"building crochet designs one stitch at a time"
In honor of National Crochet Month, I’m going to post a photo and a link to a free crochet pattern every day this month! Here’s the first of 31 free crochet patterns that you may love just as much as me!
I LOVE this baby booties design and I’m going to give it a try sometime this month. I love the texture of the post stitches and the functional button band at the top to help keep these booties on babies’ feet! How about you? You can find the FREE pattern here.
Happy crocheting,
Susan
Have you ever been working on a crochet project and run into a mistake you made? All of us have (maybe not on every project we make, but on some of them). If the mistake is just a few stitches back, it’s an easy fix. But what if the mistake is many rows, rounds or inches back in your work? Now that’s more difficult and time-consuming to fix! Do you want to take the time to go back and fix that mistake, making the project take longer to finish or do you just want to finish up the project and ignore the mistake? I’ve been in this position many times and I don’t always make the same decision on what to do. I ask myself, “Does this project need to be perfect or is good enough sufficient?”
In my mind, the answer to this question lies in the time-frame that I (or you) have for the project and the intended use/recipient of the project. If this project is made for a family member or friend, I probably want it to be just about perfect. If the project is going to be photographed for a publication (such as in a crochet book or magazine), then I don’t want to have ANY mistakes in it. There is an unwritten Murphy’s Law that says, “If there is a mistake in a crochet project for photography, then that’s the exact spot where the photograph will be taken!” I’ve seen it happen before and it’s not a pretty picture (plus it can be confusing for those who are making that particular project because the project in the picture doesn’t look like what they’re making)!
What if the project is given to a charity and the person who will receive it won’t know who it came from? I guess it’s a matter of personal pride in your work or the ever-present “time constraint” that says “You don’t have the time to go back and fix that mistake; it’ll be good enough”. In my mind, the mistake isn’t as important in this situation and I can live with a mistake a lot easier than I can if the project is going to be photographed for publication. But it’s not always easy for me to leave the mistake alone because I’m a perfectionist (and a recovering perfectionist when it comes to housework, but that’s another story!).
How about errors in crochet patterns? Some designers come up with lots of patterns and quickly self-publish them or sell lots of designs to publishers for their books and/or magazines. They type up the pattern quickly and never proof-read their patterns. Then they move on to the next design and work on it at lightning speed! Well, I can’t work that way and I think that’s wrong (unless you’re the sole bread-winner in your household and need all that income). I think there should be more pride in what we do as designers and/or crocheters (or ask ourselves “Why am I a designer and/or a crocheter”?).
Being a perfectionist, as I am, has its good points and bad points. I don’t design as many projects as some other designers, but I design what I like and I hope others enjoy making my designs. I don’t want to have errors in my patterns, which often confuse those who purchase and make those designs, so I give my patterns my utmost attention to make sure they’re correct before I sell them.
Note: If you find a mistake in one of my patterns, please let me know so I can correct it and forward the corrected copy to everyone who has purchased that pattern. I strive for “perfect” patterns, but I’m only human and an error can creep in from time to time.
If you have a question about one of my patterns, please e-mail me and ask me your question(s). I love to help others understand crochet patterns and I learn a lot about how patterns can be interpreted differently. This, in turn, helps me write my patterns better! If you’ve purchased one or more of my crochet patterns and you like the way it’s written, please let me know (or write a review on this website). I like to know both the good and the bad!
So what do you do when you find a mistake in your crochet project? Do you go back and fix it? Do you leave it alone and say to yourself, “The Amish intentionally make a mistake in their handwork because only God is perfect”? Do you make the same mistake over and over to create a “design element” in the project? Do you hide the mistake by crocheting a flower and sewing it right onto the mistake?
How about when you find an error in a crochet pattern? Do you give up, ask a friend for help, or try to figure it out on your own? With the plethora of free crochet patterns available these days, there are lots of errors in crochet patterns, making it difficult and often frustrating to finish the project with enjoyment. It’s truly enjoyable to find and work with error-free patterns!
