happy new year!

January 4, 2025 by 2 Comments

Hello everyone, it’s been a while!  I have lots of life updates but I’ll put those at the end, cuz I have craft updates, too!

Firstly, I made over 30 crocheted hats in a week and a half as a Christmas present for the patients on my lodge at the hospital where I work, and I think they really liked them!  Now the staff are asking for them too, though, so I still have a few more to make and tbh I’m a bit tired of hats. 😅

I am therefore just futzing around making random stuff.  I started a crocheted doily from some leftover yarn but that’s not gotten far, however I was inspired by a good friend to knit some simple fingerless gloves!

This is me wearing them at work with my pretty keyboard setup (which of course I made because I have 5,000 hobbies), and unfortunately you can’t see the pink donuts on my sweater that the gloves match perfectly, but they’re there!

I’m using a leftover wool-blend aran weight yarn from my brightly colored ripple blanket, which is perfect for these gloves, but I made up the pattern and there are some tweaks I wanna make for my second pair, which I have started:

The completed gloves with the new one

I’m casting on the same # of stitches (36, because that’s my current age and because I have small wrists so it works) and using the same needles for the ribbing (4mm) and the body (5mm), but I did a long-tailed tubular cast on in 1×1 rib for the second version because it’s more stretchy (and I just love the way it looks, it’s my favorite cast-on even though having to do the setup rows is frustrating sometimes).  I’m gonna do a few more minor alterations, like changing where I put the increases and making a slightly larger thumb hole, but really I’m just winging it.

I did start trying to do the same with some Felicini sock weight wool blend yarn from KnitPicks, but I didn’t know how many to cast on and overestimated, so I had to do it again.  And now it’s still too large compared to the neon ones, so I have to do it again.

I know the neon one will fit, so the brown/orange one will be too big, I think.

I’ll keep going on it though after I finish the neon ones, even though it’ll take a lot longer since it’s sock yarn instead of aran, because it matches a blanket hoodie I got for Christmas from my partner’s mom:

It’s so cozy I’d live in it if I could.

And that brings me to the life update parts, which I’ll try and keep brief: I’ve been dating a new partner for a little over 7 months, and she just bought a lovely old home so we’re gonna move in together (as long as my dog doesn’t try to hurt her cats, so I’m quite nervous about that cuz I have no idea how my dog will do with cats).  I’m excited to get out of this tiny, dark apartment (not to mention it was kind of an emergency move to get out of a bad situation with my ex-husband, so it has some negative feels attached to it), and I’m thrilled to be able to slowly decorate my own home and make a place that’s really my own.  And guess what?  I’LL EVEN HAVE A CRAFT ROOM!  My crafts will all have a nice space and won’t have to be scattered all over the whole house, making things look messy, and I’m so excited about it.  I may do a post about that, assuming I get to that point without any issues with the fur babies.

Another update: I’ve been diagnosed as being on the spectrum and also having ADHD, and it’s been the best thing for my life in a long time.  It explains so much about me, which is helpful in terms of me accepting myself for who I am and understanding why I do the things I do and struggle sometimes with certain things, and I’ve gotten on medications that are making a world of difference.  It’s not quite perfect yet, but I feel better than I have in a long time.  On top of that, I’m going to therapy weekly with a therapist who is absolutely amazing, and we’re even gonna work on some of the ex-husband related trauma/issues before I move into the new house so this can really be a new start for me, and I couldn’t be more excited.

So yeah, my new year is starting off pretty freaking awesome, and I hope it is for you as well!  Did you make any resolutions this year?  I never do anymore but I love hearing about other people’s goals, so feel free to share below!  And as always, thanks for reading, and I’ll see you again in hopefully a short time! ❤

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hats galore!

January 28, 2023 by 2 Comments

Hihi! Hope ya’ll are safe and healthy and that your 2023 is starting off positively!

I just wanted to hop on and share some knitted hats I’ve made or am currently working on, starting with a couple I made as Christmas gifts for some of my fellow BTS ARMY. They live in Canada, so I figured wool hats would be a practical gift, and I used sockyarn dyed in colorways based on BTS’ music videos & albums from Hawari Bazaar, which I absolutely love!

This first one is the Barbotine pattern ($4 CAD), worked up in the “Love Yourself” colorway of the Nova Sock yarn. I used the chain plying technique to triple the strands, and I’m quite happy with how it turned out visually (the colors in real life are nicer — the peach is more pink), but I had a bit of trouble with the pattern. I began the brim with the recommended needle size, but it was way too tight, so I frogged it (which is a nightmare when you’re chain plying something) and tried again with the next needle size up. I completed the hat, but it’s still too small, and I don’t have a giant head. It’ll fit on my head but it just feels a bit tight and won’t pull down over my ears as much as I’d like. I’ve never met my friend irl so I’m just hoping she has a small head.

