The Dainty Daisy

Beginner's Dishcloth

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 12:08:00 +0000

I am part of a MOPS group and for our April Mom's Night Out I have agreed to help teach the group how to crochet! How much more fun does it get for me than to hang out with a bunch of women, eating good food, and crocheting?!?! I had searched for a good starting project, but just didn't find much I was thrilled with. I finally decided to write up my own dishcloth pattern. I wanted to make sure that it gave a beginner ample time to practice the sc, because I feel once you master this, the other stitches come easy. I also wanted to make sure it also was a pattern that worked in rows and in rounds. Below is what I came up with. Enjoy!

Hook: H
Yarn: Sugar 'n Cream

Abbreviations:
sc = single crochet
dc = double crochet
slst = slip stitch

Chain 26
Row 1: 1 sc in second chain from hook and in each chain across. Chain 1. Turn (25 sc)
Row 2: 1 sc in each stitch across. Chain 1. Turn (25 sc)
Rows 3-28: Repeat Row 2
Row 29: 1 sc in each stitch across. Chain 3 (counts as dc). DO NOT TURN. You will now work in rounds to complete edging.

Edge:
2 dc in same stitch as chain 3 to make the first corner. Work dcs evenly across edge of piece until you reach next corner. 3 dc in corner. Now work along beginning chain, work dcs across until next corner. 3 dc in corner. Work dcs evenly across edge of piece until you reach the beginning chain 3. Join with a slst to top of chain 3. Finish off.

Flower:
Chain 4, (dc, chain 3, slst) into first chain. (chain 3, dc, chain 3, slst) into first chain 4 times. Finish off. Sew to dishcloth.

Running for Rosie: Round 2

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 03:04:00 +0000

Do you all remember when I ran my first ever 5K last September?!?! We raised almost 1000 hats and OVER $1000 for Helen DeVos Children's Hospital here in Grand Rapids! It was awesome!

I have to admit that I have not put on my running shoes much since then. I have wanted to, but haven't been very motivated. Recently, I learned of the Color Me Rad Race that is happening here in Grand Rapids the end of May. The kicker for me was that Helen DeVos Children's Hospital was the charity benefiting from this race. Obviously, this meant it was time to lace up my running shoes!

This time I am not making a hat goal. We have a couple hat collections going on right now, so instead we are just sticking to the monetary goal. I actually have quite the large team forming of people who are committing to "Run for Rosie," and I cannot wait! You can help out too! You can either run with us or donate to our race!

If you would like to donate to Helen DeVos through our running check out this site here.
If you would like to run with us check out this site and join the "Running for Rosie" team with the team captain "Thompson."

So, PLEASE consider helping us out!!! Whether you run or donate $5, it all helps!

For Sydney

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 01:58:00 +0000

I receive stories from so many of you about your own personal reason for giving to Rosie's Cozies. Each one touches me in a different way, and more often than not your stories bring me to tears.

I have read stories of triumph. Ones where you have given birth to a preemie and after many weeks or months in the NICU you were able to bring your baby home. Others of you have had heartbreaking stories where your babies were never able to come home and you were left with a huge hole in your heart where your baby was supposed to be.

I have heard from a woman in Africa who donated hats in order to give back to the rest of the world because so much of the world gives to Africa. I have heard from a grandmother who watched as her grandchild fought for life because he was born far too early. And I have heard from of you who just want to use your gift to give back.

A couple of months ago I heard from Deborah. She began to crochet after an awful loss and has been giving to Rosie's Cozies. In January she dropped off hats she had made, but I wasn't home and wasn't able to meet her, so she left them on my porch. Today she dropped off another bag of gorgeous hats and I had the amazing privilege of meeting her in person.

You see, Deborah lost her sweet Sydney Michele this past October. She was born full-term, but she was still-born. I can't even imagine.

Deborah told me this amazing story about how she began to crochet to help with her loss. She had found my Shell Stitch Beanie pattern and was able to make that. Then, in searching for help with hat sizing she found this post from Oodles4Noodles and found a comment of mine explaining Rosie's Cozies. Deborah went to check it out and realized it was the same site that she had found the Shell Stitch Beanie. She decided she wanted to help out and then realized that of all places in the entire world we were in the same city, AND, the Rosie's Cozies were donated hats to the children's hospital connected with the same hospital where she delivered Sydney.

What are the odds, huh? Today we were talking on Facebook and she wrote this:

"I am so glad that I was given this sign from my daughter and that I can do something for others."

My heart aches for her. The mother in me cannot fathom. I just can't mentally even put myself in her shoes because it is too hard, yet here she is....making hats, giving to others, and bringing light out of her darkness.

