Ruffle Scarfs

This weekend I took a break from gardening and worked on a few of my yarn projects.  I had purchased a few different yarns that are mainly used to knit ruffle scarfs, which my Mom has been wanting me to make for awhile now.  So I sat down and found my instructions and in a day I had two completed ruffle scarfs and a third in the works.  With the right instructions (and pictures) these ruffle scarfs are fairly easy to whip up and would make great gifts this holiday season.  HERE are the instructions that I found the most useful with good pictures for those of us that are visual learners and there is even a video!  Both scarfs turned out great and now I have a basket full of finished projects that I need to weave in ends and block.  My next ruffle scarf is with some specialty yarn from my Local Yarn shop, so I will share that when it's completed.

Patons Pirouette (left) and Red Heart Boutique Sashay (right)

If you don't know how to knit, you could try this crochet ruffle scarf with Lion Brand's Homespun yarn.  The result is not quite the same since the yarn, itself, is entirely different.  However, I still love the look of the ruffle scarf, which can be made shorter or longer (the one below is longer).

Lion Brand Homespun: Crochet Ruffle Scarf

On the Hook & Needle Project Update

Usually I only have one or two projects each for crochet and knitting in-the-works, but since I had taken a handful of classes in July at Anna's Yarn Shoppe, I have more than that.  Plus I started a few fall projects that I shared this week on the blog HERE.

Crochet: Frost Scarf

If you do not have the link for the pattern, check out my previous post HERE.  I worked several weeks on this project, only a few hours a day and I'm not quite done.  After awhile, I became bored with repeating the same row over and over again.  It really is an easy pattern if you know basic crochet stitches.  I did find that I would stitch looser or tighter at different times when I would work on this.  Though I think I can get away with this minor "problem" as the bottom is wider then the middle and I will be blocking it in the end.  I just have to be sure to make the bottom on the other side of the scarf wider then the middle.  This will give it a different effect than the pattern intended, but it also makes my scarf more unique - it is handmade after-all.

Knit: Winter Berries Wrap/Scarf

I really love the look of this pattern and the mock cabling.  You can read my previous post HERE.  Once I learned the new stitches in this pattern it was not a difficult pattern.  I found that the way it was written (having to go back and forth to look at the decorative pattern and the main pattern) made it more difficult than actually knitting it.  I must have knit the first 10-15 rows about 5 times!  By the time I started over a 6th time, I was able to continue in the pattern and I did manage to rip out my mistakes.  However, I usually had to rip out 4 rows to finally be able to start again in the pattern.  Not sure why I ended up having to rip out more than a row to fix a mistake in the previous row, but it was good practice in fixing my mistakes.  Now I am finishing the last part of the pattern, which is not descriptive enough for me (as a beginner knitter) to make sure I am making the correct decreases in the pattern.  Once I can figure this out, I have the final edging and it will be complete, before blocking.

You can see the mock cabling starting to develop

Two Great Fall Scarf Patterns

Among other projects I have in the works or have already finished, I am working on two scarfs for the Fall.  The first pattern is crochet and can be made in other colors the yarn comes in, but I choose the Autumn color (Harvest Moon) as it reminds me of the changing colors of leaves.  The second one is knitted and the design has a beautiful leaf pattern to it that I am working in a gorgeous fall green color.  There are several other knitted projects with intricate leaf designs that I have on my list to make at some point.  Most of them are on Raverly, so if you haven't joined you should.  There are great patterns both free and to buy.

Scarf 1: Sophisticated Scarf by Red Heart in Crochet

Follow my progress, new photos and notes HERE. You can find the pattern HERE.  The picture doesn't do the actual color justice, but you get an idea of how the scarf looks.

Scarf 2: Daphne

Follow my progress, new photos and notes HERE.  You can find the pattern HERE.  So far I have only finished the repeat of rows twice and already you can clearly see the leaf pattern developing..  It will look even better once it is blocked

On the Hook: Crochet Frost Scarf

Besides knitting projects, I have a few crochet projects I am finishing.  One is a poncho with Lion Brand HomeSpun yarn, while the other is the Alpine Frost Scarf from the Best of Interweave Crochet book. You can also purchase the pattern individually at Raverly.com .

