Texture it With Knots! The Bullion Rose---2

Last week we made our first bullion knot rose. This week i would like to share with you a second rose also made with the bullion knot.

Materials:

If you are making these rosebuds as an all-over after-the-fact embellishment on a bag, and you used yarn for the bag, you can use yarn for the rosebuds.
If you want a contrasting fiber, you can use Perle or pearl cotton for the rosebuds.
Suggested colors: DMC Pearl Cotton Thread, Size 3, 16 yds. (15m)
Very Dk. Shell Pink
Rose
Very Lt. Shell Pink
If you want to use yarn, use the following colors:
Red Heart Shocking Pink or Country Rose
Rose Pink or Pretty 'N Pink
Baby Pink or Raspberry


Choose where you want your stitch to go on your bag or garment, bring the needle through from the back to the front at that spot, then you insert the needle a few stitches below that, and bring the needle up near where you oribilaly brought the needle through to start up,
then you wrap the yarn around the needle (if you are using yarn, wrap 10 times, if you are using embroidery thread, wrap 15 times. Not too tightly so that you can pull the needle through!) Pull your needle through, tighten it up a bit and to anchor it in place, pull your yarn or thread through to the other side.
For second side of center, bring out needle a little bit under the bullion just made, then, insert needle through beside the bullion stitch just made and make a bullion with 8 wraps. pull needle through, tighten stitch and ancor it in place. Fasten off on the wrong side. Thread needle with Pretty 'N Pink, if using yarn.
If using Pearl cotton, thread needle with Rose. Starting right underneat the darker center, bhering the needle through, then stitch above where you stitched the last bullion, to make this petal longer than the last one, make 12 wraps, pull needle through, tighten stitch, and anchor it.
Repeat this last stitch on the opposite side but make 14 wraps instead of 12. Pull through, tighten stitch. Ancor sittch and fasten off.
Thread needle with Baby Pink of with Very Lt. Shell Pink, if you are using Pearl cotton. Make a small Bullion of 8 wraps underneath the center rosebud already made. Pull through and tighten. Anchor stitch. Make another bullion on the opposite side with 8 wraps. Pull through and tighten. Anchor stitch.
Make another bullion a little bit above that one with 8 wraps. Ans another one on the opposite side a bit above the last one with 10 wraps.Make a tiny bullion across the top with 6 wraps. As always, pull needle through wraps, tighten, then anchor stitch.
Then go a little bit inside the top of the rose and make another 6-wrap little bullion. Pull needle thorugh, tighten stitch and anchor it.
Finally, make a small, 6-wrap bullion onthe side of the rose, (You can continue for as long as you want to and make the rose as large as you want to, but we will stop with a small rose.)
Once you have made your rosebuds, you can add little crocheted leaves (if you want to). Use Red Heart worsted weight yarn Tea Leaf or if you use pearl cotton, make leaves with Med. Pistachio Green.
For this one I decided to make 2 bullion leaves, one a bit to the side of the bottom and one above the last petal.

Christ's Human Nature

Betty Jo's Braid

For this purse strap you will need 4 ropes. Each of a different color (please refer to previous tutorials to learn how to make the crocheted ropes. Use the Search box to find them.)
For this example I used Red Heart colors Shocking pink, Pretty 'n Pink, Spring Green and Kelly Green, but you can use anything you like or what will match with your bag.

Once you have your ropes, you make the strap as follows:

1- Twist your first two colors and pin them down at the top and at the bottom of the working surface, so that the twist will not unravel and remain firm.
2- Insert the other two cords through the center of the first twist, bring the ends around the edges and push them down the center of the next twist, keep repeating until you get the length you want.
3- Secure both ends with a safety pin before you take your braid off of your working surface and finish your strap by sewing the ends to your purse ring securely.

This makes a pretty easy 4-color braid that even a braiding beginner can make in a jiffy!

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God Loves You!

Adriana's Braid

If you make bags often or totes, you cannot have enough of these braids. You could be making the same simple bag, and making it look different each time by using one of these braids. This one is beautiful as is, but you can embellish it further as I will explain later. Let's get going!

