SCATTERGORIES

Cuz sometimes you need to take five...

The game is SCATTERGORIES, and it’s harder than it looks!
Here are the rules:
Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following. They MUST be real places, names, things…NOTHING made up! If you can’t think of anything, skip it. Try to use different answers if the person before you had the same 1st initial. You CAN’T use your name for the boy/girl name question. Have fun!
Your Name: Molly
1. Famous Singer/Band: Madonna
2. 4 letter word: Mint
3. Street: Monterey Oaks Blvd (my street).
4. Color: Mahoghany
5. Gifts/Presents: Million in Cash?
6. Vehicle: Mercedes
7. Things in a Souvenir Shop: Many Tacky Things
8. Boy Name: Mike
9. Girl Name: Moira
10. Movie Title: "Metropolis"... or better yet "M"
11. Drink: Manhattan
12. Occupation: Manager
13. Celebrity: Morgan Freeman
14. Magazine: Marie Clare
15. U.S. City: Marietta, PA
16. Pro Sports Teams: Mariners?
18. Reason for Being Late for Work: My car broke down...
19. Something You Throw Away: Moldy Things in the Back of the Fridge.

20. Things You Shout: My Word!

21. Cartoon Character: Miss Piggy (in the Muppet Babies Cartoon... boo-yah)

Cowboy Hat for Q

Hello Again...

Here is another gift that I made over vacation. Quinlan, my nephew, was grilling me on all things Texan. He wanted to know all about the big ole piece on his US of A puzzle map called Texas. I told him about Cowboys and how they round up cattle and whatnot... and told him about cowboy hats, boots, and spurs.

Of course, then I thought, why not make him a cowboy hat so he could be sherriff?

No pattern... the crown was made in single crochet... the brim crocheted in back loops only in double crochet. I held two pieces of yarn together, one strand was wool-ease in woods and the other was just some random off-white worsted weight yarn I had.

Enjoy!

Baby Elephant for Atticus

Sitting on top the blanket for Megan is the Elephant I made for Atticus. I started by following a pattern from a magazine (I'll have to look it up and let you know where it's from later). But, I forgot the pattern at home and winged everything but the torso of this guy.

I used worsted weight yarn and he's a very "tough" lil Elephant. I'm hoping to get a pic at some point of Atticus with the Elephant. Still to come are pics of the Sheep and Dragon hand puppets. As well as a Cowboy hat I made for Q. All were my own design.

Because I'm proud of the snuggly blanket (my biggest project in a long time)... here are some more angles on it:

A Blanket for Kate

(above picture by Teresa Wong).

Moving away from a lot of friends in Los Angeles was difficult and there are times, especially recently, that I really wish I could be there for them.

My friend Kate's brother died tragically right before graduating from high school just a few weeks ago. Although I didn't know him, I know and love his sister a great deal. Kate and I would get together with Teresa to stitch over such broad genres as Pride and Prejudice, Sex and the City, Monsters Inc, Munich, and the Super Bowl. The three of us would stitch away and make snarky comments about whatever it was that we were watching. We would talk about life, the universe, and everything in it. Why boys can suck and how yarn can rock...
While we were living in LA within near proximity, Kate was studying some crazy smart stuff at UCLA for her Masters in some sort of science-y/chemistry-ish thing. She would talk about lab experiments in terms of baking cupcakes - which was a perfect metaphor so that I would be able to get it :o)
After I moved away to Texas (or perhaps, overlapping), Kate started working at a lab out in Camarillo and I think that what she is doing has to do with making sure that their company's cupcake recipe is replicated correctly at other cupcake bakeries. Or something like that. I know it has to do with cupcakes.
Anyway...
we would touch base now and again on what was going on with her... but you know, moving apart sometimes makes for long spaces between talking, quick emails here and there. And really, I was so involved with starting up in a new place, that I hadn't be in touch with Kate, Teresa, or many of my amazing friends from la la land as much as I had hoped to be.

