An anniversary gift…

To celebrate my first blog birthday, I thought I should give all my readers a little gift. So I sat down a couple of days ago with my hook and designed a little flower. I got carried away, I couldn’t just make one…….I became a little addicted.

Here it is:

Anniversary Crochet Flower
Anniversary Crochet Flower

I have written the pattern below, but I have also charted it. If you want the chart you can find it as a free download on Ravelry here.  It is also available on LoveCrochet here.

So here is the pattern:

ANNIVERSARY CROCHET FLOWER

This is written in English crochet terms and uses standard abbreviations.
It is made in the round, like a little motif. It is written as if the same colour of yarn is used throughout, so if you want to use a different colour, just break the yarn at the end of the round, fasten off and start with new yarn at the start of the next round.

Abbreviations used:
MR = magic ring – hold thread in hand and wrap working yarn around forefinger twice to create ring, slip ring off your finger and insert hook to pick up first st, 1 ch, then work the necessary sts for round 1 and close the ring tightly by pulling the loose end.
st = stitch
ss = slip stitch
sp = space
ch = chain
dc = double crochet
tr = treble
htr = half treble

I used a 4mm hook (US G/6) and some DK weight yarn, but you can use any yarn as long as you use a suitable hook.

3 colour flower
3 colour flower

Round 1 – make a MR, 1 ch (does not count as a st), 6 dc in ring, pull end tight, ss to 1st dc to join. (NOTE: sometimes this ss wants to be a st! And you may find when you do round 2 that you have one st too many, to remedy this just do 5 dc not 6 dc)
Round 2 – 1 ch (does not count as a st), [1 dc, 3 ch] in each st around, join to 1st dc with a ss (you have 6 3ch sps)
Round 3 – 1 ch (does not count as a st), [1 dc, 1 htr, 3 tr, 1 htr, 1 dc] in each 3ch sp around, join to 1st dc 1ith a ss. Break yarn and fasten off.

Sew in all ends, then enjoy!

You can get a different look depending on how many colours of yarn you use. For some flowers I used one colour for rounds 1 and 2 and a second colour for round 3. On others I used a different colour each round.

What to make with these flowers? Well, lots of things – brooches, hair clips, embellishments, string up as bunting………….just use your imagination. And please let me know what you make.

Happy anniversary xx

Now for the legal stuff – I designed this, it’s all my own work and is copyright. Please feel free to make as many as you like, but do not copy the pattern and please credit me with the design. Thank you!

Almost a year!

I’ve been blogging for almost a year now, I know because I’ve just paid a renewal fee on my domain name! I can’t believe how quickly this last year has gone. I guess I must be enjoying life because I haven’t stopped to review or consider the year, I’ve just ploughed on and enjoyed!

Today I took another big step – I started a facebook page. Just search for Agrarian Artisan on Facebook and you should find me!

In the next few days I will publish the next hexagon in The Hexagon Project 2014 and self publish the Molly Shawlette. And that will bring me to 101 designs (at least that is what Ravelry tells me!). Wow! I need a drink!

Here’s the prototype of Molly:

Molly Prototype
Molly Prototype

And a glimpse of motif no 4 of The Hexagon Project 2014:

Hexagon Project 2014 no 4
Hexagon Project 2014 no 4

Happy knitting and crochet xxx

On a roll…..

Somehow I set myself a challenge, I don’t know how or why I did it – it was one of those happy accidents. The challenge is to design one crochet scarf a month and it is very much a personal challenge. But whatever the how or why, it is rolling along nicely. At the end of last week I published my May crochet scarf and I am already well advanced with June.

So here is my roll call:

January Crochet Scarf
January Crochet Scarf
February Crochet Scarf
February Crochet Scarf
March Crochet Scarf
March Crochet Scarf
April Crochet Scarf
April Crochet Scarf
May Crochet Scarf
May Crochet Scarf

All different, and all fun to make! I’m on a roll now but will I keep it up to the end of the year? Let’s see.

Happy crocheting xx

Home Alone 2

If last weekend was rare, then this was unprecedented! Yes my readers, he was away again! It was a last minute decision and he was only away for one night, and I had planned some chores this weekend so I didn’t quite have as much time to do things just for me.

I did wake up on Saturday with ideas of doing some shopping. Unfortunately it rained, and rained, and rained some more. It was so bad I much preferred to stay inside, despite being in desperate need of a new camera, with a few more bells and whistles than my current one – and a replacement battery for said ancient beast. But even this desperation did not encourage me to go shopping! So I had half a day and one evening to fill, but no operational camera to share progress.

However, fortune shone on me and my brother arrived carrying his camera just as I was contemplating braving the camera on my phone. So today’s photographs are courtesy of him. I should add that this wasn’t some form of sibling telepathy. Photography is one of his hobbies, so he carries his camera with him most weekends.

My crafting comprised 2 items. First I finished this month’s Janie Crowfoot mystery blanket instalment:

Janie Crow May
Janie Crow May

It includes the piece which I think is destined for the centre of the blanket and is my favourite so far.

Earlier in the week I received a package from The Old Piggery. I had visited their stand at Wonderwool in search of some scissor keeper kits but they had none. However, they took my email and promised to send me details. Now I really wasn’t expecting an email from them, because my previous experience of leaving my email at a show never yielded any results. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised to receive an email soon after Wonderwool offering me a choice of kits and providing photographs so I could choose the colours I wanted. This is the sort of customer service I like and I purchased several kits. So I spent an hour or so making one up yesterday:

Scissor keeper
Scissor keeper

Whilst visiting them at Wonderwool I was very taken with a skein of yarn that I spotted – the colourway is Moss and I managed to find two 25g skeins of it in laceweight. So last night, I wound the first skein and started my ‘June’ crochet scarf. I have only done a little but already the colour pools have stunned me. I hope it looks as good on film, but that will be a photo for another day – you will have to be patient.

Happy knitting and crocheting xxx

A long weekend

This weekend is one of those long weekends in the UK which result from having a Bank Holiday – yay! I have had a lovely quiet weekend because my husband has been away partaking of his hobby on a racetrack at Castle Donington. So what do I do when he is away – well this weekend I planned absolutely nothing!

It is glorious to be able to wake up and do just what you like with no-one getting under your feet. Apart from the cat, that is. So we (the cat and I) have done just as we like. Naturally this involves a little crafting (crochet) but it also includes a little gardening (pruning), rather a lot of tidying (I have moved my craft room around for the 3rd time in a year – I think I need a bigger room), an unusual amount of cleaning (I cleaned all my kitchen cupboards and threw out lots of items that were chipped, cracked or just plain useless) and plenty of RnR.

Ok, I confess the crochet wasn’t exactly ‘little’. The May instalment of the Kaleidoscope mystery blanket came out this weekend, so I spent Saturday evening in front of the television watching all 6 episodes of the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice back to back, with crochet hook in hand and cat cuddling next to me (except on several occasions when said cat decided the yarn was the best play thing in the world, even the decoy ball of acrylic I always have handy wasn’t good enough for her!). Sunday night wasn’t quite so intense but did involve crochet, as did Monday (a bit in the morning and another bit in the afternoon) – so I have finished May.

May Kaleidoscope - just getting a little big to photograph on the table
May Kaleidoscope – just getting a little big to photograph on the table

Part of this drive to finish May was because I was expecting the Janie Crow mystery blanket instalment on 5th May (why oh why did I challenge myself to do 2 mystery blankets?) and had to finish Kaleidoscope before it came out. Except I made a mistake – the next Janie Crow instalment comes out on 8th May – so I have 3 days yet. Ah well, maybe I should do some knitting………!

Happy knitting and crocheting xxx