Hygge Nook

Crochet floor pillow using a recycled Ikea mattress

A lifetime ago I showed some sneak peeks of my next project and hallelujah, it's finished.

I. Love. It.

 

Here's what I started with - many balls of yarn and a lump of mattress (top pic) that was once part of a child's extendable bed mattress from Ikea. The main part of the mattress has long since gone to the recycling plant but I hung on to the two end pieces thinking they might come in handy one day. The only thing was, they were pretty darn ugly uncovered. Being somewhat short in the sewing skills department, I turned to my trusty hook and came up with a plan to create a no-sew box sleeve that I could use to cover the mattress.

Here's what happened:

1. I had to make 70 squares, each finished with lilac yarn. All the yarn used is Rico Cotton, purchased from First4Yarns. It's very cheap at £1.50 for 50g and though a little splitty it comes in a wide range of gloriously saturated colours.

 

2. Add on the lilac square border and start crocheting together. I roughly measured that each panel would need 24 squares while the sides would be 1 square width. Here's the panels as they start to take shape...

 

3. Here's the panels ready to be put together. I realised just as I was doing this that I would need some way to remove the cover for inevitable laundering so I decided to put the back together in two portions:

 

4. The cover was crocheted together to make a box shape like this (on the left) and the back was joined together with some coordinating lilac ribbon

 

And there you have it, that's how you make a super cute crochet cover from a redundant bit of foam mattress and a pile of yarn. And you know what? I have three more pieces of mattress *glee*. I have enough yarn left over to make another one, but probably with a different finishing colour. (I think this took around 13/14 50g balls.)

A final shot? Go on then.

 

Crochet basket

 

One of the best things about going on holiday is finding pretty things to bring home. Whilst I didn't go shopping mad, I did pick up this pretty basket en route for home and it's just the thing for storing my granny squares and half-made granny blanket. I whipped up a crocheting storm over the weekend so I've definitely tipped the half way mark (phew!) but as you can see from the basket's contents, my yarn stash is much depleted so it's time to order some more... (and I can hardly wait for the day when I can post a finished pic).

Crochet cushion - finished!

At last! It seems like I have been making this cushion forever (though not as long as the never ending granny blanket) though really it was the lack of cushion cover on which to stitch it that delayed me the most. But finally I got my act together and picked up a linen cover from Ikea and spent an afternoon sewing in ends then stitching the panel to one side. Jolly pleased with it too.

It was once like this:

 

Did you spot the error? Fixed it! And now it's this...

You can find links to the each circle/square and the joining method in this post.

I hope beginner crocheters will attempt it. It really is very simple and you only need to know how to join a chain, chain small amounts and do a treble stitch.

The yarn is particularly gorgeous and was a Christmas gift. It's Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo in a purple, navy blue, pale blue and white and while the yarn seems on the thin side, it has a very tactile silky feel to it and the crocheting gives it thickness.

My next project

My second circles cushion project is nearly completed and I'll hopefully show you the finished version next week once I have a cushion pad.

For now though, I have a new project. It's a simple, but unique, Ikea hack and I've been excited about it ever since the idea popped into my head and I'll tell you why. My two youngest children have extendable Ikea beds (similar to this one) which come with mattresses in three parts, so you can make the whole thing small when your child is little and then add pieces in to make it longer as your child grows. As it happens, I have some spare pieces of the smaller bits of mattress, and, as children do, they tend to drag them round the house and use them for floor seating or, more often than not, for building living room forts.

 

These mattress pieces are ugly though and I was thinking of taking them to the recycling depot, when it hit me that, actually yes, they would make great floor cushions if only they looked better. Only my sewing skills aren't awesome and I no longer have a sewing machine (I might change that soon) so what's the next best, quickest way of covering them?

 

Crochet, of course. You were way ahead of me there, weren't you?

