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Back to School Pattern Roundup

Screenshot_20200810-133121_Instagram

Friends!! It is roundup time!!🍎
Crochet Wizzard has collected 10 amazing patterns in a Back to School Roundup, from 10 amazing designers!! Go check out these amazing patterns! They are perfect for those going back to school and for the wonderful teachers in your life!

These wonderful designers are all on Instagram:
🍎 @graceandyarn5
🍎 @bluestarcrochet
🍎 @myfingersfly
🍎 @garnknuten
🍎 @needleklankers
🍎 @hookedonpatterns
🍎 @sunflower.cottage.crochet.too
🍎 @hookedbykati
🍎 @thenicolechase
🍎 @crochetwizzard

Half Price Patterns August 10-16

Please visit my Etsy shop to see this week’s specials:

All patterns are half price through August 16, 2020. No coupon code required.

New Pattern Release

Today I released a Halloween Baby Rattle Crochet Pattern. It’s super cute for baby’s first Halloween, and it only takes a little bit of yarn. You may even have enough already in your stash! More Halloween patterns will be released every week during August.

halloween rattle edit

Don’t forget about the Gnome Election 2020 competition. Check out last week’s blog to see the details.

Stay safe, stay cool, and happy crocheting!

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Election 2020

political gnomes

Since we are three months away from Election Day, I thought I would try something different this month. My newest designs are gnomes of the two major U.S. political parties. Based on the number of downloads of these two patterns over the next three months, I will make a prediction for the Presidential election on November 2.

The designs are easy to crochet using worsted weight yarn – a Republican Elephant Gnome and a Democrat Donkey Gnome. Each design gives instructions for vertical stripes and horizontal stripes on the hat.

Republican Gnome                                                  Democrat Gnome

The patterns are also available at Ravelry and My Fingers Fly, along with Kindle on Amazon. Show your support for your political party by crocheting the corresponding gnome. Make a few for friends. Please post photos of your gnomes to Instagram. I would love to see your finished gnomes!

August Sales

This week’s 50% specials on Etsy based on the National Day Calendar:

August 2              International Beer Day          Beer Mug Hat Crochet Pattern

Beer Mug Socks Addi Pattern

August 3              National Georgia Day             Peachy Queen Amigurumi Crochet Pattern

(Free pattern on blog)

August 4              National Coast Guard Day      Coastal Military Baby Sweater Crochet Pattern

August 2-8          National Clown Week               Clown Eyeglass Holder Crochet Pattern

Clown Eyeglass Holder Addi King Pattern

August                Natl Back to School Month       School Bus Hoodie Crochet Pattern

New Releases

In addition to the political party gnomes, the Halloween Gnome Crochet Pattern is now available. This little cutie is so much fun to make – use your own color scheme and embellishments to make this a truly unique item for your Halloween decor. As always, I would love to see your gnomes on Instagram.

gnome halloween spider

Coming Attractions

Stay tuned for more great Halloween patterns coming in August and a Halloween Crochet Pattern Ebook to be published in early September. More half price sales for the month of August will include Bowling Day, Aviation Day, Dog Day, and many more.

In the meantime, try to stay cool, stay safe, and happy crocheting!

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Benjamin Turtle Nap Buddy CAL Part 2

Good morning everyone! We had a cool front come in this week with gorgeous morning temps. It will be a hot one in the afternoon, but I’ve been enjoying my morning coffee on the patio enjoying the 70-degree weather.

Benjamin is proving to be as popular with crocheters as I had hoped – he’s just so cute! Please share your color combinations on Instagram or Facebook. This week we’ll be making the African flower motifs for his shell and putting them together. Next week will be making the turtle head and bottom flap, then attaching the blanket to the turtle shell.

Part 1 is available at Benjamin Turtle Nap Buddy CAL.

Part 3 is available at Benjamin Turtle CAL Part 3

Free Turtle Jewelry Pattern

Turtle Directions

African Flower (Make 10):

Rnd 1: With Sungold yarn, Magic Ring (MR), ch 3 (counts as dc), dc, ch 1, *2 dc, ch 1,* repeat 4 times, join with sl st in top of beg ch-3. Fasten off Sungold.

Rnd 2: Attach Mild Green yarn in any ch-1 sp, ch 3 (counts as dc), dc, ch 1, 2 dc in same sp, (2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc) in next 5 ch-1 sps. Join with sl st in top of beg ch-3.

Rnd 3: Sl st into ch-1 sp, ch 3 (counts as dc), 6 dc in same ch-1 sp, 7 dc in remaining 5 ch-1 sps. Join with sl st in top of beg ch-3. Fasten off Mild Green.

