Odds and Ends

Don't let anyone tell you that craft doesn't have value. It has value just like other things that take time and dedication to learn and master. This is my very favorite tote. I use it to hold a current project because I'm crafty and proud. I bought this machine embroidery design from Urban Threads Embroidery.  

What is this? Evidently, something way more important than I could have imagined. This little wire tie was holding a bundle of cables on the back of my long arm. Evidently, it was stressed enough to give up. Most of the time it didn't make a difference. Until it did. It was causing the automation to complain. Once I figured out this might be part of the problem I promptly found a bigger, hopefully more trustworthy, wire tie to replace it. 

That yellow wire tie is the replacement. I hope it holds up to the stresses. Considering I had the system set up for a while it is nice to know I really only failed the set up with this small problem. Otherwise we're still stitching like champs. 

Tools and supplies (Amazon affiliate links):

Check out crafty supplies on Amazon

Mosaic Crochet

I've been working on this mosaic crochet blanket for a couple weeks. It might look a little wonky but blocking will fix that. 

The fabric is very nice and has a nice weight to it. This is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes. I'm just changing colors a I come to the end of a ball of yarn. It's so nice to not have to think about it too much.

If you want to check out mosaic crochet I recommend watching some of Tinna's videos on YouTube. She is very patient and has so much to share. She also has patterns on Ravelry.  

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)

Odds and Ends

This lily (I think it is a lily) was blooming in my front garden recently. Right there next to the weeds. We like all the plants here, even the dandelions.

I carried my latest crochet project (that I have yet to share) around in this awesome tote I made using an embroidery design from Urban Threads and too many Sharpies.

I made fococcia bread for dinner one night using this recipe.

It came out great! We added it to the list of things to make when we host dinner and games with friends. 

I finished this fun pair of stripy socks using the mini-mast I picked up specifically to make fun stripy socks. Expect to see many more in even more exciting color combinations. Yarn from Knit Picks; stripes are Felici, solid purple is Stroll solid.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Knitter's Pride medium sock blockers
Baker's Half Sheet (2 Pack)
15 X 16 inch canvas tote (20 pack)

Too many Sharpies (affiliate links):
Ultra Fine Point Sharpies
Sharpie Electro Pop Permanent Markers, Ultra Fine Point
Sharpie Permanent Markers, Ultra Fine Point, Cosmic Color
Sharpie Permanent Markers, Fine Point, 80s Glam Colors
Fine Point Sharpies
Sharpie Color Burst Permanent Markers, Fine Point
Sharpie Permanent Markers, Fine Point, Cosmic Color
Sharpie Permanent Markers, Fine Point, 80s Glam Colors

Snuffle Mat

Somewhere I saw someone had made a snuffle mat, or mentioned one, and had to see what it was about. I found a tutorial by The Honest Kitchen so I decided to make one for my dog. First, I ordered this dish mat from Amazon. It cost about $6. The edges are a little curled because we put it through the dishwasher before I added the strips. It had a smell when it arrived.

I reached into my fleece scraps bin and cut a bunch of pieces roughly 1" wide by 6-7" long and sat down to make the snuffle mat.

It's a super simple project that doesn't take long. Once you get the pieces cut you just sit down with your favorite podcast and tie all the strips onto the mat.

Here is what it should look like on the back (this was the only thing missing from the tutorial that I thought might help) once you get all the strips tied on. The density of the strips keeps it flat on the floor so those curled edges aren't really an issue.

Because I cut the pieces both width-wise and length-wise based on the scrap at hand, some of the strips stretched and others didn't. That left me with an uneven surface. I shoved some small training treats into the spaces between the strips and encouraged my dog to find them. The first time was too exciting because it was new and she wasn't quite sure what to expect. I had to make her put it down more than once the first use. The second time she knew what she was doing and was excited to find the treats. Definitely a fun addition to rewards and it only cost me $6 and some time.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Rectangle
Fiskars Rotary Cutter
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
Kitchen Protector Regular, White, Sink Mat

Never Too Much Yarn

Sometimes I realize I've made a mistake and follow it up with another mistake. Well, maybe not another mistake. Just more yarn. When I ordered yarn for a project I picked a yarn that would be on back order until September and that just wouldn't do. So I picked another yarn (that dark blue on the right) and filled the rest of the cart with other things to meet the minimum for free shipping because I like free shipping. This is what I got in that order from Knit Picks.

The most exciting thing in here is this hank of yarn called Static in the colorway Glow. I absolutely love this yarn. It seems to be the same base (75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon) as Stroll, which is perfect because I love Stroll.

