Baby Blanket Centre Squares

Baby Blanket Centre Squares

Pretty in Pink Baby Blanket

and Little Boy Blues Baby Blanket

I have been asked many times for the pattern for the squares in the centre of these baby blankets and have been very pleased to share via email upon request. I have had the pattern written up for ages so I thought why not create a post to share the joy that I had in making them.

I hope the pattern is clear but if you have any questions just let me know

Centre Square Pattern

1. Chain 6 slip stitch into the first stitch to make a ring.
2. Chain 1 (counts as first dc) c 15 into the ring, slip stitch into the first chain made, 16 sts.
3. 4 chain, 3trtog into same st to make the first petal cluster, 3ch, miss next dc,

*tr 4 tog, 3 ch, miss next dc**  repeat from * to ** 6 more times, 8 petal clusters formed.

4. Slip stitch into the next 3 ch space, 1ch, 1 dc in same space, * 2ch, (3htr, 3ch, 3htr0 into next 3 ch space, 2 ch, 1 dc in next 3ch space, rep from * 3 times more, omitting dc at the end of the last repeat, slip stitch into first dc.

The final round is trebles and I think you will be able to follow that from the images. Any questions please let me know and I will be happy to help if I can.

Converse Style Crochet Baby Bootees

My daughters friend is expecting her first baby in February, they have literally been friends all of their lives. Their birthdays are only 6 weeks apart and they had their first playdate when they were just 6 & 12 weeks old, they started school together at the same nursery when they were three and shared classes all the way through their senior years in education. It is quite amazing seeing this young lady that I have known all her life producing a new life herself.

I could not resist making these Converse style bootees for the little man, yes she already knows IT’S A BOY!

This cute pattern has been squirrelled away in my little stash, of ‘things to make one day’,  for a while now and I have been waiting for the opportunity to give it an airing.  I must be honest and say that it was on the third boot that I felt happy with how it was looking, it took the three goes to get the hang of making the front sit nicely – this was totally down to me being too eager to finish and not reading the pattern more carefully.

I have taken shots from all angles so you can get a good all round view so on to the side. The black trim line makes them look like the real thing don’t you think?

As I so often do I I have used good old Stylecraft DK which is always so great to work with, the choice of colours is fantastic especially for these little boots.

And the back, I still think I should be able to improve on the joins that you can see on the white sole here.

Then on to my favourite finishing touch – the laces!

I love the finishing touches on this pattern, it describes how to coat the end of the laces in glue and leave to dry before trimming so they look like real laces.

So if you have a little critter of your own or indeed anyone else’s you want to make these for……… the pattern by Suzanne Resaul is available via the home of many great patterns – Ravelry.

It is a very popular pattern around the globe and has been translated into Swedish by Pysselkiisen,  Spanish by Duendecilla. and more recently Italian by Mirella.

Please note that this pattern has kindly been made available for you to use and enjoy free of any charge, also you may sell shoes from the pattern, the only thing is that is required is that you give the credit for the pattern design to Suzanne, and lets face it, she really does deserve it.

THANK YOU SUZANNE.

Pink Cardigan with Frilly Edging and My New Labels

What I love most about this cardigan is the shape, it flares slightly and the frill trim that borders it doesn’t pull in like a normal rib would. I love to see little girls in dresses, but when they need an extra layer and you put on a cardigan and the rib pulls in all those lovely flounces on the dress. The flared shaping on this pattern allows it to sit so nicely over a little girls dress and allows the gathers to fall and float as they should.

It’s for my friends granddaughter who happens to be another Miss E, pattern no. 1721 by Sirdar worked in DK yarn so it works up quite quickly. It’s one I have had for ages and have made many times over the years for numerous little ladies.

The frill is worked around the whole of the cardigan also forming the collar and has a gorgeous trim formed by making 6 additional chains between every other stitch.

I am also pleased to show you my new ‘The Grange Range’ labels used for the first time on this pretty pink cardigan.

And a washing advice label too.

I had a bit of bother sewing them into place so will have to give a bit more thought to that on the next project.

Stripy Mouse All Finished

I am so happy to say “ta dah” the colourful stripy mouse is finished at last! I know you cannot tell from the images but inside his tummy, hands and feet are some bags of plastic beans so he is nicely weighted and sits really well.

He looks so sweet on his matching baby blanket.

I just popped off to replace the battery in my camera and when I came back he was helping himself to some cheese and crackers, with a few grapes on the side no less! Think I have created a rather sophisticated chap?Really happy with how he has turned out especially considering he was originally going to be a giraffe! See link below for more on that little mishap.

