Sarah's Sweethearts: crochet We went to an Old Fashioned downtown Christmas Festival this past weekend. It was wonderful! Here are some pretties from our night out. These were window displays in the old store fronts. I just adore the sleigh above! (top photo) It was life size! I believe this Santa is Antique since he was prominently displayed in an antique store window. Many snow globes, Miss A loved them, so many happy tiny worlds to provide endless day dream material.:) These trees were from The Festival of Trees. Wonderful causes too! Of course Miss A loved the pink and purple Christmas Trees. ...the evening could not be complete without the favored Carousel. I believe they are running a sale right now too. I actually worked mine a little short and the pattern calls for Paton's lace which has these gorgeous tiny sequins in it. Happy Sunday and have a beautiful week!
Ric-Rac rose hip : ...the crochet pattern for the flower squares is finally written out for you to try out...To those of you who have been waiting for it -- thanks for your patience! So, here goes: With the color of yarn you wish to use for the center of the flower, ch 4 and join with a sl st into the first ch to form a ring. Continue working in the round as follows: Round 1: Ch 4 (counts as 1 dc, ch 1) , * 1 dc into ring, ch 1 **; repeat from * to ** 6 times. Join with a sl st into 3rd ch of the ch-4 made at the beginning of this round. Round 2: Join the color you wish to use for the petals into any of the ch-1 spaces, ch 1 and * 1 sc, 3 dc, 1 sc ** into the same ch-1 space; repeat from * to ** into the next 7 ch-1 spaces. Round 3: Ch 1, and working behind the petals now, sl st into the stem † of the last sc made in round 2. ch = chain stitch; sc = single crochet stitch; dc = double crochet stitch; sl st = slip stitch.
Quick Clipboard Facelift I just finished a year of Bible study on the book of Revelation (a toughie, but sooo good!) and I wanted to thank the teachers who have been watching my boys each Tuesday morning. I decided to whip up a couple of thank you gifts. Wanna make some too? Clipboard Mod PodgeWide sponge brushPaperRibbonOld credit cardFirst, measure your paper by tracing the clipboard on the paper you chose and cut on the inside of your line. Put a thin layer of Mod Podge directly on the clipboard. Use your wide sponge brush to spread it out like this: Then place your paper on top of the Mod Podge layer and smooth out the bubbles. After the bubbles are smoothed out, put another layer of Mod Podge on top of the paper to seal it. After it's dry you can attach the ribbons. Then package them in cellophane, because what girl doesn't like getting a gift wrapped in cellophane?!
Granny’s Border – in Progress | alottastitches After much consideration of yarn colors and amounts, I finally started working on the granny’s border! The darker aqua squares which frame the blanket are slighter larger than the inner squares of light aqua, because the darker aqua yarn is of a slightly heavier weight. With the help of some experimentation, I decided to skip one stitch out of every four or five stitches in the blanket’s edge as I crocheted the first round of its border. I made it a plain double-crochet round of the same darker aqua yarn, hoping this would make my irregularly spaced stitches less noticeable. I began the first teal round by working three double-crochet stitches (a familiar granny cluster) into one stitch of the dark aqua, skipping the next two stitches, then repeating those two steps the rest of the way around. The second teal round is even more familiar, working a granny cluster in each open space, just like in a granny square. Like this: Like Loading...
Homegrown Mom craft blog : crochet I spent about an hour standing in the craft store Saturday staring at a wall of yarn in the coolest muted tones and edgy colors ... a palette I would have murdered for (with my bare hands) years ago. Seriously. I'm especially impressed with the acrylic selection. Vanna's Choice, Cotton Ease (which also has great labels), and Red Heart Soft are all being made in totally amazing colors. Back in the 90s when I was crocheting ALL THE TIME, there wasn't a lot to choose from if you were making $10 an hour in San Francisco and wanted muted, edgy colors. OK, there was *nothing* to choose from. There was one granny square blanket in particular that I made in variegated rainbow, bright purple, yellow, green, etc., that would make your eyes bleed. I did manage to make a tasteful blanket out of Red Heart for my little sister's wedding present. I even splurged on some Lion Brand Microspun for hats and scarves for Andrew and I when we first met. The picture doesn't really capture it's yumminess.
Sew Many Ways... tangled happy Wristlet Sometimes you want to travel light – with just the essentials at hand. For this, you need: the wristlet. A tiny, tidy tote that hangs from your wrist. It’s just 5″ x 7″, but holds all the necessities with room to spare. This is a perfect project to use up bits and pieces. Fabric scraps to work with the cutting dimensions shown below½ yard medium-weight fusible interfacing¼ yard light-weight fusible interfacing7″ zipper¾” D ring¾” swivel clipAll purpose threadSee-through rulerFabric pencilScissors or rotary cutter and matIron and ironing boardStraight pins Based on the diagram above, cut all the pieces listed below. For the bag: A — strap: 14″ x 3″ B — strap tab: 3″ x 3″ C — top front accent square: 2½” x 2½” D — top front rectangle: 6½” x 2½” E — bottom front: 8″ x 4″ F — back: 8″ x 6″ For the lining: G — back lining: 8″ x 6″ H — front top lining: 8″ x 2½” I — front bottom lining: 8″ x 4: From the medium-weight fusible interfacing: From the light-weight fusible interfacing: Fusing all pieces
ANNEMARIE'S CROCHET BLOG ♥ ANNEMARIE'S HAAKBLOG sewing 101: making a duvet cover I don’t know about you, but I never cease to be shocked at the price of bedding. And nothing sets off my “I could make that myself so much cheaper and better” instincts like duvet covers. It’s just a big flat case of fabric, yet even the simplest options easily soar into the three digits—but all it takes to make your own is a bunch of fabric, a few straight seams, and a spare afternoon. Not only will going DIY with your duvet cover save you some cash, it’ll also allow you to custom-make exactly what you are looking for. *if you missed any of brett’s sewing 101 columns this month, check out her archives: curtains, zippered throw pillows, ottoman slip cover CLICK HERE for the full how-to after the jump! What You’ll Need Approximately 10 yards fabric (see below to calculate exact amount; I suggest buying extra just in case) Yard stick, long quilter’s ruler or tape measure Sharp scissors Straight pins Sewing machine Iron and ironing board Selecting and Preparing Fabric Fabric Tips Planning and Cutting
not your average crochet Sew Liberated: kitty doll tutorial Some children are doll children. Some children are stuffed animal children. I was a stuffed animal child, and so are my nieces, the giddy recipients of these here kitty dolls. For those of you who have a stuffed animal child of your own, here's a quick tutorial along with the additional pattern pieces to make one (or two, or three) for yourself your child. (Do make sure that you print it out at 100%, or else you will find yourself with a very large-featured cat.) You will also need to purchase the fabulous Wee Wonderfuls "Kit, Chloe and Louise" doll pattern to make the rest of the doll body and little outfits. I used this tutorial to make the pillows and pillow cases, although my doll quilts are different. Again, just to have all of the info in one post, the doll bunk bed and double doll chair came from Meadow Weeds Farm, whose prices and workmanship are excellent. Let me know if you make your own!