phew . . .

I thought I wouldn't finish these throws in time.

Nearly finished my shopping and wrapping - now for some serious baking!

More festive fun over on my blog

Crochet mug cozies!

Bonjour! Kate here (aka Mommy en France from Two little cabbages & cie), using the guest login into share these cozies with you.

I think I have become addicted to making them. Besides these two, I have a few others in the works. They are so easy to create, even for someone like me, who has only very basic knitting and crochet skills. You can definitely whip one up while watching an hour or two of television, or listening to your favorite podcasts.

The cozy on the right is made from this fabulous funky wool yarn called Terre Neuve (in multicolour) from the French knitting chain Phildar. I used this pattern, free on Ravelry and the author's website. The cozy on the left uses up some wool I've had for years, from the last time I attempted knitting (2004?). If I recall, I bought it at the local supermarket! I used the pattern from the latest issue of Mollie Makes. I have to say, I was a little disappointed because I didn't find the article clear enough about how many chains to use (mug sizes do vary after all) and whether the starting chain was to run vertically or horizontally. But this could just be me and my cluelessness. At any rate, I managed to make it work.

Both are for my cousin and his fiancée and I'll be adding a tin of my favorite tisane as well.

Happy holiday crafting!

Crochet apple cosies

Bonjour!

This is Kate (aka Mommy en France), using the guest login to post.

My poor sewing machine is not feeling well, so she's having a rest and probably going into a shop for a tune up next week. In the meantime, I've been working on crafty Christmas projects that don't involve sewing.

Among other things, I'm trying knitting and crocheting again. I learned how to do both years ago, but never really got into them. And my skills never evolved beyond hats and scarves (for knitting) and not much of anything for crocheting. I think part of the "problem" is that my mother, aunt and mother-in-law are such talented knitters that I just sat back and let them do all the knitting for everyone. What they can do in a week would take me ages to accomplish.

Anyway, I decided to sign up for Ravelry and hunt down some simple projects to help ease me back into this. And wow, is Ravelry great. What an amazing resource! At any rate, I've already whipped up a snood for myself, using this great free pattern. I'm going to make another for a friend. And I made some apple cosies, using the pattern from the first issue of Molly Makes. If you didn't buy it (I didn't), you can either buy a digital issue through your e-reader or you can find the Apple Crochet Jackets pattern for free here (thank you, The Guardian).

The one on the left is for my dad, who always brings his lunch into work. The one on the right, well... I'm tempted to keep it! And these work up so, so quickly - even for a novice like me - that I may make a few more. The best part about these cosies and also the snood is that they don't require lots of yardage, so I'm able to use up all the odd bits and bobs of it that I have held onto over the years. Finally, what better way to show off a few favorite buttons?

Happy crafting and happy Thanksgiving to all you other Americans out there. I guess it's really the start of the holiday season now...

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening?

Hi, I'm Carly, I blog (somewhat sporadically) here.

Wow, Christmas has snuck up a bit this year, or is it just me? Looking back at my blog it seems I was feeling a lot more festive this time last year!

I have some crafty Christmas plans up my sleeve though, time willing:

Snoods! I have knocked up a pink flowery snood for some lucky person who shall remain nameless, here is me modelling it for now (doesn't it look pretty with my dress? I like looking like an explosion in a paint factory):

The pattern is available on my blog if you fancy making one yourself. I may whip up a few more of these, they're quick to make and make great gifts - who doesn't want to stay cosy?

I have also got a few cross stitch ideas in the pipeline - I want to make little necklaces and/or Christmas decorations. Here is a slightly larger one I made last year (bit frayed having been in and out of the frame rather a lot of times!), it's for the wall rather than round your neck but it gives you the idea:

And I'm also planning to give knitted headband/earwarmers, which look like this (I can't seem to rotate the photo for some reason):

They are made using a free Ravelry pattern. I love the colour of this wool, I bought it in John Lewis last year and never managed to use it as I only had one ball, but it was the perfect amount for this headband. Not good if you react badly to wool though - itchy ears are not a good look!

Aside from these projects I don't have any other firm plans, but I'm loving seeing everyone elses ideas here. Blogland seems so inspired in the months coming up to Christmas, I love it.

Speaking of crafty stuff, I take it we've all seen Pip's list of 307 handmade christmas gift tutorials? Inspirational!

Happy crafting ladies

Cx

Drowning in crochet . . .

I have two heaps of granny squares to make up in to bed throws - one for my mother who loves anything pink,

and the other for my younger daughter to match her pink and purple bedding.

Now there's just the boring bit of stitching them all together!



My Christmas crafting begins

Hi there,

I'm Kirsty and I blog over at The Leopard Anchor. Every year I say I'll make presents for every single person on my list and every year I fail through leaving it too late.

I have just started my Christmas crafting this week by revisiting a craft I haven't done since last winter, crochet.