We’re all human and mistakes/errors happen. So how many mistakes/errors are “acceptable”? I think that answer is going to be different for different people.
I’d love to hear from you about how you deal with mistakes in your crochet projects and errors in crochet patterns! Let’s all learn and grow together!
Happy crocheting,
Susan
P.S. Voting is now open for The Crochet Awards! You can cast your votes here.
And Crochetville is holding their annual National Crochet Month Blog Tour again during the whole month of March (that’s just 2 days away now!). You can read all about the designers who are participating and the daily prizes here.
Have you heard of “The Crochet Awards”? They used to be called the “Flamies” or the “Flaming Hook of Justice Awards”. They were started by Laurie Wheeler, the founder and fearless leader of The Crochet Liberation Front. Each year, many crochet designers, bloggers, yarn companies and more are nominated for these awards. Anyone can vote for their favorites in each category, starting on Feb. 23rd. You can even nominate your “wildcard” favorite starting on Feb. 16th. For more information about The Crochet Awards, check out this page.
To see who won in last year’s awards, check out this page. Here is one of my favorites from last year’s awards:
It is the Happypotamus, designed by Heidi Bears! Isn’t it pretty with all those vibrant colors? This design won in the category of Best Pillows or Cushions. If you’d like to make one of these, you can find the pattern for sale in Heidi’s Ravelry shop here.
Now back to this year’s awards. The Crochet Awards are being split up into quarterly awards in order to feature more great crochet stuff! All of the nominees for the first quarter of 2015 are listed on this website. This quarter’s awards are all about apparel, from jackets to scarves and everything in between! To see all of the categories for each quarter of the year, check out this page.
I’d like to share a few of my favorite designs that are nominated for the first quarter of 2015.
This is the Fun in the Sun Cover-up by Marly Bird that is nominated in the category of Best Beachwear (swimwear, coverup). It was published in the Summer 2013 issue of Love of Crochet magazine. I like this design because of the nice motifs that Marly used and the possibility to wear it as an everyday top (with the addition of a solid top underneath, of course). It looks very comfortable and easy to make, too.
This is the Jordan Sleeveless Pineapple Top by Vicky Chan that is nominated in the category of Best Tank/Tunic Top. I like the relaxed look of this top and the crochet pineapple is one of my favorite designs! I think this top would look great on many different sizes and figures! You can find this pattern for sale on Ravelry here.
This is the Fall Leaves Wrap by Jessie Rayot that is nominated in the category of Best Shawl/Wrap. I LOVE the colors in this wrap and the way it wraps around the neckline. You can see this pattern and purchase it from Jessie’s Ravelry shop here. This is the same wrap that Jessie entered in the 2014 CGOA Design Competition (and won first place in the accessories category), but in different colors:
I was one of the 3 judges in the CGOA Design Competition last year at the CGOA Conference in Manchester, NH. It was a blast! This year, I’m one of the 2 co-chairs who are putting the design competition together. The other co-chair is Bobbie Matela from Coats & Clark (also a CGOA Board member). We’ll have all of the details for this year’s design competition very soon, so stay tuned for that!
I’m getting sidetracked again! Oh well. Such is my life! Here’s another of my favorite designs that is nominated in the category of Best Cowl:
This is the ZigZag Blues Cowl by Yuliya Tkacheva (I believe she’s Russian and is living in the UK). I love this cowl because of the zigzag design done in all front post and back post stitches! It’s brilliant and has lots of texture! You can purchase this pattern here.
The last of my favorites that I’m going to share is the Summer Sprigs Lace Scarf by Esther Chandler. This scarf is nominated in the category of Best Scarf. I love the lacyness of this scarf and the pattern is free on Esther’s website here. If you scroll to the bottom of her blog post, you’ll see the pdf downloads of the pattern and charts. I haven’t made this scarf yet, but 166 people on Ravelry have made it! If you’re not a Ravelry member, you really should join! It’s free and has links to more patterns that you can imagine! Here’s the Ravelry website.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at The Crochet Awards. And I hope you’ll take a few minutes and vote for your favorites when the voting goes live in 10 days. There are so many talented crochet designers all around the world and it’s nice to give credit to those whose designs are the best in their classes! Until next time…
Happy crocheting!
