Crochet Every Day

Sewn Christmas Gifts

2012-01-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to enter the Giveaway -- you still have time. It's open til Sunday!

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While most of my Christmas gifts were crocheted, I did manage to sew a few things. First, I made a sewing machine cover for my Mom in Law. She picked out the fabric and wanted a crazy pattern. So I just went with it. She really liked how it turned out, and I was glad to learn that I could wing it (no pattern) and make something fabulous!

I also made a cute little business card holder for my cousin. She works at a winery, so I thought the fabric would be perfect. I didn't have any of our full size Newly Wife cards, so I just put in my own (it needed to hold it's shape). I am supser happy with the final product -- and totally planning to make my own! Now... what fabric to use? Oh yes, and I used this tutorial.

Basket Case Giveaway

2012-01-29T10:09:00.000-08:00

Happy Sunday! I'm teaming up with my girl Laurie to put on this fun giveaway for you. She is the one who designs those lovely scrubby patterns that I am always making. Can you believe I no longer buy sponges? I simply use a scrubby for a few days and then throw it in the wash (we have a bin for dirty rags by the garage door so they don't stink up / get moldy in the house). Anyways, here's what Laurie has to say...

In honor of the fact that I've been a total Basket Case lately, Megan and I are each giving away one Basket Case Three-Piece Set. This is not the actual finished project, it's the .pdf file which includes patterns for the scrubby, pot holder, and towel.

The rules are pretty straightforward. You'll have three chances to win. For each of the following, you will receive one entry:

Stop by Megan's blog, Crochet Every Day, follow it, and leave a comment on any post except the one that describes this contest. If you're already a follower, just leave your comment.
Stop by Laurie's blog, Big Girl Blog, follow it, and leave a comment on any post except the one that describes this contest. If you're already a follower, just leave your comment.
Tweet the link to the contest with a cc to Megan @themegababe or Laurie @LaliberteLaurie. It doesn't matter which blog you link to in your tweet. If you're not on twitter, then post on facebook or Google+.

Here's the important part: After you've done one or more of the above, return here and leave one comment telling us what you did. At the end of the contest, each of us will pull one name.

Here's the bonus: If you tell both of us what you did, you double your chances of winning.

Don't forget we'll need your email to contact you and send your file. Each of the two winners will receive an email from downloads[at]ravelry[dot]com with Laurie Laliberte Designs in the subject line.

The contest begins at 8:00 a.m. GMT on Sunday, January 29, 2012. (That's 3:00 a.m. on the east coast and midnight on the west coast.) It ends at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, February 5. (That's Superbowl Sunday in case you're keeping track.)

Happy Crocheting!

Thanks for giving us this pattern, Laurie! Now go on and leave some comments and hopefully you can win!

Basket Case

2012-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:00

I finished up this scubby this weekend... aptly called the Basket Case Scrubby. Since I'm feeling a bit like a basket case right now (Matt's Fire Academy has begun), it made perfect sense to finish this.

As always, I love how Laurie's patterns turn out. And want to know something better? You can win your own copy of this pattern later this week! Make sure you come back on Sunday (or all of next week) to get the details!

[Don't you love the bandaid on my finger? The cat got a little piece of me when I picked him up. Little booger!]

Recent Finishes

2012-01-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

So I have gotten a few fun things off of my hook recently. Check it out..

April 21: Fruit and Veggie Basket

September 29: Granny Skull Hat

January 20: Gryffindor Hat

So happy to get some things finished -- great way to start 2012! I really love that green + brown color combo for the hat. So cute!

Home Improvement List

2012-01-15T22:46:00.000-08:00

Awhile back, I saw John and Sherry's massive home to do list. Needless to say, I was inspired and Matthew and I spent out six hour drive to my parents (before Christmas) coming up with this list. We went room by room and created this MASSIVE list! This is more for me to reference, but feel free to read it over! :)

Buy your own here: http://www.etsy.com/listing/89503497/magnetic-note-pad-honey-do-list

Master Bedroom

Caulk and Paint (casing, shelves, base)
Trim around Closet
Bathroom Door Trim
Closet Curtain
Window Curtains & Valence
New Comforter
Replace Ceiling Fan
Wall Stickers
New Door
Matching Dresser Set
Transition Strips
Repair Termite Damage

