WIP Weds: Granny Stripe Boutique Bag

First of all, apologies for not posting for a while. I have been really busy with my course but have now submitted my assignment so have been able to get on and blog! It was mentioned that the module I'm currently studying is one of the hardest Level 3 options, partly because of the enormous workload and they weren't wrong.

So this afternoon I just had to do a quick project to feel like I've got somewhere with my crafting. I guess you could technically say I've finished this one as I've done all the crochet but I'm planning on lining it and maybe making a fabric flower brooch for the front.

It's the Granny Stripe Boutique Bag by Tangled Happy, though I've made a few adjustments which I'll detail below. It's a very quick make and would be great gifts for kids.

So the changes I've made are as follows:
1. I wanted a bigger bag, so I increased the size. The pattern is based on 50sc stitches. This number needs to be a multiple of 3 plus an extra 2. Going by total guesswork I based my bag on 62 stitches.
2. The bag is made in the round and rather than following the pattern and whip-stitching the bottom closed at the end, I made a smaller chain and worked both sides of it. i.e. I started with ch32, sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch along. Then worked my way back up the other side of the chain to give me 62 sc stitches in total. I then joined to the first sc with a sl st and continued as per the pattern.
3. I just did the pattern until the beg looked deep enough. I then fastened it off and rejoined at one end for the rounds of sc. This was mainly because each round you make moves the start of the round over by one cluster. By the time the bag was deep enough, the start of a round was in the middle of where the handle was going to go, so I knew I'd have to rejoin at some point anyway. I also ignored the stitch count for these rows and just measured to find the central stitch and couted 7 stitches either side and placed stitch markers so I'd know where to make the handles.

And a close up of the colour - I dyed this yarn using tea and Kool Aid. The pictures don't capture it very well, it's somewhere between the photos above and the one below.

I've also done a little more of the Vintage Vertical Stripe blanket I started ages ago!

For All Seasons? 3KCBWDAY4

Today's theme for Knitting and Crochet Blog Week is whether or not you are a seasonal knitter/crocheter. I have to admit, I'm not really sure.

I like to have a blanket on the go most (if not all) of the time.  This is my current work in progress, though I haven't picked it up in the last few weeks (naughty me!)

WIP: Vintage Vertical Stripe

Every year I say that I'm going to be organised and make winter stuff before winter hits but it rarely happens. I'm not sure if it's because of the weather or season though. I think it's just lack of time generally.

Often I find myself making something seasonal because I'm inspired by someone else's makes. Perhaps I read a blog and the writer has made a scarf and it gives me inspiration to make mine.

Winter In London scarf

Sometimes it could be that I love a pattern someone has come up with and shared at the appropriate seasonal time of year. Sometimes I have crazy ideas like needing to make loads of snowflake decorations for the tree because it needs them

At other times I find myself wondering why I'm making a blanket or quilt in the heat of summer (though in Britain that's a rare feeling).

I guess overall, I am a seasonal crafter...I'm just not convinced it's because I choose to be.

 

Another WIP: Vintage Vertical Stripe Blanket

I've started yet another blanket. This time it's the Vintage Vertical Stripe. I've been wanting to make one of these for a while now because I love the look of it. It's a very simple pattern, made of US dc (UK tr) but with the stitches made into the spaces between the previous rows stitches rather than under the loops of the stitch and with two dc in the final space to keep the number of stitches correct.

I've chosen to make this in deep, warm, earthy tones in Stylecraft Special DK. Here's my progress so far: