Roundup

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Got a few quick projects done this past week.

A few more ewoks, for starters.

The pattern is by Etsy designer Lucy Ravenscar and can be purchased here. I used the small hook for these guys again (E), though I did end up going up a hook size to G for the second two hoods. As you can see on the bottom one, the hood with the size E hook didn't really fit the ewoks. I only made bigger hoods for two of them though because my daughter had already claimed the first one. I ended up letting her keep it since these are a surprise for someone anyway and they won't be expecting a set number.

She was just so sad when I told her the ewoks weren't for her. I couldn't resist, especially after she dug out her Princess Leia for the ewok to play with.

I also made a little fall housewarming gift for my stepmother, that I will be sending her way this week.

Pumpkin Bowl by Cori 2012.

Pattern: Crochet Pumpkin Treat Bowl by Meredith Crawford (available for free at her blog, One Sheepish Girl)
Yarn: Knit Picks Brava in Orange, remnant green and brown
Hooks: US G, US H

This was super quick and easy. I did it in an evening. I did end up using a different leaf pattern (kind of just winged it, actually) because I got a little confused by the pattern provided for the leaf. I am pretty sure that was just my ineptitude though.

Anyhoo, so that's what I've been up to.

I will not be updating with any more projects again until December, since National Novel Writing Month kicks off tomorrow. I will still be working on stuff though when I am not writing, so hopefully once I start posting again, I will have lots of things to show you. In the meantime, if you're curious about what I am working on, I'll be keeping (or at least trying to keep) the current project list over on the left side of the blog updated for you.

My goal is to get that dang shawl finished before I start posting again, too. Fingers crossed.

Until then, have a happy November, you guys!

Bits and Pieces

Over the last month or so, I did a lot of crafting for my daughter's birthday, which was last week.

The first (and big) thing was one of her actual presents. I may have mentioned before that her favorite show is Phineas and Ferb. If you are not familiar with the show, the titular characters have a pet platypus named Perry (who is actually a secret agent, fighting the town's resident evil scientist). I found a pattern for the platypus, in pet form, and decided that I just had to make one for my daughter.

So I did.

Perry the Platypus by Cori 2012.

Pattern: Plushie Pet Platypus by Melissa Mall (available for free here)
Yarn: Knit Picks Brava Worsted in Tidepool, Orange, and Persimmon (one ball each)
Hook: US G

I am really really proud of how he turned out (even though I put his front legs on a little far back, I think). My daughter was absolutely thrilled with him and has enjoyed carrying him around and having adventures with him since she opened that gift. So I think that counts as a win all around.

On top of making her a present, I also made a few favors for her birthday party guests. It was a Star Wars theme, and for the kiddos I made light sabers out of pool noodles and duct/electrical tape, which were a big hit. But there were a few smaller kids invited, so I wanted to make sure I had something for them as well. I also wanted to have some prizes for kids for the games (that we kind of ended up ignoring completely, but oh well).

So, I dipped back into that stash of Star Wars amigurumi patterns by Lucy Ravenscar that I had purchased from Etsy last year.

Star Wars Party!

Ewoks by Cori 2012.

Pattern: Ewok Star Wars Mini Amigurumi by Lucy Ravenscar (available for purchase here).

Princess Leias by Cori 2012.

Pattern: Princess Leia Star Wars Mini Amigurumi by Lucy Ravenscar (available for purchase here).

Stormtroopers by Cori 2012.

Pattern: Stormtrooper Star Wars Mini Amigurumi by Lucy Ravenscar (available for purchase here).

I just used remnant yarn for them, none of them take up very much, and a size US G hook. The patterns call for a smaller hook, actually, but that wasn't working for me. These guys are all a lot of fun and very quick to make. They also seemed to go over well at the party. There ended up only being three kiddos plus my daughter there, only one of them too young for the light sabers, so I ended up just letting everyone pick one out to take home, and sent another home for an older sister who wasn't able to make it. Plus, Baby Girl ended up getting to keep one of the Leias and a stormtrooper, so win!

Anyhoo, doing all of these smaller projects really helped to get my crochet mojo back in gear, I think. That, and the really gorgeous new set of crochet hooks I got for my birthday. So on Sunday I dived back in to working on the dragon blanket and am now past the halfway point, huzzah! I am going to aim to get five rows done a day, which should have me through the tricky part in the next week. Fingers crossed I can make that work, because then I can have this puppy finished by the end of the month, which is my goal.

My Kind of Fairy Tale

Well, I still have three full-sized afghans to make for events this year, but as of this moment, I am all done with baby blankets. Here is the final one I completed.

Fit For a Princess by Cori 2012.

Here's a closer look at the pattern and striping.

