HULA BLANKET 2

 A second blanket is now complete.

I like making squares as they are a small project that is easy to do anywhere at any time. Sometimes I make square between projects so I have a stash of squares ready to be made into blankets.

This time I did not have a stash of squares so I made them especially for the blanket. The pattern is simple and a one row repeat. 

The pattern is called Brain Fog.   BRAIN FOG   I used up some  Aran weight yarn for this project and it has made a nice soft blanket. 

I wanted a nice solid but attractive way to join the squares. This is an easy way to join squares that makes a solid join and looks nice. Flat Chain Join

This is the result

       

A nice cosy blanket.

I added a simple single crochet border in the same yarn I joined the squares with for continuity.

The next blanket will be a crochet one. I want to make some other things first ready for Christmas so the next blanket is on hold for a while.

HULA BLANKET 1

 I completed the blanket and like the results. I wanted something that looked warm and cosy with a touch of Autumn to it.

It is roughly 25 inches, sorry I don't do cm, I am old school so inches work for me. The blanket could probably do with blocking but as it will no doubt be washed before being used I don't see the point of blocking it.

I added a border to it so it has a more finished look.

A simple single crochet skip a stitch and repeat all around with single crochet chain 1 and single crotchet in the same space at the corners. I chose to do 4 rows as I thought it looked nice with the colours I had.

I am now going to make a knitted blanket.

Easy to make

 I love to knit and to crochet. 

I am not an expert I just enjoy creating things that are easy to make. Trust me nothing I make is hard to do, I like easy patterns and anything fiddly is not attempted. 

The main reason is I get lost when there are lot of instructions and that gets frustrating as I need to rip stuff out and start again. By the time I have done that a few times I head for a different stitch pattern that is still pretty by simple to do.

I taught myself to crochet using Youtube so I learnt US terms that are different to  UK terms.

US v UK Crochet Terms

I can use both but find the US terms easier to understand, probably because I learnt them first.

Granny Squares always evaded me, I could never get them to work and tried lots of videos before I found one that made sense to me, and hey presto I made a granny square.

You will find the link for a NO Twist Granny Square in Sites I Use top right of my blog. It is so easy that I wished I had found it first off. The lady explains everything and takes it nice and slow so you can see what she is doing. Now I can make granny squares I make blankets, throws and afghans with them. One other thing I found that using this method I can make a large Granny Square and not have to sew the little ones together.

See what I mean one big Granny Square and no sewing except for sewing in the ends of yarn changes.

There are lots of ways to change colour and if you look on Youtube you will find one that suits you, none  of them are difficult to do and everyone seems to have their own way of doing things. Take your time and watch a few videos until you find one that you like and use it. Play around with colours and and have fun creating your colourful Granny Square.

I learnt to crochet a few years ago and fell in love with it. I even make Amigurumi figures.

KNITTING

I love to knit and again look for simple patterns and stitches.

I make scarves of various kinds along with fingerless gloves.

I made a keyhole scarf that really easy to make.

I was looking for a simple keyhole scarf when I stumbled across this.

KEYHOLE GARTER STITCH SCARF

This lady is amazing her name is Judy and she makes such lovely videos that are easy to understand. I have saved a lot of her stitch patterns to use later on.

You don't have to make things difficult for yourself you can find easy to make things with simple instructions.

THREE BLANKETS READY

 I have 3 blankets ready to be picked up. I like making them and find it relaxing as I watch TV in the evenings. It takes a while to make them as I tend to work on them as and when I can.

BLANKET 1

This is a Granny Square blanket with a border. I checked to make sure this was acceptable as it has a lot of holes. I did not want claws being caught in them and causing problems.

BLANKET 2

This one used up DK yarn that I had in various colours. I chose one dark and one light ball of yarn and held the two together as I worked the blanket. A simple pattern that used Half Double Crochet throughout and an 8mm hook. I added a border to make looked finished.

 All my terms for crochet are American. I learnt to crochet using YouTube and found the American terms made more sense to me.

BLANKET 3

This one is knitted I used two patterns that complimented each other. By alternating the squares it created a nice patchwork effect. I crocheted the squares and strips together.

A lady is going to pick them up and send them off to  Happy Paws.

Blanket for Happy Paws

 I have made blankets for Happy Paws Puppy Rescue. I first heard about on my local Neighbourhood site. A lady was making blankets for them and asked if anyone could help as they needed more blankets. I was happy to take up the mantle and start making blankets.

Happy Paws Puppy Rescue

This is one of the blankets I have made.

It was easy to make. I held 2 strands of DK yarn together and an 8mm hook. I uses HDC (Half Double Crochet) making it a thick and cosy. I added a simple border to finish it off. I will be making another blanket but this time a knitted one.

The BIG KNIT

 I love the Big Knit it helps use up oddments of yarn and the little hats go to a good cause. What am I talking about? I am talking about this.

The Big Knit

For every smoothie sold with a hat on it Age UK get 25pence. Now what  can you with your tiny hat once you get home?

They can be used as egg cozies, desk decorations, bunting, Christmas tree decorations or you can return them to Age UK to be use the following year. What do they look like?

Bears, Octopus and a Dinosaur

Floral hats and one with Cherries.

Bobble hats

Playing with patterns for Bobble hats and a Cupcake

Striped hats

More Bobble hats

Playing with yarn to create patterns

The last ones were made using 2 colours changing colours for each stitch (Knit  1 yellow 1 blue) across the row then reversing it ( Purl 1 blue 1 yellow). I played around with colours and row counts to create interest.

Butterfly on flower, Octopus, Rabbit

Cat and a Fish

Unicorn!

The hat with the butterfly was easy to create and I will be making more of them as I have a lot of butterfly buttons. The cat was easy to make as well I may use google eyes as sewing them is a nightmare as some yarns seem thinner than others even when they are all DK ( 8ply/ Light Worsted).

I love the fish it is a little fiddly as you sew on the tail and fins but it is cute as when it on a bottle it looks like it is swallowing it. The blue Jellyfish was super easy and the tendrils as so easy to make and attach. I am not sure about the Unicorn I want to see if there is another pattern, it is okay and I will add it to the bag I think it needs a snout adding to make it look more like a Unicorn.

There are lots of patterns to try Big Knit Patterns These on the Age UK site.

I like some of these as well Jo's Big Knit With all these patterns you are not short on ideas and as the project is small you can try out new techniques.

I plan on making 2 per day until mid August that gives the lady who will collect them time to do so. The cut off date is the end of August as they want the hats ready for October.

 

My Mascot

 I love making Amigurumi dolls and have made a mascot for the team I am part of

Meet Myrina Savant. 

  Myrina was an Amazonian Queen who was known for her skills in strategy and led her warriors to a great number of victories. Savant is a learned person, especially a distinguished scientist.

The team I am part of is Mad Scientists, Body Warriors and Monsters Oh My!. We are working on finding ways to remain active, eat healthy and combat the things that life throws our way.

The science bit is working on healthy eating doing research into what works us. The body warrior leans towards  exercise and staying fit. The monsters are the things that tend to get in the way of these.

My mascot is a little reminder of what I am aiming for.