More finished items The gray and white jackets are based on a Craftsy pattern called Lutin Marguerite. Of course I had to make changes to suit my taste. The two baby slippers are from a store bought pattern, using fleece fabric scraps.

DREAM Beanies

This is Jose Luis Zelaya, probably the fastest crocheter in the world.  He's trying to fulfill a dream of finishing and completing his PhD by supporting himself through crocheting beanies.

Some baby sweaters I've crocheted last month, for baby Selene:

I've also crocheted some cowl for a couple of friends:

And here's some cuteness--Baby Selene at 8 months

This is what I've been making lately, what with the new grandbaby.

And baby Selene wearing them

I'm mad about this baby. She fascinates me and makes me smile. I just love her.

Just Pictures this time, of some items I've finished or currently working on.

My very first grandbaby!

Happy New Year everyone!

Christmas and the New Year's eve celebrations went by too fast that we didn't have the chance to savor and enjoy them. Like my youngest said, it was a bit blah this year.

My dad had his abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery on December 9th and he's recovering and adjusting really well. He will be 84 this month and he misses having to drive around. There were 39 staples in all removed from his stomach/abdominal area. He was surprised that it didn't hurt when they took out the staples. That's modern technology for you.

On another note, Crochetville has a post on FB regarding the differences between liking crocheting vs. knitting. I do both but when it comes to projects that you want to finish quickly, I always go with crochet. Afghans, baby blankets, hats, etc, I always crochet. However, in 2013, I finished 2 knitted afghan projects.

If I wanted the nice fitting and stylish hat, I go with knitting. Socks? Sweaters? They have to be knitted, in my opinion. However, I have several knitted sweaters and cardis that I don't wear at all because I don't like the way they look. Go figure. I also have some crocheted socks that I wear all the time as slippers, at home. If I want to be able to wear my socks with clogs, knitting it is, because it's not bulky.

What's my point? I really don't know. I love both knitting and crocheting, and I use them in different projects, depending on what I like doing at the time, the yarn, the pattern, etc etc. And I have since subscribed to a Crochet magazine, where I plan on crocheting a cardigan. Who knows? I might even wear it.

I have finished several WIPs that I even amaze myself. I usually have startitis, with my projects lingering forever. These are my FOs, so far:

1. One crocheted Ripples prayer shawl for our ministry at church .

2. A striped crocheted shawl, also for the church ministry

3. A baby afghan called Leaping stripes from the Moogly site

4. A baby cardigan, a freebie from Valley yarns called Cold Spring cardigan

5. This scrap afghan from the Yarnspirations website

6. The striped lace afghan from the Mary Maxim kit, pictured from a previous post.

And I started some new projects.

1. Granny square afghan using scraps (again). You never run out of scrap yarn. Every project you finish yields a ton of scrap yarn

2. As part of a CAL sponsored by Kim Guzman, a Tunisian entrelac afghan freebie from the LionBrand website.

I'm finishing my afghan kit from Mary Maxim and almost 3/4 done with my Hue Shift Afghan from Knitpicks. This one is so addicting that I purchased another kit for the Rainbow colorway. Here's a picture of the Baby colorway I now have.

I love, love the colors, the pattern, and the yarn. It's 100% premium acrylic and so very soft. I hope it doesn't pill after washing. The pattern is for sale and can be found here.

I have been following Kim Guzman on Twitter and did not realize that I have most of her patterns from way back. She was one of my favorite authors/crochet designers. I never really got the hang of Tunisian crochet since to me, the fabric is so dense, thick , and it curls. Never really found a use for it except for potholders. But since then, newer patterns and techniques have come out that you can basically do anything with it, including lace and various stitches. Kim has a ton of videos on Youtube that are so well explained that you can create something by just watching them. hmmm... a new afghan squares blanket, maybe, using her techniques?? Here is a picture of a scarf I'm making using her Spider Lace afghan pattern.

This uses a double ended Tunisian crochet hook and the video can be found HERE on Youtube

Spinning cotton on a tiny drop spindle

A new baby blanket, crocheted

I was browsing the latest Mary Maxim catalog and saw this afghan pattern kit. With the free shipping, I ordered the kit. this is how much I've done so far:

The yellow yarn was not part of the kit. Without it, the whole thing looks blah. I think it was an improvement.

