Well isn’t it obvious? This is the neon bag literally of my dreams 😀
I love the look of a crochet cross-body bag, but wasn’t entirely sure on the colours I wanted to use, UNTIL Scheepjes launched their neon catonas. I knew instantly that it was a done deal.
GET THE YARN
Scheepjes Catona is a 100% mercerised cotton, fingering weight yarn, with balls available in 50g, 25g and teeny tiny 10g sizes.
Scheepjes has a full list of stockists on their website.
Wool Warehouse ships all over the world from the UK Caro’s Atelier is my LYS and they also ship across Europe LoveCrafts.com also stock most colours
The pattern is in progress, should be ready soon. Lots of fun parts and only a single ball of each colour. I also bought the plastic chain online, but I’ll provide alternative instructions for you so it can be 100% crochet.
Don’t you just love this curly, lacy mess on my lap?
It’s been perfect crochet weather here in the Netherlands. I look out the window and the beautiful trees on my street are all slowly turning a rich copper. I’m making the most of enjoying this time before the less-romantic phase where I spend a my days clearing leaves from my garden!
I’m really enjoying working with this Scheepjes Legacy yarn. It’s easy to crochet, my project is growing quickly and it holds up magnificently to frogging – which I do a LOT of while designing.
GET THE YARN
Scheepjes has a full list of stockists on their website, you can search for one close to you.
I’m nearly done, now I’m on the hunt for the right hoop to be able to stretch it. I think I might have found a stockist local to me which is a huge win. More on that next week!
I have a brand new crochet project on the go that I can’t wait to share with you!
I’m using the lovely Legacy yarn from Scheepjes which is a nostalgic delight.
Doesn’t this yarn just trigger memories of years gone by, visiting an older relative, being fascinated by the cabinet filled with precious china and statuettes, all artfully arranged on delicate lace doilies?
Scheepjes has multiple weights of this yarn, mercerised and non-mercerised, in two colours, bright white and off white. I’m going to use the mercerised Nr. 6, with the following specs:
Hook size: 3.5mm Ball Weight: 100 grams Length: 240 metres Gauge: 23 stitches x 30 rows to 10 cm on 3.5mm hooks
Get the Yarn
Scheepjes has a full list of stockists on their website, you can search for one close to you.
I absolutely love these hanks. The way they’re wound, they way they feel in my hands, I’m transported to another time by this yarn, which I’m sure was the intention of the Scheepjes design team.
With that feeling of a by-gone era in mind, I’m going to use this yarn to make a vintage-inspired lace mandala. I’ve been busy building a chart to work from, it’s going to be quite a challenge to write it all out line by line I’m sure, so this will be a great project to brush off the chart making skills!
Keep an eye on my blog and Instagram for more photos and progress to come!
Ik heb de Nederlandstalige versie van mijn Rainbow Ridge Blanket toegevoegd! Het is hieronder, en ook op Ravelry/Lovecrafts te vinden als je liever een PDF printvriendelijke versie willen gebruiken.
100 x 70 cm na opspannen (kan iets kleiner uitvallen door spanning in het garen)
Stekenverhouding
18 stn en 19 rijen meten 10 cm in patroon. Houd de stekenverhouding goed in de gaten, want je hebt weinig speling met deze kleine bolletjes. Afkortingen
(NL termen) L losse Hv halve vaste S(tn) steek/steken l-open lossen opening St stokje(s) SOv sla-over vaste (zie speciale steken) HK hoofdkleur (2622 Latte) K(1) kleur (1) Herh herhalen VK Voorkant AK Achterkant
Notities
Je haakt het patroon in rijen heen en weer, met de SOv techniek (zie Speciale steken). Daarna haak je de dubbele rand in toeren.
Elk rij begint met een l1. Dit telt niet als een steek.
Herhalingen
[(…)] herhaal de instructies tussen haakjes het totaal aantal keer aangegeven.
