St. Patrick's Day Paper Crafts

I made a pocket letter. I don't know why.. I just wanted to do something crafty, and I was digging through my drawers of paper stuff..  I just used what I have to make this (and looked at a lot of pocket letters on Pinterest for inspiration). I sent this out yesterday. It cost $1.77 to send it.

The back/what I put inside the pockets. I didn't want it to be too thick to fold up. Oh, I forgot to upload the picture- it fit inside a business envelope. I haven't made a pocket letter in probably 10 years. Oh, I take that back. I made a mini pocket letter about four or five years ago. I don't have a picture of it, though.

And I made a Clover St. Patrick's Day card (Pinterest inspired also). I don't have a stamp that says Happy St. Patrick's Day. So I just cut a thin strip of paper for the bottom. 

And I used the same paper to make a "matching" envelope. 🍀

And I also made a little gift bag to put odds and ends in (some of it is pictured). I also sent this out yesterday.   

I'm already ready for Easter now. 😝🐰 I'm making an Easter envelope flip card with a Peep cut out I've had forever. 🤷 I don't need any more stamps or stickers, I have too much stuff. 

That's all for now. 

~Until Next Time~

 

Another Easter Puff Pal

I don't even know when I started this project.. Probably two Easters ago.. It's been sitting in a bag, all the parts complete, but not finished. I had to do the eyes and nose and mouth and sew it all together. I did one of these before.  I don't even remember why I started this. 🤷 It's a pattern from McCall's Crochet Magazine, April 1995, Vol. 9, No. 2 issue. Someone from a yahoo group I used to be in gave me the pattern. I haven't been able to log into that group in I don't know how long. I don't know if it's even still there. ~Anyway~  Another UFO finished. I was trying to find a Leprechaun Gnome I had started. I guess I should look for something else totally unrelated. Maybe I will find it.. 

I started a roast early today, so we are eating dinner super early. My husband came home from work early, it's rain mixed with (a lot of) snow. Yesterday it was 51 and blue skies. I was ready to go plant some flowers or something.. 😒

 

I Made Some Scones

After all that talk about scones in a recent post, I went and got some heavy cream to make some. 😋 Scone Recipe I used. It only makes eight. 

Up close (I sprinkled them with sugar). 

And, I made Devonshire Cream!!! 😄💖 It was not that hard (well... It wouldn't have been, if I had a mixer I didn't have to keep stopping and putting the beaters back into it... LoL). The day I made it (which was the day before I made the scones), I licked the spoon and I thought, "It just tastes like whipped cream cheese." 😠 I stuck it in the fridge, and thought maybe I will add some more sugar later. Then yesterday I made scones and put some on it. It's just about perfect. With the sweetness of the scone (which isn't a lot, btw). SO yummy!!   Making scones is not that hard, either if you have never made them. It's kind of just like making biscuits.

I was thinking some more (did you smell smoke? 😜) about Crochetville...  Where did all the patterns that were posted on there, go? There was a lot of patterns. It's annoying. Because it seemed like every time I posted something, I would get a message from someone (name starts with an A) about "You can't post that, copyright issues...".  So what happened to all the patterns, A? I don't know. I was just thinking about that..

Well that's about it for now. I could have swore I saw a Robin the other day. Only 22 more days until Spring!! 🎕

 

Another Boring Post...

I made banana bread yesterday.  It came out good. Usually when I make it in a bigger pan (like the recipe says to), it doesn't get done in the middle, but gets almost burnt on the bottom and side/edges. This time it was done in the middle. Maybe I just needed a gas stove all along. Lol. 

I also made some whipped honey butter (pictured on the banana bread above). I need a new mixer. Sigh...  I've had that one since I got married. 😵The beaters keep falling out. And one of them won't even *go*.  For the honey butter, I just had written it down: 1/2 cup butter (softened and whipped-which just means beat with the beater), 1/4 cup honey and 2 tsps grated orange peel mixed in. That's it. I didn't have any orange peel. So I washed an orange and made my own...  There's literally one slice of banana bread left. And it's only three of us here now... 

