What to with left over yarn?

Hello Everyone!

Now that I have learned how to crochet I always seem to have a project or two going on. But I have noticed that I leftovers, a skein, or a partial skein that I am not sure what to do with. I have seen tons of ideas on Pinterest from blankets to hats. I settled on making 12×12 squares of this really soft Bernat blanket  yarn that I used to make blankets for Christmas presents. Once I am done with all the squares I will see how many I have and decide on blanket sizes and how many I can make.  I have 3 colors of yarn that I am creating squares from. I am not sure I will mix and match or I will keep the blankets all one color, I guess it will depend on how any squares I make.

 

(Please ignore my messy desk in the background. I have never been good at keeping a neat work space. But I guess that messiness breads creativity, right? )

So far I have one block completed! Whoo Hoo! I love how portable this project is. The temperature blanket I am working on is getting to big to take with me everywhere I go. I like to have a project with me at all times (you never know when you have a spare moment to work on your crochet) Once I have all the squares done and I make it into a blanket I think will donate it to a Women’s shelter, they are always in need of blankets.

Here is the pattern:

Chain 25

Single crochet 25 rows (or as many rows it takes to make a square)

That is it, I am keeping it pretty simple.

And the best part of making these squares is that I will be freeing up space in my craft room for more yarn! Yay! More Yarn!

What I am working on

Hello everyone!

I thought I would add a new segment to my blog, it is all about what I am currently working on. With all crafting going on, things take time and I usually get started on a project and get sidetracked to some new and shinier. But I want to show you what I have going on in my craft room. (well, just a few of the things going on, because let’s be honest, there are always tons of projects that have been started and not finished.)

The first item is the Crochet Temperature blanket. Here is the link to the original post about it: 2016 Temperature Blanket

If you follow me in Instagram you probably have already seen this (if you don’t follow me you can find me  @taketimetocreate) As you can see, I am still working away. It is fun to see all the new colors and a pattern is starting to emerge. But,  I am still waaaaay behind (I am still working on February) but I just keep plugging away.

A few weeks ago I learned how to do a Finnabair inspired mixed media art (You can see the Finnabair blog here: Finnabair). I took the class from Tanya with Free Heart at a retreat called Mojito Creek.  (click on the name to follow the link to their websites)

Tanya is amazing and wonderfully patient. I loved creating new things and learning new techniques. And the retreat is beautiful, and relaxing, and I would say just about perfect!

Here is one of my completed items that I made in the class:

 

Here is an item that I made using a puzzle I found at the dollar store (I just couldn’t resist), and stencils, and mica powder and all kinds of things. I still need to do some final touchups, but when it is done I will list it in my Etsy shop.

The last item I am working on is another mixed media that says “Beautiful” This on will take a while because of all the nooks and crannies, but I think it will turn out great in the end.

 

So what are you working on?

 

No affiliate links in this post. All opinions are my own.

2016 Crochet Temperature Blanket

Hello Everyone!

This week I wanted to tell you about my year long project. I am making a crochet temperature blanket! For those of you that don’t know what that is I will tell you.

I take the high temperature for my city and I crochet a row. I am using Caron Simply Soft Yarn (you can pick it up at Michaels, Joanns or online). It feels great and with no lot tracking it is easy to pick up more yarn as needed because it is impossible to judge how much I will need of each color for the year.

I created a chart that is in 10 degree increments and correlated that to a color and that is what I use for the row for that day (I did find examples online and used them as a guide line, but ultimately I used colors that work in my house). For example,  I use the Sunshine color when the temperatures are between 70-79 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

I wanted it lap blanket sized so I crocheted 120 chain stitches (I added stitch markers every 10 stitches to help with my counting and I wanted to make sure the blanket stays close to rectangle by the end) Then I am just crochet using a single crochet stitch, one row for each day. I figured that this will help my practice my single stitch and it will keep the blanket from getting too big. As it is by the time I am done with the blanket and the boarder it will be over 44,000 stitches! So far I am behind (I am still working on February) but I am working hard to catch up and I will keep you updated on my progress. (I may end up finishing the blanket in 2020….) And that is is it, I just keep going until 2016 is done.

Are you working on any year long projects? I would love to see what you are working on!

This post does not contain affiliate links.

Crochet keyboard cover for my tablet

I got a tablet a few years ago and I absolutely love it. But I discovered that it was hard for me to type on the screen, so I opted to get a Bluetooth keyboard. Much better. However, the problem with the keyboard was that it didn’t have a cover. I didn’t want it to get damaged, and I needed to practice my crochet skill (a win-win all around) so I decided to create a custom sleeve for my keyboard.

         

I don’t really have a pattern, but I will walk you through what I did and hopefully you can recreate it if you would like. Please ask questions about what I did, and if you create one as well feel free to post it, I would love to see it.

