Shark Blanket

I started my mermaid tail crochet project with a lot of enthusiasm. I was convinced that I would be able to 'wing it' and have it turn out awesome. Well not long after my 'Skein 1' update I was hitting a bit of a roadblock and getting frustrated. That's when my friend Becky posted on my FB wall a picture of a shark blanket from MJ's Off the Hook Designs. Being the crazy person I am I saw it and immediately wanted to make it. I bought the pattern (my first purchased crochet pattern!) and ran off to the craft store to buy gray yarn. I had enough white and red on hand for the teeth and gum details. I had to tweak the pattern just a bit because I did not use a bulky yarn. I used regular yarn and used two strands. It went pretty smoothly but I did end up making the tail 3 times to get the sizing right.

I am super happy with how it turned out. I just took a couple of quick shots before wrapping it up and sending it off to Texas! It got there only a couple days after her birthday. The nice thing about the pattern is that it includes lots of different sizes (baby to adult) and she allows you to sell your finished products as long as you give her pattern credit.

She also has a mermaid tail blanket pattern....I may just break down and buy that as well. Although it is probably very similar to the shark pattern I want to start supporting craftspeople more when I can.

So excited to have finished another LARGE crochet project. Working on more and more and keeping the momentum going. Getting back into hats too now that fall is here (in name if not in temperature). Trying to decide if I can buckle down enough to be part of the Halloween cryptkeepers this year. If nothing else look for a giveaway I am hosting in early October!

Happy Labor Day everyone! And Happy Crafting!

Mermaid Blanket: Skein 1

Well after a hard couple of days at work I have a day off. Pancakes in the morning, Lots of internet reading, crocheting, and going to see Magic Mike XXL with some gal pals. Perfect day really. Now I am doing a last minute load of laundry so I can return to work and the real world tomorrow.

I have the crafting bug HARD and am still riding high after finishing the granny square blanket. I am doing a project for myself this time so I can share more 'in progress' posts without fear of ruining any sort of surprise. Have you seen the super cool mermaid blankets online? There are a few different patterns out there as well. From what I can tell though most of the blankets are 'lapghans' so they just sit on top of you like a blanket. I'm interested in something a little more lifelike. More cocoon. Actual feeling of being a mermaid. Sure I might have to struggle in and out of it or hop around like I'm in a potato sack race but I still think its the way to go. Despite the patterns available I am making this up as I go along. I am trying out different stitches along the way and sort of making this a sampler project. I found the loveliest Red Heart Soft yarn in 'Deep Sea' (perfect, I know) and am not changing colors so I am trying to add some interest and texture with different stitches. It would be a quicker project if I just went with one stitch I'm sure but it feels good to try new stuff on a project that does not have the pressure of being a gift or on a time crunch.

When I found the yarn I bought several skeins and I thought I would share what it looks like after skein 1;

My game plan is to start at the bottom and work up and then return to the bottom to add the fin. Progress is progress. I plan to continue sharing as I go along. Has anyone else made a mermaid blanket of any sort?

Happy Crafting!

Crochet Cacti

After seeing the idea on the internet I loved the idea of sweet little crochet plants around the house. Finally a plant I can't kill. On a trip to the dollar store I grabbed a 3 pack of mini clay pots. It actually took a LOT of restraint not to buy more but I made myself a promise that I could only buy more if I made at least these 3 first. Now after a couple of weeks I have 3 new little cacti! There are lots of free tutorials out there for all different varieties of little cacti. They are quick to whip up and I find it super satisfying to sit down and have a project done start to finish in the same sitting. After making the first one Tony liked it so much he wanted to have it on his nightstand. (The entire collection resides there currently, I may have to make more for other areas of the house!) With the never ending winter these sure have helped me think of warmer days to come. 

Now on to bigger crochet projects? I feel like there are always more projects in my head then I will ever get to. Nice to get these little ones done! 

Happy Crafting!

Happy May!

Happy May everyone! Wow the time seems to be flying by. This week along is going to be busy what with The Avengers being released this Friday, which also happens to be Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with you...hahahahahahaha). Then Saturday is Cinco de Mayo and I have a shin dig that evening. Today though I am sharing some new RubyMarilyn Etsy Shop items that I finally got listed!

 New earrings! Hand crocheted with silver chains and just a bit of lace.

 What I am calling my 'Heirloom' necklace. It is an epic 74" long vintage faux pearl necklace that I crocheted onto. Looped it looks all sorts of lovely.

Finally decided to list my Granny Punk necklace. It is the perfect mix of old lady awesomeness and irreverent charm.

Cheers!

8/365 Bow-nanza

Day 8. I have seen super cute versions of this all over the internet. I figured it would be easy enough to try on my own. I like the results but I think it might be too chunky. Never thought I would say that.

Spending the rest of my time trying to think of a Derby names. Seriously. All day long. Gotta pick by the team meeting tomorrow. I can't do clever under pressure.

