Showing posts with label yarn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yarn. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

A Knitting Project: Swirl Hat with Flikka Yarn

This post contains affiliate links. 

A quick knit.  That's what I needed.  I wasn't feeling particularly well a little bit ago and I wanted a project to keep my fingers busy, but I wasn't in the mood to work on any of my current WIPS.  The Swirl Hat was the perfect solution.


I've used this pattern before, and I really liked it for its simplicity and uniqueness.  The first time that I knitted the Swirl Hat I was very much a beginning knitter.  (You can check out that knitting project here!)


The yarn is Lion Brand's Flikka in Wading Pool.  It was a clearance find at Hobby Lobby recently.  It's a thinner yarn, a 3, I believe.  The skien has just under 200 yards, so it's perfect for small projects like a hat. The yarn is soft and I think it will be lovely to wear.  My one complaint is that my fingertips did turn a little blue, so the dye isn't quite set. It is supposed to be machine washable, but I haven't tried that yet.  I will be sure to wash with a color catcher






Saturday, November 24, 2018

Best Little Yarn Shops (Gift Guide) 2018

This post contains affiliate links.  If you click on a link and then make a purchase I will receive a small commission. 



A few years ago I put together a Best Little Yarn Shop Gift Guide, and while much of it is still accurate, I thought I'd put together an updated version for 2018!

These are some of the Best Little Yarn Shops that I've stumbled upon.  I've personally used yarns from these shops and absolutely loved them.  You can click through to my free patterns and reviews to read more about the yarns and the shops.

Be sure to check out the shops' social media, because most of these places will be having sales for Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, and just general pre-Christmas shopping!



Expression Fiber Arts
Shop 
Check the specials page for the latest deals and coupons.




Kimaries Knit Knacks
Website
Etsy
Facebook
Instagram
My pattern: Sterling Unicorn






Quaere
Etsy
My Projects: Snowman Scarf



String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn
Facebook
My Projects: In Threes SweaterCherry Twist Hat




The Violet Valentine
Shop 





Purple Lamb
Etsy 

I have not finished any projects with the yarn that I purchased from Purple Lamb, but the yarn itself is absolutely lovely.  Carla, the shop owner, is a wonderful person and I found our correspondence delightful.  (Here's my box of goodies on Instagram.)




Is this an exhaustive list of the Best Little Yarn Shops out there? Of course not!  These are simply the best ones that I personally can recommend based upon my experiences with them. 



What about you?  What would you consider the Best Little Yarn Shop?  Whose yarn or customer service stood out to you this year?  Let me know in the comments! 

Friday, May 11, 2018

The Watermelon Hat: A Free Knitting Pattern

I received the yarn for this project in exchange for my honest opinion. This post contains affiliate links. This means that if you purchase something after clicking on one of these links I might receive a small commission. This is no way affects the price that you pay.

A girl is wearing a pink, green, and white hat with black beads.

This gorgeous yarn is from Love Knitting.  This fun Watermelon Hat was knitted using MillaMia Naturally Soft Aran in Shocking Pink and Emerald Green.  This yarn is so soft and squishy!  It's such a fun cozy yarn.  Each ball has 87 delicious yards of yarn.  It can be machine washed, but don't put it in the dryer, it needs to dry flat!  There is lovely stitch definition and it was a pleasure to knit.  I'd absolutely love to work with it again!

(I must say though, that while I loved knitting the yarn, trying to get a good picture of the pink, was, well, shockingly difficult!)

This is a close up shot of the hat brim.  The watermelon theme is carried out with the use of color.

The Free Knitting Pattern

Begin knitting this hat with size 5.5 circular knitting needles.  I knit the entire hat on circular needles using the magic loop technique.

With GREEN yarn. 
Cast on 80.  Join, being super careful not to twist.  I used the crochet hook cast on method, I really like the look and I'm super comfortable with a crochet hook!

Work a rib knit for about one inch, I had six rows.  I used a K1P1 rib knit, but you could use a K2P2 rib knit, whichever you prefer.

With white yarn.

Knit around.

Switch to size 6 circular knitting needles.

With Pink Yarn

Before knitting with the pink yarn you must add your "seeds".  When choosing your beads be sure that they will easily string onto the yarn.  I used some black beads, very much like these beads, from my craft hoard.  Use my yarn threading tip to make it easier and then thread on about 100 beads.  You will need to continually push the beads down towards the ball of yarn while you're knitting.  If you find this tiresome you could sew the beads on individually after you've finished knitting.  I randomly allowed the beads to be worked in.

Knit around.  Continue until hat reaches about four and a half inches high.  For reference, I knit 21 rows in pink before my first decrease row.

