Another project...FINISHED!!

I ran across a knitting pattern that was for a child's sweater made with just two identical hexagons. I found a crocheted adaptation but I just went ahead and made hexagons and this is what I came up with. You can see the buttonholes but I haven't gotten buttons for it yet. That can be a project in itself.

So...  and comments? Good or bad, either way. I'm hoping that it will fit the Princess! I put the buttonholes down a bit to help with the trach.

Popping in to say hi...

I know it's been a while. There just aren't enough hours in a day. Maybe I need to make a schedule for my day like I have for the Princess.


Anyway - I have finished a few projects... Some were just for me, some were pattern testing for a designer.

This was a SmoothFox test pattern. You can get the pattern here. Check out her other patterns as well!


Then there was this...

This was another SmoothFox pattern but not done as a test pattern. (I did that a while ago.) For this I just used two 200g balls of very soft variegated English yarn I bought at a yarn store on a road trip. I think I got within a couple rows of actually making it as big as it was designed. Pattern available here.

I really liked the way this one worked up so square and true. Again, another SmoothFox test pattern.

You will be able to get the pattern on SmoothFox's Ravelry site soon, I believe.

This was something I had started a while back.

I had already done the circles so all I had to do now was connect them all and put a simple border around it. Can you figure out the patterns in the circles???

And another one I just made up...

I connected the squares as I crocheted them so had a chart of where I wanted what color. Simple HDC border.

I can't remember if I posted this one or not. I did the basic blanket (HDCs I think) and then make some star appliqués out of Bernats fun glow-in-the-dark yarn. You can see what the difference is in the insets.

And this one technically is still a WIP. Over the last couple nights I have woven in all the loose ends (a job I H ATE!) and then connected all the squares. I want to put a ruffle border around it but I can't find the border books I have and haven't been able to find a ruffle pattern online that really grabs me yet.

What is funny about this one is that I was trying for just a random placement but after it was all done I saw that it wasn't so random. I have no idea how that happened!

I will try to post projects here as well as on my Ravelry account. Look me up there...  I'm Mamagotyarn. If you go there you can see some other things that I have done (that may or may not have been posted here.) 

Short and sweet - shhhhhh... it's a surprise!

Princess Junior has a birthday coming up. This is for her, so don't tell!

It's a Vicki Howell pattern (you can find it HERE) that I adapted to make bigger. I used a larger hook and 5 squares for the sizing. And I really, REALLY don't like doing the picot stitch because I have a hard time making them look good so I did a shell stitch around the edge. I think it turned out pretty nice. I'll post a picture of her in it after her birthday.

And talk about weird inspiration... I ordered a key fob (or two) on ETSY (From Sweet Irie, check them out!) It arrived a couple days ago. Anyway, they are very good about wrapping their merchandise for travel. When I opened the package it was tied in three strands of yarn that really hit me color-wise!

Ironically I had just seen a pattern that needed three colors. Hmmm... I see a trip to buy yarn coming soon in my future!

Let me lend you an arm, and an arm, and an arm, and an arm, and an arm...

I made a new friend for Princess Junior. Her name is Olivia.

She was fun to make. I found the pattern online. The person who make it hadn't realized that the original pattern she had used those old darn pointy sticks for the arms. She adapted and did crocheted arms. I liked what she did but she didn't give instructions for that so since I couldn't reproduce her look (although I really tried!) I adapted as well and made these stuffed arms. Twelve stitch single crochet tubes. I made four arms just a bit longer than the others and then alternated them when sewing them on. And, yes, there ARE eight legs.

No news on the wheelchair. We hope that no news is good news. One of Princess Junior's nurses took some fabric I picked up and made an extension for the back of the stroller we were given. It will help greatly in making sure her head doesn't drop backwards over the top edge. Maybe we will hear something soon. :)


Oh... something we thought was hilarious. GamerBoy just got his license the first week of December. Now the state uses the list of who has a valid driver's license for lots of things. One of those things is to pull jurors for trials. Guess who just got done serving one week of jury duty! LOL... Yup... GamerBoy got summoned. I have never had to serve and have been driving for 33 years! I don't think Dak has either. GamerBoy just hit the jackpot right off the bat! 


