Wednesday, 30 March 2011

Rainy London and An Etsy Feature

Currently: Listening To: The Trooper - Iron Maiden / Drinking: Coke Zero / Making: Arms and Legs

One of my crochet patterns has been featured in an Etsy Treasury today! Entitled Apple Jackets; it features, well, Apples in jackets lol! Check it out here - they're all so cute!

Big Thanks to Kristen for including me in your fab treasury! Check out Kristen's fab blog here too! :D

Also today I went on a little day trip on my own to London. What with this trainee dental nurse job I have coming up in June I figured I'd better get used to travelling to and around London on my own.

I was a bit nervous about going - you know, when you don't have to do something you don't really want to do it? Well it was abit like that. But I did go! I went to Tower Bridge to get some tacky tourist postcards. Then travelled on the Tube to Embankment to my favourite sushi shop, Wasabi. I also visited Trafalar Square and Piccadilly Circus on my way through to Chinatown to pick up some wasabi peas lol! Oh, and I bought 30 postcards in Paperchase. They were 60p each :(

It of course started raining, when I was in Chinatown. My umbrella failed me spectacularly, so I had to walk back through to Embankment station in the pouring rain wearing my thin MCR hoodie. I wasn't happy!! But over all it was a good trip. Next time I think I'm gonna go up to Camden Market. Wish there were some good yarn shops in London. Anyone know of any?

Tuesday, 29 March 2011

Flowers, A Blanket and Uniloomph Art

Currently: Listening To: Feel Good Drag - Anberlin /Reading: Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson /Making: Secret Ami Project!


I recently finished my first big granny square blanket! It's for a relative, but I don't think they check this blog out so I can post a picture here :)




Took about a month and a half, not as long as I thought it would. It was fun - I made it whilst watching tv in the living room with my parents in the evenings :) Lots of Coronation Street and Eastenders I'm afraid :( Secondly here's one of the flowers I did last week




I tried to felt it by putting it in the washing machine, but it didn't really do anything. I have a pattern for this, which I'll post soon :) Last but not least I got a lovely drawing from my Etsy pal Nayoko! Yay!



Isn't it great?! It shows Stuart the Uniloomph saying goodbye to his twin Ezekiel, who was sent to live in America with Nayoko last month. Notice the black patches on his feet?! It's called 'The Reason We Ship Them In Boxes' :D Thank you Nayoko! We miss Ezekiel!!

Sunday, 27 March 2011

This Week I...

I stole this great idea from my good pal Jillie over at One Pink Hippo. Check out her blog, it’s full of yarny goodness!!

This Week I...

... Designed some new crochet flowers

... Worried about my brother who went on holiday to Poland

... Took a lot of painkillers

... Played Guitar Hero too much

... Was sent some great ami designs from Nayoko

... Continued crocheting my second monster granny square blanket

... Used my new Shape-Up flip flops (They killed my legs and feet!)

... Started reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

... Received about 7 postcards through Swap Bot

... Did alot of walking

Friday, 25 March 2011

Free Pattern: Mini Pillow Pals!

You lucky things - 2 free patterns in 1 month lol! Here's my latest offering, Mini Pillow Pals!



You can use them as, obviously, mini pillows; as stress ball type things; as pin cushions or just as a little friend!

They are really simple to make, it's just a little rectangular pouch that's stuffed and sewn up at the bottom. It's not even really a pattern; just directions.

I hope you enjoy! Like always - any problems just comment below :)


Mini Pillow Pals

You Will Need:
• Aran /WW Yarn in 2 different colours
• Crochet hook (I used a 4mm [G] )
• Fiberfill or other stuffing
• Various Buttons
• Stitch Marker
• Embroidery/yarn needle
• Embroidery Thread


Abbreviations
• Ch - Chain Stitch
• Sc - Single Crochet
• St/Sts - Stitch/Stitches
• Slst - Slip Stitch
• Inc (Increase) - 2 Sc into 1 Sts
• Dec (Decrease) - 1 Sc over 2 Sts
• ** - Marks a group of stitches to be repeated until the round is completed


Gauge
No gauge, just keep your stitches nice and tight to avoid gaps in your work


Finished Size
4.5’’ tall (approx.) using a 4mm (G) hook and Aran yarn.


Other Info
• As this is amigurumi, work in continuous rounds; in a spiral, unless otherwise stated. Don’t join at the end of a row; just keep going
• Use stitch markers or a piece of scrap yarn to mark the start of every round. Replace at the start of the next round as you go along. This will help you keep track of where you started, and saves a lot of time if things go wrong!
• I write my patterns in American terms, so Sc means Single Crochet; Dc means Double Crochet etc
• The number at the end of each round is the number of stitches you should now have

----------------------------------------------------------------------


Head/Body (Working from the top down)
1. Ch 13 (13Ch)
2. Sc in each Ch to beginning. In 1st Ch, Sc 3. Continue to Sc on the opposite side of the Ch. In the last Ch Sc 2 (26 Sc)
3. Inc, Sc 10, Inc 3, Sc 10, Inc 2 (32 Sc)
4 - 14. Sc around (32)

*Sew face to top of the body*

15 – 28. Sc around (32)
29. Dec 2, Sc 10, Dec 3, Sc 10, Dec (26)
*Finish off, leave long tail for sewing*

Assembly
• Stuff the pouch you have just made and sew the opening shut.
• Take your contrasting colour yarn and cut into approx. 3’’ strips. Use this method to attach the hair.
• Sew on additional buttons if desired.

