FO Friday 20

It's Friday again! Thank god, I think I'm ready for some time hanging out with my husband. I love days we can spend together, even if we just sit at home and play video games. This weekend should be beautiful here in San Diego, getting into the 70's on Sunday. Sorry to all of you who are stuck inside and surrounded by snow. I don't mean to brag. LOL

I had a fun week of packages arriving at my door! I ordered several knitting books from bookcloseouts.com, a knitting book from Barnes and Noble and tons of fingering weight sock yarn to dye. All of it came within two days of each other. So awesome. Here are the books that I got. I can't tell you how excited I was to find the Charmed Knits book for super cheap. I've been dying to get this book! The Big Book of Knitted Monsters was the one I got from B&N (obviously since it just came out).

Have any of you knitted any patterns from these books, or read the Yarn Harlot's books? I'm excited to dive in to all of them. What are your favorite patterns from these books if you own them?


Anyway, back to FO Friday. I have a few projects to share, and one that you've seen before but I thought I would show it to you completely finished.

You may remember the purse I made for my sister in law that I shared in FO Friday 18 and how I debated on a ribbon or not. Well, I found one that worked pretty well, so I went ahead and bought it. Here is the purse completely finished with the ribbon. Do you like the new addition?





I finished the heart washcloth, and also pretty much finished off that skein of yarn, so I marked it off of my yarn diet skein count. I had fun knitting this because it was easy, especially since it's hearts so that it was symmetrical. Once I read the first part of a row, I knew how to finish the row off without looking at the pattern. It made it an easy tv watching knit. Also, I loved how the yarn pooled when knitted.

Materials used:

US 6 needles
Bernat Handicraft cotton
Yarn needle





This has been a long time coming. I'm not sure why it took me so long, but I think it might have been the annoyingness (I know, it's not a word but just go with it. LOL) of the color change on such a small ami, BUT I finished the corgi!!! Planet June's pattern was great, and once I stopped complaining about all of the color changes, I finished it quickly. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The only thing that annoys me a little is that it turned out SMALLER than the wiener dog, which doesn't make sense, but oh well. I just need to do a collar and get a name tag before shipping it to my mother in law, along with the other dog I made for her.

Materials used:

5.00 mm (H) hook
Red Heart Super Saver (body- white)
Vanna's Choice
Caron Simply Soft (nose- black)
Poly Fluff Stuffing
Safety eyes- 9mm
Yarn needle

Share your FOs!

FO Friday 18

I'm excited about this weekend, but not for the normal reasons. We're straightening out our office/studio space, but more about that in a coming post. Let's just say that I will be working hard this weekend, but will be rewarded for it!

I only have one FO today, but I am happy to report I have started the decreases to my knitted hat. I'm a little nervous about that part!

The FO I have to show you is the purse that I started just this week! Shocking, I know! It's such a great pattern (once you get through a few of the issues with how it is written), and now that I have completed my 3rd (and best) one, I can make it with my eyes closed practically. This one is a late Christmas present for my sister-in-law (my husband's brother's wife). She likes stuff that looks from the 40's-60's, and loves purses, so I hope she likes this one. She also loves tiki stuff, so I wanted to use bamboo handles. I originally thought I would go with the lighter ones, instead of black, but it clashed even more with the yarn, as it was a yellow wood color. I got the fabric for the lining several months ago, finding it in the remnants bin at Joann's. I love it, and am happy I have some left over to line something else with it. You can see in the picture (sorry it's dark), but it also has tan/gold flecks in it.

I'm still debating on using a ribbon for the bow. What do you think? Do you like it plain? I would have to run to Joann's (and avoid the yarn) to get something that matched, as nothing in my ribbon stash does. You may remember how the ribbon goes into the purse, but if not, here is the one I made for my sister for Christmas that has a ribbon.

