Flowers for Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day and I've been neglecting my baby—this poor little blog! Since it's rather late in the game to start knitting or crocheting anything for mom, I thought I'd give you all a big bouquet of flowers. Or, at least a nice collection of 10 free crochet flowers patterns.

Crochet flowers are great stash-busters, and you pretty much always have time to make one.  If you want to make one (or more) for your Mom, try attaching them to pins, crocheting tiny ones to glue on earring backs, or sticking them on a handmade card just like elementary school. Moms love those!

1.  First up is this bright and cheery Crochet Orchid.  I love how the different layers give it real dimension, and the colors are pretty fun too. 

This version is made it plarn! If you wanted to get fancy in the kitchen, you could probably use it as a scrubby.

2.  Can you believe these Carnations are crocheted? I love this presentation, but wouldn't these be great as part of a permanent corsage or boutonniere?

3.  These colorful Pansy Flowers could really make a statement. They lay a bit more flat than many flowers and could be good for embellishing things like clothing or afghans.

 4.  These Brilliant Crochet Blooms are just that. I love how the petals curve up into little cups, and the color combinations are lots of fun too.

5.  A lot of crochet flower patterns take some liberties with nature, but this Crochet Daffodil could almost be picked right out of a garden.

 

6.  How sweet is this Lily of the Valley? I think it would look fabulous on a lightweight cardigan. 

 

7.  I adore these Puff Stitch Crochet Flowers.They're so bright and cheerful, and have a real retro charm.

 8.  For the true flower lovers out there, a whole afghan of flowers! This Floral Fiesta Afghan is a garden in itself.

 

 9. For a classic, Victorian style, whip up this Iris Rose. The lacy background makes it something truly special.

10. Finally, for the utiliarians out there, try these adorable floral Jardain Crochet Coasters. I wouldn't mind resting my cup of coffee on those.

However you're spedinging the day today, I hope you enjoy yourself, and take the time to kick back and relax with some crochet!

Uterus Bean Bag

As a follow up to my post on feminist Mother's Day gifts, here's my own contribution. It's definitely a little wacky, and probably wouldn't be for everyone, but for the mom with a sense of humor, consider this uterus bean bag! Give mom a hilarious paperweight or stress ball for the office, or just a bit of anatomical home decor.

I'd never actually owned or used a stress ball before this, but now that I've made a few of the uterus variety, I see the attraction. They are strangely comforting to squeeze, and have a nice heft to them. I can imagine really squishing it during those times when you're stressed out or when you just wish you could leave your own uterus at home (you know those times).

They're also pretty fun to make, and a nice stash buster that uses less than an ounce of yarn total. This one measures about 4" in height and 6.5" across. It's larger in the hand than most stress balls, but I think that makes it all the more fun to squeeze.

This one is filled with navy beans, which are just about the perfect size for the project. They're large enough that there's no danger of any escaping, but small enough to fit even in those skinny fallopian tubes.

The uterus can be made with or without the ovaries. I like how solid it is with the ovaries tying the tubes (no pun intended) back to the uterus body. Without the ovaries, the tubes stretch out further, and actually might be kinda fun to play with, now that I think about it.

it kinda looks like it's dancing

This pattern includes a few unusual techniques and so I've added more photos to the pattern than in most of my other designs which I hope will demystify any strange things I might be asking you to do with your yarn. Of course, I'm also offering free customer service as I do with all my designs. If you have a question, don't hesitate to ask.


It's a fun pattern and pretty quick to whip up as well. I'm offering the pattern for sale for $3 via Etsy and Ravelry. But, from now until Mother's Day, it'll be half price with the coupon MOMSDAY. Have fun stitching!

Finished uteruses can also be purchased if you're less of a crafter and more of a craft supporter: Uterus Bean Bag

Feminist Mother's Day Gifts

April has found me working on several projects at once, and the blog has ended up taking a back burner to finishing pieces and writing patterns as I work my way through a couple fun projects (secret for now...shhh!) for Mother's and Father's Day, as well as finishing up some winter projects that haven't made it out of the WIP file just yet.

I don't know about you, but I find that Mother's Day gift ideas are, on the whole, not terribly empowering. It's disturbing how much of what Amazon thinks your mother will love has to do with house cleaning. Please don't get your mother a vacuum for Mother's Day. Just don't.

Since I have Mother's Day on the brain and haven't quite completed my own pattern to share, I've put together this list of feminist crochet and knitting patterns to celebrate the wonder woman in your life.


First up are the knits, and first on the list is (unsurprisingly) a Wonder Woman pullover by Natalie Bursztyn. I absolutely love this. The detail is amazing, and it's a FREE pattern on Ravelry! Can't get much better than that.





How about this Feminist Killjoy hat by Glitz Knits Boutique? I love the two-color pom pom and cheery colors. Be loud and proud, you feminist killjoys!




If you have the time for some small gauge colorwork, try these amazing FeminInos-mittens by Hedvig Egerö. The designer adjusted a cross stitch pattern to work in a knitted format. Genius! The detail is great in these.

Or how about a very warm and cozy looking Huntress Cowl by Karla Repperger. Inspired by The Hunger Games and the perfect accessory for smashing the patriarchy.

And now....onto the crochet!

First up, a crochet version of that Hunger Games inspired cowl, the Hooded Huntress Vest by Mamma DIY. The hood really adds to the coziness factor, and I love how this designer went wild with the colors. She looks like a girl on fire, doesn't she?



Because crocheters needs a little Wonder Woman in their lives too, here's a pattern for her snazzy headband. This Wonder Woman headband looks like a fun gift that would be quick to stitch up for any awesome lady.







This one might be a bit of a stretch, but I get a kick out of this Foxy eReader Cover from Creeks End Crochet on Etsy. Information is power, after all, and we all deserve a little foxiness in our lives.



And finally, a pattern to remind you to break the chains of patriarchy, a Chain Link Necklace. Shara Lambeth offers a free tutorial for this one-of-a-kind accessory.




This Mother's Day, I hope I've inspired you to make something to remind your mom just how awesome and powerful she really is. Get crafting!