Now for to project. I'm going to pair two different cakes of Stroll Gradient with these five balls of Stroll solid to make a shawl. This project is purely in my head and I haven't even tried to swatch so who knows if this will work out. Stay tuned!

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Knit Picks Options Wood Interchangeable Knitting Needles Set
Addi Turbo Interchangeable Knitting Needles

Crochet Crazy

I've been working through this Mandala yarn that Aunt Betty gave me. The Granny Hack shawl works up relatively quickly and is easy to pick up and put down. 

This is the colorway Sprite. 

Each cake gets you a full run of the colors. Mine started with yellow and ended with orange. Then it was on to the second cake for another repeat. 

Such a simple design that turns out looking more complicated than it is. 

This is a free pattern on my Ravelry. Check out the Granny Hack and share what you're making on Ravelry by linking to the pattern and on social media using #grannyhack. Not quite Pride colors but finished during Pride Month was a happy little surprise.

Pattern available on Ravelry: Granny Hack

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways
Lion Brand Mandala is available on Amazon, though you might be able to find it cheaper locally.

Yarn, yarn, yarn!

I dyed this yarn years ago and it was still sitting around waiting to become something. 

I caked it up along with the leftovers from the other one I dyed. I'll have to think of something fun to make. 

This shawl has never made me happy. The yarn is fun, but I just don't like the resulting piece. 

I unwound it and got it caked up, too. I have no idea what I'm going to make with it. This cake is 200 grams of DK (I think) yarn we dyed using Kool-Aid. 

This, along with several hanks of yarn from the last Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival were hanging around. I find that if I have to stop to wind the yarn I will move past it to other yarns or projects. 

So I caked it all up. Now it's all ready for when I get the urge to make something.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Stanwood Needlecraft large ball winder
Knit Picks yarn swift

Embroidered Tote

This has been the view of my embroidery table for weeks. So much clutter and so little room for new ideas. The first step in the project was finding my table. 

After a little while, sorting things, storing things, and admitting somethings would never get done, I could again find my desk. I hooped up some stabilizer and a tote bag. 

This design is from Urban Threads. 

The design is called Cattery Border. 

Aren't they cute!

This is great medium-size tote to carry books, groceries, or some yarn and your current project. 

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron
Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
tote bag

Crochet Crazy Granny Chevron

Last week I shared my progress on this granny ripple shawl. 

I reached the end of the yarn, so that means the end of the shawl. 22" wide and 60" long.

I must admit I like this fabric more than I thought I would when I started. 

Two cakes of Lion Brand Mandala resulted in this substantial shawl. 

This is a pretty simple design and you can find the basic directions for the stitch in several crochet stitch dictionaries. I used my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways to design this shawl. If you want to make one like mine, I also published through Ravelry. Check out my free Granny Hack pattern on Ravelry.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways
Lion Brand Mandala is available on Amazon, though you might be able to find it cheaper locally.

Crochet Crazy Granny Chevron

I've been eyeing this stitch pattern in my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary for a while now. I decided it was time to make a swatch and plan a project. This was my first swatch. Very good start. So I ripped it out and cast on for a shawl.

That got me to here, five happy little chevrons and the certainty that I would run of yarn well before I got to a suitable shawl length. So I ripped back again.

I cast on for four happy chevrons and I think this will work out so much better.

The piece is about 20" wide and should finish around 64" long.

I'll have to work through the second cake to be sure, though. I've only just started on the second cake. I think I'll have to write this pattern up and add it to Ravelry. It won't be all that original, but it will be mine. I think this really is a beginner pattern. If you can granny, you can make this shawl. I did finish my Crashing Waves Cowl pattern and it is available on Ravelry.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways
Lion Brand Mandala is available on Amazon, though you might be able to find it cheaper locally.

Framed!

Since I picked up such great art at the Crafty D.C. Festival I had to buy some frames so I could display that art. I picked up this fabulous print from Jen of Zooguu. All the frames on Amazon had white mats so I had to pick up a black on locally.

I had never attached a print to a mat before, so I did a little research on YouTube and found a great video that really had way more content than I needed. It did give me some tips to get me started, though.

I'm really pleased with how this turned out.

Since I was on a roll, I grabbed my other two prints. These are so much fun!

I even added the Alternate Histories info to the back.

I'm overly proud of this and I didn't even work very hard. Darling Husband helped me hang them.


Tools and Supplies (affiliate links):
11" x 14" frame with white mat
11" x 17" black poster frame
Hardwood Roller
Scotch Magic Tape

Local supplies:
Elmer's School Glue
Black 11" x 14" mat (8" by 10" opening) (it is possible to buy black mats from Amazon, but you have to buy ten at a time)