Crocheted Creation - Diaper Bag

Unfortunately, this will be lacking in some pictures. Like I think I only have one "in between" except for the final eff up. Anywaaaaay, my good friend Mandy is pregnant (due date in four weeks, eeeeee!) and back when I learned of her knocked-up status, I told her I wanted to get her a diaper bag. Super nice friend, right? Yea, I'm a super AWESOME friend, but not one with HUNDREDS of dollars to spend on a dang bag! And those were on sale.... Soooo then I almost made her a star blanket . Like to the point that we picked out super cute colors and everything!

But why do that? Why make something she KNOWS I'm making for baby Emeline? So I decided to surprise her. And of course waited until the last minute. And little did I know this project would take a REALLY good amount of time. But dang it, I promised her a diaper bag, and I was going to deliver! So out of, I think, the THREE patterns on ravelry that were for crochet, had a picture, and were free, there was thank God ONE that didn't look like yarn took a giant poo. And it was this one: http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/HookedBags.html#materialsMenu

And here is the picture I had to go off of, so you can giggle at some of the mistakes that I made along the way... like the first one being gauge. I was CLOSE to the gauge they wanted. But had to make my own measurements for half of the things after I got the first sides done to make everything work. Oops? Ah well.

SUPER cute right? So in love ♥

So yes. Awesome. I really had no idea how LONG it would take to make two big sides, two pockets for those, a long gusset (and yes, this is the pattern where I learned just what a gusset was. Who knew?!), pockets for the sides, and handles, all doing single crochet, double crochet, single crochet, double crochet..... But it was worth it! Seeing everything start to come together was so great! 

Soon, I was done the sides, pockets, and gusset. Time to start on the handles!!!

We all saw from the pattern picture that the handles are different colors, right?... Yea.... I guess I was a little purple hungry (that was the main color (MC) for this project. The contrast color (CC) was green. So yaaaay I'm DONE the major crocheting! I made the handles! And then I swore. A lot. I mean lots of profanity. Then I learned a fun pinterest tip of using a clothes pin for spare yarn, so I took apart and used on to roll up the rest of the purple yarn from the handles! And I began it in green! Yes, no other way to screw up! I make it, put it all together, and I'm grinning because I'm so happy I made it! It felt weird to hold it the way the handles were, but no biggy, I'm sure it was meant to be that way........

Effffffffffffff

Ok one, ignore the fact that it doesn't have a button yet. That was the last thing I needed! Then I FINALLY realized that I had done the handles wrong. While they were SUPPOSED to just be one length curved up and then back down on the same side, I made one handle go one side straight back to the other. I was MAD. Either way, thank God it was easy to actually unsew it and redo it! An hour or so later, and thankfully with a cute green button, the final project emerged! She liked it, and I hope she realizes that she can throw it in the washer and dryer and it'll come out just as awesome (or it should. I really shouldn't jinx myself on this.)

And that's that :) As much as it takes forever to make, I'm so excited with the simplicity of the pattern and how well it turned out! I can't wait to make another for the next close friend whose eggo gets preggo. :)

Crocheted Creation - Star Blanket

So, a couple years ago, I found the cutest star blanket pattern ever! I loved it! And then I made it. And either the pattern never told me to decrease even time you're in the middle or something, but it was a messed up dead starfish creation. I had my cats sleep on it. And was very ashamed.

But alas, one must move on and try to improve! So I found a non-granny-square-like version of it, called "Beth's Little Star Afghan". A little harder to start off, but my GOODNESS did I like the results! But the cats already had their shameful dead sea star, so I made this one for a friend back up in DC who has what one might called, oh, an OBSESSION for objects with five points.

Tada! (please don't mind the fact that the points are cut off. Turns out I was wobbly standing on another part of the couch. Whoops? Alas, it still makes me smile so shush)

Yay! A star shape! A pretty star shape that I wish gave magical powers like in Mario and came with reallllly fast music when you touched/magically absorbed it into your skin! Alas, just a regular star shaped blanket. I'm pretty sure SHE used this as a blanket for her kitties too! (loves stars and cats, she's pretty awesome).

So even, after washing the shameful blanket enough, I REALLY needed to make a new one. I had used different scrap yarn, so the orange got realllly poofy, the blue looked withered... it was just bad. So I decided it was time to make the kittehs a special, actually from the heart and not from shame star blanket. And how I LOVE it! Even though it doesn't match the decor in the living room at all (eventually I'll make it ALL work), I love love LOVE the colors I chose. I wash it with the lights every week to keep it clean for kittehs, and they love to sleep on it! So alas, a kitteh and blanket montage for your entertainment...

