Oh, Hello There!

Hmm... I think I mentioned that I would be back in, what was it, April?

Oops. Sorry about that. Really. I work as a substitute teacher both in town and in the next town over, so I can get a little sidetracked and busy. Okay, a lot sidetracked and busy.

I don't have any pattern round-ups for you, but I do have a few photos of what I've been working on. Sadly, it's only been one project (not counting the order I'm still working on), but I can say that I've made my first "real" clothing item.

This is the Amelia Toddler Sundress. It was meant to be a birthday gift for one of my nieces (I have two little  bitty ones now), but I foolishly made a mistake when reading the pattern and had to restart the entire skirt the night before the party. So, I've decided that it'll be a Christmas gift instead, which is fine because that gives me time to finish it properly (and go buy more yarn that I ran out of, of course).

Here is a couple of Work In Progress photos. I'm actually nearly done with it now. It's super cute and I've decided that I'm going to go ahead and make one up for my other darlin' niece for Christmas as well. I'm super proud of this!

Isn't this just the cutest thing? I love it already. I can't wait to make another in a different set of colors. (This is currently being worked up in Peaches and Creme's Happy Go Lucky.) Takes up a fair amount of cotton yarn, but it's well worth it.

I'm on the fence about taking orders for Christmas at this point. I've got a commission to finish and my own gifts to work on (they're a little more complicated this year).

However, regular commissions are still open. I'm more than happy to make something without a tight deadline (like Christmas), so feel free to contact me if you have any questions or would like to order something.

No promises as to when I'll post again, but I do hope to post again when I'm finished with this dress and maybe even add a sneak peak of what I'm giving away for Christmas gifts to all the women in my family this year. (So maybe next month?) Going to aim for a Halloween/Fall themed pattern round up as well, seeing as it is that time of year.

Until next time, my dears! :D

On the Tenth Day of Christmas

Day 10 and these cuties finally arrived to their new home. My dear friend "Jazz" (the woman who I featured a few days back) ordered these for her two little boys.

Again, I have learned so much from making little stuffies like these. The blue/green one is a little thicker than the red/orange guy - stuffed him a little and it seemed to make his head a little more stable. I have also learned that hair is a pain in the butt sometimes. "J" has a slightly crooked face, but I think he looks heroic. "C" has the written mouth, while "J" has a mouth made similar to the stitch used for the eyes. (Can you guess which one I like better?)

They may have been a little difficult, but they are well worth it. I love them so much. I may make some next year for my nephews. I really hope Jazz's little boys love them as much as I do. These will forever go down in my book as a favorite pattern that I'm totally willing to repeat.

Standing guard over my yard - or at least until they move to their new home!

The pattern can be found at RedHeart.com under the name Boy and Girl Super Heroes. They're adorable and not as difficult as I had originally thought. And they actually work up rather quickly too, since the head and body are one single piece. The thing that took the longest was the cape, but even that wasn't too terrible. Learned so much about weaving in tails for these guys too.

I'd like to remind you that anything that you see within my blog I can make custom for you. And almost every pattern I find is available to you on the Free or Paid pattern pages at the top. Feel free to contact me or dive into the pattern pages! If you make something from any of those pattern, I'd love to see! I'll even give you a free feature just so that others can see the amazing work that you've done as well!

On the Eighth Day of Christmas

Day 8 and a sort of "repeat", if you will. The first day was about the little blue teddy for my youngest nephew, Michael. Well, today's photo is of the little green teddy I made for my oldest nephew, Keoni.

I really do love this little guy and may even make him again, but bigger! Wouldn't he just look adorable a bit bigger? Size comparison, he's a little longer than my 7.5in hand (from middle fingertip to wrist). He's wider than that, too, of course.

Ain't he just the cutest?

Remember that this pattern is from Lion Brand and is called Bear in a Jiff. It is on the "Free Patterns" page, but you will need an account to be able to use Lion Brand's patterns.

Be sure to stop by Kota's CC on Facebook to like and share all of these photos! They'll be ongoing until December 25!

On the Seventh Day of Christmas

Day 7 - and look, it's a Sunday! 

Many of you know that my mother was diagnosed with "Non-Specific Breast Cancer" back in early February. If not, I'll do a brief rundown. She's been a trooper since day 1. Never really let pity and doubt and worry nag at her. She had her brief "I have cancer" cry, but shrugged and said that it is what it is. She even refuses to let others pity her because of it. The only thing she could do was talk to her doctor about treatments and what they could do to fight back.

And fight back she did! Since February she has had chemotherapy and radiation and several surgeries. She had a double mastectomy (meaning she's lost the gals), but is looking forward to getting her new ones after she's finished with radiation. She even said she wanted them to be bright pink, but knows that's now how it works. 

So, back to today's photo - she's lost some hair, thanks to chemo, but that's normal. She found a photo of an older woman who lost her hair to cancer as well and had knit herself some hair. After posting the photo to my page and a strong hint, I did some searching myself. And I found a cute pattern, pictured below. And of course, I've got to make it in different colors so that she can wear a different "wig" every day of the week!

I've made a blue one as well, but didn't grab a photo of it at Thanksgiving, which is when I had made it. She loves it, and that's all that matters to me. :) Makes me super happy.

She can be a natural blonde now!

This paid pattern Funny Halloween Pink Wig Crochet Pattern can be found at Ravelry, of course. It says it's a "Halloween" wig, but you could totally wear it at any point of the year! I may even make a wig for myself to wear this winter and surprise some of the students I sub for! Wouldn't that be fun?

If you make some "hair" for a friend or family member of your own, send me some photos! I'd love to see the crazy colors y'all come up with!

On the Fifth Day of Christmas

Day 5! Moving right along! (Explanation for why this is late will follow down below)

So, I've been struggling with this beanie for a year, a YEAR. I wanted to make it for a friend last year, but I couldn't figure it out for the life of me. This year, however, a fellow crocheter on Facebook posted her troubles with this particular pattern in a group we're in. I figured I'd try and help her out, since I was stuck too. So we began to work "together" on it (separately, but sharing notes and issues via Messenger on FB).

And that's not where the troubles stopped. After I had completed the hat, I realized it would fit my niece better than my friend. Well, that wasn't in the plans. Okay, we'll try again. Tore it out, and discovered (thanks to my new buddy) that if you work the hat in one hook, and then go UP a hook size for the owls, it works out a whole heck of a lot better. I would probably even recommend going up a hook size than require for the hat and go up a hook size from that for the owls, but then again, I crochet a little tight.

This pattern may have kicked my butt for a while, but I can say that I am happy with it and I now know how to work cables into my work. It was harder than I thought, but that's how you learn. I would be willing to make this again and again.

The pattern is called It's a HOOT! and can be found on Ravelry. I actually purchased my copy from her website, but Ravelry is always a good place to buy and get patterns. They'll automatically store your receipt so you don't have to worry about losing it. And you'll get to download any paid pattern you bought over and over if your computer crashes or something. I use Dropbox to save all my stuff, so I'll never lose it.

This is late because I was working all day Friday and got home and just could not find this photo. I had one, but GOD BLESS was it horrible. Didn't show the color well at all. I will try to keep up with this the rest of the Advent Season, but I do have to work and get stuff made. You can help me out GREATLY by dropping by my Facebook page and