I whipped this up from my cotton ease stash:

If you don’t know me already, cotton ease is my all time favorite workhorse yarn. Especially for baby/kid items. It is a cotton blend, and it is machine washable AND dryable and breathable and soft and comfy. It can be a tad splitty for crochet, but if you are knitting with it, it shouldn’t be a problem at all (unless you are knitting with uber tiny sharp needles that are too small for worsted weight yarn). =)

Pattern is from here (or if you have Ravelry, it is here). I have to say, even though seaming is the ultimate suck, it doesn’t suck as bad when it’s crochet. You don’t have to make things super invisible as you do with knitting; probably because crochet fabric can hide seaming lines better than knitting.

So this is for a friend. Hope Leyton loves it! Sorry it is so late! (And sorry for the blurry pictures; with a mobile kid, it’s hard to get him to sit still for a good shot)

P.S. Totally unrelated (but still on the subject of baby hats), but I was in the midst of doing an Oscar the Grouch hat for my own kiddo (despite everyone trying to discourage me from doing it). The only person who was thrilled about the project was my own husband. Everyone thought the eyebrows (which are made from fun fur) were nasty looking. Even my own brother said it looked scary. I had never worked with fun fur so I gave it a shot. And OMG that stuff is NASTY!!!!!!!! It is like knitting with an ugly rodent in your hands!!!!! Never again!!! Turns out my kid accidentally pulled that project off my needles, so I take that as a sign that it probably belongs in the trash. I didn’t take any pictures of it because I don’t want to subject you to the horrors of that project. I’m a little sad about it because I thought Oscar the Grouch would have been a fun look for my kid’s head, but I guess now I know that fun fur is from the devil. Lesson learned. SHUDDER

It has been a long hiatus. I’m sure it’s implied why I have been away for so long. Life just got really hard. My lovable little guy has been a challenge to say the least. We are definitely now post-colic (THANK GOD) and have been battling insane sleep problems since Thanksgiving. Currently working on them (and seeing improvements, yay). And as you can tell, things are starting to slightly pick up, because now I actually have time to do something crafty.

The pattern is the Osito Infant Bear Hat (pdf link). Tres adorable, non? =)

I added ear flaps just to cover those tiny little ears from getting cold. My first time improvising with crochet increases/decreases. Easy peasy for a sleep deprived momma, I’m impressed and proud of myself.

Now that my little guy’s head is warm, let’s hope he sleeps better. Sigh.

Had the most surreal week ever. Overwhelmed, overjoyed, exhausted, bursting with love. My life has officially changed forever.

Right after birth; all cleaned up and meeting mommy for the first time:

Daddy and baby checking each other out:

Hanging out in the bouncer:

Big yawn:

Want to hear something funny? I was scheduled to be induced this past Tuesday, but the baby decided to get things started naturally a couple hours before the induction. And I had a crochet project packed away in my hospital bag. Yep, I figured during the induction I would be bored. Turns out, by the time I got to the hospital, I didn’t have time for a thing (things progressed way faster than anticipated). I suppose that crochet project will have to wait. (Maybe during nursing sessions when I’m also catching up on Project Runway and Top Chef episodes? Hehehe)

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ETA: If you can handle it, the birth story is here (password: nathaniel) =)

Even though I am considered a “housewife”, I don’t really do much (or enough) “housekeeping”. Or cleaning. Or whatever it is you call it. But now that the holidays are fast approaching, I find myself with alot of house guests and friends coming to stay with us. We are booked every weekend! Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love hosting and having people over (and cooking for everyone!), but it IS a swift kick in the pants to get the house somewhat presentable and “clean” (see how I put that word in quotations?). =)

I’ve been dreading cleaning the craft room for a year. The closest picture I have to a “before” shot would be this one (while viewing it, imagine the mess to be 3 times worse, and that you can’t even see the floor).

Now here are the “after” shots! (Click on each of the photos, and you’ll be directed to the same Flickr photo where you can mouse-over and see all the tags I made for where everything is organized in its place.)

Doesn’t that give you an “ahhhhhh” feeling of satisfaction in your soul? When things are set in their proper place, I have to admit, there is some psychological comfort there (at least for me). Especially when the cleaning/organizing process took nearly two full days!!

And so, while I was cleaning/organizing, I found 7-8 other WIPs I had completely forgotten about. A few of them were socks. Which is sad, because I suppose I can never finish the second sock because I had no idea what I did with the first, and left no notes, or any indication on where I left off last. So I ripped out a couple of them. That was sad at flrst (the letting go part), but then relieving (relief that I have less projects on my “to-do” list to finish). And then I found this little fun thing I made a year ago:

Coasters!! I must have been trying to use up all my leftover Rowan Cotton Glace. 

What a treat, to find a fun thing amidst the yucky mess. =)

What I’ve been up to:

Pattern: Adult Mary Jane “Skimmers”, by Sylvia Schuchardt
Yarn: Lion Brand Cotton Ease, various colors
Hook: 5.5 mm (I)

I made a couple more than the ones posted above; they were fast, and they were fun. But it was even more fun to watch my friends’ faces as they excitedly tried on their new MJs. They make great house slippers or anytime you want to keep your feet warm and comfy. And best of all, they are machine washable! The pattern comes in various sizes, and are pretty true to size. My first one, though, was a bit messed up because I didn’t read the directions correctly; for the body of the shoe – I doubled the yarn when I shouldn’t have. If you don’t make stupid mistakes like that, you should come out with exactly what the pattern says it ought to be – a great pair of Mary Janes! =)

*Last picture courtesy of Christy & Marin – Thanks Christy for the camera pic, and thanks Marin for being a lovely foot/leg model! =)

My brain is all over the place. My house is in complete disarray as well (often times, they go hand in hand for me). Now that weddings and showers are no longer on my calendar this summer, I’m determined to clean up. Laundry, clutter, sanity, etc.