The finished project! Yay!

Peaches kept bugging me to finish it already!

Gizmo's favorite spot to look cute while she's plotting evil schemes with her mustache.

Cuteness, right? 

Next up: well for the star, one to match the decor or one for a baby shower or something. Besides that, I'm working on Christmas Stockings right now! So I'll post about the diaper bag awesomeness for a great friend I already miss dearly, then eventually the hilariousness that will be stockings when I've never made them before and half the pattern has me going, "Ahhh, what? Isn't this supposed to be on the easy scale?!"

-Em-

Crocheted Creation - 4th of July Placemats

Pinterest  basically rocks my world. Just browsing, I happened upon a picture of amazing place settings! So iIfollowed the link to the FREE pattern here, ran out to Michael's and got the yarn! First off, you DEFINITELY need about twice as much blue yarn as red and white. Just an FYI. Also, the pattern is for two settings. I wanted four, so I had to double everything! The stars were tricky to understand the pattern at first, but then I made tons and would LOVE to use just the star pattern to make a mobile or something when I have a babers. Or maybe a cool abstract art thing on a canvas with blowdried crayons????? Ahhh, the ideas!  Anywho, here are some pictures! 

The first set of two I made!

An artsy close up :)

Oh falling stars, how I love you!

For the actual 4th of July, I ended up gettinng white napkins and a white tablecloth (harder than I thought to find for my small dinging room table) and put two settings on the table and two on our bar counter in the kitchen. They were a success! Woot!

DIY Creation 2 - Entertainment Center

A friend of mine posted a picture on Facebook of an old dresser she and her husband transformed into an extertainment center. So clearly I wanted to try! We needed something bigger for our TV anyway, so it was worth the shot! Here's the original dresser:

We took out the top drawers (that look like two drawers, but it's really one!) to start. Bought primer, paint, paint brushes, rollers, tarps, all that good redecorating stuff! We also had to buy a piece of plywood to put on the top of the middle drawers. After a couple coats of primer, paint, and painfully waiting almost a week to make sure it's REALLY dry, it was almost ready! Just one more step... drawer liners! With a little wrapping paper and TONS of Modge Podge, I had beautifully lined drawers! Slightly crooked since everything was too big and some were tilted, but hey, they're closed most of the time. :-p Here is the finished project, followed by what it looks like in action!

Open...

Closed...

In action! We LOVE it!

DIY Creation 1 - Bottle Cap Trays

I have taken a new fancy to not just looking through Pinterest items and dreaming of what I could do with random items in my home, but actually completing some items! This first post is for my bottle cap trays, which Pinterest and other crafty ladies had nothing to do with, actually! 

I was beginning to notice that the wooden trays I purchased at Target a couple years ago had taken a beating. Water stains, other random marks and scrapes. So I decided it was time to fix these with my Crazy Pack Rat Lady amount of beer bottle caps we had. The first one has our last initial at the focal point... in my hubby's favorite beer, of course :)

The next one is much more recent. After making some AWESOME patriotic place settings, I was inspired with my next creation! Why not do a FLAG?! So I did :)

The first time I had the "D" in there, I didn't glue each bottle cap in place. Bad idea. It looked just weird after a few months. So I redid it, just did a little bit of Elmer's in between the caps as I laid them down, and now they're stuck there! The tops are just thick plexiglass we got cut to size at Lowe's epoxied on the sides to seal it in! Here they are together (haha one with flash, one without, couldn't decide which I liked the best!)

50 Qs 9-12

To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?

I don't believe I have any control. Which is weird. Because I looooove control. There have been too many factors that have been coincidence or an act of God, that I can't say it was because of me. And I'm beginning to really love that :)

Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?

I think they're one in the same. I try to do the right things right! But overall, I'm more worried about doing the right things.

You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?

Tell them to STFU. After letting them spill. Hey, they made me feel awkward, I'll do the same! But I'm going to let them finish so I can defend my friend, and let them know what they said that was wrong.

If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?

Take your time growing up. Childhood is over before you know it!

50 Qs 5-8

What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?

War. Life would be so much easier without it! And I guess with that, I'd like all diplomacy to work and no reason to START any wars!

If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?

Working around animals. No doubt in my mind!

Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?

Kind of a mix of both. I don't know yet (still!) what I'd want to make a career, so I'm making my own spending money (I believe in doing that if possible) and supporting my husband in his endeavors (definitely not settling there!)

If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?

Ummm.... maybe have babies sooner??? I would probably try to succeed faster in life in some areas. And maybe would have created a bit less debt so that it wouldn't fall onto family members when I would die early.