Category: Crochet Adventures

Oh look – A Snowbird …

Em … to be honest, I had no idea what kind of bird a snowbird is as we don’t have them in Europe. I had to ask Google and the answer was that nowadays many different birds in Canada are called snowbirds and indeed, Google showed me a lot of different pictures. But originally “Snowbird” was the name for a Junko. Do you know them?

However, I would like to introduce you to my new flatmate: little Snowbird.

This cute snowbird is part of the pattern Winter Birds 2 from @natura_crochet. I spotted it on Instagram last year. It was sometime before Christmas, so I got it myself as a present.
The pdf is more like a booklet than a single pattern. It is beautifully designed and contains patterns for three different birds: Kingfisher, Waxwing and a Chickadee – plus the Snowbird as a bonus pattern. All birds are very colourful and wintery styled with hat and scarf.

I used Schachenmayr Catania and Wenco DIY (a German brand) with a 2,25 mm hook. Both are 100% Cotton sport weight (#2) yarn with a yardage of 125 m / 50 g.

On my desk: ready to assemble

My colours are:

  • 429 – Anthrazit / Catania
  • 434 -Nebel / Catania
  • 258 – Erdbeere / Catania
  • 206 – Honig / Catania
  • 51, blau / DIY
  • Head – Anthrazit
  • Body – Nebel, Erdbeere
  • Wings – Blau, Nebel, Anthrazit
  • Tail – Blau, Nebel, Anthrazit
  • Legs – Anthrazit, Honig, Erdbeere
  • Beak – Anthrazit
  • Hat / Scarf – Honig

I made some small adjustments to the hat and the scarf. I made the scarf a little shorter and narrower and the hat a little wider – it just worked better with my yarn.

I have to confess, I was a little hesitant about sewing the parts together. I don’t have much experience in assembling such small parts. So they So they have been lying in my basket for days (weeks?). But the placement etc. is well explained in the pattern and all went well!

I am absolutely happy with the result. Just started the Waxwing …

Have a lovely time 💕

Tunisian Crochet Heart

A while ago I came across this pattern on Ravelry: Tunisian Crochet Heart by Joy Clements from Crochet Road. Cute little hearts made in a combination of Tunisian and regular crochet.
I lately rediscovered my love of Tunisian crochet and dug out my Tunisian hooks, so of course this pattern caught my eye… But to be honest, what really convinced me to try it was a picture I saw on Ravelry: these little hearts are not only a perfect Valentine’s gift, they are also perfect as a small pincushion. Plus, big bonus, you also can clip on a few stitch markers. Very handy for me! This way I can have one or two stitch markers with me – just in case I need them unexpectedly – without having to carry the whole box.

The pattern

In my opinion the pattern is absolutely beginner friendly. Everything is explained very well along with a lot of pictures and videos. You won‘t even need a Tunisian crochet hook, a normal hook is absolutely sufficient.

The pattern has instructions for the heart itself which you can use as gift hanger, bunting or whatever comes to your mind. There are also instructions for joining two hearts to give it -stuffed with some fiberfill – a three-dimensional look. Last but not least you can create a tiny heart-shaped bag.

My hearts

These hearts are quick and fun to make. So I made some in different yarn weights and qualities. I decided to stuff mine with fiberfill. I only could not decide whether I prefer them more or less stuffed. So they all look a bit different.

My small hearts are made with Cotton sport weight yarn and my 3,00 mm Clover Amour hook. They measure about 5 cm / 2 inch.

Yarn and colours are:

  • Schachenmayr Catania (100% Cotton – 125m / 50 g)
    • 263 – Soft Apricot
    • 408 – Altrosa (dusky pink)
    • 258 – Erdbeere (strawberry / red)
    • 205 – Apfel (apple / green)
  • Scheepjes Catona (100% Cotton – 125m / 50 g)
    • 520 – Lavender
  • Wenco DIY (a German brand that I bought in a supermarket)
    • 51 – blau (blue)

I probably will gift the red and pink ones for Valentine‘s Day. The green and blue one will definitely be used as pincushion.

