Raggedy Ann Crochet Hat

I made this!!!

This was so easy. I started at about midnight and I put finishing touches on before 2:00 am. 

On January 6, I said I should make this for someone's baby. And I did!!! I can't believe it. It was SO easy!

And inexpensive! Two balls of bulky red and cream (#5) yarn (on sale $2.49x2), 3 sheets of felt ($0.34x3), blue ribbon ($0.50), my N needle, my embroidery needle, and my trusty glue gun. So $7 plus two hours of my time. And the pattern was $1. So $8 plus time. 

I can make 1-2 more hats with my cream yarn. Need more ribbon. A spool is only about $2.99 though. All other supplies are in abundance. 

Here is the link to the pattern. You can make various sizes. Good luck!!! 

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/raggedy-ann-newborn-hat

Crochet Hat Project

I totally need to make this hysterical little hat for someone's baby.

Skeleton Gift

Mini Me LOVES anything medical. I really need to make this for her birthday in March.

Hmmm....Maybe a medical themed birthday...? Wait. No. I don't need a bunch of 7 year olds playing doctor on my watch! LoL!

I've Been Busy!

I made five hat and scarf sets in the last month. The first set I made is pictured under Husband Hat and Husband Scarf. They were all Christmas Gifts for the people I love.

Husband Scarf

I made a scarf for my husband that is long, thick, warm, and EASY to make!!!

Husband Scarf Crochet Pattern - Free!

Yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick and Quick
Yarn Weight: Super Bulky, 6 oz, 106 yards
Color: 149 Charcoal
Balls of Yarn: 3.5
Needle: I-5.50mm & N-9.00mm

Husband Comments: I love this scarf because it is long. Most scarves are not long enough.


Husband Scarf Pattern:
Row 1: With N hook, Chain 275, Chain 3, turn (it's REALLY long. You could stop at 225 for an adult or 175 chains for a child.) Chaining with a larger, looser hook prevents the scarf from curving - keeps it straight b/c the first row of chain tends to be tighter.

Row 2: With I hook, Use the Chain 3 as the first double crochet. Double crochet in next stitch (front loop), then double crochet until end of row, chain 3, turn.

Row 3: Double crochet in next stitch. Chain 2. Double crochet in next 2 stitches. Repeat to end of row. Chain 3. Turn. (This added a simple design element - see close up photo.)

Row 4: Double crochet in first 2 stitches. Double crochet in the space. repeat to end of row.

Rows 5-8: Double crochet in each stitch (2 loops) to end of row. Chain 2. Turn.

Row 9: Double crochet in each stitch to end of row. Slip stitch to end. Cut end and thread through.

Good Luck and Have Fun!!!

  

Modification One:
For my son who has a gray and orange coat, I chained Row 1, did 3 Double crochet rows, then did Row 3 as above, followed by another 3 rows. Then I chain stitched orange thread and passed through the loops (as in Row 3 above). At the ends, I wrapped around the edge and threaded through.

Modification Two:
For my daughter who is just six years old, I skipped Row 3 (as above) and only did 6 rows. I also added 3 crochet flowers.

Modification Three:
My husband wanted another scarf that was thinner. I skipped Row 3 and just did a total of 6 rows and used a lighter weight yarn. The effect is a "dressy" scarf instead of a warm weather scarf.

Wreck It Ralph Costume

Motor Mouth wanted to be Wreck It Ralph for Halloween. Except...There are NO Wreck It Ralph costumes! The movie isn't even in theaters yet.

Motor Mouth emailed me a pic of Wreck It Ralph. Then he kept asking if we finished his costume. I told him that "Daddy and I GOT this." Then we'd look at each other and whisper "We don't have this, do we?"

J to the rescue!!! J found these two shirts at a thrift store for maybe $4 total. The brown fabric is from JoAnne Fabrics, maybe $14 total.

I crawled into bed at about midnight the night before Motor Mouth needed his costume for a party. J had been asleep and woke up then.

When I woke up the next morning, J had sewed these overalls without a pattern! Look at the detail! It was MAYBE his third time using a sewing machine.

I'm pretty proud of my man. The smile on Motor Mouth's face said it all.

