Outdoor Seat Cushions

I've been looking for replacements cushions for years. I could never find any at the stores that were the right size. I checked with cushion stores online, and saw that mine were non-standard size, and that I would need to get the cushions custom-made. An average estimate for six cushions that are 3 1/2 inches deep, with piping, made with Sunbrella fabric, was approximately $500-$800. No thanks.

I'm not much of a sewer: mainly Halloween costumes done on a Hello Kitty sewing machine, but I was determined to save money and do it myself. I found a great tutorial online, which helped immensely in explaining in great detail all of the steps in constructing a cushion. Sunbrella fabric at the local fabric store was $35 a yard: I found an online source for $17 a yard. I borrowed a sewing machine that had the all-important zipper foot attachment. Coupling the fabric with various notions (piping, heavy duty thread, zippers), re-using the innards of the old cushions, and the covers I made wound up costing me about $200.

The cushions took me one week to sew. Some days I worked on them for several hours straight. The fabric wasn't easy to sew: it frayed quickly, and the several layers of thicknesses I had to sew through were often too much for the basic sewing machine I had borrowed. Again, I'm not much of a sewer, but with a lot of patience, a good seam ripper, and time, these cushions are definitely do-able.

The next thing to do will be to stain and seal the bamboo frame.

ABC Blanket

"Stop cheating I'm reigning"

Nice. This happens to me every once in awhile. And no, I don't cheat.

They make a poorly spelled accusation then take off before I get a chance to respond. I know it's the mature thing to just ignore it and NOT respond, but sometimes it gets old.

What incredible words have been used to indicate that I've cheated? I've gotten beat plenty of times, by plenty of people, often by hundreds of points. I never resign midway through, though it's apparent that I have no chance of winning. I see the game through to the end and try my best. I expect others would do the same, but sometimes they don't

I know, I know: relax, it's just a game. I just had to vent a little.

Felt Book

I haven't made one of these in awhile, and I forgot how time-consuming they are. Each page took about 2 1/2  hours to complete. The blanket stitching took some time as well: if I tried to use enough thread to go all around the page, I spent a lot of time untangling knots. If the thread wasn't long enough, it took time to hide and secure the ending thread, while trying to create a seamless transition to the next stitch. I wound up going with the long thread method, but even doing it that way, I still ran out of thread before I got all the way around.  

 

 

I: Inchworm and ivy. There's some poison ivy in there as well.

S: Sea turtle, sea star, and seahorse.

A: Alligator.

B: Buddy the black Basenji, and balloons.

E: Elephant.

L: Ladybugs.

L: Lion.

A: Armadillo. The white stars form the constellation Taurus, which is Isabella's astrological sign. 

Leaves of three, let them be!

 

Basket Weave blanket

30" X 44". Size 'H' hook. Pattern from Ravelry. It took 2 1/2 weeks to finish, and approximately 1.75 pounds of yarn.

The pattern is three front post double crochets, three back post double crochets, repeated the length of the blanket.

Two rounds of single crochet around the entire blanket.

11 Preemie Hats

Size "G" hook. Magic circle, DC 8. Join, 2 SC. DC 16. Join, 2 chain. (2 DC in one stitch, 1 DC in one stitch). Repeat ( ) around. Join, 2 chain. (2 DC in one stitch, 1 DC, 1 DC). Repeat ( ) around. Join, 2 chain. (2 DC in one stitch, 1 DC, 1 DC, 1 DC). Repeat ( ) around. Join, 2 chain. DC around until you get the length you want for the smaller hats (the two on the right will fit a tangerine), (2 DC in one stich, 1 DC, 1 DC, 1 DC). Repeat ( ) around for a hat that will fit an orange. Continue pattern for larger hats.

Noah's Ark

Washer Necklaces

Another Aviator Hat

"J" hook. Double crochet in brown with a single crochet cream trim.

More Hats

Brain Waves Beanie

Outdoor Chandelier

Mini Baguettes

I'm no baker, but I tried these for the first time on Thanksgiving, and made them again last week. If you make allowances for dough-rising time, this is an easy and tasty bread.

Hat With Pom Pom

Make a magic circle, double crochet into the circle 8 times. Join with slip stitch. Ch 2. Make 2 double crochets in each stitch, for a total of 16 stitches. Join.
Ch 2. Make 2 double crochets in first stitch then 1 double crochet in next stitch. Repeat all the way around. Join.
Ch. 2. Make 2 double crochets in first stitch, then 1 double crochet in next TWO stitches. Repeat all the way around. Join.
Continue, using this pattern (2 double crochets in first stitch, then 1 double in next THREE stitches, etc.), until hat is the circumference you want.
Continue around until hat is the length you want.

Since it's a preemie hat, the pom pom is a lot smaller. I wrapped yarn around my index finger over 150 times. Trimming with scissors is how to get the ball smaller and tighter.