Chophook 8" Square

Well, I joined up with the Traveling Hook III over on crochetville, and what we're doing is raising awareness for Friedreichs Ataxia (click the Axe Ataxia Button on the left for more information on this terrible disease) by crocheting squares to make afghans, and talking about it!!! While we do we are taking turns using a hook that was made by Jimbo. Well Jimbo makes some BEAUTIFUL hooks, one day I'll convince my husband that I NEED one, and no not just to drool over! He has also made some roughly size K Chophooks- hooks made out of Chopsticks. Head on over to his blog to see how you can get your own chophook (which works wonderfully btw) AND help to fund the much needed research that FARA conducts.

As I sit patiently... yea, sorta patiently, for my 5 day turn with the Traveling Hook I wanted to make up some 8" squares, so that I have a decent sized package to send in when my week with the hook is over, and I thought, "hey, jimbo made the chophook to help raise funds for FARA, i'll use my chophook to make squares for the afghans!" YAY!!! Well, I didn't want to use any old square, and there are LOADS of 8" square patterns available, but I didn't feel like looking for one that would work with a "roughly size K" hook. So here is the first square I ever designed, and it comes out to 8" if you use a Chophook!






Please understand that you can use this pattern for whatever projects you so desire, but do not sell the pattern!! It's free, and it's right here, so if you sell it, that makes you grimy, and who wants to go to bed dirty?? I hope it'll be used for charity purposes, but I acknowledge that i can't control that, so enjoy!! And show me pictures! You can email me pictures at Lovinglyhandmade@gmail.com I'd love to see how you use this or any of my patterns!

Materials:
Small amount of worsted weight yarn in 2 colors
Chophook (roughly size K crochet hook)
Tapestry Needle to weave in ends

Abbreviations:
FPTRC: Front Post Treble Crochet
Sc: single crochet
Hdc: half double crochet
Dc: double crochet
Sl st: slip stitch
Ch: chain
Sk: Skip
FO: Finished Off

With Color A. Ch 4, join with Sl st to form Ring

Round 1: Working in ring: Ch 3, 2dc *ch 2, 3dc* 3 times, ch 2, join with sl st to top of beginning ch 3

Round 2: Ch 1, *FPTRC around nxt 3 dc, (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in ch 2 sp* 4 times, sl st to first trc

Round 3: FPTRC in nxt 5 sts *ch 3, FPTRC in nxt 7 sts* 3 times, ch 3, FPTRC in next 2 sts, join with sl st to first trc

Round 4: Ch 1, sc in same st, sc in nxt 4 sts * 3 sc in ch 3 sp, sc in nxt 7 sts* 3 times, 3 sc in nxt ch 3 space, sc in nxt 2 sts. Join with sl st to first sc, FO.

Round 5: With color B join with sl st to center sc in any corner. (Ch 3, dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in same st, *(ch 1, sk nxt st, dc in nxt st) 4 times, ch 1 (2dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in nxt st* Repeat around, sl st to top of beginning ch 3.

Round 6: Ch 3, dc in nxt st * (2dc, Ch 2, 2 dc) in corner, dc in each st and space across* repeat around. 17 sts each side. Sl st to top of beginning ch 3. FO (Square should be 6” at this point)

Round 7: With Color A Join with sl st to any corner, (ch 3, dc, ch2, 2dc) in corner * Dc in space BETWEEN each st across (2dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in corner* Repeat around. Join with sl st to beginning ch 3.

Round 8: Ch 2, hdc in nxt st * (2hdc, ch 2, 2 hdc) in corner, hdc in each st across *repeat around join with sl st to beginning ch 2. FO. Weave in ends.

Peaches and Cream Done

Well I finished up the Peaches and Cream Ghan this morning, it's a Christmas Gift for Zach's Grandma Pease, my sil told me that her favorite color is peach, so I went with that for her. Here's the picture:






Some things coming up, are I am testing a pattern this week for Krochet Krystal (the one who designed the Daisy Square), it's a darling Capelet, I'm testing it in the size for Dawny Cakes, she wants it done within a week, so I'll start on that as soon as I get the pattern.

Last night I started a LAce and Bobbles afghan, using a G hook, it's going to be for Dawn, I let her go through and choose her colors, most of them match, at least certainly better than the colors Kenzie Chose for her 5 year blanket. BUt the L&B will be 14 different colors, mostly pinks and purples, but also brown, black, green, and blue.. hey so long as she likes it, that's all that matters.

More later....

Family and Hobbies

Thought I should put up some new pictures. These were taken over the last couple days, just some shots of the family. First is Zach with girls on the couch, he had been just relaxing and watching t.v when Kenzie decided to snuggle, then jadyn jumped on and Dawn just couldn't be left out. The bottom two are mackenzie and dawn, they both picked me a flower from the Magnolia tree in the backyard today, they are too sweet!













