Month: December 2011

Finding me on Twitter; @CrunchyOpal

Aynaria 3 Comments

I’ve been a Twitter use for a few years. The past year I haven’t been as active. Occasionally I’d resurface to make an occasional tweet, and just as quickly I’d disappear.

Twitter bird

Twitter was a bit too busy! However, that was partly my fault, since with my HealthyOpal account, I had a little over 800 followers; someone was always tweeting. Although I used TweetDeck, the amount of tweeting that went on, was a bit too busy. In reality, outside of a handful of people, I didn’t feel as if I was interacting with anyone, so I really had no desire to log onto that account.

New Twitter account; @CrunchyOpal

A few days ago, I made another Twitter account, CrunchyOpal, and I must say that I’m enjoying this Twitter experience a lot more. Currently the most people I’ve followed are crocheters.  Which, judging by my recent posts makes perfect sense… Crochet is the newest craft I’ve learned. Since I’m a crochet noob I tend to have questions and the blog sites, forums such as Ravelry, You tube videos by Crochet and Hectanooga1 have all been extremely helpful.

Warm welcome as a noob crocheter

Adding instant communication via Twitter, has made the few crochet roadblocks I’ve encountered so much easier for myself. Many helpful tweets were sent my way, along with direct messages, and mails sent to me on Ravelry. My username is OpalT on that site.

I am thrilled with the amount of crochet lovers I’ve met. I’m in awe with several of the crochet designers I’ve interacted with through the various social media outlets. They dispel the crochet myths that some have of the capabilities of crochet. I am looking forward to joining their ranks someday.

Five more crocheted items have been made

Since crocheting the gold hat for my daughter, I’ve made five more crocheted clothing items for people. So yes, this noob crocheter has been actively crocheting. I’ll be posting a few of those in the upcoming days. This time I’ll be sure I have models for them. You should see me modeling something in the next few weeks, since I’ll be working on a tam hat. I love tams, since my long dreadlocks (nothing dreadful about them) can fit in them neatly.

Photo Source: My Blogging Journey

Happy hooker: Crocheted my first (human) hat

Aynaria 20 Comments

Crocheted Hat 1 12 27 11

Today, I made my first human crocheted item, a gold hat for my daughter. If you closely look, you might see a bit of pink yarn tied into this crocheted hat. I tend to use bits of yarn as stitch markers.

This hat isn’t completed. I’ll be edging it with pink yarn. Perhaps I’ll add some embellishments? Crocheted flowers would be nice… this hat is for my daughter and though she’s a tomboy — she loves her outfits to be very ‘girly’.

Regarding this hat… a few mistakes were made, but I was able to correct them. I cannot tell you what stitches were used besides the chain hook, single crochet, and a row or two of double crochet. The reason is simple, I let my fingers and hook explore, and tried out a few variations with my crochet hook and this is the crochet stitch that appeared. I used a few variations throughout this crocheted hat project. It sure was a lot of fun. It will be interesting to come back to this piece after I’ve been crocheting for a while. Later this week, I’ll try to do a search and see what’s it’s called. I’ve seen it before, I just don’t know the name. Anyway, I thought this stitched worked well with the hat. It was simple to do, and I liked the lace-like pattern it created.

Crocheting: Doing my own thing

When it comes to crafts, I learn best by simply doing my own thing. Getting acquainted with the artsy vibe of whatever medium I’m working with. After I’ve satisfied that itch, everything falls into place, and I find listening to the experts talk about the craft isn’t hard.You would think since I know what works best for myself, I would have bypassed the books I picked up on crochet, right? Nope, didn’t happen…. I searched Youtube for crochet videos, and even acquired books from the library. Although I did glance over them, and some of the videos (and books) were well written, it didn’t make much sense to me until I explored on my own.

My daughters Monster High dolls now have competition, since I’m slowly starting to make crocheted garments for people.

Did you know that some crocheters call themselves ‘hookers’? It makes sense when you think about it, since a crochet hook is used. When I first heard the term “happy hooker” applied to someone who crochets. I admit I chuckled a bit, since I thought it meant something else entirely.

A Merry Christmas and unexpected visitors

Aynaria 9 Comments

Hen 12 25 11 1

This morning, while I was hand washing dishes, I was greeted by the trumpeting of our neighbors rooster, Cock a doodle doo! — the rooster cried.

I’d like to think he was telling our little community, Merry Christmas! He repeated his cry, Cock a doodle doo! and I couldn’t help but think he sounded louder than normal, and so I looked out our kitchen window.

Well guess what?  Five of my neighbor’s chickens were in our front yard, they were scratching and pecking away at the grass. Every few moments Mr. Rooster would stretch out his neck and cry… Cock a doodle doo!

