Continuing on - More Stuffie Clothes!

So I also added another stuffie to the swap package to replace her little lost frog. Okay, so the one I added is not little :-)

But he's SO cute! All he needed to make him perfect was a cute little bow tie. And I couldn't find one without all this ridiculous sewing. Okay, if you want a perfect bow tie, you really do have to sew it. But since I was looking for cute, not perfect, here's how it ended up:



And since I'm really nice, I even wrote out a pattern of what I did!

Starting with the right side of the bow, chain 8 and then make 6 treble crochets into chain #4. Slip stitch and secure into chain #1. Slip stitch up the outside of the shape to chain #4.

Then, chain 3 and single crochet into each chain on one side, and then stick your hook and loop through the other side and single crochet into each chain on the other side.

To make the left bow, its a bit different. Chain 4, and do 3 treble crochets into chain #1. Then, make 3 treble crochets into the last single crochet instead of the chain.

Next, you're going to create the strap and its security. Single crochet in a box shape around the "ball" in the middle of the tie. After completing the sc box (you should be on the bottom of it), chain 20 (or the appropriate neck size for the animal). Single crochet back to the bow tie. Make sure to single crochet into the bottom depending on where you started. Anchor a single crochet into the top of the box and slip stitch into each single crochet until the end of the strap.

Secure the strap to the bow by single crocheting into the top corner of the box, and then single crochet into the bottom corner. Fasten off and you've got a cute bow tie!

Elephant Earmuffs

So I've been very busy. My friends know I swore off swapping for a couple months, and then...

Anyway, I angeled for a really nice gal who's stuffie was whisked away from her in Little Visitor. I guess its part of the risk, but what a shame!

Anyway, I decided to make her a stuffie and buy one for her, and I think I assembled a nice package for her.

Part of the package was this adorable little elephant that I named Aliya (Sri Lankan for Elephant) - created from Romansock's cute little Pocket Elephant pattern:



But an elephant lives in the jungle! What was she going to do in Michigan? So I made her some winter gear!



These are her earmuffs, because I imagined an elephant would lose a lot of heat through her ears!

So if you'd like to make some cute earmuffs for your elephant, here's the pattern:

Start with the left side and chain 7. Do 9 treble crochets into chain #4. Slip stitch from the last treble crochet into chain #1.

Then, create the middle of the left side - single crochet back to chain #7 on the half moon side. In effect, this is what you are creating:



Then you're going to chain 7 and repeat. The only difference is you are going to anchor each treble crochet onto the single crochet stitches in the middle with a slip stitch.

So in effect, the instructions look like this: Chain 7, create treble crochet in chain #4, slip stitch into single crochet row, create treble crochet from the top (where you just slip stitched) and anchor into chain #4 with a slip stitch, and repeat until you have 9 total. When you're finished with the last treble crochet, anchor it with a slip stitch to the end of the single crochets.

Then you're going to create the brace at the top of the earmuffs. This one's easy - chain 10, single crochet 10 stitches, and chain 10 into the single crochets so you reach the end of the line.



Now this is where it gets a bit tricky. You're going to repeat the same steps you did to make the first muff but you need to make sure that you face the bottom/foundation chain to the middle! If you don't, you're going to end up with a twisted muff on the right side. And don't feel bad if you have to try it a couple times - even I had to and I designed the pattern!

(In case you forgot or prefer the shorthand, here's how to make the muff: ch 7, 9 tc in ch 4, sl st ch 1. ch 7, *tc in ch4, sl st to sc #1, tc in sc #1, sl st to ch 4* Rep * until 9 tc, sl st ch 1. (make sure to face bottom chain to the inside!).)

This pattern is also registered in Ravelry (look for me as cfbandit).

Funny Email...

Yesterday a friend of mine sent this out. What a hoot! While I'm not a dedicated Cubs fan, I do live in the Chicago area so I pay some attention to what they're doing on a yearly basis.

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Just to keep everything in perspective .... twenty major events that have occurred since the Chicago Cubs last laid claim to a world series championship...

1. Radio was invented; Cubs fans got to hear their team lose.

2. TV was invented; Cubs fans got to see their team lose.

3. Baseball added 14 teams; Cubs fans get to see and hear their team lose to more clubs.

4. George Burns celebrated his 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th, 70th, 80th, 90th and 100th birthdays.

5. Haley's comet passed Earth ... twice.

6. Harry Caray was born....and died. Incredible, but true.

7. The NBA, NHL and NFL were formed, and Chicago teams won championships in each league.

8. Man landed on the moon, as have several home runs given up by Cubs pitchers.

9. Seventeen U.S. presidents were elected.

10. There were 11 amendments added to the Constitution.

11. Prohibition was created and repealed.

12. The Titanic was built, set sail, sank, was discovered and became the subject of major motion pictures, the latest giving Cubs fans hope that something that finishes on the bottom can come out on top.

