Crocheted
in a straight line then tied to prop up the ears, this is not only customizable
for most finger sizes, but it can also be used as a decorative napkin ring or
around the silverware on your holiday table!
Materials:
F
Hook
Scrap
Yarns, photo was made with Premiere Cotton Yarns found at Michael’s
Notes:
Worked
in a single line then tied together, the shape of the ears is made at each end
of the chain, then slip stitched around the entire perimeter to add support to
the ears and keep them from being too floppy.
Pattern:
Chain
50 – this can be modified to fit all sizes of fingers; the remaining pattern
should remain the same.
Sc
into second chain from hook. In the next 9 stitches: 2 hdc, 2 dc, tc, 2dc, hdc,
sc.
Sc
into the next 30 stitches then in the next 10 stitches: sc, hdc, 2dc, tc, 2dc,
2hdc, sc.
Ch
1, sl st in each stitch all the way around and back again.
Sl
st to join, fasten off, weave in ends.
When
finished tie around finger, I used a simple knot and played with the ears until
I was happy with them. If they are not long enough for pleasing ears or are too
floppy, the beginning chain should be modified.
*** The PDF for this pattern is available in my Ravelry Store for $1.00 USD. ***
Well, over the last 6 months A LOT has changed, not all a grand experience, but here I am. :)
In January I was unceremoniously fired from my job of 13 years. It was a complete fiasco, really. It was a hostile work environment (20/20 hindsight, right?) and I was trying to improve the situation at the time; unknown to me I was a walking target. The only redeeming incident to the whole situation - other than those who screwed me, will get their karma - is that the department I managed went into a downward spiral and within 6 weeks of my termination, was sold to another company. Sketchy, no?
After spending the next month mentally struggling with the stigma of being fired after 13 years, trying to deal with unemployment benefits & all the b.s. that comes with it, I was struggling. Since deciding that I was an awesome manager & gave all I had to that company and my employees, that company didn't deserve me. My family deserves me. So, my new job: Stay-at-home Mommy!
A stay-at-home mommy to a 16-year old son, 10 year old daughter, and an 8 year old son. No diapers for me. No formula or baby food. I tried that about 16 years ago, wasn't for me. Now? Holy crap, people! I have no idea what I'm doing! LOL! I've come up to handling mornings about 95%, I mean that I've really done something wrong if my kids can't figure out school mornings by now. Then trying to plan suppers and grocery lists? Amazing Adam & I are pretty spectacular pulling this together, but it isn't always as easy as it seems from the outside.
I do love staying at home though. :) Due to my anxiety & panic, it is relatively quite easy to stay home. I do miss my car - still up on blocks since September, but getting better. So, not only do I get to avoid the public but I have hours to binge watch Netflix and crochet!
That being said, I have promised patterns in the past, but I'm going to deliver, especially on paid patterns, since we now need help to pay our bills! :)
COMING SOON:
Cowls inspired by Elsa & Anna from Frozen ($)
A plus-size shawl inspired by the Seattle Seahawks ($)
A plus-size rainbow & cloud scarf ($)
A plus-size scarf of flowers (free, $1 PDF optional)
Easter ring with bunny ears (free, $1 PDF optional)
Please keep checking back as these free patterns will be posted, with an optional PDF available for $1 via Ravelry or Craftsy. I will also announce the release of the paid patterns here as well as my Facebok Page.
Thank you all for not giving up on me! Here's to a better future and buying my patterns, right? :)
My goodness, where has the time gone? I cannot BELIEVE all the views this little blog has received over the last few months!
Welcome to all my new visitors, take a look around and post some comments, I'd love to hear from all of you!
I'm still here and still hooking. I have published a new hat pattern recently, the Puff Stitch Slouchy Hat, now available on Ravelry & Craftsy. I've finished a few blankets as well. I unfortunately lost my cro-jo this summer during a bout of depression (during the summer, crazy, right?). Getting much better now that it's cooler & sweater weather is back!
Check into my Facebook page: G33k Squ33 Crochet for more current updates.
I'm also working on a new cozy pattern, of which I'm hoping to post next week; can't wait for all of you to see it!
That's it for now, hooking like mad! Hope you all have a fun & safe weekend!
Simple pattern to showcase the beautiful colors in an amazing yarn!
I have forever loved watching the stars, Amazing Adam and I spent our first weekend together doing just that after the kids were asleep.
