In the early days of this blog I designed a compact fluorescent lightbulb and stitched an incandescent bulb to go along with it. In honor of today I thought I’d write a pattern for the incandescent bulb, clean up the CFL pattern if possible, and add an LED bulb pattern to the mix!

The CFL changes have been made to the original blog post, and for the LED pattern you’ll have to get the Name-Your-Price pattern in the store (which includes all three bulbs). The incandescent pattern is below.

Incandescent Light Bulb

Gauge is not terribly important, but since I use an E/4 hook (3.5mm) on the CFL, I used it on the incandescent as well. You’ll need worsted weight yarn in two colors, stuffing, and (optionally) something to weight the bottom with (I have used tangled necklace chains, beads, pebbles, and coins). My crochet abbreviations and conventions are on the crochet reference page, and any stitch instruction you might want is linked to from the pattern page.

In bulb color:
1. Form magic ring, ch 1, and sc 6.
2. 2sc around (12).
3. *Sc, 2sc* around (18).
4. *2sc, sc 2* around (24).
5. Sc 2, *2sc, sc 3* five times, 2sc, sc (30).
6-8. Sc around (30 sc; 3 rnds).
9. *Dec, sc 5* four times, sc 2 (26).
10. Sc 2, *dec, sc 4* four times (22).
11. *Dec, sc 3* four times, sc 2 (18).
12-13. Sc around (18 sc, 2 rnds).
14. *Dec, sc 4* around (15).
15-17. Sc around (15 sc; 3 rnds).
18. *Dec, sc 3* around (12). Stuff bulb.

Cut yarn and needle join in second stitch from end; FO bulb color.

In base color: tie slip knot and place on hook. Insert into any stitch of rnd 18 and attach with slip stitch.
19. Starting in next st and ended in same st as sl st, sc around (12).
20-23. Sc around (12 sc; 4 rnds). Stuff, finishing with bottom weight if using.
24. *Dec* around (6). FO.

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Grain Monster Pattern

You’ll find grain monsters in many places….

The flour canister is an obvious place to look.

The mixing bowl likewise, but….

They can appear in places you wouldn’t expect, as well!

Mean or nice, however, they like to play, especially if they can build something.

For more portraits and details about the pattern, visit the pattern page.

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Mud Monster Pattern

He’s a sloppy little guy, inspired by frogs and mudskippers — not to mention mud season. The pattern page has more about what’s required to make your own; here I just thought I’d show you an adventure we had. Just to warn you, there are a lot of photos past the cut in this post.

We got a good bit of rain this weekend, so it was perfectly wet. Down by the river, Muddy made a sand castle amid the pawprints and then posed with it.

Afterward, it was time for a little swim.

After a while Muddy was ready to come home. Nothing feels better after some damp, chilly weather than a bubble bath!

Of course mud monsters track all kinds of water everywhere. After all these adventures it was high time to just cuddle up in a towel on the couch.

Make your own!

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Big and Little Pi Pattern

You saw a Pi and pi I made for my sister back in late 2012, with the pattern for little Big Pi. That version of big little pi required sewing to shape the curved foot. (The little Big Pi shown also had one leg longer than the other, due to a counting error.)

This version is sewing-free! The pointed foot and “horn” of the top bar curve through a combination of increasing/decreasing and a method I developed to collapse pairs of rounds into single rounds on the inside of the curve. The stitching takes some paying attention, but it isn’t difficult and all stitches are common (very common, in fact: slip stitch and single crochet).

But enough about that. I was fortunate enough to capture some pictures of Pi and pi in their usual haunts…

They love the soothing motion.

I think they’re gambling?

Where they go to relax!

Their individual beauty shots are on the pattern page.

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Snouty Hippo Pattern

I never thought that snouty hippos would be such nosy hippos! Look at this:

What are you eating? Can we have some?

Ooh ooh! We’re good at crosswords! Does that say “Hi-po”?

Who are you? [Dachshunds, nosy in a different way.]

Hey, is that us on the computer? Click there!

Can you reach? I’m trying, I’m trying!

Information about stitching and materials is in the shop.

[1] I learned long after planning this all out that this National Hippo Day originates with the game Second Life. National Hippo Appreciation Day, which has a Facebook page, is July 24. Perhaps we’ll speak about hippos again then.

