Crafty Carolinagirl

Drusilla's new placemat

Drusilla is all over the blog this week! She has been so good since I covered the lamp cord so I got to working on her pretty pink and summery placemat. I am having lots of company next week and thought it would be nice to have it finished for their visit!

Here it is! It turned out almost perfect. Can you see my boo boo? It is on the bottom left hand corner. I made it a little too long, so I tucked it under and single crocheted around the sides to keep it under. Oh well. You live and learn.

Drusilla likes it and that is all that matters. She puts her feet on it while she eats. I think it is because it is really soft! I used white Red Heart yarn and pink Caron's Simply Soft yarn with a size K hook. I like the bigger loops on this one. It made it an easy project too.

My goal is to make a few matching throw rugs for the kitchen with this same yarn. I am going to have to make a trip to my AC Moore before I tackle them though. No more yarn! 

**Don't forget to check out the Iowa Flood Relief Auction benefitting the evacuated animals. You can check out all of the great items up for auction here, and swing by and see mine here. So far it has 1 bid, yea! I have my bid in too for an autographed CD from Ann Wilson of Heart! The auction is open until July 2.**

Somebody deserves a time out!

Drusilla is just the sweetest and kindest cat. She is also very well behaved, most of the time! I don't know what strange obsession she has with cords, especially my iPod headphones, but this is the tenth pair she has eaten through.

Maybe she just wants to listen to some music. After all, she does love Fleetwood Mac, Duran Duran, and the Bee Gees. No joke! Her tail actually sways to the beat of their music.

So while I was counting my quarters for yet another pair of headphones, I got to thinking. What could I do to deter her from making my home cords her late night snack? Why not make some sort of cover so she won't be tempted to take a nibble on the cord. Brilliant! 

I thought I was the most clever person on this planet. Yeah, apparently I am not! There are cord covers all over the internet. Oh well. I guess I'll have to make my millions elsewhere.

Though the cord covers are everywhere, their tutorials are not. So, I improvised and came up with a crocheted version of my own:

I know it looks like a long, crocheted snake. Well, that is pretty much what it is. This one is for my living room lamp. Drusilla likes to wrap herself around the cord and nibble on it. 

I didn't keep track of exactly what I did, but I can give you an idea of how I made it:

Drusilla's Cord Cover

Materials Needed: 

Yarn to match room colors (I used Red Heart tan), hook size H

Directions: 

ch 14 loosely or enough to wrap around the plug (you will have to slip the cover over the end of the plug, so don't make it too tight) and join with a slip stitch.

Do Not join, work in a continuous round. You can mark with a stitch marker the end of each round, but it is not necessary.

round 1 - sc in each stitch (14 or however many you ch).

round 2+ - sc in each sc around until desired length and fasten off.

slip cord cover over cord and you are good to go!

As you can see Drusilla is still fascinated by the cord, but she no longer gets wrapped around it. FYI, I don't know if I would push the cover all the way up to the plug. I wouldn't want it to turn into a fire hazard :)

What a crazy weekend!!!

Five things I did during this crazy weekend:

1. Attended my monthly Etsy street team meeting. 
2. Learned how to make my own soy candles, okay so I supervised, but it was still fun.  
3. Made a photo CD with scanned childhood pictures and music for my sister's 30th birthday. Can I just say that if I have to hear "Step by Step" from the New Kids on the Block one more time I am gonna pull my hair out.
4. Constructed a photo light box, though I still can't figure out how to work it.
5. Opened my new Etsy shop.  

So as you can see, I did absolutely NO crafts this weekend. That is pretty rare and I now feel the need to make up for it. So, last night I whipped up a little crocheted bracelet from a pattern I got from Eve on my Crochet Along group. 

Of course this is my first try so I used cheap yarn and cheap beads. But, it was so easy and so much fun that I think I am going to try some more with better yarn and nicer beads. This might turn out to be what everyone is getting for Christmas this year!

I also got my prize package from Yarnigras! I'll post about that and show you what cool things I got this week, once I get some pictures taken.

Adopt a Shelter Cat Month

Summer is the season when shelters see an influx of cats come into their facilities. This is why June has been declared "Adopt a Shelter Cat Month". Many shelters offer discounts and free food/toys/litter when a cat is adopted during the month of June. This is a great incentive for adoption, but should not be the sole reason for adding a cat to your family.

Unfortunately, there are some cats that are very hard to adopt even during the month of June - black cats. I don't know if it is because people are superstitious or just afraid of a black cat, but whatever the reason many black cats are euthanized every year for the simple reason of their color.

ShimmerGreen from the "Black Cat Lovers" group on Ravelry has decided to try and change this. She has come up with a black cat pattern to be crocheted and embroidered on Snuggle Mats. These beds will be given to black cats and will travel with them to their new homes. Her hope is that each bed, "helps the potential pet owner to make the connection to the potential pet a little easier".