Don't get me wrong, I would have no problem serving. I have an aunt that used to work for a big city in Florida and I would go sit in on trials. Fun. Just have never been asked to serve. GamerBoy called on Sunday to verify and learned that he didn't have to go in Monday or Tuesday but had to call Tuesday evening to see about Wednesday. We did but after the questions and everything he was one of the ones excused, being told to call back Thursday evening to see about today. He did and had to go back again today for a different trial. But he was excused from that one as well and today he was sent home after questioning too, so his week is up. (Ironically, today was a theft case and he was asked if he had been the victim of a theft. He told them about Princess Junior's wheelchair being stolen so they didn't want him on that jury!) He should be getting a check in the mail soon. We hit the jackpot too... He brought home breakfast from McDonald's both mornings. :)

Linking Rings and Barfing Clowns, and Shaded Squares... And ROCK ON!!!!

I have been remiss in my postings. I apologize to anyone I have disappointed.

We have been dealing with some issues with several family members and it has taken quite a bit of time and attention. but programs have been completed and a cross town move (MIL - not us!) made and I think we are doing somewhat ok at the moment. Still some stress (always will be) but it is now at a lower level. Hopefully it will continue to head downward.

I have been working on a few projects. One is in the finishing stages. I saw one that someone else had done and used it for inspiration. (My squares don't have as many rounds) I'm working on the border now and then will weave in the ends. LOTS of ends. :( This is the blanket. It is done with two strands to achieve the blending effect.



It is three rows of four squares. I alternated, starting some squares with the light color and some with the dark. I used black to set it off (I love how black really makes bright colors pop out at you!) and am doing a solid black border around it. I will probably do a second row and a scallop row to finish it off. It is definitely a winter throw because of the double stranding. I have some left over yarn in those colors so am making a smaller throw only not double stranded so it won't have the blending and the squares will only be 4 rounds. I'm going to do a solid join so there will be no holes in it.

I'll take pictures of other projects soon.

I also wanted to alert you to a REALLY cool colorway for yarn at an Etsy shop I found. I HAVE to have this yarn and plan to acquire some asap. It is from Astrid at Damselflyyarns.

CLOWN BARF!!!

Astrid, you could NOT have named it any better!!! Be sure and check out her other yarns! She has a really nice chocolate mint sock yarn and does 7 different kinds of yarns.

Another couple Etsy shops I have run across have some really cool stuff too. JustBeHappy is run by Alessandra and she has some really whimsical button necklaces. I got the multicolored one. :)


And I'm in the process of making her Love You Forever wreath. Drop by for a visit. I also have business card holder that she made. The PINK one! :)

And then there is FebystanDesigns, which is a family endeavor. Ebru does amazing thread work and made a gorgeous pair of earrings I am anxiously awaiting to arrive. Check out the shop and see what beautiful work is there!


Aren't they beautiful?!?!?! I have nothing but awe and respect for people who can do this work.

And lastly... Look what Dak just got. I surprised him with this last week and he is a very happy camper. Just don't tell Chatty that it's Vampire Red Satin! :)



I threw in a small amp and a case. :) And HEADPHONES! :)

I have an odd habit of throwing quarters and singles in jars. See what you can do when you save your quarters??? :)

Wow! I love this square!!! A spiral granny?!?!?!

Ok... I'll admit it. You might not believe this but I hate to make something that is in lots of pieces and has to be sewn together. So while I love making different Granny Squares, I hate having to finish the project. I have even considered soliciting someone from one of the crochet groups I'm in to pay them to finish it for me. :) But this is a square that I might not have that problem with because I absolutely LOVE this square!

I really, really, really like the swirl pattern but we only need so many round blankets. (Although I do have some ideas on making something larger that will end up as a square. We'll see if it works out.)

