Monthly Update: December

Another month, come and gone. Another year, come and gone.

Well, this was an interesting month.

First up, I finished my 12 Days of Christmas Hats series that I began on Black Friday. Since then, I've been working on a new idea for a series of crochet projects. I will tell you more about that soon. I'm pretty excited about it!

I've been on vacation since early mid-December, and have been enjoying my time off for the most part. We had a good Christmas filled with family and friends. We got to watch the Seahawks earn the number one seed in the NFC for the second straight year. Now, we are looking forward to a new year.

One lowlight of this month was needing to put our dog, Lillie, down. She was a good dog, but had been getting progressively more aggressive and violent ever since our house was broken into almost 5 years ago. After she bit our son bad enough for him to need stitches the Friday before Christmas, we made the decision to put her down. (There were other factors involved, including state law, so please no negative comments on our decision.) We will definitely miss her, but it would be a lie if I didn't say I was a little relieved to not have to deal with her trying to attack neighbor dogs all the time. Rest in peace, Lillie. We love you!

Throughout my break from work, I've spent a lot of time working on a reading guide document for The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, which we will be reading in class next quarter. A colleague and I split up the work, and it has been quite the undertaking. I have probably spent at least 15-20 hours working on just my half of the book, but it will all be worth it next quarter when we don't really have to prep or plan anything.

The only other things I've been reading are books on digital photography (to go with my new camera lens and light box), and a comedy book by Sarah Colonna (who is the new fiancé of Jon Ryan, the punter for the Seahawks).

I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season! Check back tomorrow for a review of last year's new year's goal, as well as my goals for 2015.

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 12 - In a Jiffy Beanie and Rocketship Applique

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Since my best friend works for Rocketship Education, I couldn't send a box of hats without at least one having a rocketship on it. So, with a picture in my head of what I wanted, I sat down and made it happen. Now you can too!

This beanie is sized for elementary school children and works up in a jiffy (Get it? Cause I'm using Jiffy yarn...haha!). The rocketship applique can be used for any hat, or maybe a blanket or bag. The sky is the limit...or not...since it's a rocketship (Get it?).

I apologize...it's been a long hat series and my brain is tired :)

In a Jiffy Beanie
 

 

Materials:

• half skein bulky yarn (pictured: Lion Brand Jiffy in Violet)
• J hook
• Yarn needle

Directions:

Round 1: In magic circle, 11dc, join to first dc

Round 2: ch 2 (counts as stitch throughout), dc in same stitch, 2dc in every stitch (22 stitches), join to beginning ch

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (33 stitches), join

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (44 stitches), join

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (55 stitches), join

Round 6-13: ch 2, dc in each stitch (55 stitches), join

Round 14: ch 1, sc in same stitch, sc in each stitch (55 stitches), join, fasten off and weave in ends.

Rocketship Applique
 

Materials:

• small amount of  worsted weight yarn in 4 colors
• G hook
• Yarn needle

Directions:

Body

With color A, ch 9

Row 1: sc in the second chain from hook, sc across (8)

Row 2: ch 1, sc across (8)

Row 3: change to color B, ch 1, sc across (8)

Row 4-14: ch 1, sc across (8)

Row 15: change to color A, ch 1, sc across (8)

Row 16: ch 1, sc across (8)

Row 17: ch 1, 2sctog, sc in next 4 stitches, 2sctog (6)

Row 18: ch 1, 2 sctog, sc in next 2 stitches, 2sctog (4)

Row 19: ch 1, 2sctog, 2sctog (2)

Row 20: ch 1, 2sctog (1) fasten off and weave in ends

Fins

Row 1: with color B, work 4 sc into the edge of rows 5-8 (4)

Row 2: ch 1, skip first sc, sc in next 2 stitches, 2sc in last stitch (4)

Row 3: ch 1, 2sc in first stitch, sc in next 2 stitches, sl st in last stitch (5, including sl st)

Row 4: ch 1, skip first sc, sc in next 2 stitches, 2 sc in last stitch (4)

Row 5: ch 1, 2 sc in first stitch, sc in next 2 stitches, sl st in last stitch and then work 4 sl st into the top edge of the fin and one last sl st into the same space as the first sc from row 1, fasten off and weave in ends

For the second fin turn the work over and repeat on the other side.

