Wallflower Mandala (Coaster) Tutorial

I have designed and crocheted for myself a few mandalas before, but it has always been through rough sketching or experimenting on the spot.

This time round, I have decided to try writing down pattern and sharing it with the community. This humble little mandala is actually a mini version of my other mandala which I have posted on Instagram few weeks ago. I hope that the written steps are clear and easy to understand for you. If you've any questions of found any errors, please let me know :)

Btw, if you're keen to try this pattern, I would love to see your finished mandalas. :) Please tag your photos with #wallflowermandala on Instagram or leave a comment below with a link to your blog. A link back to my Instagram account (@joakhui80) or my blog (http://ohmilly.blogspot.com) would be much appreciated. Thank you very much!

I made this mandala using cotton yarn(scheepjes cotton 8 and hema fine cotton) and a 3mm hook. The finished mandala has a diameter of approximately 14cm. The steps are written in US terms:

sl = slip stitch
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
hdc = half double crochet
dc = double crochet
tr = treble crochet

For crochet terms conversion, please click here.

Each round is worked with a new color (except for the last 2 rounds). Let's begin!

Round 1 :

• Start with a magic ring, ch4 (counts as 1dc and ch1 space).
• Work (1dc, ch1) 11 times into the ring. 
• Sl into the 3rd ch of initial ch4 to join the round. Fasten off. (total 12 dc, 12 ch1 spaces)

Round 2 :

• Join new color in any ch1 space. Ch3 (counts as 1 partial tr), work 3 more partial tr in same space and pull through 4 loops on hook (tr4tog). Ch2. 
• Repeat (tr4tog in next ch1 space, ch2) all the way around. 
• Sl into the top of the first tr4tog. Fasten off. (total 12 groups of tr4tog, 12 ch2 spaces)

{To make tr4tog (made up of 4 partial tr) ::

• yo twice, insert hook into space, yo, pull up a loop (4 loops on hook), *yo, pull  through 2 loops on your hook*, repeat *to* once more (2 loops left on hook)
• yo twice, insert hook into space, yo, pull up a loop (5 loops on hook), *yo, pull  through 2 loops on your hook*, repeat *to* once more (3 loops left on hook)
• yo twice, insert hook into space, yo, pull up a loop (6 loops on hook), *yo, pull  through 2 loops on your hook*, repeat *to* once more (4 loops left on hook)
• yo twice, insert hook into space, yo, pull up a loop (7 loops on hook), *yo, pull  through 2 loops on your hook*, repeat *to* once more(5 loops left on hook)
• yo, pull through 5 loops on hook.

}

Round 3 :

• Join new color in any ch2 space. Ch2 (counts as 1 sc). Work 2sc in the same space. Ch1. 
• Repeat (3sc in next ch2 space, ch1) all the way around. 
• Sl into the 2nd ch of initial ch2. Fasten off. (total 36sc, 12 ch1)

Round 4 :

• Join new color into the top of any tr4tog of round 2 (see above image).  Ch2 (counts as a long sc). Work 1sc in each of next 3 stitches.
• Repeat (one long sc in next tr4tog, 1sc in next 3 stitches) all the way around.  
• Sl into the 2nd ch of initial ch2. Fasten off. (total 36sc, 12 long sc)

Round 5 :

• Join new color in any stitch. Ch2 (counts as 1 sc). 
• Work one sc in each stitch all the way around. 
• Sl into the 2nd ch of initial ch2. Fasten off. (total 48sc)

Round 6 :

• Join new color in any long sc of round 4. Ch2 (counts as a long sc). 
• Skip one stitch. Work (1hdc, 1dc, 1tr, 1dc, 1hdc) in next stitch. Skip one stitch.
• Repeat (a long sc in the next stitch, skip one stitch, (1hdc, 1dc, 1tr, 1dc, 1hdc) in next, skip one) all the way around.
• Sl into the 2nd ch of initial ch2. Fasten off. (total 12 shell stitch clusters, 12 long sc)

Round 7 :

• Join new color in any long sc. Chain 3 (counts as one dc). Work 1dc in the same stitch, 1dc in each of next 5 stitches.
• Work (2dc in next long sc, 1dc in next 5 stitches) all the way around. 
• Sl into the 3rd ch of initial ch3. Fasten off. (total 84dc)

Round 8 :

• Join new color in space between any 2dc (see above image). Ch4 (counts as 1tr). 
• In the next stitch (after the 2dc in same stitch of round 7), work 1dc. 
• Work (1hdc, 1sc, 1hdc, 1dc) in next 4 stitches.
• Work (1tr in space between next 2dc, then 1dc, 1hdc, 1sc, 1hdc, 1dc in next 5 stitches) all the way around. 
• Sl into the 4th ch of initial ch4. Fasten off. (total 12 groups of 1tr, 1dc, 1hdc, 1sc, 1hdc, 1dc)

Round 9 :

• Join new color in any tr. Ch2 (counts as 1sc). Ch4. Skip 2 stitches.
• Repeat (1sc in next stitch, ch4, skip 2 stitches) all the way around. 
• Sl into the 2nd ch of initial ch2. (total 24 sc, 24 groups of ch4). 

