PlanetJune Christmas CAL

There is a new CAL going on! Anyone who's been following my blog for a while knows how much I love CALs. Love to watch lots of people make the same things and see how everyone makes it different, plus it gives me extra motivation to make something that's not my own. A kick in the butt, you might say :) Now it's time to make Christmas stuff. Yay, my favorite holiday! 

June has been somewhat disappointed by all the people who's taken advantage of her CAL discounts and then never finished anything, so this time it will be a little different. She has several Christmas patterns, some of which are free, and we are free to choose which ones to make. One or all of them :) Then, after the CAL ends on Christmas Eve, the participants can win prizes! Gift certificates and/or free patterns, I think :) Read more about the rules HERE.

I plan to make a Christmas tree or two, as soon as I've finished a few holiday patterns of my own :)

Pumpkins!

Here are two pumpkins I've made over the last few days. The small one is for PlanetJune's Fall CAL, and the big one is for Itsy Bitsy Spider's Pumpkin Patch CAL. 

I almost couldn't finish them because of wrist pain, but I only had the stems left, and I decided to do them anyway. Carefully, and only one stem a day :) I think the pain (beginning tendonitis) is because I've mostly been tatting for a long time now, and the sudden and intense crocheting was suddenly very straining on my wrists...

PlanetJune's pumpkin is crocheted with a lovely soft acrylic yarn (Idena Twins, now unfortunately discontinued) and crochet hook 4.5mm. The pattern was easy to follow and the pumpkin could easily be made in a few hours :) I had plans for making a couple of the Pocket Amis as well (the witch and ghost), but because of my wrists I think I'll be satisfied with just the pumpkin. I would really love to make more of those and line them up in the window for Halloween :) We'll see how it goes... The big pumpkin was crocheted with the same bulky wool yarn I use for my Great Big Bugs, also with a 4.5mm hook:

This pumpkin could easily be mistaken for an ordinary pumpkin, albeit a very pale one... Let me tell you that he is not :)

This is Archie. He is a very special little albino pumpkin who needs glasses because his eyesight is a little poor. He feels like all the other pumpkins are looking at him and teasing him for his glasses. Not cool! If anything, glasses make you smarter, and your nose doesn't look so naked :) Archie is a really sweet little guy who's going to be an ophthalmologist when he grows up. He has one really good friend, and they stick together like - well - pumpkins! 

Have a good weekend, and don't make fun of people (or pumpkins) with glasses! :) (In case you are wondering - yes, I was inspired by this post..)

CALs and give-aways and stuff

First of all, I really need to thank Greenpixey for the lovely prize I won from her give-away in July. Thank you! What I won was a little heart shaped tin of mint candy to give to my boyfriend :) 

Also in the package was a surprise that I decided was just for me :p A yummy bar of milk chocolate! It was gone within minutes, hihi :)

The package arrived several weeks ago, but I waited to post about it since the mints were going to be a surprise, and I'm not sure whether my bf reads my blog or not. And then, of course, I forgot... I remembered to post about it now because my boyfriend came home from the library the other day and gave me the empty tin to keep little treasures in :)

I'm currently participating in another give-away that (hopefully) has not ended yet. At Artikaur's blog you can enter to win a ball of pretty blue crochet/tatting thread:

I think the give-away will end in a few hours (some time after midnight in my time). Hope I win - my thread stash is not big enough yet! Perhaps it never will be...? :p

So, the CALs... Well, I never got any further on my alpaca for PlanetJune's summer CAL :( I feel really bad that I got the pattern cheaper than I normally would, and then I never had time to make it... The CAL has now ended, and you can see all the finished alpacas and violets HERE.