Window

With color C, 12 dc in magic circle, join, fasten off but leave a long tail to sew the window onto the body

Flames
Add a couple of fringe tassels to the beginning chain for the flames. I used 4 tassels with 3 4" pieces of yarn each and then trimmed them all to my desired length of about an inch.

 

Alright, 12 Days of Christmas Hats = done! I hope you enjoyed these patterns and that you use them to make some wonderful gifts for the awesome people in your life! I wish you all a great and creative holiday season and I'll see you in the New Year with some more crochet patterns. I'm pretty excited about what I've got in mind for next year, you won't want to miss it!

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 11 - Winter Blossom Earwarmer

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Disclaimer: This ear warmer was originally designed for my friend, Cassandra from Cassandra Hamilton Photography. I was intending to sell the pattern, but I have decided to offer it here for free in the hopes that the kids in my best friend's class will get a few more donations from you lovely people. It matches the Winter Blossom Newsboy Hat.

Winter Blossom Ear Warmer
 

Materials

• Worsted Weight (4) Yarn – less than 1 skein (Pictured: Deborah Norville Everday Soft Worsted in Cream, and Simply Soft  in Burgandy)
• I hook
• Yarn Needle

Directions:

Note: To change the size of the finished product, change the size of the beginning chain by a multiple of 3. You will work three rows into the beginning chain, fasten off the yarn and join it to the back side of the beginning chain to work three more rows.

Ch. 69, join with a sl st being careful not to twist

Round 1: ch 4 (counts as hdc, ch 2), hdc in same stitch, *skip 2 stitches, [hdc, ch 2, hdc] in next stitch, repeat from * to the end of the round, sl st into the second ch of the beginning ch 4.

Round 2: sl st into the ch 2 space, ch 3 (counts as dc), 2dc in same space, 3dc in each ch 2 space around, join with a sl st to the top of the beginning ch 3.

Round 3: ch 2 (counts at hdc), hdc in each dc around, join with a sl st to the top of beginning ch 2, fasten off.

Round 4: With right side facing, join the yarn into the backside of the beginning chain at the same stitch as the first [hdc, ch2, hdc] from round 1, repeat round 1.

Round 5: repeat round 2

Round 6: repeat round 3, fasten off and weave in all ends.

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 10 - Simple Slouch Beanie

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

A simple two stitch slouch beanie. This hat is sized for 20"-22" heads. You can use this post to resize the pattern.

 

Materials:

• less than 1 skein worsted weight yarn (pictured: Bernat Satin in Dandelion)
• I hook
• J hook
• yarn needle

Directions:
Round 1: In magic circle, 12dc, join to first dc

Round 2: ch 2 (counts as stitch throughout), dc in same stitch, 2dc in every stitch (24 stitches), join to beginning ch

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (36 stitches), join

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (48 stitches), join

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next  3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from *  add an extra stitch into the last stitch (60 stitches), join

Round 6-20: ch 2, dc in each stitch around (60 stitches), join (more rounds here = slouchier)

Round 21-25: switch to J hook, ch 1, sc in same stitch as the ch 1, sc in each stitch around (60 stitches), join to first sc, fasten off and weave in ends after round 25

And here area a couple of pictures of Elijah in the hat, simply because he actually wanted to wear a hat I made. It's a Christmas miracle! :)

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 9 - Simple Striped Beanie

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

A simple striped beanie in someone's favorite colors makes for an awesome personalized gift. This hat it worked in alternating dc and sc rows. Change hook sizes for each sc row to keep the beanie from getting too tight. This hat is sized for 20"-22" heads. You can use this post to resize the pattern.

