Finished Blanket, Scarves, and Photos

Thanks to everyone for all your good health wishes. I am feeling a lot better; still a little achy and I tire easily, but much better.
It's almost Friday, so I'll let you see what I finished this week.

I finally finished the Drop in the Pond Lapghan! And not a moment too soon; my friend's birthday was today. She really liked it :-)

I started another yo yo afghan.

I've been making yo yos since July for this one, just a few here and there with any little bits of yarn I have, and I hadn't planned on assembling it until I had all 500 done (I have 270 so far). But my friend, Kay, really wanted to learn how to make and assemble her own yo yo afghan, so I showed her how.

I'm still making Ruffled scarves.

They're a lot of fun :-)
I have to find a new stashbuster project. I'm thinking something heart related.
I'm headed to bed; it's been a long day. Thanks for reading!
Blessings :-)

Photo a Day January 30, 2013

Yesterday's prompt was Down. Not very original, but I took a picture looking down into one of my WIP baskets.

Photo a Day January 31, 2013

Today's prompt was Yourself. I am not having a good photo day, so I'm skipping this one. New month starts tomorrow :-) Where did January go?

Daily Inspiration

 

Scrapbuster Finished!

OK, not really. But it's super close! I was trying so hard to finish it last night. I got all the crocheting done (unless I decide to make a decoration for it), but was too tired to sew it together.
I know it's been driving some of you crazy wondering what it is :-) I won't keep you in suspense any longer.
The round thing you saw before

was the bottom for my new

extra large bag! Made entirely from scrap yarn :-) The pattern can be found over at Attic 24. I love all of Lucy's bright colorful creations.
That's all for now; I'm off to my hair appointment. I'll be back later with some more things.
Thanks for reading!
Blessings :-)

Catching Up

I'm back :-) At least, I hope I am. I've been off and on sick for the last week and a half. I had a nasty sinus infection followed by a bad cold. The worst part is I'd be sick for a day or two, be fine for a day, be sick for a day, be fine for two, and so on. Can't shake it completely. I still have my cold but am able to sort of function.

Due to my fuzzy head, I've been unable to follow any patterns that require more than two different stitches. I tried, and frogged, several projects over the last week and a half. I did finish a couple things on my good days.

The A La Mode Boa Scarf:

Here's a closeup of the chains:

I finished the Cascade Scarf:

I found a tutorial online and made T-shirt yarn from a T-shirt I got at a yard sale for 10 cents. Then I turned the yarn into a trivet.

I'm past the halfway point on my Stashbuster project and will reveal it soon. No one's guessed what it is yet, although I've enjoyed all the guesses.

I made 3 more Ruffled Scarves from Sashay yarn, but haven't taken any pictures.

I haven't done any mini projects for the week or any dishcloths since last week because I've been sick. I'm hoping to catch up on those soon; well, as soon as I can follow a pattern again!

I hope you're all doing well and staying healthy :-)

Dishcloth a Day #19

Shells in a Row Dishcloth
This one was fun. I'd never tried the FPDC and BPDC before.

Dishcloth a Day #20

Granny's Path Dishcloth
This was a nice combination of traditional granny and solid granny.

Dishcloth a Day #21

Daydreaming DishclothAnother nice, textured one from Heather at The Good Life.

Dishcloth a Day #22

 Garden Flower Dishcloth
This pattern from Bernat is almost too pretty to be a dishcloth. It would make a nice doily instead.

Granny Square Saturday January 19, 2013

(I still need to make one for this past Saturday, the 26th)

Peace Sign Granny Square

This was not as hard as I thought it would be. Round 2 was definitely tricky, and it was a new experience working with 2 colors at once and inserting them at different stitches. But, on the whole, I really liked this one. Hope really likes it; she's into peace signs right now. She's asked for a blanket of these for her birthday in April, all different colors. I'll have to get moving on that.

Photo a Day January 18, 2013

Finally got my Shadow picture. This is Hope at the Museum of Science and Industry. She's playing in their shadow room; the butterflies are supposed to land on your shadow. There's another screen where fish will chase your shadow, and another one where little rocks will fall on your shadow and bury you. Fun.

Photo a Day January 19, 2013

The prompt was Delicious. What I liked was it didn't have to be food; it could be anything you thought was delicious. I love antique furniture; I love to look at it, touch it, imagine what I could do with it and where I could put it. I find it delicious.

Photo a Day January 20, 2013

The prompt was Something You Saw. We went to the Chocolate Festival at MOSI (the aforementioned museum). I took a lot of very cool pictures of what we saw; this was one of my favorites. It's an edible basket made from pretzels and modeling chocolate. Pretty cool, huh?

Photo a Day January 21, 2013

The prompt was What You Do. As a mom, I wear many hats, but the two main things I do are homeschool my daughter by day and sell jewelry by night. Now, where did I hang my cape?

Photo a Day January 22, 2013

The prompt was Corner. This is a wildflower garden planted on the corner a few blocks from our house. I love to see it in bloom each year.

