Yarn Along - Knit and crochet!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



So. Of course, after my previous post needing help with crochet.. I almost immediately was able to find a video that *finally* made the magic ring make sense. Now I just have to figure out how to decrease..

Crocheting: Pichu. Maybe. Mostly I'm just playing to see if I can do it. Because obviously my yarn isn't the right color.

Knitting: Longies! Of course! I will finish this pair eventually.

Reading: Claimed by Shadow by Karen Chance. It's book.. two. I think. Yes. Two. I love this series. And Borders recently had a coupon for 30% off all fantasy novels. I went with the intention of picking up books two, four, and five (because I'm crazy and already owned one and three). But they didn't have four. So it's waiting at the library for me. I know that I've read through three before. Likely I've read book four. But I know that five will be new to me. Whee!

Crochet help?

Okay. Some background. I can knit. I cannot crochet. I didn't learn to knit the "proper" way. After learning the long tail cast on and the knit stitch I tackled this as my first pattern. I Googled for videos to describe everything I needed to know for it: knitting in the round, magic loop, picking up stitches, short rows, purling. That's how I learn. I find something I want to make and then I work my way through it.

I want to crochet this (among many others) for my two older sons for their upcoming birthdays. Only.. I don't know how to crochet. So I've tried to approach this the same way I did with knitting. But crochet seems more complicated. Crocheting flat versus in the round versus joining rounds and continuous rounds. I'm so very lost.

So my question is, can anyone point me to a good starting place for this pattern? I know how to chain. I can find videos for single, double, etc crochet. But.. magic ring? That can't be like magic loop because it's just a single hook. Do I chain six to single crochet in this supposed magic ring?

So. Lost.

If only I had some local friends who crocheted! Of course.. I think I'd need local friends in general first, wouldn't I?

Right Now I'm Loving..

A baby (perhaps I should be calling him a toddler now) who is learning to fall asleep on his own. Even if it is only for a few minutes. And while he ought to be awake, at that. But it tickles me that he can go from this:



To this:



To this:



And all in the span of about ten minutes.

A giveaway!

Over at This Cosy Life you can enter the Meltdown Monday Giveaway where you can win this:



It's a six inch doll that I made using the Wee Folk Art pattern (adapted to be in-the-round).

Here's hoping we can avoid a meltdown at our house today!

Weekending!

Oh man, this weekend was full. There was:
- knitting a teeny cat and a pair of longies
- 30% off all fantasy books at Borders? Score!
- one-on-one time with the Elf while planning herbal studies for "school"
- used book store finds (classics for the Elf)
- hair cuts - homemade style
Before:


After:


- finding a learning tower on craigslist for $60!





- finally got through a backlog of emails (though now I have new ones to respond to!)
- Brooklyn style pizza for Sunday dinner

Shamless promotion

I have finally added the longies/board shorts from last month to my Etsy shop. I'm also half done with a pair of pumpkin colored longies. I haven't decided if I'll sell them or keep them, yet. Whee!

A Wee Hare

I spent every free moment of my day knitting a hare. I'm crazy, I know. I'm working on a set of woodland critters for someone. I tried out one of the patterns to make sure I could do it (Ravelry notes here. Turns out that I can. I think the critters will look nicer with bigger eyes (I used embroidery thread because it was handy).

This was the best photograph I could get of it.



Because this kept happening..



And this..



So at least I know that it's loved!

Yarn Along!

I decided to participate in the Yarn Along I've read about on several blogs. You can be a part, too. Stop by Small Things to read about it.



I am knitting a teeny cat body to go with my teeny cat head. Actually, since taking this picture I have finished the body and am knitting a teeny cat paw.

I just started reading The Backyard Homestead. No opinion yet as I've only read a few pages. Whee!

Weekending!

Oh! This weekend was packed. With knitting!

This is what I have to show for it:



The pattern is written by the amazing Emily of Yarn Miracle. I cannot tell you how much fun I had knitting this guy. And my Beast *adores* him. He played with each and every piece (well, except for the body) prior to them being sewn together. His eyes lit up when I handed him the toy all completed. This cat has seen a lot of action and he's only a couple of days old.

Of course, the pattern is written for bulky yarn. I used worsted. Which got me thinking. And plotting. So Saturday on the way to my youngest niece's birthday party we swung by the yarn store where I pictured up some lace weight yarn. I've never knit with such fine yarn before. It's.. interesting. I clearly need better lighting and eyesight for this sort of work.

Regardless, now I have this to show for it (I did say that it was taking me longer):



I'm most of the way through a book that keeps getting more interesting. It's called The Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. Someone had posted about it, but of course now I can't recall who (does this prove that I read too many blogs?). In any case, I'm really enjoying it.

Hmm. What else? I made yummy pizza and the Elf is reading books again with little grumbling. His Singapore books (I bought them used from a yahoo group) arrived today. I've been putting off working on his curriculum, but I'm going to have to tackle once I'm done with this cat. Oh! And he officially passed third grade - he had his evaluation on Friday.

And now a baby has awoken from his nap! Whee!

Not Quite A Yarn Along

I missed the Yarn Along again. Melissa + deadlines (recently) = at least a day late. Oops.

Here's what I've been working on knitting-wise:

A knitted cushion/stool. I used a seriously freaky thick cotton yarn that I bought from someone in a yahoo group. I found size 19 wooden needles on sale for $2 and used about 260 yards of yarn. The stuffing is: one king sized feather blanket, one twin comforter, and three pillows. My kids *adore* it.



Shorties! Of course. I hope to get these into my Etsy shop soon (where I've lowered a lot of my prices because nothing is selling and buying curriculum pieces is *expensive!*).



A cat! Oh, I am having so much fun with this one. I've cast on the body and will hopefully get some time to work on him today. B asked me why I'd made a cat with entrails (the yarn tails hanging from the neck). Since then my boys have completely latched on to this idea. Yes, I most definitely have boys. This cat head has seen a wicked amount of play already. In fact, the Beast wandered off with one of the ears while I was knitting the second one.




The eyes are very special on my cat head. Seaming, sewing, and embroidery are just not things that I'm good at. You can see the second eye better in this picture (with Surreal, one of our younger cats).



Also, you may see this guy (the wooden house is just there to prop him up) in a giveaway at one of my favorite blogs. I'll post about it when/if it happens.