The cotton yarn I've been using is pretty expensive, so I was really thrilled to find Rico cotton (on advice from Attic24 who is quite a splendid crafter) which is a third of the price at £1.50 per 50g ball and has some great colours. I ordered 16 balls of Rico from First4Yarns and got it in the post a couple of weeks ago. The colours are divine. Heavily saturated, but thankfully not neon, with a great choice available and the resulting circles just look like so much fun. Some of the colours cused in blankets little old fashioned but I think the lilac square edges keeps them looking contemporary.

 

The circles are so quick and easy to make that I already have a whole front panel and two side panels. I just love them. This is the top panel. Although it looks too small at the moment, there is some stretch to the squares and once the side panels are added, it should take shape fairly quickly and I'm really glad that I got to recycle the foam pieces too.

35 squares left to go!

Crochet circles project

Wasn't the past weekend glorious? I'm really lucky to have a large garden in London and even luckier that I got to sit outside all weekend (including in the fab new hammock), sunning myself and getting stuck in to a new crochet project while the children whizzed around on their scooters and played on the grass. We ate every meal outside, listened to the birds sing and admired all the flowers that are blooming. Pretty heavenly.

 

So, this is the start of the new project. It's the same circles pattern that I made my first cushion cover out of. However, this time I stuck to a palette of three colours - pale blue, royal blue and lilac in a bamboo/wool mix which is great to the touch - and gave the overall pattern more structure. I plan on finishing it off with cream bamboo (as soon as the yarn arrives) squares before stitching it up into a cover. So more on that soon (also, much as I hate to say it, I've spotted an error and might have to redo three circles. Ugh!)

New Amy Butler yarn

Amy Butler is one of those go-to sources of fabric for anyone who wants something vibrant and exciting. Now, though Butler has turned her hand to new ranges of yarn and wallpaper which should excite crafters and decoraters alike. There's even a bunch of free downloadable patterns to get you started here - I love the sexy hexy patchwork quilt, love and peace wall art, Amy's Mid Mod quilt, Nigella silhouettes and the yoga bag.

Seeing as my sewing skills are pretty basic, let's look at the yarn instead. Amy has collaborated with top yarn company Rowan to create Belle Organic, a range of - you guessed it - organic yarns in DK and Aran in both cotton and wool.

 
There's also a pattern book called Midwest Modern knits with some stylish modern knits that are really a cut above the often so old-fashioned knitted garments that are still touted by other yarn companies and publishers. I think this scarf and gloves will be popular items but there are some nice blankets and cushions to make too. The 50g balls will cost around £5 each so it is pricey but not much different to other quality yarns.

Will you be trying out this new range of yarn? What will you make?

My new crochet cushion

In between crocheting the never ending blanket, I'm taking on a few smaller crochet pieces. After all, there's a lot of satisfaction in seeing something get finished while the bigger jobs plod on.

 

The squares take around 20 minutes to make and they're very good for finishing off scraps as each round doesn't require much yarn. How many squares you'll need depends on the size and shape of your cushion. I've taken pictures of the various stages of the process...

 

I've laid the squares out here to show what they looks like before they're stitched together. In the lower right corner, I've left the last three squares in stages so you can see how they build up from the first round (far right), to two rounds in blue then three rounds with the pink centre. The rest of the squares are finished in black. As I said already, a lot of these can be made from scraps but you'll need around 100g of your finishing colour for the square. 

In total, there is 25 squares using a variety of colours in Rowan handknit cotton which is the same yarn I'm using for my blanket. It's a really nice yarn, soft to touch with mellow colours and a few brights and costs around £3.75 a ball.

 

One of the most fiddly bits of the whole process was sewing in all the loose ends to make it neat. This might seem pointless but I didn't want any ends poking through and spoiling the finish. So, on the left is what the back initally looked like and on the right is when it's all tidied up. As you can see from the edges, it needs some help to get a more uniform straight edge.

I joined them together using Attic24's granny squares join method and then stitched the whole piece on to a readymade Ikea cushion cover which has enabled me to manoevre the crochet piece into neat edges. I very simply tacked the piece into place - it's easy but fiddly and I stabbed myself with the needle so many times that had I been Sleeping Beauty, I would have been a gonna.