Make 6 ropes as explained before (please refer to other tutorials for manner of making the ropes)
of 6 different colors of your choice (it will help you keep better track of where each rope goes
and honestly speaking, the braids are prettier that way!) Choose colors that match or contrast
your bag or tote in a complimentary way. It the bag is in a neutral tone (beige, light gray, ets.)
the sky is the limit, because those colors go with any other color or hue you can imagine!

To start the braid: Measure your bag to place ropes at an equal distance on both sides.

Pin 3 ropes on one side at the top of the bag, leaving a bit of extra rope that will be secured to the inside of the
bag and will go under the lining of the bag.

Pin 3 topes on the opposite end at the top of the bag, leaving at least 3 inches in between the two groups of ropes.

Braiding:

1- Bring the left hand rope over the middle rope to the center.
2- Now, place the right hand rope over the new middle strand to the center.
3- Now bring the middle rope forward from behind and pass it over the strand that is now on the left side, and bring it to the center.
Repeat these 3 steps once more. Now pin the ropes in place, and repeat this process with the other 3 ropes on opposite side of bag.
Pin both braids so that the top braiding will not become runraveled.

No bring the rope that is on the left of the second braid and join it to the first group of rope pairs and do the same with the last rope on the
right side.

Now, bring the new second braind from behind, and pass it over the rope that left to join the other group of pairs. Now braid again with the 3 new pairs on each side as before.

Pin securely and sew your braid to the bag. Fasten off, Cover inside ends with lining.

Note-
When you sew your braid in place, make sure to move upward the rope that lies behind in the center and secure it in place so that it can be seen.
You can also sew a beautiful crocheted flower in the center or a pretty, large button of your choice.

Done!

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Less than 2 minutes to read and it will brighten your day!
Be Not Discouraged

Lilly's Braid

This is a pretty easy and great looking rope braid that will greatly enhance any simple bag or tote or bag that you want to embellish. It is a 6-strand braid which, to start with, I recommend that you make with ropes of different colors so that you can easily follow what you do until you get it down pat and can make it with ropes of the same color against, say, a contrasting ground or a lighter or darker ground.

To start, make your ropes as explained in previous tutorials.
Make 6 ropes of co different colors twice as long as the size of your tote or bag. If possible, leave them unfinished at the bottom part of them, just in case you need to enlarge them or to shorten them when you are done braiding.
This is NOT an exact science! Pin your ropes at the top of the bag as usual, leaving a little excess which you will bed over the edge inwardly
and will be sewing to the inside of the bag, to be covered by the lining.
Think of your ropes as pairs. You have 3 pairs.
To make the braid proceed as follows:

1. Take the left rope of each pair and place it over the rope on its right side.

2. Skip the two outer ropes and working only with the ropes in the middle, take the right rope of each of the middle pairs and pass it over the left rope of each pair. (Look at the photos)






















3. From here on you just repeat the first two steps over and over until you have the right length of rope for your project. Pin the edges down and sew all around with matching yarn.


You can make the braid tighter or you can open it up a bit more so that the background of the tote or bag can be seen behind it.





































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Pepper's Braid

This is a pretty easy braid which will enhance any bag you want to embellish!
Note 1-
Unitl you learn how to make this braid well, i suggest that you learn to make it using 4 cords of different colors (it would look lovely against the black, dark brown, grey, white or beige crocheted fabric of a purse or bag.)
Or if you want to, use darker or lighter shades of the same color as the bag you will sew it to or contrasting variegated yarns that match or vice versa.
This will help you to keep track of where the cords are going until you learn this braid by heart, and no one will notice why you do it.
Materials:
4 Basic cords twice the size of the space they will be covering on the bag

Note 2- If you want to match the size of the cords exactly, do not fasten them off, but simply make bobbins before you start your cords with enough yarn to make more than twice the cord you believe you need, in case you need to add to your cord.
Nice little economic bobbins can be made from the little square closures of sandwich bread. Place the unfinished portion of the braid to the bottom of your work. If you can complete the braiding to your satisfaction with the amount of cord you already had, wonderful!
Simply fasten off, leaving a long tail to sew with, and sew the braid in place once you have finished it. But if you are short, simply attach pins to secure the braiding you have done above, and crochet yourself some more cord to finish your embellishment. Then, fasten off and sew in place.
Note 3- To keep your cords in place, pin them as you go so that they will not move from where you want them. If you want your braid to be as open as the one in the photos, keep the cords position "open" so that the crocheted fabric of your bag can be seen through the twists and turns of the braid.



