Granny squares everywhere!

So what started as a super neato swap in my crafting group, turned into a tiny obsession with granny squares.  I know I use that word a lot, obsession-but when it comes to things like crocheting, DIY and pinterest- I am totally and completely obsessed.  I fantasize of a life with Hank Hill as my husband, mowing, painting, digging and sawing our way onto the parade of homes. 

I'm getting off topic.  So, granny squares.  They are without question totally rad.  Even just your basic granny is awesome b/c you can do them big, or you can do them tiny.  If you go over to Dollar Store Crafts you can make an adorable tiny one as a necklace.  I copied her design almost exactly, and gave it as a gift to J's sister for her birthday. 
I'm not going to link to a granny pattern, only because I want you to go on a Google (or Pinterest) spree on your own, and discover that they are like snow flakes!  No 2 are alike!  I have an entire board on Pinterest devoted just to granny square patterns.  There is also a great book available The Granny Square Book that has I think 75 or so different patterns in it.  I bought it on my kindle and I really like it.

I loved it so much, that I wanted to make my own. 

 

I forget which size hook I used for this square, but I believe it was the smallest one in the pack.  It is so very tiny.  Make sure you try this on a day when you are not already irritated.  The thread would keep slipping off the hook, and it until I got a groove going, it was annoying.  In the end though, totally worth it. 
 

 

Yes, I was snacking on nilla wafers when I was making this.  It was the closest thing I had around for a size comparison.  I wore it while we were on vacation last month and got tons of compliments on it.  My grandmother now wants a table runner made up of tiny granny squares!  Maybe for Christmas?  Great idea though!

Then I decided to go just a big bigger, and bolder in color.   I made a strip of grannies and hung them up at the pharmacy nearest J's apt. 

His neighborhood is great to yarnbomb in, they always stay up for a long time. 

 

Nik <3

Never thought I'd be a cross stitcher

As I said in the previous post, I recently got back into cross stitching starting with an awesome kit from nerd JERK and from there just jumped in feet first. 

Last month, my youngest cousin tied the knot.  I wanted to give her a handmade gift that she would just love, so after some brainstorming and Googling, I found this totally radical shop on Etsy- wee little stitches.

If you have never heard of this shop before, get ready to love the heck out of it!  They offer not just custom patterns like I got, but also tons and tons of pop culture related patterns.  There is something for everyone, especially if you are a nerd/dork/geek!

They are super easy to deal with too!  Once I ordered the pattern I quickly got an email from the shop owner giving me the info on where I could send the pictures of my cousin, her (now) hubby and their 2 dogs.  In a few days I had a darling custom pattern. 

I knew my cousin would just love this.  She recently graduated from veterinary school, so animals are a big part of her life (just like mine!).  I knew having her dogs included in this "family portrait" would just make her heart melt. 

And I think I was right!  I made her open her gift before the wedding, because I am one of those people who likes to see the reaction on peoples faces.  She said it was her favorite gift, and her new hubby even pulled me aside to say how much he loved it! 

So, enough of me jabbering. Here is the finished product done and framed up all nicely. 

It was so popular that I have about 10 people (including myself!) wanting to get family portrait patterns with their furry family members.  I wonder if they could do ferrets or other small animals too?

Nik <3

Pinterest has made me obsessed with embroidery hoop decorating!

My dreams of becoming a world famous blogger have come to a grinding halt since I haven't blogged a single thing in so long.  I can't be the crafting Perez Hilton without tons of updates and news. 

In defense to me though, it's not like I wasn't crafting and creating.  In fact, I was doing so much of it, that I didn't have time to blog.  It sounded like a valid excuse in my head, even if you aren't buying it. 

So I'm trying to come back strong with this post, and then keep the momentum going with all the other stuff I've been doing.  In the past few months I have gotten back into cross stitching pretty hardcore.  My mom tried to get me into this as a kid, but I didn't have the patience for it.  Especially when the thread was always knotting. 

But last year I started back up my doing a really simple yet awesome kit put together by NERDJerk over ob Etsy.  All her stuff is amazeballs, but her kits are super cute, and she does everything herself, even down to screen printing her own packaging. She is one of my all time favorite crafters. 

So then just a few weeks ago my cousin was married, and as a gift I cross stitched her a super cute custom design done by weelittlestitches.  That will be its own blog post soon. 

All this thread and hoop work has started a new obsession in me.  Embroidery hoops.  I went to a random thrift store yesterday and scored 6 different hoops all different shapes and sizes.  And all for about a dollar a piece!  Yes! 

So today I used some cute material I had on hand, and then made a trip to Hobby Lobby to get some more.  I didn't really do a tutorial, only because it didn't seem necessary.  I just got the fabric in there, made sure it was tight and looked nice and then cut the back really short.  I think I will need to add some weight maybe glue and old battery or something in the back of the hoops so that the bottom lays flat on the wall. 

My materials were:
Embroidery hoops
Fabric in your design of choice
Iron and ironing board
Scissors

I also might use some of the striped material and cut it into a heart, and stitch it onto the orange.  Don't you just love that big hoop?!?

All in all I am super happy with how they came out.  I can't wait to rearrange stuff and add stuff to my walls to make them look even more awesome!

<3 Nik