I love Christy's Finished Afghan

 I love Christy's finished afghan.  The pattern is a feather and fan ripple, and it's an easy pattern with basically a 2-row repeat.  So, it's easy to crochet while watching TV and relaxing.

I used Caron Simply Soft yarns, and they really are soft and cozy.  I really like the border around the afghan.  I mirrored the shell pattern on the top and bottom of the afghan, and crocheted a shell stitch pattern along the sides.
 

The afghan is about 45" x 65".  It will be so nice and cozy this winter!

Notes:  Round 1) SC on top row with bone color. Sides: Each shell row/sc: 3 scs. So, 3 scs in each row shell section spaced out along side edges. Sc on bottom edge in the bottom of each stitch.

Round 2) Top row as usual with 9 DC in corners. So, 7 dcs (one DC in a stitch, skip a stitch) then 5 DCs, 5 DCs (do not skip a stitch between shells).

Sides: (Skip a stitch, SC, Skp a stitch, shell of 5 DC) along sides. At edge: Skip a stitch, SC, skip a stitch, corner of 9 DCs.

Bottom Edge: Mirror the bottom edge by doing the Shells (5 DC, 5 DC) at the top curve of each ripple (at the 4th DC of the previous row). (Skip a stitch, DC) 7 times between shells. Corner is 9 DCS.

Finish with a row of SC along the top edge, one SC in each stitch in bone color.

K loves her Inkle Woven Guitar Strap

 K loves her guitar strap, which was so quick and easy to weave.  Plain weave on the inkle loom makes a very strong strap.  The colors in the weaving provide the design.  I used 3/2 weaving cotton.

The leather ends and slide are from A Spinner Weaver.

I really enjoyed weaving this for her. 

K's Guitar Strap

 This is a fun guitar strap to weave.  The technique is Baltic style band weaving, and the band pattern is in the Inkle Pattern Directory by Anne Dixon.  

 Pick-up band weaving was traditional in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Baltic countries, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.  Bands were used as trim for clothing and to tie clothing.  Apron strings, bonnet ties, and hair bands could be colorful woven bands.  Bands were used to hang articles up and to tie bags closed.

The pick-up pattern is easy to weave by moving the pattern threads up or down.  Each pattern thread is surrounded by 2 background threads, and the pattern thread is thicker or double the weight of the background threads.  The weft thread matches the background threads because it can show on the band when you drop pattern threads.

 I'm using 3/2 weaving cotton with doubled pattern threads.  To finish the band, I'll sew on leather ends, available from A Spinner Weaver.  I added borders onto the pattern design to increase the width to 2".

I'm really enjoying weaving this colorful guitar strap for K. 

 A Quick Project:  A Guitar Strap

It's fun to weave a guitar strap as a gift, especially for a granddaughter who will be taking guitar in her first year of high school.

So, I chose some fun colors:  purple, pink, yellow, and a bit of green, and found an online inkle loom generator to make my own pattern.  I'm using 3/2 weaving cotton, 77 threads.

                                 My Pattern using Purple, Pink, Yellow, and Green

                                                     Pattern Color Order

I love my Schacht inkle loom--it's very easy to warp and weave.  The inkle loom generator prints out the colors in order to warp the loom.  I use 5/2 cotton for my heddles, and I heddle one thread, unheddle the next, etc.  The inkle loom is a 2 shaft loom, which makes plain weave, unless you are using a pick-up pattern.
 

                                                        Beginning to Warp the Loom

It takes awhile to warp the loom, but the weaving is quite quick.
                                            

                                                   The Warped Loom, Ready to Weave

To begin, I put small sticks into the warp.  This gives me something steady to weave against to provide a firm surface. 

                                            Inserting Sticks into each Shed for 4 Picks

Next I weave a pick with my weft thread, which matches the outside thread color.  In the next shed, I place a needle with the needle top facing the tail of the weft thread.  Take the weft thread through this next shed also, leaving a small loop, and then place the tail thread into the needle, and pull it through to the other side.  

This will bury the tail thread.  I like to take it also through the loop of the weft thread.  Now pull each thread in opposite directions until the strap is the measurement you'd like it to be.  You shouldn't see any weft thread peeking through, and each warp thread should be nicely lined up.  I am making my strap 2" wide.  I have 77 threads in my warp.  Be sure to consistently check the width of the weaving to try to keep it uniform.

                                                         Making the Guitar Strap 2" Wide.

Here's what the weaving looks like in progress.  I will make the strap 60" wide and finish it with leather ends that I ordered from A Spinner Weaver. 
                                           

                                                        The Guitar Strap in Progress

This is a very quick and easy project.  I'll post a picture when the guitar strap is finished.