Making a Fabric and Crochet Mushroom: A tutorial

Remember this tiny little mushroom I showed the other day and then turned it into a necklace. This is a tutorial about how to make one but I am going to make a larger version to give you a better idea of how it is done. I will apologize in advance for the quality of some of the photographs because I took them as night was falling on the porch.

Gather up your supplies. You will need some fabric circles in any size you want. This will become the cap of your mushroom. You will need to have some picot lace edging , crochet cotton and a suitable crochet hook. You will need either a sewing machine or a needle and thread to sew the picot edge onto your circle.

I have a thing for liberty tana lawn fabric so that is what I used. Now you need to decide whether you want the raw edge of the fabric facing up or down. I like the raw edges showing so mine is facing up. After you have decided you need to start to crochet two single crochet stitches in every hole of the picot edging.

Continue all around the circumference until you have completed the circle. Now continue to do rounds of single crochet until you have gone for at least three rounds.

On the next round start to decrease by making a single crochet in every second stitch and continue rounds of this until you have about 8 to 10 stitches in a round.

That completes the gills of the mushroom and now onto the stalk. Continue making rounds of single crochet until you have reached the height you want for your mushroom. My stalk was about 4 cm long.

Finish off the last stitch by cutting the thread and pulling it through the last loop. I like the threads showing so I just pulled it through to the start of the stalk with the other loose threads so it looks like tendrils. If you want you can finish it off and sew all your threads into the matrix and then trim the ends.

Now the biggest question of the night was to stuff or not to stuff. Such difficult soul searching questions I have to deal with on my porch at night. Well my answer was not to stuff. You might decide differently but my reasons were as follows. If I stuffed it in would not be light weight and airy, I would have to finish the botton and maybe even weigh it down with stones or grain, it would be so much easier to mail unstuffed if I wanted to sent it to a friend, but the most important reason for not stuffing it was that if it had been stuffed I wouldn't be able to do this with it.

I am in love with this little wooden mushroom headed guy. I want to make a gang of them and then put the little mushroom dance from fantasia on . If you don't happen to have little wooden dolls in your vintage suitcase the mushroom looks great on its own or it can also double as a finger puppet.

The light was so much better today that after work I kind of got obsessed with taking pictures of this. It just looked so awesome with some of the other things I have made recently and the flowers I picked on the side of the road yesterday. Here is what I mean.

While I was taking pictures my garden snail friends were trying to get my attention by sending me the snail version of a love note.

I want to welcome any new visitors to my blog this week. Please don't be shy, leave a comment . I love comments so much!!! So much that I think it is time for another give away. So if you leave a comment here I will get my little snail friends to help me draw a name on Monday and if you are chosen you can win either a snail ( the fabric kind) or a mushroom , your choice.

Comments

[Sandra]

I love the mushroom necklace! I think that I may have to break out the mini crochet hooks tomorrow and give it a whirl.

[mamie]

oooh, i love your tutorial on this precious mushroom. cannot wait to combine the arts of fabric and fiber. i really love the dress altering also. cannot wait to see more.

[mayalu]

Well, I'm not exactly a new reader:) but I had to gush about that little mushroom headed guy! Perfection!!I absolutely love what you've been creating with natural objects and now wooden toys...and have bookmarked all of your tutorials for the day I learn to crochet (I'm only a knitter, so far). What a wonderful photo shoot! I'm up way too late and this post made it all worth it, thanks so much for your constant inspiration.

[Kristin L]

I found your blog through Spirit Cloth and have been enjoying all your small creations. I have a thing for mushrooms, so your recent tutorials are great fun. I might have to try making a crocheted mushroom hat myself. :-)

[Jessica E!]

Hello! Well. I found your blog throughh... Craftzine.com (they have other really great projects I want to try!). They had your acorn necklace on display, and I thought that was verry adorable. :D I was thinking the same thing that Kristin L said: Mushroom Hat. Haha!

[Séverine]

J'adore !
It's so cute and poetic... i'm in love with this fabric/crochet mushroom either... :)

[Christina J.]

I love the mushrooms. You must crochet very fast.

[anne]

I've already commented on another post so I'm not new -- you need not include me in the drawing (let those newbies have a better chance!). Just wanted to tell you that your creations are magical and you are so generous to share their making in tutorials. I can't wait to make a mushroom and a crochet-covered rock with my daughter.

[Cat]

I love the little mushroom man. I have been wanting to crochet little things like that but I don't know what to buy or even where to look for it. Any suggestions?

[EricaE]

I've been reading your blog for about 3 weeks now and it's so refreshing! I was introduced to your blog when I saw a post about the acorn necklace on the Craft Magazine feed. I love your creations! (Do you have them for sale anywhere?) Also, I love your photography! Makes me miss living in a natural area.

[Lynn]

I am an Ontario resident living in Virginia and found your blog recenty - oh how I miss home! Thank you for the wonderful images of what I miss very much and your lovely lovely projects and words.

[Aine]

I love your little creations! I've only crocheted with larger hooks, so I'm wondering what size hook works best when doing these types of projects. You are so inspiring!

[Karen]

Ontario? My home province. Now BC. I love your photography - it perfectly complements the tutorials.
And the whimsy is wonderful.

