Elephant #3

This is probably the best elephant I've made so far! (I've only made two before, which includes the "elephin") This elephant is much bigger and more realistic with its floppy, folding ears, and thick legs.

I found this awesome pattern for free on a UK site, www.deramores.com. Since it's from the UK, the crochet terms were different but still simple enough to follow. Although it did get confusing since "DC" means double crochet in US terms but in UK, it actually means single crochet. But other than that, it was a simple although time-consuming pattern.

I love this elephant pattern and it's not difficult to make but I do hope I won't have to make it again. At least any time soon. But unfortunately, my sisters already seen it...and now she wants one for herself...even though I've made her two elephants for her before. (sighhhhhhhh) I need to try to put that off for as long as possible. I tend to get bored easily doing the same patterns so I like to try something new and different. My next project, however, is the Spring bunny, which I've done a couple times before; both the white and tan Spring bunnies for my mom and one for a friend. Hopefully I'll get to try new patterns after I do the bunny.

Deramores: Elephant pattern

Giraffe

After taking a break from crocheting, I've decided to start again but this time I want to start selling my creations. I've been putting this off for some time, making excuses that I was too busy to crochet. A lot of my friends and family have been telling me to open up an Etsy shop but I wasn't sure if I was good enough. Last year, I set up an Etsy shop, thinking up a name and building my profile, but I never put up any products. Now I've decided to start taking orders and slowly make products for my shop. I already have my shop name, HelloMonAmi.

A couple of people of made orders already; the first one is a giraffe. I spent all day working on it and it turned out really well. I think I've gotten a lot better at sewing the limbs and the details. This pattern I got from the Vanna's Choice Easy Crochet Critters book; the same book where I got the patterns for the lion and "elephin" I made a couple years ago when I first started. The original pattern uses softer "baby-like" colors but the person who ordered it wanted it to be like an actual giraffe. And luckily, I had the perfect colors for it! I'm really pleased with the way it came out.

I'm still taking crochet orders and I'm open to any suggestions on what I should make to put in my shop. Message me on Facebook or on my blog and we can discuss what I can make you! I can do most animal amigurumi dolls, scarves, hats, and a lot of other things. Tell me what you want and I will see if it is something I can crochet for you! Or you can wait until I have my Etsy shop up, which I hope will be soon!

Panda

It's so nice doing a short project after spending a year on a long, monotonous pattern. After the scarf, Megan asked me to make her a doll. She's leaving for her mission on December 4th and she is pretty much the only friend of Donna's that I haven't made a crocheted doll for. This panda is really simple. The problem I have with these dolls is sewing together all the body parts so that it isn't lopsided. This one looks a little crooked but it isn't very noticeable, especially if you squint.

I really need to work on my sewing.

Angie's Art Studio: Panda Bear

...and on my photography skills.

Claudia Scarf

I finished. I am done...

It's almost hard to believe because I've been working on this for so long but I completed the Claudia scarf.

I started this scarf last December for Donna. I thought I would be able to finish it by Christmas but I had other things to work on and this scarf was so damn long so I told Donna she would have to wait until next winter. Since I had a year, I took my time with this scarf. Did a few rows a day at first. Then it went down to a few a week...then to a few a month. Eventually I would just pick up on it whenever I remembered to do it, which was a couple times a month. The fan pattern is beautiful but requires so many stitches. Just one row would take me about a few minutes. The whole scarf is 166 rows so it got tedious to do every day. And I figured I could take my time since Donna doesn't need a thick scarf to wear in San Diego. Just as long as it was finished by winter break when we go visit Utah.

So here it is. The 11 month long scarf.

Little Slice of Life: Claudia Scarf pattern

Graduation Gifts

The spring semester is ending here at San Diego State University. It's finals week and everyone is trying to finish writing their papers and cramming for their final exams, eagerly waiting to escape for the summer.

This semester I made a few friends at an internship I had for a few months. Most of my fellow interns are graduating this semester with a bachelor's degree. I've gotten pretty close to a couple of girls there so I crocheted a couple of dolls for them.

One doll is the All About Ami's Spring Bunny I made before for my mom on Mother's Day. I just made the "male" bunny and used white yarn and beige felt to make it look more feminine. I made the bunny a carrot too but it's not shown in the picture.

The other doll is Ana Paula's Amigurumi Bear. I added a party hat and a bow tie. For the party hat, I only crocheted a few of the top rows since it needs to be small enough to fit on the bear's head and for the bow tie, I used a smaller crochet hook to make it more miniature. I dressed up the bear because I planned to give it as a gift at my friend's birthday party. I think they both turned out really cute.

Baked Goods Pt. 2

This is Part 2 of the Baked Goods post I put up in March last year. Since then, Donna and I have made some really yummy desserts.

 Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake by Donna

 Chocolate Cupcake with Strawberry by Donna

 Fruit Tart by Me :) 

(I put a fruit tart up last time but this one is so much prettier)

 Christmas Treats made by Donna and Me

Tiramisu Cake by Me, Decorated by Donna

(I know...another tiramisu cake)

Crocheted Christmas

This holiday, I crocheted a few Christmas gifts for family and friends to help save money and also to give something more personal.

1. For my friend, Jerrica and her baby daughter, I made a pair of slippers and booties.

I found the pattern for the blue slippers on All About Ami. All About Ami blogger, Stephanie found the pattern on Calypso Gray's blog, The Little House by the Sea, which she made some modifications on. It isn't shown here but I added some little pearly white buttons as decoration later on.

These baby booties were also found on All About Ami. The original pattern is from the blog Topsy Turvy. These booties are really cute with the scalloped edges and the wrap-around style.

2. For my aunt, I made her a thick headband with a flower.

I bought the pattern on Etsy by Rosedew Creations.

3. I made a few mini snowmen keychains for some friends.

 Here's a picture of them in the snow...

Dapper Toad: Mini Snowman Crochet Pattern

4. And for these two handsome boys, I made beanie hats.

The snowman hat was found on Repeat Crafter Me and the dinosaur hat is the same pattern as the snowman hat but with crocheted spikes found on The Boy Trifecta.

And there were some who couldn't resist trying the hats on for themselves...

Overall, it was a fun, happy, and busy holiday.