Crafts | Bead Happily Ever After

Holiday Rushing – Hit Pause

Posted on December 11, 2011 by crystal

Remember I mentioned that when it comes to holiday bustle, I want to take it down a notch this year?

Well, it’s going fairly well so far . . .

In fact, I can honestly say I’m hitting the old “pause button” much more often than in the past.

Sure, I still have moments when I feel nervous that Christmas is almost here . . . but suddenly it seems easier to rationalize that I’m in this for the joy – not the stress.

And nothing helps me take a deep relaxing breath quicker than making something! It truly is amazing how an hour of creativity can fortify me for several hours of gift shopping at the mall.

I found a couple of quick and easy ornaments to complete.

Here’s my take on Whiskers and Wool’s “Ringing in Christmas” ornament series.

And even in the final hours before Dec. 25th, there’s time for this quickie! Simply make a long crocheted chain, gather it into into loops, and add a bow!

Cute as can be to tie to a box of candy or bottle of spirits for an easy, yet very thoughtful, gift! 🙂

Whether you are crafting little “somethings” or just pausing for a cocoa-break, I hope you’re making it a point to stop and smell those evergreens!

‘Til next time,

Hugs,

Monday Memo

Posted on November 28, 2011 by crystal

Let’s hear about your holiday weekend, Kids!

Did you have a Thanksgiving feast?

Did you shop ’til you dropped on Black Friday?

Here at Bead Happily, we did the first and skipped the second! 😉

Let’s see…. I have two topics today.

First: I would like your thoughts about the next Bead Challenge.

a. Should we wait until after the holidays? We’re just about in December now, and I fear that schedules will already be stretched to the limit without having extra assignments! So, I’m wondering if January would the best time to begin the second challenge?

b. Is there a bead in my shop that you think would make a great “challenge bead“?
(Even the non-beaders might want to offer opinions on this!)

Second: Changing the subject now . . .

You know me – I love a QUICK craft project! Quick is really all I have time for these days.

Who knew having a retired husband would leave me with less hours than I had when my kids were little?!? Ok, I’m exaggerating, but it IS a different kind of schedule, lately! (I wouldn’t change a thing, though.)

But back to the project . . .

I loved making this crocheted flower scarf! Don’t they look like little pansies?

And it’s always fun to whip up a pair of matching earrings!

This scarf has an artsy, whimsical, look that really appeals to me. I’m thinking it would look great paired with a light-weight turtleneck sweater.

You can find the pattern here.

‘Til next time,

Hugs,

Sticktoitiveness – Japanese Crocheted Flowers

Posted on September 26, 2011 by crystal

stick-to-it·ive·ness. n. tenacity; perseverance

In the beginning there was *new* yarn . . .

colorful new yarn!

Time passed . . . and it was still colorful . . .

but there was less of it!

The reason?

Some of the yarn had been turned into a stack of “flowers”.

Weeks went by . . .

and suddenly there were double that amount!

By midsummer . . .

there was only a hint of what was to come.

Right now though . . .

It’s finally looking much more like a shawl. 🙂

Of course, I’m not finished – still need more flowers. In these photos, they’re not arranged in any particular order. I have a feeling it will take lots of arranging and rearranging to find the layout I like best.

Hopefully, it will be ready to wear this winter. 😀

What is it that you are trying to finish these days?

A book? closet organization? fall cleaning? craft project?

I’d love to hear about it!

Hugs,

Crocheted Flowers Update

Posted on June 7, 2011 by crystal

There’s progress on the flowers for the shawl I have planned.

With 16 complete – I’m 1/3 of the way there! 😀

I still need to weave in the loose ends on a few of these. And I think I’ll eventually want to “block” all of them (lightly mist and pin the edges flat).

For now though, I’m having a ball watching things begin to take shape!

Most years, I stop knitting and crocheting during the summer months. The reason is simple . . . it’s just too hot. As a project gets bigger and bigger – it ends up on my lap and who needs a yarn “blanket” when it’s 90º?

But, these flowers are fairly small (approx. 4-1/2″ diameter), so there will be no problem.

I will, however, wait for a *cool* day to assemble the shawl because I’m pretty sure I’ll want to try it on immediately after it’s finished! 😉

Have you thought of something fun that you’d like to work on this summer?

Hugs,

The Good Yarn

Posted on May 26, 2011 by crystal

Do you remember when I was making these flowers?

I was using yarn scraps to practice because I wanted to experiment a little before changing to the pricey yarn I had just bought.

This week, I finally carved out a little time to begin working with the “good yarn”.

It’s from Debbie Bliss, and it’s called “Cashmerino”. Talk about soft! And the colors are gorgeous. 🙂

I‘ll be making about 50 flowers in all combinations of these colors.

In the end, I’ll sew the flowers together to make a shawl. The thought of how pretty it could be makes me giddy, I tell ya!

So far, I have 10 flowers complete. It’s fairly easy to make 1 or 2 per day – usually after dinner, when I sit down with Sir Beads to watch a TV program.

I won’t show the new flowers yet . . .

Oh, what am I saying? I hate it when somebody leaves me in suspense!

How about if I show one of them?!? 😉

To be continued in the coming weeks . . . .

Hugs,