Anna's Yarn Shoppe chose S. Charles Collezione's Luna yarn, which is absolutely perfect for this project. I love the Luna yarn as it is a solid color with a bit of the metallic glitter and is a mohair-silk blend.  If you are new to crochet I would not recommend working with mohair as it can be tricky and if you make a mistake it can be very difficult to take out several stitches.  And if you use the Luna yarn in white the scarf resembles snowflakes.

The pattern itself is not very difficult once you get the stitch because it merely repeats the stitch.  We made a minor alternation to the pattern dimensions to make it more of a scarf than a scarf-wrap, which I will be adding to my raverly project page..  This will also be my first crochet project that I will need to block, but the blocking will enhance the appearance of the pattern stitches when complete.

You can follow my progress and notes as I work on the scarf at Raverly.com .  I will be posting photos as I finish the project, so stay posted for that.

Best of Interweave Crochet - Alpine Frost Scarf

Knitting lace patterns & circular needles

Recently I signed up for a few knitting classes and two were lace or mock-cable pattern stitches (the Winter Berries Scarf).  I love looking at all the wraps, shawls, scarfs and other knitting patterns that involve lace stitches and I think "Ooh, that looks difficult".  Now, I'm only a beginner knitter and have only completed a couple of knitting patterns, so these projects will be my first attempts at lace knitting.

Here is my knitted rib stitch for a cupcake pattern.

Pieces of the cupcake, a combination of crochet and knit

Cupcake is finished

Obviously taking on a wrap or scarf in lace knitting is a huge challenge and probably not something some instructors would recommend.  For me, I understood the stitches involved and can make a knit and purl stitch.  Everything else is a variation of these two stitches.  Some I find to be tricky, like knitting behind or purling behind.  But practice makes perfect.

So far I have completed a few rows of the repeated pattern stitch for the Encantada wrap (from the book Destination Alchemy) using an Artyarn instead of the Alchemy Haiku yarn.  I love the colors and the feel of the Haiku, but felt that it might be slightly easier to work with the Artyarn for this particular pattern.  The type of yarn you use for a pattern can really make or break a pattern.  Though there is a fine line when you are on a steep learning curve.  The finer, thread like or higher percentage of mohair or angora can make it very difficult to work with if you are a beginner.  It's not easy for me to correct my mistakes in knitting as I can in crochet, but mohair can stick and make taking a stitch out (whether it's crochet or knitted, makes no difference) very difficult.

Now for circular knitting needles.  I have always seen the traditional straight knitting needles, until I asked a well-seasoned knitted, did not understand the versatility of circular knitting needles.  From our conversation, I learned that circular knitting needles are great for projects that require a large number of cast on stitches or end up with a large number of stitches made; for those with weaker wrists joints/muscles since it keeps the weight of the project in the center as apposed to one side; and can be easier to knit with since you do not have long sticks hitting your arms as with traditional knitting needles.  So if you are thinking about getting circular knitting needles, I would recommend it.  Currently I have 3 projects on circulars and I am happy with using them, though I would recommend getting interchangeable ones.  Mine are from Knitpicks, but there are may different companies that make interchangeable circular needles, and it really is a personal choice whether you want acrylic, nickel or wood/bamboo.  That's not to say you shouldn't have straight knitting needles, I still use those for some projects.

So if you are joining the Raverly or NobleKnits Olympic knitting games you should get started.  Happy Knitting.

July's inspirations

It's already the middle of July and I still have so much more I want to accomplish before the end of the month.  As I try to stay cool in the heat and still complete my list of projects, I wanted to take a moment and share a few links that inspire me this month.  Don't worry I will be sharing my projects as I complete them.