Happy New Year! + the start of A Necklace a Day

Happy New Year! 2011 is finally over and we have a brand new year to start off with a bang. I don't know about you but 2011 was not my favorite year. I had some really good times but it did not have the zing that say 2010 or 2008 did. I think I am an every other year kind of girl.

I spent New Years Eve in the chillest way possible. Sitting on my couch watching movies with a good friend. Pink champagne was still involved but I did not break out a sparkly dress this year. But it was really good- just what I needed. Best quotes of the night included, "The movie is called Warrior not pussy" and "Drinking champagne out of mason jars? It is like we are having a Harlan County New Years!"

I am trying to be optimistic about 2012. So far I have no huge plans in the works besides my friend's wedding in September (I have to go order my dress! Annndddd I might be making them wedding pie...more to come). I am just hoping to go with the flow and figure some stuff out. Other than the wedding I hope to go to some good concerts and get into some new activities. Roller Derby here I come!

To give myself some sort of direction this year (and a challenge) I am starting a 365 project. Inspired by many others doing similar projects I thought I would try my hand at it. If you are interested in hearing about what other people are doing/have done I highly recommend this blog. I have decided to make a necklace a day for a year. Starting now. Rules will be fairly simple. Post a handmade necklace everyday on the blog. I wanted something that would be crafty but also focused and doable. I believe that necklaces will be a narrow enough requirement to keep some of my 'crazy' out of the equation but will be perfect time-wise, space-wise, and money-wise. There is still a ton of room for creativity including themes, techniques, materials, etc. If I know I have trips or events I will make the necklaces ahead of time and just try to keep on schedule. I have a feeling things are going to get pretty random...I already have some ideas for some large fun STATEMENT necklaces that will hopefully be fairly epic.

I will still continue to post any other fun crafts or baking adventures that come my way but I have a feeling that this project will be the most prevalent part of the blog this year.

Here is number 1:

 A little bit of granny, a little bit of punk this necklace is a combination of a chunky vintage chain and some hand crochet work.

See you tomorrow!


Cheers.

The Letter 'A'

New necklace in the shop. I have been wanting to start making some necklaces that do not have any sort of metal closures. So many cute necklaces these days tie in the back and this is my version. I have also been wanting to incorporate more  embroidery into my work and so I have started this 'tattoo initial' line. I will hopefully be posting more color combos and initials soon but let me know if you are interested in seeing a particular letter/color.

Shop Update: Ready for the Holidays!

I am so excited to bring you some of my new holiday collection today! Playing off of the 'classic' RubyMarilyn designs I am bringing some holiday cheer and kitsch into the mix.

 

  

 

I was really tempted to call the necklaces 'ugly sweater' necklaces but I don't think they are ugly! Over the top? Maybe. I think it really depends on how you wear them but I am absolutely in love. LOVE I SAY. So Christmasy and fun. The scarf and the neckwarmer were born into being to deal with my over-making of crochet snowflakes. I just can't get enough. Once I get a pattern in my head I need to make it and usually several times over! I love the gray scarf so much because most of the snowflakes are unique. I think that makes it kind of fun.

Stay tuned. More pieces will be added to the Holiday Collection later this week. I was just too excited about these to wait!

Etsy Update

It has been so rainy here. It has been so depressing out I decided I didn't want to leave the house at all. (Ah the privileges of the unemployed!) So anyhoo I have been working on catching up on some things. I updated the shop today with a few more items and I am working on some new designs to come out soon. The new thing right now is that instead of just have silver findings (chain, clasp) I have finally branched out and am now including gold.

Agatha in Black w/Silver Chain

Agatha in Mustard w/Silver Chain

Agatha in Black w/Gold chain

Agatha in Mustard w/Gold chain

  Hibernate in Brown

Etsy Update

Couple new pieces for the shop today. Slowly working on some new designs that I want to add to the shop.

'Noir' is a super long layered black necklace. I wanted to make some really big statement necklaces and although these have a lot of look to them the are not heavy or overly fussy.

'Sandstorm' is long and layered and is less dramatic than the all black of 'Noir'.

Both can be found over at the shop!

Edwina, Gertrude, and Agatha

In the shop now are a few more necklaces. At this point I have 3 rough 'styles' which are more or less the same every time I make them. Instead of a different name each time I make a piece I have decided to just name the styles making it easier to identify the different types.

First off... Edwina

The Edwina is like the Rainy Day necklace it involves small loops of crochet and then larger loops that are woven with the others giving this piece a very bold and dynamic look.

Gertrude

The Gertrude is a little less complicated than the Edwina but it has all the boldness. This is a bib style necklace that is going to be making a statement.

Agatha

Agatha is sweet and simple. She is a charming smaller necklace that is flirty and girly without being overwhelming.


Can you tell I like little old lady names? Because I do. A lot.

More...

New items in the shop today. A little bit of color with a blue and mustard sneaking in with the good ol' gray and white.

Don't they look pretty layered together?



