Crochet Theme: Wraps in sunny shades of Malabrigo Sock

Designs:

Lizzie | green & white

Giraffic Day | polka dot

Suncatcher | ochre

Autumn Waltz | brown

Crochet Looks: Candied Orange

I appreciate having orange in outfits for its ability to lift your spirits and make you happy in seconds!  

Orange seems to be considered a difficult color for wearing. However, it goes well with multiple colors and its bright nature makes it such an interesting style statement. Below, orange is paired with all shades of beige and milk-white, khaki, deep blue, marmalade red, teal, black, and reddish-brown.

LINKS:

Candied Orange pattern on Ravelry | Etsy (soon) | LoveCrafts (soon) | Patternvine (soon)

Crochet Tips: Zirka Filet Blanket

I've got a question on Ravelry if Zirka shawl pattern can be adaptable to a rectangular shape. Zirka is a triangular shawl worked from the bottom up in the filet crochet technique:

There are several possible ways to achieve a rectangular (square) shape in filet crochet.

• You can start from a corner and crochet a triangle by placing the increases on both sides until you reach the desired width. Then, decrease until you get a square (first picture).
• You can work in the rounds from the center out until you reach the desired size (center picture).
• Or you can simply work in rows (last picture).

The first option is perfect for making triangular filet shawls. I love it very much. It features an easy and quick start and allows you to stop as soon as you reach the desired size or until the end of your yarn. 

However, your piece will not (in most cases) be perfectly triangular; it depends on your chosen yarn, tension, the thickness and height of dc stitches and the length of chains. To get a perfect piece you have to have all cells perfectly square. 

In the case of shawls, it is not a big problem, in my opinion. You can block your piece and get it nearly perfect.

But in case of the square-shaped blankets, such imperfection will be very visible. Actually, you will get not a square, but some sort of a diamond (picture at right). It can be fixed (a little bit) by blocking but not much.

Making a pattern for a blanket which perfect result depends on so many factors is not a good idea. The solution which might work for me (like making the chains longer, or switch dc to tr) could not be suitable for a fellow crocheter, who has a different tension or using a different yarn.

The second option is working in the round, which faces the same problems. Your piece will tighten in the center and have the flared (too wide) edges/sides. This option works for smaller motifs, but the larger your motif turns out, the more is its deformation.

The last option is working in rows. This is the simplest (but boring, maybe :) way of making the large and accurate piece in the filet crochet technique. And it requires much simpler blocking: you have to either stretch your piece in width or make it longer to achieve the square shape.

I recommend using the last option since it makes the finished result much more predictable. Here is the filet chart for the Zirka blanket worked in rows. I hope you find it useful and it helps you to crochet your Zirka blanket.

Happy crocheting! 

New Pattern: Candied Orange

I am so excited to announce the release of the last pattern of 2019, the Candied Orange sweater!

The orange color combines the energy of red and the happiness of yellow. Bright and uplifting, it is associated with sunshine, joy, excitement, and warmth! And, of course, it's the color of my favorite
winter fruit, an orange. I love all of its shades and versions: fresh, dried, and candied!

The sweater is worked sideways in two pieces, front and back, which are seamed at the shoulders and sides as tail-free as possible. An extra pattern repeat is added to the back to create a higher back neck. The sleeve stitches are picked up around the arm openings and worked in the round top down with decreases evenly placed along each sleeve to create a gentle taper towards the cuff.

The pattern is written for 6 sizes and 2 lengths, cropped and regular, and includes yardage requirements for both options of all sizes.

The amount of ease is up to you: roomy for layering or extra comfort, or minimal ease for next-to-body wear. Look through the dimensions on the pattern page and choose the ease and length
that works best for you. 

In the photo: cropped version in size C worn on 36¼″ (92 cm) bust with 10″ (25 cm) of positive ease. 

The wonderful orange yarn I used for this design is Malabrigo Rios in shade Sunset. 

 

The pattern is available on Ravelry for 25% off the regular price until the end of 2019 with the code HAPPY. Happy crocheting!

LINKS:

Candied Orange pattern on Ravelry | Etsy (soon) | LoveCrafts (soon) | Patternvine (soon)

Yarn: Malabrigo Rios

Crochet Theme: Colorful Shawls and Stoles

Designs:

Mindfulness | white stripes

Bruce | purple background

Kambalda | colorful stripes

Smoothie | smooth color gradient

Purple Gold | purple & gold

Seastar Blanket: Color Order Research

When I was working on the additional color diagrams for the Seastar blanket pattern trying different color combinations, one moment I became curious if there are any color placement rules which might help to make a better decision.

Should I start with the lightest or darkest color? What color should I use as the last one? How does even a tiny change impact the overall look? ⁠
⁠
So I chose two sets of colors in the same color family and did research! This is so interesting to see how much of a difference small changes make!

New Pattern: Seastar Blanket

Seastar Blanket, previously published in Crochet Now magazine, Issue 32, is now available in my store on Ravelry! The pattern has been tweaked a little, updated, and now uses U.S. crochet terminology.

It is written out and charted, and includes additional color layouts and a blank template to colorize your own version so you can try out the color combinations before you start crocheting.

The blanket consists of 86 hexagon motifs and 8 partial motifs to fill the gaps at the top and bottom. The motifs are joined as you go, making for minimal finishing. The pattern uses the simplest crochet stitches: chain, single crochet, and double crochet.

The pattern is available on Ravelry for 20% off with the code STAR20 until Wednesday, December 18, 2019! Happy crocheting!

Crochet Theme: Squishy Projects in Malabrigo Worsted

Designs:

Ozone cowl in shade Water Green

Jazzy Patchwork blanket in shade Frank Ochre

Tri cowl in shades Jewel Blue, Polar Morn, and Frank Ochre

New Pattern: Kruška Cowl

My latest pattern release, Kruska cowl, is free until the end of this year (no code is required and the price will be reduced automatically when you put the pattern in your Ravelry cart)! 💛

Kruška (/krûʃka/) is a Croatian word for “pear”, which was my inspiration for this cowl, and this delicious fruit is reflected in this design in many ways: from the yellow-brownish shade of the yarn, to the pear-shape construction (the cowl is narrower at the top and gets wider towards the bottom), to the herringbone stitch pattern which immediately brings to mind those yummy Hasselback-sliced pear tarts.

The instructions are written for three sizes (Small, Medium, and Large) which use 2 (3, 4) skeins of Manos del Uruguay Alegría Grande. The stitch pattern uses regular single crochet stitches worked in an unusual way.

Happy crocheting!

LINKS:

Kruska pattern on Ravelry

Crochet Theme: Cotton Garments

Designs:

Jolie | white

Paprika Dash | red

Tata | beige

Gamine | grey

Dotty | turquoise

Sailmaker | stripes