The 2012 Ornament Project ~ February

The Circle of Hearts

Materials:
your choice of yarn and an appropriately sized hook, scissors, and 5 stitch markers

Leave a 10" tail
Rows 1-5 are worked in the round


ch 2
Row 1:  work 6 sc in 2nd st from hook.  Place marker in front loop of first sc
Rows 2-5:  working in the round and in back loops only, sc around, place marker in front loop of first sc in each row

do not finish off 


Your work should look like a tube with the tail end coming up through the middle.  (you can use your hook to bring the beginning tail up through your tube)  The hearts (we'll make one half at a time) are worked in the unworked front loops from Rows 1-5 in a vertical fashion.  The first half will be worked from top (Row 5) to bottom (Row 1) in the stitches you have marked.  The second half of that heart will be worked from bottom to top in the unworked stitches directly to the left of the first half.  Please use the pictures as your guide.  I have marked the loops in which we will be placing our stitches with a dot.

Beginning Hearts

First Half - sc in front loop of 1st sc from Row 5 (remove marker), (dc, 5 tr) in same st, dc in front loop of 1st sc from Row 4 (inserting hook from bottom to top as in picture below), hdc in front loop of 1st sc from Row 3,  sc in front loop of 1st sc from Row 2,  sl st in front loop of 1st sc from Row1

Second Half - working in unworked front loops directly to the left of first half and from bottom to top (see picture below) sl st in front loop of 2nd sc from Row1, sc in front loop of 2nd sc from Row 2, hdc in front loop of 2nd sc from Row3, dc in front loop of 2nd sc from Row 4, (5 tr, dc, sc) in front loop of 2nd sc from Row 5

Repeat First Half and Second Half respectively two more times.  Each time you will be working in the unworked front loops directly to the left of the last half.  Your completed Circle of Hearts will have 6 heart halves.  

Finishing

After completing your 6th heart half, you should be at the top of your ornament.  Sl st in front loop of 1st sc of Row  5 and finish off leaving 8".  Use your hook to draw this ending tail piece through the middle of the tube as in the picture below.  Tie the beginning and ending tails together using an overhand knot making sure to allow 2 to 3 inches for hanging.

Your Circle of Hearts ornament is now complete!  I hope the instructions are easy to follow.  This one was a little tricky to write.  Please don't hesitate to ask questions in the "comments" below if you need me to clarify anything.  Until next time...

(If you need a stitch guide or help with the abbreviations, Crochet 'N' More is a great place to find all of the basics.)