Have not been around for ages I know as family comes first and was all consuming.  

I am still dealing with the aftermath of that so not time yet to resume

however a friend said things had changed with the blogs and asked me to check out posting a photo

so here is one I took this morning of some kind of spider web on my Ash tree.

I asked my pest control guy this afternoon about it but it was new to him.

Neon green spider webbing.

How cool would that be on Halloween?

Pumpkin Hats

I got a request from my daughter-in-law

for pumpkin hats for the four girls.

Ones like the one I made the youngest when she was a newborn.

I said sure, but had to go out and buy yarn, 

after I spent two days finding the pattern I had used,

only to discover it only came in the newborn size!

Fortunately it was a simple pattern and easy to adjust.

It might even get cool enough for them to wear the hats!  LOL

But at least I finished them in time and sent them home with my son tonight.

Butterfly Afghan

I missed August entirely.

Not by choice.

I was hit with vertigo and it really laid me low.  LOL

So while recovering I luckily always have a stash of 'future' projects on hand,

so I pulled out the bag of yarn I had to make this butterfly afghan

for one of the granddaughters for Christmas.

The colors are not very true in this photo as they are blue, hot pink, and purple.

I have no idea why the purple just looks like a darker pink.

At any rate it is bright and cheery and I hope perfect for a preteen.

It still needs blocking but I will do that when I get a table cleared...

In the meantime I have begun another afghan with bumble bees for her sister.

Again, I am grateful I keep a stash of yarn on hand.

Yes, it is a rather large one.

But then again can one ever have too much yarn

or fabric or other crafty supplies?

Something new for the 4th

I decided I wanted something new to wear for the 4th of July,

so a few weeks ago I picked up some beads

and I finally had a free evening to do some stringing.

The photos did not come out very clear

but you can get the idea.

The actual stringing did not take all that long.

However, afterwards when I spilled the tray I had been using...

it took a bit to chase down all those beads!

And of course when you are down on your hands and knees you get a close up view

of all those dog hair covered dust bunnies!

Oh well, it was still fun.

Trying something new

Don't you just love it when someone brings handwork to a waiting room?

I love seeing what people are working on and often learn from them.

Recently this happened and the lady was knitting with a new type of 

ribbon yarn that I had seen but had no idea how to use.

She explained that one side has semi-solid texture

while the other side had regularly spaced 'holes'.

She was knitting into these holes.

I figured it should be easy enough to translate into crochet so I too made a scarf.

One skein of Patons Pirouette, 

(similar to but not exactly what she used),

made a very long scarf with SC stitches

but since it is on the sparse side I like doubling

the scarf up when I wear it.

If you want to try this, she and I both discovered

that you need to rewind the skein so you can work from the other end.

Her yarn was in a tangle so I suggested wrapping it around a cardboard toilet paper tube.  I use this with my yarn winder for my knitting frame and is what I did and it worked well.

The tube fits well on the wooden holder I have for using balls of crochet thread and I used it for this and was pleased with how it flowed.

I love trying something new and easy and even better when it is a fast project as well.

Ready for Easter

My daughter-in-law tells me that they never did Easter egg hunts or baskets

so she put me in charge of the baskets this year.

Since none of her girls had done Easter baskets

I decided I wanted to do a little extra this time.

Luckily there are an abundance of patterns available

and I began with carrot pouches,

each containing a kit to make

a candy necklace.

For the oldest I made a lamb that goes over a plastic egg and has beads for eyes.

The youngest cannot have beads yet

so her tiny bunny fits inside an egg,

and has no face.

I hope the tail holds up!

The second oldest has decided she likes owls,

Therefore the little owl is hers.

The pattern was not exactly like this

but I thought pig tails instead of tufts

were fitting here.

This one holds a small egg inside 

so I used the flap closure option

but decided instead of a button or snap

that she needed a tail...

Last but not least is the one for the 3 year old who obviously is a fan of Monsters Inc.

Only Mike Wazowski 

covering an egg filled with candy

would do for her.

You may have noticed flowers in the first photo.

Those are another story

which can be seen here.

My gratitude to all the lovely and talented crocheters/designers out 

there who so generously share their talent.

Happy Easter to all!

On the Model

LOL

She tried them all on at one time!

Such a little cutie!

This 'n That, Quick 'n Easy

Taking a little break and using up some scraps,

I made up these spiral hair ties.

My 3 year old granddaughter

looks so cute in a pony tail.

And it is time to bring a new walker decoration to my mother.

Since she loves Cardinals I thought this little fellow might cheer up the gloomy days.

He is not terribly proportionate,

but cheerful all the same.

I love how the elastic hair tie really looks like feet.

Worth all the work

I managed to capture the look on the oldest girl's face.

You can almost see the next girl's surprise.

