Christmas Crochet Inspiration

With summer pretty much over in the UK and the leaves turning a lovely orange colour I can now start thinking about all the crafty things I want to make for Christmas! I know, I know, It's still a good three months away but I would like to make a few crochet presents this year as I was still just a complete beginner last year. I still count myself as a beginner but I am competent enough to make a few things now that don't fall apart!

My main easy make will be scarves - for myself as well as others. I am also thinking about place mats, coasters, candle votive covers and anything of course some lovely decorations to adorn our new flat! I particularly would like to make a wreath a la Attic 24 (I love Lucy!) and my mum has been eyeing up some stocking garlands to hang over the fire place. Of course with all of this crochet making madness I will be making my biggest order to the wonderful website, Deramores. I really cannot fault them! Every order I have placed has arrived the next day, they have a massive stock selection, colours...I could go on. I have also seen a lovely seller on Instagram who is selling DK packs in various colours and she'll even put custom packs together for you! This will be great for Christmas colours as well as future projects I have in mind. Her name is Anita and her Instagram username is mycraftlife (she also has a personal account madebyanita showing off her lovely creations).

Here are some Pinterest inspiration:

 

Red Apple Placemat by MariMartin

 

Basket Weave Placemats - Redheart.com (free pattern!)

Granny Stripe Infinity Scarf - Olgasoleil.blogspot.com

Christmas Stockings - www.talesoftwistedfibre.wordpress.com

Colourful Christmas Wreath - Attic 24

Christmas Wreath - Julia Crossland

I hope that has given you some inspiration, albeit a little early perhaps! Have you started your Christmas shopping yet?

Betty xxx

Etsy Love

Recently I find myself spending a lot of time on Etsy. Not necessarily making actual purchases but just looking at all the pretty goods there are and being in awe of how talented all the sellers are. The great thing about Etsy is that you can shop all over the world and find treasures that are unusual, handmade and quite often, unique. I also love that they have a massive vintage section featuring bags, clothing, jewellery and home wares.

As a seller on Etsy (www.bettybuttonpie.etsy.com) I have to say I am quite lazy. I have been selling my handmade jewellery on and off for about three years now but after a bit of a disastrous craft market and lack of money I lost my mojo and haven't really gotten it back. I am a lover of all crafts and can see the time and effort that has gone into each pieces I favourite on Etsy, but unfortunately my passion for selling my wares has dwindled, at least for now.

Here are some of my most favourite items at the moment:

 

Harry Potter Expecto Patronum T-shirt

 

Mustard Yellow Button Earrings

 

Silver Stacking Rings

 

Bicycle Phone Cover

I could honestly go on and on listing all the wonderful creations but I hope you liked a few of my personal favourites. 

What are your favourite items? Do you have a shop on Etsy?

Betty xxx

Lace Baby Blanket

After seeing Saffy on Instagram post a lovely picture of her baby blanket I decided to buy the pattern (available via Etsy or Ravelry).

I've wanted some yellow in the flat for a while so thought this would be a great addition to use as a throw and to use as a lap blanket when the evenings get colder; wow don't I sound like a granny?! I used Hobbycraft's own make in yellow as I had it from another project and hardly used it. When that came to an end I didn't have any plans to go to Hobbycraft so used a cream colour (Sirdir Hayfield Bonus) and now that has finished I've moved on to Stylecraft Special DK in Parchment bought via Deramores as well as Cream in the hopes that that will be enough to finish it off - somehow I think I'll need a bit more.

The pattern was a bit confusing to begin with but now I've picked up all the stitches and each round its pretty self explanatory. After working on it for a while and once the beige yarn was nearly running out I decided to stop there. The great thing about blankets is that you can go back to them at any time so for now it sits comfortably on the back of the sofa. I'm sure in time I'll want to expand it but I'm happy to have finished it for now.

Boodle's Yarn

Boodle's Yarn available at Hobbycraft now!

For some time now I have wanted to experiment with T-Shirt yarn to create something chunky like a rug but have found it really hard to track down said yarn in an actual shop and online it seems to be quite expensive. So, whilst browsing the pages of Hobbycraft, I discovered Boodles Yarn. It comes in a variety of colours (I think more are available in store than online) and at only £6 with a 3 for 2 offer on, I'll be making a trip to HC this week!

The only draw back is that some of the reviews online have stated that the label doesn't indicate yardage so it is hard to tell how much is needed for a project. I'm planning to buy three lots in the offer and see how far that gets me. Boodles also recommend using their bamboo crochet hook but I'm not sure if it offers anything different than a standard crochet hook in the same size.

I'll let you know when I buy and start a project with this yarn although I have about 3 different projects on at the moment so much try and finish one of those first!!