Project! Puff Coasters from TL Yarn Crafts

Pattern: Hexi Puff Coasters from TL Yarn Crafts. What a dream of a palate cleansing project! 

Materials: Impeccable yarn from Michael's - a fantastic, bargain acrylic that's great for crochet projects. A lot of body but still nicely soft. I used Forest, Taupe and Smoke - leftovers from another crochet project. 

Cost: Since I bought this yarn for another project and the pattern was free - we'll say free!

Timeline: This project was a fantastic, refreshing start to 2022 - I crochet all three of these in the second weekend of January while locking down due to a sliiiight Covid scare. (We're fine, everyone is fine, I now have three coasters.)

Sizing, mods, changes and notes on fitting: The pattern is written for DK yarn but this is a worsted yarn, so I used a size J hook and added an extra round before the edge round. 

Feelings about myself: This month I am focusing on spiffing up my decor, and this little project is a great start. Currently, it's under an orchid in my bedroom and it looks cozy. Like a tiny plant blanket.

Feelings about the world: Although I know a lot of people are ready to throw 2022 into the garbage already, I am feeling strangely optimistic! Maybe it's because I've been refreshing my space and that's giving me a good energy? I dunno, but I'm continuing to ride the wave for as long as possible. 

What I’ve been listening to or watching: We've been rewatching Star Wars from beginning to top, in order, including the live action shows (sorry, cartoons). I have seen most of the movies about a million times, but it's fun to see it all in context. It's a good hibernation project. A very JANUARY project.

Crochet Beach Bag, Finished!

Oh, just a photo of the crochet Beach Bag that took me waaay too long to finish. I started it as part of Alycia's crochet along for JUNE. Yes, June. But I've finished it, photographed it, and posted it to this blog, and I think that's what counts, right?

The white yarn is some Sugar & Cream, and the cream is leftover from my favorite summer sweater. I initially planned to ombre dye the whole thing, but then when it was finished I really liked the subtle color blocking. So I'm leaving it as-is for the moment, and when it gets nice and dirty, I'll stick the whole thing in a dye bath as planned. 

This means I get to cross off another one of my summer goals, and since it was 100 degrees yesterday, I say I still have time to complete the remaining goals. After all, crossing things off lists is one of my greatest pleasures in life! 

Mom's Graduation Blanket and Life Updates

This summer, amIright? 

I finally finished this blanket, a gift to my mother for her graduation. She actually graduated in April, but I made it my goal to finish this blanket by this week, since my whole family will be in California visiting me for two weeks.

The pattern is something like this Starburst pattern, finished with a chain-stitch border. The yarn is that ole WORK+SHELTER yarn I dyed last year. It crocheted up wonderfully into a blanket that can only be used in colder climates. Seriously, this thing is heavy and WARM. I was suffering and sweating while finishing it last week when it was nearing 90 degrees. 

This summer has really been a kick in the pants - in addition to tackling my web series, and moving offices, and hosting amazing visitors, life has taken a 180 degree turn. Chris and I broke up about a month ago after being together for five years. 

It's a bit weird to make this announcement on a craft blog - I just want to show you pretty pictures of yarn - but you might notice that I haven't been talking about him much on Instagram lately, and he hasn't been mentioned here for awhile. It seems like this space would be a pretty incomplete picture of my life if I allowed him (and the sweet bunnies) to just disappear without a word. 

That said: I'm doing well. I'm staying in California. I'll still be knitting and acting and singing and sewing. Thanks for listening - you guys are the best. 

Works in Progress - Blankets & Lettuce

A few weeks ago, I went home for my Mom's graduation from college. She graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a degree in Art after about 30 years of taking classes on and off. She has 4 kids, 3 grandkids, paints professionally (that links to her sweet art blog), and is very involved in the community and at church. So basically, she's amazing and her commitment to education has finally paid off. Other people would have given up 25 years ago - but not Jean Canavan!

She also reads this blog - I love you, Mom! -  so if she's blushing right now, she'll let me know.

So for her graduation, I wanted to make her something big. When my little sister, Meghan, graduated, I made her a crochet blanket, and I knew that Mom deserved the same. 

But where to get the amount of yarn that a great blanket requires? Ah yes, my old WORK+SHELTER yarn line! 

I still have a bunch of this yarn and held double, it's perfect for a blanket. Seriously, this is what this yarn was MADE for. I searched around for a good pattern, and landed on the Starburst Flower crochet motif. 

I'm only about a third done, but I presented the blanket to my mom in April. It fit over about half her body, but she loved where it was going! She has vision, my mom. 

