Bear's Birthday!

Today my little sister Bear is turning 18!

It feels incredibly weird to realize that my sisters and I are all officially adults.

This year Bear will start college and begin to have lots of new experiences and I will have to learn to step back and let her go.

She has really become a stunning, intelligent young woman and I am a very proud older sister!

So to mark the end of her childhood and the start of the rest of her life I made her a teddy bear :)

This is the pattern I used, and it worked wonderfully! I did add the embellishments from my imagination, but I would highly suggest it this pattern!

H A P P Y    B I R T H D A Y    B E A R !
xoxoxo

Cheers,
Cristyn

Ta-dah!

I finally completed one of my to-do projects today!

Using some fabulous new colors I got off on Knit Picks 

I made Lemur a set of coasters for her apartment.

I used a variety of different patterns so I pinned them all to my Pinterest crochet board for your enjoyment

Happy crocheting from a very snowy Virginia!

Cheers,

Cristyn

Where HAVE You Been!

That, my dear friends, is an excellent question.

I've been studying, studying a lot!

(Being an Anthropology/Middle Eastern studies double major is even harder than it sounds!)

I've been coughing and sleeping far to much

I've been thrifting

and drinking tea tea tea!

I've not been crocheting very much at all

(so I did this just to prove I still could!)

Though I've been playing with colors!

I've been packing for home

and waiting for Spring to finally arrive.

I've been planning adventures.

I've been applying for internships.

I've been watching the steady pace of my blog visitors rise!

And most importantly I've been sick and away and am glad to be back!

Cheers,
Cristyn 

A mid-February weekend

There are two feet of snow on the ground at home, but here it's fifty degrees and beautiful!

This weekend included a lot of studying, much stress, a film festival and the making of my spring gloves!

They are thirty-three stitches round all the way up with a hole created for the thumb.
(for help on that view my Colonial Celebration entry)

They are actually a bit lighter in color that this picture shows, but they are just as comfy, cozy as they look!

With midterms coming up and fencing tournament underway
I have had little time to blog.
Though hopefully life will calm down soon
and I will be able to write longer posts more often.

Hope you are having a lovely February!

Cheers,
Cristyn

A perfect shawl day

I finished my cloudy day shawl!

Well I actually finished it a few days ago and have just been waiting for a sunny day to take it out for a photo shoot.

The weather, however, does not want to cooperate...

It has been cloudy for days and they keep calling for snow, though we have yet to see a single white flake.

Though the weather has been really great and has given me plenty of opportunities to wear my shawl.

Needless to say I couldn't wait any longer to show you my work!

I based this shawl off of a pattern on Ravelry. I apologize that I cannot find the pattern now :/ , however most of it is my own development and is a repetition of  three rows of dc ch (dc into hole created by chain of last row) and two rows of a similar sc ch.

The lace edging is bases on the second pattern here.

My parents also came this weekend to teach me how to drive the newish (aka not mine so I've never driven it) manual car, because my car is at school with Lemur.

They also took me to get real food and we walked around CW with Lucy,
 who made a friend Mr.Grey one of the CW cats.

Here he is ignoring us like a cool cat, but he let me pick him up after I took this and he is so soft and squishy! Man I really miss having all my kitties to snuggle with!

Cheers,
Cristyn

A Colonial Celebration

That's right! 

Today is Mrs. J's birthday!

(Mrs. J and her hubby!)

So naturally we celebrated in colonial Williamsburg. Where else would the first lady of America's third president celebrate turning nineteen?!

I made some crocheted fingerless gloves as a present. She really wanted some that would work with her reinactment clothing, so I let her choose what they should look like (colonial America is not my specialty) and went to work designing some that would fit her...well, fit her like a glove (pardon the pun!)

So here they are modeled by Mrs. J herself!

I did a work as you go pattern to make a pair that was prefectly suited to her arm and hand size.
Here's what I did:

Single crochet foundation chain of 34 stitches
two row of single crochet, using a single chain to move up to the next row
nine rows of double crochet, using two chains to move up to the next row
one row of (dc3 dec) repeating to end
two rows dc
one row (dc2 dec) repeating to end
four rows dc
one row (dc3 inc) to end
four dc rows for thumb (do not connect rows, when a row is completed tie off and continue next row in same direction)
two rows dc
one row sc
Bind off.

It is a bit confusing but it turned out well.
(Hopefully this all makes sense, but if not leave me a comment and I can try to help you out!)

I am hoping to make myself a less complicated pair with a set pattern, probably this one.
They are just adorable (and I don't have to worry about historical accuracy!)

It was a darling day, it was even warm for Febuary and we all had food that was not college cafeteria food!
We ate at a tavern in cw for Mrs. J's birthday and it was lovely!

Cheers,
Cristyn

Oh the Things You Will Do!

a.k.a. projects I may one day get to do!

