Little houses

Posted on May 24, 2013 by KJHC

Recently I whipped up a cheap little decorating project. I found two kitschy wooden houses at a thrift store in town. Each cost $1.

I bought some craft paint and brushes. I love the color combination of bright red and turquoise. I sanded the little houses so the paint would stick better and started painting. After a few coats I began to wish I’d primed with some white paint, but it was a bit late for that so I pressed on. I added coats over the course of the entire day, probably nine to 10 coats in all (each of which took just a minute or two… cleaning the paint brush took longer than that each time!).

As you can see in the above photo, the original paint showed through the craft paint I was applying for the first five or six coats.

And here’s the finished product! I think those silly little houses turned out nicely as modern pops of color in the living room. It was a fun, quick project for less than $10!

Easter basket

Posted on March 31, 2013 by KJHC

This is the first year I’ve put together an Easter basket for the Peanut. Last year he was only 4 months old so there really wasn’t much point in an Easter basket last year. Though he did wear the most adorable little onesie with bunnies and chicks on it that read: “Team Jellybean.” Anyway, this year I crocheted the Peanut a little bunny using this pattern. I also picked up a board book about baby mountain goats. The photos in the book were taken by a local photographer. I also found a little wind-up bird that hops at the grocery store. I have no doubt it will break pretty quick, but it was cheap and it’ll be entertaining for Peanut. Finally, I bought some plastic eggs that have a neat metallic sheen to them. I only used half in the Easter basket and filled a couple of them with Cheerios so the eggs rattle and Jonathan can munch on the contents.

I am rather pleased with Peanut’s first Easter basket. In years to come I’m sure we’ll add a chocolate bunny (is there anything more fun on Easter than chomping the ears right off a chocolate rabbit?) and an age-appropriate toy or book. This is probably the only year I can have the basket sitting out in the open and Jonathan just ignores it. Next year will be a different story, I’m sure! But that’s what the top shelf of the closet is for!

Here’s a couple more photos of the charming little crochet bunny, which was so easy and quick to make up:

Aren’t the button eyes adorable? It reminds me of reading the book “The Velveteen Rabbit” when I was younger. Speaking of which, that book would be a great Easter present for older children.

We’re spending Easter at a new friend’s house. Jonathan and my new friend’s 22-month-old daughter will be Easter egg “hunting”! And by hunting I mean picking up the eggs strewn about in plain sight. While Mom and Dad put back mimosas and deviled eggs. Maybe there are better things than chocolate bunny ears after all…

Happy Easter, everyone!

What I’ve been up to and adventures in upcycling

Posted on March 19, 2013 by KJHC

Does anybody else feel super guilty when they don’t blog for a while? Yes? OK, me too. Alack and alas, I’ve been too busy. I know that’s not a great excuse and I should find the time to blog, but, well, I’ve been too busy. My husband and I opened our brewery March 6, had a grand opening March 8, and have been getting into the rhythm of running our own business ever since. For those of you out there with small business experience, you know what it’s like to wake up, bound out of bed, try to get as much done as humanly possible in the shortest amount of time possible, realize it’s 3 p.m. and you still haven’t eaten anything, try to spend quality time with your child (because that’s more important than anything, and that includes blogging), work, work, work, finally eat something at 9 p.m., and collapse into bed. Welcome to my past few weeks. Whew!

Luckily I found some time today while the Peanut was sleeping to do something just for me. I’ve been missing having creative outlet nearly every day. Before March I was turning out crochet projects right and left. Since the beginning of March I’ve added about three rows to the ripple blanket I’m working on. So it was high time for a little crafty time.

I had an old purple knit sweater I bought from Eddie Bauer years ago. It has been very loved, but the shoulders were starting to fray from so much use. So instead of getting rid of it, I cut the back out of it to use as backing for a pillow case. Here’s the raw materials for my project:

The church my mother-in-law attends has been clearing out a lot of the yarn and material it has accumulated for projects over the years. It’s a sad thing, really, that so few people still attend services there that there’s no one to make blankets and scarves for people who need them. So Terry has given a lot of the fabric to me. It’s lovely stuff, too. I can’t wait to make all sorts of things with it. The two fabrics in the photo above both came out of the box she brought me when she and my father-in-law came to visit a few weeks ago.

The actual cutting of fabric and sewing it together took me about an hour while Peanut slept. It was nice to use my sewing machine again after not touching it for months!

Here’s the front of my upcycled pillow on our bed (the quilt is also something I made).

And here’s the back of the pillow, using the sweater. Turned out pretty nicely, huh? Advice for anyone else sewing on knitwear: It’s stretchy, so let the sewing machine pull the knit material through instead of tugging it through yourself. It gets all bunchy and weird if you tug it.

