CUSHION CAL 17th January start

To Start on the 17th January a mini cal making a Cushion Cover

Over the years i've made dozens of cushions, so before we start I'm going to share a couple of tips with you.

TIPS:

 1: Never make a cushion in just dk Acylic yarn, it stretches and all your hard work will grow and be too big for the cushion pad in with a couple of months.....infuriating
Aran not completely free from stretch but it does hold its size better. 

2: Mix your Acrylic with some 3/4ply sock wool or Merino or similar, matching the colours if you want a plain colour...or use Aran weight yarn and keep your crochet quite tight.

3: Make you own fastenings, buttons or ties, then you don't need to go searching for that perfect button, or use a zip, but not so nice to look at.

4: Make a button band so you don't get happy openings 

5: Make sure the cushion pad fills your cushion cover.

6: Buy the best quality cushion pads you can get, it will make your cushion special.

CUSHION CAL:

You will need 16 Aran weight yarns or a 16 Dk and sock wool mix. 
Please pick your own colours if you want the cushion to go in a particular room scheme. 

An 18" cushion pad...the better quality this is, the better your cushion will be. 

5mm hook keep it quite tight so change hook size if you crochet is at all loose. 

SPECIAL ARAN/ALPACA TWEED COLOURS:
To get the exact shade i wanted i've used some Alpaca shades but mostly Special Aran
1: Special Aran, Parchment
2: Alpaca tweed, Sea Breeze
3: Special Aran, Sage
4: Alpaca Tweed, Duck Egg
5: Special Aran, Storm Blue
6: Special Aran Denim
7: Special Aran, Cloud Blue
8: Pistachio
9: Special Aran, Meadow

Special Aran for all following colours
10: Saffron
11: Camel
12: Gold
13: Spice
14: Pomegranate
15: Raspberry
16: Rose

BATIK AND LIFE 
Worked together make a good Aran weight  but I cant get 5 of the colours to the right shade so that won't work!

 Pity I love the Batik and Life together as an Aran Weight and i have managed to make 20 shades (chary below), but not the 5 missing colours needed for this project if you want to tweak the colours then you can use the Batik and Life together 

COLOURS:
1: Cream and Cream
2: Sage and Mint
3: no match
4: no match
5: Teal and Aqua 
6: Indigo and Denim
7: no match
8: Pistachio and Zing
9: Olive and Meadow
10: Old Gold and Daffodil
11: Biscuit and Oatmeal
12: no match
13: Coral and spice
14: no match
15: Raspberry and Lily
16: Raspberry and Rose

DK AND SOCK WOOL
match your nearest sock wool to the same shade to match the Aran colours 

Its going to be a square Cushion in 9 sections, a new section every 2 days, worked one after the other in a section of stitches and cover shapes like triangles circles, squares, hexagons, ripples and stripes in both directions. 
some scribbled nots and sketches as a taster
but of course all this could change as i actually make the cushion

If i have time i will do a circular cushion too, but no promises on this one as i will need to move onto the next Mini CAL

NEXT CAL: The Camper Coat for the 20th February 2017

You can pick your own yarn for this one and there will be options for dk or Chunky
I am actually using some recycles James C Brett Marble in a couple of colour ways.
Click the link to see the colour options above 

The new pattern will be based on this pattern 

but with a shaped sleeve this time

Bethany Skirt Mini CAL and the smaller of the AW's

Just a quick up date then on Friday i will share the shaped top row

SIZE AND THE NUMBER OF GRANNY SQUARE

Working on my Granny Squares they measure 2.5"/2.5cms 

you would think that 13 Granny Squares would measure

32.5"/82.5cm?

but it doesn't, it actually measures 33.25/84.5cms slightly bigger

TIP:

So i am going to suggest you work out roughly the size you need hip/bum measurement plus 4"/10cms easy BUT check it when you get close to the measurement and make sure it isn't too big?

Joining a number of squares together seems to make it grow a little so you won't need quite so much easy adding, in the form of the extra granny squares

I cant give you a chart to follow here you will need to do this calculation to fit yourself.

based on the hip/um measurement and adding approx 4"/10cm ease.

Another way to get the correct size would be to use a favourite skirt that has a good fit, and use that as a measurement to work too.

Don't forget if you join all the squares together with the join as you go 3rd round don't join the top row as i will add the shaped top row on Friday

PATTERN FOR BETHANY SKIRT GRANNY SQUARE (no shaping yet)

join all rows together except the top row of squares

PATTERN

US Terms, UK Terms in brackets 
basic 3 ROUND GRANNY SQUARE

Make 78 squares 9 colours you need 8 of each colour and 6 extra, pick 6 of the colours to add these extra squares...or as many as you need to fit

Finger wrap of 4 wraps

ROUND 1: first colour, ch2 counts as first dc [tr], 2dc [2tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, sl st into first st, cut and weave in ends

.

ROUND 2: second colour, ch2 counts as first dc [tr], 2dc [2tr], in first ch2 sp (corner), 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr] in next 3 corner sps, finish with 3dc [3tr], ch2 in first corner to complete sl st into the first st. 

ROUND 3: att. 3rd Background colour, join as you go colour, ch2 counts as first dc, 2dc [2tr], in the corner sp, only, 3dc [3tr], in next side sp, 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], into next corner sp, repeat sides and corners to end, finish with 3dc [3tr], ch2, in first corner, sl st into first st to complete.