Materials used:
5.00 mm (H) hook
6.00 mm (J) hook
6.50 mm (K) hook
Red Heart Super Saver (purse- Buff)
Wooden Bamboo handles- Black
Green dragonfly (lining)
Sewing Machine
Brown and green thread
Yarn needle

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 24

Good news, I'm healthy! Bad news, I have WAY too many WIPs. As I mentioned in my post earlier this week, I keep starting projects. I think part of it is because I was sick so I kept starting new stuff since I didn't feel like working on something I already had started. Also, I want to get through some of my yarn for the yarn diet. Obviously, I realize I need to finish projects to do that, instead of starting them, but for some reason that's not hitting home. LOL

Here's a few of the WIPs (a few didn't really visually change so no point in posting them):




I am FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY getting to this purse. It is (was) for Christmas, for my sister-in-law in Chicago. I decided to use Buff, an oatmeal color, and then will be putting a darker lining in it. This is the 3rd time I've made this purse, and I will say, I think this is my best. For some reason, it's coming out a little bigger than my last one (or maybe not as big as it seems since the last one was in black). Anyway, I'll be happy when it's finished. I've only been working on it one evening, and hope to actually have the crochet part finished when you read this. I have a crochet meet up Tuesday night (or last night I guess, since you're reading this Wednesday), so I hope to finish it then.




This doesn't look like anything, I know, but I thought I would include it anyway because I'm using my first hand dyed yarn I did several months ago. It's Fisherman's wool. Since it's a partial skein I didn't want to choose a big project for it and run out of yarn, so I chose this pattern. Since I now sew, and don't have a pincushion I thought it would be perfect. I'm excited to finish this. I haven't decided if I'm going to felt it when I'm done or not. I've never felted anything before!


And the hat. Since I'm working on tons of stuff, I haven't done too much more, but since it now lays flat because it's long enough, I thought I would share. I'm really happy with how even the stitches came out, even if the ribbing is messy. It does get a little boring since it's just knit stitch though.

That's it for me this week. What are you working on?

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

FO Friday 15

Happy Christmas Eve!!! Soo excited! I hope you all finished the gifts that were last minute. I LOVE Christmas, and love giving presents. I think that's the best part, to watch people open things that I've bought/made for them. It's so rewarding. This year it will be even more so, because of all the hard work I put into each gift, though that makes me a little more nervous!

Next week, I will have WIPW posted, as well as FO Friday, but will only be participating in WIPW. I will be traveling and hope to have a chance to stop at a few yarn stores and have a little time to knit/crochet while I'm away. I will also have a post scheduled with the details of the yarn diet I will partaking in starting January 1st. I will have a follow up post on January 2nd or 3rd with pictures to show my stash as a way to document it at the start. Hope you have a chance to stop by and check it out!

Now onto FO Friday.

I have quite a few projects to share, thankfully! I wasn't able to finish everything of course, due to being sick, but at least everyone who needed a gift on Christmas, had one.


This is the love bug/lady bug I mentioned on Wednesday. I made it for my little niece. My sister loves ladybugs so I think it will be a hit, though I hope they will let her play with it a little. It took me no time at all, as I made it in a few hours. I think the best way to go was I assembled as I went instead of making all the pieces and then having to put it together. I hate that part!

The pattern was this, but instead of the whole kit and kaboodle, I decided to just make one of the bugs. Because of that, I increased the size of the hook to make it a little larger.

Materials used:

5.00 mm (H) hook
Red Heart Super Saver (body- Black)
Red Heart Super Saver (wings- Red)
White felt
Poly Fluff Stuffing
Safety eyes- Brown 9mm
Embroidery floss- Pink
Yarn needle





I've been working on this way too long, but I like how it turned out, despite my little mistake in the stem of the glass. It's funny how this turned out compared to the dragonfly. It's knitted a little looser, so it doesn't curl as much as the dragonfly. On the other than, this pattern, along with the colorway doesn't lend itself to it being very double-sided. Here's a link to the pattern.

Materials used:

Size 7 needles (Knit Picks Harmony interchangeable)
Lily Sugar'n Cream (Potpourri Ombre)
Yarn needle

Last week

Finished. There is a weird bump in it because I have had to fold it up to hide it from my husband!

