Happy December everyone!

I've been knitting and working on crochet projects like crazy but since they're all presents, I can't post any on here until after Christmas... I don't wanna give away any spoilers to my friends :)

I do have 3 small freebie patterns I'm also working on and I promise to get at least one up before the end of December so please be patient with my slow posting this month. December gets crazy around here  :)

In the mean time I hope you all have a truly wonderful and friend/family filled holiday season... And remember, it's not about the presents. It's about the LOVE  :)

Happy Thanks Giving!!! (free hat pattern)

Happy Thanks Giving!!! (well tomorrow it is) I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful day filled with family and yummy food... diets are OFF today Ladies and Gentlemen :)

I made this with FANCY YARN  :D   haha, ok maybe it’s not to you but to me it is and I love it. I found it at a cute little knitting shop up near my grandma’s. This stuff is great but let me tell you it is hard trying to think of a project for a skein so tiny. I’m used to between 250 to 300 yards. This one is less then 100. I eventually decided to make a hat because I thought the yarn looked like it would have an awesome self striping effect… and I was right  :)  So I got a super cute hat out of it and I wanted to share the pattern.

This yarn is called Mochi Plus. It is 80% Merino Wool and 20% Nylon… My first Wool!!!! I’m such a nerd, I know  :)  This yarn was not consistent in size. There were some areas that were thicker and some areas that were thinner. Not hugely different but enough to notice. I would classify it as slightly smaller than Worsted weight so if you are using worsted weight for this hat, it may come out a bit too big. Just a warning.

I used a H/8 5.0mm hook …I know, I’ve been favoring this one lately and truthfully I prefer one bigger but this one has a super comfy rubber handle that my Wal-Mart hooks don’t have (got it at the same place near my grandmother’s house) and yes I refer to it as my “fancy hook” so it has become my go to hook.

 

This pattern IS mine  :) and you can have it here:

 

The abbreviations I use are as follows:

ch – chain

sl st – slip stitch

sc – single crochet

dc – double crochet

 

* ch 6, sl st together to make a circle

Row 1 – ch 1 (counts as first st here and throughout pattern) 1 sc in same st, 2 sc in each st around (12 st)
Row 2 – repeat row 1 (24 st)
Row 3 – ch 1, 2 sc in next st, 1 sc in next. repeat 1-2-1-2 around (36 st)
Row 4 – ch 2, dc in same st, 1 dc in next st, 2 dc in next st. repeat 1-2-1-2 around (54 st)
Row 5 – ch 1, sc in each st around
Row 6 – ch 2, 1 dc in next 5 st, 3 dc in next st. repeat 1-1-1-1-1-1-3-1-1-1-1-1-1-3 around (68 st)
Row 7 – ch 1, 1 sc in each st around
Row 8 – ch 2, 1 dc in each st around
Row 9 – repeat row 7
Row 10 – repeat row 8
Row 11 – ch 2, 2 dc in same st (makes shell) sk 2 st, 3 dc in next st. repeat shell pattern around.
Row 12 – repeat row 7
Row 13 – repeat row 8
Row 14 – repeat row 11
Row 15 – repeat row 7
Row 16 – repeat row 7
Row 17 – ch 2, sk 1 st, 1 sc, ch 1, sk 1 st, Repeat *1 sc, ch1, sk 1 st* all around.
Row 18 – repeat row 8
Finish off and weave in ends.

You’ll notice from my hat photos that my row 18 is solid black. That is because this tiny skein ran out on me 1 row too soon so I had to add on some plain black worsted weight. I think you can tell from the photos that the black is a bit larger/thicker then the primary yarn. I really love how it turned out and I wear it all the time.
I hope you like my fun hat and I would love to see what you do with this pattern.

The matching gloves

Do you remember when I posted about my favorite hat? Well these are the matching gloves. I am so happy with how they turned out. I got the buttons on clearance at wally world for 75 cents. I thought they looked a little like snowflakes (which I love) so I picked them up without any project in mind and they turned out absolutely perfect for these fingerless gloves. They are toasty and comfy. And the first pair I’ve made that I actually get to keep for me  :)

Note about the pattern:

When I was making these I really thought that they were going to end up way too small. But I stayed with the pattern anyways. The yarn I used had a great stretch to them so they fit perfectly now. If the yarn you're using doesn't stretch, I would suggest making them bigger for adult size gloves.

This pattern is not mine. You can find it HERE

My crocheted Halloween

This year, my best friend and I dressed up as Day of the Dead sugar skulls. She did a traditional head-dress of flowers. I went for a tiny hat and spider web veil… Which I of course made myself  :)

Super fun, right? I just love how it turned out.

This year, My bestie and I made trick or treat bags for the kiddos to match their costumes. I already showed you my son’s Hulk bag but I later added a nose and mouth to it so I have to show it off again  :)

This is us Halloween night:

These patterns are not mine.

The witch bag was designed by my friend so I’m sorry but I don’t have a pattern I can link to.

The Hulk bag was loosely based off of a Frankenstein bag I found HERE (this bag is tiny, I made mine a lot bigger)

The veil pattern can be found HERE (there is a link to the hat pattern with the veil)

Star Bag Whoopsie

This post is really late. I swear I thought I had posted this before but I guess I forgot. I was chosen to help test a pattern for Julie from Gleeful Things. It’s a star bag and I was so excited because I LOVE the star hat she made and I had never made a bag before. This pattern is AMAZING! Seriously, I love it.

