My first pattern

So I finally am writing out my first pattern. It's to the blue cinch hat I made. I'm sure there's a pattern floating around in cyber space out there for it already... but I didn't follow one. I completely made this hat up off the fly so I'm claiming it as my own. Just keep reading to see how I did it!

I used Caron So Soft yarn, which is 18 stitches by 24 rows in 4 inches. And I used the recommended H hook.

Row 1: using a H hook, ch 42

Row 2: in the second chain, hdc in the back loop of each stitch. Chain 1 and turn.(40)

Row 3-41: hdc in the back loop of each stitch. ch 1 and turn (40)

Row 42: hdc in the back loop of each stitch.

Do not ch1 but line up the two ends of the hat and slip stitch together to make a seem. This will create a tube wide enough to fit around your head.

Take a length of yarn long enough to weave into whichever and you decide to make the top and pull to cinch the hat closed. There will be a small round hole at the top, this is okay.

You can either leave it or put a pompom in it later. Tie off the cinched yarn and weave all of the ends into the underside of the hat.

The finished product will give you bold vertical stripes and a cute bunchy top. It will be long enough to flip up a brim or pull down over your ears.

And that's it. Just send me a comment or email if you have any problems with it.

In other news

So my dad really liked the hats I made for him and Cathy. He said they're super warm and soft. He also said he'll be wearing them around whenever they go out to see if anyone wants to buy some. I guess I should send him some of my business cards so he can hand them out all the way up in Tennessee. That's kind of nice of him to do for me. I know we haven't been on the best terms these last few years... Maybe that can change a bit.

So I have a good plot... Okay... I have like 3 or 4 good plots spinning around in my head and Goddess knows how many stories actually started. BUT. I'm currently working on the sequel to my finished book AND I just worked out a good Apocalypse story plot. I think I'll try and knock out the Apocalypse story and try to get THAT published. Then I have a bargaining chip when it comes to the fantasy one. Well that's what I'm hoping anyway.

RAINY DAY.... I love rainy days. They're so nice and relaxing. Though I can't believe it's already 2:30. I really don't know where the rest of the morning went. I did a few sit ups on the AbLounge Kathi is storing on my porch, did the dishes, had breakfast. Wrote out the plot to the Apocalypse story, made my pompom and finished my hat, posted it up, checked the mail and other wise have goofed off. Oh well. I guess I'll go call Home Depot... and then I might try moving some of my boxes of Christmas stuff out into the shed so I can start cleaning. That one MAY wait until Sunday so I can make Terry help me. We'll see.

The hero of Canton

YAY! I officially completed my first Jayne hat from Firefly. I'd had it mostly done for a couple of months, but I just broke down and made my first circle to make the pompom for the top. I think I have to keep this one because the seam isn't perfect, but I will pop it up on Etsy so I can make them to sell now that I know how to make more unnoticeable seams.

Now I want to go watch Firefly and find the easter egg of Adam Baldwin singing the Hero of Canton song XD.

Planning

There are so many things I'm planning for... Maybe that's my problem. Maybe that's why I can't actually get anything done or the universe drops BS in my lap. Maybe I just need to be more spontaneous. As of the moment I'm planning on...

Making dinner tomorrow night, calling Home Depot to see how much it would cost to rent a chainsaw. Making a cake for Jonathan's birthday, GOING to Jonathan's birthday party, going to game Saturday night. Going to Thom's show sometime Sunday. Use the above said chainsaw on branches in the back yard. Buying materials to make a permanent table out of two cut down citrus trees BEFORE Ethan's birthday. Selling all of the glass stuff I brought over for Steven, organizing the garage and selling a bunch of that crap. Getting the house cleaned up and ready for Ethan's Birthday Party. Decorating for Ethan's Birthday party, making the cake for the party, and getting the presents. Game each Saturday between now and said party. Gasparilla next Saturday before game. And in any of the time between - crochet.

I guess I can't say I don't finish things because I just finished a matching scarf to the blue hat I just made. They'll look pretty good together, classy almost. I just have to take better pictures of both and get them posted - Oh look, ANOTHER thing I plan to do. On top of finally feeling like writing, things are just peachy... if I don't loose my head first.

Blue hat

So I had an idea for a hat. But it was one of those stitches that would take FOREVER with 2 different colors. So I switched it up and changed the stitch and tried this hat. It looked great, except I made it too big. So I tried again with a nice soft blue yarn that I had a bunch left over of. It turned out exactly like I'd hoped. It's soft and warm and cute. And of course my computer is being a pain in the but and won't upload the picture. But now I'm working on a scarf to match. And this giant skein of yarn is quickly running low. Of course! But thanks to Ravelry, here's a picture.

