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.