Cabin Fever!

Talk about the highlight of the cool-chet season. I decided we have to have a cool-chet getaway every year. Oh so much got done. Movies watched, sunburns received, and projects up the wazoo! ouch. 

When I look at the pictures I feel like I should have done more, but it's still a decent amount. It also didn't help that the lack of sleep at 2 am causes some major mistakes that end up being taken apart the next day. Hardly conducive to productivity.

Let's start with an overview shall we?

Ta Da! The things on the right side of the counter were the ones I made.
I made my own odds'n'ends'n'balls bag, a hook holder, a stuffed owl, a headband, a hat, half a bag, and a chocolate candy corn/acorn which you can hardly see. It looks just like Kami's but with chocolate. YUM

I can just see you on the edge of your seat waiting for more details huh? Let me fill you in on my fave lil guy.

Isn't he just the most? Ok, so maybe he had a freak window accident leaving his beak a little worse for wear. And perhaps he feels a little awkward having to look up all the time. AND...maybe turning him sideways brings to mind a condition many high school boys claim to have when exposed to a cute girl for too long. But really, I love him for who he is. Pure preciousness. I don't have a good name for him yet, though. How's about you leave a comment and the best name wins? Alright then!

Folks, please direct your attention to the left side of the picture. You will see the bottom of the bag I made. I'm feeling a strong need to make approximately 30-400 more. Give or take. I definitely need to make a HUGE one like Kami's. I have sack envy.

Moving on to your right you will see my very own creation out of my very own mind. Don't get me wrong, I do not claim to have invented this idea. But I did not use a pattern and although it is far from perfect, there is some potential there. I wanted somewhere to store hooks (until I make an actual "hook holster"), sewing needles, bits of yarn, scissors, and any other small items. Something cute and easy to take with me. So I started off with two little circles. Then I made a panel using just SC and a section of SC in the back loop. That section is the flap. I just thought it would be fun for the flap to look a little different. I sewed the flap to the circles using a contrasting yarn. In that same contrasting yarn I made the beginning of a flower motif. **ding ding ding... you've found the word of the day! MOTIF It means something snazzy you can use to jazz stuff up. It does, I promise, look it up! Ahem...I sewed that on to the ends to be interesting and then decided to go the extra mile by adding a ruffle around the flap. I used the same contrast yarn to stretch out a hole in the flap and sewed a button to the panel. Wow...that sounds....Ok keep moving people, let's not dilly dally.

To the front of your screen you will see much cuteness in yellow. We started with the full flower motif and if you can't tell, I'm mildly obsessed with it. Everything must be motifed in flowers from here on out. Kami's super easy, but full 'o' math, pattern had us beaming when we looked so durn cute at the end. A little green circle in the middle there and I can't stop squealing. Seriously, my boyfriend is starting to get annoyed.

Just up and to the right is a fun little hat I made with a gigantic ruffly flower. I've sworn and oathe never to wear it with my hair up. When a person who's had chemo tells you that you look like a chemo patient, well, it's a sign. Who am I to ignore it? This puppy was the bane of my existence all throughout Bear Lake. I wanted so badly to make this cutest hat. I started it twice and stopped it twice when I had a beret, then a pillbox hat. I'm not sure why the contrast between the top and the sides was that drastic, but it was. We got a lot of laughs, though, so it wasn't a complete waste. Then I made it too short and Alair was kind enough to tell me I was reminiscent of a fashion victim we had all known. I got the willies so bad that I started working double time to lengthen that sucker out. Once I did, it came out looking just peachy I believe.

Lastly partial project at the top right. (For the record, I know the color is Aran, but I still can't stop saying Aryan. I know, I know..tsk tsk.) The first picture is probably a better view of it. That is half a market bag. I LOVE the design. It's so super cute. In fact, I fully have plans to make that exact same design into a skirt. It practically is already! I do plan to finish the bag first though. This brings me to my main complaint. I'm shocked that so many published patterns have so many mistakes and confusions. But it's really very common. Trust me, I know that I screw things up a lot. In this case, though, you go through the whole pattern and all of a sudden it says repeat for other side. Did it warn me that I was about to make half a bag? No. Are there any instructions whatsoever about putting the two halves together? No. Inquiring minds want to know people.

