Earrings for Remi

I am not much in the blogging mood but here is a quick look at  some earrings I am making for my four year old.  She loses them so quickly, we decided that we would just start making them as it is cheaper.  Sorry the pics are pretty dark.  Some days me and the camera just do not work.

A pink beaded set, and a thread crochet than beaded set.

Purple thread crochet than beaded with pink beads.

I actually created four sets last night but the last couple of pics of the pink beaded hoops were badly out of focus.

She is such a doll when she wants to be.

Remi happily showing off a pair of her new earrings that she loves.  She is also quick to tell me that I need to make a bunch more...okay then.

A Busy Day

Today was a wonderfully busy and FUN day.  My husband and I got the girls to help us clean both of the cars and we dyed Easter eggs.  This was a first for our girls since in the past we always opted for plastic eggs.  It was a super fun day and I can say that next year we will definitely dye eggs again.  It was a great moment with the girls.

Butter Tub Easter Basket 2 - The Sewn Version

Okay, I created an Easter basket using a butter tub and crochet for my younger daughter because I thought I was short an Easter Basket.  Well turns out I was short both Easter baskets since I can not recall where I stashed the one good one. 

My older daughter was thrilled to hear the news that I was going to have to quickly whip her up an Easter basket.  She immediately told me she didn't want hers to be like her sister Tate's but that I needed to sew her basket. 

Okay, bossy elder child of mine.  So I went scrounging through my meager fabric and trim stash and found some super cute animal print flannel and some white ruffled trim and using a butter tub as a base and created a really simple and cute Easter basket that looks entirely different from the first one. 

I always seem to be saving all sorts of close-able containers as long as I can think of two immediate ideas on how to reuse it, other wise it goes into the recycling/garbage bin.  I don't just keep things I think I can reuse, I have to have an actual idea and need in mind because I sure don't like clutter and I definitely don't want to become some crazy hoarder or garbage.

This basket was really easy to sew up, and stitch onto the butter tub.  I punched holes at the top just like I did to the first tub I created.

Hope you like it.  I sure do love sewing on my new machine.  So much nicer than that old mechanical Singer that the timing kept needing to be reset.

Easter,recycling and other projects.

I have been busy, with many different projects and thought I would share some of what I am working on or have completed these last couple of days. 

My daughters love, and I mean LOVE to draw.  So I try to make it a habit to always have something to write with and something to write on for the girls on my person and am often picking up cheap or discounted notebooks, pads, journals when I spot them.  Big Lots and the dollar store are two of my favorite stores for these types of items. 

Recently I decided to make a few out of leftover cuts of scrap paper.  Here are two that I made, with plans to make more of varying shapes, and sizes since these are a HUGE hit with my girls. Might be because they get to help scrounge up the paper or simply helping push the handle on the paper punch but hey, if it entertains them and gets the job done that's a win win in my book. 

I think these first ones came out well, and am excited to work on more.  Wish I had more scrapbook stuff on hand.  Wow! It sure can take a while to build up a decent variety to work with.  It has been fun though, hunting discounts for things I or more daughters might use.

Okay, this next project was a last minute idea when I realized that only one of last years Easter baskets had survived.  I didn't want to purchase one so decided to recycle a butter tub and sacrifice it to my Easter Basket idea.  It actually came out awesome if I do say so myself, and I do. 

This is how I did it.  

1.  Took a large butter tub and used a small hole punch to punch holes around the entire top lip of the container.

2.  Used a small crochet hook that fit easily through the holes to thread my yarn through creating a foundation from which I can crochet.

3.  Crocheted around the tub doing a double crochet until I had enough rows crocheted to wrap around the bottom a bit.  (The first row is the hardest and I had to use the small hook to pull the yarn through and up to the larger hook but this is only necessary for the first row as it is so tight.)

4.  Took a long length of yarn the same color and threaded a yarn needle which I used to pull in the bottom of the crocheted basket and then tied off in a secure knot, cut and hid the tail.

5.  Crocheted a handle to desired length and stitched it on through the holes in the tub. 

Voila! Recycled Easter Basket.  It was a pretty quick, super easy, and cute last minute project to complete.  Obviously you could further embellish the basket or do fancy stitches but this one does the trick.  Probably could have made it look like a bunny head but really this was a fly by the seat of my pants project.  I didn't have any instructions, just created as I went.

Complete Easter Basket from butter tub and yarn. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday!

How do you learn best?

I am a self taught crochet and knitter as well as sewer, baker, cook, etc.  As for my learning style, well, I read and do, and try, and screw up sometimes, and do again.  I have a few crochet patterns and books picked up through the years but find other than perusing them every now and again for pure entertainment, inspiration, and eye candy I rarely follow the actual patterns.  I am happiest creating my stuff from scratch and am quite comfortable with my trial and error ways.

Other than the steps for an actual stitch, the books and patterns sit in a pretty pile in my craft/office room.  Oh! Have I mentioned that I am an avid reader and will seriously read just about anything. My husband finds this amusing as he has found me curled up with a Nuclear Physics book, a good drink and a blanket and so engrossed you would have thought I was studying for a major exam or reading a steamy romance.  I just really love to read and all books are sacred brain candy.

Some of the crochet/knit books I have hanging around and love to look at or read are:
I admittedly have a serious weakness for books but especially for How-To, DIY, educational, historical and craft books (these are all books, unfortunately, that I do not enjoy looking through on my spiffy Kindle.  It was a Christmas present).  I have a hard time putting down a book with good pictures, instructions or any kind of educational information.

I have numerous cookbooks but don't use a recipe unless I bake.  I have several how to books but prefer to wing it or simply read a products instructions on use and go to town.  I love to learn new things, whether useful in my life or not.  My brain is full to bursting with all sorts of random info.  I am also a research nut when it comes to an idea.  If I don't know, but get a hankering to, I will research the subject to death until I do know, and know as much about it as I can (this however in no way makes me an expert as I do not have the following certificate to certify my knowledge).  This is probably due to my avid desire to learn and read but strangely this desire disappears when in a classroom environment.  LOL! I just hate how limited the classroom feels to me.  Boo! I would probably have twelve or more degrees by now if I didn't hate structured learning so much.

Oh well! I am well aware that a degree does not equal talent/smart and smart/talent does not always equal a degree but they sure come in handy when getting a nice job, don't they.  Those HR people sure do like paper certificates of all kinds (good thing I have a few stashed away if I ever need them). 

I am much more a hands on, trial and error, self taught/paced sort of individual.  I prefer to learn by doing.  This doesn't mean I do not like being taught because I really do love to learn, just not for hours on end in some boringly over chilled/heated classroom with a hundred other souls taking up the surrounding space while some professor drones on and on and I am expected to take notes, remember said dull lecture and actually absorb/learn something.  Nah! That is so not my style.    I think US education needs to take a more vocational/hands on approach and less of book/professor says regurgitation method but that is just me and I know others learn quite well this way or it wouldn't be.

So how do you learn best? Do you follow patterns, instructions and guidelines to a T or are you more like me? Ha! Ha! That last bit rhymed.  I'm a poet now (you can check out some of my work through poetry.com *snickers* )

P.S. I do actually have poetry on poetry.com but that was merely me making a joke about my accidental rhyme.