Done!!

How easy was that lol!! I hope you enjoy your Mini Pillow Pals!


Saturday, 19 March 2011

Mini Ted For Charity

I completed a whole ami in one evening on Thursday!! I made a mini/modified version of my Ted Pattern.


He's only small! I made him for the Knit A Square charity that I crochet for. He will be sent off to South Africa in the up coming months :) I plan on making more Mini Teds to send off, they're simple and quick to make so I reckon I could have quite a few made up in a short period of time :D

Monday, 14 March 2011

Free Pattern: Big Mouth Octopus!

Been a while since I put a free pattern on here!! You might remember my earlier post about Oppie The Octopus. Well I typed up the pattern and thought I'd share :)


This pattern can be either easy or pretty difficult, depending on how you would like to make him. You can choose to sew on sequins and beads if you like, or leave him plain. You might like also to make the tentacles all in one hit, as one piece, or you can use the simpler option of doing them one by one. Both methods are written out below :)

Alot of the credit to this pattern must go to the picture that inspired me to make it, which was Sugar Coated's 'Octopus' on Ravelry, from the Chinese pattern I Am Octopus :)

Any problems, comment below! Have fun!

Big Mouth Octopus

You Will Need:
• Crochet Hook (I used 3.5mm, E)
• Double Knit/ Sport Weight/ Light Worsted Weight Yarn in Mint and White
• 12mm Safety Eyes
• Stitch Markers Or Piece Of Scrap Yarn
• Fiber fill Or Other Stuffing
• Curved Needle (Optional)
• Sequins and Seed Beads/Small Beads (Optional)
• Cotton/Thread (Optional)
• Fine Sewing Needle (Optional)

Abbreviations
• St/Sts – Stitch/Stitches
• Ch - Chain Stitch
• Sc - Single Crochet
• Tr – Triple Crochet
• Slst - Slip Stitch
• Inc (Increase) - 2 Sc into 1 St
• Dec (Decrease) – 1 Sc across 2 Sts
• ** - Marks a group of stitches to be repeated until the round is completed


Gauge
No gauge, just keep your stitches nice and tight to avoid gaps in your work


Finished Size
3.5 inches high (approx.) using a 3.5mm (E) hook


Other Info
• As this is amigurumi, work in continuous rounds; in a spiral, unless otherwise stated. Don’t join at the end of a row; just keep going
• Use stitch markers or a piece of scrap yarn to mark the start of every round. Replace at the start of the next round as you go along. This will help you keep track of where you started, and saves a lot of time if things go wrong!
• I write my patterns in American terms, so Sc means Single Crochet; Dc means Double Crochet etc
• The number at the end of each round is the number of stitches you should now have
• Although I have used certain colours for this ami please feel free to use whichever colours you like!
• Using a thicker yarn than DK/bigger hook than 3.75mm (F) will result in the toy being a considerably different size to that shown.

Head/Body

1. Ch 2, Sc 6 into 2nd Ch from hook, or Magic Ring 6 (6)
2. Inc around (12)
3. *Sc, Inc* around (18)
4. *Sc 2, Inc* around (24)
5. *Sc 3, Inc* around (30)
6. *Sc 4, Inc* around (36)
7. *Sc 5, Inc* around (42)
8. *Sc 6, Inc* around (48)
9. *Sc 7, Inc* around (54)
10. *Sc 8, Inc* around (60)
11-16. Sc around (60)

You can take this opportunity to sew on the beads and sequins, before it gets too difficult to reach the inside top of the head. It’s very fiddly and time consuming, so you may want to leave this step out. But I think it makes him look all special lol! I used a mixture of sequins and glass seed beads, though any small beads would look fab!

When you’ve done all the sewing, continue with…

17-20. Sc around (60)

You can stop here again and add some individual seed beads lower on the head, if you wanted him to look all fancy hehe!

21. *Sc 8, Dec* around (54)
22. *Sc 7, Dec* around (48)

The head closes up pretty rapidly from here, so you’re gonna want to stuff it whilst you go.

23. Dec around (24)

If using Safety Eyes, attach now, half way up the head.

24. Dec around (12)
25. Dec around (6)
*Finish Off, Weave In End*


There are 2 ways of doing the tentacles. You can do them all in one piece, which is the way I did it because it leaves a nicer finish on the bottom of the body, or you can do them individually. Here’s how to do them in one piece first…


Tentacles (One Piece)

1. Ch 2, Sc 8 into 2nd Ch from hook, or Magic Ring 8 (8)
2. Inc around (16)
3. *Sc 1, Inc* around (24)


WARNING - This gets VERY fiddly/annoying!! You’re been warned!!


