The Craftivist: cute

Showing posts with label cute. Show all posts

Quick and Easy Baby Sweater

One of the projects I had started for the holidays was the Quick and Easy Newborn Sweater. I found the pattern on Ravelry, of course.

. I really liked the garter texture on this pattern, it's something a bit different. But I think if I try it again at a later date I'll probably modify it to be in stockinette stitch and maybe add some duplicate stitch designs for variety. The only other problem I've found with the pattern is that I really think it's going to be a bit too large for a newborn. My guess is it will probably fit the 3 month crowd a bit better than a newborn.

I'm excited for the next project even though I haven't completely decided what I'll be doing yet. I think that the next one will likely be a baby blanket, I just don't know which pattern I'm going to work up yet. I still have The Afghan from Hell to finish, just the fringe, but my yarn for it is out in the crib/workshop and there is seriously about 4 ft. worth of snow drifts blocking me from it. I would like to get that finally finished and out of the way though. That thing has been mocking me since I started it, not necessarily because it's difficult but simply because it's TEDIOUS.

My mother in-law has an afghan she wants me to start on once I'm finished with The Afghan from Hell so hopefully I'll be able to make it out to the workshop in a couple of days to collect the yarn and finish it so I can start on her project. The afghan she wants done is going to be a bit of a challenge because it was already partially started by DH's grandmother before she passed but there is no pattern. Therefore, I'm going to have to figure out the pattern and gauge before I can really get any amount of meaningful progress done on that blanket. Fortunately, I don't think the pattern is overly difficult and I think, once it's figured out, it should work up pretty quickly.

Bracelets

My trips to Wal-mart usually are few and far between and typically consist of me heading straight for the produce section or the pharmacy aisles. It's not that I don't like Wal-mart, I just don't really have much use for it. I don't go grocery shopping all that often and when I do I usually go to our local Meijer. So, the fact that I took a meandering walk through Wal-mart last night was pretty unusual for me but I'm happy I did because I found some really cute buttons and picked up some fairly inexpensive yarn at 2 a.m. Really can't do that at too many other stores. At least something good came out of these bouts of insomnia.

So while I was sitting awake looking at my new little baubles I decided to put them to good use and made a crocheted bracelet. I used a simple pattern of just plain double crochet with a single crochet border, it was 3 in the a.m. by this point after all, intricate patterns were just not feasible accomplishments that early in the morning.

The button really makes the bracelet, I think. I have several patterns now saved in my Ravelry favorites folder that include more intricate patterns and some knitted patterns. It's kind of nice to spend a little time making things that are just for fun every once in awhile. Time well wasted. :)

Make Your Own Gummies!

If you are anything like me and my kids then candy is one of the greatest of the simple pleasures. One of our favorite candies is the classic gummy bear.
My kids are also incessently searching for things to do so we found a cute little blog that tells you how to make your own gummy candies. I really like this recipe because it was one of the easiest that I found. You can find the recipe at Skip to My Lou. Enjoy :)

Toy Train

I bought Middle a Creativity For Kids Make Your Own Train kit earlier this week.

We spent this morning building it.

This sort of thing is right up his alley since he ~~likes~~ loves anything with wheels and he loves building/working with his hands.

The train before Middle glued on the wheels.

Middle is a fairly rambunctious little squirt but when it comes to projects like this one, he can actually sit still, concentrate and work quietly for a quite a long time.

Which means a nice break for Momma ;)

Painting his masterpiece.

This is the finished product. The paint job is completely custom xD

I helped him spell out his name and then he picked out the number 4 sticker (for his age) and the heart.

It has now been run into every wall in our house at high speed and it's still holding together. I'm fairly impressed, I think it was definately worth the $3.

Octopus

I finished Middle's octopus. I used a pattern out of Tiny Yarn Animals: Amigurumi Friends to Make and Enjoy. By Tamie Snow.

I'm about half way through my shirt and should have it done for the graduation. If I have time I may sew up a skirt to go with it. But that's a pretty big if.

I've finally finished all the cleaning that I need done for the party, except for the bathroom. It's amazing to me how quickly two small children can destroy a clean bathroom. I finally have some time now to relax, watch some Cheers reruns and do nothing, absolutely nothing. :)

One Pair of Baby Pants Down...Several More to Go

These pants are seriously one of the easiest sewing projects out there. A beginner could make this with virtually no problems at all and a more experienced person could turn out several in one day.

For Youngest's pants I used the monkey print flannel fabric that I've showcased on here previously but you could use really any fabric that is suitable for clothing, including old adult sized t-shirts.

There is a detailed tutorial at the handy home projects blog.

Micro-preemie hat

I made this cute micro-preemie hat for the local Children's Hospital.

It's made with 100% cotton, Lily Sugar n' cream yarn.

I tested it's fit on Youngest's teddy bear, "Mr. Cuddlebear"

The pattern is simple:

but I'm having a little technical difficulty with the website so I'll have to post the link to it later.

EDIT: Technical problems resolved...here's the link to the hats.

Happy Groundhog's Day!

I decided last night that I would crochet a wrist warmer in honor of the event.

You may be able to tell what outcome I was hoping for by the "springtime-y" colors I used.

And if the colors didn't give it away, the giant spring flower should've.

But, alas, the groundhog has failed me yet again.

So, I made my own groundhog (or ambiguous, egg shaped, brown creature).

You will notice that his shadow is BEHIND him.

Therefore, he can't see it. Well, that and the fact that his eyes are glued on, as in not real and therefore completely useless.

Spring is on it's way!

Dachshund Puppies

Cookie had her puppies last night and I have to say they are absolutely ADORABLE!
She started labor around noon with heavy nesting and some whining and had delivered the last pup at about 1:30 am. She had 6 total, 5 boys and 1 girl, which is one more than showed up on the x-ray.

Here she is with 4 of the 6 puppies. She was taking a much needed rest at this point.

Fortunately everything went smoothly. I had the vet on call but he really wasn't needed. She knew exactly what to do and when to do it.

All the puppies are healthy and eating well.

I've already got some cute little puppy toys in progress.

The Year in Review

It's time to say goodbye to 2009. It was a whirlwind year not only for the nation as a whole but for my little family as well. We experienced new adventures like starting the first day of school, losing our first teeth, potty training, chasing cows, and making self sufficient strides. We had some sad times. We had some hard times. We had a lot of happy times.
Let's take a look at some of the many highlights of this year in pictures...

This year: