The living room looked like it threw up a bunch of yarn, so I then realized I needed to get busy on some blankets to donate.
Yarn has been put away and the living room is back to being the living room, ha ha!
I dug out my crochet/knit journal, and started to write down the yarn brands and colors for my current projects. I should have been doing this years ago, but it's getting done (so I can repeat one if I would like to).
. . .lap afghan started (to donate to a charity, senior center or other).
. . .a set of pot holders in progress (my on-the-go travel project). I am seeking out places to donate it to, and it may go to the Senior Center Bingo (for a prize). There is also another woman I know who collects items for women leaving battered life situations, and starting over with a new home.
Not my handiwork, but some we saw for sale.....
Oddly, anyone who doesn't crochet or knows their products, would not know that these were made with acrylic yarn. They were being sold as pot holder sets for $10.00. Anything hot will melt acrylic yarn, so these are not good for anything but a doily. Even cup/mug coasters should be 100% cotton, as well as any type of pot holder/hot pad. Just sharing some information. I thought it was a tourist trap item, trying to sell as "Amish made" and such.
The month of February typically is the month we tend to get the most snowfall. Now we are thawing out, and having some flooding. Heck, Wednesday we started out with everything frozen again, then snow showers, followed by a day of rain.
Yesterday we woke up to fog. The weather is all over the map right now. Just after dinner time last night, we had a rain shower.
Ribbit, Ribbit. 🐸 Sounds like Rip it, Rip it. It's where the term "frogging" a crochet project comes from. Ripping out stitches due to mistakes in previous rows.
I did more frogging this past week than I wish I had, ha ha! I worked on the blue and white baby blanket, but kept making mistakes. I am not sure if it was my husband talking to me, or if I was just having an "off" day. Ha. If fact, I had to rip out a few rounds last night (again) due to an extra stitch I had made in a previous row. I hope to get it finished soon.
. . . finished more books, so more matching granny squares for my "book" blanket. These books were both on my shelf for several years (other than the very last book). The first book granny square is a repeat photo from last Monday's post, but these are all the newest ones made for the "book" blanket. All of them have been crocheted to the blanket (other than the last three).
The "BAT" book was tucked into a drawer and forgotten about last year. My Mom gave me book #1 and I read it about a year ago, and bought book 2 and 3. She just handed me the book with a giggle, and told me I just had to read it. Hence the kids book included in my reading this year.
. . . some embellished paperclips, to use up the last bit of some crochet thread.
Lastly. . .
I found a new pacifier holder pattern, and I love it. Funny story about finding it. I went on a search, so I could make one to gift with the pink baby blanket soon.
I can't exactly remember how I saw the one I liked. Maybe doing an image search? Once I found the one I wanted, I checked Ravelry. All of the finished ones were noted with a pamphlet or copy of Crochet World Magazine. After extensive searching, I somehow found a book that it was published in, and wa-la, our library had a copy.
My first crocheted pacifier holders - Pattern is from Crochet Crowd. As you can see at the clip, it is rounded, and slides back and forth on the clip. It's cute, but I was not really that happy with the final results. I also had a hard time getting it to lay flat, even after blocking it.
These crochet up very quickly, and they fit the clip much better than the last pattern I used from Crochet Crowd (using #3 crochet thread). The pattern I used, uses #10 cotton crochet thread. I already had the clips, because I had made a few using the last pattern.
Last month, I was him-hawing about getting rid of a bag of misc. beads. I'm glad I did not. I used some jewelry supplies, jewelry tools, spare beads, and created a way to attach a row counter to my project bag (or project) for traveling. Talk about a happy gal. No purchases needed. The row counter actually came in a bag of odd assortments from a thrift store haul years ago.
Results? I love this for road trips or just any long drive with time to do handiwork. I still feel I will be using paper and pen any other time.
It's been raining here for the last two days, which has delayed any outdoor work, and the AC units have yet to be removed. It's a battle to get anything done after work hours, as the darkness sets in way too fast.
It's a very foggy morning this morning, and they are predicting a slight dusting of snow tomorrow (first snow of the season if it happens).
I don't lack indoor work at any rate. I started purging/cleaning/re-organizing both the utility room and the "office" and have started yet another donation box. I'm sort of ping-ponging around the house in hopes to complete areas of chaos, including Christmas totes. I'm going through the totes to remove any old, worn decorations, lights that don't work, and extra items we can live without.
I finally drained my homemade oregano oil for the winter. I plan on using it on homemade pizza as well as for an medicinal purposes.
I failed to re-stock the mouse traps, and our weather will be drastically changing, starting tomorrow (today is pretty chilly too). I do miss having a mouser around, so it's not off the possibility list just yet.
UPS delivered my new light bulbs (more on that later, but still looking for solar charging light bulbs), and it was pitch dark. I had turned the outside Christmas lights on the night before, to check all the bulbs, but my husband gave me the green light for turning them on for a few brief evening hours. Especially if the UPS guy needs extra light to make a delivery (he he!).