Hearing the news about Kate's brother broke my heart. Although so many people talk about high school being the best years of their life... I just have so many memories of huge swings in emotion and just the overwhelming stress of all that I knew changing very quickly. I was excited and hopeful for the change... but terrified.
My senior year of high school, my friend Claudia's brother Robbie committed suicide over Christmas Break. He was a freshman at our brother school - a highly-lauded Jesuit school that my dad went to, cousins went to, various high school boyfriends went to...
Robbie was beautiful, smart, funny, and one of the few lil bros I didn't mind hanging around when I was with his big sister. I knew that he was having a hard time adjusting to high school... just didn't know why.
I found out about Robbie's death from a phone call from a mutual friend. A few days later, there was a full page article on the front page of the newspaper with a picture of Claudia and her family. The article explained that Robbie was mercilessly teased and bullied at school... and that he was gay and trying to come to terms with it with help from his family and a local GLB&T counseling center. He kept it as a secret at school and went to counseling after school. But he lived in fear of being found out...
and at his school the insults were, of course, all anti-gay. Cuz that's as creative as Jesuit kids usually get.
When Robbie died, I didn't know what to do or how to be there for Claudia. I felt completely helpless and just clumsy with it all.

10 years later, I feel exactly the same way with the death of Kate's brother. Just helpless and clumsy... and so far removed. I know more now from what I have read and what I have gathered from having buried a few other friends in the past few years. The one thing I have learned is that there is no such thing as a universal condolence when tragedy strikes. What I have learned is to listen and to let my friend who is suffering let me know what they need....
so if they call me and want to laugh, we laugh. If they call me and want to cry, we cry.
Being someone who often comforts myself by coming up with advice for others, it's hard to bite my tongue and just let it be all empathy. Cuz there really is no fixing death and grieving. It's just something that needs to run its course... so the best thing is to be a shoulder along the way.

After the news settled, I was talking with Teresa. "I feel so helpless, but I really want to do something... all day, I looked at afghan patterns online... but I don't know? Should I make her an afghan?"

"Did you get my email?" Teresa responded.

"Uh, no, I haven't checked it. Why? Were you thinking of doing the same thing? Because I can do something else..."

Teresa laughed a little, "Oh, no. You can make a blanket. It's just that I sent an email because I thought it might be a good idea for the members of Kate's stitch 'n' bitch to contribute squares. Then we can join them into a blanket to give to her from all of us. And if you wanted to, you could crochet a few... because although the others are mostly knitters, all of the squares will be different in yarn and stitch, so I think a few crochet ones will work fine."

Wow. Brilliance!

So, I set to work crocheting a few squares to be added by Teresa into Kate's blanket.

These were my contributions (pictures are clickable):
Obviously, this blanket isn't going to fix anything. But it is a nice gesture of love from all of her stitching friends to let her know that she is in our thoughts and hearts.

Ripple-Ghan for Megan :o)

In just over a week, I stitched up this Ripple-Ghan for my sister Megan. It's perfect for snuggling under with her beautiful son and gerber baby wannabe Atticus... awww.

I finally got to meet him just before his first birthday. My family rented a guest house in the NC mountains for a week. It was the first time that all 6 siblings were under the same roof for a week since, I think, Christmas of '94.

Anyway... meeting my nephew was great and while we were there I made him a few other things which I will be posting as soon as I get back home and can load up the pics from my camera. In addition, I will post up a few more angles on this Ripple-Ghan so that you can see it spread over a bed. It was originally intended to be a lapghan, but without a pattern... I kind of just got carried away. It ended up being large enough to cover a full sized bed.
I used Yarn Bee Chenille from Hobby Lobby. It's incredibly silky soft and the colors are very vibrant. Megan loves bright colors and these colors match the nursery and it's Froggie theme :o)
I made him an elephant toy and a sheep hand puppet (the sheep was intended to look like Shaun the Sheep from Wallace and Gromit's A Close Shave). I also got to hang out with my adorable niece and other equally adorable and older nephew, Quinlan. I made Quinlan a dragon hand puppet. The dragon, sheep, and elephant were made without patterns. Though, for the elephant, I referenced a picture from a pattern when I was getting started.
Pictures of those items will come later.

