Crochet the Year Away

Sorry about that title - it rhymed and so I couldn't resist.



Here's my sis-in-laws Christmas present:



And now - an admission. I tricked ya'll. Mainly in order to trick my mother, who occasionally reads this blog. I said I was working on finishing 'Going to Market' for her. Well - I wasn't.



See, every year she always knows exactly what she's getting from me, and this year I wanted to surprise her. She's been wanting me to finish poor Betty Boop for years, and now I have!

It's also my end-of-year project; traditionally, in my family, you have to finish something on New Year's Eve (a craft project, a book, something) and start something on New Year's Day. So, my mother's Christmas present that I make is almost always her anniversary prezzie, too, because she got married on New Year's Eve.

So here's what she got - after I started it years ago, (I was still in high school!) realized I wasn't doing it right, (the website instructions were *really* vague, it should have been done in hdc - I think) got tired of it, and slung it in the back of the closet to quietly go insane...






How do you like my blocking technique? Lol - I leant someone my padded blocking board, so until I get it back, rough blocking is all I can do. She's a lil' wavy, but my single crochet always was. She'll straighten out nicely, and then be attached to a pillow case. She's just the right size.


All her little ends show through with the camera flash, but they don't show much in real life.


I can't tell you where you can get this pattern; I got it off a website back in 1998 or 99 - I can't remember. I have absolutely no idea where it was.

**EDIT** and Blogger's cutting off half the pics again, at least on my screen. I'll turn 'em into links later - I gotta go for now!

Some Finishes!

I finished some stuff!
(don't go into shock!)
First, my sister's wedding sampler. It's 'Fantasy Wedding Blessing' from Dragon Dreams, with the changes she wanted. Purple flowers, blue-sky fabric, and little dragons at the bottom.


Finished size: I didn't measure; about 7 x 13, something like that.
Fabric: some aida I dyed myself.
the little dragons at the bottom are the DD freebie 'Christmyth Wyvern', (his head only) with the colors my sister wanted. I'll scan them for a better look when I get my scanner working again.

Also, I've made some aprons for Christmas gifts:



I think the butterfly one is my favorite; it has two tall skinny pockets instead of two square or one rectangle. The aprons look a little odd, I guess, but it's just the way they're laying. None of them are actually deformed (like that top poinsetta apron... >.<)

Looking for Patterns!

I was web-browsing instead of stitching the other day (^___^) and I saw these patterns on someone's personal cross stitch site.
Sadly, it was in a language I don't read (I don't even know what language it was!) so I was hoping someone would know where I might find them?

I thought this one was Dimensions 'Elegance of the Orient' at first, but then I looked to be sure, and it isn't. Very similar, but Elegance isn't holding a parasol.


No clue at all as to this one:

Or this one:

**Edit** - found this one! Dimensions 'Splendor of the Orient'!
This one had a name after it that started with a 'V'. I thought I'd saved it, but apparently I didn't. **EDIT** It was Vervaco (thanks Sharon!) but I still don't know the name of the pattern.

If anybody can help, I'd really appreciate it!!!

Hope to post a finish, or at least a major update, tomorrow!!!

The Emo Bear in a Hat

Ahem. Yes.
So, this is the hat my brother-in-law was gonna pay $45 for. only, it's not blocked yet. I made it in about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. With about $1 worth of yarn.


The purple is actually darker. Flash burn... But it has the squared-off earflaps and the neck flap that he wanted. It came out pretty nice, actually.

One prezzie down, about 7 to go!

The First Day of the Rest of My Month

It's December first - and once again, it's time for panicky fast stitching of Christmas goodies.
Hey, it's tradition!
At least for me... organization is a planet somewhere, right? Other side of Pluto...
Anyway, 'Going to Market' is supposed to be my Mum's gift. I have her officially 1/4 done now. Here's a piccie:

Her colors are absolutely gorgeous - they just glow, I swear! I can just sit and look at her...

Anyway!
I'm going to make my sister a couple pairs of these:

In different colors. A black pair and a pink pair, probably. Maybe a red pair, too. She'll also be getting her wedding sampler, that I showed in the last post. I only need a day or so to finish it.

Then, my new brother-in-law wants a crocheted hat with squared-off earflaps and sort of neck-flap cover thingie (that's the scientific name) in the back. He was gonna buy one, and I looked at it, and it was like $45... and I said 'I can make that.' I can too - I don't even need a pattern, it was so easy! For forty-five dollars!!! I ought to try and sell the darn things, really! I'll be making it in black and purple - his choice.

My brother got married on Thanksgiving Day - so now I have a new sister-in-law and my very first nephew! He's six and I'm going to make him an Indiana Jones plushie - he's nuts about Indiana. As for her - I have no idea what to make her. I'll think of something. My brother will be getting an Optimus Prime plushie. Trust me, he's just another big kid. I'll be making it to look like the cartoon/comic book character, not the new movie character.

My Da... I have no idea what to make him, yet. He loves crocheted skull caps (he sleeps in 'em in the wintertime, 'cause he's got no hair) but I've made him about six of the darn things. Hrmm... a dilemna...
So, that's what I need to get done in December. Oh, and my little 5x7 kit of the three Wise Men. I've worked on it a tiny bit, but I left it out in the car. There's four inches of snow out there and it's cold so I'll show of pic of it later! I've got until midnight on Dec 31st to finish it - if I'm gonna keep with my lil' tradition - but it's no big deal to me if I don't make it.

Wedding Blessing Update

It's cold here.

And rainy.

Rainy and cold.

And a little bit snowy.

and wet.

and, ya know, cold.

It's also raining.

...ah, November! how I love thee!

Anyway, since it's cold and raining - in case you missed that - I've been spending a little more time stitching. I'm soooooooo close to finishing my sister's wedding sampler!

It's Fantasy Wedding Blessing by Dragon Dreams

I finished the castle and most of the border and all the 'verse'. However, since it's cold and raining and dark and dreary and all that, I can't get a decent picture. So here are scans - I had to scan it twice to get the whole thing. Scanning makes it look crooked and wavy, but it's not. I promise.

And here's a close up of the castle - I love this castle!!!

I really love this pattern-chart, too - it's beautifully done and very easy to work with! Now I have to make (more) changes to it, though; my sister doesn't want their last names on it. Long story, but they might end up changing their last name to his mother's name due to some issues with his father. Anyway, she asked if I could put their first and middle names instead. 'Sure,' I said. Well, 'Alison Irene' is pretty easy to fit, but his name is 'Robert Roosevelt.' Not so easy. I may have to leave off the charm and just put an ampersand. If I do that, it'll fit perfectly under the bottom line of herringbone stitch.

Then, my sis wants to know if I can put a little dragon on it, too. This, I'm not so sure about. I'm going to have to go through all my Dragon Dreams patterns and freebies and see if I can find a little one that will fit, because I don't have enough material to put a very big one. Hmmm... maybe I could find a little dragon charm to go on one side of the date, and a different fantasy-style charm to go on the other side? or a little heart? That might work!!!

**Edit** okay, so Blogger, being evil, has cut off the sides of the pics instead of resizing them. I refuse to try to figure out why. So I'm going to try turning them into links to my webshots album.

Afghans!

My mother's Women's Group has been working to make lap blankets for three local assisted-living homes. So I took a break from cross stitching and the never-ending scarf to make these:

They're all made from scrap yarn left over from other projects. I just worked with the bits, changing colors randomly in the middle of rows as each ball of yarn ended. I think I like the pink one best. The one with the red border will suit a male - I think - and the bluest one could be for a guy or a gal, but the pink came out very feminine. It was fun to go back to crocheting for awhile; it was the first craft I ever learned to do and I haven't done much lately. Especially not granny squares - they are so easy, and I can actually get them done while watching TV or listening to music, instead of getting distracted and either missing the show or forgetting to stitch.

They're all about four 1/2 feet square, maybe a little bigger. Just right for a wheelchair-patient. I also made a lap quilt, but I forgot to take a picture and I've already given it to the lady collecting them. I'll ask if she happened to take one, but it was just a simple one, so no big deal.

Now back to work on 'Going to Market' - I want to get at least halfway done with her this month!

Finished Brittercup Kitty!

'Trick or Kitty Treat'
from JCS Halloween issue.
Stitched over one on 28ct.
DMC threads
about 2 by 2 inches. I think.

It's supposed to have a lil' spider button to set it off, but - I don't like spiders.

At all.

So I'm thinking I'll put a couple little leaf buttons that I have. Then it shall be a fall kitty! (and I can leave it up longer)
Turning it into an ornament this evening!

Some Slightly Better Pics

My scanner is working now, even though my camera is not. So here's some slightly better pics than the last post!
Creation: And my progress on Trick or Kitty Treat:

Over one stitching takes forevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvver.... X_x

But so cute!

