... really? My last post was in September? How embarrassing.

I'm back. Really! I'm determined to bring this blog back to life, at least as much as it was before. Blogging inspires me to craft, but unfortunately crafting doesn't inspire me to blog. Mostly because I'm too busy and I don't feel like I've done anything noteworthy.

Since graduating college and getting a 9-5er job, I've had notably less time to sew, but a lot more time to crochet and knit! that sort of thing can be done anywhere, so I've taken to bringing whatever project I'm working on EVERYWHERE. I don't have any pictures of my own projects, not yet anyway, but here are a few of the patterns I've done or have been working on:

Life is Uneven Cowl: I've actually finished this project, in a lovely deep red. I didn't have quite enough yarn to do all the required rows, so mine only has 28 or so, but I like it alright. It was fun learning the yarn over and knit two together techniques. I feel like I can finally do somewhat *fancy* things with yarn!!

Pythagorean Scarf: I'm working on this right now, in a lovely heathered expresso yarn from my new favorite yarn store, Renaissance Yarns in Kent. I love how easy and simple this pattern is, while creating a beautiful effect, with only purling and knitting! AWESOME.

My next project is going to be a Invisibility Shawl from the Charmed Knits book that a dear friend gave me a year or so ago. Mine's going to be a light blue, not the suggested gray, just because I fell in love with the blue when I saw it at the store. This should be an interesting project, although I'm a little daunted by the various techniques I'll have to learn.

If you were wondering why now, of all times, I decided to pick up my dear old blog again, it's because during my spare time at work I've been perusing some lovely blogs that have reminded me how much fun this is. One is, for instance, FringeLore, which is Julie's beautiful blog where she showcases her steampunk jewelry. It's amazing! A friend and I have recently started dabbling in steampunk fashion, and I want to buy everything in her Etsy shop. Amazingly enough, she's currently having a giveaway for SIX pairs of earrings! Or is it seven? Either way, AMAZING. She's awesome. I strongly suggest checking out her stuff, but only if you have a hanky nearby to wipe up your drool.

I am the worst blogger ever.

I'm sorry! I've been completely slacking on this poor blog. But it's not as if I've been hiding my crafts -- I simply haven't been doing any! The good news is, this week I'm going to try real hard to make time to make a few more dino plushies. My church is having an auction, and I'm going to donate that dino quilt I made a month back along with a few dino plush I've been thinking about. Should be fun!

This weekend, I did hem a few pants for my brother's girlfriend, but that's not even worth sewing. I've also started yet ANOTHER scarf -- another knitted one, so it's more practice in knitting than anything else. Pretty yarn, though. Once I get a bit further, I'll upload some shots.

In less than a month, Plush You opens in Seattle! I'm really excited for it, and am looking forward to the inspiration I'm sure to get from the show. Hopefully I'll be able to fit a lot of crafting in before November, when National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo) starts up, and that takes up all my free time.

But, well, just wanted to throw it out there that I'm not dead! Just extremely busy and overwhelmed. But still alive.

Rglglglglglrrrlglgglgll!!

What's this? Other WoW plush? Well, that's exciting. Intrigued by some comments I had gotten on my Voidwalker plush post a few months ago, I decided to google-search for more Warcraft plush, and -- tadah!


Definitely a different approach, since mine is much more abstract and, well, cute! Gobi's is interestingly "realistic," in a way, and I love how sculpted all his pieces are. The main reason my voidwalker is so simple is merely because I didn't know how to create such a perfect model of the demon's actual body.

If you check out Gobi's site, he's also done a murloc, complete with free pattern! I'm pretty sure I have to try this out.

Whoops..

A week or so ago, I decided to go about making my first piece of clothing based off of a pattern. A simple pair of pajama pants, with these lovely flannel prints that I got a very long time ago:



I'm happy to say the pants came out fitting very well, except... I shortened the pattern a little in the waist area, and now they're a tad TOO short. Let's just say I shan't be bending over while wearing these pants, hm?

