Rangers Octopus Loo Roll Cover

 As the title says ... a loo roll cover, in the shape of an octopus, in Rangers FC colours :D

headband tester

pattern test toddler hat

I'll link pattern when available

flower headband

A pattern test for a Ravelry designer... pattern can be found HERE

mathematical hyperbolic crochet and stuff

Yeah I know...havnt been very prolific with posting recently.

So what have I been up to? As the title suggests a little bit of mathematical crochet.

Started off with 6 sc in a ring, work 1 sc, inc 1 sc in a continuous spiral. I have no idea how many stitches were in the final round of the spiral...suffice it to say a helluvalot. As coral follows a similar growing pattern I also "modelled" in with some teeny tortoises...well they look like turtles

As for the tortoise/turtles, they come from the freebie pattern by lucyravenscar ... here are some more because my kids keep asking for another one in a different colour and they only take about 15-20 mins from start to finish

What else...ah...the Liquorice Tic-Tac-Toe. Jean Greenhowe pattern from Bazaar Knits.

Look great now it's finished, but a word of warning to those without patience cos it's a b**ch to sew up.

My kids love it tho, bright,colourful and an easy enough game. 

Finally the one i like the most at the moment. Again by lucyravenscar it's Wicket the Ewok

There are other bits either done or nearly done. Will get them up soon.

Toddler Pirate Beanie

I say Toddler size, but altho it's a little big for a smaller kid add on an extra couple of rounds and it's stretchy enough to do a smaller adult head. An extra round of increases should fit most adults. For the motif I ended up making my own up as i went along...I did try to find one online but none of them looked quite what i wanted. I'll write down what I did as best as I can and edit in a better guide with some pictures when i make another. If you try it and can think of a better way to explain it, or if it makes no sense at all please feel free to comment :)

 On to the instructions.

Materials

 Double Knitting (US worsted/Aus 8ply) wool in black and oddments of white. (the whole hat weighs 36grams so about 35g of black would be enough)

4mm(G-6)  and 2.5mm (C-2) crochet hooks

Large eyed tapestry needle

Abbreviations

hdc - Half Double Crochet ( I tend to use US terms so this is the one I mean Art of Crochet by Teresa HDC)

sc - single crochet Art of Crochet by Teresa SC

st - stitch/es

Directions in brackets ( ) repeated as written and [ ] shows stitch count

Gauge 4.5hdc x 4 rounds per inch approx

Hat

round 1 Using 4mm hook and Black yarn make 2 chain, work 6hdc into 2nd chain from hook, do not join,continue in spiral place stitch/row marker for round end

round 2 Work 2 hdc in each hdc working under all 3 loops of previous row [12hdc]

round 3 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next) to end of round [18hdc]

round 4 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 2 hdcs) to end of round [24hdc]

round 5 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 3 hdcs) to end of round [30hdc]
round 6 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 4 hdcs) to end of round [36hdc]
round 7 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 5 hdcs) to end of round [42hdc]
round 8 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 6 hdcs) to end of round [48hdc]

round 9 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 7 hdcs) to end of round [54hdc]

round 10 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 8 hdcs) to end of round [60hdc]

round 11 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 9 hdcs) to end of round [66hdc]
round 12 Work (2 hdc in next hdc, 1hdc in next 10 hdcs) to end of round [72hdc]

To make an adult or larger kids hat add in one or two more increase rounds here, following pattern will give 78 stitches and 84 stitches respectively, then continue as below with those stitch counts

rounds 13 to 26 work 1 hdc in each hdc (14 rounds total)
round 27 work 1 single crochet changing to white to complete the stitch, then work to complete 1 full round of single crochet and slip stitch to close.

Sew in all ends neatly


Skull and Crossbones motif

Worked in 3 parts, 1 skull and 2 bones, do not make turning chains after the first foundation chain, in my opinion this gives a neater edge in this case
Skull

Using 2.5mm hook and white chain 7
row 1 work 1 sc in 2nd chain from hook and each chain along [6sc] turn,do not make turning chain
row 2-4  work sc in each sc
row 5 work 2sc in first stitch, work to last sc, work 2sc in last stitch [8sc]
row 6 work 2sc in first stitch, work to last sc, work 2sc in last stitch [10sc]
row 7 work 2sc in first stitch, work to last sc, work 2sc in last stitch [12sc]
row 8-11 work 1sc in each sc - 4 rows
row 12 slip stitch into first stitch, work 10sc, slip into last stitch, turn
row 13 miss the slip stitch from previous row and slip into first sc, work 8sc, slip in next stitch, turn
row 14 miss the slip stitch from previous row and slip into first sc, work 6sc, slip in next stitch, turn
row 15 miss the slip stitch from previous row and slip into first sc, work 4sc, slip in next stitch, fasten off

Embroider mouth eyes and nose as shown in picture before sewing skull to hat placing chin of skull 2 inches (5cm) up from contrast trim row.

