Bouncing Bobbles! Baby Blanket and Hat

I recently made a blanket and hat for my good friend and her new baby boy. 

I love the way it turned out! The blanket is a basic Corner to Corner (or C2C), with a bobble edging. Find links to tutorials for these on my Pinterest Resources board:  https://www.pinterest.com/eklayre/beginner-and-crochet-resources/

Here's the blanket and edging:

I made a coordinating hat using a basic beanie style (free handed) in a mimicked pattern as the blanket, same bobble edge: 

It's going in the mail this week! Can't wait! Happy hooking!

-Claire 

This week! The Yoda Hood Pattern Launch!

Soooooooo excited to share this pattern with you! My house is Star Wars crazy, and with the new movie coming, I wanted to design something to honor the ultimate Master Jedi....

In a few days I'll have More pics of the kids size up, and the pattern will launch this week on Ravelry and my Etsy shop. Adult/kid/toddler sizes and works up quickly (took me 4 episodes of the Walking Dead). 

Stay tuned! May the hooks be with you!

-Claire 

 

Free Crochet Pattern! Skinny Sashay Scarf - No Ruffles!

I have a confession to make: I *highly dislike* ruffled sashay scarves! I prefer a feather boa anyday. I don't like making them, or the way they look, but I *LOVE* the yarn! It's metallic and sparkly and soft, and comes in fabulous colors. 

I found a bunch in my stash the other day and decided to solve this problem. This pattern is fast, simple, and there are no ruffles involved :) Hope you enjoy! 

The Skinny Sashay Scarf: 

Material/Notes:

- 2 1/4 skeins of Red Heart sashay yarn, in "boogie" or other color

- Q  / 15mm hook

- large tapestry needle

- stitches: dc = double crochet, ch = chain

- American crochet terms
- I used the "invisible join" method and it worked just fine with Sashay yarn to add a new skein! 

1. Ch 92, dc in 3rd, dc across, be sure to dc in top loop only, join new skein when needed in that row. In last stitch dc 3 times around (see pic below) (92)

2. Move beginning ch "knot" and continue to dc, do not turn, and continue using only the top loop left over from your starting chain (92). Tie off and sew in ends.

3. Cut 10 even lengths of yarn, knot to form fray. I did mine around 10" each, 5 on each side. Customize however you want!

Left: dc around beginning ch

Right: the end of your scarf after dc-ing around

Done! Easy! Fast! Happy Hookin!

-Claire 

***this and all patterns on this site are copyrighted to Horizontal Designs, The Gimpy Hooker and not to be reproduced or copied without permission. PS - You may legally sell finished products from ANY pattern! 

Only 4 Days Left! Crochet Lounge Giveaway!

Have you entered this MASSIVE giveaway yet? If not - DO IT!!!!

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Win your choice of paid patterns from us, and a ton of other amazing prizes! 

PS - have been in the process of moving into my new home and setting up my new studio - will be back blogging and publishing the 32 (FREE and paid) patterns waiting to be formatted/finalized in the next few weeks! 

Happy hooking!

Claire

Ravelry Crochet Pattern Sale!

All crochet pattern are 50% off through Mother's Day as a big thank you to all you amazing Mommy's out there!

Code: MDHDS2014
Ravelry Link: http://www.ravelry.com/stores/horizontal-designs

Enjoy!!!!

It's Done! My First c2c Afghan

Am so excited to have finally finished this corner to corner (aka c2c) afghan - it's definitely the biggest project I've done - and I love the way the colors turned out!I attempted to create a Moroccan jewel tone style - the jury is out on if that worked!

It started with this color palate:

...but ended up frogging the yellow and leaving it out.....

Crochet Pattern Launch Giveaway! The Posey Pixie Hood!

It's that time again! While my amazing testers are helping finalize the crochet pattern, which happens to be one of my favorites to date, it's time for a contest!






This is the Posey Pixie Hood, designed with my daughter in mind, inspired both by fairy tales and vintage charm. It comes in two sizes, and the smaller size will fit toddler - adult, but in case you wanted it bigger, I included a larger size as well. All pictures feature the toddler-adult size.

There are so many ways to customize this! And it includes loads of picture tutorials, a stand alone pattern for the large flower, and a bonus pattern for the coordinating headband.