A Finish and a Start

I finished 'Creation' on Monday, I just haven't had time to post about it! I hate it when life gets so busy.

So anywhere, here's my mum's birthday present:

Pattern: 'Creation' from the book 'Beloved Bible Story Samplers' by Praying Hands

Fabric: 14ct ivory

Floss: DMC

Finished Size: 5 1/2x9 inches

Not the best picture in the world - seems like when my camera works, my scanner dies, and when my scanner works, my camera vanishes. Right now, neither is working! agh! and I had to borrow my mum's old one.

And since I never finish anything without starting something else - which is why my WIP list never shrinks! So here's my newest little start, 'Trick or Kitty Treat' from the Halloween issue of Just Cross Stitch. It's done over one on 28ct. Here's about an hour's work:

I didn't bother cutting the fabric down smaller because I'm not sure how I'm going to finish this one yet.

Not enough knitting done to post a new pic, but I'm still working on that scarf!!!

Adam, Eve, and the world's longest scarf!

Here's my progress on 'Creation':

I'm not sure if you can tell, because my scanner washes colors out horribly, but the sheep are adorable! They're done in a blend and they look all tweedy... ^__^

Now, this may not actually be the world's longest scarf (probably isn't) but it's the longest and coolest! lol - I'm a big fan of the old Doctor Who - haven't seen the new one yet - so when I decided I was going to learn to knit, and the books recommended I start with a scarf - well, how could I resist?
This is Doctor Who's scarf:

Yes, I realize that I may be insane for trying this, but come on! I'll be a geeky-hero! I'll have made my very own Tom-Baker Dr. Who scarf!!! *wibbles happily* I found the pattern(s) here. I added it up, and if I did my math right, it's got 1,040 rows for Season 12's scarf. It's traditionally about 14 feet long.

So here is my very small, very sad looking little scarf so far:

...

Yeah, so a knitting genius I am not. Lol - pretty bad, actually! The right side isn't wavy like that, though, I just didn't smooth it out as good I as should when I was taking the pic. The purple showed up black, but in real life it actually is purple. I really need to buy a new cable for the good camera.

I estimate I'll be done with this scarf in about 87 years. By then, though, maybe my knitting will look a little better.

And possibly go a little faster... O_o

Starts and Shopping

Sometime on Sunday, it dawned on me that it's October now.
Okay, I knew it was October, so it dawned on me that it's gift-time-October. As in, my mother's birthday is this month (the 27th) and Christmas is less than 3 months away.
So, out goes the old rotation - except for Mulberry Tree Sampler, I'm keeping that one in - and in comes the gotta-get-these-done! gift rotation.
So, without further ado:

This is going to be my mother's birthday gift. It's called 'Creation' and is from a pattern book called 'Beloved Bible Stories'. (not affilliated with site, and have yet to order from them. Just the best link I could find) They're all very primitive looking, which she really likes. And the colors will look good in her house, too.

This will be my sister and BIL's gift. It's a claddagh, or it will be. I'm stitching it on 22ct with ecru thread. It will probably be made into a pillow. It was a freebie pattern I found somewhere. I'll try to remember where.
Those are the only two new starts I've done so far. I still need to start my Dad's gift and my brother's gift, a possible one for my brother's girlfriend, and some sort of toy for my probably soon-to-be nephew. My mum's gift will be 'Going to Market', or the next of the samplers if it looks like I won't get that one done in time.

Now - for the shopping!
I live in a very rural area - as in, it's over an hour and a half drive to get to a Wal-Mart. If that's not rural, I don't know what is! So for buying floss, I usually order online. But it just so happened that Monday, my brother was going to the last of the big-time flea markets before cold weather moves in, so I went with him. Why? Yeah, I like flea markets, though I don't usually spend much, but there's a JoAnn's about half an hour from there! Whee!
So we left the house at 7am (shudder - not a morning person!) and got home at 11:30 that night.
Bleh.
But I got almost 100 skeins of floss for .29 apiece, several pieces of fabric that I want to experiment with dyeing, a skein of pearle cotton that I need for my dad's gift, a bead nabber, some needles, Thread Heaven, and this lovely kit that was on clearance:

So, despite the disgustingly early start (for me, anyway, I'm used to working evenings!) it was a pretty good day! I also spent about $10 at the flea market. No stitchy-stuff, though.

Lookie What I Did!

I finished Vash!
Pattern: Vash the Stampede (made with PCStitch by me!)
Fabric: 14 or 16 ct. black
Floss: DMC
Finished Size: 13x17

And he only took three years!
Of course, 2 of those years he lived in the corner of a drawer...

