January GG ~ From the Last to the First

Aloha, friendly readers~ I hope you all are enjoying your worldly weather. We've had a huge snowfall for our neck of the woods. It has been many years since the area has seen this much. It was wonderful. I restocked our snow ice cream for when we forget what winter is like in the midst of summer.  We shoveled snow (a lot of it).  Luckily my shoulder has healed nicely.  Last week was the first week it felt "normal" so it was good timing, and the shoveling of the snow didn't do anything other than make us sleep really well. :)

scale in inches

Of course, now they're threatening the same thing could happen this coming weekend! I wonder how much of this current snow will melt before then.  Certainly not the mountains of shoveled stuff! Oh well, I love it all! :D  This was a lovely atmospheric gift which segues nicely into the next item of interest, January's Gifted Gorgeousness!

click for more info!

First up, I made my first ever shawl!  It's a shame I couldn't get better pictures of it; this red just seems impossible.  It was made to match this hat, gifted to my husband's grandmother back in September.  I spent quite a while looking for a pattern to try!  I wanted it to have shells (like the hat) but still have somewhat open stitches so as not to be overly warm.

didn't mean to match the carpet

Technical Details

• "Tranquil Tea Wrap", crochet, freebie pattern by Lion Brand Yarn found here (ravelry).
• My ravelry project page here.
• 10mm (N/P) hook.
• Yarn: Caron Simply Soft in autumn red.
• Started: October 17, 2018, Finished: October 21, 2018, unknown hours.  

As you may notice, this was a blazing fast finish (for me) at only four days!  I think the gigantic hook helped though it felt odd using one so large.  Plus the sitting around at grandma's house made for excellent crafting time.  I made a few modifications, namely doing another repeat of the pattern to make the shawl longer.  I also did not do the edging as the pattern indicated, instead opting to keep the scalloped edge of the shells as the last part.  Afterwards, it received the spa treatment of a gentle wash and then a light blocking.  I don't much care for blocking acrylic but it opens up the shells and spacings so nicely.

assembly in progress

Next up, yes, finally the husband cube, and finally a cube~!  I had fun with this...mostly.  I used iron-on interfacing to give the rather floppy jobelan some stiffness and to close up the holes in the fabric weave so stuffing wouldn't leak out.  Also it helped with this very fray-some fabric!  I outlined each of the glyphs in DMC 310 and then went insane and joined them together with gold metallic floss because I enjoy suffering, apparently.  I wanted to do it this way to mimic the logo of the series which is in black and gold.  I then braided a small loop of black and gold crochet thread which must (must!) have something wrong with it as it is incredibly fragile.  I may at some point go back and make another, sturdier loop of something else but for now, I'm waiting to see if it's okay as-is.

assembly complete!

I rather like how it turned out, though it is much bigger than originally anticipated.  I don't think he'll be taking it to work after all, so it is proudly displayed atop our media cabinet where most of our video game consoles live.  As I was stitching it up, I had to laugh at myself.  I was stitching it on the closed top of the sewing machine.  Wouldn't that have made quick work of the cube!

what a crazy floss toss

For Christmas, my husband got me the remainder of the "old" floss colors of the DMC collection!  I would be complete now if it weren't for those silly new colors. :)   I greatly look forward to bobbinating these but I've run out of plastic storage containers.  It's so hard to find them in colors other than pink, blue, purple, and clear.  There used to be a whole bunch of options available!  Even eBay has failed me.  I'd really love a yellow one but alas, I'll probably just wind up with another clear one.

a year of giveaways!

Lastly, I've been toying around with this idea for a while.  I have a small pile of patterns I've picked up in various thrift stores so I wanted to try a Year of Giveaways!  Each GG post in 2019 I will have one chart up for grabs, and I will announce the winner in my random end of/beginning of the month post.  Since these are all thrifted designs, some might have some markings on them.  I will make note of the ones that do in their individual posts.  Here is the first chart!

PFC #14

This is an older Homespun Elegance stitch from the Plain & Fancy Collection called "Snowmen - Tall & Small".  This a totally clean (was it ever stitched?) chart.  They're really cute and I love the idea of having a twig broom embellishment!  No fancy extras will be included in this giveaway to cut down on shipping costs so you will have to source your own twig haha. I will ship the pattern worldwide though!