FYI...J cut the neck of the orange shirt to make the v-shape. You can make this with an overalls pattern or buy a white pair of overalls and dye them brown with RIT dye.  Good luck!

Sonic the Hedge Hog Hat

We made this for our son! 

Sonic the Hedgehog Hat & Scarf

Motor Mouth is OBSESSED with all things Sonic the Hedgehog. 

He asked me to crochet a Sonic hat for him. I finally made it for Christmas. 

As a bonus, I made him a scarf to go with it.

I crocheted the hat.

I modified a pattern I found called "Chemo Hat." 

Unfortunate name for a great little hat that is easy and quick to make. 

J made the face using felt pieces that he glued to a black felt piece that doubled as an outline. That main piece was glued to the hat. Fabric glue just wasn't enough to hold the edges down as it hardened but the hat has to be flexible. I used black thread and a larger needle to sew the edges down.

This was the inspiration for the face of the hat.

Naturally, our boy loved it!

Finished for Friday - Earflap Hat / Peruvian Hat

I really wanted a hat with earflaps that looked cute but without a pom pom on top. After searching for crochet patterns, I just couldn't find what I wanted. I finally found this pattern and was thrilled! It was exactly what I wanted. 

Ron Weasley Animal Crackers Hat

But when I followed the Ron Weasley Animal Crackers Hat pattern, I made the hat too big and it did not turn out well. Not well at all. It's not the pattern, it's me.

So I went to my old faithful - my very own original Husband Hat Pattern. 

I used a bulky weight wool blend and an H hook.

I added a different color a couple times for a couple rows to mix it up a bit. Then I added the earflaps and from the first pattern I tried (see above). 

And this is what I ended up with...

I kinda like it. I call it my Wife Hat

And, I made a scarf to go with it.

I used this simple pattern and added a few rows of the lighter color so it matches the Wife Hat. 

Have you finished anything this week? 

If so, play along at Lit and Laundry's site.

How do you know they really like it??

Earlier this year, I made this Pond Friends Stacking toy for a friend's baby.

Motor Mouth's school has a silent auction and fund raising banquet each year. I offered to make one for the 2011 silent auction. The development associate said she liked the idea. But you never really know if someone really likes something you made or if they are just being polite.

Well, now I know. 

She likes it!! She really likes it!!

Can you believe I was asked to make one for the development associate's friend? And she'll pay me to do it. That means she likes it. She really likes it!!

What I'm Popular For

More people are drawn to my blog to see this:

It's a hat I crocheted for my husband last year.

It's called 'Husband Hat'

There are days that over 100 people look at this hat on my blog.

And some of them actually follow the pattern I wrote.

Some post photos.

Like this one

And this one

This person credits my pattern on Ravelry.com but not her blog...

I tried to follow a pattern to make a hat. 

I screwed up and in the end, made my own pattern.

Now crochet websites are directing people to MY pattern. 

That's messed up.

Creative Blog

To better handle blog traffic created by my crochet patterns,
I have a new blog:  Widney Woman Creative. 

I can see who visits my site when, how many times a day, what pages they viewed, how long they stayed, etc. Not so much Big Brother watching you as Widney Woman has her eye on her site. Thanks to these stats, I can see that a lot of traffic is coming from 3 primary craft/crochet sites. These sites are driving so much traffic to Widney Woman, they justify their own entity.

2 Ways to View Widney Woman Creative:

Click 'Creative' on the Menu Bar above
OR

Click Widney Woman Creative

It's possible I might add writing or other creative endeavors in the future. Haven't decided yet.

Finished for Friday - Pond Friends

Finally, something I can post on

Finished for Friday!!!

Pond Friends Stacking Toy

Frog pole, Dragon Fly, Lady Bug, Bumble Bee, Blue Base

I crocheted this for one of my friends who has a new baby. Not sure which friend yet. I have to choose from 10 people who are about to pop out a kiddo.

I thought I could just bang it out because it is simple. It really took a long time to make. J likes it a lot. I don't think he wants me to give it away...

Pattern is Lion Brand Vanna's Choice

Baby Pond Friends Stacking Toy

Pattern Number: 90075AD

Now, please head on over to the home of

Lit and Laundry to see what fabulous thing she

Finished for Friday!

