Hi all! Shannon from eat.sleep.make. here! I'm pretty sure that I'm not the only person that is suffering from being overrun by generic glass vases that you've never used again since their first appearance housing a gifted bouquet of flowers. I have a ridiculous amount. I've been trying to figure out something "sustainable" to do with them. You could always spray paint them… or… spray paint them.. That was all I could come up with, but then what do I do with a plethora of spray painted, oddly shaped vases? I get exhausted just thinking about it all.
So, the round up I put together last of DIY Harvest Centerpieces inspired me. Specifically, the repurposed sweaters as vase covers. However, not wanting to cut up any of my sweaters, I decided to create my own. I always have plenty of yarn stashed away… finally, the solution to my hoards of vases (and hoards of yarn) seemed easy, attainable… and attractive!
If you don't know how to crochet, I'll point you towards some great tutorials to help you. I don't think I'm anywhere near proficient enough to teach someone the basics. But, if you already know how to chain your first row and the basic crochet stitches, you'll be good to go!
I chained just enough to slightly stretch around the circumference of the base of the vase. You want your vase sweater to squeeze slightly so it will stay in place. Once you get your chain long enough, connect the end to your loop. You will have a circle.
Next, chain 3 up and do a triple crochet stitch. I find this gives such a great chunky feel to it, leaving the yarn with space between stitches without getting too tight. Once you come full circle, do a single crochet stitch to connect the ends of that row. You should have a seemless connection. Just repeat that until your sweater is as tall as you need it to be to cover your vase.
Sources for Learning to Crochet:
Learn How to Crochet Part 1 – This video is very well done and I think pretty easy to follow. Give it a shot if you want to learn the basics of crocheting.
Futuregirl Craft Blog – I've been following Alice for over 6 years now. She's the one that inspired me to learn to crochet to begin with. Her blog offers some amazing tutorials and ideas!
The Happy Hooker – This book will teach you SO easily how to read crochet patterns. Honestly, I never thought I'd understand all the weirdness that is a crochet pattern, but with this book, I was making flowers in no time.
**Disclaimer: The above mentioned sources are not promoting this post. I am simply mentioning them because they work. I've tried them myself and I think they can help you all become awesome Hookers, too!
Thanks for stopping by! Check out some of our other fun and easy fall projects over at eat.sleep.make.