My sister in law is going to get a pink, cream and grey striped scarf made using this pattern. I'm using a nice cheap chunky yarn & a 10mm hook, it . I've made this scarf before:

In fact, it was the first thing I ever crocheted (& only crochet project I've ever finished) and it's the best scarf I own, if I do say so myself. If I can come up with an appropriate colour combination then my other sister in law will also be receiving a scarf from the same pattern.

My dog likes to pose, can you tell?

I really recommend this pattern to beginner crocheters, it's really straight forward but looks really impressive!

A new member and some inspiration

Good morning everyone,

I'm new to the Crafty Christmas Club, I'm Wendy and I blog over at The Crafter's Apprentice.  None of my in-the-flesh friends or family read my blog, or even know I've got one, but I wanted to join this blog to share the links I've found for great tutorials, and even some of my own.  I see everyone is posting their to-do lists, but I haven't made one yet so I'll post it when I have made it!  I have, however, been making Christmas presents and I thought you might want to see some of them - with links to FREE tutorials of course!


Pocket tissue cases from a tutorial on Bitty Bits and Pieces.  VERY quick and easy to whip up and they only use up scraps.



Fold up shopping bag from a tutorial on Crafty Ady's blog.  Look on the sidebar for the link to a pdf tutorial (free).  This one does take a little more patience and I would say skill, but I managed it with the minimum of skill!



Another quick and easy tutorial, this one for headbands over at KC Quilts.

This tutorial for glasses cases using a flex frame is really fast to whip up and they can be as simple or as embellished/pieced/appliqued/embroidered as you want.  It's another one from Crafty Ady and the link takes you right there.  I can't post a picture as they're showing up as those funny purple lines on my blog for some reason.


This is the Pheobe bag, it was great to sew up, I really enjoyed it.  The tutorial can be found on Artsy Crafty Babe.



Cute little baby bear hats for the babies on your gift list.  I also recently made a panda version.  These take half an hour to crochet.  The tutorial is on Alli Crafts blog.  She has patterns in a couple of sizes so you might have to check the tags on her sidebar to find the right size.

 
You've probably all seen this before - it's the Buttercup Bag by Made By Rae.  It uses tiny amounts of fabric and is fun to make.



How about some oven gloves for the cooks in your life?  This pattern from Sew4Home doesn't involve quilting or binding.

And finally, some tutorials from me that might be useful.



Lavender sachets make a great stocking filler and come in so many guises.  I posted a tutorial for these scrappy patchwork lavender hearts.

 

I also wrote a tutorial for counting bean bags for the little people in your life.

And finally...



How to make an appliqued notebook.  This one is a no-sew (apart from the cover applique of course!) version.

I will be back soon with my Christmas to-make list.

Post Christmas Post

Hi, everyone! It's Jaimielee from hippopotamuslee.blogspot.com. I had such a great time reading the lovely posts you all wrote here. It was an awesome source of inspiration! I definitely didn't get everything done that I planned (what else is new?), but my holiday was great. I hope yours was too! I don't want to flood this page with my Christmas Photo Explosion! but be sure to check it out over at my blog :)



My 1st tree with tons o' gifts!!

Crocheted Cowl

Hello, everyone! I'm Jaimielee from hippopotamuslee.blogspot.com and I'm one heck of a procrasticrafter. I can't seem to help it, no matter how determined I try to trick myself into being...

Cowls, snoods, moebius scarves — whatever you call 'em, I love them! I made one using Lion Brand's Fishermen's Wool. Somehow a giant 8oz skein wasn't sufficient, so it's not quite finished yet.

100% Pure Virgin Wool with natural lanolin oil IS ITCHY!
I crocheted it based on this pattern from The Crimson Owl. I mean, to make these cowls, you don't really need a tutorial or pattern, it's just a series of HDC and DC till you reach the length you need. Super simple! It's for my lovely SO who is enjoying 88° weather right now in the Philippines while I freeze to death in Chicago!

Next up are Christmas cards. I'm so late!!

Snowflakes

I haven't used a crochet in something like 35 years, but when I saw those, I thought they were so cute, I had to make some! The Heart Handmade tutorial is so good, I figured it out all by myself and so can you. Each of them take about 15 minutes to complete once you get the hang of it, while watching a movie, you can whip up a half dozen. Which is what I did last night while Michelle Morgan and Jean Gabin smooched in Quai Des Brumes. Nice way to use leftover yarn!

Crocheted Bows

...sew 'em on everything!!

The pattern comes from creativeyarn, which you may already be familiar with. If not, check it out! The blog seems to be out of commission,  but is still a great resource!! Lots of free crochet patterns for gifty things. 

When I saw Emily's post about crocheted mittens, I immediately pictured them with these cute little bows. (Not that your embroidered bow isn't totally sweet!)

:-) 

- renee.