I really like some of the Wire and Wire-wrapped jewelry - A Tree Necklace and X-mas tree earrings

For the fall I am loving some of the crochet and knit wraps and shawls.  I even have a few classes I am taking to expand my beginning knitting skills and learn to knit lace patterns.  Here's two of my favorites: A bamboo wedding shawl  and radiant eyelet shawl

As for sewing I have been admiring a few headbands.  This lace one which would be great for some of my lace fabric scraps.  And this fleece one for the winter, though I am not sure if I will embellish it with a flower or not.  I think the fleece headband combined with this fleece hat (in adult size) will be a perfect project to use the fabric from my old jacket.

And finally I think I need to sew up a few of these gift bags before the holidays arrive.

For now I will leave you with this beautiful day lily that was blooming in my garden.

New Links and Favorites for May

This month I thought I would share some of my favorite finds and links, maybe you will be inspired too.

My next sewing project (once I find the fabric/colors I want): Here

Great craft idea for tin cans and 4th of July or Memorial Day: Here

I want to braid my hair like this for the summer time: Here

This dessert would be very festive for 4th of July or Memorial Day: Here

And my favorite quote for the month is:  "Gardening is cheaper than therapy, and you get tomatoes"

I have been spending a lot of time in my garden, getting everything planted and watching my plants bloom.   But I have gotten back into my crafts.  Here's one I recently finished.

Out-of-Control Yarn

At the moment, I have been taking a break from my crochet and knit projects so I can complete a few sewing projects (as well as living life to it's fullest).  My knitting needle and crochet hook cases are almost complete and I have a bag that I am starting.  I will post those soon. 

In my absence from my yarn projects, I did discover an interesting blog post that I thought I should share.  Especially for those (like me) who have a yarn stash.  Maybe you don't know how to organize it or store it.  Check out Hugs for Your Head .  I really found her post about controlling your yarn stash to be very useful and insightful.

For my yarn stash I have an idea on how I am going to sort and organize it.  My yarn has outgrown the basket I was using, so I am creating some fabric bins and using a bookcase to store it.  Once I have finished this project I will share, but at this point it is an idea.

Getting ready for St. Patrick's Day

After a small technical problem I am back online.  In the time off, I have been getting ready for St. Patrick's Day and no it's not a big party that I am talking about.  Just a few quick projects and recipes to celebrate the holiday in style.


Now most people I know, think that corned beef and cabbage is a "traditional" Irish dish.  Reality is that this is not a traditional Irish dish and if you have travelled to Ireland you will be hard-pressed to find it.  I'm sure the dish is served at some restaurants or cafes in Ireland, but I never came across it in my travels. 


Instead I like to try different recipes for St. Patrick's Day, though not all are "Irish".  Here are a few of my favorites:


Guinness Gingerbread - This won't last long at any party (Click here for Nigella's recipe)

Guinness Chocolate Cupcake/Cake - Or try the Bailey's Irish cupcake from Kara's Cupcakes in Napa.
For this I baked it like you would a brownie, but you can also use a Shamrock cake pan or just cupcake cups.

Reuben Sandwich (instead of plain corned beef and cabbage) - I have a post devoted to this, so stay tuned.


Irish Soda Bread (Click here for Ina's recipe)

Scones (though these are also very English/British)

On to the projects.  Both of these are quick and easy projects to complete.


Clover (Shamrock) wood ornaments:
I had bought these clovers for another project a while back, but decided that a Shamrock tree would be a cute center piece for the table.  I used a few shades of green to paint them which would coordinate with my table runner, though you can easily choose other colors or shades.

After adding a decorative ornament hook and hanging them on a spring ornament tree, my center piece was complete.



The second project I completed were felted crochet shamrock earrings and hair-clips.  For these I used some extra green wool yarn and whipped up the shamrocks in a matter of minutes.  I think the felting process took longer than actually crocheting them.  Though I found that smaller items do not felt as nicely as hats or other clothing items.



Before felting




After felting







A week of crafts

In my absence from the blogging world I have been busy working and crafting.  Here's a quick review of my projects, finished and in-the-works.  A few projects I don't have photos of yet and they include a crochet poncho on my crochet hook and a hat on my knitting needles.  As for sewing I am working on a knitting needle case.  Happy Friday!