Gifted Gorgeousness Giveaway Guidelines

1. Be a minion follower (upper right corner of my blog)!  Feedly, bloglovin', etc. do not count as there is no way to show it!  I am sorry; blame blogger for this one.
2. Comment and tell me you would like to be included in the drawing!
3. Open worldwide! 
4. No winning twice in a row (example: the winner of March's drawing would not be eligible for April's).
5. Closing date: January 29th, 2019 23:59 CST.

Thanks for reading this edition of Ishkabibble Babble and good luck to anyone entering! \:D/

what to do after it snows?

October GG ~ Progress is Progress

Howdy again, world~  Here is this month's Gifted Gorgeousness where I astound(?) you all with my progress(?) on various gifted items.

click for more info

First up, a bit more progress on the last side of the Husband Cube.

before

after

Once I finally fixed all the errors I made previously, progress has happened.  He's got his flippers now.  All that's left is his gigantic tail and a bit of belly(?) decoration.

all better

Next up, I made some repairs to the house slippers I made for my husband three years ago!  It's the gift that keeps on giving. :D  The soles on his slippers were worn through and the foam wouldn't stay put any longer.  So, I made another set of soles and this time, wised up and ATTACHED THE FOAM instead of just stuffing it in there.  Now it shouldn't migrate all over the shoe whenever they're washed.  I also tacked down the cuff a bit more firmly this time too.  It did somewhat change the aesthetic of them since I had to attach the sole to the already existing shoe part instead of making the shoe on top of the sole.  But, it wasn't so drastic that they look terrible.  They're now ready for another season of toasty toes!

well-worn

I still have to repair my own slippers but that's not GG territory unless I count my feet being warm a gift to myself!  Since I didn't take a picture of the bottom of his slippers pre-repair, this was the state of mine.  As bad as they are, they are no where near as bad as his were! These pictures are kind of dark and a bit blurry... Fall weather is nice but also lots of overcast days.

vintage-inspired coasters

Lastly, I finished up some delightful little coasters for Leonore's wedding!  Unfortunately, I made the silly error of assuming post to Germany would get there as quickly as it does to the UK.  So they did not make it in time to provide table decoration for her wedding, buu. 

She asked for shades of green so I started making them in the dark green.  Then I just happened to find myself in Michael's one day (funny how that happens) and saw the pretty mint green.  So, why not both?

four each

I have to say -- I LOVE this pattern. There were a few minor issues with the pattern that I worked out in a test piece but after that, each was such a wonderful project to work on. They turn out so dainty and sweet.  I may wind up making some more for us that I would have to hide away from a certain small-item-stealing kitty (not naming names, Oreo).


Technical Details

• "Vintage Coasters" freebie pattern by Anabelia Handmade on ravelry.
• Hook: 1.65mm.
• Thread: Aunt Lydia's Crochet Classic Crochet (Size 10) in white and mint green.  American Thread Company Puritan Crochet Cotton
• My ravelry project page here.
• Started: ??  Finished: September 18, 2018, unknown hours.

Okay, that's all I got this time!  See you next time, probably for the Hallowe'en Blog Hop~ :D

September GG ~ Stash Enhancements, Hats, and a Just Jo SAL!

Hello, world~  It's time for our monthly installment of Gifted Gorgeousness!  Are you curious about the Just Jo SAL?  I'll get there eventually~  There hasn't been any progress on the last side of the MH3U husband cube as I've been a bit busy with other things that can't yet be shown to the public eye.

click for more info

I got an awesome package in the mail last week -- a nice pile of new-to-me knitting and crochet magazines!  A friend was clearing out some of her stash and asked if I needed wanted any.  Of course!  I took all she offered and anything that doesn't entirely tickle my fancy, I'll take with me to our local "yarn and yak" group.  Thank you, Awesome Friend! :D

yay!