Master Bathroom

New Door
Bleach Clean Shower
New Tub or Walk in Shower
Different Sink / Configuration
Shower Head / Faucet Matching
Linen Storage
Paint Ceiling White
Storage above Sink
Repaint Walls
Touch up Mirror Paint

Guest Bedroom

Replace Ceiling Fan
New Door
Electrical (fix switch to fan)
Closet Doors (repair or new)
Clean Dresser / Desk
Fix Dresser Drawers (eventual changing table?)
Cover Plate

Guest Bathroom

New Door
Solar Tube
Tile Shower
Grout Shower
Transition Strip
Base Trim
Drywall Mud
Sink / Faucet / Stand / Cabinet
Linen Storage
Re-Texture & Paint
Tile Front of Tub
Repair Tub Surface Scratches
Finish Hardibacker
Red Guard Hardibacker
Move Toilet
New Art

Craft Room

Replace Ceiling Fan
New Door
Base Trim

Hallway

Bullnose Cornerbead
Solar Tubes
Gallery Walls (City, Wedding, B & W)
New Quilt?
Paint Egg Shell

Living Room

Fake Beams
Carpet
Entertainment Area
Fireplace Tools
Mantle
Above Fireplace Lighting
New Couch Pillow Covers
Christmas Lighting Plugs around Mantle
Stocking Hooks
Sconce Lighting
Curtain
Curtain Rod / Valence
Bullnose
Art

Entryway

Bullnose Cornerbead
New Door
Gallery Wall (frames, mats, photos)
Landing / Ledge Storage
Tile?
Artwork
Cabinetry around Desk
Plotter Space
Window Seat / Plotter in Drawer
Narrow Upper Cabinets
Corner Desk Area
Arch Hallway Entry
Floor to Ceiling Cabinets
Remove Hallway Closet & Replace with New Closet in Mud Room
Vacuum in outside Mudroom Closet
Replace Fixture
Hall Light Fixtures to Entryway & Dining Room
New Verse over Door

Outside

Replace fan blades in patio fan with outdoor blades
New Doors in Garage
Mount Rear Hose Bib / Trellis
Rear Walkway
Grass Border
~~Grass in front yard~~
~~West Fence~~
~~Grape Vines~~
~~Front drip line~~
~~Plants in front yard~~
~~Rain gutters~~
Front Bark
Side Fence
Rear Fence
Rear Dripline / Bubblers
RR ties for Border
Wood or Trex Post for Mailbox
Paint stucco and trim Outside
Repair Beam (Back Porch)
BBQ
Fire Pit
Shed
Repair Fascia
Front Walkway
Front Patio Wall
Front Patio Cover
Rear / Side Patio Cover
Paint Garage Door
Film on Garage Windows
Paint Roof Tiles
Fix HUDCO PVC (Roof)
Redo / Fix / Hide HUDCO Chase & Move Condensor
Backyard Planters (Bark?)
Replant Front Herbs
Fix PVC Pipe in Back Soffitt

Kitchen (complete remodel)

Frame Back 2 Walls
Run Plumbing
Mount Spice Rack
Electrical
Plumbing In
Cabinets
Floor
Counter
Backsplash
New Ranch
Mountable Toaster Oven
French Doors
Back Door
Header
Window
Stools
Enclose Current Kitchen for Mud Room / Laundry Room / Corner Closet
Shelving in Mud Room (cabinets, shoe rack)
Cork Table

Misc. and Whole House

Double Pane Windows (bedrooms, living room, entryway)
Ceiling Texture & Paint
Wall Texture (hall, entryway, guest room, living room)
New Wood Floor
Electrical Panel (replace original, sub panel garage, Christmas plugs, living room sconces, garage plugs, outdoor landscape, backyard, attic light)
Teapot (for Matthew to make tea with)
New Pictures in Frames
Organize Spices (50 jars, label jars)
Etch Pyrex
Fewer Magnets on Fridge
Cushions for Kitchen Chairs
Large Wedding Photo
Frame with Three Wedding Pics
New Pillows on Couch
Chore list in Vinyl on White Board
Organize DVDs / Front Shelves
~~Plants in Kitchen Pots~~
Vinyl Labels on Kitchen Pots
Print Large Photos for Gallery

Christmas Celebrations

2012-01-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas celebration lasted all weekend long. Again, I used my iphone to document it! :) You saw the Christmas Eve photos yesterday. Today, you get to see everything else. I also got a new camera for Christmas, but the iPhone is just so much easier to pull out and take a quick pic! I promise more + better pictures soon!

