Chair Cushion

Maybe you remember the funky looking yarn I bought a couple of weeks ago? The intention was, that it was meant to be for chair cushions for all of my dining chairs. After I finished this one, I decided that it was too busy for that purpose, but that it would fit perfectly in this chair.

                                    And this is how the cushion looks up close. 

You can find the pattern on the Norwegian website Pickles and the pattern right here.

It is a very simple pattern and you can whip this up in an hour or so.  I added an extra row of stitches, as I used a 15 mm crochet hook instead of the suggested 20 mm. 

Have a wonderful day.

Technical challenges

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What the squirrels left me!

   
  When the oak trees start casting off acorn around this time of year, I walk with my nose to the ground in pursuit of these beautiful home accessories.  Or to be more correct the acorn caps. The squirrels and I have an agreement, They take the nuts I take the caps, which is all I need for my yearly fall crafting project. Last year I found out that I can't count on the supply as the trees only shed the caps every second year.  I was in dire need last year as demand was far bigger than supply. Luckily that is not the case this year. It is like a candy store out there these days.

This is what the squirrels shared with me today.

In a couple of days I will show you what I use them for.

On this first day of October.

We have had a brilliant Indian summer here and apparently it is continuing.

Today I just wanted to share a few pictures.

The one here, is of one of my favorite houses here in my neighborhood. Just because it looks so pretty. The little pumpkins above the door is a nice little fall touch. To live in, I prefer a more modern style house, like I am used to from back home, but it doesn't change the fact, that there is something very cozy about a house like this. 

 Stayed tuned for when they decorate for Christmas. It is out of a fairytale.

 

And then I couldn't pass this beautiful flower without taking a picture of it. 

 Happy  1st. of October.

 

Yarn splurge,

With the excuse of  the upcoming demand for Christmas presents, my friend and I went to what, among keen knitters, weavers and crocheters, must be called yarn heaven.  I think I could have spend days there, but unfortunately...... And off course we didn't leave empty handed.

A friend in Denmark saw me experience with a skein of the very unusual "yarn collage" that I had found in a little gallery in Chester, CT. When she heard that the intention was to turn it into a pillow cover, she put one on her wish list for Christmas.

 Therefore my extravaganza in the yarn store yesterday. 

Here is what I returned home with 

 

My excuse for the next lot of yarn is seat covers, for my ancient Danish dining chairs that needs an update.

 I have already started out, simply couldn't resist, so pictures will follow soon!

 

 

Fall projects

I tend to get a little bored if the projects I am working one is a little repetitive. Therefor I found that having the opportunity to switch between projects could work for me. Currently I am working on a men's cowl. It is based on  a pattern designed by Jeanette from the fantastic danish blog: Lutter Idyl. So far it has teached me to crochet the basket weave pattern which is beautiful, looks a lot like knit and purl blocks.

I have been searching the Internet for cool and contemporary crochet projects that doesn't look too much like something that was designed back in the 60'ies. That is really hard to find.  So when I was looking through my blog list on Friday night i stumbled upon a great blog post from PurlBee for another cowl.  What caught my attention was the way the blog post started out mentioning that crocheters all over the world has felt like Cinderella at the needlecraft ball. Where "Belle Knit" dances the night away and Crochet-erella" stays home and search for a modern design so she can be a part of all the festivities. It hit home, just what I have been thinking.  ...and on top of the the cowl looked amazing.  Along with this project was also the opportunity to try out another new crochet feature, that I have read about but never tried,  the foundation stitch, where you combine the foundation chain with the first row of stitches.
I spend the rest of Friday evening trying out this foundation stitch.  Purl Bee has a tutorial, and I tried to use it, but did not have any luck.  Googled foundation stick and found this website, Crochet Spot  that in my opinion described it a little easier.  It makes the edge of your project more even.

Last but not least I am working on a pair of fingerless gloves from Ros Badgers book, that I have mentioned before. The pattern is super easy so I wanted to try it out with a left over stash of soft red alpaca and merino, that I had in my basket.

3 months till Christmas!

Today is, as hard as it is to believe, wednesday the 25th of September.  That means that there is exactly 3 months till Christmas and a little less than 3 months if you live in our family where we celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve as it is tradition in our home country.

So why not get in the spirit a little early and make another Christmas Tree?

The next little tree here is a bit more colorful, than the pure black and white version shown the other day.

You start out with a single dry cleaners hanger and  bend it into the trunk of the tree with a good solid base. Wrap  pipe cleaners around the hanger and build up the amount of branches you like the tree to have.

Cut up a lot of scrap tissue paper in strips. Lesson learned. Don't  use purple tissue paper if you want to end up with a white tree!. It requires  way to much white paint to cover it up. You can either use a mix of e.g. Elmer's school glue and water in 1:2 or you can make up a paste of flour and water. I used Elmer's glue and it worked well.

In my case. Several layers of white acrylic paint was poured over the tree. It dries really quickly, so you will see quick results. 

The final "tree" with the many colors of hearts, to celebrate the holidays in a colorful way. In one of my next posts I will show you how to make the felted hearts.