As part of the Hygge Home CAL, run by my wonderful friend Marie (Underground Crafter), I have designed a granny stitch planned pooling blanket for you to hygge your home with. Be sure to check out this great blanket pattern along with 9 other Hygge Home patterns from other great designers.
Red Heart has a slew of wonderful free knit and crochet patterns on their website. I have been fortunate enough to have quite a few of my designs featured there. Most recently there have been a collection of Chic Sheep by Marly Bird™ yarn patterns. This post will show you all of my FREE knit and crochet patterns on the Red Heart website.
Guess who's back!!! My dear friend Salena Baca is back on the Yarn Thing podcast. This time she is share about her brand new book and all of the other amazing things that she is working on. There is so much to catch up on and I hope you will join us for a great conversation about crochet, business, and her new crochet book.
Today I get to share a tutorial with you to crochet my very own pattern, the Lafayette Chic Shawl. As a part of the second collection of Chic Sheep by Marly Bird™ patterns I created this beautiful crochet shawl that even beginner crocheters will be able to master.
With the success of the second annual Game Day make-along 2019 not far behind us, we are looking ahead to the next big sporting event here in America…March Madness. Just as we brought our love of hook and needles to the Super Bowl, we are doing the same for this basketball event. It is the time of year for the second annual Tournament of Stitches 2019 event!!!
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Heads up, things will be run a little different for this years make-along, so be sure to read the full post (heck, bookmark this post!) to know how it works and how to participate…and of course, WIN PRIZES!
The Tournament of Stitches make-along is a great way for knitters and crocheters to work alongside each other making something that is similar but not identical.
For those of you who joined us last year for the TOS 2018 (that is how we like to abbreviate the Tournament of Stitches), you might remember that it was like a big choose your own adventure book. Truth be told, it was a ton of fun BUT, it was SO.MUCH.WORK.FOR.ME!!!!
After I nearly had a meltdown last year, I promised myself that if I did the TOS again I would simplify it in order to make it something I can continue doing without tears and frustration. So, rather than the four concentration levels throughout the entire project that can be mix and matched each week, I have written the pattern that will have you building on your skills from the start of the pattern to the end.
Both the knit and crochet versions will go from Social —> Netflix and Chill —> Smooth Jazz —> Be Quiet, I’m Knitting/Crocheting
March 6 – April 3, 2019 (you must be a part of the Marly’s Minions Facebook Group. More details about that below) @ 10 am MT
Another change this year is that I am not doing four different projects. There will be one project for knitters and one project for crocheters. Just as last year, I want you to know what you’re making but you will not know what the final version will look like.
I’ve decided that I want to make this years project a ????shawl????. NOT a triangle shawl and NOT a rectangle shawl, but an asymmetrical shawl. One that I think will allow for the skill level transition and some excitement.
To participate in the Tournament of Stitches Make-Along you will need to go to the Marly’s Minions Facebook GROUP this is where we will be posting information. You can RSVP for the event to stay up to date with what is going on. By marking that you are going to be joining us you will get notifications when new clues are posted.
There is no cost for participating in this event, IT IS FREE; but we do ask that you share this blog post with your friends that knit or crochet, and when you post on social media use #TournamentofStitches and #MarlyBird
There is nothing worse than running out of yarn for a project, right? With that in mind, we have decided to be cautious and suggest a larger amount of yarn for this project than you might use. But, we want to make sure that no matter shawl you make you will not run out of yarn by the time you are at the end of the make-along.
Link to the Knitting TOS on Ravelry
Link to the Crochet TOS on Ravelry
[I will be adding both of these patterns to Ravelry so you can add your projects to them…consider this a place holder for those links.]
Yarn: At least 1,400 yds of a worsted weight yarn. I will be using Chic Sheep by Marly Bird™.
Colors: At least 2 colors that are contrasting, but I am using 5 colors for my sample! My colors are (3 balls) Lipstick; (1 ball each of the following) Sterling, Platinum, Stiletto, and Lace.
Needles: Size 9 (5.5mm) 24” and/or 32” circulars or LONGER size needed to obtain correct gauge.
Notions: Stitch markers, tapestry needle
Yarn: At least 2000 yds of a worsted weight yarn. I will be using Chic Sheep by Marly Bird™.
Colors: At least 3 colors that are contrasting, but I am using 5 colors for my sample! My colors are (3 balls) Velvet; (2 balls each of the following) Vineyard, Regal, Polo; (1 ball) Green Tea
Hooks: I/9 (5.5mm), J/10 (6mm) size needed to obtain correct gauge.
Notions: Stitch markers, tapestry needle
My team and I will link to the instruction page for each week in this blog post below (directly below this section, you will see dates that will be highlighted when the instructions have been posted) @ 10 am MT the day of the event.
You will also get a notification from the FB Group for when we post the instructions for each week AND (we learned this last time) we will have one dedicated thread in the group for each clue in each round.
Having one thread dedicated to each week makes it easier should you have a question, you only need to find that thread in the FB group and ask it. Our top Minion Moderators and testers are watching those threads so they can help you.
Knitting Shawl Instructions (click the link):
Week 1 Knitting Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 2 Knitting Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 3 Knitting Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 4 Knitting Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Crochet Shawl Instructions (click the link):
Week 1 Crochet Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 2 Crochet Clue-coming AVAILABLE NOW
Week 3 Crochet Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 4 part 1 Crochet Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Week 4 part 2 Crochet Clue-AVAILABLE NOW
Honestly… it's a super fun way for us knitters and crocheters to make something that's kinda the same but also a little different! We'll all be working on a shawl, but the knit and crochet versions will have their own unique skills to build on each week.
So here's the thing… you'll need to be part of the Marly’s Minions Facebook Group to get all the deets, but the make-along officially runs from March 6th to April 3rd, 2019. Make sure you RSVP in the group so you don't miss any new clue postings!
Yes! We're making a shawl… but not just any shawl! It's going to be an asymmetrical one, which I think will be really exciting and allow us to build our skills from easy peasy to a little more focused as we go along.
Easy peasy! All the instructions will be linked right here on this blog post below the “HERE ARE THE Weekly Instructions!” heading, released at 10 am MT each week. Plus, you'll get a heads-up in the Marly's Minions Facebook Group where we'll even have a dedicated thread for each week's clue to help with any questions!
Oh, welcome! So here's the thing… you'll want to join the Marly’s Minions Facebook Group first, as that's where all the main action happens. There's no cost to join the event, just make sure to share this post with your crafty friends and use #TournamentofStitches and #MarlyBird when you post on social media!
The free crochet pattern Super Simple Shawl uses a crochet crowd favorite small filet crochet mesh stitch combined with easy picot border. Made with the amazingly soft and ultra colorful Colorscape yarn by Red Heart Yarns (see link below), this beginner crochet shawl is sure to become a favorite accessory either draped around the shoulders or around the neck like a shawlkerchief (my preferable way of wearing it ;-))
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