Nebulae are amazing cloud-like formations in the heavens, exhibiting all kinds of beautiful colors and shapes. There is the Crab Nebula, Cat's Eye Nebula, Butterfly Nebula, Horse Head Nebula, Pillars of Creation Nebula and I believe there is even a Unicorn Nebula!
The colors of this yarn from Groovy Hues Fibers really inspired this pattern, I really wanted something simple and understated to not detract from the amazing color changes in this yarn. In all honesty, I have NEVER worked with sock yarn before! I was a bit intimidated in the beginning and afraid that all my frogging would render a chunk of the yarn "over worked." I was incredibly pleased when everything ended up amazing in the end. It is exactly what I was hoping for!
I've also fallen in love with nebula jewelry! I was lucky enough to purchase this necklace from Nerdy Little Secrets this last week. I simply cannot wait to wear it with this scarf!
love, Love, LOVE!
Knowing how much I like putting patterns out there, I encourage you to put your own spin on this one. the Star-Heart is completely removable! Instead of being stitched to the scarf, I stitched on a button instead, small enough to slip between the clusters and large enough to not fall out every time I move.
Please head on over to Ravelry to purchase, add to your queue, please remember to add to your favorites! It is also available at Craftsy.
As always, please let me know what you think & don't hesitate to contact me with any questions!
Nerdist: John Huges' Movies Playlist
I love movies. I love music.
I know I'm not alone when it comes to John Huges's movies either: Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller... etc. These movies weave in and out, all through my childhood and into my young adulthood and I will always LOVE them!
The Nerdist posted this play list today found here on their website.
How did they do?
50 Shades of ...
I know there is sooo much hype about 50 Shades of Grey releasing this weekend. I for one, will NOT be attending, haven't read the book, don't really want to. I read the Sleeping Beauty Trilogy (now to be a quartet) by A.N. Roquelaure, aka Anne Rice way back when and was quite pleased.
The hype around this just makes it seem like 50 Shades is the Twilight Saga version of Sleeping Beauty. Maybe I'm wrong, but yeah, still not interested.
For those of you, like-minded, people out there, I have included a clip of "50 Shades of Buscemi" - staring Steve Buscemi! Enjoy!
Interested in Learning New Stitches?
I can't remember how long ago I discovered the Stitch-a-Day newsletter & website, however I have been signed up and receiving their daily editions for quite some time now.
Every day I receive a newsletter with a description for a new crochet stitch (they also offer knit stitches too for knitters & bi-stituals). They also offer a weekly log which has both knit & crochet stitches that will be featured during the week ahead.
How to Have People to Kiss your A** on Valentine's Day & They Will Thank you!
Distractify posted this article about how you can get a chocolate, crystal, or bronze molding of your anus. ... Yeah, I know, I said, "anus."
Can you imagine taking a box of your chocolate anuses to work? Handing them out to people you secretly despise? Watching the look of happiness on their face as they eat it! OMG, I would definitely not keep a straight face during that interaction!
Such a devious act - this should absolutely be on the "to do" list for those of you anti-Valentine's Day people out there!
FREE PATTERNS: Repeat Crafter Me
I LOVE this lady! She has crock pot recipes, free patterns for craft & crochet. I don't know how she does it, but this lady is totally Amaze-balls! Sarah is a mom of 3 young kidlettes and she still has time to make it all look easy!
I have made quite a few of her patterns and they're not only completely adorable but quite easy and effortless to follow.
Please make a point to check out Repeat Crafter Me and all her wonderfulness!
** Have a great Valentine's Day this weekend, remember to have fun, but keep it safe! For Amazing Adam and I it is our first Family Weekend in a long time where he actually has the weekend off! We haven't decided what we'll be doing with the kids, but I'll make sure to post about it later!
Beginning this year, a
goal I have set for myself is to of course, blog more! In order to do so, I've decided to post interesting links, mostly crochet or geek related, sometimes
both. I hope you enjoy! If there is something you’d like to see in the future,
please let me know in the comments below.
NEW PATTERN RELEASE!!! (New Paid Pattern)
I released my very first
paid pattern just before Super Bowl Sunday this year! Links are posted under
the picture below.
Amanda's Super Bowl Scarf
This pattern is available for $3.50 USD on both Ravelry and on Craftsy.
I am super excited about
this one! One of my amazing cousins, Amanda, created a leaf pattern
inspired by the Seattle Seahawks 2015 uniform… here’s a pic:
Yes, it is a butt, however we're supposed to be looking at the green stripe!
Since Amanda is super sweet,
she gave me the graph to create my own pattern from!