And my Mulberry Tree piece now has a little floating roof and some windows... also some odd green smoke coming from that right-hand chimney. Reckon what they're burning in there?!

Mulberries and Magi

I know I really don't need to be starting new projects, but - I did it anyway.
Well, technically, I already had the three little hearts stitched, so it's not a new start! That counts, right? It's a UFO!
This is 'Shaker Mulberry Tree' from a very old cross stitch magazine (I can't remembe which, because I had to make the pattern much bigger to be able to see it, but it's old enough that the pattern symbols are hand-drawn) The original was done on cream aida, but I decided to stitch it on 28-ct Annabelle. The fabric didn't have a name, but obviously, it's pink.
^__^

One tree down, one tree, a house, and an alphabet to go!

Now for my other start - and this one, I can't claim as a UFO. But it still had to be started!!!
About three years ago - yes, it was 2005, I was in Wal-Mart a few days after Christmas and saw some 5x7 kits on clearance. There were 7 or 8 different ones, and I, being me, bought them all.
I stitched His Kingdom in 2006, and A Savior is Born in 2007, and I just realized that if I'm gonna stick with my little tradition and stitch one in 2008, I'd better get to it!

Out of the kits I have left, there's a nice simple one of a white church in a field with a few trees around it. I could get that done easy, right? Right! So, let's stitch it, right? Wrong! I decided on a nice, complicated one of the Magi presenting their gifts. Hey, it wasn't the most complicated one left! I exercised a tiny bit of restraint!
And here's my start on it: A floating turban and a purple triangle. Go me!

Oh, I also feel the need to tell on myself, for some reason:

I was watching a movie with my sis today - well, she was watching, I was working on Vash (I'm down to 5 colors!) and I cut my floss, marked my pattern, found the next stitches I needed to do - and then I started looking for my needle.
I couldn't find it. It wasn't stuck in the couch arm - yes, I do that - it wasn't neatly in a corner of the fabric, I didn't see it in the floor or on my lap. So I start getting a bit frantic, and tossing cushions and my lap blanket around. About this time, I notice my sis staring at my like I'm crazy.

'what?' I say.

'what are you doing?!' she says

'I lost my needle!' I say. 'Help me find it - you don't want it in your foot or your bum, do you?'

'You mean the needle with the ten inches of bright blue floss in it?' she says

'yes,' I say

'the one you're holding in the corner of your mouth?' she says.

'yes,' I say, very quietly, and go back to stitching.

...

x_x a genius I am not.

UFO Progress!

I've been working on one of my oldest UFO's this week - how shocking is that? - and I've really made some good progress, I think! The pattern is of Vash the Stampede, the main character in the anime 'Trigun'. It's a computer-genereated pattern that I made myself. 'Cause, really, where are you gonna get anime patterns? Well, except for that freebie site listed over to the left, of course! But they weren't around 3 years ago when I made this.
Here's what he'll look like - the first CG pattern I ever did!
So I stitched on him steadily for several months, and he was really looking good! Then I got distracted by other patterns.
Which happens to me a lot.
Anyway, now I've picked him back up, and out of 23 colors in the pattern, I'm offically done with 10! All the white has been stitched, which was a major chunk of that gun!
He no longer fits on my scanner, so here's his lovely completed left side:

And his not-so-lovely, not completed right side. It picked up a bit of green from the hoop because I scanned it still in that hoop. Bad me.
So I'm really really really close to a happy dance with him! Which brings up a little problem - my brother really wants him!

And so does my new brother-in-law.

...ya know, I think I'll just keep him!

Other stitching stuff - I've bitten the bullet, so to speak, and picked up knitting again. I'm having to learn from books, because there is not one single person around here who knits. No one. So it's going really slowly. And doesn't look wonderful. And as soon as I find my camera cable, I'll show it to you! Why should I suffer alone?

^___^

~ I wanted to thank Jennifer for commenting on my last post - I adore your patterns, you know! They are an absolute delight to stitch from! As soon as I get the Wedding one done, I'm pulling out my poor neglected Gardener's Prayer.