This is so many of you who give to Rosie's Cozies and share your stories with me. I wish I could meet each and every one of you and sit down with a cup of coffee or talk over a glass of wine. I want to hear WHY you give to Rosie's Cozies, and to give each and every one of your stories their moment to be heard. Their moment to be felt.

One thing I have learned through Deborah is that Rosie's Cozies is just as much for herself as it is for the babies wearing her hats. Making hats has become therapy for her, and it is a way to give honor to her Sydney and to give her life a legacy. Rosie's Cozies is named after Rose DeVries, but it could just as well be named Sydney's Cozies, or any other name of who YOU make hats for. It is a ministry to honor every one of those sweet babies and the families who know the pain of infant loss, prematurity, and the uncertainty of whether or not they will be bringing their child home.

This project is far more than giving to babies and families in the NICU. I have found that it is something that has given people a purpose, a way to honor their children, and a way to use their gifts. I am beyond thankful to all of you who give to Rosie's Cozies. I am beyond thankful that Deborah has found an amazing gift she possessed that she is using to bless so many families. And let me tell you, this woman can crochet! She JUST started in October and she showed me pictures of her work and I was floored.

I have included the video below with permission from Deborah. It is the memorial video made for her Sydney. Please watch and honor their daughter and their family. It's a hard video to watch, but sometimes I think there something special when we can relate to the pain of someone we don't know and hurt for them too. Please say a prayer for this family, as Deborah was very open about the daily struggle it has been since October. To follow along with Deborah's family and their story you can check out their blog here.

Thank you Sydney, for your sweet life taken too soon, and for inspiring your mother to share her AMAZING talent.

We Need You!

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:07:00 +0000

A bit ago I put out a plea that we try to raise 500 animal hats for Rosie's Cozies. Well, we are not very close to the goal....at all. We currently have about 100 hats, of which only about are animal. I will say that even the ones that aren't animal hats are stinking adorable, so I cannot complain because they are awesome!

I am asking people to step up and even commit to one or two hats if they can! I would love to walk into Helen DeVos Children's Hospital with the goal we had originally and with our mission accomplished. PLEASE consider making even just one hat. Trust me, it will make a difference and put us closer to our goal. Each hat is a blessing to a family, so either way you are touching people's lives and bringing a bright spot to a family that might be scared. You don't HAVE to send 50 hats! I have had many people send me 2 or 3 hats and they are just as exciting to get as the boxes with 20-30 hats in them!

So please join me in reaching out goal! Share the word, tweet about it, Facebook about it, and throw it up on Pinterest. Let's get there together! :-)

3 + 3 Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 20:43:00 +0000

I recently posted on Facebook about an idea to have a giveaway where I would give away three of my crochet patterns. Then, those who win the patterns would commit to make the pattern for someone who won the actual product in the pattern. I have many followers who crochet, and many who don't. I figured this was a great way to get everyone involved and to really show the love all around--crocheters or not.

Please, choose to either win patterns OR completed project. I would love for those who can't crochet to be blessed by this community of crafters by receiving something they might not be able to do for themselves. Have fun and good luck! Now, get to it!

CROCHET PATTERN GIVEAWAYS:

Curious Monkey Pattern

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hooded Baby Cocoon Pattern

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Newborn Ruffly Diaper Cover Pattern

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Actual Product Giveaways:

Curious Monkey Hat

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hooded Baby Cocoon

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Newborn Ruffly Diaper Cover and Hat

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GOOD LUCK!!!

Anyone With Me?

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 19:33:00 +0000

Hi all! Look, another blog post so soon!

I have been debating making myself a sweater for awhile. It is hard, because many patterns out there aren't real hip and look a little too matronly for me. Today, I was reading other crochet blogs and I saw this pattern. I felt like it was THE sweater to do. It was cute, looked simple, and the big ol' bow made it unique.

I just posted asking people for advice on what color to make. It seemed every color suggested would have been awesome! Navy or gray would make it a great neutral, but I wondered if a bright green or yellow would give this piece more of a statement. I have decided on the latter. My first gut was to do a kelly green, and I think that is what I am going to go for. Maybe when I get to the yarn shop I'll think otherwise, but for now that is my plan.

I wondered if anyone want to do this with me and we could compare how the project is going? Right now I have about 4 orders to complete, and then I am taking some time off of orders to focus solely on pattern writing and making stuff for fun. Not that orders aren't fun, but it's is always nice to not have a deadline hanging on my calendar.

You can purchase the pattern here. So, who is with me? What color are you going to do?