 

Photo a Day January 23. 2013

The prompt was Electric. This one was tough to make interesting. I liked this Electric Fisherman I saw at Bass Pro Shops. I thought it was cute. 

Photo a Day January 24, 2013

The prompt was Stripes. A house a few blocks from ours (not the one with the garden, a different house) has Old Glory displayed proudly. Best stripes out there.

 Photo a Day January 25, 2013

The prompt was Landscape. This is out at the farm where Hope takes her horseback riding lessons. It's a very peaceful place to crochet.

Photo a Day January 26, 2013

The prompt was Together. These are Tim's favorite Muppets characters together on his computer monitor. 

Photo a Day January 27, 2013

The prompt was Sun. It was another overcast day (very warm, though), so I snapped a photo of the sun hiding in the clouds.

Photo a Day January 28, 2013

The prompt was Through. This is our bird, Tweety, through the bars of her cage. She's a little blurry in the photo because she was doing her "let me out, let me out" dance across her bar. She does that anytime I go near her cage door. She loves to sit on top of her cage and watch us without the bars in her vision.

Photo a Day January 29, 2013

Today's prompt was Grow. I took a picture of our dog, Sugar. She very quickly grew from a tiny puppy into the 80-pound beast she is now at 3 years old. She's a good dog; a little overprotective, not very bright, and totally ADHD, but a good dog.

I really enjoy the photo a day challenge, even if I have to take a few pictures a day because I get behind. It makes me really look at my surroundings and find the beauty in the ordinary.

Thanks for reading!

Blessings :-)

Finished Friday

Actually, it's not really Friday anymore; it's almost 1:00 in the morning where I am :-)

Ta Da! The Ruffled Scarf!

Close-up of the ruffles

This was sooo fun and easy to make! I can't wait to get some more Sashay yarn to make another.

I'm still working on the Cascade scarf and the A La Mode Boa Scarf. It's been a busy week and I haven't been home much. 

I love all your guesses on my Stash-buster project! So far, they've been:
-a stool cover
-a cushion
-a pillow (three guesses)
-a blanket (two guesses)
All great guesses! But, sadly, none of them are correct. Hmmm, I think I need to give a prize to the person who guesses correctly. What do you think?

I think I should head to bed. I have an all day scrapbooking party tomorrow and I don't want to fall asleep in my glue :-)

Dishcloth a Day #17

This is the Pansy Parade Dishcloth. It seems so small after the last two large ones I made! It was quick and easy to make (the best kind!) and has a reverse single crochet border on it (a stitch I need to practice more.)

Dishcloth a Day #18

The Between the Rows Dishcloth was another one that used a reverse single crochet border. I had to add a round of single crochets before I did the reverse single border; the pattern didn't say to, but I couldn't make the reverse single border look right without the single crochets as a base. It came out a little wonky and needs to be blocked, but I enjoyed working all the different stitches.

Photo a Day Challenge January 17, 2013

Yesterday's prompt was Ready. I took a picture of the things I had to get ready before I could leave to run errands: books to take back to the library, candles to be dropped off to a friend, and jewelry and catalogs that had to be mailed to different people.

I didn't take a picture today; the prompt was Shadow, but we had no sun today. I tried to take a picture of a shadow in the house, but it didn't come out right. I'm going to try again tomorrow.

Daily Inspiration

Thanks for reading!
Blessings :-)

 

WIP Wednesday

I've made some good crochet progress over the last week.
I finished my Ruffled scarf; I'll show you pictures of that Friday.
I'm plugging away on my Stash-buster project. Any guesses? Hint: It's not a rug.

I'm halfway done with my Cascade Scarf.

I started my A La Mode Boa Scarf. I'm not sure how many rows it will take to be as thick as I want it to be.

I resurrected a UFO today: my Granny Sampler Afghan.

My friend, Kay, and I made these together during the challenge, then we both bagged them and tucked them away. She's moving to Tennessee in March, so we decided it was now or never to assemble this. We made a little progress today.

I've also been working on the Polka Dot Blanket.

Sorry about the dark pictures; I've been having trouble with getting between too much light and not enough light with my photos. I need to start taking them during the day.
I hope you've made lots of progress on all of your WIPS this week :-)

Dishcloth a Day #16

The Granny Spokes Dishcloth was fun to make today. It's another great pattern from bestfreecrochet.com. It would make a great blanket square too (maybe without the border).

Photo a Day Challenge January 16, 2013

Today's prompt was Two Things. I'm not too happy with this picture; I figured I could find something more interesting to photograph besides my salt and pepper shakers. Oh, well.

Daily Inspiration

Thanks for reading!
Blessings :-)

Two Tuesday

Two Things I'm Grateful For:

1. Our 4H group. There's so much to love about our little club: we're all homeschool moms, we have a good mix of boys and girls of all ages, we do a lot of fun projects and field trips, and we have an awesome leader who is always there for us.

