Hello my name is Kristi...

It may be entirely possible that I am addicted to yarn. We recently bought one of those long, double sided, under bed storage totes to hold all of my yarn. Karl had doubts that I could fill it but I knew the score. One stuffed yarn bin later and still not enough room for all I have...sigh.

I made a promise to use up one third of the stash before I would purchase anymore yarn. The only exception would be if I needed more yarn to finish a project.

Or if I was buying yarn for someone else.

Or...

No, I must be strong...no new yarn until I've used a good portion of the stuff I already have.

I wonder if there is therapy for this sort of thing...possibly massage therapy?

It was an exciting game to say the least...

Okay, so I went to my sister's to watch the playoffs, Colts versus the Patriots. A match up that usually end with the Colts blowing their chance at the Super Bowl, but why not, besides she was making meatballs.

The game hasn't started yet and I'm sitting on the sofa and I decide I'd like a drink of my punch. I pick up my glass and in the humorous way that's been happening to me quite frequently lately, the glass slides up through my hands, into the air, turns itself upside down and dumps punch all over me and the sofa.

Fine, I didn't really want to watch the playoffs anyway. I don't really like football and the Colts are gonna blow it anyway. Since I happen to know that my only other clean jeans are still in the washing machine I tell Karl I'm just gonna go home. He decides to walk with me. (We live less than a block from Lora.) We get home and he looks so sad that I decide I'll just wear my fleecey PJ bottoms (it's only family at Lora's anyway) and go back with him.

Go back to Lora's. Start watching the game, decide I need another sandwich from the kitchen and that Mel (Lora's dog) needs to come out of the front room because she's getting over excited. Tempt her into the dining room with a piece of summer sausage and she bites me, hard, when she jumps up to take it out of my hand.

So I go off to cry a liitle and pull myself together. Come back, sit down watch the game, it's very exciting the Colts are getting their asses kicked, and everything's fine for about 20 minutes...

Then Mel comes bounding into the living room, throws herself into my legs as hard as she can, flops on the floor and proceeds to rabbit kick me in the shins three or four times. I would have left but I was afraid if I went outside I'd get plowed down by a bus...Besides Baylee chose the next moment to come over and sit on my lap.

I'm trying not to be miserable but...Baylee trips over my foot getting off my lap and kinda twists my ankle around. Whee!!!

However the game is getting better. The Colts may not be completely humiliated after all. So I spill another glass of punch. At least it's on the floor and not me...

Now the game is getting really exciting. The score is tied. Tied! Wait! the Patriots score a field goal, shit...Come on Payton (or however you spell his name) come on...get the ball, get the ball...OH MY GOD!!! Oh my God!!! The Colts have scored a touchdown!!! Okay just gotta run out the clock...Shi,t the Pats have the ball stop him STOP HIM!!! Interception!!! INTERCEPTION!!! The Colts are going to the Super Bowl!!!

Everyone is jumping up and screaming and clapping and hugging and cheering. My husband looks at me and jokingly says "Ready to go home?" I laugh and say "Just let me gather my stuff." So he flops back onto the sofa next to me and elbows me in the eye...

hard.

But hey, the Colts are going to the Super Bowl, so I guess it was all worth it.

I FELT the need...


This lovely little flip to black bag is about to get the beating of it's life.



After 15 minutes in extremely hot water with an angry towel...


It hadn't quite learned it's lesson so I tossed it back in for another 10.


A little more time and then we whipped it into shape and gave it the brush off...

Lessons learned: 1)Yarn was too dark to show the colour work very well. 2)If the bag absolutely refuses to go back into a rectangle, your husband can make you feel better by saying "I think it gives it character."

My very first piece of colour work!!!
 

Baylee is the most likely recipient unless her head is too big. Her father had a HUGE head when he was a baby...If not Baylee then Graci. 

Thank You Gift
 
Trisha let us use her house while she was in Latvia. I crocheted this as a thank you gift. It's a simple granny rectangle (gotta love grannies!) crocheted with Yarn Bee Soft Delights Burgandy. I decided it wasn't quite big enough after two skeins so I edged in three rows of triple crochet using two strands of Pound Store Fun Fur yarn one dark brown and one tan. 

A Cardi for Baylee
  The second to last day in Liverpool I jokingly asked Karl if he thought I could get one more crochet project done before we left. He said he doubted it and I felt like a gauntlet had been thrown down. I didn't quite get it done but I felt like I'd rose to the challenge quite nicely. In fact when we left the UK the cardi really could have served it's purpose as is. I added the pockets and puffy buttons after we got home.   
It's an incredibly easy cardigan. I simply crocheted five rectangles using half double crochet, seamed them together and edged it with the contrasting yarn. 


  Patch pockets and puffball buttons with button loops, super cute!

Rough directions:

2 skeins Yarn Bee Soft Delight in color of your choice (Extremes Blue)
1 skein Yarn Bee Luxurious in color of your choice (Snow)
Scrap yarn for making button loops
4 largish plastic buttons or make your own (poly fill required)
Size J crochet hook
Size F crochet hook



With the Soft Delights and a J hook, make a chain as wide as you want the back of the cardigan to be (35 chains for Baylee who wears a 2T) add two chains. Turn. *Half double crochet in second chain from hook and each chain across. Chain two, turn* Repeat from * until you have the piece the size you want it to be. Finish off.