 It's puffy and soft, and has interesting texture, and is made with under 1 skein of Homespun yarn!  Enter to win a copy below! There is a chance for a bonus prize of any two patterns as well!

GOOD LUCK! Contest runs through next Tuesday at midnight, and you can share and enter every day! Winner announced Wednesday, 3/19/14.
---Claire

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The Men's Crochet Scarf Blues & Holiday Gifts

Overlay sc striping! Made for my Dad. Used Homespun and Caron Simply Soft.

I had tons of fun this Christmas creating scarves for the guys in my life (and a few clients!) and other random crochet stuff for family, friends, and clients.





Everything for the guys ended up blue! Not on purpose, just ended up that way. I "made" (or, rather he played along) my husband model this scarf created for my brother. This is what happened:

 He was a good sport (kind of), and after about 30 pictures I finally got a decent one:

New Crochet Pattern! The "Fat Amy" Owl Giveaway

This cute chubby owl doubles as both a mason jar cover and a purse! It's also fits perfectly over an ugly plastic soap container to liven up your bathroom or kitchen.

We had a naming contest, and "Fat Amy" just seemed to fit perfectly. In case you were wondering, Fat Amy is a hilarious quirky character from the movie Pitch Perfect. Check her out below (adult language warning). Buy it now or enter the giveaway below for a chance to win THREE great prizes!

FREE CROCHET PATTERN: Marvelous Mini Stocking Ornament

I actually made these last year, and I'm really happy I kept the pattern because I'm making them again this year, they are great gifts you can make with scraps and are super fast (ninja crochet!). I even made a German colored one for my MIL!

 

 

 

 

Materials:

- Very little yarn, any weight
- Suggested hook size for yarn
- In the red stocking, I  used Lion Hometown Chunky yarn (with hook size 8), and RH Super Saver in White (hook size 5.5mm)
- Tapestry needle for weaving in ends

New Crochet Patterns and Stuff!

I have not be blogging much - but I HAVE been crocheting and designing, I swear! Just to prove it, and be able to pin the pictures to pimp my goods, here is a quick round up of patterns that are being finalized and tested, a few paid, and a few free (yay!).

1. The "Bears and Bows" hat, sized Preemie through Adult! More pics coming...!

FREE CROCHET PATTERN! "Canyon Sunrise" One Skein Adjustable Cowl

It's that time again..... 
A FREE CROCHET PATTERN!

This is a design for an adjustable cowl, perfect for cooler weather and looks lovely with any color changing bulky yarn - I used Lion Brand Homespun in "Painted Desert". The colors reminded me more of a sunrise over a canyon though, hence the name.

This took me almost exactly one skein! FOR THE WIN!!!

It also has an adjustable tie, and with the stitch variation, sits nicely around the neck and off the shoulders. And the color change almost works out per row, which was totally by accident, but we can pretend I'm a yarn and crochet mathematical genius and planned it! Anyway, on to the good stuff...

Baby Bear Cocoon Crochet Pattern is here!

Things have been quiet around here while I recovered from a minor surgery (had a port placed in my chest to receive IV fluids and meds) and a ton of doctors appointments, blood clots on the new port, and more hospital stays. 





 BUT THIS GIMPY HOOKER WON'T BE STOPPED!

"never give up, never surrender!"
(Galaxy Quest)

All theatrics aside, I have a ton of patterns I am trying to get organized, tested by my wonderful group of hookers, into a pretty PDF's with pictures and links, and uploaded. It's slow going, but it's going!

The Gabriella Blanket Crochet Pattern (Launch Giveaway!)

This blanket was a labor of love - the first blanket I have created/designed, and made especially for my daughter's two year birthday.

It's a fairly basic granny square adapted to fuzzy bulky yarn, which made it super quick to work up, and didn't take nearly as much yarn as I thought it would. The squares are large! I love how the colors turned out as well, very vintage chic.

It's also very easy to customize, and make as large or as small as you want. I include pointers for using this type of yarn, and ideas for different borders. The pictured blanket is about 60" square.

You can purchase it for only $1.99!!! 
Find it in my Ravelry or Etsy Shops.

Become a Facebook Fan and WIN this pattern! Enter the 2 day contest blitz below starting at midnight!


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on a King sized bed...

On a toddler bed (with cute toddler tootsies!)

ENJOY! Be sure to follow on Facebook, as I'm creating a coordinating stuffed animal with my yarn left overs to make this a complete gift set, perfect for any little one. I may even make an adult colored version of this, its so soft and snuggly and works up so fast!