I adore the Jane Austen Knits magazine!  I'll eventually update my ravelry patterns page with the ones I'll be keeping.  I'm getting quite the collection on there but it makes it so much easier to not wind up with duplicates~

In the spirit of giving instead of hoarding receiving, I made another "flowering hat", this time for my husband's grandmother's birthday. She's in the Red Hat Society and I thought this might work for some of her gatherings. The flower is again removable and she's already mentioned using it as a pin on a dress! How nice to hear a gift is already being used. :D

best hat pattern

I actually had a rather difficult time trying to get this color to show properly! It's actually a deep wine red.  There's also a small button at the center of the white flower holding everything together but that got washed out trying to bring out the red.  I went up a hook size for this hat and am much happier with the result.  It's so soft!  The flower might be a bit too big with that hook though...

Technical Details

• "Ridge Hat with Brim" freebie pattern by Kool Stitch on ravelry.
• Hook: 4.5mm.
• Yarn: Caron Simply Soft; Colorway: autumn red, purple, and white.
• My ravelry project page here.
• Started: ??  Finished: August 24, 2018, unknown hours.

With this finish, I have finally surpassed last year's crafting finishes (this is #16) and am on my way to surpass my most productive year (2016: 18 finishes).  I'm not a very fast or prolific crafter so this is really exciting for me.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

winner, winner, chicken dinner (?)

Here are the results to the poll from the last post regarding y'all's preferences over comment settings.  Embedded seems to be the most preferred setting!  I would guess this is because it allows people to easily reference the post they're commenting on.

I have no idea how long this poll will last, or even if it's still open to vote!  The site says they eventually clear out inactive polls but didn't specify a time.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★
Now it's time to contribute in a different way to GG!  Surely by now y'all know I love thrift shopping and can often spot fun things I don't desperately need. I also watch for potential giveaways for pretty charts I know I'll never stitch but think will make someone else happy.

Just Nan - Morning Meadow band sampler

This time the giveaway is for a Just Nan chart: Morning Meadow.  I had originally offered it to our GG hostess as she sure seems to stitch a lot of Just Nans, to the point where I started calling them Just Jos!  Jo already has this particular chart but hasn't stitched it yet.  So, win this chart and have a SAL with Jo and get to count it for all sorts of Gifted Gorgeousness!  :D

what's a meadow without grasshoppers?

This giveaway is just the chart; unfortunately no fancy beads that sometimes came with them.  It's a nice, clean chart with no markings though there is a thrift store price sticker (it's a bonus? :D).  Since shipping is open worldwide, this will just be the chart, no little extras tossed in.

Gifted Gorgeousness Giveaway Guidelines

1. Be a minion follower (upper right corner of my blog)!  Feedly, bloglovin', etc. do not count as there is no way to show it!  I am sorry; blame blogger for this one.
2. Comment and tell me you would like to win!
3. Open worldwide! 
4. Closing date: September 30, 2018, 23:59 CST.  Closed a little early on September 27 and will ship to the one entrant!  A popular name means a lot of people have it already haha :)

Thanks for reading this edition of Iskabibble Babble and good luck to anyone entering! \:D/

August Smalls ~ A Mystery Solved

Howdy to you all~ I'm a little late this post due to me not paying attention this week whatsoever!  The weather was all weird and threw me off my regularly scheduled life.  Looking forward to this nice, long weekend though.  I've not done much actual stitching lately but it's times for the Smalls SAL update where a mystery(?) has been solved!

click for info!

I had a number of amusing guesses as to what the mysterious little brown things were. Everything from finger/toe warmers to kitten mittens (kitten mittens were tried by my husband ahaha). Only one person guessed correctly -- chair boots! The reason why the opening is so small is because I crocheted over elastic.

suddenly the correct amount

I can never get the little felt sticky things to actually stick to our dining room chairs as they come down at a strange angle and aren't flat on the bottom.  After going through my collection of older craft magazines, this pattern looked easy and functional!  And they certainly are easy; each one takes around 20-30 minutes to hook up, including making the elastic loop.

weird legs

Unfortunately, they wound up being a tad too small for the chairs (you'd think I'd test this after making one)!  But, we have wood floors everywhere in our house and ample other things to put them on.  Plus, they were hugely attractive to a certain small-item-stealing kitty so it's safe knowing that even if they fail as chair boots, they make a fantastic cat toy.

