In previous posts I have mentioned that my daughter Aimee is my favorite person to make most of my crochet projects for. The picture above is the contents of her “box of crocheted accessories” I made for her for a Christmas gift (except the blue slippers – those were for my son-in-law Nate). All of these items were from tutorial patterns that I found on YouTube. I have already posted my tutorial review/project notes on the Ribbed Ear Warmer/Headband, and will be posting my notes on the rest over the next few days.

Why do I love crocheting things for my daughter Aimee? Well there are a few reasons. She lives in another state so I don’t get to see her often. Plus she is usually very honest with me so if a pattern or fit isn’t quite right she lets me know. Good honest feedback is important and I would much rather she critique my work so that I can become a better crocheter. I hope next year’s crocheted gifts for her are baby blankets and buntings, I already have a head full of project ideas! (hint hint)

Although I know how to read patterns it really is easier for me to watch a video – it greatly reduces the risk of me missing a stitch or losing my place. I’m just a visual/hands on type of person. A bonus with YouTube videos is the related videos that show up on the side that show other similar crochet tutorials. I’ve ended up spending hours watching and discovering new ideas and inspirations.

Here is a list of the items and a link to the YouTube tutorials that I watched for inspirations and pattern instructions.

Boot Cuffs – These were not from a YouTube tutorial. I used the same technique that I use for hat bands with back loop only stitches. I just made the starting chain height wider than I do for a hat. The grey ones have a shell stitch on the top and the khaki ones I single crocheted a few rounds using Loops & Threads Country Loom for the lambswool look.

Plaid Hat – The Buffalo or Hunter Plaid hat was fun to make. If you have basic crochet skills you should be able to follow along with the tutorial. The three different colors are picked up and dropped for the entire pattern so there weren’t a lot of ends to sew in. I originally was making this for my son-in-law Nate, but when it was finished it was a little too puffy/slouchy to be a men’s hat, so it ended up in Aimee’s crochet gift box. A bonus on this – Aimee was wearing her Buffalo Plaid jacket when she came over on Christmas day not knowing that a matching hat was under the tree for her! YouTube Tutorial Plaid Hat link.

Slippers and Booties – The blue slippers are Nate’s, and the pink booties are Aimee’s. I ended up making 2 more pairs of the slipper style for my hubby Patrick and my son Bill in different colors. For Aimee’s booties I added 2 rows of Red Heart Fur yarn to the top for a cute Dr. Seuss”ish” look. Slipper YouTube Tutorial, Bootie YouTube Tutorial.

Headbands/Ear Warmers – I made all three of these in one day. They were easy and quick. The Ribbed Headband was spotlighted in a previous blog. The Red Headband was from this YouTube Ear Warmer Tutorial by Jayda in Stitches, except I made it a little too big so this one is back on my project list as a “rework”. For the houndstooth headband I used a tutorial that was for a shawl but I just wanted to learn the technique and made it into the ear warmers. The shawl is very nice too and maybe a future project. Houndstooth Crochet Shawl YouTube Tutorial.

I really enjoyed making all of these and learned some great new techniques and designs in the process. Aimee seemed to like them too so it was win-win all around.

Thanks for reading! Check back for my YouTube tutorial reviews/project notes on the individual projects.

~Tami – Tanglewood Knots