How Many Licks?

A 1, A 2, A 3 *CRUNCH*

This guy came out pretty adorable. More adorable then I had anticipated. I used this pattern for the basic body, and the rest I improvised. I'm so happy with this, and my friend seemed to enjoy it too.
Also I made this 4 months ago. Bit late, ain't I? But you know, camera phones are hard.

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Remember when I used to post stuff?

Yeah me neither, but look crochet stuff! So this will be a quick post. I made this little guy, using this pattern, for a friend's birthday about a month after her birthday. I didn't follow the directions for the eye and just sort of made it up as I went, but since the other instructions we're good, I'm sure the ones for the eye are as well. It's still sitting in my living room. I'll mail it. One day. Soon. Hopefully.
I also made a crochet hair band for another friend (which I didn't take a picture of. And I also have to mail. One day. Soon. Hopefully) based on this design but tweaked a tad to make it continuous. This lady (who is funny enough located where my friend is...) has some other beautiful designs (including these hand warmers which I made but didn't take picture of, to go with a teal version of this hat which I made but did not take a picture of, that was for the same person as this cuttlefish a teal version of which I made but didn't take a picture of, using a pattern I bought from Hansi Singh on Etsy, the same person who wrote Amigurumi Knits which has an octopus pattern in it which I DID take a picture of but never posted, and also has a pattern for a Loch Ness Monster I didn't take a picture of. You see a pattern no?)
That's all I got. Sorry. I'll work on getting some other stuff to write about. Now that Conan's gone I don't know what to do with myself. Maybe post more?

***EDIT***

I found the octopus picture:

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Beware: Needles are Back

Good Golly! It's Time for some elderly crafts! Yea, I know. I've been pretty m.i.a lately. And I apologize. But good news is that I've been busy! OK, not really, but I finished a few projects and am ready to share.

Now if you'll recall I've mentioned the lack of knit projects for cute toys out there. I'm not a crocheter, at least not a good one, so I was desperate to find something. Sure i had my bird pattern, but that gets boring. Enter Amigurumi Knits.
My reaction when I came across this book at Borders? FINALLY! I mean really, crochet had the strong hold on the cute squishies for much to long. Future research lead me to Hansi Singh's Etsy page where she had more patterns for sale. But first the book.

Compared to the other book I've briefly mentioned, this book was wicked accessible and easy to follow. How do I know this? Because the octopus I made for my roommate's birthday looks like this:

Yeah. The fact that it even remotely resembles the one in the book is a fabulous sign. Many points won. But really, HE'S SO CUTE! And he really is mini. I could hold it in one hand. The entire book is filled with cute patterns, from garlic to a snail to a jackelope. I'm so pleased!

There are more for the future, including a pattern I bought on the Etsy page, and I'll keep the updates coming. Now if you'll excuse me, Rascal Flatts are on Conan and I need to plug my ears.

Lator.

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Oh, er, hey there.

So, I swear I haven't forgotten about you fantabulous Juicebox readers. (Really, there are two drafts from me on our list, I promise.) It's just been one hellz of a semester. But here's me getting you up to snuff on what elderly crafts I've been doing since the new year, unless this becomes another incomplete draft! Please excuse the horrendous blurry pictures; I haven't figured out the whole capturing completed projects thing yet.

JANUARY

A Sad-looking Bear, a birthday gift for The Cuteness. I just realized that I never took a picture of him with arms. Woopsies. This was actually my first completed crochet project. WOAH! I find crochet faster in the satisfaction department, but lacking in the neatness department. Maybe I just crochet to loosely, but knitting just looks better in my opinion. Here's the pattern.



Birds and Worms. Birthday gift for a friend for my roommate (the model in the next pics actually). The yarn is 100% Baby Alpaca so they're the softest birds in existence. The bird is my modified version of this pattern. I use my modified version more than the original now.

Sweater/shrug, chevron pattern. This was a birthday gift for my aunt. It's a little small. It's this pattern but I added a button (hence why it's too small...). I kind of want one for myself. However, this was the small size and it took forever, and goodness knows I'm not a small. I started this last summer and worked on it little by little and I still didn't have it done one time for her birthday. It's sad; I fear I won't have the patience to make sweater vests.

FEBRUARY

Uh, an unfinished glove. I am very very ashamed. I WILL finish these by next winter though. They're smoking gloves with a beer opening palm, so I might have to smoke a cig or two to legitimize my creation. Actually, they're a mix of Cigar from Knitty, and the beer gloves from Son of Stitch N' Bitch. I'm really excited to (eventually) finish them.

MARCH

Birds and Cocoa. Yet another birthday bird gift.
The Cocoa is this pattern, my second attempt at crochet. A bit tighter than the bear. Maybe I'm getting better at it? Probably not because mine came out a lot leaner than the one in the pattern. I can't count stitches in crochet. Sshh, don't tell!

And that leaves us to now. I'm in the middle of another crochet gift, so I'll post it when it's done (and not six months from now). But for now, I have a few papers to write and an apartment to find.

Lator.

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Build Your Own Rabbit Army!