I had never tried a
pattern with a lot of color changes until I created this one, and you know
what? It actually ended up being a lot of fun! It was quite intimidating at first but I've learned a lot from looking around on the interwebs investigating different techniques to improve my work and color changing is something I must have retained!
What I have been working on:(Please forgive the dark pictures, I’m surrounded by
inadequate lighting for proper photography in my home)
My eldest son, Riley, is really
into Pokemon, so much so that it has infected the rest of my family! I’m up to
my ears in what I have deemed “poke-lingo” it sounds so strange when you have
NO IDEA what is going on let alone being talked about… and yes, it has taken
Amazing Adam too. *le sigh*
Riley usually has his
profile pic as one of Cubone; to which I found out has a seriously HORRIBLE
back story:
Team
Rocket (I remember some of them from the cartoon) killed his mother in front of
him when he was just a baby and now in honor of her death or in order to exact
revenge or something, he WEARS HER SKULL! What. The. Heck! This is for kids? Really???
Anyway, I had wanted to
get Cubone done in time for Christmas, unfortunately I decided to NOT stress
myself out this year (last year?) and do what I could, so I spent most of
January still working on Secret Squirrel Projects! This was the first one –
seems as if I’m always making things for his younger siblings, so I put Riley
on the top of the list.
This little critter has so many stinkin' parts! I stuck to the pattern like glue too, I had to seriously! Apparently, I switched the back spikes, but it doesn't seem to matter, he LOVED it! I was a happy mama!
Squirtle
went to Aurora. After she saw that Riley got Cubone, she started dropping hints –
like a typical Scorpio, trying to manipulate my will – that she wanted Pikachu;
and like the Capricorn I am, gave her Squirtle!
Only modifications I made
to the pattern were using 15 mm buttons instead of 15 mm safety eyes; which I would
have had to make a special trip to the other side of town to purchase. Also, instead
of 3 pipe cleaners in the tail to help hold the curl, I used 2 folded in half.
Not only did it make it easier to crochet the end of the tail, but it made sure
that sharp bits were definitely not going to poke out, as well as not ruining a
pair of scissors cutting the ends off!
Assistance for selling projects & not underselling
yourself! Free Link
I know a lot of people are
always wondering what their craft items are worth if they were to start selling
them. Well I found a link to a Craft Calculator – it seems as if it is also
available in both the App Store and on Google Play as an app, making it
completely convenient to use on your phones and tablets!
Not exactly a crochet
item, but I LOVE the way these boots turned out! Created by Glamour 4 You, she
turned a pair of boots into wearable crochet art, even out in the Washington
weather, these would be adorable!
I love dragons, and I've been eye-balling some scarves around there, but this one is not only super
cute, but it’s also free! Posted by Six Little Mice, this one is definitely on
my To Do List!
Stitch I’m dying to learn: Crocodile Stitch Free
Pattern
Saw this purse posted on
Craft Passion and thought it would be a great way to learn how to make the
oh-so versatile Crocodile Stitch. I’ve seen those scales on shawls, cowls,
booties, slippers, scarves, blankets and so much more! Can’t wait to give this
one a shot too!
One of my all-time
favorite patterns has got to be the Circle of Love Afghan by Moogly. It’s a
free pattern posted on her blog and it is gorgeous! I originally made it in
colors she suggested (reminded me of the school colors for Washington State
University), then because I did enjoy working the pattern I followed the
original with a Seahawks colored afghan:
Just a quick post to share with everyone that, thanks to all of you, my Supernatural Moonlight Infinity Scarf has been included in the TOP 100 PROJECTS OF 2014 according to FaveCrafts.com!
Here's a pic of their homepage showing my cowl:
See??? Look, right there, it's my project!
I have posted the links to the pattern on, and pinned the post at the top of, my G33k Squ33 Crochet Facebook page. If you do stop by please remember to Like my page and feel free to leave me a message!
Now, I haven't received an award or anything, but it's still unbelievably AMAZING! It honestly wouldn't have been possible without everyone downloading or saving a copy of that pattern, no matter how you found it.
So as my first blog of 2015, I want to say thank you. Thank you to all of you who visit and follow, and have liked my little blog here.
Continuing on this amazing feeling, I've bought myself a separate crochet calendar so not only can I keep track of my projects, plan ahead for holidays, but hopefully I'll be able to schedule pattern writing time and start a weekly? monthly? post of some of my favorite patterns I have squirreled away.
If you have any requests for types of patterns you'd like to see, please leave me a comment below. I always want to hear from you guys!