13. Wrigley Field was built and becomes the oldest park in the National League.

14. Flag poles were erected on Wrigley Field roof to hold all of the team's future World Series pennants. Those flag poles have since rusted and been taken down.

15. A combination of over 40 Summer and Winter Olympics have been held.

16. Thirteen baseball players have won the Triple Crown; several thanked Cubs pitchers.

17. Bell-bottoms came in style, went out of style and came back instyle; disco did the same.

18. The Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and Florida Marlins have all won the World Series.

19. The Cubs played over 14,000 regular-season games; they lost the majority of them.

20. Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Oklahoma and New Mexico were admitted to the Union

There is such a thing as TRADITION! :)

Garage Sale-ing for Swapping

So I was getting a little worried until I heard from my swap partner today that she was sending my package. I seem to have a higher than normal incidence of flaking.

We've been having a problem with people, not flaking, but with just not doing their jobs over at my yahoo group exchange. In fact, my exchange may be held off unless people can get their act together.

This isn't difficult. All they have to do is add the date the send and the date they receive to a table in the yahoo groups.

Yet for so many, it is so difficult. Sigh. So I'm going through the rules and switching things as I go. At least I've had very good organizers in the past, so I'm trying to be one.

People will do what they're supposed to do someday. Yeah. And I'm gonna be the Pope, too. If you're going to dream, you might as well dream big.

(that's my new beaver Chewy playing in a playpen I bought at a garage sale for the "Bargain Hunter" swap over at craftster)

Renegade Craft Fair: A review

So I've been meaning to post this forever and haven't. I FINALLY made it to the Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago.

I was EXTREMELY interested in going because I heard it was, like, the coolest show EVER. And the last three years something has always come up the same damn weekend. So I made it a point to go this time.



I have to say I felt very hip because I went home from the St. Peter Barn Sale in Geneva and switched to my scooter from the car. Thought it'd be easier to park that way.

So I went around. I was hoping for some kind of map, but didn't get it, but that was really okay because I knew it was going to be a low-budget kind of thing. Or so I thought.

My initial impression was Wow! This must be way cool because there are a ton of people here! Dogs, cats on leashes, people - in every kind of dress imaginable.

Then I started looking. I was really interested in finding a hat and scarf for my swap partner, something cat related for another swap, and some useful and interesting little things I could give as gifts for the holiday season.

While I was initially impressed with the very cool stenciled and screenprinted shirts and aprons, after awhile it was kind of like, same ol', same ol'. I'm really wondering why the heck there was so much screenprinted stuff there.

Some very cool stuff I saw: aprons by the Craftyscientist, everything by the Recycling Artist, Emily Kirschner, and the cute little alpaca toys by a couple of girls whose company is escaping me right now. There was also a great booth that I bought some wool roving at - small pieces that were just the right price for someone who's very new to spinning and wanting to try it out.

Emily and her partner's booth was awesome like always. One of these days I'm going to fork over the money and get one of her awesome large totes - they have to be way stronger than those polypropelene bags being sold at the grocery store right now. And her service skills are AMAZING. She or her partner managed to talk to everyone in the booth, even though you had to wait to pay. That was very cool.

The cute little cat toy below is what I ended up sending my swap partner. A little piece of the Midwest for someone in Cali :-)



What I was really impressed by was the fact that these were not just booths, they were little slices of a crafty world. Almost all of the vendors did more than just stack stuff in their booth. While I couldn't afford those little alpaca toys (that looked like little alpacas), I highly enjoyed their booth - covered in grass with the alpacas looking like they were eating and sleeping and playing in their natural environment.

This was by far one of the funniest booths ever and probably the reason I'll go back with my DH.



This was a "robotic" postcard vendor. You'd go up to the booth, spin the dial and "it" would beep and talk to you and then vend a card - with things like Chicago, the craft fair, etc. as the theme.

I must have sat there for half an hour. Lord, I'm easily entertained. HAHAHA! :-)

Some very nasty stuff I saw: WAY, WAY, WAY too much screenprinted stuff. Its the fad of the year, apparently. $60 garter stitch scarves. Come on! I know we have to make a living after all - I would have been willing to pay $25-30 for a basic one to save my time, but they didn't even look like they were made of wool!

Some of the vendors had extremely crappy service. I walked out of one while waiting to talk to the vendor about her wool yarn from Michigan. I wanted to know more about it and how much it was, and would have been willing to pay for it because I'm very connected to that area, but she was talking with her friend and didn't want to pay me the time of day.

That was my biggest disappointment of the day. Even though there were all manners of people there, there was a certain crowd that Renegade seemed to be meant for - namely, size Small or Medium blond haired girls with tiny dogs.