Sundress for Myla Rose

I haven't been posting as most of my crochet projects lately are top secret.

But, there is one project that I was able to send to my niece, so I can share that one. *drumroll*

Myla Rose just turned 1 in May and I wanted to crochet her a big girl dress now that she is walking. I looked all over for patterns and couldn't find one that seemed exactly right. So, I decided to just make one up. I used Yarn Baby Sweet Delight from Hobby Lobby which was on sale.

I asked her mom for her size (btwn 12 mos and 18mos) and then searched online for approximate measurements for this size. Most measurements go by weight and I wasn't sure what her weight was (a true lady never reveals her weight...). Moreover, I was determined to start the project right away. Once I have the yarn in hand, I really can't wait to start. So, I found this handy chart.

I made the top in a square to fit the chest measurement. Then, I crocheted the skirt to fit the waist. I made the top in all single crochets and the skirt with increases of diagonal shells. In between, I made some post stitches in Double Crochet to weave a belt/tie through.

Then, I made the back in single crochet. The straps were done in the shell stitch. Each shell is a button hole so that if the straps were too long, they were adjustable.

For the buttons, I used these sweet little rose buttons that I found at *gasp* Walmart. I know, I rarely shop there. But sometimes, it's just too easy. Since she is Myla rose, I thought a Rose pin would be a nice lil addition. I pinned it to the belt, though, it can be placed on the bodice or skirt. Or just removed completely.

And here is Miss Myla Rose modeling it for us:

and the back:

Awwwww... :o)

If I were to make it again, I would make decreases on the top so that it would fit her better and not be so square in the front... but other than that, I think it's pretty dern cute. Then again, anything would look cute on this baby. And yes, I am biased.

Modeling the hats...

Q and Myla wanted to model the hats to make sure that they were acceptable for the auction...

Of course, Myla's noggin is a few months too old for the Chicken hat... but I was so glad that my sis-in-law took the pics so that I could share them with you :o)

I love the pic of Q in the citygirl cap. He's definitely workin it.

Mad Hatter

I have started teaching crochet a little bit more seriously - meaning, I have gotten organized about it. I taught a group of friends a Hat Class a few weeks ago. Everyone was at different levels, but I think everyone had a good time... and there were some really awesome hats that were made in result. I'm hoping that some of my friends from that class (hint, hint) will send me pics of their finished projects so that I can share them here.

Anyway... teaching others how to get a hat started reminded me of how much I love to make them. They are so quick and so easy to change up into whatever style you're looking for.

So... I went on a bit of a hat binge. I made about 8 hats in a week. In defense of my sanity, several of them were made for a silent auction to benefit my nephew's preschool (awww...)... so really, there was an excuse... er, I mean, need....

This week, I had the flu, so I haven't crocheted so much as a chain in several days... but I haven't od'd on hats yet... and plan on making several more in the weeks to come.

Anyway... here are some of the hats I made last week... my own pattern unless otherwise noted.

FROGGER: This lil green guy was made in Caron Simply Soft Bright Lime with some black trim... his eyes are hard to see here - so I'll post another pic, but I made his pupils as "stars". No real reason, just thought it was cute. Before he had the smile, he was looking a little alien... so I think the goofy grin really helps.

CHICKEN: This somewhat grumpy chicken is definitely his own bird. Maybe he's not thrilled at the prospect of being perched on top of a baby's head? Maybe he's just a little sarcastic? I'm not really sure. I totally winged this hat (ba dum dum ching) and didn't have a plan. When I finished it, I just sat it down in front of me and stared at it. The big blue eyes stared back at me. I couldn't tell if if was the creepiest thing I ever made or the cutest. The jury is still out on that one. I used Caron Simply Soft for this one, too... for all the parts. He has ties on either side that tie under the baby's chin - they have chicken feet at the end.

