Itsy Bitsy Messenger Bag

I've been trying to find time to start up a pattern business, but I've found that even though I can read any crochet or knit pattern, in symbols or by chart, it's harder to write them for someone else to be able to follow!  This purse is an example of my first attempt at such a thing.  I'm still working on the pattern--even though I can recreate it (and have, several times over!) I'm working on making it so that even a beginner crocheter could successfully make it.

At first, I made it without the flap, but I really like it better with it! It makes the perfect size messenger bag for my daughter's American Girl dolls, or she can carry it for herself. I admit I don't love it in this particular shade of green (although I do think it looks better in person--trying to capture it's color is hard to do) I do love this yarn--Caron Simply Soft Party.  It comes in several fun, bright shades, all with a bit of sparkle thread running through it.  There's a cobalt blue that's really pretty, plus a bright pink, purple, white, and this green.  You can find it at JoAnn's- that's where I got it-but today I'm heading to Michael's and I hope to find it there as well.

When I finally have the pattern finished, I'll post a link to my Etsy shop for anyone interested in buying it.  I'll include several options for the finished bag--with or without the flap, plus options for the strap.  It will also make a really cute Easter purse for a little girl; in fact, that's what I plan to do with the new yarn I buy today! I'll probably add some flowers to make it much more Spring-timey.  I'll show you all what it looks like when I finish!

Vanessa

A Beaded Crochet Necklace for a Dear Friend

A good friend is celebrating her birthday this weekend, and I knew she would appreciate something handmade, so I set about trying to think of something she'd like.  I know she loves to shop and look good, so of course jewelry came to mind fairly quickly!  And, I wanted to make something crocheted.  This beaded necklace was the perfect solution.

I love these colors, they are my favorite and they happen to look great on my friend as well :-)  Let's see what I started with:

Silver DMC embroidery thread...of course any color would work!

Glass beads..I kept the sizes separated because I wanted to space the larger beads between the smaller ones...

Two clamshell crimp beads.  You will also need a closure of some sort, which I don't picture here.  (see below in my final product for my attempt and getting a picture of it!)

 Using a beading needle, I then strung the beads onto the thread.  Don't be afraid to put too many on, because you don't need to use all the beads you put on, but you won't be able to add beads once you've started your chain.

 I forgot to mention that I (sort of!) wound the thread into a ball.  It wasn't easy, at least for me, but if I hadn't done it then the thread would have knotted up on itself!

Start making a foundation chain with a very small hook.  Slide down the first bead when you're ready to add one....

  With the bead up against the last chain you made, make the next chain right over it...it's easier to do than to explain!

  

Just keep crocheting the chain and sliding the beads down the thread to add them in when you wish.  When you get it as long as you like, finish off just like a crochet chain by pulling the tail through the last chain made.  Make sure you leave enough of a tail to work with later!  I made three chains, but you can do as many as you like.

I tried to get a picture of the clasp here.  Basically, thread the ends of your chains through the bottom of the clamshell, then tie a knot with all the threads at once and slide it down as tight as you can against the open part of the clamshell.  Place a little dab of glue or clear nail polish on the knot, then close the clamshell shut.  Add your clasp and you're finished! Want to see it again?

This was simple to make, and it went together very quickly.  All told, it took me two hours to make this, and that included time out to paint my daughter's fingernails! I'm sure with no interruptions, it would take an hour or less to make a beautiful piece of jewelry for yourself or as a unique gift!

Thanks for reading!

Vanessa

Snow in the Desert

I live in Southern California, in a rural area that is between our very own wine country and the resort city of Palm Springs, one of the hottest places in the summer with temperatures reaching over 110 degrees Fahrenheit every year.   One of the things that makes this area geographically unique is that we have these extremes of super hot, dry, heat right alongside regions with high elevations and snow skiing in winter.  My house is in between, not being quite so hot as Palm Springs, and being at high enough elevation to give us snow once or twice each winter.  Today my children were elated to wake up to a couple of inches of freshly laid snow, and it is a day off from school to boot so they could play all morning in it!

The beauty of this snow is that by the end of the day most of it will be gone, and other than picking up a few broken branches from around our property there will be no clean up, like those of you in the really cold northern locales have to deal with every winter!

















All this cold weather got me thinking it was really time to work on a new blanket for my younger son (he's the happy one above getting ready to chuck some snow at me!) We're in the planning stages of redecorating his bedroom, and we've chosen a contemporary color palette of teal blue, grey, orange and lime green, so of course, these are the colors I've chosen to do his blanket in.

I made this sample swatch in a wave and cluster pattern, and while I like the look of it, I'm not crazy about how stiff the finished fabric feels, and the clusters use up quite a bit of yarn.  So, I'm going to skip the clusters and make a wavy chevron instead.  I like the color sequence though!

Before I settled on a striped pattern, I had tried making a couple of squares in the same colored yarns.  This twisted square was a really fun one:

  And then, there was this one below:

I really liked this square, but I thought it would be too feminine for my soon-to-be eleven year old son!  (Happy Birthday tomorrow to him!)  Maybe I'll use it in softer colors for my daughter some day.

So that's what's going on in my brain today with crochet!  Happy hooking to the rest of you!

