I just finished my first child wearable! I am very proud of this piece. I got the pattern on the Lion Brand Website, click here. The directions rated this project easy....but I don't think I agree 100%. Sure, the stitch pattern is super easy...but the seaming took some time. Especially since I did not even know how. And I have never sewed a button on anything. So it was a learning experience for sure.
I was lucky enough to be shown how to seam from a sweet lady from my new knit and crochet group (I will talk about this later)
It is not the best seaming job that I have seen...but not bad for my first time. There are so many babies being born this summer into our family and neighborhood that I decided to start early on the baby gifts. I am also working on another Tiramisu blanket and some other baby outfits.
Hope you all like. I did not use the recommended yarn for this project. I used some of the skeins of Simply Soft in orchid that I had in my stash. I could not believe how much it split. I may use the Baby Soft Lion Brand yarn in pistashio for the next one. Although, my neighbor who liked it...commented on how she loved how soft the yarn was. She has an 18 month old who would look adorable in one. Hmmmm...of course I already bought the Baby Soft yarn. I am sure I will figure out something. See, I told you all in blogger world that I was working on crocheted stuff. YAY!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Looky what I made and what I got!
WARNING: image heavy
Then I had some fun making an amigurumi carrot for scrubbing carrots!!!! I think it came out cute...not bad for my first time....
I made a few interesting tawashi's for the tawashi swap. I made a scrubby out of Knit Picks Shine that reminded me of a watermelon when it was finished. Wouldn't ya know, my swap partner revealed after the swap that she loves watermelons!!! Perfect. I told her that she may want to use it as a shower scrubby since I made it out of cotton....she agreed.
Then I had some fun making an amigurumi carrot for scrubbing carrots!!!! I think it came out cute...not bad for my first time....
Then I had my hand at making some crocheted flowers....that looks like stars...
Lastly, I gave an extra treat of handmade stitch markers in a crocheted case, of course!.
And look what I got...
Fishy Tawashi and some beautiful stitch markers which I forgot to photograph ;)
Monday, April 7, 2008
Back in the saddle again....
I have been working on some crochet lately. Is it finishing the boboletta sweater??? NO.....Is it completing a promised Christmas present??? NO. I have been crocheting Tawashi. What are TAWASHIS you may ask...?
This excerpt is taken from a Ravelry.
"What’s a tawashi for? Ta-wash-i the dishes, of course!
I can hear you groaning, but my feelings are not hurt, because I know that you probably just learned a new word, and you won’t forget it anytime soon!
Tawashi is Japanese for “scrubber” or “brush”. In the stores here (Okinawa, Japan), there is usually a larger tawashi section than a dish detergent section, because part of the idea behind tawashi is that they are environmentally friendly. When made of acrylic yarn, they are quite effective even without detergent, thus reducing groundwater pollution.
Tawashi are sometimes made in the shape of the items to be cleaned: for example, a paw print or fish shape to clean the pet dishes or homes, and food shapes for use in the kitchen. Various holiday or seasonal themes are very popular as well. Some are simple squares or motifs, while others are knitted or crocheted pieces with clever assemblies, like three strips woven into a ball. There are even tawashi made that incorporate other cleaning supplies. An example of this is one of my favorites – it is a crocheted strawberry that is then attached to the bristle part of a toothbrush. Now your tawashi has a handle AND the added bonus of double scrubbing action, not to mention an increased “kawaii” factor!
I can hear you groaning, but my feelings are not hurt, because I know that you probably just learned a new word, and you won’t forget it anytime soon!
Tawashi is Japanese for “scrubber” or “brush”. In the stores here (Okinawa, Japan), there is usually a larger tawashi section than a dish detergent section, because part of the idea behind tawashi is that they are environmentally friendly. When made of acrylic yarn, they are quite effective even without detergent, thus reducing groundwater pollution.
Tawashi are sometimes made in the shape of the items to be cleaned: for example, a paw print or fish shape to clean the pet dishes or homes, and food shapes for use in the kitchen. Various holiday or seasonal themes are very popular as well. Some are simple squares or motifs, while others are knitted or crocheted pieces with clever assemblies, like three strips woven into a ball. There are even tawashi made that incorporate other cleaning supplies. An example of this is one of my favorites – it is a crocheted strawberry that is then attached to the bristle part of a toothbrush. Now your tawashi has a handle AND the added bonus of double scrubbing action, not to mention an increased “kawaii” factor!
A lot of Japanese tawashi books contain both knit and crochet projects, because more often than not, Japanese crafters learn both crafts, rather than one or the other. There are even weaving, crochet-on-the-double, and “no skills required” tawashi, so anyone can make at least one! There are some resources online for free tawashi patterns.
Don’t read Japanese? Never fear, the charts are pretty easy to figure out, and the photography is excellent, so you can use the pictures as a reference.
Cruise around on this site for a while, and you will find LOTS of useful information, like needle conversion charts and translation of Japanese crafting phrases.
You don’t have to search around on the Japanese sites to make your own tawashi – make a free form scrubby, or get inspiration from other projects! For example, knit a mitred square or crochet a flower, add a hanging loop, and you’re done! Hang it by the sink and pat yourself on the back for your resourcefulness!
Most crafters are already familiar with the Japanese dolls known as “amigurumi”, and now they can add “tawashi” to their repertoire as well. This is another way to have “instant gratification” on a project – AND a way to use up some of those acrylic yarn scraps!"
I joined the Tawashi Ravelry group...and just completed in a premiere swap. I will post pictures soon of what I made...and what I received. Tawashi are great projects for me in many ways....they are instant gratification, portable, stashbuster and most of all fun!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
I have been TAGGED!!
My crochet friend, Ghost has tagged me....
Here are the rules:
1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
So, here ya go!
Seven random things about me:
1. I married my high school sweetheart.
2. I became a mini-van mom at 25 years old.
3. I am obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer series and I am finally on the last season.
4. I used to scrapbook, but have since gotten hooked on crochet.
5. I use text messaging way to much on my cell phone, like a teenager.
6. My guilty pleasure is having a gourmet iced coffee, Almond Joy from Mary Lous News
7. My favorite gemstone is a tanzanite.
OK, now whom to tag back?
1. Needles
2. Ginny
3. Li
4. Donna
5. Tracie
6. Michelle
7. Candy
Here are the rules:
1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
So, here ya go!
Seven random things about me:
1. I married my high school sweetheart.
2. I became a mini-van mom at 25 years old.
3. I am obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer series and I am finally on the last season.
4. I used to scrapbook, but have since gotten hooked on crochet.
5. I use text messaging way to much on my cell phone, like a teenager.
6. My guilty pleasure is having a gourmet iced coffee, Almond Joy from Mary Lous News
7. My favorite gemstone is a tanzanite.
OK, now whom to tag back?
1. Needles
2. Ginny
3. Li
4. Donna
5. Tracie
6. Michelle
7. Candy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)