Susan
Do you enjoy crocheting for the holidays? I definitely do! During the past 15 years, I’ve designed quite a few heart-shaped crochet patterns! So in honor of Valentine’s Day, I’ve compiled a list of my published Valentine’s Day and/or heart-shaped crochet patterns for you (and a few are FREE, too!). If you’re like me, you’re looking for a new heart-shaped crochet pattern to make for this Valentine’s Day (before it’s here and gone!). Why not crochet something for your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day?
1. Valentine Placemat Set (published in the Feb. 2010 issue of Crochet World magazine). This filet placemat set was made with size 20 cotton crochet thread.
2. Wiggly Hearts Rug (published in the Feb. 2010 issue of Crochet World magazine). This rug was made with Red Heart Super Saver and LusterSheen yarns.
3. Heart Swag (published in the Feb. 2010 issue of Crochet World magazine). This swag was made with size 10 cotton crochet thread.
4. Filet Heart Coaster (available for purchase on my website here). This coaster is made with size 10 cotton crochet thread.
5. Heart Coaster (FREE pattern download on my website here). This coaster is made with worsted weight cotton yarn.
6. Valentine Earrings (published in the Jan/Feb 2011 issue of Crochet Today! magazine). These earrings were made with size 10 cotton crochet thread.
7. Justify my Love Coasters (published in the Jan/Feb 2013 issue of Crochet Today! magazine). These coasters were made with Red Heart Super Saver yarn).
8. Wiggly Valentine Hot Pad & Coaster Set (available for purchase on my website here). This set is made with size 10 cotton crochet thread.
9. Bruges Lace Heart Centerpiece (published in “Crochet Beyond the Basics” book in 2014 by Rita Weiss and Susan Lowman, published by Leisure Arts). This centerpiece is made with size 10 cotton crochet thread.
10. Easy Cell Phone Cosy & Heart-Shaped Key Fob (FREE pattern on the Red Heart UK website here). This set uses Red Heart Detroit Color yarn, which is a 100% acrylic, light weight yarn (#3) that is available in the UK. If you live in the US, you could easily substitute Red Heart Anne Geddes Baby yarn or Red Heart Baby TLC yarn instead.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at my Valentine’s Day and heart-shaped crochet patterns. There are TONS of other published Valentine’s Day and heart crochet patterns out there by many talented crochet designers. Why not find the perfect pattern and start your Valentine’s Day crochet project(s) now (before it’s too late!). And if you’d like to learn a new crochet technique (such as wiggly crochet, filet crochet or Bruges Lace crochet) at the same time, what are you waiting for? Start learning something new right now!
Happy crocheting,
Susan
With only 2 weeks left until Christmas, these One-Skein Scarves are perfect for some last minute gifts! The crochet patterns are available separately or as a “special value” set. They’re sure to please many friends and family members on your holiday list!
Each of our “One-Skein Scarves” patterns includes a symbol crochet chart for those of you who are “visual learners”, like me. As always, each pattern includes the finished size, skill level, materials list, gauge, abbreviations used in the pattern, special abbreviations and full written instructions.
The Autumn Romance Scarf was inspired by the beautiful colors of Patons Kroy Socks FX that I saw in my local yarn store. I knew I simply had to design something beautiful with it! It’s a one-skein scarf worked from one end to the other. Then some fringe is added at each end. There is no edging involved in this scarf. It’s a quick project and I absolutely LOVE the colors of this yarn!
The Glamour Scarf was something I decided to design with a skein of Vanna’s Glamour yarn one day. It’s another quick project with an easy stitch pattern to memorize. It’s worked in 2 halves, from the center to each end of the scarf, making each end symmetrical. The scarf includes a simple edging to finish it off. And the shimmer in this yarn is wonderful!
