Old storages of mine

For some time I've been thinking what to give my aunt on her birthday. No any idea. Totally empty head. Then I went through (again) parts of my old craft storage. I found a plastic bag with old loose ends for weaving. There was a bobbing that seemed interesting. Then I remembered Tove Fevang's book. The result (pot holder) is at Crocheting site.

I am going to give this pot holder to my aunt with some herbs I have grown from seeds. The design and idea for the pot holder is from Tove Fevang's Helt enkel hekling (Totally simple crochet) but I have just picked up thicker yarn and the result is pot holder instead of duster. It was a bit difficult to crochet this because the yarn was so thick but if I managed you will too.

Buttons and buttons

One of the most difficult things in finishing a cloth is to find buttons that match. Sometimes it goes like a dream and you find perfect buttons, sometimes you must accept to pick up the ones that are not like from a horror movie. Sometimes I wonder if a cloth making should be start from picking up the buttons, then the fabric or yarn and only then decide what to do with it all.

I have finished my first ever piece of crochet cloth about which I wrote before. It is a pink vest for ballerina.

This is my very first crochet project where I use only crocheting. It is my own design and it was very easy to make. The pink yarn is teteks yarn Perlita from the Republic of Macedonia. It's 100% acryl. I used old storage of mine so I had to buy only 10 buttons (0,10€ / button). Not bad at all. This vest is designed to wear with long sleeved T-shirt so it warms enough but not too much. Long sleeved one coloured no logo or trade mark T-shirts are easy to sew or cheap to buy. With this pink it looks great to use for example white or chocolate brown shirt.

Craft box

Long, very long time ago, I bought a craft box. It didn't take much time until I noticed it was too small. Later on I bought another one. Soon these two were not enough. Since that I have not bought new craft box. I should buy a craft room to get it all fit in. Mean while waiting that craft room I have been keeping my sewing bobbins in a brown paper box. It doesn't look pretty but is useful with the proper lid. For some time I have been thinking I should do something to its awful look. Today I had some time to go through my old scrap booking papers and found something useful for the box.

So what I do now?

At the moment I have two projects going on. I have been crocheting a vest for a ballerina. It's pink of course. The design is in my head and I am curious to see how it turns out. It was not long time ago when I didn't even know how to crochet and now I am doing a vest without instructions. The reason for not using instructions is that long time ago someone special visited East Europe and brought me this every knitter's dream gift -huge bag full of yarn for knitting (all pink). So, now there's only few thread balls left and I decided to use them now. This project is up to teteks yarn Perlita from the Republic of Macedonia. Despite it's all 100% acryl I have noticed that it is machine washable and reusable. Which means it doesn't look horrible after few wearing times like synthetic fibers usually do. I and someone else have been knitting many winter clothes from it and I do can say the quality is good and doesn't couse any troubles to a person who is allergic to sheep wool and has very sensitive skin.

The other project I have picked up is a pamper moment for myself and I am doing it slowly with love. It is Victorian Strawberries Scissor Keep designed by Anne Orr for Textile Heritage Collection. It is a gift from a friend and this product will definately be all mine when finished. Just and only for me and myself. (Don't touch it!) My first ever Mother's Day gift was a pack of silver scissor and thimble. And no one is not allowed to touch them. I use them in stitching and they are my special tools. Scissor keep comes in need because the box of scissor and thimble has broken few years ago and it is not something you can fix. So this gift will comfort me a lot to get over the loss from which I have not got over yet.

Born to sew

This sewing bag is a gift for a special friend. The design is printed out from Free Patterns Online and it is Carrie's Creations. You can still find the design from that site. I used loose end threads for the stitching and included some beads. The zipper holder has also some bigger beads so it's easier to use.

Good books lead you forward

Now the whole shawl I designed is finished. The shawl feels warm and luxurous. I am sure I will use it many times in the future. But I do my best not to spoil it in the daily use.

The book that helped me to learn crocheting is Norwegian Tove Fevang's Helt enkel hekling. It's English version is called Totally simple crochet and it is brand new translation in English. I think it comes out in May 2011.

I have other books about crocheting. Also one given me years ago by my grand mother who did a lot crochet. But all these books are so complicated and confusing. I really can recommend this Tove Fevang's book if you need to learn to crochet. It has very simple and easy instructions with good photos. It includes very first basic skills but has also challenging projects if you want more. What is the best in this book? Well, in it everything needed is explained in the way I can understand it all. This book helped me to design my own shawl and what's the most important -to make it.
 

This is the shawl I designed and knit to fit with my dress to warm my shoulders. The size is  approximately 46cm x 115cm. It weights almost 150g. Even though I used expencive materials total cost is 36€ which is relatively small mount of money when we talk about shawl made of silk and mohair. If you do it yourself you save a lot of money. This is easy project to make and anyone who can or want to learn the basics of knitting and crocheting will succeed well. You just need to deside how wide and tall you want it to be. And because it comes to your shoulders it will suit well anyway. Shawl is also multi useable and last forever if you won't wash it in the wrong way.

Crochet edges make the last finished impression and good contrast to furry mohair knit. The yarn I used for crocheting has not mohair or any other furry material at all so it is also easier to crochet. Black shade is a bit demanding for a beginner but if I managed -you can make it too!