Forget-Me-Not Flower C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

You know what they say, "April showers bring May-Flowers"! Our landscape in San Diego has been covered in flowers. We have been having regular rain at least once a week (which is really unusual for our area), and so all of the plants have been getting plenty of water. The unfortunate thing about this is that it waters the flowers AND the weeds! But I am definitely one to focus on the beauty I see around me, and I love seeing the flowers on all the hillsides as I drive around. This is why I designed this forget-me-not blanket, with a dainty blue flower. They remind me of the flowers I enjoy every day! I hope you enjoy this new design!

Tulip Flower C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

April brings the beginnings of SPRING! The weather is warming up, and the ground is thawing, signaling to bulb plants that it is time to wake up! This is why I chose to make April's design feature a gorgeous tulip! I am very excited to share with you my Tulip C2C Blanket design!

Lavender Blanket - C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

I'm excited to share this next design in my storybook flower series. This design features a Lavender plant- and I can almost smell it through the screen! I plan on planting several lavender plants in my yard when we finally re-landscape it. They are one of my favorite flowers! I hope you enjoy this design!

Rose C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

Here is the next design in my flower series. This is the Rose C2C Blanket. This one was also inspired by the storybook cover style and while I wanted to continue with the two-toned design trend, I just loved the depth that the color brings to the rose. I hope you enjoy this design!

And I have also included yarn colors for a WHITE rose variation! Doesn't it look so COOL!

Lily Flower C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

I can't believe it's been a YEAR since my last blog post. I am SHOCKED because I have still been crafting plenty, and still coming up with designs, but I just couldn't take anything to the finish line! BUT NOT THIS YEAR! I'm so excited to get back into the saddle and start publishing my patterns again. 

I hope you love this one! This is the Lily C2C Blanket. I was inspired by the style of classic storybook covers and wanted to create designs that featured flowers in that style. So this was born! I have a few more coming out, so be on the look out!

Dandelion Wish C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

Here's my last pattern release for the month of April! I mean, we really need a lot of outdoor time because of the stay-at-home orders from the Coronavirus. I noticed some dandelion weeds growing in my lawn 😲. But that reminded me of how beautiful Dandelion flowers are, and the joy of my childhood years blowing tons of dandelion flowers. Now, as a gardener, I cringe as I watch the seeds spread across the sky.... I'm always apologizing in my head for spreading weeds, but I can't help it! they're so fun to blow!
This blanket is a tribute to the beauty of a blowing Dandelion flower. Make a wish! This blanket is just for you!

Flower Burst C2C Blanket - FREE GRAPH

So far, I've been posting a lot of geometric C2C patterns. I wanted to take a quick break and share something floral and beautiful! But don't worry, I have some more geometric patterns to release!

Check out my newest pattern: Flower Burst!

Flower Puddles Blanket - Genie

I couldn't help myself and I made another blanket using the Lion Brand Mandala Yarn. You can read where I got the pattern in my original post: Flower Puddles Blanket.

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase an item through one of the links on this site, I may receive a small percentage of that sale. See my full disclosure policy.Thank you for helping support this blog!

I love the edgy feel that this blanket has. It is very different from the other two I made from Mandala Yarn, that were both a rainbow color scheme. I used two skeins of the yarn called Genie with one skein of Caron Simply Soft in White.

The colors worked in rounds perfectly. My technique of blending the two strands of Mandala yarn at just the right moment makes for a perfectly blended blanket.

I simply adore this pattern. The ripples really stand out and the striking colors make it look so bold!

The flower edging is one of my favorite features of this blanket. The colors happened to work in my favor and ended with a nice solid colored edge. It puts a clean finish on this blanket.

If you love grays, whites, and teals, you should consider purchasing this blanket from my Etsy shop! Or you can custom order a blanket just like this using a different blend of Mandala yarn!

Flower Puddles Blanket - Mandala

A while back I found a whole bunch of skeins of Lion Brand Mandala yarn in the most gorgeous colors. The best part? They were on CLEARANCE, so I got nearly every skein the store had left!

It was when I got this yarn that I began searching for a fun pattern to use this beautiful yarn that I stumbled on the Flower Puddles Blanket. I first tried to make it out of the yarn by itself, but I found that I couldn't get the gauge to be right, it kept bubbling!!

