Sunshine and Color...

I've come to realize that I need two things in my life that make me happy! The first is sunshine, I love waking up with all that natural light shining through my windows. The hubby would prefer that the blinds be closed all day every day, not me, my day just seems so much brighter when I wake up to sunshine! The second is color, I crave it. No boring gray, brown and black! I want bright ,captivating color! Greens, blues, oranges, reds, yellows, and violets!!! I love them all, I want to be surrounded by them all the time! I'm happiest in a world with color!

We had an amazing weekend! I had some much needed "girl" time with my Mom, sisters and Aunt! It was so nice to go out shopping with out the little ones! I forget what that's like! We had a birthday party at Rollie Pollies and the boys loved it! 

Bud and Bug have been playing so hard outside they can hardly keep their eyes open until bed time! The weather has been gorgeous, and we are all taking advantage of it, the lawn is all nicely manicured and my flower beds recieved a good weeding, there are new flowers blooming in there too!! There was not a whole lot of crocheting going on this weekend I was too busy but, I did manage to crochet a flower for my little niece's graduation dress!

Single Crochet Color Change Tutorial

This tutorial will help you to change color in single crochet. It is fairly easy, don't feel overwhelmed. I know it's easy to be frightened of trying something new but, just give it a go. With practice it becomes much easier and hopefully this little photo tutorial will help. 

Single Crochet Color Change

Step 1- Chain any number of stitches, ( for this tutorial I chained 10) working in second chain from hook single crochet in all chains up to the last chain.

Step 2- In last chain single crochet but stop when you have two loops on your hook. Instead of yarning over you are going to place the new color on your hook. 

Step 3- Pull new color through the two loops on your hook.

Step 4- Chain 1, single crochet in new color all along next row until the last stitch, repeat steps 2-4 to change color again. Ta-dah, you've done it! Now keep practicing and you will get better as you go.

Good Luck and Happy Hooking!

What a lovely weekend....

Our camp out was wonderful! We enjoyed some amazing weather and did a bit of hiking, ATV riding and lazing about for the first half of our long holiday weekend. 

The last half was very busy! I trimmed all the hedges, hung out laundry(five loads to be exact), pressure washed the garage and front of the house, painted the porch ceiling, and pulled some weeds. Whew....that was all in one day!  I am also working on a few crochet projects and finally completed the baby boy blanket, hat and booties.

Aren't they just darling?

Making this blanket for Bug....

And.... a bunting for my porch

These colors are just wonderful, I love how bright they are. They just make me smile!

Here's hoping you find something worthy of a smile today!

Until we meet again 

Happy Memorial Day

So I have had a few things going on this week. One of my WIP's is the beautiful citrus stripe baby blanket from Felted Button. http://www.feltedbutton.com/2013/11/a-free-crochet-blanket-pattern-for-you.html. I used some colors that were a little more intense than what the original blanket has. I am loving it though!!!

 I also have started a blanket for Bug, it is using the Bavarian stitch. Attic 24 has a great tutorial. I chose tones of blue and green and I am trying to lessen my stash. It is a highly addicting project!!! I still have a baby hat and booties to complete by the first week in June and I have been procrastinating on those because of this new Bavarian blanket!  I also whipped up a new wreath for my front door, boy does it look cute!

The holiday weekend is upon us and I must say I am looking forward to our little camping trip!! Dida and Poppy (those are Bud and Bug's grandparents, and my Mom and Dad) will be joining us. I am sure we will have a great time. I even bought the ingredients for campfire cones! Yum Yum!!!

 However, let us not forget what this holiday is all about. Remembering those who gave of themselves, the sacrifice they made so we may live each day to its fullest! For them I am truly grateful!!!!!

Lazy Days

Love the days like today when I can just relax and enjoy! I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat down to finish a book, how wonderful it felt. The sun was shining and there was a heavy dew on the ground so I figured I would head outside and snap a few shots. I am still getting used to my new camera and all it's functions. It was a lovely morning to be out....

A snail and cheesy fingers....