With my left over yarn (DK yarn) from my Legacy blanket the hearts turned out about 7 cm / 2 3/4 inch. I made them with a 4,5 mm hook, but this time with a Tunisian hook. I guess it will also work with a normal crochet hook – personally I just found it more comfortable with a Tunisian hook..

Yarn and colours are:

  • Drops Lima (65 % Wool, 35% Alpaca – 100 m / 50 g)
    • 100 – Off White
  • Drops Merino Extra Fine (100 % Wool – 105 m / 50 g)
    • 15 – Light Sea Green

I am just thinking about making some bookmarks using just a single heart. Maybe decorated with some embroidery? I probably will have to try it …

In case I have inspired you, the pattern for this little cuties is available on Ravelry.

If you love to crochet hearts just like I do, you might want to have a look at the ones I did last year.

Happy Valentine‘s Day ♥️

Something nice and small – Still feasible before Christmas

Are you celebrating Christmas and still looking for a little something to give as a gift or decorate? These two crochet patterns, Glittery Christmas Baubles and Sparkly Stars, are really quick to make and look fantastic.
I’ve had a lot of fun crocheting them over the last few days and have found them quite addictive. The yarn you use will make them look very different, so they don’t necessarily have to look Christmassy. It all depends on your preference.

Both patterns require very little yarn, so they are great for using up any leftovers.

Glittery Christmas Baubles

The pattern is from Ana Morais Soares from One Skein of Love.
As the name of the pattern applies, Ana has used glittery yarn in some parts. I did not have anything with glitter on hand – so mine are made with some leftover yarn from my Legacy Blanket.

A little side note: Yes, my Legacy Blanket is finally finished! To be precise, it’s been finished for about a fortnight now, but I haven’t managed to take some nice pictures yet. The weather here is mostly pretty grey at the moment – clouds, rain, or fog. I hope it gets better in the next few days!

Back to my baubles, I think they clearly show what I meant at the beginning – they look more rustic than glittery and Christmassy.

I’m totally in love with this look!

I used

  • Drops Lima (100 m / 50 g) – colour 100, Off White
  • Drops Merino Extra Fine (105 m / 50 g) – colour 07, Light Brown
  • Drops Merino Extra Fine (105 m / 50 g) – colour 15, Light Greyish Green

with a 3,5 mm hook.

The bauble itself consists of two halves that are sewn together. First, you crochet the two halves, then you join them together while inserting the bauble.
Ana used a Christmas bauble for this. Unfortunately, I didn’t have one that was the right size. So I put a polystyrene ball inside mine. It’s a 7 cm (2 3/4 inch) ball. The circumference is about 22 cm, just over 8.5 inches. It fits perfectly!

Of course, you can use various decorative stitches to join the two halves. Alternatively, if you prefer not to stitch them together, a crochet join, such as a simple zipper join, works very well.

I tried different joins, and the one shown on the left is my favourite.

It is made with slip stitches worked through the back loops. On each half, I inserted the hook top down, from outside to inside. I started with a slip stitch through the back loop of a stitch on the lower half, then slip stitched through the corresponding stitch on the upper half. And so on … It creates a nice kind of braided effect.

Sparkly Stars

Sparkly Stars is a pattern by Joy Clements from Crochet Road, which I spotted on Ravelry. These five-pointed stars are as quick to make and as addictive as Ana’s baubles. They can also be used simply as winter decorations.

Here, too, the final look can be influenced by the yarn and colours used.

The pattern offers two different sizes, contains detailed pictures and also a link to a video tutorial.

I used the same yarn and colours as for the baubles, but this time with a 4 mm hook. So again, no sparkle or glitter.

My small stars are about 9 cm and the tall ones about 14 cm.

Both patterns, the Glittery Christmas Baubles and the Sparkly Stars are available on Ravelry.

Glittery Christmas Baubles on Ravelry
Sparkly Stars on Ravelry

I will definitely make some more baubles and stars using different yarns.