Next time I can get my hands on some cheap flannel, I'm going to try again, without so many liberties regarding the pattern. It was surprisingly easy, and I definitely boosted my confidence regarding patterns.

Belts!

So many of my crafts are gifts for my mom, either by specific request from her or just because I make something I think she'd like.

This belt, modeled by me here, was asked for specifically by her, after she found this tutorial on how to make a flower tulle belt for way less than J Crew would like to charge for it. (The blog, generally, is quite a fun read. Now that I have to dress professionally every day, it's nice seeing how other people do it with flair!)



So, today, I put together a belt for my mom. It turned out quite well, and very cute! I might have to make one for myself, actually.

Been a while, hasn't it?

A lot has happened since my last post.. I moved home from collegetown, settled in with my family again, and started applying in earnest for any sort of writing job available. Unfortunately, nothing directly related to my major has worked out, but I am starting as a receptionist for an insurance agency in a week. It'll be a good starting job, I think.

In the meanwhile, I've kept myself busy with a few crafts, including finally finishing my dinosaur quilt!



It's a bit smaller than I expected, but very cuddly and fun. I inserted a layer of batting between the material, so it's softer than it would be on its own. Now I just need a little boy to give it to! Or a little girl, let's not be sexist now.

Hats!

Okay, just one hat. And it's tiny. I was playing around with crocheting in the round yesterday, and ended up making this tiny little beanie, modelled by a TY plush I have lying around.

I'm now working on a Liane-sized version in blue and pink, so let's see how that goes.

Food and yarn!

I made some delicious banana-chocolate bread the other day. From scratch! I've made banana bread from a mix before, just adding my own bananas, but this time I did it on my own. It turned out really well. Very moist and delicious. The chocolate chips made it.

I've been working a lot on knitting and crocheting lately. I've finally knitted a scarf! Well, almost. I haven't finished it yet, because casting/binding off scares me. I'm not sure I quite understand how it works, so I might wait until I can find someone to show me in person.

I've also figured out how to crochet in the round! It's much easier than I thought it would be, so I'm trying to make a scarf in this method for my roommate before I leave Bellingham (on Sunday! Ahh!). Maybe once I get this down, I can try making some cute little yarn amiguri!

Finally finished!

Since I graduated a few weeks ago, I've had a lot more time on my hands. I decided to put at least some of that time toward finishing the blanket I started back when I moved in, almost ten months ago; I mentioned it way back when, describing it as "a smaller blanket" than the one I made for my mom's birthday last year. Hah! This thing is huge.



It's roughly 33 inches by 114 inches, or two and a half feet by nine and a half. Ridiculous! A strange shape, definitely, but it will do nicely as a blanket for my bed. Or I can wrap it around myself indefinitely and be cozy that way.

A year of dinosaurs!

I really like making dinosaurs, because they're relatively easy and always a hit. I've been a fan of dinosaurs since I was a kid and briefly considered getting my degree in paleontology, even! Well, that didn't happen -- I graduated a week and a half ago from Western with a degree in English literature -- but I can still continue making them!


This is the first dinosaur I made, just about a year ago, for a friend's birthday (and it's her birthday again this Saturday! Happy birthday, Jess!). He's from felt and turned out really well, I think.


This fellow came to be last winter, as a present to myself. I used basically the same design as the previous dinosaur, but I used cotton instead of felt. Since the seams are exposed, he's fraying a bit, but he's very cuddly.


Now -this- guy I just made last week for another friend's birthday. While the other two are psuedo-stegosauruses, this one is something of a longneck dino, although my mom thinks he looks more like Nessie.

I've been commissioned to make a pink dinosaur sometime soon, and I might attempt a t-rex sort of guy for that one.

A gift!

Today's my birthday, and my beautiful and talented roommate gave me this amazing creation.



I wish I knew how to felt! Such a cute little amiguri. He's something of a pin cushion, and she felt the need to include a little strawberry, so I wouldn't have to impale the kitten.

