My Tree is Up and I made a button garland!

It's the earliest I've ever put my tree up, but I have so much going between now and Christmas it had to be done! This is third year I've put my crochet baubles and chains on the tree and I still love them as much as when I first made them. I'm not one to change themes every year. Christmas is a time for traditions in our house, I like the familiarity of using favourite ornaments.

Although, there are always decorations that start to look a little shabby when you get them out of hibernation. When they need to be retired I make something new, and preferably crocheted, to take their place. So my decorations are getting progressively yarnier. But as a child of the 80's I will always insist on at least one piece of tinsel in my house.

For my new decoration this year, I made a simple button garland. It was just a very long chain of cream yarn, with assorted red and green buttons every ten chains. It's hanging above an arch in my house and I added a home made felt and scrap ginger bread man in the centre and a felt Father Christmas and snowman at either end.

The chain garland itself is very quick to make up. It would be a good family craft to make with any little budding crochters, and I think would also look lovely decorating a tree or woven amongst bigger evergreen garlands.

What do you think?

I'm also 90% finished on my crochet garland wreath. It's currently hanging on my ironing board while I find the time to sew it together up the back. I'll do it tonight, honest! I was thinking I might add a poinsettia in a red shimmery yarn? Or maybe holly and berries? I'll post pictures of whatever I decide, but any input is always welcome.

How is everyone else doing with their festive crocheting and crafting?

My Tree is Up!

My woolly tree is finally up! I love my crochet baubles and chains so much. I originally planned to intersperse them with traditional baubles, but once I got going I realised that I liked them on their own and I had made more than enough to fill the tree with just fibre festiveness.

I am aware of how awful I am at taking photos, so I think a New Years Resolution for me is to take some kind of night course at my local college. 

Everything looks so much prettier in real life than in my dodgy pictures. I added my three favourite Father Christmas ornaments and a little robin up at the top, but other than that it's all wooly.

I got the tree up on Sunday and since then have been adding other festive touches around the house and frantically hooking away at my wreath. Almost done! I'm hoping by the weekend I'll be fully decked with boughs of crocheted holly.

Christmas Crochet Baubles

It's almost a year since I last wrote. I'm in a new house now, I have a new job, and my little boy is 14 months old, which I can hardly believe. Day to day life hasn't had much time for crocheting, but I'm always thinking of ideas.

Ten minutes here and there on Pinterest and The Crochet Crowd Facebook has given me bags full of inspiration, but until last month I haven't had the time or energy to pick up my hook. I think the change in the weather perked me up. Being incredibly ginger, Autumn and Winter have always been my favourite seasons. Far less chance of getting sunburn and the colour palette is just much more me. 

As soon as I realised I was now getting a whole hour of free time for myself of an evening, I started on some crochet baubles. I've wanted wooly ones for soooo long!

My last big red one has just had its ends sewn in. There are twelve of those and they're my favourites. Perhaps because they came out like I imagined them in my head, which is one of the reasons I love crochet. I wish I could draw, but my hands never translate what is in my brain on to the paper. With crochet it usually comes out like I was hoping. 

I used the remainder of the red wool from last years crochet 'paper' chains. I ended up with about thirty and this year as we are in a new house I thought I would put them on the tree so hopefully having the red baubles in the same wool will look like I meant that to happen!

It doesn't show up too well with my dodgy photo taking, but I found this lovely wool with a gold silk thread and gold sequins running through when I was mooching about the wool shop so I decided to make some little baubles too. I ended up with twenty four little ones. They were probably the most fun as they worked up so quickly. 

And finally I made two of these green, sparkly monstrosities. I had a packet of sparkly pipe cleaners in my craft box that kept shimmering at me, so I experimented. They look very ropy and home made, but I sort of like that. Not enough to make more than two though! I think they look like something that Mrs Weasley might decorate The Burrow with. 

My next task is a wooly crochet wreath, but my delivery of lots of lovely shades of green wool is not due for another few days so I thought I'd use tonight's hour of free time to re-join the online craft community. 

How is everyone else doing with their Christmas making? I love this time of year for idea swapping. Winter really is the best season.

Christmas Crochet Baubles

It's almost a year since I last wrote. I'm in a new house now, I have a new job, and my little boy is 14 months old, which I can hardly believe. Day to day life hasn't had much time for crocheting, but I'm always thinking of ideas.

Ten minutes here and there on Pinterest and The Crochet Crowd Facebook has given me bags full of inspiration, but until last month I haven't had the time or energy to pick up my hook. I think the change in the weather perked me up. Being incredibly ginger, Autumn and Winter have always been my favourite seasons. Far less chance of getting sunburn and the colour palette is just much more me. 

As soon as I realised I was now getting a whole hour of free time for myself of an evening, I started on some crochet baubles. I've wanted wooly ones for soooo long!

My last big red one has just had its ends sewn in. There are twelve of those and they're my favourites. Perhaps because they came out like I imagined them in my head, which is one of the reasons I love crochet. I wish I could draw, but my hands never translate what is in my brain on to the paper. With crochet it usually comes out like I was hoping. 

I used the remainder of the red wool from last years crochet 'paper' chains. I ended up with about thirty and this year as we are in a new house I thought I would put them on the tree so hopefully having the red baubles in the same wool will look like I meant that to happen!

It doesn't show up too well with my dodgy photo taking, but I found this lovely wool with a gold silk thread and gold sequins running through when I was mooching about the wool shop so I decided to make some little baubles too. I ended up with twenty four little ones. They were probably the most fun as they worked up so quickly. 

And finally I made two of these green, sparkly monstrosities. I had a packet of sparkly pipe cleaners in my craft box that kept shimmering at me, so I experimented. They look very ropy and home made, but I sort of like that. Not enough to make more than two though! I think they look like something that Mrs Weasley might decorate The Burrow with. 

My next task is a wooly crochet wreath, but my delivery of lots of lovely shades of green wool is not due for another few days so I thought I'd use tonight's hour of free time to re-join the online craft community. 

How is everyone else doing with their Christmas making? I love this time of year for idea swapping. Winter really is the best season.