Granny Does Yoga

Back in August, I made a granny rectangle for Granny Square Day (August 15). 

Starting granny rectangles is a bit different from starting a granny square. Probably the most common way is to start with a chain for the length of your starting round. I don't care for the flimsiness of the chain so I started with a double crochet eyelet. I've seen this technique a variety of places, but I learned it in Marty Miller's Craftsy class Mastering Crochet Foundation Stitches. It's a great class, by the way, and covers all sorts of variations of foundation stitches and things you can do with them. For the eyelet foundation, chain 3 then dc into the 3rd chain from the hook. That's one eyelet. Repeat for your desired length. How long should that be? If you know what you want for your finished dimensions, subtract the short side measurement from the long side measurement. The result is how long to make your foundation. The first round of 3 dc clusters is made into the spaces of the eyelets.  

I liked my rectangle so I decided to continue working on it and use up some more leftover bits of yarn. I wasn't sure what I was going to make with it until I hit on the idea of a bag for my yoga mat. I kept going on the rectangle until its short dimension was a bit larger than the circumference of my rolled up yoga mat. Then I seamed it into a tube. For the bottom of the bag, I made a granny circle.

I made a strap that resembles a granny rectangle using this tutorial from the FutureGirl blog.

It needed to be a bit longer so I added a few rounds of granny clusters to the top, and this was the result. All and all, not bad considering I had no plan. Plan?? Who needs a plan??

So, dig out your stash of little leftover balls of yarn. You know you have one. But don't be square. Try a granny rectangle!

Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival 2016 

 

The Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival was last weekend. It was a gorgeous fall weekend if a bit on the warm side. I spent the weekend hanging out with my crochet guild buddies at the display our CGOA chapter - Always in Stitches put together. Many thanks to Karen for these 2 photos of the display.

 

 
I loved this felted octopus mobile that was entered in the felting category of the fiber crafts competition. There was also a great felted octopus hat.

There were 2 wonderful knitted blankets. One was adorned with many little sheep and has a matching pillow. Here's a section of it.

This fabulous blanket was made with the fiber of all the breeds whose names are knitted into it. It deservedly won the Diamond award - the best of the best.

There was the cutest little jackalope among the crochet entries. It was in a glass case and hard to photograph so this doesn't do it justice. It won grand prize in the crocheted toy category.

My shawl made from Laurinda Reddig's Robin's Wings pattern didn't do too badly either.

 

Granny Square Day 2016

Hello, everyone!  Did you know that tomorrow (Aug. 15) is Granny Square Day? I didn't until I heard it mentioned on the Skein Enable podcast. I found this post on Facebook about it. The idea is to make a granny square and post a photo on Instagram to help create a virtual blanket. Sounds like fun to me! So grab a hook and some yarn, create a square for the worldwide blanket and post it on Instagram if you play in that forum. If not, make a granny square anyway! If you want to follow me on Instagram, I'm Greenhook over there too.

Speaking of granny squares, I spent several hours yesterday teaching people to crochet including making granny squares. It was the local Knit Out and Crochet - an event started by the Craft Yarn Council in 1998. I'm a member of Always In Stitches which is a chapter of the Crochet Guild of America, and we participate in the Knit Out and Crochet event every year. We teach people to crochet and help them to improve skills they already have. It's always a good time spreading the crochet love. 

Judy spent the day at the registration table checking people in.
 

Karen had a table with kids' activities. It's quiet in the photo, but it saw a lot of action with kids making pompom and pipe cleaner people.

Here I am with my new friend Gwen. She was so excited to learn how to make a classic granny.

I made this placemat incorporating African hexagon flower motifs and the 3dc granny cluster as an example of items that can be made with squares. It's also a great way to use up leftover yarn.

 Thanks for stopping by!

Fun with Thread or A Bit of Christmas Sparkle

I dug out my balls of crochet thread recently to make some snowflake ornaments. I could have gone with the traditional white, but I had a few bits of leftover red and gold sparkly fiber from other projects and some size 10 cotton crochet thread in silver and gold with a metallic strand. Time to play! Here's the result.

I started with this lovely snowflake pattern from my friend the talented designer Andee Graves. I added one little tweak - the gold picot edge. You can't see the metallic sparkle in the photo, but it's there.

Andee's pattern is lovely on it's own, but gosh, I have these pretty red and gold bits that are so Christmasy! I started leafing through my motif stitch dictionaries to see what I could find. This is a modified version of one of the patterns. I layered him on top of Andee's snowflake.

I like it! But it's not quite there yet. The center is too plain. How about a button.

I like this a lot. But...the gold of the button is a bit dull and antique looking. Not really what I'm after. And I wanted the center piece to be a bit bigger.  Let's try something else. I fiddled with all of these. None of them were quite right for one reason or another. But they are all saved and might go on my Christmas tree.

 I gave it one more try.

Now I've got the size and shape I want, but I need something in that center hole. What have I got in my bead stash?

A shiny gold filigree bead and bead cap. Now I'm happy. I could easily spend hours and hours leafing through stitch dictionaries and playing with snowflake or flower patterns and leftover bits of yarn, thread, beads and buttons. Dive into your own stash (you've got one, don't you?!) to see what you can find and where your creativity takes you. These are great for ornaments, package decorations, or fancy gift tags. Hang one around the neck of that gift bottle of wine. No wrapping necessary!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a very Merry Christmas!

Granny Square Creativity

It's been over a month since I've posted. I've obviously been slacking! Time to remedy that. In my continuing exploration of the possibilities of the granny cluster stitch and granny squares, here are some creative uses of the squares. First a qualifier. Many times you'll see all square crochet motifs called "granny squares," but I'm referring to the classic square using the granny cluster stitch.

Thanksgiving is past, but I love this turkey with granny square tail feathers that my sister Gina made for her table decorations. She said it was a great way to use up leftover yarn. The pattern is the Thanksgiving Turkey Amigurumi by Kara Gunza and is available on the Petals to Picots web site.  

  

I found quite a few jewelry patterns using granny squares. Here's one for a brooch I made. It was in the crochet mystery Knot Guilty by Betty Hechtman.

Hear are some Granny Square Earrings by Leigh Manson-Brown that are crocheted with wire. That's a technique I'm interested in trying. The gorgeous amethyst briolettes add a great pop of color.

As a tea fanatic, I love this fun tea cozy by Shari Tombs. It would brighten up anyone's tea time.

Toys are natural for granny squares and other motifs. These Granny Cats by Jen Maude made me smile. The middle one has a classic granny square belly.

Hooty the Owl lovey by Laura Tegg is a real cutie.

In anticipation of Christmas, maybe I'll make some of these Granny's Christmas Cubes by Carolyn Pfeifer.

That's it for now. I hope everyone is enjoying the run up to Christmas and the other winter holidays. Happy Hannukkah to my Jewish friends and family! I couldn't find a granny square dreidel, but this one by Marly Bird looks like it has a granny triangle in the base.

Pretty Quick Flowers

I've procrastinated in starting a blog because I couldn't think of a good first topic. Well, fie on that! Time to close my eyes and jump! This is primarily a crochet blog so here's a quick crochet project that I just worked up. My crochet guild (Always In Stitches - a chapter of the Crochet Guild of America) is setting up a display in the local library in preparation for the Knit and Crochet Out in August. The theme of this year's display is crochet for the home. My crochet projects are decidedly lacking in home decor items so I needed something quick. I found this pattern for Sunflower Coasters by Little Mee Creations and went to work. These little beauties work up quickly. Trying different color combinations was a lot of fun and actually a bit addicting.This is a great use for leftover scraps of yarn.