A Granny Square and a Swirl all in ONE??? YES!!! The original pattern is in four colors. I didn't want to do that many so cut it to two and am bordering each square in black. I think the swirl shows up very well like this. If you want to try it yourself the pattern is at Crochet Me. And look around while you're there!

And I'm probably going to use "Dudessembly" (click here) by Drew Emborsky to put them together. Check out his other patterns too, he's a great designer.

Out, out, damn bug...

Ok... I know that isn't an exact quote... but it's close and it's how I feel. And I am sure Will wouldn't mind, especially if he felt like I do.

Dak and I are both under the weather. Although, since the weather usually deals with things in the sky we are always under the weather. But I digress... I'll put it simply. We Are Sick.

Fortunately the two oldest are gone (Chatty is at her mother's and Gamer Boy is at a friend's house) and Princess Junior has full coverage on her nurses (they have been hit with the bug too!) so we actually have time to rest.

Saturday morning we both slept until 11 am. I woke up feeling like I was swallowing razor blades. Now I'm not one to run to a doc for every little thing so you know I'm actually sick when I CHOSE to go to a doctor. Saturday option is the walk-in clinic and I decided that yesterday was probably a good time to go.

Dak and I arrived right before what looked to be a rush. I took a seat and Dak went to sign us in. When he hadn't joined me after a few minutes I turned to look towards the desk and saw that he was still waiting behind a couple people with 4 or 5 more behind him! Yes, whatever this is sure is making the rounds.

When they called us back they did flu swabs on us both. Both came back negative. Since Dak has always been told he's allergic to penicillin they gave him different drugs than they gave me. We stopped to drop off the prescriptions and went next door to get some soup while we waiting. Now before anyone condemns us for going out in public like this we aren't hacking away every two seconds and even then we are responsible coughers. The restaurant is one that isn't cramming as many tables as they can... it's booths with wide aisles. We ate and left, picked up the medicine and some juices, and went home.

We were up until about 11 - 11:30 but this morning we again slept until about 11 am. Our guess it that we needed it. Gamer Boy went with his buddy to a drumming concert last night but has called several times to check on us. He said he was starting to feel bad but seems to be feeling better today and didn't want us to come get him. I think that being away from the house is allowing him to NOT get whatever this is do the degree we have. We are purposely staying away from Princess Junior, using the video monitor and intercom to stay in touch with the nurses. (I can see she is a bit wiggly at the moment!)

So this is a perfect opportunity to work on some of my WIPS and plunge into the yarn stash.

This is what I have been working on...



It's a three color spiral circle. Right now it's about 4 feet across and I have 7 more skeins of yarn left to use!

Then I have done some of these...



They are face cloth/wash cloth sets. I don't know about you but I like to use a separate washcloth on my face. They are 100 cotton and really soft! The face cloth is 6 inches across and the wash cloth is 8 inches across. Eventually they, and others like them, will be in my Etsy shop. I'm revamping the shop to benefit Princess Junior's room fund.

This will too.



It may look like it is another wash cloth, and in a way it is. But it's in a coarser cotton and it is meant for dishes.

Then there is the yarn... I bought some more.

There is this... It's SOOOO soft!



And this... Gamer Boy picked these colors and wants a four color spiral blanket!



I'm not real sure what to do with these yet. I have a spiral square pattern that I was thinking about doing in this...



But I don't have these earmarked for anything yet. Just liked the color combinations.



Pale pink and purple. Doesn't it look like cotton candy???



One of my all time favorites... pink and gray!

And I have some black and red too but the red looks orange in my pictures so just trust me... it's cherry red.

Any suggestions???

Do you Quamut???

I didn't. I had no clue what that even was. It just sounds so... ewwww....

But evidently Quamut means "how to" in Latin. So online it's appropriate that Quamut is a "How to" site published by Barnes & Nobel, the bookstore people. For the month of February they are offering all their knit and crochet patterns as FREE downloads. Check it out here for the crochet offerings and here for the knit offerings. And check out the rest of the site. It looks interesting! But be careful... you might learn something.