Yay! We have made it to the LAST GrannySpiration Challenge of the year. I am a little sad that the challenge is over, but I am quite proud of myself for sticking to the schedule and theme throughout the whole year. It was a personal challenge that I posed for myself at the end of last year for 2017, and asked a few friends to join in on, and it was awesome working alongside them and seeing what they came up with. At the end of this post, you will find the information for this month’s MEGA giveaway, and link up. I have a lot to share about the giveaway below, so brace yourself – hehe!
12/03/17 Update: Okay, so originally I was working on a pattern review of a top I recently discovered. I was so anxious to finish, and even bought a new skein of yarn to finish up, and then at a check point spot (last Thursday night no less), I realized the top was not on point, and would need to be tweaked way too much to be ready in time for this challenge, plus I really didn’t want to have to review a pattern for fun, and do a bunch of adjusting to it – call me lazy 😉 I ended up putting the yarn back in my stash – I will definitely use some Sweet Delight in future projects.
I sat and thought long and hard about what to make for this challenge… I thought about a Christmas ornament… a tree skirt… a new pillow… finally a cowl idea popped into mind. I jotted the idea down, and went to bed so I could start fresh on the idea.
First thing Friday morning, I pulled out the last skein of Berroco’s Vintage yarn from my stash, and got to work on my vision, and the cowl turned out perfectly!
I made the ribbing wide so that it could be pulled up over my face to keep it and my ears warm if it was windy. When not windy, just fold over the ribbing, and it makes for a beautiful collar to go with the granny stitch handkerchief-like pattern.
This cowl only requires one skein, and would make a great holiday gift. Make this in your favorite color, or work the ribbing longer, wider or shorter for a custom fit (and adjust the granny stitch pattern as needed). One last thing I will say about this before I go on to the actual pattern – I wanted mine to be a little looser, but the ribbing has lots of give to it, and stretches about four to five inches. If you want a tighter cowl, shorten the ribbing section by one inch.
Marjan from Atelier Marie-Lucienne
Sandra from Hakelfieber Austria (in German)
Jenny from Crochet is the Way
Rhelena from Crochet n Crafts
Mariam from Mariam’s Creations: Recycle and Create
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Linking Up To…
December 2017 Sharing Time – Raising Memories
Snickerdoodle Create~Bake~Make Party #210 – Across the Boulevard
Nifty Thrifty Sunday – Nifty Thrifty Things
Create Link Inspire Linky Party #208 – The Crafty Blog Stalker
Inspire Me Monday – Week 309 – Create with Joy
Made by You Monday – Skip to my Lou
Tutorials & Tips Link Party {333} – Home Stories A to Z
Bee Party #42 – My Busy Beehives
04/12 Creative Mondays Link Up – Claire Justine
Simple Christmas Projects | MM #182 – A Wonderful Thought
The Scoop Link Party #304 – Worthing Court
Faux Fur Christmas Stocking & Link Party #193 – Dagmar’s Home
The Really Crafty Link Party #96 and Holiday Celebrations – Keeping it Real
You’re the Star Linky Party Week 62 – Let it Shine
From Dream to Reality #291 – The DIY Dreamer
Show and Tell Link Party – Flamingo Toes
The Wednesday Link Party – Oombawka Design
The Linky Ladies Party #121 – The Purple Poncho
Sew It Cook It Craft It Link Party #34 – Sew Historically
Style File Link Up – Lady in Violet
Turning Heads Tuesday Link Up – Elegantly Dressed and Stylish
Your Whims Wednesday #332 – My Girlish Whims
Whisk it Wednesday Link Party #8 – Carrie’s Home Cooking
The Blended Blog Style Link Up – Living on Cloud Nine
Hookin’ on Hump Day – Petals to Picots
{Wow Me} Wednesday #328 – Ginger Snap Crafts
Magical Christmas Home Decor & I’m Lovin’ It {linky party} 165 – Tidy Mom
Pin Junkie Pin Party #244 – The Pin Junkie
Creativity Unleashed #201 – Practically Functional
No Rules Weekend Blog Party #264 – Sincerely, Paula
Crafty Love Link Party #28 – Jessie at Home
Scrappy Stitchers Link Party #36 – Stitches n Scraps
Thursday Fashion Files Link Up #138 – Curly Crafty Mom
Sweet Inspiration Link Party #86 – The Boondocks Blog
Friday Feature Linky Party – Oh My Heartsie Girl
Friday Frenzy Link Party 12/08/17 – Kelly Lynn’s Sweets and Treats
Link Your Stuff – Anniemarie’s Haak Blog
{nifty thrifty sunday #312} – Nifty Thrifty Things
This Month’s Giveaway is sponsored by myself, Alexandra of EyeLoveKnots. One winner will receive the 2017 YARN GOODIES ($130 Value) to include…
…A cute little yarn winder [Yarnology], a Luxury Wooden Yarn Bowl [Yarnology], and two skeins of Malabrigo’s Rios – a worsted weight, pure merino superwash yarn made in Peru – in the Piedras colorway – a mix of pretty autumn colors.