Related articles

• Crochet Stripy Mouse (thegrangerange.wordpress.com)

Crochet Baby Blanket Pretty In Pink

Excited to share more baby blanket news.

Using the pinks from my recently acquired stash of yarn I set to work.

These scrumptious squares make me think of sweet little fondant iced buns.
It was easier this time as I was simply following the pattern I devised for the blue baby blanket so I just set straight to it and made a stack of squares for the outer edge. Flower squares for the centre bordered with a simple treble 1 chain 1 border.
The simple border in turn surrounded by the old favourite.

Yes, of course I mean granny squares.Following the granny style pattern I added a few more rounds in the pale pink, 5 to be precise, before attaching the little fondant fancy squares to form the outer border. And last but not least a couple of rounds of single crochet to finish off. There you have it, a matching pink baby blanket partner for the minty blue one made earlier.

Forgive this random addition but I keep seeing so many wonderful photos from people’s gardens I thought I would share my cherry blossom with you too.

Every spring it gives a spectacular show of blossoms and is one of my favourites in our garden. Sadly these wonderful, but fragile, blooms only last 2 to 3 weeks, and if we get a spell of wet and blustery weather even that can be cut short! It was a bit late this year (a bit like my sharing this image with you) and has shed it’s pale pink petals for this year, so we will just have to enjoy the rest of the garden till it’s time comes again.

Happy hooking!!

Related articles

• Crochet granny square baby blanket (thegreendragonfly.wordpress.com)
• Some thoughts on blankets and how to make them (butterflyinthelibrary.wordpress.com)

The Colours of Spring

I have been very busy behind the scenes these last couple of weeks but as promised here is my lovely stash of yarn.

As you can see I have already been using some of it, I got busy with the blues first………………….

………………and made this lovely stack of squares for the outer edge of a baby blanket in cool minty blues and greens.

I wanted to mix things up a bit and as I love granny squares so much.

Then these little beauties for the centrepiece.

Here is how I joined them all together.

Now to get on with a matching one in Pinks!

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• Colour Palettes – Beach Dreams (thepartyconnection.wordpress.com)

Baby Booties With Teddy Bear Faces – Lois Daykin Baby Crochet

Here at last, these cute little crochet baby shoes, I just adore the teddy bear faces on them. They were really fun to make, well maybe a bit fiddly when it came to making the ears, but they are worth a bit of faffing wouldn’t you say?

Photo: Liv Cawston

You may remember I told you back in August about my colleague NG who was expecting her second child when I wrote about the Teddy Bear (thegrangerange.wordpress.com/2012/08/15/teddy-bear-for-a-baby-boy-from-lois-daykins-baby-crochet-book/). Well the expected little man has made his entrance to the world and is now the grand old age of 2 weeks. NG and son number one, Master R, brought Baby S into the office last week to see us, so sweet, so little, so sleepy.

Big brother Master R,  was so excited as he proudly introduced little Baby S as my new sister! Well, he is only three and a half himself, bless.

Anyway back to these lovely little baby boots. I used the same as for the Teddy, Rico Soft Essentials Merino Aran from www.crafty-yarn.co.uk/shop/115/175/index.htm the delicate pale blue for the main bootee colour with beige for the face and paws and a touch of cream for the finishing touches.

I am definitely intrigued by baby shoes, you see so many fabulous designs from cute Baby Jane shoes to mock Wellies, Converse baseball styled boots and trainers.

I was a bit confused at first as other shoes that I have made have always started with the sole and worked up but with these you start at the top. By making a chain and joining to form a circle then working in rounds you create the boot cuff.Then you add the top of the boot, it looks like a big blue tongue at this stage.

Then you pick up and work in rounds again the form the sides, heel and toe.

That leaves the sole to do.

So with the sole completed and a line of cream trim around the top of the bootee it’s time to make the sweetest of Teddy Bear faces, their cuteness being the essential element for these baby feet treats.

Finally stitch the face onto the bootee, I actually applied the features before stitching on the face as it was easier to manage and gave a neat finish as any ends were tucked away.

Make another one to match and you have the cutest little Teddy Bear Bootees fit for a prince, or in this case Baby S.

Photo: Liv Cawston

This is my favourite photo of both Teddy and Booties taken by my lovely friend and photographer Liv, you can probably tell that she also took the image of the boots at the start of this post. I do my best with the photography but find it quite trying at times as I get shadows and dark patches or cannot get the composition to look on the image the way I had envisaged it in my head.  I was struggling with this image when Liv just happened to pop round and quick as a flash (pardon the pun) it is done. You can see more of Liv’s work on her website www.livcawston.co.uk . Thank you Liv.