Valentine Lavender/Cedar Sachets: A quick and easy sewing project.  These are going in my chest drawers

Crochet Child or Doll Crown

Crochet Placemat: The final step is to felt and then I will show you what I have in mind.

Another yarn shop - Anna's Yarn Shoppe

So here's another (and one of my favorite's!) yarn shop and it's not because of the spelling of shop.  Anna's Yarn Shoppe in Elk Grove, California is the perfect, quaint yarn shop for the fellow crafter.  When I first arrived at the shop I found that there was so much to look at that I didn't know where to start.  The owner is awesome and very helpful.  And if you are in the area you will find a great group to sit with while you knit (or crochet) and chat.  It's such a great atmosphere that describing it does not do it justice.

There are plenty of classes and even events going on to keep the beginner or expert busy learning.  Check out the website, listed above, for a list of on-going classes.

And if you are looking for yarn, look no further.  There are so many choices you will spend hours deciding.  I really love the specialty yarns that are available to pick from.  But if you are not looking for those specialty (or "trophy yarns" as those at Anna's refer to them) you will find a rainbow of colors in different weights.  The yarns are arranged by weight which I find very useful when you know what weight you need for your pattern or project. 

If you need another reason to check out the shop and the website you don't need to look further.  Anna's offers complimentary ball winding in-store and online.  Now go find your projects so you can go shopping (you know you want more yarn for your stash)!

Happy yarn crafting.

Crochet Wand for Girls

A cousin's daughter recently turned 4 and I decided to make a little homemade gift for her.  I was really inspired and loved the Wand from Tangled Happy.  Here's the link to the crochet pattern.

The pattern is simple and easy if you know the basics of crochet.  I modified the pattern a bit since my stick was more narrow than the one she used.  This is a great pattern and I love the projects she shares on her blog.

With pink/glitter yarn I made the star then added the stick and ribbons.

My cousin's daughter loved her little princess/fairy wand.  To go with it I had a little princess-castle bag and crochet bracelet.



Crochet Hats of All Kinds for Toddlers

Here is one of my promised posts on some crochet hats.  In particular are hats for babies and toddlers.

The first one is from a Drops Design that I modified using some yarn I had from another project and thought would be cute for this.

Be careful with the size on this Drops pattern.  I gave this as a gift for a little girl turning one and it was on the larger size, but that's better than being too small or tight.



The second one is a cap for a baby boys (but you could change the color and make if for girls).  This is a design of my own and I will hopefully posting the pattern for sale online soon.  The size would also work for dolls clothes, like Cabbage Patch.

The last one is a snow day hat for babies, but can also be used for dolls clothes.

Filati Yarns Yarn Shop

On occasion I make a trip to the Roseville and Rocklin area, just North of Sacramento.  I love the shopping and variety of stores (and the selection) available.  This visit included a stop at Filati Fine Yarns in Rocklin.  My Aunt had mentioned this yarn shop to me and thought it was worth checking out.  To sweeten the deal their annual after-Christmas sale was taking place.  You can't beat a yarn sale.

The shop is fairly easy to find, just read the signs since it is a smaller shopping complex.  And it's right off of Interstate-80.  You can also pick up a few craft supplies at Beverly's Fabric too.  The Roseville Galleria is just a few minutes south, so it is close to other shopping malls.

I was surprised how large the shop was and there were so many yarns I didn't know where to start first.  The other knitters and crocheters were very friendly and helpful.  There were several different samples and already-made examples throughout the store (of course I found another pattern this way!).  I also found many other yarn companies that I had not heard of, especially ones from Italy.  A few of my favorites were the Norwegian wool yarn, but I also found many Italian yarns in the sale bins that I bought.  Really I could have gone crazy picking yarns for several projects.   And I spent more time looking at yarns then all of the other supplies and books/magazines.



My yarn stash from Filati

 If you are in the area I would recommend a stop at this yarn shop.  Even if you are not a knitter or crocheter yourself, you might be inspired to become one (and they have classes if you decide you want to!).