There were a great deal of people there between sizes 12-24 that would have loved some of the stuff there and almost everywhere you went, sizes ended at M. What's up with that? Do these craft vendors know they're killing off 85% of their market? Plus, I was dressed "non-crafty" - button down and jeans, and I would walk into a booth at the same time as a size 6, girl wearing a screenprinted shirt and I would be ignored, while the vendor would fall all over themselves to treat their other customer well.

Heck, I brought $100 with me and spent $15. Yes, that's right. 15% of what I brought. I was that disappointed with the services of the vendors.

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Will I go back again? I think so. I'd especially like to take my DH with me and see what he thinks. Especially if Carlo Rossi is there again. That was too funny - sample the Carlo Rossi and decorate a jug of wine. It was quite popular :-)

Ravelry, or how I've forgotten how many projects I've done

So, the new buzzword in the knitting community is Ravelry. I finally climbed the 20K + waiting list and got in and have been amazed at just how awesome it really is.

Worth every bit of the hype? Absolutely! Want to know what a particular yarn looks like knitted up? Just search for it and hundreds of projects pop up. Looking at a pattern? See the comments everyone else made about it - and the potential yarn substitutions.

But the most amazing part, at least to me, is the part where you enter your projects, past, present and future. After going through the Yahoo group photos and the photos from my blog, my flickr account, my photobucket, my 360 and craftster, I've realized how many projects I've forgotten that I did since I give so much of my knitting away.

So I've just been overwhelmed with entertaining memories of my old projects. This weekend I'm going to try my stash - which will so help me predict what yarns I'm going to need in the future. I'm sure DH will appreciate that!

Are you a vegan?

So off my blog, on most of the crafty lists I've gotten lots of questions about my list of favorite links.

Several of them are for vegan cooking blogs and so the inevitable round of "are you a vegan?" questions began.

The answer? No, I'm not a vegan. I've been against it since I attended Ithaca College back in 1999. The people there are crazy obsessed.

Now, does that mean I hate animals? No.

Does that mean I devour meat only like a carnivore? No, not really. I'm a big fan of turkey and chicken, but I don't eat pork, lamb, veal, most pieces of the cow, etc.

Does that mean I'm a closeted vegetarian? Nah, not really. Its more of a budget thing - my husband and I are just starting out in the world - we can't afford it and we've grown accustomed to it.

Do I eat a lot of vegetables? Yes, yes I do! I love almost all of them except okra. And tomatoes. But tomatos cross over the list into the "I hate almost all fruit" category.

Do I eat fish? Absolutely! Its my favorite food that's not a dessert item :-D

Am I adamant about not eating so much meat? No - I eat it when I like. Like last night, DH and I had steaks for a once in a while treat. And the occasional Arbys enters my diet. I feel its better for the environment that way - if we all ate a little less meat, there would be more resources for the animals that should be living in peace here -- and instead who are living in hotel parking lots and darting across freeways.

Hopefully that makes sense to most of you. I don't feel I need to fit into a particular category dietetically. Plus, those vegans are crafty people - check out Hannah's Bittersweet blog - she's not only a vegan but also has tons of Little Visitors she's made. And she's a great writer :-) = something I aspire to be someday.

The Kitty Kat Hat

The Kitty Cat Hat!

Someone asked if it was doable on the loom, and here it is!

Base Pattern: Ro's Earflap Hat

Modifications:
-Used maybe 1/4 skein of Mainstays yarn and 1.5 skeins of "knitting" fun fur in tan.
-Added ears.

New Pattern:

Ears:
Cast 6 pegs onto a green Knifty Knitter. Do 4 rows back and forth.

Here's where it gets a bit tricky:
E-wrap peg 6 (go from left to right, leftmost peg is 1 and rightmost is peg 6) and knit off. Move the loop on peg 6 to peg 5. Ewrap and knit off all pegs back to peg 1. Do another row of e-wrap (pegs 1-5).

Continue this process until you have two pegs left with loops on them. E-wrap two rows, move the loop on peg 2 to peg 1, knit off. E-wrap peg one again and knit off. Send the yarn through the loop and knot off.

Repeat this process 4 times to make 4 "ears".

Take a pair of ears and whipstitch together the sides NOT the bottom. Repeat for the other pair of ears.

Lastly, whipstitch the bottoms of the ears to the hat. I recommend doing it on each side so the ears remain stiffly out.
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The ears are way customizable: for a rounder ear, halve the amount of ewrap rows at the beginning and end. for a more even triangular ear, do continuous decreasing rows instead of an e-wrap row in between. do an inside and an outside ear pair - pink on the inside first ear, fur on the outside second ear.

This hat fit me even with a large head, so feel free to customize it!

Oh, and I mustn't forget to credit my model, Siam the cat.

He he ... this is funny!

Funny Sign

I would have posted the image up but it might be offensive to some people. Being on their side of the fence, however, this is darn funny stuff!

e.g, i.e., who knows?

Apparently, these people do:

Daily Writing Tips

A great brief explanation of why you should use one or the other! You should listen!