Addicted to Bead weaving

Gosh, where did the time fly - I've been busy this last month working on a new skill and a new range for my Etsy shop - I am ashamed to admit that I have now truly become addicted to beading - and not just any beading but bead weaving with Swarovski™ Pearls and Crystals.

Being in love with white colour, I have now expanded the shop's range not just to handmade wedding cards but handmade wedding jewelery too. Starting with bead woven bracelets in a range of colours, I have done several necklaces and bracelets.

As soon as I finish one item, I want to start on the next one - and there is so many different designs I want to make, there's just not enough time in the day :) Which of course also means that the housework gets totally neglected and the children are having to learn the art of "self service" in the kitchen whilst mum is happily busy bead weaving...

Handmade with Love, and lots of Swarovski Crystals and Pearls

"I Do" love wedding cards

"I Do" love wedding cards 

For the past couple of weeks I've been making some more cards for my CraftsAdore shop, in between the colouring projects.

I do love white die cut cards, so there's now a range of monochrome cards in my "Wedding Cards" section, featuring Centura Pearl in Snow White with Gold flecks, backed on black cardstock. Many of my cards feature Tonic Studio Affections Dies, which are simply indispensable when creating wedding cards, but I am also partial to glitter, so there is a few cute cards featuring Stamps by Chloe too.

All Glitter - Stamps by Chloe

All Monochrome - Tonic Affections Dies

Home is Where the Heart is

Home is Where the Heart is

Today I'm attempting to do some simple home decor using Tonic Affection Dies. I adore anything heart shaped, so these are my favourite set of dies and I've used them before individually on my cards, but never as a full set on one project. I've been meaning to do it for a while but never had time to do it. It was quite time consuming to die cut all the layers. I used Centura Pearl Snow White with Hint of Gold, plain black card stock (if I had to do it again, I would have chosen some silver mirror card instead to soften the look) and some "bling" hearts, as well as sentiment stamp from Crafter's Companion.

The hearts are layered on foam pads, to give 3-dimensional effect. All three hearts are then glued onto wide ribbon and are now proudly hanging in my corridor, welcoming us back home after a busy day. I'm not sure about all 3 of them being together, as the design is quite "busy" so I may split them to be displayed individually in the future. 

Shhh, don't tell anyone but I love my Spectrum Noir pens

Shhh, don't tell anyone but I love my Spectrum Noir pens

I am still only at the beginning of my crafting journey, but one of the first purchases I have made last year was a full set of Spectrum Noir alcohol marker pens, along with the tutorials DVDs. I have never coloured before in my life, so that was a big leap of faith for me, but Leann Chivers from Crafter's Companion made it sound so easy that I just fell in love with it and had to have them all :).

So here I am, a year or so later, having done quite a few handmade cards using the Spectrum Noir pens, I am starting to feel more confident. However, I never had the courage to actually try to colour in the "Shhh" digi stamp that included on the Crafter's Companion Spectrum Noir tutorial DVD, as it seemed to be a more "ambitious" project.

But I could procrastinate no more, as my daughters kept pestering me to make something for their room. I have more or less followed Leann's instructions, but improvised on the flowers. And of course, as I love a touch of glitter on my cards, I had to add that in too.

The "Shh" picture took several hours to complete, mainly because I printed it in the original large size, with the intention of framing it for display. I am quite pleased with the result, and in spite of few minor glitches, it will go onto the wall in the girls' room.

Shhh, don't tell anyone but I love my Spectrum Noir pens

I can honestly say that I would have not been able to do it without my Spectrum Noir pens (and no, I don't work for Crafter's Companion :)).

Celebrating Michael Jackson in Cross Stitch

I am a life-long Michael Jackson fan, but I don't actually have much of MJ memorabilia on display around the house. However, I recently decided to make something to celebrate his life, and have on permanent display in my craft room.

Since I cannot paint, I decided to cross stitch - this was only my first major cross stitch project, and one tip I can give you if you are a beginner too - cross stitching is quite a slow craft, so choose a subject that you really love to make, as you will be spending a LOT of time cross stitching it before it is actually completed.