4. Ch 15, 6 Tr in 2nd Ch from hook; 7 Tr in each of the next 7 Ch’s; 1 Tr in each of the remaining 3 Ch’s

When you’re back to the beginning of the Ch, Skip 2 Sc and Slst into the 3rd Sc of the base circle
Repeat Round 4, 7 more times to make 8 tentacles.
*Finish Off, Leave Long Tail*



If you don’t fancy doing it that way, you can do them individually…

Tentacles (One by One)

Ch 18, 6 Tr in 4th Ch from the hook; 7 Tr in each of the next 10 Ch’s; 1 Tr into each of the remaining 4 Ch’s
*Finish Off, Leave Long Tail*

Repeat 7 more times (or however many you’d like!)


Mouth

Ch 15, Join with a Slst, Ch 1
Sc 18 into the loop, Slst to beginning Ch 1. Ch 1
Sc 18 around, Slst to the Ch 1 at the beginning of the round
*Finish Off, Leave Long Tail*


Assembly

• To make the tentacles abit more curled up, you can give them a twist Clockwise (It may be Anticlockwise if you’re left handed, I’m not too sure :S)
• Sew the tentacle piece/the individual tentacles to the bottom of the body.
• Arrange the mouth in whichever shape you would like (Have fun! It could be a perfect ‘O’, smiley, sad…) on the front of the head, and sew in place.

Tada! You’re done!

I hope you liked the pattern! I’d love to see any Octopi made with this pattern! Also, again, you can comment below if you have any problems with it :)

Enjoy!

Saturday, 12 March 2011

Oppie The Octopus

A while ago I found a great Optopus pattern on Ravelry...


I Am Octopus
Alameda


... The only problem was that the pattern was only available in a Chinese book, which I have no means of getting. Plus I also liked the thought of it being quite big, with curley tentacles. So I got out my 3.5mm hook and some DK yarn and in a few hours had this geezer...


I call him Oppie! He is very similar to the Chinese book version, with the same mouth and sequins, but I also added some extra seed beads to his head and the curley tentacles.


I'm happy with the way he came out! I am planning on putting the pattern for him on my blog sometime next week, so you can too make your own Oppie! Yay!

I also made another Mini Pillow Pal...


... she hasn't got a name yet. I too will be putting the pattern on here soon :) Yay for free patterns!!


I'd also like to say my thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan that are effected by the horrendous earthquake and tsunami that hit yesterday. I couldn't believe the destruction caused :'( Makes all this talk of amigurumi seem stupid some how :(

Friday, 4 March 2011

Long Overdue Pressie Post

Wow, why has it taken me over a month to upload these pictures?! Cos I'm lazy, probably.

Anyways, this is the fabtastic Christmas and Birthday package I recieved from my crochet pal Jill over at One Pink Hippo :D

Behold!!


First there was a lovely card from Jill and her girls Arwen and Susie (the words made my Mum go 'Aaaaawwww!!'); a red rubber ducky and a soapy sponge block in the shape of a gingerbread man! I have yet to use this - I'm thinking it will grow when you put water to it?! And a cute Christmas bag!


A pair of socks from the famous Forever 21 *yay!*, some mega cute knee high toe socks (they are very comfy!) and some Spanish rice!


2 of my favourite things! A tiny knit sweater! And a lovely pot holder in the same colourful yarn (I take it it's a pot holder - we don't really have them over here so I'm guessing by all the others I've seen on Ravelry!!).


And last but not least a mini Zhu Zhu hamster plushie!! *Squee!* Plus a kawaii necklace from Claires (I wasn't aware you had Claires over there!!) Not pictured, because I started using it as soon as I opened the box, is a great antibacterial hand cream called Sweet Pea. I love this stuff - I use it ever night before I go to bed, it smells so nice and clean!

THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the wonderful things Jill - I'm lucky to have such a great friend! Be on the look out in the post for a parcel! :D

Tuesday, 1 March 2011

Timmy, A New Friend and The Stash

I crocheted my first ami of the year last week! Yay! Here's Timmy...



I crocheted Timmy for a customer on Etsy. She wanted a Uniloomph just like Stuart, my pattern Uniloomph, but also requested he had hooves (hoofs?!). So I crocheted the bottom of Timmy's feet black! I like him, and making him has given me new enthusiasm for amigurumi, which can't be a bad thing!

So I decided to finish an ami I started late last year...



I call him a Mini Pillow Pal, because he's a mini pillow and he's very friendly lol! I wanted to use this new Aran yarn I bought from Southend, so used a bigger hook than usual. I also used one of many cute buttons I bought in the same shop for the middle of his eye, and gave him pink hair. I was originally thinking about giving him arms and legs, but decided against it as I thought he looked cute enough. If anyone's interested I can write the pattern up and post it on here - it's super simple.

Oh, and I sorted out my yarn stash today. I counted over 60 skeins, then found I had another 12 hiding in a bag...



This obsession has got to stop - I bought a 35 litre bucket today to keep it in, along with the existing hold-all and big fabric box I already have, and it's taking over my room lol!