My Organic Cotton Yarn Obsession

I have recently become familiar with a line of 100% organic cotton yarn by a company called Galler Yarns – Inca Eco. I cannot get enough of this yarn, I love it. The feel of it is so soft and I love that it is 100% cotton too, which means many people who do not like, or cannot wear wool (like my good friend over at This is Sesame) could wear it and get the feel and look of wool without the super warmth or allergy risk.

While traveling in NY over the 4th of July holiday I picked up a few skeins of it and wanted to find some patterns that would make the yarn resemble a wool look but not be too bulky.

So far I have found a hat pattern and a chunky cowl pattern that I have used and really like with this yarn.

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#SFEtsy Pop Up Market @Rickshawbags on July 26th!

Come out to Rickshaw Bagworks up in Dogpatch, SF this upcoming Saturday afternoon from 11am – 3pm to check out the company store and shop for local curated finds from myself and my fellow SF Etsy teammates! Hope to see you there!

This show will feature some new items not yet available in my shop, keep watching my Instagram Account for more photos!

SF Etsy Pop Up Show @ Rickshaw Bagworks

July 26th: 11am – 3pm

 

 

New Scarflettes Now Available!

Check out my shops newest addition:

Some cute scarflettes!

Scarflettes in a fun wavy pattern!

Come in a variety of colors!

With a hint of metallic!

Currently all shop items are 15% off to celebrate the new year! Use code: POSTHOLIDAY15 on all orders in January over $20!

Thanks for stopping by!

#Mashup – Monochrome Scarf

The Yarn

Company/Store: Tess Yarns (bought at the Feb 2013 Stitches West yarn show)
Colorway: Variegated white to light gray to medium grey (the label does not specify a name or #)
Weight/Length: Superwash Merino/570 yds
Material: 100% Wool

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I wish I had taken a photo of the yarn before I balled it up, it was beautiful, but I forgot so you will have to imagine these whites and grays looking like this prior to me winding it up.

Now I want this color too….

The Pattern

I tried about 6 or 7 different patterns before I opted to try something similar to the pattern I used for a few of my scarves already. I used the Aquatic Blossom pattern as my base and altered a few key elements.

First, instead of the foundation chain being [ch5, then tr in first ch, repeat] I shortened it to [ch3, then dc in first ch, repeat], this created a shorter star pattern that I like better for this yarn. I wanted it to not be too airy or be able to see through the stitches. For the rest of the pattern I followed it like normal but instead of triple crochets I used double crochets. It created this really neat ripple pattern with the stars and the color changing in parts also looks like wide stripes.

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So far I am liking this pattern, I have done 3 full rounds, it will be a circle scarf. 570 yards is a lot so I will see how thick I end up making this and maybe I will have some left over for a few bracelets or a headband hopefully. Either way I love this yarn and the monochrome colors, hence its name! More photos once its finished!

Final Stats

Size: 6 inches wide by 57 inches in total length, 8 total rows were made with this 1 row repeat pattern.
Yarn Used: I had a lot of yarn left over from this project so I also made a hat to go with it! So I can estimate that I used approximately 300 yards for the scarf. I love how it started to zig zag the colors as the rows were built. Very happy with how it came out, its light but warm!

This item is For Sale! Link to Etsy Product Listing!

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Thanks for stopping by!

Cozy Throw Pillow

About a month ago, shortly after I finished my DROPS Blanket, I made a few new squares with this flower motif in them with some extra yarn I had. Link to Ravelry pattern here. After making a few I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with them so I set them aside for awhile.

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Fast forward to about 2 weeks ago when I was needing to get a few more $ into a Joann.com order to qualify for free shipping, I saw that they had these plain polyester pillow forms. That’s when the lightbulb went off, I can make a few more squares and turn them into a pillow! While I am certainly not the first person to do this of course, however I got excited at the possibility of a new project. The pillow forms arrived, I got 2 16×16 forms and I got to work on more squares.

Taking what I learned from the DROPS blanket, I estimated the pillow to need 9 squares for each side. I did not want to leave too big a seam between them like in the blanket so I opted to do a row of sc in the back loops only across each row (I used white to connect all the squares and then around each set of 9). I then did a row of regular sc around each set of 9 squares, putting 3 sc in each of the 4 corners. Finally to join both sides I did another round of sc all around, this gave the edge a slightly thicker look and hold.

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I think it came out really cute, don’t you?!

Want one for yourself or a gift in your favorite colors? Now available as a Made to Order item in my shop, so head there for all the details!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

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Meet Betty!

Meet Betty!

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Meet Betty! She is my brand new head form that I will be using to take photos of all of my shop items. She allows me to make my product photos much more editorial and reflect my items in style! Curious where I got her? Check out Store Fixtures USA mannequin head section.

I also got crafty at home this weekend, and with the help of my husband (the true do-it-yourself guy) I built a custom light box out of a large cardboard box, an old white sheet, tape, and a lamp. If your interested I followed the basic guides from this tutorial I found here.

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This is the setup that I used to take all new product photos. From building the light box, to taking all the photos then post processing them and uploading them, it took almost all day on Saturday but I cannot believe how great they turned out. This also allowed me to combine my two favorite hobbies, photography and crochet, in a big all day project. It was super fun!

Here are some sample shots from all the ones I took. If you head on over to my Etsy Shop Page to see all of the new photos, plus some new items that are now for sale as well!

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Thanks for stopping by!

June 22nd – Triton Midsummer Art Fair!

Next Saturday, June 22nd from 10am – 5pm I will be joining many other local crafters at the Triton Museums Midsummer Art Fair. Check out the museums website for more details and location information. This will be an outdoor fair and will also have food trucks and other entertainment so its a must visit for sure if you are local to the Bay Area!

My table with have both my photo prints as well as some hats and scarves that are currently available in my Etsy Shop.

Come out and support local crafters and visit me at my table! Hope to see you there!

 

Two New Patterns

I tried 2 new patterns over the holiday weekend, the first is a pattern I found called Stashbuster by Sarahndipities. It us a super fun quick pattern you can make with anything, I am certainly going to use it again soon with all the leftover yarn I have like she recommends!

I made this into an infinity scarf too which makes it great warm wrap for cool to cold days. The yarn I used was a multi color acrylic yarn with reds, browns and dark magentas, reminds me of fall :)

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Infinity Shell Scarf

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Infinity Shell Scarf

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Infinity Shell Scarf

The other pattern I tried is called the Divine Hat  by the same person whose Cable Hat pattern I have followed and used already. It makes a spiral effect and looks really neat when its done, I especially like how the yarn I used almost makes rows of color too.

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Spiral Hat

Both are currently available for sale in my shop! Back to crocheting!