Therefore Michael Jackson was a perfect subject for me to learn to cross stitch. I found this pattern free on a website (sorry can't remember where) and armed with a 14 count white Aida, several skeins of black embroidery floss, I was off. I decided to double the "squares" (where each cross stitch covers 4 squares on the Aida) and stitch with all strands of the embroidery floss to make the picture large so it fits a 10"x8" frame.

Celebrating Michael Jackson in Cross Stitch

I am very happy with the result, and my cross stitched Michael Jackson picture now proudly sits on a top shelf in my craft room, looking down on me. Today, on what would have been Michael Jackson's birthday, I'd like to believe that he is looking down peacefully on his fans and smiling with one of his beautifully brilliant smiles. Happy Birthday, MJ!

Scruffy Little Cat Absolutely Adorable Birthday Card

Today I'd like to share my latest birthday card made for one of my daughters.

This one is made using a Scruffy Little Cat "Amy" stamp from Crafters Companion, which I got via Create and Craft TV when it was originally launched, and it is coloured in with Spectrum Noir pens ("Absolutely Adorable" sentiment was on the same stamp). This is only my second attempt at making a card with a Scruffy Little Cat stamp.

Absolutely Adorable Amy Scruffy Little Cat

It is mounted on an embossed Centura Pearl card (both also available from Crafters Companion) and a Spellbinders die cut frame. The finishing touches included Parchment butterfly (embossed with Stamps by Chloe glitter), embossed Parchment quilled flower (again, from Crafters Companion) and a simple organza ribbon bow.

Coloured with Spectrum Noir Pens Birthday Card

The Spectrum Noir Pens used:

Hair: TN2, TN1
Skin: FS2, FS4, FS6
Dress: TB1, TB2
Cupcake, Bag & Bottle PP1, PP2, and IB1

Fimo Clay modeling fun

Today we've been having fun with the kids learning how to do clay modeling.

Mummy, Daddy and Baby Bear

After starting with normal play dough, we moved onto cheap modeling clay from a pound shop.
The results were ok, we've made some Despicable me Minions, frogs and general random stuff, but I like to save kids' crafts (a mother can't just chuck it away, can she?), so we've moved onto polymer clay so it can't be baked in the oven.

I got a few Fimo soft clay kits from a local The Range shop at a bargain price, and off we went. It says it's a "soft clay" but it is still quite hard, if you compare it to some air drying clay, which seems like butter. On a plus side, it makes less mess than play dough so I love it already...

Anyway, we did some flowers, butterflies, love hearts - the usual, and some creations were better than others. We still have a few Fimo soft clay kits left - princesses and fairies, but I feel we need more practice on cheap play dough before we give it a go.

However, one kit I really fell in love with - the family of bears. Out of one kit we managed to make mummy bear, daddy bear and a baby, and still quite a lot of pink and white clay left. They are so cute that I just HAD to share them - and they're even more cuter for the fact that they were made by my 10 year old daughter - she's got a natural gift, I think. I especially love the daddy bear.

Cute first attempt at Clay modeling

I don't think I can match her skills, but I am keen to learn to make more things with Fimo clay - I'm hoping to make some flowers and other simple stuff to go onto cards.  

Loom Bands Craze Summer 2014

Summer 2014 is officially loom bands crazy, and if you can't beat them - join them. I have resisted the craze as long as I could, but in the end, since we're having yet another stay-at-home vacation, I've invested in a several looms and literally thousands of loom bands. But the truth is you only need a couple of forks, and it probably is much easier than using the looms.

The kids are spending hours on YouTube searching for best tutorials, not just bracelets, but 3D mini toys and bag charms  - so far we like OlgaCrafts best, as sometimes talk-free tutorials are the easiest to follow.

At the end of the day, the technique for making loom band bracelets are very similar to loom knitting, so once you've mastered the "hooking over" then you can knit anything. I am partial to flower designs, so I have joined the kids in doing a few starburst bracelets. Making loom band bracelets is surprisingly fun, and highly addictive! Each one took me just over an hour so that's about a day's work here:

Starburst Loom Bracelet

Hmm, which colour should I wear today?

I predict this loom band summer craze will last awhile, and I bet there will be lots of Christmas Decorations made this year out of loom bands.

