First Knitted Baby Afghan

This is the very first baby afghan I have knitted. Tonight it went as a shower gift to the daughter of one of my dearest friends who is expecting her own daughter. By the looks of things tonight, that little one may be here any moment. :) The first picture is of the afghan before I washed it and added trim. I love how plush it came out and I think I found a new yarn to add to my list of favorites. I used Baby Bee Lambkins Baby Boucle that I got at Hobby Lobby. It was a thick plush yarn that had a nice sheen to it without a metallic thread. Below is the afghan after washing and adding the finishing ribbon. It added the touch of color the white afghan needed I thought. Using this yarn, with size 11 needles, and the Diagonal Pattern Baby Blanket at Lion Brand's Web site, 1/4" ribbon was the perfect size for threading through the increase stitch all the way around the blanket.

Another costume flashback

Halloween 1989, when E was a year old, I decided to make her a costume. This ladybug outfit lasted through all 3 children for several years in a row. There was a little suit, with the hood separate, and the wings went on like a backpack. This too is packed away in a keepsake box awaiting the next child who will wear it. :)

Keep finding flashbacks

This is my senior prom dress. I'll date myself by saying that I graduated from high school in 1989. But, anyway, I made the gown. It was my first major sewing project and I was very pleased with how it came out. It's still hanging in one of the closets around here. I doubt I could fit in it at this point. Forgive the absence of my own head, and for that matter, the absence of my date. That was a terrible smile and with the old face even (considering new face didn't occur until 2002). You can tell it was me by the birthmark. :P And since I have not obtained permission from my date to post his photograph, I will not.

Still another flashback

I've just rebuilt my computer and am currently going through all of the pictures I have stored. This means finding the older ones of craft projects past. Some years ago, I tried my hand at scrunchie design. There's not really much to designing or crocheting a scrunchie. These are two that I designed and made for my children. I thought they came out quite well. Now to just find the notebook where I wrote down the designs so I can make more.

Another flashback

Sometime after I found out I was pregnant with my oldest child, E, my mother and I were somewhere (Wal-Mart, maybe?) and saw this fabric with the city pattern on it. So we bought it, a matching green backing, the eyelet lace, and the quilt batting. I hand-quilted around the edges of the streets, buildings, animals, etc. When it was done my mother bound the edges with the eyelet lace. It came out really cute. E always referred to it as her "City Blanket". This picture was taken upon the completion of quilt. Obviously it took me a little while since the child I was pregnant with at the beginning of the project is about 9-months-old in this picture. It survived all 3 of my children quite well as they drove little matchbox cars all over the streets. It is currently packed up in a box in my basement awaiting the first grandchild. Note: E is now 20-years-old.

Flashback

I've decided to start going back through the pictures of the various things I've made over the years and put them up here too. Here's the first that I've come across. Last Halloween (that would be 2007), I completed a costume that I'd begun working on a number of years before. This costume is a Gothic Alice in Wonderland. I used a pattern for a girls' dress that I altered to allow for the fact that my figure is a little more "ample" than that of a girl. Then using the same dress pattern and a lot of printer paper, I created the pattern for the pinafore. Then to top it off, I made the cupcakes that said "EAT ME" that are seen in the picture. Overall I thought I did pretty good. Everyone at work who was voting in the costume contest did too. I won second place. :) The prize for second place was half a day off of work to be used anytime between 10/31/2007 and 12/31/2008.

Shopping Bag - Attempt 1

I got this pattern from Lion Brand's Web site. It is the Eco-Friendly Expandable Shopping Bag. It was very easy to make. I used Lily Sugar'n Cream cotton yarn that I got at Micheal's in the big skeins for the cream flecked net and small balls of the contrasting purple. Ultimately, I was attempting to find a pattern for a reusable grocery bag when I found this one. The pattern really came out much more like a beach bag due to size and expandability. It expands well so you can stuff a lot into it. The problem is that the cotton has a little bit more stretch for the size of the bag than I would like. If you put very much weight in it, the bag drags way down from the shoulder. I am attempting to rework the pattern with some sizing changes to see if I can arrive at something more functional for my intended uses. I will update with the finished result.

