Crochet Cuteness

I may have to treat myself to this little goodie. Maybe it will inspire me to get out those hooks again. Craft time is non-existant right now.

Pinafore

This pattern is actually for an infant dress, but I think it makes a really cute toddler top. I used I Love This Cotton yarn from Hobby Lobby. It's nice and soft, but does seem to get a little fuzzy with wear, but it hangs well.

Crochet Christmas Gifts

Veggies for Eleanor's new kitchen (patterns here)

Cap for Joe's cousin (pattern here)

Matching drawstring bag

Happy New Year!

(crochet pattern for cardigan here)

Crochet Baby Gifts

The pattern for the sweater is the Cecily Baby Cardigan by Alicia Paulson. I used Rowan Yarn Cashcotton DK in Clear. I loved this yarn and I don't know that they even make it anymore. I found it in the discount bin at Nina's in Chicago and haven't been able to find it on the Rowan Yarn website. It's very soft and the color is my favorite. I'm always drawn to soft blues.

The pattern for the booties was from this Etsy seller.

Projects I've Been Up To

Baby Gifts

A crochet wrap sweater for Eleanor. (A little too big)

A crochet dress





Projects to come: Eleanor's pirate costume and a dress for her baby doll that has been naked for about a year now.

No glue gun, no yarn? What's a girl to do?

I realize that it's been a while since I've posted anything "crafty." Unfortunately, all of my supplies are sitting in our POD right now. That sounds so sci fi. No, Joe and I are not about to depart for space travel. We've packed up 90% of our home, using PODS (portable on demand storage). For the time being, it's all in storage. When it's time for us to move in, they'll transport the storage unit to our new home. At that point I'll be able to start crafting again (if I don't just go out and buy some replacement supplies in the mean time).

Here are some pics of my last two projects that I forgot to post. I found the most adorable patterns for infant shoes.

I'll have to make a pair a size bigger pretty soon since they just fit at the moment.

Also, I've been making a couple of headbands. Anything to keep all that hair out of the eyes. I like the way the crochet flower looks rather than those neon silk flowers I've seen in a few stores.

Pair of Booties and Hat

I made these little items for a friend's new baby girl. I'll be sending them off this week along with a few items of clothing that Elle grew out of before she even wore them. I just couldn't bear to pack away clothes that still have the tags on them.

Round 1: Ch1 *sc, ch3, 3dc, ch3, sc*

I've been working on a few crochet projects lately. The green flower above has been steadily growing, mainly while I drink my coffee, watching the Today show. I plan on stitching it to a circle pillow for Elle's bedroom. I like the idea of these fluffy crochet flowers adorning little pillows and will probably make a few more for her room.

I also finished up this hat for Elle. I found the pattern online here. We still need hats in the springtime, living in Chicago. I made the flower larger than suggested in the pattern, and used a tan, nylon tape.Ew, I hate pictures of myself. Anyway, I've had two balls of this green, wool/nylon yarn laying around for almost 4 years now. I finally decided to make myself a hat with them. I crocheted a simple single stitch, concentric hat, and then added a small brim to the front. I'm not sure if I'm extremely happy with how the brim came out. I'll have to try a different approach next time.

Cutie Booties

I finished crocheting the baby booties that I mentioned the other day. I love them. They look so cute on her little chubby feet. (The pictures are a little blurry, because she doesn't keep those feet still for long.) I used a pattern by Kelly McCaleb, but altered it a bit. I followed the pattern the first time around, but I wasn't pleased with my outcome. It turned out big and bulky, and didn't really look like the example picture. I'm not sure where I went wrong. I may have used a heavier weight of yarn than I was suppose too. So, on my second try, I used the same weight of yarn as I did before, but used a smaller hook (the pattern calls for a G hook, but I used an F instead) and used a single stitch on the last row instead of a half-double stitch. Also, I'm not sure how a baby would keep these little slippers on her feet, so I added the suggested tie. They work up pretty fast and just look so darn cute. I'm stopping myself from crocheting all day and making a pair in every color. Is she really going to grow out of all these cute little baby things one day?

A Few Crochet Projects

Yes, yes, yes! It is beautiful outside. Elle and I even took a walk today. She needed some fresh air after being cooped up this winter and covered in layers and layers every time we left the house. This kind of weather change rejuvenates and motivates me to get moving. It's funny how during those cold and dreary winter months you have to motivate yourself to do even the simplest tasks. Now, I know this weather is too good to be true for February in Chicago, so I am going to take advantage of it while I can.
Lately, I have been working on a couple of crochet projects. I'm a book taught crocheter so I'm kind of figuring out the patterns as I go. The first item I finished is a dress/top for Elle.

I say dress/top, because I actually started this when I was still pregnant, and if I remember correctly, I used the pattern for a 3-6 month baby and I'm not sure if it will fit her now as a dress or as a top with leggings or pants underneath. Anyways, I dug it out of my yarn box and finished it up. I got the pattern from a book that has many adorable baby items. I decided to try some other projects from the book, but I kept getting frustrated with the pattern directions. I assumed that I was just wasn't familiar with the techniques and went online to see if anyone had advice for creating the projects in this particular book. To my surprise I came across review after review stating that many of the patterns were incorrect and that the book seemed to be edited poorly. Well, at least I know now that it wasn't just me, but I wish I didn't waste my money on this book. You can even see that the left strap on the dress I made is thinner than the right even though I checked and double checked the pattern. Next time I try to find a pattern book I will make sure to read a few reviews first.

The next project I've been working on is a blanket using the crochet block patterns in this book, 200 Crochet Blocks, by Jan Eaton. I really like the examples and colors she shows in the book. They really inspire you to try them out. I did check up on this book and found a list of corrections here. I haven't checked my copy to see if they have been revised, but now I know where to go if they haven't, and I don't feel like I wasted my money.
Today I started my third endeavor, a pair of baby booties. I purchased a pattern from Kelly McCaleb's Etsy store. I've seen a lot of patterns out there for booties, however these booties seemed unique and more like little ballet slippers than booties. (Wow, I just said booties one too many times). I'll let you know how they turn out.