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Tag: red heart yarn

Snowball Scarf

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It’s 2021 ya’ll!

We made it officially out of the year 2020 and so far, these first few weeks doesn’t look like we are completely clear of 2020 yet. But we still have a whole year to change that!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas and New Year’s! Ours ended up being very different looking than the past few years, but what’s important is we got to spend Christmas and the holidays with everyone even if it took a couple weeks to do that. Our Christmas decorations are down, the house looks horrifyingly bare and I have so much anticipation and excitement for this year! I have so many pattern ideas flowing through my brain and to be honest, this one was not on my radar AT ALL.

I still have so much Red Heart Hygge yarn left over from the babies’ blankets I made last summer that I’ve been trying to use up. (I’m still hard core trying to use up all the yarn I have lying around and not make routine trips to get yarn unless absolutely necessary. So far so good!) And around Christmas time I just got this picture in my head of a huge, cozy and long scarf. I just couldn’t get the picture out of my head. I knew I would need a project to work on at the Christmas festivities so I brought home a skein of Hygge and just went to town on that idea. A few days later, you got the Snowball Scarf!

This pattern is literally so unbelievably easy and even with the huge size (I mean it ended up being 91 inches long!!), it works up soo fast! While sitting with my family just talking and crocheting, my grandpa said, “Madison, you’ve gotten like a foot of that done already!” It works up so fast! Which is exactly what I wanted! I wanted a pattern, like my goal for all my patterns, that a beginner can look at and start making and be proud of what all they’ve accomplished.

Another cool feature about this scarf is because of the length, it can be worn in many different ways. Here are the three ways that I like to wear it:

This scarf uses Red Heart Hygge yarn just like the Sophie Headband and uses the same stitch pattern as the Victorious Infinity Scarf. If it’s not obvious yet, I’m pretty obsessed with the treble crochet v stitch and Hygge yarn. (I promise I have projects in the works that do not use those two things.) As I mentioned, it works up incredibly fast all thanks to the treble crochet stitches height.

Maybe you guys were the same way, but some of my first projects I ever crocheted was double crochet, back and forth a bunch of times to make scarves with fringe on the ends. I mean I made soo many of those and I recently found some in an old tote I have. Let’s just say, those look ROUGH. My skills have greatly increased since then. But I think from making those so much, I thought that those kind of scarves aren’t popular or useful anymore because of the big hit infinity scarves and cowls have become. Yet once I started this one I knew it was going to be one of my favorite patterns. Because I think it’s nice to take something you made so often as a beginner crocheter and kind of upscale it now to show yourself just how far you’ve come over the years. What a perfect New Year task to do. It isn’t just about “New Year, New Me” but it’s about “New Year, Look How Far I’ve Come.”

I hope this pattern brings you that same sense of accomplishment that it gave me. I am proud to give you guys this pattern and I hope you are proud to make this scarf and share with others what you’ve made!

What you will need to make this pattern:

  • About 440 yards (a little more than 2 skeins) of Red Heart Hygge Yarn
  • 6.5 mm hook
  • Scissors
  • Yarn needle
  • Pom Pom maker (optional)

Some abbreviations you will see in this pattern:

  • Ch = Chain
  • St = Stitch
  • Sts = Stitches
  • Hdc = Half Double Crochet
  • Tr = Treble Crochet
  • * * = Repeat instructions inside the asterisk across the row until otherwise noted

Gauge:

  • Gauge isn’t a necessity in this pattern, it all depends on how you want the look of the scarf to be and how long you want it.
  • My finished dimensions are 91” long (including the poms) and 9” wide.
  • Depending on your gauge and the size you make your scarf, the amount of yarn used will vary.

Notes:

  • This pattern uses a treble crochet v stitch.
  • The ch 2 at the beginning of the hdc rows DOES count as a stitch.
  • The ch 4 at the beginning of the tr rows DOES count as a stitch.
  • If needed, feel free to do a foundation hdc for the first row if your tension is tight on the ch and first row.
  • If you would like this pattern to be narrower or wider, simply chain an odd number of stitches to get started.
  • If you would like this pattern to be longer or shorter, just don’t do as many tr v st rows.
  • Each row’s stitch count will be in parenthesis at the end of the round’s instructions.

