Saturday, March 23, 2013

Owl Hats and Mini Purse!







So I was browsing the internet looking for a great new hat to make and saw an owl hat. It looked fairly easy so I decided to give it a try. It quickly became one of my most popular hats. This great hat was made from a free pattern, yes you heard me right FREE. The sleeping owl hats are made from the same pattern with a few changes. For the hat itself I simply omitted the ear flaps. The eyes were made with the same pattern but I used all soft white yarn then used black yarn and a darning needle to sew the eye lashes on.

Here is the link for the owl hat pattern:



After making several owl hats I decided I wanted to try and make a mini purse to match and again searched the internet for a free pattern. I found one that was easy to follow, but I did change a few things so it would match the hats. I will list the changes below the link.

Here is the link for the purse pattern:


So the main change is when I changed colors. Instead of waiting til round 11 to change colors I did it at the beginning of round 7. I then followed the rest of the pattern and added an extra round of single crochet at the end. So I ended with 2 rounds of single crochets instead of one. For the flower I used the following pattern, but just did the first row of petals.



  If you would like to purchase an owl hat or purse they are for sale on Crochet By Rita's facebook page. You will find the link on the upper left hand side of this page.


I hope that you enjoy these patterns as much as I have. The sites that I have linked have several other free patterns on their sites including a sock monkey hat that I will be posting about in the near future. I look forward to seeing your own owl hats and purses. If you have any questions or comments feel free to post them below.


Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Baby One Eyed Monster





Hat fits 12-24 months

H hook for hat; G hook for teeth and knobs
Darning needle(to attach pieces to hat and to sew on a mouth)
Gauge- 1st two rounds= 2 inches in diameter

Uses 2 colors for hat itself. Shown using red heart super saver in blue suede and carrot. Any worsted weight yarn should work.

Abbreviations
Hdc- half double crochet
St- stitch
dc- double crochet
sl st- slip stitch
ch- chain

Round 1- start with 1st color; using a magic circle, chain 1 then 10hdc in circle. Join with 1st hdc  with a sl st  (10)

Round 2- ch1 2hdc in same st and then 2hdc in each st. Join with sl st to 1st hdc (20)

Round 3- ch1 2hdc in same st, 1hdc in next st. *2hdc in next st, 1hdc in the next st* repeat from * to * join with sl st to 1sthdc  (30)

Round 4- ch1 2hdc in same st, 1hdc in next 2 st *2hdc in next st, 1 hdc in each of the next 2 st*; repeat from* to *. join with sl st to 1sthdc (40)

Round 5- change colors; ch1 2hdc in same st, 1hdc in next 3 st. *2hdc in next st, 1hdc in each of the next 3 st*; repeat from * to *. Join with sl st to 1st hdc (50)

Round 6- ch2 2dc in same st, 1dc in next 4 st; *2dc in next st, 1dc in each of the next 4 st*. Repeat from * to * join with sl st to 1st dc. (60)

Round 7- ch2 1dc in same st, 1dc in each st around. Join with sl st to 1st dc (60)

Round 8-10 change color back to 1st color. Ch2 1dc in same st and then 1dc in each st around. Join with sl st to 1st dc. (60)

Round 11-13 change color back to 2nd color. Ch2 1dc in same st and then 1dc in each st around. Join with sl st to 1st dc (60)
Finish off and weave in ends.


Eye, mouth(with or without teeth) knobs on head

Eye-start with black yarn
Start with a magic circle; ch2 12dc in the circle. Close circle joining with a sl st to 1stdc. (12)

Change to red or whatever color you choose for the iris. Ch1 2hdc in same st and then 2hdc in each st around. Join with sl st to 1st hdc.(24)

Change to white. Ch2 2dc in same st, 1dc in next st. *2dc in next st, 1dc in next st*. repeat from * to * join with sl st to 1st dc. (36)
Finish off and weave in ends.


Teeth use G hook
Ch 5, 1sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1hdc in next chain, 1 dc in each of the last 2 chains. Finish off leaving a long enough tail to sew it to hat.


Knobs on head (3 shown you can make as many or as few as you like)
Use G hook
Work rounds in continuous spiral use a stitch marker if needed.

Round 1- Ch 3, 6sc in 3rd chain from hook(6)

Round 2- 2sc in each st around(12)

Rounds 3-7 – 1sc in each st around(12)
Sl st into next st. finish off leaving a long enough tail to sew it to hat.


Attaching eye and mouth

Attach black yarn to back of eye with a knot. You will then use the black yarn to sew the eye to the hat. After you have attached the eye use the same yarn to sew a mouth onto the hat below the eye as shown in picture above. Weave in end and cut off excess yarn. If you are putting teeth on your hat you can now attach those to the mouth.



This is one of the first patterns I have written, so if you have any questions or find any problems with the way something is written, please just leave a comment below.


You may not sell or redistribute this pattern in any way. You may sell items made from this pattern. I ask that if you do sell items made from this pattern that put a link back to me on the page.


Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Welcome to Crochet by Rita

A few of the hats that I have made.

          This is my first post on Crochet by Rita. It is my hope that this blog will be helpful to other crocheters like myself. I will have links to free patterns that I have found as well as patterns that I have written myself. I will be posting patterns for the monster and dinosaur hats in the picture above soon. I will also post links to the patterns for the sock monkey and owl hats shown. Look out for helpful tips when altering an existing pattern for either a larger or smaller size. I hope that you all will enjoy what you find here in the coming days, weeks and months. Happy hooking!