The second one went a bit better:

This one is the Violet Waffles pattern (free), worked up in the “Ddaeng” colorway of the Nova Sock yarn with 2 strands held together. I struggled to get this picture to turn out right, too (but the pattern was fine and the hat fits!). It is a waffle patterned hat and the stripes actually kind of coordinate with the waffle pattern, and I can say it looks better irl, too.

Now for some WIPs:

This is the Le Bonnet de Rosalie pattern (free), and I’m just using some mystery yarn that I think is acrylic (gasp!) It’s going well so far — I did an extra row of knit stitches between the 2nd and 3rd sets of cables, but I don’t think you can really tell unless you’re looking for mistakes, so I didn’t go back and fix it. You can see I did a provisional cast on, which is not called for in the free pattern, but I plan on going back with another yarn (a different mystery acrylic in blue) and making a lining so that the hat is extra toasty!

This may not look like much yet, but I’m always so pleased with long-tail tubular cast-ons so I figured I’d share those foundation rows now hehe. I’m working with Purl Soho’s free Classic Cuffed Hat pattern, although I’m going to alter it a bit, first by not doing the longer fold-up brim. For the cast-on I’m using a pair of plastic needles from this delightful candy-colored set that I think I got off of Amazon a while ago, and I’m actually going to use them for the whole ribbed brim because I’m not going to connect to work in the round until the main body of knit stitches begins. I’ll switch to circulars at that time, and I plan on turning this into a cat ear hat so I’ll just keep working the tube without decreases until the hat is around 7in.(18cm.), and I’ll do a three needle bind off or something along those lines and then invisibly tack down the ears. It’s hard to explain without pictures so I’ll take more as it goes along and share.

One note on the pattern, though: it says to use the larger needles for the ribbing and the smaller needles for the main body of the hat, and that seems contradictory to every single thing I’ve ever read about ribbing — I believe you’re supposed to use the smaller needles for ribbing because the stitches are typically so loose and stretchy — so I’m doing it the other way round. I also sized up the needles, since apparently I just knit tightly.

So that’s what I’ve been doing lately! I did finish my swamp witch costume for the Renaissance Faire, so I’ll share some pictures of that and talk about the different components I made in a future post. I think it turned out really well for my first costume!

That’s all for now, though. Thanks for stopping by! See you soon! 🙂

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The Swamp Witch

July 13, 2022 by 3 Comments

Hello, hello! I’m back with a new project to share with you guys today: a shawl that I will be wearing for my Renaissance Faire costume this year! I’m going as a swamp witch, and since it’s in October and November I figured a nice wool shawl wouldn’t go amiss. Here’s what I’ve got so far:

It’s a knitted triangular shawl following the Lace Mess Shawl pattern (which is really more of a tutorial than a pattern, but it’s free!), and it starts from the top down and more lace (simple yo, k2togs) is added the farther down you go. It should look kinda messy and something like a swamp witch would wear if I do it right! In fact, I’ve made one before years ago in a different yarn (sorry for the terrible photo quality):

This time I’m using KnitPicks Muse Handpainted, an aran weight 100% superwash merino (on sale at time of posting), in colorway “Success.” It’s a decently soft and nicely squishy yarn with tones of grayish green, which is exactly what I wanted for the swamp witch costume.

I haven’t gotten far with the lace yet, but you can see a little here to either side of the “spine.” Also, note my skull stitch markers, which I thought were perfectly fitting for such a project. 😄 I’d link to them for you but I can’t remember where I got them and I’ve had them for years now, so my apologies for that.

The shawl is working up very quickly on size 10 needles (6.00mm), and I’m already on the second skein of the 4 I bought. I’m spit-splicing the ends together (since it’s not something I’m giving to someone else) so that I don’t have to worry about knots. If you haven’t run across spit-splicing before I recommend you look it up — it’s a great way to join wool yarns seamlessly (and it’s delightfully weird). 😁

For the costume I also plan on using a crocheted shawl I made years ago from the Recuerdos de Infancia pattern, a versatile shawl pattern that’s proven worth the $6 for me since I’ve actually made 4 of them. Here’s the one I’m going to use, possibly as a waist wrap (sorry again for the terrible photo quality):

There are many other components of the costume I need to put together, as well, so I’ll update with those and definitely with finished photos of the current Lace Mess Shawl.

Do you ever make crocheted or knitted items for costumes? If so, do you try to make it something you can wear again on its own later, or do you just make it for the one event?

I hope you are all staying safe and healthy. Please take care of yourselves, and thanks for stopping by!

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a bazillion wips

September 14, 2021 by 5 Comments

Howdy, hookers! How have things been going with ya’ll? Surviving 2021 alright?

Things here haven’t changed much, to be honest. I’ve just got about twenty works-in-progress and figured I’d share just a few of them here!

First we’ve got this simple triangle granny shawl that I started just to use up this yarn that I bought years ago for a specific pattern that never panned out. It feels like it’s slow going.