Then I made some tea and had my own tea party. (Sigh)... How depressing is that? When you don't have any money, you make banana bread and have a tea party by yourself..  Then take pictures of it and blog about it. LoL. I need some real tea cups with plates. I don't even really actually like tea. Unless it's herbal/flavored.  But I had too many flavors going here: Banana bread with honey butter and orange peel in it- wouldn't go too good with peppermint or lemon tea. Scones and Devonshire Cream would have been a little better. But this was pretty good.

I mentioned in my last post I found a wheelchair caddie I had started. I knew I had some other ones I had finished, too. But I could not find them anywhere. Today I was looking for a certain shade of purple yarn, and guess what I found? The bag of wheelchair caddies I had done. Never fails. I can't find anything when I'm looking for it (well sometimes I can), then when I'm looking for something else totally unrelated, I find the thing I was looking for before. But not the thing I am currently looking for. O.o  Another thing I found (that I wasn't actually looking for) is the tunisian scrap strips I had started. I don't even know how long ago I started these (second picture down). Like when our oldest son and our middle son were little.  Anyway, these are the caddies. The pattern is no longer available online. It was from "Around the Crochet Table". I was trying to find out what the copyright laws are about a pattern that used to be online, but it's no longer available...  It wasn't a vintage pattern. It was from 2002. I wonder what happened... Anyway.  These are for the Oglala Sioux Nursing Home, for a group I'm in on Ravelry. I want to get more chapsticks, and little Kleenex packs and whatever else I can think of to put in them. Little lotions? Hand sanitizer? And I was going to put a card in each one; "Thinking of you, hope you are having a nice day"..  God knows I have enough cards, LoL. And I want to make some more caddies. I had started a square to make a lapghan to match, the one on the top left. Well, I actually finished the square. I didn't finish the lapghan, though.. 😝

Well I guess that's all for now. 

~Until next time~

UFO's

Not the alien kind...   I went through a long phase of not wanting to crochet or knit anything. But, lately; I am wanting to crochet everything again. I drive myself nuts! I don't even know what I was looking for on my blog, but I saw a picture of the scrap strips afghans I used to crochet. And I was like, "Oh yeah... I should do another one of those!" (Sigh..) Meanwhile I already started working on another baby bunting I had started a long time ago. And while I was trying to find something in my sewing/crochet room, I found a wheelchair caddie I had started. So I finished that. (I haven't sewn the buttons on yet but..)  Ugh. It's no wonder I go through a phase of not wanting to crochet. I burn myself out doing too much at once. But, at least (except for this scrap strip) I am trying to finish up old UFO's. The pillow cover for my bed is on hold. I don't like how it's turning out. I did all the ribbing, and when I started the body of the pillow (?), it isn't even with the ribbing. It should all be even. (Sigh..)  I'm glad my husband doesn't get mad about all my projects all over the house..   I have bananas and all the ingredients pulled out to make banana bread today. Last night I was laying in bed thinking, "I want some scones. And some Devonshire Cream." 😀 I was googling recipes for it and I don't have any of the ingredients.. (Sigh) Then I was trying to figure out how many bananas I had in the freezer. And I thought, "What about that whipped honey butter I used to make?" It's not scones and Devonshire Cream, but... 🤷

I Cleaned My Desk

Alert the press..  I know, it doesn't look clean? But trust me, it's cleaned. I just have too much CRAP! I already had too much stationery. Then when my aunt passed away, I got all of her stationery too; when my cousin had an estate sale. She invited all the family over beforehand to go through and see what they would like. 

This is all the stationery my aunt had. TONS of envelopes, cards, two boxes of adorable cards. 🩷

I didn't take a picture of how messy my desk was (picture the first picture, but piled up in a MESS). This was the top of my desk, though. 

I put some of it on my table (which is messy, too). I know it looks hoarderish, and horrible. But, I have to say in my own defense.. Even though we have been here two years (sigh), the place we lived before (not the house right before this one) had a bigger  basement that wasn't freezing cold, stone, and scary to even go down into, that I had a lot of my card making supplies and I had a huge cabinet to put things in. Which (of course) got thrown away, so we could move back here before my Dad passed away. And, the room where all this is at, is freezing cold. And has the computer desk and other stuff in here. 😡 So it's not exactly "my" room... And, I can't even get to my desk to even sit down, because everything is packed in here. So I was just throwing all my stuff on it even after unpacking (which I didn't organize while I was doing it in here, because I was focusing on the rest of the house). Then two years ago, I got diagnosed with cancer and was going through chemo and everything else...   So, I am not a total slob. 