Christmas Wreath from Book Pages

Christmas Wreath from Book Pages

I sew those tutorials on how to make wreaths from paper, and specifically, from old book pages, and I just had to make one - it's perfect Christmas decoration, both for modern and traditional houses. 

It's very simple - take a paper plate, and cut squares out of the pages, roll them into tubes, glue on - I ended up with 3 rows, to add fullness. Add a bit of string (I used white yarn) and hang it. It would have been easier if I had a glue gun, but I only had PVC glue to hand so it took a while. I finished it off with a crochet flower. I think it looked rather nice - in fact we ended up keeping it up on the wall long after Christmas was gone...

Simple but effective handmade Christmas decoration

Sewing Patchwork Baby Blanket

Sewing Patchwork Baby Blanket

I decided to learn some patchwork. As usual, I don't start with easy projects - I seem to make my life difficult and go for the more difficult or advanced patterns, not for a beginner. Oh, well. I really fancy learning to sew a start-type patchwork, for my little star. I drew up a patter on a paper, did some measurements and off I went - the result was a patchwork star, albeit not a perfect one. In my eyes, it was perfect. The size of the block was about 16", and I padded it up with some cabin log style patchwork around it. I used up about 4 fat quarters (with lots of leftovers). I cheated a bit in terms of quilting it, as I used some old blanket to put this cotton patchwork block on top of it, and just quilted around the edges.

 He was more than happy, throughout the winter, in his pushchair, covered with his star patchwork blanket.

Sewing Patchwork Pillowcases

Sewing Patchwork Pillowcases

What is the best sewing project to start learning sewing on - pillowcases of course! But I did not want to do just any "old" pillowcases - I decided to make personalised patchwork pillowcase for each of my daughters. I got a meter of fabric from a local fabric store (I think this butterfly design is by Clark & Clark). The fabric was already in "patchwork" style, but I cut it up, and it was just enough to make these four pillows, and I used plain pink fabric for the backing. I did not follow any particular pattern - just fitted the pieces to fill layout to make a patchwork square to fit the pillow size. Each pillowcase was embroidered with their name and a chosen picture (a perfect excuse to try out my birthday present - Laura Ashley Brother Innov-is 2200 sewing / embroidery machine). I think I'd have trouble picking my favourite pillowcase now -they all turned out to be unique, just like their owner :)

Same fabric, different results

Pretty Ballerina

Pussy Cat & Butterflies

All you need is LOVE

You can never have too many butterflies. Or Love Hearts.

Sewing Little Girl Dresses - With Sleeves

Sewing Little Girl Dresses

After having learned to sew some soft toys, and a simple pillow dress, I've decided to learn to sew dresses. Since I did not want to waste expensive fabric, we went to a thrift shop and got some double bed covers - there's plenty of fabric to learn to sew from that and the fabric pattern look interesting to be made into a dress. The dress pattern was from Simplicity range, and the dresses are made from largest size 6 and size 4, to fit my two middle daughters. Don't they look cute in their matching dresses?

Pretty in Pink

The pattern was easy enough to follow although I had to refer to YouTube for instructions on sleeves easing - that bit took me the longest. I finished the dresses off with some decorative stitching and ric rac ribbons, in pink of course. I'm not sure I would let them out in a real world in these dresses but they're more than perfect for garden play. Next time, I may be brave enough to try "proper" fabric....in fact I think I may have to learn to do a prom dress pretty soon.

Sewing Prom Dress from Free Dress Sewing Tutorial

Sewing Prom Dress from Free Dress Sewing Tutorial

I still consider myself a sewing beginner. I can count the number of dresses I have made so far on only one hand. But, my oldest DD was not discouraged by my lack of experience - she asked me to sew her a prom dress. OK so it's not a "real prom", only graduating from the primary school, but at this age, any excuse to dress up is good enough.

I was really struggling to find any suitable easy dress patterns online, and time was quickly running out, so we started to panic. Shop-bought dress was not an option. Fortunately, as if by heaven's intervention, this tutorial from SewMammaSew landed in my Facebook page news feed - perfect! This was exactly what I had in mind. Although it is not exactly a prom dress tutorial, more like a baby doll twirl top, it is easily adaptable and can be made into a dress.