Decreases:
Round 1: *Knit 20 Stitches. Place stitch marker* four times around to end of round.
Round 2: *K1, K2tog, Knit to two stitches before next marker, SSK* four times around.
Repeat round 2 until there are 16 stitches remaining.
Round 3: K2tog around.
Break yarn and weave it through the remaining 8 stitches.  Finish off!


 

A note about the sizing of this hat.  My lovely daughter modeled this hat for me.  As you can see it fits her comfortably with just a slight amount of slouch.  The hat also fits me quite well.  Her head circumference is about 21 inches and mine is 22 inches.  

A smiling girl is wearing a knitted watermelon hat.


Thursday, April 26, 2018

Little Green Adventurer Backpack

I received the yarn for this project in exchange for my honest review.  This post contains affiliate links.  This means that if you purchase something after clicking on one of these links I might receive a small commission.  This is no way affects the price that you pay.

A boy in a red shirt is wearing a crocheted green backpack.  There is wooden fence in the background.  The boy's face is hidden.

When Love Knitting asked if I would be interested in reviewing some of their yarn, of course my answer was yes!  Who's surprised?  No one?

Yarn My middle child's favorite color is green, and it was his turn for some Mama made goodies, so this Main Street Yarns Shiny + Soft in Grass Green was perfect.  It is a 100% acrylic yarn.  It can be machine washed and dried, a huge plus for a kid's item!  The skein had 356 yards, which was a perfect amount for this project, I had only the tiniest amount of leftover yarn.  The yarn worked up quite easily with nice stitch definition.  It is nice and soft right out of the box.  There's a slight sheen, or shininess, to it.

Hook I used my Clover Amour size 7 crochet hook.  This is a little smaller than the recommended hook size of H/5 mm.  I wanted the body of the bag to be rather densely crocheted, to keep all of my little adventurer's finds from escaping.

The boy is wearing a red shirt.  He is stretching his arms out, along with the green straps of his backpack.


(Free!) Crochet Pattern

Bag

Chain 26.

Round 1 IN TOP LOOP ONLY Single crochet (sc) in second chain (ch) from hook, and in each of the next 23 chains (24 sc). Work 3 sc in the last chain.  Work back down foundation chain in opposite loop. (23) 3 sc in  last chain. slip stitch to join.

Round 2 Chain 1. (Working in both loops) 2 sc in the first stitch. Sc in next 23sc. 2 sc in each of the next 3 sc. Sc in next 23 stitches.  2sc in each of the next 2 sc. slip stitch to join.

Round 3 2 sc in first sc from previous round.  Sc in next 25. 2sc in next stitch. 1 sc. 2sc in next stitch (at the "end" of the oval). 1 sc in next stitch. 2 sc in next stitch. 25 sc. 2 sc in same stitch. 1 sc. 2 sc in next stitch ("end" of oval). 1 sc. slip stitch to join.

Round 4 2sc in 1st stitch. 28 sc.  2sc in next stitch. 1 sc. 2sc in next stitch (at the "end"). 1 sc in next stitch. 2 sc in next stitch. 28 sc2 sc in same stitch. 1 sc. 2 sc in next stitch ("end"). 1 sc. slip stitch to join.

Round 5 Chain 1. IN TOP LOOP ONLY sc around. Slip stitch to join.

Rounds 6-44 Chain 1. Sc around. Slip stitch to join. (72 stitches total)

Round 44 Chain 1. Sc 4. 32 in back loop (inside the bag) only.  36 sc. slip stitch to join. (Note: the 32 back loop only should be centered along the back of the bag.  Adjust accordingly if needed.  This is where the flap will be added later.)

Round 45 Chain 2. sc around. (72)

Round 46 Slip stitch around.

Flap

Row 1 Single crochet in each of the front loops left from round 44.  (32)

Rows 2-27 Chain 1. Turn. Sc across. (32)

Strap 

Make two.

Chain 7.

Row 1 Sc in second chain from hook.  Sc across. (6)

Rows 2-72 Chain 1. Turn. Sc across. (6)

Button Flaps

Chain 5.

Row 1 Sc in second chain from hook.  Sc across. (4 sc stitches)

Rows 2-12 Chain 1. Turn. Sc across. (4)

Row 13 Chain 1. Turn. 1 sc 2 ch 1 sc. (This forms the button hole.)

Rows 14 & 15  Chain 1. Turn. Sc across. (4)

Finishing Sc evenly around, with three stitches in each corner.

Assembly

Whip stitch the straps to the bag, lining up the edge of the strap with the edge of the flap.

SC around all edges other than the opening.

Whip stitch the button flaps onto the bag flap.

Sew buttons.

Enjoy!





This is a side view of the little boy in a red shirt with a green backpack.  He is ready for an adventure!