The Pediwick Scarf is made in a beautiful shade of green, but you can make your Pediwick Scarf in any color you desire, of course! It’s also made in 2 halves, from the center to each end. This scarf doesn’t require an edging, since the edges are so straight already. It has a nice stitch pattern on the ends, finishing it off nicely.
Whether you choose one of these scarves or all 3 of them, I’m sure you’re going to love crocheting them up in a jiffy! Each scarf pattern is available for $3.95, or the set of all 3 One-Skein Scarves patterns is available for the special price of $7.95. That’s like getting the 3rd pattern for free! To see more about these new scarf patterns, visit our “Pattern” page here.
I hope you’ll enjoy these One-Skein Scarf patterns and will share photos of your scarves with me. I’d love to see what creative scarves you make with these patterns!
Happy crocheting,
Susan
I’ve been busy working on more crochet patterns for you. Introducing my newest crochet pattern, “Bear Mitts”. Right now, this pattern is only sized for teens through adults (it’s not available in a child’s size yet, but I’ll work on that as time allows). What teenager or young adult (or “young-at-heart” adult, for that matter) wouldn’t love some adorable bear mitts in their stocking this Christmas? Without further delay, here is my bear mitts pattern for your crocheting pleasure:
I’d like to tell you a little about this crochet pattern. I got the inspiration earlier this year when my middle son and his wife were here visiting from China. My daughter-in-law brought some adorable bear mitts with her from China and once I saw them, I fell in love with them! Here’s a photo of the original bear mitts from China:
Aren’t they adorable? I think they’re so cute! Anyway, I decided within a few minutes of seeing them that I’d design some crocheted bear mitts similar to them. And I’m glad I did.
These bear mitts are a lot of fun to make! The head, muzzle and arms are made just like amigurumi pieces and are stuffed to keep their shape. The mitt body piece is made from the top to the bottom with the yellow dress on the front worked at the same time as the brown body. The skirt ruffle and collar are worked separately, then sewn onto the body afterward. The head and ears are separate pieces, too. Because the original Chinese bear mitts had the top of the arms sewn to the side of the face, I decided I’d do this, too, so they don’t flop around while being worn. I didn’t like the way the feet were coming out in crochet, so I decided my crocheted bear mitts didn’t need feet (besides, the fingers sticking out at the bottom can be the bear’s “legs”!). I chose to use safety eyes and noses because I like the look of them, but you could embroider the faces on your bear mitts, if you choose. This is how they look worn:
They’re really fun to wear! If you don’t care for the yellow dress, you can simply make your bear mitts with a different color of dress (it’s absolutely your choice on that part of the pattern)! And if you’d like to embellish your bear mitts with buttons or bows, I think they’d look great with those, as well (I think a bow at the top of the head or off to one side would be adorable!).
The 16-page written pattern for these Bear Mitts includes many photos of the individual pieces for ease of identification and construction.
As always, if you have a question about one of my patterns, I provide free pattern support for all of my patterns here at The Crochet Architect. I learn as much from my customers’ questions as they do from my answers (and I always welcome questions). That’s how we all learn, right?
If you’re an intermediate crocheter (or an adventurous beginner), I hope you’ll give these bear mitts a try. They’re great for helping to keep your hands and wrists warm! And they’re very stylish, too! You can find the pattern right here for sale on our pattern page.
Happy crocheting,
Susan
We all love scarves for keeping our necks warm during the cold winter months! I know I do! But there’s one thing even better than a scarf because it doesn’t fall off easily or become crooked with wear. That item is a “cowl”! If you’ve never heard of a cowl, it’s basically the same thing as an “infinity scarf”, which is a scarf that is joined together at the ends into one big, long tube. There are no ends to be concerned about being straight or even when wearing it. You just put the cowl over your head and wrap it around your neck once or twice, depending on your preference of length and neck warmth! And presto! You have a beautiful and functional accessory to proudly wear or give as a gift. And it’s one of those gifts that doesn’t have to be a certain size, too!!!
