Stripes and Dollies

I'm a real stasher/hoarder of craft supplies, and I'm on a quest this year to make use of what I have rather than purchasing more. It's a real treasure trove, very exciting to brainstorm ways to make use of my materials.

Among my sub-stashes is an incredible collection of felt. I have inexpensive big-box craft-store felt (which, honestly, I don't like), as well as the wonderful saturated colors of real wool felt from the Purl Soho sewing store. I don't know how to use a sewing machine, but I do enjoy sewing by hand, and I'm completely self-taught and therefore not a pro by any means. But it's fun anyway.

So my latest de-stash felt project is this dolly, made for my daughter from a remarkably simple and clever pattern found on the Purl Bee website:





These were fun to make, and lovely to look at: the legs are even jointed with buttons at the hips so that she can sit!

Next up in my de-stash is the world's easiest blanket. Somehow I have managed to collect skeins of Vanna's Choice yarn in nearly every color! I had easily enough for two generous afghans, and have finished one already for my husband:



The pattern is absolute beginner crochet: chain as many stitches as you like, with even tension (not too tight, not too loose)--I did around 100 maybe--then two rows of each color in half double crochet, switch colors, another two rows of the next color in half-double-crochet...etc etc till you have the length you like! I did two rows of half-double-crochet edging all around the blanket, and it was done in a week.



It's warm, machine washable, colorful, and everyone likes to snuggle with it on the couch. I've already started a second, which will finish up my stash! Go Vanna!

Scrap Projects

This winter my favorite project has been fingerless gloves and mitts. I've made so many pairs! It's a perfect way to use up half-skeins, and you can make them as long or as short as you like. This pair was from leftover Lion Brand Amazing, and a simple pretty crochet pattern, "Fingerless Glovettes" by Sandi Wiseheart:



Also on the needles was a chevron scarf (pattern from Interweave Press' "Scarf Style"), using some lovely sock yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts:




As the proud owner of a massive stash of appealing single skeins, many of these sock yarns, I must recommend the wonderfully creative variety of projects found in "Sock Yarn One Skein Wonders".