Throwback Thursday - A Beanie

Good morning readers! I have found that I enjoy crafting for National Hat Month. Perhaps it is the oncoming chilly weather that makes me long for something to cover my head and back. What I know is that I hardly crochet for myself and this "celebration" allows me to be a little selfish and add a new beanie to my collection.

This week, I wanted to share one of the hats I created previously. It is a pretty simple hat, but here goes:

It's called the interchangeable beanie. The flower is removable, which means you can have one beanie and any number of embellishments that can be changed at any time. I thought it worked with someone who changed their colors very often. I will say that this blue and green doesn't go well together, but it does draw your eyes to the flower.

In hindsight, I would have made the beanie black or white and created a myriad of colors with the flower or other such embellishments.

What's your favorite hat?

Sarah

Make it Monday - Ridge Hat with Brim

Hello readers! I announced yesterday that this week's theme is National Hat Month. In honor of this month, I have chosen to crochet a beanie to add to my collection. The pattern comes from a blog called Stitch of Love. The owner of this blog has been quiet since 2013; however, the free patterns are still available to use on this blog. Here's the link to my project: Ridge Hat with Brim.

With this, I need to make a note. I will not put the instructions to this beanie on my blog. It is not my pattern. You must follow the link above by clicking the words Ridge Hat with Brim to have the pattern.

Materials:
Worsted Weight yarn  - I used Caron One Pound Baby in Denim
Size H hook
Yarn needle
Stitch Marker (optional)

I know that the pattern and Stitch of Love uses a different set of materials to accomplish the goal. I have issues using smaller yarn, so I went with what was comfortable. Like with any pattern, I chose to accomplish it in a way that fits my body and how I crochet. Crochet is so versatile. Given that I have crocheted MANY hats and beanies over the years, I found this one more hands on with the clusters and front post double crochet. Yet, it turned out so beautifully.

There were a few changes to the pattern that I had to do to make it fit. First, I ended up stopping at Row 6 of the flat circle to make it fit my head properly. I have a smaller adult head. It is important to make the hats fit your head instead of following a pattern and not be able to use it.

The second change I made was subtracting one row of the body to ensure my eyes were not covered up by the brim.  And that leads me to my third change. I ended up removing rows 1, 2 and 5 from the brim. It was too long to fit my head. I didn't mean to skip 1 and 2, but I miscalculated. It worked for my head, so that's a plus.

Here's the work in progress. This is working on the brim.

This is the finished product.

I thought about putting a braid around the brim with a flower, but I kind of like it plain. The original pattern comes with a huge flower to put on the side, but I absolutely LOVE Bonita flower patterns.

One thing I did notice with the pattern had some numerical issues where the stitch count did not add up in the beginning of a new row as it does the rest. For instance, in the brim the pattern designer has a 4 stitch count in the first section of row 1 and has a 5 stitch count in the second section. I corrected this on my own hat as that removes some stitches.

Overall, I love the pattern. As I was crocheting it, I thought of tulips and other spring-y patterns. I bet if you wanted, you could turn it into a basket by stopping at Row 7 on the body and putting a handle.

Happy Crafting,

Sarah

Revealing the Theme - National Hat Month

Hello Readers! Who would have thought that we would have so many things to celebrate in our life time? As I searched these events, I was so shocked at the sheer amount of things to celebrate. Then, I found something that matches the crafting theme so well - National Hat Month!

Yep! National Hat Month seems like the perfect opportunity to make September all about hats. Unfortunately, I found two non-hat weekly themes that prevent this from being a complete hat week. Do not despair! I have tons of hats to share with you this week.

The material list is pretty easy for this week's Make it Monday.

Materials:
Worsted Weight Yarn
Size H hook
Scissors
Yarn Needle
Stitch Marker (optional)

See, super easy!.

I did choose to use Caron One Pound Baby in Denim for my hat. I cannot wait to show you the results of my Make it Monday project.

See you tomorrow,
Sarah

Throwback Thursday - Journals and Writing

One of the first things I did when I was preparing for a fall craft fair and after my foray into paper crafting was cover a composition notebook. Since school days, composition notebooks were used to write down thoughts and work with writing prompts. Children on a daily basis continue to do this as a way to practice writing and grow as individuals.

In high school, my English professor required us to write daily as a way to reduce our stress and to talk about anything we wanted. It could be about boyfriend troubles. It could be about life. Or about our jobs. It could be anything under the sun. I didn't understand how very calming and relaxing writing without an audience was. I do now, which is why I am sharing some of the composition books I covered.

Each of these have their own qualities and match someone's traits. Thankfully, they were all purchased! It showed me that there are still many people who use the composition notebook as a portal to write their thoughts.

*Suggestion* Buy one of these for your child at home. Allow them to decorate it. And start writing a note to them each day with their reply on the back page. It will bring you closer and encourage them to confide in you.

Sarah

Make it Monday - Binding a Book - Photo Heavy

This project was done months in advance because it was created for my mother's birthday. Her birthday falls in December, close to Christmas. We had plans to go out for lunch, but I wanted to make something special for her. Something I took time on. I have the luck to have a mother who truly loves everything homemade or anything given to her. Her humbleness stuns me every time. In recent months, she had told me that she had been studying her religious text. So this Make it Monday project comes from the desire to help her progress.

Yep! I bound a book. Two of them in fact. And I would have to say that they are more along the lines of a booklet. The ones I have made are meant for note taking or other such things. You can obviously create larger books than the ones I completed. All you would need to do is puncture the paper a little at a time to accomplish this. And cut the designer paper larger to cover the added paper.

Materials

Paper cutter

Designer paper or colored paper

4-6 sheets of white copier paper

needle

thread

scissors

Here are the instructions on how to accomplish this project:

1. Take 4-6 sheets of white copier paper and fold them in half. Be sure to press the bent side with a straight edge or a bone folder.

2. Cut the designer paper to 8.5 x 11 to fit over the paper. You can also add 1/4 of an inch on either side to overcompensate. (Excuse my crafter's mess - This was around Christmas time.)

3. Fold the designer paper over the copier paper. Remember to press the seam with a straight edge.

4. Take your threaded needle and puncture the center of the paper from the inside. Leave a longer tail because you will need to tie the ends together.

5. When you bring the needle and thread out, puncture another hole about 2-3 inches away from the center. I went a little further on this one than I did my first one.

6. Take the needle through the paper and back across the center to the opposite side. I didn't measure. I just eyed the space to see what looked right. They are about equal distance from the center. Puncture the paper and pull the needle to the outside of the booklet again.

7. Finally, push the needle through the center hole. Pull tight. Then cut the needle off leaving a long tail to tie.

 8. Tie the two ends together twice and cut a majority of the excess. Fold the booklet.

Congrats! You just made a booklet. Here's the pictures of the two finished booklets I completed. I chose not to embellish them as I knew that my mother would love them, but you can embellish them with ribbon or stamps or whatever you wanted.

These are bookmarks I made to match the booklets.

Booklets and bookmarks together.

Finished and packaged. If you are wondering, I took a 8 x 10 cello bag I purchased from JoAnn's online (with a self adhesive closure), added the booklets and bookmarks, and closed it. I then took a piece of brown cardstock (scrap) and folded it over. I stapled it onto the cello bag. I used a scrap piece of the flower designer paper to cover the staples.

I hope you have found this tutorial informative and choose to do it yourself. It is relatively easy. It was super quick. I was able to accomplish it within ten minutes (minus the bookmark part since I laminated). A bit of that time was trying to thread a needle....because my threader broke. So, you can accomplish this project in less than 10 minutes without a doubt.

Take some time to create some homemade books and bookmarks for someone you care about! The gifts don't have to be expensive, especially when they come from your heart.

Sarah

Revealing the Theme - National Children's Book Week

From the age of nine, I had a desire to write. It was so important to me that my father suggested I start using the GED book to learn high school and college level words. I spent time studying and writing the words in the dictionary. I would have 10 new words each week. By half way through the year, I wrote a 16 page short story - romance of course. Nervously, I read it to my little sister who sat rapt at each word. I was sitting on the dresser and she was sitting on the bed. I remember feeling enthralled at her response and hoping that she would love the story I had to tell. Yes, had. Within moments of finishing, I waited for the response. When she told me that it was good and she loved it, I breathed a sigh of relief and celebrated internally with jubilation.

