Crocheting – PipsRainbow

Well hello lovely ones, how are we all? Hope this finds you well & everyone is gearing up to the summer, sunshine, bbqs & those sit & crochet moments in the sun. We seem to have started early here. BBQ’s & pizza ovens are a go go. We were enjoying the warmer weather, but it seems to have vanished at the moment. Definitely layers and rain coats at the moment. We had a great time in Cornwall recently. But the weather was definitely interesting. One minute it was blue skies and sun, and the next it was blowing a gale and raining. Much prefer sock knitting in the sun! My The Yarn Badger Advent socks are working up a treat.

I’ve currently had the delight of being able to run two regular crochet groups. Well, one crochet club at school for the Year 6 children at lunch every week and one Stitch n Chat for adults. They have been really well attended . My Crochet Club at school is getting busier by the week. More little faces keep popping around the door asking if they can come in & have a go. Or parents stopping me on the school run asking if their child can attend. We seem to have sneaked many in recently, so the room is full of laughter & fun. It’s amazing what they create each week. Some are absolutely flying. One girl came in last week with the beginnings of a crocheted jumper!! I mean how crazy is that! Just like that she started it on a car journey! She came in this week with it finished and some wrist warmers made too. Amazing. I love how children can just have an idea & create it. Without any panic or fear & oh I’ll do it later! I wonder what she will create next. I think I need to take a leaf out of her book & just go for it & stop worrying about the end product! Only a few weeks left with this little group. I am definitely going to miss them. They are a great bunch and so lively and happy to have a go. This is our fourth year now that we have done the group and I hope to carry it on as long as I can. This is the biggest group we have had so far, think there was 20 of them this week. Just think 20 little crocheters going out in the world. What a wonderful thought.

Our other Stitch n Chat Club is also going strong. We seem to be meeting more regularly now, which is good! Amazingly we were all knitting socks the other day! Seems to be the thing at the minute! I’ve been teaching my Mum & my friend to make them! They are such a great project to take around with you. Very transportable & except for the heel & toe, it’s just knitting in the round, which is so calming. Especially helpful when you are supposed to be navigating in the car! Whoops!!

The only problem is when we travel in the dark. I do use the crochet hooks that light up, but they aren’t as good I don’t think. I did find I can knit in the dark, but it’s easier if it’s DK yarn. Hmm…. maybe I need to start a new pair of DK socks!?!? I did get some wool for my birthday. Well I got a couple! Maybe it’s time to start one! Knitting socks in the dark on a big journey! Win win!

Haha… I seem to have come off track! Always happens when you start thinking of new WIPs! They are just too tempting. It’s the possibilities that get under your skin. The new creations created by those yummy yarny squishy balls of wool…. ooops, there I go again.

Right so I was just going on to talk about the importance of yarny groups & even the ability to crochet & knit in public! I remember the first time we met as a group in the pub. It definitely didn’t feel quite natural.

We did get a few quizzical looks. Haha! No one said anything. But you could tell they were wondering what we were doing. But then as time went on, crocheting/knitting as a group became more natural. And now, I genuinely miss it when we don’t meet up. It’s the chat and banter of people from different ages or different backgrounds that I love. And the support we can give each other. Recommendations for physiotherapist and electricians or offering advice on experiences. Or even just listening to someone, when life is not going their way. And then on the other hand, having a little moment to crochet and knit away from the daily runnings of life and sharing all the squishy yarn too!! Just magical. We meet at different places, sometimes it’s only a few of us and we might go to someone’s house. But other times it’s cafe’s or a pub in the evening. Always nice to do the pub, but always tricky to fit it around my little ladies clubs!

There are lots of group like ours around the country, so I really hope that you can find one. I came across this whilst in Cornwall. It was in a great pub called The Royal Oak in Perranwell Station.

I really hope you all have a safe little space outside your home, where you can crochet and knit. Even if it is just on your own for now. Or maybe you might have been thinking about joining a group and just not had the courage to go. This is your chance. Take that brave step… you wont regret it. A new little group of yarny friends is just around the corner. Hope you find them.

Have a great rest of their weekend all.

Happy Hooking.
🌈Xx

Hello my lovelies, how are we all? We have definitely been enjoying this sunny weather. It makes such a difference to how you feel, doesn’t it. We’ve just had a full weekend of hockey madness, but it was definitely better spectating in the sun. But then a week of poorliness in the house. Definitely a lot of germs going around. Whatever it is, seems to have wiped out a third of little man’s class. Crazy. Oh the joys. Think I will have to be an antibacterial warrior again!! It’s definitely not been the best of weeks & I don’t seem to have been able to have done hardly any crocheting. Hmm… need to change that.

