Finished Objects

I have pictures of a few FO of the many I did this season that I can share with you.

I suppose we can start with the shortened version of the vest I have made. I shortened it for my sister and made it small and short for my niece. She seems happy with it.

Now her mother's version.

This side of my family is so very good about actually modeling their things for me! I can't thank them enough.

I also made Mary a cowl. They live in California put certain times of the day can get windy and chilly I have been told. She layers well.

She can wear a hat of any kind. Actually both she and her daughter can. I like to make hats for them and should do it more often.

I've made cowls for my mom and one of my other sisters and couple for me. I just do not have pictures of these yet.

Here is my baby sister in hers. I have such beautiful sisters.

Now for my beautiful mother.

I made a few hats and scarves for some men.My oldest.

Here's a sweater I made for myself!

And fingerless mittens. I've given most of them away already but here is a pair (well one of a pair) I kept for myself.

Aunt Mary's Gift Commissioned By Mom

I'm going to make me one of these. I just love it and it looks so good on Aunt Mary in the pictures she just texted me. It is made form #10 cotton thread and it's well worth the effort that is.

You can find the pattern here. I took the liberty of changing the yarn it was made with. I feel I got something heirloom and elegant out of it. I hope Aunt Mary does as well.

Just in the mood to try and share something.

I've been working on many things this last month or so. Some for gifts, some as orders and some for me. I've made cowls (which I think I like the big ones I can cover my head with better than hats and scarfs) and vests, and fingerless clothes, and hats and scarves and infinity scarves.

I also made a true mobius scarf that I tried very hard to take a picture of myself wearing today. It did not go well but I put so much effort into it that I feel the need to post one just because I spent so much time on it. With my work schedule to day, I do not have more time to invest.

So, here is the poorly done picture. It makes the scarf look bulgier than it seems to be. It is made out of a sport weight yarn, and a bit stretchy. The yarn is a gala yarn that I happened across at Big Lots so I know I can't find it in regular stores or order it.

My shawl

As I wait on yarn for the projects I have orders for, I'm trying to finish up a few things (I never post a WIP here for some reason) and make a few small projects.

I finished the shawl I was making out of fingering weight yarn. I really like the yarn and when I found it on sale, I bought it knowing I'd make something out of it when I could. I later found the pattern for the shawl. I fell in love with the border I think. And that's what my husband liked about it best as well. Also, he was very happy that I made it for myself.

I have a couple of pics I took with my cell phone today because I haven't had time to get any others done. I'll post those for now and try to get some more later.

I finished the sweaters for Aunt Mary's grandchildren!

I've had an order in for these for a while now but, since they are Christmas gifts, other things got completed first.

Aunt Mary chose a pattern but, I really should have tested it before letting it be the one she chose from. Some things were not well written for me and some things I didn't like and some things just weren't working correctly since she wanted a solid color and this pattern was stripped.

I ended up modifying the pattern so much that I will not even list it here and it basically ended up being a new one. I should have written it down as I went along. I know this. I just am so lax in doing that. I don't keep good records of things I have made in case I need to go back and make another for someone else. I need to make that a goal of mine to get better.

Any way, here they are and I really hope she likes them.

Matching Shrugs for Sisters

I have a shrug like this one and I've given a couple as gifts. These are the first two I have sold.

Though I only took a a picture of one, sister got it just a like color and size.

Wedding Gift Finished!!

I was worried about completing my nephew's wedding gift since he had to move his wedding date up more than an month. I finished it. His wedding is this Saturday. Now I need to concentrate on making sure I get all the pics of the day he wants.

He doesn't even know about this blog so I feel it is safe to post the pics now. My sister in California can see them and be included before the wedding day like everyone else if I do.

Market Bags....My Designs

I made (and posted pics here) of market bags a while ago. They didn't hold up to my shopping at a supermarket the way I was wanting. I like the bags and may try them in a smaller size but they weren't what I was needing for this.

I finally thought about just making my own and not using a pattern by someone else. I did and I'm pleased with the results of the bags (though not so much with the quality of the pictures I have of them). They are more solid. More sturdy. I started with a solid bottom for them and went from there. I wanted a bit of a pattern to them. I wanted them to look nice. Pleasing and practical was my goal.