Thanks for visiting in 2014, don't forget G33k Squ33 in 2015!
Just a quick message to wish all of you a Merry Christmas!
Today is my birthday too! So, since the Littles are at their mother's house until tomorrow, we're withholding our family celebrations until tomorrow (12/26), then it will be Christmas Morning in the afternoon and then birthday supper! Tonight, we wait for Doctor Claus to come visit us via the BBC!
I did crochet a fair share of gifts for family, however i didn't exactly take pictures of any of them. Goal for next year... pictures of all of the things!
Had a great time with Amazing Adam's family this last weekend, fantastic start to the holiday festivitites. I crocheted a beautiful tree topper Weeping Angel for our tree, a Jayne Cobb hat for Amazing Adam's cousin & she LOVED it!
Time to go, but we were lucky enough to find a chance to get a Santa picture:
Santa picture... obviously set up by a bossy older sister!
Yeesh! has it really been that long since my last post??? Jeez! I'm seriously so sorry about that! What could I possibly have been doing all this time you ask? Well let me see...
Kids started school again - getting them ready is always a hubub and I know there are tons of others out there that feel my pain. Riley is now a freshman. Aurora started third grade. Jacob started second grade. What a spread, right? Luckily, they all go to schools that Amazing Adam and I have previously attended, and the two elementry school teachers were also teachers for Riley when he attended the same school. We're set up for a very awesome school year!
Crocheting... if I haven't been blogging then I had better been yarning, right? Well, I've been working my fingers off! I finished a Seahawks version of Moogly's Circles of Love Afghan which I am currently trying to sell on my Facebook page. I also made 4 Pokeball inspired dice bags for the family. Photos of these projects are posted on Facebook as well. I'm currently working on Spider Mambo's I Heart Skulls Circle Cardigan for Aurora. She chose Caron Simply Soft in Neon Pink & Limelight. No missing that girl in the car-pool lane after school!
Working. Working at my out-of-the-home job managing an answering service. New employees, former employees, company picnics... the usual. This is usually where I'm reminded that there are less than 100 days until Christmas. When I'm reminded of this, I usually send snide comments to the reminder.
Doesn't exactly seem like a lot, but there's a lot of time and driving and other energy put in to those events, right?
What is coming up next, you're asking. Well, I have a few things on my to-do list:
I Love Yarn Day (10/10/2014) - I really want to post another pattern to celebrate I Love Yarn Day, unfortunately I don't think it will be free this year; it will, however, be discounted for the week of I Love Yarn Day. Stay tuned to Facebook and this blog for more details as we get closer.
I still have the Penelope Bag and Sunshine Sack to post (I'm somewhere in the finishing stages), had another idea for a bag, but we'll see if I'll even bring it to fruition since I ran out of a "seasonal" yarn. (HATE that, nothing but a tease!)
I also still have the pattern for my Submissive Hooters needing to be finalized.
I need someone that can sit next to me writing in "crochet speak" as I create these things, seriously! I'm thinking it should be considered a foreign language to speak "craft."
Anyway, I just wanted to check in with everyone; I've seen a number of views increase over the last few weeks and I am incredibly humble and thankful that all of you have found my little blog. You have no idea how much squee it gives me.
For all you new followers: WELCOME! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, don't hesitate to comment on posts here or on Facebook - haters too! You're all welcome! If I didn't want honest opinions, I wouldn't put it out there to be judged by the general public.
So, here's to hopefully not such a long silence between posts!
Good day everyone! The winners were announced on my Facebook Page for the rainbow bag naming contest! I present to you the Penelope Bag & Sunshine Sack! Winners will receive a copy of both patterns once I have it finalized! Congrats go out to Steven N Kasinda Tobek with "Penelope" and Susie T Homemaker with Sunshine Sack
Penelope Bag & Sunshine Sack
In another HUGE development, I was unable to present these prototypes to the winners because I'm offering them as part of a HUMONGOUS Labor Day Give away by the Giveaway Goddesses! Super easy to enter, make sure you follow the instructions on their giveaway album; there are roughly 90 different prizes! Contest is open until August 15th! Good Luck everyone!!!
A few weeks ago I took part in sending a Pascha teddy bear to an orphanage in Russia by the way of Ireland. They received a box of over 50 teddy bears ... here's the unboxing! Mine is somewhere in the mix....
Thank you to Allison Hoffman from Crafty is Cool for putting together such a beautiful and heartwarming event. A simple video, but I have to admit, I teared up a bit watching the excitement in the reception and anticipation of these children receiving such a simple gift.