Have a lovely time 💕

More Squares of my Legacy Blanket

Progress with my Legacy Blanket. The joining comes closer, 11 of 12 squares are finished now. All tails worked away and most of them already blocked!
I also revised some of my colour placements and am happy with the result!

Besides Pam just released the pattern for the Justyce Destany Border .

I was happy to help testing the border pattern. Although my blanket is not finished yet I am able to show you a sneak peek of the border.

For testing purposes I used two of my ›old‹ squares which I made right at the beginning of this journey: Drops Merino Extra Fine #50, Light Beige as main colour, #06 Brown Mix and #07 Light Brown for contrast. I discarded this colour scheme after I had worked the first two squares – somehow I didn’t like it. But – advantage – it gave me some ›leftovers‹ for testing the border.

And here some of my finished squares

Madux James

Brixton Carter-Lee

Marley Mae

Jalen Miles

Carter Jude

Olivia Grace

So far so good!
Lauren Rose (one of the revised ones) and Brood of Angels are still on the blocking board. The last one to finish is Macey Ann. Actually, Macey Ann was the very first Legacy Square I made. So it still has the ›old ‹ colour scheme and – besides now being part of my border patch – needs to be redone.

All patterns for the Legacy Blanket are available in Pam‘s Ravelry store.

Have a lovely weekend 💕

Happy Granny Square Day 2023

Today is Granny Square Day!

It looks like Granny Square Day has become a kind of tradition in the crochet world. Since 2014, every year on 15. August, people from all over the world post their (Granny) squares on social media, mainly on Instagram. The original idea was, that all the squares together on IG would look like a colourful Granny Square blanket. Just search for the hashtag #grannysquareday2023 and you will see what I mean.

Last year I posted Ana‘s Sweet Marigold Square. She designed it especially for the Granny Square Day and I had the pleasure to test the pattern. This year I decided to show one of my own designs.

One of my own designs sounds a bit like having a huge pool of designs to choose from – he, he.
In fact, I don‘t!
Sometimes it just comes over me and then I grab my yarn and hook and start combining stitches … I am still learning … Sometimes something emerges that I like and perhaps develop further. Sometimes I just discard everything …

This is how the small square here was “born”. Something I like and thought I could at least show on Granny Square Day. ( It is based on my very first square that I designed over a year ago, but never showed anywhere. )

So far it doesn’t have a name – and no finished pattern, only my notes. I do not yet know exactly what I will do with it.
It’s a 6″ square, maybe I’ll develop it further into an 11″ or 12” square? And combine both, the small and the big one to … ??? We will see!

First I need to write down the pattern properly and maybe take some detailed photos. And think about a name! So there is still a lot to do.

My sample is made with Hobbii Rainbow Cotton 8/6, a DK or Light worsted yarn. Colours are Jeans Blue (#29), Light Jeans Blue (#28) and Pearl Gray (#73).

I hope you like it!

HAPPY GRANNY SQUARE DAY!


Some Easter decorations

I am sure you all know the times when suddenly ‘life happens’. Well, it just happened to me – a bit unexpectedly! So during the last two – almost three -weeks I had only very little time to crochet and, to be honest, only little desire to do it.

Nevertheless I’d like to show you some of my Easter decorations that are really quick and easy to make.

I made these back in 2021. Patterns are The Easter Dudes, a paid pattern by missBerlin and Easter Eggs, a free pattern by Tatiana Saienko from Planet Piu.

You can read all the details in this post.

And – as a kind of return to the world of crochet – I am just working on a 2023 edition.

As usual my Dude is made with Scheepjes Catona in the colour 505, Linen. But this time I decided to use the same colour for the Dude‘s Cap and the Easter egg – it is Schachenmayr Catania Trend in 507, Salbei (Sage).

I hope to get the Dude assembled today and then I will have to think about some embroidery. Still not my best discipline … so I guess it will be something simple and easy …

Have a lovely week 💕

Midnight Snowflakes – My blanket is finally done

Unbelievable, but yes!
Today I gave the finished Midnight Snowflakes blanket to hubby. Just in time for his birthday next week!

