homemade@myplace

They are all done, but the first one still need some blocking ….. !!!! The DIANTHUS HEXAGON This motif (#52) is taken from the book  75 Floral Blocks to Crochet by Betty Barnden  and I started one a couple of months ago, just for fun …. … and little by little ( a lot of threads to cut and trim in for each hexagon!) it became bigger and bigger, with my obvious great satisfaction…. …. but, after crocheting 25 motifs I said : ENOUGH !!!! So, right now, I'm a proud owner of a new table centrepiece and I think it will be nice on my vintage wooden table (now in storage!) … I didn't block it yet, so the actual dimensions are : 105cmx62cm I used a 4mm hook and some yarn balls from my stash : Sirdar Wash'n'Wear in light grey, black, red, pink, white and turquoise! LONG OVAL WRIST WARMERS I really love to play with colours and shapes and I like to keep things simple, so I made these quick wrist warmers (my own pattern!) … ...

In my  last post  you can look at some flowers I've been using to decorate the tops (they are glued on them) of some bottles' lids and today I'm going to share the patterns (sorry, no photo tutorial!) with you … You need : one hook (4mm in my case) some colourful yarns ( from my stash : MODA VERA MARVEL 8ply, 100% acrylic) a pair of scissors a yarn needle please, remember I follow the US crochet terminology! ;oD The REBEL FLOWER Choose a colour for the centre of your flower, make a slip knot on the hook, chain 4 and insert the tip of the hook in the first chain made, to form a ring. First round : chain 2 and crochet 12 DC (= double crochets) into the ring and slip stitch in the top of the first DC. Cut yarn and fasten off. Trim in the ends. Second round : choose a new colour and make a slip knot on the hook. Push the hook in any DC top and make 1 SC (= single crochet), chain 9, make 1 SC in the 3rd chain from the hook and make other 6 SC in ...

Exactly one month ago I started this  flowery project  …. Today, I can show you the simple idea I came out with : a Starburst Flowers Centrepiece !!! Wanna look? Please, you are really welcome … …. some flowery details… Are you interested in some technical data? I was working with a 3,5mm hook. The cottons used are : Catania 100% cotton for the petals ; Sirdar FLIRT double knitting black (SH 226 LOT 91016) for the centres and Sirdar FLIRT double knitting beige (SH 222 LOT 10308) for the outer round; DALLA ROSA 100% cotone perlato (made in Italy!) in white (bagno 117) for the round around the black circle! The pattern for the STARBURST FLOWER was found on the book "150 Knit & Crochet Motifs" by Heather Lodinsky. The final measurements of the centrepiece are : 45cm for each side and 41cm in width (or depth?). More photos … -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

So today, as my 4th project to share, you'll find a knitted one … …. oh yes !!!! Have you ever tried to knit some bowls ??? You can find the photo tutorial + pattern right  HERE , over at  Cut Out & Keep Superstars  !!!!!! As you can see from the above picture, my  5 Petals Knitted Flower  is a lovely embellishment for the centre of the bowl !!! ;oD What will be next ????? Still 3 projects to go …… !!!!!!! xxxx Alessandra

So, we start again with BEAUTY IS WHERE YOU FIND IT photo challenge!!!! This is my little photo participation …. … a bright dandelion picked for me by Tobia …. kept safe in my scarf ….. If you desire to join or to see more amazing pics, just visit  luzia pimpinella  right  HERE  !!! Thank you! xxxx, Alessandra

…. and today my second project of the week …. …. my  5 Petals Knitted Flower  ….. !!!!!! It's an old favourite of mine and I still love it !!!!! I started to knit as a young kid….. you can read more about it  HERE  !!!! Have fun knitting and reading, too !!!! xxxx Alessandra … If you missed my first project, no worries :  Stripy Wrist Warmers  …. just click on it!!!! ;oD xxxx Alessandra …. see you tomorrow!!!!!

…. These flowers are not new for me …. I made a set of coasters a while ago (see  here  !) and I'm still enjoying them ! I found the pattern of the "Starburst Flower" in this book :  150 Knit and Crochet Motifs , by  Heather Lodinsky . I tried to find any pin related to this pattern, but no luck : sorry!!! I still love these gorgeous flowers, so I decided to crochet them again : a smaller version this time ! I think this is a nice one, too, but I kept it simple, not crocheting any slip stitch chain … …. and the first one called for a second one …. …. and for a third one …. …. and obviously, I didn't stop there … So I decided to start, each time, with small groups of 1 round black circles … Then, I add a second round of white cotton perle'… … and a third one with a neutral colour as beige …. … So the number of blooming flowers is getting bigger and bigger … …. and, as you can see, I'm joining them one by one...