Collection and A New Pattern

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:26:00 +0000

Wanted to give an update on our Zoo Babies collection. Right now, we hardly have any hats at all. I am hoping I start to get a bunch of packages soon, but if you haven't decided if you wanted to help out or not, please consider making even just a hat or two! There are adorable patterns out there and they work up so quick!

If you are newer to my blog, you can read about our preemie hat project here. It is called Rosie's Cozies and it is in honor of a sweet baby girl.

On another note, I have really by trying to do a bit more pattern writing. I have just released a Curious Monkey hat, and hope to have a couple more to release here soon. I have one out to testers and need to try to figure out how to make the changes necessary to make it an easier pattern.

I still have a sale going on for my Curious Monkey hat on over at Etsy. Just use the coupon code MONKEYMADNESS to get it 20% off!

Sorry I have been a bit slow on my blogging lately. I hope to get back into the blogging swing again and update this more often! Hopefully my next post will be showing off pictures of all of the adorable little animal hats we collect!

Zoo Babies

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 01:25:00 +0000

Our next hat collection is starting, and the goal is to raise 500 animal hats! I CANNOT wait to start finding these in my mailbox! I am even more excited to be able to bring them up to the NICU at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital!

I had been hoping to post patterns and links to patterns written by myself and others, and I am so thankful for those who have designed patterns for this next collection! You are such a blessing to this project and to all of those families who will receive our hats. You can find our list of patterns below. PLEASE keep checking back, because I am hoping to add more as designers get back to me.

I think it would be awesome if we shared with everyone what has been made. You can either post it to the Rosie's Cozies Facebook Page, OR use #rosiescozies for Instagram or Twitter.

I would like to have all hats to be sent in by March 23rd (or so). This will give me time to deliver them by Easter and bless all those babes with some cute little hats :-) Hats being sent to me can be mailed to the address below, or I TOTALLY understand if you want to send them to your own local NICU:

Rosie's Cozies

6026 Kalamazoo Ave SE #119

Kentwood, MI 49508

Thank you again to all of our designers, as well as those of you who plan on making hats. I know that they will be a huge blessing to the families who receive them. I think I am most excited about this collection than any other that we have done so far!

One quick reminder! The hat patterns below are written for preemie size. Do not be afraid to go up a hook or down a hook to make hats in all different sizes. The NICU needs hats for babies as small as 1lb and as large as 10+lbs. Babies grow quickly, and as they get bigger they will need larger hats.

Okay, get those hooks ready, because I know you are going to want to make at least one of each of the adorable hats below!

The Dainty Daisy Owl

The Dainty Daisy Monkey

Calleigh's Clips & Crochet Creations Tiger

My Sweet Potato 3 Hippo

Niccupp Crochet Sock Monkey

Deanna from Dandy Mountain Boutique created the following hats. She does not have a blog, but be sure to show her some love at her Facebook page. Below you can find the links to the pdfs:

Dandy Mountain Boutique Zebra

Dandy Mountain Boutique Lion

Dandy Mountain Boutique Chick

Dandy Mountain Boutique Giraffe

Below are the hats I already hast listed elsewhere on this blog.

Bear

Winnie The Pooh

Kitty 18-20 Week Gestation

Monkey 16-18 Gestation

Owl

It's A Zoo!

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 01:08:00 +0000

After hearing that all of the Rosie's Cozies we dropped off recently have already been snatched up, I realize that although this is an on-going collection, it's always nice to have a big push for hats and a timeline. It keeps things exciting and I LOVE dropping off so many at a time.

I have found that a ton of the loved favorites are the animals hats. I felt that this might be a good theme to go off of for our next drop-off. How fun would it be to fill the NICUs with babies wearing teeny tiny owl, dog, lion, bear, cat, etc hats?!?!

This round of hats I would LOVE to offer a plea out to designers to help me out. I have an owl and monkey hat pattern, but I would love to share this with other designers. I took part in Sunset Crochet's 12 Days of Giveway this past Christmas as a designer and I loved it! It was awesome to see so many people making hats and their adorable pictures.

So, here is my thought. I would love for designers to offer up some free patterns for animal preemie/newborn hats. I could post a link to your blog from here, or I could directly post the pattern onto my site (and obviously give you credit and links to your FB or shop site). I would love for you to include in your pattern the hook size, yarn used, and overall dimensions of your final product.

I would love if we could collect 500 hats. I know these kind of hats can take a lot longer, so I didn't want to make our goal too lofty.

If you are interested in designing a pattern please email me at thedaintydaisycrochet@gmail.com. I would like the final pattern to be completed by January 18, so I can post them that following weekend. I haven't decided the final date on hat collection. I am still working that out to give enough time for the patterns to be made and for people to be able to spend some time on these as they will take longer. In the meantime, those of you who want to get started can start mailing me hats now!