Last you saw this purse, it was almost finished but needed the final touches, the lining and the ribbon. I wanted to finish it for last FO Friday, but unfortunately with being sick, I just got around to it on Wednesday of this week. I'm pretty happy with it. If I had time, I think I would make the lining inside a little smaller so that there isn't any wrinkling at the top where it's sewn in. I hope my sister likes it, because I worked hard on it and like it myself. I have one more of these purses to make soon, a present for my sister-in-law.

Materials used:
5.00 mm (H) hook
6.00 mm (J) hook
6.50 mm (K) hook
Red Heart Super Saver (purse- Black)
Wooden Bamboo handles- Black
Pink flower fabric (lining)
Sewing Machine
Black thread
Yarn needle
Ribbon (for decoration)

Last week

And finished! The lining looks really saggy in the pic due to the way I had to prop it open to take a picture of the inside.

Share your FOs!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 19

I'm going to keep this pretty short, as I've come down with the flu. :( I was on such a roll, had so much energy and then BOOM. I got sick on Monday afternoon. Definitely no fun. I hope you're all having a great week.

Here are this week's WIPs:


Almost done! When I'm feeling better, I need to just sew the lining together and then hand sew it in the purse. I also need to add the ribbon decoration to the front. I hope to get better pictures then, for FO Friday. :)



I made a boo boo where the stem of the glass and the main portion meet, but didn't realize until I was way far into it. I don't think the recipient will mind, so I just left it. Other than that, I'm really happy with this and really like the border for it. I also am loving the subtle colors in the cream yarn! Anyway, this is the pattern I'm using.



Despite having so much to do still for Christmas, I couldn't wait to start these. As I mentioned here, I decided to make the Waffle Fingerless Gloves. As you can see, I have finished one, and am about to start on the second. I'm afraid it will be a little small (I still have to seam it) but hope it will stretch. I used Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool that I dyed and LOVE the way the colors turned out. I'm stoked!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 18

Wednesday, again. Can you believe it?? It is already the 8th of this month, and that has me pretty much hyperventilating. Yikes! Luckily, to take off some of the sting, I was able to order a few bought gifts online yesterday. Now I just need to worry if they will make it here in time. As far as the crochet/knitting presents are concerned, I'm running out of time. There are a few that can be mailed a day or two late, so I am putting those on the back burner. We'll see how it goes. My days are pretty much devoted to crocheting/knitting. Needless to say, I'm getting a LOT of TV time in.

Just a side note, I plan to have a few fun things happening on the blog coming up, including a yarn giveaway, a CAL/KAL (patterns haven't been chosen yet, so if you have any suggests please let me know!) and a yarn diet challenge for the new year (gasp!). So stay tuned for that!

As far as WIPs are concerned, this is what I have on my plate.



The dragonfly washcloth turned out sooo great (will share pictures on FO Friday), that I wanted to do another one. This will be a gift and will look like this. I don't want to say too much about it, but I hope to finish it quickly so that I can get to another one and make them a little set. We'll see. This wasn't originally in my holiday gift making plans, so I can't add too many items at this point or I will simply run out of time...or just not sleep leading up to the holiday.

Sorry for the picture, it's hard to get a good picture of the black yarn doubled over.

I've been dreading making this. I started way back when and then stopped and ripped it out. I love the way that the purse looks in the end, and use the one I made as a test purse a bit! The problem is, the pattern isn't written very clearly and so I have to look at a breakdown someone did on Ravelry with pictures (thank god for that person). Once I get out of the flow of making it, I can't really restart again for some reason. So, here I am starting it again. I have to make two more by Christmas. This one (obviously black) is going to be the worst because it's so hard to work with black, IMO. The next one I think I'm going to do a tan color, so that should go much faster. Luckily, when I stop whining about it and just do it, I'll be fine. It's a fast pattern to do once you get into the flow of things.



For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

FO Friday 8

Can you believe it? The Owl Bag finally done! Now, I haven't been working on it for a long time (since October 25th) but I haven't been working on much else since I started it. Behold, the owl bag! Now, Wednesday night I was all smug, thinking I had finished the crocheting part and could work on the assembly. Of course, I screwed up. I was too busy watching Doctor Who to realize I did the iris' of the eyes black, not the pupil. My husband suggested that I just go with that but it looks too Muppet-like. So instead of taking the easy way out, I decided to scrap those. Thankfully they're super easy to make and fast, but still. I just wanted this dumb thing finished!