TIP:

By doing half the first corner then continuing on and  completing the first corner at the end you will always have a complete side ready to join.

JOIN AS YOU GO

when joining corners /sides together add a sl st between the 2ch sts, in each corner and 2 side spaces when a square needs to be join to another.

Join in 5/6/7rows, required length, into a tube, leave the top row for shaping post.

COMPLETE THE FIRST SQUARE, Then add the next using the join as you go sl st method

The smallest of the Angel Wings Shawlette and the brightest in colour

with a Flower Pin

Do You Recycle Loved Yarn?

It's heavy, a lot of yarn in this old seat cover made in moss stitch, we no long have the chair so I'm recycling the yarn for another project..its taking quite an effort!..worth it, I think it is i love this James C Brett Marble yarn.

 un-picked, rolled into a ball, made into hanks, washed, conditioned and drying...

then i can get on with this new flower project, a long shawl/ wrap of flowers...

Waste not want not!

Granny Triangle pattern asked for..

5 ROUND GRANNY TRIANGLE PATTERN STAR

USA Terms 

 original picture

DK 4mm hook

Aran 5mm hook

make as many as you want to make a star or a complete blanket 

MOTIF PATTERN 

First colour: 2 finger, finger wrap of 5 wraps.

ROUND 1: first colour: ch 2 as first dc , 20dc, into circle, sl st to complete round.(21st)

ROUND 2: 2nd colour yarn in any st, 3ch as first t, dc in next st, 1hdc in the next 3 sts, dc in the next st, tr in the next st, chain 5 and repeat two more times for 3 sides, sl st to complete round (7sts each side)

ROUND 3: 2nd colour, You will be in the right place to start round 3, ch2 as first dc, 1dc in each of the next 6sts, 3dc, 3ch, 3dc in the corner space, 1dc, in every st, repeat corners and sides to end of round,  sl st to complete round. (13sts each side)

ROUND 4: first colour: sc in every st, with 2sc, 2ch, 2sc in the 3 corners, sl st to complete the round. 

(17sts each side)

ROUND 5: 2nd colour: starting in a ch 2 corner, ch2 counts as first dc, 2dc (making a granny shell),

 miss 2sts,  3dc (granny shell), in next st, repeat a granny shell in every third st.

in the corner ch2 sp,  do 3dc, 3ch, 3dc, repeat for all 3 sides, sl st to complete. (7 granny shells each side)

 from the original picture on my Google profile made into a giant star with 12 motifs

GRANNY SQUARE SKIRT MINI CAL

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE....
Will be adding a few more pictures of the completed Angel Wings Shawls as soon as I'm feeling fighting fit again,,darn cold, loss of voice and generally feeling tired not been good this last week.

AS PROMISED...

Welcome to the first day of Bethany Skirt Min CAL
This was the picture of a Granny Square Skirt Bethany saw and asked if i could make her one similar. Bethany picked her colours from my stash and we decided on a joining colour.

 Carolyn has made a lovely skirt with a knitted waist band, i will be making a crocheted version but i've added the link if you would like to do a knitted waist band like Carolyn
 handmade by Carolyn 
click link to see here original post 

GRANNY SQUARE TIMINGS: 1minute for the first round

2 minutes for the second round

5 minutes for the 3rd and join as you go round

Please don't be rushed, work at your own pace but i need to complete Bethany Skirt in 

the next 8 Days..a birthday present for the 9th January.

not exactly sure of the number of 3 round granny squares i need yet next post will confirm the number

2 rows of 6 squares joined together measure 5" x 15 or 12.75cm x 38cms

So at the moment I'm working on

14 rows x 6 GS = 84 squares approx  

IN TIME: 84 X 8 = 672 MINUTES, that's 11.2 Hours for squares

plus a couple of hours to do the waist band and an hour to do a hem edge and a couple of hours for hiccups lol.

Rounding the time off say 18-36 hours to make a mini skirt....depending on your crochet speed 

So to complete this Bethany Skirt mini cal you will need at least 2-3hours a day to complete in  8/9 days.

Up for it? 

Then here we go

I'm using 9 colours of Merino and a 

10th Merino/acrylic in charcoal grey to join the 2round squares together

DAY 1:

So start by making the one round granny squares in each of your chosen colours 

start on the second round and do at least 25-30 of the second round if you want to complete in 8/9 days

DAY 2

Working 2-3hours should see all your second round squares complete. 

DAY 3

We will start the join as you go a new post on 3rd January 2017

WORK AT YOUR OWN PACE.

If you don't have a couple of hours a day then double the days and work a little slower. Do your own timings so you can work out how long it will take you 

measure the widest part of the hip/bottom and add approx. 4"  10cm ease

if making it for a child then you might find rows of 5 squares in length will be just right and slightly less ease will be needed 

PATTERN

US Terms, UK Terms in brackets 
basic 3 ROUND GRANNY SQUARE

Make 78 squares 9 colours you need 8 of each colour and 6 extra, pick 6 of the colours to add these extra squares. 

Finger wrap of 4 wraps

ROUND 1: first colour, ch2 counts as first dc [tr], 2dc [2tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr], ch2, sl st into first st, cut and weave in ends.

ROUND 2: second colour, ch2 counts as first dc [tr], 2dc [2tr], in first ch2 sp (corner), 3dc [3tr], ch2, 3dc [3tr] in next 3 corner sps, finish with 3dc [3tr], ch2 in first corner to complete sl st into the first st.