Simple Striped Beanie

 

Materials:

• 2 colors of worsted weight yarn
• I hook
• J hook
• yarn needle

Directions:
Round 1: With I hook, in magic circle, 12dc, join to first dc

Round 2: ch 2 (counts as stitch throughout), dc in same stitch, 2dc in every stitch (24 stitches), join to beginning ch

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (36 stitches), join

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (48 stitches), join

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next  3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from *  (60 stitches), join

Round 6-7: ch 2, dc in each stitch around (60), join

Round 8: Change to J hook and change colors, ch 1 (does not count as a stitch), sc in same stitch as ch, sc in each stitch around (60 stitches), join to the first sc not the ch 1

Round 9: Change to I hook and change colors, ch 2, dc in each stitch around (60), join

Round 10-19: Repeat rounds 8 and 9

Round 20: Change to J hook but do not change colors, ch 1 (does not count as a stitch), sc in same stitch as ch, sc in each stitch around (60 stitches), join, fasten off and weave in all ends

*I do not fasten off after each color change, I just put the color up to the next row*

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 8 - Double Crossed Beanie

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

This hat has two rows worked in crossed double crochet. You skip a stitch, dc in the next stitch, and then work a dc back in the skipped stitch. You could do more rounds or even the whole hat in crossed double crochet, but I just wanted to add a couple of accent rounds for this one.

This hat is sized for 20"-22" heads. You can use this post to resize the pattern, but you will want to make sure your last increase round ends in an odd number (counting the beginning ch 2). To do this, simply add in an extra stitch on the last increase round.

Double Crossed Beanie

 

Materials:

• less than 1 skein worsted weight yarn - multiple colors
• I hook
• J hook
• yarn needle

Directions:
Round 1: In magic circle, 12dc, join to first dc

Round 2: ch 2 (counts as stitch throughout), dc in same stitch, 2dc in every stitch (24 stitches), join to beginning ch

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (36 stitches), join

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (48 stitches), join

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next  3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from *  add an extra stitch into the last stitch (61 stitches), join (The extra stitch is because the pattern needs 60 stitches, but the ch 2 is not part of that count)

Round 6-9: ch 2, dc in each stitch around (61), join

Round 10: change color, ch 2, *skip 1 stitch, dc in next stitch, dc in the skipped stitch, repeat from * around (61)

Round 11: ch 2, dc in each stitch around (61), join

Round 12: change color, repeat round 10

Round 13-15: ch 2, dc in each stitch around (61), join

Round 16: change to J hook, ch 1, sc in each stitch around (61), join, fasten off and weave in ends

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 7 - Basketweave Beanie

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Here is a pattern for a beanie using the basketweave stitch. You will need to know how to do front post double crochet (fpdc) and back post double crochet (bpdc). Essentially, you work the stitch around the post of the last round, either from the front or from the back. A quick YouTube search should be able to give you a visual.

If you want to resize this pattern, this post will help, but you will want to make sure that the number of stitches after your last increase row is an even numbered multiple of 3+1 (so, 61 - 1 / 3 = 20 - an even number, or 55-1 / 3 = 18 - an even number, but 67 - 1 / 3 = 11 - odd number). To get the right number, you might have to add or subtract a couple of stitches to your last row, count the beginning ch 2 as a stitch, but it will not be used in the basketweave pattern. In this pattern, you will add in one extra stitch in round 6.

Basketweave Beanie

 

 

Materials:

• worsted weight yarn (Pictured: Red Heart Super Saver)
• I hook
• J hook
• yarn needle

Directions:

Option One
Round 1: In magic circle, 12dc, join to first dc

 

Round 2: ch 2 (counts as stitch throughout), dc in same stitch, 2dc in every stitch (24 stitches), join to beginning ch

 

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (36 stitches), join

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next 2 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from * (48 stitches), join

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same stitch, *dc in next  3 stitches, 2dc in following stitch, repeat from *  add an extra stitch into the last stitch (61 stitches), join (The extra stitch is because the pattern needs 60 stitches, but the ch 2 is not part of that count)