Annual Widney Gingerbread House - 2009

It's that time of year again for our Annual Gingerbread House(s).

 This year, I decided to get one for each child and let the kids decorate it for themselves because last year, I was far too obsessive.

Last Year....

Last year - My 1st ever gingerbread house

This Year...

J and I put the houses together then I applied icing for the kids to use their creative juices to decorate. Motor Mouth decided to follow the picture on the box. So of course, Mini Me did too. Ever notice how they never give you enough candy to make the photo????

Motor Mouth getting started...

Mini Me...

MooMoo watches the progress

Motor Mouth's finished house...

And Mini Me's finished house...

J did the drippy icing thing on the front
of the houses and chimney.
I think their houses look better than mine did.

Motor Mouth...

Mini Me...

Finished For Friday - Scarfing 'em out!

I received e-mails weekly from Lion Brand, a yarn company, that have some crochet patterns. Most of the patterns are over my head. One day, a few weeks ago, I spied this scarf pattern my aunt is modeling.

I liked it so much, I made another.

This time, I used the correct needle size.

I think I actually like the larger needle results.

What do you think?

Finished for Friday is a weekly event on my dear bloggy friend's site over at LitandLaundry. Please be sure to check out her amazing cornocopia this week.

Colossal Waste of Time

I am crocheting an adorable and unique baby blanket. When complete, it will look similar to the blanket MAM recently made for a preemie, only bigger (MAM's shown below) and blue and whiter.

This is my first attempt at a blanket. That's not the problem. I was working away but had some problems getting the yarn pulled out of the manufacturer's 'ball'. So, I took it all apart and made a ball from the other end.

 It was all good until I got to a spot close to the blanket. That's where a huge knot formed. I worked for 5 hours and whittled it down to this: 

I could have started the blanket over and almost had it finished in that time, but it is tricky to start and I wasn't with MAM, who helped me get it going. And I didn't realize how long it was taking me. Some of my blanket unravelled in the process.

Finally, I gave up and cut it. Only, I don't know how to join yarn or incorporate it in the pattern without it being super obvious or falling apart on the recipient. I'm going to take my kids for a walk to the library and maybe I will return to making the blanket. Or not. Ever. We'll see.

Finished for Friday - Elephant

 

Finally!!

Mini Me requested a crochet elephant from me way back in December!! She has patiently waited while 4 cousins got amigurumi animals. She has patiently waited while her brother got his requested rocket and her friend had a cat made. Mini Me waited patiently while her uncle and her father got a hat!! 

Getting an elephant pattern was harder than I thought. I searched and searched and searched. Finally, I found a pattern I liked. Then I found out it was a knit pattern. I need crochet. I tried to do the stitch conversions, but they didn't work out for me. I'm new at this, remember. 

So, I made it without a pattern. All on my own. Made it up as I went along. No pattern.

Good things come to those who wait!!

I added the ears I had forgotten!!

And shortened the trunk

Please head over to Lit and Laundry,

home of Finished for Friday

for some incredible ideas.

Finished for Friday - Husband Hat

I did it!! 

I finished a hat for my husband in time for a big snow 

fall scheduled to arrive this weekend!

After making a hat for his brother, J asked me to make one for him. We went to JoAnn's together and J picked out the yarn. It was fun to share JoAnn's with him. We've been to Hobby Lobby and Michael's together, but this was a first.

I had some problems getting started, so MAM helped me out again, last Friday, when we met up at a cafe for some fun time together. Have I told you how much I really like MAM? I made this hat a little different from the last one, as I added 2 rows of double crochet stitches at the end, instead of higher up on the hat.

J said he liked it. 

But he wasn't willing to model shirtless again...

Be sure to head on over to Lit and Laundry, 

the Home of Finished for Friday

Now, for the pattern.

HUSBAND HAT CROCHET PATTERN

Pattern Rows 1-10 adapted from Lion Brand Yarn Easy Stripes Hat #70731AD, minus color mixing.

Note: I tend to crochet tightly so if you have problems, it could be that you are not crocheting tightly enough.

Hook Size: H

Yarn: Lion Brand - Bulky in Charcoal

HAT


With A, ch 4, join with sl st in beg ch to form a ring. 