So after figuring out the gauge a bit better with other yarn types, I finally decided to give the Mandala yarn a go!

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase an item through one of the links on this site, I may receive a small percentage of that sale. See my full disclosure policy.Thank you for helping support this blog!

I decided to use two strands of the Valkryie Mandala yarn with one strand of a neutral white using Caron's Simply Soft yarn. I might use a different neutral color depending on the color scheme of the Mandala yarn.

I found that the three strands and size N-15 hook worked beautifully. I started one strand halfway through the gray, and the other strand I started at the purple. I staggered the mandala yarns so that it would create a more blended effect, instead of harsh, unpredictable color changes.

I absolutely love love love how it turned out! The colors did blend nicely and I only had to piece together one ball of yarn to get the colors to match and continue the pattern.

I loved how this one turned out so much that I made a second one out of the yarn called ThunderBird

I used the same technique as the first blanket, just using a different color scheme! I loved the colors and how bright they were!

I hope you have enjoyed these photos and start crafting something beautiful!

Spring Garden Scarf - Free Pattern

This is a very fun pattern you can do to celebrate spring! I know the Handmade Especially for You charity would love these scarves because they are certainly going to brighten up the day of whoever the recipient will be!

If you enjoyed this pattern, please consider making an extra one to donate to the charity (HandmadeEspecially.org) or purchase my PDF pattern document so I can make one on your behalf.

Materials:

Size K crochet hook

Soft yarn (medium weight)

Sewing needle

Gauge:

Initial chain should measure around 65 inches. If needed, add or subtract multiples of 3 to pattern to change size.

Special Stitches:

2-DC cluster: *Yarn over, insert hook into stitch, yarn over, draw yarn through stitch, yarn over, draw yarn through first two loops on hook, repeat from *, finishing off by drawing yarn through remaining 3 loops.

Pattern:

Chain 132

Row 1: 1dc in 4th ch from hk, dc in each ch across. Turn

Row 2: Ch 3(counts as dc), 1dc in next 2 sts, *skip 2, ch 2, 1dc in next st. Repeat from * across, ending with 1dc in each of the last 3 sts. Turn

Row 3: Ch 3(counts as dc), 1dc in next 2 sts, skip 1, *(2-dc cluster [leaf], 1dc [stem], 2-dc cluster [leaf]) in the next st, skip 2, repeat from * across, ending with skip 1, 1 dc each of the last 3 sts. Turn

Row 4: Ch 3(counts as dc), 1dc in next 2 sts, CHANGE TO FLOWER COLOR, *(2-dc cluster in space between first leaf and stem, be sure to catch ALL 3 strands of the stitch, then 2-dc cluster on top of the stem stitch, then 2-dc cluster in the space between stem and last leaf, be sure to catch ALL three strands of the stitch.) skip next st and repeat from * across. After finishing the last flower change back to the scarf color and 1dc in each of the last 3 sts. Turn

Row 5: Ch 3(counts as dc), 1dc in next 2 sts, *skip all flower stitches, only dc in between flower motifs, ch 2, 1dc in next flower space (catching all three strands of stitch). Repeat from * across, ending with 1dc in the last 3 sts. Turn

Row 6: Ch 3(counts as dc), 1dc in each st across.

Fasten off.

Weave in ends.

Beautiful Day

It has been such a beautiful day. I had to post this beautiful photo of the sunflowers I made with a stem from the bookmark pattern.

Be creative. Make something beautiful. Enjoy life!

Flower Bookmark Stem - Free Pattern

Wouldn't it be nice to have a super cute bookmark that stayed in place? Look no further because now you can crochet one that is so adorable and super easy to make.

Materials:
Light Worsted or Worsted Weight Yarn
Size H crochet hook
Sewing needle

Flower for attaching to stem (use my sunflower or rose patterns!)
 
Gauge:
Works out to be about 13" long using materials listed
 
Pattern:
Leaving a 6" tail, chain 40.

Working into chains, sl st into 2nd ch from hk, 1sc in next ch, 1hdc in next ch, 1 dc in next 3 chs, 1 hdc in next ch, 1 sc in next ch, ch 15, fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing flower.

Tie a flower onto the top end using the long tail.

