DIY crocheted clutch bag!!

 

 

Hiya guys!!  Happy Friday!  I hope you are all fab! 

So, in my last post, I mentioned that I’m going to start posting every second Monday…however instead of posting this upcoming Monday, I am doing a post today, as I will not be near a computer on Monday!  I know, I’ve just made this totes confusing, but from the 10^th August I will be posting every second Monday!! 

Okay, now that’s out the way…today I thought I’d do a post about something I’ve been working on for a wee while.  Had this little project going for a couple months, but had to take a break from it as I had no time to finish it.  But as I had quite a few days free this past week I managed to complete it…yay!   So what was the project…a crocheted clutch bag!! 

 

 

 

I know, another crochet thing!!  But, you know what, I love crocheting so there probably will be many more crochet posts coming up!

 

So, this little piece of work was actually meant to be a tablet cover for my sister, but I just loved the stitch/pattern that I used and ended up just making it into a clutch bag for myself.  That’s bad isn’t it, haha!  To be honest, if I decide I don’t want it to be used as a bag anymore, at least it can have another life as a tablet cover!

 

This was quite an easy project as all that was needed was:

 

 

·         Yarn – I used a super chunky wool yarn

 

 

 

 

 

 

·         10mm crochet hook – as recommended on the packaging of the yarn

 

 

 

 

 

·         Zip – bought this in a haberdashery store

·         White cotton pillowcase – used for the bag lining

 

 

 

 

·         Needle

·         White sewing thread

·         Scissors

 

 

 

And this is what it turned out like!

 

 

 

 

I basically just did a ribbed stitch for the whole clutch bag!  To be honest, I came across this type of stitch when I was trying to crochet a beanie hat and needed to watch a video to see how to do that.

 

Originally I was aiming to make a beanie but halfway through I thought it would be quite cool to make it into a tablet cover/clutch bag!  As I used a super chunky yarn, it probably would have been a wee bit too thick for a hat anyway!!

 

(I have put the link to the video at the end of the post, so you can watch it, if you like.)

 

So, the only extra bit I added to the bag was the lining.  I just used a white pillowcase for this.  Another kind of material would be quite good for the lining, but I just stuck with a cotton pillowcase as it was handy for me.

 

 

 

 

How I made the lining:

 

 

1.     I measured the pillowcase against the bag to get the size for the lining.

 

2.     I made sure to use one corner of the pillowcase so I wouldn’t have much sewing to do.

 

3.     After sewing the open side and creating a pocket, I sewed on the zip.  

 

To be honest, this would be SO much easier to do using a sewing machine!!

I had to sew by hand and to be really honest, it was super difficult!  I just can’t sew.  I’ve tried so many times but I just can’t get it.  I can cross stitch no bother but that’s probably because of the wee squares and lines, haha.

 

So, if you are amazing at sewing by hand then you’ll manage this with no problem. 

 

4.     Next, I sewed on the pocket lining, with the zip, to the crocheted part.

 

 

 

 

5.     And lastly, I attached some scraps of grey yarn to the slider of the zip to make it easier to use as well as to add a little bit of extra interest to the bag!

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s all that was needed to make this clutch bag!

 

Even though attaching the lining to the crocheted part was a bit stressful for me…this was quite an enjoyable thing to make!  And now it’s all finished it looks fab!!

 

 

 

 

Anyway guys, thank you SO SO much for reading!  I really hope you enjoyed this post J and I’ll see you back here on the 10^th August when my new post will be up!

 

Have a great weekend and as always, take care and I’ll see you next time!

 

Lin xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

YouTube Sources:

 

Super Easy Ribbed Crochet Hat/Beanie by Amanda Lee-Roy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCIUAWfUCLU 

DIY Crochet Bunting!!

 

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Sunday!  Hope you’ve all had a good week!

 

I’ve had a busy past few weeks, and totally struggled to do a wee crafty project last week to post to the blog – which I’m totally gutted about L, naturally.  But I decided I’d rather post up something I enjoyed making rather than doing something in a rush just so I had a new post up!  I’m such a perfectionist and it’s rather annoying at times, ha!

 

Anyways…I had a few wee days off this week (yay!), so I had a good sit down and did this week’s project.

 

A couple months ago, when I went into town to do one of my crafty shopping sprees, I decided I’d get a couple crochet tutorial books.  I’m quite a visual learner, I’d rather watch a YouTube video tutorial about new stitches and patterns, but I thought ‘Why not get a book about crocheting instead?’  I did realise though, once I got home and tried one of the designs, that reading patterns is quite tricky!!  I got a wee bit stressed out to be really honest.

 

However, this was only because I was new to reading how to do a pattern.  Like anything you are a beginner at, it just takes time and a lot of patience - just keep at it and you’ll get there!!