Some time within the last year or so, the hippies and granola-eating tree-huggers all got together and voted that we should ban all plastic shopping/grocery bags from retailers. This sucks in my opinion because, now we'll have to purchase plastic bags for our garbage bins instead of reusing the ones from our groceries. Not to mention, how am I supposed to make plarn now?!?
Anyway, I have been trying to make or buy reusable shopping bags. Here is the first attempt. The bottom sucks, but I LOVE the rest of this bag.
No Name Beach Bag & Mini Bag
If you visit my Facebook page, I'm having a contest as to what to name this bag set. Comment on the post I have pinned to the top of my page and if your name is selected, you will receive a free copy of the pattern BEFORE it is released (but as soon as I have it done & tested)!
The rainbow pattern in the main bag consists of 10 different colors, I still need to play more with color schemes, but this one isn't so bad.
The sun is the cover over a smaller cell phone sized clutch. The handle on it has a bobble stitch at the end which makes it wonderfully secure, but also quickly removable. I free handed the sun and cloud. So at this point there is a lot of back tracking, modifying and pattern writting to get to!
I'd love to hear what you think about this set! Let me know in the comments below!
A lot of things have been going on lately, I got back into testing patterns - successfully, I might add. I also created a Pascha Bear for Crafty Is Cool. She found a video (below) that she found endearing and decided to create a bear for orphans in Russia, here's the original blog post that I participated in.
Then among all crochet projects flying around our home, we also reached the end of the school year, Jacob completed 1st grade, Aurora completed 2nd grade! So happy for them, they've really learned a lot over the last year - despite Aurora's teacher being a complete idiot!
On top of the Littles completing their school years, my eldest son, Riley completed his last year of
middle school, 8th grade for us. I was soo excited thinking this is great, he made it – maybe not
with the most spectacular grades, but he made it. I will officially be the mother of a high school student this next fall. He also turns 15 in September, and we all know what that means.... impending driver's ed!
Riley was scheduled to have a “moving-up”
type ceremony/gathering on the last day of school. Both Amazing Adam and I
attended this same school when we were in middle school, so we thought that the
event would be along the same lines; granted it’s been about 20 years since
then, but still, something along the same lines, right?
First of all I’ve been dealing with panic and anxiety issues
as much as I can lately; for which I’m currently NOT medicated for. I enter the
school, thinking I’m going to be a basket case because my baby is “graduating”
middle school. Well, I was a basket case, but not for the reason I thought. I
was a basket case because this event was the biggest fiasco that I’ve ever
attended! The seating was crap. I needed an easy in/easy out location – a lot
of which was reserved for staff. (eff that!) Then due to the fact I selected an
easy in/easy out location I didn’t deserve to watch the event at all as I was
blocked by a metric ass-ton of people who were more deserving than i. Seriously
people, who stands in front of EVERYONE and makes no effort to make sure people
behind them can see? I couldn’t stop the crying from that point forward, I kept
trying to keep it under control but I couldn’t. I began to realize that this
was NOT like any other moving-up ceremony I’d ever attended.
At this point Amazing Adam wrapped his arms around me and
stayed that way for the better part of the event. We sat that way through the
principal’s speech – felt like I was in church, but in church, I can see what
is going on!
The 1st student speaker.
A choir performance.
At this point they listed off ¾ of the 8th
grade class that received awards
Another student speaker; which if you’re
making a “commencement speech” please refrain from using street lingo. If I were
that kid’s parents I’d have been incredibly embarrassed!
Then another ¼ of the previously awarded students were
mentioned again for another award.
A 3rd student speaker.
A quartet performance.
Last but not least, a slide show. Anyone who’s not been
part of the “popular” kids, sportos, princesses, whatever… would know that they
have a slim chance of ever being caught on film, right? Well, folks my son is
not a “popular” kid, I was unable to see him in the slide show due to being
surrounded and that there was only 1 picture of him dissecting a salmon
(totally cool).
At the end of this “event” I was so incredibly pissed that I could
barely contain myself. I grabbed the Littles and headed out to my car as
Amazing Adam told Riley where to find us when he was ready to leave.
To keep this story moving, I eventually got home after
celebrating Riley’s achievement and the last day of school in general at IHOP…
and wrote the middle school principal this e-mail:
I would like to thank you and your staff for ruining the entire
ceremony for my family today.
My son was an 8th grader at CMS this year and was at the ceremony today. My
experience during the ceremony was one of the worst events I've ever had the
displeasure of attending.
