Have lots of time? Must crochet shoes!

My little boy spent his weekend with his grandparents and gave me some time to finish a project.  I've always wanted to make myself some warm indoor shoes and during the rainy weekend, I was finally able to finish one.

These shoes fit my size 6 feet snugly and I'm planning to go to suppliers to check on how to get soles for them so that I can use them outside.  I used leftover buttons to give the shoes a little design.  With a little more practice, I can probably use other crochet stitches to give them more variety but for now, I'm really happy with the outcome!

Artesania Art and Crafts Fair

I went to the Artesania Art and Crafts Fair to support my friends in selling their handmade projects.  Here are some photos of their items :)

Shell Baby Beanie Pattern

Since I have some free time today, I decided to do the pattern for the Shell Baby Beanie Pattern I previously posted.  For those who haven't seen it, you can check out my post about it. 

Notes:
I ran out of bulky worsted weight yarn so to make do, I used two strands of normal worsted weight yarn. You can just add more strands to fit the bulkiness and thickness that you want.
Don't join round unless stated. :)

Round 1 (Color 1)
CH2 in Magic Ring (counts as 1HDC), 7 HDC (8 HDC)

Round 2
CH2, 1HDC in same ST, 2 HDC in each ST around (16 HDC)

Round 3
Rep Round 2 (32 HDC)

Round 4
CH3 (counts as first DC) DC in each remaining ST around, join with SL ST in top ST of CH3

Repeat Round 4 for Rounds 5 and 6
(you can add more rounds here to get the desired length)

Round 7 (change to color 2)
Attach color to DC, HDC around

Round 8
HDC around

Round 9 (change to color 1)
SC around

Round 10
DC in 3rd SC from Hook. 4DC in same stitch (Shell Made)
Skip 2 SC, SC in 3rd SC
Skip 2 SC, Shell in 3rd SC
Repeat around
SL ST in last SC

Finish off with a tail long enough to weave in.

If you have comments, questions or adjustments to the pattern, you can do so by sending me a message!

September, here we go!

I'm down to the last two orders of beanies and will move on to the baby blankets and a big (drumroll please!) table runner that someone commissioned me to do.  Not very fond of doing those kind of projects because it uses mercerized cotton and an insy winsy crochet hook. 

I haven't even gotten around to buying the yarns but I've started practicing my grip for the 1.30mm crochet hook that I have.  I'm more comfortable with the bigger ones and worsted weight yarn.

September's less stressful than August (hopefully) and will give me more time to do more projects and start out on other crafts.  Since I haven't made anything new except for the beanies that I've already posted, here's a photo of my little boy (who has just learned how to roll over on his tummy) taking his afternoon nap with his baby blankie.

Don't worry, he's breathing just fine.  He makes it a point to adjust his head when his nose gets too buried in his comforter :)

Rainy season = Beanie heaven

It all started with a simple beanie I made for my husband.  Vanity, being his strong and weak point, showed off how the beanie made him look younger.  Though I'm not sure how his friends reacted to that, they did react positively towards the beanie.  So during the past few rainy days, I've received a few beanie orders.  Most of them were just the simple slouchy kind, while one did request for a blue beret.

Besides the beanie, I did get requests to do baby blankets.  I haven't started on those yet because I'm still behind the orders for the beanies.  I'll make a blog post about the blankets as soon as I'm done with them.  For the meantime, here are some photos of the beanies I've finished.

This is a simple beanie cap for newborns-3months 

A shell beanie also for babies

Aviator beanie for babies

Granny stitch beanie for babies

Slouchy adult beanies in different colors

 

Super slouchy beanie in puff stitch perfect for the cold weather during the rainy season

My husband saw this post while I was taking a bath and insisted that I make him my model.   Due to marital responsibilities, I had to give in to that request. So here he is wearing a hand spun red beanie. 