What else? I've been re-growing my romaine lettuce heads on my windowsill. Sarah from Knit York City posted a picture of her lettuce on Instagram, and I was intrigued. The bunnies go through about 5 heads of lettuce a week, so we definitely have lettuce leftovers to spare around here. After I cut the leaves off, I popped the stems in water, and voila! New lettuce!

And really GREEN lettuce, too. It's funny how such bland grocery store lettuce can look so healthy when grown somewhat naturally. And by funny, I mean a bit creepy.

A little crochet cozy

When Alycia from Habitual Homebody posted the newest crochet along pattern, I was totally into it. A cute cozy that also uses up scraps of yarn? Yup. 

And then on top of that, it was my friend Katy's birthday on Saturday, and I knew she'd love her own little aloe plant wrapped in a sweater. Although, wow, this aloe plant is sad. Thanks for nothin', Lowe's.

The "pattern" is here at Hopscotch Lane, but I didn't do any of the increases, because as you can see, my pot was a little galvanized tub, not the ceramic kind. It still turned out pretty cute, though, so I think the pattern works for pots of all shapes and sizes. It's inclusive like that. 

Christmas Past Round-Up

You know it's "that time of year" when the traffic from Pinterest starts picking up! So I thought I'd throw together a few photos from last Christmas' projects.

Last year I...

Wrapped presents with pompoms!

Made fabric trees (tutorial, too!)

Crocheted Granny Stockings for me and Chris (Info & pattern on Rav)

Knit a Mini Mitten Garland (Info & Pattern on Rav)

Still in need of Christmas inspiration? Danielle (aka Ms. KitschyDigitals) posted an amazing round-up of all her Christmas projects! 

Simple Crochet Stool Covers

Here they are, the last of my crafty summer plans, finally accomplished*. I was having a hard time powering through some Christmas-Present-Knitting, so I took a little time out and whipped up these stool covers using this video tutorial and large amount of leftover yarn. They're not perfect, but they sure get the job done. 

*Let's just ignore the fact that I said I'd sew myself a romper, ok? It's just not in the cards for this year, and I'm going to accept that and move on. 

Crafty Summer Plans

Mmmm, Summer. Although I'm still pretty busy, Summer always puts me in the new-project-planning mindset. I suppose it comes from those Summers in high school & college when a break from school meant time to devote to crafty pursuits and reading fiction. 

Here's what I'm planning for this Summer:

Knitting

A few weeks ago I had a dream I was wearing Allyson's Summer Lace Stripes Sweater, and I couldn't get it out of my head. I know, I'm the corniest. "It came to me in a dreeeaaammm!"

I ordered Knit Picks' Comfy Worsted in Ivory and cast on Sunday after I finished my Holla Knits sample. It's the perfect California sweater - a light, breezy extra layer that will go well with shorts or my bright teal skinny jeans! 

Jewelry

A is watching...

Last summer I was totally obsessed with recreating some beaded bracelets from a popular show about doomed teenage girls (....) and made the one above for my sister. This summer, I'm dying to use my bead loom to create pretty Native American- inspired jewelry, like these bracelets, and these barrettes.

Crochet

A crochet blanket from years ago, before I had a blog

It's time to jump back into crochet! We were gifted three plain, wooden stools that work perfectly with our counter. Except that, you know, they're so plain and wooden. I'm going to crochet a little seat cover for each, and hopefully they'll be as pretty as this cover. 

Sewing

I bought McCall's M6331 last Summer, and totally didn't get around to sewing it up. I want, nay need, that romper. I'm interested to see how this pattern comes out, since it claims to be adjustable for different bust sizes, instead of just going with the standard B-cup. We know that's not gonna work for me! 

Reading

What's that you say? Reading isn't a craft?! Ok, let's say I plan to perfect the craft of reading while crafting, and start with this book. I'm a huge fantasy fan, so I don't know why I've avoided A Game of Thrones for so long. Chris and I just finished watching the first season of the HBO series, and I'm totally hooked, so I think it's time. Anyone else loving these books or the show?

a little crochet

A few weeks ago I got myself the newest Mollie Makes magazine, as motivation to finish a few commissions. It came with a free kit to crochet a rose brooch, which I was pretty excited about. 

Except I forgot about how bad I am at reading crochet patterns. I ended up starting this thing three times before I was able to complete it. (Hint: read up on the differences between British and American crochet terms before you start a new project.)

 Luckily it turned out pretty cute! 

After that hard-won success, I dove into Goodknits' Doily Brooch pattern. Lisa of Goodknits released this as a free pattern right before Mother's Day - she's so nice - so I crocheted up one for my Mom and one for my Grandma. This is such a cute and detailed pattern, and only took about 40 minutes! I will definitely be making another one for myself! 