~Anyway~

I don't think I posted this snowman card I made. ?  I sent this one out already. I thought it came out cute. Even though it is simple. I was going to put more on it, but I thought "I always do that then it costs more to send.." 

Like this one- I put the flower and gems on it. I think it came out so cute, though. I'll just have to go to the post office to send it. (Sigh.. I hate going there lol.)

And, a cute picture of my kitties. My husband (FINALLY) brought the cat condo in from the garage. Our cat's eyes got HUGE, and he jumped right in it. (The brown tabby in the middle cubby). 😻 The tortie doesn't come downstairs during the day, while our one dog is out. (Sigh...) She hasn't liked that dog since we got her. So when our son lets her out of the kennel (he has her in his room, long story) our cat runs upstairs and stays there. 😞 Until she goes back up for the night. It's crazy. She isn't afraid of (or, dislikes more like) our other dog. Obviously this was one of the times when the dreaded dog was upstairs. 😝

 

Bear Sweater, Now With a Hat

You guys! I have posted in the past about all the baby things I crocheted (some knitted), for a group I was in. Well the OB Unit stopped taking donations for some reason. And I was bummed. Even though at times I got burned out and overwhelmed, I loved making things (and buying-when I had any extra money) for the babies. Well!... Another group I am in is have a baby drive for 2025. It made me happy. 😍 I have at least four things/projects crocheted for babies, that I was just going to save for if I ever have a grandbaby. Well it doesn't look like that's going to happen any time soon....    Not to get off track here. The sweater pattern is from Yarnspirations. And the bear hat pattern is from ktandthequid, there's a bunch of different sizes which I love. I made the sweater size 6 months. But, it measures 10.5 inches across the chest. So it's a 24 month size according to size charts. So I made the hat the same size.  

Other projects I have to send are the four color baby sweater, a baby bunting, and a Patti Cake Cardigan. This sweater measures 13 inches across the chest which according to size charts is a size 8. That does not seem possible. It looks so small to me. Maybe because my babies were so big. LoL I don't know...  

 

Happy Valentine's Day

 

Well Happy Valentine's Day. I'm not really excited about it. I used to do stuff (mostly for the kids-make heart shaped pancakes, buy them little Valentine candies and other stuff- they didn't really care half the time-except when it was candy or toys). But, they're all grown. And my husband hasn't gotten me flowers or candy in years. So. 😞

I finished a dishcloth today. It's the Ribbed Dishcloths pattern. It was the first week of February's dishcloth (knitted) pattern in a dishcloth group I'm in. This week the knitted cloth is the Manuela Dishcloth.

Happy Teddy Day

Teddy Day was actually yesterday, February 10th. I didn't even know there was such a day. But I was driving home from my doctors appointment, and on the radio the woman said "Today is Teddy Day", in preparation for Valentine's Day. I told my  husband, but he didn't buy me a teddy bear. 😒  (Even if I tell him flat out, he still can't take a hint sometimes. LoL)

So I came home and got all my teddy bear stamps out (all two 😝), and made some cards.. I have had this bear stamp forever. I think it was one of the very first stamps I got, when I started making cards. One of my friends (when I was a kid), her mom made cards. And when I was an adult, she had me over to make cards one day. And I was hooked!! 

And my other bear stamp..  I don't know, I might add more to this one? A sentiment? "Hello". It looks like the bear is waving hello.  I also need new ink pads. 😭 I have one more bear I stamped before my ink pad was done. I might finish another card today. I have a black ink pad, and other colors. But none that I could stamp a bear with. Unless I did a turqoise, red, or purple bear. Hmmm... A purple bear. 💜😀🐻 I'm going to have to make an envelope for this card, too.  Well... Maybe I will have another crafting day today.    Totally not related to anything but since we're doing special days... We've been in this house for two years today. That's a record for us, lately. If I start hanging pictures, though; we'll probably move for sure. 😉

P.S. Today is also Hug Day

 

What Happened to Crochetville???

