It's Not Easy, Being Green

I based this on the flower garland I made a few weeks back. The only thing I did different was to sew beads on a few of the petals. Sort of tough to see in the photos, but they're there if you squint!

Flowery

What to do with a small amount of leftover sock yarn? Make a flower garland! This was a fun, slightly mindless (in a good way) project. Lately I've found Stiff Drinks and Movies are not a good combination when crafting. Working on something repetitive and simple is the solution to the problem.

It's a bit off, but hung up over the window it's really cheery. My mom mentioned it would make a fun necklace and I think she's on to something. I'm going to have another go at this with some cotton thread and see what I can whip up.

A Pillow and a Pie

Granny squares are insanely addictive. I think I want to make a dozen more of these pillows. My wrist (ouch) might disagree, but this is seriously fun. I backed it with a leftover sheet and stuffed it with the insides of an old pillow. Is it lumpy? Yes. But is bright, colorful and flies in the face of all the snow outside? Yes, yes and yes.

I didn't make this pie. I wish I did. If I had made it the crust would be a) black and b) crumbling into disrepair. Instead I bought the pie at an indoor farmer's market last weekend. Held at a lovely warm greenhouse, this petite pastry was calling my name. At five inches wide it was almost too cute to eat. Almost.

Squared

I stayed small. Well, small-ish. Here's the makings of a pillow, one huge granny square I suppose? Alternating colors mean I don't fall asleep while working on it, but an easy to memorize stitch means I can hold a conversation while working without herculean effort. I have some cotton thread that I bought for about ten cents a piece at a yard sale and I'm thrilled to be able to finally find a way to eat away at the stash.

There's seems to be something a bit off about the way I'm adding the new colors. Rats. I'm not going to look at that area; ignorance is bliss.

And speaking of bliss, it's a three day weekend. I am celebrating with a stiff drink and catching up on "Cranford" tonight on PBS.

Hunkered Down

I've been wanting to knit granny squares really badly, but have been having serious trouble figuring the darn thing out. When I was at the library the other week though I spotted Maggie Righetti's "Crocheting in Plain English." I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I liked the cover so much I checked it out sight unseen. Chalk one up to being a graphic designer.

Last night I sat down (armed with a glass of wine) to try to figure out how to crochet a granny square. After a couple minutes it just clicked - something I owe to the crystal-clear descriptions in the book. Different strokes for different folks, but the whole thing finally made sense and I have been struggling for months to get this. Now I have visions of afghans and pillows dancing in my head. I probably should play it safe though and start out with a scarf or something.

And I am still working on the nieces' nightgowns. There is pink floral flannel everywhere. Two down, one to go is the status report. I was super disappointed I couldn't get them done in time for Christmas, but it actually worked out better perhaps because I got to check out how much the girls had grown since I'd seen them last and now I can adjust the hem-lengths accordingly. I'm hoping to get the nightgowns finished up before the end of the month. That's the good thing about a craft blog; the glaring reality of what projects I still have on my plate. Keeps me slightly more honest, right?

My Mom gave me a stem of tea roses from a bouquet she'd bought recently. Most of the buds shriveled up (*shakes fist at grocery store*), so I cut off a few stems before throwing the rest out. They're looking a little worn, but it's nice having something green and growing in the dead of winter.

Oh, and I just realized Spud and Chloe yarns has some free patterns on their site; super cute! I'm totally in love with the apple hat and am dying to knit one for my youngest niece.

What Tangled Webs

If you know anything about crochet, you can probably tell that I know very little about crochet. Let's just get that out in the open.

I've been knitting since I was a teenager, but been trying to teach myself crochet over the course of the past few months. Success has been limited. I managed a granny square a few weeks back, but that involved a lot of ripping out, gnashing teeth and general unpleasantness.

I've got a no longer wearable long sleeved t-shirt though that needs some revamping. I've cut it open to make a cardigan a la Angry Chicken and want to gussy it up a bit with some crochet. I'm in need of an instant gratification project and I think this fits the bill.

I'm stumbling along with the crochet making this up as I go. I'm trying to be less uptight with some of this stuff and just enjoy the process. I ended up stitching this to the back of the cardigan, then cutting away the fabric underneath. I'll get some pictures when the sun chooses to make another appearance (no, I'm not a fan of diminishing daylight).

Mushrooms In Your Hair

Awhile ago I was browsing D. Blümchen & Company's website and stumbled across the miniature mushrooms they had in stock. Um, hello awesomeness.

I've been thinking about what to do with them for awhile and finally decided on a headband. The base is crocheted with black thread I found at a yard sale and the rosette is a yoyo made from scrap black lining fabric I had on hand. Some glue, and voila, the finished product.