This year, I started designing lots of scarves and cowls, since they’re a lot of fun to crochet and wear (and don’t require sizing!). I recently had my first cowl design published in the Dec. 2014 issue of Crochet World magazine and I have a new cowl pattern for you right here on The Crochet Architect. It’s called the “Unforgettable Ripple Cowl”, named after the Red Heart Boutique “Unforgettable” yarn that I chose for this cowl. This yarn comes in some absolutely “gorgeous” colors! It’s 100% acrylic, so it’s machine washable, which is a big plus for anything you might get dirty (not that I get my cowls dirty, but it could happen and I want to make sure I can get it clean without felting it)! I really enjoy crocheting with this soft, squishy yarn. Anyway, here is my new cowl design:
Aren’t the colors pretty? I chose a ripple stitch pattern for this design because I like the way the changing colors are shown off to their best advantage. It’s also an easy pattern to memorize and crochet, as well as being quick to make! This cowl uses only 1 skein of the Unforgettable yarn, making it an economical project, too. There is only 1 seam to sew to join the bottom and top edges to form the tube-shaped cowl, as well as 2 tails to weave in (that’s not bad considering all the beautiful colors that change on their own!).
Here’s a photo of the cowl worn doubled:
I’m really going to enjoy wearing this cowl during the winter, which isn’t too far off now (we had our first frost on Sunday night, so winter is right around the corner here in the higher elevations of Arizona!).
Have you started any new scarf or cowl patterns lately before winter hits where you live? Do you have someone on your Christmas list who loves scarves and cowls?
To purchase the “Unforgettable Ripple Cowl” pattern, just check out our “patterns” page!
Happy crocheting,
Susan
It’s time to get ready for winter and what better way than by crocheting a new scarf! Here, for your crocheting pleasure, is the newest scarf pattern at The Crochet Architect: our “Stained Glass Snowflake Scarf”!
This scarf may look complicated, but it’s not. It is worked in rows of single crochet, all on the right side with color changes. There are long tails at the beginning and end of each row to turn into the fringe when you’re all done crocheting this beauty! And we all know what that means, right? NO TAILS TO WEAVE IN!!! Do I hear a “hallelujah”?
If you’ve seen my “It Takes All Colors Snowflakes” afghan on the Mainly Crochet website and you’re not quite ready to jump into a large afghan project, this scarf is the thing for you. It is worked the same way as my snowflake afghan, but is much faster to make. In case you missed seeing it last month, here is a photo of my snowflake afghan:
As you can see, the afghan and scarf look very much alike, except the afghan has more rows of snowflakes and the scarf has more snowflakes wide (10 snowflakes, to be exact). They’re made the exact same way, which makes it nice. If you like my snowflake afghan and are intimidated by its size, why not try making the snowflake scarf instead. Then when you have the confidence, you can move up to making the snowflake afghan! The snowflake afghan pattern is available on the Mainly Crochet website here. If you haven’t heard of Mainly Crochet, it’s a digital crochet magazine that is available to subscribers. You can get all the information about their service on their website.
So what types of projects are you going to crochet this fall/winter? Are you going to make some afghans or scarves? How about a sweater? It’s a lot of fun to crochet new projects and give them as gifts (for those recipients who appreciate them, of course!).
To purchase the Stained Glass Snowflake Scarf pattern, just check out our “patterns” page!
