Out of the Norm.

So I am starting a crocheting project and I am very excited about it. It's not a blanket, or a scarf, or a hat, or a granny square. But a sweater. Yes, I am going to attempt my first REAL project...I know hats, scarfs, blankets, and granny squares are real but I am excited because I feel my crocheting skills expanding and love it a lot. The sweater is called "BOUNCING BABY PULLOVER", I hope to have it finished in time for the arrival of my niece. My sister is due in April. The pattern I am using is for a size 12 months, but that just means the baby can wear it a year from now Hopefully around Easter.
I will keep posting pictures of my progress, we will see how this goes, I am not to concerned it is a pretty easy pattern for the most part, it's the piecing the parts all together when it's done that I will have to pay attention too because I haven't had to much experience with that part yet.

Granny Square Exchanging

On top of all the other projects I am in the middle of, I have started exchanging granny squares with someone in ALABAMA. How did this start? Well I am still learning new things in crocheting and there is a YouTube user that gives great video tutorials anything from how to work a stitch you may need help with to full projects that she walks you through. I love her YouTube site because she literally walks you through an entire project from beginning to end, and the cool thing is that you can pause the video as you go and rewind it as you need to.....IT IS GREAT. She does a wonderful job explaining things. Anyways, I had noticed a comment on a video one day that someone was looking for people interested in exchanging granny squares. I thought wonderful this would be so much fun. I messaged them and it's history. So we have been exchanging granny squares now for about a month and a half. We have agreed to exchange one square every 2 weeks. Granny squares are great because when your done collecting them the purpose of them is to sew them all together to make a big blanket. I love it because you never know what you are going to get and that's part of the fun. I have discovered that the person I am exchanging with is a GUY. He's in his mid Twenties and attends Troy University in Alabama. Needless to say he has an amazing talent and uses crocheting like I do as a tool to wind down, and de-stress. His grandmother taught him how to crochet as did my grandmother.
So here are 2 of the 3 block I have made and mailed to him. The first one and the third one, I forgot to take a pic of the second one I made... I feel as I go my squares will get better and better, my 3rd one was definitely my most favorite out of all of them that I had made. I am even making 2 of everything I am making one for myself and one to mail. So in the end I will have two blankets one with the squares I am doing, and one with the squares I am receiving.

Here are the first 3 squares I have received.

They are all beautiful and I am having a ton of fun with this!!!!! Can't wait to see what the finished projects will look like months down the road.

Many Many Crocheting projects

In the past few months I have started and finished several projects, and started and have not finished a few.
Some of my finished projects include
1) Scarfs for the kids teacher's done in school colors for Xmas Gifts
2) Scarfs for the In Laws done in UK colors for Xmas Gifts
3) Fingerless mitts and matching hat made for a Gift for My sister's Baby Shower
4) Fingerless Mitts for a family friend
5) Granny Squares (which I will devote my next post too)
6) Hat and Scarf for Mom-Xmas Gift
7) Blanket for BFF's baby...which I need to touch up and mail.
8)10 soap bags/scrubbers for bar soap-for a friend who makes an at home line of bath and body products that are amazing.
9) 10 hats-My first paid commission project. Matching hats ranging for ages 1-adult. They were fun to make. Here is a pic below.

Some of my unfinished projects that I have going include:
1) More soap sacks
2) Finish edging on blanket I made for my S-I-L's baby, my niece.
3) Hat for Syd.
4) Fingerless Mitts for Sam.
5) Finish Baby blanket for my sissy's baby due in April.

SO as you can see I have kept busy busy with many many projects, I know I have more to work on, but one at a time.......

Pick-A-Pocket-PROJECT UPDATES

So I have spent the last 2 days at my moms. Doing what you might ask? well first off canning....Salsa, we got a wild hair to can salsa. So last night, I came home smelling of garlic, and when I rubbed my eyes, ohh the burn from the jalapenos that I had cut up earlier. OUCH! I must say my aroma would keep any blood sucking creature away, well at least my hubby anyways. LOL

Well today, we finished up the table cloth and runner for my cafe table for the kitchen, and re-covered the 2 chairs to it as well. I am putting all the final touches on my kitchen, I will post pictures of the whole completed project very soon.

After completing that project, I started on a 6 pocket bag/purse. I got the idea from the BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS "Quilts and More" magazine Fall 2008 edition and my mother. It is a very simple purse to make.

Here is what the finished purse looks like.
The pattern is very simple choose 3 different types of material. I chose a very cute green/blue turtle print for the inside ( I LOVE TURTLES), the outside I chose a green print that looks similar to a tortoise shell, and for the purse straps a blue water-like print. Isn't it just darn cute? I can't stop looking at it. I already have material selected to make several more, I think this will be a GIFT project I will work on. Where are the pockets? Well when the straps are sewed on, it divides the sides into 3 pockets to use to put stuff in. The top closes with a simple snap. I had lots of fun making it. I also took left over material and cut out 4 turtles to embellish each side of my bag, they were super easy to put on with fusible backing, it is a backing you iron on, then you iron on the patch to whatever you want it on. I did both sides with a green and blue turtle.


IT WAS LOADS OF FUN!!!!