Serious Catching Up, Seriously

I'm not really sure how it got to this point. Do the days just whiz by for everyone, or is it just me?

To recap the last few months:

My oldest son Morgan is doing great in his freshman year at college. I, however, still feel his absence strongly. Luckily, he texts me constantly, so it does make things easier. Plus he's almost finished with his second semester, so I am counting the days until he is home again. :)

My second son Tanner is about to graduate from high school, and he has been accepted to the University of Texas at Dallas. Yikes! I have some pictures to order and announcements to address. Oh and a wreath to make for our front door, since I made one last year when Morgan graduated.

My third son Carson is about to become a high schooler. He was accepted into the Science & Engineering Academy (the same school Tanner will graduate from), so we continue with the tradition of attending magnet schools. I'm really proud of my boys. :)

My fourth son Connor is finishing up third grade. He once told me (when Morgan mentioned his dream to move to Europe after college) that he would never leave me. He is the sweetest boy, and he misses Morgan the most (after me, of course).

(UH campus visit)

In crafty news, I have finished two blankets (and started another), made countless hats and scarves, and started cross-stitching again.

   

             (Nikki's bobble blanket)                  

 (Morgan's cozy dorm blanket)

(Kevin's nautical-inspired blanket)

I used to cross-stitch all the time. I hoarded DMC embroidery thread and contemporary patterns. I'm not really sure how my crafty life evolved from thread to yarn, except that after having my children, I found it much easier to put a yarn project down than a cross-stitch project. Cross-stitch after all requires a certain amount of concentration.

(Birthday gift for my bestie's son. Pattern by weelittlestitches.)

I'll post some of the cross-stitch pieces I have framed around my house. Next time. :)

How Can It Be October Already?

I just cannot believe how quickly this year is passing. It feels as if I just dropped off my oldest at college, but in reality it has been more than 7 weeks. Luckily, my son texts me all the time, so it doesn't feel much different from last year. He is adjusting well to living on his own, and we are all managing here without him. Although we certainly miss him.

We have been to Houston twice to visit him. While I have my own personal prejudices against the city (really long story), I do love the campus of the University of Houston. It has towering trees, beautiful art installations, and buildings of stature and distinction, plus all the amenities one could possibly want. Makes me wish I could go to college again. :)

The best part for me is how happy Morgan is:

 And just in case you thought there would be no mention of yarn in this post, guess again! :)

This is another WIP that I work on now and again. I have been hoard, ummm... saving, this yarn for awhile, and I finally had to start using it. It's Red Heart Boutique Treasure in Watercolors. I just love all the shades -- it looks like several colors but it really is only the one colorway. I'm using the Spring into Summer Blanket pattern by Felted Button (the pattern calls for a different yarn but works up beautifully with this one).

I'm also working on seasonal items. I was playing around the other day with a little ghost applique that I just couldn't get out of my head. I made 2 versions: a 'standing' ghost and a 'floaty' ghost.

I posted them on Instagram and got some requests for a pattern, so I wrote them up and here they are:

Little Ghost Applique

WW yarn 

G hook

Version 1:

Rnd 1: Magic Circle, 3 dc, 2 hdc, 3 dc, 2 hdc, all in circle, pull tight, join w/ sl st in first dc.

Rnd 2: Ch 1, 2 hdc in next 4 sts, hdc, (ch 5, sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc2tog, sc in last ch), sc in same st as hdc, (hdc, dc) in next st, 3 dc in next st, (dc, hdc) in next st, sc, (ch 4, sc in 2nd ch from hook, 2 sc in next ch, sc in last ch), hdc in same st as sc, 2 hdc in next st, sl st to join. 

Rnd 3: Ch 1, (hdc, dc), (dc, hdc), hdc in next 3 sts, (hdc, dc), (dc, hdc), sl st, finish off. Weave in ends. 

Version 2:

Rnds 1 and 2 are the same as above.

Rnd 3: Ch 1, sc, 2 hdc, (hdc, dc), 2 dc in ea of next 2 sts, ch 4, 2 sc in 2nd ch from hook, 2 hdc in next ch, 3 dc in last ch, sl st to ghost body to join, finish off. Weave in ends. 

Face: Use black yarn or thread to embroider eyes and mouth.

Please do not copy and redistribute my pattern as your own. Feel free to sell finished items -- please give me credit though for the original pattern by linking here. If you have any questions or problems with the patterns, please feel free to leave a comment here. Enjoy!

New Cotton Yarn Colors

I came across some new colors in the Lily Sugar n Cream cotton yarn family, and of course they were too gorgeous to pass up. I tried though (haha, not really).

(^clockwise from top left: ahoy ombre, anchors away ombre, nautical ombre, and sail away)

And I found these about three months ago:

(^calico and kitchen breeze)

So of course I dropped everything to make more african flower hexagons to add to my growing collection of unique motifs! I think with these new additions, that the hexagon count is 120.

Someday I will join these together and make the best. blanket. ever. :)

The Addiction That is Pinterest

Pinterest. The reason I did not blog for 2 years.

