Blue Wave hand knit pillow

After Christmas rush I found some quiet time to finish this pillow. I used 100% cotton yarn from Peaches and Creme.

This pattern is simple wave that I found in my knitting book.

Karibu - Welcome

Crochet African Flowers

New skill that I learned last week - to crochet African Flower. Basically, it is the same as Granny Square but made as hexagon.

Crochet Pattern

Abbreviations:
sl knot = slip knot
st = stitch
ss = slip stitch (to fasten)
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
dc = double crochet
fo = fasten off
Rnd = round

Base Round – sl knot, ch 6, ss into first ch to make a ring.
Rnd 1 – ch 3, 1 dc, ch1, *2 dc, ch1, * repeat until you have six spaces and six 2dc. ss to the 3rd chain of the beginning round. fo
Rnd 2 – Change color: Start in a space. ch 5, 2 dc in same space, *ch1, 2 dc, ch2, 2 dc in next space – repeat * 5 times, 1 dc and ss into the 3rd ch of the beginning round.
Rnd 3 – ch3, dc6 in the 2-ch space, ch1, * dc7 in next 2-ch space, ch1, repeat * 5 times. ss the 3rd ch of the beginning round. fo.
Rnd 4 – New color: ch1, sc around and make a long stitch down in round 2 between each flower petal. End with ss. fo.

I found that, in the base round, it is easier to use "magic ring" than "ch 6". You can check youtube for instructions. Try "magic ring" or "magic circle" or "magic loop".

All Things Burlap

New treasury - All Things Burlap - by LaBelleParties

Sorry for not posting for almost a week, I started my job training Monday - Friday 8am to 4pm. Feels like I was in another universe whole week. Just now looked into my activity log and found this awesome treasury "All Things Burlap." My personal favorite is the vintage-looking journal.

Crochet flowers

Last few days I learned a few new (for me) techniques for crocheting flowers and hearts. I am seriously thinking of creating a new category in my Etsy store, something like "crocheted appliques". Though I have one concern - I really need to move beyond red-pink-white.

Sunny days are so rare ...

... in Southern California. In the middle of June, on the last day of school, my daughter wore boots and a sweater. Well, it was raining earlier this morning (and yesterday morning), and the temperature was 58F. After 10am it cleared a bit and I went to the lagoon to take a few pictures. After some "photoshopping" the pictures don't look that gloomy.

New feature on Etsy!

They added a new link that shows how many treasures an item was featured in, very convenient.