The hand spun red beanie made up left over yarn and thread

The hubby / model

I'll work on the pattern for the pink and gray shell beanie in the coming days.  Once done, I'll post it for everyone :)

It's going to be an Amigurumi Christmas!

This Christmas, I'm planning to make lots of amigurumis as gifts for my friends who have little kids and for those who are young at heart!

I have this annoying habit of starting a project and moving on to the next because I get bored. Finally, I finished my first Amigurumi project I started back in June. Will definitely have to finish a special request for an Amigurumi Chihuahua for my friend!

I used multicolored yarn to give the bunny a colorful feel

Besides amigurumis as presents for Christmas, I'm also stocking up on beanies for the rainy season. Have a few order already and will be posting the finished projects when I'm done. 

Crocheted Toiletry Bag

When traveling, I almost always forget to bring my toiletries with me and wind up having to buy my stash at the store.  Besides being expensive, I end up brining home the leftover toiletries so they don't go to waste.

The bags I have at home are either too big or too small to fit the basic necessities.  So in order to just have the right bag, I made one for myself!

I followed the basic pattern for the base of the bag and created my own pattern using the simple Shell stitch.

Panda Bear Beanie Hat

I got sick with the flu for a few days.  And with my little boy passing the days with my in-laws waiting for me to get better, I decided to make him a little panda hat.

I used my old pattern for a beanie hat and just did my own ears, eyes, stuffed snout and nose.  Instead of using the normal circular ears, Senna's panda beanie has stuffed ears.

Granny Square to Granny Hat

Here's a cute granny hat for newborns!  I made one for my little boy for his dedication.  I made the beanie hat in choco brown, almond and chili red.  If you want to make one for yourself or your baby, you can easily do so because it's a free pattern.

Trinkets for the crafty heart

I recently purchased this beautiful pair of scissors from an online shop called Bits and Pieces. It's going to go be a pretty addition to my blog and will work well as a prop. :)

She also has a wide array of vintage jewelry, boxes and stickers.  You can visit her shop and leave a message if you have suggestions or would like to request a new set of trinkets!

Senna's Dedication

We held a simple celebration for a little boy Senna yesterday at Stacy's in Capitol Hills, Quezon City.  Been busy the weeks preparing for it and coordinating with the guests.

I'll be back to my "regular" blogging schedule this week. :)

Bacon Rice and Home-Made Iced Tea

Being a stay at home mom has a couple of perks.  First and foremost, is being able to spend more time with my little boy.  Second would be catching up on my crochet, crafts and reading.  Third and probably not my biggest point would be learning how to cook.

Today, since I was being lazy as usual in cooking lunch, I decided just to cook a really simple lazy dish for myself.  It's my favorite Bacon Rice.

Bacon rice and my home-made iced tea

Here's a simple recipe on how I did my bacon rice.

Ingredients:

3-4 slices of bacon
1/2 cup leftover rice
2 cloves of garlic
one small onion
1 tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper

Leftover rice that has gone cold usually are in clumps so to make it all fluffy and easy to cook, mash it a bit free it from itself.

Chop the garlic and onion into small pieces, small enough for sauteing.

Cook the bacon accordingly in the olive oil.  I like mine crispy so I let it cook for a little longer.  Drain the excess oil so that we keep the cholesterol to a minimum.  Set aside the bacon.

In the remaining oil, saute the chopped garlic and onion until brown and transparent.  Put in the rice and  saute it together.  Put in the rest of the bacon and mix well.  I let it stand in minimum heat for 2-3 minutes so that the bacon fat coats the rice well. Not really healthy but it tastes wonderful, so I only do this once in a while. 

Be careful not to burn the rice because cleaning the pan is going to be a nightmare.

My version of Iced Tea

Ingredients:
2 tea bags of Lipton "Brisk" Tea
2 whole lemons
1 liter of water
Honey or brown sugar to taste

Slice the lemon and set aside

I boil 1 liter of water and soak the tea bags until the water goes lukewarm.  (You can soak it less if you don't want to have the strong tea taste that it produces when you soak it for too long)  I place the warm tea in a pitcher, put in the lemons and set it over night in the fridge.