Finally, there's a new CAL that's just about to start - a halloween themed fall CAL at Itsy Bitsy Spider (who also hosted the Great Owl CAL earlier). This time we're making pumpkins :) 

We are to decorate the pumpkins however we want, and at the end there will be a contest with a prize. Whoever makes the coolest pumpkin wins! I have to concrete ideas for my pumpkin yet, but I'll come up with something as I crochet along :)

Two CALs and a "feature" :)

As you may have noticed by the links in my right sidebar I'm participating in two CALs this summer :) I've already shown you the beginning of my owl for Itsy Bitsy Spiders Great Owl Crochet-along. I finished the owl a while ago, and I made even more changes to the little bird: added embroidered eyelashes and feathers on the belly :)

Now the crocheting part of the Owl CAL is over (it ended on Sunday, I think), but there is going to be a swap with some of the finished owls. Signing up for the swap was optional, so I'm keeping my owl, but I really enjoy seeing lots of different owls together :) Click HERE to see Karla's post about the birds. Makes me want to make lots more owls and have them roosting on a shelf in my apartment :) I'm sure Bollan wouldn't mind! Speaking of The Great Boll: she was actually mentioned in a blog post along with my owl for the CAL :) She's so proud! Even Bollan's own blog was mentioned :) We are both very grateful to be featured on Itsy Bitsy Spider's blog!

You see, The Itsy Bitsy Spider has this Flickr group where people are encouraged to post their latest finished crochet projects, and she will then pick some of them once a week to be featured on her blog. You can read more about this HERE. Ooh, and guess what, I've been featured again! With my Great Big Dung Beetle :) 

Thank you very much for your kind words about my Bug, I really appreciate it! Bollan and I are both very happy :D

The second CAL I'm in is PlanetJune's Summer CAL, where you can crochet either alpacas or a pot of African Violets. I am of course making the alpaca! I've started the CAL a little late, because I was so sure my mother had some alpaca yarn in her stash, but I couldn't find it (not in the right colors, anyway - unless I want to make a blue one!), so today I finally went out and bought a ball of lovely light brown alpaca yarn :) Expensive, though... So far I've made the ears, muzzle and head, and was ready to assemble the face, but then I discovered that I don't have suitable safety eyes :( I have the right size, but the posts are both too thick and too long (and too hard to cut off), so I'll have to come up with a different solution... No pictures of the alpaca yet, but I'll post some as soon as I've made some real progress - I have until August 31st to finish it :)

So far, so good :)

I've started my owl for Itsy Bitsy Spider's CAL! Finished the head yesterday :)

I made a few changes to the eyes: worked two rounds of black (instead of black and another color) and an extra round of green to make the eyes a little bigger, plus I added white dots to give it some life. I think it worked :)

Sunshine whales :)

Today's the last day of PlanetJune's Spring crochet-along, and I've finally finished a little herd of tiny whales :) I don't know why, but the yellow whale turned out a little smaller than the other two, even though I used the same yarn & hook...

I originally planned to make seven or eight tiny whales, one in every color of the rainbow, but time escaped me, and I only had time to make these three. So instead of Rainbow whales they became Sunshine whales :D 

Maybe I'll make the last four (or three, since I only have one shade of purple) later, but for now Bollan is happy playing with three of them :)

New crochet-along :)

A while ago The Itsy Bitsy Spider announced on her blog that she wanted to host a crochet-along with one of her patterns. People voted, and the pattern we're making is the Owl :)

So, a couple of days ago the CAL was officially announced, and the first 10 people to sign up would get the owl pattern for free (it would otherwise cost 2$). I was number five, so I got a free pattern, yay :D But there's more! She has now decided that anyone who signs up by May 30th will get a free copy of the pattern :)

There will be tips and tutorials for crochet and amigurumi beginners, and at the end (in September if I remember correctly) there will be an optional swap with all the finished owls. There is also a new Flickr group to share pictures of works in progress and completed owls. Sign up today and start crocheting :D

Spring crochet-along!

There is a new crochet-along at PlanetJune, the creator of the cute groundhog you may have seen earlier this year. For this CAL you can chose between two different crochet patterns, a daffodil and a tiny whale. Both patterns are free! 

The CAL last until the end of May, so there is lots of time to make a bouquet of daffodils or an army of whales :)

Read more about the CAL on PlanetJune's blog or Ravelry group. There is also a Flickr group for amigurumi made from PlanetJune's patterns, where tou can add pictures of your finished creations if you don't have a Ravelry account.

Groundhog Day!