I don't know if any of you were ever on Crochetville before. It was before Ravelry. I hadn't been on there in a while. But I was looking through my blog trying to find a pattern for a turtle. 🐢Somehow I came across this picture, from 2008... It was for the "Drum Afghan CAL" on Crochetville. When I clicked on the link "404 page not found" came up. WHAT?...  In this post. Click on the link to see what I mean. I tried to google it, and this came up. But that is not Crochetville, okay? I know it *is*, because it's still the same mods; without naming any names. But, EW. Just give up instead of whatever that is. Anyway. I did finally find a similar pattern to do this afghan (this was technically a lapghan size I did): Stained Glass Afghan #2

Some more boring useless information: I've been winding yarn. This somewhat ties into the boring post about a bed. Only because it's in the same room, and I have been trying to organize in there. I have a closet (?)- it's not really a closet, though... I'll have to take a picture of it someday. I guess it is a closet. But it's really small, there's no door, and there's three shelves. So anyway, it's a mess after shoving a bunch of things in there when our son came here last summer. Bags of yarn. And the yarn was a tangled mess. So I started going through the bags and untangling and winding yarn. This was what started the whole thing. 😛

Then I got a whole bag and took it downstairs and just sat at the table and wound balls...  I have since wound that red yarn connected to a mitered square I am knitting (I need to find the other knitting needle, too.)

I know, I'm living on the edge here. Winding yarn and getting upset about Crochetville being gone. 😝 Well I told you this blog is boring.. 

~Until Next Time~

 

Boring Post About a Bed...

In my last post, I wrote about my pillow not matching my bedspread and thinking "I could crochet one" (Duh.. 😜) Well this is the yarn I bought to crochet the pillow. I have started it. I'm using the Pillow Cardigan pattern. I was not coming out to what the measurements said, so I stopped at row 49? I don't have my notes right here. I only have three buttonholes. And it's measuring 22 inches.😕 So, I guess I will have to either sew a pillow that big or buy one... (Sigh). I don't feel like ripping out what I did. LoL

This is the pillow I currently have on my bed. (With a photobomber.) It goes with our other bedspread- which is burgundy and tan. (Last picture.)

Which is why we have burgundy curtains.. (The other bedroom has curtains in it already, this bedroom did not.) 

And a picture of my kitties. You can see how I was saying my afghan doesn't match, either.  Oh well. This bedroom is my "sewing/crochet/knitting room". We got the extra bed when our son and his fiance came here to visit last summer, so they could sleep in our room (with their two big doggies 😝). Now I have even less room in here for anything. And with everything going on since they visited, I have not been able to organize it very well. But I am slowly trying to. It's been three months since my surgery. I just am trying to not overdo it. 

Well that was my boring post about a bed... ~Until next time~

Happy Groundhog Day

Today is Groundhog Day... I don't personally know the purpose of it, other than just for fun. The first day of Spring is the first day of Spring. 🤷  

Anyway, I finished the Tunisian Dishcloth. 😀 I had crocheted three spiral scrubbies, so I did three dishcloths..

I know I already posted about this dishcloth, but I took another picture of it with it's scrubby.

Same for this one.  I still have not found any Valentines Day kitchen towels other than at Meijer's.

I was laying in bed one night and couldn't sleep (story of my life) and thought, "The curtains in here do not match my bedspread at all. Neither does the pillow (I use a little throw pillow to lean on while I sleep). So I thought, "I could crochet a new pillow.." And I dug through all my yarn but I couldn't find a matching color purple... (Of course.) Well I wasted money on two skeins yesterday. (It WAS on sale, though- for $3.88 a skein.) 😜 So this pillow is going to cost about $8 to make..  (If I don't have to buy a pillow form.) I would sew a pillow, but my sewing machine is broke. Again. 😭 Well I'm off to look at all my saved pillow patterns... 🧶

 

Tunisian Tuesday

What???... Three posts in one day?  After I posted my last two posts, I went and got what pink variegated I have left. I think I will have enough to do a dishcloth. I could NOT remember how to get started on tunisian short rows, though. So I went on YouTube and I found this video. 
 