If you can't finish up the tea by the next day, remove the lemons and store the tea by itself.  The lemon slices would be all soggy and yucky by this time.

You can add honey to the mix or brown sugar.

Cats and crochet

I've noticed that people who love crochet are also in love with cats.  Or maybe that's just a common thing among the people I follow on Instagram.  I have two dogs and two cats but I am particularly fond of the always pan-faced Jack.  Jack is a Siamese cat given to us as a house-warming gift from friends who are also cat lovers.

He's either pissed or indifferent.

Back when I was still pregnant, Jack would be my constant companion while I was doing my crochet projects.  He would either be asleep beside me or on my yarns. But mostly he'd be asleep.

Jack before snuggling next to the yarns to fall asleep.

As the work week is coming to a close, I'll probably spend my weekend finishing up on my projects, taking care of Senna and watching Jack fall asleep in front of me. 

Update: Finished Baby Blankie!

I just finished my first baby-related project.  And here's the blanket with my baby boy as the model. :) He's sleeping in a DIY cradle that my brother-in-law made for me.

Don't mind the hair. ha ha ha

Why hello there, July!

A lot of things will take place this July.  There's the handicraft fair, my birthday and Senna's Dedication.  Busy month indeed!

So far, I've managed to add a few more ponies to the bunch and will make more in the coming days.  Since Senna's been sleeping more constantly than before and I've adjusted to his sleeping habits, I've been able to schedule my crocheting during the day.

Crochet roses with vintage buttons

Besides the fair, I'm celebrating my birthday in time with Senna's Dedication or Christening.  After the fair, we need to go check the venue and decide on the menu.  Now that I think about it, the fair and the dedication is only a week apart. Ha ha ha but no worries, I'll probably make a way to fit everything.

Gearing up for 10a Alabama

Really excited to finally be a part of the handmade fair my friends have been attending since last year.  It's a great way to meet new people and sell my crochet.  Though I'm not really rooting to make profit, I am looking forward to meeting other people who are interested in arts and crafts.

Hobo bag perfect for groceries or the market

Another bag I plan to sell at the handmade fair

Tons of crocheted roses as clips too!

Email me if you have questions or just want to share some <3

Baby Blankie Cutie Patootie

I'm currently doing a baby blanket for my friend Tara, who's due to give birth this August.  It's a simple V-Stitch blanket with popcorn borders.  You can get the stitch pattern from Lion Brand's Stitch Finder

Simple Baby Blanket

I used home dyed yarn from Yarn Source Manila called Dizzy Twister.  The yarn is sturdy but not too heavy.  It's also soft and will make a comfy receiving blanket or something to tuck your baby in. When I'm done with this blanket, I'll probably do another one for my little boy.

Home Dyed Yarn

 You can message me for commissioned work :)

DIY Wedding Bouquet

I recently finished my first ever handmade bouquet made out of satin flowers, beads and ribbons.  The flowers were hand sewn.  Though it took a lot of time, it was really worth it instead of the usual glue it together.   Here's the final product.

The high res photos are still with the photographer and I'll be requesting for it later during the week. As this is my first commissioned project, I asked the bride if I could experiment a little and came to the following conclusions:

1. Satin comes in varying softness (?) i.e. pink was easier to mold than white

2. Organza is hard to mold because of the fabric. Only did a few flowers, and used the rest as a base frill.

3. Soft tulle is nice to sew but clashes with the satin.

4. Buy more beads, less pearls.

5. Main fabric first, supporting fabric should be incorporated later.

6. Need to figure out a nicer looking stem.

If want to have your very own handmade bouquet for your special day or know a friend who is interested in one, drop me a message at roliannetorio@yahoo.com