finished: knit headbands for custom orders

Hi, everyone!  As the week winds down to a close, I wanted to show you these cream-colored knit headbands I made for two custom orders:

The base pattern was my Whitney Headband (that you can grab by clicking here) and the flower is once again the Leona Flower - my new favorite.  These headbands are already becoming more popular in my shop as we head into fall, so I'm looking forward to making a bunch more.  Next up is a black headband with maroon flower.  It should be gorgeous!

So once class is over in November, I'm going to convert my patterns to PDF.  You'll still be able to print them directly from my blog, but I've decided to also make them downloadable from Craftsy.  I think this will help make it not only convenient for you (my wonderful readers), but it'll also help me organize which patterns are free and which ones are for sale.

Someone remind me to do that because I know I'll forget to do it (thanks to upcoming holiday preparation).  I've already started on some gifts, but keep getting distracted by random things that pop up.

Anyway, I'm excited for this weekend.  Somehow, all my evenings have had something going on, and now all my weekends (that I purposely left open) have filled up, as well, all the way into November.  I know I say this in almost every entry, but I think I need a break.  Or another vacation.  It's hard to believe our beach vacation was already four months ago.  Seems like just last week!  I hope everyone is a little less stressed out than I am at the moment :)

and now for something different: box stitch afghan in progress

I know what you're thinking... "When was the last time Jenn made something that wasn't a hat?"

To be honest, I couldn't tell you.  I've been whipping up all sorts of hats and headbands for the past couple weeks.  Don't get me wrong - I love making them.  There's that whole "instant gratification" thing that I love, which is mostly why I've chosen to make and sell hats to begin with.

But sometimes it's nice to switch gears  and work on something mindless and long-term.  Take this simple box stitch afghan I've started making with some Red Heart Super Saver scraps:

I originally purchased the yarn to make a different afghan, but never got around to it.  Shock!  It feels good to put it to some use.  The colors still look great together, and to be honest, I think this pattern looks so much nicer with these colors than the afghan I had planned for it before.

I was inspired by this pattern in the Sep/Oct issue of Crochet Today magazine.  If you have access to a copy, definitely take a look.  It's a simple pattern that I've used before, just never for a full blanket.  For example, I once made a box stitch afghan in strips then sewed them together, which created a zig-zag effect.  This is quite pretty, though, too.

Not entirely sure what I'll do with it when it's done.  Maybe it can be a blanket for my craft room.  Cool fall nights and winter are coming up, and it can get chilly in there!

On that note, I'm really happy that it's starting to feel like fall.  It's my favorite season with two of my favorite holidays, not to mention the three year anniversary with Hubby.  I'm excited for everything this season brings each year, and for some reason, I'm really amped up this year.  I'm looking forward to crafty weekends with my lady friends, Celtic Classic, leaves changing, yarn shopping in Philadelphia, concerts, and most importantly, finishing my Capstone and being done with school.  YIPPEE!

finished: knit double moss stitch hat with flower

Happy Thursday after Labor Day!  Short weeks are my favorite, and this one has been blowing by.  I can't believe we're more than halfway through already.  It's both good and bad - I'm looking forward to the weekend, but I'm worried about never having enough hours in the day.

The good news is that I finished a bunch of custom orders last weekend, so I had some time to work on patterns I've discovered over the months.  One of them was this cute knitted hat:

I can't find a link to the pattern right now, but I'll add it as soon as I do [ETA: FOUND IT!].  It's just a simple 1x1 rib followed by rounds of double moss stitch.  I'm always amazed at how the simplest patterns create the most beautiful textures.

I added the crochet flower later using the Leona Flower pattern - my new favorite!  I made it detachable by placing it on a safety pin.  Then, I glued on a pretty gem.  Originally, I had wanted a clear gem, but I think the yellow-green one sets off the yarn's teal color.

Speaking of the yarn, I used Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe - another one of my favorites.  This particular ball sat in my stash for about a year, so I'm glad I finally used it for something - even though I have a ton left over.  Not that I'm complaining (it's always a good thing when you can stretch out the life of your yarn!)

I may take better photos and list it in the shop this weekend.  We'll see if I can part with it; I'm tempted to just keep it for myself.  Then again, if I did that with everything I made, we wouldn't have room to move around in our house.

Hope you're all having a great week and that you have wonderful weekends to look forward to :)

finished: black slouchy crochet hat

Good morning, fiber friends!  How is your week treating you?  Mine is just blowing by thanks to not having enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I need to accomplish.  But that's just something I've gotten used to - what fun is life if it's not spiraling out of control?

I'm here to show off this black slouchy I made over the weekend for the Playin Hooky Giveaway winner (click here for the pattern):

The winner liked a previous hat I had made in this style using Caron Simply Soft.

So let me complain a little bit about Caron and their prices (and yarn prices, in general).  I remember a time not four years ago when Simply Soft surpassed the $3 mark.  It had always been one of my favorite, better-quality, mass-produced acrylic yarns, so I used it for everything and winced every time the register rang up more and more.

Do you know how much a skein was when I purchased more this past Friday?  $4.29.  What is going on?  For the same price (or maybe $2 more), I can get something similar from my LYS, which I want to support more than these chain stores, anyway.  Good grief.  And because the hat is slouchy, you can only get one hat per skein.  I might be able to squeeze out a skullcap or headband, but who knows?

And so ends my rant for the day.

If you didn't hear about the giveaway, basically a bunch of talented online vendors came together to promote each other's shops and help Playin Hooky reach 5,000 Facebook fans.  The response was amazing and I am pleased to welcome over 400 new fans to my own Facebook page.  I'm grateful for everyone who appreciates what I do as a current hobby and (hopefully) future full-time business.  I hope you enjoy these posts!

finished: custom knit headband with flower

Happy Friday!  I hope you've all had an enjoyable week with lots of crafting.  I feel like I've been able to accomplish so much without having class (even if it was just once a week).  No homework to worry about has been an awesome thing.

I'm popping in to show you a headband I finished up for another custom order.  I'm loving how it turned out:

The pattern is my very own Whitney Headband, and the flower is the Leona Flower.  This crochet accessory is exactly what I've been looking for all these years: a layered rose that stays flat against your head instead of sticking out and looking like something is growing out of your ear.

I hope my customer loves it as much as I do.  These headbands are so fun and quick to make up and they're definitely a best seller for me.

And, believe it or not, cream is the most popular color.  I would love to find out of it's just because cream is a nice color, or if it's because neutrals match anything.  This time, I chose a cream color from Hobby Lobby's "I Love This Yarn" brand.  I started shopping at Hobby Lobby about two months ago and really do love their yarn.  The selection, as well as the quality, is amazing.

Have a fabulous weekend!  I'll be taking some projects on the road with me while Hubby and I travel to a wedding.  I'm looking forward to seeing some friends and enjoying one last fun weekend before my capstone class begins on Monday.