Round 10 :

• Continue with the same color from previous round, sl into ch4 space next to current ch2. Work 3sc, ch3 (counts as a picot), 3sc in ch4 space.
• Repeat (3sc, ch3, 3sc in each ch4 space) all the way around.
• Sl into the 1st sc at the beginning of the round. Fasten off.

I hope you enjoy making this mini #wallflowermandala.

P.S. : I named this mandala 'wallflower' according to my personality.

Crochet hook case

I received a set of clover amour crochet hook set with no casing for my birthday this year. These ergonomic hooks are extremely comfortable to hold and use. I decided to make my own crochet hook case to give them a 'home'. I wanted my case to be bright and colorful with a few pocket slots to hold the hooks. Recently, I've fallen in love with spike stitch as you can make wonderful patterns out of it. So, this will be a good chance for me to play around with spike stitch.

Using cotton yarn in 10 different colors, I created a piece measuring approximately 23 x 18 cm with diamond shape patterns.

As you can see from the close-up view below, I made 5 rows of single crochet (sc) with each color. For every first row of color change, repeat spike stitch pattern.

I made a inner lining of the same measurement as the front piece using the color beige...

 and a separate pocket piece, measuring approximately 23 x 10 cm. 

For this piece, I made 2 rows of sc with each color and spike stitch pattern upon color change.

 After I was done with the all the 3 pieces (front, back and pocket), I lined them up together, joining them along the edges using sc.

 Here is the result.

Here comes the part where I had to sew individual pocket slots. As I wanted to create a seamless look for my pocket piece, therefore, I had to sew through the back of pocket piece together with the inner lining.

The seams are now hidden behind the pocket piece.

I also inserted two pieces of cardboard measuring 10 x 17 cm each in between the front and back pieces to give it a 'backbone'.

I crocheted a flower to serve as a 'button' for my case…

 and made a chain of 20 (ch20) to serve as a loop for my button.

Here it is, my home-made crochet hook case.

 I'm happy with my crochet hook case. Happy weekend!

Fair-isle knitting - Jumper

This is actually a delayed post for my fair-isle jumper project. I started on this project in early May but had to pause for a while, as I had to hurry to complete the shawl project for my mother-in-law's birthday. The pattern can be found here.

When I was browsing through DROPS Spring and Summer Collection 2015, this jumper caught my attention right away. I simply love the colour combination, the casual look and the pattern. So I ordered the yarn without much hesitation.

I ordered 1 extra ball from Wolplein on top of the indicated number of yarn balls needed on the website. I have learnt from my past experiences to order at least 1 extra ball in order to avoid yarn shortage situations. Cotton Merino has a very soft touch, consisting of 50% wool and 50% cotton.

The colour denim blue is simply amazing.

This jumper was knitted using knit-in-the-round method.

I had to frog and modify the the sleeves two times as I wasn't satisfied with the baggy look of the sleeves while the body piece is just fitting. :(

Here's the final result:

I'm definitely getting better at catching floats, as compared to my past fair-isle knitting projects.

Here's a summary of this project:

Pattern :: Delphos by DROPS Design
Yarn :: Drops Cotton Merino, colour number 01 and 16
Balls used :: 9 x 50g
Cost :: 28.50 euro
Level of difficulty :: Intermediate
Duration of project :: 1 month

For now, it will stay in my closet till autumn arrives.

Happy weekend!

Utilizing unwanted yarn - Knit book sleeve

Around a year ago I purchased some blue acrylic yarn with the intention to make a poncho. Halfway through the project, I realized that it was going to be something which I would never put on. The colour is just too strong and the texture is too rough and scratchy. Ultimately, I gave up on that project. 

Just the other day, while I was tidying up my yarn stash, I came across these few balls of blue yarn and was wondering how I could utilize it. I could probably use them to make:

• basket
• amigurumi
• floor mat
• book cover

I decided to try creating my own book cover using this yarn. This will serve as a good interval project after my latest fair-isle sweater project which I will blog about soon. 

I tried to keep this pattern as simple as possible, using stockinette stitch for both front and back.

Cable stitch for the mid section.

One ridge of garter stitch along the edges.

When I was done with the knitting part, I folded both front and back into half.

Lastly, I sewed the inner stitches along the edges using whipstitch.

Below is the finished piece. 

I'm rather happy with the result. 

Till next time, have a good weekend!