Optional: Attach a tassel to the long tail

If you are really up for it, you could make yourself a little garden. The tassels look like roots!!!

 Or make yourself a bouquet!

These are so fun and they make great gifts!! Feel free to share the love with your friends!!

Springtime Flowers

I found a really cute flower pattern that I had to make! They are called the Loopy Flowers from Alli on Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/loopy-flower-for-February

Review of pattern: It was a little tricky to figure it out because it wasn't specified that the pattern used UK crochet terms, so wherever it said double crochet you are supposed to do a single crochet (US terms). After I got that figured out I was able to whip these out very quickly.

 

Don't they look so fun!!

 

 

They would look fabulous as an embellishment on a jacket, purse, or blanket.

If you squish the petals down to make them more rounded it adds to the spiral effect!

 

So head on over and check out her pattern. Here's the link again: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/loopy-flower-for-February

Some Christmas Presents

The past few months I have been pretty much non-existent here, and for a pretty good reason:
we bought a house!!

We moved into our first home in the middle of November, so I had been busy with escrow stuff all of October, and moving in/out in November, that all of December has been fixing things around the house, and working on some Christmas presents.

I have some presents I made that I cannot show off yet in case the recipient views it here on my blog. But here are some Christmas gifts friends commissioned me to make:

First, a Minecraft creeper beanie for a husband, and two beanies for two kids with attachable flowers. Adorable, right?!

Petite Rose Applique - Free Pattern

I have looked for and read many different rose patterns available across the internet... and they were either too big (like 3 rows!) or too small (rose bud, instead of blooming). I created this pattern to satisfy my need for a petite rose that is EASY and QUICK to work up. Enjoy!!

Materials:

Size F crochet hook
Light Worsted or Worsted Weight Yarn
Sewing needle

Gauge:
Works out to be 2 inches wide using materials listed

Pattern:
Leaving a long tail, Ch 26.
Row 1: 3 dc in 3^rd ch from hk. *sc in next ch, 4 dc in next ch. Repeat across, ending the row with a sl st. Finishing :  Roll the rose and sew it together through the bottom!

You can add a leaf to the applique and make it 100 times more gorgeous! Click here for the leaf pattern

Baby Barefoot Sandals - Basic

These baby barefoot sandals are SO CUTE! This pattern is for a basic triangle shape that you can embellish however you want. This is the first of many baby barefoot sandals I've come up with. Enjoy!

Materials:
Light worsted weight yarn
Size F hook
Yarn needle

Notes:
Starting chain counts as a double crochet throughout pattern
I tend to crochet very tightly, so if you know you crochet loosely, you may want to use a smaller hook. You also may increase the starting chain from 2 to 3 if you need to.

Pattern:
0-6 Months
Start with a magic loop: Ch 2,  dc twice into the magic loop. DO NOT TIGHTEN
Row 1: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across. (4 dc)
Row 2: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (5 dc)
Row 3: Ch 2. Hdc in same st, sc in next 2 sts, hdc in last two sts.  (6 sts)
Edging: Ch 1, sc down the left side of the sandal, down to the magic loop. (Sc 1, ch 5, sc1) in the magic loop. Tighten. sc back up the right side of the sandal.
Ties: When you get to the end of edging, ch 30 to form the first tie. Attach yarn to other corner and ch 30 to form second tie. Weave in all ends.

6-18 Months
Start with a magic loop: Ch 2, dc twice into the magic loop. DO NOT TIGHTEN
Row 1: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across. (4 dc)
Row 2: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (5 dc)
Row 3: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (6 dc)
Row 4: Ch 2. Hdc in same st, sc in next 2 sts, hdc in last two sts. (7 dc)
Edging: Ch 1, sc down the left side of the sandal, down to the magic loop. (Sc 1, ch 6, sc1) in the magic loop. Tighten. sc back up the right side of the sandal.
Ties: When you get to the end of edging, ch 30 to form the first tie. Attach yarn to other corner and ch 30 to form second tie. Weave in all ends.

24 Months
Start with a magic loop: Ch 2, dc twice into the magic loop. DO NOT TIGHTEN
Row 1: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across. (4 dc)
Row 2: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (5 dc)
Row 3: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (6 dc)
Row 4: Ch 2. Dc in same st, and dc across (7 dc)
Edging: Ch 1, sc down the left side of the sandal, down to the magic loop. (Sc 1, ch 6, sc1) in the magic loop. Tighten. sc back up the right side of the sandal.
Ties: When you get to the end of edging, ch 30 to form the first tie. Attach yarn to other corner and ch 30 to form second tie. Weave in all ends.