Pattern:

Ch 25

Row 1:  Hdc in 3rd ch from the hook, ch 4, turn (24)

Row 2:  Tr in next st from the ch 4, sk st, *2 tr in the next st, sk st, 2 tr in next st,* repeat across, ch 4, turn (24)

Row 3:  Tr in between space of previous rows last two tr sts, *2 tr in space between the next group of tr from previous round, sk st, 2 tr in space between the next group of tr from previous round,* repeat across, ch 4, turn (24)

Row 4-71:  Repeat row 3 (24)

Row 72:  Tr in between space of previous rows last two tr sts, *2 tr in space between the next group of tr from previous round, sk st, 2 tr in space between the next group of tr from previous round,* repeat across, ch 2, turn (24)

Row 73:  Hdc in each st across (24)

Tie off and weave in all ends.

Next you will make two large pom poms out of the remaining yarn. You can also use a pom pom maker if you have one and if that is your preferred way to make them. (You can even put a faux fur pom at each end of the scarf if you prefer that.) Personally, it’s easier for me to make pom poms with my hands. I have huge hands though, so if you have smaller hands it might be more difficult to make a large pom pom. But for these pom poms, I ended up wrapping the yarn around my hand about 100 times to make it super big and fluffy.

When making the pom pom, leave the ends really long. Take your yarn needle and thread one of the pom pom’s tails in the needle. Weaving in and out of the first row’s hdc sts, start from one end to the other end of the first row. Take the other pom pom tail and repeat the process, starting from the opposite direction and working all the way across.

Tie the two tails of the pom pom together after you finish weaving them all the way through from both directions. Ensure it is centered on the end of the scarf before securing. Trim the tail ends to essentially add it to the pom pom.

Repeat this for the other end and then you are all done! You’ve officially made the Snowball Scarf.

I hope this scarf keeps you warm for years to come and I hope you loved every minute of making it. I would love to see all of your Snowball Scarves so please tag me on Instagram when you do make it and use the hashtag #SnowballScarf. If you would like to pin this free pattern on your Pinterest board, you can click here. And if you would like a paid copy of this pattern, you can purchase that on Etsy here. Buying the paid copy will help me to continue to bring you patterns regularly. Like always, if you have any questions about this pattern, or any of my patterns, feel free to message me on Instagram or email me at [email protected].

Happy crocheting friends!!

Feel free to make as many of these as you would like and feel free to sell them. I just ask that you please acknowledge Madison’s Makings when you do. Please do not steal or copy this pattern and/or my pictures and credit them as your own work. Thank you!

The Sophie Headband

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Hello everyone! I have a new pattern for you all and I am SUPER excited about this one! It’s officially August now, one month closer to fall and chilly weather. I wanted to get a quick and easy, stash busting pattern out for anyone that might be able to do a fall craft or vendor show, even with all this pandemic stuff STILL going on.

I’ve had a busy couple weeks and procrastinated a little too longer on a blanket for my soon to be nephew. The baby shower for my sister-in-law was last Saturday and I was able to finish his blanket last Saturday with about three hours to spare. WHEW! Corey and I stayed with my parent’s the night before the shower so that we could be in our home town and be able to help set up for the shower. In the meantime, he had a wedding to go to the same afternoon. I asked if he could gather up my crochet stuff and pack it away whenever he left for the wedding. Luckily, some yarn and hooks were hiding from him, which gave me a few hours and a few skeins of leftover Hygge Red Heart Yarn and some random hooks I had lying around. This was enough for me to come up with, what I think, is the softest and warmest headband out there!

Earlier in the week, my coworker had this super cute headband holding back her hair that had a little knot on the center of it. She said it was a regular headband that she knotted herself and I just loved the way it looked! So while sitting at my parent’s house, snuggling with my puppy Sophie, fiddling around with some Hygge yarn, I started experimenting to try to make a headband/earwarmer that had that knot on the top of your head.