Make Pepper's Braid as follows:

1- Place your 4 cords at the top of the bag you want to embellish, leaving 2 sc in between each cord. Pin them securely into place so that you can work freely.

2- Bring cord #1 over cord #2.

3- Bring cord #3 over cord #4.

4- Place cord 31 over cord #4 (which is now in the center)

5- Bring cord #3 over cord #1

6- Place cord #2 over cord #4

To continue, repeat from step 2 to step 6 as many times as necessary, pinning in place so that the cords will stay in desired shape for a beautiful open braid.

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From Stress to Joy

Embellish it With Ropes--Faux Cabling 3

We will now make two braids, each with three ropes. These are the simplest kind to make, especially when you want to add "something" to a project in the spur of the moment or are in some hurry to finish it. (By the way, the names for these braids are my own, and the way I make them is also my own, they don't come from any book or publication like this.)

Undecided Braid- Materials: Ropes of colors of your choice crocheted in advance. Pins Blunt needle to sew finished braid in place Yarn or embroidery yarn to sew through side loops of braid Measuring tape This is a 3 strand braid that goes from side to side, chaging from a right side braid to a left side braid on purpose, to make it a bit fancier.

To work this braid proceed as follows: Arrange three ropes at the top of your project, pinning them to the top, but leaving a portion of the braid unworked so that you can later on sew it underneath the lining of the bag. Center them well, use a measuring tape, if necessary to make sure they are centered. To braid do this: 1- Take the rope on the right and bring over the middle rope. 2- Take the rope on the leftt and place it over the new middle rope. 3- Take the new left rope and place it over the middle rope. 4- Take the rope on the right and place it over the middle rope. 5-Take the new rope on the left and place it over the new middle rope. Tighten the rope a bit. Tighten a bit. Repeat these 5 steps once more. Now comes the change: 6- Take the new middle rope and place it UNDER the rope on the left. 7- Take the rope on the right and place it OVER the new middle rope. 8- Take the new rope on the right and place it over the middle rope. 9- Take the rope on the left and place it over the middle rope AND the rope on the right. 10- Take the new rope on the left and pass it over the middle rope. 11- Take the rope on the right and plass it over the middle rope. Continue this way indefinitely. You can also make a longer braid that will encircle the middle of the bag and disappear behind the sewn sides, but for that, you must make your braid before you completely sew the bag.

Wanna Walk Down the Middle Braid- Materials: Ropes of colors of your choice crocheted in advance. Pins Blunt needle to sew finished braid in place Yarn or embroidery yarn to sew through side loops of braid Measuring tape This is a 3 strand braid that goes from side to side, chaging from a right side braid to a left side braid on purpose, to make it a bit fancier.

To work this braid proceed as follows: 1- Take the rope in the middle and place it over the rope on the left. 2- Take the new rope in the middle and place it over the new rope on the right. 3- Take the rope in the middle and place it over the rope on the left. 4- Take the new rope on the middle and place it over the rope on the right. Continue this way indefinitely until you get the length of braid you need for your bag or purse.

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Embellish it With Ropes--Faux Cabling 2

Let's start with the faux cabling. As I said before, instead of making the cables with dc or tr sts, you will be making them with previously crocheted ropes which you will then sew to the purse, tote, bag, etc., using the little loops the ropes have on the side of them. Using these ropes as stems of plants is often used in Russian Irish Crochet, but we will use them here in the form of Aran cables. They are easier and faster and can be an after-the-fact embellishment to aproject nearly completed which needs a little "something" to make it prettier.

Things to remember:

1- You should make your ropes twice as long as the braid you want to make, since
the braiding process shortens the ropes.

2- You can leave the end of your rope unfinished so that if you run too short, you can crochet the number of rows that will complete the length you need and then continue braiding.

3- Complete your braid by pinning it to the bag before you sew it up. Make sure you're happy with the results before you make them permanent!

We will start with a really easy 4 rope cabling: Rusty's Cable

Make 4 ropes in a color of your choice.

Pin the ropes to the front of the bag as follows, (leaving a little bit extra rope loose which you will sew to the insde of hte bag under the lining of it):

In our example, 1 made 2 ropes with Carrot and 2 ropes with Pumpkin.

