Inspiration: Color

I know, I know, blog has been a bit bloring lately. I am finishing up an adorable hat for a little new boy who has just arrived on this earth, and I want it to be perfect!

Until then, enjoy some more boredom. I was waiting for the subway, and I saw this awesome green/blue painted pole that was chipping, and under was some awesome rust-colored, pinkish red. There was even a little bit of another layer of yellow. I took this pic with my incredibly old phone (the other night it "won" as the oldest and most out-of-date phone at a party), so the color is not as beautiful as it was in real life. If you haven't noticed from a number of posts, I.love.this color blue.

I normally make things of this color monochromatic, but I am digging the pinky, rusty red.

Also, mejorly craving a yellow, maybe multi colored, slouchy beanie, even if it is just now finally becoming warm outside!

Inspiration: Pacman Crocheted Beanie

I wrote about this amazing crocheted hat in my other blog NewUsedClothing.


I think I may need to make this?? Holy crocheted hat, Pacman!

I Would Rather Be Crocheting...

This is a NatalieDee comic of a crochet hook that I censored what the hook was saying. It was not appropriate for family-friendly blogging (meaning: only my family reads my blog).

This post is titled: "Only if I get to miscalulate the pattern for my size and give up before I am done." HAHA.

Starfish Slouch Beanie Pattern

Here today is a Teabeans original pattern!

AUTHOR'S NOTE 1/29/12:
I recommend THIS revised version of the Starfish Slouch Beanie:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/78988074/Starfish-Slouchie-Beanie-Pattern

Starfish Slouch Beanie

Hook: E/4 -- 3.50MM

Yarn: Brown Sheep Company's CottonFleece in Putty

Row 1: Ch 3 (counts as 1st dch), 8 dch in loop of ch 3. 9 dch total Sl st to first st to join.
Row 2: Ch 2, turn (counts as 1st dch). 2 dch in each dch around. 18 dch total Sl st in first st to join.

Row 3: Ch 4 (counts as 1st dch and ch 2), dch in same st. *sk 1 st, dch, ch 2, dch in same st, ch 2, sk 1 st, dch, ch 2, dch in same st* [4 times]. Dch in beginning st, ch 2, sl st to 3rd ch in 1st ch 4.

Row 4: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. Only st overtop of dch from previous row for each of the next rows. *Dch, ch 2, dch in same st, ch 2, dch in same st, dch in next st, ch 2, dch in same st* [6 times]. Dch, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch 4.

Row 5: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. *Dch, ch 2, dch in same st (V-stitch), dch, ch 2, dch in same st, ch 2, dch in same st, dch, ch2, dch in same st (V-stitch)* [6 times], V-stitch, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch 4. Added ch2, dch is 1 increase.

Row 6: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. *V-stitch, V-stitch, dch, ch2, dch in same st, ch2, dch in same st, V-stitch* [6 times], V-stitch, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch 4.

Row 7: Ch 4, turn, dch in same st. V-stitch overtop each dch around [31 times]. Sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 8: Ch4, turn, dch in same st, V-stitch around [31 times]. Sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 9: Ch 4, turn, dch in same st (counts as 1st V-stitch). *6 V-stitch, dch, ch2, dch in same st, ch2, dch in same st* [4 times]. 4 V-Stitch, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 10: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. *4 V-stitch, dch, ch2, dch in same st, ch2, dch in same st, 2 V-Stitch* [5 times]. 1 V-stitch, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 11: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. V-stitch around, sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 12: Repeat row 11

Row 13: Ch4, turn, dch in same st. 2 V-stitch. *dch, 6 V-stitch* [5 times], 2 V-stitch. Sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch 4. Dch is one decrease.

Row 14-17: Repeat row 11.

Row 18: Ch 4, turn, dch in same st (counts as first V-stitch). *8 V-stitch, dch* around. Sl st in 3rd ch in 1st ch4.

Row 19: Repeat row 11.

Row 20: Repeat row 18.

Row 21-22: Repeat row 11.

Row 23: Ch 2 (counts as first dch), do not turn, dch in blo around. (111 dch total) Sl st in beginning ch2.

Row 24: Ch 2, do not turn, *2 FP dch, 1 BP dch* around. Sl st in beginning ch2.

Row 25-31: Repeat row 24.

Fasten off.

Inspiration: Nicole Richie

If you don't love NR, you're dead to me. Just kidding! (kinda) Monet sent this pic of NR to me a few weeks ago, so I knew I had to make it for her bday. More pics and pattern to come!

Top Seven Things I Hate About Crochet

I am not ready to post my new hat pics and pattern yet, but I really want to start posting every day. Inspired by the "hooks & humor" section in the back of Crochet! magazine, here is my top seven list of things I don't like about crochet:

