The trio is finally united!

Here it is! The cowl and the hat I made last summer with my purple coat... The coat looks way darker than it is in real life... The lighting in my new apartment is not very similar to that of natural lighting.

Disclaimer: I had just gotten back from the gym in these photos.

Winter love!
- Bow Girl

Update on Cowl

I adore this pattern. Adore. It works up pretty quickly, too!

-Bow Girl

Pattern Levels

Long time no post... that is because it's been a while since I've really done any marathon crocheting that I can reveal. I have some secrets up my sleeve, but I can't show them until the recipients see them first!


For now, here is an update on my non-secret projects.

1) I am trying a new cable crochet pattern since I am done with the sham (see below). I have been doing more cable crochet now that I am sort of past my bow phase... I am maturing things with more complicated motifs, I guess. Although flowers aren't always easy.
This pattern was labeled as "expert" in level. I don't consider myself an "expert" at cable crochet, but I can't lie. I tackled this pattern no sweat.

Here are two pictures so far!

Those pink things are my fingertips. : D

2) Sham of a sham is done!

I haven't been totally idle. See!

Bow Love!
-Nicole

Coffee Cozy

Here are some coffee cozies I have made lately:

 my mom's in action

my dad's, which he hasn't seen it yet 

my dad's on a coffee cup

Beverage love,

          Bow Girl

Gifts for people who have Everything (with a capital E)/ Coffee Cozies

Everyone knows it is hard to find a gift for someone who has everything they could ever want or need or people who have unique taste. That is when I turn to my bag of crocheting tricks. I made my sister a scarf out of our alpaca Paco's wool once. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture in my haste to finish on time! I also made my mom a 4th of July table runner.

 I like the old-school Americana look for the fourth of July.

If my mom wants something, she usually gets it herself. What can I, as a low-income college student, afford to get my mom that she can't afford to get herself? Crocheting is basically the only worthwhile gifting skill I have. So I talked to my mom and we settled on a coffee cup cozy.

They take about... 30 minutes to an hour to make, depending on the intricacy of the pattern. For me personally, basket weaving takes me a bit longer. I adapted this pattern from a free online download. I like how it looks like a basket and is in a basket type of color.

It looks big here. Size comparison below

View from the top

For size comparison

Any coffee lovers out there with a few spare dollars? I would be more than happy to design something with you. They can have more than one color, zigzags, etc.
Get at me in the comments section.

Bow love,
         Bow Girl

Why bother?

Sometimes I know before I try something that it isn't going to turn out how I want it to. But I do it anyway. This is especially true of crocheting. Today I tried this leaf pattern I knew would look good in thread but probably not with yarn, and it didn't come out so great... It's okay. The 3D nature of it didn't really get captured on my camera.

I have no clue why I put myself through these types of things. I still learned some cool things I guess, and it didn't hurt me any.

In other news, my sham is getting big!

I am showing it so that the long sides are aligned with the vertical edges of the photo. 

I like it a lot! I think it will be a fun accent to my bed.

Bow Love!

             Bow Girl

Hey there!

So I just wanted to update my plans on my navy sham of a sham and my sweater....

1) The sweater's front and back sides are now connected, which has made it much easier to try on. Yay for progress!

2) My navy sham is going to get sassy. I have a surprise in store for it. Hopefully it turns out cool. Here is where I was at when I last photographed it:

I have done even more since this.

Bow Love!

-Bow Girl

New Projects

Hey y'all! I have some new projects brewing, and I am pretty excited to share my progress...

1) My sweater! I don't want to show too much just yet, because honestly, it doesn't look like much yet. I keep scrapping sweaters, but I am Determined (with a capital d) to see this one through. I love me some pineapples, and this yarn is exactly the brown I wanted... It's Nacho's wool. I just realized I never took a picture of the scarf made of Paco's wool that I made for Elysse... Oops!

