Firewheel Meadow Wall Hanging
Whatever you call them—Indian Blanket, Gaillardia, or Firewheel—these colorful, happy flowers are a joy to behold. We had them in our front yard for years, and oh, how I loved to come home to their bright greeting.
Figuring it was time to make a firewheel wall hanging, I crocheted dozens of them using the pattern on pp. 83-84 of Crochet Bouquet: Easy Designs for Dozens of Flowers. The flowers are made in two layers and then sewn together.
The project stalled for a while, and during that time, I had occasion to drive around Texas. I noticed the roadside Firewheels had very dark centers. My memory said that the tiny yellow flowerlets of Firewheels bloom around the edge of the flower center. But not quite! They bloom from the edge of the center toward the center of the center, darkening to a rusty red as they bloom out.
As you zoom along the highway, you mostly see the yellow on the edges of the outside petals going to a much darker red center. No orange streaks. Not many yellow dots around the center. Luckily I hadn’t embroidered many yellow dots. But all my flowers were sewn with orange yarn. I would have to change them.
For the firewheel meadow, I wanted a strong green for the foreground, bright greens for the middle ground to give the impression of sunlight, and grayed greens for the far distance. Here are my three piles of green. This is why one needs a stash, or as I prefer to call it, a yarn collection.
My trusty Ultimate Sweater Machine knits my wall hanging backgrounds very fast. This is good, because they are often large! In this photo, I’ve already finished the blue sky, and am in the process of making the green meadow. Since I use lots of yarns, I change yarn every one or two rows. This is easy on an Ultimate Sweater Machine.
Since I cut up and sew the knitting to make my wall hangings, I stabilize the knitted fabric with fusible interfacing. This takes a while, but the interfacing stops the cut knitting from unraveling and it keeps it stable for sewing. To much handling will eventually mess up the edges of the cut knitting. I aim to sew before that becomes a problem.
I use a quilting technique called ‘foundation piecing’ to make a quilt top from my knitted fabric. The foundation is a piece of fabric, which will be part of the finished product, but you won’t be able to see it. I use fabrics that I know I will never use for anything else.
On the left side of this photo, you can see the cut pieces of sky pinned to the foundation fabric. To the right, the pieces are already sewn—using a zigzag stitch, I catch the edges of two patches, which sews them together and attaches them to the foundation underneath.
This wall hanging is fairly large, so I pieced and sewed it in four sections.
Yay! I finished piecing and sewing the wall hanging! I love the part where I get to arrange embellishments. Our dog, Finn, kept an eye on me as I placed the largest flowers in the foreground, medium sized flowers in the middle ground, and small flowers in the distance.
This was a pre-arrangement. Before I could finalize the placement of flowers, I still had to quilt and bind the wall hanging. I wanted to get a feel for how it would look. Would I need to add anything to the quilt top before quilting? I took pictures to help me remember this arrangement.
Wait, wait! Let me try out the buttons I had picked out for this piece! Yes, I felt the dark buttons added contrast and made the flowers look more like the real thing. One more photo, and then I gathered up flowers and buttons in preparation for the next steps: quilting and binding.
Decorate Your Crocheted Cozy Home
Time to customize our Cozy Home! Page 136 of Cute Crochet World gives instructions for all kinds of add-ons: gable vent, window boxes, shrubbery, lintels, and chimney. The first three are crocheted separately and sewn on.
Lintels can be embroidered or crocheted. Here’s how I like to crochet them:
The thread is under the work. Insert hook from the right side of the work to the underside.
On the underside of the house, yarn over hook.
Draw the loop to the right side of the work.
When you have enough stitches, cut the yarn, leaving an end of about 10″/30cm.
Draw the loop completely out so the end of the yarn is on the right side.
Insert the hook from the underside to the right side of the work, in the same space as the yarn end comes out, making sure that your last loop will be caught by the yarn.
Yarn over with yarn end, and pull through to the underside of the work, catching the last loop as you go, so that it can’t come unraveled.
Now you can use that long yarn end to crochet the rest of the lintels—fewer yarn ends to weave in! Yay!
Embroider flowers and leaves or use beads to represent them. I like French knots for flowers and straight stitches for leaves.
Welcome to your new Cozy Home!
Taos Wool Festival Workshops in October
The Taos Wool Festival is always the first full weekend of October, with workshops starting a couple of days ahead. This is a great time to be in the mountains of New Mexico. The autumn colors and crisp weather are just wonderful.
This year I’m offering three classes at Taos:
Polymer Clay Button Boutique, all day Friday, October 3. You’ll go home with lots of colorful, pretty buttons, ready to use. They’re machine washable and dryable.
Knit Mosaic Patterns and Design Your Own, Saturday afternoon, October 4. After this class, you will be able to knit any of Barbara Walker’s many mosaic patterns, and you can design your own! This mosaic cactus motif is one of my earliest original mosaic designs. I still like it a lot!
Cables, Bobbles, and Braids, Sunday morning, October 5. You’ll learn how to do these stunning knitting techniques, but more importantly, you’ll develop a deeper understanding of these textural wonders. You’ll go away ready to twist and shout!