1. Sewing in the ends. First off, it involves a needle and sewing. I would be a seamstress if I liked needles and sewing. I don't. It is so tedious and requires so much close attention. I don't have the patience for it. But you need to have patience and take care so your work doesn't unravel. And to really kick you while your down, you only have to sew the ends in when you are so close to being finished!
2. Knots. Speaking of lack of patience... Knots are my arch nemesis.
3. Counting. I love math! I minored in mathematics for my undergrad degree. Counting is not math. Counting is boring, and if you lose track, you have to start all over counting sometimes hundreds of tiny little loops.
4. Ugly patterns. There is not much cute stuff available for crocheters (crochetists?), unless you are a baby, and babies cannot crochet.
5. Explaining to everyone that, no, you do not knit. And no, knitting is not crocheting. I like this about as much as when someone hears a Phil Collins song and says, "oh, Genesis!"
6. People who expect gifts. Just because I love crochet does not mean I love spending hours making you a custom piece and spending upwards of $50 on yarn (even small projects require you to purchase a full skein) for FREE. Yes, I make gifts when I am so moved. Please offer to pay for the yarn at least. If you are nice, I usually give a discount or give it free anyways.
7. Bad ideas and over ambitious projects. Below is a perfect example. First, I got excited about fillet crochet, which I have never done before. Then, I thought I would do cursive lettering. Oh, what a perfect idea, since I have never even done a BASIC fillet pattern before. And just to make things a little bit more challenging, I decided I should do this all with TWINE. Guess what is not comfortable to be rubbing against your fingers for hours on end? After hours of trying, I quit before I could even get my full initials, which are not even legible, which is why I added the pink lines. Don't even ask me what the purpose of this project was. Eh, I'll tell you. I was going to hang my huge sunglasses collection off of it, like a sunglass holder. Weeks later, 25 pairs of dusty sunglasses still clutter the top of my dresser.

Inspiration: Bag

Hello! Stars are aligning, and the crochet gods are sending me signals. I think I am supposed to make some crocheted bags, Field of Dreams-style.

First, I saw that taterly cute clutch at Urban Outfitters that I first blogged about here.

Then, today I was browsing ModCloth, and I saw this bad boy:
Today I was also reading WhatIWore, and I happened upon a post about Le Quaintrelle, who I know of from Weardrobe. She is making reusable crochet sacks from old plastic bags. Rad! Click on the pic for her post.

These bags got me thinkin about a crocheted handbag I bought over 12 years ago, before crochet was even a twinkle in my eye. Bought in a vintage store in Mechanicsburg, PA, this handbag is one of a gaggle of vintage handbags I own. I could easily make this since it is rounds of sc. It looks like it is made from rags even, or T-shirt material. I did once attempt a crocheted handbag like this. It was one of the 2nd or 3rd items I ever made, and it was 2 squares sewn together, based on the only pattern I knew, mentioned in this post here. I gave it to Kelley, and I don't blame her if she never used it. It was Teabeans crochet in its infancy.

In winter we had a Hat Fest. In summer, will we have a bag fest?!

Evolution: Hat

I have lots of ideas in mind for a summer beanie or tam beret, so I decided to start something up and see if I could get it to look like one of my ideas. For me (and probably many), crochet projects are always trial-n-error because I have no patience for a pattern, and I want my project to be original anyways.

So, long story boring, I started up a tam beret in Central Park one of the days it wasn't downpouring in this NYC (side note: one thing you CANNOT crochet is an umbrella). For those of us who forgot what sunshine looks like, here is a pic from that day:

It took me a while to get the increases looking right. I think I decreased then too much on each row, and I ended up making the beret too tight. Plus I think there is too much ribbing, and it is an awkward balance to the pattern of the back. Below is the tam beret that I speak of, in my favoritest of colors! The ribbing is front and back post stitches, and those stitches are b*tches. Very time consuming and tricky, but very cool looking. The rest of the beret is what I call a star pattern. It's a lot of dch and ch2 intersecting. So to me beautiful green color tam beret is the first stage of evolution: hat.

Stage two of evolution: hat was to start an entirely new hat based on my first attempt. The inital sizing and the stitches were good. I started hat two on a 3 hr flight to Dallas, and I finished it on the 3 hr flight home. When I got home I saw that, like hat 1, the ribbing started waaay too soon. I wanted this hat to be much more slouchy, but it was very snug. I don't mean that it was tight around my head like hat 1, because it was not (part of hat evolution!), it was just snug to the back of my head.

The second pic below is me working on several more rows of star pattern after taking out 3 hrs worth of FP/BP ribbing. ARGH!

Stay tuned. I nearly finished the hat. It took three phases of evolution, which I don't think is that many, and plus I have a good base for the other ideas I had. BONUS! Since I wrote down this pattern I can post it here, and replicate it for sale on my empty Etsy shop!

Mr. Kitten, What do you do all day?

Poor Mr. Nixon seems o-so bored at home all day long when Iron Marty and Katiebeans work similar hours.

Crocheted Flower Headband

Just another lovely shot of Emily modeling one of the headbands I made for her! Can't wait to have some available on my new Etsy shop.

Off to Dallas!

Hi everyone! I am off to Dallas today to visit my ADORABLE niece (her parents are cool too). Going to make a massive to-do in crochet world on the airplane and work on a gift for a friend.

A Case of the Mean Pinks

Oh how I love, Miss Emily & her blog support! This headband looks HOT HOT HOT, and she looks o so pretty and pink.

Bowtie Me Up!

Two posts are better than one tonight! Emily also requested a bow headband, and since she let me the pick the color, of course I went with HOT PINK! Hot pink is the hottness, and I think it adds sass to a bowtie in your hairs. I hope she sends me some pics of her modelling this!

Because I hear that imitation is a sincere form of flattery, tonight I flatter a girl who's blog I stalk. I love the style of her photos and (of course!) her shorty short hair:

QsDaydream

Flowers in Her Hair, Flowers Everywhere

Finally, I have completed two flower requests from my friends as a result of my May Crochet headband post!

Emily requested a green and white flower on a brown headband to look more like a real flower:

Kelley has requested just the flower so she can glue it to whatever hair accessory she wants. You might remember this flower from the Savannah Baby Hat post. She told me to use my judgment in colors, and I can't help it, I LOOOOVE hot pink and orange together. It clashes so good, like toothpaste and beer:

Again, if you want a flower headband: $20, includes shipping!