Oh and while I'm ranting, I started a kick assghan for my sister's baby. It's got another really vague pattern. You get three lines explained and then it says to "follow chart".  The chart is a bunch of X's and spaces that looks sort of like a needlepoint. What is hard to understand is #1. Am I going sideways or longways? #2. Apparently I already did three of the lines on the chart and only after repeating them a few times, and wondering why the beginning looks nothing like the picture, do I realize that. #3. And this was the worst one, the pattern is WRONG. I mean sooooo very wrong. It tells me to chain 149. I do the first three rows with 146 stitches. It says I should have 147 but after chaining 149 I SC in the 4th chain from the hook. Math. So now I get to the chart. I start off going sideways which I am supposed to repeat three times. I finish that and I'm nowhere near the end of the first three rows. hmpf...take it out. Start going longways which I should be repeating once. Now I don't have enough length to finish repeating. ARGHHH I spent waaaaay too much time believing it had to be me in all my amateur glory. Then I got smart (it takes awhile to kick in) and I counted the number of stitches sideways and the number of stitches longways on the chart. 110 and 160-something respectively. Which of those numbers gets me to 146? Neither. So now, again, I take the entire thing apart. Oh and did I mention this-is-the-second-time-I've-started-this-and-came-across-the-same-issues-the-first-time-and-so-I-have-another-screwed-up-chunk-hanging-out-in-another-bag-because-I-didn't-want-to-take-it-apart-AGAIN-so-I-just-started-a-new-one-with-a-new-skein? GASP! Breathe Shannon. Feeling wiser and somewhat "taken for granted" (It's not fair!) I started over making my chain come out to be 110. Holy crap. It's all working like a charm. I'm just zooming right along now and I can't wait to finish it so I can show y'all. I WILL conquer this beast.

10-4 Over and out.

-Shannon

what the what?

there are a few crochet things i don't understand. number one? cowls. case in point:



why don't you just...make...a...scarf? i'm confused by this. apparently they're all the rage.

number two: plarn. or, plastic yarn if you will. this is "yarn" you make out of plastic bags.



once again, i like the earth. but it takes around 80 plastic grocery bags to make one plarn bag.....the math is too hard for me. you have to cut it up into strips and then keep adding it and adding it and adding it....gah. too much work. it reminds me of that line from pee wee's big adventure: "the mind plays tricks on you. you play tricks back! it's like you're unraveling a big cable-knit sweater that someone keeps knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting..."

however, there are some things that are so lame that they have transformed into pure awesomeness. for example, the crocheted snuggie! just when you thought the snuggie could not possibly get any cooler, IT DOES.



this is a red heart pattern that i'm dying to try. i'm guessing that i'll get to it sometime after christmas. then, it's time to get down with this bad boy.

Fat bottomed bags, you make the rockin' world go round!

There's something about Bear Lake that brings out the crafters in us. For weeks, we talked about what we wanted to do while we were there, and then finally we were there and we were so excited that we could barely contain our glee. And when I say we spent the whole time crocheting, I'm not kidding. EVERY MINUTE was utilized in the creation of cuteness. It was like cuteness barfed all over the cabin. Check this action out.

The first thing I needed to do when it comes to my projects, is find something to cart all my crap around in. Hence, this GINORMOUS bag. I really didn't mean for it to be this large, and these pictures really don't do it justice, but it's amazing.



It's a bucket bag!



This is a new headband creation. I'm in the middle of figuring out how to make a child size one. I know, don't make it so long. But, it's not that simple. There's a lot of counting involved. Those of you who know me know how much I hate to count. This has a cute green crocheted button in the middle. I had to crochet the button because I forgot to bring real buttons. It's sitting on my enormous bag.



Next on the list? Halloween stuff! Yes, this is a candy corn. I called them acorns the whole week, but that doesn't change the fact that they are adorable! That is a ghost in the background too. He's part of a project that I still need to finish. I can never just finish anything.



More pics of our creations. They include (but are not limited to because I haven't taken pictures of some stuff yet) bath poofies, face scrubbies (these are all technical terms), washcloths, and smaller bags to hold our odd'n'ends'n'balls. We'll also explain this later.



ALL THE CUTE STUFF WE DID!! Actually, this isn't everything. I still have more pictures to take!

homemade gifts for everyone!

sooo.....as i'm catching up on bills and going on vacations and such, i've decided that all ya'll are getting homemade gifts.

first up? my darling niece kassy. now, this girl just turned 12 and i'm pretty sure she's cooler than me so i really want to impress her.

i need a good gift, i need to spend no money, i need her to think i'm cool.

on with the headband! i've seen these things everywhere, but i had NO idea how easy they are. this took me 20 minutes. literally.



i got this from here.

i have yet to hear from her if she likes it or not, but i have it on good authority that she does. :)

i'll post a pic of her wearing it as soon as i can.

