Xmas ornaments love red cups

One thing that I really hate about Christmas

 is putting all the ornaments away.

Unlike the tree trimming part there is no party 

with family and food.

There's just me and the cat and a lot of tissue paper.

I wrap the paper around the ornaments 

and put them away in boxes.

She jumps into the boxes and tears apart the tissue paper.

But this year, thanks to Pinterest 

I did something different.

First I glued a bunch of red cups 

to the bottom of a plastic tote.

Then I filled them up with ornaments,

putting a delicate one in each 

followed by a couple of soft ones to cushion it.

I also stuck in some of the pre-torn 

tissue paper (thanks kitty).

I made a second layer using cardboard 

as the base.

It was ridiculously simple and hassle free.

Pinterest link

Making a few Christmas Ornaments

I've noticed some really cute ornament patterns
this year and I've finally found some time
to make a few.
All of them are from free patterns.

First up is this pretty star that I
made for my friend Star
(also known as Coltpixy).
This one actually took a bit of work
but I'm really happy how it turned out.



The hexagon is a  variation of Priscilla Hewitt's
sunburst granny square.
 I used this great tutorial from Daniela Herbertz
to turn a hexagon into a star.

Aren't the mushrooms cute!
And they are easy to make:
pattern is from Drops 0-723
Drops are posting a free pattern
each day leading up to Xmas.

I've been seeing a lot of cute trees
and the good thing is that you
really don't need a pattern for these
since they are so simple.



The bauble is from the
very talented Lucy from Attic24.
I've never made anything from her site before
but I now know why everyone loves her patterns.
Here is the link
which includes step-by-step instructions
to guide you (including pictures).



This little gem I bought from the

talented Woolly Fabulous.

I love how she combines thrifted materials
with zippers....Brilliant!

A crochet monkey, a vintage curtain and ginko leaves

Even though monkey is only partly finished

I thought he would enjoy going outside to

enjoy a beautiful autumn day.

Although monkey and I have spent only

a little time together, he and I have bonded.

Maybe it's because we have similar tastes..

obviously he likes vintage fabrics and

we are both fascinated by ginko trees.

But he is more impatient than I am.

I'm enjoying watching how his shape unfolds

as I make changes here and there.

But he is constantly rushing me to finish,

not concerned whether his legs curve

slightly inward, 

or if his shirt should be striped or plain.

But I forgive his restlessness,

for he is young.

Flower burst bag

First Christmas present done.
(Not the best picture as it is raining here).

I really like how this turned out.

It's the perfect size for a little girl to hold

all her treasures in.
It's 6 inches tall by 7 inches wide.

I made this one with Bernat Satin and used this 

great free pattern by Yasmin Gamal.

It only took 3/4 of a skein so it cost

 about $3 to make.

I've bought some green organic yarn

to make one for another niece
so I'm curious how different it will look
(other than one is pink and one is green :0)

Wip: a little bag for a little girl

I'm starting on my Christmas presents earlier this year.

This way when I change my mind a million and

a half times it won't actually be late December 

by the time I finish it.

I started off with a very simple but pretty bag for 

my 2 1/2 year old niece.

She is a girly girl and I never know what she

will like. Also her mum really isn't a fan

of handmade things.

So I picked something that doesn't take a long

time to make.

So far I'm loving this bag!

The pattern is for an adult so I shrunk it down by

using a 4.5mm hook and crocheted really tightly 

(hard on the hands).

You make the flowers first, joining them as you go.

Then you make the bottom part and

attach it to the flowers.

Then all you have left is to make the top.

Easy peasy!

A Tale of Two Max's

I made the bag on the left to hold

the crocheted presents that I made

for my darling new sweet niece.

You could also use it as a Xmas stocking.

I really love how it came out despite the fact

that my sewing machine had major problems

and that I could only find the acrylic felt

and not the nice wool felt.

This great free pattern comes from

the totally cool blog Meet Me at Mikes.

Click here for free pattern

I crocheted the little Max figure from

this wonderful pattern that I bought on Ralvery.

I found him easy to make and

only changed his nose.

His crown comes off and his

hood comes down, how cute is that!

I'm part way finished making a second

one for my son.

Related link: Another crocheted Max

The beginning of Hobbes

Hobbes
Originally uploaded by sukigirl74

Since we are now in November I thought
it was high time that I get started
on my son's Xmas present.

Barack Obama lives at my house

My oldest son asked for 2 books
written by Barack Obama
for Christmas so when I saw
this pattern I thought I'd
make it for him.



He's 2 1/2 inches tall which
is smaller than if you
followed the yarn and hook in
the pattern.
I decided to make him using
a dk weight yarn and 2.5 mm hook.
I also made him into a stuffed toy
instead of a puppet.
I think he would also look
cute as an ornament to mark
this historic event.
Here is the free pattern.
You just need to sign in to Lion Brand

Another knitted scarf

One of the wonderful things about the gorgeous
yarns that are available now is that even
a beginner knitter (that's definitely me)
can make a pretty scarf using
the simplist pattern.






 
This scarf is for my son's girlfriend and
as this is my first gift to her
I wanted it to be special.
It's a simple garter stitch
using 20 stitches on 15 inch needles.

The yarn is lovely,it is Lang's Mille Colori
and are stripes of deep chocolate browns with
amazing jewel purples and reds.

But what made this scarf come out so lovely
was the addition of a second thinner yarn
called Rowan kidsilk haze made from kid
mohair and silk. Not only does it add an
incredible softness to the scarf but
it also adds a slight shadowing affect
which unfortunately doesn't show
up in pictures.

One-Skein crochet scarf

I wanted to make a quick but nice present
for mum and I knew that
this scarf would fit the bill.
When rolled up it looks
like a perfect rose.



When worn it can be wrapped once
or several times around the neck.



1032 people (counting me)
have made it Ravelry's
most popular crochet project.
I used Paton's Classic Merino
and I would guess that
I used only 3/4 of a skein.
I've seen it made with acrylics
and expensive yarns and all
of them resulted in a very pretty scarf.

You can find the free pattern here
or in the Happy Hooker book.

Crocheted Ornaments-sweaters and skates

What fun it was to make these
mini sweaters!
They along with the little skates
were sent to Coltpixy
for a swap over at
Creative Living.


I love the sweater pattern
by Marci Senders.
She has done a great job not
only with the pattern but
also with a great tutorial
complete with step-by-step
pictures.
Thanks Marci!

I was also very happy with how
the little ice skates came out.
Thanks to Myra Ann Shaw
for a really cute pattern!
I'm planning on making
another pair but this time I will
make them into hockey skates
for my referee son.

A crochet rat for Rosie

My niece Rosie lost both her rats
this past year.
I decided to make her one for Christmas
using a great pattern
by planetjune at etsy.



He is about the size of her own rats.
Let me just say that it is very difficult
to photograph a black rat.

And you know the expression that
the camera adds 10 pounds.
It happens to rats too.





I never thought that I'd be crocheting a rat.

Crocheted Christmas Garland

I've made two of these garlands and I am
starting one for myself.

Poor little gingerbread boy!
He needs a candy cane crutch.

Crocheted Santas waiting for Christmas

I wanted to work on a project on my holidays that was
small enough to easily fit into my suitcase.
I also wanted something silly to crochet in
the heat of Italy so this fit the bill.
All I had to do when I got back home was put stuffing
in them and take their picture.

The middle one is to be the first Santa in a garland
of non-traditional Santas.