Experimenting with upcycling

I've seen some cool crochet ideas online lately, and I've got some inspiration. I wanted to try my hands with transforming old plastic bags into something useful and good-looking. I was surprised by the easiness of creating the yarn (dubbed as "plarn" by some) and it's easier to work with than I thought. Also, since I'm using brown bags, the result looks surprisingly natural. I'm going to keep experimenting with this material, I think it can be perfect for bags, baskets and other kitchen-related stuff.
So here are the steps of transformation:

1. Ugly bag

2. Weird-looking "yarn"

3. Starting the work

4. The finished product

I'm completely excited about this new technique! If you have any other ideas for upcycling plastic bags or any interesting experience with it, please share!

Work in progress

Since I started my new day job, the time I can spend on working on my crochet ideas has reduced greatly. But I don't give up on it, and I still have some nice projects going on - it might take a little longer to finish them though. Here's what I'm experimenting now:

I've found this nice pattern online, I think on Pinterest, and I decided to try.

The diagram is nice and clear, although sadly it doesn't give me any idea about the yarn weight or the hook size, so I had to take a chance. I have some leftover lace yarn from another project, and I try to use that up. So here's where I am right now:

I'm still not sure if the size will be ok, or if the yarn will be enough to finish it :) But it's really exciting to see this beautiful lace pattern forming, so I'm willing to take this risk. I hope that soon I can report success!

Sharing Secrets II.: Searching for free patterns

    Whenever I need new ideas or patterns, the first thing I do is to search online for inspiration. Usually I do google image search with keywords like "bikini crochet pattern" or whatever I'm looking for at the moment. Sometimes this search is not really fruitful, then I use my little secret weapon.

I search in Chinese.

   It's still not always successful, but the Chinese web is huge, so there's a good chance to find very different things than what the English search brings you.

For your convenience, I'm sharing a few phrases here, you can copy-paste them into your google search. 

Crochet:   钩针编织
Knit:        编织
Pattern:    样式
Hat:         帽子
Top:        上衣
Bikini:    比基尼
Dress:     穿衣

If there are any other words or phrases you'd like to search for, leave a comment!
Good luck!

Experimental piece

     I have always wanted to make swimsuits! I just think that they are one of the most delicate and beautiful wearable items you can create with crochet. Also, it's quite challenging, as it needs to fit very well. I've been searching online for patterns, and I found surprisingly few. I did find pictures of finished swimsuits, mostly for sale, some of them were really beautiful. Sadly, the patterns I found turned out to be rather useless, as some were unclear, and others had weird proportions. I spent three days to make one of them, which came out as something that fits my wide hips well, but then the top part hardly reaches over my belly button, make it impossible to wear. It's like the top and the bottom part was designed for very different sizes.

     After that, I decided to make my own. I used some parts of other patterns, and made up the rest by myself. I think it's not a bad one for a first attempt. I did have to go back and change things quite a bit though, so although it's not a big piece, but it took a lot of work. I'm proud of it, and I already have some ideas about improving things for the next one. Because there will be a next one, I'm pretty sure!

What do you think about this one?

More pictures and details here.

Sharing Secrets I.: My favorite patterns for bra or bikini top

   One of the things I like making best is bikini tops or bras. The basic cups are relatively easy to make, and the ornamenting possibilities are simply endless. I've tried some different methods for making the bra cups, here's what worked for me best. (I found these patterns online, I don't own them and they are not my creations)

    I know it's a little hard to see because the picture is small, but maybe you can get the idea. It starts in the middle with single chains, then the rounds go on the two sides of the original chain, building up the cup from the center, working outward. The increase happens on the center line, adding an extra double crochet-single chain-double crochet group to each round.

    I like this pattern because the increase gives a nice shape to the cup, although sometimes I find that the single chain in the center can make a small opening on the texture, not too big, but you can see it if you look close.

Another one I like a lot is this one:

     I haven't tried to make the trim yet, but I found the cup pattern very useful. Although it has a very similar way of building up the cup from the center, but without the small holes on the center line I experienced with the first one. This one has no single chain increase, only double crochets, so the texture stays nice and even.

    I think the real trick is to find the right length of the starting center chain, based on the weight of your yarn and the desired cup size. Sometimes it takes some trial and error to find out, but it's definitely worth it!

Do you know an even better way? Please share!

Recycling

     I'm still in the process to go through that big stash of yarn I was given from an old basement. It's been a big task, as it fills two large trash bags. I had to go through them skein by skein as I realized that some of the wool yarn were infested by moths, so I had to throw those away and carefully inspect the rest.

     Luckily, the stash consist of mostly synthetic fibers, which were unaffected by moths. Although, deciding the fiber was also an issue as most of the yarn came without any labels, so I spent a few hours in the backyard with a lighter, taking small samples of each skein and burn them to see what they're made of. I've found this helpful chart online that helps figuring out your yarn.

    So after inspecting and categorizing, now I'm ready to finally use the yarn. The cold weather gave me inspiration, and I decided to make a hooded scarf, because I think hooded scarfs are cool. I selected chocolate-colored yarns to create this piece, and as I watched the stripes building up, I nicknamed it tiramisu. The pattern is really easy, this is project that could be great for beginners, as it would be really difficult to not succeed.

