Valentine's Day Heart Garland

Here's a free pattern and tutorial for a little Valentine's Day seasonal decor to cozy up your home!



My garland was about 5 feet long and used about 27 mini hearts!

The pattern for the hearts is available for free from Crochet Today.

Download Mini Heart Pattern from Crochet Today

This little garland is happiest when all the hearts can rest against the wall or door frame, instead of swooping loosely. Otherwise they tend to face the floor a bit.



Here's a little tutorial on how to string them together.

1. Line up your hearts in the order you'd like them.
   
   
   
2. Measure out your string to string the hearts on.
   
3. You'll use knots to hold the hearts in place, so get your yarn needle threaded!
   
   Tie a knot. String heart. Tie a second knot. Then repeat, allowing about an inch and a half or so of space between each heart. It looks like this.
   
   
   
   It can be tricky to get the knot to land where you want it, but here's some tips.
   
   Make a loop about where you want your knot to go, and pass your yarn needle through the loop.
   
   
   
   Hold the loop down with your fingers as you pull the needle through.
   
   
   
   It takes a little pushing and pulling but your knot shouldn't land too far off from where you want it.
   
   To string your heart, thread your needle from the back to the front, then out the back again.
   
   
   
   
   
   Continue knotting and stringing until all your hearts are used!
   
   
   
   

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

We helped my parents decorate their tree this weekend. They have some of my favorite ornaments from growing up.

Ta da!

And here's how the weekend looked through Instagram.

 

Vegan banana bread | Out for sushi Friday night

Whoville-style tree on our table at the sushi restaurant | Carrots from my garden. Plant earlier & thin better next year
Blankets made at Stash Bust for Charity night | My favorite ornament picture

DIY: Simple Pinecone Garland

Now that December has arrived, I have a simple Christmas decor project to share. Some pretty pinecone garlands, and you likely have two of the three essential supplies on hand already.

For the garland above, I used some hemp string for a natural, rustic feel. For a second garland for my stairs I used red yarn. I have a random assortment of ribbon on hand from past projects and gifts. I just needed to make a trip to the craft store for some pinecones.

Pinecone Garland

Supplies

String or yarn - enough to go across wherever you plan to hang your garland

Ribbon 

Pinecones

Sharp scissors

Instructions

1. Cut a length of string long enough to span across where ever you want to hang your garland.
2. About 8 inches from one end, tie your first pinecone.
   
   
3. Cut a piece of ribbon about about 6 inches in length. To get the forked end, fold the ribbon in half and cut on a diagonal so the edges of the ribbon will become points.
4. Use just one knot to tie the ribbon on to the string about 4 inches or so from the pinecone.
   
   
5. Alternate tying pinecones and ribbons for the length of your string.
   
   
6. Hang your garland in its new home to enjoy for the season.

Friday Fancy-ness

In my effort to post more and create a more inspiring blog, I bring you fun photos and links from what inspired me this week. Perhaps this will be a regular thing?

I want to crochet this now. Now. It's a great "my office is freezing" sweater.

Penny Arcade Jacket from Vickie Howell