Necklace With Crochet Thread ( Crochet Accessory #2 )

Hi everyone! I can finally introduce what crochet projects I made as Christmas presents. I'm going introduce an necklace that I made for my mother-in-law. 

 

I used three kinds of crochet thread for the necklace. I posted my evaluation of these crochet threads here.

My mother-in-law likes nature. I love the nature too, so we often talk about flowers, birds and butterflies. 

I didn't want to attach the threads to connect the butterfly, flower and chain together, because that doesn't make firm connection.  I made the flower first, and connected the butterfly to the flower with slip stitch while working on the top of left wing. This way is better, but I needed to plan the structure before I started making the necklace I also connected the chain to the flower with the yellow clear bead in the center of the flower.

Crochet thread is good for use with beads in crochet projects. Most beads don't have holes that are large enough for the yarn. When you want to use beads in your project, which use thick yarn, you can put beads through on crochet thread, and crochet with your yarn and the thread together.  This way you can place even tiny beads whenever you want in your project.  This can also give your project additional color.

Stitches that I used for the necklace.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet.

Crochet threads that I used for the necklace.

• OMEGA  Nylon Thread : Yellow 
• Egyptian Crochet Thread : Light Gree 
• Red Heart Knit-Cro-Sheen : White
  

Three Ways Scarf

I got two interesting skeins of yarn lately.  I bought one at a shop for 1 dollar.

This yarn doesn't unravel, so I thought it would be good for making small things like accessories. The yarn also has texture like suede, and it's elastic.

I got the other yarn from my mother when I visited Japan last fall.  She is a great knitter, but she prefers sewing to knitting now.

This yarn is very fluffy, and suggests a USA size P/10mm hook. I didn't have that size, so I bought the hook to work with it. This yarn doesn't unravel as well.

I initially wanted to make a hand bag with these, but I realized that I didn't have enough of the fluffy yarn to make the hand bag I wanted. I also noticed that the fluffy yarn can show it's feature on chain stitches effectively, so I made this three way scarf!

 

I made long white trim with crochet thread, and put a chain made from the fluffy yarn on it.  Finally, I added another chain made with chain stitches and picots in pink. The scarf can be used as necklace or belt as well.

I'm thinking of making other accessories with these yarn.

 Stitches that I used for the scarf.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet Picot.

    

Yarn that I used for the scarf.

 

• RED HEART Knit-Cro-Sheen : White
• GALA Mix Fiber : Pink
• ARAMIS Cosmetic : Light Pink

Ear Flap Hat

I wanted ear flap hat for myself since I moved to the U.S from Japan three and half years ago, but I couldn't find one that I wanted to buy. Most ear flap hats generally have a same design, which have two or three flaps on right side, left side and forehead, a pom pom on the top of the hat, and strings from the ear flaps. Basically, I didn't change the design on mine.

 

I used two granny squares as ear flaps. Making them trapezoid, I reduced some stitches on the bottom.of the pattern. Granny squares have holes that you can see through, so I lined them with white felt. 

I also used two corkscrews as the string. The corkscrew is one of my favorite patterns, because it's easy to crochet and it looks solid. I often use the pattern in my accessory projects. 

I used the same yarn as my last project, hand bag, so that the hat is made from left-over yarn as well. 

Stitches I used for the ear flap hat.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, half double crochet, double crochet, treble crochet, foundation half double crochet.

Yarn that I used for the ear flap hat.

• Lion Brand Yarn HOMESPUN : Borbon
• RED HEART Super Saver : Aran
• I Love This Wool : Sungold

Hand Bag

I've made a hand bag from left-over yarn. I always aim to use my left-over yarn. When I buy yarn, I'll choose yarn for a project, but left-over yarn in my yarn basket often gives me new ideas.

I have been trying to learn higher level stitches, and I chose Diamond Cross Trellis pattern for the front and back sides of the hand bag. This skill level is experienced, but if you practice a few times, I'm sure you can use it in your project! The tip for the pattern is to loosely stitch Font Post Triple Crochet.  I looped dark yellow yarn around the front post triple crochet.

I became interested in edging lately, because edging can make projects fancy or impressive, so I  worked edging on the cover of the hand bag. However, I wanted to add the yellow flower too, so I used a little free form around the flower.

I used white felt to line the inside of the bag. I didn't use fabric for two reasons; first I don't have a sewing machine, the other is that I like felt.

