Kitchen Washcloth Durability

by M. J. Joachim

This post has been inspired by Tina’s question on my last post. Tina over at Life is Good shares some amazing stories on her blog. I’m sure you’ll have fun following her if you don’t already. She’s wondering how well Lots of Crochet Stitches kitchen washcloths do on greasy pots and pans, or if they are just for wiping counters and the like.

A photo speaks a thousand words…

The kitchenwashcloth set pictured was made a year ago last April. It has been used heavily since that time. I usually make my kitchen towel sets out of 4-ply cotton yarn. It is sturdy and durable. Once they’re in my kitchen, anything goes. Once they’re in the wash, same rules apply. As you can see, they hold up pretty well.

I’m determined to get to that doily, Diana (DianaWilder…about myself, by myself)…regarding another comment from the same post. I’m looking forward to having it finished and being able to share it with you too.

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches. Until next time, happy crocheting!

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (©2013 All Rights Reserved)

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Simple Single Crochet Washcloth 051513

by M. J. Joachim

It’s been a while since I last posted. During that time, my oldest daughter graduated from college and family played center stage. One of the things I did during our family time was start teaching my son’s girlfriend how to crochet. We went shopping for yarn and hooks and spent a few hours at my kitchen table working on kitchen washcloths together.

The pattern is simple enough. Begin by taking one of your standard washcloths. Measure it and make a foundation chain that is approximately the same width. Make single crochet stitches in each chain across, and continue making single crochet rows until you have a rectangle that is about ¾ of the size square you need for your washcloth.

Change colors and make a shell border on one end. Begin by making one single crochet stitch in the first stitch. Skip the next stitch, make a shell (5 double crochet stitches) in the following stitch, skip the next stitch and make a single crochet stitch in the following stitch. Continue working this sequence across your row – [sc + skip + shell + skip + sc + skip + shell + skip + sc etc…]

My washcloth ended with one stitch left over, so I made a single crochet decrease for the last stitch. It is easy to use this pattern with any number in your foundation chain, and simply adjust the shell border accordingly, so it still looks nice. That’s one of the reasons I like this simple kitchen washcloth pattern, because it allows and responds well to the flexibility of the person crocheting it.

I’m still working on a couple of doilies to share with all of you. One is so close to being finished. I just need to sit down and spend a couple hours finishing it up and writing the instructions for you. Now that things are settling down around here a bit, I’m betting I’ll have time to do just that in the fairly near future.

Thank you so much for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches. I hope you enjoy this washcloth. You can even make a matching kitchen towel. Simply make your cloth much longer before adding your final trim.

All my best to each of you. I hope you and yours are well and you’re finding lots of time to crochet and do all the things you love to do.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim

©2013 All Rights Reserved

April Showers Bring May Flowers

by M. J. Joachim

Happy May Day everyone!

Here it is, a vase full of A – Z flowers per +Glory Lennon's  request.

See you again soon.

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (All Rights Reserved)

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Zinnia Flower

by M. J. Joachim

It’s hard to believe the A – Z Challenge is finishing up today. I’ve had a grand time sharing so many flowers with all of you, many that I will use as guidelines for future projects, so please stay tuned. Your comments have energized me through this process. My brain is on overload with so many ideas for future projects, and I love getting your feedback on my work.

Zinnia is my z post – not my last flower. There were a few others I found while working on these that I’m excited to design and share with you. Unfortunately all this flower power has left my twelve months of doilies in the dust.

I’m still finalizing pattern details for February’s doily. March’s doily is complete with no tutorial page – handwritten page, yes, tutorial for site, no. April – well, it simply didn’t happen. To that end, I have decided to spend my summer making doilies. This likely means I won’t be posting every day. Doilies take time to do them right, and finalizing patterns takes even more time. It hit 100 degrees F here this past weekend, so while some of you are still buried in snow, summer has arrived for me – too hot to spend hours outside. Doily days are upon us…once my oldest daughter graduates from college next month, that is.

Onto our Zinnia Pattern now…Thank you all for an amazing A – Z Challenge this year!

You Will Need

Crochet thread and hook (I used 4-ply cotton yarn/size F hook

2 beads – 1 dark color, 1 lighter color

2 pieces pipe cleaner

Step 1:  (Foundation chain) Chain 17; single crochet in 2^nd chain from hook

Step 2:  Chain 5; half double crochet in 2^nd chain from hook and in each chain; hdc in sc; sc in next chain on foundation chain

 

[Repeat Step 2 for each chain in foundation chain]

Note:  Petals will naturally create a spiral as you work.

Step 3:  Yarn over; insert hook from bottom of spiral through each layer of center; yarn over, pull loop back through bottom of flower and finish off. This will secure all layers of the flower together.

Step 4:  String 1 dark bead and 1 light bead on end of dark pipe cleaner & secure for flower center; fold bottom of pipe cleaner up and twist securely under beads; insert through top center of flower and all layers

Step 5:  Take green pipe cleaner and secure at base of flower, spiraling it down around dark pipe cleaner and loose ends of yarn to finish stem.

 

All patterns for A – Z Challenge 2013 are originals designed and created by me, so please abide by all copyright laws. However, you are more than welcome to link to my work. In fact, I would very much appreciate it if you do. Thank you!