Updating

So I posted 4 new items on Etsy. My 3 USF items and an older thing I made that I hadn't thought of posting. A nice child's shawl that I had made when first learning. I want to update the images are there, but I currently have the are where I'm storing all the stuff blocked off. Of course that SHOULD mean someone will buy one and I'll have to move everything, but with my luck - yeah right.

We got a quote on cleaning up and planting some jasmine out front. Along with getting our hands on a key lime tree and getting the dying trees out back ripped up. Not bad over all. Kind of makes me want to push to see if we could buy this house. I'd go all out. There would be paint, and new windows, and TONS of new landscaping... We would have the prettiest house on the block!

Anyway. Made a cake for a birthday tonight. It turned out pretty good. Gave me good faith that I can successfully decorate Ethan's cake the way I want in a few weeks. It'll be a banana flavored sheet cake with white icing. It will then have branches creeping up from the bottom right hand corner where I will be placing a few new Pet Shop Birds he likes. Then in the top left corner do the Happy 5th Birthday Ethan. I think he'll like it.

Lovely rain

What a lovely rainy day. I have the windows open (don't worry, they're slanted windows so no rain and slip through). I actually was able to sit down a write a little bit. Not that it was very productive seeing as how I started something completely new. But I figure, if I don't get these nagging ideas out of my head they'll block up everything else.

I got done a hat last night. It ended up being a Rasta hat. It was supposed to be a very cute beanie slouch, but the instructions just didn't want to cooperate. So I undid it and made something else. It's kind of cool, I already have something else started. I'll probably go get dressed and try to see how far I can get on it.

Time to grab something to drink and go get dressed.

Clean

Time to start my spring cleaning. I have a ton of glass in my house that I need to take photos of and pack away. I have to start going through the stuff in my garage and organize - it looks like a bomb went off in there. But I think before I do the garage I need to clean the house and get it ready for Ethan's party.

Party time! So in a month is Ethan's big day. 5 years old and I can hardly believe it. Time has just flown. He has requested chicken nuggets and french fries for his meal of choice and we're still in debate about the cake. I'm going to invite everyone up here. With me not having a car it just makes it so much easier.

So I finished Mom's Poncho. She's happy with it, I feel it could be redone better. I didn't follow a pattern for it and it crumples really bad in the front. I'm not entirely sure how to fix this short of just pulling up a pattern and going over it.

Saturday I can go get the rest of the yarn to finish Ian's Poncho and get it done before the Renaissance festival starts. I won't be able to participate this year. I might be able to go a couple times, but working it is out. I sent a message to Ed, haven't heard back from him yet though. I should enlist my services if anyone wants a yarn cap. Maybe Ian or Maddy can hand out some of my business cards or something.

The next thing I need to start on are some scarves. Some very specific scarves that I need to finish and have posted on Etsy before June. Why? So that people can order them and get them before Harry Potter is released in July. I think a couple from each house. Traditional striped, but I want to find some nice soft yarn. Shopping for me.

De-evolution

Gah... damn this monetary system that rules us. Why can't we go back to a barter system? I'd move up north where it's cold and crochet everything for trade! I could also bake and cater for trade. It would work out great.... Here's to the economic and industrial de-evolution!

Wait.... doesn't that usually fall after the Zombie apocolypse? Damn I'll need a couple swords then... XD

Not so good

So... this whole remembering to blog thing... I'm not very good at it. I finished 3 projects and didn't even think - Hey, I should post these! So one was a group of jewelry crochet that I'd done for my friend Kate who's leaving to go up North on Thursday. I just had to finish beading it and buttoning it.

The other is a pair of hats I made for my dad and his wife. They live up in Tennessee and it's been snowing like crazy up there. To be honest with you, I haven't personally spoken to my father in over a year, my mother tells me these things. But I decided to be nice for a change and make him something. So I grabbed some of the Loops and Threads Charisma yarn and whipped together a pair of hats. Different colors but matching in design. Beautiful and warm... and I forgot to take a picture. I'm so stupid.

Anyway... I ran out of the brown yarn for Ian's poncho, and I need to get a pair of yarns to make a hat for the guy at Village Inn. Then I can head up there with my business cards and away we go! One step at a time I suppose. The cards turned out great, I can't wait to get them around town.