Thanks to Trixie, too! for the nice complement on my sister's necklace! I was thinking of making a few of those for etsy, if I ever remember to actually sit down and make them... ^^'

Fantasy Wedding Blessing

Here's what my sis *was* getting for her wedding, before she decided not to go with the caterer-church-florist and to get married at home.
Which meant me, my mom, and my aunt did everything and I didn't have time to finish this, even though - for once - I started with plenty! Hopefully, the pics will be clickable. Blogger doesn't always cooperate with me.
Fantasy Wedding Blessing from Dragon Dreams
Progress before my sister asked me to do the decorations, food, etc:

Done on fabric that I hand-dyed myself. Border colors darkened because the originals looked too faded on this, and the flower colors changed to match my sister's wedding color, purple. Metallics changed from gold to silver.

Progress done now:

And in case the evil no-clicky-picture thing happens again, you can see them here

GtM and a bitty finish

Here's my current progress on 'Going to Market'. It's suppossed to be my mum's Christmas present, but we'll see how that works out! I rarely get prezzies done in time.
Gah! Hoop marks!
^____^

And here's a bitty little thing I did for my smiley-face collection:

I don't remember the company, but it was just a little beginner's kit, anyway. Didn't take very long at all.

My Finished Puppy!

So - I finished this pretty back when I wasn't posting - thought I'd share!


Didn't it come out cute?


My first time doing cording and couching. I think I may have done tassels once before, but I can't remember.


oh well.


This was a 5x7 Sunset 'Jiffy' kit, done for my gran who has a dog almost just like this. I'll be giving it to her in a few days; I'll get a pic of the real puppy then.

I think you should be able to click on it to see it bigger, if not, then you can see it here

Wedding Necklace

Okay - so, here's one of the things I made while I was - not talking here!

My sister ordered an expensive choker that looked beautiful online.

When it got here it was... well, hideous.

So my Aunt pops up with this crochet pattern:

Pretty, hmm?

So I had about three days to make it.

But I did it!

Here's my sister wearing it, just before the wedding:

Doesn't she look pretty?

Whoa

It's been forever since I posted!
My life's been really crazy for the past couple months, though, and also my sister's wedding is driving us all crazy.
It's in two more days, and after that I'll have a big post with finishes! whee! and updates, and and and new projects! And a little stash (gifties, not bought!)
Just thought maybe I ought to let anyone who wanders by know that I are not dead!

Quilts and Stash

Here are the quilts I was talking about last post.
They are $10 plus S&H. I'm pretty sure I can fit them in a flat rate box. If you're interested, comment or email me at elf_night at hotmail dot com
They are all smoke-free, pet-hair free.

42x72 - crib size. Back is blue plaid.


41x72 - crib size. Back is cream with peach-pink roses. This one would be sooo pretty for a girl baby!


46x64 - lap size. This one is green, Green, GREEN! Back is floral.



And here's the last of my purchased stash! All of it was bought before I started the ten-project challenge, it just hadn't arrived yet.

The Castle by TW and Dear Santa by L*K
I bought these used and got a great deal on them!

And my new patterns, Smoky Mountain Cats by Pegasus, and Sleep Tight kit by Pinn Stitch. Not sure you can see the pic on the kit very well; it's of sheep counting themselves as they jump the fence - until the last one falls asleep! Uber cute!

Also got the beads and treasures needed for my Gardener's Prayer project, and some size 28 tapestry needles - one of which arrived broken but I got them on sale so oh, well.

A Different Project

I haven't been cross stitching for the last few days - I've been involved with a different project!
A local food pantry has been planning a fund raiser; selling quilts to make some much needed repairs on their building.
This food pantry/food bank - whichever you would call it - feeds over 120 families twice a month, for free, in our area. They give them a huge box of food every two weeks! Since it is a private organization, they screen to make sure the families are really in need, and not pretending. That's a problem in this region. A lot of food banks have shut down because they couldn't get donations because everyone knew the people going there for free food didn't really need it.
Anyway! To the point!
I've been working with some other ladies, getting some really cute basic quilts ready for sale!
The prices will be really, really low, believe me!
I hope no one minds, but I volunteered to put some on my blog for sale. If that doesn't interest you, just ignore them, okay?
Look for some in the morning and a few later tomorrow!

A Patchy Puppy Pillow

Here is my Princess-Puppy with some of her pillow done. It's patchy 'cause I skipped around a lot, working most of the light red first. She's getting sooooooooo close to being done! I can't wait to backstitch her.
Also - I have reached 1000 stitches on Spike!
Well, technically 1034, but I got wrapped up in something and forgot to count... x_X
So, anyway, here he is - a lovely dark green ...um, block!
This makes him 10% done! All in a month! For me, that's utterly amazing! I'm so fickle, and I skip around on projects so much.
*happy sigh*