The apple blossoms are almost ready to burst open

 What a pretty little fairy...

 My crochet project for the past week was this adorable baby blanket. Commissioned by my Mom's good friend, for her niece's baby boy. It turned out beautiful!!! It was inspired by the Matthew blanket over on HanJanCrochet at etsy. I tweaked the pattern to my liking and it think it looks great!

Perfect for a baby boy! 

Happy hooking and until next time -Melinda

Irish Rose Potholder Pattern

Irish Rose Potholder Pattern

Size 4 mm Hook
Cotton Yarn ( I used I Love This Yarn) In  Pink, White, Pistache, and Stonewash
Tapestry Needle

FRONT

Rnd 1- (Right Side) Ch 6, join with a slip stitch to form a ring, Ch 4 ( counts as first dc and ch 2), Dc ch 2 7 times in ring, join with a slip stitch in first ch2. (8 dc, 8 ch 2 spaces)

Rnd 2

Rnd 3- (wrong side) Ch 3, working behind sc in dc from previous round, repeat 7 times and join with a slip stitch in first ch3, turn (8 ch3 spaces)

Rnd 4- (right side) Ch 1, (work in ch 3 spaces from previous round) sc, ch1, 3dc, ch1, sc, Repeat 7 times and join with a sl st in first sc, turn (8 petals)

Rnd 5- (wrong side) Ch4, sc in sc from previous round, join with sl st in first ch4, Turn (8 ch4 spaces)

Rnd 6- (right side) Ch1, sc, ch1, dc, ch1, 5tr, ch1, dc, ch1, sc all in ch 4 space, repeat 7 times, join in first sc,  FASTEN OFF (8 petals)

Rnd 7- ( right side) Join green in center of any petal from round 6, ch3 2dc, ch 1, 3dc in same space, * ch4, sc in center of next petal, ch4, 3 dc ch1, 3dc in center of next petal * Repeat from * * 2 more times join with a slip stitch to first ch 3. fasten off

Rnd 8- (right side)  Join white in any corner ch1 space, ch3, 2dc, ch1, 3dc all in ch1 space * ch 2, 3dc in ch4 space of previous round, ch2, 3 dc in next ch4 space, ch2 , 3dc ch1 3 dc all in corner ch 1 space* repeat from * to * 3 times ending with a ch2. join in first ch3 with sl st

BACK

Ch 21

Row 1- hdc in second ch from hook, hdc in each stitch across (20 hdc)

Row 2- turn, ch 1, hdc in each stitch across (20 hdc)

Repeat row 2 until your work measure the same as the front of your work

DO NOT FASTEN OFF

Join front and back with sl st, ch1 sc evenly in each stitch around, 3 sc in each corner, fasten off

Edging- Join blue in any space, ch1,sc in each stitch around w 3 sc in each of the middle three sc in the previous round, once you reach  the beginning slip stitch in ch1, ch 10, join with next sc, 17 sc in the loop you just created. Fasten off.Sew in all ends with a tapestry needle and enjoy your finished work!

orking

Happy Hooking!!

If you see any mistakes please let me know. 

Days gone by

We  have officially had our first thunderstorm of the year! I just love the sound of rolling thunder and the flash of lightning as it illuminates the sky. I have been fascinated by it since I was a child. I went out last evening after I had put Bud and Bug to bed and tried to capture the lightning with my camera. Impossible!! So my new camera has a function where you can take video and turn it into a still. Here are the results.....

 Not exactly what I wanted, but intriguing nonetheless.

Love the colors by the way!

On the way to drop Bug off to his pre-k class we drive by this dilapidated old house. It makes me sad to see a home in such disrepair. I get to pondering who lived there, who built it and the memories that old house played a part in. In a way it's sad ,yet beautiful.

 Can't you imagine sitting on the porch sipping iced tea while the laundry is flapping on the line.

It makes me think of days gone by, when things went on at a slower pace. In this age of technology and hurry-hurry it reminds me to slow down and cherish the little things and make some memories.

Until we meet again- Melinda