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Wide Old Owl Pattern

I like owls and got a good response to my peacock coasters, so an owl coaster was a natural choice for design. I wanted to make one that was completely flat – no eyes sewn on top of a base, as was the case with every owl coaster pattern I found. In fact, I really wanted to make eyes and a beak separately and then stitch the body around all three of them, but that was not to be. I was unable to make a small diamond shape in crochet; the points all soften too much.

However, I did get the eyes to work out as planned. You make two eyes, in one of two versions (or, I suppose, one of each if you like), and then join a new yarn to stitch the body around them. The beak is done via color change and a long stitch, inspired by overlay crochet. It does sit on top of the rest, but my investigation shows it’s not enough of a bump to make issues with your glass, can, or bottle.

There are eyes with an open center and eyes with a solid center worked in two colors. I personally prefer the open center, but they only look good on a contrasting background. The only uncommon stitches used are triple treble crochet (4 yarn-overs) and linked triple crochet (instead of two yarn overs, two loops are pulled up through the side of the previous stitch); they are taught in the pattern, and the pattern page also links to a video of linked triple crochet.

Incidentally, you can make these with a solid eye of 12 dc in a ring. That was my original eye, but the result is a little creepy so I changed it!

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Trinket Box Pattern

Oh man, I thought this would never be done. Long ago this was to be a teaching pattern, for half double crochet increase and decrease. It was pretty subpar using only the techniques learned to the desired point in the course, but the idea was sound, so I re-created it using the magic ring and with the sides created in the round beginning with stitching directly onto unused loops of the base. Many, many revisions later, I bring it to you.

This pattern was a challenge. I shifted the increases and decreases in the corners of the box half a dozen times, and even developed a new hybrid joining/spiral technique for the base: slip stitch at the end of the round, but don’t chain up. I call it the stepped spiral. It has some benefits of both typical rounds techniques: less seam than joined rounds, less asymmetry than a spiral – though not zero seam or zero asymmetry. I applied it to two of the lids as well.

The chimney lid (funnel shaped) had a dramatic reimagining – I first made it starting at the top, stitching around in the back bumps of a starting chain, and then went back at the end to sew in two artificial chains to fill in the spot where the chain twisted down and made a sort of chip in the lid (since a loop made by stitching in the back bumps wants to be a mobius strip). I could not figure out how to pin down and explain my filling-in method, though, so I had to re-design. Instructions for top-down stitching are included, though you don’t get a ring of teardrops and you do have your starting slip knot up in the top edge, but the main instructions are for starting at the neck with foundation single crochet, a la this recent blog post. The main lid is in red below and the alternate in light green.

I plan to work out how to make these in non-yarn materials. I’ve tried embroidery floss with a size 4 steel hook (2mm; above), and I think four strands of thread (for a mini box) and narrow wire-edged ribbon (for a very solid, possibly slightly larger box) would both be appealing. When I do figure those out, in addition to blogging them I’ll put photos and materials lists on the trinket box pattern page.

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Sluggos Pattern

Sluggos are little slug-like creature with bobble-stitch eyes. You can make them face in any of three directions, with eyes the same color as the body or a different one. They are one piece and quick to make – best in herds!

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BOO!

Ghosties Pattern

This newest store pattern began to take shape on a very long car trip, at the suggestion of my husband. They are done in two pieces in the round and are quick to put together. I’ve even done one in embroidery floss with glow in the dark features.

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There are seven fruits represented, both whole and sliced, each with a matching leaf: apple, pear, orange, grapefruit (shown only in sliced form above), lemon, lime, and peach. Of course there is some overlap of patterns there, but also a good bit of variety, such as a kaffir lime leaf pattern and a mandarin orange segment. Instructions are included for the stems, with knot diagrams and suggested yarn lengths. There are three options available for purchase: everything, whole fruits only (with leaves and stems), or sliced fruits only (instructions for hanging loops, but no leaves or stems).

These were originally intended as ornaments, but they would also make lovely appliques on a market bag, or, made in embroidery floss and stiffened, would be fun earrings or pins. In fact I will be adding product photos to the catalog pages of just such uses in the near future!

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