Monday, February 7, 2011

Photo Box


I'm pretty proud of my photo box. It has been completely worth the minimal effort. I have been using daylight as my light source, but am totally excited to use my Ott Lite soon. I have been wanting to do this for a while, but after reading Handmadeology's tutorial, I was motivated. I use a white piece of scrap material in place of the curved posterboard for bigger things. I love love love this.

http://www.handmadeology.com/category/product-photography-tips/

Franky's Skull Sweater


Franky is a dachshound mix, but he's a good size at 15-20 pounds. I used Bernat's Skull Sweater pattern. I used Paton's wool. He looks so handsome in his sweater and it's really light, but warm. I don't think Franky minds wearing it at all. He never gives me trouble when I put it on him and he doesn't try to take it off either. Since its wool, it stretches a bit, so sometimes if he has been laying around in his sweater all day I'll find his arms (legs, whatever) sticking out and he looks like he's wearing a skull skirt! Also, his chest is pretty broad. If I could do it all over again, I would add about an inch or so more between the leg holes. I was pretty excited to make and finish this project, so it only took me a few days to finish. The chartwork, shaping, and edging were all very simple.
The only thing I am not too thrilled about is that I have to hand wash it. No biggie though.

Flower Hat



Super simple but equally as cute! Crocheted with bulky wool in sea green with bulky purple wool flower.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Big Flower Hat


I got two 50g balls of Berocco X-Press in a mixed bag of yarn at the thrift store. You are looking at both of them. I had just enough for the hat and the little bit for the middle of the flower. The yarn is just about the same as Lion Brands Baby's First. I tried making a grown up version of my baby flower hats. It has the same feel and stretch. But I loved the look of this big floppy flower.

Dinosaur Hat









I got into the dinosaur hat craze. I think Jackson looks adorable in both versions. I have an orange hat with yellow spikes in the works. They don't take too long and I absolutely love the easy and quick construction of the spikes. 4 triangles, sc across the bottoms to connect.
Still thinking about a girl costume hat. Maybe ladybug or cupcake?

Mary Jane and Sock Booties


These little Mary Jane Booties came from the Crochet to Go crochet card set. It wasn't very difficult to do, but there were lots of ends to cover and weave. I reshaped the first few rounds of the socks by adding decreases at the front center. They were too boxy and bulky. I also did not add the crochet thread trim. That seemed like too much work. I added a picot edging.
I don't think I will do that pattern again, but I would like to come up with my own version in the future.

Swirly Bibs


I really love these bibs. They are absolutely adorable, as well as, machine washable and dryable. I would say they would fit baby year 1-2. I used cotton and cotton blends and an H hook. They worked up in less than an hour.

Crocheted Bowl






I really like these little bowls. They are crocheted so tight that they become pretty sturdy. I'd like to eventually be able to stitch some little designs around when I have some extra time, but for now they whip up pretty quick. I used bulky rug wool and an F hook. I started with a plastic hook and saw how it bent like a fishing pole with a nice catch on the end. I soon switched to aluminum. The crocheting really wears on your hands, but the finished project rocks!

VCR Green Bag


Finally finished my VCR tape bag. It's awesome! It seems very sturdy, but I'm not too sure about that because I recall breaking the tape while crocheting, a few times. I used two strands of VCR tape and one strand of window ribbon (I really don't know what it is called, but it is ribbon with little squares cut out). It took about 5 or 6 spools of VCR tape ribbon. There were some that were an hour long and others were only 30-45 minutes. It's a pretty decent sized bag, as well: about 17" wide and 12" tall. I think I could hold a lot of groceries or whatever in it!
I've been working on the bag for about 2 years now off and on. It's such a loud project! Everytime I took it out I heard everyone sigh. It is hard to hear the tv.