Laura's birthday present

I thoroughly enjoyed making Laura's birthday present. However, I didn't get it mailed until around 5 weeks after her birthday. And here it is another month after that, where I am finally showing you what I made for her. I made the same letter for my front door, except with an "R" of course. The "F" is her future last name. It's a cardboard letter wrapped in twine. I came across the idea of making your own pot-holders, and really liked the fabric. Hopefully Laura will use them.

Better late than never, I guess????

Sewing time

With Kelby in finals this week... I've recently increased time with my sewing machine. I can't show one project yet, as the recipients have not received their gifts. But here is another project. I wanted to make a gift for our niece, and I wanted Kelby to have a part of it. So, Kelby helped pick out the fabric, and I sewed up our little project.

It's a child-sized apron. I think it turned out super cute, what do you think?

Shell Scarf Pattern - Crochet

Years ago, Grandma made me a crocheted blanket, using a shell pattern. I've always loved using it, and especially loved the pattern. So I decided to convert the pattern to fit a scarf. I guess I could have looked up a pattern on the internet, but instead I looked at the blanket and tried to copy it. It took me trial-and-error, and lots of stitch ripping, before coming up with a good approximation. So.... here is my first pattern! :)

- this is not detailed in terms of which type of yarn to use, or size of the crochet hook. Use what you like, and the larger the hook, the easier and faster you will go.


Shell Scarf - crochet

1st row: chain 35 stiches, turn

2nd row: slip stitch 1, single crochet in each stitch (you should have 35 total), turn

3rd row: slip stitch 1, double crochet in each of next 4 stitches (stitches 1-4)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (5-7)
             - count three stitches on your 2nd row, and in the 4th stitch, double crochet 1 (8)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (9-11)
             - double crochet in each of next 3 stitches (12-14)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (15-17)
             - count three stitches on your 2nd row, and in the 4th stitch, double crochet 1 (18)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (19-21)
             - double crochet in each of next 3 stitches (22-24)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (25-27)
             - count three stitches on your 2nd row, and in the 4th stitch, double crochet 1 (28)
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything) (29-31)
             - double crochet in each of next 4 stitches (32-35)

4th row: slip stitch 1, double crochet in each of next 4 stitches (stitches 1-4)
             - skip next three stitches (5-7), and in stitch 8, double crochet 6 stitches
                (you will see a fan shape forming)
             - skip next thee stitches (9-11), double crochet 1 in each of next 3 stitches (stitches 12-14)
             - skip next three stitches (15-17), and in stitch 18, double crochet 6 stitches
             - skip next thee stitches (19-21), double crochet 1 in each of next 3 stitches (22-24)

             - skip next thee stitches (25-27), and in stitch 28, double crochet 6 stitches

             - skip next thee stitches (29-31) 

             - double crochet in each of next 4 stitches (stitches 32-35)

5th row: slip stitch 1, double crochet in each of next 4 stitches

             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)

             - count three stitches on your previous row (this is part of the fan, therefore fan stitch 1-3),

                     BETWEEN fan stitch 3 and 4, single crochet 1

             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)

             - double crochet 1 in each of next 3 stitches

             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)

             - count three stitches in the fan, BETWEEN fan stitch 3 and 4, single crochet 1

             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)
             - double crochet 1 in each of next 3 stitches
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)
             - count three stitches in the fan, BETWEEN fan stitch 3 and 4, single crochet 1
             - slip stitch 3 (not hooking into anything)
             - double crochet 1 in each of next 4 stitches
             - (you should have 35 stitches on this row)

row 6: repeat row 4

row 7: repeat row 5

keep repeating rows 4 and 5 until the scarf is as long as you want it to be. To finish, end of a "row 5", then turn and single crochet across. You are now finished, tassels are desired!!!!! exciting!!!!

In this picture, this pattern is in the middle scarf and the scarf on the right. Can you see the shell/fan pattern?

Picture time

A Picture post for you. I've already discussed these activities, so there will be fewer words than sometimes. Picture quality isn't the greatest, as I focused more on capturing events than making great pictures. 

Craft time:

Here I am frantically working on another scarf, with both
dogs. Notice Sophie's collar, it was a happy day when she
no longer had to wear it!



For the DIY Christmas, here are 4 of the scarves

I made. From left to right, Me, Mom, Grandma,

Aunt Ann. I used two different patterns, a

Basket Weave for mine and Ann's, and a

revised Shell Stitch for mom and Grandma!





 Buying our Christmas tree:



Christmas Lights:

Our outside Christmas display, thanks to Kelby.



 Christmas Morning:

Christmas morning with TWO puppies.
They loved their new toys and treats.




Here is Sophie with her head down her Christmas
stocking, looking for more yummy treats!









Life has been busy

Sorry for the lack of attention to the blog. I know some of you have consistently checked for new postings (hi mom) so I appreciate that you haven't given up on me. My time at home as been busy, which equates to less computer/internet/blog time.

