Daisy Poncho made with Laurel Hill Crochet Hooks

Once the hustle -  bustle of the holidays

came to an end

I entered the New Year

with a fun new project 

and 

a Beautiful set of

Laurel Hill Crochet Hooks.

The set pictured is the

Variety Set

and can be purchased on my shop.

This lovely multicolored satin case is included.

The Daisy Poncho was a custom order 

and it was one of those 

"create as you go along"

pieces.

It was made for a regular customer as a surprise birthday gift for her sister.

It always makes me happy to be involved in surprises!

 I love the POP the Big Daisy makes...

And the flounce of the floral edging,

which was crocheted separately then stitched on.

{It took me 3 solid hours to hand stitch it on but it was worth it.}

The pattern for the edging can be found in 

Crocheting on the Edge

by 

Nicky Epstein

This is a fabulous book that I have used many times for finishing work.

The edging on this poncho is found in the "Flora" section.

It's called Honeysuckle.

I think it might be my favorite for poncho's,

as I've used it more than once over the years.

It gives that extra feel of femininity to have flowers

dancing around one's body.

And if you like to crochet flowers

 this book is a MUST HAVE.

You'll find the pattern for the daisy and leaves inside it's beautiful pages.

There is no actual "pattern" for the poncho itself.

It is constructed of a stitch I like.

I determine the amount of stitches I need for the desired width

then I make two rectangular panels of the same length.

Then they are hand stitched together and ready for any edging and embellishment

I want or a customer has requested.

I have also made this poncho many times using knitted roses with I-cord stems and leaves

vining around the neckline.

That's a favorite of mine.

The yarn I used throughout was Knit Picks Comfy Worsted

75% Pima Cotton

25% Acrylic

It is super soft against the skin and lightweight on the body.

Plus machine wash and dry.

The body of the poncho is done in the color Peony.

The daisy is White with a center of Creme Brulee.

The leaves are Jalapeno.

Since I am not fond of the little hole left in the center of a crocheted flower,

I usually prefer to sew a bead in.

This one has a creamy pearl bead sewn to the center.

But getting back to those exquisite hooks...

I am so excited that I am now being given the privilege of selling

these beautiful tools on my 

Etsy Shop

If you are interested in these gorgeous hooks

click on the live link above each picture.

The hooks are reasonably priced and made using the following 

Sustainable Exotic Woods:

Ebony

$10.00 each

Nam Oc

$9.00 each

Trai

$9.00 each

I have been crocheting for 33 years and during that time

I have searched high and low for 

the 

PERFECT

Crochet Hooks.

And now I've found them.

You can read my story of how I found them and why I love them

on 

the Laurel Hill Blog

here

For those of you who Crochet,

you just have to try them.

I promise you will

Fall in Love.

XO

    XO,

 Danette

Dolled Up Apron

While organizing my loose patterns {once again!}, I ran across this one for a very basic crocheted apron and immediately thought it would make a nice birthday present for my daughter Chelsea who will be 24 in February.

She just got married in October 2011 and, like her mother, always ties an apron around her upon entering the kitchen for anything serious. And this one will not only be cute on her but will look nice just hanging on a hook in the kitchen by her fridge while not in use.

Of course, she is a bit of a "girlie~girl" therefore the pattern called for some tweaking. So I rummaged through my books and found Nicky Epstein's Crocheting on the Edge for some ideas. From page 57 I added the "party ruffle" to the bottom edge and Voila! we have some flounce.... now we're getting somewhere. Then on page 63 I spotted the "peacock ruffle" {had to have this one for the name alone!}. The minute I looked at it I thought "pocket!" I crocheted this ruffle in the same contrasting yellow as the party ruffle and added a few rows of single crochet, turned the whole thing upside down and ~ there you have it! And the cute little ditty dancing across the top was just something my hook did when I wasn't  paying much attention.

The yarn I used for this project was Fantasy Naturale 100% Cotton made by Plymouth Yarns. It's my favorite for making dishcloths, which I do for myself every summer therefore I always keep a good amount of this yarn in my stash. This apron was so quick, fun & easy to make. I really enjoyed seeing where it would take me. When I showed it to my knit night girls they all had such a fit over it I had to run copies of the pattern. It will be interesting to see how they "doll" theirs up!