Blog Love, Cat Love

Please allow me to deviate from my normal blog nob fare of craft crochet thingies to tell you about KittyKind (and also my cats).  So we adopted Mister a few years ago after we moved into the Crooked Nook.  Marty was working late nights, and I wanted a buddy around.  

Anyways, it was fine until Marty got normal hours, and then Mister started to seem to be more like purring furniture than a lively pet.  He doesn't care for playing so for the 3 hours at night we were home, he pretty much continued to lay around until bed time.  What a sad existence!  

Anyways, we were very blessed to have such a sweet cat.  Neither of us were cat people AT ALL, but in NYC it's hard to have a dog if you have a busy lifestyle and a small apartment.  Every single human who has met Mister has fallen in love with him.  He is not shy and will work his way onto anyone's lap for a purr session.  In fact, at KittyKind his listing said: "100% chance of...love showers."  KittyKind is a no-kill shelter. It's so hard to believe, but Mister was actually returned once because he was TOO snuggly. I am not even joking.

Sooo we were both very skeptical about adopting another cat.  We had a good thing going with Mister:  he is so sweet and completely non-destructive.  One night I was volunteering at KittyKind, and I mentioned fostering a kitten.  Five days later we had a munchkin.  Things were rocky for less than a month, with Mister hissing & sometimes attacking Topher.  Now, Topher is just as much a snuggler as Mister (slightly more shy), and Marty adopted him a month later:

The two boys (Mister & Topher!) play several times daily, which just makes my heart so happy!  Here is a video, but I am dying to get a good one of them romping around & chasing each other!!

Anyways, the moral of the story is:  if you live in NY, you should consider adopting from KittyKind!  And if you don't, you should consider adopting your cat and supporting no-kill shelters.  Here is Topher's success story on the KittyKind blog.

Criss Cross Crochet & Knit Pattern

Heyoo!  So an awesome blog-nob visitor emailed me asking about my Evenstar Criss-Cross hat.  I thought that was really cool that she was trying to make the hat, and I really wanted to help her with the pattern.  It's so hard to explain so I re-did the hat, and I have posted the pattern here.  Pics & notes below!

Unlike the original Evenstar pattern, this pattern incorporates knitting - my first attempt at this ever!  I think the effect came out great.  I have included ideas for if you want to finish the pattern in crochet.  I haven't knitted since my age was in the single digits so this was a bit of a challenge, but I got it on my second try.  If not, I would have nixed the knit and gone crochet all the way haha.  Here is a close up of the knit/crochet sections meeting:

Here is another side view.  Not psyched on how these pics came out this morning, but I think you get a good idea.  Maybe this weekend I will update the blog with some cuter pics of the hat!

PLEASE: if you attempt make this hat, let me know if you have any issues!  I will be happy to help explain or revise any errors in the pattern.  Also if there is a real name for the "quadruple chain" stitch, I would love to hear of it.

I get wherever I'm going, I get whatever I need

Hi!  Oh I hate when I have a few good projects going, but nothing finished to share.  I was out of town doing some wedding planning, and my mom brought some new yarn I had left over Christmas.  I decided to pause work on my blanket to try to redo this hat.  A reader emailed me asking for the pattern, and of course I have not written it down so I am doing that now.  Here is a sneak peak!

I am trying to incorporate knitting into the finished product so that should be interesting!  I had learned how to knit when I was a child, but I only recently have picked up needles again.  It is so frustrating to be new at a craft again.  I feel like when you lose a stitch knitting then you lose the whole project.  And casting off was definitely a challenge.  I was on the edge of my chair, sweating, hands-cramping.  Ha!

Hopefully pics & pattern in the next few days for the above hat.  Until then, enjoy this pic of me and my cat buddies reading up on casting off.  Check out the sweet thermal sweatpants and puffer slippers.  Chat soon!!

Hello & Welcome & Bienvenido & Willkommen

Ever since CrochetPatternCentral.com posted some of my patterns, traffic to TeaBeans has skyrocketed (by TeaBeans-standards haha!).  So, for all the newbie visitors from around the country, here is a snapshot of what you missed the last six years!  It was hard to choose, but these are my favs from each year (my options for 2012 were kind of limited...).

Clockwise from top right:  Owl Mosaic (2007), Blushing Flame Floves (2008), Running in Circles Necklace (2009), Favorite NYC Slouch Hat (2010), Indian Summer Swim Suit (2011), Eternity and a Day Scarf #2 (2012)

Anyways, right now I am working on an AWESOME blanket, which is saying a lot since I hate making blankets.  I am also working on refining and writing down the patterns for 2 older hats that several readers have emailed about.

Just wanted to give a heads up since I probably won't be able to post for a few days - off to the beach to meet with a mazillion wedding vendors!

Eternity and a Day Scarf: Part Deux

One time recently my sister mentioned that she liked my Eternity and a Day Scarf.   Hopefully she wasn't lying because I decided to make her one for Christmas to go with the floves she asked for.  Welllllllll.... this scarf takes forever to make.  I thought maybe the first time it was just because of the yarn I was using, but nope.  So it didn't make it on time for Christmas, but here it is now!  Molly, if you are reading this: the scarf is in the mail!

Pics & pattern below.

To download the full (FREE!) pattern - click here!

Smiling is My Favorite

Here is a picture of my cute sister modeling the gloves I designed & made for her for Christmas!  See the original post here.

Knit, Knee

Hiyo!  Happy New Leaf!

I hurt my knee pretty bad a few weeks ago so I haven't been able to train for my upcoming race.  I have a few pics and projects to post tomorrow; but since I won't be working out tonight, this is what I will be doing.

Anybody have any craft-related resolutions?