So, there are two ways you can help:

Design an animal hat pattern that is free for us to use to make some Rosie's Cozies
Crochet/Knit some animal hats and mail them to me or donate them to your local NICU

Hopefully, I find a zoo in my mailbox soon!

Thoughts Please

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 13:39:00 +0000

I have been debating about the direction of this blog for awhile. I admit that it needs a face lift, and I am hoping to do that soon. I love having a space to post all of the things about crochet that I want. I love to share my new projects, patterns I have found, or even throw around some ideas.

I have gone back and forth with offering ad space and making this blog more than what it is on that front. Part of that scares me, because I really like the laid-back feel I have going on here. I don't want to force my blogging because I have sponsors, but it would be a nice little added bonus as well, and may make me not neglect this place sometimes.

So, I need some of your help. What would you like to see here? I would LOVE to get some more free patterns up, and I would really love to finish some of my patterns for my shop here soon. I have had some in the works for months! Would you like more links to patterns I have found? More advice on how to crochet? My thoughts on yarn? More about my personal life? Would you be interested in purchasing ad space? More projects to give back? Linky parties to share projects? You tell me :-)

I am not a writer. I am a crocheter who LOVES to share with others, and I am thankful that so many of you want to follow along and see what I have to say! Please lend your thoughts and help me form some sort of focus and direction! We all know I need it! :-)

Family Name Picture Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 13:22:00 +0000

I wanted to share a little tutorial on a gift we made for my in-laws this Christmas. I was really proud of how it turned out and I had a couple of people ask how we did it. Unfortunately, I am not near as good at doing tutorials on these types of things as other bloggers, so there aren't many pictures of the process. However, it's pretty simple.

The idea came from my husband's sister. She found it on Pinterest. This is about as far back as I can trace this. We thought it was a great idea for people who don't live in the same city, but still wanted to be in a picture together. Paul's family lives two hours East of us. Although we see each other a decent amount during the year, there was no way we were going to pull together a picture quick enough for Christmas.

We had everyone make their own letters however they wanted. As you can see, Marc made his "T" out of pieces of regular 8.5x11 paper. I kind of love how his son, Caden, is holding the bottom piece a bit crooked :-) Monique and Caden's "Os" were made out of foam board. The rest of the letters I made out of poster board.

Once pictures were taken and sent to us, the hardest work was really cropping, cutting, and formatting the picture. We had a basic idea of the size we wanted, but it was really hard to get 8 pictures to fit the same height and still show off the person and the letter in each one. It took some finagling, but eventually we got it. Next we had to find someone that printed this size. FedEx Kinkos is always a GREAT option for things like this. They made it as big as we wanted on photo paper and cut it for us. I think it cost us $10 to get two of them printed off.

Our other dilemma was finding a frame that would fit the picture. I think in the end it ended up being a 5" x 22" picture. We knew that getting it professionally framed was going to be FAR over our budget, so I decided to head to Hobby Lobby and do my best to think outside of the box. Oddly enough, I found this wall shelf and thought that if I turned it on it's side the picture would fit nicely on the top portion, AND it would be able to be set on a table.

I took the shelf and painted it black. There was a funny lip on the bottom of the shelf that looked a little blank, and I felt something had to be written there. Thankfully, I have a friend who is an amazing calligrapher and asked if she could help us out. I have awful handwriting and knew that if I attempted to write anything on this I would either misspell it or totally ruin it. Jen, from Graceful Expressions, beautifully added the "Established 1977," on the bottom for us. This was the year that Paul's parents were married.

The final step was Mod Podging (Mod Podge CS11235 Mod Podge Paper Matte Finish (Google Affiliate Ad) the picture to the shelf. This part was easy. Slap on the Mod Podge, slap on the photo, cover it with more Mod Podge, let it dry, and voila!

Here is a picture of the final product. It looks huge on my in-laws' table, but I promise it isn't near as big as the picture makes it look. Again, it is about 6" high total and 24" wide:

Needless to say, it was a success!

My New Favorite Necklace

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 15:47:00 +0000

Ann Troast Photography

(Left to Right: Stacy, Me, My Mom, Jill, Cricket)

I am so thankful for the relationship I have with my mother and my sisters (sister in law included). This year I wanted to do something special to convey in some small way how much they all mean to me. So, I decided to get us all matching necklaces. Originally, I had really wanted all of us to get matching tattoos, but I wasn't sure if we would all be game for that, so I settled on the necklaces.

Ann Troast Photography

Recently, I discovered that my old college roommate has been making jewelry. She does awesome work, and I knew she was the perfect person to go to make these necklaces. I obviously love to support anything handmade, and especially someone like me who does it as a little side business.

