I’m on the hunt! For Christmas gift patterns, that is. My mother-in-law has always been my top priority for Christmas shopping because she does so much for us throughout the year and i try to take every chance I can to show her how much we appreciate it. So, when I saw this Queen Anne Lace Scarf pattern I knew it was perfect for her.
My first adventure into the pattern happened when I first found it about a month ago. I had a ball of a super chunky, earthy, rainbow color yarn I found at Goodwill. After perusing Ravelry for the better part of an entire evening (no joke, must have been up until 3 am with a snoring man on one side and a snoozing baby on the other) I found this little nugget. It worked up decently but between the hook size I was using and the intricacies of the pattern, my small ball of yarn was quickly devoured. By the time it was tied off the whole project was only long enough to be a baby cowl. So, of course, I seamed it up and ‘made it so!
Isn’t it darling?
Having tucked a bit of experience with the pattern under my belt I carried on… Until!
I scored these lovelies on another Goodwill run. I kid you not, they still smelled like a craft store. They were almost brand stinkin’ new! The tags one the squishy pastel yellow and pink ones says $5 a piece and I saw a partial tag on the blue ones (100% wool by the way!) that said $6 (There were 3. I’d just already gone through one by the time I snapped this). So $33 worth of yarn for $2.99. Yeah, I was thrilled!
After only a day of contemplating I knew what the soft blue wool was meant to be! Queen Anne Lace for My mother-in-law of course. I started working that evening with my trusty H hook. Mama’s favorite. But woe was me! After 4 or 5 motifs I realized my dang stiff hands kept my gauge much too tight for that hook and pattern combo. Thus began the agonizing task of pulling a part what I’d done thus far to salvage any yarn I could. Which, if you’ve ever done that with wool, you know, is hard! 100 or so tangles and knots later the strand finally broke on me. I have saved all I was going to and it was time to cast on with a new hook. I pulled out my I hook and was off again.
To the right is my “H” hook attempt. On the left is my “I” hook,
Between baby L, work, and keeping food in everyone’s bellies I didn’t get to work on the scarf much but when I did it was always a joy. The whole thing only took a total of about 4 hours. I think the finished project speak for it self.
My favorite thing about this pattern? It’s fun! If you’re an easily distracted ‘hooker’ (like me!) you’ll enjoy this one. I sometimes can’t handle big projects with rows and rows of one stitch. With this pattern the motif works up quickly and with ease and utilizes different stitches and elements like turns and chains. Much more interesting.
Do you have any extra special people om your list (Besides your kids and spouse of course)? Will you be crocheting them a gift? I’d love to hear about or see your creations!
Crunchy Crochet 