Photo of the Week

I'm having so much fun with the zoom on my new camera.  If you can zoom in to the right spot where there is a little green, it doesn't seem like the photo was taken in the winter when almost everything is brown.

I take the green around me for granted in the summer, but in the winter I find myself looking for even the tiniest amount of green to latch onto and be happy about.  Green means life and life is a happy thing!

Butterfly Notebook

I'm sensing a butterfly theme here this week... it's a coincidence really.  I just happened to have a bunch of small paper butterflies from my butterflies on the wall project and I also just happened to have a small journal my husband got from work.  He didn't want it, so he agreed to let me make it girly :)

What would I do without fun scrapbook paper and modge podge?!  I might just shrivel up and die because you can do so many things with it.  It would be such a shame if such things did not exist.

New Butterfly

I finished another butterfly painting, making three of them in all!  I'm still planning to paint more.  They look good as a series and they are fun to paint :) 

I just listed this one in my Etsy Shop along with the others.... click here to see them all. 

If no one ends up buying them, I'll be giving them away as gifts or hanging them up in my own home (hopefully). We are in the process of looking for our first home at the moment and it's a crazy, exciting, and stressful process.  But I can't wait to finally have our own space to decorate and customize as we please!

Photo of the Week

I had a little photo shoot with my Valentine's flowers... aren't they pretty?!    I love the look of flower petals with sun shining through them :)

Hometown Landscape in Oils

Last weekend I got out my oil paints for the first time in months.  I was almost scared that I had forgotten how to paint in oils, but once I got going, it came back to me quickly. Thank goodness!

This is my second version of the pond I grew up around in rural Arizona.  I can't decide if I like the watercolor or the oil version better.

Which do you like best?

Shell Stitch Crochet Hat- Free Pattern

A Happy Valentines Day to all!  I hope you are feeling loved and showing some love today :)

To celebrate, I'm sharing a little something I've been working on for almost a month now-  a crochet hat pattern!

This is my first official pattern, so I had to make three hats times to make sure I had it written correctly.  But now it's finished and I'm sharing it with all you crocheters out there for free!   I would love for some feedback on my pattern, so if you try it out, be sure and let me know how it goes!  Or, write me with any questions.

The pattern is just for the hat- no flower included- sorry.  The pattern for the flower comes from Melody Maria Fulone on Ravelry.com.  I tweaked it just a little bit for my own preferences.  I used a K hook instead of a J and made the second row of the flower on the front instead of the back.  Then I just flipped the flower over-  I like it better that way :)

So here's the pattern for the Shell Hat. (You can click on the link below to download a pdf to print off)

Shell Hat Pattern

Shell Hat

Size: Woman’s medium 20inch
(stretches 1-2 inches).

Materials:
Worsted Weight Yarn
Size US H (5.0 mm) crochet hook
Yarn needle

Abbreviations:
ch= chain
dc= double crochet
st= sitch
sc= single crochet

Notes:
·  Beginning ch 2 counts as a dc.
·  Rounds 7-12 are worked in a shell stitch variation.
·  Rounds 8, 10 & 12 are worked with the ch 2 as the beginning of the shell. The final 4
dc of the round are worked right next to the beginning ch 2 and joined with a slip stitch
to the ch 2 to complete the beginning shell.


Cap
Round 1: Ch 3, 11 dc in 3rd chain from hook. Join with slip stitch in top of beginning ch3.
[ 12 dc ]
Round 2: Ch 2, 1 dc in same st as join, 2dc in each st around. Join with slip stitch in top of
ch2. [ 24 dc ]
Round 3: Ch 2, 1 dc in same st as join. * 2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next st. Repeat from *
around. Ending with 2 dc in last st. Join with slip stitch in top of ch2. [ 36 dc ]
Round 4: Ch 2, 1 dc in same st as join. * 2dc in next st , 1 dc in next 2 sts. Repeat from *
around. Ending with 2 dc in last 2 sts. Join with slip stitch in top of ch 2. [ 48 dc ]
Round 5: Ch 2, 2 dc in same st as join. * 1 dc in next 3 sts, 2 dc in next st. Repeat from *
around. Ending with 1 dc in last 2 sts. Join with a slip stitch in top of ch 2. [ 60 dc ].
Round 6: Ch 2, 1 dc in same st as join. 1 dc in each st around. Join with slips#tch in top
of ch 2.