Today, February 2nd, is the day when the groundhogs come out of their burrows and check out whether spring is coming soon or not. If they can see their shadow, it will be six more weeks of winter. If there's no shadow, spring is upon us :)

My crocheted groundhog for the Groundhog-along went out in the snow this morning, and there was only the teeniest hint of a shadow, so his prediction is an early spring. It has to be said that if he hadn't been in our backyard, he would have had a big shadow, since the sun was shining everywhere else. So, what to make of it, I wonder? I think I'm hoping for an early spring anyway :)

The picture looked okay on my computer at home, but on this library computer it's very dark, so I hope you can se anything... Here's a picture with flash, just in case, but it gives him a shadow and messes with the prediction, so it doesn't really count!

Figs, anyone?

Well, of course I couldn't keep away from the 100 Flowers book either, and just had to try out a couple of patterns. A nice break from studying for my Latin test yesterday (which I think went well, by the way). I made a fig leaf and a fig (also made a ginkgo leaf, but haven't photographed it yet).

The fig leaf was actually pretty difficult to make up, because you don't crochet all the lobes the same way on the same round. You're supposed to make first three lobes, then crochet down the middle of the leaf (from the top to the stem), turn, and then make the last two lobes. Then you fasten off, re-attach the yarn by the stem and crochet the second round. That the last half of the first round has the back facing forward doesn't really show on the finished leaf (it's the two pointing down/left on the pictures), but I don't see why I couldn't finish the first round in one go, and then continue with round two without breaking the yarn. You just end up with four yarn ends instead of two... And on top of that, the leaf is sort of split open down the middle, so you have to stitch that up as well.

The fig itself was an easier pattern to follow, except that the book (which is English) suddenly switches to American terms in the written directions. However, if you look at the picture, it seems that the chart is correct. The whole thing is worked in double crochet, but I think it probably should have been hdc, because the stuffing really shows through the stitches, even after I tried to fix it with a yarn end :/

Oh, and look, my groundhog has arms! We are moving forward :)

Squares again

Okay, so I finally decided to switch the colors around on the squares, and here is the result. I'm quite pleased that I did it, I'd hate to do it in a few months when I have made loads of new squares. Anyway, here are some granny squares of my own design for the blanket, with the color scheme complete:

And a photo without flash, in case that shows the colors better:

Well, now I'm taking a break from the squares to work on the groundhog, hope to have him finished this weekend. After all, Groundhog Day isn't that far away :)

Eyes & granny squares

Got my latest order of safety eyes in the mail today, albino eyes in two sizes, and a color called 'blue pearl'. Not sure why, they are more silvery gray than blue, but with a pretty pearly shimmer. Now I'm ready to make albino groundhogs and husky dogs :)

About my granny square blanket project, I have finally decided to invert the colors and make two squares of each pattern with the same two colors. This is what I've got so far, three different patterns in four different color combinations:

I have (unfortunately?) found a new color combination of light blue and moss/pale green. That way I will get a total of ten squares of each pattern, and that makes at least 120 squares by the end of the year :) The only thing I'm unsure about is whether I should change the colors of the new combination with one of the old (if that made any sense). These two, perhaps?

I just fear that the new combo will make a distinctly paler square that stands out from the rest, so if I use the light blue with the green, and the moss green with the blue.  My boyfriend has approved of the pale square, and he usually helps me with the colors, but I'm not sure about this one... What do you think?

Don't know whether or not to use flash, the colors are messed up either way, so here's another picture of the same squares without flash... So, do you think I should switch the colors on these two?

Flu & crochet...

In spite of my great plans of finishing projects I have done very little since my last post. I've been sick since I had the swineflu vaccine on Wednesday. Although I feel better now my shoulder is still pretty sore from the shot, and I have no energy to do much crafting. I have found that when I'm sick amigurumi takes too much concentrating and is harder on my hands than "regular" crochet, so I've mostly been making granny squares. The purple wrist warmers are finished, though, and the purple granny square bag was felted along with them. All the other bags are crocheted, just need to be felted :)

I hate what the flash does to the colors, but there's very little light in our apartment and daylight is pretty hard to come by these days, so without it the pictures would just be a big blur :/

The groundhog has grown a little (the front legs are made but not yet attached), but I've fallen a bit behind on the secret crochet-along, which is now almost over. I have only managed to do the first four parts (head, hat, legs & body):

