Year End Wrap Up

If you read this blog, you may have noticed that it has been very quiet.  This is in part due to my busy life in graduate school, as well as a busy year in general.  Fortunately, it is also because I was doing so many projects!  Here is a glimpse (I was so busy trying to get people their orders and gifts that I didn't even get pictures of most of them!).

"Beardie" commission

Boy Brain

Lady Brain

Earwarmer

Earwarmer

Placemat that will not lay flat.

Baby Blanket commission

The beginnings of a comforter for my son.

I come from a family of crocheters!  My Great-Great-Aunt Nan's shawl is modeled by my Aunt Rose Marie.

Engagement Gift

Hat in KnitPick's Chroma Worsted "Superhero"

This year I dabbled in doilies.

Another doily in process.

Crochet-along in process.

I have so many more projects both completed and in progress, but no pictures!  I'm hoping to get a lot more projects completed in the new year.

Here's to 2014!

Ouch.

Between my job (which has me spending a lot of time on the computer) and crocheting, my wrists and hands can get a little fatigued.  Obviously, I take some precautions, but eventually, one has to do some damage control.

This post, from KNITFreedom has a series of stretches one can complete to get those muscles limber and loose again.

What things do you do to prevent crafting injuries (as silly as it sounds, we know they happen and THEY HURT!).

- CA

Friday Round-Up.

Crafting wise, it has been a busy week.  I finished three commissions in the last 7 days, and I got another one as soon as I finished the first two.  Those crocodile stitch booties are POPULAR.  Between gifts and sales, I've made 10 pairs of those booties!

I also completed a blanket for my mom, which I think turned out nicely.  It is based on the Milles Rings pattern, which I used first to make a blanket for my son when he was born.

E's blanket, Christmas 2011.  Done in cotton (too heavy) and acrylic rings.

Three of the four colors started for the second blanket.

Speaking of E, my big summer project is a granny square blanket for him.  Rather than purchase a whole linens set for his room, I wanted to make something special.  Once I'm done, I will  post the pattern / diagram here.  Until then (and it might be a while), here is a preview:

This ombre-like motif will be repeated in 5 other colors, plus a classic granny border.

Finally, I've been teaching myself tunisian crochet (AKA: afghan crochet or shepherd's knitting), which is a cross between crochet and knitting.  While you can do it with a regular crochet hook, you can also use a longer tunisian crochet hook.  I'm trying to learn how to change colors properly so I can convert a piece-in-progress to this technique.  Tunisian crochet is very thick, solid, and looks great with the intarsia technique.  Over at Moogly blog, Tamara recently stumbled upon a tunisian motif that looks like strawberries, and her site has been a creative beehive trying to figure out how to re-construct it.  Moogly has some of the best free patterns, round-ups from around the web, and really clear tutorials.  Her creations tend to be just my style.

- Crafts Ahoy!

My Life is Forever Changed!

Have you heard of the foundation-less double or single crochet?  Until tonight, I had not.

 I started making a mason jar cozy to dress up a gift I'm making, and the pattern called for a "foundation-less double crochet."

Pardon?

The pattern's instructions were not very clear about this special skill, so I went to Crochet Spot, which has some great tutorials, and I was on my way.  The link take you to the foundation-less double crochet tutorial, but the link under "Inspiration" is to the main page.

*Pictures when the project is completed.*

In other news, I finished TWO projects last night.  In my mom's circle of friends, I have become known for making Bonita Pattern's Crocodile Stitch Booties.  At Christmas, I was making a delivery via a Christmas party (classy, I know) and when another one of my mother's friends saw the finished product, she ordered two pairs (one boy and one girl) to have on hand "just in case."  She gave me no time-table, and therefore they are only now being completed.

"Boy" Booties (I also made little boxes for them)

"Girl" Booties

Here are some previous examples of the Croc Booties (I make different "rises"):

"High Rise" in Caron Country Spa

"High Rise" in Knit Picks Chroma Fingering "Guppy"

"Low Rise" in Caron Country Spa

"High Rise" in Loops and Threads Snuggly Wuggly Mini Dots

"Mid Rise" in Knit Picks Chroma Fingering "Guppy"

Love this pattern!

- CA!

Designers I Love: Heidi Bears Creative

There are just some people in the crafting / crochet world that I envy so much.  Anyone who can design their own patterns AND create beautiful works of art are just too good to be true.  I know they don't need my help getting their names out there, but I want to feature them from time to time to expose them to a whole new audience.




Heidi Bears Creative

Heidi creates adorable and totally snuggle-worthy creatures out of African flower motifs (of all sorts and sizes).  The first pattern of this kind was a sweet pink, jointed teddy bear, and it was followed with a frog prince, a hippo, and most recently, an elephant.

Not only does she sell these pattens, she also has free tutorials on how to make the flowers themselves, so you can practice before you commit to a pattern.  There is also a tutorial on how to join as you go with the flowers, giving the finished projects a cleaner look.

Courtesy of Heidi Bears Creative

Finally, she has a lot of tutorials and patterns for knitters as well that are just as cute as the crocheted ones.  It almost makes me want to learn to knit right away.

Courtesy of Heidi Bears Creative

I have a lot of other designers I'd like to feature, so stay tuned!

Question of the week: What other features would you like to see on this blog?  Comment to answer!

- Crafts Ahoy!

Summer Stash-Busting

People who know me will laugh, but I actually love to organize and simplify.  Once a year I do a huge purge on my house, getting rid of clothing, paper, and other things that aren't serving a purpose in our home any more.  In 2012, I followed Clover Lane's 40 Bags, 40 Days, which leads you through a deep clean as part of Lent.  It was right before we moved, and I was so glad I didn't have to move all that junk.  It made me wish I had done it before every move!

Frogging in process.

But I digress.  I was organizing my craft supplies in an attempt to fit them all into one closet in our 1920s style home (read: little itty bitty closets).  I'm almost there, but my biggest obstacle is the yarn.  It takes up a lot of space, and according to my Ravelry stash page, I have 119 yarns stashed, and I know that's less than the actual number.

Therefore, I declare this the Summer Stash-Bust!  I'm going to refrain from buying anymore yarn (unless it's for a commission) until August.  I have a few projects that should help with that, and I'm going to post them at the side.

What craft supply do you need to downsize, and how will you try to do that?

- CA!

A post-purge organized closet.  Phew.

Crafts Ahoy!

Love this color combo!

Welcome to my dedicated craft blog!  I've always been a fan of arts and crafts, starting with Perler beads and latch-hooking when I was about 6.  I go through phases, but I've been most passionate about crochet over the last three years.

Blue and green motif on Mille's Rings.

I have a Tumblr page (www.craftsahoy.tumblr.com) with inspiration and ideas, but this is where I'll discuss the things I'm actually working on.  Some posts will border on being DIY or gardening, but "craft" has a fluid definition around here.

Boo! (Testing for a still-unstarted project)

I hope you visit frequently (expect about a post per week), and I hope you leave inspired to create!  If you need more ideas and inspiration, check out my blogroll.  These are the ladies and gents that inspire me, and I hope they do the same for you.  I will also be curating a list of my favorite patterns, linked to their Ravelry pages.

Great pattern!

Sarah London's "Wool Eater," which delivers on the name.

- CA! (Crafts Ahoy!)