That is how the Sophie Headband was created! With the help of my puppy, I was able to create this super cute headband using leftover yarn. To say this is a great stash buster is an understatement! All this takes is about 57 yards of yarn, that’s it! It also is all one piece which makes it super quick and hassle free when it comes to putting it all together. It uses half double crochet which paired with the thicker Hygge yarn, allows it to work up so fast. Give yourself a few hours and you can have a few of these done in no time!

Currently, this pattern is for a typical, female adult’s head, I would love to transform it for all sizes very soon, so stay tuned! Until then, let’s get started!

What you will need to make this pattern:

  • 6.0 mm hook
  • 57 yards of Red Heart Hygge Yarn
  • Yarn Needle
  • Scissors

Some abbreviations you will see in this pattern:

  • Ch = Chain
  • Hdc = Half Double Crochet
  • Blo = Back loop only
  • Hdc2tog = Half double crochet two together
  • St = Stitch

Special Stitches:

  • Half Double Crochet Two Together: Yarn over, insert hook into the first stitch, pull up a loop, yarn over, insert hook into the next stitch, pull up a loop. There will be 5 loops on your hook. Yarn over, pull through all 5 loops.

Dimensions:

  • When finished and lying flat, it should be about 11.25 inches long and 4 inches tall at the tallest part. *see photos at the end*

Notes:

  • This is sized for an adult female. If the headband is too big, simply do fewer rows at the end of the pattern.
  • Each row’s stitch count will be in parenthesis at the end of each row.
  • This is a very beginner friendly pattern.
  • The ch 2 at the beginning of each row does not count as a stitch.

Pattern:

Ch 15

Row 1:  Hdc in 3rd ch from the hook, hdc in st across, ch 2, turn (13)

Row 2:  Hdc in first st, blo hdc across until one st remains, hdc in last st, ch 2, turn (13)

Row 3-17:  Repeat row 2 (13)

Row 18:  Hdc2tog, hdc in blo in the next 9 sts, hdc2tog, ch 2, turn (11)

Row 19:  Hdc2tog, hdc in blo in the next 7 sts, hdc2tog, ch 2, turn (9)

Row 20:  Hdc2tog, hdc in blo in the next 5 sts, hdc2tog, ch 2, turn (7)

Row 21:  Hdc in first st, hdc in blo until one st remains, hdc in the last st, ch 2, turn (7)

Row 22-35:  Repeat row 21 (7)

Row 36:  2 hdc in first st, hdc in blo across until one st remains, 2 hdc in last st, ch 2, turn (9)

Row 37:  2 hdc in first st, hdc in blo across until one st remains, 2 hdc in last st, ch 2, turn (11)

Row 38:  2 hdc in first st, hdc in blo across until one st remains, 2 hdc in last st, ch 2, turn (13)

Row 39:  Hdc in first st, hdc in blo across until one st remains, hdc in last st, ch 2, turn (13)

Row 40-53:  Repeat row 39 (13)

Secure last chain.  At this point, tie a single knot at the center of the headband at the narrowed part. Once complete, put the hook back in the project to finish the last row.

Row 54:  Hdc in blo of previous row and blo of first row to join the ends together (13)

Here is a picture of what it should look like when you crochet the two ends together. Don’t forget the ch 2 and turn before starting this step.

Tie off and weave in all the ends.

Here’s the picture of the finished dimensions. You can tell I come from a family of contractors when I have a tape measure like this instead of the normal kind. 🙂

And there you have it my friends! The Sophie Headband! As mentioned in the notes, if the headband is too big or too small, just adjust the amount of rows in rows 22-35 and rows 40-53. If you need it smaller, take away one or two rows from each section. If you need it bigger, add one or two rows from each section. Remember though, yarn will relax and stretch as you wear it. The purpose in this pattern for crocheting in the back loops only is to make it stretchy and comfy.