So, if you have some spare time and some left over yarn, stitch up a few of these. If you don't crochet, there are knitting and sewing instructions for Snuggle Beds as well. I know I'll be making some of these for my local shelters, and of course one for my own black shelter cat, Drusilla!

That is why they call me Crafty Carolinagirl

I don't know what has been going on with me, but I have been all kinds of crafty lately. I guess I am living up to my blogging name! It first started with me teaching myself to make stitch markers, which led to me learning jewelry making. Well, now I am into making crochet beads!

I am really enjoying making the beads. I can whip up so many in such a short time, and this is the first time I have used #3 thread and a small hook. It is a running joke between me and my crafty friends that I use a size G hook on everything, and I mean everything. I have five G hooks because of this. I do enjoy bigger hooks too, but basically because it makes the project move faster.

Anyway, I am really enjoying my little hook and my thin thread, as is Drusilla. She has become very attached to the ball. I am going to have to keep an eye on her so she doesn't try to take a nibble. That would not be good.

So, here are a few beads I finished up last night. . .

I really like the peach color. I only bought one color, in case I didn't like it, but I love it so much I am going to have to go back to Michaels this weekend and get some more colors and some bigger beads. So, now y'all know what I'll be doing this Memorial Day weekend while watching two more NCIS marathons (did anyone see that finale on Tuesday? Whew!), and of course working on my deck!!!

Pretty, Pretty Flowers

I love the look of fresh flowers. I only wish I could keep some in my house. Unfortunately, I have pretty bad allergies, a black thumb instead of a green one, and a cat that likes to nibble on them (not good for kitty cats). So, Drusilla and I have to enjoy fake ones in the house and the real ones outside.

As far as the house is concerned, I am working on some crocheted flowers for the window ledge in my kitchen. I found this really cute pattern from PlanetJune for crocheted daffodils, and I am headed to the store this weekend to get my yarn so I can whip up a few.

I also have several flowers around the outside of my house. I am so glad the former owner planted them, because I have absolutely no idea about gardening, nor do I want to! And after several weeks of rain, they have finally begun to bloom.

They really are pretty.

I am pleasantly surprised that they are still alive. I tend to kill all plants that come within several feet of me.

Like these!

In my defense, I think these died because of the drought. . . at least that is my story, and I'm sticking to it!

Easy crochet hook holder

I was doing some spring cleaning this past weekend and came across a travel jewelry case that I got last Christmas. I used to travel a lot when I worked in book sales, but now I barely travel at all.

   

Just as this little travel case was going to be put in the "cute, but will never use it" pile, something clicked. I realized that it was the perfect size to hold all of my crochet hooks! I must confess that I am constantly, and I mean constantly running up and down the stairs to grab one hook or another. I am thrilled to have them all put in one container, and one that is so cute!

I have my bigger hooks in the top zipper, my smaller ones in the middle, and my crochet & knitting stitch markers in the bottom one. This is a bad picture, but can you see my cute knitting stitch markers? My '80s swap partner made me some Mike, Carol, and Ben ones for my favorite '80s TV show, Growing Pains.

I still have yet to figure out what to do with the ring holder. Does anyone have any suggestions? I thought my stitch markers would fit around it, but it turned out to be too fat. Maybe I can keep an embroidery needle or two. I am always running around looking for them too :)

Thursday Thirteen #6

Did anyone else know that March is National Crochet Month? Maybe I am the only one. In any case, for this week's Thursday Thirteen I figured I would share with you 13 projects I am bound and determined to finish this year. Will you join me?

1. Poison Tote (I swear I am starting this at once!)

2. Eye Love My Cat

3. Pac-man

4. Crochet Blanket (I really want to make this into a new headboard for my bed.)

5. Aqua Ami Sea Lion

6. Step Lively Rug (I need two for the kitchen.)

7.Simple Tea Cozy

8. Team Jersey Cozy

9. Pike Place Market Bag

10. Hot Dog

11. Dodo

12.Halloween Throw (Here is the first of two Tunisian Crochet projects I want to try.)

13.Carrion Bag (Here is the second one. Pretty spooky!)

14. Crocheted Shawl (This is an extra one because it is a long shot. It is just too pretty to not try!)

Just a reminder too, my Crochet Along group has just started its new theme - Small Crochet. Some of these projects would be perfect to try out and post!

Thing A Day Project #29

Today I made. . .

Crocheted bonbons for spring.

Whew! 29 consecutive days of crafting was tough! But, it was a good challenge for me, and it helped push me towards finishing some of my Etsy store projects. I will tell you that I am really looking forward to not blogging this weekend, of course I will still be crafting :)

Have a nice, relaxing weekend. I know I will!

Thing A Day Project #12

Today I made. . .

A little Amigurumi airplane.

This is going to be part of my '80s favorite television show swap that I am taking part in. It is being hosted by the '80s Ravelry group. I'll be posting the rest of the swap items before I send them off to my partner next week. I can't wait to see what I get for my favorite '80s show, Growing Pains!