New Stash Buster - Happy Wreath

I could not be more happy with how this stash busting project turned out - everyone needs to make one! I'm already planning a fall themed and Christmas one for our house!


Happy Hooking!
Linking up at 1dogwolf

It's been a bit...

It has been awhile....

but I promise I have been missing-in-action for a very good reason.

My sweet baby girl, my first born, the one who first gave me the title of mommy,

turned 5 years old.

And well, we felt that was pretty darn important.

So we took her and the little guy to Disneyland (and my sister joined in the fun too).

This is the birthday girl and my sister in California Adventure

We had such a good time, and most importantly, the big 5 year old had a blast!

I still remember the day she was born, every second of it. It brings me such joy to remember that day, but sad at how fast time goes by when you're in the day-to-day routine of everything.

She will be starting kindergarten this year, and from what I've been told, once they enter "the school system", time goes by even faster.

I'm not ready for that. I want her chubby cheeks to always stay chubby. I want her curiosity about everything to never fade. I want her imagination to always be present, and allow her the hours of play time that she has now. I want her to always have the ability giggle over the most ridiculous things in life (a little potty humor, anyone?)

But alas, time goes on, and she continues to grow right before our eyes.

I can tell you this, my sweet & silly E:

you will always be that carefree girl in my eyes

and I promise you a childhood full of adventures, just like you love.

Mommy loves you to the moon and back, sweet girl.

WIP Wednesday 5/1

Happy May Day everyone!

I don't know how your households are fairing this spring, but this last week has done a real number on my two little ones. Both suffer from bad allergies and asthma, with the youngest classified as chronic/severe. Well those spring winds and blooming what-not's have reared their ugly heads and knocked both kids out this past week. I think we are *knock on wood* finally over the worst of it, but with the way things go, that could change at any minute.

I did manage to get a little bit of crocheting done this week, but it wasn't what I would have liked. I had an order for a newborn photo prop set of a beautiful hat with a large flower and diaper cover - done in grey and pale pink. It was GORGEOUS! I never put those colors together, but I'm thinking I may need to add a blanket of something to the shop in those colors. I can't seem to get them out of my mind! I finished the items and immediately took them over to our friend, so I didn't get a good shot of the set. Hopefully she'll get some good shots with the photographer!

Next up is the Crazy Blanket - I did NOTHING on it. But I think I figured out why it went so wonky. Its a HUGE blanket, and the stripes are vertical, so its crazy long. I used cheap worsted yarn I had in my stash, so I'm thinking the weight of the blanket is just too much and pulling it. It's beyond doing a blocking save, so it will definitely be a blanket that stays in the house (maybe hidden upstairs).

I started yet another baby bobble blanket for the supply at home with my stash. I have a show at the end of May, and those are so popular. Hopefully I'll be able to get a couple done before then. Here's the Baby Bobble Blanket started in ivory (about 1/3 done):

This is seriously my favorite non-pattern. I make it up as I go size-wise and I really don't have to think much while doing it.

Sadly, that blanket is the only one I have a photo of this week. I started a chevron blanket too, in blues/browns/ivory and I am loving that one, but I've only got a couple rows started. I promise I will have much done on it by next week and have a good photo to share ;-)

WIP Wednesday 4/24

So I have a little progress this week, but its definitely been a week of project struggles.

First up is the Crazy Blanket. I did zero on it this week, however, when laying it out to take the picture, I realized it's curving. Bad. I've added a bunch of stitches somewhere, and it is such a PITA to go back and fix it. I now officially hate this blanket, but here it is:



Next up is my favorite Beach Blanket, which I didn't get to work on a ton this week, but I am just a few rows from finishing the pale pink. Still my favorite, although now I think it's curving too. I will definitely be blocking this one:

I picked up the Tunisian police theme blanket this week. It's quite tedious, so I had given myself a break from it. Did three rows, realized a mistake made five rows back, frogged it and redid the rows plus 3 more. Like I said, it's been a rough crochet week for me. Hubby's gonna owe me a weekend away once this thing is finished (it's per his request):