Please sign up for classes before September 1, 2014, at taoswoolfestival.org/workshops.
Step-by-Step Cozy Home
I’ve always been a very home-oriented person. The day I started working from home, in 1993 I think, was a great day. December 19, 2013 was another wonderful day—we moved into our earthen home, much of it built by me with the help of friends and family. Would you be surprised to learn that “Cozy Home” is one of my favorite designs in Cute Crochet World?
Luckily “Cozy Home” won’t take you as long to build as our earthen house did. To help you along, here’s a step-by-step photo-tutorial for “Cozy Home.” Written instructions are on pages 133-136 of Cute Crochet World.
This is the beginning of the Walls, Row 3. Remember that the ch-2 turning chain at the beginning of a row counts as a stitch. It is the stitch that corresponds to the “first stitch” in the photo. The pattern asks you to hdc in the next 3 sts, so you will place your first of the three hdc sts in the “next stitch” indicated in the photo.
The yellow dots show where to place the stitches of Row 4.
On Row 5, you chain to make the other side of the door opening. The chain includes enough stitches to turn and begin Row 6.
A Front Post hdc (FPhdc) of Row 8 in progress here. Look for the yo for the hdc (this is the second loop from the right on the hook). The hook is inserted from the front of the work around the post of the next stitch and is coming out the front of the work again. Finally, there’s a yo which will be drawn up.
That final yo from the last photo is drawn up here and we have 3 loops on the hook. To finish the hdc, yo and draw through all loops on hook.
This is the very beginning of Row 9. On this side you can see how the FPhdcs of Row 8 formed the “corner” of the house.
The window rows are created with dc sts and ch-spaces. This shows the hook at the very beginning of Row 11.
After Row 15, you’ll work an outline of sl sts around the other three sides of the house. Along the bottom edge of the house, sl st 12 to the “corner” formed by Row 8, then sl st 3 to the door opening, chain 4 to go across the door opening, and sl st 3 to the next corner.
The hook is positioned to sl st up the side of the house, into the free loops of the foundation chain.
Now I’m ready to sl st across the top of the house (top left of page 135). The instructions call for a marker at this corner. I forgot to use a marker, but it will definitely help you find the stitch later when you add the gable and the roof edge.
The walls are finished! Now it’s time for the gable end (the triangular piece between the roof and top of the house wall).
.
For the picot gable end, turn to page 136. Counting the base of each picot and the ch-sts between the picots, you have 11 stitches, which is exactly how many sl sts you have along the top of the section above the door.
To join the picot trim to the top of the wall, insert hook into the base of the picot and into the BL of the first sl st along the top of the house. Finish the stitch as instructed. For the next stitch, insert the hook into the next ch of the picot trim and the next sl st along the top of the house, and finish stitch as instructed.
The roof begins with a chain, which is attached by inserting hook into the chain and into the next sl st along the top of the roof.
Here’s the first row of the roof, finished. You will be increasing and decreasing on each row to shape the roof.
The finished roof looks like this.
The Roof Edge (instructions lower right on page 135), finishes the other side of the gable and joins to the tip of the roof. Use the yarn ends to sew the roof and gable edges together.
Remember the long chain you made in Row 5? You have already crocheted into this chain to make the house walls. To make the door, sc into the free loops of this chain, as directed on page 136, “Door.” Begin the row with an sc, which means to place a slip-knot or loop onto your hook, draw up a loop in the appropriate stitch, as shown in the photo. To finish the sc, yo and draw through both loops on hook.
Here’s Door Row 1, almost finished. In the next post, we’ll do some features to make the house a home.
Textile Collecting, Andean Hats
My lovely model, Ella, was almost four years old when I posted pictures of her in our Andean hats in December 2006. Now she’s eleven and a half and too big to wear those hats.
The hats are too amazing and the little girl too cute to leave the remaining photos in my unposted file. Here they are—a tribute to the skill of those knitters of the Andes.
Words are knitted into this hat!
TextileFusion Again!
Finally, finally, I’m making another TextileFusion wall hanging. It will have a narrow band of blue sky and lots of green for the base. After it’s quilted, I’m going to applique Firewheels all over it.
The Firewheel is a two-layer flower project from Crochet Bouquet. In real life, Firewheels are among my favorite Texas wildflowers. They are also known as Gaillardia or Indian Blanket.
In this photo, I hope you can see the patches of darker green toward the bottom, which are already sewn to the foundation fabric. I’m patching in the bright green, where you may be able to see my pins holding the patches in place.
It all has to be finished by October 1st, because the wall hanging will be in the Threads of Texas Quilt Show in Stephenville, TX, October 3-4, 2014.
Speaking of TextileFusion projects, the October 2014 issue of KNITstyle magazine features an article about my knitted, quilted, and embellished wallhangings, with lots of pictures. Daryl Brower wrote a very nice piece about me and my work. Thanks to her and to editor Cari Clement, who suggested the article.
Step-by-Step Frost Flower
The Frost Flower on pages 112-113 of Crochet Garden doubles as a snowflake if you crochet it all in white. The pattern is pretty straightforward, but a few pictures will help you visualize it. Look for a Frost Flower table mat project here.