Cloud 9



Mustard Seed



Blue Nile

Rain Cloud

More to come! This weekend has already been a flurry of making, packing, errands, lunch with the girls. Whew! Tonight going to a concert and tomorrow brunch with the fam. It is actually really nice out right now- but it is really windy!

I made it onto the Etsy blog!

I am so excited! I was one of the shops featured in the Etsy Finds: Opening Acts blog post today. Thanks Etsy! The positive response has really made my day. Now I am really motivated to get making! Look for an update super soon...

Shop Update

Well it has been awhile since I have gotten anything into the shop! Regardless I am now pleased to present some of my newest crochet necklaces. They are still in the soft white and slate gray of some of my former pieces. I just can't get over how much I love these yarns though! Eventually I will run out and when that happens I will probably spice things up with some more color.

You can check everything out at my etsy shop!

Loop de Loop






Rainy Day





Rites of Spring



Have a great day!

Yarn Bombing

I get easily distracted. There is so much cool stuff out there in the world and with it all at our fingertips 24/7 its no wonder I cant concentrate. I flit from this craft to that. Embroidery to crochet to sewing to baking to...you get the idea. When I found out about Yarn Bombing I was intrigued and delighted. I had recently been on a bit of a street art kick anyway but I am nowhere near brave enough to wield a can of spray paint. But Yarn Bombing? Hmm. That I could maybe handle. What it is: Knit and crochet graffiti that makes the world just a wee bit more snugly but is still totally removable. (That is my definition by the way.) I probably found out about the book Yarn Bombing: The Art of Knit and Crochet Graffiti from a crafty blog. I asked for it for Christmas and it never came. And then it magically showed up in a birthday present!

So inspiring from cover to cover I poured over the book finding more inspiration than I could handle. I was so ready to get out there and DO it! But what? What kind of tags should I make? I am sort of a lone crafter in my parts so there was no 'crew' to back me (or to form as of yet- if you are in the Rochester, MN area and are interested in that let me know...) and I was a bit directionless. So much inspiration and no real plan. Most tags are simply cozies that can be made to fit a plethora of outdoor objects including: trees, sign posts, pipes, fences, handles, etc. I kind of wanted to make something that had some shape to it.

My idea finally came from a band. I get emails from 30 Seconds to Mars as part of their street team Echelon. They just came out with a new album and their new symbol is the "Triad" which is a simple triangle with a horizontal line going through it. The band is promoting the "Triad Global Assault" to try to get this symbol in as many places as possible. They have a flickr page here. I decided that THAT was something I could crochet and put up different places. I stitched up 3 triads pretty quick and then they sat on my desk. They sat there until finally I was leaving for my long awaited trip to Ireland and somewhat on a whim and somewhat inspired by other Yarn Bombing crews that go global I put one of the pieces in my purse.

It didn't happen until the third day of our trip. My friend and I were taking an easy day enjoying a scenic drive on the Dingle peninsula. Well even in such a small area we got lost and ended up circling this one small village about three times. Finally my friend Aimee, who was driving, declared that we were stopping and taking a few minutes to "figure our shit out". The place we stopped was a scenic little beach and it was a beautiful and sunny day so we both enjoyed a chance to stretch our legs, takes some pictures, and hunt for sea shells. It was here on the beach that I decided to leave my first tag. On a chain link fence next to the road at the entrance to this little section of beach I whipped out my triad and tied it to the chain link fence. I then took a step back and took some pictures. It felt awesome. I was so proud of myself for finally going for it! (Yes I am a dork.) Of course I did have to spend the next 30 minutes explaining to Aimee what yarn bombing was and why I decided it was something I needed to do but it was worth it. I didn't label my tag- I am not quite that sophisticated yet- so I don't have any idea if anyone else has seen it or if it is already gone or whatnot but I think that this is only the beginning for me!

On a completely random note: I am sort of in the mood for Sushi. Hmm.

Birthday Bear

It is my grandma Marilyn's birthday tomorrow. I had no idea what to get her so on impulse I decided to make her a little amigurumi teddy bear. My grandma has so many teddy bears she doesn't know what to do with them but I decided one more couldn't hurt.

Just to make it clear I love crochet but the whole amigurumi thing is a little new to me. A while back I made an adorable little bunny from a pattern on the Lion Brand yarn website. Since I already aced that one I decided to use the same pattern and just change the ears. I also added a little crochet heart because it is sort of close to Valentine's Day and the bear was already going to be a bit late for her birthday. So yes this teddy is a little lopsided, a little uneven, and fairly imperfect but I whipped him together in an afternoon and I am fairly sure my grandma will love him regardless of his imperfections.

Added a little tag "homemade with love" the idea came directly from this article from Design Sponge and these little tags are now my new shop item tags/business cards but I have so many I am really enjoying just playing around with different messages. I might make some up for the epic amount of baking I hope to get done this weekend. I have fallen in love with not 1 but 4 cupcake recipes and I want to try them all!