 

Something this project really taught me is about colour. I wanted to try and make each square different but didn't have a huge palette of colours to choose from. It was fun to mix and match shades to see what really worked together. I'm really enchanted by the hot pink, navy blue and that vibrant orange together and yellow, sugary pink and the soft sage green really appealed to me too plus the black edging has a really nice patina. (I may come back and list the colourways for each square.)

 

As you can see from the finished cushion, I've purposefully given it quite a patchwork look with a very loose structure - the orange of the central square is reflected in each corner square (if you're really eagle eyed, you'll notice in the picture of the back that I mixed up the panels; I had to unpick one section to  make sure the orange squares where in the corners as planned. So not fun). I think if you wanted more structure you could plan out repeats of squares and use them to give it a more planned look. Of course, you don't have to just settle with a cushion, you could make a ton of squares and have a very pretty blanket instead.

The design for each square can be found at Yvestown (thank you!)

Pretty crochet pillowcases

I've been meaning to post about this super sweet and quick pillowcase update. It's a splendidly simple make & do project. Just take a pillowcase, throw in some crochet and a dab of basic sewing skills and voila! Updated covers with a crochet trim.

It's not my idea - the fabulous Rosehip came up with it and you must, must, must visit her blog for some beautifully photographed pillowcases which she sells through her etsy shop. They sell out quick so you must keep an eye out and snap them up fast.

 

Oh. My. Word. Aren't they pretty? Did you spot the Eiffel Tower print? I may have died and gone to heaven. And isn't the little pink bench with its turned legs darling?

If you do fancy having a go yourself, you can find the instructions that I followed here at You Go Girl. The instructions come with close-up photos and are really easy to follow.

 
All you'll need is a pillowcase - I used a plain pink one that I happened to have spare (when you are trying something out for the first time, sometimes you just want to use what you have to hand, rather than mess up a prettier, pricier cloth). However, I think a floral or graphic print pillowcase would look fabulous and that's what I'll be trying next. You'll need some yarn for the trim. I like Rowan handknit cotton and a 50g ball (around £3.75) will give you plenty of trims.

Books for the weekend

I don't want to keep apologising for the lack of posting. Sometimes life just gets in the way. Lots of work on, schools closed due to the beautiful but freak snow, things to pursue, make, do and bake. All make for a busy bee.

I'll leave you with this picture of a little stack of books I'll be looking through this weekend (aren't the yarn colours yummy?) - a rare weekend with no work to catch up on and lots of time for crafting, dozing, watching DVDs along with the more mundane household things.

Have a lovely weekend xx

Crochet Granny Blanket: The beginning of the 'Little Puzzles' blanket

Yes, it's starting to take shape. I'm on square 13 (ooh, unlucky, quick, make another one!) and finding it easier and easier as I go. So far, I like what I've made. I'm not following any particular colour pattern, but I am making sure the last round is white so that when I come to put them together, there will be a uniformity about the blanket.

Let's take a look, shall we?

 

A neat stack of squares - I do like that rosy pink and soft green together.

 

And here they all are looking yummy.

 

Close up!

So, 13 squares down, 100 odd to go. I think there will be a lot of crocheting this Christmas and New Year to ensure that I have a much bigger stack of squares. Plus, I must learn how to stitch/crochet them together and sew in those loose ends.

In case you are tremendously interested in the where and whatfors, I'm using Rowan DK Handknit Cotton which has some divine colours. It costs between £3-£4.50 per 50g ball, depending on where you shop. I dread to think what the final price will be, but I'm picking up a few balls here and there, so spreading the cost. That it is handmade by me and unique, is, of course, priceless. It would be much, much cheaper to use acyrlic but I figured, seeing as I'm spending a great deal of time making it, I wanted to use the best yarn and have it last years and years.

Oh, and why 'Little Puzzles' blanket? My two year old Gabriel, who is quite keen on jigsaws, calls the squares little puzzles. I'm so glad he likes it and maybe in a month or two we can snuggle in it.