Actually, I am pretty sure that is merely a coincidence. It is a fact though that in the last 2 years, I have been on Pinterest on nearly a daily basis. Why? It is an inspiring mix of food, crafts, ideas, locations, and products! And Benedict Cumberbatch! What's not to love?

I started with a couple of boards, one of which was simply called Yarn! I pinned and pinned like crazy, and then realized my Yarn! board was so big that I could never find anything. So I created sub-category boards:

Yarn! Accessories (hats, scarves, shawls, booties, slippers, jewelry)

Yarn! Afghans, Blankets, Throws

Yarn! Amigurumi (dolls, animals, any stuffed figures)

Yarn! Clothing (sweaters, tops)

Yarn! Housewares (pillows, rugs, baskets, kitchen items)

Yarn! Motifs, Embellishments, Appliques

Yarn! Purses, Totes, Bags

Yarn! Squares, Circles, Hexagons

Yarn! Tips, Tricks, Techniques, Stitches

Yarn! Wish List (yarns I covet. This is what happens when you resolve not to purchase more yarn -- you start pinning it instead!)

I also have a yarn-related board called Things I Make. Most of the items pinned there are available in my Etsy shop.

(I would love if you followed any one or all of my Pinterest boards! Right now I have more than 850 yarn-related pins and more coming. These are all my personal boards. I will be creating specific business boards for The Lavender Lizard real soon!)

Back to Benedict Cumberbatch....today marks the start of season 3 of Sherlock (in the US), the super-awesome British television show of a modern Sherlock Holmes. (If you are already a fan of Sherlock, you may have noticed my reference to the show in this blog's title.) To celebrate, we are having Super-Size Sherlock Sunday, and we will be re-watching last season's The Reichenbach Fall (from January 2012!) and then tuning into the new episode on PBS. So I'll wrap this up by saying 'why do the Brits take so long between television seasons? And why only three episodes?' Tally-ho!

My Latest Projects

I'm happy to report that I have completed another afghan in the long-running and ever-growing list of blankets for the primos!

Plus the next one for the primos is almost complete; just 10 more rows to go.

In the meantime, I have started a baby blanket for a dear friend who is due in November (yay for Scorpios!). It's made with super-soft, super-plushy Buttercup yarn by Red Heart. I chose the white-multi color since I'm not sure of the baby's gender yet.

I also made a flower scarf for a gift using 2 colors of Loops and Threads (Michaels own brand) Impeccable Yarn, an ombre called Holland and a solid named Soft Fern:

And I liked the combo so much (reminds me of a fruit salad) I made a long, skinny scarf that will be listed at The Lavender Lizard.

More WIPs and an Update...

It's been a busy, crafty couple of weeks since the boys finished up their school year. They all painted birdhouses for my parents' 51st anniversary, which was on June 15. My parents live about 30 minutes away on 6 1/2 acres of land with tons of trees. We thought the birdhouses would be a great addition to their enjoyment of the property.

From left to right, DS4's barn birdhouse, DS3's double-decker birdhouse, DS2's colorful feeder, and DS1's castle birdhouse. (Truthfully, I painted the barn. DS4 was not interested in painting at all.)

I finished one of the 2 scarves I started last week. It turned out great! I will be listing it soon at The Lavender Lizard.

I was not happy with the way the second one was turning out, so 5 rows into it, I pulled it all apart. The reason: I love love love the yarn (Caron Spa -- a bamboo/microdenier acrylic blend) and the colors are scrumptious:

But the pattern I was making was not taking full advantage of the drapey, silky feel of the yarn. I have new ideas for the yarn though, and I hope to dive into them real soon.

And here's what I'm really, really, really trying to avoid:

The only things missing from this afghan are weaving in the ends (yuk!) and 3 rows of a border. I must force myself to finish this, and I'll probably devote Friday to this dreaded chore. Wish me luck!

Has Anyone Seen This Yarn?

This is my favorite yarn ever!

It looks like an English garden, with shades of pink, rose, lavender, purple, and green.

But it's discontinued and has apparently been in my yarn stash so long that I can no longer find any trace of it. I'm pretty sure it is Lily Sugar n' Cream brand cotton yarn, but it may be Peaches and Cream. Either way, I want more!

This little cup was made from the little bit I had left. I ran out of the yarn before I could finish covering the cup, so the bottom (which can't be seen) and the inside are solid purple. (Sorry, this cup is not for sale -- it sits on my desk and holds the little papers with words for the Fabulous Friday Finds. Similar cups are for sale at The Lavender Lizard.)

So here's my plea to the yarn gods: Please, please, please bring back this yarn! Please....

2009 Diary

I saw an interesting post in the Etsy Forums the other day. Fantazya, an Etsian from Canada is putting together a 2009 diary in which every page features a shop (Etsy or other). I thought this was soooo cool! When I checked what days were still available, I found my birthday! Whoo-hoo! So I just put together my page:

I started with my favorite thing -- yarn! Here's the photo in color (yummy):

I think it turned out pretty good, just like I imagined it.

There are still days available in the diary project (not many, though.) Interested parties can check here for more info.