Sorteer de kleuren in deze volgorde:
K1: 2514 Rose K2: 2513 Light Rose K3: 2620 Starfish K4: 2466 Peach K5: 2518 Canary K6: 2496 Banana K7: 2640 Mint K8: 2639 Green Tea K9: 2630 Arctic K10: 2646 Glacial Mist K11: 2658 Lavender K12: 2657 Orchid
Speciale steken
SOv (Sla-over vaste) is een techniek waarmee we een steek met twee draden tegelijk haken. Met de eerste kleur, steek naald in steek en sla de draad om de haaknaald. Haal de lus op. Met de tweede kleur, sla draad om van voor naar achter (houd de tweede kleur voor de eerste), met de eerste kleur, sla draad om en haal de eerste kleur door alle lussen.. Zie video instructies hier. Ook op Youtube.
Instructies
Rij 1 Met HK, 102l, 1v in derde l en alle l tot einde van rij, keer om. (100 stn) Rij 2 Met K1 als leidende kleur, samen met HK, l1, SOv in alle stn tot rij-eind, keer om. Rij 3-6 Herh Rij 2. Rij 7 Met HK als leidende kleur, herh Rij 2. Rij 8-10 Herh Rij 7. Rij 11-14 Herh Rij 2, knip draad K1 af. Rij 15 Wissel naar K2, met HK als leidende kleur, herh Rij 7. Rij 16-18 Herh Rij 7. Rij 19 Met K2 als leidende kleur, herh Rij 2. Rij 20-22 Herh Rij 2. Rij 23 Met HK als leidende kleur, herh Rij 7. Rij 24-26 Herh Rij 7. Rij 27 Met K2 als leidende kleur, herh Rij 2. Rij 28-30 Herh Rij 2, knip draad K2 af. Rij 31-46 Met K3, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 47-62 Met K4, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 63-78 Met K5, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 79-94 Met K6, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 95-111 Met K7, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 112-127 Met K8, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 128-143 Met K9, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 144-159 Met K10, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 160-175 Met K11, herh Rij 15-30. Rij 176-191 Met K12, herh Rij 15-30. Knip draad K12 af.
Rand
De rand haak je in toeren, eerst met een 6 mm en daarna een 4 mm haaknaald.
Toer 1Deze toer wordt de VK. Met HK en 6 mm haaknaald, keer om, 2l, 1hv in elke s tot einde van rij (dit is nu de hoek), 2l, roteer 90 graden, 1hv in elk rij-eind, zo dichtbij de zijkant als mogelijk, tot de volgende hoek, 1hv in de hoek, 2l, roteer 90 graden, 1hv in elke l tot de volgende hoek, roteer 90 graden, 1hv in elk rij-eind tot de laatste hoek, sluit met een hv in eerste s.
Toer 2 Met 4 mm haaknaald, 1l, 1v in de hoek-open [(1l, sla 1 s over, 1v in l-open) tot hoek-open, 2l, 1v in l-open], herh tot einde van toer, sluit toer niet in laatste l-open, maar haak hv in v.
Toer 3 1hv in elke s tot hoek-open, 1l, [(1l in l-open, 1l) tot hoek-open, (1v, 2l, 1v) in hoek-open], herh tot einde van toer, 1l, sluit af met hv in v.
Toer 4 Herh Toer 3, maar voeg 1 extra herh van (1l, v, 1l) toe voordat je de toer sluit met een hv.
Toer 5 Herh Toer 4, hecht af.
Omdraaien naar AK Hecht aan in in AK van dezelfde hoek als Toer 1 van de rand, en haak Toer 1 opnieuw, maar nu in de AK van de hv van Toer 1 (VK). Herh daarna Toer 2-5 (deze bevinden zich dus aan AK).
Omdraaien naar VK We sluiten nu de dubbele rand en verbergen alle draadjes daarin als volgt: 1l, 1v in l-open van zowel laatste AK als laatste VK toer, [(1l, 1v in l-open van beide toeren) tot de hoek-open, (1v, 1l, 1v in beide toeren) in hoek l-open], herh tot einde van toer, sluit af met een hv.
I LOVED making this blanket SO much! I mean, you know how few blankets I make, right? I simply struggle with making something so huge, it takes me months! This one however, is perfect for my instant gratification heart. I could smash it out relatively quickly as it’s sized for a baby, and the rhythm of the stitches means you just want to keep doing “one more row.”
