A Crochet Christmas

I'm still busy with my Christmas crocheting and crafting, and I have almost finished my Christmas doll.  I'm hoping to put the finishing touches on her tonight and share her with all of you soon.  But in the meantime,  I thought it was time I shared some more free Christmas crochet pattern links I've found around the web. These little crochet goodies are great for decorating your home or as gift toppers. You could also use them for stocking stuffers, or quick and easy gifts for co-workers, your child's teacher or anyone you want to give a little something to show you care.

  Crochet Mitten Ornament Pattern

Crochet Christmas Tree Pattern

 

Another Crochet Christmas Tree Pattern

Check out PixieKitten's cute little santa hat.  Perfect for your amigurumi dolls, or hang it on the tree for an adorable ornament!  Small Crochet Santa Hat Pattern

 Crochet Wreath Pattern.

Crochet Candy Cane gift topper or cute tree ornament.

Tiny Crochet Mittens gift topper or ornament.

I love this amigurumi angel.  Wouldn't she make a cute stocking stuffer?

Crochet Mr. and Mrs. Christmas Mouse.

 Crochet Christmas Wreath.  What a cute idea!

Crochet Cup Cozy.  Use this drink cozy and even your coffee or hot chocolate cup will be festive!

So there you have it, lots of free patterns to crochet up some holiday cheer!

Crochet News

If you're like me you will be very excited by this article that ran today on ABC news in Chicago, IL. The title "Crochet's Comeback" caught my eye immediately. How exciting! I love crochet and have always thought that it is such a beautiful art, although I must admit, I cringed every time my grandma, bless her heart, would send me one of those ugly crocheted vests. I got them for birthdays, Christmas, and for no reason at all. I loved my grandma and my conscious, even as a child, wouldn't let me throw them in a drawer and not wear them. So I would wear them to school. I seemed to be the only girl in school lucky enough to have these "vests of many colors" and I got more than my fair share of teasing. Let's face it, crochet's 'bad rap' is well deserved based on the crochet of the 60's and 70's.

But crochet has become more modern and fashionable, trendy even. I've always thought if today's crochet got more exposure it would change people's minds and it would overcome it's fuddy duddy reputation.

The article I read this morning caught my attention and I must say I was excited!! The article started out by saying that when you think of crochet, you probably picture your grandmother's baby blankets, or those (ah-hemm) multi colored vests worn by college girls in the 70's. It went on say, "but crochet has been updated and it's making a comeback". Hurray!! It's about time, I thought.

According to the article, some of the crochet accessories that will be popular this fall are Nordstrom crochet tights, sweaters and tunics in purple, grey and turquoise, and looped scarves. Also popular this fall, handmade crocheted hand bags made with recycled pop tops such as these from CasaBrasilonline.com.




The recent crochet jewelry trend is expected to continue as well. You can get more details and read the full article here.

In addition to making some of these items for my Christmas Craft Boutique, I'll be adding some of these popular fall fashion accessories to my Christmas crochet gift list!

On a side note, my trip was fantastic, but I'm so glad to be home. I'll be posting pics soon!

Cutest Ever Amigurumi and the Magic of Invisible Thread

My amigurumi deer is done! I'm so pleased and excited about my latest creation. I had been eyeing this pattern for weeks and finally broke down and bought it and I'm so glad I did. She was so fun to crochet and the responses I'm getting from her are overwhelmingly positive. Lots of ooohs and aaahs and baby talk!

She looks curious!

I used invisible thread to sew on the felt around her eyes, and inside her ears, and that was such a time saver. I was able to securely sew the felt on and the stitches can hardly be seen unless you are really looking for them. I was so impressed with the thread in fact that I went back and bought 3 more spools for future projects!! Invisible thread is an absolute must if you're going to embellish your Ami's! I found it to be a bit hard to work with, but the results made it soo worth it!

For those of you that just have to make one of these of your own, you can find the pattern for sale here: http://www.crochetcute.com/Fawn_Crochet_Pattern_p/pat02001.htm

I plan on making the little brown one next, followed by a "Rudolph", complete with red nose, for the Christmans Craft Boutique.

It seems that lately I am spending more time blogging about crochet, and surfing the internet for cool crochet stuff than I am actually crocheting! There are so many talented and creative crafters out there! I enjoy looking at other peoples ideas and work so much. Saying all of that to say, I ran across something today that I just have to share. Have any of you ever heard of an artist by the name of Jo Hamilton? I hadn't. He crochets portraits of people from pictures and his work is absolutely amazing! Take a look at these photos:

I can't imagine the talent and patience it must take to do something like this!

You can see more of his work at http://www.johamiltonart.com/.

Time for me to go relax in front of the tv with a glass of wine and a crochet hook.

Life is good!

MORE FREE AMIGURUMI PATTERNS TO LOVE!