Crossbones make 2

This is harder to explain and I will get pictures edited in later when I make another to help clarify, but it's basically a chain ,work a nobbly bit,work the chain,make 2 nobbly bits,work other side of chain make nobbly bit and close...bear with me and I'll TRY and write down what I did...

chain 16
in 2nd chain from hook work 1 slip stitch, 3 hdc and 1 slip stitch (5 stitches in one loop)
work in sc along chain to last stitch.
in last stitch work the following, 1 slip stitch, 3 hdc, 1 slip stitch, 3 hdc, 1 slip stitch (this is the double nobbly bit)
continue working down other side of chain to last stitch (the one that was the 1st stitch at the beginning)
in last stitch work 1slip stitch, 3hdc, 1 slip stitch and fasten off

Hopefully this should now look like a bone, if not when sewing to hat the center of the nobbly bits can be pulled in a little to make the indent...again I appologise and I will try to get clearer to understand photos and instructions up ASAP

Sew these onto hat below the skull as shown.

Present hat to toddler and hop he/she likes it :D

The Toadstool Stool

I've been planning this one for a while...in fact I've actually had the reel for over 6 months now and now it's made we have a fair bit of space in the cupboard LOL.

Started off it's life as a giant plastic cottonreel. Well...network cable reel but you know what I mean.

After a bit of discussion making it into a toadstool seemed the best idea. To make it hardwearing I decided on crochet and using 3 strands of wool held together. After a couple of tension circles decided on a 5.5mm hook...6mm was a bit loose and 4.5 was way too tight. I don't have a 5mm hook at the moment (plarn project with plastic hook and it shattered...ooops)

Simple circle...2 chain, 8 single crochet (american SC, or UK double crochet) into the 2nd chain, then working in spirals increasing evenly...ie round 2 increase in each, round 3 work 1 increase 1 round etc...

...and so on until it was slightly larger than the reels diameter (ballpoint pen for size guide).

Then a few rounds straight for depth, then some decreasing and finally a row of double crochet (UK trebles) to thread the attaching tie through.

The base was a bit more difficult to cover. Worked it in again 3 strands, 3 different shades of green to give a mottled colouring. Worked back and forth using shortrow shaping this time to create an open sided doughnut shape to make it easy to attach on. Then some details of 6 white circular spots and a little blue flower for on the base.

Picture below is most of the bits unfixed for a general idea of how it was coming along

Once I had everything done it was time for stitching. Details onto main parts 1st, and then the base. It's sewn together at the radius of the doughnut that was left open, but can easily be unstitched and re-attached should it need washed at any point. Finally a chain stich cord around the edge and pulled tight underneath. Finished result of base was pretty neat.

A closeup of the flower detail.

Next came the hard part of stuffing the seat.

With small kids about things always get spilled, so it needed to be something spashproof. Final descision was a black bag filled with chopped up carrier bags. This made it waterproof but still soft enough to be "shaped".

After much squishing and squashing and duct tape the padding was complete and the top cover popped on, again using a chain stitch cord to tie it on making it easy removed for washing.

I have to say I'm pretty chuffed with myself :-) ...

...and Wee Brian quickly picked up on what it was for.

Now just need another reel to make another one so there can be no fighting between the boys.

Skull Cushion

A skull shaped cushion.

Done in crochet, 2 strands of DK held together using a 4.5mm hook to get a close stitch. Stuffed with cut up carrier bags, which makes it pretty soft and no noisier than a beanbag. Littlest Spawn loves it.

Spiked Stitched Crochet Sock

Freebie pattern HERE thanks to Lion Brand

remember you need to be signed in to see most things here tho.

Turned out quite well, using DK wool and a 4.5mm hook. Will make it's partner later on, and they should fit my 3 yr old over his normal ones to make wellieboot socks.

I like the general pattern, but i think next time i would just use 2 colours...there's a lot of carrying the wool up the inside that could easily get tangled with tiny toes, altho with a couple of washes it should felt into the rest okay.

Handwarmers for Granny

My Granny is now...errr...87 years old. Yup 87 and still going pretty strong LOL.

But like most older peeps she feels the cold in her extremities...just not enough to wear gloves in the house cos then she can't do her crosswords.

SO...fingerless mits...gives the warmth of mittens with fingertips and thumb free to hold her pen.

She already has a bright pink pair I made for a tester size, but she needs at least a wash and a wear...so here's her 2nd set.

Itsa mia Mario

WHOO HOO...in the words of the dude himself LOL

Well I got him finished other than a couple of buttons on his braces, but i'll pick them up tomorrow hopefully.

