first FO of 2015: Desert Rose, ta-da!

January 6, 2015 by 7 Comments

I’d have posted earlier because it only took a day to make, but I had to block it first!

Desert Rose - crocheted by Hannah from Not Your Average Crochet

The pattern is by Ana Clerc and is actually called Desert Marigold — I just called it Desert Rose because I used a yarn colorway called Rose City. The pattern is available for $5.50 on Ravelry (click here).

The pattern is very simple — I’m a little mad at myself for paying for it when I could probably have gotten close by looking at the pictures, but I went ahead and paid because I didn’t want to sit around experimenting and guessing (is that paying to be lazy?).  In any case, it turned out beautiful and I’m very happy with it!

Desert Rose - lacy crochet cowl in a fingering weight yarn

The yarn is KnitPicks Hawthorne in Rose City, and I still have a good bit left.  Maybe I could make a baby hat?

It was good to get back to crochet after such a lot of knitting.  It went by so fast but I enjoyed every minute!

Desert Rose - crochet cowl in a lacy patternI’m stuck on fingring/sock weight yarns right now, because they make wearables drape so nicely!  I’ve already started another project that’s also in fingering weight yarn and it’s coming along — I’ll share soon!  So far 2015 has been very productive (I hope it lasts)!  Have you started on anything new yet this year?

Well, that’s all for now, thanks for stopping by!

 

 

 

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black friday yarn

November 29, 2014 by 5 Comments

Some yarn buying happened yesterday, but not in a store. In fact, I don’t think there is a LYS at all in my city. KnitPicks, however, was having a sale (and still is), and it was impossible to resist.

I decided to try a new yarn, hoping for some motivation and inspiration, and the Hawthorne line caught my eye. The Hawthorne yarn is a fingering/sock weight yarn and is composed of 80% superwash fine highland wool and 20% nylon, and every colorway is gorgeous! I hope it’s soft, too, because I got 6 skeins.

Here are pictures of the colorways I purchased:

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Aren’t they lovely? I can’t wait to receive them and get to work on some projects!

Have you ever tried this line of KnitPicks yarn? If so, what did you think?

That’s all for today, I think. Thank you for stopping by!

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crochet in the works — fox amigurumi

October 16, 2014 by 10 Comments

That’s right, crochet, not knitting. I’m currently working on this Fibi the Fox pattern. Here’s what I’ve got so far:

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I bought the KnitPicks palette yarn for this but I’m not sure if I’ll really need the second ball of the reddish brownish orange color:

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Didn’t think it would take so long, but the yarn and hook are so tiny! My hands also get a bit tired after working on small objects after a while, does that happen to you too? More than with bigger projects, I mean. Not that I’m complaining about the yarn size and hook — I think it’ll make a beautiful item when I’m done! All that’s left are the arms and tail and sewing all the bits together.

It should be mentioned that the patterns from that particular Raveler do cost money, but I think the shapes are so cute I’d rather just follow the instructions than try to guess and end up with something not as good. I also bought the dragon pattern because I LOVE dragons (as you may remember from my giveaway a while back when I gave away a “Dragonriders of Pern” book), but many of the patterns are so similar that I bet I can figure out the bear and mouse, etc. on my own, and the bunny mod is free.

I think these would be good Christmas gifts for children but unfortunately I don’t really know very many, so they’ll just keep me company for now, which is fine with me! I haven’t even bought the yarn for the dragons since the fox is taking so long. Hopefully it’ll be done soon, and I’ll give an update as soon as that happens!

That’s all the yarny news for today, thanks for stopping by!

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sewing scissors acquisition

July 26, 2014 by 15 Comments

My parents and I went to one of my favorite antique malls yesterday up in Charlotte, NC. They got me a fantastic vintage 9″ pink Pyrex pie plate and also some [presumably] vintage sewing scissors!

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I don’t know exactly how old they are but they look awesome and they’re REALLY sharp.

Something about having pretty crochet/knitting tools just makes the whole process just a tad more indulgent (kind of like a really expensive and luxurious skein of yarn), don’t you think?

What are some of your special tools? Have any antique hooks or needles, or maybe a really cool measuring tape? Let me know in the comments, and as always, thanks for stopping by!

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4 tips for making baby shower gifts

July 12, 2014 by 9 Comments

baby hat

Above is a gift I gave to my coworker at the last baby shower I attended.  This weekend I’m going to another baby shower, and I’m trying to narrow down options for an appropriate gift.  I’ve got some tips to help:

  1. Use cheap yarn.  Baby things can get messed up.
  2. Use yarn that’s soft enough for a baby’s skin.  This might mean counting out your favorite wool, even if it feels soft to you.
  3. Use yarn that is both machine washable and dryable.  This will help busy moms clean your gift easily, meaning your gift is more likely to get used if the mom isn’t worrying about getting it dirty.
  4. If you want to use a natural fiber, try cotton or bamboo.  They’ll keep the baby warm if you’re making something wearable but they will still breathe, keeping the items from being too hot.

With these tips in mind, I’ve found a few items in my house that are already complete and waiting to be gifted to a soon-to-be mom.  The first is made of Stylecraft Special DK leftovers from a previous blanket (100% acrylic):

baby blanket 1The second is also acrylic (maybe Caron Simply Soft?) and has been around for a couple of years:

baby blanket 2Both of these blankets are soft, made of acrylic, and machine washable and dryable.  Since I’m not sure if I’ll have time to make something else, it’s a choice between the two, but the 4 tips apply to almost anything you want to knit/crochet for a baby.

What are your favorite things to make for babies?

Thanks for stopping by, see you soon!

 

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