Little things

My friend and walking partner Becca gave me 3 bags of assorted yarn recently,

there was a lot of acrylic

 ( and I am very fond of wool and silk)

so a lot of the yarn was shared with Jackie ( Michaels mom)

 ...however i did find this odd looking acrylic yarn ..It is the kind that used to be used for macrame ..

and I though..

Macrame plant hangers!..

My Nana used to make them when I was younger ..and I know she showed me how..

I just have to refresh my macrame skills ..

but to test out the yarn I made two little "baskets"

I love the idea of "hard "crochet ( where you crochet over other cords to  give strength)..

in this case... stiff yarn/smaller than normal hook/sturdy decorative stitch..

make up for the lack of additional cording .

The stitching over the cording is also the basis for Irish crochet

the organic nature of crochet makes the baskets a bit "wonky" but I like a bit of wonky

The Green Vase

I recently got a new craft book while at a community yard sale with Kelley ..it featured a nifty vase made of old magazine rolled into tubes and coiled ..and then saw another version while shopping with Tat and family

so this is so simple of a concept and the should have been easy..

should ..mind you...

just roll a bunch of coils and glue together!

OK

so the instructions did say it would take a lot  of them

I worked for several night rolling the tubes  

and then several more hrs flattening them ,rolling them and gluing them into place

in the long run I got something that was interesting , but not very pretty..and way more work than the result..But I did finish it ..this was rally a project for someone with no other things going or it would make a neat family project ...

the Great Cover Up

OK so Y'all have noticed the fixation with shawls, I think they are so pretty, lacy, floaty, and usable..or at least I think so...alas , I keep picking increasingly  more detailed and complicated designs., I like the challenge of learning a new pattern..and it keeps my hands busy while catching up on Desperate Housewives!

The Blue shawl above is one of my endless projects, it was pretty and fun to do , but my the last 2 inches of the project I was getting ancy to start the next project ! You can see from the slightly blurry photo above that Lilly cat was quite taken with it and decided to use it as a blankie!

I started on another shawl right after, with a pattern I saw in the book "crochet so fine" it had a flower border that I didn't like ...so I left it off..another pic where my flash washed out the beautiful color and it has a metallic sparkle behind it ..I made this one as a gift for my boss ( Lisa if you read my blog... act surprised !)

I thought I had posted the pic for Michael's pillow , but didn't see it ..this is just the top ..

I have 2 more projects in the works at the moment , another smaller pop top bag..and a vase made of paper..both of them are almost done ! ..

I started a pink mohair shawl last night also.....so many projects ..so little time!  

Pot holders

This week I tried a new pattern for a really pretty potholder!

OK so it kinda looks like something a grandma would make..I get that its not in every ones taste ..but heck its a potholder and not a piece of art work ..but I do think its kinda pretty and was really fun to make

 I also tried to make paper beads, I saw this at the destination art event, and saw some paper beads that Alex had made .I mean this was simple... just rolled up glued paper right? ...well I ended up with more glue on my hands and paper beads that would not behave ..I had the best intention of making a bunch of them to send to my mom..but they are so ....well lets just say... the pretty pack of paper I bought is being sent to basil to make cards with and I will go back to making fimo beads..but it was a good try!

 I had a bit of cotton yarn left from the pot holder ( and not enough to make another one of the same ) so I thought I would make a fancy dishcloth .....I love the silly looping chain st that runs from the center ,,but the silly thing will not stay flat...but it was fun to make anyway....

if anyone reading ever wants the link to any of the projects that I make I am glad to share ...just let me know !

the fascinator !

I am not sure if anyone else seemed as focused on hats from the royal wedding as I was ..
I love hats
my mom loved hats
and I have hats all over ..I usually wear my hats just for sun protection but I love them nonetheless

but I noticed a trend for small silly useless fascinator hats ..so I made one of my own, my friend David was working on a full size felted top hat, and I used the same concept to make a mini felted bowler..
before anyone asks, no I don't intend to wear it ..it is just art for arts sake ..but it is cute! 
I hand felted using microwaved hot water and a wooden spoon, and blocked over a vase

I also worked on a pillow for my Michael..I make stuff for everyone else but never for him so I found this pretty pillow and made him one ...the top was done in noro silver thaw..so all the pretty colors are part of the yarn..the back ( that I was still working on when I took the pic.) .is purple and olive....and its pretty too..alas I forgot to take a pic of the completed pillow ....

Happy Easter

so I couldn't resist making something for Easter

8 little eggs and a basket!....and our lillycat is so excited to show them off!

Kelley made some sure cute little bunnys that I will add a pic of later

from Kelley

The original pattern called for sock/fingering yarn, but I didn't have any in the colors that I wanted and I wanted to use yarn from my stash.  My bunnies are made out of Sugar 'n Cream cotton, I have LOTS of that hanging around in various colors.  I used size 6 DPN's.  I also made my ears longer, because 10 stitches just didn't look long enough.

I just like to add my bit of spring pep talk
the cycle of the seasons, and of renewal is continual..I get so exited about the miracle of plants coming to life ..of beautiful flowers and all the riot of colors ...may all of you have a chance to take a  sec this spring to look at all the beauty around you!
cheers!

ATC's

my new thing is artist trading cards
basically small works of art..in trading card size

now when I first looked into this I thought "oh how simple "
but getting images to grow and thrive in the small space is more than just shrinking down artwork
as I was creating the images I was thnking of the most impact with the shortest amount of visual scan time

so if ya didnt get all that I will take out all the jargon for you
the smaller the art the less time people look at it ...

so I wanted rich layered images..
alas there is no substance to them ...
they are just pretty
no story
no deeper visual meaning

I didnt really capture all the colors right with the photos ..
the last pic is the prototype of basils business card ..
but alas after scanning ..
it got wet..
Basil said it was maurice spilling the sambucca on it ..
I got one good scan for him and the cards were printed but I saved it just to show off

I double posted today to make up for my lack of posting this month!