crochet Archives - Hobbyist on the Road

Posted on February 5, 2021March 9, 2021 by Vytene — Leave a comment

Dreamy Collar Styling

I have recently completed a very detailed crochet CAL pattern for my Dreamy Collar with a vintage feel and a contemporary look.

I thought I’ll show you some ways I am going to style it, so as to give you an idea of how it could be worn.

Did you know that removable collars like this are back in fashion in 2021? Although I don’t think they ever went out of fashion in the crochet world 🙂 🙂 🙂

How to wear your Dreamy Collar.

Play with contrasting colours. If your collar is light, then wear it with a dark blouse or shirt.

Dreamy Collar Styling - on a black blouse tied up on the side.

You can tie the collar up on the side, like in the picture above, or centered in the front, like in the picture below.

Dreamy Collar Styling - on jeans shirt, tied up in the front.

2. Wear your Dreamy Collar on a matching colour background. If your collar is light, like mine, wear it with a cream shirt. The collar will give the whole outfit a very subtle finish and dress up even a very casual top.

3. The fashion now seems to turn around the idea of matching items that at first sight don’t match. I matched my Dreamy Collar with a leather jacket and keep thinking I should buy a leather shirt and wear it with that.

4. Wear it with other accessories such as a faux fur collar or a long necklace.

You can get a very detailed pattern CAL for this Dreamy Collar

Tools and materials used:

Anchor Freccia mercerized thread, 100g/570m approx. (For this Dreamy Collar I used up less than one 50g ball of the thread.)

1mm size hook.
You can use any size of yarn and hook, but keep in mind that the larger the hook and yarn size, the chunkier your collar will be.

Parchment paper and a measuring tape for collar shape cut out.

Soft board or a flat cushion for pinning your collar cut out and individual motifs on and assembling the collar with the lace.

Pins, needle, scissors.

Create beauty one stitch at a time!

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Posted on February 3, 2021February 3, 2021 by Vytene — Leave a comment

2 Ways to Make a Magic Circle

How to make a Magic Circle and why do we need it?

Beginning crocheters often wonder, how to start crocheting in a circle so as it would come out neat and tidy every single time.

Magic Circle is the answer.

In the videos below I show you two ways how to make a magic circle. Choose the one that you find easier, the finished item will look exactly the same.

Variation 1

I sometimes use this first variation when I work with thicker yarn.

Variation 2

As a rule, I usually go for this second variation, especially when crocheting with fine thread and a small hook. I find that by doing it this way, I use up less yarn.

This technique is used when starting all sorts of projects – hats, round napkins, amigurumi toys or anything else where you need to start a circle with no hole in the middle.

Here’s a Dreamy Collar project where I used magic circle to start most of the circles apart from one type. Click HERE

It doesn’t matter how fine or chunky yarn you are crocheting with, your circle will look neat and tidy every time!

Create beauty one stitch at a time!

Posted on November 4, 2020November 4, 2020 by Vytene — Leave a comment

How to Crochet Spiky Snowflakes?

Crochet Spiky snowflakes and decorate your Christmas tree, home or office this Holiday Season!

These spiky snowflakes also make a beautiful unique gift for anyone who appreciates handmade items.

To get your FREE Spiky Snowflake pattern:

I created this spiky snowflakes pattern after looking at lots of real snowflake photography online. So this pattern resembles a spiky snowflake variety in real life.

But to be honest, I found so many real snowflake variations that I realized, you can crochet almost any kind of imaginary snowflake and it will resemble a real-life one.

One common snowflake feature though, is that each snowflake always has 6 ‘branches’. That’s apparently, a scientific fact. But don’t quote me one that! I am only a crocheter and not a snowflake scientist J

If you want to learn to crochet these beautiful Spiky Snowflakes, you can get a FREE PATTERN HERE.

Level: Beginner friendly.

It is a very easy snowflake to crochet and is perfect for beginning crocheters because you need to know only very basic stitches – slip stitch, chain, double crochet (US terminology).

Materials and tools you will need:

0.75mm size hook. You can get it HERE
The yarn is 100% mercerized cotton 100g/ 570m approx. Anchor Freccia 12. You can get it HERE
Fabric stiffener. I have used Mod Podge Stiffy, you can get it HERE
Pins.
(Optional) Soft flat work top, you can also use a flat cushion.
A piece of cardboard and a plastic bag.
(Optional) A small painting brush.
Scissors and needle.

You may also like to crochet:

Sunshiny Snowflake, pattern HERE

Ornate Snowflake, pattern HERE.

Finishing Stage for Spiky Snowflakes

If you want to use your Spiky Snowflakes as a hanging décor element, you have to stiffen them after you have completed crocheting them.

For this step I use fabric stiffener called Mod Podge Stiffy, you can get it HERE. It works perfectly for me.

But you can also use homemade stiffeners such as water and glue mixture. Make sure the stiffener is strong enough to hold delicate branches and elements of this Spiky Snowflake.

For laying out and drying my snowflake, I use a soft board (a flat cushion will also work), put a piece of cardboard on top of it with a plastic bag covering.

For ease of access, I also use a small painting brush to apply the fabric stiffener. You can also apply your fabric stiffener with your fingers.