MISS BUNNY: To balance out the somewhat odd Chicken Hat... I made a pretty traditional bunny hat. This one I did in Cotton Tots. I wish that I had done the face detail in embroidery floss, because the Cotton Tots yarn was a bit too light to "take it". So, the detail on the nose cinched up the stitches around it. But... it's ok. It looks more obvious in the pic... I made the ears long and thought about lining them... but then I thought that it was kind of cute and cartoonish this way.

To balance out the baby gear... I made a bunch of adult hats...


One was a cloche... that I started from a pattern, but then totally frogged it and made up my own. I made it in gray and purple yarn that I happened to have lying around. I really liked the color combination... felt really vintage to me and classic. This one is also going up for auction.





To balance out the vintage hat, I made another hat from the city girl cap pattern... which is very urban and hip. I've gotten a lot of requests from friends for this hat... and am going to get some cranked out hopefully in the next few weeks. They work up really quickly and the pattern is very well-written. I used the same mystery yarn as I found lying around and used in the first hat.



Ok... so finally, my friend had been asking me for beanies... he loves one that I made for him a few years back, but needed a few new ones. Of course, when asking for them, he buttered me up by saying, "I always try on beanies at the store but they so don't fit as well as the one you made me!"

Which... true or not... I'll take it :)

So that rounds up the hats for the week... be forewarned, our next class is amigurumi... so expect lots of cute lil toys in the near future.

Long time... no post!

I have been crocheting a lot lately, but just been too lazy to post. Cold weather (yes, it even happens in Austin, TX now, thanks to good ol' global warming...) makes me want to curl up inside with yarn and Gilmore Girls... which is a show that my knitting friends in la la land turned me onto... it's the perfect show to stitch to!




Anyway...



here are some projects I've recently completed ... and my to do list...



A baby it cold outside sweater and matching hat for my newly mobile baby niece...

In two different purple blends of a homespun-like yarn. (I used mill ends that my mom gave me last year). The white trim is homespun. I added flowers to the bottom left lapel to make it look more vintage and feminine.

Her older brother also wanted to try on the hat... which is a bit too small ... but cute nonetheless :). The BICO pattern is really quick and easy and really does work up in less than 3 hours. The secret is that it's almost entirely done in one piece- so there are no seams! Just an excellent project! For the hat, I just did a hdc simple cap and added a shell stitch border. The buttons and the center of the flowers are in the same purple blend as the hat... but the main sweater color I ran out of as I completed the last row of the sweater (how perfect is that!?!?)
I highly recommend the BICO sweater pattern! 1 skein + 3 hours = one adorable baby sweater. That's tough to beat!


For my other nephew, I made this lil' ear flap hat with a pom-pom, which I guess fit him for about a week before he out grew it!


This was also done with mill ends of a homespun-like yarn. It worked up in about an hour... plus 1/2 an hour for the pompoms and earflaps.

It was inspired by watching A Christmas Story... the boys wear the cutest winter hats in that movie!!




I also made him a fuzzy brown bear hat... but I'll be adjusting the size on that and reposting once it's finished.





I also made a hat for my friend Jamie that is pretty much identical to the toddler hat above... I teased him that he would never actually wear it (he requested it)... and so he sent me this video...




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WK2XzY8J1i0








Cool, huh? (if you can't view the video, click the link).

I also made a Longhorn hat for my friend Marco... which I don't have a picture of yet. And I'm working on 3 hats for my friend Jeff.


For my mom, I gave her this circle vest that I had made... in white cotton tots yarn.


I am hoping to get a picture of her wearing it because the picture I took with me trying it on really isn't very good...(wow, look at my filthy bathroom mirror - gross). I basically did the Lacy Leaf Cocoon pattern by Annie Modesitt for Interweave Crochet, Spring 2006 and didn't add sleeves. My mom said that she prefered it without sleeves, just as a vest.
The picture to the left is of it lying down, pre-blocking.