2. My techy husband. I know nothing about electricity; luckily, it's one of Tim's hobbies and passions. So when our 4H kids wanted to build gameboards for the fair, he volunteered to come in and teach the kids how. I don't know who had more fun today, the kids or Tim! 

Two Patterns I Think Are Neat:

1. Tiny one round hearts from Fiber Flux. Great for little bits of yarn lying around. She even gives you a great pattern for a wreath made with these.

2. Amigurumi doughnuts from Lion Brand. Cute and low in calories!

Dishcloth a Day #15

The Lacy Dishcloth from Sugar N Cream is certainly the largest dishcloth I've ever made. It came out to be about 12"x13"! It was fun to make, though; I got to practice the Long Double Crochet stitch.

Photo a Day Challenge January 15, 2013

Today's prompt was Ordinary Moment. That was tough! Watching my hubby fix cars is very ordinary for me so I took a picture of that. I usually stop by the shop where he works once a day to say hi or pick him up for lunch.

Daily Inspiration

The only real failure in life is the failure to try.

Thanks for reading!

Blessings :-)

Mini Monday

Whew! I'm glad the weekend is over! It was great but very busy.

We had our local conference Saturday for the jewelry company I work for.

Some of the new Spring jewelry line

 It was a lot of fun but a very long day; we left the house at 7:30 am and didn't get home until 8 pm. I made my dishcloth and granny square and went to bed.

Sunday, after church, we had to buy parts to make gameboards for 4H. While Hope stayed with a friend for the day, Tim and I went to 3 Radio Shacks to get enough buzzers, light bulbs, battery packs, wire and batteries for 9 boards (that's how many kids we have in our club who are doing gameboards for the fair). After we found everything, we went to Michael's where I bought some cotton yarn. I love it when it's on sale for $1 each! 

Then we went to Ikea for a little while before coming home. I cooked and ate dinner, made my dishcloth, and went to bed.

So, here we are on Monday, and it's been nice and relaxing so far. Hope and I had school this morning. I made my dishcloth and am now working on my Stash-buster Project.

For my Mini Monday project this week, I want to make some scarves.

I have this yarn picked out for a Cascade Scarf from A Little Slice of Life.

This yarn is for a Ruffled Scarf. There's no written pattern, just a YouTube video from Maggie Weldon of Maggie's Crochet.

And this is for an A La Mode Boa Scarf from Crochet Dreamz. With the exception of the Cascade Scarf (which seems to take forever to make), these are quick scarves to crochet, so I should be able to get all three done this week.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and a terrific Monday so far :-)

Dishcloth a Day #12

This is the Citrus Twist Dishcloth from The Good Life. It's a great pattern that works up quickly with a nice texture. Mine came out a little wonky, but I can fix that with a little blocking. I had trouble with the border; I can never seem to "single crochet evenly" down the side of anything. I'm hoping I get better with practice.

Dishcloth a Day #13

I really enjoyed making the Crocodile Scrub N Wipe Dishcloth from bestfreecrochet.com. I had never attempted the Crocodile Stitch before because it looked hard, but I found it to be pretty easy once I understood what "double crochet 4 times up the post of the next double crochet" meant. Blogger flipped my picture (again); the scales are the bottom of the dishcloth. It's meant to be folded in half; the scales do the scrubbing and the single crochets do the wiping. Neat, huh?

Dishcloth a Day #14

The SC 8 Point Round Dishcloth was fun to make today. It's a mini round ripple :-) I would advise using a stitch marker for the first couple rounds; I had a hard time seeing where each round began and ended because the single crochets don't have a lot of height.

Granny Square Saturday

I love the Spring Breeze Afghan Square from Priscilla's Crochet. I'm not sure why it looks crooked in the picture because it didn't come out that way. I made this one late on Saturday when I was really tired, and I wish I'd taken the time to make it multi-color. I think it would look like a flower square with the right color changes.

Photo a Day Challenge January 12, 2013

Saturday's prompt was Surprise. A tough one to capture. I took a picture of our new Spring jewelry catalog. Although it wasn't a surprise that we were getting it, it was a nice surprise to see a person modeling the jewelry on the cover. For all the years I've been a jewelry lady, our catalogs have always just had the jewelry on them.

Photo a Day Challenge January 13, 2013

Yesterday's prompt was Circle. I took a picture of my dinner (oops, cut off the corner; it doesn't look like a round plate anymore!). Yum, spaghetti and meatballs :-) I probably could have found a better picture while we were out and about, but I left my camera and prompt list at home. I have a camera on my phone, but not good Internet access. Live and learn.

Photo a Day Challenge January 14, 2013

Today's prompt is Yellow. This is Hope's cat, Oreo, laying claim to Sugar's yellow and white tug of war toy. (Sugar is Hope's dog.) Good thing Sugar was outside when I took this!

Daily Inspiration

Thanks for reading!

Blessings :-)