Round 6: ch 2, *fpdc around the next 3 stitches, bpdc around the next 3 stitches, repeat from * around, (61) join

Round 7: repeat round 6

Round 8: ch 2, *bpdc around the next 3 fpdc stitches, fpdc around the next 3 bpdc stitches, repeat from * around (61), join

Round 9: repeat round 8

Round 10-11: repeat round 7

Round 12-13: repeat round 8

Round 14-15: repeat round 7

Round 16-17: repeat round 8

Round 18-19: repeat round 7

Round 20: change to J hook and sc around (61), join, fasten off and weave in ends.

Because this is a highly textured stitch, a light steam blocking will help the stitches relax a little bit to give the hat a bit more ease. To do this, simply put the hat onto a Styrofoam head form (available at most craft stores), and with an iron set to steam, steam around the hat, but do not touch the iron to the yarn. Let it cool, and enjoy your hat.

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 6 - My Hat Patterns Round Up

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Here are some links to some of the other hat patterns I've posted here on the blog over the last couple of years. Remember you can use this post to help resize all of these patterns. These patterns were not created specifically for this series, but I have donated some of the original hats as well as made a few more to send to the kids.

• Sock Money Earflap Hat
• Aviator Hat
• Pumpkin Hat (this can easily be changed to other fruits/vegetables)
• Hooded Infinity Scarf (not exactly a hat, but it's one of my most popular patterns and it does cover your head)
• Bow Beanie
• Bird Earflap Hat
• Ruby Turban (a 1920's inspired hat and my personal favorite)

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 5 - Winter Blossom Newsboy Hat

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Disclaimer: This hat was originally designed for my friend, Cassandra from Cassandra Hamilton Photography. I was intending to sell the pattern, but I have decided to offer it here for free in the hopes that the kids in my best friend's class will get a few more donations from you lovely people.

This hat pattern is sized for an adult (22-24"), but it can be resized as long as after your increase rows you have stitch count that is a multiple of 3.

The pattern for the bill can also be added to any other style of hat you have made. Simply decrease the length of the first row of the bill to fit your hat.

Winter Blossom Newsboy Hat

Materials:

• worsted weight yarn: pictured Deborah Norville Everyday Soft Worsted in Cream
• I hook
• yarn needle

Directions:

Round 1: 11 dc in magic circle

Round 2: ch 2, dc in same space as ch 2, 2dc in each stitch around (22) join with sl st to top of beginning ch 2

Round 3: ch 2, dc in same space as ch 2, *dc in next stitch, 2dc in next, repeat from * (33) join with sl st to top of beginning ch 2

Round 4: ch 2, dc in same space as ch 2, *dc in next 2 stiches, 2dc in next, repeat from * (44) join with sl st to top of beginning ch 2

Round 5: ch 2, dc in same space as ch 2, *dc in next 3 stitches, 2dc in next, repeat from * (55) join with sl st to top of beginning ch 2

Round 6: ch 2, dc in same space as ch 2, *dc in next 4 stitches, 2 dc in next, repeat from * (66) join with sl st to top of beginning ch 2

Round 7: ch 4 (counts as hdc, ch 2), hdc in same stitch, *skip 2 stitches, [hdc, ch 2, hdc] in next stitch, repeat from * to the end of the round, sl st into the second ch of the beginning ch 4.

Round 8: sl st into the ch 2 space, ch 3 (counts as dc), 2dc in same space, 3dc in each ch 2 space around, join with a sl st to the top of the beginning ch 3, sl st into next stitch

Round 9-16: repeats rounds 7 and 8

Round 17-18: sc in each stitch around, join with a sl st, ch 1 (66), fasten off and weave in ends (Stop here for a beanie or continue to add the bill)

Hat Bill

Row 19: mark 22 stitches on the front of the hat, using two strands held together, sc in the front loop only of each of those 22 stitches, ch 1, turn

Row 20: sc in the next 22 stitches, sc in the next 4 stitches in round 18 (26), ch 1, turn

