Knitting Dragonflies

 I wanted to try some fingerless mitts or arm warmers and thought that I would try a crochet pair. The pandemic has gotten me into crochet in a serious way. I love knitting and that is my primary love but crochet has really gotten me excited. It also helps me switch in between projects and keep my hand stress down. Crochet is so much quicker than knitting. I've had fun comparing them and trying out all kinds of crochet patterns. I found this one that was cute and had the cable detail but not too difficult. Pattern is free ( rav link )  from Julie Fort. Thanks Julie, it is called the Cable Wrist warmer. The pattern is well written and I didn't have any trouble trying to figure out what to do as someone newer to crochet. They fit very well. I love that they have an actual thumb shaping and this is specific for the right and left hand. I used worsted weight yarn, Lion Brand Wool Ease and I'm definitely going to make another pair, the pattern is fairly quick to make and would b

I finished the first one and was pleased with it. So decided I would try again. Pattern is from Marly Bird, free pattern. It is the Love Light Gleems Stocking (rav link ). She also has a video on her YouTube channel you can find and it shows how to make the whole stocking.  This is the first time I've made the Latvian braid and her video showed how to do it. I did modify the pattern to only 2 repeats of the design. It makes the stocking thinner. I added some stocking net area in-between the braid and the main design to include the last name. For the heel I used 28 stitches and used the afterthought heel. It makes it quick to make the body of the stocking. I used the afterthought heel from Knitty Natty ( you tube link ) I'll add a pic of my first stocking I made. Enjoy and may your knitting needles fly as fast as dragonflies.

Jodi and my Oversized Hoodie on the porch.  Yarn is scarfie, from Lion Brand, I did modify the arms & I added slash interior pockets. I'll add the details of my modifications in another post. I have plans to add a zip to it. So far I'm loving how it turned out!! I really love her patterns and highly recommend them. Pattern is Oversized Hoodie from Carrie Chambers (crochet with carrie) blog link May your needles fly as fast as dragonflies.....

    Pattern from Taylor OBrien. I saw her tutorial on YouTube (link)  and had to make this. It was fun and fast!  I highly recommend you giving it a try.

  Free pattern from Dora Does, pattern is the AnyTime Cardigan, instructions are very clear! Pattern Link (designers blog)

  Another pattern from Bodhi life crochet or Taylor Obrien (Wittke) I found this on her YouTube Channel. Fun and fast with options on how to wear it! Check out her video. (youtube link ) I think it would make a good gift for any occasion. I used a worsted weight yarn, her pattern calls for a bulky weight.  I adjusted the pattern by chaining 75, and using a 5 mm hook. For the next one, I would probably chain 80 and maybe use a slightly larger hook if using worsted again. . May your needles fly as fast as Dragonflies......

 Just need to pick out some buttons and finish this up. I love how it looks, yarn is scarfie from Lion brand yarn. Pattern is free.

  Got this cropped hoodie done in time for my nieces birthday. The pattern is the Hooded Fall Cardigan from Crochet with Carrie, she has a YouTube video also. It was simple and clear, I love the look of it and added toggle buttons. Pattern is free. Pattern link ( designers blog ) I'm really pleased with how it turned out & my Niece says she loves it! I used 8 skeins of  Wool Ease worsted weight yarn or about 1600 yards. For the size medium, cropped.

I knitted a shrug pattern a bit ago, and it turned out very nicely, but I wasn’t happy with how it looked on me, or the functionality of it. The Shrug is often seen as a bridging item for beginning to intermediate knitters. An item for the “I’m tired of knitting scarves, hats and shawls etc.., but don’t feel like I’m up for a sweater yet”. It attracted me because I thought it would be easy mindless knitting for watching TV or visiting, and also a useful addition to my wardrobe. It was a lot of knitting. The pattern I picked was all stockinette stitch. Whew….really long and boring. I would recommend picking one with a simple pattern to keep it interesting. And while it looked nice, I didn’t find it to be very useful, for myself. My husband called it my buttwarmer, and that is a good description of it. It stayed open in the front, where I was cold, and bagged in the butt area, which I don't need to emphasize. I did like the shorter sleeves and  that it was large enough to put ove