Rudolph the Wine Cork Reindeer

Hey, y'all!

Hope you had a great Christmas!

While I was typing last week's post about the wine cork crochet evergreen trees, I got to thinking.  I couldn't remember if I ever showed you the little reindeer I made, and it turns out I hadn't.

Back in 2009, I got a bug up my butt to bring something small for everyone who would be at The Hubbs' family Christmas (which is a lot of people, y'all).  I had wanted to try this for a while, and Nana had a bag of wine corks that she gave me to try it out.

Materials: wine corks, a bunch of those decorator curly stick things that people without little kids stick in vases in their homes, pins, glittery berries from the floral section, construction paper, tacky glue

I was very happy with how these turned out, and they were a big hit at the party.  I do have to say that I'm rather disappointed, though, that I didn't save any for myself.  I found the materials in my craft area when I went looking for the corks, so I think I'll be sitting down and making some more of these to go in my crochet forest for next year.  :)

Have a safe and happy New Year's Eve, y'all!  I'll talk to you next year.


'Til next time,
OCB

Crochet Wine Cork Evergreen Trees

Hey, y'all!

We're all about finding different uses for things around here.  All kinds of things, really...but this time it's about the wine corks.

They're pretty and rustic, and - though I don't care for wine myself - I know a lot of folks who go through these things on a pretty consistent basis.

I've been trying for a while to figure out what the heck I can possibly incorporate them into with my crochet, and I think I finally found it: miniature evergreen trees!

The little guys measure about 3" tall, and the bigger ones are approximately 5" tall, give or take.  All have been constructed using acrylic yarn, wine corks and tacky glue.

The super-cool part?  I can use old yarn scraps that are too big to throw away but too small to start a full-sized project.  It all comes full-circle, I guess, with this desire to minimize waste.  :)


'Til next time,
OCB

Corny the Unicorn Amigurumi Plush

Hey, y'all!

(Jello - you might not want to look at this with K-Bear around...don't want to spoil the surprise! )

If you're not already aware of The Hubbs' comic strip, you've apparently been living under a rock or you've bumped your head.  It seems like Sam the Dragon is all I talk about these days.

We have a 4-year-old niece who is absolutely in love with the characters from Sam the Dragon.  For her birthday this year, I made her a stuffed Sam.  For Christmas, she'll be getting Sam's bestest bud, Corny the Unicorn.

If you're not already familiar with the boys, here's a photo from a recent camping trip of theirs:

And here's the stuffed Corny that I've made especially for our little buddy, K.

 

I'm absurdly happy with how this little guy turned out.  When I made Sam for K's birthday in August, I wasn't entirely happy with the head and eyes...but it looks like I've corrected that issue with the Corny prototype.  I think I'll be making at least a couple sets of these guys in the near future.

For those who may be interested, I used Red Heart Super Saver acrylic yarn, embroidery floss for the nose and mouth, safety eyes and polyester fiber filling.  All of the stitching was done by hand using an aluminum G hook.  Corny measures just over a foot tall including his horn, and the widest part of his tummy is a little less than four inches across.

Here's hopin' all of your holiday crafting projects are going smoothly...only thirteen more days until Christmas!


'Til next time,
OCB

Christmas Decorations

Hey, y'all!

Well, here we are at that time of the year again: the time when I can't share any of my crafty projects, because they're waiting to be presented to their rightful owners.  Rather than spoil any of those surprises, I'd like to take a few minutes and show you some of my decorations at home.

For those of you who don't know this, my daughter is five and a half years old, and she has autism.  I couldn't imagine loving anyone as much as I do her, and I honestly believe she's the best thing that has ever happened to me.

But decorating with autism in an itty-bitty house can be challenging.  Functionality is key around here; The Princess needs her running space, we need our sanity, and we all need to be sure nothing poses a danger to her.  Here are some of the things I've come up with over the last few years.

First, we only use two-thirds of our artificial tree.  We find that the tree is less imposing this way, and it doesn't feel like we've lost half of our living room.  I also wrap the front door with wrapping paper...not to worry: during the winter, we come and go through the garage, so we're not blocking ourselves in.

Another trick to save space and functionality is to simply switch out our decorations from season to season.  We have two large bookcase-style DVD shelving units in the living room, which are great places for knick-knacks.  This snowman is very special to me; The Princess made it at school last year, and I absolutely adore it.

