Update and my first pattern

Update: I am getting closer to finishing my bolero. I have 7.5 rows to go before I finish the last sleeve. Then I need to sew it together and finish the edging. I have been debating whether or not I should block the pieces before sewing them together. My mom (who crocheted and knitted for years) said that synthetic yarns really do not need to be blocked. She also let slip that event hough she made dozens of garments in her lifetime (I still have several of the sweaters that she crocheted for me and the jacket she knitted for me when I was in grammar school), she never blocked a single item and they all came out fine...so, since I am working with acrylic yarn, I think I will probably skip the blocking this time. I will post pictures as soon as I can, but right now I am focusing more on getting the bolero done since I only have a few more days until my grandmother's 80th birthday and this is her birthday present!

Ok, on to the pattern part of this post. My sister-in-law finally located the bunny purse that I made for my youngest niece. She sent me a couple pictures, one of which I have posted below. I am also attaching the pattern that I wrote out. It is my first pattern ever, so please be patient with me. I tried to keep to the normal pattern writing method, but may have accidentally strayed.

Please note, this is my design and I hold the copyright and all associated rights to it. For further copyright details and usage restrictions, please see the statement at the bottom of this webpage.

Bunny Purse Pattern by Jenny Greig (c) 2006, All Rights Reserved:

Body + Ear 1:

Row 1: Ch 2, join in circle with sl st. Ch 1. Turn.
Row 2: sc 8 into round 1. Join with sl st. Ch 2. Turn
Row 3: dc into next stitch. 2 dc in ea. remaining sc of round 2. Join with sl. st. in top of last turning chain. Ch 2. Turn
Row 4: Repeat Row 3.
Row 5: dc in next 2 stitches. *2 dc in next st. 1 dc in next st.* Repeat through end of round. Join with sl st into top of last turning chain. Ch 1. Turn
Row 6 (1st ear): sc in first 3 dc. Ch 1. Turn
Row 7: sc across row. Ch1. Turn
Row 8: 2 sc in 1st st. sc in 2nd st. 2 sc in last st. Ch 1. Turn
Row 9 – 11: sc in ea. st. ch 1. Turn.
Row 12: dec. one stitch on ea. end. Ch 1. Turn.
Row 13: dec. first st. sc in last st. Ch 1. Turn
Row 14. dec. Tie off. (Choice: You can weave in your end now and use ribbon later for tieing ears together to form handle or you can double knot your ends and use to tie ears together in a bow.)

Ear two:
Row 1. Attach yarn to Row 5 approx. 11 stitches to the right from 1st ear. Sc 3 (there should now be approx. 8 stitches between ears). Ch 1. Turn.
Row 2-9: Repeat rows 7-14 of body.

Make 2 Bodies with 2 ears ea. Make sure ears are spaced identically on ea. body. Using a second color, and a yarn needle, stitch on face of your choice on ea. body. I chose to use the natural circle of the face with three stitches on the upper curve for the eyes, stitch around middle circle for nose. From bottom of nose, make a straight line down to next curve. Place 2 stitches curving up on each side of straight stitch from nose to form mouth.

Sew together bodies from the outside of one ear to the outside of the other ear, making sure bunny faces face outward. (Note, if you want a wider purse entrance, begin sewing together farther down body.

Join ears of one body to corresponding ear of other body at the very top. (Note, if you did not weave in yarn at end of ears, use yarn to knot ears together, then tie as a bow to hide knots. If you did weave in yarn, select ribbon or bow of desired color and use yarn need to thread through top of ears and tie together.)

Cool Crochet Bolero

I have been working on the Bolero from Melissa Leapman's Cool Crochet as a gift. Unfortunately, I got stuck on an instruction that requested me to crochet under a chain. I finally was for help on the Crochet Partner's listserv. One of the members helped me out with the info. In the meantime, I had also gone searching to see if anyone else had made the pattern and written about their experiences. Luckily for me, I found Bron's Blog. One email to Bron and she was explaining the directions to me. I really appreciated both Bron's help and the CP member's help! I am now back to work on the Bolero and will post pictures soon. Thus far, I have the back and one side pretty much done. I am impressed with how quickly it is working up.

Ok, back to work for me!

Past projects

I have worked on several past projects, including:

• A chenille scarf (my design)
• A double wedding circle afghan (Vanna's Favorite Gift Afghans)
• A swimsuit coverup (Crochet Fantasy)
• A toothfairy pillow for my oldest niece (mixture of someone else's design and my own)
• A bunny purse (my own design)
• A basket weave baby afghan (designed by Dot - http://bythehook.blogdrive.com/archive/207.html)
• A patchwork blanket for my late grandfather (my design)
• A belt (my design)
  
  Unfortunately, I only have pictures of the wedding afghan and the tooth fairy pillow. (see below - sorry for the poor picture quality, my camera and I aren't quite on working terms yet).
  
  Currently, I am working on:
  
• A sleeveless shell for me (Melissa Leapman's Cool Crochet)
• A bolero for my grandmother (ditto) - I am not using the recommended yarn for this (a mohair mix), but rather am trying a nice baby yarn. Thus far it's turning out lovely, and I hope it will continue to do so.

Future Projects:

• A pillowghan for my male best friend - my own design (Christmas)
• A pillowghan for my Mom - not sure what design will be yet (Christmas)
• A shawl or sheet edgings for my MIL - not sure what patterns yet...maybe Seraphina Shawl (Christmas)
• A halter top for my 2-year-old niece - my own design (Birthday)
• An elephant bib for my new nephew (Internet design - I will post the cite when I start the bib) (Christmas)
• Sweaters for my nieces (Christmas)

Boy am I going to be busy between now and Dec!!!!!!!

Intro

Well, here goes. This is my official attempt to keep a blog. This blog will probably focus more on my current attempts to learn how to crochet and begin making my own designs. Thus far, my designing is still in the early stages, but I have successfully designed a toothfairy pillow and a bunny purse for my nieces.

I do reserve the right to go off on non-crochet tangents at times, however, so take this as your warning.

So, who am I? I am Jenny G. I live in Florida with my husband and my 8-year-old cat Xander (who believes he is the reincarnation of Alexander the Great). I crochet in order to relax, although my free time is getting smaller and smaller lately. Since I don't yet have kids of my own, I tend to focus on things for my three nieces (aged 2 - 6), and my nephew who is due at the end of this month.

Talk at you all later!