Agathi’s Handmade Crochet, Lace and Handcrafted Olive Wood – Kassiopi, Corfu

While we were in Corfu enjoying the friendly atmosphere wonderful food and of course, the sunshine, we visited Kassiopi which is bigger than San Stefanos where we were staying but still a relatively small place. The photo below, provided by Agathi as you can see was taken in 1963, this little place has definitely grown over the last 50 years.

I met Agathi in Kassiopi when we were here last year, she is such an inspiration with amazing talent and so many skills, crocheting, knitting, lace making, weaving, whatever I take to show her she can tell me more about it. Oh how I long to absorb all her knowledge.

I couldn’t wait to go back to her shop this year, it is a veritable treasure trove of wonderful things, they are literally everywhere………

……….hung are tablecloths in all shapes and sizes in featuring handmade lace and embroidery………

………more cloths, sheets, pillowcases and bedspreads are stashed and stacked on shelves along with the paintings by one of her sons………

………on hangers are napkins and smaller tablecloths………

………in bowls, on the counter in shelving.  A zillion things in this little shop, from carpets and rugs to baby shoes, bibs and Christmas Angels.

Shelves are piled high with hand embroidered sheets, table cloths of all sizes just waiting to be snatched up.

Crochet is very fashionable in Europe and Agathi makes a range of different clothing and accessories.

They are a talented family, Agathi’s other son creates with olive wood, his wonderful creations are also available in the shop.

There is an area dedicated to his work with the shelves bursting with options.

All these beauties are turned on the lathe he imported.

My favourite is this pestle and mortar but unfortunately it was too heavy to bring back, I will try to allow for the weight on the return flight next time.

For a small shop Agathi is amazingly busy. If you ever have the pleasure of going to Corfu I would definitely recommend a visit.

Crochet Jacket and Shoes For Baby E

I was away for work last week at a trade show. I don’t really like being away from home as it parts me from my wonderful family and my woolly projects, so as I packed I included some pink and lavender 4 ply, a couple of hooks and a pair of scissors.

In the evening after dinner I left my colleagues at the bar and disappeared up to my room for some happy hooking time……………..

………………. aaaaah that feels better!

What am I making?

Well, if you have been to The Grange Range before you will remember the post before the foal was Pink Crocheted Dress and Beanie Hat For Happy Little Baby E

I am making the jacket for the same little laughing lady to go with the dress, and when I get home I am going to try to make some shoes to cover those cute little toes now the weather seems to be getting cooler.

But for now back to the jacket. It is constructed much like the dress.

First you make a flower.

Make the flower into a square.

Join the squares together.

And then there were three, this is the sleeve you see. Continue making and joining the squares as many as instructed for the size you are making.

Then start working up from the squares to create the body of the garment, again this is the sleeve is shown here.

Here are the finished sleeves.

And the finished body, all worked in one piece.

And here is the finished jacket, the pretty picot edging really finishes it off nicely don’t you think?

I got about half of this done while I was away and finished it once I was back home.

It looks really flat and lifeless here but I am sure it will come to life when a certain little lady adds her smiley face.

Then determined as I was to make some suitable footwear I spent all of Sunday making and pulling apart shoes! I got so fed up, I tried so many different patterns and just could not achieve the look and finish I wanted.

Frustrated and about to give up? No way, not me, I was determined not to be beaten by this.

In the end I made up my own version and this is how they turned out.

I am really pleased with them and am hoping to make these sweet little shoes my first tutorial. Although I must say I am really nervous about doing it in case no one can understand it, “just be brave and have a go” is what my lovely hubby says.

Watch this space!

Pink Crocheted Dress and Beanie Hat For Happy Little Baby E

Hi there sweet little Baby E. She is such a cutie and quite the natural model when it comes to having her photo taken as you can see.

This is the same little dress in the post Baby Announcement Sets Needles and Hooks to Action

But this time done using three colours for the pretty floral squares to make the bodice……….

………..and with the matching little beanie hat which I think you will agree little Baby E carries off with panache.

As this was for the summer I did not make the matching jacket but maybe I should have done given what the weather has been like!

Thank you for the lovely photos, I have just finished another little cardigan coat for you which I will be sending soon I hope you will send me some pictures of you wearing that one too.

Bye for now sweet little lady.