Crochet, crochet and more crochet!

Our holiday at home gave me just the space I needed to get on with a few crochet projects.  The first was to embellish a little case I had made for my mobile phone using some felted blanket.  I was pleased with the overall shape/design and ease of use of what I had made but it was lacking a bit in the decorative department and was definitely looking like a poor companion to my lovely new bag.

Now it has received its crochet decorations, it shines on its own accord and looks lovely by itself or with my bag.  It really feels like it belongs to me now...

The crochet flower was actually the centre of a granny square I attempted when making my Easter cushion.  I got that far and then the rest of the pattern totally defeated me and I decided to go back to a design I enjoyed and felt comfortable with until I had had a bit more practise.  I loved the flower though and kept it as I knew I would find the perfect home for it eventually.  

By itself the flower still looked a little lost so I blanket stitched along each side of the flap and added a matching picot edging in crochet.  Let me know if you would like a tutorial for making this.  The size is totally flexible and I think it could work well for and ipod too.

My second crochet project was this eye popping circular cushion cover.  It is based on the pattern in Complete Feltmaking: Easy Techniques and 25 Great Projects, I say based as I lost my place in the pattern and just carried on making it up as I went along!  I also wanted to use this lovely Colinette wool that I had and didn't have enough of either colour, so I went for a kind of bullseye effect that I rather like.

The original pattern calls for some felt leaf shapes, stitched around the centre bobble but I like it just as it is so I think I will probably forget that part. I am also going to keep it un-felted as even with two skeins I have only just managed to achieve the desired size and I am too impatient to wait for another lot to arrive before I finish off.  I have a few different ideas on how to back it but haven't made my mind up properly yet.  I'll show you more photos when I decide and complete it.

Finally, I have the next instalment of progress on my long term blanket project.  It goes everywhere with me (you may have spotted it at the beach) and I am just starting my 7th ball of cotton yarn.  It is now respectable scarf width, moving towards a wrap, but I am still enjoying myself and with another thirty odd balls of cotton to go I hope to still make it to double bed size eventually.  I have a day full of spinning ahead of me today, a friend recently found a wheel in a charity shop and I am going to try and pass on what little spinning knowledge I have, to her.  Lots of coffee, cake and laughter should make up for lack of teaching skills but hopefully I will be back with some hand-spun to show you after the weekend - have a good one!