Polka Dot Throw

You ever look at something and just say to yourself "I am gonna MAKE you"...gosh, I hope you do, or else this is going to be an awkward moment. Its not just me, is it?

Here is my latest...

 

Pattern:  http://www.redheart.com/files/patterns/pdf/WR2107.pdf

It appears to just be plain old Red Heart Super Saver yarn...which I have a few (hundred) skeins of in my stash from hat making. I am going to stick as closely to this color selection as I can. Its so perky! It belongs on my couch.

I hope that you will make one with me! I will update here with my progress. First and foremost...collecting the colors in a basket.

Im off!

Happy Hooking,
Mel

Review: Bernat Alpaca Natural Blends

Ravelers...please go HERE for the post with the pattern. I messed up and pasted the link to this review where I should have posted the link to the pattern and I cannot seem to fix it. :) 

Well...let me just start by saying, "I love my set of fingerless gloves. But."

I tried Bernats Alpaca Natural Blends yarn. This was an impulse buy and my first time using this yarn. I went with "stone"...a very dark, shiny charcoal gray. Not metallic shiny...it has a sheen to it, as you can see above. It is 70% acrylic and 30% alpaca. It is a nice bulky weight. I paid $6 for my skein.

It is soft. Not as soft as Hooks and Loops Charisma or Lions Homespun, though. If I had it to do over again I would use Charisma. It is the same bulky weight and almost always on sale. So, it would be half the price and a little softer.

All softness aside, there is one reason I am complaining about the alpaca. It sheds EVERYWHERE as I crochet. I have a black cat that lives outdoors (her name is Ninjette, she is AWESOME)...but I kept thinking that she had snuck inside the house. Black hairs were EVERYWHERE. And the hairs that manage to stay on the yarn get very tangled on the hook. It caused the yarn to get very piece-y and separate as I worked. Not a pleasure.

But the end result was the desired one. It was just a hassle getting there. I would give the yarn 2** out of 5*****.

Thanks for reading! Happy hooking <3

Cute and SIMPLE Fingerless Glove Pattern

I took quite the crochet-vacation. Every time I do I come back full of vim and vigor, revving to get back at my hooks. As a starter project, I am making a little something for me. I want to share it with you guys, too! It is a fast, simple crochet project. What I like to call...instant gratification. Like one of those chocolate cake mugs!

Hopefully, this easy to follow video can be of additional help while you are making these gloves.

This pattern goes really fast because it calls for bulky (size 5) weight yarn. Choose something soft and bulky. I like acrylic because it can be washed and dried while maintaining its integrity beautifully. One 3.5 ounce skein of bulky weight yarn. At this weight you should get about 110 yards. 

J/6.00  mm Crochet Hook
3.5oz of Bulky Yarn

Scissors

Yarn Needle

Gauge: 4" x 4" Square is 12 stitches wide and 7 1/2 rows tall.

Glove Uncuffed is 10" long and 4" wide

Note:At the end of each row "chain one loosely and turn" is implied unless told otherwise.

This is for a medium set of gloves. If you want larger then add an additional 2 rows of HDC. I had enough yarn leftover from the 3.5 oz to do this so you should not need to buy more.

Create the Body of your Gloves

Chain 27,
Row 1 HDC in third chain from the hook. HDC in each stitch across (25)
Row 2-15 HDC in each stitch across (25)

Turn your work and single crochet one time into the side of each row (15-19), 

Sew up the sides of your gloves

Fold your work in half, right sides together. 

"Sew" them together with a single crochet in the first 5 stitches. 

(what we do next with form the thumb hole)
Single Crochet in the next five stitches on only one side of the glove (not sewing the two layers together. 

Then proceed to sew the glove together with single crochet stitches in the last 15 stitches

Fasten off. 

Turn the glove right side out. Make a two inch cuff on the bottom of the glove and enjoy!

Repeat the pattern for a second glove.

Let me know if you have any questions?

These are very versatile. They can be adorned with bows, buttons, ribbons...the possibilities are endless. Tag me on social media so that I can see them if you make them.

Thank you for joining me and I hope that you stay warm and joyful. 

Melody

Please remember that you may make and sell items from my patterns...but please give me credit. And never ever sell or reproduce my patterns. Thank you!

This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to follow them you will not pay any extra but I may be financially compensated. I do appreciate your support. Thank you. 

Starbella Knitting!

Late Night Summertime Sewing

I was up WAY too late last night sewing. Wanted to share my projects!! No patterns, just online tutorials and whimsy. Sometimes I think I should have a separate craft blog called "Pinterest After Dark" *shrugs*

First off, the sewing machine cover. I am really happy with the way it turned out. I won't be remaking it, even though it is not as wide as I would have liked. I measured. I must have lost more inches than I had planned to in the seam allowances.

Its double sided.

Side one is a patchwork striping of blue/purple/green cotton fabric. I used grommets on the sides so that I can cinch it with ribbon.

This is the other side. I love this little sewing notions fabric! Cute colors, the buttery yellow suits my sewing space really well. I put a pleated pocket up front so that it can double as a sewing mat. I will be making a matching thread catcher.

 I am really pleased with it. Despite being thinner than I had imagined, it will do the job of keeping dust off of the machine and prettying up the space.