I hope you all enjoy this pattern! This is my favorite pattern I’ve made to date and I cannot wait to see all of you guys’ creations with it! Please feel free to tag me on Instagram if you do make it and use the hashtag #SophieHeadband. If you would like to pin this on your Pinterest board, you can click here to view it. And some more exciting news, Madison’s Makings is officially on Etsy! So if you want a print out of this pattern, please click here to buy a copy of it. If you have any questions about this, or any of my patterns, please feel free to message me on Instagram or email me at [email protected].

Happy crocheting!

Feel free to make as many of these as you would like and feel free to sell them. I just ask that you please acknowledge Madison’s Makings when you do. Please do not steal or copy this pattern and/or my pictures and credit them as your own work. Thank you!

Baby Galore!

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The last few months have been filled with lots of baby crochet projects! To sum it all up, my brother and sister-in-law are having a baby boy in September and my sister-in-law and her husband are having a baby girl in August and a friend of mine is having a baby boy in a couple weeks. These are the first babies in my family in a very long time, so to say I have had very little experience in the realm of baby projects is an understatement. I went on the search to make something as personalized to each baby as possible without losing all the wonderful soft and cozy features that I believe all baby items should obtain.

The first project I started working on was a cactus themed nursery blanket for my friend’s baby. We went on a Mission’s trip to Arizona last year which inspired her and her husband to have their nursery be a cactus/desert/Arizona theme and so I ran with that. I checked out Nella’s Cottage because I love how personalized her baby blankets are. I started with her granny square blanket and used Caron’s Simply Soft yarn. I love using this yarn for granny square blankets or blankets where there is going to be color change because there is such a huge selection of color options to choose from. Not to mention, this yarn is so soft and works perfectly for blankets. For this blanket specifically I used a combination of Taupe, Grey Heather and Off White for the main stripes portion. For the cactus applique, also from Nella’s Cottage, I used Pistachio and Dark Sage and added a few accent stripes in these green colors on the edge of the blanket. For the flowers on top of the cacti, I used some light blue scraps of yarn I had lying around in the never ending abyss of my yarn collection. (Don’t tell my hubby that I said it’s never ending, because then I won’t be allowed to go back to the yarn store.)

I had never sewn anything like the applique onto a blanket before. It was a little tricky at first, but once you started sewing it on, it became easier and more stable. The one thing to pay attention to is that you are placing your needle in a good “hiding spot.” A few times I would flip the blanket over and realize that I sewed in some of the back most parts of the stitches which exposed the sewing stitches. It’s a quick and easy fix, but just something to be mindful of while making it.

If you would like to try making this blanket, I highly suggest it! The pattern is easy, fun and mindless. Nella’s Cottage has soo many amazing applique patterns and different pictures and styles on her Instagram to inspire a blanket for any and all occasions. You can find all these at http://www.nellascottage.com.

The next project I worked on has been a long time in the making. As soon as I found out my brother and sister-in-law were having a little boy, I wanted to make him something special. My brother is a big Pittsburgh sports fan, especially of the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team. (If I’m honest, most of my family is, myself included.) I had only made one baby outfit as a pattern tester and that was the extent of my baby clothing experience but I knew I really wanted to try to make him a little hockey outfit. A quick search on Etsy and I discovered Grandmabilt’s shop that is filled with adorable little baby outfits for every sport you could imagine.

Before the world shut down from COVID, I made a quick trip after work to Joann’s to search for black, gold and white yarn that could work for a baby outfit. This was my last outing before Ohio shut down nonessential stores. But I knew that things were going to be closing soon and I had to make this for them. Walking into Joann Fabric’s into the yarn section, I realized I had greatly underestimated how challenging it would be to find black, size three, baby yarn. I had just about given up hope when I turned to walk out the store and saw The Hook Nook’s new yarn line. I have been a fan of her products for awhile but hadn’t had any experience with her new yarn line yet. (I am totally obsessed with her interchangeable hooks!) She has a type of yarn called Small Stuff which miraculously had black, white, and yellow, size three yarn. I gathered up way more than I would ever need, but let’s be honest, COVID made us all hoarders. The official color names of the yarn are Tattoo Ink, Minimalist, and Warm Sunshine.

