By Tawni Rogers
When I started taking on projects, it was more to learn new things, to learn new stitches, or to push myself to try something I hadn't done, to try more complicated techniques. As I've gone along throughout the years, sometimes I just pick up something that I want to try. Maybe it looks cute in the picture, and I make it.
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And then when somebody tells me that they think it's cute or they're surprised by my talent, it really kind of boosts my spirits to try and make it again.
Pattern: amenagerieofstitches.com
Repeating One Ring Until It Scrunches Up
The part that I found really enjoyable about these simple plants is that it's not super hard on my brain to think about.
For example, the plant part of this particular one is just repeating a ring over and over and over again until you get it to scrunch up on itself. I don't have to sit there and count really meticulously or pay very close attention, but I think the result turns out super, super cute, and it looks like I've put a lot of work into it.
Chunky Yarn, a 4mm Hook, and Big Eyes
I've been able to take the patterns and customize them to what I like to do. I find softer yarn that may be a little more chunky for these projects. I usually use a 3.5 or a 4mm hook as well.
Again, that's typically a little bit big for projects like this, but it just makes it easier on my hands. I also use oversized eyes in these projects.
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Some people like their eyes to be small; some people like them to be larger. I kind of like the big eyes on these projects, and then I just add a little bit of embroidery thread as a V-smile for these cuties.
From Potted Plants to Leaf Coasters
Because these are fairly easy guys to throw together and they were really well received by my friends and family, I've made a lot of them. From there, I've taken it and customized it with different pot sizes, different pot colors, and different plant colors. I've even been able to reverse-engineer a pattern and make my plant look like a potted plant that then turns into coasters.
It's not exactly the way this one looks, but because I started learning how to make plants, I was able to figure that out and make something a little more usable for people.
This led to these little coasters, which have been really well received. Everyone's always very surprised when you can pull out the little leaves and actually set something down on them. Then it's super fun to fold them back up, put them back in the pot, and make it look like a little plant on your shelf.
I was really surprised at how well received these have been, and it's been really fun to sell these at markets and give them away as gifts.
Why the Simple Plants Win Over Big Blankets
I was really surprised at how well these have been received everywhere. I make some really complicated projects: big blankets, large cardigan sweaters, fancy hats, and I would have thought those would cause more attention, but these little simple projects that I can throw together in an hour and a half sometimes are the most well received. They just seem to seal people's hearts for some reason, and they love to set them on shelves.
I've been asked many times to make another version of a different plant so that people can have a whole collection of plants. What I've learned here is that sometimes the simplest projects give you the best results.
