Quick Super Bulky Infinity Scarf

The latest scarf trend is infinity scarves/cowls, and they are EVERYWHERE! My mother asked me to make one for her, but none of the patterns I found went well with the yarns I had.  Most designs I found would take a very long time to make, and I wanted one right now!

Since I needed something quick, I decided to use some lightweight super bulky yarn in my stash.
Bernat Knit or Knot Clara.  I have several skeins, in sets of two skeins each.  I knew that it would take two skeins to make the scarf long enough.  After my first failed attempt (too long, and too thin), I finally got it figured out.

I gave my first completed scarf to my sweet friend Maddie.  She loves it!  (and it looks great on her)



Here's how I made it:

Super Bulky Infinity Scarf

Materials: 2 hanks of Bernat Knit or Knot "Clara"
Size 19 (16 mm) circular needle - 29 inches long
Large Eyed Yarn Needle for weaving in those huge ends!

If you can't find Bernat Knit or Knot "Clara" yarn (it's been discontinued), look for a soft, lightweight super bulky yarn that knits to a gauge of 2 stitches per inch with a size 17 (13 mm) knitting needle.

Pattern:  Loosely cast on 100 stitches with size 19 knitting needle.  Join in the round.

Round 1 - Knit
Round 2 - Purl
Rounds 3 & 4 - Knit
Round 5 - Purl
Rounds 6 & 7 - Knit
Round 8 - Purl
Round 9, 10, & 11 - Knit
Round 12 - Purl
Rounds 13 & 14 - Knit
Round 15 - Purl
Rounds 16 & 17 - Knit
Round 18 - Purl
Cast Off, then weave in ends.

Enjoy!

Here's a photo of Bernat Knit or Knot Clara, so you know what the original yarn looks like:



That yarn comes in a long hank, so you'll need to get a friend to hold it for you, as you wind it up into a big ball.  Or, you can use a fancy yarn swift. :)   Here's a video, showing how to wind up that yarn:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKkoYtMu7Jg

Here's another one I made, using a different color of the same yarn:

Edited: I miscounted the center rows when I originally posted the pattern.  There should be 3 knit rows in the center, instead of 5.  So, there are 18 total rows for the design.  Happy Knitting!

A Whole Lotta Knittin' Goin' On!

I have SO MANY PROJECTS GOING RIGHT NOW!  ACK!
But, I'm actually enjoying the process.  When I get tired of working on one, I just set it aside, and pick up another.

A few days ago, I cast on a triangle scarf, trying out Bernat's new "Fleurettes" yarn, in the color Honeysuckle.  I only have 3 skeins of it, so I'm going to knit some rows in between each skein using Bernat Satin in the color Stone.  I might add a crochet border around the edge, using Satin for that as well.  Looking forward to seeing how it turns out!



Here's another:  A Christmas stocking for a new customer.  I'm using Red Heart Sport for this one.  I'm also making another one in wool (Knit Picks Palette), for my sweet repeat customer. :)



After two unsuccessful attempts at knitting (or crocheting) a tie for my friend John, I think I've finally found the perfect pattern for the yarn.  The yarn (Cascade Yarns Heritage Silk Paints) looks lovely with standard stockinette stitch, and the bias design makes it pop!  There will be some lining and seaming involved at the end, but that's no problem.  I grew up sewing, so it should be a cinch.  (famous last words...I know....)



Another project I'm enjoying working on is my "Recurrent Dream by Moonlight Shawl".  Made that name up myself - I'm using Moonlight Mohair in the color "Northern Lights", and Moda Dea Dream in Black.  They work so well together, and the French Scarf pattern is PERFECT for it. :)



There are some other projects going as well, but I figure this is enough to tell you about.  Stay tuned!

Bernat Bamboo Crochet Vest

For the past few months, I've been crocheting the Bernat Bamboo Crochet Vest.
Last night, I actually had time to seam it together! :)



My vest is size 3X, and is a nice, comfortable fit.  The Bernat Bamboo yarn is eco-friendly, moisture-wicking, and cool - perfect for the hot, hot weather here in Charlotte, North Carolina.

My Craft Room is ReDone! (again....for now....)

After a month of organizing my home, I was finally able to concentrate on my craft room.  It was a disaster, because lots of my craft stuff had migrated all over the house.  And I REALLY wanted to get it organized, because I had invited a group of crafty friends over, and they were all excited about seeing my craft room.  Now, THAT is an incentive to get a craft room organized!! :)

I'm very glad to get it all done.








Of course, it's never really COMPLETELY done.  I still want to go through all those boxes of yarn, and get them thinned out and organized a bit better.  But, it works for now.

I went around with my video camera for a walk through.  Check it out!
(Be sure to have a cup of coffee on hand.  It's a LONG video.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh1oeJeO6LQ

Re-Doing My House, so I can Remodel my Craft Room!

Last month, I decided to remodel my craft room.  It really needed to be done, because my craft stuff was starting to migrate all over the house again.  The main issue was that my BED was in the craft room!  Ugh!  It had to be moved in there a couple years ago, because there was a hole in my bedroom ceiling.  I got the leaky roof repaired, but still needed to fix that ceiling hole.  I decided to stuff it with polyester fiberfill, so it wasn't standing open.  But, I just couldn't sleep in that room....the hole freaked me out!