Round 7: Ch 2, skip 1 st, 5 dc in next st. * Skip 2 sts, 1 dc in next st. Skip 2 sts, 5 dc in
next st. Repeat from * around, slip stitch in top of beginning ch 2.
Round 8: Ch 2, skip 1 st (do not count join st as a st), 1 dc in next st. * Skip 2 sts, 5 dc in
next st. Skip 2 st, 1 dc in next st. Repeat from * around, ending with 4dc in last st next to
beginning ch 2 (to complete beginning shell). Slip stitch in top of ch 2.
Rounds 9: Ch 2, 4 dc in same st as join. *Skip 2 sts, 1 dc in next st. Skip 2 sts, 5dc in next
st. Repeat from * around. Ending with 1 dc in 2nd to last st. Slip stitch in top of ch 2.
Round 10: Ch 2, skip 1 st, 1 dc in next st. * Skip 2 sts, 5 dc in next st. Skip 2 st, 1 dc in
next st. Repeat from * around, ending with 4dc in last st next to beginning ch 2 (to complete
beginning shell). Slip stitch in top of ch 2.
Round 11: Ch 2, 4 dc in same st as join. *Skip 2 sts, 1 dc in next st. Skip 2 sts, 5dc in
next st. Repeat from * around. Ending with 1 dc in 2nd to last st. Slip stitch in top of ch 2.
Round 12: Ch 2, skip 1 st, 1 dc in next st. * Skip 2 sts, 5 dc in next st. Skip 2 st, 1 dc in next
st. Repeat from * around, ending with 4dc in last st next to beginning ch 2 (to complete
beginning shell). Slip stitch in top of ch 2.

Rounds 13, 14 &15: Ch 1, 1 sc in same st as join. 1 sc in each st around. Slip stitch in top
of first sc.

Fasten off and weave in loose ends.

Happy Crocheting!  And, as a note, please do not use my pattern to make items to sell and Please do not redistribute or sell this pattern as your own. Thanks :)

Photo of the Week

This is what happens when my son get's his play dough out and I get my camera :)

Wishing you all a Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow! 

A Look at my Sketchbook

I took a little trip to the park at Daybreak last week with my son and got a little sketching in while he was playing!  Drawing outside really makes me happy :)

Starched Yarn Hearts

I decided to try out a new craft idea I discovered at the Disney Family Fun website..... Starched Yarn Hearts!   I thought my three-year-old would want to help me make these, but alas, he was more interested in playing with water in the sink.  Kids are funny that way!

I think they turned out ok in the end, but man, this was a HUGE mess to make.  The instructions basically involve combining cornstarch and water, dipping pieces of string in the starch and shaping them into hearts using a cookie cutter.  Great concept, but the starch stuff was incredibly messy and once it cooled, it turned into huge globs.  At that point it was pretty hard to get the string saturated. 

So, if you want to try this one out, consider yourself warned.. It's Messy!  I also had to adjust the cornstarch/ water ratio.  I used 1 1/2 cups of water for 1/4 cup of cornstarch.  I've heard of others using fabric stiffener or even elmer's glue.  Those probably work better.

I let the hearts dry for a good 24 hrs on some parchment paper and then strung them up for some simple Valentine's decor for my apartment.  I actually had more fun photographing them than making them- hehe!

 

Photo of the Week

“The pain passes, but the beauty remains.”  -Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Valentine Goodies: Bookmarks

I've had all these left over scraps of watercolor paper laying around and up until last night, I had no idea what to do with them.  But, being the saver of junk that I am, I kept those lovely little papers knowing they would come in handy one day..... and they did!   Take a look....

......bookmarks made with stamps, colored pencil, colored paper, and ink on watercolor paper!  I even laminated them using packing tape. 

 I know that good old fashioned bookmarks may be becoming extinct since the birth of e-readers and tablets, but I still like them.  I use my husband's kindle every once in a while, but I  will never give up reading physical books and using physical bookmarks.  There's something satisfying about handling an actual book and turning actual pages.

Reverse Applique T-shirt and a Free Pattern

Here's a look at my latest sewing project... a reverse applique T-shirt for my little guy.  The idea came from Sweet Verbana.  She has a great tutorial for the reverse applique technique.  It's pretty simple and I had fun doing it!  I even added some stitching around the edges to make it a little more interesting.

I ended up drawing my own design for the applique.  It's based on one of my son's toy tractors :) I even scanned the drawing and turned it into a PDF to share with everyone else who wants to make one!  But beware, all those curves are pretty tricky to stitch around on the sewing machine.

Just click on the link below to bring up the PDF and print away!

Free Tractor Applique Pattern

And here's my little guy in the one and only tractor shirt... as he plays with a part from our carpet cleaner and some string! He's quite inventive with the things he finds to play with :)