Contagious Crochet, Part II

One of the first things I gleefully unpacked after our move was my yarn and crochet hooks. And after four months of being yarn-deprived, it's more like crack than crochet! I've been on a tear since then - whipping out cotton scrubby washcloths and trivets like no one's business. Well, except of course, that I'm about to post lots of pictures and totally make it your business. If you're interested, that is! :-)

I made my first flower trivets before Christmas, and they became gifts for LOTS of people, shown here wrapped around a small jar of crazy-good dill dip mix.

I also played with making a few small coordinated sets, each including a flower trivet and two washcloths. (One washcloth is a plain flat double crochet sheet, and the other is the nubby scrubby pattern that I came up with while recycling a failed bath scrubby!) These were considered highly experimental, and only distributed to a select few who I could trust with their honest but loving feedback.

Well, this time around, I've taken it up a notch and am now working on sets of five pieces. One round flower trivet, the same two square washcloths and two granny style washcloths as well. Ta da!!

The four square washcloths are my own patterns and design. The round flower trivet is made from a pattern by Maggie Weldon, of www.maggiescrochet.com.

The inspiration for this was finding the natural ecru cotton yarn on a huge 14 oz CONE and going :: Wow, I could make a TON of washcloths with this! And I totally am. :-)

My design philosophy has changed slightly, incorporating the brighter colors more as accents than as central elements. I've also tweaked the patterns some to achieve more uniformity of size through the set. I'm just having so much fun with these things it's getting a little ridiculous. So far I've knocked out five full sets - three of them in the new color scheme with blue/green, red/green and pink/purple.

I'm hoping to take them outside (in the new backyard!) and get some better photos soon. These were taken indoors, but will have to suffice for now.

Like 'em?  LOVE 'em?  Wanna get 'em in your colors?!  They are now available in my Etsy shop.  Woo hoo!  I'm happy to make a set just for you, as shown, or in pretty much any color combination you can think of.

They are 100% cotton, completely washable and reusable, so soft and gentle on your hands ... they will inspire more hand-dishwashing and counter-scrubbing than you can imagine, but totally in a good way.  :-)  Enjoy!

Visions of Spring Giveaway, by Irish Rose Creations

I'm not sure what to claim as "wish I'd thought of that" for this one ... doing a giveaway myself, or being able to offer such a spectacular prize!

The giveaway of mention is being offered by fellow Etsian Irish Rose Creations, and you can see all the details on her BLOG.  Short story is she'll be giving away THREE amazing "Ring of Roses" doilies (like the one above) to one lucky reader on March 8th.  (Full disclosure: I'm blogging about it here to get a few extra chances to win!)

If you have a moment, be sure to browse her shop - I've highlighted a few of my favorites below.  Her work really is amazing.  And she must be a much faster crocheter than I am ... no way I could offer a doily of that intricacy for less than $30 ... unless I only wanted to make 50-cents an hour!  Then again, I've only been crocheting for 18 months (give or take) and she's been doing it for 25 years.  I'll get there, eventually.  :-)

 

Tulip Patch Granny Square Afghan

This one is just so charming! And maybe it's because I'm in Michigan and getting ready for the spring flowers, but somehow this afghan is so hopeful - looking forward to new blooms!  I also really like the "quilty" quality of the block placement.  It really does look like a pieced quilt top, except it was pieced out of granny squares.

 

Crocheted Mint Green Lace Cross Bookmark

I don't generally go for crocheted bookmarks - which is odd since I like crocheted everything else!  But what strikes me about this one is how the shells come together almost like a butterfly motif, that is of course particularly apt for Easter.  I really like the packaging as well; it highlights the form and style of the item very nicely.

 

Shabby Shaded Blue Flower Appliques/Embellishments (Set of 2)

Again, the price point on this one blows my mind ... THREE dollars.  Are you kidding me?!  Either I'm greatly overestimating the amount of work required here, or I'm just way off base, but that seems crazy low to me.  I think these are just delightful!  Hmmm ... now to think of a new project where I could use them!  ♥

Tied by an Angel!

