Lace Pillow Shams
Right now my main knit/crochet project that I'm working on and take with me is some lace pillow shams for my bed. Currently I just have my sheet pillows on my bed but I want it to look a little fancier so I'm knitting some shams to go in front of those when my bed is made.
I'm using the pattern "Golden Dawn" from this book on the Antique Pattern Library, and this yarn from KnitPicks in Copper. I think the copper color will look great with the blue and white quilt that I use for a bedspread.
The pattern was initially intended for a bedspread, but I'm adjusting it to be smaller for a pillow sham. It's pretty simple since thea pattern is for a square block that you make multiple of, then sew together. To make a smaller bedspread or a pillow cover you simply make fewer blocks. A finished (but unblocked) block looks like the image on the right.
For two pillow shams with overlapping backs, I'll need to make 66 blocks total. So far I'm on my second, so I have a long way to go. Not as long as I'd have if I were making a bedspread though!
It's fun to work on this because the block never gets unwieldy to work on in public or too big to fit in a purse or backpack. The lace pattern is complicated, which makes it fun for me, but maybe difficult for a beginner. If you do handicrafts of any kind though, I recommend you check out the Antique Pattern Library, they have a ton of patterns and general information about how those crafts were used a long time ago.
