Simply
Crochet
Make me now!
Hooked on handmade
Pom-tiddly
pom!
So quick to make (& it’s super-cute)
26 patterns inside
Bright & breezy designs for you
Bunting for your bike & Home
er l p m a S FREE
CYCLE STYLE
On-trend makes for you & your bike
+ cowl
Jacket & blanket
Simply
Crochet
contents
Woof Guten Tag! p7
Issue 17
Issue 17
Issue 17
Great patterns for you
38
Crochet toughens up Issue 17
v i si t y/ http://bito.lbuy S C A P PL E t t ern s! these pat
4 Cycle style makes Spruce up your wheels with bright bunting, wild roses, a stripy saddle cover and a skirt guard. Plus, there are gloves, a backpack and a cute hat for you, all in tasty ice cream colours. 6 Glittering cowl Learn to love geometry with this infinity scarf by Anniken Allis. It’s light, airy and so soft against the skin – a cowl that oozes laidback glamour.
7 Amigurumi dog Meet Frank, quite possibly the most adorable rainbow pooch that the world has ever seen. He’s an ideal stash-buster.
8 Chanel-style jacket Introduce a touch of ooh là là to your wardrobe with this garment. Ruth Maddock has produced this impossibly stylish jacket with sweet buttons and handy pockets too. 10 make a mandala Crochet blogger Wink’s spring mandala in a spectrum of rainbow shades, in triple trebles and a touch of surface crochet.
11 Raindrop makes Hook up six sweet raindrop accessories for a rainy day: earrings, a brooch, belt, pendant, wristwrap and shawl. 12 beautiful bow scarf Amp up your feminine mystique with this oversized bow
Issue 17
Issue 18
Issue 16 Issue 16
Issue 17 Issue 16
13 stripe blanket and cushion Earn your stripes with a colourful blanket and cushion set by Julie Harrison. With bobbles and stripes in the happiest colours, it’s a unique project that will have you playing with all kinds of different stitches.
no time, with Cara Medus’ clever jewel-bright accessory.
Good reads 14 permission to play Be inspired by creative crochet artists and bloggers to have more fun with your own makes – let whimsical crochet brighten up your day.
vibes
Make me now!
EN £4.99 ISSUE SIXTE
FRESH LOOKASSON
NEW SE HOOK STYLES TO PLUS!
Bright Easter Designs
this Crochet-style chanelket! jac
ET & NURS ERY MAK ES
Animal gic for a Ma Sweet shapes ver keo nursery ma
OM TMAG.C IMPLYCROCHE WWW.S
Harness pom-pom power and transform a dull outfit in next to
Start your trial of our Apple magazine and your first two issues are free! Once they’re downloaded they’re yours to keep forever.
Pretty es mwitak h vintage
YLE JACK
16 crochet with beads
18 read our digital edition
MADE ON HAND HOOKED
CHANEL-ST
Download our free Apple app to view a free granny square pattern each week.
Simply het
Croc
GYPSY,
Adding beads is a great way to give your crochet a real wow factor. We’ll show you how, whether you’re right-handed or left-handed.
16
MODERN
17 granny square a week
C
ADE D ON HANDM HOOKE
15 crochet with beads
TO GET THE FULL CROCHET PATTERNS SHOWN FOR THE ITEMS IN THIS SAMPLER, DOWNLOAD A DIGITAL EDITION ONTO YOUR IPAD OR IPHONE. TAP THE PICTURE OF THE PATTERN YOU WANT ABOVE, TO GO TO THE APP STORE.
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accessory, hooked in the most perfect pastel shade.
+ TIFUL
BEAU GYPSY MODERN PROJECTS yk.indd cover_cm
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1
PRINTED
IN THE UK
• £4.99
ISSUE 16
2/19/14
11:51 AM
Cap it all
Who said practical can’t be pretty? Get kitted out for springtime cycling adventures with our collection of bright and beautiful makes. Your first essential? A stylish peaked cap in cool cotton.
Get a grip
Fingerless gloves are perfect for cycling. This pair have a leather underside to help you grip onto the handles. A mesh stitch pattern, contasting bows and a vintage vibe – mitts don’t get better than this.
cycle style
on your bike!
Harness pedal power and get outdoors with our collection of super-cute cycling projects.
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Geo stitching
Learn to love geometry with this infinity scarf by Anniken Allis.
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Amigurumi dog
Silly sausage
Simply ador ab le
Meet Frank, the most adorable rainbow pooch the world’s ever seen. By Becky Garratt.
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Crochet jacket
Simply fabu
I should coco
lous
Hook Ruth Maddock’s chic, Chanel-inspired jacket to inject your wardrobe with a little oh là là.
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make a mandala
Hook blogger Wink’s spring mandala in a spectrum of rainbow shades.