I feel all over the place with my crafts too. It’s like my brain is going to explode. There are only 24 hours in a day, and I don’t have enough internal capacity to pursue all the interesting things out there! I have just recently signed up for a photography class this fall. I’m combining my wirework interests with newfound interests in metalwork (see my new favorite toy below). Firing up this baby is SO MUCH FUN. I never knew there was an inner pyro in me. After my first torch class, I want to fire up EVERYTHING!

I’ve also been playing around with jewelry. It’s been a year since I’ve been addicted, and the beading obsession is still growing strong. Here’s a little peek:

Lastly, how could I not mention any fiber crafts? After all those squeal-licious booties, I got to doing an adult-sized version (yes, there’s a pattern for this too).

The stupid thing is, I wasn’t paying attention to the pattern, and I made it slightly too big for my own foot (I crocheted with a double strand of yarn rather than a single strand). I wear a size 8.5, and I think this will fit a 9 or 10. I’ll be throwing this in the washer and dryer to block it anyways (I’m using Cotton Ease) so we’ll see how it turns out and whether it changes the fit or not.

Ok, off to cleaning the kitchen and doing laundry! Whoopee! (Can you hear the sarcasm through your computer screen?)

His and hers!!

First, one more Mary Jane, in pink and green as suggested:

And now, for the boys! I love these little loafers!!

Pattern: Little Button Loafers, by Sylvia Schuchardt (see note below)
Yarn: Lion Brand Cotton Ease, various colors
Hook: 3.5mm hook (E)
Notions: sewing needle, embroidery thread, coordinating buttons
Notes:

The soles are pretty much the same as Sylvia’s other booties patterns. Although, with this particular pattern, I had some trouble. But I improvised. As a knitter, crochet is still a relatively new thing for me; the style and nature of this craft is a tad different from what I’m used to. But no matter, I was able to make do, and as  Tim Gunn from Project Runway says, “make it work!” =)

Other than that, these were super cute and super fast to make. I don’t like hand sewing buttons, but my motivation to put the buttons on was to have a uber cute finished product. Ta-da!

As promised, a couple pairs of mini Mary Janes! These went so quick, I feel like I can make a billion of them. I’ll be mailing these to Natasha. I hope she gets the package before she sees this blog post… but I have a feeling she’ll see this before she gets the mail. (Hi Tash! Hope you like them! Congrats!) =)

Blue/green:

Brown/pink:

Pattern: Baby Mary Jane “Skimmers”, by Sylvia Schuchardt
Yarn: Lion Brand Cotton-Ease, in various colors; Lake, Lime, Hazelnut, Berry
Hook: 3.5mm (E)
Notes:

Pattern
This pattern is very detailed and very well written! Make sure you count each stitch, however. If you’re off by one, it throws the whole pattern off, that’s how specific it is. And it goes really fast. I can finish a newborn pair in one afternoon. I love it!

Yarn
A bit on the splitty side for this type of project; you are using a worsted weight yarn with a 3.5mm hook, so things are going to be dense and a little tight (which is intentional). Slightly frustrating at first, until I loosened my grip a tad. Love the colors and the fact that it’s machine washable, of course!

What other color combos do you guys think would be cute?

I’ve only made one and I am completely in love with this pattern. I couldn’t wait to finish the matching pair to share with you, I’m bursting with excitement.

I’m making them newborn size; although, my gauge is probably a tad larger than it ought to be.

I’ll post details when I actually finish with a full pair (or two). I’ve had a really full month, and yesterday was an emotional and physically taxing day. This project is a wonderful and relaxing distraction (plus, it’s obnoxiously quick!). I’m off to Monterey this weekend with some of my good friends for a short time of some needed r&r. Can’t wait!

This one is for Josh and Tracy. They are due end of July, and I’ll be gifting this to them some time this week. I didn’t have time to finish it by the shower date (which was this past weekend). I was busy with the shower details and games and such – which, by the way, was loads of fun and I’ll have to post pictures of that sometime soon!

Pattern: Eyelet Stroller Blanket by Paula Fisher
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Sport in Green Apple (8 skeins) and Grass (2 skeins)
Hook: Size F (3.75 mm)
Notes:

Pattern
Easy. It’s pretty much double crochet stitches all the way down, with strategically placed eyelets here and there for a simple flower motif throughout the blanket. I’m not really in love with the double crochet look (I like my stitches to be more dense and close together), but since this pattern calls itself a “stroller” blanket, then OK, it’s not meant to be a heavy and dense blanket to keep you warm. A bit monotonous, but great while watching TV or bringing to a social knitting night like my local Stitch ‘n Bitch group. Cute and simple.

Yarn
I love Shine, and their variety of colors (not to mention Knit Pick prices, of course). Shine Sport was a bit thinner than the recommended yarn in this pattern, and I went down a couple hook sizes to accommodate, and make the stitches look a bit more dense. I also did a handful more of repeats (total of 8.5 repeats) until I wanted the blanket size I wanted. And just to make things interesting, I made the scalloped border a different color. I love how Shine is machine washable, made of a cotton blend (great for summer babies), soft and cool at the same time. It’s a bit more elastic than I hoped for, but no matter, hope my friends love it.