Hodge and Eric showed us over the last few weeks how acorns are a treasured gift among squirrels, but I think the crocheted variety could come in handy for us humans too. Below are some unique and creative ways you might use these acorns. And, as always, here’s the free pattern to make your very own!
My pattern includes instructions on making a cap and a bottom, which you sew together to form an acorn. If instead you don’t sew the cap to the bottom of the acorn, you’ll have a unique gift box in which to hide a little present.
Add acorns to a fall wreath or mantel display.
Crochet your acorns in holiday colors or all white and hang them on your tree or display them in a decorative bowl on your coffee table.
String a cord through the stem and wear the acorn as a necklace.
Use bright colors and a crochet hook size H-8 (5.0 mm) or larger to make an acorn like Eric’s bioengineered one. These acorns would make wonderful pincushions, present toppers, or even cat toys.
Only eight days until the next Make It! Challenge is revealed. My friend over at the Evil Squirrel’s Nest challenged me to crochet Rainbow Donkey from his online comic. The latest episode even features a letter from MEAP — in which he surreptitiously divulges my secret plans!
Take a summer stroll down famous Pearl Street in Boulder, Colorado, and one of the first things you’ll notice is the beautiful landscaping, including picturesque flowerbeds and statues. Walking along on my lunch break one day, I realized that all of these statues must get pretty hot in the summer sun. It should come as no surprise that my next thought was “I should crochet them some sunglasses.”
So that’s exactly what I did. And on a particularly nice day in late July, I set off down Pearl Street with my friend Becky McKay (also known as the Cereal Baker) to help out some statues. It was by far the most fun I have ever had downtown! People really seemed to get a kick out of us. Tourists photographed our handiwork. A waiter at Trattoria got in on our fun. Even the cops were smiling. Now I just want to make more and cover the world’s statues with crocheted sunglasses, which Becky dubbed “croshades.”
Becky the Cereal Baker wears croshades.
Isn’t that a great name? Can you think of a better product? Okay, maybe glasses you can actually see out of would be better. I’m on it! Becky just challenged me to crochet such a pair.
I wonder what they will look like. Will they be like the shutter shades of the ’80s? Will the lenses be lacy or covered in fringe? Or will they look like LeVar Burton’s Geordi La Forge glasses? You’ll have to stay tuned for the Make It! Challenge, Croshades Edition, slated for early next year.
Until then, crochet a pair of these beauties with my croshades pattern. I think it goes without saying that you shouldn’t wear these while driving, operating heavy machinery, or well, moving about in any way. They’re really just for decorating your favorite inanimate objects.
Here’s one thing to keep in mind when you go yarnbombing. While croshades work really well on statues with ears, it’s good to bring a little extra yarn with you in case you need to tie your croshades on the statue.
Whatever you do, be sure to take pictures. Send them to squirrelpicnic{at}gmail{dot}com and I’ll add them to our Croshades album on Facebook and do a follow-up post here.
Check out these photos of our fun on Pearl Street.
On the cute scale, I think koalas rank about a 9 – right up there with pandas and piglets. They’re definitely one of the cutest animals in the outback. My friend Sharon knows koala cuteness. In Melbourne, Sharon teaches classes in fiber arts and runs the blog gentlestitches, which features patterns for her aussiegurumi, the name she’s given her adorable crocheted creations.
I made this koala using her pattern. The goatee was my own addition. I’ve always thought that koalas look like they have goatees.
Squirrel Picnic 
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