This was the first time I made a crochet hand bag. I took one week to complete, because I made the pattern at the same time. Of course I was working on other projects as usual. While I was working on this project, I got two more ideas for new hand bags, so I started working on one already! I look forward to introducing those projects soon.

Stitches I used for the hand bag.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet, front post triple crochet, 2 treble cluster, 3 treble cluster.

Yarn that I used for the hand bag

• Lion Brand Yarn HOMESPUN : Borbon
• RED HEART Super Saver : Aran
• I Love This Wool : Sungold

Christmas Costume for Duffy

Hi, it has been snowing here in Kentucky U.S.A. It's the sixth time this winter season. We usually don't have the snow in December, but it's good to have the snow. There is a bird called Cardinal in Kentucky. The male bird has bright red feathers, so they are really attractive in the snow!

I'm always working on some crochet projects, I'm now making Christmas presents and a hand bag, but I'm working on those projects without Christmas colored of yarn. Since I watched the Cardinal in my yard today, I wanted to make Christmas item, that's why I made this costume.

 

My Duffy is about 5 inches tall. I've made the dress, boots and hair accessory. Of course I used left over yarn for the costume. I initially wanted make a hat, but it was hard to have her wear it on her head. Her head is almost flat with large ears. Even if I make ear holes in the hat it will cover her eyes, so I decided to make the hair accessory instead.

I tried to take a picture of Duffy with the snow outside, but it didn't work. That's why I put her in front of the window.

Stitches that I used for the costume.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, foundation half double crochet, half double crochet, double crochet.

Yarn I used for the costume.

I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : Red and White.

Yarn Evaluation 12/2010

Are you working on crochet Christmas presents? I am done with some, but I'm still working on one more. I'm sorry that I can't introduce my crochet Christmas present projects to you before Christmas. I will surely post those projects after Christmas. Coming soon!

I used some new yarn in my projects, so I'm going to tell you my evaluation of those yarn.

I Love This Yarn Sport Weight

Colors that I used :  Green, Red, Black, Ivory

Evaluation :★★★★

I used this yarn for Christmas Items. 

The yarn has soft texture and reasonable thickness, so I worked on a waffle pattern with it. The waffle pattern was finished successfully. However, I think that the yarn is not suitable to small projects, because the yarn can't show a detailed pattern. The price is low, so it's good to use it when you need a lot of yarn for projects.

OMEGA  Sinfonia


Color that I used :  Blanco

Evaluation :★★★

This yarn is made from cotton. It looks like spring and summer yarn. I made snowflakes with the yarn. The yarn string doesn't tend to separate, so it's good for detailed pattern. However, the yarn suggests a hook (USA size E/4), so even if you make small project with it, it will be lager than you expect.

 

CARON Simply Soft

Colors that I used :  Soft Yellow, Country Blue

Evaluation :★★

This yarn has a smooth and soft texture, and it's a little slippery. This yarn may not cause you to feel itchy. String often tends to separate, and had bumps on the yarn, so the bumps showed up on surface of project. I needed to buy those colors of the yarn for my project. I couldn't find a better color in other yarn brands, that's why I bought the yarn. I guess the yarn is suitable for blankets, but I might not use the yarn for my project any more.

Red Heart Knit-Cro-Sheen


Color that I used : White

Evaluation :★★★★

This crochet thread made from cotton. I made snowflakes and some different crochet motifs with the yarn. It's really good to work on small project and detailed pattern like lacework. This was the first time I used crochet thread, but I didn't have any problems.

OMEGA  Nylon Thread


Color that I used :  Yellow

Evaluation :★★★

It was hard to work on a crochet motif, which is one part of a necklace, with the thread.  This thread is very slippery. The yarn also tends to twist, but the yarn doesn't make project twist. I like the color, because it has gently shifting shades of the same color. I was afraid of using iron on the project to make it flat, because the yarn is not supposed to be ironed, so I covered the project with a cloth napkin when I used the iron. That way worked well.

Egyptian Crochet Thread


Color that I used :  Light Green

Evaluation :★★★

This thread is very very thin! I had a hard time to using it, but the thread makes the project feathery. I made a necklace chain with the thread. I'll keep using it for making accessories.

Have a wonderful time with crochet!!

Snow Flake

I made crochet snowflakes as Christmas decoration, and hung them from curtain rail in the living room. 

I got this pattern form Patons free pattern site, here. 