I followed the sizing for 9-10yrs old but adapted it as follows - bodice was 16" instead of 8", and skirt length was 36" and 30" wide (as that's all I had in the fabric). I did not have Clover gathering tape, so used normal gathering stitch on the sewing machine. I have also added a 3" wide belt, made from the same fabric. I don't know what type of fabric it was, as it was a bargain find in a thrift shop, but it measured 60" by 59" and it was just enough to make this dress.

Before I attempted the "real thing", I made a trial run with some spare cotton fabric first - so in the end she ended up with 2 dresses - one casual and one special occasion. They each took about a day to make.

I think she's pretty happy with them both, but looked particularly stunning on her actual prom day.

So if you're new to sewing, try this pattern - I am really happy with the result, and the baby doll twirl top pattern is perfect to adapt and adjust to your own measurements (and even make it into a prom dress :) ) and the instructions are easy to follow. And I especially love that there is no sewing zips or buttons - I am yet to attempt any patterns that involve zips.

Little Princess Birthday Card

Last year we started a "family tradition" of making handmade birthday cards for each other. With five children's birthdays throughout the year, we certainly have plenty of opportunities for making them! Today is my little princess's 3rd birthday, but I've been busy knitting her a teddy bear, and I have run out of time to make one (I cheated and made it on Serif's CraftsArtist so she still had one made by me, but that's not "totally" handmade, is it?)

So I have let my 9 yr old daughter lose with my crafting stash, and asked her to make a birthday card for her little sister all by herself, from scratch, completely unsupervised. This is her result:

OK, I may have helped a little bit - the stamp is from Crafter's Companion Angelica range, the flower is from Spellbinders, but the rest is all her doing. I am especially proud of her colouring with Spectrum Noir pens - it just shows you anybody can learn with the right tools!

Spectrum Noir pens used:

Hair: GB2, GB8

Skin: TN1, TN2

Dress: TB1, TB2, TB3

Adorable Knitted Sirdar Snuggly Teddy Bear

Adorable Knitted Sirdar Snuggly Teddy Bear

This toy is knitted based on a pattern "Bear in Sirdar Snuggly DK (1457)". The pattern is easy to follow even though it is all knitted in separate pieces, and than sewn together. It does take a while to sew, but the end result is worth it. This is my second toy in this Sirdar soft toys knitting patterns range, so the sewing was much easier this time, although I am yet to master sewing on the legs (but since this toy is supposed to be cuddled, not standing, it does not matter match).

Cute or What?

This Adorable Bear now joins her sister's Adorable Bunny

Finished knitting just in time for my youngest daughter's birthday today. Happy Birthday little M!

Nothing beats a handmade present

Sewing Little Girl Dresses - Pillowcase Dress Style

Sewing Little Girl Dresses - Pillowcase Dress Style

Originally I bought this cotton fabric to sew something for my little boy's room, but it seemed too girly to me, and not blue enough, so I decided to turn it into a dress. Since it was my first ever attempt at sewing a dress, I went for the simplest possible dress pattern - pillow dress style - from Simplicity patterns. You can, however, just follow some free tutorials available on the web to achieve the same (and probably simpler). In fact - I made another pillowcase dress style after that one, following the patchwork dress tutorial found here - highly recommended!

I'm quite happy how it turned out, although it is rather short now for her, but can easily be worn as a long top or with some leggings.

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Free Knitting Pattern

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Free Pattern

If you fancy expanding your knitting skills beyond baby makes, but not quite ready for a full grown up project, try your hand at this cute knitted girl lacy bellflowers shrug. Fits 9-10 yrs old and beyond.