Vanessa

Cute and Quick Hat

Sometimes you never know where you are going with a project until it's finished.  This morning's crochet undertaking is an example of that.  It was a perfect morning--quiet, with the kids sleeping in after staying up way too late last night with friends.  As we are usually very busy with outside activities and school, having a day at home is a gift not to be squandered! It was a good opportunity to just sit and play with yarn.

So, I sat down with my coffee, fingers itching with anticipation.  First, I worked for a bit on the Diamond Carat scarf I posted about yesterday.  But, I wanted to make something and complete it--remember the crafting ADD?  Hats are the perfect sort of project for that, especially in a super bulky yarn. I picked up this Wool-Ease Thick & Quick yarn by Lion Brand Yarns right after Christmas when Wal-Mart had a great sale on it--only $1.88 a skein!  So I grabbed a big hook and got started, shaping the hat as I went.  A couple of rounds got ripped out as I went along, as I knew I wanted it shaped like a beret,  but not too big, and I wasn't completely sure what number of stitches was going to accomplish that goal.  Finally, I came up with a cute hat that fit my adult head fine, if a little snugger than I wanted, but looked perfect for my 8-year-old daughter, especially with a felt flower added to it (which I made for her as a barrette a few month back). What do you think?

I think it took me all of an hour and a half to make this, maybe two.  Considering I was making it up as I went along, I think I could make another in much less time!  I could post the pattern if anyone is interested; just leave me a message in feedback and I will!

Have a great Sunday!

Vanessa

Diamond Carat Scarf from Ravelry

Wow! Two posts in one day!  Well, technically three, since my other post just below this is to direct folks over to my "What's Cooking" page.

I want to start posting about all the different projects I'm currently working on.  I'm hoping for some feedback, plus a way to encourage myself to finish a little more quickly than it sometimes takes!  I've joked to friends that I have "Crafting ADD"; what I mean is that I will start something, then go "Ooo, look at that!" and run off to start something else, then before you know it, yet another project will catch my eye and I can't think of anything else until I start THAT one!  Can anyone else relate?

This scarf I started back before Christmas.  It was the first of at least three projects I began as a gift for someone, only to go on to something else.  I have to admit--I'm kind of glad I didn't give this away, because I really like the pattern and I really, really like the yarn.  ;-)  I'm a little embarrassed to show it in this state, especially once I show you a picture of the finished scarf from the Ravelry website, where you can also go to buy this pattern.

(BTW--I have no special affiliation with Ravelry nor do I gain anything from suggesting this pattern.)  

I usually have fairly even stitches, so I'm going along with the idea that mine doesn't look right yet since it needs to be blocked--yeah, that's it ;-)  The pattern also has a row of Tunisian crochet blocks, and I've never done any Tunisian crochet before, so there's a bit of a learning curve here.

In the next few weeks I'll post updates to this project, plus add some other projects I'm working on.  I also have a pattern I've created for a little purse for my daughter and her friends that's perfect for her to carry or for her to with her 18" doll (you know the one!).  It's the first pattern I've ever written, and I've made it three times, and now I'm waiting for some feedback from a good friend who has kindly agreed to try it out!  When I know it's good, I'll post it here!

Happy hooking!!

Vanessa

Valentine's Cup Cozy and Coasters for Friends...

Happy Valentine's Day!  I don't have much planned for today, since it's the middle of the week and we have other obligations tonight, but Hubby and I are going to go out tomorrow night and catch a movie, something we rarely do, especially a grown-up movie without the kids!

Eventually, I'd like my blog to have interesting patterns and current projects to inspire others and hopefully get some feedback from all the creative folks out there.  But, since I'm just starting up I thought I'd put up a few pictures of one of the most recent projects I made.  

I apologize straight out for the poor quality of the photos.  I am NOT a photographer, and I know that I have much to learn!  With these photos I've tried using a do-it-yourself light box and an Ott lamp source.  Well, let's just say I have more work to do! 

A group of friends and I meet once a month for Girl's Night Out....also known as GNO.  It's potluck, with the hostess providing the main course and everyone else bringing side dishes, desserts, and drinks.  Husbands and kids are NOT ALLOWED!!  I think we're going on three years now, and while we may have skipped a month or two, we've always managed to stick to our rules and honestly, I think some of the  husbands are starting to have as much fun taking the kids out!  We play a game, usually a card game or dice, and then exchange gifts with a friendly "Now You Have It, Now You Don't" style.  It's fun!  This month I've made crocheted coasters and a cup cozy to match, with a cute heart in honor of Valentine's Day.

I used Sugar and Cream cotton yarn in variegated pink and white for the centers, and used white for the border.  These are the coasters....

I then cut out a couple of heart shapes from some felt, in a light pink and a darker pink, and hand-stitched them together...we'll call it "rustic" since my stitching is far from perfect! 

Then I stitched the hearts to the cup cozy....

I thought it turned out pretty cute!  I'm not showing how the cozy is made since I need a button to finish it, and I don't have one in my stash so I've temporarily pinned the cozy on. :-)

Here are the all coasters and the cup cozy.  Since our rule is no gift over $10, I don't think I'll give the coffee cup as part of the gift.  That's okay, since I'm sure most of my friends are like me and have way too many mugs in their cupboards!

That's all I have for today. What kind of things do you all do with your friends?  I'd love to hear from you!   Thanks for stopping by!

Vanessa