More hot water bottle covers :-)

The hot water bottle cover I made for my friend turned out better than I expected!  I used Myf's hot water bottle as a base for the pattern design but when I went and bought a hot water bottle to put inside it before posting, it turned out that Myf's hot water bottle is smaller than standard....However, as I'd not made one before, I'd made it a bit baggy to accommodate the stitching together.  So I did panic a bit when I brought home the new one but it actually fitted perfectly and gave it enough stretch to make it look far more professional.
I know I've posted these pics before but I just want to put them up again so you can see the difference!

Before:-

After:-

I added bigger buttons as the ones I'd used previously were a little small and kept slipping out.

My only complaint with doing it all in single crochet is that the fabric is fairly thick and it takes a little while for the heat to come through.  So when I thought I'd make one for my Mum as her other present, I decided to go with a granny square for the main body.  I used the pattern I wrote for the top flap again here and also crocheted a pair of holly leaves to decorate it with.

The pattern for the wagon wheel granny square is from here-it's a lovely simple pattern that looks really pretty.  The holly leaves are from the amazing blog of attic24-I also use her wonderful pattern for the piles of bunting I've been making recently and I'm currently using her 'teeny tiny stars' pattern.  She does fabulous photo tutorials-I adore her use of colour and her patterns are amazing so you should definitely go check her out :-)

I've bought another hot water bottle for me-as soon as I get some time, I'll be making myself a pretty cover!