R1: Ch 1, work 6 sc in ring, join with sl st in beg ch. 


R2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each sc, join with sl st in beg ch, 12 sc. 


R3: Ch 1, *sc in next sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 18 sc.  


R4: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 2 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 24 sc. 


R5: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 3 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 30 sc. 


R6: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 4 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 36 sc. 


R7: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 5 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 42 sc. 


R8: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 6 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 48 sc. 


R9: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 7 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 54 sc. 


R10: Ch 1, *sc in next 8 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch, 60 sc.

(Note: Measure the head this is designed for. Increase or stop increasing as necessary to fit your intended adult head. My husband has a big head.)

R11: Ch 1, *sc in next 9 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch, 66 sc.

R12: Ch 1, *sc in next 10 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch, 72 sc.

R13: Ch 1, *sc in next 11 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch, 78 sc. 

R14-19: Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch. 


R20-21: Ch 1, Double Crochet in each sc around, sl st in beg ch. Fasten Off. Weave in ends.

Join Ravelry.com, the new yarn community of choice!

 

More details on hats below....

UPDATE:

My husband lost his hat on the train last year so I made him another this year. I actually made six of these hats following this pattern for Christmas 2012. It's a versatile pattern and I mixed it up a bit - did some double crochet, added flowers, etc.

I'm not sure why some people in the comments below had a hard time with the pattern. I'm thinking that perhaps they may be crocheting too loosely - I'm pretty tight when I crochet.

Or, they may not be measuring the recipient's head as they go along. I measure to make sure it's not too loose. Once it seems like it will fit snugly, I stop increasing and just crochet the rows until i measure to see if it is long enough to cover the ears and hair of the recipient.

It is really important to measure the crown of the head and the length. I've used this same pattern for my kids and three different men. Some hats I make a little longer or bigger or shorter or narrower.

Have fun!

Finished for Friday - Brother-in-Law Hat

My sister-in-law, FaithChick, sent an 'easy' crochet pattern and asked me to make a hat for her husband. Well, I tried. And failed.

I tried again. And again. Finally, I had to get MAM to help me. Turns out, I have been crocheting all wrong!! The amigurumi technique may have messed me up, or in my amateurness, I just missed a few things. At any rate, MAM set me straight. 

Marine Man in his new hat!

I didn't do the original pattern, instead opting for a modified pattern all my own. Crochet is absolutely beautiful when done properly...

And now my husband wants one...

Please head on over to Lit and Laundry, 

home of Finished for Friday. 

It's pretty amazing what she accomplishs in 1 week!

WIDNEY CROCHET HAT PATTERN

Pattern Rows 1-10 adapted from Lion Brand Yarn Easy Stripes 

Hat #70731AD, minus color mixing.

Gauge: 12 sc = 4 in.

HAT
With A, ch 4, join with sl st in beg ch to form a ring.
R1: Ch 1, work 6 sc in ring, join with sl st in beg ch.
R2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each sc, join with sl st in beg ch – 12 sc.
R3: Ch 1, *sc in next sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 18 sc.
R4: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 2 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 24 sc.
R5: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 3 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 30 sc.
R6: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 4 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 36 sc.
R7: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 5 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 42 sc.
R8: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 6 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 48 sc.
R9: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 7 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch – 54 sc.
R10: Ch 1, *sc in next 8 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch – 60 sc. 

(Note: If your gauge lines up, stay at 60 sc to R14. Otherwise, increase to fit adult head as needed.)
R11: Ch 1, *sc in next 9 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch – 66 sc. 

R12: Ch 1, *sc in next 10 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch – 72 sc.

R13: Ch 1, *sc in next 11 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch – 78 sc. 

R14: Ch 1, *sc in next 12 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch – 84 sc. 

R15-19: Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch – 84 sc.
R20-21: Ch 1, DC in each sc around, sl st in beg ch – 84 DC.
R22-27: Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch – 84 sc. 

R28-29: Ch 1, DC in each sc around, sl st in beg ch – 84 DC.
R30-31: Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch – 84 sc.

BORDER
With B, ch 1, sl st in each sc around, sl st in beg ch.
Additional Row: Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch. Fasten off.

FINISHING
Weave in ends.