Not very happy with the girl's backside, it's butt-ugly (pun intended), so I was kind of hoping for a dress that would cover up her "cellulites", but she's going to have a snowflake dress, so I guess I'll only have to show her from the front when she's finished :p Instead of working more on the amis I've started the Block-a-month cal on Ravelry, and these are the squares I've made so far:

The bottom squares are the 6 inch Little Dahlia square pattern for January. They aren't anywhere near 6 inches, though, more like 4. Not sure what I'm doing wrong, I use the hook size (5mm) and yarn weight that the pattern recommends, but they just come out too small. The top squares are made from this pattern from last year's crochet-along (March), and even though the pattern suggested the same yarn weight and hook as the first, they actually would be bigger, so I had to make some changes to get them the same size. *sigh* I don't get it... Anyway, as long as I can stick to the same size I guess I'll be okay :) And again, the flash messes with the colors. That yellow-looking color is actually green...

Crocheting along...

As fast as time permits :) The Secret crochet-along is now on part 3, which I haven't had time to make up yet, but here are last night's pictures of part 1 and 2 (head & hat):

The Groundhogalong is also coming along nicely. The head of the thing is finished, and it looks like it will be a very cute groundhog :) I used a safety nose instead of embroidering it on. Today or tomorrow I'll get some money, and I think I'll order some new eyes to make an albino groundhog as well! I just hope the eyes will get here in time...

I am also considering joining a block-a-month cal, a group I found on Ravelry. You basically choose between 3 different square/block patterns that are posted every month, and at the end of the year you should have enough squares to make a blanket or something. Sounds exciting :)

A new crochet-along!

I will be participating in the Groundhogalong, crocheting a super cute groundhog from the pattern by June Gilbank (PlanetJune). The cal ends on February 2nd, at Groundhog Day :) On that day the groundhogs come out of hibernation, and if they can see their own shadow, the winter lasts for another six weeks. If not, spring has arrived :)

The crochet-along has a group on Ravelry, found here, and a Flickr group found here. Buy the pattern and start crocheting :)

Happy birthday to me :)

It's my birthday today :) Well, technically it was yesterday, since it's now past midnight. I'm 27, and rapidly closing in on 30... Should I worry? I don't feel old at all, not much older than I felt 7 years ago. 

Earlier today we went for a walk at the frozen lake, and it was extremely cold. About 12 degrees freezing. I had a knitted alpaca hat, and my newly washed hair was tucked in my jacket, but the inch that was exposed actually froze stiff... 

My mother-in-law gave me some money for my birthday, and I thought I'd spend most of it on yarn in fancy colors (I need them all!). The yarn shop had a 20% discount on all yarn, so I  went a little bananas :) This is the yarn I usually use for small amigurumis, and for my granny squares:

I can also mention that I'll be participating in a crochet-along at Veronica's blog Ulliga Gulliga Saker. You find the crochet-along here. I understand it will be something like an amigurumi, but otherwise it's a secret. The pattern will be posted tomorrow, I hope. I'm so excited :)

:/

Argh... Started the panda and everything looked fine. The acrylic/wool yarn I used even brushed well. But then I discovered I didn't have enough... With the hooks I am supposed to use, I fear I will need more than three balls of yarn just for the head and body. Of course it's Saturday, and the stores are closed and will not open until Monday, so I have to try something else. So now I have started a new panda, a lot smaller this time. Since I can never bear to unravel anything I've made, I think I'll just leave him alone for now and maybe finish him later, when I can get more yarn.

So many projects, so little time...

Today I decided to join the CRAFT crochet-along and make a fuzzy panda. Sadly the CAL ends on Monday or something (haven't worked out the time difference yet), so I don't have much time :/ I have picked colors and found some yarn to use, so I guess I just have to get started.

Yesterday I went out and bought some orange yarn, so now I can finish a little something I've been working on for Halloween. I am also crocheting the turtle and a mushroom from the book by Mia Bengtsson, AND working on a couple of patterns for my Etsy shop. Finishing all this can take weeks with my efficiency, as I always start new projects before I finish the old ones. I have a thing about small body parts, I can't make more than two of them before it gets kind of boring. So I have tons of amigurumis lying around still missing arms or legs. Poor things. I think I'll have to finish them some day, when I can find some more patience.