November Days . . .

Here's the monthly breakdown. . .

1 crochet blanket completed
1 book read
6 birthdays
1 anniversary
52 miles run
3 basketball games
1 state band competition
2 Thanksgiving holiday celebrations

The baby blanket above is one I made for a co-worker and ex-student of mine.
After finishing this blanket, I remembered why I don't make huge granny square blankets.  They always twist and turn on me.  I soaked this blanket in water, stretched it out and let it dry.  After I laundered it and let it air dry, it still turned on me.  I pinned it down and set to steam blocking it.  Same thing.  Sighhhhhhh. . . Hopefully after a few washes it will soften up and relax.  One good thing to come from the project was I learned a new stitch--the reverse single crochet.  Easy peasy to do and it adds a nice rope-like finish to the edge.

Well this is all I have time for today! Thanks for popping in!!!

September/October Days . . .

The latest sign outside of my art room

The breakdown . . .

Numerous volleyball games
Fair
Numerous cross country meets
One hair cut
2 trips to Corpus Christi
2 trips to Sugarland
1 trip to Houston
3 books read
1 crochet blanket finished
1 Halloween Carnival
2 Rotary Meetings
57 miles run (Only 9 in October ughhhhhhh)
Umpteen days of yearbook pictures
2 send offs (XC and Band)
Got a fitbit . . .will add up those steps later :)
1 new blog thereddeskartroom.blogspot.com


With school back in full swing, and my learning two new jobs, it's been quite busy for me. I started up a new blog for my art classes and have been doing fairly well at keeping up with what's going on in the art room.  October is always a crazy month for me.  Our local fair keeps me busy with both girls having animal projects, working the auction, working the food booth, etc.  We all do, and we are all worn out for days afterward!!  Our local Halloween Carnival is, of course, this month.  Many things are going on in school with games, pictures, art contests, it leaves little time for much else.  I am happy to say, however, that things seem to be slowing down, I've gotten in a little hooky time and that brings me such peace :)

I had two weeks to get a blanket crocheted for our carnival to be used as a raffle prize.  I started on a blanket and realized despite working on it every spare minute I had, there was no way I would finish a blanket in two weeks with everything else going on in my life, so . . .

I switched gears and pulled these little squares out of their resting place.  (Thank the good Lord for WIPs!!)

You might remember these little squares that started out as a baby blanket . . .

Well . . . no baby blanket any more!!  I ended up completing 12 of these squares and then I added two more rounds to each.  Here are some of them . . . 

Not quite completed, but you get the idea . . .

I joined the squares using a yarn that was a pretty close match to the stylecraft I've gotten accustomed to using in a pretty cream color.

I added several more rounds and finished it off with a pom-pom edge.  I'm sad to say that in my hurry to get the blanket finished, laundered, and to the carnival, I failed to snap a picture of the final product!!!!  At least I have this . . .

So, I'm making a valiant effort to blog on my personal blog a bit more than I have been.  Do check out my other blog if you're interested!

Glad you stopped in AND there was something new for you to check out :) Happy Fall!!!

August Days . . .

A busy month. . .haven't they all been!!

Back to school

1 wedding

1 birthday

2 weeks of inservice

1 hair appointment

2 volleyball tournaments

2 volleyball games

1 new blog thereddeskartroom.blogspot.com

1 crochet blanket completed

54.4 miles jogged/walked

It feels like forever since I last posted anything.  Work has kept me busier than anything, plus running the youngest to and from cheer practice, volleyball practice, and numerous other things!  Eldest drives, so she can take care of herself for the most part.  

I will get back on track once I get in the groove at work with picture taking and getting in some hooky time.  Until then, venture over to the new blog to check out the goings on in the art room at school!

Happy September!!  Fall will be here before we know it and I CAN'T WAIT!!!

A Crocheter's Jackpot

Good Afternoon!  I actually have a little time to blog today and want share a project I just finished lastnight and a goldmine of goodies I came into a week ago.  First, here is a finished baby blanket that resulted from my find . . .

I love it!! It is now on my dining room table soaking wet with straighter edges than you see here.

A week ago . . .