Embellishment flower:
Start with magic loop. Ch 3. In the magic loop *2 dc, ch 2, sl st, and repeat 5 times. Tighten  magic loop and attach to sandal!

Kanzashi Flower Hairclips

So while I was browsing Etsy one day, I saw a beautiful flower hair clip made from fabric. I just had to make one for my little girl. I found out that they're typically called "kanzashi" flowers. Here is what I did: I found some fabric and cut out little squares and circles (I wanted to see the difference), stitched them together and jeweled the centers. Here are the results:

The one at the top was made from squares. The bottom three out of circles. Left is out of 5 petals, the rest 6 petals, but different sizes. The purple one is my favorite! You may see some of these coming to the Etsy shop soon!

Want to make your own? Here's one of the MANY sources for instructions
http://offbeatbride.com/2010/12/diy-semi-kanzashi-style-fabric-flowers-part-2

Sunflower Crochet Pattern

So, I'm working on a blanket for my third child arriving sometime early May. I've also got a headwrap planned made from the same pattern as the blanket once I finish! Meanwhile, I decided to post my little sunflower pattern that I use to make hair clips.

Sunflower Applique

Materials:

Size H crochet hook
Worsted weight yarn, in brown and yellow
Sewing needle

Gauge:
Works out to be 3 inches across with materials listed.

Pattern:
Ch 3
Row 1: dc 13 in 3^rd ch from hk. Sl st with first dc and fasten off. (you can alternatively use the magic ring and DC
Row 2: Attach yellow anywhere, (ch3, Tr, ch3, sl st) in same dc. Then (sl st, ch3, tr, ch3, sl st) in each DC around. Fasten off.

Irish Rose - Free Pattern

I've had many people asking for the pattern to the Irish Rose I had attached to the scalloped beanie posted on the blog. The one on the flower only has two layers, but the traditional Irish Rose has 3. Here is the pattern to the one pictured above. If you like your layers to be larger, follow the pattern for the Large Flower. I will get a photo of that one up soon.

Materials:

Size H crochet hook
Worsted Weight or Sport Weight Yarn
Sewing needle

Gauge:.

Not Important, but using sport weight yarn the flower will end up being about 3.5 inches across

Notes:
Pattern is worked by making a row of petals, then chaining the next row of petals behind the previous row made.

Pattern:

Small:

Ch 4, Join with sl st to form ring
Round 1: Chain 3 (counts as one dc), *ch 1, dc into loop. Repeat from * 4 more times. Join with slip stitch to top of ch 3
Round 2: Ch 1, *4 dc in ch-sp, sc in dc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1.
Round 3: Working in back of flower, *sc around the post, ch 3. Repeat from * around, and sl st to first sc.
Round 4: Ch 1, *5 dc in 3-ch-sp, sl st in each sc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1.
Round 5: Working in back of flower again, *sc around the post, ch 4. Repeat from * around, and sl st to first sc.
Round 6: Ch 1, *6 dc in 4-ch-sp, sl st in each sc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1 and fasten off.

Large:

Ch 4, Join with sl st to form ring
Round 1: Chain 3 (counts as one dc), *ch 1, dc into loop. Repeat from * 4 more times. Join with slip stitch to top of ch 3
Round 2: Ch 1, *4 dc in ch-sp, sc in dc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1.
Round 3: Working in back of flower, *sc around the post, ch 4. Repeat from * around, and sl st to first sc.
Round 4: Ch 1, *6 dc in 4-ch-sp, sl st in each sc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1.
Round 5: Working in back of flower again, *sc around the post, ch 4. Repeat from * around, and sl st to first sc.
Round 6: Ch 1, *8 dc in 5-ch-sp, sl st in each sc. Repeat from * around. Join with a sl st to ch-1 and fasten off.

Crochet Flower Hair Clips

So I used that irish rose I previously posted about and made a clip out of it! I also wanted to make another flower clip for my sister (she does hair) where I made a simple flower, and this cute leaf from this site