In many cases crocheters first apply the fabric stiffener and then lay out their snowflake to dry. In this case, I reverse the process because the snowflake has lots of small details, and it takes time to lay them out and pin them down precisely, the way I want them to look.

So I first lay out my snowflake and pin each detail in the way I want it to look in the final version. I prefer to lay it out with the wrong side facing up. This particular snowflake design has lots of small spikes, so I need quite a few pins to keep each spike in shape.

I then take my paint brush and apply the fabric stiffener quite generously, especially around the base of each branch. Make sure that each corner, each little spike and each branch vein have enough stiffener on them, so as the snowflake would hold its shape perfectly when dried.

Leave it to dry out.

24 hours later (or maybe even less)…

Voila! Your snowflake is ready for beautiful winter décor!

Get you FREE Spiky Snowflakes Pattern HERE

Create beauty one stitch at a time!

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Posted on July 15, 2020July 16, 2020 by Vytene — 3 Comments

Irish Crochet Dress: Finished

Two and a half years since the start of the project, my Irish Crochet Dress is finally properly finished – done and dusted, completed, finito! 😀

And on a quiet Sunday afternoon, I was able to have a photoshoot I’d been looking forward to for quite a while now 🙂

One final consideration before wearing the dress was the colour of the undergarment.

Since this is a see-through dress, the colour of the undergarment has an important impact on the finished look.

As you are looking through the pictures below, notice how the look of the dress changes depending on the undergarment colour.

In some pictures, I am wearing a black undergarment, whereas in others, a light coloured one.

In the two pictures above the dress is worn with a black undergarment.

Two pictures below have light undergarment is the base for the dress.

As you can see from the pictures above, this question of what to wear under the Irish crochet dress is an important one.

For example in this case, the black undergarment lends the dress a more dramatic look, whereas the lighter one seems to tone down the details.

And to finish this series, here are a few close-ups:

One of those dark nights as I was completing the dress, I thought to myself this has been my first and is going to be my LAST Irish lace dress…

NEVER again!!! I thought to myself…

But now, as I’ve completed the dress, and have had a chance to enjoy it a little, I’m not so sure anymore…

…another Irish Lace Dress project just might happen at some stage in not too far off future… 🙂 who knows…

Create beauty one stitch at a time! (Even if it takes you over two years to finish!)

Previous posts in this series:

5 Irish Crochet Lessons for First-Timers

2. Irish Crochet Dress: Main Rose

3. Irish Crochet Rose Finished

4. Irish Crochet Dress: Elements Completed

5. Irish Crochet Dress: Design

6. Irish Crochet Dress: Lace

7. Irish Crochet Dress: Picture Emerging

8. Irish Crochet Dress: A Quick Update

9. Irish Crochet Dress: Trying It On for the First Time

10. Irish Crochet Dress: Working On Sleeves

11. Irish Crochet Dress: The Annoying Bit

Want to learn the Irish Crochet technique with an easy project?

Click HERE for a perfect starter project.

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Posted on May 12, 2020March 9, 2021 by Vytene — 1 Comment

Choker Collar – a Basic Irish Crochet Project

This crochet choker collar started out as a request from some crocheting friends of mine, who have never tried Irish crochet technique before. They asked for a small and simple Irish lace project so as to understand how this crochet technique works.

So after looking through the options available, I created a small basic Irish lace project – a crochet choker collar.

This project involves only a few basic Irish crochet motifs and, as Irish crochet projects go, is quick to make.

The skill level: elementary. All you need to know is Ch, SC, HDC, DC, and Sl St.

With this crochet choker collar project, I wanted to show you that even if you use the most basic of crochet motifs and stitches, you can still create something gorgeous in Irish crochet technique.

In fact, after looking through thousands of pictures online, I keep coming back to the same conclusion – more complicated motifs don’t equal better-looking items.

A lot depends on the materials used and the design decisions taken. Plus how you match your crochet accessory with other items in your outfit is also very important.

Materials I used for this crochet choker collar project:

0.6mm hook for the motifs (flowers, leaves, etc.)

0.5mm hook for the lace

You can buy small size hooks HERE

Yarn for the motifs:

N8 Retors d’Alsace DMC, you can get it from Casa Cenina

Threads & Yarns – DMC – Retors d’Alsace #8

Egypto 16 for rose variation 2, you can get it from MAFIL HERE

Yarn for the lace:

N12 Retors d’Alsace DMC, you can get it from Casa Cenina

Threads & Yarns – DMC – Retors d’Alsace #12

You can use any size of yarn and hook, but keep in mind that the larger the hook and yarn size, the larger and chunkier your choker will be.

Do you want a pattern tutorial for this choker collar?

This crochet choker collar will make a perfect accessory for your own outfits or a unique gift for those who appreciate handmade items.

Here are a few ideas on how to wear your crochet choker collar:

Wear it together with a pearl necklace or another color-coordinated piece of jewelry.

2. Wear it with a long string of pearls and turn the choker around so as your ‘back’ would become your ‘front’:

3. Wear it as a bracelet:

4. On a cooler day, you could also wear the choker on your shirt collar:

5. Another variation that could be possible but may require some adjustments is wearing it as a hairband. But for that, we would have to think of a way of fixing it to the hair.

To learn how to crochet this choker collar in Irish lace technique, get a downloadable PDF Pattern:

Create beauty one stitch at a time!

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