Get Hooked
I finally finished Shiny – the second Pteranoodon I have made. She turned out pretty good although she is just a tad smaller than the other one. I was hoping she would be much smaller.
I plan to redo her maybe with less rows. I might try a very lightweight yarn but not sure if I have blue in my stash. If not, then I will probably just start the mom and do the other two kids since I have plenty of green in all weights.
I’m making the Pteranodon family from Dinosaur Train for my daughter. The pattern is from PlanetJune.com. It worked up really fast and was easy. I’m working on Shiny next. This one is going to be the dad. My daughter also wants Buddy who is a T-Rex. So that will probably be my project for the next week or so.
This year I plan to make a lot more Christmas gifts and think some dinosaurs would be perfect for my nephews. Since I’m in dinosaur mode, maybe I will do a few more to get a head start on Christmas gifts.
I’ve been crocheting more cowboy hats. This one is in hot pink and is just adorable. I changed the edging from the Stitch and Bitch pattern since I found the stitch it used to be very hard. It took way too long for me to go around the hat.
Think I will take a break from hats. I have been working on a few different ones all summer. I do plan to make some hats for Christmas, so I can’t take too long of a break.
This time of year my cups began to sweat as soon as I pour my drink. Fast food cups are the worst to sweat profusely. I decided to make my own drink cozy since napkins work well but only for a while. I’ve tested my crochet drink cozy and it works great.
Here is the pattern for the crochet drink cozy. Use cotton yarn and a size 4 crochet hook. Gauge isn’t important since you will be making it to fit your cup.
Being Chain 2
Six single crochet into 2nd chain from hook
Next row, 2 single crochet into each single crochet(12)
2 single crochet, then 1 single crochet around (18)
2 single crochet, then single crochet into next two SC, repeat for round(24)
2 single crochet, then single crochet into next three SC, repeat for round(30)
Check your circle. If it is big as the base of the cup, then stop adding increases. In fact, if the circle is a little smaller than the bottom, don’t add any more increases.
Start doing even single crochet rows with no increases if your circle is large enough. If not continue the pattern until it’s large enough – ie next round would be 2 SC then single crochet into next four and repeat for round.
Make four single crochet rounds
Change colors if desired and do 3 even rounds of SC
Change colors if desired and do 2 rounds of SC
Change colors if desired and do 2 rounds of SC
You can continue in the round if you want a taller cozy.
One trip down the yarn aisle of your local hobby store will reveal that there are a lot of yarns on the market. A lot of yarns are suitable for amigurumi. Generally you want to stay with a medium worsted weight yarn. Bulky yarn may not produce what you were hoping from your amigurumi. Light weight yarn can be used for amigurumi but the gauge may be smaller; you may have to add extra increasing rounds to get the size you want.
When looking for yarn to make amigurumis, you want to look for good, all-purpose yarn. Acrylic worsted weight makes a great choice for amigurumi yarn. There are many colors and the yarn is durable. Cotton yarn is also a good choice for amigurumi too. You will want to use a medium weight yarn for your amigurumi. This is a great weight to work with when making crocheted dolls and toys.
Before buying yarn, check your stash since you might find your yarn there. Making amigurumi toys doesn’t take a lot of yarn. If you have a some left over from another project, then try using it. Sometimes you may need two or more colors so finding yarn from your stash will save you money. If you are making a toy for a child or baby, then choose an amigurumi yarn that is soft. Using a baby yarn or cotton would both be fine choices.
Bottom line is that you can practically use any yarn for amigurumi. Medium worsted weight works best but others can certainly be used. Homespun or bulky yarn probably would be difficult to work with for small amigurumi. Acrylic or cotton yarn works well but wool and other fibers can be used with good results.
I made these two minions from Despicable me for my nephews. It was their birthday and I had gotten them gift cards. I thought it’d be cute to have the minions ‘hold’ them since we saw the movie a few weeks ago. I’m working on a pattern that hopefully I will post later this week. I just need to finish it up.
They are about 3 inches tall and were a hit. In fact, I’m making two more this week. One is for my niece and one is for my daughter.
I have tried unsuccessfully to learn how to knit. When I came across a technique called knooking – knitting with a crochet hook – I knew I had to know more. I found a knooking blog that explained how to do this technique with a modified crochet hook. There is also a knooking group on Ravelry that is a great resource.
I had made a small dishcloth by knooking. Then I smashed my thumb in my truck door. So I’m waiting for it to heal completely before I try knooking again. Here is my dishcloth –
I’m looking forward to getting back to this technique. It is kind of cool to be able to knit with my crochet hook.
Teacups in crochet are so cute. They make a great fun toy for little girls. This pattern is from Lion Brand and is actually supposed to be a teacup pincushion. It was really easy to work up and took only about an hour. Four teacups, four plates, and a teapot would be an adorable Christmas gift. This is one pattern I need to keep in mind when planning out crochet gifts.
I made these for a swap. They were on my partner’s wist although they weren’t in crochet but felt. I used embroidery thread for the body and stuffed them with a chick pea. Stuffing wasn’t going so well. Then I used a ribbon to make an acorn top and attached it to a button. Then I hot glued the button to the top of the acorn. I had made about 10 and then my daughter noticed them. She took about half of them, so I had to make a few more. They didn’t take that long. I just start with a chain 2 and then six single crochet into the second chain from hook. Then a round of 2 single crochet into each stitch. Next an even row of single crochet followed by a decrease of in every three stitches.
They turned out almost nearly what I had hoped. I would have been happier not using the hot glue but not sure how I could attach it to the crochet.
While watching an episode of Spongebob Squarepants, I noticed the Squidward was reading an issue of Modern Crochet. I was able to use my camera to get a picture of it.
Not to critique but I’ve never crocheted with knitting needles before. Still it was kind of nice to see crochet ‘featured’ on Spongebob. There are so many Spongebob crochet projects. While Squidward as looking at the magazine, he said something like, “oh I’ve never seen that before.”