1. Pin 1 rope at the edge of where you want to start your braid. Pin the other ropes beside one another.

2. Pass the 4th strand of rope over the third strand of rope, under the 2nd and over the 1st strand of rope. Consider now the third strand the 4th strand, now repeat the procedure you did before, pass that strand over the strand that is now the 3rd rope strand, under the 2nd and over the one that is now the 1st, continue in the manner until you have braided all your cable.

Note- If you do not have enough, rope, pin what you have done carefully and crochet some more until you have completed the length you want. If you have ropes that are too long, unravel them to fit. Remember to leave a little bit of an excess so that you can sew the ends of the braid to the inside of the bag under the lining to secure it well. Secure well to the bottom of the bag as well.

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Embellish it With Ropes!---Faux Cabling 1

I have been so busy that I had not had the time to continue with the tutorials but I'm back! We will begin a series of lessons dealing with faux cabling. We will be using crocheted ropes as the basis of the cables, which will be sewn to the purse, bag or tote you have already made, BEFORE you add the lining to it. The edges of the ropes will disappear under the lining and curve gracevully towards the bottom of the bag. This is, as our theme has been, an after-the-fact form of embellishment which you will add after you have completed the shape of your bag up to the point where you would start adding the straps, lining etc. You will be adding these ropes to decorate the front of a very simple bag, preferably with a squarish shape that will lend itself to a sewn rope without bulging or pulling. I don't know what would happen to a more difficult shape. You would have to make a sample to test. You can add the braids horizontally around the bag, or vertically down the front. You must make each cord twice as long as the bag you are going to braid. We will make a series of sample braids to give you an idea of how to do it. Testing will give you the results you will want. This is a wonderful embellishment alternative to make a run-of-the-mill-looking bag really special! We will start by learning the basic cord that you will be using to make these wonderful ropes. Notice that the ropes will have little loops on the side edges, those are the loops you will be using to sew the braids to the bag with a blunt needle. Basic Cord-Ch 2. Row 1- 1 sc in 2nd ch from hook. Turn Row 2- Insert hook in little loop that formed on the side of the sc and pull up yarn, you and complete sc. Turn. Continue repeating row 2 for the length of the rope you want to make.

Craftybegonia’s Crossed Cord This is my own cord, which I came up as I was just playing around with the basic cord. Ch 2. Row 1- Insert hook in second ch from hook and pull up loop, yo, make 1 sc as usual. Ch 1, turn. Row 2- Look at the side of your stitches, the very side edge of them, you see a loop that has formed there, Insert hook into that loop, pull up yarn, yo, pull up yarn through all loops on hook. Ch 1, turn. Row 3- Now you see a loop has formed on the side of the cord, insert hook in that loop, pull up yarn, yo and pull through all loops on hook. Ch 1, turn. Rep row 3 for cord pattern. First pactice making the cord until you have an even rope that you can braid and we'll start braiding!

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Embellish it With Knots: The Dragonfly

This dragonfly can be made in any color you want, just use two different colors that match well with the purse, bag or garment you are embellishing with it. It would also look cute also on afghan blocks!

Materials:

Red Heart worsted weight yarn Tea Leaf
Red Heart worsted weight yarn Spring Green
Crochet hook size H
Blunt needle
Scissors
Previous knowledge on how to make French or Colonial Knot (see previous tutorials that teach the knots. You will find them here:
http://craftypursenalityshoppe.blogspot.com/2011/01/texture-it-with-knots-french-knot-and.html)

Body-

With Tea Leaf, ch 11.
Row 1- 1 sc in 3rd ch from hook, and in each ch across. Fasten off, leaving long tail to sew with.

Wings-

Skip 3 sc, join Spring to 4th sc, ch 10, sl st in same sc, fasten off, leaving long tail to make knots with.
Skip 1 sc and repeat wing on next sc.
Rep two wings on opposite side.
Thread needle and sew center of body to the crocheted fabric you want to embellish with a running stitch or any stitch you are comofortable with. Fasten off.
Thread needle and sew the wings onto the crocheted fabric, fasten off.
Thread needle with Spring Green and make a row of 4 French or Colnial knots in a straight line inside each wing. Fasten off.
That's it! You have an easy dragonfly you can increase or reduce in size and add to purses, wallets, eyeglass cases, clothing, beanies, quilt blocks, etc.