 

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (©2013 All Rights Reserve); zinnia peruviana, Forest and Kim Starr, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported; zinnia bi-color, Branlon, Public Domain

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Yucca Flower

by M. J. Joachim

Yucca is a desert plant and the flowers are positively gorgeous! My instructions for making the yucca plant are general. You can make yours any size, by using materials dependent upon your needs and desires. The yucca plant pictured is a small plant. I used 6 inch pieces of pipe cleaner for the flower strands. These worked well for the Cup of Leaves I made to go with this post.

I used a baby soft cream colored yarn and a size G hook. I also used branch colored pipe cleaner, because the color closely resembles the yucca plants in my own neighborhood.

Begin by Making 1 Cup of Leaves

Step 1:  Chain 4; make a popcorn stitch

>>>Double crochet 3 times in 4^th chain from hook

>>>Remove hook from loop

>>>Insert hook in last chain of 1^st chain 4 and back through loop removed

>>>Yarn over, draw through both loops on hook

 [Repeat Step 1, to make a long row of solitary popcorn stitches.]

These can vary in length, ranging between 6 – 10 popcorn stitches.

Weave in loose ends.

Step 2:  Weave a piece of pipe cleaner through popcorn stitches – leave a bit of pipe cleaner at each end.

Make several strands of popcorn stitches with pipe cleaner – 5 to 8 works well for each plant.

Step 3:  Bunch up bottom of pipe cleaner and twist it together. Repeat for top of pipe cleaner, strategically placing petals as you work.

Step 4:  Insert bottom of pipe cleaner thorough center of cup of leaves; untwist and lay flat, wrapping loose ends of pipe cleaner up around base of plant.

All patterns for A – Z Challenge 2013 are originals designed and created by me, so please abide by all copyright laws. However, you are more than welcome to link to my work. In fact, I would very much appreciate it if you do. Thank you!

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (©2013 All Rights Reserved); Yucca filamentosa, Moriori, Public Domain

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Xanthisma Flower

by M. J. Joachim

I have to say, X is one of my favorite flowers for this challenge. Funny that last year’s X post is also a favorite of mine. This little flower is so bright and cheerful, plus it’s one of the easiest patterns I’ve made. Of course by the time I got to X, I was getting pretty good at designing flowers. But still, this little flower makes me smile and I want to make whole vases full of them, to brighten up dull spaces in my home and bring a little sunshine to inconspicuous corners.

I used yellow embroidery floss, green pipe cleaner and a two-holed yellow button to make my flower.

Step 1:  Chain 2, make 6 single crochet in 2^nd chain from hook

Step 2:  Single crochet in same place and in each single crochet around; join with slip stitch to 1^st single crochet

Step 3:  Chain 4, single crochet in 2^nd chain from hook and in each chain back to single crochet; slip stitch in sc in center.

[Repeat Step 3 once in same place and twice in each single crochet around, joining with slip stitch to 1^st stitch in round]

Finish off.

 

Step 4:  Insert pipe cleaner from bottom through top of flower. Weave pipe cleaner through a yellow two-holed button and back through base of flower, pulling it securely into place.

Step 5:  Use short end of pipe cleaner to wrap around loose threads; trim loose ends and pull tips of flower petals out to separate them. Steam and starch if desired

All patterns for A – Z Challenge 2013 are originals designed and created by me, so please abide by all copyright laws. However, you are more than welcome to link to my work. In fact, I would very much appreciate it if you do. Thank you!

 

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (©2013 All Rights Reserved); xanthisma spinulosum, Stan Shebs, GFDL (both photos)

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Windflower

by M. J. Joachim

When it came to preparing my W post, I couldn’t help but start humming a song from way back when, Windflowers. Once that happened there was no stopping me, as I curiously started looking for pictures to see if I could design and make one. Turns out, they’re not that difficult to make at all. I used 4-ply cotton white yarn, a small yellow bead and yellow embroidery floss for the center and green pipe cleaner for the stem.

Step 1:  (Foundation chain) Chain 7

Step 2:  Single crochet in 2^nd chain from hook; chain 7

Step 3:  Half double crochet in 2^nd chain from hook, double crochet in next chain

Step 4:  Make 1 triple in each of the next 3 chain; double crochet in next chain and half double crochet in single crochet

Step 5:  Single crochet in next chain of foundation chain; chain 7

[Repeat Steps 3 – 5 for each chain on foundation chain; Repeat Steps 3 & 4 one more time to make last petal, so you have 6 petals.]

 

Step 6:  Skip 3 petals and slip stitch into sc of 4^th petal, so that petals overlap; make 1 more slip stitch into 1^st petal underneath to secure; fasten off

Step 7:  Take a piece of 6-strand (yellow) embroidery thread and thread 1 end through bead, knotting securely at top, leaving a long tail for stamen

Step 8:  Use crochet hook to draw bottom tail of yellow thread through base of flower, centering bead in top of flower

Step 9:  Take 1 green piece of pipe cleaner; poke through bottom of flower and secure directly under bead

Step 10:  Wrap 2^nd piece of green pipe cleaner around loose yarn and thread, as you wrap it around 1^st piece of pipe cleaner

Step 11:  Trim top of thread and fluff out ends in center of flower

All patterns for A – Z Challenge 2013 are originals designed and created by me, so please abide by all copyright laws. However, you are more than welcome to link to my work. In fact, I would very much appreciate it if you do. Thank you!

Thank you for visiting Lots of Crochet Stitches.

M. J.

Photo credit:  M. J. Joachim (©2013 All Rights Reserved); Windflower, Abelsson, GFDL

©2013 All Rights Reserved