2) My sham... I don't have a sham for my dorm bed... So I figured I would make a sham of a sham. Basically I am making a new cabled pattern just to cover my pillow because I bleached my sheets a bit... I detest bleach spots. Anyway, now that you know my deep, dark laundry secrets, here are some pictures.

I am excited! It's a lot of fun because it is a color I rarely work with, and it also looks a bit like the baby blanket I made. I am glad I get to keep this one for myself.

Bow love!
-Bow Girl

Dedication

Dedication to a pattern is important when you are first learning the ropes. But other times, it is better to understand the pattern and modify it to your own liking. For example, the baby blanket I made. Speaking of that blanket, the baby is a healthy baby girl!

Giving something you spent 40 plus hours on away to someone you don't know sounds kind of difficult. My advice would be to store it in a clean, safe vessel in a place you won't see it until right before you have to send it off. It decreases the chance that you will form an attachment to it. Also, don't name it anything. That's recipe for disaster. All of my projects have a title, as in "The Baby Blanket" or "The Peacock-Colored Blanket," but once the actual item is named... it's like naming a lost dog. A done deal of sorts. I named the blanket below Mr. Snuggleupagus (or Snuggleupagus for short) like the character on Sesame Street, even though I was never a big fan of that show as a kid. However, that name is the perfect name for my first snuggle blanket. Bamboo silk yarn is HEAVEN!

Also:

1) Happy belated Mother's Day to my mom, who lets me fill her house with crocheting gear and lets me put my feet on the table (see above). Thank you mom, you rock!

2) I am super attached to Snuggleupagus. All of the loose ends are tied up and woven in. Voila!

 I recognize that it clashes with my childhood home... It probably won't spend much time there in the long run.

3) Last night I was very prolific and made a lace sample. Lace cable work is actually a pain in my side, but I love the finished product!

4) I keep ditching my own sweater patterns. I am thus going to modify one I bought for $2 on Etsy.

Here is what I've got so far. I hope for it to be a little bit draped. I started this around 12:50 AM and finished last night around 2:50 AM. Night owl much?

I realize that it doesn't look like anything yet... That is par for the course.

Even though I am super dedicated to daily exercise and GRE prep, I have a feeling I will be crocheting up a storm in the next few weeks (while I have the chance), so look forward to new posts!

Bow love,

         Bow Girl

Snuggleupagus

Snuggleupagus, my snuggle blanket, is finally done! Now it's time to prep for the GREs. Wish me luck!

AOII stuff and Headphones: Seeing red!

3 minute project I made for Elysse:
Panda for Jen!
Roses for Jen and Danielle!
Headphones!
AOII doily for Danielle
My PFam is the BEST ever. Our night rocked!

Bow and alpha love,

Bow Girl

Red of ruby and rose

I have 2 sets of headphones with crocheted embellishments. They are both on super old headphones and have electrical issues. They make crackling noises/ have one ear with sound instead of two, and I am worried about getting shocked. So I bought some earbuds at the WashU bookstore and I am crocheting them red.

I also made some red roses. Red is just my color this week. Maybe because I am A-Okay with being AOII obsessed.

Bow love and alpha love,

Bow Girl

Long Hiatus!

Sorry for the long hiatus. Sorority recruitment and life have caught up with me...

I wore some crocheted flowers to bid day, and everyone loved them! Namely, the yellow hard-hat brim turned belt and the periwinkle Irish rose (as a scrunchy) for the 80s theme.

It has been sweet.

Bow love,

Bow Girl

25% of the Snuggle Blanket

I have made 25% of the snuggle blanket (6/24 stripes) while at home this break (in addition to the baby blanket!).

That is over 8400 stitches!!! That means the whole thing is over 33,500 stitches. Crazy, right?

Here are my progress photos! The colors look off due to the photos being in weird light (at night!).

I typed this up DAYS ago, but the photos wouldn't attach. Finally it worked! Now that I am back in STL and finally posting this, I am on stripe 26 and have reached my big landmark: 35,000 stitches!

Looks big!
Trippy detail shot!

