From My Loving Home

I saw this cute scarf on a blog and realized I had the same yarn sitting at home with no purpose as of yet.  New to crocheting, I thought it would be a nice project to work on while watching tv since I didn't have to concentrate too hard. The free pattern (Estelle button cowl)  was not only simple but the finished product turned out as promised notwithstanding my novice skill level.  I used one skein of Red Heart Boutique yarn for this the project.  I bought a set of metallic buttons at Michael's to finish it off.   I like the versatility the buttons add.  You can either wear it as a simple double-wrap cowl by fastening it end to end or you can fasten the buttons anywhere along the scarf for a variety of different looks.  From my loving home, Monika

Having a little boy, I always wanted to knit a newsboy hat for him as they are so wonderfully adorable.  When searching for free patterns, I only ever seemed to come across crochet patterns so didn't actually attempt making one until taking up crocheting this year.  After making the newsboy hat, I decided to also make a lady's hat from the same yarn (Red Heart Super Saver - Aran Fleck).  I found a very cute pattern on Pinterest (link to website below). Once the hat was done and ready for finishing, I decided to have an angled brim instead of the straight folded back brim and it ended up looking a bit flapper which I think is also cute. The pattern can be found http://www.crochetaddictuk.com  and I would consider it a beginner level pattern.  There are numerous other free hat patterns to be found on the same site.  The child-size newsboy hat pattern I used can be found at http://vallieskids.blogspot.ca (linked directly to pattern pag...

I recently decided to give crocheting a try after being an avid knitter my whole life.  It turned out to be surprisingly simple to figure out thanks to my knitting background and Google.  I found a lovely bag pattern (free!) on Pinterest and used some bargain yarn to give it a try.  The whole project took me about a week to complete and used two balls of yarn.  The original pattern I was following was the Rainbow Bag .  I followed the pattern as best I knew how (as it turns out I may not have been doing some of the stitches correctly at the beginning but they still looked fine!).  Obviously, I did not change colours throughout instead using a colourful yarn.  I decided learning to crochet would be enough of a challenge so I didn't need to add the hassle of changing colour every row and then sewing that all up at the end.  Here is the finished project.  My next project is a triple stitch scarf but then I think I will try ...

As the weather gets colder, it’s time to break out the wool and the woolies.  I took a basic sock pattern and added a diagonal pattern for a bit of fun.  The yarn used is Lion Brand Sock-Ease and it is usually easy to find (I get mine from Michael’s).   One ball makes the pair, which is great so you don’t have to worry about matching up dye lots. The pattern is set out below and I would rate it as an intermediate pattern but an easy sock pattern.  In other words, I don’t consider sock knitting a beginner project but, if you’ve successfully knitted a pair of socks before, this pair should cause you no problems. These are knitted in the round on 5 double-pointed needles (size US 2) and for the gauge: 8 stitches equals 1″.  The pattern is for a woman’s regular calf and ladies’ size 8 foot. Sock Cast on 64 sts (16 on 4 needles). Row 1:  Join to begin round and work in K1, P1 across all four needles. Row 2-6:  Continue in K1, P1. Diagona...