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Back View

I am happy to share my pattern notes for this girl lacy bellflowers shrug knitting pattern for free, providing that you follow this copyright notice:

Copyright Notice
Feel free to share a link to this pattern by linking to my blog and giving copyright credit to © CraftsAdore, but do not copy the pattern and claim as your own. The pattern is as-is, and I cannot provide any individual support on it. This pattern may not be used to produce items for commercial purposes - you may knit from this pattern for own personal use only or for charity. Please feel free to share your finished project by adding your comment to this post. ❤ Happy Knitting! ❤

Terms:

K knit

P Purl
Sl1 Slip one stitch purlwise

M1:  Make 1 (a method of increasing which is almost invisible, done by inserting tip of left needle underneath the little "bar" of yarn which runs between the needles, from front to back, forming a new stitch on the left needle, and then knitting into the *back* of that new stitch)

K2tog:  Knit two stitches together

P2tog:  Purl two stitches together

YO:  Yarn over (bring yarn from back of work to front of work -- makes a hole if "knitting" all stitches)

KFB: Knit into the front and back of each stitch

CO 109st in long tail cast on using 3.75mm circular needles & DK yarn (I used baby soft colour changing yarn).

Allow 11st either side for ribbing = 22st

5 columns of bellflower repeat = 17 * 5 + 2= 87

Bottom Ribbing:

Row 1 WS:             Sl1 purlwise, Knit (this will be the wrong side of your work) all st

Row 2 RS:              Sl1 purlwise, Knit into the front and back (KFB) of each stitch till last st, K1

Row 3 WS:             Sl1 purlwise, * (K2tog, P2tog) rep from * till last st, K1

Row 4 RS:              Sl1 purlwise, Knit into the front and back (KFB) of each stitch till last st, K1

Row 5 WS:             Sl1 purlwise, * (K2tog, P2tog) rep from * till last st, K1

Row 6 RS:              Sl1 purlwise, Knit into the front and back (KFB) of each stitch till last st, K1

Row 7 WS:             Sl1 purlwise, (K2tog, P2tog) x6, K2tog, *p2tog, k2tog; rep from * till last st, K1

Main Body:

Switch to 4.5mm needles

Multiple of 17 st over 16 rows (first one is 19 st), 5 pattern repeats across - use Stitch markers between the patterns & rims.

Do NOT count the st after second row as it changes.

Repeat this 16 rows pattern 5.5 times till 12-13 inch high

Beginning & End Rim:

1              RS           Rim 1:     Sl1 purlwise, (KFB) x6                         Rim 2:     (KFB) x6, K1

2              WS          Rim 1:     Sl1 purlwise, (K2tog, P2tog) x6             Rim 2:     (P2tog, K2tog) x6, K1

Repeat 2 rows over 16 rows of bellflower pattern:

Row 1:     1,3,5,7,9,11,13

Row 2:     2,4,6,8,10,12,14

Bellflower Lace Pattern:

1              RS            p2* yon, k2-tog, yo, (k2-tog) x 3, k2, yo, k3, yo, ssk, yfrn, p2 *             

2              WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops*

3              RS            p2*yo, k2-tog, k3-tog x2, yo, k1, yo, k2, (ssk, yo) x2, p2   *

4              WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops*

5              RS            p2*yo, (sl 1, k3-tog, psso), yo, k3, yo, k2, (ssk, yo) x2, p2 *             

6              WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops*

7              RS            p2*yo, k2-tog, yo, k1, yo, k2, ssk, yo, k2, (ssk, yo) x2, p2 *             

8              WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops*

9              RS            p2*yo, k2-tog, yo, k3, yo, k2, ssk x2, (ssk, yo) x2, p2  *             

10           WS                *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops *

11           RS            p2*(yo, k2-tog) x2, k2, yo, k1, yo, (sl 1-k2-tog-psso) x2, ssk, yo, p2 *

12           WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops       

13           RS            p2*(yo, k2-tog) x2, k2, yo, k3, yo, (sl 1-k3-tog-psso), yo, p2  *             

14           WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops       

15           RS            p2*(yo, k2-tog) x2, k2, yo, ssk, k2, yo, k1, yo, ssk, yo, p2*             

16           WS               *Knit the knit stitches; purl the purl stitches; purl the yarn over loops *

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Knit till 12"

Finish with ruffle neck:

K for 2 rows

Kfb each st in next row

K next row

Kfb each st in next row

K next row

BO.