December Already?

Can you really believe it's December already?  I've been super busy since Thanksgiving and I'm hoping things will settle down soon.  So be prepared to see more posts of the projects I have been working on.

I have mentioned crochet hats several times, and I will finally get the pictures posted.  And I already have new crochet projects in the works.  Now I have been working on some sewing and those will be up soon too.

If you are looking for gardening and cooking ideas, tips and such I have those too to post.  Especially since I have a ton of green tomatoes!!

Finally, I have some new reviews of some recent outings to share with you.  I'm always looking for new traveling ideas.

So much to post and so little time at the moment.  Stay warm out there, it's been freezing temperatures this week here in Northern California.

Have you heard of DROPS?

Even though I have only been crocheting for a short period of time I have a ton of patterns that I want to complete.  Some are for knitting and now I have to learn to knit!  Those of you who crochet and/or knit probably know what I mean.  If you haven't found this website I highly recommend it.  Many of my favorite patterns I obtained from their website, maybe it's the wee Scandinavian in me.  And here it is, the DROPS patterns from Garnstudio (click here).  Just check it out and maybe you will see why I am so in love!

For Christmas I have found several more patterns I would like to make on their website and here is one of them; the felted slippers.  Not a surprise since I love to felt things as I introduced with my witching hour post.  It's not the same as the felt material you find in the craft and fabric stores.  Every thing about a knitted or crocheted item that is then felted is completely different than felt material.  Even pictures do not capture all the features.

Oh and I have already planned another road trip.  I just have to find the time.  Garnstudio also has yarn that is sold online, but I can buy it at the Nordic Mart in San Luis Obispo.  (See what I mean about the travel bug?!?)

Be sure to come back, I will have several crochet hats to share just in time for the colder temperatures we are experiencing.

It's witching hour

Halloween is just around the corner and I have been asked so many times this month what my costume will be.  Here it is, at least in part.  My witch's hat in black, I also have one in purple for my Mother.

I am mastering my basic crochet technique and this is a great beginner or easy pattern for crocheting (Click here for the pattern).  And I have found that I LOVE felting yarn.  Try it once and you will see why I am in love with felting. 

Use can easily substitute other brands of wool yarn as I did.  Patrons classic wool and Lion Brand Fun Fur were my yarns of choice, mostly because they were easy to find.  Just remember to use 100% wool, Do Not use any Super Wash wools or other wool mixtures to felt.

So when it's witching hour, beware . . .

Crochet Baby gift

Do you remember any crafts your grandmother used to work on?  I know I can . . .

Now my grandmother used to do more knitting then crocheting, but I had an interest in it when I was a child.  But I never really found any truly inspiring crochet or even knitting patterns then (which really wasn't that long ago).  As a result, I gave up on crocheting.  I also did not have a great teacher (if my grandmother had been alive she would have been a great teacher).

Back to the present, I have started crocheting again.  I refreshed what I had forgotten on the basics of crocheting and started a beginner pattern.   My Aunt really inspired me to give crocheting another try.  All the fantastic yarns; colors, quality, material content . . . and so much more.  Even the new patterns were so much more appealing to me.  And there are plenty of free patterns from yarn company websites that are appealing.

I picked a beginner project and a baby gift at that for my sweet neighbors who just had a baby girl.  I first tried the baby hat since I wanted to progress to adult hats for myself and my family/friends.  Now, I will admit that it took me several tries before I finally got it down pat.  Reading the pattern, I find can be tricky, more so than learning the crochet stitches.  Once I finished the hat, I tried the baby booties pattern and that was easier and I was able to complete both after only ripping out the stitches once before I understood the pattern.

I added a little photo brag book and I had a cute, yet simple homemade gift.

Maybe I will try a baby sweater, toy or blanket for my next baby shower gift . . . until then I have my other crochet projects in the works and will share those as I complete them. 

Hopefully you will be inspired to try something (even crocheting) to make some homemade!