Author: Kate

Mermaid Doll

As a fellow crocheter I’m sure any one of you reading this can certainly relate to the dreaded yarn overflow problem. If you’re anything like me, you collect yarn compulsively. Currently I have at least five bins of yarn in my basement. I use yarn out of each bin, but always there’s that one dedicated bin for novelty yarns that I admittedly do not use as much as I should. I fall in love with a color/color combo of yarn, find endless amounts of clearance yarn, or am gifted yarn by someone else with good intentions. I swear to myself I’ll eventually get to using those beautiful yarns, but always they end up in the novelty yarn bin. As I was going through my yarn the other day I came across many types of yarns I oooohed and ahhhhhed over, swearing yet again that I would pick them up and find purpose for them. This project was meant to be exactly that. A purpose for at least one skein of the forgotten novelty yarn.

This beautiful rainbow yarn was meant to be mermaid hair. Am I wrong?

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Cactus Hat

For as long as I can remember I have always been terrible at plant upkeep. I love the idea of gardens and flowers blooming in my yard and I’m amazed at the beauty of houseplants, but such never came to be for my own home due to my lack of green thumb. Everything I touch seems to die despite countless research, advice, and plant enthusiasts in my corner. However, something finally changed this year. I’m not sure why this summer has been any different, but I’ve been able to keep cacti and succulents alive! Even in the past, despite being told how easy those two types of plants were to care for, I’d never get them past a season. Maybe there is a shade of green showing on this thumb of mine after all? Whatever the change may be, I’m just happy that I can finally have a little army of succulents and cacti on my window sill to happily greet me every day. So naturally, I’ve had cacti on my mind and to celebrate, why not make a hat? I couldn’t resist!

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Theodore the Super Soft Teddy Bear

My first best friend was my beloved light brown teddy bear named Teddy, gifted to me by my late Nana. As a child I remember Teddy tagging along with me everywhere. He went on every wild adventure my little mind could come up with and protected me from all of the evil monsters under my bed every single night. There was such a deep comfort in holding Teddy in my arms, one I can still recall to this day each and every time I pick up a teddy bear. I always wonder if each bear I see will provide a child with as much happiness as my own Teddy brought me…  I feel like all teddy bears are made to have a story of their own. Being a creator of toys, I figured it was definitely time to try my hand at a good old fashioned teddy bear pattern. After all, handmade toys get to have the best stories of all!  Continue reading Theodore the Super Soft Teddy Bear

Adventure Time BMO Doll

One of my favorite things about working the farmers market each summer are the many people I get to interact with and meet. People of all ages pop into my booth, most with something to add to my day. Many times there are compliments over my work. Other times there is kind critique, much that I take in thoughtfully to improve designs, set up, etc. My favorites though are always the ones who come in and decide to ask for a custom request. I absolutely love custom requests. They always tell so much about a person! What their interests are, why they are gifting a certain item to another close friend… That one little inside joke you’re let in on. The gift that says more about their love language or that little plushie that acts as a special comfort tool. All custom requests are fun for me. I have yet to find one that hasn’t inspired me in one way or another.

One day last summer a teenage boy nervously approached my booth asking me to make this Adventure Time BMO doll. He was so shy. His body language seemingly shouted, “Will she think I’m weird asking for this doll???” I didn’t. Everybody has their own interests and I knew some of mine were a lot crazier than that of an Adventure Time fan! Ha! The biggest thing understood though was how it felt to be a fan of something, and wanting something to deeply reflect on said interest.

Naturally I was enthusiastic to take on the challenge. I knew BMO wasn’t going to be the easiest to make and would require a lot of pieces, but I was determined to make it work. I really wanted to make a fan of the show happy, so I got to work. In less than a week a pattern was written out and BMO was finished. The teenage boy met me at my booth bright and early that weekend for his BMO doll and he was no longer nervous but elated with joy over my creation. His grin could be seen from miles away! He kept in touch with me after that and enthusiastically rattled off multiple other fan favorites I could create in the future. Anytime I can bring a nervous kid out of his shell is such an awesome feeling! The best part of crocheting is giving away the creation and seeing the happiness it brings.

And so here today I offer the totally free Adventure Time BMO pattern so that it can be passed on and shared with other fans of the show!

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Baxter The Squirrel

Back in the days of renting my husband and I found ourselves in an older home built in the late 1800s. It was a cozy little place with all of the cute little nooks and crannies that often times bring charm to older homes. As with many rental homes, however, came quirks as well. One of those quirks were hidden holes in our walls leading to outside, as our landlord had failed to repair portions of the house before we moved in. Much to our surprise, we quickly discovered that we were not the only tenants of the house, but rather, a wild squirrel had previously claimed ownership of the place! That squirrel was quite the character with a big attitude and seemingly large annoyance with us being his new roommates. The squirrel became so much a part of living at that house that we affectionately named him “Baxter”.  Every now and then we’d hear a scurrying sound in our attic or walls. We knew it was Baxter.  Occasionally he would pop up from the outside of our house and hit our windows as if to say, “Hey! Get out! I was here first!” and always came a big startle from such occurrence! It was crazy how much this squirrel really began to test our limits. If ever I put a plant outside, he’d quickly dig it up. Every single morning while my husband left for work there would be a chatter from the trees above. My husband would look up and there Baxter would be, angrily waiting and throwing nuts at him! Sometimes he even hit him!