On top of the other cabinet is our nativity scene:

Our kitchen serves as kitchen, dining room and entryway.  Space is precious here, and we use a china cabinet as our pantry.  Apparently, this was not a priority in the 1970's when the house was built, but we're happy with this compromise.  It also makes a nice place for seasonal decorations.  This year, I put my large tree-topper angel up (she's too big for 2/3 of a tree) along with our stocking hooks (stockings will be hung on Christmas Eve, as is tradition in my family).  I also wrapped the windows to add a little extra cheer to the room.

I grew up on Disney.  So did The Hubbs.  My favorite character is Stitch...has been for some time now.  He's all around my house, including the cookie jar in the kitchen, candy dishes, keychains, sweatshirts and my plush collection.  On our honeymoon, The Hubbs and I found a Santa Stitch who we just couldn't live without.  He is residing on our dinner table for the season.

Next up is our bedroom.  My mom made the characters on the wall: Santa Claus and Willie Melt the snowman.  On top of our electric space heater is Charlie Brown's Christmas tree.

Last, but not least, here's The Princess showing off her new-found skill: looking into the camera and not screaming her bloody head off:

 Well, that's about all I have for ya this week.  Thanks for stoppin' by!


'Til next time,
OCB

Crafty

Crafty blog?  What crafty blog?  If it doesn't have anything to do with fleas, it's just not on my radar today.

While I'd love to tell y'all about the sweater I just finished, I can't.  I just can't. 

I've spent the last three - or is it five?  I've lost all track of time - days obsessively cleaning my home.  My poor, sweet fur kids got fleas.  They have lumps and bumps all over their big, beautiful bodies. 

Do you want to know the kicker?  It's my fault.  Somehow, I've managed not to give them their flea medicine in...well, I can't rightly tell you how long it's been.  I just haven't thought about it.

I'm a bad mom.

So I've been spreading boric acid around my house and vacuuming it up like it's going out of style.  I've been obsessively picking these crafty little buggers out of my girls' fur and taking great delight in crushing the life out of them one by one.

I've been torturing my beloved doggies by forcing each of them into the bath - AGAIN - to eradicate the crafty bastards. 

After that, I committed the most heinous of all my crimes: I locked them in the kitchen all day while they dried off and the boric acid and I did our work.  I sprinkled the stuff around the living room after The Princess left for school, and I left it to really work its magic throughout my work day.  I then proceeded to vacuum each couch, nook and cranny again and again and again, all while they watched helplessly from the other side of the gate.

All the beefy treats and cheese slices in the world wouldn't make up for what my girls have been through in the last week.

So: crafty?  I'll give you crafty.  Each and every one of those crafty little bloodsuckers is going DOWN.  Mark my words.

'Til next time,
OCB

Bobbles and Cables Bag

Hey, y'all!

Holy poop on toast...Thanksgiving is tomorrow!  I can't believe how the time is flying.

Now, I'm assuming you are familiar with my purse obsession, especially given that about 1/2 of what I've posted on here is purses.  What you may not know is that I love big bags in funky colors.  Oranges, turquoises, hot pinks...for me, no color is taboo when it comes to purses.

Browsing through the local shops earlier this fall, I fell in love with quite a few mustard-colored leather bags.  You know, the ones that feel like butter and cost as much as a car?  Yeah.  Those.

Since I can't exactly justify spending a mortgage payment or two on a bag, I thought I'd raid the ol' stash and buy some new handles.

 

This project also helped me to begin the process of overcoming my fear of sewing.  I've never lined my bags in the past, but I think that's going to change...and soon...based on how well this one turned out.

Whaddaya think?  I may be in love.

Yarn: Caron no-dye-lot one-pound skeins in off-white and mustard yellow (100% acrylic)
Hook: Aluminum M
Handles: Nylon with braided detail from Jo-Ann
Lining: Modified standard pillowcase.  Oh, yes.  I did.
Total Project Cost (if I bought everything full-price and new): about $25-30 plus time



'Til next time,
OCB

Color Block Sweater

Ok, y'all.  This thing has been a work in progress for I-can't-tell-you-how-long.  One night last week, I decided to let it graduate to the next step: a finished project.

I saw the pattern for this sweater in Crochet Me a couple of years back and instantly fell in love.  Parts of it didn't work for me, so I tweaked and full-out changed quite a few things.  The result is this super-cozy, totally-me color block sweater:

For anyone who is interested, I made it with Caron one-pound skeins of no-dye-lot worsted weight acrylic yarn.  All of the stitching is done with an H hook, and there was a hell of a lot of sewing involved...not my favorite.  When I make my next one, I'll be modifying even further to remove that part as much as possible.

But, I gotta say, I had great timing.  The weather here is transitioning into that perfect sweater temperature, so I can see this baby getting a lot of use over the next few months.


