handmade by stefanie

It's been a while since I've shared a crochet project, so I couldn't resist this adorable cactus kit from Global Backyard Industries. They sent me 1 kit of my choosing (there are two cactus styles, Ruby and Charley ) in exchange for my honest review. I've never been great at keeping plants alive myself, and a certain grey cat has a propensity to eat anything green and vaguely plant-like that comes into the house. So a plant that I can't kill and the cat (probably) won't try to eat is something I can really get excited about! Image via Global Backyard Industries website .  What impressed me the most when I received my Ruby kit was that it truly did include everything you needed, right down to the poly-fil stuffing.While I appreciate a good scavenger hunt, realizing you need a straw or don't have the right crochet hook can really be a momentum killer. They also source materials and supplies from American sources whenever possible, which is pretty cool ...

It's an unusual WIP Wednesday! Though, I have many, may WIPs, most of them are still in hibernation until my arm issues resolve. So, currently I am working on crocheting a cute little bunny with some hand-dyed yarn I bought at YarnCon last month: ( yarn and pattern details here in my Ravelry notebook ) Since spinning is another activity I can do while waiting for my left arm to get back to normal, I decided to start spinning the two Foxy Batts I bought in the Yarn Hollow booth at Ply Away last month. Tilly is guarding my first single, and I'll be spinning another to ply with it: I've been working on self care to get back to my regular knitting routine as soon as possible, and I'm getting closer, but I'm not there yet. Over the weekend, I was able to finish a project that's been on the needles since mid-April, the brioche cowl with 2 colors of Art Yarns Merino Cloud (you can find Artyarns yarn here at Patternworks ) . ( yarn and pattern details here...

Well, some of you might have already caught this post which accidentally went live LAST weekend. Oops! Thanks, Blogger publisher, for not accepting the publish date I entered the first time...ok, fine, that might  have been operator error on my part! At any rate, I apoligize if this gives you deja vu, and for those of you who are just now seeing this post for the first time: just pretend you didn't read this first paragraph! Ahem. I've been making some random toys lately and haven't gotten around to sharing them on the blog, so today's post is a hodgepodge of some toys that you might have already seen if you follow me on Instagram. After making my contributions to the #ProjectGnomeDiplomacy, I decided to keep with the tiny theme and made a wee little sheep with a tiny alpaca for a buddy: Keeping in the theme, I also crocheted this tiny snowman , which was a past FreshStitches kit club shipment that has been sitting in my WIP basket for several months. ...

Welcome back! Today is my third and final post sharing the handmade gifts I made this holiday season. As you might have guessed, as Christmas drew nearer, I started to run out of steam! I managed to make a fun little crocodile for my nephew Ethan: Unfortunately, I only managed to complete one stripey sock for Tyler in time for the holiday (insert HO joke here?), and he was the lucky recipient of said single sock and an IOU on Christmas morning. The good news is, I managed to finish the second sock the end of the following day since I was able to knit in front of him! I used the directions for the Chittery Chattery socks and worked a striped stockinette stitch pattern instead of the knitting the pattern as written with three colors of Louet GEMS Sport . Tyler loves them! That pretty much wraps up the tour of my holiday knitting. I had high hopes for also whipping up some cute ornaments to use as stocking stuffers, but unfortunately, that never happened. Perhaps in 2015 I wil...

The next round of gifts I made this year was sent to my family in Kansas City, and it comprised most of my knitting and crocheting efforts. Clockwise from top left: I made sport weight socks for both of my grandparents using Louet GEMS yarn and two of my own designs, Chittery Chattery and Alameda  (more on this later). Next is a crocheted placemat which was requested by my grandfather to commemorate the Royals' American League Championship Title - you can't tell in the photo, unfortunately, but it's the perfect shade of Royal blue (I used Baah Shasta in London Blue for the main color). Speaking of colors which really don't show up in the low light of mid-winter, we have my dad's navy blue hat knit in Zealana Air Chunky . I just did a simple rib and winged it - you can find more details here on my Ravelry project page if you're so inclined. It's incredibly soft and warm, and I'm pleased to report that Dad really loved it! Last but not least...

I'll be taking it easy this week as I recover from the holiday madness and prepare for a fiber-filled 2015, so this week I'll be sharing the handmade items I gifted this year! I'll be starting out with the items I sent out to my sister's family in the Rose City: Pattern: Howie the Holiday Penguin by FreshStitches Monster Pencil Cups (to match each of my nephews' rooms) and Crocheted Bath Mat for my sister and sister-in-law; both of these patterns were improvised.  For more pattern and yarn information, click the links below. On Wednesday, I'll share more DIY holiday gifts, see you then!

Earlier this week, I gifted this crocheted owl pillow to my secret santa from my knitting group...none other than Allyson from the Sweatshop of Love ! I used the Owl Pillow pattern from Ana Paula Rimoli's book, Amigurumi at Home , and Swish Worsted, which is a lovely merino yarn from Knit Picks. Turns out it's great for crochet! Since I don't have an actual work party to attend this time of year, the holiday party that my knitting group throws is pretty much THE celebration of the season for me (other than weekly visits to the Christkindlmarket). It was a great party this year, and my secret santa (Laura from Ink Whale Design - we are a talented group!!) spoiled me with some gorgeous yarn from Hazel Knits and these hilarious gift tags & card: My other project for this week was answering the call put out on the Spinzilla blog for handspun bows made from yarns spun in this year's event. They'll be using the bows to create a colorful banner display at t...