Thursday found me scrambling to finish, as well as write my words for NaNoWrimo. No rest for the weary.


Here's what it looked like last week and this week for WIPW (final product below):






Materials used:

6.00 mm (J) hook
Red Heart Super Saver (bag- Pink Camo/ Buff), eyes- White/ Black/Cafe)
Yarn needle
Thread
Sewing machine
Fabric
Felt (for the beak)

And the finished product (for real this time). I have to say this has to be the most proud of a project I've ever felt. As a lot of you know, I recently got a sewing machine. I decided to go all out and not only line the bag, but also line the straps.

I worked on this project from October 25-November 5th.

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 12

I've decided I needed to start on my Christmas gifts instead of just saying I'm going to. Good plan, right? It seemed like I had so much time, until I realized we are in the last week of October and November will be a crazy writing month for me. I need to crank out about one present a week (if not more) to get done in time. Crazy, isn't it? I decided to just focus on this one crochet project this week, as I'm trying to finish it quickly, so I'm only sharing this one today.

That being said, my WIPW post this week is a bag for my niece. You may remember, I made this reindeer for her birthday this year. At first she didn't really know what to think of it, but now every time I see her she's asks what I'm making and has a huge list of items for me to crank out for her. She doesn't know I'm making this, and hopefully she'll like it. She requested a dog amigurumi, but I told her it would have to wait until after Christmas. Hopefully she isn't expecting that! I am already doing two dog amis for my mother-in-law (representing the two dogs that passed away this year that she had for 13+ years).


I first saw this owl bag pattern (Ravelry link) in the September/October issue of Crochet Today! I loved it right away and showed my sister, who thought Lily, my niece, would like it as well. When finished, I hope to line it with this adorable pink fabric I got in the remnants section of Joann's. I'd love to sew in a few pockets as well, but it will only be my second bag lined, so I don't want to get ahead of myself. Originally I wanted to use the pink camo yarn with pink solid, instead of tan but couldn't find a pink I was quite happy with that would look good with the camo. Over all, I like how it's coming out, though after crocheting the bottom and the initial color change, I decided to increase the strips by one, so it's three before a color change instead of two. It didn't seem to be reading as well as I hoped with two, and I think it's much better now. What do you think?

Don't forget, tomorrow I'll be flashing my stash again (that always sounds so dirty, doesn't it?). Please join me if you have the time! There will be an ongoing Mr Linky provided, where you can update your stash each month when I share mine. :) This time, I'll be showing off my yarn inside my new wood chest!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

FO Friday 4

Welcome to another FO Friday! I thought this week I would be sharing my hat I started in this week's WIPW, but alas, I had to frog half of it due to its size. That led to the yarn breaking in one spot. :( Fortunately, I figured out where I stopped increasing and didn't have to frog the whole thing. I'm back at it again, and just plan to join the yarn at the break.

Of course, this left me with no FO Friday, or so I thought. I decided to take the bull by the horns and finish the gray purse I shared in WIPW 4. Since I shared it with you then, I crocheted a strap and machine sewed (with my new sewing machine) a lining. The only thing I had left to do was sew the lining into the purse. Now, that may not seem too hard, but I had no clue how I would do it. When I got my machine and had such success with making the lining, I thought I would just put it under my machine and BAM, have a lining.

Of course, that didn't work. Is anything that easy?

I tried several times, several different ways, but my machine kept bunching the thread along the crocheted side. I don't know if it's because it was a mix of crochet and in this case, polyester or just because sewing machines don't like yarn. Or maybe it was the way this purse is crocheted, not allowing the machine to catch the yarn at times. (Does anyone know the answer to this?)

So, in the end, I realized I would have to hand sew it into the purse. That seemed like such a huge chore, so I put it off...until yesterday. In the end, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Of course, I could have probably done a little bit better of a job doing it, but for the first time, I'm happy. This was my "test" purse, as I have three more to make for Christmas. It doesn't need to be perfect.

We'll see what you think...