I knew right away that I was going to make a Halloween bag. I am obsessed with it after all  :)  I picked out my fabric first and made the interior of the bag. I used two fabrics, one that would show in the interior and one that would peak out from under the yarn. I loved it! The first yarn I started out with a rainbow color but then because of bad planning I ran out half way through.

I wasn’t going yarn shopping anytime soon (I live in the middle of nowhere and going to the yarn store is a big deal) so I switched to a solid purple yarn. I was bummed that I had to switch colors but it turned out awesome! Check it out:

I first used the bag to hold yarn and hooks for my current projects. It was wonderful until I accidentally poured hot wax all over it  :(  Well after getting all the wax off, I threw it into the washer… Now this was my big Whoopsie. It turns out I didn’t prewash the fabric (rookie mistake, I know,  I’m so embarassed) and the bag came out of the dryer all distorted. The fabric had shrunk and the yarn had stretched. There was a good nine inch gap between the bottom of the fabric bag and the bottom of the crocheted bag.

Lucky for me, I am a very resourcefull girl. I got out my seam ripper and separated my bags. The exterior is now used to hold all of my winter hats (we have a LOT) this bag is awesome and huge! I haven’t even stuffed it full yet, there is plenty more room.

And my fabric bag will soon be reunited with the original yarn I had intended  :)

To check out this seriously awesome pattern, go HERE

Snowflake Hat

I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE winter. So when I saw this hat, I had to squeal a little (I know, I do it a lot) It kind of form the same way the spider web hat worked and I wasn’t a fan of having holes in a winter hat so I changed the pattern a bit and made the last half of the hat solid double crochet.

This pattern is not mine. You can find it HERE.

Free Infant Bear Hat Crochet Pattern

Those adorable sandals (found here) I made were not the only presents I gave to my cousin for her new baby. I also made her this:

Aren’t they adorable? The Mitts pattern is not mine. I just added the cute little bear claws. You can find the mitts pattern HERE.

 

The adorable bear hat IS mine  :)

To make this cutie, I used worsted weight yarn in Brown and Cream (both from Red Heart) and a size H/8 5.0 mm hook.

 

The Abbreviations I use are the American versions.

ch – chain

sc – single crochet

dc – double crochet

sl st – slip stitch

st – stitch

sk – skip

hdc – half double crochet

 

Pattern:

* Using primary color (I used cream) ch 5 and sl st together to form a circle.

Row 1 – ch 2 (counts as first dc here and from now on) 5 dc around and sl st together.    *I finish all rows with a sl st. If you’d prefer to work continuously the pattern will be the same, you just need to keep track of your stitches. (7 st)

Row 2 – ch 2, 1 dc in next st, 2 dc in each st after (14 st)

Row 3 – ch 2, 1 dc in next 2 st, 2 dc in next. repeat 1-2-1-2 pattern around. (21 st)

Row 4 –  repeat row 3 (30 st)

Row 5 – repeat row 3 (44 st)

Row 6 – ch 2, 1 dc in next 4 st, 2 dc in next. repeat 1-1-1-1-1-2-1-1-1-1-1-2 around (51 st)

Row 7 and 8 – ch 2, 1 dc in each st around (51 st)

 

Row 9 – (start of earflaps)

          ch 2, 8 dc (1 hdc in each st here and throughout earflaps)

*9 hdc, ch 2, turn. 9 hdc, ch 2, turn. sk 1 st, 8 hdc, ch 2, turn. sk 1 st, 7 hdc, ch 2, turn. sk 1 st, 6 hdc, ch 2, turn. sk 1 st, 5 hdc, ch 2, turn. sk 1 st, 4 hdc*

sl st down earflap 1 towards front of the hat. when you get to the end of the earflap 16 dc (1 in each st)

repeat between the *

sl st down earflap 2 towards the back of the hat. when you get to the end of the earflap 8 dc (1 in each st) finish off.

Row 10 – join next color (I used dark brown) 1 sc in each stitch around. finish off and weave in ends.

 

Ears – (make two) I used cream for my ears but you could switch up the colors for more contrast.

7 dc in a magic ring, ch 2, turn. dc in each st. finish off and pull ring tight. Sew ears onto hat and weave in ends.

For eyes, I used dark brown and stitched 2 curves into the bottom of the hat to make the bear look like it’s sleeping.

 

Well I hope you all like my bear and I would love to see your versions so feel free to comment with links to your projects.

Slouchy Hat

This hat probably has my favorite color combination. I just love the teal and the cream. It worked up in a flash and is very warm. Win  :)

This pattern isn’t mine. You can find it HERE

Beautiful Cowl

This is a gift for my Bestie… And it took FOREVER to finish… Seriously, the loooooooooooooooooooongest project I have ever done. But totally worth it. It is so beautiful and I just know my girl is going to love it!

Please excuse the stray string in the photo above, I hadn’t sew in my edges yet when I took the photo.

This pattern is not mine. You can find it HERE

Cute little Sandals

One of my beautiful cousins is having a baby in December so I’ve been in baby mode. This is one of the first projects I made for her.

This pattern is not mine. You can find the pattern HERE