In order to move my bed back out of the craft room, I was thinking that I would need to get the hole fixed first, then redo the painting in there, and do the flooring as well.  (I removed the carpet some time ago.)  This would take quite a while to get all this done, because I didn't have the skills to fix that ceiling hole myself, and I didn't have the money to pay for a carpenter either.  So, I figured I would have to keep it all on hold.

I have a smaller bedroom in the house, but I've been using it as an office for the past few years.  My mother told me that I should move my bed into that room.  At first, I discounted the idea, but then gave it some thought.  It made sense to move my bed in there, and move the office to the room with the ceiling hole.  So, that's what I've done.  Here's my little bedroom now:



All my embroidery supplies are in this room also, because I keep them in underbed boxes.



So, now that the bedroom was done, I had some SPACE available in my craft room!  Woo Hoo!



So, I looked all over the house for all the craft supplies that had wandered.  I sure did have a lot of crafty stuff to organize!!!



Next, I decided to do some work on the rest of my house as well.  I had invited some of my crafty friends to my house at the end of the month, and needed to get everything spic and span for their visit.  On to the BATHROOM!  What a nightmare in there.  I hadn't given it a good deep cleaning in ages.  So, everything came OUT of the bathroom, and waited in the hallway, while I did all that scrubbing and disinfecting.



Here's my bathroom BEFORE



and AFTER



Makes me feel clean just walking in there now. :)

When my bathroom was done, I decided to straighten up my dining table and entryway as well.  Looks a lot better now.  I'm gonna paint that old 1970's panelling one of these days.  :P



When that was done, I did a deep clean in the kitchen area as well.  No photos of that, but it's greatly improved as well.  Now, that all my housework was done, I was FINALLY able to concentrate on the craft room.  Stay tuned for my next post, which shows my updated craft room! :)

Bernat Bamboo Crochet Vest Crochet-Along

Right now, we are having a Spring Crochet-Along in the Bernat Forum, making a beautiful Crochet Vest, using Bernat Bamboo yarn.  This super soft bamboo yarn is absolutely LUSCIOUS!!!  Yummy!!!



I've made lots of videos, capturing every single stitch for the project.
Check 'em out: Step by Step Videos for Bernat Bamboo CAL

So far, I've finished the Left Front, as well as the Band for the Left Front.  Looking good so far!  I am really looking forward to wearing this. :)

My Bernat Temperature Project

I've been knitting row after row, to show the temperature for each day of 2013.  Two rows for the low temp, two rows for the high temp, and two more rows if there is rain, snow, or lightning.  (grey for rain, white for snow, black for lightning)

So far, I've finished through March, and it's already VERY LONG - 56 inches!


Needless to say, this will NOT be a wrap, because 56 times 4 is just ridiculous.
So, I've decided to make an afghan instead.  This section will be one side of the afghan, with the fringe hanging on the edge. I will make an identical section for Oct, Nov, and Dec, to make the other side.

Now, I want to crochet some squares for each day of the Spring and Summer months.  Those squares will be seamed together for the center section of my afghan.  Wish me luck!

If you want to join in the Bernat 2013 Temperature CAL/KAL, we would love getting to know you in the Bernat Forum.  Check it out!

Designing My Own Scarf, Using Bernat's Stitch Gallery

About a year ago, we started a knit and crochet-along in the Bernat Forum, where we are all designing our own scarf, using the Bernat Stitch Gallery for Knit Stitches and Crochet Stitches.

Since that time, several Bernat Forum members have finished their lovely scarves, and moved onto other projects.  But, as usual, I am WAY behind the rest of the pack.  I had a great idea, but just didn't follow through as quickly as I hoped I would.

This past week, I grabbed my three skeins of Vickie Howell Sheepish yarn, and got to work with Bernat's "Wagon Wheel" design.  IT IS SO FUN!!! Omigosh, I can't believe I dragged my feet on this.  :P


Here's the two videos I made, showing how to make the wheel motif.

Part One Video "Wagon Wheel"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqBNc2spaRI

Part Two Video "Wagon Wheel"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHTKJ3qvY38

Now, I just need to make lots of wagon wheels, then seam them together for my scarf.  :)

Bernat Temperature Scarf KAL/CAL

I am having so much fun with the new 2013 KAL/CAL on the Bernat website. :)
Follow along with the KAL/CAL on the Bernat Forum.

We are making "Temperature Scarves", changing colors according to the temperature each day of 2013.  I'm using Bernat Denimstyle for my scarf - all 13 colors of it.



Here's how I've arranged the colors, according to temperatures for Charlotte, NC.



And here's how my scarf looks, after working January 1 - January 5.  I am making a wrap instead of a scarf, casting on twice as many stitches as the pattern dictates.  And I'm leaving the ends to be a fringe along one side.  I started off with an edge of several rows in the lightest color, and will finish off the project in the same way.  I might also crochet an edge along the unfringed side.  Time will tell. Can't wait to wrap myself up in this cozy wrap!