Oh the Cuteness!

I finished Johnny's cowl and hat with plenty of time to spare before Valentine's Day, and I'm sure glad I did because he only got to wear them a couple times before this unseasonably warm weather set in. Sorry it took me so long to get him to pose for a shoot lol! Info on the patterns and yarns used can be found in my previous post, here. We were both really happy with how these pieces turned out! Like I said in the original post about the cowl , he chose the patterns and yarns himself, and I think that makes him really excited to wear them. I adore the hat, especially the textural stitch pattern and the beautiful way it's decreased on top. I have to admit I've been stealing it to wear myself here and there. Even though he may have to wait till next winter to wear them, he says it's the best Valentine's Day gift ever. Daww. And holy cow look at what he made me! He's been whittling since Christmas now and this is by far the coolest thing he...

A big shipment of yarn arrived at our house! Johnny has been picking out patterns from Ravelry and, with a little help from me, has been buying the loveliest yarns to go with them! Above is a leftover Rowan skein from his cowl  (Which is finished, photos coming in a few days!), that will be turned into a toddler version of the same pattern and put in the hope chest. The two dark Patons skeins are for the socks below, and he got me the minty one on the bottom just because he likes me. I'm thinking about a slouchy folded-brim hat with a big pom pom on the end, anyone know of any good patterns? In the mean time, here's my list of things to do: Emerson Hat via Interweave    l   Java Socks via Knitty   Beer Gloves from Son of Stitch 'n Bitch I've actually already started on the hat. I love this stitch pattern and would adore a sweater made of it! The yarn, like his cowl's yarn, is Rowan, but a lighter version called Creative Focus Worsted , ...

Yay! Another local shop has started carrying my items! Rebooty is tucked away on upper Grand Avenue in Oakland , and is a wonderful boutique committed to selling eco-friendly items made from reused materials by local artists. The owners are super nice and really care about people's impact on the earth, and the lovely variety of art and home decor in their shop reflects this passion. I'm very proud to say that they now carry my owl pincushions, feather hair clips (which haven't been sold online yet), infinity scarves, and steampunk rings! And hopefully they'll have a few more things of mine coming soon too! Please go check them out if you're in the area, you won't be disappointed!

My friend and knitting guru Suzanne had a birthday party recently that carried the theme of "Share Your Craft", and she teamed up with another Stitch 'n Bitch member to also make it a de-stash party. I brought a bag of fabric and miscellaneous crafting goodies to give, but I had no idea how much other people were bringing! Needless to say, I came home with a LOT of yarn, fabric, and knitting needles! I don't have any plans for the ones above, but I'd love some one-skein project ideas from you guys! The big pile of Fjord is going to become a lap blanket for Johnny, and I'm not sure what I'll do with the white and cream yarns yet. I also came home with these cute fabrics and colorful needles! But, I cleaned out my own needles and realized I have an extra pair of 11's and 3's, and I was wondering if anyone out in internet-land would fancy a trade? I really need a needle gauge, any kind will do! Since I have all these vintage plastic ...

I mentioned this quilt in a post about this time last year , and I'm so happy that it's finally done! There were a lot of trials and tribulations with this one, namely a bum old sewing machine that wasn't doing me any favors. I ended up going back and ripping out all of the quilting I had done on my old machine and redoing it properly with the walking foot on my new one, and I am so happy I did! And it took me forever to choose a binding, but I ended up finding a very subtle yellow and white chicken wire patterned piece that was perfect! The top and little pieced strip on the back are made entirely from recycled fabrics, mostly shirting weight samples form my fabric rep friend Ivy, along with some damaged vintage clothes that my mom cut up and saved for me (the red squares with white flowers and the pink squares with blue flowers for sure, but I forget which others).  I hand-cut all the squares instead of using a straight edge and a rotary cutter, because I wa...

When I started to crochet as an adult (I learned when I was 10 and quickly forgot until college), I learned how to make amigurumi first. The little cupcake on the bottom left was the 2nd creation I ever crocheted, and I still have him and love him to this day. The pattern was one of the first posts I ever made on this blog , nearly a decade ago, but it has since disappeared from the net.  Looking back, I realize now that I didn't do some of the techniques right, but it still came out so nice that I made more and sold them on my etsy shop in the early years, and even figured out how to make a giant one for fun. I hope some of you will try this pattern if you've never tried amigurumi before, because it got me hooked (Ba-dum-bum-tsch!), and I hope it will work the same for you!  You can leave it plain in earth tones for a muffin, or a red bottom looks like red velvet cake. My favorite thing to do was add seed beads for sprinkle "freckles" and little expressive ey...

TADAAA! Guys, seriously, I am soooo excited to unveil my new branding identity! I'm complete crap with Photoshop, so my dear, sweet, wonderful, and endlessly patient boyfriend helped me (as in pretty much did everything) to create a new brand identity for Oh the Cuteness! It started with my rough sketch and color palette and evolved into the wonderful cohesive brand above! I can't wait until I have a chunk of time to sit down and implement all of these wonderful logos, fonts, buttons, and colors on the blog and shop. Not to mention new business cards, tags, labels, and a banner for the booth! But it will have to wait until this weekend as I've got a new retailer to make things for today, and a craft fair in Oakland this Saturday. If you happen to be in the area, be sure to stop by the Jack of All Trades market in Jack London Square and say hello! Also don't forget to go enter my Valentine's Day Giveaway! Three winners will be chosen soon so hurry!