Once you get the hang of it, you don't even really need the pattern. I just couldn't remember how to get started. Chemo brain.. I love this pink variegated, and I want to get some more. Although I don't know who would have a pink kitchen. But I was making dishcloths for Valentine's Day gifts. So... They would go with a Valentine's Day kitchen towel. If I can find one cheap enough. (They want $9.99 for one at Meijer.) 😠  

I can't eat or drink anything until my appointment today at 3:30. So I'm going to go crochet my dishcloth some more..

I also forgot to post the finished Stitch doll I crocheted! This was a Christmas present for my (future) daughter-in-law and our middle son. I finished this the week before I went in for my surgery. So, the middle of October. I really did not enjoy this project. But, it does look cute when it's finished. And (I think) they liked it. My son said "That Stitch is really good, you made it?" 😌 Well, I think I'm actually caught up for now. ~Until the next time our internet is actually working~  Lol

 

Catching Up Again. Oh deer...

I finished the Heart Pocket Note Holder. It used to be a free pattern, but I can't find it anymore. I had a mini clipboard notepad from the dollar store, I took the notepad and stuck it in there. And a pen I had from the dollar store. I'm sending this to someone.

I got in the mood to do a dishcloth. I wanted to do a round one. I could have swore I had a pattern for a knitted one that was round, and short rows. But the only one I had like that used two different colors. So I looked for a crocheted one. I will have to see if I can find the link for it. I just looked on my phone, since the internet wasn't working that day. Don't get Hughes Net, FYI....  Here is the dishcloth pattern: "Simple Granny Round Crocheted Dishcloth"  I think I might have been thinking of the Tunisian Short Row Discloth. Which is crocheted, not knitted. But I wanted to use that variegated yarn for it. The link for the pattern does not work any more, FYI so don't click on it. I'll have to see if I printed that out.. Or if it's on Ravelry somehow. Ha, it was on Ravelry: Tunisian Short Row Dishcloth. Now I don't have enough of that variegated to do one with... Sigh. LoL. I will have to see what other variegated I have in my stash. 

I was still in the mood to make dishcloths and I wanted to do an Idiot's Dishcloth. I have also been making Spiral scrubbies again. I don't know why. They are useless to wash dishes with IMO. And, they smell so bad even after washing. Unless you use bleach, maybe. But they are cute; and fun to make.

I also made a little heart to put things in. I don't know if I ever posted about these before. It was in the "Tightwad Gazette" book.  ETA: I did post about this before.

They don't actually hold much, though. The only thing I could think you could put in there is tiny little stickers you cut out. Confetti. I don't know. Unless you made the hearts bigger. 

Here is one of the cards I was going to post about last time. But the internet wasn't working good, taking forever and not even uploading.  I got the inspiration for this one off Pinterest. I think it was penguins, not snowmen. I used some stickers for the snowmen. I wanted to make a slimline card to "match" some snowflake envelopes I got at Goodwill. I ended up having to pay like $1.15 I think, to send the card though, because it was too puffy/thick. Sigh.

These are the envelopes. I ended up ordering some snowflake stationery that matches the bottom envelopes perfectly. 

And, I think I posted about a card like this before? This one, I added a Christmas tree too. I had never (successfully) made a shaker card before. I hope the people I sent them to didn't just throw them away. 

I thought I would show a picture of some deer we have come in our yard all the time. There is a back story about the deer... I filled up my bird feeder one day, to try and do things I used to love doing. Well the next morning, I was standing at the sink waiting for coffee to get done brewing and I looked out the window. The bird feeder was completely empty and open! UGH! "Stinking squirrels!", I thought. But  later that day, the dogs were barking like crazy. I said "What now?" and looked outside. Three deer were in the side yard, and the mama was at the bird feeder! (Mama, and two babies.) It wasn't squirrels, it was deer. Kind of funny/not funny. I'm not putting any more seed in the bird feeders now, though. I can't afford that. And a couple weeks after that, my son said he pulled in the driveway (he goes to the gym early) and there was about 15 deer in our front yard. I said "What, did they go tell all their friends?" 🙄 Originally, there was the mama and the two babies (mama and one of the babies are pictured above). This is why I misspelled "dear" for my blog post title, lol. Oh deer... 😝