I’m delighted by how my quick little project turned out! It feels nice to make something after several weeks of working all the time. It’s also nice to have something new (made from something old) to spruce up our bed!

Updates

Posted on March 1, 2013 by KJHC

Howdy folks! Just a quick update because this week has been nuts and next week will be even nuttier as we are finally opening our brewery! Woot! Here’s what my days have been about recently:

Marketing, graphic design, and beer. Not a bad combination. Especially that last part. If you’re interested in the brewery my husband and I are opening, you can check it out here.

In other news, was anyone wondering what happened to that striped blanket I was working on earlier this year? I’ve been meaning to get photos up of it, but it’s been getting some hard use. So here it is!

I’d say it’s a hit.

Vivid colors and nifty buttons

Posted on February 17, 2013 by KJHC

Here is the second hat for little Miss Olive that her parents requested. I think it’s darling. I’ve been playing with vivid colors and with color combinations that I think are unexpected. Teal, orange and deep purple: how delightful!

And the button! I’m gaga over the button. It’s a resin button made by Melissa Loden, a local (in a state as big as Montana everything within about 300 miles is considered “local”) artist. I love these resin buttons. I have a set in yellow with the same flower I’m hoarding for myself in the future (I’m so busy making things for other people I don’t make much for myself). Anyway, I thought the purple of the button matched the hat just perfectly.

I’ve had a lot of positive feedback about my hats and blankets recently, so I think I may go for it on the sales front. Planning to sell in our brewery for a while, and maybe expand from there. If I can get in with a few local shops that cuts down on shipping, too. So wish me luck!

Ripples

Posted on February 15, 2013 by KJHC

Started working on another baby/lap blanket. It’s already pretty much gorgeous. I’m using Debbie Bliss cashmerino aran yarn in eight different colors.

Isn’t it just lovely so far? I’m using an H (5 mm) hook and Lucy from Attic 24′s ripple pattern. Is there anyone in crochetland who doesn’t just adore Attic 24? I just ogle at her photos and beautiful crochet projects. Crochet porn!

Anyway, I’m hoping to sell this blanket. Haven’t decided yet whether or not to start an Etsy page, or to just try to sell in some local stores or at local craft fairs. I’ve been chatting with a friend of mine who’s a wicked good knitter about going in together for craft fairs so we can split the cost of the booth. We think we’d be pretty successful because we’ve both got a good eye for color. But I worry about getting what I want for my work. I bought the eight skeins of yarn on sale for $7 (normally they’re $10.50). So just my cost of materials alone is $56. And I like to at least pay myself a little for my time and effort (well, actually, I’d like to pay myself so I can afford to go buy more yarn for my next project). I think I’ll ask $125-$150 for this blanket when it’s done (which is paying myself about $3 an hour, by the way), but the question remains, can I get it? I suppose if it doesn’t sell I have a lovely lap blanket for myself. I’m also trying to make a bunch of baby hats/women’s hats to sell, and perhaps some garlands and mobiles.

In other news, I picked up a little bag to hold my hooks, scissors, stitch markers, and tapestry needles last time I was at the yarn store. I’ve been on the hunt for something for a while to corral my hooks. I’d pinned a number of crochet hook book patterns, but I think I like this little drawstring bag better. It was made locally and I love the fabric the lady used for my home state.

And now I’ll leave you with a little glimpse of heaven:

Bring your lovin’ back here

Posted on February 14, 2013 by KJHC

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! Usually I’m pretty “meh” on the Hallmark holiday that celebrates a man’s beheading because he advocated for love marriages instead of arranged marriages. But this year I feel like celebrating a little, and even got my husband a card! (We have strictly not observed Valentine’s Day since we began our relationship nearly five years ago because people shouldn’t need a specific day to buy each other flowers and cards and such.)

And of course, I also made a little Valentine’s mobile/garland because why the heck not.

The top heart is red, then pink, then the middle and bottom hearts are the same yarn as I used for Olive’s hat, and the fourth heart is white. To hang them I strung some crochet thread that’s pink and white I had on hand through the back of each heart. Here’s the pattern for the hearts if you want to make some of your own. They whip up in minutes!

P.S. Ten virtual brownie points if you can guess which band wrote the lyrics in this post’s subject line. Here’s a link to the song (with some awesome Pepe LePew cartoonage!).

Olive’s hat

Posted on February 6, 2013 by KJHC

A friend of mine who lives in Portland has an absolutely darling little girl (well, at least in photos… still haven’t met her in person yet). A few weeks ago I sent that darling little girl a cute hat I crocheted. Olive’s parents liked the hat so well they want a couple more! Here’s the first one (of two) that I’ve finished for Olive. It looks very much like an Olive hat if I do say so myself.