So I would like to introduce you to little Hoot. I wanted to make the lovely Lisa from For the Love of Yarn a little owl out of my For the Love of Yarn yarn stash. Thought it would be nice to make one out of all her wool over the years. So there’s wool from her yarn clubs, advent calendars and skeins of individual wool. Couldn’t resist mixing it with one ball of fluff from a few years ago, to make little Hoot super soft. So Hoot is made from 4ply yarn and fluff held together. I used a 4mm hook. You don’t have to use the fluff, just make it with DK yarn, whichever you prefer.

Right let’s get down to business. Hope you like the pattern.

Level

Easy (This pattern is written with UK Crochet terminology.)

Yarn

50g of 4ply yarn and 20g of fluff or 100g DK yarn in the main owl colour. Then 10g of white yarn for the eyes. You will also need a small amount of orange DK yarn for the beak and a small amount black yarn for the eyebrows and eyes, if you aren’t using the safety eyes.

Hook – 4mm crochet hook

Finished Size – 20cm tall

Notions

Scissors, darning needle for ends, toy stuffing, a pair of 10mm safety eyes. (If using them.)

Abbreviations

Slip Stitch (ss) – This is where there is no height to the stitch. It’s usually used to join rounds. So insert the hook into the front of the stitch you are joining to. This is usually the first stitch you made in that round/row. So yarn over hook and pull through that first stitch then also through the loop on your hook.

Chain stitch (ch) – To make a chain, place the yarn over the hook then pull it through the loop on your hook.

Magic Ring – Fold over the yarn to make the loop. Insert your hook through the loop and grab the working yarn (long piece) and pull through the loop. Hold the tail and the working yarn and pull so that the knot tightens, but you still have a loop. This has created a magic ring.

Double Crochet (dc) – Insert the hook through the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have two loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops.

Double Crochet Decrease (2dctog) – This is where you crochet two stitches together to decrease the amount of stitches in the round. So insert the hook through the front of the first stitch only (the front V) and then insert again through the front of the second stitch (the front V). Now yarn over your hook and pull it back through both stitches, so you will then have 2 loops on your hook. Yarn over your hook again and pull through both loops. And there is your 2dctog. (Basically 2 double crochet stitches crocheted together.)

Back Loop Double Crochet (bldc) – Work each double crochet stitch in the back loop only.

Fasten off – Slip Stitch into the next stitch, pull the yarn through the stitch, then cut. Leave long tails, so that you can use them to attach the different parts of the body together.

Yrh – Yarn Round Hook

st – Stitch

Right it’s pattern time…

Pattern

Head – make 1 using main owl colour.

Rnd 1: Make a mr, 1ch (does not count as a st throughout) then 6dc into the ring. Pull the tail tight to close the ring. (6)

Rnd 2: [2dc into next st.] 6 times. (12)

Rnd 3: [1dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (18)

Rnd 4: [2dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (24)

Rnd 5: [3dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (30)

Rnd 6: [4dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (36)

Rnd 7: [5dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (42)

Rnd 8: [6dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (48)

Rnd 9: [7dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (54)

Rnd 10: [8dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (60)

Rnds 11 – 13: 1dc in each st. (60)

Rnd 14: [8dc, dc2tog.] 6 times. (54)

Rnd 15: [7dc, dc2tog.] 6 times. (48)

Rnd 16: [6dc, dc2tog.] 6 times. (42)

Rnd 17: [5dc, 2dctog] 6 times (36)

Rnd 18: [4dc, 2dctog] 6 times (30)

Rnd 19: [3dc, 2dctog] 6 times (24)

Rnd 20: [2dc, 2dctog] 6 times (18)

Rnd 21: [2dctog] 9 times (9)

Stuff the head at this point.

Rnd 22: [1dc, 2dctog] 3 times (6)

Seal up & fasten off, leaving a tail for it to be sewn on to the body.

Ears – make 2 using main owl colour.

Rnd 1: Make a mr, 1ch then 4dc into the ring. Pull the tail tight to close the ring. (4)

Rnd 2: [2dc into next st.] 4 times. (8)

Rnd 3 & 4: 1dc in each stitch. (8)

Rnd 5: [2dc, dc2tog.] twice. (6)

Rnd 6: 1dc in each stitch and fasten off. (6)

Body – make 1 using main owl colour

Rnd 1: Make a mr, 1ch then 6dc into the ring. Pull the tail tight to close the ring. (6)

Rnd 2: [2dc into next st.] 6 times. (12)

Rnd 3: [1dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (18)

Rnd 4: 1dc in each stitch. (18)

Rnd 5: [2dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (24)

