Snowflake Monday

I can't remember why we went into the bookstore, but we'd decided not to buy anything. So I didn't take my purse, and The Lizard didn't take his wallet.

He looked at books. I looked at crochet, knit and quilt magazines. It was a pleasant break from whatever stress I'd been facing.

Next to me on the bench was a Betty Crocker Christmas Cookbook. On the cover were a few attractive snowflakes. I wanted to make them!

I looked at the price of the cookbook, thinking perhaps I could give it as a Christmas gift because I really don't need any more cookbooks. I don't have room on my shelves for more, plus, I don't eat sugar anymore. This particular cookbook is loaded with sugar recipes. Plus, I've already made this year's Christmas presents.

I had nothing with which to draw. I could have gone out to the car to retrieve my purse. I instead decided a little exercise in photographic memory was in order. Good to sharpen the brain every now and then. So I tried to memorize the three snowflakes I liked best.

When we finally finished perusing the bookstore, I took one more mental snapshot of the cookbook cover, and in the dark in the car, I drew sections of the snowflakes I wanted to duplicate on an envelope because it was the closest thing to a drawing pad I had.

This week's snowflake is the first and probably the easiest of the three, and I finished designing it, writing the pattern and pinning it in the middle of the night because Microsoft, which knows everything we want and need better than we will ever know, automatically adjusted my computer for Daylight Saving Time while I wasn't looking, even though that isn't supposed to happen until next weekend. I thought I was going to bed at 1:30 a.m., which is bad, but in reality, it was 2:30 a.m. So I'm going to call this snowflake Midnight Oil.

You may do whatever you'd like with snowflakes you make from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!


Finished Size: 6 inches from point to point
Materials: Size 10 crochet thread, size 8 crochet hook, empty pizza box, wax paper or plastic wrap, cellophane tape, glue, water, glitter, small container for glue/water mixture, paintbrush, stick pins that won't be used later for sewing, clear thread or fishing line

Midnight Oil Snowflake Instructions

Make magic ring.

Round 1: Ch 3 (counts as 1 dc), into ring work 1 hdc, 1 sc, 1hdc, 1 dc, *ch 2, 1 dc, 1 hdc, 1 sc, 1 hdc, 1 dc; repeat from * around 4 more times; 1 dc into 3rd ch of starting ch 3. Do not pull magic ring too tight.
Round 2: Ch 5 (counts as 1 dc and 2 ch), *1 dc into next sc, ch 2, 1 dc into next ch 2 sp, ch 3, 1 dc into same ch 2 sp, ch 2; repeat from * around 4 more times, 1 dc into next sc, ch 2, 1 dc into next ch 2 sp, ch 1, 1 dc into 3rd ch of starting ch 5.

Round 3: Ch 3 (counts as 1 dc), 1 dc around dc post, ch 1, 1 tr around dc post, ch 1, sl st through top of tr, ch 1, 1 dc around dc post, 1 dc in 3rd ch of starting ch 5 of previous row, *1 hdc in next ch 2 sp, 1 sc in next dc, 1 hdc in next ch 2 sp, 1 dc in next dc, 1 dc in next ch 3 sp, ch 1, 1 tr in same sp, ch 1, sl st in top of tr, ch 1, 3 dc in same sp, ch 1, 1 tr in same sp, ch 1, sl st in top of tr, ch 1, 1 dc in same space, 1 dc in next dc; repeat from * around 4 times; 1 hdc in next ch 2 sp, 1 sc in next dc, 1 hdc in next ch 2 sp, 1 dc in next dc, 1 dc in starting sp, ch 1, 1 tr in same space, ch 1, sl st in top of tr, ch 1, 1 dc in same space, sl st in 3rd ch of starting ch 3.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.

Round 4: *Ch 3, 2 dc in 3rd ch from hook, ch 17, 1 sc in 10th ch from hook, ch 12, sl st in sc, ch 10, sl st in sc, sl st in next ch, ch 9, 2 dc in 3rd ch from hook, sl st in middle dc of 3 dc group of next petal; repeat from * around 5 times; st st in middle dc of 3 dc group at start of round; bind off. Weave in ends.

Finish: Tape wax paper or plastic wrap to top of empty pizza box. Pin snowflake to box on top of wax paper or plastic wrap.

Mix a few drops of water with a teaspoon of glue in small washable container. Paint snowflake with glue mixture. Sprinkle lightly with glitter. Wash paintbrush and container thoroughly. Allow snowflake to dry at least 24 hours. Remove pins. Gently peel snowflake from wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach 10-inch clear thread to one spoke, weaving in end. Wrap fishing line around tree branch (or tape to ceiling or any overhead surface) and watch the snowflake twirl freely whenever you walk by! Snowflake also may be taped to window or tied to doorknob or cabinet handle.

Tweet

Pin It