I got a call from a friend of mine who had cleaned out her mother's crafty stashes.  She knew I was of a yarny sort and offered all things yarn related to me: yarn, crochet hooks, knitting needles, books, you name it. Of course, I wasn't about to turn down her offer!

When I picked up the lot, it was in several boxes, old comforter bags, totes, so I set to organizing it.  I found quite a lot!

I gave all of the kitting needles, books, and knitted works in progress to my eldest daughter, along with a super cute wicker basket to store it in.  Above is what I kept.

Found amongst the yarn and what not, was a blanket almost completed (the stripey bit up top the size of a twin bed) and granny squares.  There were enough granny squares for two blankets:  one baby size, and the other, a lap size when finished.

This isn't all of the yarn, but a sampling of what there was.  I was familiar with the Red Heart yarn and the Lion's brand and some others in the mix, but not Deborah Norville or Vanna yarns.  There were also some really pretty hand died skeins of super soft alpaca.  Yummy!!

I set forth laying out the squares I could join to finish up whatever this project was intended to be.  Jerry (the crocheter of these squares) makes her squares differently than I do: looser, using different yarn, and a much bigger hook.  I ended up using an "I" sized hook to join the squares.  It took no time to join them all together into a super cute blanket.  It was kind of neat to take someone else's handy-work and make it mine. Now I've got a sweet little blanket ready to give!

Thanks, Jerry . . .

Four Square Granny Square

Just dropping in to show what I started working on today.  At the beginning of summer, I had a goal of completing two baby blankets before the start of the school year.  I finished one back in June and have been knocking around a few ideas as to what I wanted to do for the second.  I decided that I loved my sampler blanket so much, I would make a smaller version of it.  So far this is what I've come up with.  I will need to complete 8 more of these squares and then join them all together.  Rather than using black as the joining color (which I tried, but didn't like--it's for a baby after all!!) I've decided to use various colors.  I will keep you updated!!

Have a terrific Thursday!!!

July Days . . .

Can you believe July has come and gone!!!
Here's my July break down. . .

1 GT workshop
Celebrated Independence Day
1 trip to DFW airport to pick up eldest
1 luncheon with a very good friend
1 EC-12 art state test (which I passed yeah!!!)
1 wedding
1 birthday (mine :)
Parents anniversary
2 trips to Comfort
2 dentist appointments
1 eye dr. appointment
2 books read
42.1 miles run

It seems summer just started and now it's already coming to a close!  I have one week left of my summer break before I return to school and embark on my first year as an art teacher.  I've been spending much of my free time working on cleaning and organizing my room and am anxious to get going.  I wish I had taken some before pictures, but I think the afters will suffice.  I'll be working on that blog post shortly.

Much of the month has been spent traveling it seems, and taking care necessary things before the school year begins.  Already next week, volleyball for my oldest begins and cheer camp for the youngest.

Here are some pics from some projects I worked on in July as well as some others to simply document the month!

I worked on some bunting for my classroom earlier in the month.  Just yesterday I crocheted them together to hang.  More pictures can be found on my Instagram.

 

This bag was a joy to make.  I've been carrying it around on occasion and getting some nice complements.  The pattern details can be found HERE.

Meet Mabelline!!!  She was born on July 18th.  In this picture she is a few hours old.  Her mom did not survive the birth which is no surprise considering how BIG this girl is!  We brought her home in the backseat of my husbands truck.  Yes, the backseat.  I rode in the back with her.  She is almost two weeks old now and she is beautiful! We named her Mabelline because she looks like she's wearing a ton of eye make-up.  You can even see that perfect "wing" on that upper lash!

We popped a few fireworks to celebrate the forth with our youngest.  Pesky mosquitoes were out so it was a short lived celebration but enjoyable all the same.

Enjoy what's left of summer!!

Yarny Tote

Morning All!

I've been working the last few days on something I've been putting off for over a year now--a yarny tote!

Originally, I planned to up-cycle this thrift store find with deep red crochet roses.  After spending an hour making three roses and knowing I was going to need tons more, I gave up on the idea.  The roses found another home, and the bag, well, it just hung out in my closet.  This week I decided to give it another go and I am so happy with the results!!