I used cotton yarn, which suggested a crochet hook (USA size 4/E) for the snowflakes, but it made them larger than I expected. I tried crochet thread with a thread hook (USA size 7) next time, and it made just right. I hung smaller sized snowflakes from Christmas lights on the kitchen cabinet. 

I used crochet thread for the first time, so I tried to make some different crochet motifs with the thread.

 I made a crochet neck lace too! It's really easy necklace, but it's cute for winter.

I just used purple leather for the necklace and a yarn flower with eight beads.

While using the crochet thread, I came up with some new ideas, so I look forward to introducing my new projects to you soon. I also want to use different colors of crochet thread.

Yarn and thread that I used for these crochet motifs.

• Red Heart Knit-Cro-Sheen : White
• OMEGA Sinfonia : Blanco

Winter Wreath

I got two wooden wreaths from my mother-in-law this year, and I made a crochet fall wreath with crochet pumpkin, butternut squash, leaves, two kinds of flowers and acorns. I really enjoyed making the wreath, and hung it from the living room wall during fall.

I've made winter wreath too! The winter wreath is simple compared to the fall wreath, but it looks gorgeous.☆

I made three crochet Poinsettias, and attached to the other wreath. I had planned to attach some snowflakes on it, but I realized that if I'd like to show the gorgeous Poinsettias, I should not attach anything else. I just used dried seeds pods around the Poinsettias. I like to use things from nature, because those are free and it looks warm. 

I'm going to tell you how I made Poinsettia. I made four green leaves, eight red leaves and three buds for each flower. I wanted the Poinsettia to look more real, so I wanted to change leave's size slightly. I actually made four different sizes of patterns for the leaves, but  there are two sizes of green leaf and four sizes of red leaf.  I also used different hook sizes to change the sizes of the leaves. 

After I made all sizes of leafs, I sewed four leaves together with slip stitch, so three groups of leafs made up each flower. I put all groups of leaf in center like flower, and turned it over, and then sewed roughly not to move leaves and to keep the leaves from rolling up. I tied three buds together with ten inches of yarn, and put it through the center of the flower, and then tied the yarn to the wreath.

I'll hang the winter wreath from the living room wall until February.

Stitches that I used for the Poinsettia.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, shingle crochet, half double crochet, double crochet, treble crochet.

Yarn that I used for the Poinsettia.

I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : Red and Green

Patons Grace : Lemon Lime

Christmas table setting

Hi Everyone! Are you getting ready for Christmas? I am. I always need to think about what seasonal projects I want to make a month early to present my crochet ideas on this blog. Since I'm done with a crochet Christmas table setting, I'm going to introduce. 

 

Napkin Holder

It was hard to make holly leaf shapes. I made some chains and worked on both sides. That way the crochet project won't roll up. The napkin holder is composed of two leaves, three berries and a belt.

Stitches that I used for the napkin holder.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single stitch.

Candle Holder Cover

We can see numerous fancy candles at shops. I actually bought the red candle on the table this year since it was 50% off. However I would rather like to use what I already have with my ideas than buying new things every year. I came up with decorating a glass candle holder with crochet! I made three square granny, and connected them with chain stitches. I also made the snow flake and put it under the candle holder.

Stitches that I used for the candle holder cover and the snow flake.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet, picot.

Center Piece

I tried a waffle patter for the first time, and learned that waffle pattern takes a lot of yarn. The center piece (9" x 32") took two balls of yarn. However waffle pattern looks very nice! I worked on both sides with chain and picot stitches. That looks snow flakes, doesn't it?

Stitches that I used for the center piece.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet, picot.

Snowman

These snowmen on the each place mat have a function. You see letters on their hats. Those letters tell guests where to sit, because each letter indicates the guest's first initial. Guests may take their snowman home after the meal. This is may idea.  I want my guests to enjoy my meal and entertainment.

I used orange beads for his nose, and used cosmetic cheek powder for his cheeks.  I usually use hook, which yarn suggests, but I used smaller hook for the hat. Changing hook size is one of way for adjusting size.

Stitches that I used for the snowman.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, foundation single crochet.

Yarn that I used for these projects.

I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : White, Red and Black

Omega Sinfonia : Blanco

I'll introduce other my crochet Christmas projects soon!!

Crochet Accessories #1

I visited Japan with my husband this fall. One of my reasons that I want to visit Japan is to buy handcraft materials. There are a lot of specific handcraft shops in Japan. I also look forward to seeing my mother's sewing projects. She lives in Japan, and she is great at sewing. I always get new ideas from her projects.

