Free Crochet Patterns from the School "Mini-Mall"

If kids were crochet designers....we'd just plain have different designs for kids!
Bob the Toy Tester put on his Toy Developer hat last week. He needed to make products for his classmates to buy with class dollars at his school's "Mini-Mall" event.

This is Bob's second Mini-Mall and he was anxious to create something that would thrill enough kids to bring about bidding wars. He had also seen other "vendors" be successful with raffles (he calls them "rambles"), so he needed a special item to feature.

He decided that a '70's hippie theme would have wide appeal. For him this means rainbow colors with beads and peace signs. The key specific items for him were headbands and peace sign necklaces. I came up with simple, speedy designs which were officially tested and approved by Bob.

The next step was Toy Production. Bob could prep the materials for mass production but by the time we knew what the products would be, I had to make them myself quickly. I was able to make roughly:

10 headbands
1 peace sign necklace
2 hemp bracelets for certain teachers
10 diamond "Bow-Tie" rings (an idea we had before the '70's hippie theme)

Sales Figures:
100% SOLD OUT.
Under what sounds like extreme peer pressure, Bob took orders for more.

Sales Trends:
Any obvious crowd pleasers? He could have sold 3 times more headbands, and the peace sign necklace was a clear sales incentive.

Bob's instincts for what kids will want most were better than mine! I humbly offer it as a free crochet pattern:

Children's Choice '70's Hippie Headband

I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook
Any cheerfully rainbow-colored and soft medium-weight yarn (I used Universal Yarn's Reef: A slightly stretchy, chenille-like novelty yarn made of 31% Polyamide, 44% Acrylic, 25% Wool.)
2 medium-sized wood beads

1. Chain 12.
2. Insert hook in second chain from your hook, yarn over and pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through one loop (1 chain made; place marker in this stitch, or pinch it with your fingers). Yarn over, pull through both loops on hook (1 single crochet made). *Insert hook in marked (or pinched) chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (2nd single crochet made).
3. Repeat from * 43 times (or to fit a child's head comfortably).
4. Join headband into a ring without twisting: slip stitch in first single crochet and chain at the base of it. Then chain 7 and fasten off.
5. Slide a bead onto each yarn tail, knot bead in place, and trim tail close to bead.

As promised on my DesigningVashti blog, here is the Hippie Hemp Teacher's Bracelet.

Crocheted '70's Hemp Teacher's Bracelet

1 ball of craft hemp cord available at Wal-Mart or craft stores
I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook (aluminum is better with hemp)
6 small Jesse James Company's Dress It Up "Tiny Collection Retro" buttons
1 larger flower button (same brand) for clasp
2 small wood beads (optional)

1. String the 6 small buttons onto the hemp and then string on the larger button.
2. Chain 1. Slide up the larger button close to hook and chain 1 so that the button is locked into the stitch.
3. Insert hook in 1st chain made, yarn over, pull up a loop. Yarn over, pull through 1 loop on hook (1 chain made; place marker in this stitch or pinch it with fingers), yarn over, pull through both loops on hook (1 single crochet made).
4. *Insert hook in marked (or pinched) chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (2nd single crochet made).
5. Repeat from * once.
6. Insert hook in next marked chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, slide up a smaller button close to stitch, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (beaded single crochet made).
7. Alternate #5 and #6 until all buttons are used. Then repeat #5 twice.
8. Chain 3, double crochet in last marked stitch, turn, slip stitch in the chain space you just created. This is the buttonhole. Fasten off.
   
9. String a small wood bead onto each yarn tail, knot end to secure bead, clip yarn close to bead.

Holiday Frolic with Jelly Yarn: Free Pattern!

Silly me, after using Jelly Yarn to make some personalized bungee bookmark gifts for my son to take to school (see pattern below), I rather foolishly left it sitting out on the day that he had two friends sleep over. That's right, 3 grade school boys in a room with 1 ball of Jelly Yarn and a tempting pair of scissors. Everything and everyone got wrapped and tied. You could try counting all of the cut ends in the photo but you'd miss some :-)

I'd say there's less than a half of a skein left. Note to self: if providing Jelly Yarn as a party favor, allow 1 skein for every 3-4 kids.

Ready for the....Happy Holidays 2008 Free Pattern? This pattern is very simple and easy and requires only the most basic crochet skills. Full copyright held by Vashti Braha; for personal use only, please share the link to this pattern, not the pattern itself. Thank you.