Another item made with yarn I’ve had for years — this scarf, which will probably be way too short unless I buy more yarn or just join something completely different. The yarn itself is nice; it’s a merino/silk blend from Purl Soho.

This is my first attempt at something truly freeform and I must say I’m pleasantly surprised at what I’ve got so far. Trouble is I’m not sure what to do next. ideally it’ll be a shoulder wrap, but I’ve got a long way to go.

And finally, here’s a new piece that I started against my better judgment (I really should finish other projects before starting a new one). Made from sock yarn dyed in various BTS themed colorways by Hawari Bazaar, this will theoretically be a large wrap/throw blanket for my office, or maybe for home. Just basic stripes of sc.

Sorry I don’t have more interesting things to talk about. Ya’ll don’t wanna hear me complain about work, though, I promise, and I’m sure I’ve talked about K-pop enough on this crochet blog to last a few years already. I just wanted to share something with ya’ll so you know I’m still here and crafting. I’ve posted a couple times on my Instagram lately, actually, so find me there if you wanna see more stuff.

Please stay safe and healthy, and thanks so much for reading! See you at some unforseen date in the future!

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top 16 all-time favorite patterns!

October 26, 2018 by 5 Comments

Hey everyone! It’s been a loooooong time, because I honestly haven’t been crafting very much this year. Even so, I wanted to share my top 16 all-time favorite knitting and crocheting patterns (there’s a healthy mix here, gathered from years and years of crafting; and no I did not include all of my own self-published patterns 😉). I hope you enjoy, and let me know if any of these are your favorites too down in the comments, or if you have other favorites I didn’t mention! And in no particular order, here we go!

1. Neat Ripple (crochet)

Many people think this pattern from Attic24 is a classic, and I agree. I’ve made 2!

2. Color Kaleidoscope Blanket (crochet)

I’ve only made one so far, but this quick and fun textured pattern is really easy and would be great for all kinds of variegated yarn! It’s also pretty cozy!

3. Chunky Circle Scarf (crochet)

I love this thing so much I’ve made 7 and am not planning to stop anytime soon. Quick to work up, they make great cozy squishy gifts!

4. African Flower Potholders (crochet) (square, round)

not your average crochet - african flower potholder

not your average crochet - african flower potholder

While these are technically separate patterns, the idea is the same. I like to put a simple backing on all of my potholders for both looks and function. I’ve made around 15, as they also make good gifts.

5. Giftie Slouchie Beanie (knit)

These are quick to make and are what I traditionally give to people in my family when they are in the hospital (except my Dad, who got one for Christmas one year and was totally not in the hospital). I think I’ve made 4.

6. Thai Crochet Cowl (crochet)

Thai Crochet Cowl from Not Your Average Crochet

Ok so this is one of my originals, but I love it because it’s a good stash buster and it produces a supremely plush and toasty fabric!

7. Ribbed Waffle Hat (knit)

Ribbed Waffle Hat

I love this because it’s quick, cozy, and will fit even the largest of heads (but I also go up a needle size from what’s recommended, as I tend to knit tightly). I’ve made 9.

8. Recuerdos de Infancia (crochet)

recuerdos de infancia crochet shawl

I made one in lace (pictured) and one in fingering weight, and I love both.

9. The Olympia Cowl (knit)

the olympia cowl

Another one of my own design, I love this thing and am currently making more.

10. No-Purl Ribbed Scarf (knit)

This photo is of one I have in the works now, not my completed one, and I will actually seam this one to make an infinity scarf. I love the cozy squishy texture this stitch pattern makes!

11. Springtime Satin Balls (crochet)

I made 4 of these ornaments for Christmas gifts. The pattern is not available online, only in a booklet called “Springtime Satin Balls” that I found on eBay, but I’d say it’s worth finding; the author made other booklets with similar ornament patterns as well, if you can’t find that one.

12. Arlequin Shawl (knit)

I’m on my second one of these asymmetrical beauties now. Love it.

13. Sunburst Flower Granny Square (crochet)

Probably my favorite granny square. Makes a fun but beautiful puffy square. I plan on making more of these.

14. Aspen Blanket (knit)

I affectionately named mine “the blanket everyone wants” because these super chunky cable knit throws were (are?) so popular. It was really fun (and warm) to make and I’d totally make another one!

15. Black Cat Slouch Hat (crochet)

not your average crochet pussyhat project

While I did make a black one for Halloween one year, I’ve made 8 pink ones for the Pussyhat Project (a feminist movement). In fact I’m making more now for the Women’s March in DC at the beginning of 2019, and if you want to make some to send my way to distribute, I would be very grateful!

16. Quick and Simple Granny Shawl (crochet)

not your average crochet granny shawl

This is another of my patterns; well, I wrote out the details, but it’s just a granny triangle. In this yarn it worked up cozy and gorgeous! I’ll be making more.

Well that’s it folks, what do you think? Are some of these on your favorites list, or did I miss your fave? Let me know! As always, thanks for stopping by!

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