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From Stress to Joy

Texture It With Knots! The French Knot and the Colonial Knot

We will begin today to learn a series of knots which we'll later use to embellish appliques to purses and garments. We will embellish a heart, a dragonfly, a flower, and maybe some other things. Not in that order! But first we need to learn two different knots. You will find, as you learn how to use them, that later on, you will venture out on using in other ways than these (I want to encourage you to use your imagination and creativity, that's part of the joy of crafting!) As you get more familiar with embellishing, and more secure at it, you will branch out to use these techniques to come up with your own designs and enjoy it thoroughly!

You can use these knots as we will in these tutorials, but you can also use them to form other things. For example, if you are working on a baby bag or on a baby blanket or baby cardi, and you would like to add a dolly applique to the item, you can work the dolly's hair with these knots. If you want to make an A B C or a 1-2-3 bib, you can crochet the letters, and sew them as appliques and then embellish them with these knots, either by edging them with the knots or actually filling the crocheted letters with them, to give them texture and originality. You can also use the knots in stripes every 2 or 3 rows. If you are making a shopping tote, and would like to add clusters of grapes to it, you can make those wonderful Irish-crochet leaves and then form the grape clusters with these knots. Little lambs, the centers of sunflowers, lilacs, fluffy clouds, raspberries, mums, and many other things can be "shaped" with these knots. Really, your imagination and creativity is really the limit!

Today, we will learn the French Knot and the Colonial Knot. You can choose to learn both knots or jsut one of them. They can be used interchangeably for your projects, or you can use both at the same time to embellish our projects!

The French Knot
This is the most common of the two knots we will be learning. This is the knot that first comes to mind when people think of making something with knots.
To practice these two knots you will need the foillowing:

A piece of crochet of a comfortable size for you to hold (a solid sc granny square block would do)
1 blunt needle if using yarn or an embroidery needle if using Pearl cotton or embroidery floss
pearl cotton or worsted weight yarn in your choice of colors
A pair of scissors

I will be showing you the stitches in yarn because they will show larger and you will be able to see them better, but even if your item is made in yarn, you can make these knots in embroidery thread or in pearl cotton, or even in crochet size 10 cotton, to create an effect and a contrast in textures. It is all up to the idea you have in mind.

To make a French Knot, thread your needle, bring the needle to the front of the crocheted fabric, now, hold the thread up with the opposite hand (the one not holding the needle), place the needle right under the working thread and wrap the yarn or thread around the needle twice. Push the needle into the crocheted fabric back down as close as possible to where you came out, (not in the same spot, just as close as possible to it.) Now, holding on to the working yarnor thread, pull your needle through the center of the knot, guiding the yarn or thread as you go so that it will not tangle, until you have almost no yarn or thread left. Then, let go of it and let it all desappear on the other side. You don't want too much tension on the thread, jus enough to keep a good shape on the knot and so that the needle can pass through the center easily, without having to force it down.









































































We will also learn another knot, the Colonial Knot. This is also a pretty knot to use in may ways. You can exchange the French Knot for it or
viceversa in any project you want to embellish.


The Colonial Knot

To make a Colonial Knot: Thread your needle with either yarn or thread. Come up through the crochet fabric with your needle. Now, form with the working yarn or thread the shape of a backward letter "C", ley your needle down against the "C" just formed with the working yarn or thread, wrap the working thread around the needle to form a figure "8", then, while holding the yarn or thread down, bring the needle down into the crocheted fabric very close to where you came up (not in the same hole, just right next to it), keep a soft tension on your working yarn or thread as you push the needle through to the back side of the crocheted piece.
pull through the center of the knot, hoding on to the working yarn or thread until only a little bit is left, let go and make it disappear down the center of the knot.











































































If there is time, later, I would like to teach you a couple more knots that you can also use together with these two or interchangeably in place of these two.


But for now, practice these two knots until you get them down, and we will move on to embellishing with them!



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Rendezvous in Space!

Texture It With Knots! The Bullion Rose!