Something made a while ago....

These are pictures of a layette that I made for this little lady prior to her birth, some time ago. The layette also included a pair of booties and an afghan. I hear a picture of her with the afghan, which I am told she sleeps with now at nearly 2-years-old, is forthcoming. I think my work just added a little enhancement to an obvious cutie!

Proof that I've learned something....

After the slipper, people had to be wondering if I really actually learned anything or not, so I feel the need to prove it. I think I've mentioned before my intention to use all my left-over yarn, particularly the baby yarns, to make hats and such to donate to the hospital for newborns, the elderly, cancer patients, etc. Here is my first knit contribution to that collection of items. I used my Samsung Blackjack, which is a rather large cell phone, as a size comparison for the hat. This one is intended for a preemie. The pattern for this one is at Lion Brand's Web site, called Queen of Hearts Preemie / Newborn Hat. I decided to make it in a single color, omitting the instructions to change colors. And I used my favorite Bernat Baby Coordinates yarn. No surprise that I have left-overs in that brand. ;) The pom-pom was made with a Bucilla ® Doodle-Loom ® Tool Kit which I picked up at Hobby Lobby using one of my e-mail coupons to save 40%. Coming Soon: The very first complete knit baby afghan!!

Where do I find the time?

Many people who know me know how nuts my schedule has been for many years. They also know how much I still somehow manage to accomplish. Take, for instance, how much I still manage to crochet. Or even that somewhere in this nutty schedule I keep, I have still somehow managed to meet a new friend who has been teaching me, and others, to knit. I can't thank her enough for helping me get beyond the few little things that were proving to be roadblocks to me learning this skill. So now, I have to show you the slipper. As a learning tool, our teacher had given us a simple slipper pattern and set us loose. She told us to use larger needles so that we could see our stitches while we were learning, so I did. I think mine may have been too large. It was far too large for any human foot I've ever seen. This slipper, when shown to my darling husband, was referred to as a "bowling pin cozy". Equally, my darling middle daughter K stated that it was a "wine bottle cozy". Not what I was going for, obviously. :) So now that my very first completed knit piece has been photographed for posterity, I will likely be frogging it to reclaim the yarn. I think the colors will make a wonderful hat to add to the bag of little things I plan to donate to the hospital.

Fit for a Little Man

The owner of the company DH works for and his wife are expecting their first child, a boy, in mid-April. Naturally, I had to whip up something special for the little tot-to-be. I absolutely love how this came out. I decided that a little boy needed a pull-over sweater and a pair of Levi's jeans. I used Red Heart Baby Soft yarn and Red Heart's Leaflet J17-0750 Sweet Baby Crochet for the patterns.

Afghan for a Special Little Person

I had picked up the Bernat Baby Coordinates Sweet Stripes in the Sprite Stripes at Hobby Lobby on the clearance rack for a few dollars off per skein and so I decided to use that. DH had been with me and had been convinced that I wasn't going to use it so I had to prove him wrong. This pattern came from an older worn-out copy of Leisure Arts Leaflet 2335 - Unique Baby Afghans to Crochet. It's quite a large baby afghan at 36"x36".

I really love the variation in this pattern. The chain loop braids are gorgeous too. I've made this one several times now and it's been so beautiful every time.

Changes for the New Year

After much consideration, I've decided that my blog shouldn't just be crochet. I love the crochet, but there are other crafts at which I am equally talented. Among them are cross stitch and sewing. I look forward to sharing more projects and finds as I engage in my crafts.

First Completed Project for the New Year

This is one that I created the color and layout of using a motif I found in a book of pattern stitches that I have. (Whereabouts of book currently unknown and I don't remember the exact title. I will post further info when I figure out where I've put the book.) I'm giving it as a gift for the new grandchild of a dear friend. I do hope they like it. I liked how the edges came out because of the hexagons. I might need to try it again and do some kind of border around the edges to see if it adds anything special.

01/03/2008 Addendum: I presented the afghan to my friend. He was most surprised and loved it. He said he couldn't wait to take it to the baby. Several others at work saw it as well and praised it.

01/08/2008 Addendum: I found the book. It's called The Pattern Library: Crochet