Nothing to do with knitting but I thought this was cute. When my daughter showed me the picture online, I didn't think it was a real cat. Upon research, this breed is called a flat-faced Persian .

I have several cones of variegated cotton yarn in my stash and a slowly disintegrating collection of dishtowels. Might as well knit some. This pattern is really simple, with garter stitch borders and plain stockinette body. To alleviate the boredom of knitting it and still make it a doable project while watching TV, I decided on this pattern. Mind you, it's not a new one. I've seen people knit this with their socks. The purl bumps appear on the right side of the fabric.

Purl 1 color Dishtowel pattern

(c) Vicki Suan

Materials:

4 oz Variegated cotton yarn

US 7 knitting needles

Gauge: 5 stitches per inch, stockinette

Directions:

Cast on 50

1. Knit 4 rows

2. (RS) Knit

3. (WS) Knit 3, purl 44, knit 3

4. Repeat rows 2-3 until piece is 22" long.

5. Knit 4 rows

6. Bind off

Note:

Again, you want the purl bumps to show on the right side. The color I picked to purl is the coral color (see picture). While working on the right side, as I came to the coral color, I knitted it first. After I turned the fabric to work on the wrong side, as I came to the coral, I knitted it as well, to make the purl bumps appear on the right side.

On the same note, as I was working on the back side of the dishtowel, I purled the coral color as I came to it. When I got to the right side, I purled the coral again, making the purls appear on the front side of the towel.

Clear as mud? Play with it. There are no set rules. I simply wanted that one color to be more prominent on the right side. Make a comment if you have questions and I'll get back to you.

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and decided to give it a try. Here is my version:

Peach or Plum ice cream

2 cups sliced fresh peaches, peeled and pit removed

3/4 cup plain yogurt

1/4 cup honey

Blend all ingredients together and freeze. The original recipe calls for putting it in an ice cream maker. I didn't. I put in in a plastic container and put it in the freezer. You can adjust the honey and yogurt (more or less) to suit your taste. You can stir the mixture every 2 hours or leave it in the freezer overnight (I did). The icecream will be firm and icy like a frozen yogurt but I was able to scoop it out with an ice cream scooper. Enjoy.

Vacation time

No Hawaii this time as it was too expensive for the 5 of us. Instead, we drove to LA, Carlsbad, and San Diego. Here we were at Pacific Beach in San Diego, CA

Every shot I take of a beach scene is always like this. I don't want to be in pictures except the occasional one or two shots, just to prove that I was there. Otherwise, I am perfectly happy to take pictures of my family.

And here is Emily trying to bury Matthew in the sand. No luck. Places we visited included Legoland, San Diego Zoo and Sea World. 7 days and still not enough time to visit more places.

I finished this wreath, inspired by Attic 24. She has so many ideas on her website, all free, and oh so colorful. This wreath has a foam base. The idea behind the blue cover is from my daughter, Emily, who loves the color blue. This was fun to make. This next one is a sheep from the Fuzzy Knits book.

Here is another crochet rug I finished. Again, I used scrap cotton yarn (dishcloth cotton) held doubled. Click on the picture to see the bigger version. Each flower is crocheted individually and then, sewed together by hand. That was the easiest way of doing it. I crocheted a border of single crochet in black yarn. This is how each individual flower looked like. You kinda have to match the curves. and sew it on. tah dah!

I have finished a crocheted rectangular rug using left over bits of cotton yarn I used for washcloths and dishcloths. the yarn is held doubled in mismatched colors picked randomly. I crocheted strips of 13 dcs (don't ask why. It just seemed the right count). And I picked a random length of 30 inches long. 4 strips sewn together, then a border of hdcs and this is what I got. I had hubby buy rug backings at Home Depot and we're all set. The backing cost $22 and is quite a huge size. I can probably make about 10 rugs with this sheeting. Next time, I'll show you my flower rug with a pattern.

I have some recently finished work: Here's a knitted baby owl from Fuzzymitten.com Another is a kid's owl hat (crocheted) from RepeatCrafterMe and here's the adult version this polar bear hat was done without a written pattern. I just winged it.