Upcycled Yarn - Workbaskets

Today I finally got my paws on some larger size hooks to work with the tshirt yarn that I won :D 

They are just a tad bigger than what I'm used to working with... 

For scale, my 1.5mm hook that I use for animals is at the top; the 12mm hooks are the grey and blue ones in the middle...

Using the Chunky Crocheted Basket pattern from Crochet in Color, I made myself two work baskets - one big and one small - that I can keep things tidy around my chair, and also easily take with me if I need a project to go on the road (or visit others!). 

The blue one is about 11" diameter and 10" tall. It is the perfect size for my collection of candy yarn for animal making - it fits the 10 balls quite comfortably, with room for a little bag of pieces and the hook! 

The pink one is about 8" diameter and 6" tall :) It fits two balls of Fayette (enough to make a Road Trip Scarf). 

I did make a few little changes to the Crochet in Color pattern - I made the last row crab stitch (or reverse double crochet) instead of a plain double crochet row, and added a button under one handle so I can close the basket a bit for carrying :) 

I love them! And my workspace is already looking tidier :P 

One last shot with extra drama: I accidentally had a filter on and didn't notice...

Experiments with Tshirt yarn!

Last week, something AMAZING happened to me. I usually never win competitions or raffles or anything like that (I figure I've used all my luck up on amazing family and friends). 

Buuuuut......

My lovely friend Angela Armstrong from Get Knotted Yarn Crafts entered me in a yarn giveaway competition on the Upcycled Yarns Facebook page. And I won! 4 x 400g rolls of pink and blue tshirt yarn :D :D :D They arrived in the post this morning.

The very first thing I had to do is make a caddy for my hooks. In the past I've only had one or two hooks in rotation at a time, so never needed something on my table for hooks. But now, with road trip scarves, slippers, toys and afghans on the go, the pile of scattered hooks has been getting a bit out of hand! 

I took inspiration from Anne's Zpagetti container pattern, this Chunky Crochet Basket pattern and a knotless finishing idea from Crochet in Color. The biggest hook I have is a 6.5mm, and it was really a bit too small - looks like I need to buy more hooks! I alternated rows of dc (US sc) and htr (US hdc) to get up to the height I wanted.

What do you think?

(excuse Gerald and Steve the giraffes there in the background, they refused to get out of shot even when I asked nicely) 

What should I make with the rest of this gorgeous yarn? I am thinking a workbasket with handles. Does anyone have a favourite pattern? Hook size? Ideas?