Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Keeping Busy with My Latest Projects...

My ABC Baby Blanket and Bohemian Oasis Afghan are certainly keeping me busy lately. I am on the next to the last section of the baby blanket, (D,E,F,G) but it has been difficult to work on this past week because our air conditioner was not working. Of course in Kansas we have been having above normal high temperatures lately and the baby blanket is very dense, (single crochet) so it is hot on my lap and the yarn is sticking between my fingers so it has been doubly difficult to work on it.

I have persevered though because I am determined to finish it as soon as possible because I have so many other projects running around in my mind that I want to get started on. As I said, this blanket has been a challenge for me. I was almost finished with it and realized I had started out with a G hook and somewhere along the line I switched to an F hook. It's kind of funny now but it wasn't when I had to frog the whole thing. I had some minor mistakes on it at the start so I just ripped out the entire blanket.

Somewhere I read to use toilet paper rolls to wrap your yarn when you have to frog something so I tried it and it worked beautifully! I highly recommend this method. I still ended up with some tangles but managed to salvage most of the yarn. At one point I was going to throw all of it away and go buy new yarn because it was so frustrating but I muddled through and I'm glad I did. If my daughter didn't love it so much I would have said "forget it", but she won out and now it's almost done and I think I finally have the hang of it.

I'm looking forward to joining my beautiful squares together on the Oasis Afghan. I have the black Fabel yarn by Drops and I think it is going to be a really pretty afghan when I get it done. This one is just for me. It will be so lovely on my bed and the colors of all the squares made from the Drops Delight yarn are so yummy.



You may have noticed from my recent posts that I am anxious to try Tunisian Crochet. It looks like knitting and gives you a tighter fabric than crocheting does. Kim Guzman is the Queen of Tunisian Crochet, (see the new Spring Issue of Crochet Savvy magazine here. Kim is on the cover!) I have had my Denise hooks for a couple of years now and haven't made one thing with them. I also have Kim's book, Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Tunisian Crochet.



I can't wait to try some of the neat patterns she has in it. Kim has put up lots of videos on YouTube as well so I should, (hopefully) be able to learn how to do it! I'll keep you posted on how its going.









Well, that's all for now. I hope you all have a great week! Oh...by the way...the air conditioner got fixed yesterday so everything is "cool" now!! :)

Happy Crocheting!


Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Honey Sweet Baby Blanket: Free Pattern

 
Another challenging blanket I want to make after I finish my never ending, (frogged many times) ABC Baby Blanket!!

New free crochet pattern from CrochetKim with video tutorials: Honey Sweet Baby Blanket!






Honey Sweet Baby Blanket
Tunisian Crochet Honeycomb Cable


designed by Kim Guzman © May 2014


Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Monday, April 28, 2014

Cro-Knitting: The New Art of Worsted Work (1914)


Cro-Knitting: The New Art of Worsted Work (1914). In the public domain. Read now or download pdf. I love the pictures in this...





Happy Crocheting!

Thursday, April 24, 2014

How to Add & Sell a Pattern on Craftsy!


 How to Add & Sell a Pattern on Craftsy!

(This post contains affiliate links which means I will be compensated if you purchase after clicking these links.)



In addition to wonderful online courses and craft supplies, Craftsy also has an independent online pattern store that lets anyone upload and sell downloadable e-patterns with no fee!

How do you add a pattern to Craftsy and start your pattern store? It’s easy!

1. Make sure you have a Paypal account. All pattern transactions happen through Paypal, and Craftsy requires that you have a Student, Premier, or Business account in order to sell patterns.

2. Put your pattern in .pdf format. You can’t upload any patterns to the online pattern store unless they’re a .pdf file format, so if they’re currently saved as a Word doc, .jpg, or other file format, you must convert it to a .pdf before you upload it to Craftsy.

3. Include a photo. All patterns must have at least one photo to accompany them, but you can add up to five photos. Colorful, interesting photos tend to work the best for catching our members’ eyes!

4. Fill out the pattern description. We will ask you some basic questions around your pattern making it easier for Craftsy folk to find your pattern and know what your pattern is for. Make sure you have info about your pattern handy for this step.

For more information on how to sell a pattern through Craftsy, or to get started, visit Craftsy today!

Happy Crocheting!



Monday, April 14, 2014

Little Eme: Sweet Little Baby Moccasins Pattern and Tutorial

Here is a link to the cutest little baby moccasins pattern and tutorial. I just had to share...

Little Eme: Sweet Little Baby Moccasins Pattern and Tutorial 




Happy Crocheting!
 

Monday's Crochet Showcase: Corner-to-Corner Throw


This week's showcase item is for the Intermediate Crocheter! This is another free pattern from Red Heart.
This throw would be perfect in any size or any yarn. A nice cotton yarn would be perfect to take to the beach this summer. You could make a smaller size for a new baby gift! It looks like fun and a little bit of a challenge which I like so I don't get bored when crocheting.


This beautiful pattern is available here!

Happy Crocheting!



Wednesday, April 9, 2014

WIP Wednesday: Crocheted Bohemian Oasis Afghan

WIP Wednesday: My Crocheted Bohemian Oasis Afghan

I have almost all of the Granny Squares completed and am loving these colors. I can't wait to join them with the Drops Fabel Black yarn! I am making squares whenever I get a few minutes, on my lunch mostly. I am still working on my ABC blanket for Killian and am on the last section, (the ABC section)!:) No picture yet...so my WIPs are coming along.




Happy Crocheting!






I am hooking up at the Moogly Link Party!

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Tuesday's Video Tutorial: How to Crochet the Foundation Double Crochet Stitch

Here is the link to Moogly's Video on how to crochet the fdc:

Video Tutorial: How to Crochet the Foundation Double Crochet Stitch

This stitch will save you tons of time! You will have a stretchier beginning to your blankets and it is so much easier to count nice big stitches instead of tiny chains. 

Be sure and check out other video's from Moogly!

Happy Crocheting! 

Monday, April 7, 2014

Monday's Crochet Showcase: Free Cute Log Cabin Dishcloth Pattern

This darling Simple Square Log Cabin Dishcloth is by Deborah Ellis of Neatly Tangled!

She is a crochet designer and has several free patterns on her web site and on Ravelry!

I picked this pattern to showcase today because of the bright colors and simple design. Use up those little scraps of cotton you have left over from other projects and make up some cute dishcloths to have on hand for gifts or keep them for yourself. I love crochet dishcloths because it makes the cleaning jobs just a little easier!






I hope you enjoy this weeks showcase and you can find the pattern here.


Happy Crocheting!