It seems I am as addicted to reading all about amigurumi and searching for free patterns as I am to actually crocheting the delightful little critters! In my quest to find the absolute cutest free patterns, you know...the ones that make you say "omg, I have to make that!!" I spend hours upon hours combing websites and blogs looking for them. I ran across a few adorable ones that I have put on my "Amigurumi to Crochet" list which will take me until I'm at least 80 years old to finish. Today I ran across these "Funky Pigs" at the Premier Yarns website. Get the free pattern here.

The Funky Pigs – Flora, Dottie and Lionel

Designs by Michele Wilcox

I think they are just too cute and huggable, and I love the way they all have different, yet matching outfits. And speaking of toooo cute, look at this little amigurumi lamb:

This little guy is a definate future project for me. I found the pattern for him here:

http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=155762.0

Something about those little eyes! I was able to find some of these glass eyes at my local Hobby Lobby. I think they are beautiful and I can't wait to use them in a project.

If you're unable to find them at your local craft store, you can also order them here: http://www.suncatchereyes.net/

And while you're there check out their section of free patterns! They have some very cute ones. Take a look at a few of them:

Very nice!

Well, time for me to grab hook & yarn and get my daily dose of crochet fun!

As always, thanks for visiting. And until next time....happy hooking!

So just what IS "Amigurumi" Crochet anyway??

Welcome to my very first Blog! Why am I so nervous?? Well let me briefly introduce myself. I'm a mom, a grandmom and a recently "displaced" worker. Having been laid off from my job of 9 years only 2 weeks ago I've been forced into what I now have decided to call my "vacation". Hey, might as well make the most of it right? And it sounds so much better than being "unemployed". I haven't been "unemployed" for any length of time since I was 15 years old. So here I am. 49 years old, recently seperated from my husband of 26 years, and raising my 3 year old grandson, who has lately been my main motivation for anything and everything I do!! I've been doing alot of worrying and contemplating lately. Where do I go from here? I've tossed around all the ideas of taking advantage of my meager severance time and going back to school, doing some babysitting out of my home, calling everyone I know to put the word out that I'm looking for work and all the various "work from home" ideas. What I came up with is basically...nothing. I'm just more confused than I was before. So I called an old dear friend to cry on her shoulder, which she obliged and then proceeded to tell me about how busy she is getting ready for a craft show here in our town in October 2009. She has done these craft shows before and makes a nice little chunk of change to supplement her retirement income. "You should whip up some of your beautiful crochet and attend the craft fair with me this year! We could get a booth together even."


Now that was something to think about. I love to crochet. I taught myself when I was 14 years old and have been happily addicted ever since! I've crocheted everything from afghans, to potholders to sweaters & scarves. I love to create!! To me there is such a wonderful sense of accomplishment and pride to take a piece of string and turn it into something beautiful! "Okay" I told my friend. "That sounds fun and it will get me out of the house if nothing else." I might even make a little extra money if I'm lucky. I've got a little time before my severance pay runs out in 5 months so why not? The more I thought about it, the more I liked this idea of attending a craft show with my very own "products" made with my own two hands! My family and friends always say I should sell some of my crocheted work because I am so "talented". But I've never had the time or the energy to make a substantial amount of pieces....until now.

So, first things first, I thought. "What should I make?" Afghans, baby blankets and the like would take too long. I need to make something that's beautiful and can be done relatively quickly if I'm going to be ready by October! Then it hit me. I've seen pictures in crochet magazines and on crochet websites of these little tiny dolls, animals, bugs and just about everything you could imagine....even vegetables and food!



I have often thought of trying it for gift giving or toys for my grandson. That might be something I can do quickly enough to have a respectable "inventory" for my first craft fair. So I jumped on the computer and started searching for patterns of these tiny little creatures. I was astonished at how many there were and just how popular this delightful art form called "Amigurumi" Japanese crochet is.

Ami-gu-what???

What does that mean? I did a new search under "amigurumi" and much to my delight I found hundreds upon hundreds of pictures and free patterns. The definition of "Amigurumi" is as follows: the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals and anthropomorphic creatures. The word is derived from a combination of the Japanese words ami, meaning crocheted or knitted, and nuigurumi, meaning stuffed doll. Amigurumi are typically cute little animals ( bunnies, cats, dogs, turtles, bears, squirrels and so on), but can include artistic renderings, and inanimate objects endowed with anthropomorphic features.


Ah, I see. Well that looks fun, and easy even! I'll give it a try. My first pattern was a cute little Lady Bug I found here:
http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/80016AD.html

Isn't she just toooo cute???!!! ♥♥♥♥

I grabbed hook and yarn and finished "Lorelai" in an afternoon! I was hooked. It was fun, easy and quick. And best of all adorable and sure to be a popular bazaar item. I couldn't wait to start my next project.

The blog was an after thought. I thought it might be fun to document this "journey" I'm about to begin from start to..well, wherever it leads!
I welcome any ideas or feedback and meeting some new friends along the way would be nice too!

Here's a link to a free pattern for some super cute turtles that would be good for anyone just beginning amigurumi crochet.
http://www.crochetville.org/forum/showthread.php?t=40998



It's less challenging than the lady bug (all those spots and legs!!!!) Try it out and let me know what you think!

Until next time.......happy hooking!!

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