Instead of having the opportunity to see my son having a moment of final recognition
for his hard work and reaching another momentous milestone, I was given
nothing. I had the unpleasurable benefit of being surrounded so thickly of
people who felt it was completely acceptable to stand in front of everyone and
block every bloody moment from our view. I had a continuous panic attack during
the entire ceremony due to the fact I was surrounded, couldn't see anything
that was going on and acceptable seating was reserved for staff. I did what I
could from my easy in/easy out location, but your staff did nothing effective
to make sure the event could be potentially enjoyed by all families.
Both my husband and I were students of CMS; we had the opportunity to walk and
receive our certificates individually, thereby giving our parents a moment they
could share with family members for ages to come. I HAVE NOTHING. The poor
planning of this "ceremony" ruined this event forever and instead of
something beautiful and rewarding, I am now dealing with anger, and the
disbelief that this actually happened, that I actually have no memento of my
son accomplishing middle school.
I realize that a lot of the photos in the slide show were of the
"popular" kids, that's fine, that's the way it has always been. Then
to NOT recognize the average students, the ones that also worked hard, but
didn't attend last night's dance, who didn't participate in sports, or the
group Olympics, is immeasurably offensive. It ROBBED each and every one of
those families, who worked just as hard, of a moment of accomplishment that
cannot be replaced. I can assure you I'm not the only irate parent that feels
this way - I may be the only one to reach out to the staff about it.
I will reserve commenting about the speeches as it would be my personal opinion
and detract from the point I'm trying to make; which is this: next time, just
invite the families of the kids who got 20+ stickers, the families of the kids
in the majority of the pictures, then we - the average family - won't feel as
if we were insignificant or forgotten, we'll know it as a fact, but you
wouldn't have wasted our time. Every single student that didn't get their name
called received exactly zero praise or recognition from the school; so much for
"once a warrior, always a warrior", more like, "well, if we
called your name or got pictures of you, you're still a warrior."
I have two more children that will potentially attend CMS in the coming years;
I hope that this "ceremony" will be modified to include EVERYONE, not
just the more popular students or the overachievers.
The only saving grace of this entire fiasco is that my son enjoyed it. That's
all I have. He saw a glimpse of himself in the slide show, that's all, just one
small snippet, but to him it was fine, so I'm sure the students had a great
time. Now, I hope that your staff takes a moment to realize the amount of
brokenhearted families you have created buy allowing today's ceremony to
commence the way it did.
Highly disappointed, X
I did all I could to express myself in a way that could not
be misunderstood. I felt better and honestly that’s all I really needed. I had
hoped for some kind of response, and I did receive one the following week:
Hello Ms. X,
I am very sorry that you did not appreciate the moving up
celebration that was held last Friday. It is not our intent, at all, to hold a
“commencement” type of graduation ceremony. Philosophically, I believe that a
graduation ceremony, in which every student walks across the stage and receives
a certificate, should be reserved for high school graduation. The intent was to
bring the students together to recap the year together, and to offer them our
congratulations as a class for completing middle school. I am glad that your
son did enjoy the experience, though.
Best Regards,
(withheld name for privacy)
My only thought was “Really? This is what I get?” Now, not
only disappointed in the school but feeling as if my intelligence was being insulted
as I received a pat on the head; I responded with:
It was not my desire to have pomp
& circumstance type commencement; my feelings are that every single student
deserved some kind of individual recognition. Call all the kids names for each
"hall" that completed middle school; eliminate 2 student speakers,
and 1 music bit and there would have been plenty of time to allow for a sense
pride and completion for each and every single student that worked hard both
years.
I would have been camera happy just to have my
son stand up and have his name recognized - as I’m certain A LOT of other
parents would have been too. All the families of average students got shafted,
plain and simple. I would honestly be ashamed if I were responsible for that
event and would offer a public apology.
However, I am only one parent. My original
note will probably bring some chuckles to you and your staff. I don't care. I
said my piece; I appreciate your response at least letting me know that it was
received and read, thank you for your time.
When did the education system become so disappointing? Did my
mom have to fight this hard against common sense among the staff members? I
know for a fact there was some ruckus caused by my mom when I was in school – I
still get to hear those stories, but what happened?
Since when is it OK to
overlook all of the hard work of the “average” student? Everyone whines and
complains when someone gets offended, but heaven forbid we pat a student on
the back for doing their best even if it doesn't compare to the overachievers. Don’t get me wrong, if your kid sucks and failed
to meet standards then there are consequences to be had; my Riley just barely
scraped by last year (he was quite lucky that they don’t “hold back” kids in
middle school).