Rnd 4: Attach Toasted Almond yarn at first dc of any 7-dc group, ch 1, *sc in each of 7 dc across top of shell, sc in sp between shells two rows below in Rnd 2,* repeat 5 times. Join with sl st in top of first sc. Fasten off Toasted Almond yarn.

Rnd 5: Attach Dark Olive Yarn, ch 1 (does not count as st), *hdc in each of 8 sc across side of hexagon, ch 1,* repeat 5 times. Join with sl st in top of first hdc. Fasten off Dark Olive Yarn. Block squares and sew together in the following configuration.

turtle assembly

Each side of the hexagon is 8 hdc with a ch at each end. Sew these sts together. On the hexagons that form the outer edge (as indicated in photo below by arrows), continue this seam for an additional 4 sts.

turtle hexagon arrows

Edging:

Rnd 1: Attach Dark Olive yarn at any st, ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in next st and each st around. Some hexagons will still have ch-1 sps. Skip these. At seam, work dc dec across both sides of seam. Join with sl st in top of ch-3. Fasten off Dark Olive.

Rnd 2: Attach Sungold yarn, ch 1, sc in same st, *sk 2 sts, 6 dc in next st, sk 2 sts, sc in next st,* repeat around. It may be necessary to manipulate the skipped sts towards the end of the rnd in order to finish with a shell st rather than a sc. Join with sl st in first sc. Fasten off Sungold.

Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions on this pattern. The pattern PDF is available at My Fingers Fly. If you prefer Ravelry, turtles are the featured animal on June 13 – Benjamin Turtle. Each day in June, a different animal pattern is half price.

Rainbow Nap Buddy

Bunny Nap Buddy Crochet Pattern

More Turtle Patterns

World Oceans Day – 4 Free Turtle Patterns

Free Turtle Earrings Pattern

Turtle Christmas Ornament

June2020calendar

National Zoo & Aquarium Month 2021 Blog Hop

Last year I published an Elephant Crochet Pattern ebook, but I just wasn’t satisfied with the amount of patterns, so I added a few more patterns. The ebook PDF is now available on Etsy and My Fingers Fly. Kindle and paperback versions are also available on Amazon. ElephantBookCover

Miles the Jazzy Elephant was so much fun to make; I hope you’ll enjoy him too. Elephant patterns are also available separately on Ravelry, Etsy, Lovecrafts, and My Fingers Fly. Also included in the book is an Elephant Ear Saver Crochet Pattern (free on the blog).

Miles and Benjamin will both be included in my next book, A to Z Animal Crochet. Animal patterns are so much fun!

I still have a few 2020 Crochet Calendars left – just pay shipping. Even though the year is almost half gone, the 12 kitchen crochet patterns can be used forever.

Stay safe and happy crocheting!

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Elephant Ear Saver Crochet Pattern

elephant ear saver

With so many of us wearing face masks when we venture out of our homes, people are beginning to realize how truly uncomfortable they are. Many people are making ear savers (also called mask mates) by crocheting, sewing, and even 3D printing plastic ones. Since I have had elephants on the brain lately, I made this cute little buddy to wear for my next grocery trip.

Materials:

  • ½ oz. cotton worsted yarn
  • Size G (4.0 mm) crochet hook
  • Yarn needle
  • 2 googly eyes (sew-on preferred)
  • Two 1” buttons
  • Adhesive-backed felt

Directions:

Row 1: Ch 13, sc in 2nd ch from hook and each ch across (12 hdc).

Rows 2-4: Ch 1, turn, sc in each st. Ch 5 at the end of Row 4.

Row 5: Sc in 2nd ch, sc in next 3 ch, sc in next 12 sts, work 4 chainless foundation sc (20 sc).

Rows 6-7: Ch 1, turn, sc in each st.

Row 8: Ch 1, turn, sl st in first 6 sts, sc in next 8 sts, leave remaining 6 sts unworked.

Rows 9-11: Ch 1, turn, sc in each st.

Rows 12-13: Ch 1, turn, dec, sc across to last 2 sts, dec (6 sc at end of Row 13).

Row 14: Dec both ends (4 sc).

Row 15: Dec twice across top of head, then turn to work one rnd of sc around the entire piece with 2 sc in each corner. Join with sl st in first sc. Fasten off.

Trunk:

Rnd 1: Ch 2 (or magic circle), 6 sc in 2nd ch.

Rnds 2-5: Sc in each st. Work in continuous rnds throughout. At end of Rnd 5, join with sl st. Fasten off. Sew trunk to middle of face.

Ears (Make 2):

Row 1: Ch 2, 4 sc in 2nd ch from hook.