And then I made a bag. But not just any bag. This back is from Noodlehead. Its special for another reason, too. Ill get to that in a minute. This little pouch is about 12" wide. It's got a squared off bottom so I can use it for my makeup and actually see the makeup inside. Pouches can be so irritating to riffle through! But, not these. There will be many, many more in my future. Izzy loved it!

This is why its special. See that on top. Its a ZIPPER. MY FIRST ZIPPER!!!!! *squeal*

 So much procrastination has used, so much elastic has been used....all in the name of not sewing on a zipper. I was intimidated. But, not anymore. I did what everyone told me to. I went slow, I pinned alot...and it was easy.

 So easy that I decided that I needed a skirt with no elastic waist. I used a hummingbird fabric that I bought a while back at Joanns. Its a quilting cotton. I just traced a skirt that I liked, sewed up the sides (minus where the zipper would go). I did a turned hem on the top and bottom edges. Once again, lots of slowness and pinning at zipper time. And its perfect! Fits just right, no bunching, and the zipper has no gaps or mis-sews.

Its hard to tell but the side has a little pocket on it...if you squint just right you can see it right there.

 Front view.

 Pocket and zipper view. Yeah...the pink doesn't match. I love when things don't match. Everything has to match perfectly or has to be a completely different color.

 Then, I used a Pinterest tute on making a thing that Velcros your babies to chairs.

Where were these when my babies were of the age to be Velcro'd to chairs?! This would have been great at grandmas' house when I had a stroller in the living room so that I could take a 15 minute break from chasing them. But, I can let bygones be bygones.

This is for a friend, Joelle, and her brand new baby boy!! I would post a picture of him, but that is rude to do without asking. Lets just say....GORGEOUS!

I used black quilted cotton fabric on the inside and a print that I bought way back that is also made of cotton. They were both "oops fabric" at Joanns. I had enough to make two of these. So, I actually made two of these for $4 + thread and a little velcro...so $5.

 Here it is all laid out. I actually attached the pieces wrong. The bigger piece on the bottom is supposed to connect to the other piece on the shorter side. So it will need to be folded as shown above.

And finally...another dog bow. The pink one. I love the way light pink pops on Pickles black coat. The fabric is glittery and looks great on our walks out in the sunshine. No tutorial. I just winged it. I used scissors to cut 1.5" scallops along a 2" wide strip of fabric. It was the edge of a bolt, so 45" long. Then I ran a wide basting stitch and gathered the fabric. I spiraled the gathered fabric to form the shape of a flower, got it just right and then hand sewed it to keep it in place. Once it was just right I hot glued a button on the front and some double sided Velcro on back. I am  hoping the Velcro will stay on better than the alligator clips have. *fingers crossed*

Well, that't it! After this I noticed that it was 3AM and my husband was getting up for work. So I threw in my new Jillian Michaels DVD (the butt and thighs one AWESOME - 30 minutes and a nice mix of circuits and old school butt exercises), hit the showers and went to bed for a few hours. Now I am off to walk the dog! Happy Thursday!!!

WIAW...What I Ate Wednesday!

These aren't my pictures because I found this too late in the day. I have decided to take part in a wonderful activity! I love Peas and Crayons. She has the prettiest healthy recipes! Go visit!!!

I started the day with a quesadilla. (I actually just had to google it to find out how to spell it correctly *hangs head* I am not a big breakfast eater. But, this sounded good today. Mine looked just as greezy and white floury as this one. I'm not proud.

Along with a nice big cup of this:

Then we went to the mall to walk around and beat the heat...I had one of these:

(sensing a theme? LOL) I also grabbed one of these at Starbucks. Tasty!

Then I went to Target and got my son some popcorn and so I had a little of this:

Then we walked around Kohls and went home. For dinner I was on the run. I had a date with my son to walk the dogs. On the way home I grabbed one of these:

I didn't have any fries. I chose this picture because this is EXACTLY what it looked like and it made me laugh. Its a "low carb guacamole turkey burker" at Carls Jr. I had to chew thru half a head of lettuce to find that turkey and avocado. My face was exhausted. I had a plain iced tea with this.

Then I was home and I had a ton of strawberries:

Like that ^^ but lots more. Literally over a lb. I was in strawberry heaven.

And that was my day. It was pretty typical for me. I don't eat the same thing everyday. But, low carb turkey burgers, fruit, veggies, yogurt, tea and coffee are major players in my life. I have tried to go without coffee and I didn't note any benefits. And I missed it. Coffee time is my "me" time. And iced coffee times are my treats. They keep me away from "other" treats. I do limit myself to 2 cups of coffee a day. I have read that more than that can really interrupt your hormones. I also do not drink coffee after 2pm. As it is, I am a night owl. No need to make it any worse.

The Target popcorn was a fluke. My sons love it, but only the little one was with me and the heat really took its tole on his appetite. So, it was staring at me. I don't suggest it to anyone. My husband repairs the machines that make it. Not healthy stuff. Big vat of recirculating who-knows-what-kind of oil. I didn't feel well afterward, either. Blech...

So, there it is in a nutshell. Next time I'll use my own pics. ;)

Thank you for stopping by. I have gotten a lot of love through my blog lately. I am really enjoying the experience. <3

Wordless Wednesday

Someone loves the camera feature on my Ipod. Two year olds are amazing!