Friend's gift

I have a friend I work with that is leaving. I'll miss her both professionally and personally. But this is a good thing for her. A few of us are all going to lunch with her today before her last day here. Though I don't expect her and I to totally lose touch, I have made her a gift. And if using it keeps me in here mind and her in touch more often, that won't hurt my feelings. :)

Dish towel, dishcloth and sponge.

She had her birthday!

Gwendolyn's birthday was Saturday and she opened her gifts. She called and told me they were adorable!

I myself am a bit disappointed. The pants are too short. How did I mess up on that? I have trouble getting the gauge sometimes but it's always bigger. I have to use smaller hooks to get it right.

Here at the pics.

Anxious

I'm anxiously awaiting the birthday of my niece. I want to know what she thinks about her gift. I can't post it here yet on the off chance that she will visit the blog. I'm just rather pleased with the gift and I want to see the pictures her mom sends me of it. I'll post them here.

Daphne

I was raised in a houseful of girls but, out of the 8 children my sisters and I have, only two of them are girls. I have lovely nieces. Here is a picture of the oldest one and the one that hasn't appeared on this blog before (doesn't she have a beautiful smile?). She's wearing a smaller version of the vest my family likes.

Mom's Shawl

It has taken this long for me to receive pictures of Mom's gift. And she isn't even the model. Mary is such a great sister for doing this.

Festival Booth

I plan on having a booth at the local festival in October. A sorta combination booth of a side business and a hobby. Avon and crochet. I've been making some things up for the booth and I'll try to get them all laid out at once soon to post a picture on here.

I came across pictures I had made of some wine bottle covers for my etsy store and I have made some along these lines for the festival. I thought I'd share these while I was thinking about them.

Gwendolyn's Market Bag

I've had this bag made for her for months and just have not gotten it into the mail. Not something to be remotely proud of. I sent it back with her mom from our weekend together. My niece is not afraid to do some modeling for me. She'd beautiful. Oh yes, she also wore the headband I sent.

I made her a different kind of bad than I made her mom and a smaller version of the ones I've already posted here.

Long Vest

I had this hankering for a long vest and I searched for what I was looking for. I eventually bought a pattern and modified it some to come up with this one.

Over my sister weekend I did give away both the long and short version I had made but I'll just make me another one. Mary got the long one but Jennifer may get one too since she said she liked it. I'll be contacting her today to see what color she would like and try to have it ready for her when she visits later in the month.

Here is my lovely sister modeling the vest.

I have such a special sister. She's giving this to our mother and is willing to wait on me to make her another one. So, that's three more I need to make. One for Mary, one for Jennifer and one for me. Here's a picture of my lovely mother modeling the vest.

Mary's Afghan

I've had Mary's afghan done for a couple of weeks. I just didn't want to post a pic her since she is one of the few people who actually looks at what I post here. I wanted her to see it live and in person first. I took it to her for our sister weekend and now I have a picture with her covered in it and one close up of the pattern.

I ordered this yarn and, while I really like the yarn (Bernat Satin), my monitor did NOT show the color well at all. It was far from what I was expecting. She liked it though.

You can find this pattern here.

Baby Gift

I like that the colors new mother's are picking out for their newborns are not just the traditional pastel ones. I was asked to make a baby gift for a friend to give at a shower she was attending this past weekend. She gave me the invitation so that I could get the colors from it.

The parents have chosen not to find out the sex of their child before it is born. Something that I don't come across often these days. They chose brown, a sun yellow (not pastel so much) and a green that could be called olive or sage.

My friend liked the idea of washcloths and bibs for the baby. The washcloths had to be made in cotton and I used the same for the bibs. The color of the photo once again isn't the best but I do liked how they turned out.

Summer Sweater

I found this pattern that I loved. I didn't have the brand of yarn it called for but I chose to substitute another of the same size/weight. The yarn it called for was a satin and the one I used wasn't so I knew it would drap a bit differently. I'm going through an experimenting phase with yarn I believe.

