Shawl Pins

I love shawls, scarfs, and wraps. I love making them, buying patterns for them, wearing them, and saving tons of pictures of them on Pinterest. I will never live long enough to make all of the ones I want, but I love them still. I do have one complaint: Shawl pins. I don't know what it is but the ones that are commercially available just don't appeal to me. I've seen a few on Etsy that I like, (and purchase when I find them), but generally speaking they are just kind of "blah" for me. Maybe it's because they are designed to be functional in nature? I personally like things to stand out a bit more - to shout out "hey, look at me!"

I finally decided to try and make my own, and I have to say I'm pretty happy with how these came out. They were relatively inexpensive to make and worked up quickly,

Shawl Pins by Sharpin Designs

To make these you need the following:
--Round, wooden or plastic ring. I found some on Amazon but you can also find them in your local hobby store.
--Wooden dowels - the small ones. I then cut these down to be about 6-8 inches in length.
--Yarn - pull out your remnants and those crazy "what was I thinking" yarns.
--Glue - normal, glue in a bottle that you buy for school. TIP: Try glitter glue for extra fun.

To make the rings:
1. With Main Color: Single Crochet (SC) around the ring being sure to completely cover it. Slip stitch to join and weave in ends. The number of stitches you need will vary depending on your yarn type.
2. With Accent Color: Join with a slip stitch in any SC and SC in that same st. Chain 3 (or 5, or 7, or 10!) and SC in that same stitch. (SC in next stitch, Chain X, SC in same stitch), repeat all the way around. Join with slip stitch and weave in ends.

To make the sticks:
1. Working with the main color yarn still attached to the ball/skein, glue the end to the dowel and hold in place for a few seconds. Then, start adding glue along the length of the stick while winding the yarn around it. I found it easiest to try and hold slight tension in the yarn and actually roll the stick. When you get to the bottom, cut the yarn leaving about an inch tail and finish gluing it down. Don't worry if the yarn end is stubborn. After it dries you can cut it off.

2. Let the stick dry overnight. The next day clean up anything - fill in any gaps with more yarn, rinse off any excess, etc. Allow to completely dry.

3. With the accent yarn glue a bit to one of the ends. You may want to wrap several layers to achieve a "full look." Let dry.

To Wear:
1. Position the ring as desired and pull the fabric up through the center. Push the stick through the fabric to hold in place.
2. Enjoy all the compliments!