Materials used:

5.00 mm (H) hook
6.00 mm (J) hook
6.50 mm (K) hook
Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn (purse and strap- Light Gray)
Black Polyester fabric (lining)
Sewing Machine
Black thread
Yarn needle
Ribbon (for decoration)

I worked on the purse from August 28-October 7 (The actual body of the purse took a night and a few hours the next day. I did the strap about a month ago. Making the lining was finished a few weeks ago when I got my sewing machine, and sewed the lining in yesterday).

Please excuse the cat tail and the dog head in the pictures! They're very nosy. Also, I had to use flash again, due to another gloomy day in San Diego.

Share your FO projects!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 8

Wow is it hot in San Diego! Last week I was wearing a sweatshirt to walk Milo, and this week we are breaking records for the heat! It was hot on the weekend and 110 on Monday in parts of San Diego (one of those parts happened to be exactly where I live). I don't have air conditioning. You can feel my pain I'm sure. I stayed home with the house shut tight trying to keep my animals (2 cats and a dog) hydrated and happy. Not an easy task. That being said, I wasn't in a crochet kind of mood. Who wants hot yarn draped on them in that heat?

That being said, I agreed to a quick swap with a friend of mine. She's making me a bead necklace while I crochet her a hat! She picked out a hat, modern flapper style and I started right away. It was a fast crochet and super fun! I love it and will probably make one for myself at some point. Unfortunately, it was such a fast crochet project, that I finished it before sharing it on WIPW. I will have it up on Friday for FO Friday this week!



As you can see, I've made some progress with the Granny Stripe blanket (aka The Ice Cream Blanket). I'm really enjoying it, though now that all the colors have repeated a few times, it's a little less exciting to work on it. The first set of colors, I couldn't wait to see how each color looked with the other. Then the second time around, I was excited to see how it all looked repeated. Now that I know both those things, it's just the same ol' thing here on out. It may also hurt that the weather is so hot. When I started the blanket, it was cooling down. I hope I'm ready to really crank on it once the chill returns to the air.



I'm making purses for several people (I have to make a total of 3) for Christmas, so I thought I should probably, you know, start on that. LOL You may have remembered, I made a gray version and shared it for WIPW 4. That one was a test, so I could figure out the confusing pattern! Hopefully I remember how to do it! The exciting part about making another one is playing with the ribbon and the lining I get to do afterward, so that's a plus. I hope to making this in a day/day and a half. We'll see how it goes!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 4

Wow, I can't believe this is already the 4th WIPW. Thanks to everyone who has participated thus far. I've been busy making a list of everything I want to crochet for Christmas gifts, and I must say, I have my hands full. I'm not sure I am going to be able to finish it all in time, but here's to hoping. That being said, I've started a few projects this week that will be gifts, or at least are "test" items before I made the real one.

A little off topic, if any of you can recommend a good "beginner/starter" sewing machine for less than $150, please let me know! The cheaper the better of course, but I don't want a piece of crap. LOL I don't know the first thing about sewing machines, but would love to learn. Please leave a comment if you have a recommendation!

Last week I shared my afghan further along. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to even touch it! I also shared my dinosaur. I sent it to my swap partner, which she received yesterday so I can post it soon.

This week's WIPW projects are:


I wanted to make this purse from Ravelry for a Christmas present, but the pattern was a little confusing. Before trying to making the one I will be giving, I decided to make a test one. It only took me one night while watching a movie and then another afternoon. I still have to figure out the lining (in black) and I plan to crochet a strap. For the Christmas gift, I will be making it in black with a pink inside and pink/black ribbon. I think I'm also going to buy a purse handle/strap for that one. I was really excited to find out I could make it so quickly and I had a great time doing it!



Alea at Pop Culture Junkie has been obsessed (is that the right word, Alea?) with Granny Squares lately. I'd never made one, so decided to give it a try. This is the start of my first Granny Square I started this morning and haven't had a chance to finish today. Hopefully I'll have a bunch more to share next week. Since Fall is coming, I thought it would be fun to make a few in Fall colors, so I started with this pumpkin color.

To share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in yours to get the word out! The more the merrier!