I'm coming out swinging into the Christmas season and kicking things off with a modern update to an old favorite, crochet snowflakes.
These cute, easy to make snowflakes probably conjure memories of your grandmother's Christmas tree, or that old lady neighbor who would give your family a little ornament as a thanks for putting up with another year of her crochetyness. But in spite of these associations, crochet snowflakes can be fun and fit into the modern home, free of doilies and those strawberry candies.
I'm pretty new to crocheting (thanks, Pat for teaching me!), so this stuff is still new and fun for me to make. To add a little twist, I've make a few different snowflakes and attached them together to make garland. I won't get into the details of how to crochet, there are plenty of tutorials and videos out there, so I'm just going to tell you what I did to make my garland. There are no less than a million snowflake patterns online so you could seriously do it up. There's everything from super simple to pull-your-hair-out complex, and I've chosen pretty simple ones. I'm making three different snowflakes, but the small ones are the same as one of the larger just with one less row, so it is really only two styles.
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| Two different large, and one small. |
For the snowflake with the pointed tips in the center of the photo, I'm following
this pattern. For the other large snowflake and the small ones, I'm following
this one, which has step by step images so it's great for a beginner.
For yarn I'm using Aunt Lydia's crochet thread size 3 in Iced Bamboo, which has a slight sparkle to it that unfortunately doesn't sparkle as much as I'd like, and a size E4 (3.5mm) J hook. I want my chain to be pretty snowy so I'm making 4 of each large snowflake and 9 of each small for a total of 17 flakes. A chain stitch (ch) will make the chain and the snowflakes get attached using a slip stitch (sl).
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| Ready to be hung up |
The pattern for stringing them goes like this:
Ch 40
*Slip stitch small snowflake, ch 20, sl large snowflake 1, ch 20, sl small snowflake, ch 20, sl large snowflake 2, ch20*
Repeat between * * 4 times
There should be one small snowflake left, sl it on and finish with ch40
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| Adorn your stairs if you have them |
If you like, you can starch the snowflakes so they are stiff, but I prefer to let mine be soft. They have a great vintage feel and look great draped on a railing or over a mirror (maybe in the bathroom?). You can make the garland as long, short, big or small as you like by adjusting the number/type of snowflakes or the chain length. Or experiment with different colors and styles. Plus, since it's not holiday specific, you can admire your creation all winter long!
