Life Is Good

Needle felting polyfill

2026-06-16T11:28:06.446-06:00

It's so easy to under or over stuff your amigurumi..

I tend to over stuff as I like my toys to be able to hold themselves up .. unless of course they are meant to be floppy ..

Okay even then I have a hard time leaving them without stuffing lol

However with larger plushie creations it's so easy to over stuff and end up with stressed or "holy" stitches...

Until recently I haven't made many larger plushies.. so it wasn't a big issue for me..

Then I made this super cute Dino but had so many issues with getting the legs firm enough.. the head was okay..

With the necks I use rolled tied felt to keep the heads from being wobbly..

but the legs ugh.. I ended up having to add some stitching to the stitches to tighten and close holes in a few areas.. and adding more spots over other areas ..

I came across a video on YouTube after that... it was for small "display only" types of amigurumi..

one of her tips was to needle felt the polyfill firm..

She stated that she had been hearing about the technique for some time before trying it herself mostly in Europe I believe..

I had to give that a go...

I was working on a medium size duck that needed it's bill filled firmly..

I shaped the polyfill to size placed it inside the bill

and worked it firm while still in the piece.. being careful not to go through the yarn.. being very careful to keep my fingers far away from the needle..

it did take a few minutes probably close to a half hour..

So if you count your minutes per item this may not be for you..

it does take a bit more polyfill as well ..

However the results were so worth it as far as I am concerned..

I have no issues putting in a little extra effort and time to get an item that I like better..

The process of creating an item matters to me.. the energy placed in it while making it .. something that you pick up and it feels good.. that is what I want to make..

No stress on the stitches, no holes.. firm shape without anything else added to it... as in wires or other shaping materials..

Easy to get the shape of the piece needed... as long as you keep your fingers out of the way painless too lol

Next I had to try legs... now this little piggy would have been able to stand without much effort.. but I wanted to so....

truthfully I miss needle felting but plushies are much easier to take to market.. and have sold at a better rate for me at least... and I really like making them as well..

if I can combine the two..

I'm so okay with that ..

I started with needle felting to do eyes on crochet toys after all lol

I add a bit of stuffing to stand a little taller than the yarn piece so it stays placed well after stitching on...

Look at these feet btw... so cute..

and the snout.. and ears....

Pattern by CrochetGrove

The added bonus is how much easier it is to place and stich on the piece..

This piggy is designed to have an almost splayed look..

which normally would have taken a dozen knitting needles to hold in place while I tried placement over and over.. and probably removed one after stitching lol ..

I have been seeing these cute little needle felting kits at the dollar tree.. an inexpensive way to get a felting needle to give it a try..

I would like to be able to play with wool sometimes .. mostly not a problem with all the fun and or beautiful non- life threatening yarns out there these days... but then I see a sweet little kit like this ...

Recent makes

2026-04-05T11:52:00.005-06:00

A few of the plushies I've made prepping....

I didn't ask for permission to link to the patterns.. so I am just adding the designers names and platform I got them from.. these are my take on their patterns, I have changed things here and there to make them a bit more to my liking and such.. check out their shops

Love this adorable moth pattern by ZeroGravityCrochet on Etsy.. perfect for this pair of safety eyes I made with glitter nail polish sealed with uv gell polish.. fun pattern to make

I like bunnies.. love bunny patterns.. got this free pattern on Instagram by kayascrochet.. I changed the ears up a bit to be longer and a little wider for the middle rounds.. ih and a little face shaping... a fair amount of sewing but worth it

Finally remembered to get a photo of my mini beaded turtles before I sent them out..

Loaf critters are among my favorite plushies to make.. they are so cute.. TheCozyBuckeye on Etsy has a line of them that are so cute .. this unicorn is no sew.. the way the horn is worked up is brilliant.. used another pair of my safety eyes..

I want to carry a verity of different eye types as well as plushie styles and sizes... this one got embroidered eyes.. pattern on Etsy by CassityAnnDesigns26 ... I will be making more of these ..

This one has standard black safety eyes as they really did work the best with this over the top cute pattern by MjaLisa on Etsy... got the bundle with a few others I have yet to make.. so cute I had to start with this one..

This pattern has been waiting on my desktop for quite some time.. I wanted the eyes to be big and golden... used another pair of my painted eyes.. pattern by SheildMaidenCrochet on Etsy.. quick make .. very cute

While I was making the golden eyes for the chubby owl I made this pair .. not your standard look for snake eyes but i think it works... flat out love this pattern by Crochimal on Etsy

Eyes

2026-01-23T07:12:00.001-07:00

I have been working on making better eyes for my creations for quite some time now...

I have tried dozens of different types..

Crochet with yarn or thread, embroidery with floss or yarn, felt needle or cut pieces, and of course safety eyes.. black with embroidery details around them, glitter disks and colored ..

The one kind I have wanted to do and as of yet not been able to play with is making resin ones myself...

with my allergies and or reactions to most strong smells ..... being shut down for days at a time didn't seem cost affective to me... not to mention I really don't like causing myself more issues than I already deal with on a daily basis... I will never understand why everything including yarn is scented ugh

So here and there over time I have been picking up items to create my own safety eyes that will have a bit of the depth of resin eyes... without the stronger smell..

Foil bits and nail poilish with glitter are good starting points.. gell polish should hold up better... still a fairly strong smell but nail polish is one of the smells I had gotten myself more able to deal with starting at a fairly young age.. for decades starting at around 9 years old, you would never find me without my nails freshly done lol

who knew it would turn out to be such a helpful crafting tool over the years ...

Although cost affective.. not so much in the last few years polish prices have skyrocketed ..

the art of the nail trade has really been amazing to watch .. from the big bulky acrylic ones of the 80s when I was a teen, to the gell master pieces of today.. incredible

Over the last few years when trends would change I would pick up clearance items or dollar store finds stashing them away for "some day" ..

With the clearancing of uv gells and lights I think I have a pretty good stock to start with ..

The latest find was just the other day... Chrome nail powder... it's gorgeous

I took some of my Amazon safety eyes .. a pair of sinker that were ment to be used with glitter disks and a pair of the paint added on colored ones..

I removed the paint from a rough looking pair so it wasn't a loss if it didn't work out.... and added glitter nail polish .. a layer of foil and more polish then the chrome powder..

Still need to add the clear gell coat after the final background color..

not the best shots and over all kind of hard to see as they are small... 10 and 12 mm .. not to mention the lighting was horrible.. but even at that clear potential can be seen...

a couple more test runs with a few of the pairs I wouldn't have used otherwise and I'll go for the better larger sized eyes that I picked up on a really good deal awhile back...

Definitely just the beginning... I'll get better shots when completed

Been too long

2025-10-30T23:45:00.003-06:00

This year has been so much worse than normal for taking photos...

With luck I will be able to find a bit more free time to actually take some shots of the items I have been working on.. knock knock knock

I do have a few so I will try and get those posted

Been playing with bulky yarn...

Actually this one is worsted weight .. but it's cute so I'm posting it too...

Recent finds

2024-11-03T16:51:00.002-07:00

A few random things I have picked up over the last couple of months..

Dollar tree circular knitting needles...

I have only seen one size.. size 9 ..

If you're looking for a set that won't let the yarn slide off the needle this is it... I found knitting in the round almost impossible however straight knitting went well enough that keeping them in the car for a side project like a straight stitch scarf is okay... If you already brought a set ... I wouldn't run out to get another

also from Dollar tree

The photo color didn't come out well.. I took them apart before I realized that lol... these are gold and silver they had red and blue ones as well... the sequins are so beautiful, they would have been fun decorations as is true, those sequins are just too pretty to not want to play with them lol.. I am replacing them with yarn ...

the sequins are lightly glued to a string and that to a foam base with glitter on top part.. removing the sequins was very easy.. expect glitter to fly while doing so

Speaking of sequin harvesting... Found these at a thrift store..

The sequins were easy to remove from the shamrocks, they had a surprising amount of stuffing... at the point of the photo I had already removed the headband piece from the fabric... that was the easy part as far as the headband was concerned.. hot glue was not spared in the making of these.. will take more effort to get the sequins off.. Ugh

This roll of sequins was so tightly stuffed in a baggie there was no way to tell what it was for sure...

The clerk asked if I even knew what it was.. when I told him no, he decided to cut the prices in half and gave me a discount on top of that.. 😊

I was pleasantly surprised to find out it was a yards long strip of elastic fabric sequin trim...

Picked up some cookie cutters...

The box was beat up a little bit all of the cutters are fine.. lots of random shapes but no Christmas ones.. not really a surprise as these are the regular stock went back yesterday and found these mini ones

Perfect for making needle felt ornaments for mini Christmas trees..

Needle felt scrap heart

2024-11-03T13:56:00.004-07:00

After weaving in the ends of a scrapy bag I decided to used them to make a needle felt heart..

brushed them out

Just stuffed them in without worrying about color placement

I am planning on making it a charm so heavily felted it,

flipping from side to side..

Using multiple sizes of needles..38 to start, 40 for the vast majority of it, finishing with a 42 for some smoothing or the edges

I picked up the heart cut out from the Dollar Tree..

Going to use this side as the front.. will finish off with embroidery highlights.. maybe a few other emblements.. will try to update when it's done

Sequin dress harvest from thrift store

2024-11-03T13:39:00.003-07:00

Okay this is going to take a minute... or two to "harvest" the sequins from... should get a bit of fabric from it as well.. it is small however it was on sale at the thrift store for just over $7. with tax.. I couldn't pass it up..

Sequin fringe hanging from the most of the dress ... thinking they are sturdy enough to reuse as a stitched down or even glued line of sequins .. there are so many.. the dress is probably closer to extra small so they aren't long enough to use again as fringe.. unless maybe a doll dress or on a needle felt item... could work... either way I plan on leaving them intact at least for now..

The fabric is a glittery kind of mesh look over solid green satin with sequins stitched on

The zipper is unbelievably sturdy.. heavy metal definitely going to be able to repurpose it..

Tag doesn't show any where, nor does the rest of it.. actually glad it's not any bigger.. it's going to be a big enough job as it is lol

Simple cord keeper crochet pattern

2024-08-13T11:44:00.001-06:00

This is a great project for using up smaller amounts of yarn.. the larger size only uses about 6 1/2 yards.. the smaller one approximately 5 1/4 yards

I used several different brands of yarn that varied from medium to a thicker worsted weight, 100% acrylic to give the cord keeper a bit of stretchability

H 5 mm hook

Accurate gauge really isn't essential to this project as it is pretty easy to see the overall size..

That being said mine come out about 1 1/2 inches wide ( both the same ) and about 4 inches long for the 16 row longer size and approximately 3 inches long .. a tad under.. for the 13 row shorter size.

This pattern is beginner friendly.... the hardest part is the beginning button loop with 3 SC going into the slip stitch joined loop .. which is made easier simply by making the first chain looser..

it can easily be adjusted in length by adding or subtracting sc rows.... keep in mind the button loop when closed will add a bit of length as it stretches some what

The button loop can be adjusted as needed to suit the size of the buttons you choose..... I used buttons that are close to 1 inch or slightly over.. as the buttons are the main focal point have some fun choosing yours, I used a bunch of random ones I have picked up over the years

6 1/2 yards of worsted weight acrylic yarn

H 5 mm hook

1 approximately 1 inch button

American terms

ch - chain

dec - single crochet decease in next two stitches

inc - single crochet twice in next stitch

sc - single crochet

sl st - slip stitch

1) keeping first ch loose ch 8, sl st into first ch made going through both loops of ch, ch 1 ... Check to see if loop goes around your button, you're looking for a easy slide over but not too loose, adjust loop size as needed

2) in same stitch as the joining stitch sc 3, ch 1 turn ( 3 sts )

3) inc, sc 1, inc, ch 1, turn ( 5 sts)

4) sc 5, ch 1 turn ( 5 sts )

For longer size

5 - 15) do as row 4

Shorter size

5 - 12) do as row 4

Repeat row 4 untill you almost reach the length you want

For all lengths

dec, SC 1, dec ( 3 sts)

Fasten off.....

I like to use the tail end to stitch down the button if you choose to do this leave a tail 10 to 12 inches long

Stitch button in center of second to last row, weave in ends

That's it fast and easy ... plus useful

Pictured above is the shorter cord keeper, below is the longer one with the same cord ( 6 foot ) .. either would work for holding this size cord however the shorter one is pretty close to it's limit

Thrift store bead find

2024-08-11T07:29:00.004-06:00

I lucked out at the thrift store..

Two clear boxes of seed beads.. only a couple had any removed from the hanks

Many still had their original label

One had not been opened... Yet .....

Size 13/0 ... beautiful ..

Most are size 11/0 with a few 13/0 ..

so smooth... many appear to be Czech.. if not all of them

Approximately 430 grams for just under $6.

and another sequin pillow for less than a dollar and a half... light brown .. usable back satin fabric and the stuffing will make another pillow for my doggies

You never know what treasures you'll find well thrift shopping...

Sequin harvest

2024-08-03T00:23:00.004-06:00

While thrift store shopping I came across a few items with beautiful sequins..

I have been gathering up sequins for a few projects, when I come across an item on clearance, thrifting or at the Dollar Tree I get them and stick them on the side to "harvest" at a later date..

3mm dark blue... Infinity scarf.. the color is darker than the photos make it appear..

The sequins are in beautiful shape.... Only issue I ran in to was having to wash it by hand 3 or 4 times... to remove the starch....????

The sequins were on mesh, that after removal is definitely still usable

Got a fair amount of usable sequins plus just over two yards of mesh and knit fabric for around $3.00

This piece of brown sequin fabric also came from a thrift store, over two yards of knit fabric with golden brown running through out.. both this one and the blue scarf were on fairly elastic fabric, with the sequins stitched in straight lines.. making it much easier to remove them with the fabric intact.. the fabric will make beautiful liners for smaller crochet bags where I want to keep the bag on the stretchy side...

8 mm, top hole, black sequins

8 mm, light silver top hole sequins both the black and the silver or less than four bucks each on a 40% off sale

Awhile back I picked up a yard of this beautiful black flower multi sized sequins on mesh... on clearance plus a coupon.. I don't recall the exact price but it was less then $4.00 ... Removing sequins on this is a long and tedious process each one has to be removed separately..

I plan on using the flowers fussy cut on some projects so I'm only using the ones along the cut edges of the fabric

Still a fair amount of the three different sizes well worth the price..

When a craft store was doing remodeling they put a lot of their trims on clearance so I grabbed a pink and a royal blue ...

They are more difficult to remove the sequins from but I plan on using the elastic that's in the blue one and the cord that runs through the pink as well as the other strands of floss on some freeform projects.. the sequence are larger center hole probably 8 mm as much as I am getting off of these they were definitely a good deal, I'm not sure how many yards I have 10 or 12 and these were less than $10 for sure but I don't remember exactly they've been sitting since last summer in storage waiting for me to get around to them..

I picked up a thrift store pink sequin pillow for less than $1.00 a couple of days ago.. these are size 3 mm

Stitched down in a very random pattern which is going to make removal slow, but the color actually matches the larger pink ones from the trim fairly well and will definitely be worth the effort

After opening the seam, I realize the center was a fluffy pillow and along one seam was a long zipper that wasn't exposed I'm guessing they decided to go with something different after placing the zipper and just closed over top of it either way it is an excellent condition and will definitely get used ... the back satin from the outside cover of the pillow is in really good shape and will make a nice liner or background for broach

I still have some 8 mm top hole sequins with different colors on each side, from the Dollar Tree that I need to remove, while they come off fairly easily as they're done in a straight line not much of the fabric is worth saving but having the choice of making them flippable or layering with one color up instead of variety of colors definitely adds to the fun factor of creating with them even though they turned out to be a little bit more expensive than some of my thrift store finds

I have spent the last few days harvesting sequins while watching YouTube videos, during my limited crafting time, as to give my arm and hand a chance to heal from the damage done by the antibiotics intubating in to my arm and hand.. I

it's been on things that are mostly getting ready for other projects I've had in mind for quite some time but was too busy with crochet to actually create ...

Taking a break from crocheting has not been easy as I have so many things I want to make, this busy mindless work will lead to creating some fun projects in the near future ..

Dollar tree diamond painting keychain

2024-07-16T12:23:00.004-06:00

I have been loving the little craft kits sold at the Dollar Tree ..

Fun quick projects with most of the items needed to work them up, a few tools like scissors and players might be needed to complete some of them but overall most of the items have been there...

Yesterday I saw a diamond painting keychain

small and simple looking..

I have never worked one before and haven't wanted to get into a big project just to see how it's done...

This was the perfect size to just try the craft out..

I had no clue how any of this worked or if this is even how other kits do it...

It came with limited instructions but enough where you got the idea of what to do, a small super cute tray for the beads, a sticky sheet with the pattern printed on it, it's sticky on both sides so after placing the "diamonds" you stick it to the wooden backing piece, included is hardware for the keychain as well as the "diamond painting pen" and what they are calling silicone clay and or wax depending on where on the packaging or instructions you read..

I assume do you use the tweezers or something like that to pick up the little rhinestones, but you actually just put a little bit of the wax / silicone play on the tip of the pen and it picks them up rather nicely, then just lightly touch the spot where you want them to be on the design that's it, super easy and surprisingly relaxing .. I can see why people like these kits, no real thought involved it really good mindless project that gives you something cute in the end..

I have no clue how well these will stay stuck on there if used as a keychain so I might try to add something over it... I think I'll do a little research into these projects before I try anything LOL

There were plenty of extra rhinestones looks like there's enough to do a couple of them.. definitely a fun project and well worth the buck

How I set out my embroidery floss scraps for easy use

2024-07-14T15:55:00.001-06:00

I am on a forced break from crochet... I ended up with some tendon damage when two IVs infiltrated with two different antibiotics that I am allergic ... to one immediately after the other... It's been over a month... most of the intense pain is gone in my arm and I can almost use it normally, although the strength is still an issue..

both IVs were in the same limb so at least I can still use my other arm and hand ...

my hand is still on the painful side just enough to limit me to only a couple of hours of crochet every few days at most ... So.....

I've been playing with embroidery...

Like all of the crafting I do I save scraps...

I have a lot of floss of small amounts and lengths, cross stitch kits I did ages ago among them..

I am currently working on small projects so it's a great time to use some of them up..

I thought I would share a time saver I use..

I lay out them out so I can see the colors and a general idea of amounts available..

on a piece of crafting felt.. after wrapping them around my finger tip..

holds them in place nicely

I stick another piece of felt on top and just roll them up for quick temporary storage between crafting times .. no more resorting them every time I need to stop for a bit..