Last up is a giant granny square blanket, made as one continuous square. I love the grannies, but I started this one with cotton and I'm not loving it at all. It's only going to be baby blanket size, so it should go quickly. I don't like cotton yarn for some reason, so I'm not sure what possessed me to follow a pattern using it, but it will definitely be the last. I will be going back to my first love of worsted. No more of this cotton nonsense unless I'm making washcloths or dish towels. Here it is:



Here's hoping your crochet week is going MUCH better than mine :-)

Happy Hooking!

Linking up to these fabulous parties:



April Stash Buster Link Party

       

WIP Wednesday 4/17

WHEW!

What a week this has been!

I really dove into the projects this week, and although I was sidetracked by a few customer orders, I was able to put in some good work on my WIPs.

First up is the Crazy Blanket. I swear 10 years from now, I will still be posting this as a WIP. I want to finish it, I swear, its just so BIG that I can only do a few rows at a time before my crochet ADD kicks in and I have to move onto something else. I got 2 rows done this week (= one color 'stripe'), so I'm calling it successful progress. No photo either this week for it, the light was horrible last night and since it wasn't a ton of progress on it, I'll wait until this weekend to take a good shot of it.

Next up is the project I have started calling the Beach Blanket. I love everything about this blanket. Its my stash buster, and the woven stitch is so freaking cool. I'm still a little unsure about my color choices, but since I vowed at the beginning to stitch with the same yarn brand throughout (Caron's Simply Soft - a splitting nightmare), I'm kind of limited on the color choices. Although I think the bright and the muted colors are starting to create the beachy feel I was hoping for.

You can see the tiny little hint of pale pink that has been started. I really like the way it's balancing the colors, so I think it may end up a bigger section. Definitely needs the pale color to tone down the hot pink. It's getting to be a bit much for my taste.

I wish I had more finished items to show. I may be starting a third big blanket and a baby blanket project this week, so watch for those coming in a future WIP Wednesday!

Linking up to these fabulously crafty parties:

April Stash Buster Link Party

       

WIP Wednesday

A little progress this week - yay!
First, I finished the second baby blanket with the bobbles. I experimented and used the same yarn but a bigger hook (5.5). I didn't think the difference would be significant but it was. The stitch was noticeably bigger, so I have to say I'll not be using the bigger size. The smaller stitch is so much more appealing, in my opinion.


I started a beach color blanket for one of the next Christmas gifts, and while the stitch takes forever, it is AWESOME!! I'm using yarn I have, so it's a stash buster too - even better! The stitch is the woven stitch, a very simple sc, ch1, sc, repeat pattern. I love the way the colors overlap each other.


Still working on the ginormous crazy (bobble) blanket with the colors and order chosen by my husband and 4 year old - thus the reason for being called the crazy blanket.


Definitely will be a bright addition to the house when it's finished, although that one is the slowest moving blanket EVER because of its massive size (it's queen sized, which I thought was a great idea in the beginning. It's not.)

Happy Hooking!

I'm linking up to April Stash Buster Link Party

WIP Wednesday

I wish I wasn't, but I am one of those crocheters who has a bazllion projects going all at once. I'll spare you taking photos of all of them, but here are my worthy WIPs and a just finished project:

First up is my finished project, the bobble blanket featured on Maybe Matilda. I love the deep teal color (its actually much darker in person) and that it is perfect for a boy or girl. It's also available for sale in my shop here.

First WIP is another one of these blankets, but for a friend who is having a baby girl pretty soon. This was a special request from the hubby, so of course I said yes. Its going much faster this time with a bigger hook, but to be honest, I love the tightness of the smaller hook used in the blanket above.

Last up is my first ever tunisian crochet project. I can't say I love the process, but it is a gift for the hubby, so every stitch is worth the swear words that come out. I do like the finished project, but the finished look is professional. I can't wait to see how this blanket comes together.