That feeling is something all children should have growing up. They should have a safe situation to express their voice even if the words coming out of them is not something we agree with. Sometimes...all someone needs is to be heard.

So, with that in mind...this week's theme is going to focus on the act of writing. One aspect of most lives is literature. I remember creating my own book in fifth grade. It was entitled - Mighty Morphin Spider Rangers. LOL! Yes, after the Power Rangers. It was really huge then. What it did was allow me to use my creativity and mind to create a story I liked.

This week....we are focusing on National Children's Book Week.

But in a different light than one would think we would celebrate. So please join me this week on this blog to focus on Children's book and writing.

Before I finish this post, I will provide a list of the materials needed for tomorrow's Make it Monday.

Materials

Paper cutter

Designer paper or colored paper

4-6 sheets of white copier paper

needle

thread

scissors

Sarah

Throwback Thursday - A Teddy Bear for a Friend

One of my husband's long term friends enjoys the things I make with crochet. When I asked her what her favorite color was, she didn't seem surprised that I asked. What did surprise her was that I decided to crochet her a teddy bear in that color. It wasn't planned. I wasn't expecting anything in return, as I hardly do.

What it gave me is the happiness and joy at seeing someone else enjoy something I gave to them. It could be food. It could be a hobby project. It could be something I made. It doesn't matter what it is. What matters is that I took time, effort, and love creating something that someone else will love through time.

Although I have many instances of this in my arsenal, I chose this teddy bear because it is an adorable teddy and because it shows no planning. It was a spur of the moment decision. And like that, a Random Act of Kindness was born. Here's the finished product:

Isn't he a cutie? You can find the pattern at these links:
PDF - http://gosyo.co.jp/english/pattern/eHTML/ePDF/1004/amicomo3-34_Amigurumi_Bear.pdf
Ravelry - http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/amigurumi-bear-2
Gosyo - http://gosyo.co.jp/english/pattern/eHTML/toy_ornament.html

Please note that this pattern does seem like it is just a diagram, but there is numbers in a table that provide the stitch count. This is not a beginner pattern unless you want to jump feet first into learning things like this. It is relatively easy to understand if you know about stitches, increases, and decreases.

What is one of your RAK?

Sarah

New Changes

I started this year with the intention of having every week filled with posts, and two months in that can't happen. It was a great set of intentions, but we all know that life gets in the way of that sometimes. If you do not know it, I graduated college a few months ago with the intention of focusing on my writing career. I have always written something, but it wasn't until December of 2014 that I became published. It is a huge source of pride for me. One that makes me so happy. And something that I want to cultivate.

As any crafter will know, sometimes we have to put our hobbies aside to proceed with life as we want. And that is what I am doing. That does not mean I won't be posting. In fact, in the coming months I will be posting unreleased patterns, updating the free pattern section, and more. What I can tell you is....every one of my patterns on Ravelry are now free!

It would have been nice to continue on trying to get them to sell, but I am not the type of person to chase people around begging for them to buy. So, instead I am going to go with my own personality and provide them for free. I want everyone to enjoy my patterns. I want them to be used and loved by many people instead of bought and coveted by the few.

Here's the link to my Ravelry shop! If you have viewed the pattern, here's your chance since they are FREE!!

What this means is that all my future patterns will also be free. There will be a post on the website, Ravelry upload, and a page dedicated to the pattern on this blog.

Another change is that I will no longer have Craftsy or Facebook. The only place you will be able to find my patterns is this blog and Ravelry. It is just two of many difficult decisions I had to make, but in the long run will be a positive for me as a crafter, as a writer, and for my fans.

Please don't think I will stop posting. I will continue to craft and essentially update my blog to showcase what I make. It just won't be scheduled and 4 days of the week! Even a super woman needs a crafting break!