Pattern: Modern Alchemy by Lion Brand Yarn (free registration required to see free pattern).
Yarn: Knit Picks Brava Worsted in Fairy Tale, Cornflower, Freesia, Eggplant, Peapod, Tranquil, Tidepool, and Rouge (one ball each).
Hook: US K

There is nothing I don't like about this blanket. Nothing. The yarn I used, the colors I chose, the pattern itself, it's all perfect to me. This may be one of the projects I am most proud of. I almost wish I didn't make it to give away. Still, hopefully the little girl it is going to will love it and it will be something she can keep with her throughout her life. Even more so because while the color scheme is feminine, it is not super girly in my opinion (which is what I was shooting for).

Normally, I don't like doing big color stripes like this because it means so many more ends to weave in (especially when there isn't a border), but that didn't even bother me here. Also, the pattern is for a full-sized throw rather than a baby blanket so that meant that it was, proportionally, much more suited to what I think is the right size for a baby blanket. It also means I can totally use this pattern again for grownups as well as kiddos. Score.

I honestly cannot recommend this pattern enough if you are looking for a quick, easy, and beautiful crochet project.

Now, back to that shawl I've been working on and the next of the big blankets. Hopefully progress on those will speed up once I get over this random obsession I've been having with the idea of making another sweater. I don't even know where that came from but I've got the bug bad. I think I just want to make something for myself after all of these gifts I've been making. I mean, yes, the shawl is technically for me, but there is no telling when I will actually wear it. It might actually end up being a gift anyway. Time will tell, I suppose.

In the meantime, back to work!

Top Things Off

Okay, remember when my friend asked me to make a baby hat for her photography studio? Well, before she sent me a picture of the hat she wanted, I started looking at patterns for baby hats in case she didn't have anything specific in mind. I stumbled across one that I just thought was too cute. So after I made her the requested hat, I kind of still wanted to make the hat that I had found to give her.

So I did.

Lavender Cap by Cori 2012.

Cap modeled by (slightly less creepy than the last but still no less) naked baby doll.

Pattern: Baby Hat With Flower* by Lion Brand Yarn
Yarn: JoAnn Sensations Bellazza Selection Tesoro** in Purple (maybe half a ball)
Hook: US I

*Link may require a free registration to see pattern.
**Tesoro appears to no longer be available, so link just goes to JoAnn's Sensations line.

I used a ball of wool yarn that my mom bequeathed to me the last time she was cleaning out her stash because it seemed just the right texture and color for what I had in mind. This sucker took me maybe an hour to make. It is such a simple pattern! I am not sure how I feel about the flower, but other than that I love this.

I love it so much, I decided I wanted to make a slightly bigger version for my kiddo.

So I did.

Cherry on Top by Cori 2012

Modeled by my lovely, yet seemingly uninterested, daughter.

Same pattern and hook, although I just increased the base of the hat two more times and then added more rows of the shell stitch pattern to make it larger. The yarn I used for this was Knit Picks Brava Worsted in Red (less than half a ball).

Making quick fun little projects like this really has me wishing I was more inclined to wear hats. They are so easy to make! Who knows, maybe this winter I'll be able to convince myself to don a few new caps...

Go Fish

Wow, I almost forgot to show you this little beauty!

One Fish, Two Fish by Cori 2012

Pattern: June by Sandy Rideout (from Leisure Arts #5260 A Year of Baby Afghans Book 5)
Yarn: Knit Picks Brava Worsted in Solstice Heather, Canary, and Red (3, 1, and 1 skeins)
Hook: US I

I finished this one a little over a month ago but I wanted to wait to show it to you until I had gifted it to the baby's mama. I finally got a chance to meet up with her and deliver the blanket (and its intended baby arrived last week, huzzah!), so, now you get to see it.

I have to say, I love pretty much everything about this blanket. The only thing I didn't like was that I felt like it was a little small. I was a bit put off by this, especially given how much yarn I had left over, but the Brava had more yardage per skein than the listed amount, so that could probably account for that. Still, the next time I make this, (which will be happening) I will probably go up a hook size and possibly add one more strip of fish. It actually really is the perfect size for a baby, I just like my blankets to be ginormous.

In addition to looking really nifty, the pattern itself is super easy to work up, and quick. I think it took me maybe a week to make this, working a couple of hours a day on it. That is kind of my ideal blanket pattern right there. This is the cover pattern for the booklet it comes in, and the one that caught my eye and made me pick up the booklet in the first place. There are lots of cute patterns in that book, don't get me wrong, but this is by far my favorite. I think that it alone is worth the price of admission, because I suspect I will get much use out of this for many years to come.

I also want to say that this was my first project using Brava (the Ducky Momo I made my daughter used leftovers from this), which is Knit Picks' new acrylic line. You guys, I am in love with this yarn. It's comparable to Lion Brand's Vanna's Choice, but I think it is even softer, and it has a much better price point. This might be my go-to yarn for baby blankets going forward. I have already started the next baby blanket with this yarn and I am really excited about how it is coming along.

So all around, this project was a delight to work on, and the kind of thing that reminds me of just why I love to crochet and make blankets so much. It's always so wonderful to find a project like that.