Winter Plant Experiments

I love plants. I love playing in the dirt. I love watching seeds and bulbs growing. Come Springtime I seriously check every plant in my gardens daily to see how they're doing. I feel cooped up in the wintertime...which has led to us having quite a few houseplants that I can visit with daily while all the outdoor plants are having a good sleep. Abby and Syd also love all things outdoorsy and enjoy helping in the gardens especially our small veggie patch. Abby loves to see plants rooting in water (which is how I propagate my plethora of pothos and Chinese Evergreens) so we decided to experiment with a few beans plucked from a bag of dry soup mix. Started them in clear plastic cups with napkins holding them in place. In no time at all some of them had roots. Once they started to get leaves we took out the napkins and gave them some potting soil. The kidney beans are doing the best...they are currently flowering and have little pods forming from the spent flowers so cool!

Here it is taking over our kitchen window:

Also giving some apple seeds a go:

I've also been wanting a sweet potato vine for awhile. I wasn't having good results with rooting it in water so I threw one in a plastic bowl and put it near the furnace in the basement....and sure enough it started growing!
Decided to pot it this weekend and move it to the livingroom. Fingers crossed that it will survive.

Quilt.....

My Mom recently made quilts for Abby and Sydney which, of course, made me feel like my bed needed a bit of handmade love too. I'm sure that if I asked she would have made one for me too...but I know that if I applied myself I could shrug off my earlier failed attempt and make a beautiful quilt to be proud of. So I watched a ton of videos on YouTube and borrowed a quilting book from my Mom. I watched and watched and read and read until my eyes were sore and my brain hurt in typical Crys style. Finally after much consideration (and to be completely honest a little out of spite because of the doubters) I decided that hand piecing my quilt was the way to go....yep, that's how I roll! I have to say so far I'm really loving it. Much more portable and peaceful....well as peaceful as it can get with 2 kids running around (at least they're not tripping over my sewing machine cords...right?). And well I have to admit I love proving people wrong. One more strip of the green squares pattern then I'll have to buy the black fabric for a wide border around the whole front and full back (still need to decide which stuffing I'll be using...bit more research to do on that one).

But here's a sneak peak...

String Art

I desperately needed something to replace a mirror in my bathroom that was relocated to a better spot in my front hall. So off to google images I went for a bit more crafty inspiration. And I sure found some here .

Materials:
-1/4" plywood
-Stain
-Handful of smallish nails
-White yarn
-picture wire
-staple gun

(I ended up not having enough to nails to place them every 1/2" so mine are 1" apart...it makes mine a bit different at least)

Monogram Door Signs

Been checking out lots of crafty sites lately and getting lots of inspiration from some very talented people out there. Love the monogram wall art I've seen and decided it was time for my girls to have some gracing their bedroom doors. First things first I checked around the house to see what I had laying around and if I could turn it into something beautiful....gotta love things that cost next to nothing to make right?

List of Materials:
-picture wire, a few staples and a hot glue gun
-a button stash that I inherited from my Grandmother-in-law
-some letters from a previous failed door sign
-left-over mosaic tiles from our kitchen reno
-a fairly large 1/4 plywood board (cut into 12" squares) that was left jammed in the rafters of my garage by the previous owner 10 years ago! Here are my crafty results...

Knitted Doll

Here's a sweet little doll that I knitted up for one of my niece's for Christmas. Seeing as I actually remembered to write it down as I went I thought I would share the pattern :) Hoping that it all makes sense and I didn't forget anything...

Worsted Weight yarn
3.25mm needles (or size needed so that stuffing won't show through)
yarn needle

Head:
C/O 6sts.
Rnd 1: Kfb around (12 sts)
Rnd 2: [Kfb, k1] around: (18 sts)
Rnd 3: [Kfb, k2] around: (24 sts)
Rnd 4: [Kfb, k3] around: (30 sts)
knit 15 rounds even.
[K2tog, k3] around (24sts)
[K2tog, k2] around (18sts)
[K2tog, k1] around (12sts)-Stuff.
K2tog around (6sts)

Neck: (6sts)
Knit 5 rounds, insert piece of dowel rod or stuff firmly.

Body:
kfb all sts (12sts)
[kfb, k1] around (18sts)
[kfb, k2] around (24sts)
[kfb, k3] around (30sts)
Knit even for 25 rounds
[K2tog, k3] around (24sts)
[K2tog, k2] around (18sts)
[k2tog, k1] around (12sts)-stuff.
k2tog around (6sts)- cut yarn and pull through remaining sts and weave in.

Arm (make 2):
C/O 9sts
knit 20 rounds
k2tog, k1 around (6sts).- cut yarn, pull through remaining sts and weave in.

Leg (make 2):
C/O 12 sts
knit 5 rounds in beige.
knit 28 rounds in stripes.
knit 8 rounds in one of the colours used in leg stripes.
k2tog around (6sts). -cut yarn, pull through remaining sts and weave in.

Dress:
C/O 32 sts.
Purl 1 round
Knit 1 round
[k2tog, yo] around
knit 1 round
purl 1 round
knit 28 rounds.
knit 16sts (leave remaining 16sts on spare needle/holder) turn.
p2tog, p to last 2sts, p2tog (14sts)
knit even
p2tog, p to last 2sts, p2tog (12sts)
knit even
p2tog, p to last 2sts, p2tog (10sts)
knit even. - bind off and weave in ends.

Attach yarn and repeat rows in BOLD again for other side of dress.

Use contrasting yarn to tie dress together at shouldes with bows.

Sew on arms/legs and embroider face features. Attach as much or as little hair as you would like.

Super Simple Baby Mitts

ww yarn
4mm DPN's
6mm crochet hook
Yarn needle

c/o 24sts. Join to work in the round.
K 2 rounds.
K2tog yo around.
k 20 rounds.
k2tog around
K around
K2tog around.

Pull through remaining sts, secure and weave in ends.

Using 6mm crochet hook ch 45 and weave through the eyelet row. (or you could use soft ribbon or knit an I-cord)

Leave plain or embroider/embellish however you'd like. (I used the lazy daisy and back stitches to make a butterfly to match the Square Newborn Hat)

*Picture to come soon

Square Newborn Hat

WW yarn
5mm straight needle (for cast on...or just remember to cast on loosely)
4mm DPN's
Yarn needle.

C/O 68 sts with size 5mm needles.
Switch to 4mm needles and join to work in the round.

K around
P around
K around
P around
K around
P around

Continue to K every round until hat (including brim) measures 5.5".

Hold wrong sides together and do 3 needle bind off (you could turn the hat inside out and put right sides together but I just like the ridge it makes the other way)
Weave in ends.

Embroider or embellish however you'd like...most of my embroidery was done using simple lazy daisy and back stitch.

*Picture to come soon