What is a more obvious practical item to crochet or knit when the weather gets cold than slippers? Okay, okay maybe a scarf is more obvious – and to tell you the truth, the first year or so that I crocheted I made almost exclusively scarves (and simple blanket squares)... but when you're sitting there crocheting and your toes get cold, it's not a big leap to think "Hmm... I could make myself some slippers!"
Last year my mother-in-law knit me some lovely thick & warm slipper-booties for xmas, and it was a perfect present! Their house is quite chilly, so it is now almost a ritual that I put on those slippers as soon as I walk in the door to their house and leave them on until bedtime – in fact I keep them at their place so I can't forget to bring them when I visit!
Sometime later a friend expressed interest in making some slippers, so I did a quick Google search and found this list of 5 patterns - http://whipup.net/2011/07/14/5-crochet-slippers-to-make/
I particualrly love the mary jane slipper pattern - it's very simple, and works great. Look at this link: http://goodknits.com/blog/mary-jane-slippers/ (Great name for the blog too, huh? "Oh my good knits!" - so clever.) When I first found this pattern one of my friends whom I had recently taught to crochet immediately started making them for herself and for her family members, and they've been a hit!
The first pair that I made for myself were way too big – I kept thinking that I wanted them to be comfy, not pinching my toes, so I made them a little loose... and of course as soon as I wore them for an afternoon, they stretched out so much that they were falling off my feet! So I started over, making them quite a bit tighter, and they worked out much better, and became my everyday slippers.
As much as I liked the look of these slippers, they aren't the most practical for keeping your toes toasty on really cold evenings - what I really wanted was to make myself a crocheted equivalent to the knitted booties that I had left back in Ontario at my in-law's place. It was surprisingly hard to find a crochet pattern for adult-sized booties in a chunky yarn! Finally after lots of searching, I found this cheap pattern for some quick & chunky slipper boots – or as the pattern calls them, "Serenity Forest Slippers" – http://www.free-crochet.com/detail.html?code=FC01044&cat_id=332
I gave them a try and Hooray! Exactly what I was looking for! Made with bulky weight yarn, these worked up really quickly (I made a pair in an evening). I have a couple of issues with the original pattern though, so I adapted it a fair bit - I will try to get it written up and posted it here soon. Meanwhile, here is the finished product, made with Loops and Threads Charisma yarn, which is a lovely soft and chunky acrylic that comes in a great range of multi-coloured skeins.
These have been a real success – I wear them almost constantly when I'm at home, and I'll even bring them with me to friends' homes when we visit, to keep my toes nice and cozy :) And as you'll soon see – once I get my Christmas present posts finished – I made a few pairs of these for Christmas presents!
Keep crafting!
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