Finally Finished My Fancy Cowl!

So why do I call it my Fancy Cowl? The yarn is only available in Europe, of course! I have been coveting this cowl :

on the yvestown.com shop. It's a free pattern, so I finally broke down and ordered the yarn. I love the matte color combination, and the pattern was pretty easy - although I did change it up with a decrease so the cowl would drape more at the shoulders.


Let me tell you - I am THRILLED with it! I rarely keep anything for myself, but I had to make the exception for this one. I have since found yarn to replicate the colors (and reduce the cost of it by 2/3), so if you want one for yourself, just let me know :-)




Happy Hooking!

One day sale!

Today only! Take 17% off in the shop with code SHAMROCK17.

www.chickypoo209.etsy.com


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Free Photo Mug! (Just pay S/H)

So I've been trying to find a cute something for my upcoming wedding anniversary. The Mr. is very hard to find something for! 

This awesome little deal popped up and I pounced on it - 

the  Free Photo Mug deal from Ink Garden is back! {just pay $5.99 s/h!}

Here's how it works:

Go to Ink Garden and select ‘Get Yours Now’
Select any mug priced $8.99 or less
Select ‘Customize Now’
A photo is no additional charge (um, YAY!)
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pay s/h fee (Mine was only $5.99)

And now Mr. Chickypoo will have a fancy anniversary mug featuring our own mugs :-)

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Easter Egg Fun!

My sweet husband is a saint.

Really.

He volunteered to do the Easter egg dying with our almost 4 year old one day while I was at work.

That in itself is pretty awesome.
But the fact that he's crazy allergic to eggs?
Well, now he's entered a whole new level of awesome.

The fumes from boiling the eggs almost took him out, but he powered through.
And our daughter is tickled pink over her egg creations.

Great job honey!



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Happy Creating!

Jen

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Jen

A Really Sweet Deal!

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And I love my canvas wall - I'm slowly adding different sized canvas prints of the family.

It's perfect for my picture addiction!

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A few thoughts....

So I've decided to return from my much needed break after the Zulily.com sale. I thought I'd provide a few thoughts on the whole process, especially since I know there are many of you out there who have been (or will be) contacted by one of their buyers to participate:

• The process was not explained at any step of the way. Make sure you ask a lot of questions, even those that seem silly.
• The contract terms were net 30 from the sale date. As of today, I am still waiting for payment on the items I sent in good faith. Friends who ordered items from them have already received their products. When questioned about it, suddenly I am supposed to invoice them for items sold in a sale they facilitated. Consider that before signing up. There are a lot of up front costs.
• My sample items were returned completely ruined. And I paid to have them returned in sell-able condition. I have had to invoice them for these items as well. 

Would I do this again? I'm really honestly thinking no. The amount of work that went into it far exceeded what I got out of it (and the\is was a sale that went really, really well). 

I think I'll stick to burying myself in my Halloween and Christmas orders for the time being. And some new projects....(a really cool Halloween kid project will be featured in the next couple days, so watch for it!)

Until then - happy crafting,

Jen

Much needed break...

I'm taking a much needed break after the Zulily.com craziness! Thanks to everyone who helped make it a success. It was a tremendous amount of work (I'm still a little hung over from it), but well worth it - we had a great response!

I promise to be back in the next few days :-)

Happy crafting!

Jen

TODAY is the day!

Chickypoo209 is a featured seller on Zulily.com! Go check out the awesome deals and wonderful shops being featured! And most importantly, check out my stuff :-)

I promise to be back with regular blogging as soon as this sale is over!
Pinky swear!

Happy Crafting,

Jen

Zulily.com Sale - new date!

Don't forget - Chickypoo209 will be a featured shop on Zulily.com August 18-20th! Awesome time to stock up on some Halloween goodies and get a jump on that Christmas shopping!

Can't wait for the awesome deals?

You can always shop now here and here.

Happy Crafting!

Jen