Crochet and Weddings

I have to say, organising a family wedding is tiring. Apart from my daily responsibilities as a working mom and a wife, I have added wedding duties to the list. This time around is my cousin's wedding which took place today. My MO from day one has always been to help my aunt. At least there is a small contribution from me which will help make this wedding a success.

Every weddings (I don't know why) seems to revolve around a theme. This wedding's main theme is the colour purple (not the movie). Everything is purple. From what the family members will be wearing to the flowers adorning the stage.

I love all colours but I have a thing about highlighting only one particular colour. Hence, a colour theme. My duty was to crochet some embellishments for the flower girls who will be escorting the bride and groom into the hall.

The organiser requested that I use only one colour, which is purple. If you look at the colour chart above, it is the middle square on the first row. It's quite dark and really uninteresting. Furthermore, I had to attach the embellishment on a hair clip. The end result was again uninteresting.The girls' had black hair and when I placed the clip on their heads, the clip disappeared. Thankfully, they saw the predicament and quickly changed to placing the embellishment on the girls' shoes.

Everyone went ooh and aah but personally, I don't like the colour. I love the pattern by the way. I found it at www.bonittapatterns.com where they give out free patterns and some lovely patterns for sale as well. I would have added some pink or yellow for the centre and green for leaf. I would have crochet beads or pearls as well. But I had to follow instructions.

Apart from that, I enjoyed making the embellishments and I learned to make crocodile stitch. I foresee that I'll be making more from this stitch in the future.

Crocheter on a Holiday

Last school holiday, my daughter, Sofia wanted to learn to crochet. I found a pink, 8 ply cotton yarn from www.cottonhousestore.com and I gave her one of my 5 mm hook. I taught her how to hold the hook and yarn. Of course the first stitch anyone has to learn is the chain. Initially her chains were loose but as time goes by it got better. She got better at it real fast. She got quite bored by making chains only.

The chain is a simple stitch but you have to master this stitch before you move on. I wanted to instill her love in the craft. So, she has to learn to be better than good (not just at crochet though), she has to master even the simplest stitch like the chain.

Time passed, just a day or so, as well as her interest. The longest chain she created was about two metres which now adorned around her teddy bear's neck. I'm left thinking that the window of opportunity to teach her the next stitch will appear in the next school holiday or not.

I have an ongoing project for this holiday too but being me, I forgot to bring an extra ball of yarn. So that's that. I can't imagine going through the next five days without a hook and yarn in my hands. But than of course, Sofia's yarn is available. Yeah! Now all I need is a pattern. Mental check. Before you go on a holiday, always bring:

1. Your crochet project
2. Extra ball of hook and yarn
3. Pattern book
4. A pair of scissors
5. Measuring tape

I found this pattern book at www.cottonhousestore.com. It's a Japanese book translated to Mandarin. I don't read both languages. When I first started to crochet, I looked for pattern books at the bookstore to satisfy my hunger for the craft. There were plenty of crochet books from Japan by Ondori Publication. The Japanese made reading patterns so easy using symbols. It was awesome for someone who is just starting out. I made table runners, doilies, cushion covers which are still being used at my mom's house. I created those some 15-20 years ago.

This pattern book features dresses for babies and toddlers.

I don't even know what the title is but you can check it out at www.cottonhousestore.com. Anyone who cannot read Mandarin should be able to follow instructions from this book. The symbols are universal. But I suppose you have to develop some skills first before embarking on this book. 

The pattern I ventured in making ia a cardigan. I called it the Pink Cardigan (since the name is in Mandarin - so I made one up). This is my first cardigan and it turned out to be fabulous!!

My first cardigan

Button holes made easy.

I tried making cardigans before but the end result was an eye sore. I always have a problem with my stitches. They're not even. I don't know why this pattern worked for me. Maybe this time I used the right yarn weight. I didn't try to cheat the number of stitches. Maybe....... I have mastered crochet! Hah! But whatever it is you have to try out patterns from this book. Even a novice like me can produce a masterpiece like this.

Borders made from same basic treble clusters.

Border goes all around the neck of cardigan.