. . .update on crocheting hats for charity collections. I frogged so many patterns that I found online. I finally found a few that stitch up rather quickly, do not use a ton of yarn, and can be done with one color or with using up scraps of yarn (4, worsted weight acryrlic yarns in my stash).
First up is from a Youtube video I located. I liked the ease of it, and the brim at the bottom is different from a rotated FPDC/BPDC stitch. I find it uses less yarn, but has a very nice finished look. I adapted the pattern to fit larger sizes, and used a different hook. I did try the pattern as stated first, with a "J" hook, and it was huge! I frogged it, and started over.
Here is the first one I finished, using an H hook, and adding an extra DC row and two extra rows on the bottom brim. It fits an adult. The second one is the, same hook, but added more rows for an adult male. I tried it on my husband to check size etc.
I really like this pattern for a one color hat.
(First one completed for age 2-4, using the pattern as written)
Second up, is a free printable pattern from Yarnspirations, called Ridges Family Crochet Hat. It comes in 3 sizes, and pretty easy to do. I do recommend a stitch marker, as the first DC does not count as a stitch, and it's easy to miss that when you get to SL at the end of the row, making your seam of the hat a bit off.
The pattern is worked from the bottom of the hat, and up to the top for this one, but very easy to make. The only thing I do not like about this pattern, is that the seam is slanted. I've done the pattern several times, and it's the same every time.
Overall, I like the front look, but do not like the back.
I like this "child's hat, because it stitches up very quickly, and the seam is straight on the back. It can be folded up if needed as well to fit. It's basically a lot of double crochets - pattern is called "Child's Hat" by Red Heart on Yarnspirations free patterns.
I also tried a baby hat pattern from Yarn Inspirations. It's called the Teeny Weeny Crochet Cap.
However, you can slightly see the seam on the backside as well. I have one skein of the simply soft yarn in lavender and in gray, so I'll try it in gray to see if the seam is badly visible.
As for a "scrap" yarn adult hat, I found a few patterns to try. I'll either be frogging, or back to share the resource. Keep in mind, I am using worsted weight #4 yarn (not bulky) that I have in stash.
Does anyone have a resource for me, for a simple baby hat? New born?
Does anyone have a resource for toddler and childern's hats that are quick to stitch up, and do not show a crocked backside seam?
How about any new patterns for lap afghans or wheelchair size blankets? I have located one, but am willing to look at other options, especially if they use scrap yarn too.
The scarf pattern I used in yesterday's post is on Youtube by Hooked by Robin. It is my favorite scarf pattern to use. Here is the video location.
Well, it's not the actual video link. I attempted, but blogger is being a bugger today. The pattern is by Hooked by Robin (she is on social media and on Youtube (for this pattern). She has a website too, but I did not see this pattern on it.
Pattern is by: Hooked by Robin (link to youtube pattern, hoping it works)
Pattern title on Youtube: Quick & Easy Crochet Scarf, One Row Repeat.
On social media (facebook) title for her video there, is "Easy Crochet Scarf"
I hope this helps locate the pattern. It'a a basic double HDC stitch repeat. If you cannot locate the pattern on youtube, please comment below or facebook, please comment below. I will try my best to get the actual video shared.
I started my scarf with 26 single crochet, followed by the repeat stitch. I also add the fringe on the ends.
Here is what has been, and is still on the crochet hook . . .
I was asked to crochet a hat with no ball/pom pom on top, and for it to "not" fold up at the bottom. Mission accomplished. It's made with yarn stash - Red Heart Super Saver, Newspaper Stripe yarn. Woot! Another skein left the stash. It was for my husband. He has never had a "winter" coat. He finally bought one last year, so this matches his coat.
I have already started crocheting him a scarf, preparing for those very cold days.
I do like the pattern, and have used it for craft shows, but I spent some time looking for charity hat patterns, that I could crank out much faster. I located one online the other day, but after crocheting several rounds, there was clearly something wrong with the pattern.
I'm going to spend time to look on the crochet crowd, and ravelry, and perhaps a few other places next. I am just looking for a simple hat (no pom pom) for adults and kids to donate for winter clothing collections.
I also started another lap afghan to donate. I'll be honest, not I nor my husband thought this color combination would turn out good, but so far it has. I had plans to do solid 4 color rotation, but later decided to add the tan in between each. I had some of that saffron color and had no idea what to use it with. So far, so good. It's definitely a different combination than I would use, but I'm trying to work on my scrap stash of yarn.
My on-the-go project is still baby washcloths (I'm getting to the end of the discontinued yarn).
My next on-the go project will be my jar openers/grippers.
I'm also searching for a few patterns for using my cotton yarn scraps. I'm thinking something with granny squares. Maybe a book sleeve for when I travel with a book.
I am looking for something like this. I like the button closure and I have the buttons oddly. I took a snapshot of a video, but again, this is not a free pattern.
My go-to porch project, and car trip project has been crocheting "face scrubbies." Initially, these were made and sold at craft shows, but brought in very little cash. They can be used to wash your face, used to help remove makeup with face soap, or used to apply facial toner.
They are environmentally friendly to use in place of cotton rounds for face toner.
