Crocheted Balls For A Cause: We Need Your Help!

There's good reason I'm making a blog post again after a long time and this is about asking for your help for a great cause. Of course, it involves crochet.

I was asked by Ms. Bane Agbon of Kids for Peace Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Cotabato City that conducts camps to promote peace and empower the youth, to help provide 48 crocheted balls which will be used in activities for their Emergency Pedagogy (an approach for psychosocial support) sessions for the young survivors of the assaults in Marawi and Lanao del Sur. 

These crocheted balls will not be given as toys but will be used as tools for age-appropriate body movement/games to help the survivors regain balance, rhythm, focus, let go, and be present in the moment. Crocheted balls are preferred for these activities because they are warmer to the touch (compared to plastic balls). 

So, how can you help? We need you to help us crochet these balls! 

We need 8 sets of 6 same-colored crocheted balls (total of 48) by July 5, 2017! 

It is important that we get sets of 6 same-colored balls. So if you plan to crochet them, it would be best if you crochet all 6 from the same colored yarn. You can ask friends to help them crochet with you. Colors should also be bright (no dull colors please) in plain colors only.

The pattern of the crocheted ball is taken from "The Ideal Crochet Sphere" pattern by Ms Premise-Conclusion.

I made very minor revisions to the pattern and laid it out specifically for this project.

Please download the free pattern HERE.

Suggested materials are already shown in the downloadable pattern. For the yarn, I am not requiring any specific brand, as long as the yarn is Medium (4) Worsted Weight and can provide a good shape/form (like yarn used for Amigurumi). In case you are wondering though, I have already used Red Heart Super Saver and Dapper Dreamer Combed Cotton to crochet a few balls.

Materials: Medium (4) Worsted Weight Yarn, 4.00 mm Crochet Hook, and Fiberfill

The size of the crocheted ball more or less fits a child's hand. When stuffing the ball with fiberfill, please make sure that the ball is not too hard (or soft). It should be squishy enough (but not too soft that the shape does not hold).

We have 2 drop off locations for the balls:

Gantsilyo Guru Selections Yarn Studio

(Open Wed-Sun, 10AM-6PM)

Unit 306 Emerald Place

604 Shaw Blvd., Brgy. Kapitolyo

Pasig City

Craft MNL

(Open Tue-Sat, 1PM-8PM)

Unit 302 Pasay Road Condominium 

(Pamana-Languages Building)

926 Antonio Arnaiz Ave. (Pasay Road)

Makati City

Deadline for drop off is on July 5, 2017 (Wed).

Holiday Headstart 1: Motif on Fabric Board

It's almost September. This means that it's already time to think about what you are going to give everyone for Christmas...especially if it's handmade. Yes folks, you have to start now :)

If you plan to give a lot of people something crocheted, choose something simple, classy, and pretty useful. I have some gift suggestions which you can consider, starting with this simple motif on a fabric board.

 Here are the materials I used for this project:

Gantsilyo Guru Balinese Cotton Blend

3.5mm Crochet Hook

Mod Podge Fabric Finish

Fabric Board

Paint Brush

The idea here is to crochet any motif pattern you want using any Light (3) or Medium (4) yarn and put it on any fabric board. This is a nice decor which you can hang on your wall or simply display on any table or shelf. 

I got the pattern from a Japanese pattern book with 300 motif designs (you can buy another version of this book here). 

This book has really nice motif and edging patterns. Even if you don't understand the language but have a good grasp of crochet symbols, you'll be able to use this. This book is available HERE.

I specifically chose Gantsilyo Guru Balinese Cotton Blend for this project because it holds a good shape and has a really nice sheen to it. The finish of this yarn is clean. It is also really nice to work with. 

After crocheting your motif,  bring out your paint brush, Mod Podge Fabric Finish, and fabric board. I got the fabric board from a Japan Home store in Greenbelt. It was a (lucky) chance purchase. I saw some and bought 4 boards. If you are not able to buy one, you can make one! I have seen several DIY tutorials online for fabric bulletin boards or cork boards, and I guess you can get ideas from those to be able to make your own fabric board. This one measures 10 in. x 10 in.

On the wrong side of the motif, apply Mod Podge with your paint brush. Don't be afraid to dabble generous amounts of it evenly (flat) on the motif. Mod Podge dries up clear, so don't worry about it being seen. Just avoid having "solid" portions so they won't look like "stubbles" when they dry. You can use a toothpick to remove those or spread them.

Flip the motif and position it flat on the center of the board. Leave it flat overnight to dry.

Ta-daaa! I think I was able to crochet one motif in less than 10 minutes. I am not so sure but I think one ball of the yarn can make 3-4 pieces of this pattern. You can hang this or put it on display using a small easel.

The Last Bedspread I Crocheted

Back in 2013 (which I can't believe is almost 3 years ago), I blogged about starting another bedspread. Well, I actually finished it after a year but I only found time to share it now!

I posted this "teaser" before, but I never showed the entire spread :) I used Red Heart Baby Sheen. Forgive me for saying this but I already forgot what hook size I used. Of all pieces of information, I forgot to list this one down. I think I used between 3mm-4mm. I wasn't also able to take note how many skeins of Red Heart Baby Sheen I used. This yarn, by the way, had already been discontinued by Red Heart so this makes this bedspread really special (and unique, I guess).

It's made up of 266 motifs sewn together through the back loops of the last round of each motif. It is enough to cover a queen-sized bed. 

I got the motif pattern from the "300 Classic Blocks for Crochet Projects" book by Linda P. Schapper. The spread is made of just one motif design but I played with various combinations for different rounds of the same color palette.

I love the layers (and textures) created by the front and back post double crochets as well as the popcorn stitches. They made the different colors in each round pop. 

I'm not really sure if I'll be able to make another bedspread soon. It depends, if that "itch" comes back for such a huge project :)

If you want to get the last (and rare) remaining skeins of Red Heart Baby Sheen, you can buy them online HERE. You must be warned though that there will no longer be restocks of this yarn in our store, so make each stitch count!