Though not a necessity, embellishments really add another dimension to your work. In today’s styles you’ll see many flowers adorning headbands, bags, cowls, etc., but they’re not always for everyone. How about a change? How about buttons? It understates your piece yet adds a little flair. The following pattern will show you just how ridiculously easy it is to create your own buttons and some suggestions on where to use them.

You will need to learn the Adjustable Double Ring technique for this (don’t worry, it’s easy!). Try them in different colors and sizes and you’ll have a full inventory of a really cute embellishment! Note: These buttons are made to use as an embellishment as they do not hold the “stiff” properties needed to use as a functional button.
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Sometimes, all it takes to dress up an outfit is a little bit of jewelry, and these beaded earrings do the job without going over the top. They’re pretty simple and quick to make, so even novice crocheters can whip them up.

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It’s gotten pretty cold where I live, and we even got snow. Of course that means it’s time for a nice, steaming mug of tea or hot chocolate. There are a lot of mug cozies out there, but sometimes they cover the best parts of the mug. This cozy lets pictures and text show through and is easy to adjust to show off the best parts of your favorite mug.

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A Guest Post by Jolanta Gustafsson.

This pattern for a granny square with a flower is easy to crochet and easy to adjust to your own style. Just choose the colors that you like and combine them as you want. If you want to get a stylish look, choose one color – natural white or some other light shade. To get a more cheerful look, use contrasting colors but keep them in order. For example, red shades in the center of the granny and blue-green shades up to the edges. And if you choose colors randomly, you can get quite a cheeky look!

Note: Squares in the photo are joined with single crochet stitches.
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Two spirals come together to make this bracelet–one a flat circle, and the other a 3-dimensional band. This is a great pattern for variegated yarns with short color intervals, but you can always make it in one solid color as well.

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This is a nice, thick, coaster with a ruffle for a more feminine touch. The center is nice and flat so you can sit your glass on it without worrying about ruining the ruffle effect. It is easy to make, and you can work up a whole set in a flash. Have fun with this pattern, and be sure to make a bunch in different colors!

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A Guest Post by Jolanta Gustafsson.

Finland is a northern land and it was always important to have warm clothing here. But in contrast to other northern countries, where the main technique to make clothes from wool was knitting, Finland is distinguished for its beautiful multicolored crocheted handicrafts.

The mittens that I made are inspired by the old mittens from the Ostrobothnian Museum’s collection, which are at least one hundred years old. I adapted the original pattern to a thicker yarn, shaped the mittens in my own way and added a chain-loop fringe edging. It may be interesting to know that the original mittens have 128 stitches in one round! There is also a more modern version of the same mittens – these have 64 stitches in one round. I reduced that number to 48.

The colors in the original mittens are red, green and white – red leaves and green border on a white background. The color combination that I have used is naturally white leaves and dark green border on a gray-green background. Feel free to use the colors that you like!

The most difficult part in this project is, in my opinion, to obtain the same gauge all the way through. So try to be aware of that from the beginning.
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Even dolls like to be snug and warm, so why not treat you favorite collectible or playtime buddy to a warm skirt? This pencil skirt is seamless and made to be pulled on. It cinches at the waist with an elastic waistband or drawstring. Be fashionable and crochet this skirt in a variety of colors!

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As requested by readers on the Crocheted Cotton Washcloth Sampler post, here are the 3 washcloth patterns! Washcloths and dishcloths are one of the most used and useful items in our homes. And they’re usually pretty, well, blah. Here you’ll find 3 very different patterns all using one crochet stitch – single crochet! The variations used with the single crochet stitches, make the washcloths look like they came from the most experienced of crocheters!

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A Guest Post by Carol Cox. I made these bags for my grandchild’s kindergarten class, filled with a little candy and a small toy or two. They make quick, cute favors. I also enjoy making and using plarn, after I found out about it on the internet. So uniting one of my favorite holidays with a favorite craft resulted in these small bags. Hope you enjoy making them as I did.

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