I made a similar vest for my sister Megan in pink... but... I decided that the yarn I used (a soft, cotton baby yarn actually... it's what I had laying around when I started playing around with the pattern...) didn't really do the pattern justice. So, I'm reworking that for her.


I have about a dozen other projects in the works right now... all top secret and very late christmas gifts!

This coming Wednesday, I invited some friends in Austin to meet up with me at a coffee shop for Mat Hatter Day. We'll all make hats... I'll be teaching a lot of them to make their very first hat... which is uber exciting for me :o)

I'll post results afterwards...

Very Pink Baby Outfit

It has been ages since I've updated this blog! Things have been crazy with adjusting to the new city... but, even though I am going out more and just generally busier than I was in LA, I'm still finding time to crochet.

I made the following uber-pink baby outfit for my boss' baby. She is totally daddy's little girl and he is very interested in dressing her in pink.

So...

Pink it is!

A sweater, cloche hat, and mary jane booties.

I crocheted them in Bernat Cotton Tots- Pretty in Pink and fell in love with this yarn. It's super-soft, washable, and crochets up so well. You can really see the stitchwork even though it is a very soft, snuggly yarn.

To start the sweater and for sizing, I used the hooded jacket from Simple Crochet for Cherished Babies. But, I wanted to make a cute hat and so I did not make the hood. I also added a scalloped trim in white and made a bow out of two double crochet chains instead of the frog closure that the book called for.

The sweater is done in a v-stitch and each panel worked up very quickly. To keep the collar down and open, I stitched the lapel down on both sides.

I sized it for a 3 month old baby. She isn't quite there yet, but it should fit her soon.

For the hat, I just did a simple single crochet and added a shell edge. I added a flower that I made up as I went along.

I have seen this style of hat done before, so I'm sure that I'm pulling from a variety of sources. Which means that I probably won't write up this pattern.

Next up are the mary janes. This is a really fuzzy picture, but unfortunately, the only one that I have.

I pulled the pattern from a booklet that I have at home (and can't remember the name of - I'll update once I know). The booklet rocks because it has a dozen or so very unique baby booties. I had to adjust the pattern because I was not using fingering weight yarn, so the sizing was tricky. But, I think that the effort was well worth it. They are really cute booties. I added a flower of sorts on to the side in place of a button.

I thought it would add to the vintage, feminine feel.

John loved the outfit and I'm hoping that his lil' one loves it, too.

Currently, I'm working on a sweater version of this vest and many Christmas gifts ... which will remain a secret for now...

Green Grass Purse and Betsy's Skirt on...

Hello!

I have finally settled in Austin and am ready to start posting again.

Currently, I am working on a taupe purse in lion's brand suede and a monkey for Jeff (aka, Jewffrey).
I worked up a purse the week before last and have been wearing it around town. I used the same yarn that I used to make Bridgid's messenger bag (pictures pending). The color is "grass" and it's wool-ease thick'n'quick chunky yarn.

For the very first time, I actually lined a bag that I made. Which means that I can put pens in it and not be afraid that they are going to work themselves through the stitches of the bag. I used felt to line it and did a very rudimentary, pathetic attempt at a whip stitch. I figure it's practice. I'll probably rip it out and redo it at somepoint. I'm also planning on adding a pocket for a cell phone in there... and making a matching wallet.
In the meantime, here it is. I have been wearing it around this new town of mine and have been stopped and given lots of compliments... which is just awesome.

I also wanted to show a picture of Betsy wearing her skirt. It's not a great pic because it was taken in a dark bar... and even though Erik is a great photographer with a nice camera, the skirt was black. He probably would have given it a little more effort if he realized that I made it... but he didn't believe me until later :o)
Regardless, it does prove that it actually fits her. I am really thrilled that she loves it... and just so grateful that it fits her so perfectly.
She looked fabulous in the skirt and I hope that you get to see her wearing it someday - or I get a better pic ;P