The Shtick I Do

Whew! This Christmas crafting season was a whirl-wind of activity in my family. How about yours? Of course it was. And now that Christmas is over, we turn our thoughts to the New Year. We also resolve to get started earlier next year, don't we?   "Resolutions", for me, have never been easy to keep. I've had a gamut, too. I will lose weight.  HA! I will be nicer to ____. Well, that one I've done better at. I will eat healthy. I will exercise 3 times a week; daily; learn Yoga; join the Y. I will learn a new language. I will balance my checkbook. (Does anyone even use checks anymore?) ANYWAY, you get my point.  Have you ever made any crochet related resolutions? Browsing through the vast depths of the internet I've found some that you might consider for this year. I will crochet ____ number of items for charity . I will organize my yarn/thread stash. I will teach ____ number of people to crochet. I will finish (or frog ) my Works in Progress. I ...

Do you remember when  +Karen S Vaughn  wrote for you all the Cluster Stitch Scarf Pattern ? If you didn't catch it then, you should definitely look at it now! This gorgeous scarf scored me a custom order from a family friend at this month's Holiday Open House Market. Our friend said that her mother was a very  difficult person to shop for. After some brief consideration over the scarf that my mother had made and given to me to sell or to keep my friend decided that she did indeed love the scarf. It was so soft  and so beautiful and she thought her mother would just absolutely adore it. However, she wanted to order one done in purples. (I was particularly relieved about this... I was having a really hard time keeping that scarf up on my rack for sale. I ended up keeping it for myself. *shakes head* I'm a sucker.) Here's what I came up with: The lighting in this picture is atrocious, and I apologize for that. I assure you, it is purple. I made it from Deborah No...

So, you may have noticed that I posted earlier this week - which is out of the norm for me. The reason is this: I posted a pic of the snowflake you see on this beanie to a group on Facebook and people were asking for the pattern. So the Star Snowflake Pattern is here . Since we're going to be using it for this weeks' project, go ahead and pop over there and grab it. It's simple and quick. I made this pattern with the month of January in mind. This color of blue just says " January " to me. Of course, you're free to use whatever color you want, just like always. Before we start, here's something you should know: ================================================================= My patterns on this blog will always be free for you to use. Feel free to sell the finished project in person or online. If you do sell online, please link back to the pattern here on my blog. Don't try to sell my free patterns and don't claim my patte...

Alright, I think I'm ready. I have gifts bought and/or made, wrapped and ready to ship to the family in Florida. I've got everything bought and/or made for the family here. The tree is up. A turkey in the freezer. The front room has evicted the dust bunnies and the clutter (ie: yarn) is under control. *sigh* Finally, a year where I'm not scurrying around at the last minute to get things ready. Christmas is only SEVEN days away.   Star Snowflake against a red granny square. This week I have a pattern for you that is really simple and really quick. It's going to look great hanging on a tree, adorning a gift under the tree or as an applique on the beanie you wear to go cut down that tree. A Star Snowflake. Got your stuff? Good, let's get started. Materials : Yarn Bee Soft Secret in White (good substitute would be Caron Simply Soft) size E/3.5MM hook scissors yarn needle for weaving in ends Stitches used : (American Terminology but here 's a c...

I believe that  +Karen S Vaughn  has covered copyrights once before, but I've recently had my own experience with it that I would like to share. My boyfriend's co-worker recently showed me  this  picture and asked if I could make her a hat like it for her nephew who will be born in February (sounds like my son, Daeus, will have a playmate!). Of course I agreed, gave my price, and then set about trying to create my own pattern for it. Here's what I came up with: She was thrilled with it. I realized, though, that I didn't want to call this a "Sock Monkey Hat" because... I  made it! And I want to be able to sell these. Is there a resemblance? Sure, but only slightly . I've decided on another name. I present you with Nom Monkey. This name came about during an entertaining banter between my boyfriend and I. I picked up the hat and using it as sort of a hand puppet said, "Mrawr rawr rawr monkey!" To which my boyfriend responded, "Nom nom monk...

Alright crafters, it's finally made its way to my own blog! This my very first time writing a pattern for infants and I'm quite pleased with the end results. They turned out so cute, the picture does NOT do it any justice. I hope you love them as much as I do! Custom ordered Infant Leg Warmers. Slouchy Leg Warmers for Infants Materials : Red Heart Soft yarn in colors of your choice (you can also use I Love This Yarn from Hobby Lobby) size H/5.0MM crochet hook Yarn needle for weaving in the ends scissors Stitches used : (American terminology. HERE is a converter.) Chain (ch) Single Crochet ( SC ) Double Crochet ( DC ) Half Double Crochet ( HDC ) Front Post Double Crochet ( FPDC pictures) Back Post Double Crochet ( BPDC video) Difficulty level : I suggest at least an Advanced Beginner simply because of the FPDC and BPDC stitches. My patterns on this blog will always be free for you to use as you see fit. Feel free to sell the finish...

Check this out! It's a sock loom! Sock looming? Yes, it's a great craft. I love to encourage fellow artists and crafters to expand their horizons by expanding their arsenal. Add some knitting needles to that bag of yours. Learn to use them, and you'll find that there are many many  ways to incorporate them into your crochet repertoire. Like when making a broomstick lace stitch (sometimes referred to as peacock lace). Neat, right? Here's   another video for you. It will teach you the basics of sock looming. "Well that's a short blog post..." Nah, don't be silly. I want to tell you the story of how this sock loom was made. My boyfriend up-cycled a wooden band that broke off of an old laundry basket of his. (I know, I didn't think men had laundry baskets either! *wink*) He soaked it in water for about a day and a half. Soaking it in water allowed the band to be pliable without breaking, so he formed this nice little ring with it and put a cl...

Happy Hanukkah! Since we've stepped into December with both feet, let's get busy with some holiday crochet! I piddled around with some #10 crochet thread and managed to make this adorable Christmas bell. Now here's the pattern for you to do the same. Christmas Bell Ornament Materials: #10 Crochet Thread 2.0 MM Crochet Hook size B 2.25 MM Crochet Hook Yarn needle  Scissors Stitches used: (American Terminology but here is a comparison chart) Chain (ch) Single Crochet (SC) Double Crochet (DC) Slip Stitch (sl st) Notes: This bell is approximately 1.5" by 1.5" without the hanger. And remember this: I've made exactly ONE of these so keep that in mind please. =D Pattern: Using the 2.0MM crochet hook R1 : 12 SC in Magic Circle (OR ch4, join to form a circle, ch1, 12 SC in circle). Join to top of first SC. Tighten and secure the tail. Be sure to leave a small hole for the hanger to go through - we'll make it last.) R2 : Ch4, *sk...