Technical Details

• "Chair Boots" pattern Crochet World Omnibook, Fall 1981
• Hook: 5.5mm
• Yarn: Peaches & Creme Solids; Colorway: dark taupe.
• My ravelry project page here.
• Unknown start/end as I didn't make a note in my crafty calendar!

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

unknown variety -- 'peace' or 'garden party' maybe?

I've been working on this rose bush a bit more this year.  I gave it a very drastic haircut in February and have been giving it some fish fertilizer once a month.  Basically just trying to love on it after its obvious neglect.  I think it appreciates the attention because it rewarded me with a few more very stellar blooms this year.  It's like it was glowing!  I hope that next year I can achieve even more from it. It's planted in a spot that receives wonderful morning sun but after about 10-11am it's shaded for the rest of the day. I'm thinking of trying to get a cutting started so I can move it to somewhere with a lot more sunshine.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★
Lastly, I have a poll for you all regarding your preference for leaving comments on blogs.  I am not asking what setting you use on your own blog!  Just wondering which you like best when you visit another blog.

Which comment setting do you prefer to use when visiting another blog?

Embedded (appears at the bottom of the post)

Popup Window (the small box opens)

Full Page (a new page opens)

No Preference

 

pollcode.com free polls

Thanks for taking the time to answer! There's no real point other than curiosity on my part. You can ramble about your choice in the comment section if you want to expound or possibly rant. :D

Happy September!  Let the Autumn festivities begin~

August GG ~ The Different Stitches

Greetings, world~ Thank you for the interest in my last post! It was so exciting to me to fix up the sewing machine and I know the post might've been a bit technical.  I've been playing around it; more on that later.

click for more info

For GG this month, the final side of the Husband Cube has had a good start!  And by good, I mean rough.  I picked out many, many stitches over and over (and there's still a couple left) before I finally got things rolling in the correct direction.  And I really goofed up making the pattern for this guy. Who would have thought the characters of v and ^ could cause so much trouble!  I should not have them next to each other, that's for sure!
 

Ceadus

Otherwise, this monster has a very pretty(?) interesting(?) weird(?) glyph.  Despite having 500+ hours in this particular game, I am not sure what that eye-like thing is supposed to be.  Best guess is that it's where his mismatched horns meet...?  He's also using two of the brand-new DMC colors - 02 and 03.  I had thought my husband would choose all four when he saw them but, nope, two of the older greys still won.   The new ones are the ones in his horns.

Side note: I think DMC is quite ornery for numbering the new colors 01-35!  That requires significant rearranging of floss boxes don'tchaknow!   Couldn't some be in the 3000s?!  I don't have them all yet but they are available individually at Hobby Lobby stores which is nice.

I'm also working on another gift (actually two others!) which can't yet be shown here on the blog because I'm being a sneaky hobbitses.  You'll just have to leave things up to your imagination for a while.  Don't get too wild, though.

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Not really for GG unless you count it as the gift of learning!  As mentioned above, I've been trying to figure things out with the sewing machine.  I have a nice assortment of different feet and attachments but little knowledge of what it is they do exactly!

tension control makes happy stitches

Firstly, I had to play with the tension or it wasn't going to matter what attachment I used.  So I adjusted it.  And then I adjusted it more.  And took apart the tension assembly, again.  And took the bobbin case out, again.  And adjusted even more. It wound up worth it as the pretty stitch is there!  I used white thread for the top and black for the bobbin thread so I could see what was messing up where.

zigzags and buttonhole!

Since my sewing machine is quite old, all it can do natively is a straight line of stitches so I have to add stuff to it to make it do all the fancy things machines now do straight out of the box.  The first things I tried once were the zigzag and the buttonhole attachments.   They're really neat little gizmos that do exactly what they say they do!

I'm really in love with the buttonholer.  I have three of them!  The first one I bought I'm fairly certain goes with my exact machine due to the circumstances surrounding its find.  One I bought because it had the extra set of templates and the price was right.  One I bought solely because it contained the eyelet template which is insanely hard to find and as a result, expensive!  On eBay, the eyelet alone can go for around $30 and I bought all three buttonholer sets for under $20.