I wanted the front to be slightly open because of how I planned to edge it so I took the size of the back chain divided it by two and subtracted a few and randomlyish decided on 16 as my start chain. So...

Chain (16 or your number) plus two. Half double crochet in second crochet from hook blah, blah until this piece is same length as back piece. Make two!

By folding the side panels in half I decided they were too narrow to work as sleeves but only just so I used 18 as my starting chain for the sleeves.

Chain (18 or your number) plus two...you know the drill. I made my longer than the body of the cardi so I could fold them back into cuffs, but you do what you like. Make two!

Now seam all the bits together in a manner that makes sense (Don't sew the sleeves to the neck hole.) I did leave the front panels open a little at the neck line by not single crocheting (or sewing if you're of that mind) through the last three HDC's on each panel.

Using two strands of Luxurious together, single crochet around the outer edge of the cardi for three rows. Weave in your loose ends and decide if you really want...

Pockets

Using half double crochet and Soft Delights make 2 small rectangles(mine are 7 stitches by 4 rows) edge with 3 rows of single crochet in the two strands of Luxurious and sew these onto the front of the cardi.

and

Buttons

Using one strand of Luxurious and the F hook Chain 2. Seven single crochet in second chain from hook. Two single crochet in first single crochet and each sc around. One sc in each sc. One sc in each 2 sc (reducing) continue reducing when button is almost closed, stuff a small amount of poly fill into it. Continue reducing until button is closed. Leave a long tail to sew on with. Make 4 or how ever many you want. Sew them onto each side of the cardi in pairs. Stitch a short length of crocheted chain made from non fuzzy yarn to form a loop under buttons on one side of the cardi. Use this as button loops to form a froglike closure. 

Cornelia the Caterpillar



Materials:
Pink Knifty Knitter Long Loom*
1 Skein Bernat Softee Chunky Electric Lime
2 Skeins Lion Brand Fun Fur Prints Citrus
Yarn Needle
Fiber fill
Ruler
Scrap yarn or embroidery floss to embroider face

Skills
Casting on
Knitting a tube
Knitting I cord
Measuring
How not to poke yourself in the eye whilst sewing

Begin

Legs
With Electric Lime and three pegs on the pink loom, knit a piece of I cord that's 6 inches long. Remove from loom leaving a 15 inch tail for sewing onto the body later. Repeat 9 more times until you have 10 legs total. Set all 10 legs aside for now.

Body
With Electric Lime and Citrus held together as one, cast on completely around the pink loom. Knit. Continue knitting until you have a tube 22 inches long. Drop the Citrus (Fun Fur), leaving a tail which you will weave back in later. Continue knitting with the Electric Lime until the tube is 24 inches in total. (Two more inches after you drop the Fun Fur.) Cut the yarn leaving a tail about 18 inches.

Thread the tail onto a yarn needle and starting at peg one sew up through the loop on the peg, continue sewing up through each loop until you've gone all the way around. Sew up through the loop on peg one one more time. Remove loops from pegs and pull yarn to gather and close the end. Sew a few stitches to secure then weave in end. Face End.

Assembly
Using a ruler measure 6 inches down from the face end. Thread a yarn needle with about 18 inches of yarn and sew in and out of the stitches at the 6 inch mark until you've gone back to the start of your stitches. Pull to lightly gather but do not close. Using fiber fill stuff this section of the caterpillar until it is nicely rounded. (you can also add squeakers or rattly bits etc at this time) Pull the stitches tightly to gather and close bind off.

Measure down 6 inches and repeat the process sewing, stuffing and binding until you reach the tail end. Once all six sections are completed sew two legs, evenly spaced, onto each of the 5 body sections of the caterpillar. (I used a kniiting needle and cruelly ran Cornelia through to assure her legs weren't wonky.)

Weave in all loose ends

Embroider a face and add a flower or bow and Voila! a fun and fluffy caterpillar for you or someone you love.


*I'm fairly sure the round blue loom would work equally as well.

Special Note
I made this for my 3 month old niece Lara. Over the next few years she will be chewing, tugging, stomping, squeezing, biting and probably playing fairly roughly with this and any other toys she might come across. I sewed everything on extra tight to prevent little hands from ripping off and little mouths from swallowing. You should take the same precautions for any child under three.

Lara and her caterpillar.
  

I'm back from holiday. Liverpool was amazing and brilliant and I almost wish it were next Christmas already. Except I understand American plumbing much better and I NEVER accidentally ingest artificial sweeteners here.

I managed to finish the shawl I was crocheting for Lainey, literally as she was walking up to the door. I also crocheted an off the shoulder capelet (needs a button), a granny square throw in gorgeous Yarn Bee Soft Delights Burgandy that I edged with two strands worked together tan and brown fun fur. This gave it a foxish fur type edge, very sumptious. Finally, mostly finished in the UK, a cardi for Baylee. It's done now just needed pockets and buttons which I finished up today.

Hobby Lobby has Soft Delights on sale for 99 cents again so we went and stocked up as it may be my new favorite yarn. Also bought a knitting machine. Made a scarf but I need to mess with it some to get it right.

I'll be posting pics and directions (at least for some) soon. Must rest a bit first.