Until next time,

Sarah

Another Scrappy Saturday - V-day Cards for Kids

Happy Valentine's Day! What a great day for Scrappy Saturday to fall on! I am sure that you are more than ready for the holiday to be over. Don't worry...by the time today is done Easter will have already made its way onto the store shelves. It is getting a bit crazy. And that is coming from a woman who loves holidays. On to today's project...

Okay. I will admit readily that not everything used in these cards are scraps, but some of it is. So it qualifies by a hair. Right?

My inspiration? Well...love and hearts. (gasp) Of course...to match the holiday.

What is the one thing that you might forget to purchase for your children on V-day? Well, that would be small cards to give away for their class. I remember a time when we actually made the cards to give to each other. Only the richer students purchased cards, but I was super happy to get the homemade ones. So when I was thinking of a quick and easy Scrappy Saturday project, this was it! Who wouldn't enjoy making these?


Materials:
Paper cutter
Scissors
Roller tape
Scrap sheets of plain colored card stock (I used red, dark red, pink, and blue)
Scrap sheets of designer paper (I used hearts)
An I love you stamp or similar Valentine's stamp
A (To and From) stamp
Things to embellish if you wish


Dimensions

Plain Colored Card stock - 4 x 2 1/2
Designer Paper - 3 3/4 x 2 1/4

1. Cut all paper first. I made 8 pretty quickly. These are so small that you can make a bunch up with ease.

2. Turn the plain colored card stock over and stamp with the To and From stamps. At this time, also stamp the designer paper with your V-day stamp of choice. Mine is an I (heart) you stamp.

3.  With roller tape, adhere the designer paper to the backing.

4. Congrats, you can embellish now if you wish.

I did choose to embellish with some heart puffy stickers, ribbon, glitter tape, and rhinestones.

Here they are finished. The center one is partly ripped because I pulled too hard on the ribbon. I do not have children, so these are heading to my little nieces and nephews for a surprise piece of mail from Aunt Sarah. But you do not have to use ribbon to embellish. The point is to create quick and easy V-day cards for your child's class. You can go a step further and stamp the outside with an open stamp that they can color! Let your children help!

Happy Valentine's Day

Sarah

Throwback Thursday - I love my Kindle

When I first thought about Valentine's Day, the first thing I really think is pretty horrible. The sentiment behind the holiday is perfect - sharing, caring, love. What bothers me the most is the commercialization surrounding it and the thought that you should only show you love someone near this time of year. Not that this means anything to Throwback Thursday, but I thought I would share.

This Kindle cover is one that I created around 2012 or so with the theme of love. I called it The First Blooms of Love or something like that. It has a little heart that hangs down. Each of the petals on the flower are hearts. It just seemed fitting.

Perhaps it was the love I feel when I look at my Kindle and how much it has changed my life. Maybe not. But, I thought it represents an aspect of my life that I love and appreciate all year long.

That's something I can support and hope that you do as well. If you love someone, let them know all year. Don't wait. It isn't worth the cost of waiting!

Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day,

Sarah

Make it Monday - V-day Cards

Yep! You read that right. Cards! I recently purchased two paper packs. One is 6 x 6 paper and one is 4 x 7 paper. They have no particular theme which makes them perfect for everyday card making. I was inspired when I found three pieces of "heart" papers inside. There was one more that was blue and green, but it remained unused. It would work perfectly for a more "manly" love card. I may make one since I have two men in my life that I love and who I appreciate.

These cards are pretty fast. Once you get the hang of making cards, they come together very quickly. Cut all the mats at once. And have everything at hand. You do NOT need a lot of things to accomplish professional looking cards. I do not have much in the way of stamping materials, but I do purchase some every once in a while. Think outside the box!

Let's get to the project.

Materials
Paper cutter
Scissors
Roller tape
Pop dots
Ribbon
Glitter tape
White card stock for card bases
Red and Pink card stock for Layer 1
Pattern paper for layer 2
Small amount of white card stock for stamps
Love themed stamps
Small amount of red and pink card stock for stamp mat
Rhinestones

Here's the dimensions

Card - 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 when folded. Meaning 8 1/2 x 11 card stock cut in half.
Layer 1 - 4 x 5 1/4
Layer 2 - 3 3/4 x 5

I used 1 red Layer 1 and 2 pink layer 1. I also used three different Layer 2 pattern papers. All of them have a love/heart theme. I used 1 red stitch ribbon measured to around 12 inches. I used 2 pieces of glitter tape measured at 4 and 5 inches. The stamping I measured as I did it. This will vary for you based on the stamp you used.