We bought the pitcher from Crate & Barrel for my Mom and Matthew painted the spoon rest to match. Fabulous, right?

My Dad's handwriting... he totally gave himself a gift! haha

This Shaq bag has floated around for birthdays and Christmases for the past 10 or 15 years!

Wits and Wagers!

My cousin painted a tiki stein for my Dad

[pin]Striped wine glasses from my cousin. So awesome!

Emily explaining the Shaq bag!

My grandpa found really old home videos (that's him as a teen) and had them transferred onto discs and sent to my parents. Very cool!

Crocheting during the drive home (blanket is finished and amazing!)

I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into our Christmas celebrations!

Christmas Eve 2011

2012-01-09T10:00:00.000-08:00

Our family tradition is to have a nice, formal dinner on Christmas Eve. This year we decided to make it a bit more low key. It was low stress and lots of fun! Here are some pictures to document the night...

We went on a morning run. Crazy. I still can't believe I had the motivation!

Three soups (my dad & bro made the Tomato Bacon Basil, Matt & I made Baked Potato, and Mom made the Moroccan Lentil. All were delish!

New tradition -- good tequila before the guests arrive.

Pecan & Kahlua brie. So so good!

Emily and I -- NewlyWives!

My lovely mother, tired of me taking pictures. :)

Gift from Kaitlyn, Davis' girlfriend. She painted the pitcher so it is a chalkboard. Awesome!

New Christmas pajamas -- Santa always brings them on Christmas Eve!

There you have it. And have no fear... there are many more pictures to come. Some from my NEW CAMERA as well! :)

Christmas in the City

2012-01-06T10:00:00.000-08:00

Matt and I were excited to spend Christmas in the Bay Area this year. We drove up to my parents at 3:30 in the morning on Friday. Whew. We made it by 9:30 (no traffic) and had a fabulous weekend. Friday night we went to the City (San Fran) with my brother and his girlfriend, and my cousin (and other half of NewlyWife) and her husband. We ended up meeting up with our other family in the City to see Santa. Here are some pictures from that night!

Also, you will see my digression between the pictures about the missing pictures and sucky blogger. I will soon be switching to a self hosted site through wordpress. A hassle, but I'm not putting up with the crappy photo editing / uploading / album storage anymore. So. I need a new domain name. I can do megncreations.com. What do you think of that? Any other suggestions? I have been thinking about this transition for a long time (because I am no longer a crochet specific blog), but this was the final kick in the pants. Any ideas for the name?

BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) into the City. Excitement!

[Right here is where you were supposed to see all of these cool pictures of us in front of the Macy's tree and with Santa, but it's not gonna happen. Google has switched it's images into Picasa - Google Plus and editing just does not happen. So the pictures are all sideways and I cannot get them to rotate. Bummer. It also means I will be switching blogging platforms soon.]

Bart coming home -- tired faces! That's my bro and his lovely gf

Christmas Gifts

2012-01-05T14:00:00.000-08:00

I finished up a bunch of projects as Christmas gifts. To read more about them and their recipients, check out their project pages.

June 15 - Pirate Can Cozy for my Bro

October 1: Diamond Ridges Hat for Kaitlyn (the bro's girlfriend). Plan is to have a better picture on the project page. So go check it!

September 27: Openwork Crochet Hat for Alex (little cousin)

After I made it, she let me know she doesn't wear hats that often. So she received this instead...

January 5: Gina's Shells Scarf

I also made October 6: Octoberfest Doily Blanket for a friend's new baby. Which I am passing along soon!

Lucky her! Anyone want that white hat?

December

2012-01-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share a few pictures from this last month, before it gets too far away! Our Christmas season was a bit crazy. We celebrated on Wednesday, just the two of us, Thursday with his family and then Friday through Tuesday in the Bay Area with my family. I have other posts for the trip.

