Rainbows and Adult Beverages

Summer: it's all about rainbows and beer, amiright? Here in sticky, swampy New Orleans, I admit I haven't been keeping up with my backlog of projects as well I do in the cool(er) months, but summer is the perfect time for those quick, stash-busting projects that can keep your fingers busy without heating you up. No afghans, please.

This project is fun for a lot of reasons. It has rainbows, it has googly eyes, it begs you to crack open a cold one, and best of all you can use it right away no matter what the weather is outside because you won't be wearing it—your beverage will!

Behold the rare and elusive Rainbeer

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I made this for a good friend's birthday and it looks like the celebration it is. A birthday celebration and a celebration of marriage equality, not to mention a celebration of the brief cool respite that follows summer rainstorms.

You may notice this koozie is more expressive than most.  The eyes are by no means necessary. I mean, a traditional rainbow is still pretty fun. But I have to say I was surprised by how much they add to the piece. Even without any other facial feature, this koozie has some serious personality. 

Rainbeer

Materials

• Worsted weight yarn in the colors of the Rainbow, plus black and white for eyes if desired. Shown in Red Heart Super Saver in Ranch Red, Carrot, Gold, Hunter Green, Royal, Dark Orchid, Black, and White.
• US H (5 mm) hook, or size needed to obtain gauge
• Tapestry or Large eye blunt
• Sewing pins

 Notes

• Turning chains do not count as the first stitch of rows.
• Repeat directions following * to end of round.

Abbreviations

ch: chain

sc: single crochet

hdc: half-double crochet

sl: slipstitch

inc: increase (crochet two stitches in one space)

BLO: back loop only

Gauge

14 sts and 11 rows = 4 inches in hdc

Instructions

With Dark Orchid, make a magic ring.

1:  Ch 1, hdc 8. Sl to join this and all succeeding rounds. Do not turn.  (8)

2:  Ch 1, *hdc inc.  (16)

3:  Ch 1, *hdc, hdc inc.  (24)

4:  Ch 1, *hdc 5, hdc inc.  (28)

5-6:  Ch 1, *hdc.

7:  With Royal, join round in back loop only (BLO). Ch 1, *hdc in BLO.

8:  Ch 1, *hdc.

9:  With Hunter Green, join round in BLO. Ch 1, *hdc in BLO.

10:  Ch 1, *hdc.

11:  With Gold, join round in BLO. Ch 1, *hdc in BLO.

12:  Ch 1, *hdc.

13:  With Carrot, join round in BLO. Ch 1, *hdc in BLO.

14:  Ch 1, *hdc.

15:  With Ranch Red, join round in BLO. Ch 1, *hdc in BLO.

16:  Ch 1, *hdc.

17:  Join in BLO. *Sl loosely in BLO. Join round. Tie off. Weave in all ends. 

Your koozie should now look like this:

 Stop here, or give your koozie some personality and add the googly eyes!

Eyes (optional)

Make 2

Pupil

With black, make a magic ring.

Ch 1, sc 4. Sl to join. Tie off leaving long tail to sew edge down to eye white.

White

With white, make a magic ring.

Ch 1, hdc 8. Sl to join. Tie off, leaving long tail to sew eye to koozie.

  

Finishing

Position pupil on white however looks best to you and pin in place. This is totally personal preference. You can have the pupils centered at the bottom of the white if you like the way mine looks, but you can also have your Rainbeer looking up, looking to the side, cross-eyed, or with both eyes in different directions. Give it some personality! Using a large eye blunt needle, stitch around edge of pupil. Weave in ends.

Next, position the finished eyes on the koozie and pin in place. I thought mine looked best with the bottom of the eyes lined up with the bottom of the gold band, but again, totally up to you! Have fun with it. Using a large eye blunt needle, stitch around edge of white. Weave in ends.

You’re done!  Give your Rainbeer a drink!

 My Rainbeer has a Sierra Nevado Torpedo. I think he likes it.

This design is available as a pdf download from my Ravelry shop: Strung Out Fiber Arts Designs

Quick Projects for Father's Day

If you're anything like me, about a week out is when you start really thinking (panicking?) about getting together a handmade gift.

Thankfully, there are lots and lots of free or inexpensive patterns you can whip up quickly and easily and that will be sure to make your dad proud.

Moogly has several lists of free patterns for Dad-day you can find on the blog. I'm partial to this one from last year: Father's Day Crochet 2014. That snazzy vest! The too-darn-cute instagram-inspired phone cover! TWO kinds of neck tie! And other than the vest and the throw, they should all work up fairly quickly.

If your dad's a golfing kinda guy, take a look at this year's list, which includes 3 different patterns for golfers: Father's Day Crochet 2015





Lion Brand offers a classic looking set of Golf Club Covers. I like how the simple color changes make them look different, but they're clearly still a matching set. And those numbers are both nice looking and useful!

If your dad is a bit too goofy for that, try this Tee Bag pattern by Priscilla Hewitt. It's adorable, unique, and comes with its own pun!

 And for the Caddyshack fanatic, Red Heart has a pattern for Gopher Golf Club Covers. Too funny!
   

For the tech lover, try this simple, Stash Buster Tablet Case from Habitual Homebody. While great as a stash buster, you could also alter the colors to match your dad's favorite sports team. I'm sure the sizing would be fairly simple to adjust as well.

For a super duper easy gift, try the Absolutely Easy Glasses Case by Rachel Choi. Choosing a variegated yarn will give this simple pattern some interest, but it would look good in any color, and it's one of the more practical gifts you could give.

 Aaand, for the shameless self-promotion portion of this episode, my very own Power Tie Coffee Cozy pattern can be found in the May issue of Happily Hooked Magazine. (There are many other patterns in there too, of course.)

I may be biased, but I think it's pretty cute. You can try the magazine out for just 99 cents, but subscribers do get some special perks like a free coupons for patterns by designers included in the issue, including my very own Mod Bob.  

That one might not be suitable for dad...unless you're dad is SUPER fun. Then go for it!