I was putting the finishing touches on a baby set, and tied up the Texas flag lovey with my favorite bit of package bling - the crafty angel. It's so cute  and so easy ... I was inspired to attempt my first tutorial for SoSaje. So here we go!  :-)









Materials
   ~  medium butterfly clip (#2 size), available at office supply stores
   ~  8 mm bead
   ~  narrow ribbon, cut to desired length
   ~  threading tool - I'm quite partial to plastic dental theaders since they're so easy to work with, but really any piece of dental floss or strong thread will work

Instructions
The beauty of this little project is that it's so simple, once you're working it from the correct end! In this case, it's the bead that goes on first, not the clip.  :-)

1) Insert the threader through the bead, and string your ribbon through the threader. Slip the threader through your bead so a loop of ribbon is now through the bead.  Remove your threader. (In the case of using the dental flossers, this means separating the sides until the handle splits in half - but not to fear, it can easily be used again since the plastic is quite rigid.)

2) Insert the ribbon loop through the center diamond of the butterfly clip.  From the other side, tuck the bead under the ribbon loop and cinch the knot down to form the angel's "collar."  (Click the photo below to see a larger view.) Then slide the bead down to center the head between the wings ... and done!

 

Use the loose ends of the ribbon to tie up your packages, create a book mark, or tie the ends together and create a whole host of angels with which to decorate someone's office or nook! 

Also a great craft to do with your kiddos or another group of young blessing sharers - Girl Scouts, youth groups, etc. I hope you enjoyed this, and that you'll be sharing angels with lots of others. ♥

Party Time!!

I love the fabric party banner! Rainbow colored, themed or even monochrome - it's a perfect punch of color addition to any event or celebration.

• birthday party? Check!
• family coming home from the airport? Check!
• gorgeous, sunny day that makes you really happy? Check!
• playdate scheduled with friends you just saw yesterday? Check!

It's gotten to the point that I have just left the hooks up in the entryway since I know I'll be asked to put it back up again pretty soon. Yay! And since it's made of fabric, not paper, you can know that this durable banner will last, year after year.

And fun to make as well.  :-)  I did a custom for my MIL - photos to come soon, I hope!  And working on another custom themed banner for a friend.  Meanwhile, some "artsy" photos to share from the ones I've already made.

 

 

Product Development Does Not Produce Pretty Pictures

My major problem these days isn't a lack of ideas for projects to work on. It's that when I've finally scrounged enough little scraps of time together to start working on one project, I have ideas for three others - all of which will require prototypes and tweaking before they can be finalized, and during which I will think of yet nine more things to make or do! I have to keep reminding myself that I don't actually have a deadline for any of these things, other than my own desire to be productive and generate a little income.

Ultimately I'd love for the shop to be successful enough that when the girls are both in school, the shop can be my job. But for that to happen I need to have popular and profitable products, and for that to happen I eventually need to finish a whole bunch more of these "proof of concept" projects and figure out which to pursue and which to abandon.

Right now my three main areas of focus are crochet, flannel baby items, and recycled/upcycled/eco bags. I'm in the middle of too many projects to count ... and have very little by way of tangible evidence to show for it! :-) But I keep scribbling in my notebook, and working up samples, refining my ideas, and hoping and praying that by God's grace I'll be able to transform this enterprise into a Proverbs 31 kind of thing.

Just when you think Etsy can't get any better ...

So I'm browsing Etsy the other night, because that's what I do, and I see something on the front page that catches my eye ... then I see something that person has "hearted" ... and so on, until I stumble on a PIF.  Pay it forward.  On Etsy, this ridiculous little phrase (based on a MOVIE, remember?!) has a whole new, wonderful meaning.  Check it out for yourself HERE.

As for now ... I've already wasted more than enough time online and I need to call it a night!

It was love at first click!

I discovered Etsy on a Thursday - thanks to good friend "bearchick" - and spent every waking moment for the next four days online.  Every waking moment that the girlies were sleeping anyway.  It was pure ecstatic delirum, but in a very good way.  :-)  A few days later I emailed bearchick to fill her in on my new obsession ...

"Reasons I'm falling in love with Etsy"

• you can search for items by color
  
• you can search for items by birthday!
  
• they use the word "Etsians"
  
• I've been on the site non-stop since Thursday, and I have YET to find someone with other than 100% feedback
  
• the things these people are making are just so amazingly cool
  
• I am utterly addicted to this site, even though most of the things I see I'll never ever buy - it's all the great artistry of a really good craft show, with out the hassle of having to get dressed or wash my hair
  
• I think I'll have a corner on the minky Texas flag baby lovey market!  :-)