Book Bling Bungee

Supplies Needed:

• 5mm/H/US8 aluminum crochet hook
• Jelly Yarn, fine weight: small amount
• Some bling (I found these giant acrylic 'crystals' in a holiday display at Michaels)
• 2"x2" (approx.) scrap of Foamies (foam rubber sheet-also at Michaels); I cut mine into a tree ornament shape and punched a hole in the top.
• Hand lotion, small amount (for hook)

1. Don't use hand lotion yet. String bling onto Jelly Yarn ("JY"). Make a very tight slip knot with a loop to fit over your hook. Chain 3.
2. Don't use hand lotion yet. Pull up one bling bead close to hook, chain: this is a beaded chain stitch. Repeat for the rest of your strung bling. You can use hand lotion now.
3. Insert hook into hole that you punched into your foam piece, pull JY strand through, chain 1.
4. Chain about 54--it depends on how tightly you chain and the size of your book. Finished bungee will stretch.
5. Stop using hand lotion (so that your fastening off will stay tight.) Slip stitch into each of first 3 chain stitches to form a ring, slip stitch into the next 2 beaded chains, chain 1, fasten off as tightly as possible. Hide ends behind bling. Write something on foam piece with magic marker if desired.

Peacocks Visit Their Ancestral Home

This is fresh stuff today. The toydesigningblog lives! Soon after this entry I'll be posting a free crochet toy pattern, so stay tuned. I have a lot of designs that I need to start publishing, some for free and some as instant pdf downloads via Paypal, yay!

I appreciate the diehard faithful readers of this blog; some of you may recall when I blogged here about a peacock nest that hatched in our back yard. The peacocks have been roaming the neighborhood since, and they do visit occasionally. This morning I looked out my back window and this is what I saw. Can you find all 7?

The original mottled white babies are all grown up now! Unless they're males; in that case, their tail feathers have not come in yet; but it looks to me like the white ones are females. The 3rd white one that was born here could have been a male and therefore might have been stolen.

2007 saw new color combinations in other peacocks too; a few have some striking black mixed with the trademark peacock-blue and iridescent greens. Really stunning. Inspires me to design jewelry, actually....

Meet Togepi, the Crocheted Christmas Pokemon

!!This is a BIG HIT with Toy Tester Bob and friends!!

I finished it in time for Christmas and frankly, at first I wasn't sure I would. The pattern was in all Japanese. The diagrams are fantastic though and after a few false starts, the rest fell into place quickly. For example, the diagram that I thought was for the head was actually for the bottom. I should have realized that the diagrams are color-coded, so since the head is yellow, so is the diagram. The feet and crown points are not perfect spheres and that threw me off at first, but there is no better way to explain it than the diagrams that were given.
The yarn is Bernat Cottontots because that's what I have in pale yellow and white. (Classic amigurumi is made with worsted-wt acrylic but I think I like Cottontots yarn better for this.)
Was unable to get felt pieces in the right shades of red and blue, and I have a thing for fabric paint anyway, so I went my own way and used it for the details. In the third photo it is freshly applied and very wet. It dried well as you can see in the first pic.
I actually prefer the fabric paint for the surface decorations--it has a durable and shiny-rich surface, but I wish I had embroidered the face so that I could've ripped it out until it was exactly perfect.

Pokemon Commemorative Lanyard

This custom Nintendo accessory, which commemorates game earnings in Pokemon Pearl, Diamond, and Emerald, has been thoroughly tested and approved by Toy Tester Bob.

Meanwhile, I used it to explore some crochet jewelry-making moves--mixing chaining and braiding and different kinds of beads and closures.

The prized Squirtle bead dates from the early days of my son's infatuation with Pokemon; he was about 4 years old and I don't remember what kind of toy it was a part of.

Shaun the Sheep: Yarn Saves the Day

I'm such a fan of Shaun the Sheep that my son looks at me funny. He'd probably pat my head if he could reach! Shaun the Sheep is created by the Wallace and Gromit folks. I discovered them way back when my son was captivated by claymation. This is 21st century claymation, friends!

I looked all over for a legal video clip or photo still of the Shaun the Sheep episode called "Timmy in a Tizzy". The whole episode is great and I love how a ball of yarn saves the day! Above is Timmy, the youngest of the flock.

The website has preview clips, games, activities, and other downloads. Play Woolly Jumper! It's not as easy as it looks!

First Baby Cardi I Ever Made

I just found this cardi, it had been packed away. I crocheted it while newly pregnant and back then I was in the dark as to whether I was pregnant with "Bob" or with "Olivia Genevieve". I wanted to get started so I looked in my stash for 3 yarns that might work ok. One is Peachesn'Cream cotton, one is Sugarn'Cream cotton, and one is a fancy expensive silk and rayon of which I had a single skimpy-skein. The pink yarn is supposed to be peach, and I figured that if I had a boy, peach with brown shades and real leather buttons would work fine; I like peach more than mint green.

In the photo, "Bob" is ONE DAY old. I was in heaven just resting in the garden with him. It was April and those are red banana stalks behind me.