Tag Archives: afghans

July 30, 2011 · 10:49 am

Hooded Baby Blanket

So I made this afghan a few weeks ago.  I had been holding off on crocheting anything for the baby for a couple different reasons.  First, I felt so crappy during my first trimester that I didn’t even feel like crocheting anything for two full months after I found out I was pregnant.  And second, I wanted to wait until we found out if we were having a boy or a girl so that I could crochet in appropriate colors.  But fortunately I started feeling better at just under 3 months, and at about a week before my sonogram at 19 weeks I couldn’t stand it anymore and had to crochet something.

A fellow blogger had posted this baby blanket (pictured at right) she had designed on The Blue Brick and a few of us who commented on the post were able to convince her to write out the pattern.  She did so, and graciously shared the pattern!  Click on the picture with the yellow hood to see the pattern.

Since we didn’t yet know the sex of the baby I didn’t want to crochet my traditional Ripple Baby Afghan yet.  So I opted for this great little piece in neutral colors.  It’s very simply done in rounds of double crochets with shell increases at the corners of each round, and was very enjoyable to work on on my bus ride into work a few days that week.  Once I got up to the last round and the hood I decided put the piece down for a few days until after the sonogram and then do it in either peach or blue.  As you can see I did peach.  Yes, we are having a little girl!  I did struggle with the pattern on the hood a little bit and I could not get it to come out quite like the original picture, but it’s a really cute piece and lovely for the first afghan that I have crocheted for my daughter!

This did get me thinking though.  I’ll still do my traditional  Ripple Baby Afghan, but I should probably also design my own baby afghan in honor of my baby girl.  I think I’ll do something in white that we can use for her Baby Blessing – perhaps with some pink ribbon embellishments.  But I can’t decide if I want to do something square or another version of a ripple afghan.  We’ll have to see about that.

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March 27, 2011 · 11:12 am

Ripple Baby Afghan

Alright everyone.  Here is a project I have made probably more than a dozen times for so many friends and family when they were expecting a baby.  I’ll of course be making one for myself now – as soon as we figure out if we have a little boy or a little girl.

If I have made one of these for you, PLEASE send me an email with a picture of it.  If you have one with your child using it that’s even better!  I would love to do a post with pictures of several of these gifts!

I taught myself to crochet from this pattern book.  Some of the patterns in this leaflet are rather dated as it was originally published in 1989.  Certainly not new anymore, but it still works for beginners.  I even wore out my first copy and bought another.  You can still order this leaflet on the Leisure Arts website for just $6.95.  Click on the picture for the link to the listing.

The ripple baby afghan was one of the first afghans I’d ever done, and has been one of my favorite patterns for a long  time.  It is made with double crochet stitches and shells, skipping stitches to make the ripple effect.  I like to use Caron Simply Soft yarn to make this, although I have been very disappointed to find that they have discontinued the very pretty Victorian Rose color that I like to use for the pink.

I hope to see many emails here shortly of your pictures!

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March 12, 2011 · 8:45 am

Star Motif Pattern

You can use this pattern for so many different things.  You can connect them to make a scarf by single crocheting along the edging, or you can use the join-as-you-go method to create an afghan!  I was looking for a star motif pattern and just could not find anything that I liked, so I did it myself.

Materials:

  • 2  colors worsted weight yarn
  • Size I Crochet hook.

Gauge:  Not critical, but you can increase or decrease the hook size if you want a larger or smaller star.  This one measures about 7 inches from the tip of the left arm to the tip of the right arm.

Round 1: With first color,  ch 5, join with sl st in first ch to form a loop,  ch 1, 25 sc in loop, join with sl st to first sc.

Round 2: Ch 1, sc in same st, hdc in next sc, [dc, ch1, dc] in next sc, hdc in next sc, sc in next sc, * sc in next sc, hdc in next sc, [dc, ch 1, dc] in next sc, hdc in next sc, sc in next sc, repeat from* three times more, join with sl st to first sc, finish off.

Round 3: Join next color with sc in first hdc of any section, hdc in next st, [2dc, ch2, 2 dc] in ch 1 sp, hdc in next st, sc in next st, skip next 2 sc, * sc in next st, hdc in next st [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in ch 1 sp, hdc in next st, sc in next st, skip next 2 sc, repeat from * 3 times more, join with sl st to first sc.

Round 4: Sl st in next st, ch1, sc in same st, hdc in each of next 2 sts, [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, hdc in each of next 2 sts, sc in next st, skip next 2 sts, * sc in next st, hdc in each of  next 2 sts [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, hdc in each of next 2 sts, sc in next sc, skip next 2 sts, repeat from * 3 times more, finish off.

Round 5: Join next color with sc in second st of any section, hdc in each of next 3 sts, [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, hdc in each of next 3 sts,  sc in next st, skip next 2 sts, *sc in next st, hdc in each of next 3 sts, [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, hdc in each of next 3 sts, sc in next st, skip next 2 sts, repeat from * 3 times more, join with sl st to first sc.

Round 6: Sl st in next st, ch 2, dc in each of next 4 sts, [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, dc in each of next 4 sts, hdc in next st, skip next 2 sts, *hdc in next st, dc in next 4 sts, [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] in next ch 2 sp, dc in each of next 4 sts, hdc in next st, skip next 2 sts, repeat from * 3 times more, join with sl st to first ch 2, finish off.

Weave all yarn ends.

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March 8, 2011 · 8:02 am

The First Lacy Afghan

I finally found this picture.  I knew I had it somewhere.  This was the first time I made the “Timeless Lace” afghan mentioned in my previous Lacy Afghan post.