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Finish with Ruffle Neck

Finished size (unblocked) 19inch wide and 13 inch high (excluding ruffle neck)

Fold in half lengthwise and sow in mattress stitch the short edges for 2.5-3 inches to form the sleeves.

Knitted Girl Lacy Bellflowers Shrug Fold in half and sew to form sleeves

Fits 9-10 yrs old and beyond

Please feel free to share your finished project by adding your comment to this post. ❤ Happy Knitting! ❤

Knitted Baby Girl Ballerina Booties

Knitted Baby Girl Ballerina Booties

When pregnant with my fifth baby, I knitted quite a lot of baby booties, some more easy than others. This knitting pattern is for "girly" baby booties. For baby boy booties please check out my Stay On cute baby booties. I hope this tutorial will help any other newbie knitter with learning how to knit booties - there are millions and millions of free baby booties knitting patterns available online, but not all are easy to knit or clearly written. Surprisingly, for such a little item, baby booties can be quite complicated! These baby girl ballerina booties are inspired by a free Ravelry pattern, and are quite simple once you master the magic loop and Judy’s Magic Cast-on techniques, and there are lots of YouTube tutorials available. They will go perfect with this lovely baby girl layette, also a free knitting pattern.

Tags

Booties Baby Bottom-up In-the-round Seamless One-piece Unisex Newborn-Size Hospital Girl Written-Pattern


Needles
3.25mm long circular needles for magic loop
DK yarn in chosen colour

These cute stay on booties are knitted in the round from bottom sole up and have absolutely no seams to sew other than a couple of tails to weave in.

Terms:

K knit

P Purl

M1:  Make 1 (a method of increasing which is almost invisible, done by inserting tip of left needle underneath the little "bar" of yarn which runs between the needles, from front to back, forming a new stitch on the left needle, and then knitting into the *back* of that new stitch)

K2tog:  Knit two stitches together

P2tog:  Purl two stitches together

YO:  Yarn over (bring yarn from back of work to front of work -- makes a hole if "knitting" all stitches)

KFB: Knit into the front and back of each stitch

Sole:

CO 18 sts, using Judy’s Magic Cast-on on each needle (you want first purl bump row to be on outside/bottom when you begin round 1), the tail will be on the right hand side for the beginning of each round.

Round 1 Purl

Round 2 Knit

Rounds 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11: purl

Round 4: *K 1, M 1, K 16, M 1, K 1;* repeat on other needle

Round 6: *K 2, M 1, K 16, M 1, K 2; * repeat

Round 8: *K 3, M 1, K 16, M 1, K 3; * repeat

Round 10: *K 4, M 1, K 16, M 1, K 4; * repeat

Round 12: * K 5, M 1, K 16, M  1, K 5; * repeat

Now each needle has 28 sts for a total of 56 sts.

Sides:

Blanket Rib Stitch:

Repeat 2 rounds 4 times:

Round 1:       Knit into the front and back (KFB) of each stitch

Round 2:       * (K2tog, P2tog) rep from * till end of round

Change colour if want a contrasting colour band.

Instep Shaping / Top of the foot

Round 1 :  K to last 4 st on the needle , K2tog x 2, K2 Tog x 2, K to end

Round 2 :  P to last 4 st on the needle , P2tog x 2, P2 Tog x 2, P to end

Round 3 :  K to last 4 st on the needle , K2tog x 2, K2 Tog x 2, K to end

Round 4:  P to last 4 st on the needle , P2tog x 2, P2 Tog x 2, P to end

Round 5 :  K to last 4 st on the needle , K2tog x 2, K2 Tog x 2, K to end

Round 6:  P to last 4 st on the needle , P2tog x 2, P2 Tog x 2, P to end

16 st on each needle remaining.

Ankle Eyelets for Icord:

* K 1, YO, K2 tog *, repeat to last stitch on the needle, K1, repeat on the other needle.

Next Round : P

Top Ribbing  
Change colour back  to main if want different colour top rib

Continue pattern in round for 2 rows:

Round 1 : *K1, P1*, repeat to end.

Round 2 : P all st

BO in purl pattern.

Icord:

2st icord for 23inch or 24inch crochet chain, then slip stitch, to be treaded through the YO holes

Optional Front Decoration:

sow on the front a small bow:

Cast on 15 stitches.

