My Miss Molly Poncho

Hand-Crocheted Molly Poncho, Take One and Take Two

With Autumn days comes sweater weather! And, what’s even more fun than a cozy sweater?? A colorful, swingy poncho! And I believe that a poncho that you’ve made yourself is the most rewarding!

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I am sharing this to illustrate two VERY different looks from one basic pattern. And I love them both! How can both ponchos be my favorite? I can’t explain it, but they are favorites of mine for different reasons.

Here’s the original pattern, which is more of a guide to how to use scraps (stash yarn) to create your own beautiful Molly Poncho. I fell in love with this poncho a couple of years ago, and made myself one, but with a lot of goof-ups.

First, I mis-judged the size of my crochet hooks. I got two similar colored hooks confused, which made my poncho bigger. Oopsie #1!

I have always used these hooks.  I like the shape, and like the smoothness of the metal, and when I started crocheting at 15, these were the main kinds of hooks out there.  Someday, I may try the padded handled hooks, like these, available on Amazon.com, but since I have a good collection of the Boye hooks, they are my go-to.

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Then, I got kind of happy with my stitches and made my poncho way too long, which I had to kind of make up for by fiddling around with the design and adding some extra rows on one side.

The first Molly Poncho ended up being a fun, but pretty BIG poncho–kind of like wearing an afghan! Very cozy, but hard to cook in, since it hangs down so low! But I love to pull my colorful poncho out on cool days and snuggle up underneath it! I love the mix of bright, yet autumny colors!

I did resolve that I wanted to make a Molly Poncho by following the pattern more closely size-wise. I found an example of a pink and brown wool mix crocheted wrap that I absolutely loved. But not the price. Whoa, it was way up there! But that wrap was so much what I wanted to create myself that I decided I would!

Now that it’s Fall, I pulled out my project again. In my little snatches of time at work, I can do a few rows here and there. I hope I can get it done for this year!

Here’s the beginning. I am making the two panels the same this time.

Here is the link to the Ravelry page with the original Molly Poncho, a link to the pattern, and scores of samples of how others made their Molly Poncho! Some are very beautiful to me! You’ll see mine on there, entitled The Molly Poncho, Wacky Style, because that’s what it is!

I must have begun writing this post last year sometime?  I have no idea!

But this summer I pulled out the project and just decided to finish it up, to get it ready for Fall!  So, while we traveled to the ocean in July, I crocheted the fuzzy poncho.

I finished it up then, actually, and just had to add the finishing touches.  When I tried it on last week, it was not as large as I wanted, so I added the fringe.  It’s kind of a fun touch!

I did crochet a ton of roses to add, but in the end, just decided to attach one simple rose at the neck.

And…DONE!

It just feels good to create something, and to FINISH something!

Now I am working on a peach beret the same color as the rose. ?

Crochet Therapy

I find that crocheting gets my mind in a positive channel, because I feel like I am doing something useful, creative, and relaxing.  I find that it encourages me and makes me feel accomplished, and that is something I need these days! ?

So…whether it’s crocheting a hat, baking a pie, or perfecting a song, look around until you find something creative that YOU can do!  It doesn’t have to be every day, or even every week, but little moments of creativity actually help your overall mental health, and that helps everyone!!

If you’re interested in a simple way to create fun, beautiful hats and other items, please see my article on Hats for Everyone!  I share how literally anyone can “knit” a hat, even children, and this brings so much pleasure!

This pattern does assume you have some basic knowledge of basis stitched in crochet.  My favorite crochet book, which I refer back to of I want to learn a new stitch or technique, is this one, called The A to Z of Crochet.  It has a very good variety of techniques, for the beginner to the advanced crocheter.  I scored a few years back when I found it at a second-hand store, but I am happy to say they still sell it at amazon.com.

Eventually I will post these pictures to Ravelry, with more detail on the process. ??

Now, it’s your turn!

Go create something wonderful!!