Roses in the Snow

My latest infatuation is colourful tapestry crochet (especially, Wayuu mochila bags). Yeah, I melt like chocolate when I see these traditional patterns in neat geometrical forms! What fascinates me even more is that you can turn literally ANY cross-stitch pattern into a nice piece. Right now I am working on an etude bag. I think I'm most lucky, because these white, pink and light-blue mercerized cotton threads are leftovers from my previous project, and they are just enough for a small bag. Since it's the first attempt at tapestry crochet, I'm following the tutorials and a pattern from the Internet word for word, but I'm already thinking about designing a couple of mochila bags using traditional Ukrainian ornaments. This one, when finished, is going to be a New Year present for my friend (or her daughter). 

Of all the tutorials I've seen so far, I find All Tapestry Crochet YouTube channel the most comprehensive and the most useful. It explains in detail how to work your pattern in modified single crochet stitch (so that the pattern stays even), and how to switch the colours (so that the threads don't get tangled at all). It covers all the questions I'd want to ask an expert when working on my own piece. I'm glad to have used that base tutorial to get a start with my long-awaited project. Eventually, I had to add a few rows to the bottom, because my threads are finer. I went on and did a few additional stripes, just to see what a much more simple pattern looks like using this technique. Next time I'll try the other way of transition from base to the body that this channel suggests.

The floral pattern I've found on Pinterest works like magic! By the way, my Pinterest board for tapestry crochet inspiration can be found here. I had a tough time choosing a pattern, but this one seems SO RIGHT as for the first tapestry project. I'm particularly enjoying the process of seeing the shapes emerge row by row. Now I can't wait till the rose and the bud come to life.