Lets face it, the majority of my projects, knit or crochet, don’t rely too much on shaping or sizing. I rarely pay attention to gauge, and in the case of hats, I’m usually making things up as I go along. I also have a chronic problem with finishing things I’ve started, but I’ll focus on that later. Today is about expansion, not completion… right?

So like I said, most of my crochet and knit items are flat pieces, but today I received a pretty neat gift: Yummy Crochet, a kit with a book of amigurumi patterns and all the supplies I’ll need to make 2 of the patterns: a cupcake and a doughnut. Now, I’ve tried a couple times making stuffies and other small pieces, but I generally got frustrated with all the small pieces or bored with sewing all the pieces together, but this time I am determined to get through at least the cupcake before it ends up on my to do pile for another year. Things that I will learn: How to use safety eyes, how to position safety eyes and embroider a cute little mouth in such a way that the thing actually retains its cuteness, and how to sew the pieces together without trying to rip things apart in the process. Patience and perseverance!

There are a couple extra things that I really want to talk about here, but I must wait. Partly for the photos that I don’t have yet, and partly for things to be actually complete before making an announcement for once. But damn am I excited about this one. Coming soon: More progress and awesomeness!

This has been a post celebrating the 3rd Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week.

I live in a part of the world where winters are frigid and frosty and frozen and for the most part downright miserable. But also where the summers are sunny and steamy and sweltering and for the most part downright miserable. It’s called the Midwest, and it sucks sometimes. Not all the time mind you, this winter has been exceptionally mild, especially after the blizzard we had last February.

Most of my knitting and crocheting is focused around the winter months. My Ravelry projects page (which is TOTALLY an accurate depiction of my yarning, I swear. Only not.) has no less than 4 hats and 6 scarves. Another hat (that isn’t shown on my Ravelry projects page, HA!) can be seen here, after doing a very good job of protecting my head from the aforementioned blizzard.

My summer months are spent in a constant search for air conditioning. When I do find a nice icy breeze to sit next to, I can usually get myself to hunker down for something small, like dish towels or scrubbies or market bags, the likes of things I simply don’t have photos of.
And then the temperate months are spent frantically trying to whip up (and justify) more scarves and hats or things that I will “totally wear when it’s not quite warm enough to go without a sweater” like the Amiga cardigan. One of these days I’ll get the right yarn and obsess over getting every stitch exactly right for a year until it is finally complete.

This has been a post celebrating the 3rd Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week.

Okay… Maybe it’s time you met the real genius behind all of my fiber arts endeavors. Too long have I boasted these skills and hogged the spotlight from the one who truly deserves this honor.

I would like to introduce you to the true yarnie here at Frog Soup:

Bunny.

Bunny has been with me for years, and through thick and thin, he has whipped out the hooks and needles and produced some masterful works of art. See how he shows off his work, completely without shame! He’s such a ham!

Here he is with his most recent work in progress: the Catkin. Yes, he is the creator of that as well. I am but a shadow to his mastery of the needles.

He certainly is making a lot of progress since last time we talked about the Catkin! Go Bunny Go!

Bunny, you are my hero.

This has been a post celebrating the 3rd Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week.

Despite having learned crochet about 5 years ago and revelling in the beauty of yarns, years of sketching in black and white have left me useless at coordinating more than 2 colors on my own.

However, I do have very evident colors that I gravitate towards. For example, when I make a quick trip down the block to my local yarn shop, I am immediately drawn to anything in the light-vibrant-lime green range. A good recent example is my recently(ish) finished Owlings mitts:

The rest of my winter wardrobe also sports a similar color scheme, though as I stated earlier, I can’t match or coordinate to save my life, so I’ve got some bright green mitts, a darker, dustier green hat, and a green and blue scarf. Not quite a match made in heaven, but definitely cozy!

Whenever I can pull myself away from the greens, I usually find myself quickly pulled back into anything that’s a rich, vibrant, and/or deep color, even if I would never expect to like the color! For example, when I picked out the yellow Madeline Tosh that I’m using in my Catkin, I was surprising myself, because who would have guessed that I, who dabble in purple and green and blue and red, would fall for something so bright and cheery as yellow!

 Though I do have my anxiety about trying to put too many colors together, I hope to one day pick out a beautiful rainbow palette like Lucy at Attic 24 and make some amazingly bright and cheery blanket. But for now I will stick to my two-color projects and stand back and admire those who have a better eye for color.

This has been a post celebrating the 3rd Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week