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Simply colo urful
Rainy days happen, and while we prefer sunshine, there’s definitely room for both. Chase your dark clouds away with our collection of simple accessories in beautiful blues. Shine on. 2 WWW.simplycrochetmag.coM
pastel pretty
Amp up your feminine mystique with Sara Huntington’s overblown bow.
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pick ‘n’ mix
Earn your stripes with this blanket and cushion set by Julie Harrison.
Find 13 www.simplycrochetmag.com us on www.facebook.com/simplycrochetmag
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permission to play
Simply Ins piring
With a whole rainbow of beautiful yarn shades to choose from and endless creative design possibilities, let whimsical crochet brighten your day. We chatted to some playful makers.
C
ouldn’t we all do with a bit more joy in our lives? When work is stressful, family life complicated, and the weather… well, not really worth mentioning, we need to find ways to light up our lives. Crochet is an obvious choice, but if you ever look at your works in progress and feel a bit daunted, perhaps you’ve forgotten how fun, cheery and plain playful crochet can be! Here are a few exciting ideas to get you inspired. Instant gratification Does it make you smile to see the first brave flowers of spring struggling their way through the soil? They’re a vivid promise of longer, sunnier days to come. But regardless of what’s happening in 14 www.simplycrochetmag.com
your garden, here’s the good news – crocheting a few flowers can be just as uplifting. Crafty lady Beata Basik, who blogs over at www.rosehip.typepad.com, began crocheting blossoms, “simply because I love flowers and all that is floral!” On her Rosehip blog, Beata laments: “I have so many WIPs, let alone all the other things I should be doing, yet I can’t seem to stop crocheting these flowers. They are just too much fun to make! As usual, I’m all over the map, but how can I resist whipping up one of these pretty little flowers in a stolen moment or two throughout the day? Instant gratification – that’s what it is called.” When we contacted Beata about her designs, she told us she started out by
deciding how she wanted the blooms to look. “I began with an 8-petal/4-leaf design on a square, but felt it looked far too symmetrical, stylised and formal for what I had envisioned. I then came up with a 6-petal/3-leaf design because I thought it would look more natural, as if the flower had just fallen on the square. However, extending a flower with multiples of three (6 petals and 3 leaves) into a 4-sided square proved to be a bit tricky, but after several attempts at it, I now think I finally have it looking just the way that I wanted it to!” One of the elements that makes flowers such an ideal playful crochet project is the speed and ease with which you can create a handful of them. “They’re simple and
Workshop
How do I add beads?
Grab a hook and yarn – here’s how to add beaded bling to your crochet, whether you’re right- or left-handed.
can you tell what it is yet? This is how beaded crochet stitches will look on your fabric. In previous issues, we’ve shown you various ways to decorate your crochet, and beading is another popular method. Beads are a great, easy way to add a real wow factor to your crochet. We’ll show you how to create beaded double crochet and treble crochet stitches, which you can use to add beaded patterns to your fabric or to add a beaded edging to any project. Once you’ve practised, you’ll be ready to make our pretty cuff on page 85.
beaded treble
beaded double
beaded stitches & edgings There are many different ways to add beads to your crochet, but we’re going to look at two ways to work beaded treble and double crochet sts. You can see from the images above how one row of beaded stitches can add a glamourous touch to
your fabric. The beaded double crochet stitch is particularly useful for working sparkly edgings. Beaded stitches are always worked on the wrong side rows of your crochet fabric – this is because the bead will always end up sitting on the reverse of the stitch you’ve worked. We’ll show you how.
how do i start beading? Here’s where you start – source your beads and add them to your yarn. First, you need some beads. We recommend you start with seed beads, which come in different sizes to suit different yarns: use size 6 seed beads for DK yarns and size 8 for 4ply and finer (the smaller the bead, the larger its number). Debbie Abrahams and Mill Hill are popular brands for crafters. Make sure the beads you’re using will work with your yarn, and vice versa, especially if you’re using different beads and yarn from that recommended in a pattern. It’s also a good idea to check that your beads will stand up to washing by testing a small swatch. Next, you’ll need to string your beads onto your yarn before you start to crochet. We’ll show you how (right), or, you can buy yarn with beads pre-strung onto it. 82 www.simplycrochetmag.com
01
03
02
04
Steps 1 & 2 Cut a small length of sewing cotton, thread through a sewing needle and knot the ends. Take the end of your yarn and pass it through the centre of the circle of sewing cotton.
STEPS 3 & 4 Pass the sewing needle through your first bead, gently moving it down over the sewing cotton and then onto your yarn. Repeat with more beads to string the number you need onto your yarn.
Embellish an outfit
Simply Styl ish
pom-pom pow
Feel the teal with this bright and beautiful jewel-coloured collar, designed by Cara Medus.
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