Yarnsicles

Hello World!

Hope you've all had a great Easter week-end with lots of time for family and crafting! I did. :)

What I want to show you today is a little something I had already posted on Facebook a while ago: Yarnsicles! :)

These are popsicle sticks wrapped in yarn, so the name yarnsicles seemed good to me. I had been wanting to make some samples of my Stylecraft Special DK yarn for a while, and I had seen something similar before on Lucy's Attic 24 and was also inspired by Sarah-Jayne's "Yarnspirations" on Bella Coco.

Both Lucy and Sarah-Jayne use wooden clothespins for their yarn-samples, so I wanted to do the same. But in a half-hearted search for some clothespins (already knowing that even if I found them, I wouldn't have enough for all the different colors in my stash), I found something that would do the job as well: popsicle sticks!

I had bought them a few years back for a craft project I've never even started, so I had plenty!

I've wrapped the yarn around one end of the stick in two tight layers and tied the ends to a knot. On the other end I've written the Stylecraft name for the according color. On the back (which is not shown) I've also written the color number.

Working on this fun little project made me realize two things: 1) I've gathered quite a lot of different colors over the years and 2) there are still so many colors missing in my collection, I need MORE yarn!!! (sounds familiar? *gg*)

Anyway, these yarnsicles work great when your trying to come up with a new color-combo for your next big project. And they're also nice to look at, aren't they? :)

And since I've also stocked up on my favorite cotton yarn (Catania by Schachenmayr), I thought about making some yarnsicles with Catania, too. Probably have to order some more colors first... :)

The Like List: All About Colors

The most exciting thing when starting a new project (especially a big one, like a blanket) is picking the colors. Some people just seem to have a natural talent for picking color-combos with a wow-effect, and others - like me - are a little bit anxious when it comes to the big color decision. Never mind if you're a natural talent, or a lost soul in the world of colors, the following links might help you to finally find the perfect color-combo, to encourage you to experiment with adventurous new colors you've never worked with before - or to simply teach you more about the physical backgrounds of color theory (if you're interested in that). Enjoy!

1. Color Theory 101: Selecting Yarn That Go Together on Freshstitches: this article is perfect for you if you just want a quick intro into the basics of color theory, explained from a knitter's/crocheter's point of view.

Source: freshstitches

2. Crochet School Lesson 18: Working With Color on Craftyminx: this article goes more into detail about color theory and explains the different color schemes, like monochromatic, analogous, complementary, split complimentary, triad and double complementary. The article also includes links to more color-related websites, articles and tools, and a video on how the color change is done in crochet.

Source: Craftyminx

3. All About Color on Crochet Cabana: This is the most comprehensive article I've found so far about color theory and its implication for working with yarn. It defines what color is, explains the different color-schemes, and also focuses on the emotions that different colors evoke or are associated with. And of course the article provides you with even more links, if you're still not satisfied with what you learned. I personally think that with this article I've learned all there is to know about colors and working with them in crochet.

4. The Random Stripe Generator on Biscuits and Jam: This is a tool that I've often stumbled over when reading the different articles about color - once you've made up your mind which colors you want to work with, you can use this tool to generate a random stripe pattern. Could be helpful if you want to start on a ripple or stripey blanket! As a test, I've picked white, light green, and two shades of pink, and this is the first suggestion I've got:

5. Blanket Journey on Attic24: If the other articles mentioned above are just too much dry theory for you, you'll probably love Lucy's post about how she personally chooses the colors for a blanket. And we all know that Lucy's a natural when it comes to color picking, right?

Source: Attic24

6. Design Seeds: This is not an article but a whole website about color palettes for any purpose. As crocheters we can use it for our yarn-projects, but this site is also helpful when you want to (re-)design your blog and look for the perfect color palette. When you hover with the mouse over the color squares, it gives you the hex-code of the according color, so you can use it when working with html or in an image processing software (like Gimp or Photoshop).

Source: Design Seeds

And as a bonus, here are my two favorite ways of finding the perfect color combo:

7. Rattle your yarn bag or box and see if a color combo strikes you. Honestly, that's how I've found the colors for my Dots and Dashes Throw! I've got my Stylecraft yarn in a transparent plastic box, and after some rummaging around, those four balls (cream, shrimp, spring green and saffron) were lying next to each other and I knew: yep, that's it!

8. Steal. Steal without restraint. I know, this sounds strange, because as creative people we all respect the patterns, original designs and pictures of our fellow bloggers. But when it comes to color, there is no copyright (I hope *gg*). I'm collecting crochet finds like crazy on my various Pinterest boards, and not all of the pins are about the pattern only, sometimes I just pin because the color-combo strikes me. Of course, if you're using exactly the same colors and the pattern, too, a thank-you back-link to the source of your inspiration would be nice and probably very much appreciated!

I hope you've found those links interesting and helpful, if you know more great websites about colors and especially color-combos in crochet, please let me know in the comments!

Have a great and colorful week-end,

Maybe you'd like to know, that...

• This is not a ranking. I present the items on the list in an order that seems reasonable to me.
• I'm NOT paid for mentioning any of the websites or products.
• When I'm using pictures, I always try to let the owner know that I'm doing so (if it's possible to find out the owner of a picture). If I unknowingly violate some rights, please let me know and I'll remove the according picture at once.