How to Crochet a Star (or Two)

Here is the pattern for the star on this hat:

 You can pretty much use whatever size hook and yarn you want... depending on what size you want the star.  I used Med 4 yarn, and an I hook.

Middle of Star:
Rnd 1: Using the Magic Adjustable Ring technique (this is one of my favorite links for this technique), work 5 sc in ring. Do not join!
Rnd 2: Work 2 sc in each st around (10 sc total). Do not join!
Rnd 3:  (Sc in first st, 2 sc in next st) around (15 sc total). Join with ss in first sc. Circle round complete!

Star Points:
Rnd 4: Ss in 1st st. *(Ch 5, ss in 2nd loop from hook, sc in next st, hdc in next st, dc in next st) That's the first point! Skip next sc in circle and ss in next 2 sc. Repeat from * around circle.  After last point, make only 1 ss.

If you want your points sharp, stop here and finish off.  If you want them rounded a bit, continue:

Rnd 5: Ch 1, sc in ea st around (I think there's around 50 sc, but don't freak out if you have more or less).

Finish off!

Optional:  you can make two stars, stitch them together and make ornaments if you want.

ALSO if you want the Army Star look:

At the end of rnd 4, change to yellow yarn from white and do rnd 5 with yellow.  Then take some black yarn, thread a yarn needle and stitch around the inside to make the sharp black star outline.  Super easy!

Another star option:  This star below looks more like a starfish shape, I think.  I tried to make a wizard hat and failed miserably... but the star is cute!!

Five pointed star:

ch 4.  Join into a ring with ss in first ch made.

Rnd 1: ch 3.  work 14 dc into the ring. Ss in 3rd of ch 3 at beginning of round.

This next part can seem a little tricky, so read through it a couple times before tackling it.

Rnd 2:  *ch 3, 2 tr together over next 2 dc, ch 3, ss through the top front loops of 2 tr together below (a picot made), ch 3, ss in next dc.  *repeat from * to * working last ss in same place as the base of ch 3 at the start.  Fasten off.

Enjoy!

-Cat

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Holiday Giveaway!!!

Cat and I want to have a holiday giveaway next. What are some of the hats you would like to see up for grabs?? Pin It

Army Strong & The Pirate

I gave my boys the choice of what kind of hats they wanted this winter.  Of course they choose NONE of the hats I have already made and/or designed.  My 6 year old requested a pirate hat, and my 4 year old wanted an ARMY one.

So here's what I came up with:

 Now, I am pretty pleased with my pirate beanie... however, I am conflicted over the Army one.  I wanted to make the star a little slimmer and pointed, but no matter what I did, it still came out looking "Care Bear" style.  I think I will try again later....

This is my 6 year old rocking the pirate look.

And my 4 year old, showing off his Army Star.

If anyone is interested in buying one of these, please email me at nutsinanutshell(at)gmail(dot)com and we can work something out.

-Cat

Update:  I just couldn't stand it!  I redid the star.  I like this one MUCH better!!

New and FINAL Update:  My little 4 year old woke up this morning to the "new" star and complained right away that I didn't put black between the yellow and white... how do kids remember this stuff?  So I indulged him:

And I have to admit, that he was right... it was just the right touch! Pin It

More Owls

Here are a couple more owls I custom made this week:

To buy an owl hat click on this post for the pay link: CLICK HERE!!

Then in the notes, let me know what colors you want, whether you want long or short earflaps, and which kind of eyes you like the best: rimmed or eyebrows.

-Cat Pin It

Turkey Hat

My friend Chelsea, over at A Click w/ Sticks, sent me this fun pattern to try out and look over.  We have a pattern exchange going to help find each other's typos.  These are her hats:

Click here if you are interested in purchasing this pattern for yourself.

Anyway, I had to make my little guy one to wear for the big day.  I made a few minor changes, not because I didn't like how she did it, because I DO!  But I didn't have any yellow yarn on hand, and I hate making puff balls... so I went for some funky turkey feather look instead:

I also ended up tacking the red gobbler (or whatever it's called) down because it kept flipping up on us.

Cutest little turkey ever, I think!!

I hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving!!

-Cat

You can now purchase this hat here!

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Tip

Freebie Friday tip...

You know that line you get that runs up the back of your hat? Well here's a way to change it. Instead of getting a line straight up you can change it so that it's a spiral. It looks so much better. Ok so when you do your joining stitch instead of going right into crocheting your next row, make another single stitch in first space.

It's one that Cat taught me and I like it. I hope you like it as much as I do.

: )

I'll try to get a picture posted to show the difference but my daughter dropped my camera so I'm fixing that.