I contacted Val from V's Jewels, and shared with her a design I had seen on Etsy. Basically, I wanted a cross with our birthstones and an anchor. I wanted it to symbolize how each of us are anchored together through Christ. Val loved the idea and went to work right away brainstorming and ordering supplies. The final product is better than I imagined and I LOVE it. She did an amazing job.

I include my sister-in-law in on this as well because she is just as much a sister to me as my two actual sisters. She has been with my brother since I was in high school and stuck by him when he was in the worst of his alcohol addiction. Thankfully, he is almost 6 years sober (whoop, whoop)!

Along with the necklaces, I wanted to include a poem to explain their meaning, as well as convey to them what they each mean to me. You can read it below:

To my favorite women

A small gift for you

To honor our love

And all we’ve been through.

At the bottom you’ll find

Five stones hung on

They represent us

And our very close bond

The anchor shows

How solid we are

Though waters get rough

We don’t move too far

The cross, as you see

It rests on our heart

With God as our center

We won’t fall apart

Through Christ’s awesome love

We are anchored together

In the good and the bad

And all of life’s weather.

So, thanks each of you

And how much you care

What God has given us

Is extraordinarily rare.

A HUGE thank-you to Val for making such an amazing and meaningful piece of jewelry for each of us. Please head over to her Facebook page and show her some love, and order from her! She is awesome to work with and makes beautiful stuff. You really cannot beat something that is handmade from someone who truly loves her craft.

Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 13:35:00 +0000

Thank you to all who shared the giveaway! A winner was chosen last night.

#14:The Family Brass
i shared and love your hats....also doing the 12 days charity hats...just got the info...thanks...

Congrats! If you missed the giveaway you can still get the pattern for 50% off until the end of today in my Ravelry shop.

Basic HDC Beanie Pattern (and a giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 17:51:00 +0000

Awhile ago I wrote up my own personal basic beanie pattern. I had struggled with making hats that weren't the right sizes, and after some prodding from Christine at My Sweet Potato 3 (she's the greatest and you should check her out!), I created my own!

I have decided to sell this in my shop and make it available for others looking for a tried and true, good ol' basic beanie pattern. I have yet to come up with the adult sizes, but hopefully those come eventually. For now, here is the link to get my Basic HDC Beanie Pattern. If you buy it in the next 24 hours you can get it for 50% off!

Oh, and while we are at it, let's do a giveaway for someone to get this pattern for free! I haven't done a giveaway via my blog in awhile. So here is the scoop. Head on over to FB and follow me there. Then share the giveaway on your FB page and come back here and let me know that you did (be sure to include your email :-) )

Oh, and I'd love it if you also told me who you want to make some hats for! Ready....GO!

A Craft Show

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 13:16:00 +0000

Things have been hectic around here. Once the colder weather hits the orders start flying in like crazy! I have been filling orders, as well as trying to prepare for a craft show. I forgot how much I love craft shows. I love using my own creative thought to pick out style and colors. It is even more exciting when something I am so proud of sells at a show.

Today I participated in my first craft show in 2 years! I know these things can be hit or miss, so I tried not to get my hopes up, and told myself to keep an open mind. The first hour and a half were REALLY slow. The only sale I made was one to a good friend of mine, so I figured that didn't count :-) I was getting a bit deflated and began to wonder if I had priced things too high, or if I should have had more of certain sizes or styles. Thankfully, within the last two hour of the show I did some major selling, and I was more than thrilled!

Things I want to take note for next time:

It is nice to have smaller items like hair clips and necklaces because although it doesn't rake in loads of dough per item, people can justify $5 here or there for a cute accessory. A hat for $20+ is a much bigger commitment than a hair clip :-)
Have more in boy sizes from 6-12 months. This seemed to be a size a lot of people were asking for and I had a ton of 3-6 and 12-24 months, but not much for the 6-12 month age. Also, newsboy hats were a hit.
Don't forget your business cards on your counter at home! Ugh, I specifically grabbed them this morning to make sure I didn't forget them...and then I grabbed my coffee and not my business cards. Whoops!

Blurry, but the only pic I got of the table. I should have taken more!

My famous hat rack. It got just as many comments as my hats did!

All in all it was a success in my book, and it helped a family raise money to move to Africa! Win-win! I still have quite a few items left that I will be posting in a Ready to Ship album on Facebook. Time to finish up that Christmas shopping!

BTW, who has been working on their 12 Days of Christmas Charity Challenge? I am behind and need to get to work!

12 Days of Christmas Charity Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 20:15:00 +0000

Bonnie from Sunset Crochet is hosting the 12 days of Christmas Charity Challenge that starts today! The challenge is to make 12 baby hats, share a picture of the hats you make, and then donate them to your local NICU.