I'm slightly out of the crazy depressed slump I'd been in. Must be hormones... though I can't say I'm completely cured, just not as bad. But maybe the same with that, one step at a time.

pondering

So I'm trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. I'm just at a complete loss. I had the thought of yarn dyeing. Maybe find a vendor who sells all natural cotton, bamboo, and wool; get some natural dyes and do some custom yarns to sell on Etsy. For that matter... I COULD technically make my own crochet hooks. Make like citrus wood hooks, I would need a dremel and some technical specs for size and gauge...

I don't know; I'm truly grasping at straws here. I am so lost and depressed and I can't figure out how to drag myself up. I enjoy being home and working on crochet so much... I just can't seem to get any sold. I did however get a nice offer at Village Inn. One of the support staff asked for a hat cause he's going up North. I told him if he took some of my business cards and handed them out to people it was a deal. It's a start I guess.

As a side note, my animals are so stupid. The cat is in a box and he's chewing on it like it's offended him. My dog however is outside of the box licking it like it's the tastiest thing ever. They are quite the pair. There might be a whole brain between the two of them.

Progress

Okay... so another step down the path. I just put the order in for business cards. Last time I did it... they turned out like crap. I didn't have a clear idea for the design and just threw something together. This time I have a beautiful logo that is spread across all of my sites and if they turn out like the preview I will be thrilled to go put them around town.

Pretty good progress last night on Ian's Poncho. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I WON'T have to redo it. I'll post a progress picture later. I have a job interview to go to.

Another one?

So I just finished another cap. I don't know if it's because I figured out how to make them without the help of a pattern... or if I loved them before. But I find something fun and comfy about stocking caps. They are completely out of date and style... but hey, maybe I can bring them back. Go check out the full thing on Ravelry, it looks great AND it matches my poncho.

$$$ - just a random rant

Ugh... stressing about money. In the long run I know everything will turn out okay... but right now? My phone is about to be turned off, I'm a month behind on electric and cable, and I don't have my full amount for rent. So I guess I'm going to give them what I have and keep my fingers crossed that they're willing to let me pay the remainder in the following months. The unemployment website doesn't give me any useful information so I don't know if the check I get Friday is going to be for $23 or for my usual $494. I have an interview tomorrow for Wachovia which I'm keeping my fingers crossed for. It's just all so frustrating.

I wish I could crochet professionally for a living. How the hell do you do that? I mean I COULD! The stuff I make is good and I can freakin' churn it out like a machine. The holidays proved that. I completed over 2 dozen projects in a month. Of course all of those were gifts for people cause - hey I'm poor! So far I haven't sold a single thing on Etsy. And I know part of it is cause I don't have enough product up there for a selection, nor do I have enough photos OF the product up... Not to mention you have to spend money to make money.

So things I need. A professional looking banner. What's on there now is half assed and I need to fix that. Professional looking business cards that match my new professional banner. Product to post to sell, and $7/day to promote my site. I have an idea at least for the banner that JUST came to me so maybe I'll try and get that done today.

Sorry for the rant... I just needed to get it off my chest.

For once the days are correct

Well Sunday came and went... I did nothing except make some waffles. I'm up early today. Going to go help Steven out at his house, packing some stuff up, posting some things on Ebay or Craigslist for him. Wednesday I have an interview down in South Tampa... Keeping my fingers crossed.

I finished the shrug I was making. I have to have Jenna or Kathi try it on for me since they're close to Linda's size. It just seems weird. I did it exactly like the instructions say... but it curls on the bottom and I don't believe it should.

But for now I have to go finish getting ready.

It feels like Sunday

But it's not. It's only Saturday night and in an hour and a half I'll be going over to my friend Jenna's for her birthday party. We spent all day at Busch Gardens yesterday with my sister and her family and my other nephew. Then Ethan and I went back for a little while today so he could pet/feed the kangaroos and ride Rhino Ralley again. It was fun but I'm BEAT! We had dinner and I'm just finishing up in the kitchen for tonight. I made brownies and Gingerbread bars to take to Jenna's. I might keep some of the gingerbread bars for here though... it was a craving that made me want to make them.

I haven't crocheted anything in a couple days... though I did restart the shrug for Linda. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it turns out. I REALLY don't want to restart it again. Once that's finished I'll be moving on to Ian's Poncho. I have a couple ideas for that so at least I KNOW I'll be restarting it LoL.

I had Terry run a scan on my computer to make sure it's clean. That way I can get my 2 game accounts back up and running. Battlenet and NCSoft were both hacked and I haven't had a chance to sit down and fix them. So now I can... not that I can get either of them playing again cause I don't have the money to open the account, but at least I'll know they're safe and waiting for me LoL.

Tomorrow which actually IS Sunday... I think I'll be lazy... maybe. I might take the tree down... but I'm leaning toward being lazy. Lazy is good sometimes.