Row 1: knit all stitches

Row 2: knit 2 stitches, purl 11 stitches, knit 2 stitches

Repeat rows 1 and 2 till you have 16 rows. (8 repeats)

Bind off loosely, weave in all ends.

Thread a length of yarn onto a darning needle. With the thumb and index finger of the hand not holding the needle, pinch the middle of the knitting so you get two even ridges. Sew the middle together with a few stitches and then wrap the remaining yarn around the middle of the bow. Sow onto the bootie. Fasten off yarn and weave in ends

Alternatively attach a crochet flower of your choice :)

Step back, admire your baby bootie, and then prepare to do it all over again for the second bootie.

Please feel free to share your finished project by adding your comment to this post. ❤ Happy Knitting! ❤

Knitted Baby Boy Converse Booties

Knitted Baby Boy Converse Booties

This is a free baby booties Ravelry pattern, and these knitted baby boy converse booties are so super cute, you will be asked forever where did you get them from - to which you can proudly say "Actually, I made these myself!".

As a newbie knitter, I found these to be a bit of a challenge, especially as I was learning to knit on magic loop at the same time, so I photographed each stage, in case I ever need to do these baby converse booties again - I am happy to share my photos and pattern notes with you but please note that this pattern is from Raverly, and these are my notes on how to knit this pattern on magic loop.

Converse Baby Booties on Magic Loop

Main Colour- Blue (MC) DK Yarn

Contrast Colour-White (CC) DK Yarn

3.25mm circular needles for magic loop (for newborn size 3.5” shoe sole lenght) or 4mm for 0-3m baby

Other Supplies: knitters’ yarn needle; row counter (optional)

Gauge: smaller size: 24sts over 4" on size 5

 larger size: 21sts over 4" on size 6

Terms

K Knit

P Purl

YO Yarn Over

SKP Slip 1 knitwise , Knit 1, Pass Slip Stitch over (sl 1, k1, psso)

Tbl – knit through the back loop

K2tog – knit two together

P2tog – purl two together

SSK – slip 1 knitwise, slip 1 knitwise, slip them back on left needle & knit 2 together through back loop

Sl1 – slip 1 purlwise

The booties are knitted bottom up, with the sole being knitted first, flat, and then sown at the end.

To Begin

With CC cast on (I used long tail cast on) 26 stitches and knit 1 row to start pattern on RS.

RS Row 1: k1, yo, k11, [yo, k1] twice, yo, k11, yo, k1. (31st)

WS Row 2, 4, 6, 8, 10: knit (when you reach the yo, knit in the back of the stitch - tbl).

RS Row 3: k2, yo, k11, yo, k2, yo, k3, yo, k11, yo, k2. (36st)

RS Row 5: k3, yo, k11, [yo, k4] twice, yo, k11, yo, k3. (41st)

RS Row 7: k4, yo, k11, yo, k5, yo, k6, yo, k11, yo, k4 (46st)

RS Row 9: k5, yo, k11, [yo, k7] twice, yo, k11, yo, k5. (51st)

Next

Row 11: knit across using CC

Divide stitches in half on magic loop (25 & 26 st)

Row 12: Join and knit around. The back of the shoe will be the beginning of the row/round (where the cast on tail is on your right)

Round 13: Join MC yarn & Knit using MC (or accent with black), leave it behind CC white yarn

Round 14-16: All knitting with CC (white) . Break CC white yarn

Round 17: Pick up MC blue yarn & Knit with MC  (blue)

Round 18: Knit 19 MC (blue), Break MC Blue Yarn, Knit 13 CC (white) - Joint white yarn but use Long 20” white tail to knit those 13st with, instead of working yarn from the skein , Join MC Blue yarn – leave long 20” tail - Knit 19 MC  (blue) with blue working yarn (not tail).

Shape Instep (toecap)

Using MC and CC.

In this section, you will be switching to working flat, short rows, shaping the front of the shoe.

Row 1: k19 MC Blue, k10 CC White (use main working yarn from white skein), SKP (sl 1, k1, psso) CC, turn.

