What I Find Rewarding About Crafting
What do you find rewarding about crafting? Pick any of the crafting hobbies you do, and what is it about that hobby that you enjoy, that maybe relaxes you, maybe it stirs up creative juices. Today, I’m sharing what I find rewarding about crafting. And for me, it’s a combination of things. CHALLENGE I enjoy the challenge of a new project (most of the time). Selecting a pattern, touching all the different yarns to pick the best one. Mostly learning a new pattern, but every now and then, throwing in my own twist to the pattern….maybe trying something to see if it’ll work. That little bit of feeling like a…
New Project Spotlight: Healing Stitches Crochet Blanket
In today’s New Project Spotlight, we’re shining the light on the Healing Stitches crochet blanket designed by Jeanne Steinhilber over at The Crochet Crowd. The Healing Stitches crochet blanket is a great combination of classic stitches that most advanced beginners would be comfortable with. Once the blanket reaches a certain size, the ‘rounds’ begin taking a little longer to complete, but the stitch work is pretty simple….making it worthy of the name ‘healing stitches’. What You’ll Need (or what I used) 3 ½ skeins of Caron Cotton Cakes (530 yards/skein; 4 weight; 60% cotton/40% acrylic) in the colorway Cracked Pepper US-H hook Yarn needle Scissors Jeanne’s Healing Stitches crochet pattern…
New Project Spotlight: Glorious Granny Crochet Blanket
Today’s New Project Spotlight shines the light on a colorful and fun way to use Lion Brand Mandala or Cupcake yarn — or any other self-striping yarn. It is the Glorious Granny using the pattern by Fiber Spider. This is a pattern I watched on YouTube and then jotted down the instructions as he went so I’d have a “written” pattern I could refer to whenever I worked on it. I watched it a second time and made sure that my written instructions were accurate. Once you get past the first few rounds, it works up pretty repetitively. I don’t recall the video covering the quantity of yarn or the…
New Project Spotlight: 7-Day Sampler Crochet Blanket
Hey, how’s everyone doing? In today’s New Project Spotlight, I have a fun new crochet pattern I came across from The Crochet Crowd called The 7-day Sampler (designed by Jeanne Steinhilber). The pattern makes a series of blocks that are joined together and surrounded by a border. With some fun colors, and smaller blocks to work with, it makes for a good summertime project. What You’ll Need 6 skeins – Lion Brand Mandala Ombré yarn (344 yds/skein) in the colorway Happy; 4-weight 2 skeins – Big Twist yarn (380 yards/skein) in the colorway White 4-weight US-J hook Scissors Yarn needle The Crochet Crowd’s 7-Day Sampler crochet blanket pattern My finished…
5 Reflections on the last 5 months
Do you ever sit down and reflect on where you’ve been or where you’re going? I know it’s one of those things that can be hard to do when life is happening…..at full speed…..and dive-bombing situations are coming at you. I get it! But sometimes we just need to breathe. I’ve been reading Jay Shetty’s Think Like a Monk and he talks about how monks are trained to watch their breath. It’s one of the few things you have control over. Getting anxious? Watch your breath. It will increase. Be intentional about breathing calmly. Easier said than done sometimes, but a point nonetheless. These last 5 months have brought fun,…
New Project Spotlight: Dreamsicle Tee {crochet}
Today’s New Project Spotlight series shines the light on The Dreamsicle Tee, by Sigoni Macaroni. This is such a cute little top. I don’t make a lot of clothing items. I’m more of a scarf, cowl, poncho kind of girl when it comes to crocheted clothing items. Sometimes I just can’t find the right pattern. And then I get frustrated if it doesn’t turn out or doesn’t fit quite right. So much for wearing it right? All that excitement…gone. But I digress. What You’ll Need (or what I used for the Dreamsicle Tee) Her pattern covers all of the supplies and hooks and dimensions and other goodness and the link…
New Project Spotlight: Canyon Moon Crochet Blanket
Today’s New Project Spotlight shines the light on the Canyon Moon crochet blanket by Susan Kennedy of Pretty Peaceful. So let’s get started. Raccoons. What is it about raccoons that they like the next shiny object in front of them? And what does a raccoon have to do with crafting or crochet? Well, aren’t you glad you stopped by today to find out!? And yes, you’re still in the same article for Canyon Moon, just stick with me. You know how I’m a bit of a Renaissance woman when it comes to working on projects — multiple projects at any given time? Well, I was working on one of my…
Be Like the Little Girl…
I saw a quote the other day pass by on my Pinterest feed: “Go back. Way back. To that little girl walking around barefoot on the sidewalk in the summer sun. Worry less. Be like her.” (Shehaus.com) I didn’t really have a sidewalk. I had a 52-acre farm I was raised on but going barefoot in the country grass was definitely a fond memory. I recall the lack of burdens I had back then. My biggest to-dos were my homework and my chores. The rest of my time was spent pretty much however I liked. We were not a TV-watching household. So that was off limits most of the time.…
New Project Spotlight: All In The Family crochet blanket
Today’s New Project Spotlight shines the light on the All In the Family crochet pattern. A pattern worked “in the round”, more specifically, “in the square”. The All In The Family pattern (designed by Lisa Gentry, adapted by Jeanne Steinhilber for Yarnspirations; pattern link in the supply list below) was a lesson for me in some new stitches and building from the inside out. This was another pattern that was well written. Instead of using multiple colors and skeins of yarn, I chose to use a self-striping yarn and just let the colors flow. If you know me by now, you know it’s so I don’t have to tuck any…
New Project Spotlight: One Skein Scarf
In today’s New Project Spotlight, we’re shining the light on The One Skein Scarf pattern created by Tanya over at LittleThingsBlogged.com The link to her pattern is in the supply list below. I’m about 5’2” and was concerned the scarf wouldn’t be long enough or even wide enough, but the pattern pics intrigued me enough to give it a shot. And it did not disappoint. The beauty of this pattern is that is takes ONE, that’s right, one skein of Lion Brand Mandala or Cupcake yarn which are 590 yards per skein. Do you have any single skeins of a Mandala yarn? And you know that you can’t make much…