Round 1 of the Frost Flower sets up the six petals. The large loop will be completely covered by the stitches of the next round.
Round 2 includes clusters of hdc, dc, and tr. Note that the instructions for the clusters (“Special Abbreviations” on page 113) include a ch-st to close the cluster. So when the pattern says “2 dc-CL, ch 3,” you make the dc-cluster, ch 1 to close it, and ch 3.
Why did I write it that way? I don’t know. It must have seemed correct at the time.
I crocheted Round 3 in light blue yarn, so you could see it better. The bumps are hdc-picots: ch 3, hdc in 3rd ch from hook. If you want the Basic Frost Flower, you’re done after this round!
Now for Round 4, which changes the Basic Frost Flower into a Fancy Flake. First, take a close look at the middle of the flower. The yellow lines in the photo show the small triangles formed by the ch-2s of Round 1 plus the ch 2 between petals of Round 2.
Each petal of Round 4 is worked around one triangle, which comprises
- the ch 2 at the end of a Round 1 petal,
- the ch 2 between petals of Round 2,
- and the ch 2 at the beginning of a Round 1 petal.
To begin Round 4, locate the ch 2 at the end of a Round 1 petal. Fold the flower at this point, so you can work around the ch-2. Begin at the centermost edge of the ch-2 and work toward the outside of the flower: with a slip knot on your hook, insert hook under the ch-2, draw up a loop, yo, complete the first sc, sc 1, hdc 1.
Now you’ve finished the first part of the first petal.
The next part of the petal is worked around the ch-2 between petals, which in my flower is white.
Crochet the final part of the petal around the ch-2 at the beginning of the next Round 1 petal. Then go on to the next petal of Round 4. Getting into position to crochet the next petal feels uncomfortably tight, but it will work.
Round 4 is finished, and we have a Fancy Flake.
Here’s the Fancy Flake, seen from the underside. You can see the bottoms of the stitches of Round 4 in six little triangle shapes around the center.
The Search for a New Planet Continues
In the last installment of our #cutecrochetworld story, Rog and Pam were looking for new planet, where they could settle down. Finding the perfect planet was more difficult than they thought.
The perfect planet for crocheted life as we know it must not be too close to the sun (too hot), nor too far away (too cold). This sun is way too close! The planet’s distance from the sun has to be just right.
“Our new home planet can’t be too large, because the gravity would be crushing,” said Rog. “Nor too small, or we might come completely unravelled in the low gravity,” added Pam. Together they said, “What we need is a Goldilocks planet.”
“Here I am!” said this beautiful metallic fish. No, dear fish, not Goldi-LOX!
“Hi Pam and Rog. My name is Goldilocks. I’m not a planet, but I’m an interplanetary real estate agent. I can help you find the perfect new home. I can manage your relocation, from selling your present home, to hiring movers, to making sure your new home is in good working order when you move in.” Pam and Rog said, “Alright!! Please, Goldilocks, plan it!”
Goldilocks previewed dozens of planets before reporting back to Pam and Rog. “I think I’ve found the right planet for you!” she said. “Its size, its distance from the sun, and the size of the sun are all just right! Not only that, it has abundant wool and other fibers, upon which all crochet life depends.”
“Also,” interplanetary real estate agent Goldilocks told Rog and Pam, “this planet is protected from collisions with asteroids and comets, by a larger planet nearby. It is called Cute Spoon Doll World.” Rog and Pam met some folks from Cute Spoon Doll World. They were really nice!
“What’s the name of this Goldilocks planet?” asked Rog and Pam. Their interplanetary real estate agent said, “Cute Crochet World.”
Find instructions for making all these motifs and more in Cute Crochet World: A Little Dictionary of Crochet Critters, Folks, Food and More. Follow Rog and Pam on Instagram @suzannthompson for more frequent updates.
Many thanks to the book Earth Matters, ed. David de Rothschild, for teaching me about Goldilocks planets, among other things. Earth is a Goldilocks planet, too.
Giveaway at Lark Crafts!
Enter for a chance to win a copy of Cute Crochet World and a motif from the book! To enter, visit the Lark Crafts blog, and leave a comment by Friday, July 11, 2014.
The motifs are the Vintage Television, a Martian Costumed Kid, and Gingerbread People. The patterns for all these motifs are in the book.
Good luck!
Knit Upholstered Stool
We loved the skips of England, low-slung dumpsters parked temporarily in front of houses where people were cleaning out or remodeling. We would stroll by, glancing nonchalantly into the skips, looking for interesting furniture or other treasures that were, for the moment, someone else’s trash.
Charles brought home this oaken stool from a skip one day. It needed refinishing and a new top. He stripped and refinished the wood. I provided the upholstery.
The knitting was left over from a piece I made on my Ultimate Sweater Machine. After fusing interfacing to the underside, I machine stitched a grid at about one-inch intervals across the stabilized fabric. Following instructions from a library book, we reupholstered the stool.
That was in the late 1990s, and we’ve been using it ever since!