The Scheepjes Softfun is a wonderful blanket yarn. It has loads of stretch to make it squishy and a bit of weight to add warmth, plus enough cotton to make sure you can still use it all summer long.
No baby? No problem! It also makes a great lap blanket 😉
There will be US terms available on Ravelry and Lovecrafts, and this free version below uses UK terminology.
There are five different Softfun colour packs to choose from including Pastel (which I have), Jewel, Rich, Rainbow and Cloud. There are a full list of stockists on the Scheepjes website, but you can also find the packs at your favourite LYS or online retailer including: Wool Warehouse* (global) Caro’s Atelier* (NL and Europe) Love Crafts* (US) Dot’s Yarn Den (US) Belle Mae Yarns (AU)
You’ll need one colour pack in the colours you like best, plus 6 balls of Softfun in a complementary colourway. I chose 2622 Latte.
18sts and 19 rows over 10 cm in pattern. Stick as close to the tension as possible as the mini balls are limited and you may run out if your tension is looser than indicated.
Measurements
100 x 70cm blocked (will contract a little due to the stretch in the yarn)
Abbreviations
(UK terms)
Ch chain Ss slip stitch St(s) stitch(es) Ch chain Ch(2)-sp chain (2) space Dc double crochet YUdc yarn under double crochet MC main colour (2622 Latte) CC(1) contrast colour. Number denotes which colour to be used Rep repeat RS right side WS Wrong side
Pattern Notes
This pattern is worked back and forth in rows using the yarn under colourwork technique to make the blanket. The double border is worked in rounds.
Each row begins with a ch1, this does not count as a stitch.
Work instructions inside brackets and parentheses [(…)] the indicated number of times.
Sort the colours into the following order:
CC1: 2514 Rose CC2: 2513 Light Rose CC3: 2620 Starfish CC4: 2466 Peach CC5: 2518 Canary CC6: 2496 Banana CC7: 2640 Mint CC8: 2639 Green Tea CC9: 2630 Arctic CC10: 2646 Glacial Mist CC11: 2658 Lavendar CC12: 2657 Orchid
Special Abbreviation
YUdc (yarn under double crochet) is a colourwork technique using two strands of working yarn. To work the stitch insert hook with mc, yoh, pull up a loop, with cc yoh from front to back (keeping cc in front of mc), with mc yoh, pull through 3 loops. See video instructions here on Instagram, or here for Youtube.
Row 1 With MC, ch102, dc in the third ch and in all ch sts to end (100sts), turn Row 2 With CC1 as the lead, carrying MC, ch1, YUDC in all sts to end, turn Row 3-6 Rep row 2 Row 7 With MC as the lead and rep row 2 Row 8-10 Rep row 7 Row 11-14 Rep row 2, cut CC1 Row 15 Switch to CC2, with MC as the lead, rep row 7 Row 16-18 Rep row 7 Row 19 With CC2 as the lead, rep row 2 Row 20-22 Rep row 2 Row 23 With MC as the lead, rep row 7 Row 24-26 Rep row 7 Row 27 With CC2 as the lead, rep row 2 Row 28-30 Rep row 2, cut CC2 Row 31-46 With CC3 rep rows 15-30 Row 47-62 With CC4 rep rows 15-30 Row 63-78 With CC5 rep rows 15-30 Row 79-94 With CC6 rep rows 15-30 Row 95-111 With CC7 rep rows 15-30 Row 112-127 With CC8 rep rows 15-30 Row 128-143 With CC9 rep rows 15-30 Row 144-159 With CC10 rep rows 15-30 Row 160-175 With CC11 rep rows 15-30 Row 176-191 With CC12 rep rows 15-30, cut yarn
Border
Working in rounds with 6 and 4mm hooks
Round 1 This now becomes the RS. With MC and a 6mm hook, turn, ch2, ss to end (now corner), ch2, rotate 90 degrees, ss in each row as close to the edge as possible to next corner, ss in corner, ch2, rotate 90 degrees, ss in each st across, ch2, rotate 90 degrees, ss in each row to next corner, ss to ch1 to join.