Despite numerous calls and complaints to our landlord, no fix ever came to keep this squirrel out of our living space. The last straw came when we arrived home and found our loyal orange tabby cat staring a hole into our kitchen cabinets. No matter what we did, he refused to leave the strange stare down he was having. Soon we figured out why. There was a crash from inside one of the cabinets and in no time it was very apparent that Baxter had found another way into our house! Luckily, we moved out a week later and gave up the house to Baxter, opting to buy and thoroughly inspect a new home instead. While at the time it was a very stressful and frustrating situation, we can now look back and it all and laugh at how ridiculous it was. Because of this outlandish tale, the inspiration of a new creation came to be. So I present to you Baxter the Squirrel.  Continue reading Baxter The Squirrel

Potted Crochet Flowers

Spring weather is finally upon us and I just can’t wait to get my hands in the dirt and plant some flowers! It’s always a favorite time of year for my family and me. We spend countless hours shopping around for the perfect plants to make our backyard colorful and full of life.  Roses, succulents, lilies, daffodils, tulips… We love them all! My personal favorite are always the lilacs filling my yard with their brilliant perfume. Oh how I can’t wait for those to bloom!

Unfortunately for me, however, I have no true green thumb. Actually, if we’re being honest, I’m pretty much the worst gardener ever. I try as hard as I can each year, but always fail. Vegetable gardens produce pathetic produce, if any. Once flourishing flower arrangements droop down into brown, dried, root-rotted sadness. My hopeful succulent gardens? Even they shrivel up and die, though I do proudly admit that I’ve had the same window sill cactus for two years now! So perhaps there is hope!

For now though, I’ve found a better alternative than that of continuing to kill perfectly healthy live plants. If I have no luck growing them, why not create something on my own that can outlast any real plant? And so came forth the idea of these potted crochet flowers! Something that can keep my home cheerful and push forth celebratory feelings of the new spring season,  and also something I can’t kill! My very own potted crochet flowers.

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Beehive Hat

On this dreary (and snowy, bleh!) spring afternoon, I can’t help but envision the potentially perfect days of warmth ahead. The trees are beginning to show signs of buds eager to blossom with all sorts of spring flowery goodness. Soon the  dead brown earth around us will become a vibrant green. What I am most excited for are the lilacs, their scent so intoxicating that it fills my entire backyard with its natural perfume. When I think of spring I think of fresh flowers and when I think of flowers the thoughts of life’s busiest workers comes to mind… Bees. I have a special place in my heart for bees. I absolutely LOVE them. I love studying them. Honey is my weakness. I use it in everything. I love watching  bees busy themselves in their hives. Heck, I’ve gone to plenty of beehive displays/demonstrations in my day and I can honestly say that maybe I’m becoming a little bit obsessed… Not a year goes by that my husband and I don’t seek out a local beekeeper and their glorious honey, getting lost in discussions of saving the bees and the utter fascination over how various types of honey come to bee (ha, see what I did there?)! What’s even better is the fact that my aunt and uncle took up beekeeping a couple of years ago, so we always get to hear their exciting tales of beekeeping (as well as taste test all the honey!!!!)! Needless to say, beekeeping is one of our life goals. For now though, I’ll have to settle on being creative with my crochet. So with that said, let me introduce you to the beehive hat, my most favorite hat creation yet!  Continue reading Beehive Hat

Dish Scrubbies

Dish scrubbies. Such a simple cleaning item, but oh so underrated. It was my first year working at our local farmer’s market that I discovered not only the convenience of being able to create my own household cleaning item, but also how absolutely AWESOME the crochet dish scrubber is. Seriously, crochet dish scrubbies are AMAZING. Not only is it something that works up insanely quickly, but it is LONG-LASTING in your kitchen, EFFECTIVE at cleaning, and totally capable of being RE-USED. If it starts to smell funky, just toss it in the dishwasher/washing machine and it’s ready to go, BRAND NEW, once again! I could go on and on about these, but how about I just pass on the knowledge someone else gave to me instead?  Continue reading Dish Scrubbies

Kisses Buddy

With Valentine’s Day just a couple of days away I couldn’t resist making up a pattern for one of my favorite Valentine’s Day treats. Whenever February comes around I can’t help but think of Hershey’s chocolate Kisses. They’re everywhere on the candy shelves and just so sweet to pass around! If you’re like me this year though and can’t really enjoy the chocolately goodness this year due to diet restrictions, why not enjoy a Kisses Buddy instead? 🙂

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Peter Pumpkinhead

Halloween is drawing nearer and nearer! All of the trees are changing to vibrant reds, oranges, and yellows finally after this extra warm fall we’ve been having. The chilly days are now here and it’s the perfect time to crochet after a day out at the pumpkin patch. And what better thing to crochet than this cute little pumpkin patch inspired toy? Meet Peter Pumpkinhead 🙂  Continue reading Peter Pumpkinhead