Why these items? Well… I discovered Malabrigo’s Rios yarn earlier this year, and started learning to knit with it. I will say that besides it’s soft feeling and gorgeous colors, it’s a durable yarn that will easily withstand multiple frogs as well as machine washing without getting very fuzzy. I did purchase both skeins together, and although the tag says “no dye lot”, I picked the two that were closest in colors. To go with this yarn, you will need a ball winder to wind your skeins – otherwise you will have a big mess trying to work from the skein it’s currently in, and why not have a luxurious wooden yarn bowl to go with the Malabrigo’s yarn? This yarn bowl has a large hole in it thread your yarn through, and pull from.
…A blue zippered pencil pouch with three binder rings [7.38″ by 10.25″; Imagine], a small notebook [7″ by 5″], a set of five funky colored mechanical pencils with extra lead [0.7mm Lead; Inc], a small calculator [DG Office], a set of two pink erasers [Imagine], a Clear Storage Caddy with 6 exterior pockets [8.5″ by 5″ by 6.25″; June Tailor, Inc] and the best little bright green Soft Handle Scissors [5.25″; Caliber – not photographed].
Why these items? Well, I think a pencil pouch is the perfect accessory to have to hold all your non-hooking supplies. I know that my crochet hook case only has a small pocket in it only big enough to hold a few hooks that don’t fit in the spots, a few tapestry needles and stitch markers. I always carry around a pencil pouch filled with my calculator – a must for working out crochet related math problems, numerous pencils and erasers (plus the odd ball pen or two), a notebook for writing down notes as I go along either pertaining to a pattern I am reviewing or an actual pattern I am designing, as well as scissors (which I am also including in this giveaway, but didn’t get a chance to photograph) and miscellaneous items. Though I don’t have my own caddy, when I saw this one, I thought it would be a great addition. It’s small, but holds all your goodies, and would help keep your workplace a little tidier. Wish they had two on the shelf when I went to the store! I definitely would have gotten myself one.
…AND… four sheets of white felt [9″ by 12″], two sheets of 7 count clear stiff plastic canvas [10.5″ by 13.5″; by Darice], a 3-in-1 Needle Threader [for fine threads, medium weight yarns and heavy yarns; DMC], set of six tapestry needles in sizes 18 to 22 [Yarnology], set of eight Removable Stitch Markers [Clover], a super cute retro looking tin needle case, four black Sew-On-Snaps [Size 4; Dritz], set of six small leather labels [“Made with Love”, “#TeamDIY”, “Handmade with Happiness” and “100% Made with Love”], four different sets of Organic Elements buttons made of coconut by Blumenthal Lansing [two 1″ red hearts, two 1″ yellow and blue/green squares, two 1″ blue/green ovals, and one 1.5″ grayish rectangle], and a pair of Long-Nose Jewelry Pliers [Darice].
Why these items? Well… These are great tools and embellishment pieces.
When I work up little purses, I love to line them with felt – it’s one of the easiest fabrics to work with, and won’t fray on you! Before sewing in the lining, I like to cut a corresponding piece of stiff plastic canvas to keep my bag stiff and upright. Both can be washed, which is a big plus! You could also use these two items on a handmade basket.