So big!

Bow Love,

Bow Girl

12 Resolutions for 2012

While both my sweater and peacock blanket are crochet projects, they are two very different mental exercises. My blanket is repetitive and mindless. I repeat the same simple pattern over and over, switch colors, and repeat. My sweater requires a lot of thought and creativity. Making up the pattern as I go requires constant judgement, etc. At least I can be my own mannequin. That makes things a lot easier.

Tonight is the last night of 2011, and thus resolutions come to mind. I make resolutions all year long, so I figured that I would spew a laundry list of my 11-ish resolutions of 2011 and add one for 2012. I already have a lot of stuff on my plate. Here goes nothing!

1. Exercise daily

2. Eat healthily

3. Be less judgmental

4. Appreciate others more often

5. Appreciate my body for what it is capable of and not knock it for its imperfections

6. To take time for myself more often/to crochet more often

Aside: I already crocheted over 1oo,ooo stitches this year, and that is a low estimate (panda, bows, blankets, table runner, animal ears, hats, scarves, etc. )Maybe I should just strive to crochet more than an hour a week? Concrete goals are more doable/measurable.

7. To only deliver high quality work

8. Evaluate my happiness at least once a month

9. To think more before I speak

10. To socialize more often

11. To ponder my spirituality

So what is my addition to this list?

12. To experiment more often, in crochet and in life, and to not be too hard on myself if such experimentation leads to a non-success (The only failure is complacency in my eyes).

I hope to return to regular blogging, if possible. I thoroughly enjoy the writing component. If not, I would write very rarely, and I love getting to look back at things.

Today I decided to experiment to get in the spirit of my new resolution.

It is pictured below.

This is an embellishment pattern by Robyn Chachula.

Bow Love!

-Bow girl

Finished but mentally blocked...

I am finished with everything for the baby blanket. I hope the parents like it...

Here it is!

I love it, but I don't think I will have trouble parting with it. It is too small and pastel for me.

I am progressing on my peacock blanket right now because I am mentally blocked on how to proceed with my sweater. Making stuff up on the fly is difficult. The upper half of the body is always the zinger. Anyway, here are some pics of the sweater in action.

It slid down. Oops. It is placed more properly in the picture below. See, now I need to make straps to remedy that! If only I knew how...

I think that it is pretty flattering considering being homemade. Obviously I will need to wear a shirt under for coverage.

Crochet adoration (I feel like being different today)!
-The one who is truly Hooked ; )

Blocking and Being a Busy Elf

I just pricked my hand 25-ish times with sewing pins (I mean, blocked the baby blanket)! Here are some pics of the ordeal...

Here are the steps to blocking an item made with synthetic yarn (in case you were wondering/care). Avoid heat/ironing or your work will melt!

You will need:
1. A hard surface (ironing boards work well if the item is small)
2. A spray bottle that has not been exposed to chemicals (buy a new one if necessary. The "no chemicals" part is important!)
3. A thick towel to lay between the hard surface and the fabric described below
4. A gingham/square piece of thin cotton fabric. It is pretty cheap at any fabric store. You can also use a tablecloth as long as it isn't that weird plastic-y material

5. Water to put in the spray bottle

Here is the setup of my blocking apparatus. Make sure it is flat and the towel and fabric are pinned together at the edges. In general, the more pins, the merrier.

The pinning begins...
All done! My work, once wet, will stretch to conform to this shape (hopefully!).
Mist thoroughly with room temperature water.

I am doing well on my sweater. I started with a new pattern, which I am making up as I go along. That way it will fit me swimmingly (hopefully). In my eyes, it is not worth custom making something if it isn't going to come out how I intend. So I ditched the pineapple motif and decided to go for the arcade look. My mom says it looks like a skirt. She's kind of right, but as I go along and make up the rest (literally! Wish me luck!), it should look more like a top. I tried it on, and it seems okay thus far.

I am working from the hips upward, in case that was unclear.

Crochet love!

- Bow Girl