Round 2 With 4mm hook ch1, dc in ch-sp [(ch1, miss 1, dc in ch-sp) rep to corner ch2-sp, ch 2, dc in ch2-sp], rep on all four sides to end, don’t work last dc in final corner ch2-sp, ss to dc instead.
Round 3 Ss to ch2-sp, ch1 [(dc in ch2-sp, ch1) rep to corner, (dc, ch2, dc) in corner] rep to end, ch1, ss to dc to join.
Round 4 Rep round 3, but ad 1 (ch1, dc, ch1) at the end before ss to join.
Round 5 Rep round 4, tie off.
Flip to WS, Starting in the same corner as R1 from the RS instructions, and working in the back of the SS from round 1, rep rounds 1-5.
Flip to RS Close the double border. Ch1, dc into ch-sp of both layers, [(ch1,dc in ch-sp of both layers) to corner, (dc, ch1, dc in both layers) in corner ch2-sp], rep to end, ss to join, hiding all the ends inside the border. Cut yarn, weave in the end, block to size.
I hope your start to 2018 have been as great as mine – we took an amazing family holiday to San Diego over Christmas, which was my first ever trip to North America, and I LOVED it! San Diego is a fantastic city, I could almost pretend I was in Australia. We ate our Christmas dinner outside in the sunshine, the kids played in the pool (well, the heated jacuzzi. It wasn’t that warm) and we just completely unplugged and enjoyed being together.
And now we’re back to reality, and it’s reveal time!
Just before Christmas I talked to you about the Our Tribe yarn collection from Scheepjes, and that I have my very own colourway, MissNeriss, and how proud I am. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the warm and positive messages and reactions, it was just the best way to close out the year.
I’ve finished working on my Our Tribe, My Tribe shawl, and have a couple of versions to share with you!
The first is the Original, using a single colour (MissNeriss, obviously):
And I’ve also created a fade version too!
For my fade I used New Leaf, Look at What I made, and Jellina Creations. They’re three colours that to look at them in a ball you probably wouldn’t consider them as complementary, but they’re actually a great match, thanks to the common elements.
For something bit different, I’m going to host a mini-CAL! So when the pattern launches next week, I’m going to start making a new one, and post progress pics as I go, and I want you to join me! That way we can work on it together, chat about how much we love the yarn (obviously!) and I can help you through any parts where you might become stuck.
I’m going to host the mini-CAL on Instagram, under the tag #ourtribemytribe and to be the first to know about the pattern release (and to get a discount), make sure you’re signed up to receive my newsletter which will go out at the beginning of next week!
Ahead of the pattern launch and mini-CAL, make sure you get hold of the yarn!
For the single colour shawl you’ll need two skeins of Scheepjes My Tribe in MissNeriss (or another colourway should you prefer, and for the fade you’ll need three colourways, including New Leaf, Look at What I Made and Jellina Creations. Or of course a three colour fade in your choice. Be sure to choose colourways with similar elements throughout.
To get hold of the yarns, here’s a list of some of my favourite suppliers, in NL and beyond:
Wool Warehouse:* has you covered globally (including Australia and the US)
Caro’s Atelier*: my local yarn store here in Almere, with all the Our Tribe yarns, plus the entire Scheepjes range with great service!
Magnolia Tree Wools*: a small business, based in the UK, with a growing selection of Our Tribe yarns (including MissNeriss), plus lots of other scrummy things you didn’t know you need.
Of course there are also a bunch of other retailers across Europe, and a growing range in North America. You can find all the stockists on the Scheepjes site here.
And to tide you over for a few more days, here are some more photos!
Let me know what you think in the comments, and speak to you next week. I’m off to choose a new fade for my next Our Tribe My Tribe shawl in time for the min-CAL!
If you’ve been tuning into this blog for a while you’ll already know how much my yarny tribe means to me, how these girls have been an incredible source of inspiration, support, and reality checks.