 

And…getting back on track…when I was flicking through the pages of the book - which is listed at the bottom of the post, as usual – I came across this pattern that is really neat…bunting!!!  Those super-annoying but equally festive multi-coloured, decorative flags that you see everywhere at celebrations and outdoor events, as well as indoors for parties!

 

So, I made my own crochet bunting!  It’s really quite cool and definitely an alternative to the plastic versions. Plus, it adds a homemade touch if you use it for parties!

 

  

 

What I used:

 

 

·         A variety of bright coloured yarn: white, neon yellow, pink sparkle and blue sparkle.

 

 

 

·         4mm crochet hook

 

 

 

·         The book, bunting tutorial.

 

 

 

 

 

I’m not doing a tutorial for this wee crafty project as I’m still a beginner at crochet and wouldn’t be able to explain it properly, so it is just photographs of my finished bunting.

 

 

 

A close up of the yarn strands.

 

 

It didn’t say how to join the little triangle blocks, so just made a chain

then used the same stitch as was used in the main pattern

to attach the triangle to the chain.

 

 

The chain between the triangles.

 

 

The stitch attaching the triangle to the chain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here are some photos displaying the bunting in use:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to say, I think the bunting is quite funky!  You can use any colour you like as well, which is fab!  I think next time, though, I will make the triangles a bit bigger?  Should be pretty easy(ish) to do ha ha!

 

Anyway guys, thank you SO SO much for reading!  I hope you enjoyed this post J and I will catch you all next time!

 

As always have a fab week and take care!  Xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

 

500 Crochet Blocks by Hannah Elgie & Kath Webber

An egg-cellent Easter special!

 

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Easter Sunday!  Hope you are all having a relaxing day!

 

 

 

 

I thought I’d do an Easter special post on the blog today, so this week I have been busy making Easter eggy-type projects!  

 

I did some more crocheting - a little bit different this time as I had a go at Amigurumi which is a Japanese art of crocheting and knitting teeny stuffed animals!  And, as well as the crocheting, I did a little bit of baking too and I made some Easter egg truffles (with lots of chocolate, obviously!).

 

So, on that note, here is what I made this week…

 

 

 

Crocheted Easter Eggs

 

 

 

 

I’ve been seeing loads of crocheted stuffed animals and toys on Pinterest and Instagram since I’ve got into the whole crochet/knitting thing, and I’ve been wanting to try it because they look quite cool.  I had looked at loads of videos of how they were done, but they always looked too complicated and tricky because of the whole increase/decrease of the stitches...however, I’ve realised it’s actually quite easy!  So, I decided to give it a go and make these little Easter eggs!

 

As I’m new to Amigurumi, obviously I needed a bit of help with how to crochet the eggs so, as usual, I have shown the links to the videos and websites I looked at at the end of the post!

 

For the eggs, I used a 100% cotton yarn with a 3.00 mm crochet hook, and used scrap yarn for the stuffing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The eggs ended up being all different sizes, even though I used the same size hook and 4-ply yarn…maybe it was the way I stuffed them, I’m not sure.  However, it gave a more organic look to them, which is good because eggs aren’t all the same size anyway.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crocheted Bunny Rabbit

 

I decided to make a little bunny rabbit too!  I just basically made an egg like the ones above and added ears and other little details – eyes, nose, whiskers and fluffy tail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easter egg Oreo truffles

 

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and really had to make it as Oreos are the best!

 

 

 

 

Basically this is a really easy recipe as there are only four ingredients: Oreos, cream cheese, milk chocolate and white chocolate.  I also added hundreds and thousands on top of the white chocolate, while it was still wet, to add a wee bit of colour!

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I had a wee bit of a fail with the toppings and only managed to get three good looking ones L

 

However, these are the good ones!  But let me tell you that these truffles are AH-MAY-ZING!!  If you get a chance, definitely make them!

 

 

 

 

(Wee tip: double the recipe so you’ll have loooads…because they disappear quickly!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this post, and as always thank you SO much for reading!  

I have to say the most enjoyable project was making the little bunny rabbit…it’s just so cute!!  If I had more time I would have made wee chick too, just to add to the Easter-inspired crochet projects…maybe next time? J 

I’ll catch you all next week for my weekly Sunday post! 

Have a fab week and take care guys! Xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

YouTube sources: 

 

How to crochet Easter eggs – Crocheted Easter eggs tutorial by Crouton Crafts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScEACe1i6DA

 

[For the bunny rabbit ears]

(Crochet) How to – crocheggimals – no1 rabbit egg cover by HappyBerry Crochet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIlFMWNzYYQ

 

4 - Ingredient Easter egg Oreo truffles by Gimme Some Oven

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/easter-egg-oreo-truffles/