Personally, I use the needle threader, size 18 and 20 tapestry needles for weaving in my ends and sewing pieces together, stitch markers, snap buttons in various projects, and the jewelry pliers. You may think that jewelry pliers may be an odd one to include in a yarny giveaway, but they’re great for using to pull your tapestry needle through when weaving in the ends specifically in projects that require a little more energy – like when using cotton or bulky yarns.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Must be 18 or older to enter. Open to all countries. Void where prohibited. Winner has 48 hours to respond to email notification, or another winner will be chosen. Alexandra of EyeLoveKnots (that’s me) is responsible for prize fulfillment.
This week I am featuring, from left to right: Dean’s Day Blanket is Done, Crochet Inspiration Liefs van de Breimeisjes, and Donation for Sahel eV III (A Granny Square Blanket), Crochet Inspiration from HakelLine.
Please share projects that are family friendly, and GRANNY INSPIRED through use of regular granny square or solid granny square, granny stitch pattern or other afghan square in the form of a free pattern, pattern review, or inspiration piece. Not limited to crochet or knit.
Please make sure to link to your post, and not your home page.
*If you don’t have a blog, you can still share with us by creating a Free Flickr Account – powered by Yahoo. Add your projects there, and then come back here with the link for the project.
*Link ups cannot be to Etsy listings or Ravelry pages where patterns are sold. You can link to blog posts, Flickr or Facebook pages, Pins, etc that are directed towards it, but can’t directly link to it.
To be clearer though, Raverly pages of finished projects are okay to share. Sorry for the inconvenience! That’s per InLinkz guidelines. Thanks!
Features may be chosen at the discretion of each host. By linking up, you give us permission to feature your item.
Congratulations with finishing this challenge!! And I will come back next week to see what you've made. You're giving away so much goodies, awesome!
I love making granny square Christmas stockings
I am addicted to making hat's and cowls, and anything granny square!
I love making and giving prayer shawls
I like making shawls, or scarves.
I enjoy making triangle scarfs
I love to make hats
My favorite thing to make has to be graphghans as I love to watch my patterns come to life!!!
I love making cowls for myself and my family. I also have been enjoying knitting for babies. I love making lovies and stuffed animals!
I love making blankets the most.
My favorite thing to make is anything crocheted! I make anything & everything that catches my eye (which is ALOT! lol)
Such a lovely cowl! Great colour too!
Big hug and "Thank you!" for hosting this challenge. It's been challenging and fun and I was happy to be part of it!
It’ really pretty, perfect for this season. I love the color too. Thank you for sharing at The Really Crafty Link Party this week. Pinned!
I know nothing about crochet. I never learned how, but when I see something I like, it makes me want a little bit to learn. I really love this cowl pattern, and the fact that it's so versatile. Love the color too. I think I will just enjoy looking at the beautiful work of others!
I love to make hats. There are so many varieties out there that you never have to repeat yourself if you don't want to. 😀
Thanks for the giveaway! Now I'm looking forward to January.
I like quick projects b/c I'm easily distracted…usually by pretty patterns and yarn. 😉 I've become a big fan of stitch markers b/c of my crochet ADD, too!
Right now I'm a little obsessed with shawls. So many variations, it's hard to do only one at a time!
My favorite thing to make is Shawls and Wraps. However, this triangle cowl is the perfect gift for my granddaughter. Thank you for sharing and for the inspiration that you provide.
So wonderful to hear! So welcome!! I like making rectangle shawls, though, oddly enough I don’t enjoy wearing them? I love how they look on my dress form though, and then I gift them.
I’m hoping to make this ribbed cowl soon, thank you for the pattern, you are awesome, happy new year ❤️??
Thank you for the mention of #ohmyheartsiegirl and for stopping by to share your blog!!
I love to color of your cowl!
I am having trouble with the last round, what is ” side of 2nd dc” I don’t understand what that is. The rest of the pattern is very easy
You normally work into the top of a stitch. In this case, you are working into the side of it to create the pretty scalloped edge.