Felix the Fox - Free

I needed a break from knitting and crocheting swatches and putting some submission packages together for some deadlines.

That's when my son saw me browse some Amigurumi patterns and he was just hooked by this cute little fox. And the pattern is free too!

Finished size: ~4.5"/11 cm

As I happen to have some orange yarn left-overs from the Boy's Airplane Vest this should be a quick one to make.

I've changed the pattern so that after the head is done, I don't fasten off but I continue with the body by reversing its instructions. Less ends to weave in and less work.

I've added clear glass mini marbles (in the craft store isle where the river rocks, etc. are) in the body bottom and paws to add a little bit of weight for a good stance.

What a hit with pretty much anybody who saw me work on this. Adults love it just as much as the kids. And it was fun to make too!

You can also find this pattern on Ravlery.

Tricorn

Yep, I had to look up this word as well. It is the name of the traditional 3 (tri) cornered (corn) hat worn during colonial times.

Today my 2nd grader's class put on a short re-enactment of the signing of the constitution and the teacher asked them to be dressed somewhat in that period to make it more fun.

Thanks to the internet I was able to find easy instructions for a self-made tricorn hat made out of felt, fabric stiffener, glue gun, and a golden cord.

I wasn't quite sure if my fabric stiffener with an expiration date of 1995 (yeah, I know, one should throw things away but you see, I needed it, right?) would still work but with a generous application it stiffened up the felt nicely over night.

To give it some more flair we started curling some white curling ribbon to immitate the white wigs that were fashionable during that time as well.

Project cost: ~$4 and an hour of your time while having a good time with your child.

Kick It Up - Free

It finally has arrived: my very own first published knitting pattern - Kick It Up in the Petite Purls' Fall 2009 online issue.

And it's yours for free! The sizes are: 2T, 4, 6, 8, and 10.

I still can't believe that I was given the chance to knit a design for Petite Purls. Yippee! I feel so honored.

Kick It Up

It has been a great experience and such a pleasure to work with the Petite Purls team. It is pretty amazing how much work goes into publishing a pattern... it is so much faster and easier to work a one-off just for yourself. :)

This vest is a quick knit with a simple knit/purl pattern that will get you many compliments. You can also find the pattern on Ravelry.

Enjoy!

Busy Late Summer

After a nice, slow-paced summer with short trips here and there, lots of family and friends time, and finally some hot summer weather, my soul had a chance to refuel and the batteries were recharged to tackle the fast approaching back-to-school madness...

It was the silence before the storm...

Incredible summer sunsets

And madness it was!

Crazy summer weather: thunder, rain, sunshine, and rainbows all at once

Both my boys started with new schools (we did the Open Enrollment Process to get them into a school within biking distance - but the kids didn't end up at the same school - oh, boy!), tons of paper came home, lots of meeting dates suddenly filled our calendar, my DH out of town, a software project deadline got moved up, soccer coaching sessions and practices, and lots of knit, crochet, and crafting submission deadlines just around the corner - it was quite the chaos...

Now it's just a few weeks later and it seems like a lifetime! Somehow I've managed to keep all the balls up in the air, deadlines were met, kids are happy at their new schools, they've made new friends, design ideas are backing up in my notebook... - now I just need to find a few fairies to do their magic and whip the house in order so that I can sneak in a few minutes of crafting... :)

Besides on-going design projects, I've promised some Ravelers to write up the pattern for the "Boy Plane Vest", "Boy Spider Vest" as well as the "Tulip Cable Hand Warmers" in my Ravelry projects. I better hurry up before the proper season for these knitting projects is over...