This is my Aunt Becky on the left at Christmas oh…what, 10 or 11 years ago I guess?  Gosh I don’t remember.  Maybe more than that.   The Timeless Lace afghan was her present that year.

This picture was taken in my Grandma and Grandpa Showers’ living room.  I can just feel the bustle of activity at the big family Christmas get-together when I look at this picture.  {Insert warm fuzzy here.}

Grandma is gone now, but see the ribbon goldfish mobile hanging in front of the window in the background?  That was hers, and Grandpa was nice enough to let me have that after she passed.  It’s hanging in front of the window in my livingroom now.  I just love it, and I think of her every time I look at it!

Anyway.  Sorry, I digress.  Back to the afghan.  I remember Aunt Becky being very excited when I gave this to her that year and I hope that she has enjoyed it!

I believe I’ve made two more of these afghans using this pattern.  If you received one of them, please send me a picture and I’ll post it!

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March 5, 2011 · 1:19 pm

Idea – Spiderman Afghan

Awhile back I saw a picture of a Spiderman Afghan while I was surfing the net.  I immediately thought that I needed to make one for each of my nephews!  The site I found it on had no pattern but that wasn’t a big deal.  The ripple baby afghan that I’ve made probably a dozen times (I actually haven’t posted about that yet) would work perfectly just by modifying the colors and adding the rounds of black.

When I went searching for the picture again to include on this post I found a LOT of them.  (Go ahead.  Google images for “Spiderman Afghan” and see how many you get.) And one of them even linked to (drumroll please) a pattern!  Click on the image for the link to the website with this pattern.  After looking through the pattern I’m not actually sure if I will use it or not.  I already had some ideas for how to modify my ripple baby afghan so I might just do that.  But this gives me an option anyway.

I’m feeling Christmas presents for the nephews this year!

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January 2, 2011 · 7:28 pm

Lacy Afghan

This is the Christmas present that I gave to my Mother-in-Law this year.  I just love this pattern, it’s so pretty.  I’ve done three of these now, one for my Aunt Becky, one for my Sister for her wedding, and now one for Mom.  The thing that makes this afghan is totally the edging.  The first time I made this I had never done picots before.  I initially found those pretty challenging, but now I’ve also made them with thread.  I hate making them with thread, but I find making them with yarn to be much easier.

The pattern didn’t call for it, however I used cones of cotton yarn instead of worsted weight yarn.  It gives this afghan a really great weight and looks very nice with the picots.

I’ve been trying to think of something really amazing that I could work up to enter in the CGOA contest at the conference in July.  Looking at this I think it would be really neat to create similar pattern for a wrap or a shawl.  I’ll keep you posted on that front.

Stitched in Love,

Tatha

UPDATE: I had someone ask where they could get this pattern.  It’s from a Leisure Arts pattern book: “Best of Terry Kimbrough Afghans.”  The pattern name is “Timeless Lace.”  I did not find the book on Amazon, but you can get it on the Leisure Art’s website for $12.50.  There are 26 afghan patterns in this book and I have made several of them.   Click on the picture for the link to the book on the Leisure Arts website.

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December 18, 2010 · 10:29 am

Variegated Ripple Wrap

I am always cold at work.  For years I had been meaning to make myself a wrap that I could leave at work to help keep me warm and I finally did it last year.  I have several crochet books that just have pattern stitches in them.  They’re really great because they give me ideas for projects, but  I don’t have to be limited by a specific project.  These pattern books provide instructions on the stitches for the pattern but then they tell you how many stitches to do for one repeat, allowing you to make your project as big or as small as you want to.

This pattern called for an open stitch with alternating chain 1 spaces made on one side, but I wanted this wrap to be warmer so I modified it slightly.  I made the open stitches  for the first three rows for decorative appeal, but then I changed to making the closed stitches for the length of the wrap.  Then I changed back to the open stitches for the last three rows on the  far end to finish it off.

Like I’ve said, I just love variegated yarn.  The gradual changes in color are what makes this piece really neat, not  really the pattern.  And the yarn does it as if by magic.  I could not have planned the width of these ripples and how often the color changed to make the color pattern here. 

I made this wrap super long so that after I wrap it around my shoulders, I can also wrap it twice around each of my arms for extra warmth if needed.  I will add another post here shortly with the modified pattern I used to create this wrap.

Stitched in Love,

Tatha

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December 12, 2010 · 12:28 pm

Original hDc

 I started this afghan when I was somewhere around 13 or 14 years old, just after I had first learned how to crochet.  I guess you could say it was the first design I ever made.  I’d decided to make an afghan and just did row after row of half-double crochets with a variegated Red Heart yarn named Wedgewood. 

I love variegated yarns.  I love the crazy patterns they end up making.  So many times I am surprised at what comes out and I never could have planned it to come out better.  I have some other pieces I’ll post shortly that demonstrate this even better. 

So, I worked on this afghan off and on over the years.  It started as a way to explore crocheting further and I soon went on to working from patterns and started making all the gifts I came to love to give.  But every once in a while I would pull this back out and work on it some more.  The row after row of half-double crochets was pretty dull to work on, but the patterns that developed as I worked and changed skeins helped.  The hDc stitch makes a very warm blanket too.  I finally finished it just a couple of years ago. 

It’s just a simple blanket for under the comforter on the bed.  You can see the fading at the top of the picture from the yarn I started with 15 years ago, and the difference from the more recent yarn.  I don’t feel it’s gift quality, but that’s ok because I really just made it for myself anyway.  For me it represents getting past the initial stages of doubt as I learned how to crochet and moving on to having the confidence in myself to be able to crochet anything I set my mind to.  Not to mention, it has been the longest running, unfinished project I’ve ever had.

Stitched in Love,

Tatha

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