I called my daughter to the kitchen, and we watched them for a bit. They were so beautiful. The rooster was the ‘diva’ of the bunch, and he strutted around proudly, while the hens went to work on the grass, foraging for juicy worms, insects, seeds, and whatever else they like to feast on in our yard. (It’s not the first time I’ve seen them over here).

Naturally by the time I came to my senses and thought about taking photos they had moved on. About ten minutes later, my daughter told me to come around the back of our house. It seemed we had a few stragglers…

Rabbit 12 25 11 1

The neighbor also has a rabbit. This rabbit seems to be content to live outside, and we see him often in the neighbors yard. He wanders into our yard to nibble at some tender grass shoots too. My daughter said Mr. Rabbit chased the chickens back to their own yard…  well with the exception of the hen that I’ve included in this post.

Mr. Rabbit watched, from about five feet away from the chicken, while this persistent hen foraged for more food…. Perhaps he was the ‘guard bunny’?

Hen 12 25 11 2

This hen was a friendly bird, and was quite curious of me — She even posed for some close-up shots. Look at her, isn’t she sweet? Mr. Rabbit, on the other hand, was cautious and only let me get around ten feet away before he turned tail and hopped a few yards back. So much for him protecting the chicken!

How’s that for a Christmas post? I thought I’d be posting a standard Christmas message, and today my daughter, and I received some much welcomed visitors in our yard.

Here’s hoping you are all having a wonderful Christmas holiday!

Merry Christmas!

 

 

Christmas tradition; A bit crafty

Aynaria 11 Comments

Christmas Ornaments 1

Our Lutheran church had its Sunday service a day early (today). It was wonderful watching my daughter’s choir perform (along with the other groups). More important the pastor preached an excellent sermon. Then again he always does, but it was nice to see so many new faces hearing the message. Our Lutheran church had five services available throughout the day; 10:00, 1:00, 3:00, 8:00, and 10:00

Although not the official day of his birth, Christmas in our household is a time to recognize Christ’s birth. Along with his birth we talk about the story of Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection. It’s a great chance for us to reflect on what Christ has done for us which is indeed the true meaning of Christmas.

Creating crafted gifts for Christmas

In my household, it’s become a tradition to make hand-crafted items for one another. As I type this, I noticed that my daughter has added a few items under the tree bearing my name and I’m eager to see what she’s created. She’s quite the talented artist, and I’m hoping she’s created something that I can grace one of my bedroom walls — but I’ll be happy with anything she has created for me.

Our Christmas tradition of making items for one another began a few years ago. I created my three-year old daughter a “design studio” where her creative talent could soar. I set aside a space in her room, complete with easel, shelves, construction and printer paper. Additional Items such as colored pencils, crayons, markers, and watercolors were purchased from the store — but the majority of the items were made by myself.

This year, all the items that I placed under the Christmas tree, were handmade. I’m actually proud of that fact, since some years I had a mixture. A lot of thought, time and effort are put into the items I create. I want people to feel special. I make items I know they want.  So no… I don’t make items because I’m too cheap to purchase anything. They’re definitely high quality items. I do spend money to purchase the materials I need to craft items, once you factor in the time it takes me to make some of the crafts it would have been easier to purchase something, but in my opinion, it wouldn’t be as special.

Christmas: A bit of Commercialism

A few days after Christmas, my daughter and I do visit a few stores.  I give her an allowance of what she can spend. It’s not excessive, but she’s happy and is thrilled that she can pick out her own gifts.

You see the above picture, those ornaments were made from soda cans. I’d planned on writing a tutorial post before Christmas, but the past few days I haven’t been on the computer to much, and so that tutorial will have to wait a bit longer.

Crochet: Basic Beanie hat for Monster High doll; Frankie Stein

Aynaria 6 Comments

Monster High doll Frankie Stein Crocheted Hat

Yesterday, I posted a picture of a crocheted hat I’d made for the Monster High doll, Draculaura, she’s a Monster High doll.

That hat was actually a crocheted square. I sewed three corners together to make it into a hat. I mentioned that I didn’t feel confident enough to make a proper hat. Well… the more I thought about that comment, the more I realized I was just being silly, and so this morning I searched for a hat video. I found one, but I simply couldn’t follow the directions, since the Youtube instructor was going too fast. It’s not the same Youtube lady I posted about yesterday. Crochet’s videos are really good.

Crocheting without a pattern

Today, I made a proper hat for Frankie Stein,  another one of my daughter’s Monster High dolls. I had some free time, and crocheted the hat. I have several of these hats, that I wear during the cold months. It’s nice to keep my locks protected from the elements, now and again and what better way to do that then rock them with a funky beanie hat. I’m absolutely thrilled that I crocheted a miniature beanie hat for one of my daughter’s dolls.

Crocheting this hat wasn’t a smooth process… I made a few mistakes. The majority was caught, and so I was able to pull the stitches out and redo, but others I didn’t see until after I was completed. It’s all good though. I’m now using a row marker, and I’m making a point to count the rows. Something, I’ve been avoiding doing — until now. Perhaps as I progress, I won’t have to do it as much?