Materials:
If you are making these rosebuds as an all-over after-the-fact embellishment on a bag, and you used yarn for the bag, you can use yarn for the rosebuds.
If you want a contrasting fiber, you can use Perle or pearl cotton for the rosebuds.
Suggested colors: DMC Pearl Cotton Thread, Size 3, 16 yds. (15m)
Very Dk. Shell Pink
Rose
Very Lt. Shell Pink
If you want to use yarn, use the following colors:
Red Heart Shocking Pink or Country Rose
Rose Pink or Pretty 'N Pink
Baby Pink or Raspberry


Choose where you want your stitch to go on your bag or garment, bring the needle through from the back to the front at that spot, then you insert the needle a few stitches below that, and bring the needle up near where you oribilaly brought the needle through to start up,
then you wrap the yarn around the needle (if you are using yarn, wrap 10 times, if you are using embroidery thread, wrap 15 times. Not too tightly so that you can pull the needle through!) Pull your needle through, tighten it up a bit and to anchor it in place, pull your yarn or thread through to the other side.
For second side of center, bring out needle a little bit under the bullion just made, then, insert needle through beside the bullion stitch just made and make a bullion with 8 wraps. pull needle through, tighten stitch and ancor it in place. Fasten off on the wrong side. Thread needle with Pretty 'N Pink, if using yarn.
If using Pearl cotton, thread needle with Rose. Starting right underneat the darker center, bhering the needle through, then stitch above where you stitched the last bullion, to make this petal longer than the last one, make 12 wraps, pull needle through, tighten stitch, and anchor it.
Repeat this last stitch on the opposite side but make 14 wraps instead of 12. Pull through, tighten stitch. Ancor sittch and fasten off.
Thread needle with Baby Pink of with Very Lt. Shell Pink, if you are using Pearl cotton. Make a small Bullion of 8 wraps underneath the center rosebud already made. Pull through and tighten. Anchor stitch. Make another bullion on the opposite side with 8 wraps. Pull through and tighten. Anchor stitch.
Make another bullion a little bit above that one with 8 wraps. Ans another one on the opposite side a bit above the last one with 10 wraps.Make a tiny bullion across the top with 6 wraps. As always, pull needle through wraps, tighten, then anchor stitch.
Then go a little bit inside the top of the rose and make another 6-wrap little bullion. Pull needle thorugh, tighten stitch and anchor it.
Finally, make a small, 6-wrap bullion onthe side of the rose, (You can continue for as long as you want to and make the rose as large as you want to, but we will stop with a small rose.)
Once you have made your rosebuds, you can add little crocheted leaves (if you want to). Use Red Heart worsted weight yarn Tea Leaf or if you use pearl cotton, make leaves with Med. Pistachio Green.
For this one I decided to make 2 bullion leaves, one a bit to the side of the bottom and one above the last petal.

Christ's Human Nature

Texture it With Knots! The Bullion Rosebud!

There are as many kinds of bullion knot rosebuds as there are designers. i will be sharing with you my own. It is a very simple rosebud, you can make it a bit more complex by adding mroe petals to it, and i give you the suggestion of colors you can use to add to it.
This is a lovely techinique to learn to embellish crochet. You can add it to purses, clothing (especially tops and little girl's dresses),b ut you can also use to it embellish beanies, gloves, belts, the front of ponchos, totes, coin purses, and more!

Materials:
If you are making these rosebuds as an all-over after-the-fact embellishment on a bag, and you used yarn for the bag, you can use yarn for the rosebuds.
If you want a contrasting fiber, you can use Perle or pearl cotton for the rosebuds.
Suggested colors: DMC Pearl Cotton Thread, Size 3, 16 yds. (15m)
Very Dk. Shell Pink
Rose
Very Lt. Shell Pink
If you want to use yarn, use the following colors:
Red Heart Shocking Pink or Country Rose
Rose Pink or Pretty 'N Pink
Baby Pink or Raspberry


Choose where you want your stitch to go on your bag or garment, bring the needle through from the back to the front at that spot, then you insert the needle a few stitches below that, and bring the needle up near where you oribilaly brought the needle through to start up,then you wrap the yarn around the needle (if you are using yarn, wrap 10 times, if you are using embroidery thread, wrap 15 times. Not too tightly so that you can pull the needle through!) Pull your needle through, tighten it up a bit and to anchor it in place, pull your yarn or thread through to the other side.
For second side of center, bring out needle a little bit under the bullion just made, then, insert needle through beside the bullion stitch just made and make a bullion with 8 wraps. pull needle through, tighten stitch and ancor it in place. Fasten off on the wrong side. Thread needle with Pretty 'N Pink, if using yarn.

