So Much To Do!

Once I realized that I was actually somewhat successful at crocheting I had a million and a half projects I wanted to do. I wanted to make a blanket for everyone I knew who was having a baby, I wanted to stock my linen closet with blankets made by me so they would all be the perfect size/color/pattern for what I wanted. I wanted to make nice blankets for our beds that would cost me MAYBE $30 in yarn instead of $90 for something store bought!

So far Chloe has one misshapen blanket that I made (my first blanket) though it is functional, and we have a slew of coasters that were granny squares I attempted and didn't like the finished product.

Some day I'll get to them, for now I have some custom orders and of course Chloe's birthday blanket (which will be the first successful addition to my crocheted world!). I'm excited to get some time to work on things for me and projects for people that I love.

I must admit it would be easier to get all the baby blankets done if we could just find out the sex of the baby right away and if my friends stopped having babies at the same time. Oh well I like a challenge.

As it stands right now I work Monday-Friday during every nap and after Chloe goes to bed on custom orders (and keeping up with housework ect) and then the weekends are for her birthday blanket. I'm usually pretty burnt out by then so I don't get too much done though. I see myself up all night on August 24th desperately stitching to get it done. It will be so worth it though!

Today I'm a bit burnt out and needed a break so I'm online shopping for my favorite crochet project assistant.

TOTE BAGS!!!

This one is from Amazon. 

(and approximately $20)

Tote bags are so useful when crocheting ESPECIALLY if you frequently run errands where you do a lot of sitting around and waiting or you have pets. I have dogs and I vacuum every morning but I swear my house is shedding. I put my yarn in a bag and feed it out of there when I'm working, when I'm done I fold up my project and tuck it into the tote. That way I never misplace my yarn or hooks and everything is all together. The nice thing about totes with pockets is that you can just tuck your extra supplies like fabric tape measure, yarn needles, scissors all in the front pocket and leave the yarn and your project in the big pocket. 

 

I always leave my hook in my project unless I don't have a spare and I need it for another project, then I put a hair clip through the last loop where the hook would be to hold the space.

Then if you're headed out for a doctors appointment, or you're going on a flight somewhere, or you have to go to the RMV and waste a million hours of your life just waiting, you can grab your bag and go. Never waste time that could be put to use crocheting (unless you're showing signs of carpal tunnel then take a day off).

 

Right now I'm debating if that is the bag I'm getting or not. And if yes what color. The yellow is super happy, I love the pink, and I would really like the charcoal grey but that doesn't make sense with dogs.... Decisions, decisions...

How I Learned To Crochet

These are the videos that I started with to learn to crochet! Check them out and see if they help you. I'm working on my list of amazing patterns that I love to share with you all. I always recommend youtube-ing any new stitch you haven't tried yet as it seems the easiest way to learn, at least for me! I'm terrible at reading diagrams!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqca00LdmAc
This is the first video I watched. I did okay with it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdK-WWdHCQU
Then I watched this and it really helped a lot!

Ready, Set, SOLD!!

So I'm terribly far behind on doing my own explaination of how to crochet. I'm just so swamped with things to do before the big move I'm fairly certain I won't be able to give it a good enough effort before I leave England so I may temporarily postpone it and replace it with lots of good links to other blogs and youtube videos that  can help you learn.

I will make my own in the future though!! I will study all the other videos and try to figure out what is vague and what I can simplify for you.

But for now my big news is that we closed on our house today which means we are one step closer to England! It makes it a lot easier for us to not try to manage a rental property from across an ocean so it was the best choice, but I'm getting tearful thinking about the day when I walk out the door and I'll never see my baby's nursery again.

Growing up my nursery remained untouched, at least the wallpaper and shelves did. My sister and I grew out of our nursery and into other rooms. Until the day my mother sold the house the nursery was always my nursery and I don't think I'll ever forget the soft yellow and the circus animal paper on the wall.

I'll take lots of pictures for Chloe so she can always see her room and the perfect shade of purple we picked for it. We agonized over the color, looking at probably 100 shades from bluish to pinkish purple and finally deciding on the perfect shade. Her room is perfect and I love it.

I always knew that it was very likely we'd get orders, and it's not that I'm not excited to go to England because I really am, but a big part of me imagined Chloe growing up in that room, at least for more than a year.

But we move on, and we'll have new adventures, new rooms to decorate, new friends to meet and a whole world to explore!!

Right now I'm working on custom blanket orders. I love the one I just finished and the one I'm working on now is very special indeed. When that is all said and done I'll be rushing to finish up my baby's first birthday blanket! I fully intend on making a birthday blanket a tradition from now until I'm too old to crochet. She'll have so many by then she won't know what to do with them but I'm sure the years will destroy some of them.

I just think that if, God forbid, anything every happen to me I'd want Chloe to have something personal, something that I made with my own hands that you can just feel the love in and knowing I made it with all that love for her. It's a bit of me she can keep long after I'm gone.

So I think I will share some pictures if you care to look now.

This blanket went off to meet it's new baby not too long ago. Buttery soft and ready for years of snuggles!

And this is Chloe Jane's First Birthday Blanket it!! I'm much further than this now I just haven't taken pictures. It would have looked so gorgeous in her room, but unfortunately it will only get to live there about 3 months. But then it will find a new room and just be a part of her life, so it's all good!!