Clothing design

As a child, I didn’t have too many dolls. They didn’t interest me. The only time I gave them any attention was to clothe them in the various designs I’d created. I started sewing at eight years of age, and continue today. Over the years, some of my work has been featured in local fashion shows, and a few of my designs have graced some local boutiques too. In late teens through twenties, I made the majority of my clothing and often received comments about where I’d purchased the outfits I wore, since they hadn’t seen them anywhere. That was a perfect opportunity to market myself.

I already have a lot of crocheted designs, I’d love to make, but until my skill catches up with my ideas, they simmer on the back burner — a bit longer.

Beginner Crochet: Completed hat and cape for Monster High doll; Draculaura

Aynaria 4 Comments

Monster High Draculaura

Since I’ve gotten back into crocheting, I haven’t made too many items, but I’ve decided to show the one above. I used three stitches with this ensemble; Crochet chain, single crochet, and double crochet. My gauge is still off, as can be seen in the ‘crocheted hat’ it’s not a lace crochet pattern, but look at how ‘holey’ it is! 🙂  I know in time I will get better. I just have to keep practicing.

You want to know something?  This past Sunday, when I started crocheting, I wasn’t planning on making an outfit, I just wanted to practice crocheting… However, as the rows accumulated, I thought about Draculaura (one of my daughters Monster High dolls) and I realized that the pale pink yarn would compliment her outfit, makeup, and skin tone. I now had a crochet project!

My crochet skills are limited, because of this I’m not making anything fancy, at least not yet. In reality, the hat, and cape are crocheted squares. To make the hat, I stitched three corners together with a tapestry needle (using the same yarn). While I realize I can make a proper hat (stitching in a circular pattern) I haven’t become confident enough to do so. In time I will. The cape is a larger square. I simply attached a flower button to one end, and a yarn loop on the other side.

I was planning on wrapping this up and adding it to the pile of handcrafted gifts that are under our Christmas tree, but instead I gave it to my daughter. She was so excited about her early Christmas gifts that she immediately clothed Draculaura in her new outfit. I quickly crocheted some hair ribbons using the same yarn (which I hadn’t made at the time I took this picture) and my daughter put her dolls hair in two ponytails.

I’m sewing clothes for some of my daughters dolls, and I’ve decided to add crochet trim, to some of the outfits for Draculaura. I should be finished that today, I’ll wrap them up in one of the “clothing trunks” I made for a few of her dolls, and slip the completed items (wrapped of course) under the Christmas tree.

Beginning Crochet Videos

If you’re interested in learning crochet, I’d suggest you check out Youtube videos created by Crochet. She has some informative crochet videos including videos on beginning crochet stitches. I really enjoy them since they walk me through the entire process.

Mrs. G, from my quilting group was kind enough to show me several crochet stitches. However she’s not always available, and so I can refer to the YouTube videos, when I need assistance with crochet.

 

Two festive WordPress Christmas Plugins

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Can you believe it? This year is almost over. Since I’ve done almost everything for Christmas, the only thing left for me to do is relax. Later this week, I’ll be posting a few pictures of the Christmas lights I’ve hung, along with the Christmas tree that we have. It’s not a live tree. While my real home is very festive, I’d neglected to spice up my virtual home for the Christmas holidays — until now.

Earlier today, I added two WordPress Christmas plugins to my site. I took screenshots of the WordPress Plug Ins from the admin perspective, so you could see what they look like. I like them, since it brings a festive touch to my virtual home.

Word Press Christmas Plugins

    WordPress Plugin Christmas

  1. Wp-Christmas (Download Here)

    Aren’t those snow folks cute? I owe it all to the WordPress Plug in Wp-Christmas. I thought the snowmen animation was adorable, along with the message Wish you a Merry Christmas, so naturally I installed this WordPress plugin. This plugin also has an option for you to add customized messages, and so I’ll be hanging onto this one after the holidays end. next year I’ll be having a few contests on this site, and I already have a few ideas of the type of messages I’d like to create with this addon.

    2. WordPress Plugin Snow Balloons

  2. Snow, balloons and more (Download Here)

    Do you see the falling snowflakes on my site? The WordPress plugin, Snow, balloons and more is responsible for adding the virtual snow to Celebrate Life. What I like about this WordPress plugin is there’s a variety of images I can choose. Although the majority of the images included are Christmas based, there’s other images like balloons and leaves. You also have the option to incorporate your own customized images to this plugin. Later on, I’ll be taking advantage for that feature.

I wouldn’t have known about these WordPress plug-ins if I didn’t follow The WordPress Experts via their RSS feed. If you’re a WordPress user, or thinking about making the switch to WordPress, I highly recommend following this site. It’s chock full of helpful information that will benefit WordPress users of all levels.