I always consider any picture of the three year old that is not a blur as a good one!

The two older girls are obviously more into dressing their dolls.

The three year old spent the day sitting on her new bike,

and it has a baby seat for her doll!

I have two years now to make the fourth doll dress as the baby is still too young for hers.

I am debating if I should make it now while the basic pattern is still fresh in my mind

and risk setting it aside and forgetting where I put it two years from now!

Doll Dresses for Christmas

I finished the dresses for the three little granddaughter's dolls

for Christmas.

Just barely in time.

I am looking forward to seeing their faces.

Anticipation must be Santa's middle name.

Watch out Shirley Temple

I was excited when I finished this little strawberries and cream 

crocheted outfit for my granddaughter

and was anxious to see it on her.

But once on

it was obvious

that she liked it even more than I.

Posing,

spinning,

showing her ballet moves...

and wanting to wear it home

to show her daddy!

Her mommy loved it when I dropped her off at home.

We agreed it will benefit from a petticoat.

She does not know that her dolly is getting one to match

for Christmas!

Who ever dreamed that a little yarn and ribbon

could make so much happiness?

Gifted

We celebrated mom's 89th birthday on Sunday.

She seemed to really enjoy her lapghan

which I posted about August 10th.

Texture is appealing to those with dementia

and the flowers are a type of bobble or puff stitch.

And here is mom's great granddaughter

modeling her dress from my last post on August 25th.

She seemed to like twirling in it best!

Nice to have those you love,

appreciate your efforts.

And now to pick up the messy living room

which has a variety of projects in progress,

including a lamp needing a new switch.

The books and videos I will hopefully be able to enjoy

as I recover from an oral surgery I have scheduled.

At least I think it is a perfect excuse...

A Little Dress

I finally finished this little dress for my granddaughter.

I never was able to find a yarn that matched the colors to my complete satisfaction.

Not sure why.

I had a cream, two shades of pink and a green to choose from.

I was determined that this be predominately a stash buster project though.

I am still debating adding some beads to the centers of the flowers on the bodice front.

If she and her baby sister were older I would not hesitate.

I loved how this ladybug ribbon spaced out.

The red is a bit distracting but 

that's OK.  It is just for fun any way.

The pattern called for three buttons on the back

however I had four in the button jar

and discovered that four actually spaced out better.

Lapghan from leftovers

I finally completed this small afghan for my mother.

It seems a bit heavy for a shawl though she can drape it over her shoulders if she wants.

I was just trying to use up some of the enormous stash in the garage.

These are dark colors but I felt the purple and lavender flowers

just made it pop!

Then I felt it needed a border, especially on the ends and I found

this leaf one in my library.  The leaves are a bit large but fit well.

I was going to block them flat but my daughter insisted the slight curl was 

adding interest and who am I to argue for blocking?  LOL

Lady Bug Crochet

I saw these cute patterns

for a baby hat and diaper cover

and toddler slippers later

that are a perfect match!

So the new granddaughters are getting 

matching items.

I had the three year old try the slippers on when she spotted them.

She was thrilled.

Scrubbies

Just to get out of a rut

I ordered some 'scrubbie' yarn

and tried out the patterns they offered.

My daughter spotted the scrubbies in progress the other day

and loved them so I promised them to her when finished.

They are finished and there was just barely enough left

to make a matching hot pad with added white cotton yarn.

Cute and practical but I prefer working with softer yarns.

That is easier on my hands too.

Latest Weather Forecast

Folks around here are getting a bit disenchanted

 with the accuracy (or lack thereof)

 of the local weather forecasts.  

So I figure my dog, Schatten, and I

 would take a stab at it.

Armed with our own meteorology equipment,

we went out back to take a reading.

No doubt about it...

it's fixin to warm up for the summer.

Spring is over.

Y'all can put away your winter clothes.

Spring Afghan for Mother

I just finished an afghan for my mother.

It is to replace the one that never made it back from the hospital.

I am not generally fond of granny squares.

All those ends to weave in...

But this one had such a different soft spring look to it,

and the four square piecing

just appealed to me.

What do you think?

I tend to struggle with random,

 but this one seemed easier than most for me.

Crocheted Belt

As I was going through mom's craft boxes

I discovered the rings and large hook 

and a pattern for a crocheted belt.

It called for shoelace yarn...

have never heard of this.

It was kind of neat done up in this belt

however I opted to use up some 

Chenille Thick and Quick

that she also had in her stash.

Another fast and easy project.

Makes me feel like I am doing so much.

Then again I am laid up with sore ankles right now

so I do have more time.

Just for fun for Easter

When I saw this pattern in the Crochet World Magazine

I just could not resist.

It was the April 2010 issue.

Fun is timeless.

Slippers after all should be fun!

I was sure my granddaughter would agree.

And I think she did: