The perfect Ribbed Crochet Hat.

     The wonders of crocheting. I have been looking far and wide for the perfect crochet ribbed hat that looks and feels knitted.  Many crochet hats stretch and don't return to its original size.
I went om ravelry and youtube. And this is what I have made so far
              This one I found a video on youtube by Yolanda Soto Lopez.

I took her idea and adjusted it for my baby. I love how its stretches and goes right back. Its extremely soft and I like rolling it up. This hat is done in the round with front and back double posts.

Baby Cupcake Hat

Same hat unrolled. Still cute.

This hat I found on .ravelry    Its not made in the round but sewn together creating an invisible seam. This hat is done in half double crochets in the back loop, giving it that ribbed look.

You can click here and check out my etsyshop.

Simpky5Design etsy shop

Same hat on my baby girl.

       I made a black one for my father from the second pattern, just not pictured because I quickly sent it off for Christmas, and he loved it. I am going to make some more ribbed hats because they are just an awesome hat to have.  I will also be experimenting with more patterns and colors so that I can come up with my own pattern.

    Happy Crocheting. There's nothing like it.

Christmas Crochet Gift Ideas.

It is hard to find the right gift for Christmas. This year I aim to crochet, and sew most of my gifts. I love being able to spend time making something special for a person I love.
For my mother a hat and pair of fingerless gloves.

https://www.etsy.com/your/listings?ref=hdr_shop_menu

It is such a special time sitting down and thinking of the person who I am making the gift for. It is not a quick what may they like shopping trip. Its a well thought out made by my hands gift. 

https://www.etsy.com/your/listings?ref=hdr_shop_menu

For one of my very good friends. She needed potholders. I hope she likes them.I also made a crochet towel topper so she can hang in her kitchen.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/208613367/crochet-ribbed-pompom-hat?

Crochet ribbed pom pom hat for my neices. 

So soft. Hope they love it.

I made a crochet ribbed hat for my father. And now I am making some ribbed pom pom hats for my nieces and daughters. 

This is a great time of the year to celebrate Christmas and also share with others my craft.

What other great gifts do you make for Christmas?

Crocheting All things Warm and Cozy.

I am on a mission to keep my family warm and cozy and to feed my crocheting obsession.  I have made hats, scarves, and cowls.

I am working on a new hat that I found on ravelry.com. divine hat.
Here is my first Divine Hat. It is beautiful, I have a bigger head than your average person. I used an h hook all the way through and I used a sc band. I read that the hat stretched too much otherwise. I am also thinking of adding a stretchy fabric to the band if it widens to much.

This is my favorite hat that I have made so far. made me love crocheting all over again. I am going to make it in Red Heart unforgettable stained glass next time. I can not wait to show you.

Here I made a hat and scarf for my daughter. I used another pattern from ravelry. Its the ups-and-downs crochet slouchy beanie. It was fun to make I then made a scarf to match. I made it up as I went.

     My husband really wanted a Hooded cowl. Something warm for the cold winter just waiting to hit us here. He loves it. It is made with Lion Brand Wool Ease. I also improvised and went along as I crochet. I had to frog it a couple of times before I got it exactly the way I wanted it. I am wearing it here.

I love it, I need to make one for myself.

I have also made my 3 year old son a ninja turtle hat and a scarf to go with.  When a picture that is not blurry I will show them to you.

I will keep adding my warm and cozy creations with you.

I hope you can find some warm things that you like that you can wear on these cold winter days.

Two Romances Infinity scarf

This is my first pattern. I have looked at many infinty scarves and have been so inspired. Sometimes it seems so hard to figure put exactly what you want to make. Especially considering what kinds of yarn you want to use and obviously your own personal taste.
This is my two toned scarf. I got this yan at hobby lobby. It is a blend of bamboo and acrylic.   It is so soft.

I used one skein for each color and I alternated colors as well. 

This scarf is so soft and the yarn is easy to work with. I can easily wrap the scarf two times around me. Even three times if I want. 

This is my first pattern so please be patient. 

If you make this pattern please link to me and show me how you made it and what colors you used.  

why I love crocheting.

    There are so many reasons why I love crocheting. I don't know about anyone else but I would guess that most people crochet and knit for many of the same reasons.

1) Crocheting is therapeutic. I am a mother of 3. I am currently homeschooling my first 6 year old daughter and it is stressful.      When I put that hook in my hand and I have a project and yarn I have a sense of purpose. To create something and  at the same time there is a sense of relaxation amidst the chaos in my home.

2)I love to create new things. I might not be able to paint a masterpiece or build an amazing structure with my own two hands but creating something from a ball of yarn makes me feel so good. Not only can I make hats and scarves and blankets for myself family and friends. But just the final moment of seeing my creation brings a sense of satisfaction. And this satisfaction comes at a small price. Just some yarns and certain tools can be really expensive but for the most part you can start this hobby inexpensively.
  I go to a lot of the big stores to get my supplies like Michaels, Joann's and even Walmart. When I get a chance I go to my local yarn shop they have some of the most beautiful luscious yarns available. What I like about the store is  that its just yarns and crocheting and knitting.  I can't afford all the expensive yarns but they have a clearance section. So at a fraction of the cost I am buying really good quality yarn.
When I first  started crocheting I tried to make my daughter a blanket and it is not a beautiful sight but now I have made hats, blanket, scarves, washcloth and most things I have a desire to make. I can pretty much follow an intermediate pattern on crocheting.
   It's pretty cool to see how far I have come from when I started about 10 or 12 years ago. Now I can just pick up a hook and decide what I want to make.

 3) This third reason kind of wraps up my 1st 2 reasons its that crochering keeps me occupied. It feels good to be able to whip up something useful or fun while watching TV or just sitting down having coffee. Or if I'm laying in bed and I can't go to sleep yet. This reminds me of a article I read about a young lady who crocheted her wedding dress for roughly $30 on the bus. http://blog.redheart.com/crocheted-wedding-dress-in-aunt-lydias-classic-10/
I don't know where she was going but I love the fact that you can crochet anywhere you go. I'm teaching myself to sew and I can't take my sewing machine everywhere. I could probably hand so but still not the same. With crocheting I can go so many places and still work on my project. I can go to the park, the library, the coffee shop even while riding in the car or bus.
   There may be more reasons why I love to crochet these are my top 3. What are some of your reasons? Why do you love to crochet or knit.?
   You can see some of my finished projects on Ravelry.com.
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/poet1butterfly.  I will try to post some more pics of the work I have done.
   Comment below and share your reasons for crocheting.  Why do you love to do it? Are you the oddball like me?
I would love to read about it.

Not buying new yarn for the rest of the month.

     Not only has my yarn stash gotten bigger and bigger . But I also need to save some money so I have set out to work with what I have. I have to go back and try to finish the projects I set out to do. No longer will I covet the beautiful yarn I see at the store. Or the soft chunky cowl pattern I saw on ravelry.com
      I hope this challenges me to do something new. I need to make my baby girl a new blanket and I need to finish knitting my husbands hat. (😕) That's how I feel about knitting a hat. Just a little bit frustrating.

   Right now I am working on a headband/ear warmer.  (Once again ignoring my lovely handsome husbands request for a knitted hat) I am using Rocky N.Y. Yarn.  I bought it at a local yarn store in the clearance section. They have the most amazing yarn but it can be expensive.

This the headband I am working on. I was inspired by the pattern from www.littlemonkeyscrochet.com. It is the cinched ear warmer headband. My issue with crocheted headbands that I have made for myself before is that they become too loose. So I have to change things a bit to fit my head. I have very thick hair so things do not fit so easily on my head. 

We will see the turnout. Will post a pic of it soon.

Here it is. I changed it a bit. I made it smaller and instead of cinching it I wrapped some yarn over the center. I like it. I will design my own next time. 

crocheting and blogging

I have Been wanting to start a blog on crocheting for so long.  I started teaching myself to crochet a long time ago. Before I joined the air force and was in college. It did not stick but I took it up again when I was pregnant with my first daughter. I made her some things, a blanket and a teddy bear. But I was so discouraged. No one I knew did this and I had no help. A couple years ago I began making some more things. Still not fully committed. I tired making a teddy bear for my son but it came out looking like a bloated alien. So I put it all away.
To be fair I have moved many times and have had three children since I started crocheting years ago.
But this third pregnancy really forced me to start again.  I was having a hard time walking so I sat a lot.  I also took up kniting. I made so many things this year. Scarves. Hats. Dishcloths.
 Speaking of dishcloths and washrag they are what really inspired me again. Simple little crochet rags. I guess the washrags being small projects made it easier to not get disappointed if I messed up. It was just a small project and it was great practice. Those free patterns online helped me move forward to today.
I just crocheted an infinty scarf. I'm trying to get all the cold weather gear hooked before it's too late and I wind up buying something I can make. I'm being in being silly in the first picture.
This is my first attempt at my own pattern.