Besides all the testing and other projects it took a little over a year to get it finished. I started it on 16. January 2022. And I still remember how hard it was to choose the colours! Oh dear! You can read all about my colour odyssey here.

I really love how it turned out, I loved working on it andI love the colours! Yet, I still can imagine it in white and grey …

I used Scheepjes Color Crafter, in the colour Rotterdam and Stylecraft Special DK in Duck Egg. The border is made in Duck Egg – and the joining round in Rotterdam.

You probably know this feeling when a long project is finished. You feel a bit empty – at least I do. I have to think about something new to work on in between! Yet no idea what it will be…

If you got inspired – the Midnight Snowflakes pattern is available here

Have a lovely week!

Hearts, hearts, hearts

Are you looking for some quick makes for Valentine’s Day? I found some free patterns for crocheted hearts that are really quick and easy to make. They are perfect for lovingly decorating a gift!

It started when I was looking for a certain document in my ‘pattern stash’ last week and stumbled across a pattern I had saved – probably years ago: Crocheted Hearts by Schachenmayr. It was not the pattern I was looking for but it was that ‘oh- look what I have’-moment, so I grabbed some yarn….

The two hearts in the bottom are made with the ‘Crocheted Hearts’ pattern from Schachemayr.
Edit September 2025: The pattern was available for free on their website. Unfortunately it isn’t any more. You can now find it here.

The Granny heart on top is also a free pattern: Heart Motifs by Emma Escott, available either on her blog Lululoves or on Ravelry.

I used Schachemayr Catania in the colours # 192, Weinrot and # 222, Orchidee (the two Schachenmayr hearts) and Scheepjes Catona, colour # 251, Garden Rose (the Granny heart).

Another lovely – and free – pattern I found is the ‘Heart and Soul Ornament’ by Maria Molodova. It is available in her Ravelry store.
Originally this heart is made with three rounds (I especially love the last one, twisted single crochet) but I think it also looks very nice when done with only two rounds or even only one. The tiny hearts in my cover picture are also made with this pattern.

And last but not least: at the moment I am working on these little cuties: Little Amigurumi Hearts by Mari-Liis Lille (Lilleliis) which I saw on Instagram. You will also find this pattern via Ravelry.

Do you feel like crocheting some hearts? There are a lot more lovely patterns out there. (Unfortunately I don’t have the time to try them out all.) Have fun!

New Colourway

Mere Curiosity

I have spent the last days with translating the Mere Curiosity pattern into German. Oh dear! Since German is my mother tongue I actually thought this was a good idea. Well … I hadn’t considered how long it had been since I had worked with a German pattern! In some places it was really difficult for me to find the right terms. I hope I have done it well! Any feedback is welcome!

However … To check the German instructions I made a new square. Originally I had planned to use four colours. After 10 rounds it looked too much like 70s for me, so I decided to add another colour. So now there is a new colourway available using 5 colours!

I used yarn from my stash, the brands are a bit mixed.

Schachenmayr Catania
# 206 – Honig
# 254 – Taupe
#+392 – Lime

Scheepjes Catona
# 520 – Lavender

Uschi Wolle Superglanz
# 63 – ?

Uschi Wolle is a German brand and unfortunately I only have the colour number and no name. I’d call it ‘Lachs’ which means ‘salmon’ in English. It is a little bit lighter than # 427 Scampi from Catania.

If you are interested you can download the new colour chart here.

mere-curiosity-colourway-3Download

Please also see my other posts about Mere Curiosity and

Have a nice weekend 💕

Mere Curiosity

Mere Curiosity is Live

Mere Curiosity is live

Phew, I finally managed to set up the Ravelry store and Mere Curiosity is uploaded! I am really excited!

The pattern is now available here.
As already mentioned, we will donate the proceeds for the Ukraine aid to Unicef.

You will find some more details about the Mere Curiosity Square either on Ravelry or in my previous post.

Although all special stitches used are explained in the pattern: if you are not familiar with some stitches or e.g. the technique of working in the 3rd loop, have a look at the ‘Good to know’ section. I have put together some explanations there in the last few days.

Have fun crocheting Mere Curiosity!