And now Scheepjes has made the tribe official. Just launched this week is a brand new collection, aptly called Our Tribe. The yarn is called Our Tribe because, wait for it, each of us Scheepjes bloggers has designed our very own colourway!
I’m not kidding here, I was asked to design my very own MissNeriss yarn colourway!
Picture this: late last year, at our annual Scheepjes Bloggers Weekend,(I think maybe this should be renamed the Scheepjes Tribe Retreat, what do you think?), Mr Scheepjes sat us all down with a very serious look on his face, and I thought, oh no, here it comes… But no! Actually, it was all great news, and he would like to invite us all – the Scheepjes Tribe – to design our own colourways for a new yarn collection! He then proceeded to upend a huge box of pantone chips on a table and we all went for it. Well, the others went for it while I cried with for a little while from the overwhelm.
Usually when confronted with a situation where I need to make a definitive creative decision in a short timeframe I feel stressed and the imposter syndrome creeps in, but this time I knew exactly what I needed to do. Exactly which colours I needed to use:
I handed my choice in and then waited (im)patiently for almost a year for the yarn to be ready….
And then it arrived. And it is glorious.
The colourway couldn’t be more perfect if I had designed it myself. Oh wait, that’s right. I did!
I struggle to put into words how this yarn, how working with Scheepjes, how this tribe of knitters and crocheters makes me feel. In early 2014 I was just starting to create my own designs and I was snapping photos with my phone in the middle of the night and had no idea how to write a pattern. And suddenly it all changed. Out of nowhere the creative director at Scheepjes approached me as they had been working with a couple of bloggers and wanted to grow it to a larger handful of crocheters and knitters.
I was so intimidated that very first time I met the other bloggers. I mean, I was sitting in the same room as Marinke Slump and Maaike van Koert! Not to mention Kirsten Ballering (Hoogewerf), Esther de Beer, Jellina Verhoef and Maria McPherson. Thank goodness my bestie Tammy was there to help me stay on an even keel because I remember looking around the room on more than one occasion thinking: how did I get here?
And so it began. Our little tribe grew steadily, adding amazing new bloggers and saying goodbye to a few; heartbreakingly, to Marinke. Now I feel as though some of these people are the dearest friends in the entire world.
It was this tribe, and especially the support of Scheepjes, that helped drag me through the darkest days of burnout. It is this tribe that comes together to lift one another up. It’s this tribe who are living definitions of Liz Gilbert’s Big Magic.
I wouldn’t be the designer, or the human, I am without this tribe.
Now, let me tell you a bit about the yarn itself.
Our Tribe is available in 15 colourways, one for each member of the Scheepjes Blogger Tribe (and two from Scheepjes, named for family members):
The yarn is 70% Merino superwash, 30% polyamide sport weight and 100 grams will give you 420 metres of yarn. They all have long colour changes with up to five colours in each ball. Available in all the awesome stockists from December 8.
Here’s what MissNeriss looks like in a colour swatch:
And I also wanted to share my favourite fade:
I won’t ruin the surprise as to which yarn belongs to which blogger, I’ll leave you to guess – you’ll have to tune in tomorrow for the next instalment where Rachele will tell you all about her yarn. And if you haven’t seen it already, pop over to Kirsten’s blog to read about her colourway.
Oh, and before I go, here’s a sneak peek of a new design I have with this yarn, which is coming very soon!
If you haven’t already, head back to my post from earlier in the week where I shared my recommendations for gifts for the crocheter on the go. Loads of inspiration to be had!
Now onto today’s guide.
Notions make wonderful gifts. Especially for loved ones who live far away and need lightweight gifts to pop in the post.
Wrist Ruler
I’ve been wearing variations of the I Love Handles Wrist Ruler for most of this year and I LOVE it! It ages beautifully and I have complete strangers regularly noticing and commenting on it. It’s just the most convenient accessory, great for measuring gauge and I don’t know about you, but I can never find my tape measure when I need it! I’ve also been known to measure up spaces and furniture in Ikea using it. You’ll surprise yourself with how useful it is. I’ll have a full review coming soon!