"how funky is your chicken?"

shannon is right, the buffy really helped us get in touch with our craftiness. on a side note, this movie rules. case in point.



its awesomeness astounds me 18 years later. so you can see how we were able to stay in the crafty mood for so long. vampires just do it for us. especially if that vampire is played by pee wee herman.

on this cool-chet night, my goal was to finish a project that i've been working on for, oh let us see, over a year. i am horrible at finishing stuff. i have a short attention span, and i get discouraged when things don't turn out the way i want the. however, there will be none of that anymore!!!

the project was a pillow that i began making in bear lake last year. last year at the lake was cold and rainy and there really wasn't anything else to do. looking back, i'm lame that i didn't finish it on that trip. the plan was to make an oblong pillow to accent a new duvet cover. i no longer have this duvet cover. however, now that it's done, this little guy looks adorable on my chair in my living room.







it isn't that orange in real life. it's a little more of a "burnt orange." so, i'll probably move it around a bit, see where it fits in. it's stuffed with polyester fiberfil, and plastic sacks from walmart. so it makes a little noise when you move it. i think that adds a little something extra, don't you think?

i now need something to carry around all my cool-chet stuff. so next on the list is a hook holder and some sort of bag. i can't seem to find a pattern of a bag that i'm in love with so i'm going to make it up. wish me luck!

i thought we were nuts about (literally) when we came up with the testicle recepticle, but thanks to esther, we now know that there is a whole world of crazy out there when it comes to crocheting.

seriously?

yeah, i don't know. i'm all for the environment and crap, but really? i just think that there are some things that should remain disposible. and sanitary items are one of them! i'm even coming around to the whole cloth diaper idea, but i just cannot ever see anyone using these. unless it's the end of days and you're about to start your period and all you happen to have with you is a spool of 100% cotton yarn and a D hook. i'm just sayin' is all.....

Buffy=Productivity

It's amazing what a little Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the original movie of course) and The Lost Boys can do for your cool-chet productivity! Kami and I got together the last couple of nights for some not lame cool-cheting and boy did we get a lot done. On Wednesday night I finished Jeff's blanket...FINALLY! I'm so excited to bring it to him and he already promised to proudly display it on his bed. This puppy was a whole other level of crochet for me. I learned a lot of new techniques (I should say new to me) and made plenty of mistakes. Luckily the pattern is extremely forgiving so you can hardly tell. In fact, the closeup below is showing one of the squares with the most errors. oops. It's a testiment to my rockin' photography skills. Fujifilm point and shoot fo'evah! I figured I would double the pattern since it was originally for an afghan, but I think I ended up closer to tripling. This sucker is huge and heavey. Perfect for a dude. Without further ado, for your viewing pleasure I present....dun dun duuuuun...The Manly Blanket.

Red Heart's Starbright Afghan from
J27-0004 Great Afghans & Throws

With Wednesday night becoming such a success it really got me pumped to start some new projects. After the blanket was finished we started making flowers. Then Thursday night we got together to figure out what to do with them. Kami worked on a super cute project, but I won't ruin the surprise. Once it's done you're going to flip, so darling. I decided to make mine into a headband. Let me first say that I realize this flower is huge. Ok, more like HUGE. But how fun is it to have a statement headband?! I mean really. I found the greatest technique for making cheap headbands that actually fit! Of course I can't find the post I found before, but here's one that's exactly the same except for the ties. I didn't do the ties on the back but I think I like them. Maybe I'll see if I can go back and add some to this guy.

pay no attention to the girl with the pointy looking nose

Kami and I started some hook holders that I'm super excited to make. How handy! Also, our good friend Kjcheristy (KJ) had come by to share in our crafty fun. She does a lot of scrapbooking so she asked if I could make a flower to go on a page. (We're planning on recruiting her to the world of cool-chet) I was like SURE. Now at this point it was getting late-ish. {You could tell because I had yarn everywhere and I started like three things at once at the same time as I was nodding off.} I mean I have all kinds of experience with the one huge flower I've made ever. So I messed around and came up with a little something to add. Then she mentioned a chain to frame the picture would be cute too so I whipped that sucker out. A little hot glue and Ta Da! This is a whole new avenue I hadn't thought about. Scrapbook embellishments! Those things cost a shiz load at the store and I just made this sucker for free. And it looks good to boot.