Here's the first mat completed. This is the red version with red heart pattern paper and stitched red ribbon. 

This shows the pop dots I used to put the stamp on the mat.

Here's the finished product.

Because the layers and bases of this card are the same, I am not going to show the other three cards being made. I am going to show you the finished versions. So here's the other two cards.

(Prima Stamp)

(Sentiment Stamp)

These cards were fun to make and suit my "love" of pink. What are you crafting for V-day?

Sarah

Revealing the Theme - Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day has become a highly stressful, commercialized holiday where love is treated like an one-day event. Even though I celebrate love throughout the year, I do enjoy having some delicious chocolates. I do not ever expect a gift from my husband or my loved ones. I prefer to just spend time with them. When I do crochet or craft for them, it is usually something that they enjoy.

If you haven't guessed already, this week's theme is Valentine's Day. I have two awesome projects to accomplish and share with you this week. The first project has a material list below.


Materials
Paper cutter
Scissors
Roller tape
Pop dots
Ribbon
Glitter tape
White card stock for card bases
Red and Pink card stock for Layer 1
Pattern paper for layer 2
Small amount of white card stock for stamps
Love themed stamps
Small amount of red and pink card stock for stamp mat
Rhinestones

Another Scrappy Saturday - A Chocolate Colored Card - Photo Heavy

Let's face it. The last two months of 2014 had us faced with the temptation of calorie laden foods. Then January hit and we were (hopefully) able to get back into the swing of proper eating. And then bam! February hits and every store is laden with more tempting chocolates and candies for a holiday about Love. So when the first week of February ended up being themed chocolate, I had no clue I would be caving and doing a special Food edition of Make it Monday to break the cycle of normal calorie intake! So in an attempt to reign that crazy haired, crazy eyed, Chocolate maniac in, I am going to make a card for Scrappy Saturday.

A chocolate colored card. One without calories. In fact, it burns calories!

The inspiration is the wrapper of a chocolate bar. The sentiment and stamp was chosen to match a Dove chocolate piece that has an inspirational saying inside. (I so love Dove milk chocolate. Yum!)



Materials:
A paper cutter
Scissors
Roller Tape
Scott's Magic Tape (transparent or similar brand)
Acrylic block
Stamp set
Staz-on Brown Ink
Tim Holtz Distress ink in Walnut
A sponge (I use a makeup sponge - super cheap.)
Silver or gold thread
1 card base (white)- 5 1/2 x 4 1/4
Layer 1 (tan) - 5 1/4 x 4
Layer 2 (designer paper) - 5 x 3 3/4
Scrap piece of white paper
Scrap piece of tan paper for stamp mats


Remember: The stamps I use or the paper is relatively easy to change for what you have on hand. Use this as a guide.

Before starting - I cut all my papers and base to have them ready.

1. I started by stamping my sentiment and stamp on white card stock. I always stamp on a larger sheet and cut them out by hand.

2. Using Tim Holtz, Walnut Distress ink, I sponge around the outside edge of both stamped images to create a contrast on the tan background.

3. Adhere (roller tape) the stamped images to the tan background, and hand cut them out.

4. Here they are cut out.

5. Using a piece of Scott's tape, adhere the gold (or silver) thread onto the back of the designer paper.

6. Wrap it around how many ever times you wish. I chose five. Once you like the look, cut the thread and attach with another piece of tape on the back.

7. Using roller tape, attach Layer 2 to Layer 1. Then attach with roller tape to the card base.

8. Using pop dots or foam tape adhere your stamps to the front. I positioned my flower near the center of the card with the sentiment at the bottom. You could easily adhere the flower in the center and use the sentiment inside.

And that is my chocolate inspired card. Who couldn't use a push to enjoy life's moments? We all get lost in life sometimes. Having a push in the right direction is great!

Happy Saturday!

Sarah