Then here are some pictures of recent deliveries, my joann's order and my shop caron order. Joann's really had great prices on everything, and the two books are books I've wanted for a while now, and the Crochet Lite hooks I've had my eye on, but didn't want to spend $7 per hook, got em sale nearly 2 for 1 so couldn't resist anymore. The Peach and Cream yarn is already nearly gone, it was used to make a lapghan for my husbands grandma, and plans are in place for the other yarn too.



































Then from shopcaron.com I bought 5- 1lb mill ends bags, it's luck of the draw with what you get, you know it's caron yarn but you can't choose type or color. Of the 5 lbs I got 3 lbs of simply soft (2 white and 1 purplish) and a yellow pounder, and the teal/blue is a rough coarse yarn, I'm thinking rug yarn, I have a darker blue and gray of the same type that I bought a while back at ac moore, and i'm thinking of making a welcome mat type thing for the mud room with it.

Change in Design

Well, I've found a new pattern that I absolutely LOVE for a diagonally striped afghan, and have decided to re-do the lapghans I'm making for Zach's grandma and grandpa pease. Poor grandpa pease's ghan hasn't been touched in so long, and I fear I may never finish it, and I'm not happy with how grandma pease's is turning out, and even though I'm more than 60% done with it, I'm just scrapping it and starting over. eventually I'll frog it and use the yarn for either granny squares or depending on how beat up the yarn is I'll make snuggles for the humane society with it, we'll see. But I'm so unhappy with it, that I won't even put up pictures.

So, here is the link to the pattern that I'm going to use for both. Grandma's will be peaches and cream, and grandpa's will be capecod blue, azure, black and cream... the same colors as the blankets I was originally making for them.
The pattern is called Diagonal Hues, and I found it on CPC

I've joined the Having Fun and Getting it Done CAL on the Ville, I've broken down my project list into a quarterly view, and am hoping this will help me get more done, as opposed to thinking I have a year to finish things, giving myself a smaller list of projects and a shorter amount of time on them.

My List for this is quarter is:

1. Grandma Pease's Peaches and Cream Ghan
2. 16 Daisy Squares for Krystal
3. 3 sections of the Babette
4. Eight Pocket Tote
5. 33 Squares for OA
6. Assemble 3 Comfortghans

The quarter deadline is June 30th, and I'll make this list on the right side bar so I can edit it easily, and I'll post pictures on Fridays of my progress on the items on this list.

Woot UPS came by

I've ordered a bit of yarn lately from two different sources, the first batch came today, it's yarn I'm going to use to make the Babette Blanket I'm really excited to undertake this project, it's going to be something that I do slowly for sure. I usually use red heart or caron yarn for blankets. But I saw this Bernat Super Value on sale and thought I'd give it a fair chance.... it's the same weight and thickness as RRSS except this is SO MUCH SOFTER!!!! I can't believe how soft this is for a plain old acrylic yarn! I'm so glad I took the chance, since this blanket is going to be for me :) I"m hoping to have enough extra yarn to also make a throw pillow or two to go with it.

Here are the colors: pinks, purples, green, and browns






So the projects that I want to finish are as follows:

The ninepatch
The peaches and cream
Dawn's Blanket
Comfortghan assembly
Babette
Snowflakes
Snuggles

there is always more mulling around in my head, but this is what i've got going on right now.

Chophook has arrived

Well today I received my Chophook from Jim. It's really neat, I made the beginning of a granny square as soon as I opened it, I wanted to see how it felt to work with it. It's really smooth and the yarn glides nicely along it.

Here are some pictures...

It came beautifully wrapped in red felt...





And here it is:






If you want a Chophook of your own here is where you can go to get one Chophook

You can help a really worthy cause and get a great tool to crochet with all at the same time.

Pictures

Here is a baby ghan I made for my neighbor Margie. She wanted this for her pediatrician. I'm happy with how it turned out, the bottom and top are not identical like the picture with the pattern was, so I do want to try this pattern again and see if I can get that to be a little better. However, my neighbor was happy with the finished product, so that's what is important.








Also I wanted to show this too... this picture is old, but I am working with some ladies on crochetville on a traveling ghan, we're taking turns with it each adding a few rounds. Here is how I received it:








Here is how it left my house:

On the Horizon

I have to get some pictures taken, I've been working on a peach/cream colored ghan for grandma pease, and also the nine patch ghan for grandpa pease.

I am sending a handful of hats to florida for the march charity on crochetville's chairty blitz 2008... they are late in getting sent, but the person getting them knows and is waiting nicely :)

I bought the Babette Blanket pattern today, more for the line up of the squares than anything else, it looks really cool, i'll be working on this one slowly as time allows.

On the front burner I'm finishing a baby blanket for my neighbor, she wanted something for a nurse in her kids doctors office, needs to be ready by wednesday, it's a granny ripple in colors pink and white. turning out nicely.

Will have pictures up soon, I hope.