Be sure to remove the top piece of felt slowly to avoid a mess as they stick just as well to that piece... 😊

It's so much easier that trying to wrap so many small lengths around floss cards.

With many of these being from kits the colors are a shade or two different.. this makes that slight difference easier to spot as well ..

When I finish with the project I rebag the floss and put the felt back with the rest of my felt stock... No waste .. but even if I didn't have the felt on hand I would go grab some from the dollar tree .. as much time as I save with the ease of it it is definitely worth it to me..

I do save the pieces that are too short for stitching as well .... for small tassels and such, the smaller ones I use with making scrapy fabric bags.. the texture and interest it adds .. love it...

It's been a good year since I did any real embroidery other than an embellishment here and there... was running out of smaller scraps.. so that is a bright side lol...

I had been planning on doing more bead and embroidery work it's just happening sooner than planned ...

I haven't taken any photos yet... So here's some bees instead

Dollar tree crochet kit

2024-05-02T09:05:00.003-06:00

One of the crochet kits I found at the Dollar tree a few weeks ago, definitely not something that will teach you how to crochet as the instructions are rather vague.. that aside they make for great carry alongs ..

Have almost everything you need to make it, yarn, stuffing, crochet hook that looks to be about a 3 mm, embroidery floss where the facial features, plastic needle, and safety eyes.. a couple of the other kids I had picked up we're a bit different the crochet hook was marked as a 3 mm and made out of aluminum instead of plastic and it had a stitch marker as well as the needle being just a little bit bigger, the instructions were still a little bit lacking so I wouldn't call those a beginner kit either... But they are definitely fun and worth the $1.25

I did add a couple of rows to the ears,

And added a pom-pom tail, also worked in spirals as it is my preferred method for making toys or in this case a charm for my mother to clip on to one of her bags ..

I have plenty of yarn to work it up and more than half of the stuffing left over after making a few different ones I was able to make several other projects from the yard and stuff and leftover

Needle felted monster thingys

2024-05-02T06:35:00.003-06:00

In my scrap yarn stash I've had a baggie full of light worsted weight scraps ( Mainstay ) from an inkle weaving project.. used a few bits here and there but didn't want to use it for stuffing or tie the ends together to add to my yarn ball... I swear I will get back to that some day 😁... as the pieces were fairly long and seamed like they could be more useful... how I had no clue... until

I came across a needle felting video about adding hair to a project.. she called it a monster... so cute..

After seeing some super realistic looking needle felting, I did want to try adding hair to something, but I will admit the super realistic looking critters .... they kind of creep me out....

I personally prefer not so realistic looking little critters sitting on my shelf ..

the talent and skill that go into these is just amazing and awe-inspiring.. I find it fascinating to watch... just not something I want to do at least not at this point.. but that monster oh yeah I had to try a few of those...

Started by brushing out all of the yarn scraps with a pet brush ..

The fibers that were "carded" caught up in the brushes, kind of a light felting or matting... I replaced in the baggie to use as my core fiber... the main body filler.. the term they use is core wool so I suppose I could just call it core acrylic.. anyhow I set that aside to

proceed with using a hair straightening iron to smooth out all of the strands that had remained straight-ish a bit better, the process also adds a nice shine to it, although I did not straighten it too much as I wanted a bit of a wonky look.. still ended up on the smooth side once it got it on..

Set that aside going back to the core stuff I rolled it nice and tight .. as tight as I could with it puffing out every where..

I had picked up a felting kit from the Dollar tree.. actually my son went into the Dollar tree and found them ... I was outside sitting in the car working on crochet watching his doggie.. he only came out with three so I sent him back in for a couple more.. I couldn't believe it... I had asked him to pick up one of the small crochet kits.. he didn't even realize he picked up a felting kit LOL

while I can't use the wool in it...

Or at least shouldn't.. ( serious reaction and allergy to wool and lanolin )

I will admit I'm kind of tempted to put on safety gear and try it just to see what the difference is.. maybe I could get away with trying some wet felting outside with a mask on and huge rubber gloves or something...

Okay back to this project the kit came with three needles ( if I had to guess I would say 36, 38 and 40 triangular ) and this neat little foam pad to felt on.. just the right size for a small project like this.. it also had the wool needed in the colors called for, plus an eye pin and little cord like thingy with a jump ring and lobster claw on the end that I have since learned can be used to hang things off of phones... and whatnot ... Side note looking things up when you don't know the name is a very long process.... I definitely needed to get a few of those especially after it took me so long to figure out what they were called LOL lanyard phone ring strap on Amazon if your wondering..

Anyhow where was I ...

I made my core very firm as I knew I would be keeping my hair rows close together and the firmness would be necessary... plus I just like they feel of it... Yeah okay it is also very satisfying for some reason to stab yarn fibers thousands of times over and get a solid shape out of it...

Added felted eyes

I cut the "hair" in two inch sections.. and put the rows almost on top of each other they were that close... I did have to stop and find some of the smaller scraps that I had used on other projects to finish up the top of the head as I had run through everything I had prepared just at the last couple of rows.. talk about yarn chicken ugh.. it's a good thing I had already decided I wanted the hair to stand up more on the top and was able to use some smaller pieces to fill it in, lesson learned you definitely need more yarn than you would think at least more than I thought...

Using a 40 gauge triangular needle for the vast majority of it, only in the beginning did I use a 38 triangular, so far in my limited experience I find the 40 triangular to work the best for me with or worsted weight acrylic fibers.

I used a eyebrow brush/comb that I had purchased from yep the Dollar tree to use with my amigurumi doll hair... to smooth it out a bit as I went along, this particular yarn was full of static and tended to be very fly away, so I was moistening my fingers with a light mist of water as needed .. this really helped speed things up which was kind of nice as this is a very long and sort of tedious process ... but so worth it ... it turned out so cute

I worked in circles around the base/body until I came to the eyes, between the eyes I kept the lower half worked downwards and the top upwards, I wanted the hair on the top of the head to stand upward ( good thing as previously stated lol ) ... so I added a part in the center of the head and worked rows downward from there meeting up with the circular rows I had done prior..

Not exactly like the video monster.. more of a "thing" vibe going here.. flat out love them ..

