Sometimes, when the paper pieced designs aren’t coming easily, or my mind is filled with stress or other things that occupy my time, I find succumbing to another designer’s pattern a lovely way to unwind and unravel the tangled strands of my brain.

Lion Brand has been hosting a Crochet Along for a lovely Sampler Afghan. It grabbed my attention at once as being a project that would be fun and portable, which is how I usually like my crochet! Using their pattern, I created my own sampler, with Harry Potter-inspired colors! The actual idea I had was to make an afghan that resembled the four House scarves. The project, from beginning to end, took about two weeks. For lots more awesome variations, check out the Crochet Along Flickr Group. There’s a black, gray and white version by chooosy40 that I really like.

Another great project that I just finished last night was for my dear hubby, who is currently running Call of Cthulhu with his gaming group. Inspired by his eagerness for props, what better than Cthulhu himself? Wee, evil Cthulhu made from this pattern. He’s my first animiguri and while it was a little hard on my hands, I’m quite please with the way he turned out.

I regulary quilt and crochet for a local blanket making charity, The Linus Connection, but I’m always on the lookout for other ways that I contribute with my crafts. Coats & Clark’s Special Olympics Scarf Project caught my eye and I just had to make a scarf! Knitters and crocheters can use any pattern they choose, but I opted for their recommended pattern, which is the same as their Wizard Scarf pattern. I’ve made quite a few of those for my family and fellow Harry Potter lovers, so I knew the pattern was a fast and easy one. It worked up really quickly and I made sure to tie one of my “handmade by” labels to it with a note for good luck at the Games to whoever receives it!

Special Olympics Scarf

One of my Livejournal friends, caitirin, has turned me on to an excellent new yarn source! Angelicrafts Discount Yarn offers a variety of brands of yarn at discount prices. Just to give them a try, I ordered the Red Heart Mill Ends “Odds and Ends” box. The price of the UPS shipping was totally paid for by the sheer amount of yarn packed into the box. It’s all store-quality, without the sleeve and came with a personal note from the owner, which I thought was a very nice touch. I will definitely be ordering from them again, once I deplete my now ample supply of yarn!

Another fantastic Livejournal friend of mine, the multi-talented crochet goddess, hp5freak, shared a pattern recently for a Tiny Witches Hat . It’s an adaptation of another pattern that was written so that the hat was made in two parts. Her is easy-peasy and is made all in one piece. I had a brilliant time making this. It whips up in no time and is just the right size to put on a tiny pumkin. This pattern also introduced me to the Magic Adjustable Ring (also called Magic Loop), which I had never tried before but know I will now have a million and one uses for!