Friday, January 7, 2011

Aran Sweater

During the Christmas holidays I made my little Pocket Spirit an Aran sweater, and made both of us some pretty hair accessories.  The Hellbore and Holly patterns are from the book " 100 Flowers to Knit and Crochet."  It has some of the loveliest flower patterns, and I was able to borrow it from our local Library :-)  The large flowers are crocheted in sportweight yarn, and glued to a hair barret.  The small ones are crocheted in size 8 perle and glued to a length of 1/4" ribbon and tied in her hair.

The sweater pattern is available here: Pocket Spirit Aran Sweater

And the pants are available here: Pocket Spirit Pants

Another fun project was this awesome tree, courtesy of Michaels.   My friend Joyce directed me to this link, and has made at least two beautiful trees from this pattern.  The pattern is easy, and can be made as tall or short as you like; it makes up fast, and is the prettiest crochet tree pattern I've seen.

Sadly, the link to the Christmas tree is no longer available from Michaels.


Start the New Year right and get hooking!
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21 comments:

  1. crafty dianeJanuary 7, 2011 at 3:40 PM

    Love your tree! I have had this same pattern for the past 30 years. I made my first tree by it when I was 20 years old and now I am 50. It's amazing how the old patterns come back to life!
    Blessings,
    Diane

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  2. skonyJanuary 7, 2011 at 3:47 PM

    Your tree is wonderful! Thank you for the link.

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  3. LisaJanuary 7, 2011 at 4:27 PM

    Beth, everything is wonderful, but that sweater is too cute for words!! Is there anything you can't make with your hook??

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  4. Sheltie TimesJanuary 7, 2011 at 4:33 PM

    I love your sprites and the set is amazing. I love the sweater best of all.

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  5. puntoyseguidoJanuary 7, 2011 at 5:51 PM

    She is lovely!
    Thanks and Happy New Year!

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  6. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2011 at 6:24 PM

    i love the sweater, it looks so cozy! the hair clips are awesome!. i have a question about the free spirit doll. i would like to make one with the more adult body(with chest) i seen on flickr the booby parts but i was wondering about the body. do i make the alternate torso in the pattern or do i just reduce the waist by one sc like you mentioned on flickr. thanks for the help. :) ~Anne~

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  7. ConnieJanuary 7, 2011 at 7:01 PM

    AWESOME, after a day that is almost unbearable, I come for a visit and find the most welcoming things.
    Thank you Beth,
    'til next time,
    Connie

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  8. BethJanuary 7, 2011 at 7:42 PM

    Thank you all for your generous comments :-)

    Anne, to make a the more 'mature' Free Spirit body, I just took in one sc on the waist, and made the breasts :-)

    Lisa, I've seen a full size crocheted bicycle, but I'd never try it!

    Diane, I can see why this pattern is still around; it was the best!

    Connie, I hope tomorrow is a better day :-)

    Everyone have a great evening; you certainly make my day :-)

    Beth

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  9. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2011 at 7:54 PM

    okay Beth, which pattern did you use the regular one or the alternate one? sorry to be such a bother :D thanks, ~Anne~

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  10. BethJanuary 7, 2011 at 8:58 PM

    Hi Anne,

    No problem...looking at the pattern I think I used the regular instructions, not the alternative. The alternate instructions give a pretty skinny doll. Now, that may help accentuate a more mature looking body, especially when you add breasts. You could whip up two bodies and see which one you like best.

    But, I think I used the regular one :-)

    Beth

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  11. MillasewJanuary 8, 2011 at 7:08 AM

    Thanks for posting yet another wonderful set of clothes for your little dolls! And the Christmas tree is fabulous - will save that pattern for next Christmas! Many thanks!

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  12. AnonymousJanuary 8, 2011 at 12:06 PM

    so cute



    pleace pleace can you not write how you do the foot and shoe and sock for the dolls

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  13. AnonymousJanuary 8, 2011 at 2:06 PM

    thanks Beth. i'll try both and see which i like better. i'm using Vanna's choice which is a new yarn for me. Hope it works up nicely. it feels more soft than the Red Heart Super saver that i usually use.thanks again ~Anne~

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  14. BethJanuary 8, 2011 at 2:36 PM

    Anne, I've used both Super Saver and Vanna's Choice, and I like them both!

    Regarding the shoes and socks; I'm afraid these are not my design. They are from the Annie Potter Presents leaflet "Victorian Darlings." You might be able to find a used copy on the internet.

    Beth

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  15. Annie B.January 9, 2011 at 3:37 PM

    When you say in instructions to crochet 8 links, does that mean crochet 8 stitches? I am trying to make one of the dresses and having problems coming up with the right number of stitches.

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  16. Lois EvensenJanuary 9, 2011 at 3:42 PM

    Hi, I'm having problems staying connected to leave a comment so if this is a duplicate, I'm sorry. That just happens out here.

    Anyway, I just want you to know I love seeing what you are making. Your dolls are so very sweet and your work is awesome.

    Hugs,
    Lois

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  17. BethJanuary 9, 2011 at 7:18 PM

    Lois, thank you as always for your good words :-) Hope you are having a wonderful time on the High Seas!


    Regarding link stitches...I have a tutorial available on making the link stitch, so you can see exactly what I'm talking about. Go here for the tutorial:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/29184580@N04/sets/72157623422799635/

    It is also on the left sidebar of this blog under Tutorials. See if this helps :-)

    Beth

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  18. Carolyn DollsJanuary 10, 2011 at 4:32 AM

    Hi Beth, Like the tree.

    I finally figured out how to have a link with pdf files...thanks to you. Now let's see how well I do with transferring my patterns into pdf's without the size changing...this one is a doozie.

    Carolyn

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  19. BethJanuary 10, 2011 at 11:21 AM

    Good luck, Carolyn! It was definitely trial and error to get the PDF to come out the right size. Two things that might help: use Adobe Acrobat Reader, and when printing out the page, set the "Page Scaling" to NONE.

    Beth

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  20. AnonymousJanuary 17, 2011 at 9:47 PM

    Beth what an amazing site. I have been knitting dolls for some years now and donating them to different causes, so dolls are dear to my heart. Thank you for these BEAUTIFUL patterns, with a long winter still ahead (in Canada) I now have something to keep me busy I can't wait to get started. They will not be sold, (wondering about copywright)

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  21. BethJanuary 17, 2011 at 10:28 PM

    Anonymous, enjoy the crochet! You may sell dolls made from my patterns; I would ask that you credit the design to me.

    Beth

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