Crochet + Fabric = CroFabulous

CroFabulous

I found a pattern by Thomasina Cummings, "Little Kisses Pinafore Dress" from Inside Crochet magazine May issue 41 into this dress. I decided to embark on the challenge. I chose the yarn DMC Petra (again!) simply because of its lovely colour as always. However, the yarn is too thin. I couldn't re-create the kisses effect that Thomasina did in her lovely pattern. Hence, I adapted. I crochet the bodice according to pattern and at the bottom of the bodice I crochet shell to create a bit of lace effect. My mom in-law helped sew the fabric to the bodice. The end result is a product of fabric and yarn.... CroFabulous!

I used fabric buttons here.

I added matching fabric buttons to this dress. I loved using these buttons. It gives a personal touch to the dress.

It was really a fun project to do even though I started out to do something else. Isn't life the same. You begin your career as a lawyer and ended being a baker. You were a brilliant student in chemistry and biology, and you have a masters degree to proof it. Yet, you're happy being a stay at home mom. To me, what's important is charting your own journey. The end result is much satisfying that way.

It come in pink too!

I Crochet it My Way

Since my last project, I have been very busy crochet dresses and more dresses. The one I would like to share with, is what I called Raspberry Ripple Dress. Initially it was a challenge I was really looking forward to. Than, it became a nightmare. Only passion drove me to complete this pattern and hopefully I made a little girl happy.

This dress was made from the neck (yoke) down. I love to use this style. Seamless is the way to go if you would like to attempt to crochet a dress. I used DMC Babylo yarn in white, pink and purple. Total balls were five. I wanted to use DMC Petra but I couldn't get the colours I wanted. The thing with thin yarn is that you end up doing more stitches to make up for the required size. Which means I had to spend more time working on this dress compared to using a thicker yarn. But I was willing to invest my time and the end result was satisfying.

The bodice.

The bodice was made using trebble (or the American term is double crochet) increasing at the corners to make up the arm hole. It took awhile to complete this section because of the skinny yarn I mentioned above. I have to say that I was bored and I could't wait till I reach the desired length.

Then the excitement began. I found a pattern on www.ravelry.com by Nell Armstrong called Crochet Baby set #106 which used a ripple effect. I thought it would be excellent to make the skirt. It turned out to be a disaster! Who knew that by choosing a skinny yarn would give me a headache. 

So, I stripped of the idea off and instead applied my own. At the end of the bodice, I made shells and between the shells I made chain space. For the next row, I increase stitches in these chain spaces.

The making of the skirt.

Then it was a matter of increasing stitches and changing colour until I reached the desired length. It got pretty monotonous, really. While making these ripple effects, I was thinking about the border. What can I do to this dress that will give it a distinct look? Something me, possibly.

Border at the bottom of the skirt.

Border at the sleeve.

I thought about my favourite stitch which is shell. It was not difficult to make it into a border. I used same stitches for the sleeves and skirt but the effects were different. Of all the stitches I used to make this dress I love this one the best. This was done my way. What can I say about the rest of the pattern? It's the repetition that I didn't like. It was also not being able to start off using the yarn of my choice. At the end of this project, I wish I had done more to make it outstanding, intricate, delicate. Yes, I found it. This dress lack detail.

I'm on another project. Will keep you posted. This will be a lesson learned for me. I'm not a designer, yet. And I don't know how to write my own pattern. I can use symbol but it will have to be on a large paper. I can only share with you images and hopefully you gain inspiration from them.

Buttons were sewed at the back of the bodice.

 

Finished product.

Ballet Slippers

This is not my first attempt at trying to crochet slippers or socks. But these slippers are my first success. I made not one but six pairs! You can download this free from www.craftsy.com or you can visit the designer Megan Denham at www.tampabaycrochet.blogspot.com.

I believe this pattern worked for me because of its simplicity plus you can make it into any size you want. Here I made for my son who is five and his cousins who are one and three years old. You can always add on embellishments to the slippers making them more attractive.