Most important picture here -- the third one! It is the letter that Matt received when he was accepted into the fire academy! Yay!

"Christmas" at our home, Matt made me wall- mountable pots

Skweaks (aka girl cat) obviously loves (or is rather apathetic about) Christmas

Matt's Acceptance into the Fire Academy! Woo!

Assortment of Christmas cookies that I gave to friends

Our city. How gorgeous is it??

Check out those muscles -- and he is doing the dishes! Double win!

Matt was excited to open up Tony Hawk for Wii!

Insta-Tues

2011-12-13T14:50:00.000-08:00

I'm back with more Instagram pictures. Sadly, I cannot share many of the crochet ones, because they are all gifts! Oh well. Here is what else is going on in my life...

A fun twisty hairdo. Thanks, Pinterest.

Napping kitty and Christmas decor (and La Push blanket)!

The other napping kitten with our Christmas village in the back

Coffee & Tea from our date to the Apple Farm

We're training for a 5k. It has actually been fun (also, cold)!

I made myself some business cards the other day!

Friday baking -- Brown Sugar Springerle with cookie stamps

Saturday Baking - Baklava Tassies, Spritz Trees & Wreaths, Mint Meringues, & Andes Mint Cookies. Wow.

What's new with you? Doing any baking in addition to crafting? Also, I know that many of you follow my other blog, Newly Wife, so I try not to post things here that will show up there (but you can learn how to make the meringues over there today)! I cannot wait to show you all more crocheted items after the 25th!

Christmas-time is here!

2011-12-08T10:00:00.000-08:00

Okay. I love Christmas. But you already knew that, right? Well, I finished my next Christmas toy. This holiday penguin was shipped out to a friend who we called penguin, back in college. I had to wait to post this until she received it! :) What do you think of this little guy?

I think he is just adorable -- plus he likes to hang out with our friend Rudy. :)

As per usual, check out the original post for my recap, more pictures, and a link to the pattern!

Wedding!

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

Matt and I were recently in a friend's wedding. I stole a few pictures from the photog (hi, Laur) to show you all. They are crummy because I used the screen shot + crop option for saving. :) Good thing I'm tight with the photographer. Sad thing I don't have larger size images (for me) because she is so so busy with weddings (good for her)! Anywho, here they are:

And no. I am not pregnant. Although it may look like it.

See what I mean? But it's okay. I can dance with the best of them. No matter how prego a dress makes me look!

Let's end with one final picture... one that Lauriana (the photog) sent me. How cute are we? :)

Hope you all are doing well on this Monday. And. Seriously. Let's not let this post finish without pointing out how gorgeous the bride is and the lovely combo of teal and orange that she chose. Thanks for including me in your special day, Jen!

Purple People Eater

2011-12-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

Okay so these are wrist warmers, but I typed purple and the rest just came out. So last January my cute little cousins asked me for a few crocheted items. They will be getting them for Christmas this year! haha So. Start with a little of this action...

And you end up with these beauties (and yes it is imperative that your nail polish matches your current project)...

So cute! I love the pattern. They are reversible. Love them. Oh yeah, they were my challenge pattern from January 24 last year. Oh man. In a few short weeks it will have been two years since I started this craziness. Wow.

Instagram Thursday

2011-12-01T16:45:00.000-08:00

I have some pictures of a finished project that I REALLY want to share with you, but I think my friend / the recipient reads the blog. So... we must wait a few more days until her package make it to her! Here are a few snippets from the last week or so.

Our tree is up and it feels like Christmas!

We painted Christmas gifts... Matt is definitely the artist of the family!

After painting ceramics, we had a little sushi date. This was delish!

The ladies on my dad's side of the family... and what happens when an iPhone catches part of a camera's flash! This pictures cracks me up!

Matt took an evening nap with Skweaks lounging on his lap

Apparently we make great beds! haha And my pants are not that short, they are apparently just pulled up weird. Weird.

Hope you enjoyed these photos. I was going to post one of a work in progress, but I just finished, so I will try to post all of the pictures tomorrow!