--Claire

LAST DAY TO ENTER, free crochet pattern!

Last day to enter the contest for a free copy of the Extra Icing Cupcake Hat!

If you can't wait, it's LIVE on Ravelry and Etsy!

And because I love you all so much, there is a 15% off coupon through Sept - use code HDLaunchParty !!




Enter below (takes a minute to load), and GOOD LUCK!

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Awareness Ribbon CAL - Part 2

If you have questions about this CAL, the format, or what the heck a CAL is, please check out PART 1 for details.

When we left off, we had just completed the first portion of this cute little pattern from Little Orphan Skein.

Ch 31, and Row 1.

Onto Row 2:

1. The first part is "Row 2: ch 1. sc in first 12 st."  So this means after completing Row 1, you chain (ch) 1, and turn your work. If you are unsure how to do this, here is a great video. ***Some patterns will tell you this at the end of a row, some at the beginning. It's the same technique either way.

After you chain (ch) 1 and turn, you are going to single crochet (sc) in the first 12 stitches (st).

GIVEAWAY!!!! Cupcake Hat, Extra Icing Pattern - FIVE baby/toddler sizes!

It's here! The new "Extra Icing Cupcake Hat" pattern, in FIVE sizes, newborn - 2 year old!

Featuring loads of pictures in two color schemes, step by step written pattern instructions, and links to special stitch instructions. I always include "tips" and extras on how to customize patterns to make them your own. It uses worsted weight yarn (under a skein), a 5mm hook, and it fairly quick to make. 

Includes sizing and how to customize measurements for 0-3 mo, 3-6 mo, 6-12 mo, 12-18 mo, and 24 mo. By the way - this pattern has been tested by half a dozen people! Overkill, maybe, but I want to make sure it's the best it can be!

Enter to win the pattern today (9/4) through Saturday (9/7) below:

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The pattern will be live for sale on Etsy and Ravelry Friday!

GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERS! <3
--Claire 

Launch Party! Crochet Pattern Discount Through September

The Aurora Shawl, pattern coming soon!

To celebrate the launch of my pattern sales, I will be offering a 15% discount to you fine folks through Sept. It is good in my Ravelry Shop only, and with any pattern!

I have been publishing free patterns for a while now, and a few are in E-books and various sites such as AllFreeCrochet, but it's time to get down to business. I like to design. I LOVE to crochet, but coming up with new designs is my true passion in this industry.

I look forward to sharing them with you! My debut launch pattern set is the Winter Princess Newborn Set, which you can buy together, or the booties and hat individually. 

My amazing testers are working hard, and I am continuously finishing and starting new patterns, and will be rolling out a few more this next month. Did I mention that you can use the discount code as many times as you want?

Stay up to date when new patterns launch by joining my blog (to the right), following on Facebook, and linking up on Ravely. 

Oh, you may need that code! Use HDLaunchParty when checking out on Ravelry :)

Happy Hooking!!!! 
-Claire  
PS--not doing this on Etsy because there is no way to only apply the code to the patterns. You can, however, get a 10% off code just for liking our Facebook page HERE that you can use on Etsy.

Calling Gimpy Hookers!

Are you disabled? Do you crochet? Want to learn? We started a GIMPY HOOKER group on FB!

CLICK HERE TO JOIN

Sharing resources, posting our creations, and whatever else (that is not spam or adult content), and networking if you have a crochet business.

Join us! Gimpy Hooker unite!!!! :)
---Claire

Contest Time! Happy Birthday to The Crochet Lounge!

As a way to celebrate the awesomeness that is The Crochet Lounge we are giving away the brand spankin new WINTER PRINCESS NEWBORN SET PATTERN! The winner will also receive a set of 3 of our new Erasable Stitch Markers! Win prizes from Moogly as well!

The Winter Princess Newborn Set Pattern comes in size 0-3 months. You get the pattern with lots of pictures and easy to read instructions for BOTH the hat and booties - which are adjustable and super easy to customize!

This giveaway will celebrate the first official pattern for sale in our shop (many, many more to come!), and the launch of our stitch marker line.

Enter today in the form below! And stay tuned for special discount codes for both the pattern and stitch markers after the contest is over! Be sure to register for blog post updates and stay in touch on Facebook!

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