Pattern with many thanks to Wolfdreamer who kindly offers the patterns for free on their blog

Wolfdreamer Off The Hook Mario Pattern

and this is how my little dude turned out

And a close up of the face

A few fiddley bits but in general an easy to follow pattern, clearly explained. I sewed on the eyes rather than just glueing as he's for the boys. Gregor hasn't had him more that about 12 inches from his side since i made him. Mario has sat next to him on the sofa while he was "driving" with Daddy playing Forza 3, then sitting next to the beanbag in the toy room...and now he's kipping in Gregor bed, full pride of place on the pillow.

I think he likes him :-)

Now onto Yoshi, but this one is a bought pattern from Etsy...just a read thru says it's a bit more fiddly.

And after that i have a Southpark character pattern to play with...thinking of other adaptions of it too.

The Green Bag Finished

The finished bag...pattern HERE

PIcture isn't the best but this was all I got before the batteries died on me...they're recharging at the moment LOL

If i was doing it again i would make the sides longer and make a deeper bag...it felt a little open hence why I've added on a fastening tag. The button is a toggle off a (very) old duffle coat i had. Many moons ago on a clearout i'd come across it...it was ripped and got recyled into a couple of cushion covers, and a couple of toggles were left over. I felt the natural colour of the toggle complimented the mossy green of the bag...looks okay :)

Now back to the Mario toy....body is now made...Gregor is gonna have kittens when he sees it LOL

The finished Windmill Bag

Firstly credit must go to the pattern that i got off the internet

windmill bag pattern


This is my finished bag

Here it is being modeled by my 3yr old...at this time it was carrying Roary the Racing car, a fancy hotwheels racing car of whatever prototype variety and a matcbox lambo...the boy likes his cars PMSL

Here it is in a similar sort of picture as the original pattern. 100gram balls of double knitting for scale. I used 4mm (UK size 8, US size 6) needles, and Double Knitting (US worsted weight, Aus 8ply). Pattern is easy enough for most beginners, the i-cord bind-off is a little finicky and time consuming, but gives a good solid finishing edge and as it leads into the i-cord for the handles it does mean that these are secure on at least the bag edge. If you can cast on, garter stitch cast off and i-cord it's a breeze...you tube easily explains i-cord and the bind off.

Now...i did mean to write all that up last night, but for whatever reason (fell asleep) i didnt get round to it, so today i was on the other green coloured bag pattern found HERE . Got the main bit finished and moved onto the lining. In my MAH-HOOO-SIVE stash of fabric oddments it took a while as there was quite a few i liked...matching and contrasting...eventually decided on the multicoloured patterned one. I'm a little further on than the pics as i now have the lining fully stitched in and started the gathering band...so far so good.

Only other thing for today...no F1 yet...yawns with TV boredom

oh...X Factor is back... :-D

Plarn project 1

1st I'd better explain Plarn. It's short for PLastic yARN and is basically loops of cut up plastic bags, looped together to create a long string which can then be knitted or crocheted with...googling plarn will give plenty of how-to's to make it. Anyway,the blue bag <---- is gawd knows how many bags from Asda cut up and ready to string together.

I then decided to make a pegbag...being made of platic bags it dosnt matter if it gets wet in the wonderful Scottish summers we have. No pattern exactly as such...a 5.5mm hook, about 15 or 16 chain, working 1/2 double crochet down both sides with increases and the ends for a couple of rows...then working straight rounds for about 12 rows round...back and forth for about 6 rows to create the hole of about 12 missed stitches, chain to rejoin at the top of hole, working DCs over chain on the next round, another 6 rounds then single crochet thru both sides together to finish top seam. Insert the coathanger, in this case it was an age 1.5-2 yrs trousers hanger, then neatening the hole with a cuple of rounds of SC. the pic ---> dosnt really show the hole well unforts

 This piccy is better. Now filled with pegs and hanging on the kitchen door. Until this i was just using a single poly bag to put my pegs in and due to the wind it was a tad difficult at times. hopefully the weight of this should work a lot better.

One plarn project done...LOADS more bags chopped and made into plarn...what's next ?

21st July More Car Knits

Been busy again.

Very close to having the big doll for the friends wee girls done...the dreaded hair is next on the actual doll ! But once that bit is done it's be finished in no time.

Couple of piccies tho...

This one is Brians steering wheel, it's a little bit smaller than Gregors (who owns the hand giving scale lol) but both boys are sleeping with their respective wheels at the moment. Not sure whether thats cute or sad LOL. Please don't ask for a pattern, this was a crocheted tube, circle and minitubes and I can't remember how many stitches.

The other make over the last few hours has been a little knitted car.

It's only 4 inches long and yes caused more arguements. So a blue variety is in the making for so both boys can have one each.

Hopefully I'll have the big doll nearer finished in the next night or two...more mini-me plans are in place LOL