Toasty toes

This was a Christmas request and a highly practical one too – a cover for a super-long hot water bottle.

I did try quite a few possible stitches, but am very happy that I settled for linen stitch using two strands of Drops Karisma in Grape (83), Rose (80) and Old rose (81). I think I used an 8mm hook (sorry – Christmas brain fog!) and I had the original velour cover to use as a pattern. The bobbles were 3cm in diameter, and I made a draw-string with a chain and a single row of (UK) double crochet. The channel for the draw-string was made by replacing alternate stitches of the linen stitch with an extra chain on just one row of the cover. I think I used 4 balls of grape, and two each of the lighter colours. It’s a superwash wool, so will hopefully wear well and if necessary wash well too.

Blue and gold – like the night sky

That was what I was asked for when I offered to make a hot water bottle cover for my favourite 13 year old. And this is what I came up with…

Made in Drops Alaska Dark blue (37), Navy blue (12), Denim blue (57) and Mustard (58) on a 6mm hook. Hiding behind it is another basket-weave bottle cover in Drops Karisma Grape (83)

The cover is made in two-row stripes of UK double crochet and is 28 stitches wide over the bottle, and 16 stitches wide over the neck. I had two goes at this to make the stripes work and my final version was 20 stripes long for the back section, then 15 and 7 stripes long for the front sections. The neck sections are 6 stripes long.

The main front, back and neck sections all start with Dark blue (12) and the top front section starts with Denim blue (57). The pieces are joined together with Navy blue (12) using UK half treble crochet.

As warm as a Welsh sheep

I was given some lovely Welsh wool a while ago by the Snail of Happiness, and have now found just the right project to use it for:

The stitch is Basketweave, and mine is 13 blocks wide at the base of the bottle and 7 blocks wide at the top. The back is 17 blocks high on the main section and 5 blocks high at the top. The two front sections are 14 and 5 blocks high on the main sections, giving an overlap where the two sections meet. I joined the pieces together with half trebles.

The cover weighs 180g and the yarn is double knitting, made on a 4.5mm hook. The stitch is quite time consuming but it gives a lovely textured effect, and I have no doubt that it will make a good insulating layer for the hot water bottle.

The old and the new

You might remember some hot water bottle covers that I made a while ago. Well I have had a go at re-vamping them in some new yarn:

The yarn is Drops Alaska, in off white (02) grey mix (04) and dark grey mix (05). I used a 6mm hook and the cover took 1 ball each of the paler colours and 2 balls of dark grey mix. The stitch is linen stitch.

Having finished this one I have remembered why I stopped making them – the three colour change in linen stitch leaves lots of loops at the edge of the work, and it is really tricky hiding these when joining the pieces. If I make another one I might join with half trebles rather than double crochet – a lesson learned!

Warmer than summer

It is often the case that summer in the Highlands requires more in the way of warm and waterproof clothing than it does sun glasses or sunscreen.
Even so I am being a little premature in starting my hot water bottle production line just now:

Made in Scheepjeswol XL in linen stitch on a 6mm hook. The colours are: Blue apatite and Amazonite, Garnet and Corundum ruby, Deep amethyst and Lilac quartz, all with Pink quartzite.

It is a keeper

There has been a bit of a run on hot water bottles lately (well it is nearly November) so I have got the production line going, and come up with a new colourway:

Made in Scheepjeswol stonewashed xl in garnet, corundum ruby and pink quartzite on a 6mm hook. I think this one is a keeper.

Out of the blue

Unexpected snow this week, and a good excuse to make another hot water bottle cover. This time in blue.

Made in Scheepjeswol XL in blue apatite, amazonite and moonstone, on a 6mm hook.

More cuddles

It is still pretty wintry here, and it seemed like a good time to try a different colour-way for my tweed effect hot water bottle cover.

Made in Scheepjeswol stonewashed XL in black onyx, smokey quartz and moonstone on a 6mm hook. One cover needs 1 ball of each colour. The stitch is my ‘three colour moss stitch’ but I have seen it called ‘linen stitch’ elsewhere. Pattern available on request.

Coorie in

This is a lovely phrase which people use up here meaning to nestle or snuggle in, and it describes exactly what this hot water bottle cover is for.

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It is so soft and snuggly, that I defy anyone not to feel comforted by it’s warm presence.
Made in Scheepjeswol XL in moonstone, deep amethyst and lilac quartz. Using moss stitch and a 6mm hook, it took 1 ball of each colour. No pattern yet – I just started with a hot water bottle and crocheted round it! Let me know if you would like one…