Tuesday, July 19, 2011

New Baby Hat

I found out a friend of mine just had a baby! Yay!! Here's the hat I made for her little girl. Since it's summer and hot, hot, hot... I went with a cotton watermelon themed hat. I think it turned out pretty cheerful.


I also got some new yarn last weekend- Sierra by Cascade Yarns. The yarn is 80% Pima cotton, 20% wool. It's soft and such a vibrant shade of pink. Also last weekend, I picked up some Debbie Bliss cotton yarn (I've heard good things about it, so I'm anxious to try it out).

P.S. Need to know how big to make a hat? Check out this post by Little Birdie Secrets. It's my go to place when I'm free styling!!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Cute Sundress

Woman's Day has a pattern for a child's crocheted sundress posted online right now. Here's the link. It looks adorable and might be the next thing I make my nieces. Yay for little girls!


On a related note, has anyone had a chance to check out Little Crochet by Linda Permann?  The sundress at Woman's Day comes from this book.  I've seen It at the local bookstore and it looks like it has several really cute and doable patterns. I just wish there was a Kindle version. 

Happy Hooking!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Crochet Love

One of my favorite parts of working on an afghan for someone is how much love goes into it.  I really mean that. The entire process of making an afghan is a labor of love.  For me, before I even begin, I spend hours looking around for inspiration.  I pour over all the yarn choices I have, debating which color and texture they’ll most enjoy.  I try to imagine where and how they’ll use their afghan. 

Will they keep it on the couch to curl up with while they watch TV?
 
Will they use it to casually throw over their favorite chair as a decorative touch? 

Is it something they’ll keep on their bed and fall asleep with night after night?
 

Wherever they’ll use it and however they’ll use it, I try to plan for that.  And then I begin it.  I count my starting chain over and over and check and double-check that I’m following the pattern correctly.  And once I’ve started it, I work on it hour after hour, night after night.  If you’ve ever made an afghan you know it takes time to finish.  And all the while, all those hours I spend working on it, I’m thinking about the person I’m making it for.  I think about them and about all the things that make them dear to me.  I remember the special times we’ve shared together and make plans for the memories I still want to make with them.  Then I triple check my pattern to make sure I’m getting this afghan just perfect for them.  My mind wanders again and I start to imagine them actually using this blanket, and I wonder if they’ll sense how much I care as they look over all these stitches?  I trust that they will and it makes me happy to know that, through this act of crocheting, I’m able to show someone how much they mean to me. 

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Baby's On The Way!

Any day now, there's a new little nephew or niece coming! Hurray! I made these little layettes to welcome the new little one- boy or girl. Here's praying the birth goes smoothly for mommy, baby... and daddy, too!