Monday, February 6, 2017

February Granny-Spiration Challenge


Welcome to the February edition of the Granny-Spiration Challenge!  Projects will be shared from your hosts the first Saturday of each month. Post times will vary -- you can see my Be My Valentine: A Free Crochet Pattern right here!

Join the Challenge!

You will be able to link up from 9am EST on the first Saturday of the month, through 11:59pm EST on the second Thursday from the start date - specific dates are on top of the Rafflecopter form - giving you almost two weeks to link up and enter the giveaway! (Feel free to read more about it at EyeLoveKnots.)

Please share projects that are family friendly and GRANNY INSPIRED!  It could be a "regular" granny square, a solid granny square, a granny stitch pattern, a pattern review, or an inspiration piece -- we're pretty open minded.

*Please make sure to link to your post, and not your homepage.
*If you don't have a blog, you can still share with us by creating a Free Flickr Account - powered by Yahoo. Add your projects there, and then come back here with the link for the project.
*Link ups cannot be to Etsy listings or Ravelry pages where patterns are sold. You can link to blog posts, Flickr or Facebook pages, Pins, etc that are directed towards it, but can't directly link to it.
*Features may be chosen at the discretion of each host. By linking up, you give us permission to feature your item.

An InLinkz Link-up


Enter the Giveaway!

This month's Granny-Spiration giveaway will be for two skeins of Yarn Bee's Andres Alpaca Yarn in the Foxglove colorway.  Sponsored by EyeLoveKnots.


Void where prohibited.  Sponsor is responsible for prize shipment and fulfilment.  Must be 18+.  US only. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be My Valentine: Crochet Heart (Free Pattern)

This post contains affiliate links.

Here's a unique Valentine to give this February!  Of course, it makes a sweet little gift anytime of the year!

Materials
I used Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn and an H hook. (I find it rather amusing that all but one of these colors has "hot" in the name.)

Pattern Notes
This is not a tested pattern.  It also presupposes a basic knowledge of crochet.  I'd rate this as an advanced beginner pattern.

Free Crochet Heart Pattern

Round 1 (Hot Pink)
Chain 4. Join.  Start like a basic granny square: chain 2, 2 dc, chain two, three dc. chain two, three dc.chain two, three dc. chain two, three dc. Chain two, join.

Round 2 (Beach Glass)
 3 dc, ch 2, 3dc in each corner, chain one between each corner.

Round 3 (Hot Purple)
Slip stitch to join in a corner.  10 triple crochet stitches into the chain one space.  Slip stitch in corner. 10 triple crochet stitches into the chain one space.

Round 4 (Hot Blue)
Single stitch around.
Note: Chain 2 at heart point.
Note: On purple, single crochet in each stitch but chain one between each stitch.

Round 5 (Hot Orange)
Slip stitch in back loop of the blue.
Note: Chain two at the point.

Weave in your ends and enjoy!



As always, I enjoy sharing my projects around the blogosphere.  Here are the some of the places where I link up!



Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Best Little Yarn Shops Gift Guide

This post may contain affiliate links. This is a sponsored post.


Yarn.  It's the literal string of life for many knitters and crocheters.  Those who don't knit or crochet might never be able to understand our obsession with it.  But those of us who get it are always on the lookout for the next amazing skien.  And sometimes those who love us want to contribute, but don't know how.  This Yarn Gift Guide is for both the yarn lover and those who love a yarn lover.

These are some of the Best Little Yarn Shops that I've stumbled upon.  I've personally used yarns from these shops and absolutely loved them.  I will list the shops in alphabetical order.  Please click through to my free patterns and reviews to read more about the yarns.  Each project includes detailed information about the yarn as well as my personal opinions about the yarn.

I've also tried to include any special sales or coupons that the shops are having during this holiday season, especially for Black Friday and Cyber Monday!  (I will do my best to remove expired coupons and sales as well as update with any other pre-Christmas sales!)



Expression Fiber Arts
Shop 
Check the specials page for the latest deals and coupons.




Kimaries Knit Knacks
Website
Etsy
Facebook
Instagram
My pattern: Sterling Unicorn






Never Enough Thyme Yarn
Etsy
Facebook
My Project: Swirl Hat

Coupon or Deal: If you have the Winter Issue issue of Addicted to Sock Knitting, check out page 162 for a 20% off coupon.






Quaere
Etsy
My Projects: Snowman Scarf



Sunrise Fiber Co.
Etsy
Facebook
My Project: Neon Flamingo Scarf




String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn
Facebook
My Projects: In Threes Sweater, Cherry Twist Hat




The Violet Valentine
Shop 







Is this an exhaustive list of the Best Little Yarn Shops out there? Of course not!  These are simply the best ones that I personally can recommend based upon my experiences with them.  I have recieved yarn from each of the above shops at one time or another, but I always strive for honesty in all things so my reviews include my honest opinions.



