Happy 2011! Let's start the new year off with a little DIY project, shall we?
I'm a little obsessed with crocheting since I learned those granny squares. (I know, I know, they aren't *actually* granny squares, but for the sake of classifying, let's call them that.) I was told that learning something like those sort-of granny squares right off the bat is a difficult place to start, but since then I've managed to teach myself how to do some of the simpler stiches by spending some time with expert crocheter friends (hi Kelly!) and watching youtube videos. It was inevitable that I included some sort of crocheted handmade gifts this holiday season, in addition to the crocheted rocks.
I happened upon the jam jar covers that Tif was busy making, and those sparked this idea. An extremely simple pattern to crochet wool cozies for those pretty and inexpensive IKEA Driod glasses*. By the time this post hits the airwaves, I will have given these to a list of neighbors, teachers, good people, and friends. If you put a nicely scented candle in each of them, you have a great gift for under $20.
I am probably way out of my league here, creating a crochet pattern of even the simplest sort, however I'm just going to put this out there and hope for the best, because its easy and fun. What I am really loving about crochet in general is that it is forgiving, there is actually room for little mistakes or miscounts, and they won't usually wreck the whole design. As an example, my first dozen of these were all completely different, but still completely useable when I looked closely at them, and I used them all (well, there may have been one or two thrown out). I finally got some consistency in the last batches, so that's where this pattern was tried, tested, and finalized.
Sweater Candle Holder Cozies
an assortment of IKEA Driod glasses
yarn in your chosen weight and color (I used Cascade 220 worsted, my favorite)
crochet hook in US size H/5.0mm (or size appropriate for your yarn and guage)
candles**
To Make:
(We will make this cozy from bottom up. I didn't take step by step photos of each of these rounds because of the simplicity of this design. If there's enough requests for photos, I'll try to add them in.)
Round 1= make a chain of 30 stitches, slip stitch to join into a circle, careful not to twist. (check your guage, this chain should fit snugly around the bottom).
Round 2 & 3 = 1 Half Double Crochet into each chain, 30 stitches. Join round with a slip stitch.
Round 4 = Chain 1, *1 Half Double Crochet into first and second stitch, then 2 Half Double Crochet stitches into the next/third stitch*. Repeat from * till end of round, 40 stitches. Join round with a slip stitch.
Round 5 = 1 Half Double Crochet into each stitch, slip stitch to join round, 40 stitches. Join round with a slip stitch.
Continue as Round 5 until you have the desired number of rows to cover your candle holder. I wanted my rows to reach all the way to the rim of the glass, so I did 5 more rows for a total of 10 rows. Eyeball this, it may vary depending on your guage and tension. You may prefer to have a little of the candle holder showing at the top (after all, they do come in pretty colors), so do one less row.
That's it. And when I say this is quick to do up, I was able to do one in about 20 minutes once I'd worked out the kinks. Granted, I'm crochet obsessed, but I'm still very new. And right now, I am enjoying the one I kept for myself. I can't live without candles in winter.
If you make these, I'd love to know! Send me your pictures and thoughts (and, of course, if you see any blaring mistakes in my instructions, let me know).
*IKEA calls these drinking glasses, and they are sold in that section of their store. But, for whatever reason, I use these for candleholders. So for this exercise, they are candleholders. If you do use these for drinking glasses, the cozy would work well to keep your warm drinks warm longer, and protect your hands from heat. Your choice.
**The candles I used, which happen to fit perfectly into these glasses, are the Rainforest and Euphoric refills from Aveda. These come in little paper cups, and my suggestion is to remove the candle from the paper cup before using, but put a few drops of water in the bottom of your candleholder before putting in the candle, to hopefully avoid the candle sticking to the bottom and make it easier to get it out when its done.