To commit to the challenge, leave a comment here with your email address. Bonnie will then send you a PDF of 12 FREE preemie patterns made from 9 different designers. I am honored to say that I designed one of the hats for this challenge! I have seen all of the patterns and they are gorgeous!

So, get out those crochet hooks, your baby yarn, and start making some teeny tiny hats! For those of you who have followed me for awhile you know the heart I have to make special hats for babies in NICUS through Rosie's Cozies. This challenge could not be more perfect for me! If you do not have a local NICU you may send hats to me to donate to our NICU here in Grand Rapids at

Rosie's Cozies

6026 Kalamazoo Ave SE #119

Kentwood, MI 49508

Please share your gifts and talents this Christmas by committing to this challenge :-)

Boots, Boots, Boots!

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:04:00 +0000

If you follow me on Facebook at all you may have noticed a slight obsession with crocheting boots. We had family pictures this past Saturday, and I wanted something cute and unique to put on the girls that would stand out in the pictures. I found this pattern from Two Girls Patterns. I have bought their stuff in the past and have always been extremely impressed with how easy their directions are. Loads of pictures, many notes about how to complete the project, and of course my favorite--stitch counts!

I have always struggled with doing booties....which I talk all about here. I don't know what my deal is. For some reason they always ended up coming out all wonky (yes, that is a legit word in my dictionary), and never near is adorable as the designer's photos. I was so happy when I created these boots and they turned out JUST as cute as the pattern pictures.

The loop stitch is something new for me, but it was quite easy to figure out. The pattern itself is really forgiving as far as getting your hook into the right spot and starting your first stitch in in the right place. As long as you start at the middle back of the bootie, then you end up all good. I had to play around on some rounds slip stitching into the top chain or the first stitch but either way it always worked out!

The greatest part of these boots is that they STAY ON. I have made many booties that are cute, but really are useless and impractical. It doesn't matter how cute they are if they don't stay on, right? I can't wait to see how our family pictures turned out with both girls wearing these. I will be sure to post them to share :-)

Oh, and once I did the furry boots I wanted something for boys, so I bought their cable boots pattern. This turned out adorable, but was much more work. It might be me, but I had to really focus on where I was putting my stitches, how many, and stick close to the pattern. This isn't a problem if I am working after the kids are in bed, but I tried to make this one when they were up and it was slow going.

So, go buy tons of patterns from Two Girls Patterns! They are adorable and well worth it! I still have my eye on a few others I want to try!

Shell Stitch Beanie Help

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 11:30:00 +0000

I get many emails and comments asking for help with my shell stitch beanie pattern. I sure wish I knew a better way to explain my directions. Maybe some pictures of what I mean? I am a visual person, so I totally get it!

There is a video, though! Here is the link: http://thedaintydaisyblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/shell-stitch-beanie-video-tutorial.html

Laura Muzinic from Midnight Stitches made this for me and I cannot thank her enough!

FREE PATTERN: Old English "D"

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sun, 28 Oct 2012 18:38:00 +0000

I was actually going to sell this pattern, but I have decided to just make this one for free (for now at least). It took little time to whip up, but it does take a bit of maneuvering your hook and joining the yarn in different spots. My original design was the Old English design with three vertical lines, however I know there is a version with two vertical lines. It really isn't any more or less difficult to do one or the other. Below are the instructions. Please let me know if you find any errors or get confused at all. Oh, and sorry about my terrible pictures. :-) We all know I can't take a picture to save my life!

Old English D with Three Vertical Stripes:

Yarn: Worsted Weight
Hook: I used an H
(This piece can really be made with any hook or yarn....it will just change up the size)

Chain 33
Slst in second chain from hook, sc in next 9 chains, 3 sc in next, 1 sc in next, 3 sc in next, sc in next 6 chains, 3 sc in next, 1 sc in next, 3 sc in next, sc in next 9 chains, slst in last chain. Finish off. It should look something like this:

Now you begin the vertical line and two horizontal lines closes to the inside of the D:
Join with slst to 3rd stitch to left of bottom corner of D:

Chain 7 (the first 3 chains make up the start if the vertical line, the last 4 are the bottom horizontal line).
Slst into the side of the D. It will look like this:

Now slst back across last 4 chains made.

Now, chain 5 and slst to the side of the D again, above your last horizontal stripe. I skipped one stitch in between the two. Slst back across 4 chains.

Chain 2 and slst to top of the D (the third stitch to the left of the top corner)
To finish the stripe, simply sc evenly back down the stripe towards the bottom. Slst in beginning stitch. Finish off.

