Knitted Cup Cozy - OPAM

At work some of us are taking part in a Secret Santa and I wanted to try and make part of my gift.  At Sainsbury's I found a ceramic Travel Cup with a nice Nordic style design all over it.  I was wondering if it might be a bit hot to handle when tea etc is first added and I have always wanted a reason to make a mug or cup cozy.

I spent ages looking on the Internet and tried a couple of patterns which stated they were simple but the instructions were far from just that!

In the end I decided to give it a go on my own.  So I used some cream double knitting wool that I have left over from making a knitted cloche hat.  See tutorial in tabs at the top of this blog.

I made it to fit the cup that I had bought.  

I then used single crochet to add some detail on the top edge.  Then I thought the evening is young... why not  add a bit of decoration on the front, so I visited the excellent Attic 24 and used her little flower and leaf crochet tutorial.  Now here is a news flash............ fanfare please..............I crocheted my very first LEAF. 

Yes you read that right!  I actually managed to follow the instructions (as confusing as I find them) and my leaf did look like it should.  Well, more or less with a little bit of pulling and shaping with my fingers.

I then carefully attached them to the centre front of the cozy and Ta Da!  My little bit of handmade on a Travel Cup that I hope my colleague will be able to use at work.

Seeing as I was on a bit of a mini roll I found the kit that was attached to the front of issue 20 of Mollie Makes and started to have a go at the two crochet flower coasters.

Lets just say that it is a WIP............... not lying flat at all and the gaps seem huge between each section so I may need to restart it but I shall get there.

Hope you have had a good weekend and all the best for next week!

xx