I've been super busy here the last couple of weeks, but a post from me is forthcoming! : )

~Heidi

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Heidi's Hats

I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while. It's been crazy busy. I have a home business and I started crocheting as a second, so I've been trying to keep up with everything I want to do. I've had an opportunity come up to do a booth at a craft fair. A friend of mine is going to do it with me. She makes bottle cap bows. I'll have to post a picture of one she made my daughter.

I've also been trying hard to get my Christmas hats done so I can post them on here as well as have an inventory for the booth. So every spare second has been crocheting, crocheting, crocheting. I even crochet in the car while my husband drives. Even if we're only going to be driving ten minutes. I can get something done and ten minutes here and there catch up. Always remember that even if you don't feel like you can get anything done, a little here and there will produce results. So don't get discouraged if you don't feel like you have very much time. You can do it. : )

Anyway, I'm excited to share the hats that I've been working on. I'd be happy to discuss any custom orders and requests you have.

Introducing Heidi's Hats:

Here's my Santa Hat and cute model. : )

Sizes/Prices

Newborn (0-3) $18.00 USD Baby (3-6) $18.00 USD Baby (6-12) $18.00 USD Toddler (12-24) $20.00 USD Child (S) $20.00 USD Child (L) $20.00 USD Adult $22.00 USD

I absolutely adore the gnome hats so I had to make more. : ) I have it in navy blue and purple too. I take color requests too. Here is the link of where I got my gnome hat pattern from. It was so fun to do! http://lorajeansmagazine.blogspot.com/2011/02/tutorilal-how-to-crochet-baby-gnome-hat.html

Sizes/Prices:

Newborn (0-3) $18.00 USD Baby (3-6) $18.00 USD Baby (6-12) $18.00 USD Toddler (12-24) $20.00 USD Child (S) $20.00 USD Child (L) $20.00 USD Adult $22.00 USD

Here's my Snowman Hat. I have another version of the top hat in the works and I'll be posting it after Thanksgiving.

Sizes/Prices:

Newborn (0-3) $20.00 USD Baby (3-6) $20.00 USD Baby (6-12) $20.00 USD Toddler (12-24) $23.00 USD Child (S) $23.00 USD Child (L) $23.00 USD Adult $25.00 USD

Here is the hat I made for myself. I can make these in other colors and can customize the flower too. :)

$18.00 USD

This is my nephew's Christmas present, shhh don't tell. : ) I designed it myself for him. If you want a hat with your favorite team on it I'd be happy to design one for you too.

I hope you find something you like. I love to talk shop so leave a comment or shoot me an email. We hope you have a great Thanksgiving. If any of you are traveling, be safe!

~Heidi

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Winners of the Kick Off Giveaway!

First off, I just wanted to take a second and thank everyone for their support on this new endeavor of Heidi's and mine.  We are really excited to see it take off like it has, it's awesome!

Now to the winners:

Winner of the coveted Woman's Grey Button Hat is:

Haiku Amy!!!!

Winner of the Man Band is:

The Davis Family!!!

Winner of the Puppy Hat is:

Annie!!!

And Merrianne and Annika were winner of the two baby hats.  However, after reading their comments I had this feeling that they didn't have much use for the baby hats.  So instead, if they would like, I would like to offer each of them 50% off a hat of their choice and free shipping.  (Unless they would like one of the baby hats anyway....)

Winners, please email me, Cat with your shipping info so I can get those hats to you!  (Merrianne and Annika -- email me and let me know what you decide) My email can be found under the contact information of this blog.

Thanks again for everyone who participated!!  Remember to spread the word about this blog.  The more people and traffic we get the more opportunities for giveaways and all other fun stuff we will be able to do.  Right now our goal is 50 followers, and then we will give away a Sock Monkey Hat (size and color of winner's choice).

Thanks again for your support!

-Cat Pin It

Cat's Sock Monkey Hat Pattern

I feel in love with the whole "sock monkey" hat idea last winter when I saw a few of them floating around campus.  But my issue was, that I couldn't seem to find one that I really, truly liked.  Sure there were things about all of them I did like, but always something that bothered me... not to mention the fact that several styles are just a little bit creepy too.

So after looking at lots of pictures of different hats and the original sock monkey dolls, I came up with my own design and have fallen in love with this little guy.  I sell a lot of these hats and have had them requested at several craft fairs or farmer's markets -- I just can't get enough of them done to do something like that.

I have to say, I have become very attached to this design.  I know it may seem silly, but when something is truly YOURS it's hard to share in some ways.  I didn't have any problem making and selling them, but any time someone requested a pattern, I shut down.  I just couldn't give away my little design secrets!

But we grow, thankfully, and we learn.  And I have finally decided to sell my pattern, so that others can enjoy making this little guy as much as I do.