Rnd 6: [3dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (30)

Rnd 7: [4dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (36)

Rnd 8: [5dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (42)

Rnd 9: [6dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (48)

Rnd 10: [7dc, 2dc into next st] 6 times. (54)

Rnds 11– 12: 1dc in each st. (54)

Rnd 13: [7dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (48)

Rnds 14 – 15: 1dc in each st. (48)

Rnd 16 [6dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (42)

Rnd 17: 1dc in each st. (42)

Rnd 18: [5dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (36)

Rnd 19: 1dc in each st. (36)

Rnd 20: [4dc, 2dctog] 6 times (30)

Rnd 21: 1dc in each st. (30)

Rnd 22: [3dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (24)

Rnds 23 – 24: 1dc in each st. (24)

Rnd 25: [2dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (18)

Rnd 26: 1dc in each st. (18)

Rnd 27: [1dc, 2dctog] 6 times. (12)

Rnd 28: 1dc in each st. (12)

Rnd 29: [2dctog] 6 times. (6)

Ss, then fasten off and sew up the hole.

Eye Patch – make 2 using white yarn.

Rnd 1: Make a mr, 1ch (does not count as a st throughout) then 6dc into the ring. Pull the tail tight to close the ring. (6)

Rnd 2: [2dc into next st.] 6 times. (12)

Rnd 3: [1dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (18)

Rnd 4: [2dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times and fasten off. (24)

Place your safety eyes in the middle of each of the eye patches. Make sure you are happy with the position of the eye patch before you add the backs to the eyes. As once they are on… they’re on. Alternatively, create your eyes using some black thread and a darning needle like the picture below.

Wings – make 2 using your main colour.

Rnd 1: Make a mr, 1ch then 6dc into the ring. Pull the tail tight to close the ring. (6)

Rnd 2: [2dc into next st.] 6 times. (12)

Rnd 3: [1dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (18)

Rnd 4 & 5: 1dc in each stitch. (18)

Rnd 6: [2dc, 2dc into next st.] 6 times. (24)

Rnd 5: 1dc in each stitch. (24)

Rnd 6: [2dc, 2dctog] 6 times (18)

Rnd 7: [1dc, 2dctog] 6 times (12)

Rnd 8: 1dc in each stitch. (12)

Rnd 9: [2dc, 2dctog] 3 times. (9)

Rnds 10 – 11: 1dc in each stitch. (9)

Rnds 12: [1dc, 2dctog] 3 times (6)

Rnd 13: [1dc, 2dctog] 2 times (4)

Ss then, fasten off and leave a tail to sew the wings on to the body.

And there you have all your body parts. It’s time now to sew each body parts together using your darning needle. If you need help with how to sew your body parts on, then please use this link to my techniques page.

How to sew up your creations

I start with the head first, then the wings. Followed by the eyes and the ears.

Once you have sewn the eyes on, you need to create the beak. Here’s a simple picture tutorial on how to do this. Insert a long piece of orange/pink thread, knotted at the end. Don’t forget, you always insert it at the back of the head, so the yarn is more secure. (The knot will sit in the stuffing and not be near the front of the head.) Then work in a triangle formation to create the beak & then sew your end through to the back of the head and knot it off, pushing the knot back into the head so it’s secure.

For the eyebrows, use a piece of black thread and as before with a knot at the end work from the back of the head through to where you want the eyebrows to be at the front, then work your way to the back again to secure.

And there you have it. One little Hoot. Don’t forget you can use a variety of different coloured yarns for this pattern. You could even do some stripes around the tummy. Like the one above.

As many of you know, I do not sell my patterns, but ask for a donation, however small, to support one of our incredible charities. For this pattern, I will be supporting the wonderful charity CLDF – Children’s Liver Disease Foundation. This is a charity that is close to the heart of Lisa from For the Love of Yarn and her family and I feel truly honoured that I can help and support the charity in anyway I can. Here is the link to my Just Giving page to support CLDF. A donation, however small, will be very much appreciated by the charity.

Children’s Liver DiseaseFoundation – Just Giving Page

Care
When washing, ensure you follow the instructions on the label of the yarn you are using & be as gentle as you can.
Reshape where applicable.

All you need to do now, is give it to a loved one to snuggle up with. Don’t forget to share any pics with us on the good old fashioned net.

Well I really hope you have enjoyed this pattern. As usual, any questions or queries just give me a shout.

Happy hooking!

🌈Xx

(Don’t forget that this pattern is brought to you from PipsRainbow, it has not been tech edited, but all attempts have been made to ensure it is correct and easy to follow. It is only to be used for personnel use only and not to be shared or used to create items for profit. Thank you.)