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mysterious

Lastly, I've been busy making these little things. Any guesses as to what they are?  They're not particularly exciting but they are a bit amusing, so come back for the Smalls Edition of Ishkabibble Babble to find out~  :D/

July GG ~ I Have No Idea What I'm Doing

Actually, I live my whole life not knowing what I'm doing. \:D/

click for more info

Hi, folks! It's summer time in full swing (since May...) and here's a little not-so-secret secret: I HATE SUMMER. I absolutely despise being hot. That feeling when you walk outdoors and your breath is burned away and you can swim through the air? No, thank you. I'll grudgingly accept it because it means my tomatoes and peppers are thriving.  I have to water everything every morning (some items get more in the evening too) or they burn to a crisp.  At least I have some pretty blooms...

hibiscus #3

My GG post is late this time, mostly because I kind of feel like I've sort of hit a stitchy block but the overall crafting bug is still there.  I have a little thing I've been working on but it really deserves its own post and subsequent exclamation marks.  Can you possibly guess what it will be?  :)))

In actual, honest-to-goodness GG stitching, I have the next (and last!) side of the Husband Cube charted and floss tossed, but I got wind of the fact that DMC's latest colors can be bought individually at Hobby Lobby.  I want to check out those grays before I commit to the ones currently kitted.

I did make this hat on a whim.  I can shoehorn this in for GG as the white and dark blue yarns were originally bought for the Little Cowboy Afghan that I gifted last year.  So this was a bonus stash busting; I have only about a yard of white left and even less of the aqua!  It is also kind of a prototype as I wanted to see how it looked worked up.  I think I know someone who will really like this in a different colorway.

a little feminine cloche

Technical Details

• "Ridge Hat with Brim" freebie pattern by Kool Stitch on ravelry.
• Hook: G (4.00mm).
• Yarn: Caron Simply Soft; Colorway: white, aqua, and dark country blue
• My ravelry project page here.
• Started: July 3, 2018, Finished July 5, 2018, unknown hours.

I loved making this!  It's a very simple and quick pattern with cute results.  Even though I went up to a 4.00mm hook, I think a 4.25mm (which I do not have; this is an odd size to find in the US) would’ve been perfect for me as it's just a little snug.  It won't be blowing away!  The little flower is currently held on by a safety pin.  I thought this would allow me to make different flowers or even just remove it for a different feel.  I did a crab stitched edge in the aqua for a little extra splash of color. It's a good thing I've been on such a stash busting kick lately because...

thrifting is life

This little pile was "gifted" to the local thrift store and of course I couldn't pass it by.  There are four skeins of Malabrigo yarn (the purples and blues - 100% merino wool), two skeins of Knit Picks Palatte (red - 100% wool), two skeins of Louet (grey, 100% merino wool), and one skein of Noro (multi-blue/grey - 50% wool, 25% angora, 25% nylon).  These are all really pricey yarns around here!  The Noro alone would've cost $23 before tax and I got all the yarn for $14.  The Spring Blossom casserole dishes were an added bonus, though I goofed when I bought the green one -- I already have that size!  My little spreadsheet was not updated with this information.  I fixed that immediately and took this dish back.  Another little set within a set completed!

now let's all move into child's pose

Peanut gifts his adorableness to you all. ;)  He decided that I worked out enough and needed to move on to other things, like filling my phone up with more cat pictures.

That's all from me; a bit meager, I know.  Too much tenuous shoehorning going on here!  I hope next month will be better~

May GG ~ The Return of the Speaker Cozies

Howdy, folks! Hope everything is swell where you are~ We've finally decided to end winter here and of course, skip straight into summer. I am a bit grumpy over this.  I hate being hot!  Plus with the fresh green grass needing mowed every five days...  whew.  Sometimes I wonder how I am staying awake at all.  But you're not here to listen to me complain about the weather being weather, you're here for Gifted Gorgeousness!

click for more info

First up, we have substantial (for me) progress on the 5th side of the Monster Hunter cube!

before

after

We finally picked up a PS4 and my husband has been busy playing through Dark Souls 3 and I've been busy enjoying all the spare crafting time next to him! I'm not sure why this particular side seems to be taking forever. It might be the large blocks of color.  Soothing to stitch yet seems to go nowhere fast.