Now for the next stripe. Skip one stitch to the left of the bottom of the first stripe and join with slst in next stitch. Now chain 9 and slst to the top of the D. Turn and sc back down stripe. Slst in joining stitch and finish off.

Okay, now time for the last vertical stripe. This one starts from the top. Skip first stitch to the left of the top of last vertical stripe and attach with a slst in next stitch. Chain 5. Slst in second chain from hook and in next stitch. Chain 3. Slst in second chain from hook and next. Chain 4. Slst in next chain and now sc evenly back up stripe. Join to beginning stitch with slst. Finish off.

Voila!

This piece might need some blocking, as it can sort of bend and needs some pulling on to make it sit right. Hopefully the pictures helped and it wasn't too confusing. Please let me know if you find any errors! Also, I would LOVE to see finished work on my Facebook page!

My Knitting Endeavor

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 13:30:00 +0000

For some reason I got the bug to try to learn how to knit. I think that for so long I just got sick of wondering what life was like on the "other side." I was curious how knitters made their cables, their intricate stitch patterns, and how they really made art out of those two needles rather than one hook.

The two things I dislike the most about knitting:

Fixing a mistake is scarier and much harder. With crochet you can just rip out the piece past the mistake and start over. No harm done. With knit it is a matter of reinserting needles and trying not to pull to hard on the piece so the loops don't fall through.
SO much equipment is needed! I had no idea that you couldn't just use some basic knitting needles to make everything! Apparently, there are double-pointed needles, circular needles, cable needles, and who knows what else! Buying a set of crochet hooks can cost as little at $20, while purchasing an interchangeable knitting needle set is at least $50!

However, I do love the look of knitting, and am happy I can now say I know how to knit....and purl (increase, decrease, and even some cables!).

I found that knitting takes much longer also. It is hard to go from being able to finish a crocheted project in an hour or so, to a knit dishcloth taking a few hours. I tend to give up on projects that take too long, so this would mean I have to have a it more discipline to keep going---or take on smaller projects :-)

I plan on continuing to practice and try new things, and hopefully this knitting thing won't really feel any harder or easier than crocheting. I'd really like to have knowledge on both. I have to remind myself that I have been crocheting for 8 years, so hopefully 8 years from now I will be able to knit in my sleep :-)

I think I got a bit of that knitting itch, however, I still think I lean towards my first love of crochet.

ArtPrize

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 19:24:00 +0000

I love Grand Rapids. Love it. I am a hardcore fan of Michigan, which may or may not be because it is home to all of my siblings and my parents. I am very close with my family. In fact, myself and all of my siblings (there are four of us) live within 2.5 miles of each other off the same main street. My parents are 45 minutes south of us in the same house I grew up with my entire life.

Here in Grand Rapids there is a event called ArtPrize. It is the largest art competition in the world with the largest prize for the winners. It began in 2009, and has proven to be an amazing event. For 2 1/2 weeks, downtown Grand Rapids is covered in sculptures, paintings, statues, drawings, etc. Things are made from all different types of materials. There are very few rules to the competition, making it an art free-for-all.

It's funny, because I don't often think of what I do as art. Painting a picture is art. Creating a sculpture out of clay is art. I often forget that creating hats, appliques, scarves, booties, etc is art also! This got me to thinking that it would be fun to enter a piece next year. Now for the real question...what?

I can make most anything out of yarn, but what would be worthy enough to enter into an art competition? I have been thinking of linking it with Rosie's Cozies and doing something for Helen DeVos Children's Hospital. There have been amazing yarn bombs done over school buses and VW Bugs. Could I really do that? It isn't really original, but it would be awesome to see. Maybe I could crochet a "blanket" to cover one of the pillars at the hospital....I am still brainstorming. I am trying to figure out if I do preemie hats and arrange them in some sort of artistic manner, if I do a huge blanket of grannies, or if I want to do sort of a mural with appliqués and loads of color.

Source

I think my biggest question is how can I create something with MEANING that goes beyond just a hook and yarn. How can I crochet something that others will look at and be touched? Maybe I have the artistic hands to create something, but not so much the deeper artistic thought :-)

And who knows? Maybe this is a goal too lofty for me right now!

Therapy

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 00:43:00 +0000

I have found myself able to crochet more lately. It feels so good.