I have really gotten a lot of work done on my current projects! I am always so impressed with myself when I actually finish something, it really gives you a sense of accomplishment!

(No worries, you'll see them soon, a project update is due any day now!)

However, with all these rainy days and my semi sad addiction to Pinterest, a list of new projects and inspiration came into being.

First thing first, Lemur has requested a set of coasters for her apartment

They will not be as fancy as this (so don't get your hopes up Lemur!) but hopefully they will be just as pretty and a real quick project.

This next one is a project I have wanted to do for a while now-- a granny square blanket!

I am already anticipating it to be a very long project but I would love to have one done over the summer.

I really love these calming muted colors!

This bunting is another super cute, super easy project! Though I would love to have some to decorate my dorm room with, these rooms can really lack color and cheer!

I really love this cat doll! There is no pattern and I discovered early on that making animals/dolls like this is not my specialty, still I would really love to have one. So maybe not a project, but it just had to make the list.

Still haven't found a pattern for this teacup yet either, but it is simply amazing! I would make at least 12 and use them for fun decoration! (I think I'm getting a bit bored of my dorm room, can you tell?)

No, your eyes do not deceive you, this is not crocheting. I recently began practicing embroidery and I think I may actually have some potential! I found this picture and it is now a must have! Once I get the basics down I am determined to try something as gorgeous as this.

And what about these darling necklaces!? They're a bit granny chic for my usual fashion taste (though some of you may not agree) but I think they hold some real potential as fashion statements or cute gifts.

Oooh if only I had the time!

I love my school and my majors, but sometimes it's just nice to take a break

I hope I have left you inspired.

Cheers,

Cristyn

Head in the Clouds

Today breakfast was not a reward for showering and getting dressed!
What a relief!

This weekend I taught my mom to crochet!
With a pair of glasses and some guidance I think she might get the hang of it.

(Unfortunately I won't be here to help her out)

In other news:

I have finished phase one of my Cozy Clouds shawl.

All of the grey portion is finished now I just need to do the white border and edging when I get back to school!

Here is what I plan the edging to look like.

The pattern is free! I found it on Pinterest the other day and I feel like it will be the perfect end to this project!

This weekend at home was beautiful!
The weather was decent everyday and I got to take my puppy dogs on a couple (muddy) walks. There is nothing like tiny muddy paws to put you in a good mood.

I also did some Goodwill shopping and snagged my self a lovely floral skirt that makes me morn for Spring all the more.

Seeing everyone here and being at home was a true comfort and a much needed stress cushion, I am now prepared to face the deluge of homework, quizzes and papers...
I think...

Cheers,
Cristyn

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!

It is time to introduce you all to my current work in progress (WIP), also known as the love of my life.

I have tentatively named her (yes, she is a her) my Tangled shawl, after one of mine and Wonderboy's favorite Disney films. 

Mainly, the name comes from the colors because while working the second set of hexagons with dark purple, lavender, and yellow I couldn't help but think of all those purple flags with yellow suns from the movie.

Not to mention that the more I work on her the more I feel her becoming playful and innocent with a little bit of a daring edge like Rapunzel (which also happens to be my favorite fairy tale).

Okay so maybe I've given my shawl a few too many human characteristics?

But did I mention I love her?

I started the Tangled shawl about a month ago, over winter break, and am about two thirds of the way through with the hexagons. This is my first work with granny squares and it takes more time than I was expecting it to, though I am anticipating that this shawl will be done just in time for spring, 

which will be the absolute perfect time to show her off!

I'm using Lisa Harding and  Debbie Bliss yarns. These brands can be a little pricey and I am not used to spending so much money on yarn, but the quality is definitely worth it.

As for the pattern I am using a variation on motif 37 from the book "Beyond the Square". 

I do not own the book nor do I have access to the pattern so I formulated my own pattern and came pretty darn close if I do say so myself! (I will post the pattern with the finished project, until then you will just have to wait in anticipation :) )

I really seem to have a thing for shawls lately. I just ordered yarn for a second shawl. This time it will be simple and all grey. I find I work best by having two projects going at once. One is something real easy that I can work on during downtime after a long day of classes 

(such as the gift for Mrs. J I am working on, which I'll post later, or this next shawl project)

the other is something a bit more intensive

(the Tangled shawl)

that I can sit down and work at  on the weekends and really get to enjoy the beauty of the work.


Cheers,
Crsityn

The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway!

SNOW!

This is my first snow in Williamsburg! I went to bed after a well fought snowball fight in the William and Mary sunken gardens and a nice hot shower, though unfortunately upon returning to my room I discovered my unfathomable lack of hot chocolate!

.............

And this morning I woke up to this...

Classes were cancelled til noon, which meant sleeping in!

So overall a pretty good time over here in Williamsburg today.

Cheers,

Cristyn