- Dallas Throw designed by Marilyn Losee
The new issue of Crochet! magazine is out and Caron has three great designs. Pick up a copy and enjoy!
...and Dogs Baby Blanket designed by Deb Richie
One of the Noggins, designed by KJ Hay
Archive for May, 2011
New patterns in Crochet! magazine
Posted in Crochet, Yarn on May 26, 2011 | 3 Comments »
NEW Sheep(ish) Patterns!
Posted in Crochet, Knitting, Vickie Howell, Yarn, tagged babies, beanie, free patterns, poncho, scarf, Sheep(ish), toddler, Vickie Howell, wrist warmers on May 25, 2011 | 6 Comments »
Urban Revival
The Urban Revival, slouch beanie is made with 2 balls in color: Turquoise(ish)
TooDee Frutti
The TooDee Frutti Poncho uses Coral(ish), White(ish), Lime(ish) & Robin’s Egg(ish)
10th Floor
The 10th Floor Cowl takes 1 ball each in Olive(ish) & Teal(ish).
Wrist Factor
Wrist Factor (Close-Up)
The Wrist Factor wrist warmers take 1 ball each of Espresso(ish) & Lime(ish).
Subway Scarf (Worn on Her)
Subway Scarf (Worn on Him)
The Subway Scarf uses 2 balls each of Plum(ish) & Grey(ish)
…And of course, you get get the yarn for these projects at select JoAnn stores and Buy.Caron.com!
Stay tuned for a new, Sheep(ish) pattern every week in the Caron Connections newsletter!
Stitch.Rock.Love,
Vickie
P.S. Don’t forget to check out the Sheep(ish) Blog tour which begins today! First stop: BlogHer.com!
Stitch.Rock.Love Blog Tour!
Posted in Vickie Howell, Yarn on May 24, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Starting tomorrow, please join me for the Stitch.Rock.Love Blog Tour in celebration of the launch of the 1st yarn in the line, Sheep(ish)! Every day for 2 1/2 weeks, check out a new post across the blogosphere from some of my fantastic friends and colleagues. Collectively, they’ll be doing yarn reviews, interviews with me, sharing projects their working on, designing free patterns for you, doing giveaways, and more! Here’s the schedule:
May 25th:
BlogHer.com (Kathy Cano-Murillo)
May 28th: DOUBLE POST DAY:
May 29th: Susan B. Anderson
June 7th: BetzWhite.com
June 9th: Naughtysecretaryclub.com & Ilovetocreate.com (Dual post on the same day. Yarn-wrapped mobil by Jennifer Perkins)
June 11th: StephanieJapel.com
Hope to “see” you there!
Stitch.Rock.Love,
Vickie
No Felting Required
Posted in Knitting, Pocket Knitter, Uncategorized, tagged Pocket Knitter on May 20, 2011 | 3 Comments »
No yarn? No problem! (Like any knitter or crocheter is ever going to run out of yarn!) Just grab your pocket knitter and some scrap fleece you have hanging around.
I made this cell phone holder using the Pocket Knitter and strips of fleece. I purchased the fleece as a remnant at my local craft store. The neat thing about it is that is looks kind of felted, only without the extra effort involved. The fleece worked perfect on the pocket knitter and created a thick protective cover for a cell phone. This would be terrific for making a protective case for any hand held device.
If you’re not familiar with the pocket knitter, no knitting knowledge or experience is required. Learn more about the pocket knitter at the Bond America site.
For this project, you will need:
Fleece Fabric (a remnant piece is just fine)
Ribbon or leather cord (approximately 16-18”)
Decorative Button (optional)
Yarn needle
Sewing Needle and thread (to attach button)
DIRECTIONS
Cut your fleece the long way in strips about ½” wide. Give each strip a pull or gentle tug. This will cause the fleece to curl.
Using the fleece strips, cast on 14 stitches.
Work in St st until piece measures approximately 4.5” or desired height of finished cell phone bolder.
Bind off across.
FINISH
Fold work in half. Using a strip of fleece and the yarn needle, sew the side and bottom closed, leaving the top open.
Using yarn needle, weave in all ends.
Weave your cord in and out between every other row all the way around the top until you have reached your beginning point. Tie knot in desired spot.
Sew on button in desired location.
Sheep(ish), now at JoAnn!
Posted in Vickie Howell, Yarn on May 17, 2011 | 1 Comment »
I’m thrilled to announce that Sheep(ish)–the 1st yarn in my Stitch.Rock.Love line through Caron– is available NOW (2 weeks early) at JoAnn Etc. stores across the nation! Over the weekend we went to the Austin store to check it out, and *squeal*, Sheep(ish) was indeed there! The free pattern sheets from my designs haven’t arrived yet, but there’ll be 4 available in stores next week(ish). In the meantime, here’s a list of some of some other free, Caron patterns that would work up well in Sheep(ish):
- Doris Scarf
- Mr. Fluffs Amigurumi Cat
- Urban Jungle Beanie
- Urban Planner Beanie
- Whirlwind Wrap
- Clo Petite Poncho
- Sophie Poncho
- Shady Beanie
- Cardigan Neutral (double stranded)
- Comfy Cardi, by Ann Smith
- Simple Shrug, by Cari Clement
- Zurich Scarf, by Marylin Losee
My daughter, posing next to her picture on the label.
