Sock Monkey Hats

Right behind all things owl, sock monkey hats are my most requested.  Who doesn't love a sock monkey?  One thing I love about these hats is that it doesn't matter how big (or small) they are or what colors you use, they're always easily recognizable and sure to elicit a smile!

Floral-inset Baby Blanket

Remember when I said before that our church has a lot of growing families and that gives me a lot of opportunities to make baby gifts?  Here's another example!  I used a basic v-stitch but decided, partway through (because that's when I make most of my design decisions, on the fly!) that a couple floral panels would be pretty.  To be honest, it was a huge pain and a terrible idea for something that was supposed to be a quick project.  I still love how it turned out though!  

I based the blanket off of the Lion Brand V-Stitch Blankie pattern and I used the flowers from their Summer Flower Baby Throw.

Baby Bear Hat

I love making hats for newborns!  Tiny, soft and picture-perfect...and then there's the hats!  =)  Our church is full of growing families so I have a lot of opportunities to make baby shower gifts.  I couldn't resist making a little hat for a baby girl due in about a month.  Her daddy just deployed and, at the very least, I'm hoping he'll enjoying seeing pictures of his newborn babe, snoozing away with a sleepy bear hat on.

Newborn photo props

I have a friend from high school who is a very talented photographer.  She has a studio in Colorado Springs and takes beautiful portraits.  (Seriously, check out her website and, if you're in the area, book her services immediately!)  Recently she contacted me and asked if I'd be interested in making a photo prop for her newborn shoots.  Yes!  I've been wanting to do this very thing but didn't really need the finished product so it was at the bottom of my queue.  As requested, I made her a colorful crown.  

While I made it sized to fit the average newborn's head circumference, I also used sock yarn to give it a bit more stretch.  If I can figure out where I sat my little notepad (I really need a better system!), I'll publish the pattern.

Because I had leftover yarn and an idea burning in my brain, I made her a cocoon too!  Without a newborn at my disposal I used a 15" doll.  Again, with the sock yarn, it can streeeeetch!  It changed some of the stitch counts and doubled up on my yarn but, for the most part, this is the pattern I used if you'd like to try to duplicate it.  

I'm really looking forward to one day seeing an item I crafted in a beautiful photograph by M Photography!

Ripple baby

For some reason, when I was pregnant with our first daughter, I imagined her receiving at least one sweet, handmade baby blanket.  I figured it was a given.  When she was born and said blanket ended up being a figment of my imagination, I decided it was up to me to provide her with a special blanket she could cherish forever.  After some issues with the pattern (namely that, at this point, I had never read a pattern and I inadvertently messed it up and then had to make something up or unravel all of my work and start over), a terrible yarn choice and a lengthy project made even longer by choosing to use a pretty small hook, I finally finished her "special blankey" (as she still calls it).  She was almost 2 and I vowed I'd never do it again.  Except for the fact that I was pregnant with daughter #2.  So...here we go again! I was determined that Matilda would have her blanket while she was still a baby!  Since my husband was gone at the Navy's OCS and we had moved in with his parents, I had a lot of extra time on my hands.  I was able to finish it in the car, on the way to his graduation in Rhode Island.  Matilda was 6 months old!  I did it!  Then 6 weeks later, after an extended stay in a hotel in Newport, R.I. and a hotel in Norfolk, VA, we moved into our current house in Virginia Beach.  We unpacked our carload of belongings...no blanket.  NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!  Somewhere between the hotels and our house it disappeared.  I mourned the loss of that blanket far more than little Matilda did.  All those hours of work!  Periodically my husband would mention that it would be nice for Matilda to have her own special blankey, but the thought of making another one made me shudder.  As I've said in previous posts, I love doing amigurumi and making hats because of the quick completion time.  Blankets are tedious!  Last month though, after completing my last round of orders and gifts, I started thinking about it again.  She should have a blanket--it's not her fault hers was lost, after all--and now we have baby boy who is also without a special blanket.  It wouldn't be fair for me to make one for Theodore when Matilda doesn't have one.  Blanket time!  I found myself falling surprisingly* in love with the retro zigzag pattern.  It reminds me of old ladies and I feel like it should be made with mustard yellow and avocado.  ;)  I found an easy pattern that was less severe--more of a ripple than a zigzag--(and there's also a photo tutorial if you need one) on Attic 24 and set to work. I gave myself a bit of a break by choosing a larger hook (an "I" in this case) and using 4 different shades of purple.  I realize that doesn't actually make it go any faster--and weaving in all those ends is annoying--but every time I finished a row and started a new color I felt like I had accomplished something!  2 weeks later, Matilda's Special Blankey 2.0 is ready for snuggling!

