Perfect crochet projects for spring and Summer

If like me you love to crochet warmer weather will not stop you wanting to create something and indulge in crochet projects. When the weather is hot it’s good to crochet something simple and something you can make while sitting in the garden, during your lunch break,  sitting in the park when you are on the beach and when you are on holiday.

It helps to have crochet projects that don’t use too many different colours, multiple balls and different yarns to carry around. Cotton yarn is the obvious choice for summer projects as cotton is cooler to work than wool and acrylic based yarns. My favourite cotton yarns include Sirdar Cotton DK (light worsted), Scheepjes Cotton Fun and Patons 4ply cotton.  Scheepjes cotton Fun comes in a fantastic range of bright colours, perfect for Summer projects and summer cushions. Patons 4 ply cotton has a range of colours ideal for making bright mandalas. Linen and bamboo yarns are also soft and cool to use in the summer. Avoid alpaca and mohair yarns and blends for summer crochet projects.

When the weather warms up what crochet projects can you take on? Motif based projects are the obvious choice. I also love to make crochet toys in cottons and to make large summer bolster cushions. Summer shawls in lightweight yarns are also easy to transport and easy to make in the summer.

Use small click topped boxes to secure your hooks, scissors, needles for end fastening and stitching motifs together. I also like to include my elephant cutter which includes a small measure for checking sizes and a yarn cutter.

Sounds obvious but I love crochet summer projects that produce useful finished items. Garden table mats, coasters and bowls and baskets in cotton and linen yarn on hotter days are perfect summer crochet projects. The great news is that once finished you can use them for your garden parties and barbeques.

Sirdar Dapple Yarn

With a blend of Acrylic and Wool Sirdar Dapple is as easy care, soft and warm yarn.  The 100gm balls come in a range of mottled colours, including midnight blue, speckled, my favourite autumn harvest, enchanted forest, pretty cherry blossom, morning mist, harvest, the deep purple blend twilight, Cloudy bay and Hazy Days.

A generous 360yards/330 metres per ball this new yarn has good stitch definition and would work well for cardigans, jackets and scarves. It makes a gorgeous stripe contrasted with plain stripes. I’ve used Sirdar Dapple successfully for motifs as part of a crochet throw, using a 4mm hook.
Sirdar Dapple represents good value at £5.49 per 100gm ball. For sale at Wool Warehouse.

Women's crochet scarf in Dapple find the pattern here.....

Mixing up Motifs

Choosing a crochet project with motifs has many benefits. You can make a motif when time is short and you can crochet on the go when travelling to work or on long journeys. Crochet motif projects grow quickly and motifs work well for just about every crochet project you can think of from traditional throws and cushions to bags, jackets, hats and baby clothes and toys.

When you are designing your own crochet throw and cushions you can use the same crochet motifs throughout the throw and change the look with the way you use colour. However mixing up motifs adds interest to crochet projects and to the finished design. If you decide to mix up your design using different crochet motifs use 3 or 5 different motifs for a more easy on the eye look. Base your throw or cushion design on squares or rectangles.

Incorporate big motifs for impact. Big motifs give you more scope to use clever colour combinations for more impact and big motifs don't have to use a complicated design, I've made them using a standard granny square to good effect. From my experience whatever motifs you use simple designs always work the best. The clever use of colour and yarns is what will make your design something special and original to you.

How to do it?

1. Use one large and four small motifs that when joined together are the same size as the big motif. When you use this method join the four small motifs together before joining to the larger motif. Use the same colour yarn for the last row of your large and small motifs for a very pretty effect.
2. Make a panel the width of your throw or cushion. Doing this means you can incorporate small and large triangles and even hexagons. If you use this method you will have to make sure that your motifs will create a panel that makes a level edged rectangle. 
3. Make triangular motifs and join together to make squares
4. Make square motifs in the round and combine with textured stitched square motifs made side to side
5. Create large squares turn to make diamonds and create triangles for fillers