Row 21: sc in the next 26 stitches, sc in the next 4 stitches in round 18 (30), ch, 1 turn

Row 22: sc in next 30 stitches, sc in the next stitch in round 18 (31), ch 1, turn

Row 23: sc in next 30 stitches, sc in the next stitch in round 18 (32), ch 1, turn

Row 24: sc in next 30 stitches, sc in the next stitch in round 18, sl st in the next stitch (34), turn (do not ch 1)

Row 25: sc in the next 33 sc (do not sc in sl st), sc in the next stitch in round 18, st sl in the next stitch (35), fasten off and weave in ends

Monthly Update: November

Welcome, December! I'm so glad you're here! November, you were fun, but I'm kind of glad you're over, you were a little too busy for my liking :). I have 3 more days of class this week, and one final next week, and then it'll be vacation time for me! Here's what I got myself up to last month.

Reading
Grace for the Good Girl by Emily Freeman
The Girl's Still Got It by Liz Curtis Higgs
The Girl in the Gatehouse by Julie Klassen
The very last two books in the Love Finds You series. I am now officially done with that New Year's goal! It felt like quite the accomplishment to highlight that last title on my list.

Crochet
A Green Bay Packers hat for a friend's son's birthday. Happy 4th birthday, Isaac!

A Seahawks themed hat for my newest little cousin, Logan. Welcome to the world, Buddy!

Blog Hop Crochet Along Afghan - given up. I'm not a huge fan of a lot of the blocks, but I love the ones from Gleeful Things, so I think I will be using those for something else.

A couple of boy-ish hats to send along to my best friend in Nashville to gift to some of her less fortunate students. This situation has it's own post, and I'm also doing a 12 Days of Christmas Hats series, so check around for those if you need some quick gifts to whip up!

Traveling
A quick day trip to Leavenworth/Ellensburg to visit some friends earlier this month. We helped set up the sound in one friend's church...and by we, I mean James...I chased Elijah around. We headed into town for a snack and a little shopping and then we detoured through Ellensburg to have dinner with some other friends. It was a good, but tiring day.

Thanksgiving
We hosted Thanksgiving this year for my side of the family. My mom, step-dad, step-sister and her husband all came over. It was pretty casual, and because the Seahawks were playing, we ate dinner in front of the TV. My mom and step-dad took Elijah home with them so James and I could do some Black Friday shopping.

Black Friday
It's been a couple of years since we really did Black Friday. It was fun to get out there again.

Christmas Decorating
We always decorate the house the weekend after Thanksgiving. We hauled the large Tupperware bins out of the garage, made a batch of hot chocolate, and got to work!

I hope all you American readers had a great Thanksgiving weekend!

12 Days of Christmas Hats: Day 4 - Adding Iron-on Patches to Crochet Work

All of my 12 Days of Christmas Hats were created as Christmas gifts for less fortunate students at my best friend's school in Nashville who do not have adequate winter wear. These patterns are available free of charge, but please consider making a donation here to help brighten a child's Christmas.

Have you ever tried adding an iron-on patch to crochet (or knit) work? I only ever exceeded in shrinking the work until I came up with this method. This is the perfect way for adding that extra special touch to your handmade gift.

The hat pictured is my Ruby Turban, but rounds 10-15 are worked in the back loop only to create some texture. It was made with Caron Simply Soft Party in Teal Sparkle.

Ruby Turban with Iron-On Patch
 

 

After you've made your hat (or blanket, or scarf, etc.), you'll need the following supplies to add an iron-on patch to it.

Material:

• iron-on patch
• felt that matches your yarn as closely as possible
• needle and thread that matches the felt

Directions:

1. Following the directions for the iron-on patch, adhere it to the felt.

 

2. Trim the felt as closely to the patch as you can while still leaving a little border to use for sewing the patch onto the hat/other crochet work

 

3. Using the needle and thread, sew the patch on.

 That's it! It takes a little more work than just ironing the patch on, but the end result is totally worth it!