Liberty Crochet Collar Top

All my careful planning has come to an end and I present to you:

The Liberty Crochet Collar Top

That's what I'm calling it, since I'm entering it in Rae's Spring Top Sewalong.

After crocheting the collar, I went on the search for the perfect fabric. I originally planned to use a vintage sheet, but none of them really popped. And then I found this Liberty of London scarf. I bought it last year at Target (Liberty for cheap!), and I loved the pattern, but the drape was just not working for me. It was much to voluminous to be worn as a scarf - it was strangling me. So it was relegated to the fabric stash, and has now found new life as a top.

My first attempt was a complete fail - I cut the body of the top much too large, and it looked... horrible. Like a mumu, but short. I let it sit for a day or two - let my frustration subside - and then ripped out all the seams and started again. 

I cut about 5" off the sides and added a curve to the neckline and back. I gathered the fabric in the front to give it some shape, since I decided against darts. It's completely lined with muslin, so there are no facings. And this time, it worked. 

Muslin lining - Can you tell which hem was sewn by me and which was sewn by the nimble-fingered (machine) employees of Target?

The next version will have a thicker collar (better to hide the bra strap), but other than that, it's perfect! I'm planning to wear it with high-waisted skirts - a favorite summer time look that combines the hippie look with a 1930's aesthetic. 

And look how good it will look when I'm pregnant*! I will probably never wear it like this.

These pictures (except the hem close-up), were taken by my lovely sister, Meghan. And why do I look so unhappy, you ask? Because it was really bright outside, and my eyes are extremely sensitive. I swear - I like the top, sewing, and Meghan, despite my expression.

*I will not be pregnant anytime soon, Mom, don't get excited.

crochet top progress

After brainstorming on Wednesday, I whipped through the crochet collar for my top. I crocheted 14 round motifs and then joined them together. No pattern - just improv. I used stash yarn and it was just enough - an inch of yarn left over.

I think I'll use this scarf for the blouse part. It's from the Liberty of London line for Target last year - so its like Liberty fabric for cheap! 

And I'm pretty excited because Rae from Made By Rae just announced that she is once again hosting a Spring Top Sewalong! 

If you haven't heard of this - get ready - it's awesome. Everyone takes part with some selfish sewing and in the end the best tops go into a little competition. It's all good, inspirational sewing fun, and I'm excited to enter my top this year. Click over to Rae's blog for more info!

thinking about crochet and spring

It's not quite warm in Chicago yet, but that hasn't stopped me from dreaming about warm-weather clothes. I've been thinking about making a flowy spring top with a crochet yolk. With the magic of Ravelry, I found this: 

The pattern is Floral Motif Yolk Top from Crochet Adorned. How cute would that top be with a rustic leather belt?

The neckline is a bit square for me, though, and I don't like the thick straps. So I turned to ModCloth for some research/inspiration. 

I love the collar shape on this one.

A lacy racer back! A racy lacer back! 

But this:

This one is my favorite. I love the combination of the warm rose print with the cream-colored lace. I think I could use circular motifs laid out in a nice pleasing half-moon shape and then add a scalloped edging. I'm not going for a super lacy look, so I think it will work out!

Crochet Motif Item Flower Tote - Finally Completed!

I finally finished this. Whew.

I started this bag last summer. The pattern is from my favorite Japenese crochet book, "Crochet Motif Item." It's the same book I took the hexagon pattern from. I'm sure you are thinking - why would you ever crochet this?! Look at all those ends to weave in!

And I will admit, the finishing of the crochet took a really long time. There is a reason that I am the only person on Ravelry to have attempted this pattern. But that is not why this project languished on my sewing table - unfinished - for so long.

I could not figure out what to do for handles. I knew I did not want to make crochet handles (they stretch out), but I didn't know what I wanted to do. I also wanted to line it, as a bag with a bunch of holes in it is kinda useless.

A few weeks ago I read this post over at the Purl Bee and I knew I had my solution. Use webbing for the handles! I picked some up at JoAnn's that matched the center color of the flower, and I was in business.

Check out this lining:

First time I used one of those magnetic closures!
I like a lot of pockets inside, so I added one big pocked made out of an embroidered piece (I have a few laying around...) and two smaller pockets for my phones. Yes, I have two - one is mine, one is for work.

All in all I could not be happier. Check it off the list!

Last, but not least.

I have finally finished the third pillow for my living room. Finally. It took a really long time.

Here it is with the ever-popular hexagon pillow. The big pillow is just small granny squares joined together. In this case, 50 three-round granny squares joined together by a fourth round in that light grey color. It took a pretty long time. And while I certainly like it, I think it is my least favorite of the three.
I think my favorite is actually the little square one on the left. What do you think?