If using Pearl cotton, thread needle with Rose. Starting right underneat the darker center, bring the needle through, then stitch above where you stitched the last bullion, to make this petal longer than the last one, make 12 wraps, pull needle through, tighten stitch, and anchor it.
Repeat this last stitch on the opposite side but make 14 wraps instead of 12. Pull through, tighten stitch. Anchor stitch and fasten off.
If you would like to make a couple of more petals, repeat the last 2 petals right beside the ones you made last, but using the pale pink yarn or thread.

Once you have made your rosebuds, you can add little crocheted leaves (if you want to). Use Red Heart worsted weight yarn Tea Leaf or if you use #10 cotton, make leaves with Frosty Green. Or you can make a couple of Bullion leaves using Tea Leaf if you are using yarn or Med Pistachio Green, if you use Pearl cotton, use Med. Pistachio Green.

If you came in just now and do know how to make the Bullion Knot to begin with and are interested in learning to use this technique, go back to our previous class and learn it, then come back and try the rosebud.
Here is where you will find our previous tutorial:

Texture It With Knots! Bullion Knot

For our next class, we will complete a Bullion Rose.

Born in Bethlehem

Texture It With Knots! The Bullion Knot

Now, if you don't want to make puff balls, or if you already used the puff balls and would like to use another kind of embellishment to create texture, use knots!
We will be making different knots, so you will learn to make them and by eaither scattering them all over your project or using them to follow a design of your own invention, go for it! This and the following classes will enable you to use decorative knots from now on.

Let's start with the Embroidery Bullion Knot.
You know Bullions from crochet, the embroidery bullion is pretty similar, but you can add bullions to your project after the fact, by using embroidery bullion knots.

You can add them in a pattern of your own choosing, you can scatter them all over, you can add them horizontally or vertically, and you can curve them like semi-circles.

You can use yarn on yarn, tone on tone, or contrasting colors and a different thread from the yarn used for your purse, bag or garment. For example, you can use Perle embroidery cotton, you can make them with a #10 cotton thread, you can use metallic thread, you can use satiny rayon thread, variegated embroidery thread,etc. The possibilities are almost endless.

This particular knot is also known as a caterpillar stitch or a coil stitch because you can use it as coils in a decorative manner. It all depends on how many times you will wrap the thread or yarn around your needle, if you do it say, 20 times, you will have a longer bullion and you can arch it a bit and turn it into a semi-circle.
Usually, you will wrap 15 times and you will get a straight bullion. If you would like to have an interesting effect with this thread, you can use 3 or 4 contrasting embroidery threads threaded through your blunt or embroidery needle. This stitch can be used a s a powdering, here and there as an accent, or you can mass it together, thus making a very dense textured filling following a pattern of your own invention; you can work it closely together to form a textured outline to other motifs you may want to sew onto a piece or just use it to add interest an a splash of color and a surprise where you would like it.

Before you begin, you have to decide whether you want the bullion to lie straight or if you want it to curve (for it to curve you only need tomake it longer and add mroe wraps to the needle). As with everything new, please, practice with a scrap piece until you are confindent with the stithc and then add it to your project to embellish it!

To work your Bullion proceed as follows, insert the needle into the crocheted fabric where you want it, from back to front, insert the needle again a little bit further, as far as you want theBullion to go, and without pushing the needle through the crocheted fabric all the way through, wrap the thread or yarn around the needle, 10 to 12 times for yarn or thick thread, 15 to 20 times for very fine embroidery thread or fine cotton crochet thread, not to tightly, because it will make it hard to pull the needle, and pull the needle through the wraps. Pull all the way till all the thread has gone through the curls of the wraps and all you have left is the Bullion.
To anchor the stitch, bring the needle to the back at the spot where you started.

Born of the Lineage of David

Yo-Yo It!

Materials:

Yarn of your choice

Scissors

Blunt needle

Crochet hook size H

Yo-yos are easy to make and are a fun way to embellish a piece of work. You can make them in a variety of contrasting, vivid colors against a dark ground (black, coffee, chocolate brown, burgundy or navy, to give you just a few examples. A dark slate gray will also work) or against a white, creamyu or light beige, or even a pearl gray.