So here’s the pattern for the bunny hat. Yea! This is meant for an adult. One day I might make a smaller version for a child or something, but for now adults get to be adorable.

I used a Medium weight yarn (Bernat Berella “4.” You know, The Afghan Yarn) in two different colors, white (C2) and black (C1). Though brown and beige, or any other cute bunny colors, would work. I had a lot of yarn left over so you could probably also use just one ball of one color, if you’d prefer. According to the packaging, tension’s about 4.5 stitches per inch. It didn’t occur to me to measure to get it right, but I’m sure any medium weight should be fine.

You’ll also need:
16” Circulars, Size 8
DPNs, Size 8
Straight needles, Size 8 (Optional. I just use the DPNs)
A stitch marker
A piece of pink felt, about 8x10”
Needle and thread that nearly matches the pink felt
Small crochet hook

Also please excuse any mistakes in notation and such. I’ll try my best to keep it to the standard notations but if there’s any confusion let me know. Onward!

Main Hat:

CO 90 stitches in C1. Place marker and join the round.
Rows 1-5: *k5, p5.* Repeat from * to* until end of row.
Rows 6-10: *p5, k5.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 11: Switch to C2. K until end of row
Continue in stockinette stitch for 20 rows or until the C2 section is about 3.25 inches. Again, I forgot to keep track, but I’m pretty sure it was about 20.

Decreases (Switch to DPNs when needed. I had to at about row 27)

Row 21: *k11, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 22: *k10, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 23: *k9, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 24: *k8, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 25: *k7, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 26: *k6, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 27: *k5, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 28: *k4, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 29: *k3, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 30: *k2, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 31: *k1, k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
Row 32: *k2tog.* Repeat from * to * until end of row.
At this point there should be about 8 stitches on your needle. If not, then I forgot a row, which means you should repeat Row 32.

Cut the yarn and pull through remaining stitches. Weave in the ends.

Ear Flaps:

On CO edge, find a square of stockinette stitch. CO 15 stitches using straight needles. You should have CO on along three squares in a knit, purl, knit pattern. (I hope this makes sense). When you start knitting, the wrong side of the hat should be facing you.

Rows 1,3,5,6,8,10,11,13,15: k5, p5, k5
Rows 2,4,7,9,12,14: p5, k5, p5
Row 16: k1, k2tog, k2, p5, k2, k2tog, k1
Row 17: p4, k5, p4
Row 18: k4, p5, k4
Row 19: p1, p2tog, p1, k5, p1, p2tog, p1
Row 20: k3, p5, k3
Row 21: k3, p2tog, p1, p2tog, k3
Row 22: p3, k3, p3
Row 23: k1, k2tog, p1, p2tog, k2tog, k1
Row 24: p2, k2, p2
Row 25: k2, p2tog, k2
Bind Off. Weave in ends.

Lay the hat flat so you can find the location of the other side’s earflap. CO 15 stitches as before. This time the center square should be a stockinette square.

Rows 1,3,5,6,8,10,11,13,15: p5, k5, p5
Rows 2,4,7,9,12,14: k5, p5, k5
Row 16: p1, p2tog, p2, k5, p2, p2tog, p1
Row 17: k4, p5, k4
Row 18: p4, k5, p4
Row 19: k1, k2tog, k1, p5, k1, k2tog, k1
Row 20: p3, k5, p3
Row 21: p3, k2tog, k1, k2tog, p3
Row 22: k3, p3, k3
Row 23: p1, p2tog, k1, k2tog, p2tog, p1
Row 24: k2, p2, k2
Row 25: p2, k2tog, p2
Bind Off. Weave in ends.
(As you may notice, the other earflaps are exactly the same, other than the knits and purls are switched.)

Ears:
Try on the hat and pinpoint where you want the ears to be.

CO 10 stitches.
*Row 1: k10
Row 2: k2, p6, k2*
Repeat from * to * 19 times.

Row 41: k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k2
Row 42: k2, p4, k2
Row 43: k2, k2tog, k2tog, k2
Row 44: k2, p2, k2
Row 45: k2tog until end of row
Row 46: k3
Bind off. Weave in ends. Repeat for other ear.

(At this point you need to choose which side of the ear you like better: the knit or purl side. The side you like will NOT be covered by the felt.)

Measure the ear, and cut out two pieces of felt smaller than the ear so it fits in the non-garter stitch edges. Sew the felt on using a light colored thread, making sure to only sew into the top layer of yarn and not go through to the other side.

Braids:

Cut five 14” pieces of C1 yarn. Cut four pieces of 14” C2 yarn. Cut two pieces of 5” C1 yarn.
Divide into three groups:
Groups 1 and 3: two C1 strands, one C2 strand
Group 2: one C1 strand, two C2 strands

In the center of the ear flap, pull through Group 2 with the crochet hook in standard fringe way. Pull through Groups 1 and 3 in the same way, one on either side of Group 2.

Braid the strands together, treating each group as an individual strand. Tie off the end with one of the 5” strands. Trim to make even.

Repeat on the other ear flap.

And you’re done! As I mentioned before, this is my first real pattern, so hopefully it makes sense and if not, feel free to ask for clarification. Hope you enjoy making and wearing it.