Here's what I did.

I started out making sunburst granny squares following THIS  pattern from the Bunny Mummy Blog. It is a fantastic photo tutorial I have used before. I just love it!  I would lay out the squares onto the tote as I went to get a gauge as to how many squares I needed.  I ended up making 30 squares and I joined them as I went using THIS join as you go method found on the Attic24 Blog--another favorite of mine.  

At this stage, I added two granny stripes on each of the longer sides to finish and neaten up those edges. The first stripe was easy as I just tied on my yarn and started making that little granny triplet of double crochets in each space.

Once I had the blue stripe on each side, I added a red stripe.  This one wasn't hard to add, but I had to think about what I was doing to make it even and visually pretty!

I tied on my yarn in the space between the first two double crochets.

I then chained five.  My thinking was the first three would count as 1 double crochet and the remaining 2 chains would account for the the yarn space needed to get me to the opening between those two granny clusters.

I figured right and just crocheted away.  When I got to the end, I used the same logic as in the beginning but in reverse.  I crocheted that last granny cluster, chained 5 and then slip stitched between the last two double crochets.

Once this was all done, I was ready to sew the crochet piece to my bag.  I settled in at the dining room table with the bag, crochet, needle, and thread and started sewing the crochet to the top of the bag.

My bag is an  L.L.  Bean woven purse found at the local Goodwill store for $7.00!  The weave of the bag made it easy to sew on the crochet piece.

Once I sewed the crochet all the way around, I  sewed up the side making sure to match up stripes and squares.  To do this, I folded over the crochet piece so that the wrong side was facing out and I used needle and thread to sew it up.

Hopefully this shows what I mean by what I just typed!!

After this was done, I contemplated how to tack down the bottom of the purse.  I first decided to add another round of granny clusters to finish off and neaten up what I had sewn together and then decided I wanted to go ahead and cover the bottom.  Again, I put my thinking cap on to figure what to do.  With no results, tired eyes, and a sore back from hunching over that table, I went to bed!

When I woke up, it dawned on me. . . decrease, decrease, DECREASE!!!!  Probably not a novel idea, but it was for me.  After a cup of coffee I got started.

I began by tying on my yarn and instead of starting with a granny cluster, I did what I call a decrease. It's the same method I use when adding that first row of edging to a granny blanket.  The method can be found HERE.  Again, I have to credit Bunny Mummy Blog for this.

This just shows the steps I took, but it is explained very well in BM Blog.

I slip stitched at the end of the row and fastened off.

I followed the same method for each round making sure to start a new round in a new location:  I did a decrease at the beginning, crocheted around, slip stitched and fastened off.  In the picture below you can see the blue decrease is in the upper left hand corner and the yellow decrease is in the upper right hand corner.  That's what I mean be starting in different places.  After a few rounds, the bottom wasn't "closing" as much as I wanted it to, so I went on decrease overload.

This is what the bottom ended up looking like.  Once I started with the purplish yarn I crocheted a decrease, 2 normal granny clusters, a decrease, 2 normal, etc. until I made the round.  That still wasn't doing what I wanted SO the next round I decreased every other cluster.  I was getting there!  The LAST round I made I decreased every time and it pulled everything taut and did exactly what I wanted.  Knowing what I know now, I would decrease more each round instead of saving for the end.

I finished off the top of the bag by tying on the red.  Between each cluster I made a single crochet, chained three, single crochet, all the way around. 

I did this twice which is what's shown above, except on the second round, the single crochet was made in the previous chain, then chain three, single crochet, and so on.  No idea why the picture is sideways. . . .or why my forefinger looks really fat. . .

On this last round, I did bring the yarn around the handles of the bag to add a little bit more security.

And that was that!!

I am super pleased with how this tote turned out!  I'm proud that I worked through some obstacles and figured out how to fix what, a year ago, would have frustrated me into tossing another unfinished project in the closet!

Happy Crocheting!!!   

June Days . . .

Here's June's Breakdown . . .

