Patterns: Free or Purchased?

The Morning Work Table. Check out that basket of booties!

For the last few days I've been looking for small projects that crochet up quickly. How quickly? Say an hour or less.

Preferably easy projects that don't require a lot of thought. [i.e., that can be made while watching TV or a movie.] Twenty to thirty lines for the entire pattern.

With so many choices available it's hard to narrow the search enough to come up with viable results. I DO have a few "go to" sites. Google, Ravelry, Pinterest, Etsy and CrochetPatternCentral. Searching for free narrows the search results, but if you're like me you're likely to follow that rabbit down the hole. Sometimes it can take days of research to find a worthy project.

Galilee Scarf

It's been so enjoyable crocheting the Galilee Booties that I purchased a few more of Mamachee's patterns from her Etsy shop. Bought a hat and scarf with the same Galilee pattern and another hat pattern. The scarf was very easy to make.

There's another pattern on Etsy that I've been looking at for a while. Saw it a few months ago and didn't "favorite" it, so had a hard time finding it again. I looked at it real close and seeing that I had already gone over budget at Mamachee's, I thought I could adapt a similar pattern to look like the pretty one that was for sale.

Was I ever WRONG! The pattern made up okay, but it wasn't what I wanted and I ended up purchasing the pretty Tulip Baby Bonnet pattern anyway. Am I ever glad I did! Not only is it easy to make, it also looks great! What do you think?

Those who know me understand that, as in everything, I try to purchase raw materials that are made in the USA. The 100% cotton yarn used in this project was purchased from the Pisgah Yarn Company, formerly milled in North Carolina. Now Peaches and Creme is made in Canada. You'll also notice that the spools of ribbon were made in USA. Yarn for the Galilee Scarf is Loops & Threads "Impeccable" worsted weight acrylic fabricated in Canada. [Doing my part to boost the North American economy.]

Tulip Baby Bonnet

Here's a closer look at the bonnet. If you click the Tulip Baby Bonnet link you'll notice that the finished projects have ribbon ties which are missing from this bonnet until a store-run.

Ravelry is another a great website to find projects. The user community is very good at rating the pattern's ease of use and posting photos of finished projects.  One of the projects in my Ravelry library is the Everyday Set consisting of a bib and booties. Can't wait to make it.

But wait...

Wasn't this post supposed to be a debate about "Patterns: Free or Purchased?". Well, yes. But there are merits to both.

Free patterns fit any budget and usually look good when they're made. I've used them many times in the past and will use them again in the future. As a matter of fact, the "Everyday Set" mentioned above is actually a free pattern that I'm planning to make.

I usually personally prefer the look of the paid patterns best. It's also been my experience that a purchased pattern is more ... shall we say, coherent? Plus, I know by purchasing a pattern I'm honoring that designer with currency (freedom) and encouragement to continue doing what they have been called to do.

What's your preference and why?