On the trip, I bought Chinese beads, a wooden stick for ornamental hairpin and metal parts for barrettes. I'm attempting to make crochet projects with other materials recently. I'm going to introduce my crochet accessories made with these materials.

 

For the first, I'm going to talk about a yarn. I used only one yarn for these accessories. I have introduced the yarn when I presented how to consume left-over yarn. 

The yarn has gently sifting colors, so I actually see white, pink, dark purple, light brown and dark brown on it. I recommend the yarn to you when you make a few small things. If you buy all colors of yarn, you will have many left-over yarns. Before I make these accessories, I divided each color reasonably, so you can see a few parts mixing colors on them.

Ornamental Hairpin

The accessory is composed of the wood stick, the Chinese beads, three crochet flowers and two crochet corkscrews. I made a flower ball with the three flowers, and stuck it near by the top of the wood stick, and then hang the two corkscrews from the center of the flower ball. I used the Chinese beads at the top of wood stick and the bottom of the two corkscrews. I also added tiny pink beads on each petal of the flowers.

Stitches that I used for the ornamental hairpin.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet.

Necklace

I used the crochet flower and the crochet corkscrews on the necklace as well. The flower is movable on the chain part of the necklace. The flower is actually holding ring shape. I used two clear beads at the bottom of the corkscrews as weight.

Stitches that I used for the necklace.

Chain stitch, slip stitch, single crochet, double crochet.

Barrette

I surrounded the barrette with working chain stitches to make foundation, and work five chains, slip stitch in next stitch repeatedly to make frill on the foundation. I used six tiny pink beads, a clear purple bead, and purple leather for each barrette.

Stitches that I used for the barrette.

Chain stitch, slip stitch.

If you have any questions about these accessories, please don't hesitate to ask me. I'm happy to answer you!

Have wonderful time with crochet. ☆

Costume for Duffy

Do you know who Duffy is? Duffy is a stuffed bear character from Disney. Duffy is sold at Walt Disney World's Epcot Center and Disneyland's Disney California Adventure along with an army of merchandise in the U.S. In Japan, it is sold at Tokyo Disney Sea. When my husband and I visited Japan this fall, my niece gave me a small Duffy. Japanese girls like to show off their Duffy with costumes, which they made by themselves or they bought at shops. Duffy's costumes are sold at Aunt Peg's Village store in Tokyo Disney Sea in Japan, but those are for only the large sized Duffy, so I made a fall costume for my small Duffy with yarn! Of course I used left-over yarn for the costume.

 

This Duffy is about five inches tall, so making the costume was not easy.  The costume is removable. I will enjoy making other seasonal costumes.

Yarn Evaluation 10/2010

I thought that reporting my yarn evaluation in this blog is helpful for everyone. I would like you to use my yarn evaluation when you choose yarn for your crochet projects! I sometimes have a hard time to choose one yarn from numerous selections for my crochet project. I wish I can test all of yarns before buying. :) 

Red Heart Eco-Cotton Blend

Colors that I used :  Vanilla, Currant

Evaluation :★★★

I like cotton yarn, because I don't need to be concerned about the seasons. I made coasters and curtain race with the yarn.

When I was crocheted with the yarn, I noticed that yarn tended to separate, so hook sometimes caught a few strings of yarn. I want to make a bag with the yarn for my crochet tools sometime.

 Lion Brand Yarn Company Homespun

Colors that I used :  Wild Fire, Bourbon

Evaluation :★★★★

I love this yarn! I made boleros with the yarn. I also used it on hair accessory as additional design and on the hood vest as edging. I really want to give the yarn 5 stars as my yarn evaluation, but it was difficult to count stitches.  Anyway, texture was great!

 Red Heart Super Saver

Color that I used :  Aran

Evaluation :★★★

I made hood vests with the yarn. When I touched the yarn at a shop made a crackling noise. I really suffered from deciding to buy the yarn, but the yarn was cheaper than other brands, so I bought it, because I needed six rolls to make the vests for my husband and me. I noticed that the yarn is good to hold shape afterward. 

 I Love This Wool 
Colors that I used :  Burnt Pumpkin, Pale Gray, Sungold

Evaluation :★★★★★

This yarn's name is correct! I love this yarn. :) The texture is great! Since the yarn is nice and elastic, I could crochet smoothly. I made pumpkin hats, ornaments for crochet wreath and door stopper with the yarn. I really recommend this yarn! 