Material:

• 1 ball of yarn for the main color (I used Sugar ‘n’ Cream Crown Jewels Ombre. I loved the colors and pattern is awesome as you crochet along)
• 1 ball of yarn for the edges (I used Crafter’s Secret Lavender)
• crochet hook ( I used size H)
• Scissors
• needle to weave ends in

 

Instructions:

1. Decide what you want to make a cover for. I figured this was a perfect project for my tablet keyboard.

2. You can measure the width to get an idea of how long to make your chain row, but I didn’t. In fact I didn’t do any measuring, and this became a bit of a problem later…

 

3. Start with your chain row and single crochet until you get the length you want.

4. Then you make the next panel and single crochet along until you get it long enough to cover your object and to wrap around to create a flap. This is where I figured out that I should have measured more. I didn’t make my panels wide enough, so when I held the two together it was too small for the keyboard. That is why I have a purple boarder I did two rows of single crochet around each panel. Now that it is done I really like how it turned out. The extra purple was a happy accident.

 

4. To connect the panels- I did a row of single crochet on the outside of the panels, I started right below the flap on one side and went all around the edge to the other flap.

 

  

5. Then I made a small loop with just a row of single  crochet in the middle of the flap to make a button hole

6. Sew on a button and you are done

Please let me know if you have any questions, or if you need clarification on this project. I hope this inspires you to create a cover for some of your electronics.

 

Crochet ear buds

As you can probably tell from my super, sparkly Beats post I am not one to leave my headphones alone. Recently I got a new phone and I came with a set of ear buds. I don’t usually use ear buds, but on occasion I do. But I couldn’t just leave them plain, no way! Crocheting is my new yarn hobby and it is super simple to crochet around any cord. I hope this tutorial makes sense, I just started crocheting and I haven’t created any tutorials for crochet. (and I am finding it is harder than it looks )

   Here is my fantastic son modeling the before picture of the ear buds. He is a good sport.

 

Here are the materials you need:

• Yarn (I am loving the bon-bons by Lion Brand. They are the perfect size and the colors are great!)
• crochet hook
• scissors
• needle to weave the ends in with.
• Ear buds

Here are my ear buds looking all plain and boring. But not for long!

Instructions:

• Start at the top of one the ears.  Tie a knot with your crochet hook in it. Then take your hook under the cord, yarn over, bring the yarn and hook around to the top, yarn over, and bring through the 2 loops.
• It is essentially a single crochet with a cord in the middle

     

• Continue down one side of your ear buds until you get to the junction where they combine into one cord. Make a big loop and cut the yarn. Don’t weave in the end yet and keep the loop. After you do the other side you will take this loop and combine it with the other side and continue down the cord.

           

• Crochet the down the other side of the ear bud. Join the two loops in the middle and continue down the cord until you get to the end.

 

• I found that I had to stop occasionally and squish it all together so it looked better, otherwise it was too spread out and you could see the cord through the stitches. 

     

• Once you get to the ends tie a knot and weave in the ends. Then wear your new stylish ear buds with pride!

A side bonus is they are less prone to tangling, which is always a good thing!

Here is my wonderful son modeling the finished ear buds. Please excuse his wild, unbrushed hair. 

 

Please let me know if you have any questions, I would love to help you create your own awesome ear buds.  And I would love to see your finished ear buds!

Ladies Hankie clutch for my large crochet hooks

I have just started crocheting. It is becoming one of my favorite hobbies, and even though I just started crocheting only a few month ago I seemed to have collected a lot of hooks. I have a crochet hook zippered pouch by Boye, but there are no slots for the larger hooks. So I figured I would make a clutch type bag to hold my hooks. As I was wondering around the flea markets I found these old hankies that had crocheted edges and I knew I found my fabric for my clutch! It was very simple to make. Here is what you need: 2 hankies, similar in size Fusible interfacing Needle and thread or sewing machine Velcro or button or snap Directions: Iron both hankies really well. They need to be flat. Sew Velcro to the inside hankie. Fuse Fusible interfacing to the wrong side of the inside hankie according to the directions on your interfacing package. I don’t think it really matters what interfacing you use, you just need something to help the hankies keep their shape. (I am sure there are people out there who have preferences and I would love to know more about it if anyone would like to share. I am new to sewing as well as crocheting) Once the interfacing is on sew the hankies together along the border. My hankies did not fit perfectly, but I made due and did the best I could. I have the larger hankie on the outside and just stitched around. Fold the hankies in thirds and see how it all lines up. Sew the Velcro to the outside of the clutch lining up with the other

Velcro.

Sew the 2 sides of the clutch to make the pocket. And now you are done! Congrats on creating your new clutch for crochet hooks or whatever else you want to put in it. I would love for you to share your versions of the hankie clutch.