Tag Archives: hand made

Unmatched Dye- Lots

Easy Crochet, , , , , , ,

Mee-ow, it is I, Mimi, you’ve  caught me slightly unprepared…

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Have you heard of dye-lots?

If you’ve been crocheting or knitting a while you will have, but if you’re a beginner… you need to know! Every yarn has a color of course, but it also has a dye – lot. The dye-lot is all the wool that was dyed at the same time. This means they will all be exactly the same color. You can find the dye-lot by reading the label next to the color.

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So when you go to start a new project, don’t just scoop up an armful of the same color – check the dye-lot to make sure they came from the same batch or you could wind up with a two-tone finished item that doesn’t look so good.

Any questions? Yes??

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What if you can’t get the same dye lot??

Firstly, don’t give up until you’ve talked to the store person, they may have another shop they can ring and  get it from.

And if not?

It’s time to get creative. Treat the different dye lots like different colors. Work out a pattern you can use them in. Try stripes or alternate motifs or what ever your project and imagination suggest.

Or take the yarn back and get a different one.

Here’s a project Emma used many different navy yarns on.

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On the close up you can see how I used the different yarns in patterns.

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Have a happy day and don’t work too hard,

Mimi

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finishing a Row in One Place and Starting in Another with Slip Stitch

Intermediate Crochet, , , , ,

Mee-ow, it is I, Mimi.

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Today I’m going to teach you a wonderful thing you can do with a tiny little stitch called slip stitch, sl st for short.

Sometimes when we crochet we want to start the next line in a different place to where we finished it.

If we want to make it longer we can simply add more chain at the end of the previous row like this (no slip stitches required)

If you want to finish in a longer place and start again further in you can finish off and start again, but that is too messy when there is a much  more suitable solution that looks is easier and looks better like this.

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So how do you do it? You start a new row adding a sl st to the top of each stitch you don’t want to increase, like this.

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I did this example in a separate color so you can see what I’m doing, but usually it would look like this – a seamless edge.

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Once you reach the start of the next row you do your turning ch and continue on happily with your project.

 

 

 

 

 

Easy Window Wrap

Easy Crochet, Wraps, , , , , , , , ,

Inspired by the success of the Blanket Wrap we have now completed the Easy Window Wrap.

Pattern 42 v1

This pattern is an easy one – hence its name – and is perfect for those cooler summer nights…

Pattern 42 v2

…or winter subtropical days, depending on where you live! The pattern is on sale at Ravelry.com if you’d like it.

 

 

 

Puppy Crochet

DKO news, , , , ,

Meet Tiger Lily!

Pattern 41v3.JPG

She is sporting a beautiful crocheted dog coat of course!

Pattern 41 v2

She has recently joined us as an apprentice.
WP_20160411_003Tiger Lily is a country girl who knew young that chasing wild pigs was not for her. She escaped to the outskirts of the city where the RSPCA gladly took her in.

Her gentle nature and eagerness to please make her a real asset and pleasure to have around. She has been exceptionally quick to learn everything we have taught her so far.

She is very interested in learning to crochet and design. She dreams of becoming an Art Therapist for other young female dogs at risk.

 

 

 

 

Beach Backpack – 3. From Foundation to Mesh

Beach Backpack, Beginner Basics, Learn to crochet, , , , , , , ,

DSC00001Woof and Welcome in this tutorial we’re starting our terrific beach backpack. This is how it will look when it is done.

Beach Backpack

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s get started!

First comes 32 chain stitches (ch) as a foundation chain. This is quite a big number for me to count, but I have a trick that helps me. I always count my foundation ch out loud and then if I’m not sure where I’m up to I remember what number I last heard… maybe it is a dog thing, but it works!

Oh and make sure you don’t count the loop on your hook as a chain.

Lesson 3 photo 1

Next we do our first row of half double crochets (hdc). Start with 2 turning chain, then make sure you put the hdc into the third ch from the hook.

Lesson 3 photo 2

Then just finish off the row!

Lesson 3 photo 3

So for this next row we’re going to start the eyelets that will go at the top of the bag. Yes this is the top! Trust me it is very clever.

Do 2 turning ch, 1hdc, 2ch and then skip 2 stitches in the row below and do another hdc. Now you’ve created an eyelet

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So now you can just repeat this pattern and finish the row. You should have 8 eyelets like this.

Lesson 3 photo 5

The next row is another row of hdc. Just woof along the row putting a hdc in each stitch from the row below. Instead of putting the hdc in the actual ch stitches, just put them into the eyelets themselves like this.

Lesson 3 photo 6

Your finished row should look like this. Don’t forget to count your stitches – there should still be 32!

Lesson 3 photo 7

 

Next we start the mesh just the same as we did it in Lesson 2. Start with 2 turning ch and the first hdc. Then do 4ch stitches, skip 2 hdc in the row below and put a single crochet (sc) into the top of the next hdc on the previous row like this

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Keep repeating 4ch, skip 2 stitches and 1sc until you have 10 mesh spaces and one stitch left. Make this last stitch in the row a hdc. It should now look like this

Lesson 3 photo 9

For your second row of mesh repeat this pattern going back the other way. In other words, 2 turning ch, 1hdc, 4 ch and sc into the mesh space below like this

Lesson 3 photo 10

Then keep going with a 4ch, sc pattern and another hdc into the last stitch in the line

Lesson 3 photo 11

Now you’re going well, keep making mesh spaces until you get to the end of Row 17 and I’ll catch up with you there in the next lesson! Have fun and don’t forget to count!!

Until next time…. Woof!

Olive paw 2OLIVE

Beach Backpack – 1. Understanding the pattern

Beach Backpack, Beginner Crochet, Learn to crochet, , , , , , , , , ,

DSC00001Woof and Welcome. I’m Olive the dog.  In this tutorial we’re going to make a gorgeous beach backpack. This is how it looks like when it is done. Pattern BEG004 photo 2

If you’d like to make yourself one you can download the pattern here for free.

We’ll start by reading through the pattern so we understand what to do overall.

Let’s see, we’ll need to know how to make chain stitches, half double crochet stitches and single crochet stitches. If you don’t know how to make these stitches you really should bounce on down to our STITCHES GUIDE and get some lessons from the experts. Pattern BEG004 photo 3

The other two skills are working in rows and a bit of sewing which shouldn’t be too hard woof!

You will also need:

  • A 7mm crochet hook
  • A 50 g ball of 12ply yarn in a color you like
  • A needle to sew with
  • A pair of scissors

The trick with this pattern is in putting it together. You make it as one big rectangle then you fold it in half with the middle becoming the bottom, and sew up each side to turn it into a bag.

Basically the pattern has some eyelets at the top, a mesh pattern that expands the bag so it can carry a lot, a few solid rows in the middle which is really the bottom, then repeats itself so both sides are the same.

Then you make the straps, sew them on, weave them through the eyelets and the backpack can be worn and closed. Pretty woof eh!

Sound easy enough? Let’s do it!

Until next time…. Woof!

Olive paw 2
OLIVE

Beginner Bag Projects

Beginner Crochet, Beginner Projects, Learn to crochet, , , , , , ,

We now have 2 more designs available at DKO designs. To complete our selection of FREE Beginner Projects we have two bag projects.

Beach Backpack which you can download the pattern for here Pattern BEG004 Beach BackpackBeach Backpack
Little Dilly Bagand Little Dilly Bag which you can download the pattern for here Pattern BEG005 Little Dilly Bag