Finished Baby Blanket & a Visitor

2011-11-23T10:00:00.000-08:00

I started this baby blanket last year. It kept getting thrown into the back of my crochet basket, because it did not have a recipient. A few months ago, I decided that I need to just woman up and finish it. Someone will have a baby that I can give it to. Or I can donate it (duh!). So I got out my hook, bought a second thing of yarn (because I ran out) and finished this project. Now, if only I hadn't started three more projects..

That leaves my current works in progress at six. Oy vey! Oh well, I'm going to be thankful that I finished this (because tomorrow is Thanksgiving, after all) and move on. Oh yeah, and update the project page for this sweet little blanket! Wanna know who else wanted to get in on this photo shoot...

Kitten! haha She just walked right on through my photoshoot. She really just wanted to get to the rock so she could scratch her back.

Hubs is looking at her thinking "what a weirdo," meanwhile, she must have spotted something in the distance.

Oh how pets can give us so much joy. These kittens are super quirky, but I LOVE them! :) Oh yeah, and they are over two years old, so they are definitely not kittens anymore. But they are still cute and cuddly!

Rudy the Reindeer

2011-11-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas is coming. It is a little over a month away. Crazy. I, for one, am super excited. One reason -- this cute little reindeer. I have been wanting to make this guy for the past three years or so (ever since I saw the one that my friend made), but just never had the time today. Well, folks, I did it. And in one weekend, mind you! These little guys don't actually take that much time, you just have to dive in and get going!

So I would like to introduce you to Rudy.

Why Rudy, you ask? I have absolutely no idea. Maybe because it is like a form of Rudolph? I do not know. It just popped into my head when I was downloading the pictures. As always, check out the original project page for more info!

Insta-addiction

2011-11-21T16:01:00.000-08:00

So I have a new addiction. It is Instagram. If you do not know what it is, you are surely missing out! It is a photo sharing app for the iPhone. I thought it might be fun if I post my pictures here weekly. I hope you enjoy, but if not oh well! And let's be real... what are the odds of my actually posting weekly? hehe

Completed Tiramisu Blanket

Finishing up a doily at a local coffee shop!

Celebrating Matt's birthday at the elephant bar

The most amazing syrup from Fresh and Easy

My newest fashion statement -- fun nail art (and having fun with the Label Maker app)

My Mom and I made Thanksgiving dinner together this year. We did the tuirkey in a bag. It was amazing!!

First Thanksgiving Dinner, 2011

That about sums it up. Come back tomorrow so you can see a sweet new finished project!

Giveaway at Happy Together

2011-11-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday. I still have a hard time believing that Thanksgiving is only a week away (okay, a week and a day). Also, that I'm co-hosting with my uncle for the first time this year -- which reminds me, I need to shoot him an email! Lastly, on this day last year, I was jetting off to Hawaii for some family time.

The family before Thanksgiving Dinner

Oh how I wish we were there again...

Mai Tais and Pina Coladas on Thanksgiving Morning

I digress. The whole point of this post was to let you know that I am participating in Jess' Giveaway Day today. Jess blogs at Happy Together and she was one of my first blog friends. She is super sweet and genuine and uber creative. She also started doing these giveaways each month. You can check out mine, or all of the others that are going on. I hope you head over -- and good luck! [Oh! The prize is any item in my shop. So whatever you have been jonesin for, well it could be yours!]

You could win this!

Thankfully Stitching

2011-11-10T12:01:00.000-08:00

So I have been doing some crocheting lately, but I have also cross stitching. The projects are just much more portable. I finished these little thanksgiving samplers a few hours after I took this picture. Now I just need to mount them and put them on the wall. I LOVE finishing projects!

I am currently crocheting the "table set" of doilies. I am finishing the last motif (this last one is largest with 14 motifs) right now and have the border to go. I will be SO GLAD to be finished with these!! It was an order for a set of three. Totally unrelated... My cat found the empty can of salmon in the trash...

Carlisle Cullen's Baseball Scarf Pattern

2011-11-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

This pattern has been over a year in the making, so you can imagine how excited I am to share it with you today! So excited that I made it a second post today instead of waiting til tomorrow! It does not take a year to make, I just got distracted by other projects and put it on the backburner. I wish I had finished it earlier though, because it is just so dang cute! Be forewarned -- this has a lot of weaving in. No two rows are the same color and you cannot carry over the yarn, so you have to weave in the beginning and end of each row.