[Charity]

You make the sweetest things. I have got to learn how to crochet! I wish we had the bigger snails around here, I only ever find tiny ones. A fabric one sounds grand, though. ;)

[Beth]

Love the crochet mushroom. You have inspired me to start crocheting again. I love the small projects that don't take days to do. Thanks for sharing the pattern!

[Michelle Pedro]

Hi! I actually am a recent reader - started last week and have come here everyday since. I simply love everything you do, so simple and yet so beautiful. Thanks for the tutorials and all the lovely pics. :oD

[Laura]

hello..

i found your blog a few weeks ago on flickr...i'm in love!!

the mushroom necklace is so cute...thanks for the contest!

laura

[jessie]

I love the mushrooms! You inspired me to crochet around a small piece of drift wood I found the other day. I used a 1.25 mm hook and now I think I'm going blind!

[Andrea (noricum)]

I love all the photos, especially the one of the snail with the flowers.

You were commenting the other day that people said they don't see snails... yours are so much larger than the types found around my area, I'm thinking that it's the same with other people... they're there, but just so tiny and unnoticeable. The slugs are more noticeable, but only after the rain. (And slugs chew holes in my hosta leaves, and don't have pretty shells.) In my neighbourhood, we have birds, squirrels, adorable little bunny rabbits, ducks (if you wander to the cemetery next door), and occasionally even a deer. The jumping spiders in my apartment are kind of cute too, but I draw the line at where they are and are not allowed.

[rebekah]

what a lucky girl, wearing that lovely mushroom necklace ;)

[Kris]

love the mushroom headed guy! I check your blog daily & catch you at flickr too ~ your work is very inspirational! Esty shop any time soon????? :-)

[alyssa Zygmunt]

i just stumbled upon this blog and it's love and first sight. yes! an etsy shop would be perfect. please let me know if you set up shop. i will buy everything :)

[Molly]

Ok, I'm a crochet person but unfamiliar with the picot what-ever-it-was that starts the edge of the mushroom. How? What? I need answers woman!!! This is the cutest thing in the world and I wanna make one, among many of your other nifty projects!

I've got dozens of rocks to crochet around but I haven't found my thread yet. It might be in a basket on top of the tv center. Must go look.

Molly

[Nicole]

Your general crush lady here :) ANOTHER fabulous tutorial.

[flamehair]

I love that someone else goes to photograph a craft project and gets totally carried away. I might even get up the courage to display some of my dioramas on my blog too one day. :)

[sharon ferguson]

oh me garsh, i have been reading your blog now for about 2 or 3 weeks and you and your projects are too good to be true. wow. thanks.

[Penny]

thank-you so much for this tutorial! I've been checking your blog on reader the last week or two and really love your photos and creations!

[ann]

very very insiring gotta make time to make. many can crocher but u have the vision and disiline to create, congratulations. s my key doesnt work, rymes with wee.

[Elsita :)]

Hello! my name is Elsita and I am leaving a comment to win one of your treasures! ja ja ja!!!!!
Margie, I was absolutely focused following the tutorial, I went through the philosophical part about stuffing or not stuffing... AND THEN you show the little wooden man wearing the mushroom on his head! That was SO FUNNY! I had to laugh! Thank you for making me laugh at 10:34 PM when I should be in bed bed after a long day!
Elsita :)

[Debbie]

I liked your tutorial, big difference between the porch and the following day! I love the pictures of the Cardinals. We have one that lives close by and it is difficult to get his picture..he seems to know when I'm ready to click! Have a great weekend!

[Dixie]

I'm a new reader, and I am so enchanted with your little doo-dads! You really make a girl wanna learn to crochet! :o)

[Melissa H]

Hi, I'm new. I'm loving your photography--especially the macro shots of fungus. And your snail is cute :) Now I just need to learn to crochet!

[Melissa H]

Hi, I'm new. I'm loving your photography--especially the macro shots of fungus. And your snail is cute :) Now I just need to learn to crochet!

[Dani]

Hey, I just came across your blog from Craftapalooza - I love your stuff!

[Ana Lilia]

your creations are awesome! thank you for sharing!

[annette]

it's saturday morning and i'm poking around the interweb for some daily inspiration and i came across your site. i love what you've done with the place!! :)

thanks for sharing your hooks, thoughts and amazing style!

[Kate]

hello,
I'm a new reader--I stumbled across your blog via whip-up--and I just wanted to say what a lovely, lovely blog you have indeed! Thanks for sharing a bit of your world with all of us.

[susan]

oh i love your little shroom'. i see why you took so many pix of him. i will have to make one tonight, not that i shouldnt be doing other more pressing things. now i just need to find some picot edged lace!!!
great blog, i will be back again and again

[Melissa de la Fuente]

I just found your beautiful and inspiring blog via flickr and am in awe! You are so lovely and talented and I adore your sweet creations. So glad I found you!
xo
Melissa

[bunnycreates]

that's oh soooo cool! thanks for the tutorial...

[Shelby]

I love the mushroom! I can't wait to start my own! I just began crocheting and i love your ideas and instructions! thanx so much! <3

[raajia]

I liked your tutorial, and I adore your sweet creations congratulations and many many thanks