So adorable! Thank you, Janelle!

Happy birthday, Mom!

My mom's birthday is tomorrow, and in addition to a few other things I got her, I crossed off one of her plush wishes and made her a turtle:



His head is a bit floppy, and she says he reminds her of a hat, but I think he turned out well. I really like his shell, which is made of fleece with felt patches.

Next on the list is a crab!

... Ahhhh I want this.

This adorable kitten is by Astulabee

. Her etsy shop isn't really open yet, but I'm going to have to keep an eye on it. This might be where my stimulus check goes. I adore her design and the details and -- well, everything! Unbelievable adorable.

I need to learn how to -actually- crochet.

I was taught how to crochet by my roommate last year, and all I really know is one lonely stitch. Looking at amazing patterns such as these jelly fish! makes me really wish I knew how to -actually- crochet. A friend taught me the beginnings of knitting last night, and I think I feel comfortable knitting and purling now, but I need to find some way to learn how to crochet better. Does anyone know any really great online resources, or books I should look into?

How could I forget?

Browsing through old posts, I saw I had never posted this other zodiac pillow I made, for a friend's birthday in late March.



There's more beading on this one, and I figured out a few of the glitches that happened first time around. The back is pink fleece and deliciously cuddly.

Owl you ready for Mother's Day?

I made my mom a duo of owls for Mother's Day this year, as she's been making a list of various plushes she'd like. I think they turned out quite adorable. They're made mostly of fleece.

The finished product actually looks a bit different, as I added black buttons onto the eyes, for pupils. I think they look even cuter with the added buttons. She seemed to like them quite a lot, too, so I think I can count this as a grand success.

Curiouser and curiouser!

A close friend of mine is a big fan of Alice in Wonderland (as am I), and on a whim, while I waited for her to come over to watch some Disney movies with me, I decided to make a tiny Mad Hatter hat.



It's around three inches high, and quite adorable. Rather easy to make, too, and I'm excited to give it to her.

Cup of tea, anyone?

Late night creations

I literally didn't start this until 12:30am last night. I'm not even sure why I felt the need to craft that late, but I wasn't tired and I had this image of an adorable tiger pillow in my head.

I'm happy with how it came out, although it's made me question the present I made for my mom for Mother's Day. I based that design off of a tutorial I found, and I feel like it's not really my sense of plush design, but I don't know how to change it. I like it, definitely, but it doesn't feel like -me-. I'll probably just stick with it, because it is cute, and I'm sure she'll like it -- and no, Mom, I'm not going to say what it is, because I know you're reading this.

I need a name for my cat pillow. Anyone have any thoughts?

Where's spring?

We've had a long winter so far here in Washington, but at least the flowers are still blooming.



At the end of the school year last spring, I got my first vase, and became subsequently obsessed with having flowers in the house. It's a nice, cheap way to treat myself, and I love the sight of the beautiful colors.



I've had the carnations for a week or so now (I love how long carnations last), but I just picked the tulips today. I love the bright red of the tulips, although they do seem to make the carnations look a tad plain.





Last Wednesday, I hosted a St. George party, since one way to celebrate his feast day is to exchange books and roses. We all had a lot of fun, swapping books, and afterwards I got to keep a few of the roses that guests brought.



I've been a bit too busy to do much sewing, but I should be creating a few things for Mother's Day soon.

Braaaaains!

Braaaiiins!

I made this plush for a friend of mine who lives in Florida, and since she's gotten the package now, I can post the pictures! I had such a blast making this zombie, not only because I wanted to make something awesome for my friend, but because -- well, what a cool request! He has a lot of details, including exposed spine and ribs, and guts everywhere, and even wrappings around his feet and arms!



He's based off of a World of Warcraft monster, a ghoul, like I said before. I think the resemblence is pretty strong, but I added enough of my own style to make him into a cute little plush.



I put pony beads in his torso so he could sit up a bit, but he's mostly made of felt and fluff.