Distribute the stitches on the magic loop to have all white stitches + 5 blues on either side & work those only in the flat short rows.

Continue white front pattern in CC White yarn:

Row 2: sl 1, p7, p2tog, turn.

Row 3: sl 1, k7, SKP, turn.

Row 4: sl 1, p7, p2tog, turn.

 (On Row 5-10  use your either the long blue tail from row 18 to “knit in MC” or the working yarn from main skein, whichever is closer to the worked stitches)

Row 5: sl 1, k7 CC, sl 1 CC, k1 MC, psso, turn  

Row 6: sl 1, p7 CC, p2tog MC, turn.

Row 7: sl 1, k7 CC, SKP MC, turn.

Row 8: sl 1, p1 MC, p5 CC, p1 MC, p2tog, turn.

Row 9: sl 1, k2 MC, k3 CC, k2 MC, SKP, turn.

Break CC white yarn, as you’d be using MC blue only now

Row 10: sl 1, p7, p2tog, turn.

Row 11: sl 1, k7, SKP, turn.

Row 12: sl 1, p7, p2tog, turn.

Row 13: sl 1, k7, SKP, turn.

Row 14: sl 1, p7, p2tog, turn.

Row 15: sl 1, k7, SKP, knit to the join (redistribute the stitches again on magic loop to push the stitches up to the join onto the needle.), continue in the round

Round 16: k13, K2tog, K to the end (to the join) (Total 35 stitches remaining).

Now you’ll start working both sides at the same time, joined at the back on the magic loop, but knitting in flat back and forth, 2 rows at a time for each side. (14st for each side + 7 st go onto scrap yarn for the tongue)

Side 1: Row 1: k11, yo, k2tog, k1 , place next 7 st onto scrap yarn, turn

Side 1: Row 2: Purl till join. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 1: Purl, turn

Side 2: Row 2: k1, ssk, yo, k11, turn & Continue with Side 1

Side 1: Row 3: k11, k2tog, k1, turn

Side 1: Row 4: Purl till join. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 3: Purl, turn

Side 2: Row 4: k1, ssk, k11. turn & Continue with Side 1

Side 1: Row 5: k10, yo, k2tog, k1, turn

Side 1: Row 6: Purl till join. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 5: Purl, turn

Side 2: Row 6: k1, ssk, yo, k10, Turn & Continue with Side 1.

Side 1: Row 7: k10, k2tog, k1, turn

Side 1: Row 8: Purl till join. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 7: Purl, turn

Side 2: Row 8: k1, ssk, k10 Turn & Continue with Side 1.

Side 1: Row 9: k9, yo, k2tog, k1, turn

Side 1: Row 10: Purl till join. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 9: Purl, turn

Side 2: Row 10: k1, ssk, yo, k9 Turn & Continue with Side 1.

Side 1: Row 11: k9, k2tog, k1, turn

Side 1: Row 12: knit. Continue with Side 2.

Side 2: Row 11: Knit, turn

Side 2: Row 12: k1, ssk, k9 Turn & Continue with Side 1.

Side 1: Row 13: knit, Turn

Side 1: Row 14: knit,  continue with Side 2

Side 2: Row 13: Knit,

Side 2: Bind Off in K all remaining st till the end of Side 1

Tongue:

Place 7 Stitches from the scrap yarn onto the needle. Rejoin MC yarn.

WS Row 1 : p across

RS Rows 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12: k across

WS Rows 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13: k1, p5, k1

RS Row 14: ssk, k3, k2tog

WS Row: 15: purl

Bind Off in K.

Laces:

Using a CC white colour or any that you wish:

CO 3 stitches.

I-Cord for 21 inches

-OR-

crochet chain for 21 inches – will look thinner than icord & faster to make

Finishing:

Weave in ends.

Sew bottom seam of booties’ sole in mattress stitch.

Optional: Make circle with star (can use star shaped button - I did not bother) and sew to left side of bootie.

Lace up the Converse through YO holes.

Take a step back and take a minute to admire your work, before beginning to knit the second bootie…

Update: whilst these baby booties are super cute, they're also quite small and only lasted for a few weeks. After that, I've moved  my baby onto my cute stay on booties.