Back in November, I decided to have a partial "DIY" Christmas. Instead of buying things as presents, we bought yarn and I made lots of scarves. Now, I love to crochet, but making that many scarves with time constraints was a challenge. I believe I made 8 scarves in all. Just a few days ago, Kelby asked why he hadn't received one. So back to the craft store we went, and he helped to pick out yarn. Now I am busy again :)

Another project I worked on for a few of our relatives, was taking this blog and turning it into a book. I didn't want to just send the whole blog off to be printed, as I wanted to revise the layout to make it more book-friendly. The website I found, and Love! is called Blurb, found here. What was most helpful with this website was that I downloaded a program to the computer, formated each page with the layout of text and pictures, and decided how long I wanted the book to be. Since the price jumped up at page 41, it stayed at exactly 40 pages (have to get the most for my money.) Once I formatted it to my liking, after 6 hours one Saturday in front of the computer, I uploaded it to their website, and ordered books. They came before promised, and look AWESOME. I couldn't believe it was my pictures, and my stories, in this book. The quality was impressive, and turning into great books. It was primarily to give to my Grandma, who doesn't have access to internet :)

And since it is Christmas, Kelby and I spent time decorating the apartment. When I moved to Texas, I promised myself that I would only use real Christmas trees, and not fake, plastic ones. No offense to those who use the plastic trees, as they are more economical in the long run, and much easier to find. This is one area where for me, money isn't the first consideration. The first few years in Texas, I was super tight on money, so no tree. Starting a job full-time helped, along with Kelby's encouragement. This year, we spent a Saturday afternoon driving to, finding, chopping down, driving home, and setting up the tree. Down here, there are not many Christmas tree farms, and the selection is nominal. But we found a tree, and it's pretty! Kelby has been out of school for a few weeks, and unable to work much due to his knee, so he spent a lot of time working on christmas lights for the front balcony. He was creative, and it says "The Reeds" along with a cross and tree.

I have been spending more time reading recipes and trying out new ones, while staying within our food budget. I had 1 flop, but some yummy ones!

Sophie, our puppy, was old enough to get spade a couple of weeks ago. She was tired and sleepy the first few days, but recovered fast. During this time, she wore a cone to keep her from messing with her stomach stitches. As well, one of her duclaw's was misformed, and would have caused issues in the future. So the vet went ahead and removed both of her duclaws (the 5th digit on the side of a leg). Even with a cone on, she could reach her front paws with the stitches, so she needed to watched. She gets these stitches out tomorrow, and should be good to go!

Oh, and how could I forget. We went down to Houston to visit some of Kelby's family. We got to meet his new niece, and exchanged a few Christmas presents. And then after Christmas, my parents flew in to spend a few days with us, and to meet Sophie. I wasn't sure how mom would do with her, but everyone did great. I enjoyed watching my mom and dad play with Sophie's toys with her.

I'll add pictures once I am on the other computer. :)

Baby Shower Gift

Kelby's younger sister and brother-in-law are expecting their first child in November. I wasn't able to make it to the baby shower, but wanted to give them something personalized. So this is what I came up with. A Taggie Blanket with the baby's name (Aubrey) embroidered on one side. And three home-made balls to play with. I am really pleased with how the balls came out!

For Tennley

Good friends, far away in North Carolina just brought a baby girl into this world. This is my present to her, a handmade taggie blanket. This type of blanket some babies like because the ribbons act "tags" on toys, and babies are always putting tags into their mouth. The picture on the right is working on photography skills.

Here's the most complicated sewing project thus far. Baby bloomers!!!!! So cute :)  The size on the pattern said for 6-12 months, but I don't know if I believe it. Unfortunately, I don't have a baby close by as a model, so we just get pictures of the pants. And they look like real pants, not bad for a first time.

Sewing Machine and Cloth Wipes

Sorry for the lack of posts the past couple of weeks. Sickness, and then a long road trip with Kelby took me away from the computer.

My sewing machine arrived, with lots of pieces and a large instruction book. The first night I played with the numerous settings, winding the bobbin, and threading the needle. It self-threads, but is a little finicky.

I decided to keep it easy for my first project. A co-worker is doing cloth diapers, so I made some cloth wipes for her. After reading lots of websites, I chose cloth flannel as my fabric, patterned for one side, and one color for the other side. I used cloth flannel because I read it does the best for cleaning baby bottoms, and it was on sale at JoAnn Fabrics :) I cut lots of 8x8 squares of fabric, and then used my NEW sewing machine to sew both pieces of fabric together. I used one stitch, straight lines, and made 90 degree turns. And then I had to figure out how to use the cutting feature as well!!! FYI, 8x8 was chosen because they will fit into regular baby wipe containers.

Wonder what my next project will be????

Baby Booties

Did I grab your attention? They are not for me, but I have really enjoyed making baby booties and mittens. I started with an old sweater, cut out the patterns, and sewed them by hand. It was relaxing, fun, and has rejuvenated my interest in sewing. You can even make them tighter and looser in order to get them on or off. I made a couple sets and gave one set to a friend at work (I hope her daughter is using them).

The best part is the book I bought was only $1 and has other patterns as well. Next, I'm looking at buying a sewing maching.... super excited for all the possibilities still to come!!!

[If you are interested in a pair, let me know and we'll talk. I'm going to make a boy set next. Right now, my pattern sizes are 0-3 months, and 6-12 months, approximately]