This one is made with Simply Soft yarn by Caron with a part down the middle .. pre hair trimming .. core if mixed scraps.. no ironing

Also Simply Soft with no ironing, but the cord was Simply Soft.. took forever to felt.. or about a half hour longer.... being the first and last with of anything a silky yarn core.. actually was the first of the monster thingys .. which I am sure is pretty obvious LOL I think he's gorgeous so I'm keeping this one.. and that one above this..

Both Simply Soft with random scraps core, both ironed and styled differently ... each has it's own one of a kind look ..

Yarn scraps for needle felting

2024-04-26T09:20:00.006-06:00

I always have yarn scraps hanging around.. when I got my felting needles a couple of weeks ago

I decided to use this gallon sized bag stuffed full to practice ...

Okay over three weeks later I will admit I had no clue how much effort and time it would involve...

I pulled colors as I needed them for whatever project I was working on.. some days I sorted colors out and just worked on brushing.. for hours at a time

I got a couple of dollar store pet brushes.. around the end of week three they started losing some of the metal bristles .. but as many dozens and dozens of hours as I put them through hard brushing, I think they held up pretty well for the price..

I had everything from nice super soft shiny to down right harsh scraps.. mostly in between stuff like Red Heart...

In my experience Red Heart was much easier to brush out and quicker to felt then the smoother shinier Simply Soft scraps although they did make for some beautiful monster hair LOL ( post coming soon )

Red Heart before

and after brushing

I finally finished brushing the last of the scraps out last night after doing another marathon of six or seven hours straight.. ugh

and I have a shopping bag full of baggies still left after dozens of smaller projects

Side note

I actually had to buy a box of sandwich baggies.. not something I do often .. I reuse them over and over again until they literally fall apart.. apparently it's been a few years as I could only find a few.. well I should be set for some time now ......

A few upcoming projects will be .....

I am going to try my hand at glitter eyeballs and polymer clay claws.. I just found some polymer clay at the dollar tree, small amounts in five or six different colors I think ... per pack just perfect size for doing some claws and possibly some beaks

As soon as I manage to de-scent my new pattern books enough to work with I'll start a few of these...

Look at those hats on the Impkins... definitely looking forward to this... They are in a bag of dry rice .. slowly getting better... I could live without the added fragrance .. if it takes too much longer I am going to resort to taking photos of the pages LOL in the meantime I'm going to work on glitter eyes

Oh and the hairy monsters post

Planning on mixing up some embroidery needle felting and beads also...

Needle felting with acrylic yarn

2024-04-04T03:11:00.001-06:00

Just over a week ago I came across the YouTube video on needle felting eyes on to amigurumi, they looked really impressive...

the one thing I don't like about crocheted eyes is they tend to be a bit bulky and raised, safety eyes are not always a good choice and also can be too bulky on small dolls, embroidery eyes can be difficult to get to lay right .. which is especially noticeable on small dolls....

these were nice and smooth, but being extremely allergic to wool even though I have wanted to try needle felting for ages I thought that was something I would never be able to do..

Being burned out on news but still needing something to run in the background while I was working on my latest project, I let a few more needle felting videos play... one mentioned using acrylic yarn...

That one mention was enough to get me searching online to see if I could find any more information about this..

Information is actually pretty limited, most everything directs towards wool, there were enough little bits here and there to convince me it was doable, wet felting of course is not but dry needle felting is...

My intention was to just get a cheapy set from Amazon and try making a few eyes.. I mentioned this to one of my sons while I was searching on Amazon, asked him what he thought about it... his input was... to get a better set of needles with a variety of different needle types to see which would work better.. I'll admit it didn't take much to convince me as this is really something I wanted to do for a long time... as I had just sold a few patterns, my practice is to put a little bit back into my crafting every few items sold at least, it seemed like really good timing..

I was going to start with practicing eyes but decided to watch a video on basics and they recommended starting with shapes, first being a ball.. my son walks in and asked what I'm making I tell him I'm making a ball for practice.. he's like no really what's it going to be you don't ever just practice without making something, I laughed and said I only had the set for like an hour he couldn't expect need to actually be able to make anything with it..

well that was enough to get me thinking that instead of just making a round ball I should try something I had wanted to do, so I started with one mushroom and another... decided it needed some grass or ground or something to put it on, that needed something with it which turned out to be a bunny not sized to scale or anything just something I wanted to try using just scrap ends.. the ball is now a bush.. still haven't finished with that video ( photo at top )

That lead to making more small items...

I have been working on key chains, charms and such as I like to have plenty of small, low cost items on my tables at markets and was running low..

Still using just scraps I made a few hearts..

Along the way I decided to try a landscape..

Definitely need to work on building up skills for landscapes lol... had no clue what I was doing but it was fun .. at that point I was going on over 30 hours of no sleep .. the big take away from that was you shouldn't play with super sharp needles when you're really tired... and maybe should plan things out a little bit better..

I did practice eyes... once so far lol ..

Mermaid hair

2024-03-26T10:49:00.001-06:00

I have been on a quest for a doll hair I like... Been running across this style a lot recently ...

You stitch a few strands of yarn to the top of the head going back in a line

The part down the middle is nice... It is quick..

This one call ed for a wig cap .. I am assuming to give it a bit fuller look.. definitely better with the cap but still not what I was looking for

I tried adding a line of strands along the front.. helped unless you moved the doll

Took off the wig cap and re-stranded it adding another shade of purple...

The next couple of photos turned out a bit too bright, I tried using natural light thinking we had enough cloud coverage, LOL back to artificial light

I tried a variation of a technique I had seen stranding it through the inside of the wig cap

this way it lies more like natural hair.. not a quick way to make hair... took hours, and a lot of yarn but if you're looking to stash bust this will definitely help with that

I like the way it looks but I had sent her aside while I was considering whether or not I liked it enough to put on her it just seemed off. In the meantime I started another doll from the same book.. a fairy this time but use the same hairstyle as the original mermaid.........

I decided with this one to make a wig cap and use a thinner yarn with more shine, I spaced the strains out a bit more and then unraveled each strand..

It definitely adds more time to the project but I was going for a medium full look

After unraveling the strands I used a hair straightener to tame down some of the hair.. that's when I decided this wig cap was perfect for the mermaid and switched gears

I wasn't thrilled with the minimal facial features after adding the hair so I added a nose but she still needed more

I added eyebrows and enhancements around the safety eyes, some blush ...

and added lips.. she still needed more

I added shells .. a bit fuller lips and worked with her hair a bit more.. I ended up braiding her hair in huge braids then going over it with my hair straightener to heat set it a bit ... Love the end result..... Now I need to make her a better doll stand is this one keeps trying to flop over LOL.. I have a couple more things I want to add before I put this one out for sale .. I'll save that for another post is this one is quite long as it is..

Goddess crochet doll pattern

2024-03-26T09:59:00.004-06:00

Goddess dolls

Hook size US G

Approximately 26 yards of worsted weight yarn

in the photo above all goddesses are stitched using the same hook size and stitch count.. all yarns are listed as #4 worsted weight, however there is a clear size difference... Just like softness of yarn varies from from brand to brand so does the thickness .. the Autumn red was made using Caron Simply Soft, green is a discontinued yarn by big twist that was their version of Simply Soft, blue is Caron's one pound

American terms

ch = chain

dec = single crochet invisible decrease, slid hook through front loop of next two stitches yarn over, pull through both loops, yarn over pull through both loops

inc = 2 single crochet in the indicated stitch

sc = single crochet

Worked in spiral, no of joining rounds throughout pattern

1) ch2, 6sc in 2nd ch from hook (6sts)

2) inc (12sts)

3) inc, sc1 (18sts)

4-6) sc

7) dec, sc1 (12sts)

To invisible decrease go through front loop only of first stitch indicated do not yarn over go through front loop of next stitch yarn over pull through both loops yarn over again and finish the stitch give a slight tug to make sure the stitch is snug to the work

When first doing invisible decreases take note of your next stitch it is easy to lose sight of which stitch you need to work next, it's a good idea to count your stitches before going on to the next round

8) dec, sc1 (8sts) Stuff fairy firm

9) sc through front loop only

10) inc, sc1 (12sts)

11) inc, sc1 (18sts)

12) sc

13) dec, sc1 (12sts)

14) sc through front loop

15) inc (24sts)

16) sc

When working the decreases of the bottom be mindful of keeping your stitches low, it will give you a much smoother finish

17) dec, sc4 (20sts)

18) dec, sc3 (16sts)

19) sc

20) dec, sc2 (12sts)

21) sc Stuff

When stuffing a tight area it's easy to lose stitches, to avoid this be sure to put in a stitch holder or just slide it in with you round marker..

22) dec, sc1 (8sts)

23) sc

24) dec (4sts)

Fasten off, cut yarn leaving a tail about 6 inches long. Place tail on yarn needle, weave through last stitches through the front loop only going from bottom to top for each one, pull snuggly

Go through the center stitches to weave in the tail, going out one side a few rounds down..

I like to catch a couple of stitches and go back in a few times

Fasten off weave through remaining stitches pull tight, weave in end

Arms

1) ch5, turn

2) sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc3, ch1 turn

3-24) sc4, ch1, turn

Fasten off leaving a tail long enough to seam the long edges together, sew on using photo as a guide.

I find it easier to quickly stitch up the arms panel by placing something to stitch around in it... in this photo I am using a solid straw but have used knitting needles and pencils

Before stitching on arms, turn your goddess around looking for the best placement..

I stitch the bottom of the arm first then go through the arm just above that in stead of going around the edge of the arm.. gives it a smother finish

Pattern without photos or tips

1) ch2, 6sc in 2nd ch from hook (6sts)

2) inc (12sts)

3) inc, sc1 (18sts)

4-6) sc

7) dec, sc1 (12sts)

8) dec, sc1 (8sts) Stuff fairy firm

9) sc through front loop only

10) inc, sc1 (12sts)

11) inc, sc1 (18sts)

12) sc

13) dec, sc1 (12sts)

14) sc through front loop

15) inc (24sts)

16) sc

17) dec, sc4 (20sts)

18) dec, sc3 (16sts)

19) sc

20) dec, sc2 (12sts)

21) sc Stuff

22) dec, sc1 (8sts)

23) sc

24) dec (4sts)

Fasten off leaving tail long enough to thread through remaining stitches

Arms

1) ch5, turn

2) sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc3, ch1 turn

3-24) sc4, ch1, turn

Fasten off leaving long tail for seaming edges together and stitching to body. See photo above for placement.

Cthulhu two different takes

2024-03-04T02:02:00.001-07:00

I've been meaning to do a deeper dive into amigurumi for a bit now.. it is a crochet world of it's own pretty much.. where styles can range from minimalist to super detailed, ulta realistic to far out fantasy.. thread or super bulky..

whatever style or size you like.. whatever you can think of you can make into amigurumi..

I have been collecting patterns for years now.. exploring the different styles and techniques.. at some point I will release some of my own but right now I'm having a lot of fun and learning a lot

Recently I purchased a book on Kindle of crochet Cryptids and creepy creatures, unable to thumb through the whole book of course, I wasn't really sure what I was getting but judging for the cover, I was sure to get a few cute ones at least.. it was clear it was going to be in a minimalist style,

I'm not even sure if that's the right term for this style, it's just what I have been calling the patterns that only use safety eyes and no other facial features and a minimum of details for the rest of the pattern, so that's how I will continue to refer them until I find out otherwise..

I did a quick review on my Facebook page ( Life is Good blog ) of the patterns for Nessy (of lock ness fame ) and Mothman.. if I get the chance I will revisit that in a longer post here... Far too many plans have fallen to the wayside to make any promises.. hopefully I have learned that lesson finally 😉

I really enjoyed making the Cthulhu out of this book..

oh the link to where I got both the book and the pattern mentioned here are below, I am in no way linked to or profit from either, just trying to make it easier to find the patterns I am speaking of for my readers...

The pattern is fairly quick and easy, I like how the tentacles are created while making the head, no sewing needed.. but however you do need to sew the head on which I find to be a pain, if I were to make it again I definitely would just make it in one piece .. my preference as I find I can strengthen the neck easier.. throughout the book there are a few typos ( the way every format corrects your writing whether it's needed or .. not this is not a surprise, also I imagine if you have someone editing your book who does not crochet and understand how patterns are written it would be almost impossible to not have typos ) and a lack of detail that might be difficult for a beginner to work out but overall this pattern and book have been worth the price..

The Supergurumi pattern is written for thinner yarn and a smaller hook then what I made mine with, I used worsted weight and a F 3.75mm hook .. no issues with jumping up a few sizes whatsoever.

This pattern does not fit into the minimalist category .. lots of details .. each tentacle is stitched on separately as well as the pieces, however the body is done in the same piece as the head,

it does take more time to finish but is definitely worth the effort.

It is well written, it's not the first pattern I've made of theirs, so I pretty much picked up on the style they use while writing .. I have made the the Good Witch, Evil Witch and Wizard... I have a few more to go and have my eye on a few others, each pattern has come out absolutely adorable..

each pattern is also offered free on their web page .. but well worth the price for the ad free PDF.. you can find the link to their web page from the Ravelry page link below

Two totally different looks for the same character / god?.. Both patterns more fun to work on and came out with super cute results.

Supergurumi on Ravelry
Crochet World Creepy Creatures Cryptids Amazon

Mini wreaths

2023-12-25T20:31:00.002-07:00

A cute easy ornament or gift topper etc.

I saw an magazine article about quick Christmas ideas long before the internet but don't recall which magazine, this as it had to be a good 30, maybe 35 years ago or more... I highly doubt that magazine was the only one who was ever printed the idea, so I'm sure you'll find more ideas on how make and decorate them out there on the net.

They are a cute easy project however so a revisit to the idea I thought was in order, I actually have been meaning to do this for years.. time kept getting away from me every holiday season.. I put a ring in my purse catch all bag as a reminder.. and this year it worked, I found it again just in time lol

In the article if I remember correctly they used the ring from around a milk jug, as we don't drink milk I grabbed some off of water and a couple of soda bottles that my mother was a recycling. They are a bit smaller but I think it adds to their cuteness

Just Pop off the ring

Grab some yarn and a corresponding book, in this case I used Red Heart Paddy Green worsted weight and a G 4.0 mm hook

Single crochet around the ring until it's as full as you like, slip stitch to the first single crochet stitch

Chain a loop, I did 10 chains for these as I was planning on using them for gift toppers and didn't need it very long

Slip stitch to the next single crochet or base of the chain stitches..

Weave in tails on the backside.. wreath is ready to be decorated.. I tried using small amounts of scrap yard to add colonial knots (see photo above ), French knots should work just as well, I like the bit thicker colonial knots myself... This does take a fair amount of time though, so I ended up glueing sequins and a bit of red yarn for a ribbon to them using craft glue.. maybe next year i will think of it early enough for doing all of them with knots or beads lol

Dollar Tree Pom pom maker

2023-10-29T03:52:00.008-06:00

I've been seeing these little pom pom makers for some time now at our local dollar tree.. I have been tempted just because they are so cute lol

I have a set of pom pom makers I use for larger ones but tend to use a fork for tiny ones.. I passed them up over and over again..

after completing an order or event I like to get something to further my crafting along .. this time I was shopping for both,

our last event went well,

we weren't sure we were going until the last second.. had to rely on what I had already made for the most part,...

and we got an order for my newly finished top hat... one of the few new items I was able to get done....

So I got buttons because like other crafting supplies you never seem to have the right color or style on hand no matter how many you actually have.. besides wooden buttons how could you go wrong right...

plus a couple things from the dollar tree.. ribbon and I just couldn't pass them up this time...

The instructions are very limited, but give you a general idea .. sorta

They're not super sturdy so I don't know how long they will last however they were definitely fun to play with .. popping them apart was a bit worrisome as one of the side bars came off first.. I thought I broke it before the first one was completed .. it pops right back on lol

Just wrap both bars on either side.. something I didn't think to do right off... It had been a long day lol

Not too tightly

Close and cut the yarn, holding it together lightly

Tying them nice and tight was fairly easy

Pop the pieces apart and trim

A bit of fiddling here and there to get the hang of it, pretty fast after the first one.. a lot less trimming then I expected was needed.. definitely glad I finally grabbed a set ..

We place these guys all around our booth, when kids come up with their parents telling them not to touch anything ....

which I really do appreciate, sticky fingers can ruin a project that took hours if not days to create..

so there is something they can touch and pick out one to keep..

After the last event we are almost out of stock so this pom pom maker will be put to serious use.. testing it's longevity

Click here to see original post on how to make them with a fork

Dollar tree yarn holder

2023-10-22T03:00:00.002-06:00

How cute is this lol

I never bothered with a yarn bowl, I use center pull almost exclusively

I'm not a fan of spending any time rolling a ball of yarn .. a few yards sure but after that out comes the yarn winder lol

This was too cute to pass up...

I have only used it for a quick sample.. seems to work well enough.. keeping it lower than your work helps it move more smoothly... It sure made frogging the sample piece a breeze

Pouch style bag

2023-06-13T14:31:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago I decided to use some of my scraps to test different placement of increases on this style of bag..

I grabbed some shawl-in-a-ball I had sitting around.. I only had enough to make a little bit larger than a pouch size bag,..

In the end I decided I do have the increases I like best.. lol

However I have been looking for different methods of making straps for my yarn bags .. went a braided one .. love it., easy to adjust thickness and length, stretch is not a big issue, good stash buster, comfortable to carry and sturdy

I had some left over bamboo yarn that I've been holding on to for ages .. mixed it with a cotton blend..

They paired up beautifully

I finished it and set it aside ... not wanting to put a liner in..... because the inside was just so soft and absolutely gorgeous.. it feels so luxurious I cannot think of a liner that would make it better

At the moment I am working on denim cuffs from yet another scrap bag..

I tend to end up working on a few at a time.. start with one.. think I should try this or that but doesn't work with the one I am working on so another one needs to be started.. and so on.......

decided to pull out my crochet threads and make a bunch of different things I could add on as I went along.. you can see a few examples on the cuffs ... one pattern lead to another I have wanted to try in thread.. and so on ......

This will have to be it's own post lol

Which is how I ended up working on the bag again in the middle of working on the cuffs..

As you can see in the first photo I added a few thread accents to the bag... and still no liner lol

Old Embroidery Pattern on New Bag

2023-04-27T22:18:00.000-06:00

I am still planning on getting back to my scrap bag pattern but haven't settled which stitch to use for the strap, so that is yet to come .. in the meantime I am working on some cloth drawstring bags.

