Big Motifs

What makes you smile?

For me it's a big basket of wool, a crochet hook and a head full of ideas. Just lately I've fallen in love with big motifs which I've seen in growing numbers on Pinterest and Ravelry. Is it my imagination, or are crochet motifs themselves growing bigger year on year.Thanks to the internet and sites like Pinterest and Ravelry there is an endless source of inspiration and talented  crocheters from around the world  to get ideas from.

When I make small motifs I seem to finish up with them drifting around.  I've found them in the bottom of my work basket, down the side of the settee and in the dogs basket. Not so with big motifs.

Why do I love big motifs?

• They have Impact
• You have more scope to use textured stitches
• There is more scope to use clever colour combinations for more impact
• There is more room for creativity

Big motifs don't have to be made using a complicated design. I've made them using a standard granny square and combined them in various ways to make bigger motifs. Using one main colour for example gives your finished design much more impact. 

And while growing a small motif is fine and can be effective as with the patchwork cushion to my mind a big motif should be more than a small motif with added rows. 

Not all big motifs have to be created in the round, using rows to create a big motif can just as satisfying and creative and you can use them to make more structured designs. Using colours creatively can make modern and interesting designs for cushions and throws. 

This big cushion is made up of 9 big motifs, all worked in rows.

Who says you can't square a circle?

There is something satisfying in starting with a circle and turning it into a square. A full sized project can get tedious, but using big motifs you soon get the satisfaction of completing something lovely in its own right. Big motifs also have one tremendous advantage over small motifs. Cushions and throws grow more quickly. Four or six large motifs can make one side of a cushion.

Follow Everything Crochet's board Big Crochet Motifs on Pinterest.

This post is my submission to the Deramores Craft Blog Competition 2015. Deramores is the UK’s number one online retailer of knitting and crochet supplies. Visit www.deramores.com for more details.