Shops of Notable Mention

Please, keep in mind that I've not personally worked with the yarn from these shops of notable mention.  Some of these shops have sponsored giveaways in the past and the owners were a pleasure to work with; or I trust people who have worked with these shops' yarn and they have loved the yarn.  Great business transactions inspire confidence as do recommendations from friends.

Chaleur Hand Dyed Yarn
Etsy 

Luna Grey Fiber Arts
Shop 

Nooch Fiber

Purple Lamb
Etsy 


The Silk Drop
Shop 

Yarn Baby
Shop 





Wednesday, November 23, 2016

The Sterling Unicorn Hat

This post contains affiliate links.  This post is sponsored.  Everything here is my own honest opinion.


This is my favorite hat right now.  I had such fun crocheting it!  This hat uses two of my favorite yarns, and I think both are stunning together.  The name of the hat is a simple mash up of the yarn colorways, but I think that it totally works!


Yarns Used
Unicorn Fields DK by Kimarie's Knit Knacks
This is 246 yards of 75% Merino & 25% Nylon hand dyed loveliness.  It even has sparkles!  Can I say that again?  My unicorn yarn has sparkles! It can be machine washed.  It is very soft and works up wonderfully.  I didn't encounter any tangles or messy bits.  Overall, it's an ideal yarn.



Marshall Island Sport in Sterling by String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn 
This is the same that I used on my Cherry Twist Hat and you can read all the details about the yarn there.


Hooks Used
Clover Amour H
Clover Amour I
(My Clover Amour hooks are my favorites!)



Pattern

Please Note: This is an untested pattern.  This pattern is made from the notes that I made while crocheting the hat.  If you encounter any problems or mistakes in the pattern I would greatly appreciate if you'd let me know and I'll do my best to help and/or correct the pattern.

Using H hook:

Chain 79.
Join without twisting.
Rows 1 - 6: 78 sc across, slip stitch into first stitch.

Using I hook:

Step 1: Using grey yarn: ch 4, dc in the first st (this counts as your first V stitch). *Skip 2 sts, [dc, ch 1, dc] in the next st. Repeat from * until 2 sts remain.  (This is a fairly standard starting row of V stitches). Slip stitch together.  Pull a long loop of yarn out -- enough that your work won't unravel while you work the next row.  NOTE: You will be alternating which yarn you are working with, but you will not be finishing off each row.

Step 2: Using unicorn yarn: Chain 3 in ch sp of 1st V st of previous round 2 DC. Three DC in each ch sp around.  Join with a slip stitch.  Again, pull a long loop of yarn so that this row won't unravel while you're working the next.

Step 3: Using grey yarn: Put your hook into the long loop of grey. Chain 4 and dc between first and last V of the grey round (note, this is not in the ch sp, but between the Vs). [Dc, ch 1, dc] between the earlier grey V stitches around.  Close with a slip stitch.  Pull out long loop of yarn.  (This is the row where the magic happens for this hat.  This row is how the unicorn clusters are surrounded and made to pop.  It does take a little getting used to -- you are working this new row with the row from not the last row but the row before that one. )

Step 4: Using unicorn yarn: Chain 3 in ch sp of 1st V st of previous round 2 DC. Three DC in each ch sp around.  Join with a slip stitch.  Again, pull a long loop of yarn so that this row won't unravel while you're working the next.

Work steps 3 & 4 until you reach your desired length.




Decrease part of the crown:

Using grey yarn.  *V stitch in first space.  1 dc in next space.*  Repeat around.
Using Unicorn yarn *3 dcs in each V space.* Repeat around.
Using grey yarn. Create a faux V stitch with a (dc, ch 1, dc) around, placing a dc on either side of the single dc in the spaces of the grey row below (continuing to capture the Unicorn yarn). Repeat around.
Using Unicorn yarn. *3 dcs in each faux V space.* Repeat around.
Using grey yarn. *V stitch in space between unicorn dc group (capturing the
Using Unicon *3 dcs in each V space.* Repeat around.
Using grey yarn.  *1 dc in space of each Unicorn group from below most recent row of unicorn stitches.1
Using grey yarn. DC2TG around.
If necessary, sc2tg around.

Finish off.



This was a mash up made in yarn heaven.  Both shops were wonderful to work with -- businesslike and friendly.  I highly recommend both Kimarie's Knit Knacks and String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn, as such both can be found in my Best Little Yarn Shops Gift Guide.



I will be sharing this post at some of these awesome parties!