Friday, January 24, 2014

Crochet Hat Pattern

I've been looking for an easy crochet hat pattern that can be tailored for many sizes, but now I don't have to do all the work.  This free crocheted hat pattern has all sizes from adult to infant.  When I finish crocheting my purple wool vest, I am going to use this hat pattern to make a matching hat before I box them up to send off to Wool Aid to warm some cold child in a poor chilly part of the world.

Making these hats requires that you know how to do the Adjustable Magic Circle, so pay Crochet Spot a visit and learn how.  Lol, I just had to go there myself for a reminder course.  ;)

A picture:






Doesn't seeing these make you want to make 1 or 5??  Wouldn't these hats look gorgeous with a crocheted flower on the side too?  I thought so too!

=) Gayle

Crochet Mitten pattern

No it's not mine, but I did find this apparently easy Women's Mitten Pattern , and I hope to give it a try soon.  I like easy patterns as my mind seems to get bored after awhile with more complicated patterns.  LOL, or maybe I am just too easily distracted, hmm?

Here's a picture of those pretty mittens too:




So go on, crochet up a pair for yourself and maybe one for your favorite charity too!

=)  Gayle

Edited to add:  I think that I need to make up a pattern book for all these great crochet patterns I am finding a printing off.  Just something simple, like say a 3 ring binder with page protectors.  Though only 1 page protector per pattern as I am too poor [lol, well maybe too frugal is a better description] to have enough of those clear page protectors for each page of pattern.  I have been printing off LOTS of patterns.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Crochet hook conversion chart & Ravelry

I just found this crochet hook conversion chart , its useful to me because of the Tunisian Crochet hooks I bough came with only sizes in mm (1, 2, 3......10mm) and I will now be able to use the right size for my USA written crochet patterns.

If the link above doesn't work for you, try going to:  
http://www.freshstitches.com/crochet-hook-size-conversion-chart/

Besides that, i think that her website looks to be a fun one that I will explore when I have more time.

Today though, i have been racking my brain for an easy dinner idea (tonight is not only Cub Scouts Pack Meeting, but also the PINE WOOD DERBY!!), but I got caught up reading old emails and then going over to Ravelry to see what I could see on the Wool Aid group there.  I have been busy crocheting a purple wool vest to donate to the Wool Aid, as per January's project guidelines on the [Yahoo Groups] All Crafts for Charity (AC4C) group.

Oh yes, dinner tonight will be my version of Italian chicken Braid;  any way I make it, my kids go crazy.  If I have time, I am going to grind some wheat, and use that to make my dough with -- better for us all around.  LOL, that is if I can figure out where the bucket of wheat got put, it used to be behind the back door to keep it from slaming into the wall, but since Christmas, things got moved around.  Guess I'll have to go looking.

Happy January 22nd everyone!!  It's sunny here today!!  Though I'd be happy with some snow too, its melting too fast here, I saw 2 feet of bare ground in front of the house earlier.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Purple afghan pictures

Okay, I never did figure out what was going on with my phone and posting pictures, but I was able to upload them okay to Google+ and just discovered that I can post them on here.  So without further ado, here are the shots of the purple and cream afghan I am making for when K moves into E's room.




Just looking at the above picture, I think that I'm 1/6 to 1/7 of the way finished with her afghan.  Good news to me.  ;)  I have to tell myself things like this to keep me motivated or it will join the rest of my UFO's in the basement.



Someday i will make E her own afghan to go on her bed too.  Oh my, I've got to get back to working on her afghan, just realized that i haven't worked on it in over a week, maybe more like two weeks?  Lol, I should also come through here and fix my typos, please forgive me I have no extra time just now as I need to get bread going in my machine for dinner.


Happy January and 2014 want-to-do's

Hey everyone!!

The sun is shining and it makes me feel happy even if the temperature makes me feel cold and the several times I was awake in the night make me feel exhausted.

So have been thinking again of "resolutions" for the new year, maybe more like want-to-do's though some are need-to-do's.

In 2014, I want to:
  • make at least one sweater -- maybe more.
  • make one project a month for my charity crafting group (well 12 items for charity this year), it's a Yahoo group called All Crafts For Charity or AC4C.
  • do more with Tunisian crochet
  • make a quilt for each child (if I finish the binding on the purple quilt for E, I will count that) -- strip piecing would be quick and easy.
  • toilet train K,
  • do my Physical Therapy faithfully no matter how much it hurts.
  • open last of boxes from moving in -- lol, we bought the house 4 years ago, it's long past time I did all this.
  • save money to buy bookcases -- very badly want to get my good books up higher above K, T, and E's reach so keep them from being torn up so much.  I do enjoy reading books and I would really like to see what we have.
  • hang pictures on the walls -- I'll do it myself this time if I have to.
  • Did I mention that I need to de-clutter a bunch of "stuff"?  Oh yeah, I've got to go through everything!!  Get rid of some fabric and yarn (oh heaven forbid), plus heaven only knows what else around the house.  Some of those glass items-still-in-the-boxes from my what my Mom gave me and wedding gifts that have never been used, well they can go too -- perhaps I shall list them on the the online yard sale places on Facebook.
  • Move K into E's room, maybe do a bit of light decorating to show that girls live in there.
  • Get my boys and hubby to help me more with the garden, and then with canning this summer & fall.  Last year taught me that I really cannot do it all alone.
  • lol, and  ... well bickering kids helped to forget whatever it was.
  • but maybe do more baking from scratch yet again.
Well, that's plenty.  I have already begun to do some of these things.

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Happy New Year Everyone!!

Happy New Year Everyone!!

It's now 2014, January 2nd to be precise and my boys are going back to school today.  I miss them! We actually had some fun together during this Christmas holiday break.

But now I have been thinking and doing some reading online this morning, apparently most people who make resolutions don't keep them.  I know that to be true of myself, though mine is from procrastination.  I'm very good at procrasinating!  ;)

Anyhow, I was thinking that I won't make resolutions, but there are some things I would like to learn how to do, or to do better.

These include:
  • learn how to knit better -- need to figure out how to keep my edges smooth and even.
  • Make a sweater, or several -- but at least one.
  • practice crocheting socks, I want a pair of handmade socks.
  •  Continue practicing to make thing with Tunisian Crochet, learn more stitches.
  • And those other 2 or 3 things that I only seem to think about in the middle of the night, such as get my Etsy shop back up and going! 
  • Maybe make some slippers too -- I found a cute pattern called Birchbark slippers (through www.crochetpatterncentral.com, Tunisian crochet).
Also I have things I need to work on in regards to my family,
  • Be gentler and more loving with ALL of my children, not just my baby -- its always been easier for me to be nicer to the babies than to the older children.  And with first son going through puberty, well its becoming more difficult some days to be gentle and loving with him. However since I love all my children, I need to work more on this.
  • Read my scriptures more on my own, and
  • Keep up on my personal prayers, AND
  • Try to attend the Temple at least once a month -- it will be hard with my baby and my 3 year old, but I'm still going to try to do it.
  • I also need to plan if not weekly, then at least 2, dates a month with my husband.  Something more than movie & dinner each time, or some variations on it. 
Oh hey, I get my lovely red leg cast off next Tuesday, January 7th at TOSH in SLC.  Then I get my "walking" cast on and will likely start doing physical therapy around then too.  I will work up to full weight on my foot, 25% a week at a time, but it's progress.  I will also be able to bathe with both feet in the tub!!!  I am really looking forward to that one!! Until then, we have some super cold weather coming up, I think I'd better make myself a toe sock for my cast.