Oh, one last note, though it's mildly unnecessary as you know this and are a good person. Please only use the pattern for personal use, not for some monetary gains.

Okay, enough bureaucratic shit. Go make a cute hat!

Lator!
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(Enter Rabbit Noises Here)

So I have completed a knit project. Yea! If it weren't for school, I'd have more, but you know, education sometimes gets in the way.

Anywho, here's a snapshot:

This was for a friend's birthday. She's wanted a bunny hat for quite some time now, so I figured I'd surprise her with this little guy. I think it came out super cute, and she loves it, so all in all, awesome times.

The pink felt was last minute, but I think it definitely made a difference. The ears are extended in the picture, but they actually flop over which gives an extra cuteness to the whole thing. Kind of proud of this since it's my first completed hat pattern. Actually, that's a lie. I have another one that I made for another friend's birthday, I just keep forgetting to get pictures of that one.

I have the pattern for the bunny hat written somewhere, and once I type it up I'll post it. I just wanted to get the picture up to share. I also have charts/patterns for a pipe and mustache that I need to post as well.
Goodness, if only knitting were a major...

Lator.
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Which Would the Tin Man Prefer?

It's a good day for sure, because not only is the first list done (check it out for a barrel of laughs), but also after about a week or so I have finished my first embroidered project. It was a pretty ambitious first project I think. Thing is that it didn't include just embroidery but it was pretty big for a first try, and also included sewing linings and such things to make it pretty. Anyway, I'm quite happy, and here are pictures! It's like I'm a new mother, they're my babies, and you're the co worker who couldn't give a damn but are politely looking anyway. Rejoicing ensues.

So here's the overall view. Ignore the ugly linoleum please...To give you a sense of the bag size, it fits my laptop and then some. Yeah awesome school bag! The color choice for the bag isn't the best considering the amount of red embroidery, and the yellow is random, but when I bought the bag I was intending on screen printing, not embroidering lol

Here's a close up so you can see their adorable faces! Even the commentary is like the baby thing...
I'd originally used a very chain-like split stitch by hand to do the robots outlines, but it looked wonky so i did the third by machine. It looked great so I undid the other two and machine embroidered them as well. The faces and hearts were done by hand.

This is the lovely lining. I'm in love with this purple plaid.There was a lot left over so I hope to do more with it in the future. I'm thinking a vest, but my summer's over so it may take a while.

The straps were pretty fun. I wanted some of those awesome retro starbursts, but after some advice, it seemed that the robots took up a lot of space, but the straps were bare. The lining was a bitch to sew. I used our sewing machine, but i had to stop every couple inches because i had to watch out for the starbursts. It didn't help that the machine would stop randomly with no reason in sight.

Here's Sad Robot Number 1's zombie heart. I was quite proud of this one. It was my first of the three. Though I might not have done the satin stitch, looking back, because the stitches were quite long and the middle ones are running the risk of becoming loose. I particularly enjoy the bloody bits.

Speaking of bloody bits, here's Sad Robot Number 2's heart. I might be most proud of this one. It's as close to a human heart as I could draw on my own. I'll admit my mom drew on the other ones from a copy of the original design, but that's because she can draw while I can't. I just might trust my drawing now since this one came out pretty cool. It's hard to see the two different colors in person, but I'm glad the camera somehow got the color right.

And finally Happy Robot's metal heart. It didn't fill as well as the others, but the thread was thinner spool thread so it was mildly expected. I'll just say that it looks like the grain metal gets when you sand it ;)

Anywho, the rivets are made with french knots. I wasn't looking at the original drawing when i was adding them, so i forgot that not every edge of the sections had rivets, and now it looks crowded. However, unlike the original robot outlines, I wasn't about to cut out all the french knots and re-do it.

Anywho, I hope you enjoy the first elderly craft of the blog. Along with the new list on the side. I think Cuteness did a damn good job with that list. It entertains me. Alrighty, that is all for now...

Lies! I forgot to mention that I didn't win the Sugar Slam, though I got an honorable mention which is pretty cool.

Okay now I'm done.

Lator!

PS Sorry for the image heavy post, but I had too :D
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Other Goodies

In case you thought wallabies were only capable of fatassery, here's a quick look into the future.

In the elderly crafts department, there's a shrug, a raging kaijū, some Harry Potter dorkdom, and a sm-aht (I'll let you choose between British and Bostonian accent) scarf to come.

In the robots department, there's some awesome school-related wear to come.

Finally, in the unconventional application of the elderly craft, there are some patterns for some dapper wear for the gentlemen in everybody.

I can't make any promises about when this will happen. Some will happen before others; I think it's safe to say that robots and kaijū will be the first, a long with some of the gentlemen wear. The others will definitely be done by Christmas, which is a long way off, but well it gives you something to look forward to.

So that's to come! Can't wait to post all the awesomeness. It just might be too awesome to take at once. I might just do a few two-parters like the Bret Hart cookie posts, just to give a taste of all the awesomeness.

Lator.

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Now playing: Bad Religion - The Empire Strikes First
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