Category: Crochet

Many months back, I was browsing through a local jewelry store when I came across some funky crocheted beads and instantly thought, “Hey, I can do that!” Well, thinking and doing are two different things, so for a long time this idea was kept on the back burner, since I don’t know many people who would wear such a large and colorful necklace. Even after going out and buying wooden beads to crochet around, nothing more came of it for weeks and months on end.

Finally, nearing the end of my project list and searching around in desperation for something to make, I rediscovered my earlier purchase. I aimlessly made a handful in purple, and then spent another good chunk of time wondering what to do with them now. In this way, I learned that it can be extremely difficult to finish a project when you’re not exactly sure what you’re hoping the end outcome will be.

Strangely enough, the grocery store has been a good place for inspiration lately. Picking over some grapes in the produce section, I glanced over beyond my typical choice (Seedless red grapes) and noticed how very large and round the seeded variety are. After fitting the pieces together, let’s just say I shopped as quick as I could, rushing home to uncover those forgotten crocheted beads.

Don’t they fit in perfectly with the other fruits? Sure these are a bit darker than your typical grape, but this is what I had on hand, so show me you have better color sense than I do and make your own in a more appropriate shade! But hey, atleast I hadn’t originally made blue or black beads in the beginning… That would have made for one scary looking bunch of grapes.

Using an E hook and worsted weight yarn in purple you will be making two different sizes of grapes. The first is made with a…

2 Cm Wooden Bead [Make 5]

Sc8 into ring
*Sc1, sc2 into 1 st* around
*Sc1, sc2 into 1 st* around
Sc around, 3x
[Insert bead]
*Sc1, sc2tog* around
*Sc1, sc2tog* around
Cut thread, gather remaining stitches together and pull tight, fastening off and leaving a long tail.

1.5 Cm Wooden Bead [Make 7]

Sc6 into circle
*Sc1, sc2 into 1 st* around
*Sc1, sc2 into 1 st* around
Sc around, 2x
[Insert bead]
*Sc1, sc2tog*
*Sc1, sc2tog*
Cut yarn leaving a long tail, gather remaining stitches together and pull tight.

Leaf

Ch10, sc into 2nd stitch from hook, sc twice more, dc 3 times, tc twice, and then 4 tc into the last stitch
Continue around and on the opposite side, tc twice, dc 3 times, sc twice
Cut yarn and sl st through final stitch

Assembly:

Okay, this is a little bit tricky and I’m not sure if I can fully explain it in a comprehensible manner.

What I did first was arrange the larger beads into positions that I thought looked alright, and then tied them together at the top. I then proceeded to tie the other smaller beads between the larger ones, allowing them more or less space to hang below. As my bunch of grapes grew, I continued tying the remaining small beads to the other small ones already attached.

Continue until you use up all of your beads, and weave ends into the sides EXCEPT for the ones up top. Tie the leaf around the ends at the top to secure. Finally, I twisted all of the remaining loose ends of yarn together and sealed them with a thin coat of mod-podge to form the stem. Let dry and enjoy the new addition to your fruit bowl!

Not very long after creating my blue rodent a few weeks ago, I was talking with my sister about her own [real] rodent. Not a mouse like my crocheted pal, but a chinchilla named Milo, to be precise. She mentioned that Milo seemed to be sluggish and depressed lately, blaming the lack of activity and extrapolating to assume that he was probably feeling lonely. He has a whole playground of toys and practically a buffet of foods to choose from, but with my sister in classes for much of the day, he still spends many hours alone, with no playmate to keep him company.

Finding a second chinchilla is pretty much out of the question, since Milo himself is technically not even allowed inside my sister’s college dorm room. It was a covert mission to just get him in – Packed into his blue run-around ball, placed inside a bag along with toiletries, and covered with clothing, carried very quickly into the building. Oh, and just as an aside, after all this hard work to make the living situation with Milo possible, it would be just crushing for him to be discovered. He’s very much loved for by my sister, so I’m entrusting this information to you, my faithful blog readers, to keep this information between us!

