Irish Crochet Motifs Book

My new books!

I already have several resource books...that sometimes I feel guilty buying another one, when I haven't used the others in my bookshelf. But, once in a while I stumble upon another good book :p
And, I just have to share here this one - The Go-to Book for Irish Crochet Motifs by Kathryn White.
I've always wanted to learn more about Irish crochet. There are lots of free patterns online, and the vintage ones look very interesting. But when I look closer, I find that I don't have enough time and patience to dig into the details of the patterns. As I see it, those were written in a different crochet language, even though its in English.
When I saw this book by Kathy White, I knew its what I needed to get into Irish crochet. Not only does it teach, it inspires creation and produces satisfying results. You will not get intimidated with padding cords ever again and will learn the techniques of Irish crochet from this book, from the best teacher. Btw, I learned the bullion stitch a few years ago, when I made the Bullion Stitch pincushion from Kathy's pattern ;)
The Go-to Book for Irish Crochet Motifs certainly lives up to its name. Its an informative, practical, and useful resource book I'll go to more often than all my other crochet books.

Here's the first motif I made. It has a padding cord (PC). Some of the patterns have a no-padding cord version, but I find its really worth the extra effort when using a PC :)

I plan on finishing a total of 5 different motifs as soon as I can...can't wait to show how I'll use the motifs ;)

Painting and crafting...

For about a month, this table was outside waiting to be painted, and I haven't crafted anything for a while. It was too warm and I wasn't inspired to work on this or start a project :p
Then a few days ago, I resolved to stop procrastinating. I went ahead and painted this table like mad! I didn't really do a good job of sanding and painting and even accidentally spilled some paint...but finally its done and I have my project table back :)

My Project Table

Now this crafting corner needs a makeover...

Meanwhile, since I haven't been crafting recently...I would like to share my last favorite project.
Last March while my sister, my brother in-law, and my nephew were here on vacation, I got inspired to make something for my nephew. I was also then eager to work on recycled denim projects...and since there wasn't much time to make a crocheted item, I decided to do a denim book with crocheted appliques (project details on Ravelry).
Now that I don't see my nephew in person, I'm so glad to view pictures and videos of him taken by my Sis. This one she took when her son was trying to put his current favorite book in the pocket of his denim book. So cute!

Crafting Updates

How's your crafting lately?
I've been neglecting my crafts these past several weeks...I blame the very warm weather that's not conducive to crafting. Add to that, I have gotten in the habit of shopping, even just strolling at the mall to escape the heat. However, I realize I can't afford spending much and now I should get back to work!
First, I had to take care of the painting job on my working table. This had been waiting outside for a while, now I think I'm going to finish the job by tomorrow. I probably needed a little push, and I did get one when I met up yesterday with my friend, Cat. I think we both decided to focus more on crafting and designing and avoid distractions ;)

project table

Vogue Knitting Crochet 2013
Even though its not in my wishlist, I consider myself lucky to find this issue at a local bookstore for only P70.! That's one advantage of going out shopping at the mall ;)

And now for a bit of an investment, I ordered this photography book from a crafting friend and got it after several weeks. There were some surprise items in the package too, thanks Fe!
That was before I found out about The Book Depository...where shipping is free ;)

I hope to be more productive and apply the photography tips that I'll learn from this book :))

Crochet on Earth Day and a new free pattern

Its Earth Day today April 22...details of this commemoration can of course be searched on the internet ;)
I thought of posting today to remind ourselves to be more conscious of our choices for our crochet hobby. We can crochet with more earth-friendly materials (have to do a search on that as well...). Better yet, we can crochet with recyclable materials such as plastic bags, old t-shirts and other fabrics on hand. Try to make your own paper yarn, t-shirt yarn, plastic yarn. Some even used old VHS tapes as yarn. (see google images)

Another option is to buy recyclable materials at the thrift shop. I previously bought used sweaters and cardigans made of yarn that can be recycled. (posted here) The prospect is good, however, I have yet to find the time to actually make projects from those recyclable materials :p
There are plenty of free patterns on the internet using plarn (plastic yarn) or tarn (t-shirt yarn), or just substitute whatever you have on patterns requiring worsted weight or bulky yarn.
Crocheted flowers and purses are practical projects for recycled materials

Another crochet earth-friendly way is to use remaining threads to make home decors that at the same time will save your wooden tables from scratches and stains. I've got that covered with this new free pattern, Pinya Glass Cozy.
Each cozy used only 11 gms of thread (size 8 cotton thread).

Blue Glass Cozy

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Crochet - finished or not

I still have some patterns and projects to finish...which already has taken too long. Sorry to keep some of you waiting. I really plan on sharing more free patterns this year - so far its still in-the-making. I promise to do this, soon...
I only managed to do little projects, little home improvements and the usual chores. And here's some of the little projects I made:
First, here's an illustration I recently made for my pattern Teeny, Tiny Heart. Since I don't have a program (or rather don't know how to use one), I drew the chart by hand and improved it with some photo editing on picmonkey ;)

Teeny, Tiny Heart

Last January when the weather was a bit cold, I got inspired to make baby booties from the Red Heart Super Saver yarns that I bought last December. Here's my baby nephew wearing his sneaker booties.

He wanted to play with it ;)

crochet sneaker booties

Then I have another nephew, about 18 months old. He, his Mom (my sister) and his Dad (my Dutch BIL) live in the U.K..They came to visit last month, He's so adorable! I love how he mimics the dogs' barking and he's fond of all kinds of animals, including bear stuff toys :) Here's a recent photo of him enjoying a lovely spring day, back in their place.

And this is the project that I made for him - a recycled denim baby book. Its made up of 4 flaps or 8 pages in all. I crocheted the letters, numbers and bear appliques. The heart applique was made from the above Teeny, tiny heart pattern :)

Lastly, here's another cell phone purse I made following my pattern Chic Cell Phone Purses. I modified the bottom and used a slightly bigger hook, and made a shoulder strap. I'm not sure I'll use this though, the strap is not long enough  for crossbody.

More of my crochet projects next post ;)

Editing your crochet project pics

Most of us are eager to show-off our handmade projects, and we like to take photos and post them on social media. Sometimes, we aren't happy with our photos. It may be because either we don't have the right gadget, or we don't have the skill or patience to take wonderful photos.
I know little about fixing photos in my computer...so I do most of the editing online. For free and high-quality features I go to PicMonkey. They also have Royale features at an affordable price, though if you wish to try these features for free (totally free), you can do so for one day. Otherwise, you can use the regular features anytime :) Go give your photos a makeover and have fun with it too ;)