Wondering if the JoAnn near you carries Sheep(ish)? Well, thanks to web-girl-wonder Jenny, you can consult the store finder on my website! Check that out here.
Don’t worry though, if you don’t have a store near you. Buy.Caron.com has all 21 colors available and ready to ship to anywhere in the U.S., Canada, UK & Australia!
Lastly, I really get a kick out of seeing the endcaps at stores across the country. I started a “Sheep(ish) Spotting” album on my Facebook page of shots that people send me from their local store. Keep sending ‘em to me–I really appreciate it!
As always, thanks for the support. I couldn’t be prouder of my new yarn. The colors are beautiful, it’s delightful to work with, and it’s affordable. Hope you love it as much as I do!
Stay tuned for weekly patterns using Sheep(ish) delivered through the Caron Connections newsletter, starting tomorrow! If you haven’t signed up already, you can do so on here.
Stitch.Rock.Love,
Vickie
NEW AMIGURUMI PATTERN: Mr. Fluffs
Posted in Crochet, Vickie Howell on May 13, 2011 | 4 Comments »
While I was in Denver last month shooting my Craft Lab online workshop Kirsten, one of the designers at Sympoz, showed me the mascot logo she’d created for their upcoming site, Craftsy.
She called him Mr. Fluffs, and I *heart* him! So much so in fact, that I promptly designed an amigurumi version using Sheep(ish) yarn in color, Coral(ish). Well, I’m happy to say that this little plushie has since become the official office mascot for Team Craftsy, as well as a free pattern just for you!
Oh, and if you need to learn how to crochet before you get acquainted with Fluffs, don’t forget to check out Crochet Lab!
Stitch.Rock.Love,
Vickie
Get Sheep(ish) on Buy.Caron.com Today!
Posted in Vickie Howell, Yarn, tagged Crochet, Knitting, Sheep(ish), StitchRockLove, Vickie Howell, yarn on May 6, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Pssst! Guess what? Even though we have a few more weeks until Sheep(ish)–the first yarn in my Stitch.Rock.Love line– hits shelves, you can get it before anyone else! Click on over to BuyCaron.com right NOW and be the very first to get the yarn, before it’s in stores. Super-soft, in 21 luscious colors and for only $3.99 a ball–what are you waiting for? Type on over to Buy.Caron.com today!
What people are saying about Sheep(ish)
“I liked–no, LOVED [working with]–your Sheep-ish yarn. The colors are extraordinary, and the sheen makes the yarn almost glow. And it didn’t split like loosely spun 1-ply yarns can do sometimes. Whenever I crocheted in public, people would stop and ask what kind of yarn I was using. I told them they would have to wait, but that it would be worth it.”
–Donna Childs, Designer
“I love the texture and all of the delicious colors–WOW!” –Natalie Zee Drieu, Founder Coquette Fashion Blog
Psst! You can crochet the Doris scarf, using just ONE ball of Sheep(ish)!
Sheep(ish) Scarf in color, Gun Metal(ish)
Stitch.Rock.Love,
Vickie
Make a Stylish Scarf-Belt for Mom
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged yarn bombing on May 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Knitters often don’t like the way the edge of their work curls, but I really like the natural roll of the edges that I get when I do straight knitting on the pocket knitter. It’s great for creating a skinny scarf or belt. I just made this scarf-belt out of Simply Soft Party in Snow Sparkle (yep, Party is still my favorite yarn) and added mismatched lengths of fringe with bead embellishments for some extra flair. You can drape this scarf around your neck and just let is hang, wrap it, or knot it. You can wear it as a belt or even just drape it through a belt loop and let it dangle.
It’s nice in light, both in weight and color, so is perfect for warmer weather. And the best thing? You can make this in a single evening. That means you have time to make one for Mother’s Day!
So, do you want to make a scarf-belt just like this? You will need:
- Pocket knitter
- 1 ball Simply Soft Party in any color
- Approximately 18 beads of choice (make sure the openings are big enough to accommodate the yarn)
SCARF-BELT
Cast on 14 stitches.
Work in St st until piece measures approximately 50 inches.
Bind off across.
Using yarn needle, weave in your ends
Attach Tassels/Fringe: Attach 9 tassels to each end of scarf as follows:
Cut 2 strands of yarn, 10″ long. Hold both strands together and fold in half forming a loop at folded end. Draw loop through one corner of scarf, thread ends of strands through loop and pull to tighten and secure. Repeat 8 more times to attach a total of 9 tassels evenly spaced across end of scarf. Repeat for other end of scarf.
Attach Bead Embellishments: Thread tassel through a bead and knot below bead to keep bead in place. Placements of beads should be scattered in various positions on the tassels so that beads hang at various lengths.
Trim ends of each tassel about ¾” below knot.