I have one more bit of important business to attend to. I just got the Lion Brand newsletter for fall and they have all kinds of new goodies! Some adorable tweed stripy yarn, baby wool, Merino Cashmire and new colors of old faves. Check out the goods here! I insist.

-Shannon

How cute is our "It may be crazy but it's our life" thingy!? I have a feeling that Shannon also has some mad html skills developing.....

What's up next?

Can you believe that I am actually having a difficult time finding a pattern for a toilet seat cover? It's true. Even the super cool ones with embroidered flowers and fringe....they may be a thing of the past. Why am I looking for this pattern you ask? YOU JUST WAIT!

I just finished my first kickassghan. It's white and pretty and has picot stitches around the edge. The idea was to add some texture at the bottom of my bed. We'll see how it looks. I still need to actually make my bed in order to take a picture.
So what NOW?? What project should I do next? Half the fun of this is looking for the pattern. Now we've found so many I don't know where to start. I should probably consult the list below.

I’m a lazy crocheter (is that a word?). Shannon can change colors, sew things together and all kinds of crazy stuff without wanting to run over her project with her car. I’m not like that. To change a color, I have to be committed.

I'm thinking the best place to start would be with little things. Flowers? Embellishments?? AHH! I'm so excited! And I really need to finish a pillow that I started last year…that was to go with a duvet cover that I no longer own…but that's beside the point.


-Kami

Coming Soon to A Crochet Blog Near You

Hey Everyone! *chuckle chuckle*...everyone Ok, ok, I've got a hold of myself. So anyone who might read this probably knows I've had a monster of a crochet project that has been ongoing for a very, very long time. I got a wild hair around February of this year and decided to make a blanket for my boyfriend's birthday. Not a kick-assgan. Oh no, that would have been reasonable which is so not me. I'm talking a full out, bed-sized, making a dent in my floor because it's getting so heavy blanket. The plan was to have it done by his birthday at the end of May. Fast forward to August and it's now a running joke that I'm not allowed to make him presents because he'll never get them. Sooooo....no more procrastination folks. I WILL have this blanket done THIS WEEK. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Not only will he actually get his birthday present, but I'll also have a post with some pictures to share with y'all the fruits of my labor. I have to admit, though, this labor is a lot more pleasant than some other labors I've heard about. Just sayin'.

-Shannon

As you can see, we're pretty excited about this. Because we have no actual projects to share right away, I'm going to share a pattern that I have kind of been obsessed with for the past 2 years. Does anyone else pick up those free project sheets that you can tear off in the yarn isle? I have a million of them, in fact....now that I think about it, my sister has a few that I need to get from her....

Anyways, I found this and immediately fell in love with it. It's a lap throw, this is the one I did for my sister. I have also done a turquoise one for my room.



After a lot of searching on the lion brand website, I remembered that it was not a lion brand pattern. DUH.

It's a red heart!

my dream come true.

this doesn't make me crazy does it??

as my friend jenny says....

...just because you can, doesn't mean you should...

TA-DA!

Welcome to "COOL"chet! Where we crochet immensely adorable things for our houses and for babies. The baby stuff is just too cute for us to ignore.

This is not your grandma's crochet. We often reminisce about the toilet seat covers of the past, with embroidered flowers and more fringe than you can shake a stick at. This is stuff that's adorable, easy to make, and compliments today's décor. Yeah, it may not be for some people. But I have yet to meet someone who doesn't appreciate an afghan. Or "kickassghan", as we like to call them.

I have a dream of one day having a room covered entirely out of crochet, one day…..anyways, on to the point of all of this…

Some of our upcoming projects:

House wares: curtains, lampshades, picture frames, chair/ottoman covers, rugs, bathroom accessories, pillows, blankets, storage boxes.

Baby stuff: Anything for babies is awesome.

RETRO crochet: Because we can. And it's COOL.

Bags: Yoga mat covers, market bags, purses.

Little things: Wine glass charms, magnets, pens, head wraps, jewelry, hats, hair ties and clips, and other embellishments.

Boudoir Buddies: For your personal and private pleasure! Have you ever seen those fake books that people store money in? Well, you can store stuff in these too! They're your own personal booty bags! Your 'unmentionables'…your personal pleasuring hardware, your pepper spray….whatever! Easy peasy nobody knowsy!

You name it, you can probably crochet it. Or at least fashion some sort of cozy. Cozies for everyone! Cozies for all! Our favorite cozy idea? The testicle receptacle. Yes, this is a cozy for testicles. We laughed so hard that we had to put it in here. It has a draw string.