Row 2: Ch 1, turn, 2 sc in each st (8 hdc).

Row 3: Ch 1, turn, *2 sc in next st, sc in next st,* repeat 3 times (12 hdc).

Fold top of ear down to Row 1 (center) and sew in place. Sew top half of one ear to each side of head, leaving bottom half dangling.

Place elephant on felt and mark around the edges. Cut out felt shape slightly smaller than the marked line. Stick felt to back of elephant, trimming edges as needed to fit.

Sew or glue on eyes. Sew buttons to ends of arms. Weave in all ends.

PDF download available at My Fingers Fly.

Face Masks

Elephant Crochet Patterns

Zoo Blog Hop Day 25 – Elephants

Stash Busters – Elephant Puppet

Elephant Lovey C2C Pattern

World Elephant Day

For more elephant crochet patterns, including my latest release, please visit My Fingers Fly.

Miles the Jazzy Elephant

miles elephant5

So many crafters have been sewing masks in an attempt to keep up with the demand. If you’ve neglected yourself while sewing for others, here’s a cute yarnicorn neck gaiter for you. Yarnicorn Neck Gaiter 

yarnicorn neck gaiter

With Mother’s Day coming up, the Yarnicorn is also available on t-shirts, coffee mugs, totes, and phone cases to delight your fiber artist mother.

Please stay safe, especially with some communities beginning to open businesses. Of course, we’re all excited at the prospect of yarn shops opening again! Take care.

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Black Cat Door Hanger Tutorial – Fox Christmas Ornament

Fox ornament crochet pattern

A cool front blew in last night, so it finally feels like Halloween. I miss the Halloweens when the kids were young, and I spent most of October sewing costumes for them. I think my favorite was the Jack Sparrow costume.

DCF 1.0

As a treat for you this year, I made a tutorial on YouTube for a black cat door hanger on the Addi knitting machine. It’s quick and easy to make and looks so cute hanging on the front door.

Black Cat Door Hanger

More Halloween patterns are available at My Fingers Fly  including the Frankenstein Eyeglass Holder for Frankenstein Friday.

Frankenstein eyeglass holder
Frankenstein Eyeglass Holder

Fox Christmas Tree Ornament

The cooler weather also gets me in a Christmas mood, so I have been working on ornaments for my tree. It may be too early for some people, but crafters know that it’s never too early to start making Christmas items.

Fox ornament crochet pattern

Materials:

Worsted weight yarn – a few yards of light (CC) and dark (MC)

Crochet hook size G (4.00 mm)

Yarn needle

Black pompom

2 google eyes

Ribbon or cord.

Directions:

Rnd 1: With CC yarn, ch 2 (or magic circle), 4 sc in 2nd ch from hook. Do not join.

Rnd 2: 2 sc in each st (8 sc).

Rnd 3: *Sc in next st, 2 sc in next st,* repeat around (12 sc).

Rnd 4: *Sc in next 2 sts, 2 sc in next st,* repeat around (16 sc).

Rnd 5: *Sc in next 3 sts, 2 sc in next st,* repeat around (20 sc). Fasten off CC.

Rnd 6: With MC yarn, *sc in next 4 sts, 2 sc in next st,* repeat around (24 sc).

Rnds 7-11: Sc in each st.

Rnd 12: Sk 12 sts, sc in 12 sts.

Rnd 13: *Dec, sc in next 4 sts* twice (10 sc).

Rnd 14: *Dec, sc in next 3 sts* twice (8 sc).

Rnd 15: Dec 4 times (4 sc). Fasten off with 4” length. Pull sts tight to close.

Go back to unworked sts of Rnd 11. Sc in each st. Repeat Rnds 12-15.

Glue on eyes and pompom nose. Cut a piece of cord or ribbon about 15” long. Pull through a stitch at the top of the back of the fox and make a knot.

Zoo Blog Hop Day 29 – Fox

More Christmas Ideas

Advent Calendar Christmas Ornaments Crochet Pattern Ebook

Melted Snowman Ornament

Christmas Goody Bags Crochet Pattern ebook

Crown Ornament

Roller Skate Christmas Stocking

Free “Handmade with Love” Gift Tags

 

Halloween/Dias de los Muertos

There’s still time to make some cool sugar skull items. Paperback and Kindle versions of Sugar Skull Crochet Patterns is available at Sugar Skull Crochet Patterns.

Mock up.jpg

 

More Halloween patterns

halloween patterns

 

Halloween Pattern Roundup

 

 

More Cat Patterns

National Hug Your Cat Day – 8 Free Cat Crochet Patterns

Addi Fat Cat Pattern