before

after

Next up, the long-neglected speaker cozies. I have been forced to decided to make a change. I joined the two smallest cozies together to make a single larger one that will grow even more. One of our cats (not mentioning any names, Oreo) likes to steal small items and carry them around.  Coasters, socks, actual cat toys, and apparently small doilies are not safe from this sneaky kitty (Oreo). So, I am making it into a bigger cozy for either one of the larger speakers or possibly for the end/coffee tables. They are still pending decision from the other half. And possibly to see if they're big enough to NOT be of interest to a certain furball (Oreo). 

totally innocent

I also made another fan bookmark for a Mother's Day gift.  Of course I forgot to take a picture of it before sending it off so you'll just have to use your imagination of a variegated peacock blue. :)  I really, really love this pattern and the resulting bookmark!  You can find it here on ravelry or if you don't use ravelry, here on the blog post.

That's all for this edition of Ishkabibble Babble.  I'm not sure if there will be a Smalls post at the end of the month.  The vast majority of my small stitches are Christmas and I'm just not feeling like working on Christmas!  I will have to go through my digital stash to see if anything leaps out at me.  Until next time!  :D

February GG ~ No Shoehorns Necessary

Hello again; I hope you all haven't Valentine'd yourselves into a chocolate coma. Or maybe you have and that's a good thing.

click for more info

It's (already) time for the next Gifted Gorgeousness!  I promise to behave myself this round and not shoehorn everything in ahaha (though the birdhouse totally fit).

First up, I received a wonderful package in the mailbox from Crafty Rahenna.  I've always wanted some DMC floss cards for when I make my own patterns.  I had just talked to my husband about them, wondering if it would be possible to make some of my own with bits of floss.

YAY!

I've already used them as I charted up the next side for the Monster Hunter cube (a GG regular) and they make things so much easier than digging through the floss boxes!  I especially love the one with the actual bits of floss.  Thank you so much, Rahenna~ \:D/

Since I finished the little bird house at the end of January I needed to hunt up something else to work on as the cube side has yet to be printed.  To the craft hoard storage!

brown squares

You can totally tell what this is, right?  What if I told you it was another bird (why is this turning into a birding year?) because it totally looks like a bird.  This little one is from a giveaway I won waaaaay back at the end of 2012 from Mii Stitch (where did her blog go?!).  I loved this pattern the moment I received it though it has certainly taken me a while to get around to it, especially since I totally fell off the map in 2013.

I am going to change it a little bit, maybe.  I'm using the supplied floss which has remarkable coverage capabilities but is darn near impossible to railroad.  I do wish American crafty magazines would supply such fun bonuses though!  The fabric is plain white Aida but the setting sun decided to "dye" it for the picture.

Next, I worked on a few more centers for the long-neglected Speaker Cozies.

spokes

It's been a while since they were last worked on (September of 2016, ergh).  They are a good choice for craft meetups so I think I'll keep bringing them, at least until I have another full doily (or two) complete.

Lastly, this is not for GG but I wanted to stick it somewhere as I don't do many posts a month.  Here is a little more progress on the Flower of the Month's September Aster.  I think I spent just as much time unstitching the lightest purple as I did stitching it.  I am a Distractable Do-er.

before

after

At least the glaring orange is pretending to moderate with the other purples coming in, thank goodness.  I'm still not 100% convinced it's the right color but I'm still giving it the benefit of doubt!

Okay, I think I've babbled all I can (not really but I'll stop).  My Ravellenics is Really Slow this year.  I've been having some weird days for the past couple of weeks.  I think my flu shot is protecting me... mostly.  Let's all hope it continues to do so!

An Eclectic Ensemble

I did!

Howdy, y'all! Thanks for all the interest in the blog hop post. I'm glad you guys like Frosted Pumpkin cuties too! I figured I'm well overdue for a crafty recap that doesn't have to do with holiday stuff so let's take care of that, shall we~? :D

before

after

First up, I finished the next side to the Monster Hunter cube, Zinogre the lightning doggy!  I rather like how this guy turned out.  (Have I said this about all of them? ;b)  I was worried about the lightest color blending in too much with the fabric but it turned out to have just enough texture to make it subtly pop.