I ran out of the ribbon I use for the drawstrings, but had a dozen more already cut out... so....

While waiting for the next trip to town to get more, I added some embroidery to a couple of the bags using floss I had from cross stitch kits I did years ago, lots of different colors but typically not a lot of each one.. perfect for small projects.. and keeps with the theme of using scraps

Looking for some inspiration on Pinterest I came across a funky little bird image that I had also seen in an Etsy shop.

I was so tempted to get it from the shop, but was having issues with the download I already purchased...... a copy of a embroidery book dating back to the 1880's....

I couldn't open the PDF, turns out it was a link to a site to download it there, instead of the book. I didn't find this out until trying to download it on my phone hours later.. my PC just wouldn't open it

I tried contacting them but didn't get a reply for over 12 hours ( they are overseas from me ), when the seller replied, I was given another link to download it that my PC was cool with.. no more issues with it.. but this gave me the time to go looking on Pinterest in the first place

When I found the image of the funky bird on Pinterest it had a link to free internet archive site ( donations are welcome ).. link is at the bottom of this post... they are saving copies of books that would be lost for the most part..

I downloaded this book while waiting and a few others by Briggs & Co. this one is dated 1917... COOL

So in keeping with using scraps.. I grabbed a small piece of scrap fabric ( from the drawstring bags as it was on top of the pile lol ) and some scrap thread, the kind friendship bracelets are made of... in small hanks like embroidery floss but thick like crochet thread ... I had left over from market days ( made them to hand out to kids ) matched up pretty well...

the ribbon is some that was gifted to me, that was some of their scraps and is clearly well over 20 years old, seemed fitting ..

I used a B 2.25mm hook, standard increase of adding one extra stitch per repeat per round starting with six stitches in the round, until I reached 8 stitches in between increases,

then just continued with straight single crochet ( US terms ) until I reached a size I liked, working in a spiral ..

the ribbon is thin so I just did a round of double crochets after a slip stitch to even out the round..

topped it with a couple of rounds single crochets, used a yarn needle to weave the ribbon through...

with the color changes of the thread I used a simple knot, a few of inches from the end of the thread, leaving a good two inch tail of both threads,

I simply worked over both for a bit, keeping my tension on the tight side so it would blend in better.. snipped the ends off close to the stitch after a tug to pull smooth, giving me only the start and finishing tail to weave in..

I just did a simple stitch to attach the embroidered fabric to the bag after a rough round cut, keeping it wide spread and uneven.. no fussy cutting or interfacing..

I want a bit of fraying to happen as it ages .. the stitches are deep enough to keep it from affecting the embroidery .. oh I did use embroidery floss to stitch it down.. one strand was used throughout. used a back stitch for the inside feather lines and the outline wrapping the outline.. head I did a single wrap french knot..the eye, feet and branch were done with a satin stitch

as you can see from the photo taken off of Pinterest, I did change it up a little, a few less feather lines due to size and well because I don't normally like coping anything exactly .. even from pattern books.. got to put your own flare on your work

check out those other birds... that owl.. sweet ..

side note.. while I was getting a photo of this bag and the drawstring bags I embroidered, one of which I did a "sketch like" black bird ( see photo below ) .. this guy shows up right outside of my window sitting in the same pose..

this photo is before ribbon was added, did get some finally but as yet to take a photo

Link to embroidery book download

My take on chill pills

2023-04-17T13:10:00.001-06:00

I was asked if I could make a chill pill by a friend.. I hadn't seen any up to that point but knew right away how I wanted to make mine.. quick and simple... what a fun idea to use up some scrap yarn.. so I set down my embroidery and and made a few ..

I have since seen some really cute ones, some with little faces, but much bigger than what came out with, so if you're looking for a bigger one do a quick online search, there seems to be quite a few out there..

They can be made with just about any size yarn and coordinating hook.. most of my scrap yarn is worsted weight so that's what I went with.. I had started with blue and white but the blue came up a bit short so I grabbed the next larger ball in a solid color, pretty sure it's mulberry by Red heart.. mix and match all your scraps

10 yards approximately of worsted weight yarn for both colors

G / 4.0 mm hook

yarn needle

exact gauge is not essential to this project

worked in a spiral so don't join throughout

written in American terms

ch = chain

dec = decrease, I use a invisible decrease described below with photos however you can use any decrease you like

inc = increase, two stitches in indicated stitch

sc = single crochet

sts = stitches

* * = repeat instructions between as many times as indicated

1 ) ch2, sc 6 times into the first st to form a circle ....( you can use a magic circle or any other startup for circles that you prefer) place a marker for easy round counting, moving it along as you go

2 ) inc in each stitch ( 12 stitches )

3 ) *inc, sc1* repeat to end of round ( 18 stitches )

4-10) sc all stitches .. I tried making some with 8 rounds of sc but personally I think the slightly smaller one looks better..

after you reach the last sc, stitch slip stitch into the next stitch, cut yarn and fasten off .. keep yarn tails on the inside, no need to weave in these

11-17 ) Picking up the next color put a slip knot on your hook, place your hook through the stitch three stitches before your last stitch, this will be the new starting point of each round so place a stitch marker in this stitch when the stitch is completed

yarn over and pull up a loop,

yarn over and pull through both loops on your hook to complete the stitch

sc until you get to the slip stitch of the previous round,sc in the top of that stitch

being careful not to single crochet in the bottom of that stitch but going to the next stitch, for beginners it can be a bit harder to spot and easy to add an extra stitch here, sc as normal for the rest of the rounds

This round starts the two decrease rounds

18 ) *dec, sc1* to end of round ( 12 sts ) see below explanation of dec

I use a invisible decrease, do this by sliding your hook through the first loop only of the next stitch then repeat with the following stitch without doing a yarn over for either,

then yarn over and pull the loop through both loops on your hook

Yarn over and pull through both loops on hook decrease completed

After the first decrease round add your stuffing

19 ) dec to end of round, cut yarn leaving about 6 inches, fasten off, place yarn tail on yarn needle,

weave with through front loop of each stitch, pull snug

Take your needle down through the center of the stitches you just pulled tight and pop out the side, go back in ( keeping to the same color as tail ) and pop out again on the other side, cut yarn close to the side of chill pill

I did a quick back stitch in contrasting color to spell out chill

That it your done