I made a few with scrap cotton yarn for myself, and tucked them into our travel case for traveling and camping, but decided to make several for the master bath.
I was purchasing 100 count cotton rounds, which are not that expensive, but I do use 56 a month. The cotton rounds are about $2.38/100 pack, which is slighty over a pack for every two months. Not a huge savings, but a savings no less, and nothing goes in the trash.
I use my clothesline to save on electricity, and I also have a small clothesline indoors, as well as drying racks.
Years ago, I made these reusable face pads using scrap fabric on one side and re-purposed flannel sheets on the other side.
I no longer have a stash of scrap fabrics, but I do have more cotton yarn. I will be making more of the crocheted version, for the other bathroom.
They can easily be hand washed, or put into a delicates wash bag with zipper. Patterns for the crochet rounds are all over the internet, and with different patterns.
I haven't worked on any other handiwork lately. The garden has kept us very busy. The heat also plays a part if if I'm working on anything handiwork related.
Something I learned: I just learned that some restaurants mix pancake batter in scrambled eggs to make them go further, and make them fluffier. I was floored when I heard this, but I'm guessing it's just iHop who does this. Our locally owned places here do not. I find it crazy, as some people who think they are getting just eggs, and may have allergies or health issues, do not know this. We do not eat at iHop, but sharing.
Thanks to the rain, dreary skies, and much cooler weather here, I have managed to get some handiwork done. In fact, last night we got down to 47°F, after a full day of thunderstorms and downpours. Crazy cold nights for May, but not unheard of.
The sun is shining today, but it will take a few days for the gardens to dry out. In fact, a portion of one of our vegetable gardens actually flooded. We have taken note, and plan to fill it in more with soil (but that will have to wait, as the price to have a truck load delivered has more than doubled).
. . . crocheted 3 baby washcloths. I need to sew in the ends and block them.
. . .crocheted a bookmark. I have blocked it, but I am wondering if I should starch it or dip it in 50/50 Elmer's glue and water? I have made many bookmarks in the past, but I have never once stiffened them. I feel this one needs it. I just think if it was completely stiff it would be an odd bookmark.
I only made it for gifting, and the pattern was in the 3rd crochet mystery book by Betty Hechtman - "By Hook or by Crook"
. . .started a new lap afghan for an extended family member.
By the way, all of the yarn was in my stash, so I did not have to go purchase them, but I sure hope I have enough to finish this one. I don't have a label for one of the skeins, but I am pretty sure I know what brand it is. Anyway, this one is looking good with just what colors I had on hand from other projects.
I have already been using an ergonomic "I" hook, but I now realize that it says 5.25mm, and my old Boye crochet hook, says 5.5mm (hard to see in the photo). I looked up the "I" hooks online, and some are now made 5.25mm.
I wish I had used the slightly larger "I" hook, but will make notes on my pattern. Are they changing all measurments on crochet hooks now? I think I ran into this issue before. The blanket will end up 2 inches shorter in width with this ergonmonic hook vs. the orginal "I" hook. I hope that is large enough for a lap afghan or wheel chair blanket. Not sure on the length until I finish it.
I have another perdiciment.
I have put together another color combination, using yarn I already have, for the next lap afghan. However, I don't have enough of this yarn. Apparantly, sometime in the last 16 years I bought this Bernat Super value yarn in Pale Antique Rose, for only $1.59 on clearance. They do not make this color anymore, and nor do I want to buy more right now.
I will have to spin my color wheel and see if I can whip up another color to go with it (along with 3 other colors I have picked out).
Well alot!! To be honest, I am looking forward to trading in my hook for a rake, shovel, and garden trowel. Crocheting non-stop over the last few weeks has made me realize how much I miss the garden work ha ha!
I finished this baby blanket. I used up3 skeins of baby white, and partial skeins of baby blue and a lighter brown, that were leftover from another baby blanket order (from years ago).
I started this baby blanket. I'm using up some leftover peach and blue baby yarn (F hook, so it's taking some time).
Progress on the current scrap yarn lap afghan. I'm getting down to the last of the last scrap balls of yarn, so it's the last one for now. By scraps, I mean hand size balls and smaller.
I have also been crocheting for a cause - our town's plant bingo and raffle. It is the town's first one, to help raise money to plant flowers, landscape etc in the town. They have already gotten over 50 tickets sold for this event.
First up, I finished this coaster set. It was on my list of unfinished projects. It's being donated to the cause. Not only did I finish an unfinished project, but found a good home for it. Funny how that worked out. It's a Monstera leaf coaster set in a crochet plant pot.
I also used up some cotton yarn to crochet dishcloths, and created a "bouquet" in a new plant pot for the same cause. It turned out so cute!
I also donated a set of crocheted baskets I had left in my craft show stash (been in there for over 10 years and never sold), and tucked in a smaller plant spray bottle, a few mini solar garden lights (with floral patterns on them), and a few pot holders.
And lastly, I had a set of crocheted cup coasters with roses in the center, that was also leftover from my craft shows.
All donated for the town's goal to beautify it.
The scraps of cotton yarn, leftover from the dishcloth bouquet project, are being crocheted into cleaning cloths.
