kimley knits

My schedule has been unusually hectic the last few weeks and I didn’t have time to post the amazing potholders I received in the recent potholder swap over on Ravelry. But look at these fab handmade lovelies I got…

I’m so impressed by the quality and creativity of everyone involved. I’m already looking forward to next year’s swap!

And here are my finished potholders that I sent off to live in someone else’s collection. It’s especially nice knowing how much the recipients appreciate handmade items. The swap is a win-win in every way.

[button link=”http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Kimley/potholder-swap-2012″ color=”#c2ebb1″ text=”dark” window=”yes”]My Project Details on Ravelry[/button]

If you missed out on this year’s swap, don’t fear… there’s a dishcloth swap coming up in the same group which should be just as fun. And of course, you can start planning early for next year’s swap!

Yep, it’s that potholder swappin’ time of year which means I’m busy crocheting potholders once again. Last year’s swap was so much fun that I’ve actually been looking forward to this year’s right since the minute I sent last year’s off. Crazy, huh?!?

I’ve got a nice stash of Drops Muskat cotton from Nordic Mart and I’ve been swatching away and think I’ve finally decided upon this pretty pinwheel motif that I got from one of my Japanese stitch dictionaries. I’m still tweaking it as my front is clearly too small so I’ll add another round so it doesn’t pucker.

Come join us in the potholder swap group on Ravelry so you can catch a little potholder frenzy yourself.

I had a few months there where anyone who was due a gift was getting subjected to my newfound crochet skills. I’ve finally calmed down a bit – though I reserve the right to subject a few more of these babies on unwitting friends and family. If you are in line for a gift and I haven’t already made these for you then be forewarned. The holidays are coming up…

Who knew!?! Never in a million years did I think I would become so entranced with crochet potholders but entranced is exactly what has happened. This was such a fun swap and I already can’t wait for next year’s swap! I sent my five potholders out into the world and got five totally fab potholders in return.

my potholders – side 1

my potholders – side 2

groovy potholders that I got in return

Finished Object – Noro Striped Scarf

Not much longer after finishing my Noro striped scarf, I became obsessed with crochet. So why not combine my two obsessions??? One can never have too many Noro striped scarves!

NORO STRIPED SCARF STATS
PATTERN: I followed Brooklyn Tweed’s specs
YARN: Noro Silk Garden, colors #275 & 267
NEEDLES:  US 7/4.5mm

WIP – Noro Crochet Ripple Scarf

I’m just using a traditional ripple pattern for this Noro crochet scarf which I’m doing the long way to showcase the Noro stripes. It started slowly with the first row taking forever with all those chain stitches to crochet into but once that was done, it’s all been going very quickly since. It really helped that I put in removable stitch markers for every ripple repeat while doing the initial chain. Otherwise there is no way that I would have managed it. I know I would have missed a chain somewhere.

African Flower Hexagon Potholders

It looks like I might be catching the crochet bug. I recently became entranced by all the groovy potholders on the Ravelry Potholder Swap group and decided I wanted to join in all the fun. Naturally I waited until late in the game to get started on mine so I’m not quite sure I’ll be done in time in which case people will either be getting potholder gifts in the near future or I’ll save them for next year’s swap.

I’m using my leftover Rowan cotton from the coasters I crocheted recently and using a free pattern I found on Ravelry that seems to be quite popular – the African Flower Hexagon. This seemed like a good second project – a bit more involved than the coasters but not so much so that I’d get overly frustrated. I did make several mistakes on my first potholder (the brown and purple one) so I’m calling that one my “first pancake” and will probably keep it for myself. I do love the color combo but I messed up the stitch count here and there. Nothing major but not quite swap-worthy.

My LYS is having a free crochet class this weekend so I think I’ll take advantage of that to refine my negligible skills. Oh, and maybe buy some more yarn…

Way behind on my blogging… So here’s some catch-up from a xmas gift I made for my friend Janel who moved into a new home last year and needs all the cozy stuff that makes a home a home. I’ve hardly done any crochet before and this is the first actual finished project I’ve completed with crochet. It’s all been little swatches here and there but this was a super simple project and definitely gave me the bug to do some more.

Crochet Coasters

I didn’t follow any specific pattern though I used this video on YouTube to get started and roughly followed this Summertime Coaster pattern that I initially found on Ravelry.

I had a lot of fun picking out the colors at my LYS. It’s all Rowan Handknit Cotton which I think worked out perfect for this kind of project and comes in a bajillion colors.

These were fast and fun and make a perfect gift if I do say so myself!