Since I can’t stand being helpless when others are unhappy, I did the only thing I really know that almost always succeeds in cheering people up – Crochet a gift for them! So I set off to make an acrylic-based companion.

No, it’s not the same as a beathing, scurrying, trouble-maker like Milo himself, but I still hoped that maybe it could offer some amount of comfort.

Constructed in pink this time, Millie is meant to be a faux-girl friend of sorts. She was very nevous before meeting this strapping young chinchilla she had hear so much about, so she asked (Of course) for a cookie to settle the butterflies in her stomach. Having learned from past experiences with a certain mouse, this time I carefully picked out and served her one sugary morsel and reserved the remainder of the opened package for later.

Millie gulped down her treat with glee, faster than you could blink, and before I knew it…

She had taken the entire supply of cookies hostage! It all happened so quickly, I barely had time to even comprehend what had transpired! Yet again, I failed to maintain authority with just a simple mouse! How embarrassing. By the time the sugar reached her blood stream, Millie was already flying around the room, cruising on her sugar rush. Thanks to this little stunt, we had to wait around even longer before introducing the two, for fear that Milo would think she was some spastic psycho and reject her on the spot.

Now about a month after Millie’s first date jitters and the whole cookie incident, I’m pleased to report that the two are living very happily together. Milo even felt comfortable enough to take a few liberties when it came to redesigning Millie’s basic pattern – Apparently, there were far too many stitches, so he felt it necissary to remove a few with his sharp teeth.

Ah well, as long as he’s content.

Don’t you just hate it when there’s that one certain thing you want, that you’ve been thinking of and pining for all day, and then discovering that it’s no where to be found? Whether it be a specific food, ball of yarn, book, what have you, the unsatisfied desire feels completely crushing. A space that will not and can not be filled. Perhaps I’m getting a bit over dramatic, but I know that not a single person can honestly say that they have never gotten their hopes up and been disappointed when they fall short.

Luckily, the story of my new friend today goes nothing like that. In fact, it’s quite the opposite!

Like most newly born critters of mine, fresh off the hook, my little hamster friend had an intense craving for – What else – Sunflower seeds. With none to be found, I scavenged the kitchen, trying to persuade him to try a similar treat like I usual must when dealing with company of the yarn-based variety. Truly, they can be so demanding! And who could really refuse such soft, acrylic creatures, with their sad plastic eyes baiting you on?

This one, however, would have none of it. No other seeds or nuts would suffice – It was sunflower seeds or nothing. Despairing at my barren kitchen cupboard, he scurried away to be outside and sulk, finding nothing more depressing than a world without his food of choice.

Feeling that the day had already been ruined he slowly paced the patio when out of no where…

Who could have imagined! One lone sunflower seed for the taking! What luck, what fate! It was almost as if someone had simply left it there purposely for him to find… But that’s crazy talk, right? He couldn’t fathom who would have even hear his anguished cries, let alone do such a thing…

The best he could convince himself of was that it was meant to be. This was something that he had needed, even if he could have made it through the day without, his mind told him that it was more than a mere want, but really in innate need. As the song goes, “You can’t always get what you want, but sometimes, you get what you need.”

He held onto that seed with all his might, making sure that the area was secure and that he had this marvelous find all to himself. After a brief glance around, he needed no more reassurance and savored ever last piece of his sunflower seed, nibbling it slowly as if there would never be another scrap of food to fill his stomach for as long as he lived.

Of course, the very next day he just happened to awake next to a rather large bag just bulging at the seams, filled to the very brink with sunflower seeds.

It is only human to have cravings, for whatever it might be that strikes your fancy. And I suppose, it might even be animal nature, too.

The winds are now changing and the sun is beginning to turn in for bed earlier and earlier each evening. Despite the fact that it’s still so warm out, the signs of autumn are becoming more prominent with every passing day. It seems like everyone’s already bundling up, pulling their jackets out of storage and dusting off those warmer shirts and sweaters.