'Til next time,
OCB

Controlled Burns

Walking through a couple of our local forest preserves last week, The Hubbs and I lucked into some interesting scenery.  Apparently, this is the time of year to do controlled burns in order to rejuvenate the landscape.

I also have to admit that I was surprised by the amount of wildlife we saw during the burn.  Here are a few of my favorite pics from the day...enjoy!

Oh, and don't forget: these are mine.  I'm very possessive, and the promise to poop on your foot if you steal them is very real.  Very real, indeed.


'Til next time,
OCB

Eep!

Well, poop!  It's Wednesday, and I don't have a post.  I blame work.  My bestie, T, and I work together, and we were just up at Big Boss Lady's "cabin" (read: compound) in the North Woods of Wisconsin from Friday through Tuesday.  We had to plan, set up for, and execute our company's annual strategic meeting.  It went well, but we were completely knackered by the time we got home yesterday.

Hence, no crafty blog posted this morning.

Well, hell, I guess I'll just show y'all a picture of one of the beautiful sunrises, as viewed from the compound.

'Til next week (when I'll hopefully be better prepared!!!),
OCB

Photography: Birds

Autumn is my favorite time of year.  This particular autumn, our family "thing" is exploring the state parks around our house.  In our county, there are over 100 miles of hiking trails, and our goal is to get to know them all.

One place, in particular, has begun to feel a lot like home.  We end up here at least a few times a week, probably because it's so close and it has such a variety of habitats.  We get to see lots of wildlife and interesting plants here.

Today, I'd like to share some of my favorite bird pictures from this park...enjoy!

Mallard duck drake

Great blue heron

Mute swan

Sandhill crane

Wood duck

Mallard duck

Oh, and for those of you worrying that I'm not posting crochet stuff, rest assured: it's coming.  I just feel like I need to spend as much time outside as I can before it starts getting dark too early to enjoy it after work.

'Til next time,
OCB

P.S. And I shouldn't have to say it, but these photos are all mine.  Steal 'em, and I'll poop on your foot.

Photography: East Tennessee

Hey, y'all!

I think it's about time to share another one of my hobbies with you: photography.  I've gotten more and more interested in this over the last few months, and I'm having so much fun toting my camera with me everywhere I go.

For my first photography post, I'd like to share a few of my favorite pictures from a recent trip to East Tennessee.  Enjoy!

I have a feeling this hobby is going to continue to gain momentum in my life, much like crochet has in recent years.  If nothing else, it shows me that I really am capable of taking decent pictures, even though I'm never really happy with the pics of my crochet projects.  ;)

 Until next time...have a great week!
 ~OCB 

Oh, and P.S., all images appearing on this blog and in this post are property of me.  So, be a chum and don't steal 'em...k?  K.

Holding Myself Accountable

It's Fall, y'all!  My favorite time of the year. 

Somehow, I just can't seem to find the time to finish this sweater I've been wanting for the last couple of years.  I'm really close...seriously, about half a sleeve to go...but I keep finding other things to do with my time.  Go figure.

This is my way of holding myself accountable, I guess.  The next time you see this baby, I'll be wearin' it.  :)

~OCB

E's Baptism Prayer Shawl

In January of this year, our family was blessed with a new addition.  My beloved sis-in-law gave birth to our second niece, E.

The cherry on the sundae?  She asked The Hubbs and me to be godparents.  Before taking part in her baptism ceremony back in March, I stitched up a special baptism prayer shawl for my sweet little goddaughter.

It's all acrylic yarn, and - of course - I don't remember the dimensions.  What I do remember is that I really enjoyed making it.  I really do love this little girl.

A special thanks to my mother-in-law for taking these beautiful pictures.

I'm just so glad Jello and her family are back in the area now.  It sure is nice to see them more often.  :)

Bulky Fiber Necklace: Teal

I'm a hot-blooded person.  You know, one of those gals you see wearing only a tee shirt in weather that prompts others to don hoodies, hats and gloves?  Don't get me wrong; I love me a good hoodie, but my point is that I don't do well with heavy stuff all up in my grill.  I get hot, I get cranky.  I get cranky, you don't want to deal with me.  Capisce?

With that said, I've come up with a solution for fall and winter accessorizing.  I can't walk around in a full-out scarf all day, but I love the idea of the bright colors and fun drapey quality. 

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the first in what I'm sure will become a series to include many colors of the Bulky Fiber Necklace:

This necklace has been constructed completely by hand using acrylic yarn.  I can't wait to share the other colors with y'all!

Interested in one of your own?  Let me know...these will be for sale soon.