Happy crocheting,
Susan
Have you ever wondered where designers get the inspiration for their designs? Well, inspiration comes from many places. For me, it can come from seeing something in a store, on a website or in a book. It can also come from seeing a garment or accessory that someone is wearing. My newest design, “It Takes All Colors Snowflakes” afghan, was inspired by a knitted sweater in my own closet! I don’t always get inspired by my sweaters, but this sweater was truly inspiring to me! It’s an older sweater and has seen its better days, especially around the bottom of the sleeves. But I love the snowflake pattern on it and the bright colors that were used, so I knew I had to use this design in a crochet pattern someday. Here’s a photo of the sweater (and a close up photo of it) for you to see:
Here are photos of my snowflake afghan to compare to the sweater:
I used 8 colors (plus black) of Red Heart “With Love” yarn to make this afghan. It’s worked in the Fair Isle crochet technique in which each row is worked on the right side. The tails are all turned into fringe on the left and right edges afterward, so there are no tails/ends to weave in (yahoo!). Fair Isle crochet is a great technique that yields a fabulous finished design! And since the non-working color is worked over instead of being carried across the back, the afghan is reversible, too! Here is a close up photo of a section on the back of the afghan to see:
You can find this pattern on the Mainly Crochet website here. If you’re not familiar with Mainly Crochet, it’s an online magazine started by Michele Maks, the former editor for Crochet World magazine. I met Michele in person at a CGOA Conference (possibly in 2009, but I could be wrong about the year!). Michele purchased quite a few of my crochet patterns during the years that she was the editor of Crochet World! She started out as a designer several decades ago, before she was the editor for Crochet World magazine. She’s a fabulous designer and a great magazine editor with a keen eye! A few years after leaving Crochet World, Michele decided to start her own online magazine called “Mainly Crochet”. The Mainly Crochet website went live in the summer of 2013 and has been going strong ever since! It is a subscription magazine that costs $24 per year. There are over 190 patterns on the website now. They’re all accessible to paid subscribers to download as PDF files onto their computers or tablets. Mainly Crochet has a lot of fabulous patterns by many talented designers! There are patterns for all skill levels and for all types of projects: from afghans to accessories to doilies and lots more! Check it out!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at the inspiration behind my “It Takes All Colors Snowflakes” afghan design and will give this crochet technique a try.
Happy crocheting,
Susan Lowman
I’ve been busy designing lots of scarves this past 6 months and I’ve had a blast with them! I have one of the patterns ready for your crocheting pleasure. This scarf is called “Easy Rainbow Scarf” because it’s an “easy” pattern and because of the rainbow colors I used to crochet it! I just love rainbows, don’t you? Here’s a photo of the scarf:
As you can see, the scarf is completely reversible, thanks to the special stitch worked in the black rows. This scarf, as shown, measures 4 ½” wide x 54” long, plus the fringe. However, the size is adjustable in width by working more or less rows and in length by working more or less repeats across the rows. So you can make your scarf whatever size you desire!
I used 6 colors (plus black) of Caron Simply Soft yarn to make this scarf, but you can use as few as 2 colors to make your scarf, if you wish. I used worsted weight yarn for this scarf, but feel free to use a heavier or lighter weight yarn instead to make your scarves. This is a great pattern for using up scraps of yarn, since only 25 yards of each color are required (for each colored strip in the scarf), plus 175 yards of black, to make the scarf the size shown. You can use whatever colors you like to coordinate with your outfits, coats or jackets.
This scarf is quick and easy to make. The skill level is “easy”, so if you haven’t been crocheting for very long or simply want an easy pattern to make, this scarf fits the bill!
If you’re new to working more than one crochet stitch in a pattern, have no fear! The pattern is easy to follow and includes full instructions for making the scarf with the fringe. It also includes close-up photos of the scarf and fringe, instructions and step-by-step photos for working in the back bump of the foundation chain, making a Long double crochet (Ldc), starting a row (joining) with a sc or a hdc and making the fringe. And there are no yarn tails to weave in, since the tails are included into the fringe!
If you already know how to make a chain, single crochet, half double crochet and double crochet, as well as how to read and follow a crochet pattern, you’re ready to make this scarf. If you’re eager to learn something new and enjoy making new, unique projects, it’s time to get started on this fun scarf today! And Christmas is coming, so this is the perfect time to get started on those Christmas gifts for the loved ones on your list!
This pattern is available right here at The Crochet Architect as an instant PDF download for $4.95. And, as always, I’m available to answer any questions you may have about any of our patterns while you’re making the items. If you find a mistake, please let me know right away so I can correct it. I strive to create fun, error-free patterns for your enjoyment!
Happy crocheting!
Susan
