Last year I designed the first favor bag that began a trend when I designed the Carrot Favor Bag for Easter. Since then I have crocheted a total of 6 favor bag designs, 4 revolving around Spring, you might say, and 2 at Christmas. Be sure to check out my other Favor Bag Crochet Patterns. This year I realized I hadn’t designed any for the Autumn season and I set about to remedy that. And wouldn’t you know what I would make?

Are you a pumpkin maker? Every Autumn I get sucked into the fascination of the crocheted pumpkin. Perhaps it is the warm, festive colors that so suit the season, or perhaps it is the unique but easy construction. I don’t know.

In designing the Rustic Pumpkin Favor Bag I had to figure out how I would achieve the ribbed effect. Since this wouldn’t be a sealed project, and I couldn’t cinch in the sides with stitches, I decided to simply create the effect with the fabric by working every 4th round around the front post of each stitch.

First you crochet a panel as you would when beginning a pumpkin. After sewing the ends together, you then gather and sew up the bottom. The stalk is created with rounds of half double crochet that is cinched when the bag is closed.

Top it off with an Autumn-inspired bow and you’re ready to fill it with goodies!

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I designed these coasters out of necessity. With the warm temperatures, icy drinks create watery puddles quickly and I realized it was high time I made a set of coasters to fix this problem. Even though I am partial to round coasters I didn’t have any inspiration where they were concerned and instead fell back on a few stitch patterns that I had previously admired. Thus was born the idea to create these sampler coasters.

Since a coaster is basic in its form the uniqueness had to come from the stitch. These coasters feature some exciting texture, or relief patterns, created with basic crochet stitches. One is a diamond relief pattern created with single crochets and double crochets, some of which are worked in the front post of a stitch a few rows down. Another is worked in a distinct ribbing with the same variety of stitches just in a different form. And the last is created with the surprisingly simple Crunch stitch.

Choose between the three designs, as well as the options of a border or fringe.

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I’ve always loved the traditional granny square pattern and how adaptable it is. I’ve seen some lovely granny square earrings and wanted to do my own take on the pattern. These earrings are super lightweight but add some fun movement to your outfit. I love dangly earrings, but sometimes they’re too heavy and hurt my ears after a while…not the case here! They’re made of two granny squares joined together at one corner, with some extra scallops on the bottom. Super easy and lots of opportunity for color variation. They’re named after the dog who walked past me right when I was looking for naming inspiration.

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After seeing a soccer ball plushie in the store I was like, “I can make that!” Have you ever done that before? To be honest, I do it too much. But anyway, I’m glad to say I was actually able to. When I sat down to begin crocheting it I realized I really needed an original looking soccer ball for reference. I ended up using pictures off the internet (which cannot rotate, as you may know) and simply following the pattern I could see. I have to say, I was not at all certain I was going to get it right. But I did! And have prepared a concise pattern for you so you can too.

You will make two kinds of motifs: a black pentagon and a white hexagon. The pentagon will be one round smaller than the hexagon and only have five sides, while the hexagon will be four rounds and have six sides, (hence the names).

It might seem daunting but it’s not too hard. Simply follow the pattern, using the pictures for reference when necessary, and you can do it too.

I hope you enjoy this latest pattern. I know of some little boys who will be receiving a disaster-proof soccer ball soon!

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It’s graduation season! I just graduated college myself, and I wanted to celebrate the occasion with crochet, as always. This little graduation cap is what I came up with. You could make this hat in your grad’s school colors and include it with a graduation card, or stick it on a hair clip for a photo prop. Use your imagination and I bet you’ll come up with all sorts of awesome uses. It’s the perfect size for Barbies, so my helper Adele is modeling it for you. But it’s also the perfect size to perch atop a guinea pig or bunny. My sister just got an adorable bunny and I’ve been making lots of hats for it, so stay tuned for more miniature hats in the future if this is something you like. What sort of hat should I design next?

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Here I am again, with another garland design! As I hung my Strawberry Patch Garland I realized that I would not be changing it until it was time to put up my Stars & Stripes Pennant Bunting for Independence Day. Perhaps this isn’t a big deal to everyone but as a crochet fanatic, I had to do something about it.

Using cotton yarn in lovely, earthy tones I designed a quick and easy sunflower. I mixed it up by changing the color of the center from traditional brown to green to represent a younger sunflower. Then it was just a matter of making them into garland.

Do you need a touch of the outdoors inside? Crochet your own Sunflower Garland!

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I was inspired by the delightful rainbow creations of many other crafters this time of year and wanted to make something to celebrate Pride month. This rainbow pencil case is easy to create and I love how bright the colors are. You don’t have to make it in rainbow colors, though…you can pick any color combination you desire. How about making it in college colors, or in the colors of your favorite sports team? I use this for holding pencils, but you could add a zipper at the top and use it to hold coins, beads, buttons, whatever you can think up. How about a crochet hook case? Or add a strap and use it as a mini purse. The possibilities are endless. Whatever you choose to do with it, I hope you have fun making!

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Do you like to garden? If you crochet as well then there’s a high chance you’ve considered accessorizing your pots. I absolutely adore macrame pot hangers and have even designed some smaller versions in crochet for tiny pimiento jars. Today I am sharing with you a uniquely textured crochet pot cover in warm ombre colors.

The cover is not difficult to crochet and works up fairly quickly. I crocheted mine in cotton yarn for a more natural appearance but feel free to pick from any medium weight yarn.

The texture is created by alternating between single crochet in the front and back loops. About every fourth round is an increase round making up for the pots gradually expanding size.

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When I was a teenager I did intensive ballet. This involved dancing several hours a day, six days a week. For ballet, you need to have your hair away from your face, so I got really good at whipping my hair into a bun. However, it got boring wearing my hair the same way every day, so when I learned to crochet I started crocheting bunholders for myself. I designed this basic pattern when I was 14 years old and thought it should see the light of day. Make a few for the dancers in your life, or just for people who like wearing buns. It’s a great hairstyle for when you don’t want your hair in your face, and putting a bunholder on means that nobody can see if your bun is messy.

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If case you haven’t already noticed, scrunchies are making a comeback. And why not? Who doesn’t like a simple ponytail covered in material with an endless variety of patterns and colors?

After doing a bit of research I found that there are at least two ways to make a crocheted scrunchie. One method is by crocheting over the elastic ponytail and then working generous increases into each stitch until you have a remarkable ruffle. You can find a pattern right here by fellow designer, Claire, that is positively adorable. It is called the Sea Anemone Scrunchie.

The other method is to crochet a long, flat rectangle and then sew it over the ponytail. This is the method I will show you how to do today.

Does it sound a little daunting? I thought so too at first, but it’s not by far. Just give it a try and I’ll bet you won’t be making only one.

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