Butterfly Filet Crochet Curtain

I stumbled on the pattern Swallowtail Butterflies by Kimi Honda while browsing Ravelry. It's from the 80's/90's so it's out of print. 

Interestingly enough, it was shared in multiple magazines (I thought that wasn't a typical thing for crochet??) and I was able to find the Magic Crochet magazine on eBay.

I made mine into a curtain instead of a table runner so I only did the first half of the pattern and then repeated the stars/dot pattern until it was long enough. I used a 1.3mm hook and Aunt Lydia's Classic Crochet Size 10.

It's currently being used over my shelf as a jewelry holder.

Antique Finds: Lace

I spent the afternoon exploring a few antique shops looking for lace. One shop had an amazing stash---not just lace, but also ribbons, sewing supplies, and doilies. 

At another shop, I spotted a heart-shaped doily and even a butterfly-shaped one. 

They were so unique and now I can't stop thinking about them. I decided to not buy them at the time but it's fine, I guess I can try making my own.

A Needlebook Made from Scraps

I made a little book for my sewing needles and bits. I challenged myself to only use leftover materials. 

I've been fascinated by needlebooks ever since I saw some amazing ones on Flickr over 10 years ago. Seeing all the creative styles people made back then always stuck with me and I've always wanted to try making one.

For this project, I used this Needlebook tutorial by nanaCompany. 

I actually didn't have large enough scraps to make the patchwork back so I went with a single fabric like the front.

I also tried to use iron-on interfacing. It worked... kinda. I wasn't paying close enough attention and the fabric ended up bunching a bit.

Even with the flaws, I still like it! It's such a cute project and I really want to make more now.

Crochet Leaves Sweater

I wanted to make a sweater with a leaf design and stumbled on this design, the Leaves Sweater by Annette Petavy from the book: Crochet Me: Designs to Fuel the Crochet Revolution. It's out of print so I had to get it from the library.

Mini ivy leaf belt from Foxes and Ravens.

It's so unique with the lace, leaves, and shaping-- especially for crochet at that time (2007). I made a lot of modifications which are listed on my Ravelry page. It took me about 5 weeks to finish it.

I used Loops & Threads Soft & Shiny Solids in Parsley but when I was almost done with sleeve #2, I ran out and the color was sold out everywhere! So I redid the sleeves with Caron Simply Soft in a similar color (kinda) at the wrist and transitioned to the original color for the sleeve cap. I also did the neck edging in the new color.

I really like how it looks but if I were to make it again, I'd make it using foundation chains because the beginning chains have no stretch, and getting it over my shoulders is a struggle. I'd also make the front panel longer (before the leaves) to account for DD+ cup.

Crochet Many Cats Square Pillow

I needed a project to use up some of my leftover yarns and picked the Many Cats Square pattern by Pony McTate.

I used mostly worsted weight yarn so I switched between using a G/4.5mm and H/5mm hook, depending on the weight I used and to try to prevent curling. Most of the yarn is Caron Simply Soft, Loops & Threads Impeccable Solids, and Red Heart Super Savers.

My squares came out 6"x6" so I only needed to make 8 squares to get the size I wanted.

More details on my Ravelry page.

Leaf Top

My goal is to make more leaf-themed stuff so as soon as I was done with the Dragonfly Top, I started the Leaf Top by The Knit Stitch. I used Loops & Threads Crème Cotton again but in Deep Orchid. I do like the color green but making stuff in pink or purple makes it more fairycore-like I think?

There are only 2 sizes so I went with the larger one, of course. The pattern is a bit odd though. Only the back panel is larger in width (rather than the front pieces) so not ideal for larger busts but I was able to make it work. 

I added 2 more leaf repeats but I should have done much more... because it ended up being more of a crop top length since I’m an E cup but I didn't really want to frog it. So I added more length by increasing by 80 stitches and then added several inches of some kind of eyelet stitch pattern.

I didn't have any fancy buttons around so I just used some basic wooden ones. I may change them later.

More details are posted on my Ravelry.

Crochet Dragonfly Peplum Top with Sleeves

I've been working on this for a while! I want to make more clothes but since I'm XL/2XL, it takes so much more time and yarn.

I've had my eye on this Dragonfly Halter Top pattern by KnitcroAddict and decided to finally make it. I intended to make it as written but then I ended up changing and adding things as I went along. I made the size XL for a more snug fit but also to account for any stretch that may occur over time. 

I have more detailed notes on my Ravelry.

It's my first time using Loops & Threads Creme Cotton... because it was on sale! It's a cotton blend so it's soft. I really like this color!

The crochet hook and stitch markers are from akcrochets.