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Stitching & Crafting Room:  Scrap Afghans  |
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sugar1
Farmgirl in Training
19 Posts
Diane
Fostoria
MI
USA
19 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 04 2005 : 07:57:25 AM
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Hello! Does anyone have a good scrap afghan pattern? It can be for knitting or crochet. I have some beautiful yarn scraps that I think would look nice together but I can't find a pattern I like. Thanks! |
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quiltedess
True Blue Farmgirl
296 Posts
Nancy
Priest River
ID
USA
296 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2005 : 08:19:42 AM
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Diane:
I've made several crochet afghan that have gotten many compliments and it was the easiest thing in the world. I grab 7 or 8 or 9 etc. skeins of leftover yarn and just start crocheting, I've even mixed in the "cool" things like metalics and eyelash yarns. I lay them out in some kind of pleasing order and then I just pick up the first color and go. I do a double crochet stitch and I go for three or four rows, then go to the next color. When I get through all the colors, I start over with the first color. This helps to make the "scraps" look planned and evenly spaced. If I run out of a color I just substitute a similiar one and continue until the afghan is the size I want. I try to have a theme with the colors . . . such as patriotic, or fall, or jewel tones, baby, etc. I saw this idea on some tv show years ago and I though . . . I can do that! I was very pleased with the results. I sew fabric onto two of the edges, like blanket binding (I use flannel). I got that idea from an afghan I bought at Eddie Bauer that I loved. It helps to neaten up the edges where all the color changes occur and people think I was just so clever to sew fabric onto a crocheted afghan. :-)
Try it, I really think you'll like it.
Nancy |
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sugar1
Farmgirl in Training
19 Posts
Diane
Fostoria
MI
USA
19 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2005 : 2:22:27 PM
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This sounds beautiful! Do you have to use a certain stitch for the fabric and can you do it by hand? I've never seen this done before. Thanks for the suggestion! |
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countrykat
True Blue Farmgirl
85 Posts
kathy
paola
kansas
USA
85 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2005 : 6:52:01 PM
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Hi Diane,
I've seen one that was similar to the one Nancy described. It was on the Carol Duvall Show I believe. Anyway the artist took her scraps of yarn and would crochet one row only leaving a long tail on the end she started on and a long tail on the end that she bound off on. This worked the fringe right in as she was going. You could even vary between single crochet and double crochet, this would give the piece even more texture. Also, check out www.lionbrand.com they have a bunch of free patterns and the hot thing these days is to make shawls or ponchos using a mixture of yarns. You might have enough to make one of these fasion pieces.
How fun, I'm swatching for a summer tank top right now as the one I have on the needles is almost done. I just finished a crocheted afghan for a friends daughter, need to wash and deliver it.
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quiltedess
True Blue Farmgirl
296 Posts
Nancy
Priest River
ID
USA
296 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2005 : 6:59:59 PM
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I don't use any particular stitch to sew the binding on. In fact a decorative stitch could look really nice. I use a sewing machine, but anything that is done with a sewing machine can be done by hand, even a decorative stitch. I cut the fabric four times as wide as I want the edgeing to be, so if you want the edge to be 2 inches wide, cut a strip that is 8 inches wide. Fold it in half length-wise and press. Then open it up and fold the raw edges in to line up with the center crease and press. You will end up with a strip 2 inches wide and four thicknesses. I hope this isn't confusing too much, I mostly a visual person and have a hard time trying to explain it with words. :-) Wrap the length of binding around the edges you want to cover and stitch it down. Look at a blanket with a binding to see how to put it on. You could use a back stitch if you want to do it by hand, so it will be strong and you can make your stitches fairly long. I sure hope this helps. I not a very good "explainer" :-)
I'd love to hear how your afghan comes out.
Nancy |
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knittingmomma
True Blue Farmgirl
106 Posts
Tonya
Vermont
106 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2005 : 04:34:19 AM
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Another thing you could do with bits of leftover yarn, is crochet or knit squares - simply make them all the same size - so it won't even matter if you have different thicknesses (not sure if that is a word) of yarn. Crochet all the squares together and crochet a border:)
Warm wishes,
Tonya
Simple Living, Homestead Dreaming Mom of 5
http://www.naturalearthfarm.com |
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Clare
True Blue Farmgirl
2173 Posts
NC WA State
USA
2173 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2005 : 06:43:00 AM
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Remember Granny square crocheted afghans? This is along the same line as just mentioned. Somewhere along the way they got labeled old fashioned... that's too bad because you can use updated color combinations and have them come out really bright and pretty. That pattern should be simple to find online. I'm doing one with found yarn... only I'm knitting to practice my knitting skills (I'm new to knitting). I'm binding the two long strips (they are about 7-8 inches wide), by crocheting together with white yarn. It seems to be working ok. I really don't think you need a pattern for this type of creative work, just use your imagination and go for it!
****Gardener, Stitcher, Spiritual Explorer and Appreciator of all Things Natural****
"Begin to weave and God will give the thread." - German Proverb |
Edited by - Clare on Jun 05 2005 06:45:06 AM |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2005 : 07:49:43 AM
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Both of Dh's grandmothers made me granny afghans when we married. I loved them! I love the look of them. I need to repair some of the squares. Remember the crocheted granny vests of the 1970's?
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2005 : 9:32:56 PM
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About a year or so ago I made second son (he is 25 now and lives in Calif) an afghan for his housewarming gift for his first apartment. It was just all the leftover yarn I had (within reason....no baby colors) and I used two strands at a time and the very biggest crochet hook I could find...it is plastic...and did single crochet and just did it as wide as I thought he would want and kept going until the yarn was gone. He is over 6'4" so I wanted it sort of long. He loved it and said that it was the only blanket he had that covered his feet AND his shoulders! I tend to like the same color range so it was alot of earthtones, a whole lot of green (my favorite color) and I had several skeins of a nice oatmeal tweedy stuff. I just put two strands together and added the next when one ran out and it was an easy project. Gets hot on your lap though!!
I still have a couple of afghans that my beloved grandma made just for me..she made them for all of her loved ones....and treasure them.
I have a granny square afghan going now, by the way...I don't get to that project very often and it is only half done.
Jenny in Utah
Bloom where you are planted! |
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sugar1
Farmgirl in Training
19 Posts
Diane
Fostoria
MI
USA
19 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2005 : 3:17:25 PM
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| Wow! I just knew you all would have some great ideas--Thanks! I can't wait to try them out. Something about a scrap afghan that reminds me of my great-grandmothers quilts. I made a granny square one a while ago, and made each square in two colors so it looked like two triangles connected along the long side. You can stitch the squares together into a quilt-like pattern. It was pretty, but I needed some other ideas--I like the one using grannies but stitching on a border. I think I remember seeing one in very 70's colors. You're right, it would look nice with updated colors and a white border. |
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Celticheart
True Blue Farmgirl
811 Posts
Marcia
WA
USA
811 Posts |
Posted - Jun 15 2005 : 2:46:55 PM
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I've made several scrap afghans the same way as Jenny but combining 1 strand of color with a strand of white or off-white and doing a single crochet and chain one for the whole thing. A great way to use up those scraps(except I kept having to buy white and people kept requesting afghans). I'm thinking of trying the same thing with black now.
Marcia
"I suppose the pleasure of country life lies really in the eternally renewed evidence of the determination to live." Vita Sackville-West
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jun 15 2005 : 11:30:31 PM
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I bet that would be pretty! My granny square afghan has a tan color around the colorful blocks..which looks different...I like it.
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things! |
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Stitching & Crafting Room: Scrap Afghans |
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Scrap Afghans