/toasty crocheted mittens

Hi again, it's Emily from seymour. Firstly, I need to say that I've been LOVING everyone's posts so far! Great tutorials and brilliant ideas, so thanks everyone!

It seems that this year, everyone is asking for mittens. I'm pretty sure this is because of the early snow we got last week, and my friends and relatives were confronted with the strange colours their hands turn without the proper bundling accessories. Anyhow, this is good because mittens are a very do-able project!

While I'm not totally done with either pair yet, I thought I'd share this pattern sooner than later if anyone would like to get started on some crochet mittens. They're the Basic Crocheted Mittens from allfreecrochet.com.

I'm a big fan of making these, because they go super fast and take under one skein of worsted yarn for one pair! It's also easy to alter for different sized hands. 

My plan is to stitch bows at all the wrists with embroidery thread, but the first attempt looks like a crazy person did it. Pretty sure this was done at 1 or 2 am... I can't be sure if it's even 'cutesy homemade' or just insane. Either way, this bow must go because I doubt this craziness could be replicated on its twin... how did I even do that? Oops.

Regardless, I definitely recommend this pattern for all your cold-limbed friends and relatives!

small presents

because i havent got a lot of time

i'm making my friends this

and for everyone a home made stamp

this one is for my friend that loves tea

Christmas hearts and bunting

This week, amongst other crafty endeavours, I've been making some Christmas decorations.

I used this tutorial to make these heart decorations:

I'd already made a tiny string of them in pink just because, but using this chunky wool and a size 8 hook makes really cute big hearts. I think I'll make a lot of them and string them by the window.

I've also made this 'ho ho ho' bunting.

I used red and white felt and a checked ribbon I found in my stash. I think it's quite cute, I'm going to put it underneath my wreath (when I finally manage to make one - I may just cave and buy this one from Paperchase). I haven't decided what to put on the blank pieces yet - thinking snowflakes on the red, but what on the white? A stocking? I think it should stick to the red and white colour scheme. What do you think? 

Carly xo

Snuggly snoods!

Hello again! As I said in an earlier post, I am officially in LOVE with snoods this year. I've crocheted two so far and am working on my third which will be a Christmas gift. They are really quick to make so I may make a few for different people. Everyone wants to snuggle up warm, surely! I didn't follow any pattern, just played about and this was the outcome.

This blue one was my first attempt - I stopped when I ran out of blue wool, but I don't really use it much as I think it needs to be bigger. The cherries motif is just a series of crocheted circles, I think it turned out quite nicely.

I am re-creating the one I'm wearing in the photograph above as a Christmas gift as I love mine so much. I can't decide whether to decorate it with a bow, or with cherries or with crocheted flowers...or something else?

If anyone's interested in how I made the snoods I've just put a tutorial on my blog. They are easy peasy!

Sweet Little Slippers

Made this pair of baby booties last night for a baby shower this afternoon, and was remembering all the slippers I made from this pattern (mostly the larger sizes) last Christmas.

As much as I love freebies, I felt these patterns are well worth their download price. Very well written, and quick to make.

This style comes in all sizes, from baby to adult, in four patterns, which can be purchased in a group for a discount, or separately. Go here for more info.

The more boyish booties are every bit as cute, but these only come in baby sizes. If you're adept at crochet, you may be able to adapt the style for larger sizes.

Most of her slippers have a double sole, which you can do in the same yarn, but I used hemp for the outer soles to make them a little more durable, almost like shoes.

This time last year, I was madly crocheting away, making hemp soles for 10+ pairs of slippers, in a variety of sizes. One of these days, I may even make some for myself.
(I got my hemp yarn from LanaKnits)

Speaking of yarn, and freebies, and quick projects, you may want to check out all the free patterns I've linked to as I've worked through my Year of Ami challenge over at House Full of Monkeys. Every week, I choose one crochet and one knit pattern, found free online. Then I make one of each, and post about pattern issues (if any) as I go. It's been a fun challenge for me, and I've learned a lot about how to shape things in both knit and crochet, to the point that I'm starting to design toys and write up patterns.
If you're looking for something quick and easy, you might want to check it out.

A Christmas Crafter

Posies Tea Cosy (image via Ravelry)

Hello! My name is Sarah and I blog over at Rhinestones and Telephones. I love handmade and every year I try to make or bake as many gifts as possible. My family loves my homemade peppermint bark and this year I'm going to give Ina Garten's French Chocolate Bark a whirl, just to shake things up a bit.

I've recently started to crochet again and I'm really enjoying it. I've made a hat for myself and I'm going to give the tea cosy above a try. I was thinking of making up gift baskets for my family with the tea cosy, a new tea pot, a selection of teas, and my handmade barks and cookies.

Reading everyone's posts on here is very inspiring and I'm looking forward to seeing more of your creations. Thank you to Tilly for having me on board!