Sunday, January 31, 2016

3 FO's and a Couple of WIP's

This update consists of 2 adorable crochet baby hats and a cowl using some of my handspun(this was my monthly yarn pick for January). Both hat patterns are free(check out my ravelry project pages) and i didn't use a pattern for the cowl but i have details/notes in my project page if interested.  I also chose the monthly yarn pick for February and it's some more of my handspun! It's a gray/yellow colorway which i love, i already know this will be something for me, i just can't decide if i want a hat, finger-less mitts or another cowl. We shall see!

There's also a few future projects i hope to get to these next few weeks, including some baby booties, a knit hat for the kid(at least one) and maybe something for myself :) I also have a couple of rainbow skeins i wanted to use in order to join a few knit/crochet alongs this month... rainbow-along if you please(love that title lol) but again i have no idea what to make. I'm browsing ravelry as we speak! Check out my vid for more details.

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Nintendo Baby Blanket, Llama and Misc.

I finally finished the ? Block Nintendo inspired baby blanket and i'm so excited! It took a while but it's done and it looks great to boot. I'll be waiting closer to April to give it a final wash so it's ready for use :). Since my last update i also whipped up a cute amigurumi llama(find links in the video description, this was a free pattern) as well as a knit hat, ear warmer and have a couple of things in the works. Overall i've fell into a lazy state recently and don't want to do much, however at the least i can sit back and do a row or two here and there on whatever project i happen to be working on. Hoping to have something to show next time! View the video for more blurbs and some channel and life updates.


Friday, January 8, 2016

Monthly Yarn Club ~ 2016 (& 2015 wrap up)

Last year was the first that i did the personal monthly yarn club. The concept is picking 12 skeins(i picked some from my existing yarn stash) and picking one at random every month to use for a project. I'm doing the same this year.

2015 was pretty exciting in all sorts of ways. I got the biggest news ever; i'm expecting and waiting patiently for my bundle of joy to arrive this April. I also almost reached my goal of beating/completing 1 game a month(i did 10) which is a huge improvement from previous years. As far as the monthly yarn club goes, i was 3 shy of reaching my goal and i didn't technically finish all the projects for the used skeins either(a couple are still in the works making them WIPs. Completed projects weren't a requirement however). You can check out more details in my 2015 yarn club blog post here. I listed the yarn details as well as what month i picked the yarn and linked to my ravelry project page and pattern where applicable... i will be doing the same here as well. To view more blurbs, see my fave projects and view this yarn live check out my video below.




Baby Jacquards by Bernat
Macaroon
Discontinued
346 yards / 100 grams
90% Acrylic, 10% Nylon






Mosaic by Bernat
Mineral
Discontinued
209 yards / 100 grams
100% Acrylic







Harris Banana Glama Gradient
Yellow/Orangy-Red
Handspun, OoaK
202 yards / 3.6oz
Merino blend with various fibers







Wool-Ease by Lion Brand
Weath
197 yards / 85 grams
100% Acrylic






LoZ: Link
Link (green)
Unknown yardage, weight or type of wool
Will calculate yardage when picked
2 skeins







Merino Single Ply by Scandinavian Weave and Knit
Fire Opal
215 yards
100% Merino






Northern Worsted by SMC
Discontinued
Santa Fe
230 yards / 100 grams
100% Acrylic


Seamist
Multi-color
Handspun, OoaK
240 yards total / 4oz
Wool/Silk blend
2 skeins
January Pick!





Old Mill Yarn Ewe in Browns
Shades of brown
195 yards
100% Wool









Spellbook
Gray/cream/yellow
Handspun, OoaK
270 yards / 4oz
100 % Superfine Merino






Stargazer Lilly
Pink/Yellow
Handspun, OoaK
198 yards / 4oz
100% Merino




Alpcaca/Merino Blend
Natural/brown
Handspun, OoaK
48 yards / 3.95oz
70% Alpaca, 30% Merino








Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Wips, Future Projects and Camera Issues

This update i share my one lonely FO(finished object)... which turned out to be a disappointment at that unfortunately. I made a cute baby vest that will be going into the donation bin. I used Caron Simply Soft yarn for this project and it didn't do it for me; i've disliked the yarn for quite some time but gave it a try as many other yarn crafters i know love it. It didn't turn out so great and i probably dislike it even more. I find it splitty, it untwists on itself, i don't care much for the sheen or the weight of the material once completed. It's soft(er) than most Red Heart yarns however; i'll give it that. The rest of what i have in my stash will be reserved for crochet amigurumis as it always has been.


I also share some patterns from my book library which i want to work on next. There are also WIP's(works in progress) including the Nintendo inspired baby blanket, knitted sweater and Amiibo covers. I think i'll be working on a hat next for sure. After(or during that) i'll pick up a crochet projects. To aid my craftiness, i recently purchased some very cute and yummy stitch markers. Two strawberry cheesecakes, a donut and Calficer from Howel's Moving Castle(an awesome movie). They are too cute; i plan to give them good use for sure.


Spinning also has been done! I've been working on this fiber since last year sometime and it's been a while that i left it on my wheel. Recently i decided to pick it back up and finish the 1.5oz i had left. What kept me away from it for so long i do not know. I then chain plied it making this into a 3ply, i guesstimate it's around worsted weight but will not know for sure until made into a hank and washed. I'm also uncertain as to how much there is, aka yardage at this point. This is undyed natural colored fiber which varied from white/creams to deep browns, all though no black from what i recall. The outcome is an awesome heathered/tweety yarn which i already plan to make a cowl, hat and/or perhaps fingerless mitts from... all for me of course :).

While making the video i was interrupted by my tablet(ipad, which is what i use to record at this time) various times due to lack of storage space. I finally got it figured out i believe so shouldn't have this issue again. However this time around i had to make a few short video and paste them together; in the end it would cut me off every 1-2 mins and then not record at all so ended up finishing this via webcam, which i haven't used since i began my channel. I'm actually surprised i knew where it was and how to record, lol. It worked anyhow, and it's a good backup if anything may go wrong again. Check out my video below for more blurbs and the video description for additional links.