This version is leather (available in multiple shades), but there is also a vegan option if you prefer. You can buy direct from ilovehandles.com for $19.95 USD, or if you’re in the Netherlands wol-zo-eerlijk.nl stocks them for 22.95 EUR.
Stitch Markers
Ok, full disclosure: these are made by me. They’re a set of ten colourful stitch markers/progress keepers designed to match your set of Clover Amour hooks. Whenever I put a project down for even a few days, I often struggle to remember which size hook I was using, so I designed these markers to be attached to your work and remind you which hook to use! Because of the large clasp, they’re easy to use and can also work with knitted projects when you need to slip markers from one needle to the other.
I know I touched briefly on these in my last gift guide post, but these are deserving of their own recommendation.
These Shozaburo thread clips are handmade one pair at a time by Japanese artisans; the iga braids that wraps the handles are made using a traditional method that has long been practiced in armour making. The blades are so sharp that I keep mine stored safely up high on display, away from little fingers.
The thread clippers are available at Black Sheep Wools for 40.50 GBP
Nostepinne
I find winding yarn to be one of life’s pleasures. I have a lovely swift from Scheepjes and a horrible cheap winder that I bought a long time ago from a bargain shop somewhere. But I find that my arms and a nostepinne are the perfect tools for winding hanks into cakes or balls. The rhythm of winding and moving my arms is almost meditative.
You can find nostepinnes all over Etsy at varying prices, but I love these from Be Inspired in South Africa the most:
They’re essentially made to order from varying woods, and are priced between 250 and 650 RAND (15-40 EUR).
Sock Blockers
An item that has been on my wishlist for a long time is a set of sock blockers. I know they’re not really that necessary, but they’re cool and fun and great if you’ll be gifting socks instead casting them off and sliding them on your feet. I love these from Bryson:
To celebrate the launch of this design, I’ve created a coupon for you to use at the checkout on Ravelry until this Friday the 22nd of October. Enter code miriem and check out. It’s that simple.
I’m so happy with the results of this design. Ever since I took part in the Winterlight KAL a few months ago, I’ve been wanting to create a similarly shaped shawl in crochet, showing off the amazing yarn that I picked up from Circus Tonic Hand Dyed Yarns. I still have four skeins of this glorious yarn that is waiting patiently to become something special, but that’s a story for another day…
I’ve named the shawl after my dear friend Miriem, who has been in The Top Five for almost 20 years now! This is a girl who has routinely gone above and beyond what you could possibly expect any friend to do. Let’s just say, if there are bodies to be buried, it’s Miriem that I’m calling.
About the pattern:
It is worked in rows, on the bias. The base stitch is a half double crochet (HDC). However, it is a deep HDC. Meaning, each HDC stitch goes around the regular top two loops, and also around the 3rd loop at the front of the stitch. This removes the line that rows of HDC stitches tend to create, making the design truly reversible.
What you’ll need:
Almost 800 metres of 4ply (sock) weight yarn. I used yarn from Circus Tonic Handmade; to catch shop updates, I highly recommend following Hannah on Instagram as yarn sells out in a heartbeat. I also recommend checking the sock yarns on both LoveCrochet.com* and Wool Warehouse* as their selections are fantastic.
what are you still doing here? Get over to Ravelry!
We’ve cracked the halfway point of the squares for the Scheepjes CAL 2016. I could see from all the wonderful Instagram posts from last week how much you all enjoyed Carmen’s C2C. I had never done it before and I LOVED it!
This week we meet Maria, the creative and wonderfully cheeky soul behind 50 Shades of 4ply. Maria has an incredible eye for colour, I love her palette choices every single time she makes something. Maria is a featured designer in the brand new Scheepjes bookazine, Yarn, which is just another reason for you to get a copy*.
Maria has designed the square that if I am perfectly honest, I’ve been the most excited about. It’s the heart square!
Do make sure you share your squares on social media so we can all see and comment on them. Use hashtag #scheepjesCAL2016or#lastdanceonthebeach all over the internet and I’ll be sure to find them on Insta or Twitter or Facebook.
MissNeriss 