 I had intended it to be wider but she became very insistent that the ripples not be touching her chin so I made the flat edges the top and bottom instead.  Miss M is very particular!

*surprising because I feel that crochet can sometimes look cheap and old lady/dated (certain yarns make this worse) and previously zigzag was one of those patterns that made me feel this way (along with your run-of-the-mill granny square).

Inaugural post--my crochet history

When I was in grade school, my mom started teaching me a lot of 50's housewife skills.  Not that she was necessarily pushing me to be domestic, but I was interested and she had the gifts to pass on, so it was a good time!  Over the years she taught me how to sew, how to cook, how to iron (but not how to love it.  Sorry Ma, I still hate ironing!), and how to crochet.  I remember my first attempt at making a potholder in the round.  I had finally mastered the chain and was anxious to move on to something "real."  My mom gave me some yarn and a crochet hook and left me to work on it while she was making dinner.  By the time she came to check on me I was in tears, out of frustration, because I was holding the yarn so tight in an attempt to get my stitches "perfect" that it had rolled up like a small doll's hat!  Eventually I figured out how to get the right tension but grew bored with granny squares (it turns out, that was the only stitch my mom knew) and gave it up.  Years and years later, when I was dating my husband, long distance, I decided to brush off my skills and make him a blanket as a Christmas gift.  He tells me it is one of his favorite things I've ever given him, but truthfully, I find making blankets tedious and after making baby blankets for both our daughters I thought I was done with crochet.  Then, last year, a friend started posting pictures of her attempts at amigurumi.  I was intrigued.  I loved the idea that the projects were so small that I'd get that feeling of accomplishment before I reached the point of boredom.  So I purchased a book, dusted off my hooks, and gave it a shot.  I was hooked!  I loved the little toys and immediately made a couple for one of my nieces and her new baby brother.

Then, with Christmas nearing, I decided that toy food would be the perfect gift for all of my toddler nieces.  I bought another book (for all but the sausage links, curly fries, and cinnamon roll which I worked out on my own ) and got to work!

And of course my nephews needed a couple friends...

alligator & lion pattern found here

And who doesn't want a cute glasses case?

After the holidays, my girls were jealous of all the goodies I was making for other people and requested their own.  So, I thought, why not try hats?

hat pattern found here

These were fun to make and not too time-consuming but before I could head off on a new crochet obsession, I got turned in another direction: baby gifts!  I went back to Ana Paula Rimoli and got her second book.  I made baby shower gifts, like these car seat toys:

(basic toy idea from book but with components from other projects)

I liked them so much I made one for my son!

(basic toy idea from book but with components from other projects)

Then, in getting ready for baby boy to be born, I decided to make him some little friends as decorations.

these little guys are now hanging from his window valance

made from free pattern on this blog

And that brings us to the past couple of months.  I've revisited hats and found a new obsession!  I've been making things for friends in other states, gearing up for another Christmas season and am even considering selling some stuff at a craft fair.  I'm hoping that having a blog devoted to my crochet projects will give me a place to share the results with friends while freeing up space in my facebook photo albums!  Stay tuned for posts on specific projects as well as a link up with paypal for online purchases.