What do you think? What would you have done in my position? Let me know in the comments below, I'd love to hear from you!
I promise I have yet to fall of the edge of the earth! Just being extremely busy lately; including crocheting my butt off!
I started - and completed - the Circle of Love Afghan from Moogly (the link will take you to the free pattern). I love it! It was definitely a time suck for me as it took about a month of me working on it - sometimes only a row a night, but it is now beautiful. One thing I'd make sure you take note of if you're thinking of starting this project - make sure you use Red Heart With Love as suggested. I initially grabbed Red Heart Soft - similar colors - since my Michael's and Joanne's didn't have Red Heart With Love in the right colors, but way different in the project! The Red Heart With Love is great and makes the blanket really plush! I plan on making another one - with different colors. If you decide to make this afghan, I would love to see your finish products!
As I mentioned above, I bought the quantity of yarns in Red Heart Soft for the Circle of Love Afghan, to which I didn't have a project for them, until this last weekend. I got a new car!
1980 Plymouth Volare (aka: Veronica) - she has a slant-6 :)
What does this have to do with crocheting? Well, as with any other 34 year-old car, the upholstry is original, and slightly trashed, especially the driver seat part of the front bench. Then (tick... tick... tick... ding!) Inspiration! I'm going to yarn bomb it! The colors of Red Heart Soft are going to be great with the rest of the colors in the car - white, gray and 3 shades of red/red-ish. I've already made about 5 squares in various color sequences. It will take some time, as I'm considering not only large squares but smaller squares with some rectangles mixed in. I'll have more detailed pics later including the before and after shots.
In addition to all this, I've stopped taking my brain candy - saw some information from my pharmacy about how the meds I was taking could lead to excessive menstrual issues (just what you wanted to hear about on a crochet blog, right?) It hasn't been too bad, I'm fussier, but I can feel the mood swings coming so that I can warn everyone! I'm not sure if being off them is good or bad, I was starting to think the meds had hit a plateau anyway, so I'm absolutely easier to distract - especially if it is pretty yarn related stuff. Amazing Adam and I have even had syncronized snarky moments together! It was a pretty amazing moment!
Have any of you used your crafting skills to bring new life into old items? if so, what was the item? I'd love to hear about it - and see pictures if any of you have them!
Remember you can always find me on Facebook feel free to stop by and drop me a note, I'd love to hear from you guys!
I absolutely love this time of year; family time, great food, traveling around the area to visit friends, the songs and celebrations, and most of all: my birthday. I do love it ... usually. I have found in the last few years that my anxiety levels skyrocket because I feel that I'm falling short of the Christmases my mom gave us when we were little. It always seemed that she had time for EVERYTHING! I could be wrong, people including Amazing Adam and my Mom have said that I'm wrong. For what it's worth... it still bothers me.
That being the case I have decided to change my life a bit to ease stressful situations.
ANNOUNCEMENT #1:
I will no longer be accepting custom orders as my main motive of selling crochet items.
Whew! That one was a difficult decision, let me tell you... I find that when I crochet custom orders, I have a tendency to fizzle out, I get tired. I get sick of the colors or the repetitive stitches. I can't find all the time I need to put into a deadline. All those are reasons that it is not fair to the customer, let alone to my family or most importantly, myself.
ANNOUNCEMENT #2:
In the coming year I hope to open a shop where people can buy ready made items.
I anticipate a lot of new patterns, new yarns, and other items that fall off my hook to be sold! This is exciting for me. As I'm not only learning more advanced techniques of crochet, I hope you all will follow a store listing to buy my items.
ANNOUNCEMENT #3:
On occasion I will both accept custom orders - within certain parameters - and I look forward to not only creating my own patterns and posting/selling them, but also continuing to assist testing patterns for other designers as well.
This I do look forward to. Yes, there will be deadlines, but nothing that I cannot commit to. I will not forget my lovely geeky followers, but I also look forward to continuing to develop this blog. (Can't believe it has been almost 3 months since the last post!)
So, here's to the new year, and all the new developments in 2014! Thank you for all your love and support in 2013, I never could have imagined that I would have almost 5,000 blog views!
I hope everyone has a great and wonderful holiday season, remember those of us who are truly gifted with caring families, a talent which can feed families and put food in bellies, but don't forget those who need the help of our talents, some of us aren't so lucky. Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! See you all in a few weeks with a refreshed frame of mind!