Carlisle's Scarf

Materials:
Size H Hook (I crochet really tight, so use whatever works best for you)
Yarn Needles (for weaving in those really irritating ends, and there will be a lot)
Sport or Worsted Size Yarn in Black, Grey, and White (less than 1 skein each)

Abbreviation meanings:
Rnd: round
FC(sc): Foundation Chain, Single Crochet

FC (hdc): Foundation Chain, Half Double Crochet

sc: Single Crochet
hdc: Half Double Crochet
FO: Fasten off

Rnd1 (White): 16 FC(sc), 220 FC(hdc), 16 FC(sc). FO. Turn. (this is going to be the length of your scarf, so make sure it is the exact length you want).
Rnd2 (Grey): 16 FC(sc), sc into 1st FC(hdc) (17th stitch), hdc through all FC(hdc), 16 FC(sc). FO. Turn.
Rnd3 (Black): 16 FC(sc), sc across hdc (220 sc), 16 FC(sc). FO. Turn.
Rnd4 (White): 16 FC (sc), sc into 1st sc, hdc across through all sc (219 sc), 16 FC(sc). FO. Turn.
Rnd5 (Grey): Repeat Round 4
Rounds 6 - 20: Repeat rounds 3 through 5 in the same order
Rnd21 (Black): Repeat round 3.

You are now done. You just have a million rows to weave in! I chose to use a FC for the beginning and end of each row just looks too thin if you only chain. Need help with stitche? Check out Lion Brand, and here you can find a video for the foundation single crochet and foundation half double crochet. Let me know if you need anything else!

There you have it. This beautifully striped scarf. I LOVE it so much! I'm not as Twilight crazy as I used to be, but I still like the scarf!

Christmas is Coming

2011-11-07T12:06:00.000-08:00

I know. It is only November. Thanksgiving has not come. But we cannot deny the one-month-awayness of December, now can we? I may not advocate listening to Christmas music yet (except Charlie Brown, because that's acceptable), but I will totally encourage early-in-season gift making. I made these Christmassy items a few weeks ago in order to just get something off of my hook and feel like I was accomplishing something!

Check out the original posts (star, scrubby) for more details!

PS. I am still learning this whole one space after a period thing. It is rocking my world. And not in a good way.

Sweet CAL Finished Up!

2011-11-03T12:49:00.000-07:00

I know, I know... I am like 2 weeks late! I was not super motivated to get this picture up. Probably because I was alone in this CAL. Now, that is just sad! haha I guess I will just hold off on future CALs for awhile. How cute is this candy, though?

Can you see my freaky arm shadow? haha I did finish up a few other projects, so those will be posted soon -- once I get some good pictures! Hope you have a fantastic weekend! And if you did make some sweet candy along with me, please post a link here!

---------------

Update: I was totally not alone! Rengawk made some super cute candy corn. Go on and check out her post for a bunch of pictures, but here is one that I stole.

Thanks for joining in! Any other lurkers out there who played along in this sweetness?

Sweet Crochet Along, Update 2

2011-10-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

This week we show off our finished projects. I know a few of you have started working on some sweet little candies, and I cannot wait to see them! I actually did crochet a few more pieces yesterday (as I watched Revenge of the Bridesmaids on my iphone), but forgot to get a picture. So, here is some sweet Candy Corn pinterest love...

via Craftberry Bush

via Be Different, Act Normal

via Your Home Based Mom

I promise to get my pictures up later this week. But I really want to make some Candy Corn Fudge (it's just Vanilla Frosting and White Chocolate chips, people!!) Now please, tell me that I am not the only one who crocheted some candy!

Sweet Crochet Along, Update 1

2011-10-10T10:00:00.000-07:00

Hello again! And happy Monday. Today we are showing off our stash (or leftovers that we want to use up) and introducing ourselves. Here is my stash of leftover yarn...

As you all know, I am Megan and I write this here blog. I am trying to crochet 365 projects by the end of 2014 (I posted them all in 2010). Check out my completed projects page to see my progress. I added a few new ones this week!

So. Have any of you made any candies?