Do you like hooded scarfs?

Bamboo crochet!

     The local yarn store is a dangerous place. Every time I go there I get tempted to buy things that I didn't plan on, it's just the beautiful bright colors and the fine textures that I can't resist. So more often than not, I end up buying yarn without having any idea how to use it. 

     Same thing happened when I bought this yarn. I just fell in love with the rich golden color first, then I noticed the unusual shape of the yarn, it's actually a tape yarn. Then, to complete the magic spell, I touched it, and I knew I was lost. Soft, non-fuzzy smooth texture with a little stretch in it...just perfect for any crochet ideas I might have! Except that I didn't have any at the time, still I bought a skein just because I couldn't resist. Then I checked the label and was absolutely surprised to see that this yarn was made of bamboo! I love bamboos anyway, but now I have another reason to like them.

     I finally decided to make it into a shawl/scarf, something that can be worn as an everyday accessory but also can be a nice addition to dance wear. I tried different patterns, until I found a beautiful square pattern, once again I'm grateful for my Japanese pattern books! I also ended up going back to the yarn store as I needed some more yarn to finish this project, and as usual came home with more than I planned on so I had to start thinking how to use the newly bought yarn.... this is like a vicious circle for me. Well, it's not that vicious I guess.

More pictures here.

Light and beautiful

      Since in the last post I mentioned the fine wool yarn that was a leftover, I decided to show you what I used that yarn originally for. I got commissioned to make a lace scarf, but I got to choose the style. I found the pattern in one of the Japanese crochet books I bought in Asia (I love them, they are full of beautiful and delicate items, and very clear diagrams!), but I decided to use two different colors instead of just one. It took quite a bit of time to make it, but it was definitely worth it! I was also happy to see that the recipient loved it too, so this piece was definitely a success! How do you like it?

More pictures here.

A cloudy winter afternoon

   When I work on a more complicated piece, where I have to solve problems and create the pattern as I go, sometimes I get to a point when I feel tired and I want to take a short break from that project, but I still want to work on something. I got this feeling this afternoon again, and I was trying to find some easy thing to make, something with a clear and easy pattern so that I can relax while I make it.
I decided to try my hands on something I've been wanting to try for a while but somehow never got there. Gloves. They are small, the fingerless version can be pretty simple, and as a bonus, I can use up some leftover yarn that wouldn't be enough for any bigger project. So I started to look for patterns and ideas, and I found this. Exactly what I wanted! But of course I'm just me, so as always, I ended up changing the pattern here and there. The biggest change is that I'm going around with the stitch without turning, except for the part where the glove opens for the thumb. The reason is that this way is easier to try it on and see if everything is going well, and more importantly because I don't like sewing parts together (maybe because I'm not very good at that). Another change is that I added a few rounds of double crochet to the cuff part and made a little decrease there - it's a little more difficult to put the glove on this way, but it fits the wrist much better. I think I will make a pattern for this glove (the original on the link does not have a diagram and I really don't like words-only patterns), maybe it will be useful for others too.

I used 100% non-dyed wool yarn and 2.3mm hook. The texture is lovely soft and warm, I just love these delicate yarns!

UPDATED: More pictures here.

Find SoLace on Facebook too!

       SoLace is trying to be visible on the net, so that other crochet-maniacs can find it! Although I try to post here often about the latest projects and ideas, the Facebook page has some more up-to-date info, like news that would not worth a full post here, but might be still interesting.  You can check out and like the page here.

Waiting for the summer

 I got a huge stash of yarn from my husband's grandma, it filled three large cardboard boxes and I've been sorting it for days. I've found some interesting things in it, one of them was a cone of bright blue plush yarn, I've never seen anything like this before. It's really soft, and has a nice shiny look, so I decided to make something with it that would show this special texture. I created a very simple bikini top, with the only embellishment being some basic lace stitches around the edges and on the straps. The whole thing is very stretchy and soft, I almost regret making a bigger size than I am so I can't wear it. Well, the good news is that I still have some yarn left, so I can start thinking about another nice thing to make with it....

More pictures here.

Purple mania

 I got a few rolls of nice purple crochet yarn and the beautiful color inspired me to create very delicate things with it. I ended up with a "collection" of bra tops, all my original design. First I made a simple bra with lace trim and straps, that was my first attempt to something like that. Then I wanted to see how it would look with a more bold lace decoration, so I made the second one with a wide lace pattern. While I was still working on that one, I started to learn hairpin lace, so of course I wanted to try and combine that technique with my lingerie-like purple things. So I made a longer top with hairpin lace. I'm quite happy with them, although the acrylic yarn is a little rigid, and not as soft and stretchy as other fibers, but at least it's easy to clean and will keep color and shape for long! 

      (More pictures about these here)

Found on the net...

      There are several benefits of knowing foreign languages. One of them is that you're able to search different domains of the internet. Sometimes, when I can't find inspiration among English language crochet sites and patterns, I venture out and search in Chinese. It's not always easy, but can be rewarding - this beautiful hat pattern is one of the few gems I found.
I used a 2.75mm hook and made it with very fine non-dyed wool yarn, so it's really soft and warm. I just love the way the lace pattern shows on this piece!

(This piece is for sale currently. You can see more pictures and details here.)