Isn’t it adorable? I added the brim after some thought about how to make the hat look more complete than it did. That’s why I added the ribbon, too. And if Olive’s mom doesn’t like the ribbon she can just pull it out, easy peasy. I combined a pattern from the Interwebz, but tweaked it a little to make it bigger. Then I added the brim.

The yarn is by Manos del Uruguay, which is a non-profit women’s fair trade cooperative in Uruguay. According to the tag, the aim of the organization is “to bring economic and social opportunities to rural women.” It’s viciously expensive, but it’s beautiful yarn. It’s 30 percent silk and 70 percent Merino extra-fine wool.

I hope Olive enjoys her colorful new hat!

Sunny days are here again

Posted on January 29, 2013 by KJHC

You know you live in the Northwest when, on those fleetingly rare winter days when the clouds part and the sun shines, your initial response isn’t, “Oh hey, it’s finally sunny. I can stop being depressed now!”, but rather, “Why is it so bright in here? What is THAT?” Funny how quickly this Colorado-born and raised girl, who like all folks from her native state, craved sunshine (Colorado gets about 300 days of sunshine a year) has turned into a dyed-in-the-wool Montanan, who blinks in surprise on sunny winter days. Funny cloud-locked responses aside, I am more than happy to welcome the sun today. It’s just lovely to sit in the warm, bright patch next to the glass sliding door and crochet. And ignore the work I’m supposed to be doing. And crochet.

I’m working on a blanket for the Peanut. I showed a picture of it a few days ago in my “Yarn Therapy” post. The blanket is about halfway done after a week’s worth of work. I’m using a herringbone crochet stitch with a pattern of my own devising. You can find a great tutorial here for the stitch. It’s a very easy stitch, and right now I’m totally OK with mindless finger movements so I can concentrate on other things. It’s also a very tight, dense stitch, which I like for the warmth factor.

I’m using Berroco yarn, from the Vintage line. It’s nice yarn, soft and easy to work with. Though acrylic yarn is cheaper, I don’t like the way it feels sliding across my fingers as I crochet. Is that weird? There needs to be some wool in yarn for it to be, I don’t know, real.

We’re all finally recovering from the depths of illness over the past week. After three different doctors appointments spread out over the week and a chest x-ray, the doc finally diagnosed the Peanut with bronchitis. Which doesn’t surprise me in the least. I get bronchitis myself nearly every year. A round of antibiotics and every-four-hours treatments with a nebulizer, Peanut has rebounded and is finally back to being my smiley guy. A smiley guy who doesn’t mind sharing my husband’s lap with our cat, Pele.

Had to get out of the sick house this weekend and found myself at my favorite local antique/consignment store. It is truly fabulous in there. And being friends with the owner and therefore getting discounts always helps. I was on the hunt for some chairs for the brewery. We ordered new barstools, but we have one low table and wanted some eclectic chairs. I searched high and low at the local thrift stores and was frankly disgusted to find that the thrift stores all wanted about $35 a chair for rickety sticks that would likely collapse if you looked at them wrong. So I ponied up another $20 bucks a chair and got some solid, nice chairs. They don’t match, but we wanted something “found” and eclectic anyway to go with the rustic theme in the brewery. So, three chairs down and one to go.

And of course, since that antique store is my very favorite, I couldn’t get out the door without picking up some personal things. (Did I mention that I only allow myself in that antique store about twice a year for that very reason?) I found a darling and sturdy teal blue child’s chair for the Peanut. It’s still big, obviously, but I look forward to him growing into it and enjoying his own little chair. It will go great with a little activity table in a year or two. Oh, and here’s the blanket I’m working on again draped over the chair.

Also found the flannel shirt my husband is wearing in the picture above. It’s a vintage Pendleton shirt, made in the U.S.! Sadly a lot of Pendleton’s stuff has been moved to manufacturing overseas. But this shirt, for a lot cheaper than a new one made in China, looked like it would fit so I snapped it up. And Big Country likes it a lot. My final purchases were a crochet doily and crochet table runner. I couldn’t believe how cheaply she was selling them (sssshh don’t tell her that!). The doily was $3 and the table runner $8. I could work on a table runner like that for WEEKS. And I sure as hell wouldn’t charge a measly 8 bucks for it!

Isn’t it great? Fits perfectly on “Peanut’s shelf.” (This bookshelf, which is ancient and fabulous, used to be full of books and whatnot, but Peanut would always get into it and make a giant mess. So we cleared it out and put some toys in it for him. Someday it’ll have books in it again.)

So, despite a really stuffy nose, a cough, and a rough night’s sleep last night, I’m feeling a lot more at peace with things than I was last week. I guess sometimes you just have to let things do. Drink some coffee. Crochet. Read a book. And speaking of books… I’m reading a really special one right now that isn’t even published yet! I’ll share it in my next post.

Yarn therapy

Posted on January 21, 2013 by KJHC

The Morning District

Category Archives: Homemade