1 High School Graduation

1 trip to Texas A&M for 4H Round-up

1 GT workshop

3 trips out with the kayaks

1 drive to DFW International Airport

Father's Day

1 shopping trip

1 haircut

1 crochet blanket completed

3 books read

50.7 miles run

It seems ages since I last blogged.  June has not been a restful month for me/us.  I thought once school was out it would be, but no!  I blogged earlier about the change in my job description.  I have spent numerous hours over the last few weeks studying anything art related.  I went through three different books covering history, artists, mediums, methodology.  I'm exhausted!  On top of that, I've spent a great deal of time at school cleaning out what will be my art room.   It's been hard work some days sorting through cabinets, shelves and other nooks and crannies, but I can see progress. Maintenance is painting the room today, so my next trip up I will be able to arrange the tables and make sense of the space.

I have managed some time with my family.  Father's day was spent spending time with both my dad and my father in law.  

We have taken the kayaks out a few times this month.  How utterly peaceful it is on the water; sometimes it's a little spooky--the quiet and what lies beneath the surface.  It's shark week now, but it's not sharks I fear.  It's alligators!

June flew by and I'm sure July will as well; however, I'm thinking since I have slowed down now, maybe time will too??????

Have a great week!

Drawstring Rag Bag REDO!!!

WARNING!!  Before you attempt this, DON"T!!! Read the entire blog and then go ahead and attempt it!!  Eye-yie-yie!!  What a sewing project this turned out to be and it should have been easy!!! I will be sticking to hooking after this!  Not really, but, ugh . . .  Everything written  in red was added after I laundered this item and began to insert the drawstring.

Summer is a great time for me to try new projects, be creative and, you know, make stuff!

I like quick projects when I have other things going on, and after completing my Sunny Baby Granny Blanket, I sewed up some quilted rag letters as another gift.  The problem is I had nothing to put them in.  I thought about crocheting a basket and decided against that.  I wanted the letters to be more of a portable toy, so  . . . I searched Pinterest for ideas and came across several patterns for drawstring bags.  Not being the best at following sewing patterns, I ventured to make my own :0

Here is a somewhat step by step version of what I did.  There are a couple of things I would do a little differently, but this is what I did this time.

I started out cutting 4 12" squares.  2 pieces for the outside of the bag and 2 pieces for the lining.

The colored polka dot fabric is the lining and the white minky fabric is for the outside of the bag. I took one front panel and one back panel and placed them wrong sides together.  I did this for each "side."  I then sandwiched them together with the linings facing each other and sewed one seam down the side.

I then opened it up like a book with the right sides facing me.  Next, I cut the seam with pinking shears.

This is what gives the bag that rag effect.  On top of this, I placed a strip 4" x 24" across the top of the soon to be bag. The strip is placed wrong side up.  This will make a pocket to house the ribbon I will use as the drawstring and closure for the bag.

I sewed the seam there where my pins are.  My next step was to fold the strip an inch onto itself and then fold that down to make the pocket and also make a neat seam.  This photo is the after, but hopefully it shows what I mean with the folds.  I then used my pinking shears to cut the fabric away and to help create that raggy edge.

Once I got to this stage, I closed the book, sewed the bottom shut, and made my way around the last side. I stopped sewing when I got to the bottom of my drawstring pocket.  

I trimmed the remaining edges with my pinking shears and then when needle and thread I tacked the upper corner of the pocket.

After a quick wash and dry, I added the ribbon drawstring.began to insert a chain I crocheted out of cotton.  I got part way around the pocket and noticed a seam.  I thought to myself. "Self, you sewed through the pocket!!!  The chain can't get through!"  How frustrated I was.  I decided I would "fix" the problem.  I turned the bag inside out, folded the pocket over, and sewed around.  

So the inside became the outside and the outside became the inside.  No more rag bag :(

You want to know the real kicker?!  Upon closer inspection after I did this, the pocket WASN'T sewn through!!  It would have worked just fine had I not had my head on backwards!!  It will still hold the cute little rag letters, but I think I will save this little bag for me and start over on a new one. Then again, I may just crochet up a little drawstring bag for them.  That sounds safer :) 

Maybe I shouldn't have stopped midway through to get a manicure??????

Nahhhhhhh!!!!!!!