I don't normally do pastels for myself but this is a lovely shade of peach (the picture doesn't do it justice) and I used a dark brown for the contrasting color and that is in a thread.

Teal Shrug

I got this cute sundress while visiting our son in Panama City. With the addition of a sweater or something I felt it would be appropriate for work as well. I set out in search of what I that something to accessorize it with would be. I didn't want anything too big or too heavy or too hot.

I found the pattern for this shrug and I made it in teal. The dress is mostly purple with some white and gold and teal (that being the least prevalent in the dress). I wanted a color that would pop with the vivid dress color and I chose the teal.

Here's a picture of the shrug on a hanger. It just now occurred to me that it would be nice to see it with the dress as well. I'll try to get that pic soon and add it.

Supplies

I believe that I've found the yarn I want to use for Mary's afghan. Online of course. I have very limited access to yarn in the town I live in. Walmart is it. Now, they do sell two of my favorite yarns in limited colors.

Traveling an hour to the nearest city gets me a Joann's and a Michaels. While I am thankful for them, they do not stock as much yarn as sister stores in other cities. And there are so many more yarns online than can be found any where I've purchased yarn. I think I'm going to have to order what I want for this afghan. I have a small issue with that. I like to touch a yarn I haven't used before. I like to see it and feel it. I have don't mind at all ordering a yarn I can't get locally that I have used before.

I believe that I've decided on a satin acrylic for this afghan. It will be a good texture, should show stitches well, and will be easily maintained.

Of course, I suppose one could also consider me lucky not to have a good variety near me to choose from. Otherwise, I may would bankrupt us purchasing what I found that appealed to my sight and touch.

It's a catch 22 isn't it?

Netbook Sleeves

I have a friend that recently purchased what she calls her "mini laptop". I offered to crochet her a sleeve for it. She's very supportive of my crochet endeavors and, for me, it's a reward to crochet for someone who truly likes what you are doing.

She gave me the measurements for this. It's the first time I've designed something with strictly measurements. She likes earth colors and I believe I incorporated the ones she specifically mentioned.

I got graph paper out and really went to a lot of thought on the one with the squares but it didn't turn out quite like I had thought it would. And I was careful with the seams but maybe because of the thickness of the yarn ( I wanted it to protect the netbook) the just don't look as neat as others I have done.

Since I wasn't completely happy with that one, I set out to make a different design. This one I just started crocheting and measured as I went and decided what I wanted as I went. I actually like this one the best.

The open along different sides. Now, we'll wait to see which one she likes the best.

Mom's Birthday/Mother's Day Gift

Mom has been wanting/asking for a summer shawl of some type and for it to be white.

Here's what I made her.I used this pattern but used a light weight yarn instead and still used the N hook. Which left me unsure of how I liked the stitches to begin with. It grew on me as I made this. (I ripped it out three times.) It has a lacy feel and look to it. It is so lightweight to hold....airy. BTW, I did add repeats to make it wider since I used a smaller yarn and I wanted to make sure it was wide enough.

Hopefully, I'll be able to update this post with a picture of her modeling it. I'm going to ask my sister that is taking it to her to get one for me.

I'm partial to shawls and wraps and while working on Mom's I realized that none of the ones I have are really suitable for summer. So, I did decide in the end that I would try this pattern in a different yarn for myself. I go this on a great sale. I liked the colors and bought it with nothing in mind to use it for. It's a lightweight Bernat Satin. I love the feel of this yarn and it has been a pleasure to work with...it just glides over my hook. I'll definitely be getting some more of this. Here's the work in progress with Mom's to hopefully show the difference in how the same pattern can look with a different yarn.

I've Been Busy Lately

I've been a bit busy in the crochet arena lately. Since I'm still deciding what yarn to make my sister's afghan, and the money to purchase it, I've used some things I had on hand.

I came across a couple of yarns on sale without a complete idea of what I would use them for. They were yarns I've never used and I have been wanting to try new ones lately.

The first was a couple of skeins of Paton's Lace. I made this hat and scarf from that. The pattern is a diagonal stitch that I've never done before. I do like how it turned out.