Technical Details

• "Zinogre" glyph from Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, pattern charted by me.
• 2 over 1 on 20-count light tan jobelan fabric.
• Finished size: 3.50 x 3.50" (9 x 9 cm).
• Started: July 6, 2017, Finished: September ??, unknown hours.  

I'm pretty sure this is a hunt

Four sides down!  Next up is Nargacuga, the hyper catbat.  I haven't started him yet; I'm not even done tweaking the chart for him!  He will be a rather dark stitch as I'm trying to keep to the main species and not the subs (this will present a problem for the last stitch).

I promise this is a flower

I have also started the next Flower of the Month -- September's Aster.   I'm still not enthusiastic over this one but it's not too terrible to stitch.  I snack on it on occasion but that has tapered off with all the holiday crafting.  I do not like that jarring orange center.  I am leaving it until the rest of the flower is stitched to see if it becomes less InYourFace but I am not hopeful!  Luckily it's only a few stitches that will need replaced if need be!

sunflower coaster

I'm kind of proud of this one.  I couldn't find a crochet or knitted sunflower pattern to suit my needs, so this was my first attempt in cobbling something from nothing!  I had to learn how to crochet the crocodile stitch (which, if you're interested, consumes a LOT of yarn), plus learn how to do it in the round.  For a first attempt, it turned out fairly well.  It's made of cotton yarn so it should work well as a coaster, though I'm not sure the recipient is using it as such!  I do wish I had written down ANYTHING about what I did for this pattern haha.  I'm not sure I could recreate it, though I think I'll give it a try at some point not-Christmas time.

front - front, back - back

I feel like I've been doing an awful lot of knitting lately too.  These are "star stitch" washcloths made as part of a Christmas present!  YAY I AM ALMOST TIMELY.  Also it is a good thing I started these rather early as the star stitch is torture for us poor tight knitters and these take me quite a while to make.  It does lovely things to variegated/ombre yarn, though, and that is why I chose this particular stitch pattern.

close up of the action

I have two more I'm going to make in "winter" colors.  I might make some for myself, but they can wait until after Christmas!  I did both a crochet cast on and bind off which have quickly become my favorite ways to start and end a knit project!  My tension is a bit better with them so they are looser, creating the slightly scalloped border on both edges.  Very much would recommend!

There was a minor annoyance with this yarn.  I bought the first skein at Michael's and it was 2oz.  This was enough to finish one cloth, plus about 7/8ths of the next one.  I bought the second skein at JoAnn's and it was 3oz!  Ugh.  3oz would've been enough to finish both, in the same dyelot (you can't tell the join on the second cloth though), with only a bit left over.  Now I have almost a full skein left to do ???? with.  I was a little grumpy over this.


Technical Details

• "Star Stitch" cloths, knit, pattern found here (free!) on ravelry.
• My ravelry project page found here.
• Cotton yarn: Lily's Sugar n' Creme in coral seas ombre.
• Size 9 (5.5mm) needles, plus a crochet hook for cast on/bind off.
• Started: October 28, finished November 10, unknown hours.  

Lessons Learned

• Crochet bind off.  
• Better tension control for purling! (!!!!)
• Where to buy yarn, bah.

I think that's all with crafts that I can show right now.  I have some small projects on the crochet hook which are turning out quite fun and really cute.  Plus I have another Christmas present on a different set of needles.  Plus plus I have some holiday cross stitch in the works.  Plus plus plus it's almost Cookie Time!!  I'm so happy to be excited about Christmas this year. :)

nyaa-p time

And even though it has nothing to do with anything I made but LOOK AT MY NEW PAJAMAS.  I don't impulse buy very often but I had to have these instantly, pink or no pink.  How can I ignore sleepy kitties and yarn balls!  These are seriously adorable and very comfy too.  They were brand new with tags, in a thrift store no less, so I got them for a whopping $6.  :D

helping

This entire post could've counted for Gifted Gorgeousness, haha.  I look forward to joining in again next year!  I hope you all have a wonderful time and those of you in the US, have a Happy Thanksgiving!  I don't have to cook for it this time.  \:D/