Last weekend, I finished this adorable Flamingo from the FreshStitches Kit Club! Isn't he cute? You'd never know that winter has arrived here in Chicago - I managed to find the one part of our back yarn that hasn't yet died for the season! I also finally found a frame for my Excelsior , which was my TSOLKAL project. Now it's hanging in my craft room, where it coordinates with the curtains almost perfectly. I think it needs a few friends, but that will have to wait til I'm done with my holiday gift-making, of course. Speaking of holiday gift-making....the Indie Design Gift-along is here! Click here for all the details over on Ravelry, but in a nutshell, the GAL (as it's commonly referred to) is a great way to support indie designers while also saving money on your pattern purchase and having opportunities to win some amazing prizes ! Participating designers will be offering selected designs for 25% off with the coupon code GIFTALONG2014 . Look f...

I'm so excited to share my newest pattern with you today, which also happens to be my first-ever crochet pattern! Ever since I got into crocheting amigurumi, I've been wanting to create a sister version of my knitted Button Bunnies pattern. After months (and maybe even years) of having this in my design queue, the Crochet Button Bunny is born! I used Maxima and Clasica yarns from Manos Del Uruguay , both of which are single-ply worsted weight yarns, which are ideal for crocheting - no splitting plies as you work. They're dyed in an array of beautiful colors at co-ops in Uruguay, and all Manos yarns are certified Fair Trade , which is pretty cool! Click here to get the FREE pattern on the Knitter's Pride blog!   My other FO this week is another Zoom Loom Turtle , which I made with destash yarn using the instructions from the DJE Handwovens Turtle Critter Kit . These fun kits were designed especially for use with Zoom Loom swatches, and there are several diff...

I sure hope you are all sitting down, because the chevron socks of doom are officially DONE! On Wednesday night, I finished the toes, wove in the ends, and blocked them: Despite enjoying very little of the knitting process (a rarity for me in the realm of sock-knitting), I absolutely love the finished pair of socks. Because they were such a labor of love, I'm sure I will treasure them all the more. However, let it be decreed on this day that I shall never, under any circumstances, knit socks sideways ever again. Seriously. It's just not for me....though I tip my hat to those who dig it. #SockSelfie The pattern is perfect for the variegated colorway, which is Tristan from Bijou Basin Ranch in the Tibetan Dream base. It's a yak/nylon blend yarn that is so incredibly soft and warm. The pattern is The Hub of Fashion by Stephanie van der Linden, which appears in her book Around the World in Knitted Socks . As you can see, they fit quite well (way better than you'd ...

The chevron socks of DOOM are finally getting closer to being done, thanks to an 18-hour roadtrip earlier this month. Basically, I forced myself to work on this project as much as I could while en route to Kansas City, where we visited family and celebrated our 9-year (!) wedding anniversary. We ended up bringing home some beertastic souvenirs, of course! Over the weekend, I finally grafted the second sock together and began the arduous task of knitting the cuffs and toes. I apologize for the all caps, but.....I AM NOW TWO TOES AWAY FROM HAVING THIS PROJECT OFF THE NEEDLES!  Needless to say, I am really looking forward to this project being done. I know I will love the socks once they're done - the yarn is incredible and they will be super-duper warm, too. However, knitting socks sideways is definitely not for me. I can't stress this enough. I have been working on them since the beginning of May, so it will be a huge relief to go into August with a clean slate.  ...

At last, I have some FO's I can share with the world! First, I knit a modified version of the  Monster Tissue Cozy  from Rebecca Danger's  Knit a Monster Nursery for Father's Day: I love how he turned out! I used Cascade 220 for the main color and some leftover oddballs for the ears, legs and features. I also decided to crochet my eyes instead of knitting an eye patch and using safety eyes. Next, I finished my  FreshStitches kit club  project, Sprocket the Robot! Mine turned out a bit sillier than the pattern photo, due mostly in part to my inability to count and follow the directions properly. I also decided to switch the head with the body in favor of having a smaller head: I like this squishy version, however, and I have lots of beads left over if I decide to make him a friend (but, you know, actually pay attention and follow the pattern this time). Have a crafty weekend!

Last weekend I finished the monster from Modern Baby Crochet - look at how cute he turned out! I decided to crochet the eyes all in one piece, which meant that he couldn't be googly-eyed as in the pattern photos, but it did save me some additional sewing, which is always a good thing in my book. The triangular shape makes it easy to put his cuteness on display; he kind of looks like a cross between a monster and a slug or snail! I used nearly the entire skein of Lindon Merino from Three Irish Girls; the name of the colorway is "Rhys," which just happens to be the same name as one of my nephews. The rest of the yarn came from leftover bits and bobs in my stash. My only other FO for this week is this slouchy hat which I designed with my grey Gotland handspun yarn; the pattern is available for free right here on this blog and you can queue it here on Ravelry ! Thanks for stopping by this week - for FO Friday inspiration, visit the  Tami's Amis blog . Ha...