Random Favorites

What's your favorite TV show to watch while crocheting?
Lately my favorites are: American Idol, Rachel Ray, Ellen, and some old sitcoms like Seinfeld and Friends.


Last night my younger son and I watched the Celebrity Apprentice, which we look forward to every week. (Its last year's Celebrity Apprentice...)
I'm hoping I could pick up some tips on how to think out of the box.
Since the program is very interesting, I managed to crochet only a few rows of the shrug I'm making ;)

Favorite Flip flops?


This should be it, since its comfortable and durable. I think its quite pricey, and overrated. I couldn't afford to buy it yet... However, my son got it for me ;)

Favorite Theme

For some years I have neglected the appearance of my bedroom. (Btw, bedroom for me is also computer and work station, supplies and yarn storage room) It now badly needs a makeover!
Before I can actually have it painted and decorated, (1) I will have to set aside a budget...right now, I only have a small fraction of what I need to do a real makeover. (2) I will have to do a lot of decluttering and cleaning myself.
(3) I will have to decide on the color and theme.
The last one would be the easiest to do, so I'll start with that ;) One of my favorite colors is green, and the theme that I would love is nature. Maybe a flower garden, or just leaves...I'm not sure yet.
With the little budget I have, I decided to do some shopping. A bit impulsive I know, but when I was over at Etsy last Wednesday, I browsed and found a couple of items for my theme. I bought this piece of fabric, and this piece of metal charm. Don't know how I could use it, but who knows it might spark some creativity...I also collected pictures of nature-inspired rooms:

Crochet and Knit buddies!

This week I was lucky to have two meetings! One with Bheng of All Stitch Bright and Beautiful and the other with Mona of Knittipina.
I met up with Bheng several times already since last year, and Mona for the first time. We shared some crochet and knit stuff of course, and a bit of normal stuff ;) It was fun to know them in person!


I would like to think that Bheng got inspired with my crochet designs (since she have purchased most of it) and now she has a lot of WIPs going on ;) I saw her finished pink Shells and Flowers shrug and a half-finished yellow romantic shrug - both lovely! Though I forgot to take pictures of those when we were at Jollibee...

Isn't this so cool - handknitted socks made from Cannon threads!
This lovely pair was made especially for me by Mona. I met her on Ravelry several months ago. We agreed on a swap - knitted socks for me, and crochet slippers for her. Of course I was thrilled about it! I don't know when I'll ever get to learn how to knit socks like she does... Here's a close-up of her superb workmanship:



Thanks again, Mona!

What I love about Etsy

Etsy Buy Handmade mimicrochet

I haven't been doing much to promote my shop on Etsy, and lately made only a few sales there. But there are other Etsy-related stuff that makes me happy about being there. Yesterday, I was reading some of the positive comments I've gotten so far and I found a photo uploaded by someone who made herself a Breezy Shrug from my pattern. It put a big smile on my face :)



Isn't she lovely?

Here's another modeled pic from a satisfied Etsy buyer several months ago:



So pretty!

Btw, if you're a hooker on Etsy, you can join the Etsyhookers team. I've recently joined them and look forward to getting to know more Etsy sellers and also get more tips and inspiration for my shop ;)
You can view the team's profile and list of members on the Etsy page.

Crochet a Teddy Bear amigurumi - Coaster

Here's my latest amigurumi. Though it is not really a toy, it is a functional and decorative piece in the amigurumi style.
I would not be able to come up with the design of this very cute coaster myself. Fortunately, I found it online for free! I found it while browsing on Crochet Pattern Central directory on the coasters page.

Here's my Teddy Bear coaster, which will probably be snatched up anytime soon ;)





Project details on Ravelry.

Amigurumi Crochet

Amigurumi are toys which originated from Japanese tradition. Amigurumi means “knitted or crocheted doll.” They are usually worked in rounds with single crochet stitches and is quite simple to learn for any crocheter. Usually, amigurumi is crocheted out of yarn and worked in spirals, meaning the rounds are not joined. They are also worked with a smaller hook size in order to create a very tightly crocheted or knitted fabric. The tightness prevents gaps which could cause the stuffing to show or come out.
Although amigurumi can be either knitted or crocheted, I think crocheted amigurumi is more popular since it is easier to master, and results in a more firm and detailed structure.
Amigurumi are usually worked in parts and then joined by sewing, except for some designs which have no arms or legs. These are worked as one piece. The extremities are sometimes stuffed with plastic pellets to make them more life-like, while the rest of the body is stuffed with fiber stuffing. The creativity and uniqueness will show in the colors, details and embellishments added to the project.
Amigurumi are usually cute animals but can include inanimate objects like food. Maybe it could also include any mini object that is stuffed :p

There are plenty of crochet amigurumi designs now available. For free amigurumi patterns go to Crochet Pattern Central.
These are some amigurumis in my to-do list:



Paddy O'possum


Amineko, cat

Lastly for the sake of posting, some of my designs that may be considered as amigurumi:

Fruit keychains
Yin yang ball keychain

Crochet a Souvenir

For her baby's Christening, my niece requested me to make the souvenirs. (I was just waiting for her to ask - didn't want to assume that they would like my handmade souvenirs...) I wanted to design something new, but I didn't have that much time since I had to make around 40 pcs. so I chose my old design, flower frame souvenir. I made a different edging that looked like rounded petals. I also crocheted the tie instead of using satin ribbon.

Here are the steps in making the souvenir:
1. Crochet the base using green thread

2. Crochet the edging using pink thread (pardon my blurry photos...)

3. Crochet the tie using yellow thread

4. Finish off the ends and weave in the tie around the frame

5. Cut the photo and cardboard to fit the base

6. Insert the cardboard and photo and attach keychain or magnet


I made some into fridgies, since I had some spare magnets. Then the rest I made into keychains...





I didn't realize how making 30+ of these little souvenirs would be so tedious! Also, I had to come up with a neat packaging to add to the creativity and personalized look ;)
Here's the design of the box:



I got the box shape from here. Since I don't know how to design it on the computer, I just cut out the box pattern, and made a layout from the photo and text elements that I printed separately. Then I just scanned/copied it several times (2 boxes per board sheet).