 Baby Bee Sweet Delight Prints

Color that I used : Pink Camo

Evaluation :★★★★

I made crochet socks and crochet room shoes with the yarn. It has good thickness for socks and room shoes. I liked the color, because it makes crochet projects cute.

Yarn Bee Snow Flake Wool Blend

Color that I used : Limelight

Evaluation :★

I made crochet room socks with the yarn, but I noticed that the yarn makes crochet projects twist. :( I like all colors of this yarn series, but I can't recommend this one. I guess that the yarn causes roll up and twist problems on your project. 

I'll report my yarn evaluation regularly.  
Have a wonderful time with crochet

Room Shoes #1

Room Shoes are one of my favorite crochet projects! When I was working on crochet socks, I figured out how to make room shoes from sock pattern. I used the way on this room shoes again.

The room shoes are for me. I actually made another one for me a few months ago, but I didn't want to wear it, because it was so cute and too fancy to wear. That's why I made the room shoes. This time, I attempted to make it simple and cute. Do you like this design? 

I don't like it when shoes flap while I'm walking, so I needed to think of a design which doesn't flap. That's why I made two straps on the room shoe. However, I noticed that my crochet room shoe pattern doesn't flap. Look at this picture. →

The heel of the room shoe is covering my heel well!

There is one more thing that I don't like about room shoes; they wear out too quickly. I solved the problem with sewing felt on bottom of the room shoe. ↓

You can use anything you like for the pads such us leather, denim or thicker fabric. These fabric also get damage over time, but you just need to change the fabric instead of making other room shoe.

Stitches that I used for the room shoes:

• Single crochet
• Half double crochet
• Slip stitch

Yarn that I used for the room shoes:

• Yarn Bee Snow Flake Wool Blend : Color Limelight (Shoe)
• I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : Color Ivory (Edge of shoe and button)
• Patons Grace : Color Snow (as string of sewing felt)

How to Consume Left-over Yarn

Which doughnut would you like? Don't these hair accessories look like doughnuts? These accessories are called "chouchou" in French. I'm not sure what the accessories are called in the U.S. Could someone tell me please? 

I'm going to present one of my ways to consume left-over yarn today. I usually work on my crochet projects six hours everyday, so I often have left-over yarn. However, I never through them away! I used one new yarn and four left-over yarn for the accessories. I used the new yarn for the basics, and added individual designs with the left-over yarn. 

                                                       
This yarn is what I used for the base of the accessories. It's Patons Lace. 
It was great to make a lot of same stuff, which have individual designs, because the yarn has beautiful range of gently shifting colors. You can see various colors on the accessories. Some of them look dark, also some of them look light.              

I made the accessories for my family and friends as presents. The accessories are made with left-over yarn, but it's nice to give women as present. Don't you thinks so? The accessory can also be used as a bracelet.  

Yarn that I used for the accessories as left-over :

• I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : Ivory
• Lion Brand Yarn Homespun : Bourbon and Wild Fire
• Patons Kroy Socks FX : Copper                                       

Ear Flap Ghost Hat

I love making Halloween costumes. I'm going to introduce the ear flap ghost hat made with my original pattern today! I made for my husband's costume, so it's adult man size. I came up with this pattern when I had been working on the witch hat that I introduced last time. The witch hat pattern says to work in a spiral pattern. I used this way on the ghost hat too. This time I increased stitches on the front half of each row and decreased stitches on the back half of each row.  I did this for a few rows, then switched.  For the next few rows I decreased the number of stitches on the front half of the row, and increased the number of stitches on the back half of the row.  This made the rows irregular creating a wavy shape.  It was difficult to figure out how many stitches I needed to increase and decrease in each row. I don't remember how many times I undid the hat to complete the pattern.

After I finished making the hat, my husband wanted me to add ear flaps to it, so I added like this.

Hardest part for me was to decide the look of the ghost's face. I'm not good at drawing at all, so I asked my husband which look he likes, happy, scary, etc, but he said "Surprise me". I searched numerous looks of ghost on the internet, and picked this look. I'm glad to hear that he likes the look.

Stitches that I used for the hat : 

• single crochet, double crochet and slip stitch.

Yarn that I used for the hat :

• I Love This Yarn Sport Weight : Black (Face)
  
• Red Heart Super Saver : Aran (Hat)