Just the other day, in fact, a friend of mine was preparing to run off on an errand, when he saw just how uninviting the overcast day was looking. Better safe than sorry, he through on his good trousers and a sturdy hat for good measure before facing the fierce winds.

A fan of autumn like myself, he took it in stride and saw it as a heartening sign of the changing seasons. I can’t wait to pull my own warmer garb, although it could still be a while. Most people would want to be naturally warm, but it sadens me that it take so much for me to actually feel cold enough to put on a coat! I love layers and heavy clothes, but unless it’s close to snowing, I’m often feel hot enough to bake bread beneath those garments!

Getting back to my small friend, he did express some worry about not actually owning any shirts… It was fine in the summer, but now feels a bit awkward, setting out in the nippy mornings, sporting a pair of trousers but no top. I promised we could work out a deal, because I doubt that a shirt for his size would take much longer than an hour.

It’s a good thing he has me around this time of year – Imagine standing at the bus stop completely topless by the time winter rolls around!

These days, I believe that far too much emphasis is placed on one’s looks. Models provide unreal expecations for women to attempt to live up to, but no one even has second thoughts about their authenticity. The beauty that the mass market has produced is not only so extreme that no average person could ever come close, but the fact is that it doesn’t even exist. Every poster, every last ad, the models are airbrushed to death. Not even they look that good in real life.

Now I may be going off on a bit of a tangent, but I honestly wish that people wouldn’t be so quick to judge and label others based on outward appearance. When I found a crochet pattern titled “The Ugly Duckling,” I was expecting some grotesque mass of yarn in dark, dirty colors with perhaps an awkward yellow beak poking out. Driven mainly by curiousity, I went to go check it out, and discovered a stuffed animal that was anything but “ugly.”

Sure, her beak might be a bit large, but nothing begging for plastic surgery. She may have large feet, but they’re nothing to hide in shoes and feel embarrassed about. This sweet duckling knows the pain of rejection and being called names, but she doesn’t care. She and I both know how beautiful she really is, and that confidence is perhaps the most beautiful aspect of all.

I know it’s a bit of a far cry to be comparing a stuffed animal to the mass media, but it was all I could think of as I held the finished duckling in my hand. No, we’re not perfect, but that doesn’t mean a single one of us should ever aquire the demeaning and hurtful label of being “ugly.”

As a small after-note, I’m happy to hear that in Madrid, they are now banning models that are underweight. It’s a small step foward, but a sure sign that the times are changing, and hopefully for the best.

This is a concept I had been hearing a good deal about from many people and many places – Crocheting with wire and beads is nothing new, but I passed on the idea for a number of months, unsure of how well the final product would come out. I mean, for me atleast, wire is so difficult to work with on it’s own wouldn’t trying to wrestle with it on a metal hook only end in tears and blistered fingers?

Unfortunately, I was right about one of those assumptions: When I was done, my hands hurt. Not to mention my poor crochet hook – Much of the paint was scrapped off the end! Good thing I have two F hooks… I’ll designate this blue (or formerly blue) one to wire-working only in the future, because I wouldn’t want to destroy my good pink hook by accident. [Yes, I am weird.]

Like I said, there are tons of tutorials and patterns for this type of pursuit, but being as “inventive” as I am… I thought it would be better to just wing it. My brilliant plan created nothing less than two consecutive creations that could only fit a person with a wrist the size of a medium lawn gnome.

After picking the pieces out of the trash can a few hours later, I determined that they must still be salvageable.

The one I decided to make into a bracelet was lengthened with a toggle clasp. Actually, it was two loops joined together, because the first addition was still not the right size for any average human being to wear.

The second one, which was extremely short became a choker with the help of a chain and lobster clasp.

Thankfully, all that pain wasn’t for naught and I was able to save my mistakes and turn them into something that could actually be called jewelry. I really like how they came out, so I think I’ll be making these again… Only, I’ll be sure to make them much longerthan I think is necessary, so that maybe they won’t need any additions other than the clasps.