I know it has been a long time. And let me tell you, chaos reigns! There has been a lot going on – but then again, who’s life doesn't have chaos? Over the last few weeks I've been in quarantine due to a nasty cold that has been kicking my butt (hopefully, I’m on the mend now). Plus a nasty of creative block; I’d start a few patterns then unravel everything I’d done in the day. It just wasn't grabbing my attention and it was all lacking passion and enthusiasm.
This last weekend I was again sequestered into the bedroom as to not contaminate the rest of the family I watched Supernatural Season 8! Oh, I had finished Seasons 1-7 a few months back and had been wanting to catch up on Season 8 as it was the current season, but my cable provider (you know who you are) sucks and wouldn't provide them in any helpful order. Imagine my thrill when I was notified by Netflix that it was now available on instant streaming! Heck, yes!
almost too much squee for one geek!
Thus I was inspired by a healthy (and much needed) 2-day session of Season 8; which was luckily prior to the premiere of Season 9 this week. Lately, I’d been trying to do something with a “granny square” stitch and I had been collecting sparkly yarns over the past few months, knowing that I’d find the perfect project someday. Well, that someday happened!
To not only celebrate the rampant geek squee that is Supernatural, but to also celebrate I Love Yarn Day, I present to you my new pattern:
worn the long direction - bad selfie, sorry!
in this pic i have folded it to double up as a cowl another bad selfie!
Yarn Needle & Scissors for cutting & finishing off ends
Notes:
Each round will finish with a slip stitch to the beginning cluster of the row.
Beginning Cluster:- ch 2 + 2 dc in the same stitch (the ch 2 will count as a dc for the beginning cluster only)
Pattern Cluster – 3 dc in same stitch
Do NOT chain any stitches between clusters.
It was my intention as I created this scarf that the clusters remain close, not too much space between as a more traditional cluster stitch may be, as I wanted this to be plush and cozy.
As you’re working or even when you’re done, I found that tugging the stitches both vertically and horizontally across the rows & columns helped to seat the clusters between other clusters making sure they settled where they were supposed to.
For changing colors I found it easiest to just tie off and cut the yarn mostly due to the number of colors in use and their mass to move around each other. It is your decision if you want to carry through or tie off.
Foundation: (Use your first color; see below for an outline of the color scheme I used.)
I found that there are two basic ideas to starting off a project. For this one, due to the amount of stitches required I preferred the beginning chain over the foundation row – here are both for you to decide:
Beginning Chain - chain 131 stitches, sc in 2nd stitch from hook, sc back to the beginning (130)
Foundation Row - Foundation sc for 130 stitches; sl to join to 1st stitch, careful not to twist the chain when you join to the beginning. (130) YouTube has videos on how to stitch the Foundation Single Crochet.
Supernatural Moonlight Color Scheme
Foundation Charisma Black
Row 1 Charisma Black
Row 2 Dewdrops Amethyst
Row 3 Dewdrops Diamond
Row 4 Charisma Purple
Row 5 Charisma White
Row 6 Charisma Purple
Row 7 Dewdrops Diamond
Row 8 Dewdrops Amethyst
Row 9 Charisma Black
Row 10 (sc) Charisma Black
Pattern:
Row 1: (Black) ch 2, 2 dc in same st, skip 2 stitches, 3dc in next stitch. *skip 2 stitches, 3dc in next stitch* continue repeating from * to * until you reach the beginning cluster, sl st to join. Tie off & cut.
Row 2:-9: Repeat Row 1 – changing color with each new row, following the color scheme listed above or a color scheme of your own choosing.
Row 10: (still using black) sc in each stitch around. Sl st to the beginning stitch, bind off.
Finish off any remaining loose ends.
That’s it. Super simple really, but I LOVE this scarf! I’ve got rave reviews about it from work and family. Have fun with this pattern, use colors that speak to you… I’m already thinking of what other color schemes I can come up with!
Feel free to sell the items made from this pattern, just please don’t replicate the pattern, if anyone wants the pattern for themselves, please direct them to my blog!
Also, if you find any errors or discrepancies, please let me know!
Hope you enjoy making your Supernatural Moonlight Infinity Scarf, I’d love to see your finished projects!
employee snapped what i hope is a better pic?
It had been my original plan to spend all day crocheting at Starbucks while the kids were in school. However because I've been ill and missed too much work and then the kids don't have school due to a teacher professional day. I'll be at work, but I'll be yarning in my heart!