I am selling the pattern in a PDF file that I will email you once the transaction goes through paypal.  The pattern is $8.  Now, before you go on and tell me that there are cheaper Sock Monkeys out there, I want you do two things:  First, if you want a cheaper one, go for it.  Second, this pattern includes 2 different sizes of ear flaps, 6 different mouths, and few other ideas so that you are able to customize your hat just the way you want it!

Note:  As of today, 11/12/11, only the newborn/baby/toddler pattern is available to buy.  I am still working on the children/ Adult sized one.  The reason they are not all bundled together in one pattern is because they are, in fact, totally different hats and so I will sell them as such.

Cat's Sock Monkey Hat Pattern

Pattern is $8.00

I am still selling these hats online here as well already made for those of you who just want to buy one.  No problem!

My hats are made of super soft wool, except for the red and black accents.  This is my little guy's favorite hat of all the ones I have made him.

Sizes/ Prices

Newborn (0-3) $25.00 USD Baby (3-6) $25.00 USD Baby (6-12) $25.00 USD Toddler (12-24) $28.00 USD Child (s) $30.00 USD Child (L) $30.00 USD Adult $33.00 USD

Important note:  When ordering, make sure you tell me in the "notes" what you are ordering and what size you want.  Paypal does NOT give me that information.

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Owl Hats

Ever since I started crocheting I have been fascinated with the various types of Owl hats they have out there.  I think they are super fun and everyone has their own style and technique.  Owls are SO fun to make because you can really play around with them and do so many different fun things!

I recently had a friend ask me to make a couple for her girls.  She sent me a few pictures of examples she liked.  They were fun pastel bright colors, and I was excited to take on the challenge of doing something new!

I popped over to the store and much to my surprise, I actually found some cotton yarn that I liked (I'm not the biggest fan for many reasons).  Anyway, I got to work and had a blast putting together some of the ideas that my friend liked, and some ideas that I had swirling around in my own head.  This is what I came up with:

Cat's Crazy Fun Owl Hat!

This hat is available for purchase right here!  Just make sure you let me know in the "notes" section what colors you want and where: crown, body, iris of the eye color, flower (petal and center), and don't forget to let me know what color you would like the edging and the eye brows.  If you like these, just say "I want it like the Blue one!" Or "I want it like the pink one!"

This owl hat is 100% cotton yarn (or 100% acrylic depending on what you want), with two buttons.

To order this hat or one like it click here!!

Important note:  When ordering, make sure you tell me in the "notes" what you are ordering and what size you want.  Paypal does NOT give me that information.

Note to fellow crocheters:  This pattern will be coming soon!

I also have more natural-style owl hats for both boys and girls available as well.

 Click here for Etsy Link!

Click here for Etsy Link!

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Newsboy Cap Adventures

A few weeks ago, I was on the lookout for the perfect "newsboy" style cap pattern.  There was no pattern that had all the features that I wanted!  So a found a bunch of different ones with parts that I liked and then put them together and added a few features that were just me.

Here was my first try, and I thought it was a little boxy looking (there are on buttons, but I did add some later):

 Here was my second attempt, and I did sell this one:

I make and sell these for $20 a piece. By request, I can add flowers, buttons, etc.  I need to make some more girly ones to post here too...  If you would like to custom order one of these please email me and we can set something up.

-Cat

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Website Kick Off Giveaway!!

To celebrate the kick off of this blog, we are hosting a fantastic giveaway!  The Worsted Crochet Blog is giving away not one, not two, not even three... but FOUR super fun hats and a "Man Band" headband!!

 Woman's adult Grey Wrap Around. 

Puppy Hat - Size 3-6 months

Newborn Baby Elf Cap

Baby Girl Crazy Fun Hat 6-9 months

Camo "Man Band" (Last year we made these for all the men in our family and they LOVE them)

To enter this giveaway:

Mandatory:  Leave a comment on which hats are your favorites and which one you would want if you won.

Additional entries (optional) Please leave a separate comment for each one:

• Take a look around this site and comment on what you would like to see more of here.
• Join this blog by "Following" it.
• Join us on Facebook:  Click here!
• Mention this giveaway on Facebook, twitter, and/or Blog about it.
• Snag our button and put it on your blog.

You can also get an extra entry for every friend you get to "Join" this blog-- just mention it in a comment.  Our goal is to get at least 50 followers in the next couple weeks.  When we reach 100, I will personally giveaway one of my beloved Sock Monkey Hats in the size of the winner's choice.

This blog is for anyone who loves to crochet, can't crochet but love to look or buy, and for those who want to learn.  In this economy, crocheting is a less expensive hobby than most, super fun, and right now homemade stuff is IN.  So come join us on this adventure!!

-Cat

Contest ends Wednesday, Nov 16th at 11:59 pm.  Good Luck!!!

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