MADE: Crocheted leggings

I made these pink crocheted leggings for Penelope when she was just a few months old. She finally wore them the other day, with the pillowcase dress*, and I about died.

It was just a little chilly out, but still nice enough for her to be running around barefoot. The leggings were perfect to keep her chubby little leggies warm.

I found the pattern via Pinterest, at Crazy Socks Crochet.

*I can't believe it used to be so BIG on her! Now it's so short, you can see her bloomers!

A few more friend gifts. . .

I just haven't been able to find time for blogging lately, but I thought I'd quickly post a few more of my latest crochet projects.

A neck warmer, made with the crocodile stitch.

Another Chunky Circle Scarf (in 'Bone').

A hat. I semi-made up the pattern and semi-followed this one.

I've also been working on some adorable sock monkey hats for a friend, and a baby cardigan, for a group I joined on Ravelry (an online community for knitters and crocheters). I'll get around to posting them eventually.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year's celebration! In true New Year fashion, we're trying to get our lives in order. We're working on getting this blog organized and to define our real purpose in continuing. We hope you'll like our changes. Stay tuned!

Handmade Gift 1

As I mentioned before, in my family each one of us is making something for the other family members. For my little Penelope, I decided to make a hat that my friend, Kim, told me about. It's an Anthropologie-inspired hat. (There's a flower on there, but it kind of blends in with the hat. Can you see it?)

I love how it turned out! I already tried in on her (because she doesn't know the difference between being surprised on Christmas morning or not) and it's a little big, but it still looks adorable! I used Caron Simply Soft yarn in Light Country peach. For the scalloped edge, because I like the 'daintiness' of the anthro hat, I used 'America's Best' size 10 crochet thread in Light Peach, and a 3.25 mm hook. You can find the pattern HERE.

A Scarf and Some Carrot Shampoo

I made a spur-of-the-moment scarf today. I was sitting on my bed and noticed this white chunky yarn with silver specks in it. I used it to make the star on our Christmas tree and I was thinking I don't know what I'll ever use it for again. That's when I decided to make a scarf with it! It's as simple as can be, and I love how it turned out! You can wear it down, like a necklace, or fold it around again. I like it both ways. I'm going to give it to a friend, as a Christmas gift.

(the color in the pictures is off. The yarn is bright white)

Here's what I did:

Ch 62. Turn.

Row 1: dc into 3rd ch from hook. dc into each st across. (60 dc)

Row 2: Ch 2 (counts as first dc). Turn. dc across. (60 dc)

Row 3-8: Repeat row 2. Fasten off.

Attach both short ends together to make one big loop.

(also, since I was taking pictures of this scarf, I decided to just slip on the circle scarf I made the other day and get a better picture of it. you can actually see what it looks like now. go HERE)

And in other news, as I mentioned before, I've been trying to decide where to go from here with my hair. I was planning on making some shampoo myself, with a recipe I got from a friend, but I was having a hard time getting to the health food store. One day, I was wandering around Target (when I was shopping for Griffy's teacher gift) and I happened across this shampoo, without even looking. I felt like it was the answer to my hair dilemma.

I can't tell you how good it feels to have CLEAN hair!!!! And it feels good to know I'm not going all the way back to my old ways. It's a nice, happy medium. I'm still going to wash every FEW days, but I'll use this [mostly] organic shampoo instead of baking soda (boo!). I'm also still not using any additional products. And, guess what! My hair is holding curl still. AH, the best of both worlds! Clean AND manageable. Hallelujah!