On the other hand, you can use them tone on tone, just to add texture to the item you are making and mobility (if you choose to let them hang a little more) that is flirty and fun.

For example, for a shawl, you can add the yo-yos to the last 2 rows of your shawl as a substitute for tassels or a fringe. If it is a cardi, you can do the same or sew them all over a bag or large tote! You can also sew them in rows, leaving a space in between for a fun effect, similar to a moving fringe. Like colored, hanging coins, they will add motion to the garment or the purse.

Make your yo-yos all by themselves, either in the same yarn and color of the item you intend to sew them to or in contrasting colors or even texture to the item they will be embellishing.


Make your yo-yos as follows:


Leaving a tail at the start, ch 4, sl st to form ring.
Ch 3, work 16 dc in ring. Sl st to join rnd. Fasten off, leaving long tail.

Continue to make your yo-yos until you have the amount you have decided to use according to the kind of effect you want to achieve (an overall effect of adding them randomly all over the garment or bag, section embellishment, by just adding them in rows or just to a certain area of the garment or purse.)

Attaching your yo-yos:


Thread a blunt needle with one of the tails you left over and use that tail to sew the yo yo tothe garment or purse. Fasten off. Do the same with the other tail. You can sew the yo-yo closely to the garment or bag or leave bit of the yarn hanging for the yo-yo to have mobility.


Have fun with yo-yos! You can use them to embellish the front of a top or even the edges of a scarf. You can add them to the edges of a wrap or pile them up to form almost like a faux fur-like "collar" for a cardigan or sweater.


Variations:


You can make yo-yos in eyelash yarn, so that they'll have the feel of moving, round fringes!


Hope you enjoy trying out these ideas!


This is a beautiful time of the year, when humans beings stop and think of others. This is also a verylonely time of the year for many. If you can, stop and make something beautiful for someone who is alone in the world, someone who has been forgotten by people but not by god and you will be greatly blessed!


Rendezvous in Space!

Embellished Crochet Academy Lesson 2: Rick Rack

Last week, we used Puff Balls to embellish a bag, tote or garment that needed a little "more" after it was finished. This week, we will try our hand at rick rack. Rick rack can be very useful, you can use its valleys and peacks to "hang" a lacy ruffle, you can use it as is to just edorate around your bag or garment without having to unravel a single stitch to sproce things up.

Here's a simple rick rack you can make, which is very flexible and can be used in various decorative ways:

With yarn of your choice and H hook, ch 3.

Work 3 hdc in 3rd ch from hook. Ch 3, make 3 hdc in 3rd ch from hook. Rpe until you have the desired length.

How to use it:

You can sew this rick rack to your bag or garment in various ways, using it as is, or you can bead it or sew a decorative pearl or button to each "peak" of the rick rack.

You can make 2 rows of rick rack in contrasting colors of yarn or thread (depending on the project and the time of the year) and sew them with the peaks either facing away from each other of 1 up, 1 down, or all facing one another. This rack rack is very, very flexible and you can turn it easily in whatever direction you like.

You can sew it either forming two horizontal rows around a bag or the front of a grament, or two vertical rows.

You can also sew them in a V or U shape or form a half square, leaving the top opened and fill the inside with beads or buttons of any size. Even giant buttons look good.

You can also form a heart shape or a diamond with it. Simply, pin it down in the shape you have in mind and sew in place. If you form a heart, for example, you can eaither leafe it as is, or fill the hollow center with beads or buttons.

This will give a fresh look to your a favorite pattern for a bag, tote, purse or garment.

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Precious Thought:

" 'I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil.' This the message that, in the light from the cross, may be read upon all the face of nature. The heavens declare His glory, and the earth is full of His riches." Lift HIM Up, 255.

Announcing! Embellished crochet Academy

Many of you have told me how much you love my bags. Thank you for your kind words and support. I have been thinking for a while how I could share with my supporters something that would enhance their efforts to make beautiful bags (and I will also be doing it in such a way that you can also enhance THE REST of your crochet as well: tops, hats, shawls, cardigans, etc.) And I have decided to come up with the Embellish Crochet Academy. This will be a school-type of sharing. I will post an embellishment techinque that you can use in your bags or to enhance the appearance of a favorite garment pattern so that the same will not be the same, same old ever again!