Acorn Trim Crochet Infinity scarf

I love infinity scarves. Wear them loose or wrapped around, they are warm and chic. This one is bang up to date in new season hot colours and on trend stripes this lovely infinity scarf has decorative crochet acorns. Crochet scarves are one of the most exciting projects to make, they get bigger quickly and there are so many choices of design and yarn to use.

I created this design in sections, so you can see how quickly your project is growing. Many infinity scarves are crocheted in net stitch. I’ve made this one more interesting to work and prettier to look at by adding some simple crochet picots. The very interesting acorns are easy to work and bring more to the design.

Change the colours of this scarf to oranges and reds for an autumn scarf or paler pastel shades in a soft cotton would work well in Spring. It’s easy to make your crochet scarf any length you want by adding more panels.Grab the pattern here.....

Stained glass Window Crochet Holdall

This lovely bag has a patchwork look about it achieved by adding rows of one main colour in between blocks of contrasting colour which highlight the multi coloured squares. It’s made in a tapestry style crochet which I’ve made simpler for this easy to make bag.

My inspiration for this bag was a blouse design I saw in a clothing catalogue. I knew immediately the material design would look good translated into a crochet design. For my bag I chose colours that blended together but using contrasting colours would look just as good and produce a wonderful pool of colour for your bag. By using brighter colours for the square inserts you would produce a stained glass effect.

The double crochets stitches (single crochet) used in this design show the colours to their best effect and gives a more rigid dense structure perfect for a bag. Before finishing your bag, it’s worth lining your bag stops it stretching and to prevent it being damaged.

The main points to remember when making this bag is to carry the yarn across the back and front. When working the front keep your yarns to the back and carry the main colour along the back, be careful not to pull this too tight. When working the back carry the yarns along the side facing you.

I added big tassels for more interest and thick chunky carrying strap which is long enough to fit comfortable over your shoulder. Grab the pattern here.....

Review of West Yorkshire Spinners Aire Valley Arran

Good value for a 100gm ball I used the Forest Green shade it to make the lovely evening bag pattern in my Geometrics and Shapes collection. West Yorkshire Spinners Aire Valley Arran is quite a course yarn, it wouldn’t work for children’s clothing or scarves, but it’s the perfect yarn for the small evening bag. Firm and robust for holding and handling, it would be perfect for thick chunky knits and jackets.

The yardage for Aire Vallet Arran (100gram ball) is 200m/219 yards. The yarn has a high wool content of 75% Wool 25% Nylon.

Aire Valley comes in a range of colours including Forest Green and red, pinks, this seasons plum, violet and blues, plus the fusions range in green, lilac and red blends. It's also available in the cocktail range of bright multi coloured blends.

You can buy direct from West Yorkshire Spinners. 

What's in a name?

Discovering new crochet stitches and techniques in books, online and in blogs can be both inspiring and intimidating. The names of stitches and techniques can vary and be confusing. This can mean nothing to you or stand for time spent learning something new rather than starting a new crochet project! Sometimes it’s the abbreviations that can put you off or reams of text describing new stitches you need to make to complete the pattern.

It can be even more intimidating if the new techniques and specialist stitches use particular equipment such as with broom stick crochet. Or crochet hooks that look more like knitting needles for Tunisian crochet! The decision is, is it worth investing in new equipment? Will you be able to make good use of it?

I urge you not to be intimidated by having to learn something new and so stick with your tried and tested crochet designs and styles. Incorporating new stitches and techniques in a crochet project makes the project more interesting to work, results in a high class finish and you create a stand out project.

The chances are you’ve already used some of the stitches and techniques in more intricate patterns or have the skills you need and you do not realise it. For example my peacock leaf crochet scarf uses Tunisian crochet (not named in the pattern) but you do not need any specialist equipment to make this crochet scarf. The Tunisian crochet in this design is simple enough for a newbie to crochet to make.

More often than not the pattern you are looking at is much simpler than it at first appears. To give yourself confidence in tackling something new it’s worth using a simple design or pattern that you are familiar with and adding a few specialist stitches. As always keep a check on your tension. You can for example easily change a pattern that uses groups of trebles(double crochets) for cross trebles (cross double crochets). This will use the same number of stitches and looks very pretty. 

If your design uses a mesh pattern add a picot to the chains between stitches. For example if your pattern asks for 3 chain to make the spaces then make 4 chain with a dc picot into 3rd chain from the hook with another chain to complete the mesh gap. It will look so much more attractive than a plain mesh.

If your design uses groups of trebles (double crochet), crochet around the stem of the stitch on the row below, this makes a denser finished project, but uses the same number of stitches and creates a completely different look.