A little less than a year ago I had my second baby, and knew crochet was going to be put on hold a lot...like taking orders and things. I never realized how much I would have really put it on hold, and I didn't mean to. Sometimes I just wanted to crochet without having to do it to fill an order or a deadline, but when I would crochet things not on an order list I felt guilty for keeping clients waiting. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE doing client orders, but there were times it overwhelmed me. Two winters ago my order list was over 3 months out! I shouldn't complain about lots of business, but my hands can only work so fast :-)

I knew when Evie was born that I was going to need to take time off. I knew I wasn't going to be able to do orders for that winter AND take care of a two year old and new baby. So, a few months off, turned into a lot of months off, and before I knew it I had hardly taken any orders for a very long time.

One side of this is that I have been working on Rosie's Cozies, and I do crochet a lot for that project. I also had a lot of struggles with Belle in the past year with getting her to bed...and at one point I think Paul and I were walking zombies who spent most of our nights trying to get kids to bed. Needless to say, I wasn't able to get any crochet time in when I was working on getting kids to sleep.

Recently I have opened myself up to a few more orders. I was a bit scared to do this, as I was worried I wouldn't be able to keep up, but I have been able to slowly, but surely get back in the groove. I have done a much better job of taking orders when I am done with another order, so they come more one at a time than a list of 45 orders to be filled!

I forgot how therapeutic crocheting is for me. The creating, the movement of yarn, the brainstorming, the feeling of completion of a project I am proud of. I forgot how much more relaxed I feel at the end of the day when I end it with one hand on a hook and the other holding some yarn. Crochet is much more than a hobby for me, but something that really helps my brain settle down each day. It's funny how I spent most of my life not knowing how to crochet, but within the past 8 years it has really become a large part of my identity. I am proud to keep an old craft going...and helping make it "cool" again (even if my husband so lovingly calls me grandma when I'm working).

I know all of you crafters out there are nodding your head in agreement. It's amazing how a hook and some yarn are probably saving us all a lot of money on shrinks :-)

Almost Race Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 12:46:00 +0000

Tomorrow is the big race day! I can't believe that I have actually been able to train and prepare myself for a 5k! In the past I have always watched in awe as people ran races, thinking that it was something I was never going to be able to do. Just goes to show you that not all things are impossible!

Fox 17 aired our story last night, and I cannot wait to share it with all of you! They did an amazing job! I am humbled and so thankful. Thank you to all of YOU! You have prayed for this project, donated, and have sent encouraging messages.

We are close to 1000 hats and we have made it over our goal of $1000! I am still waiting to see how many hats come in next week to add to our goal, but we are close. I knew these were lofty goals, but we did it!!! Thank you to all of you. Rosie's Cozies happens because of all of you. You are keeping her legacy alive and blessing families with children in the NICU.

My Life (Other Than Crochet)

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Sat, 08 Sep 2012 00:10:00 +0000

I realize that it has been awhile since I have followed up with what is happening in my life personally. I recently had someone who I know via the internet remind me that I hadn't been blogging much and she asked how my girls were doing. Sometimes I forget that this is a place that I can share more than just crochet related information :-) It was sweet to know that someone out there remembered the other parts of my life and wanted to know how everything was!

So, here is the scoop: LIFE IS GOOD. I love the stage my girls are at right now. Belle is almost three and starting preschool next week! She is full of sass, hilarious comments, and so much joy. She has a load of personality and keeps me on my toes! This past year she has really gone from toddler to little girl. She wants to do everything herself, yet still wants me to do everything....if that even makes sense.

Evie is seriously the easiest baby ever. She smiles at EVERYTHING and thinks everything is funny. She is crawling everywhere and pulling herself up on tables and chairs. She is definitely at the stage where she puts everything in her mouth. That girl and the dog food. What is it with babies and dog bowls?!?!?

We had an amazing summer chuck full of family and friends, and even welcomed a new nephew, Kahsay, from Ethiopia. We went to Traverse City, Silver Lake, the zoo, and had an amazing weekend over the bridge in Naubinway. It was a great summer, but I am looking forward to that fall weather I love so much. Donuts, apples, hay rides, and pumpkins!

On the crochet front I have found that life is just different with two little ones. Filling orders is harder and at the end of the day I clean up the house and just want to sit. Don't get my wrong....crocheting is my therapy, but sometimes when you do order after order it can get to be more of a job and not so much a hobby. I will still be doing some orders this year, but it will be much less than a couple of years ago.

Life is good. It is real good. We are blessed.

Free Appliqué Patterns

noreply@blogger.com (Betsy Thompson) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 12:19:00 +0000

As I have been making hats for Rosie's Cozies, I found myself running into a rut of good patterns to use for appliqués to add a little pizazz. So, I went on a mission to find some of people's favorite free appliqué patterns. If you know of anymore you use that I should add, PLEASE let me know. Enjoy!

Flowers:

Flower (I use this one for everything)
Flower

Interchangeable Flower

Animals:

Owl

Owl 2
Owl 3