Seams of Life

Cabbage Patch Beanie

I happened across a photo of the cutest thing ever, a crocheted Cabbage Patch Kid beanie. As soon as I saw it I knew I had to make one for Molly's first Halloween. I Googled tutorials and found this one on Cox's Corner Blog and I used it as a guide.

First, I crocheted a basic beanie (using the pattern found here). Then I made the pig-tails following Jess' directions.

I decided on the Double Loop Stitch for the bangs. I found some great instructions on how to crochet a double loop stitch on CraftPassion's website. It was tricky at first but after a bit of practice I finally got the hang of it.

With a little inspiration and a whole lot of help from this wonderful, crafty online community, Molly will be  the cutest Cabbage Patch Kid ever!

turning over

 We were blessed with beautiful weather this week and used the opportunity to start prepping for spring planting. As always, my husband and I are suffering from extreme spring fever and I think we may have passed it onto our children as well. That's my son up there, expertly tilling the garden as if he was an old hand at the chore. I love this time of year. I love working in the dirt and the sunshine along side my little family. I love the planning, the dreaming and the planting. This year my husband full-filled one of his long time homestead dreams and planted a small orchard of apple, peach, pecan and fig trees.

Usually, by summer's end, we are all sick and tired of the upkeep - the picking, the weeding and the watering - that a garden requires. We are fully aware of that fact going in. But those sweet memories of the spingtime planning and picking those first fruits (or veggies) always stay with us through the winter and cause the whole the whole thing to start again.

new tricks

I put off using my Raverlyaccount for a long time because -- between this blog, Google Reader, Facebook and Flickr -- I really didn't want another social media page to keep up with. Had I known what a wonderful, pattern-filled, awe-inspiring world of fiber crafts awaited me in the pages of Raverly, I wouldn't have waited so long to join in. Over the weekend I was browsing at the thousands of crochet patterns in Raverly when I came across a stitch I had never seen before -- the crocodile stitch -- complete with a video tutorial. I had to try this stitch straight away.

  

It's just so interesting and unique. I've been trying to think of different ways to put my own spin on it -- perhaps a pillow cover in different colors, I haven't decided. But you can bet I'll be using this stitch somewhere, somehow.

My days are spent at work and the weekends and evenings are the only time I have to take photos for my blog. This has always hindered my blogging because I just can't take good photos in artificial, low light. This has also kept me from sharing more of my life outside of crafts, which I would really like to share more of in this space. One of my favorite bloggers, Beki from ArtsyCraftyBabe, had seemed to master low light photography. Like me, she works during the day, but she has always shared beautiful pictures of her crafts and her family life all indoors, in low light. Last week Beki opened herself up to questions and, of course, I asked about her photography tricks and she obliged. Using Beki's tricks and tips, I've been practicing my indoor photography and I think I'm finally getting the hang of it.

  

 Now, hopefully, I can share more of what goes between the 'making'. Usually it's helping the little ones with their 'making'. My girls love to draw just as much as did when I was their age. They have been working on drawing by observation and tonight they each drew pictures of their beloved LaLaLoopsy dolls.

What new tricks have you learned lately?

 

my creative space

My creative space this week has been filled with pink feathers and white netting. The girls brainstormed and came up with their halloween costume ideas about 2 months ago but -- true to my character-- I waited until the last minute to bring their ideas to life. A blushing bride for Sarah and a pretty-in-pink flamingo for Carlee. 

Their costumes are actually semi-momma made. Technically I only made the flamingo mask, the bride's silver belt and the head piece. I found the bridal dress at the Goodwill and I grabbed the feather boa on sale at Hancocks.

I just love Halloween. Seriously, what other holiday takes a lot of creativity and does not require any gift buying!

See more creative spaces here.

 

My kids started back to school last week and we have all been struggling with the new routine. My time management skills have definitely gotten rusty over the summer. Between work, dinner, laundry and homework, I haven’t managed to steal any bits of creative time for myself lately.

 
It’s even been difficult to find the time to sit behind the computer these days. I’m sorry that this post is turning out so whiny, I usually hate to complain quite this much. It’s just that, well, I have so many creative plans and no time to execute them and this frustrates me to no end. It's times like this that I start to doubt my decision to work outside the home. I just can't seem to get everything done and I don't have enough time to fill everyone's needs, least of all my own.

And the library does not help my situation either. Just look at all the great books that have come in (off hold) for me this week.

Thankfully I will have them in my possession for at least six weeks. Surely I'll manage to find some time to sew something before then.

The one place I have managed to insert a little creativity is in the kitchen. I gotta be there anyway, right. I'm a bit weird when it comes to cooking. I don't really enjoy cooking but I'm constantly looking through cook books and cooking blogs and searching for new recipes.  I've had my eye on this spinach quiche recipe over at Smitten Kitchen for a while and this week I finally got around to making it.

 
Spinach is one of the few green veggies that my kids actually love so I am always trying to find different ways to prepare it. This recipe was a semi-hit with the kids. I thought it tasted great, but they were upset that I didn't make their favorite, creamed spinach. 

My Barcelona throw is just about complete and I can't wait to share it. In the meantime, I'll be cooking, cleaning and google-ing mixed fractions.