After putting on his new slippers, my son Ali, made a trial run. He was very happy sliding from slide to side. Then he got creative whereby he started to run and slide when he wants to stop. He almost hit the wall. I realised that I needed to sew leather sole to the slippers to prevent any mishap.

Apart from that, Megan's instructions were easy to understand and follow. I will definitely recommend this pattern to beginners who want to learn to crochet.

Ballet Slippers

Happy New Year 1434

I'm feeling blue. The Seashell Dress is almost finishing and I suppose that explains the feeling blue. Like all journey that begins it also ends. Personally, I love happy endings. But if life ends all the time with a happy ending it's almost magical.

I have worked on the back left and right opening. The buttons will be sewn here.

Tomorrow marks another end of a journey. It's the end of the year 1433. Twelve months ago I was in Mecca enjoying my hajj with my husband. We were oblivious to what was going on around the world but everyone was certainly talking about Syria.

A lot had happened since up to today. Major events in my life would certainly be my hajj, kids got very sick while we were away, I started crochet-ing for Fabric & Yarn hence writing on this blog, my daughter's first experience sitting for entrance exam (twice!), I took the kids to Jakarta - their first flight experience. Many more events big and small that I do not wish to publish because it means I have to take that walk down on memory lane. Feeling nostalgia I do not want. But I am blue.

Since a lot had happened I'm not sure if I am ready to face another day let alone another year. Will I still be feeling blue tomorrow? Another colour perhaps? Like my Seashell Dress project that is coming to an end, I am planning another project. I bet all crafters feel the same. You cannot stop when a project ends. You want to do more. I am already looking at my yarn stash. Going through my pattern books and crochet magazines. What next? Should I embark on a simple or challanging, big or small project? Maybe a skirt. Still thinking....

The end of a year also prepares my brain on my next life project. Yes, daughter will commence her primary school, son will embark on his preschool. But I? What lies ahead for me? New career? A makeover? I can't tell. I know my family will start new journeys for the new year but not mine. I have a feeling my journey will be stagnant. Watching other people take their journey and watch their lives change. Is this something possible to do? Only time will tell.

Crochet in High Spirit

I just came home from visiting my in-laws in Johor Bharu. I actually drove there..... well half-way that is. I persuaded my sister-in-law to tag along and she drove the other half way. Personally, I didn't think that I can stand driving for 4-5 hours.

My mother in-law (MIL) was diagnosed with dengue last Tuesday. This is her second infection in three years! I have to say her body may be weak but her spirit was high. She was happy to see us and surprised that we actually drove all the way just for her. It was a booster and I was thrilled that I had a small contribution to this high spirit of hers.

I don't usually visit any sick relatives. I wouldn't know what to say. Wouldn't know what to do. But when I heard my MIL was sick, I just had to see her. My father in-law wouldn't know what to do either. There were no other relatives to help them. I just had to see her.

Sometimes your presence is enough to lift a sick person's spirit. Don't have to say or do anything. We talked about everything under the sun. Her worries and her joy. Of course she had to talk about her grandchildren. They are a part of her. But not once did we talked about her aches and pains, discomfort or complains about being in the hospital. It fact she was a very good patient.

That's the beauty of my MIL. Her iman is her strength. Her focus is on making ibadah for Him. Hence she is always in high spirits because she embraces what's being given to her by Him. The good, the bad and the ugly! And she waits for her time to meet Him.

As she was talking, I was crocheting. The dress is coming out good. I'm so thankful. After 14 1/2 inches from begining, the pattern decreases. How interesting it was by just reducing the double crochet and chain, the dress tapered to form the waist. Easy instruction. Thank you Elissa Sugishita for this pattern. It didn't take long for me to form the divide and shaping for front and back. I should be finishing soon.

There was a slight nagging feeling about leaving my MIL alone in the hospital. But she was in good hands. In fact she would rather be in the hospital than at home. As I huged her, the thought of not seeing her crept in my mind. But the thing about being around someone in high spirit is that it's contagious. Soon I was overwhelmed with this sensation. Yes, the nurses will take care of her. Her doctor will monitor her progress. But most importantly, He'll look after her because she is always thinking of him. Every breath, every heart beat and every moment.