The pattern itself was so easy to follow and recreate. It worked up fast and came together so much better than I ever imagined. The part that took the longest was sewing in all the ends of the color changes, but that might have been just all in my head since that’s my least favorite part of crocheting. I made the little jersey first, then the pants and the skates last. When I first looked at the skate’s pattern I thought it was beyond my skill level when I got to the blade part. But as I’ve found out before, just start with the first row and keep tackling the pattern one step at a time and it always works out. That is now one of my favorite parts of the pattern because having the actual blade of the skate made out of yarn was a very nice and realistic touch on the designer’s part.

I couldn’t keep the secret anymore so gave it to my brother and sister-in-law for a Father’s Day/Belated Mother’s Day gift to them. My whole family loved it and now I can’t wait to see my little nephew in it when he arrives.

If you are looking for any type of outfit that is sport’s related, please check out http://www.grandmabilt.com. She has a huge selection of awesome patterns! This will not be my last experience with her patterns because there is just so many adorable ones to choose from. These would be perfect patterns to make for newborn pictures.

The third project I worked on was a blanket for my sister-in-law and her husband’s baby. I knew that I wanted to make my soon to be niece a warm and cozy blanket so I ventured into the wide selection of baby blankets that Daisy Farm Crafts has. I knew that their nursery was going to be a blush pink color along with other neutral colors. I came across the Crochet Hygge Powder Puff Blanket on their website and knew that was the one. I absolutely love Red Heart Hygge yarn. It has to be one of the coziest, softest, squishiest, most beautiful yarn I’ve worked with. While shopping for the yarn, I discovered that Red Heart has made a lot more colors in this type of yarn. When it first came out there was just a handful of colors to choose from, but now, there is about any color you could think of which is great!

The pattern was very easy to follow and turned out great! The Hygge yarn gave the blanket the perfect amount of weight and softness. It also helped the blanket work up quickly with the thicker yarn. The stitches were very easy and basic, making this a great project for beginners. The pattern itself intertwined a couple basic stitches which gave the finished product a very detailed look. I loved it! I plan on using this pattern a lot in the future.

If you are wanting to delve into this squishy, soft blanket, the pattern can be found at https://daisyfarmcrafts.com/crochet-hygge-powder-puff-blanket/. There is also a YouTube video that goes along with this pattern if you are a more visual learner.

Last but certainly not least, I made the Butterscotch Baby Onesie from megmadewithlove for my soon to be niece! When I first saw her post about the pattern getting released, I knew I needed to make it. It also really matched the style of clothing that my sister-in-law and I talked about making for her little one. I had some Baby Bee Sweet Delight yarn, in the color Naked, from Hobby Lobby lying around and decided to put it to use for this special project.

The pattern worked up fast and took form quickly. The instructions for not only the pattern but also the assembly were so easy to follow with helpful pictures to go along with it. I made the newborn size, but the pattern came with sizes all the way through to twelve months. I finished it with some wooden buttons which I thought complimented the off white yarn well. It turned out so much cuter than I expected from only my second baby onesie that I’ve ever made. Like the other projects, it used basic stitches but incorporated them in a way that gave the onesie a very beautiful and finished look.

If you would like to create this beautiful little outfit, check it out on her blog! The pattern can be found at https://megmadewithlove.com/blog-2/2020/3/11/the-butterscotch-onesie-free-crochet-pattern.

This has been enough baby projects to keep me busy for the past couple months, but there is definitely a couple more already on my hooks. I’ll be sharing them as they come on my Instagram for sure and maybe here too. Please check out all the designers that made these wonderful patterns that inspired this post. If you decide to make any of these, please share them with me (and them). I would love to see what all you create!

I hope this inspired you to want to start crocheting something new! Have fun and happy hooking!