HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

Wowee, I can't believe that Christmas is fast approaching! The shop is now 99% closed (my emailable PDF crochet pattern is still available) and I have to tell you as much as I appreciate all of sales this season (THANK YOU!), it's such a relief to not have to go to the post office again for awhile!! :-)

I'm going to be taking a break from Herbst Handmade during and after the the Holidays.... I'm not sure when I'll return. I plan to keep blogging, but I imagine the shop won't be restocked for quite some time. I've got quite a few projects for myself and our house that have been on the back burner for way too long. Also, I've got a growing list of changes I'd like to make in the new year, which are inevitably going to affect the way I work. I think it's going to be good. I just need some time to sort it all out.

We're heading to Ohio for Christmas so the next few days will be filled with last-minute planning, packing and all of the dread that goes along with traveling with a one-year-old during the Holidays. :-P (!)

I wish you all a wonderful, fun -filled Christmas!!!

BTW - The cute ornament at the top of this posting is a gift from my friend and fellow Etsian at Gemmielou. Thanks Gemmie!

Arggh!

So last night I sat down to crochet a little peppermint-striped Holiday monkey (in the shop today). Once I saw how the wide red and white stripes looked I thought.. "hmm,... sailor monkey?..." and then, of course, he just had to have an eyepatch! ;P

If you have my monkey + bear crochet pattern and you want to make a pirate version (and who wouldn't?), here's what I did:

Crocheted eyepatch to fit Lil' Monkey or Bitty Bear:
Using 3.50mm hook, with black yarn, chain 4
Row 1: Starting in 2nd ch from hook, sc 3 across
Row 2: Turn, skip first st, sc in next 2 sts
Row 3: Turn, skip first st, sc in next st. Bind off, leaving a length of yarn for sewing eypatch onto face.

Sew on eyepatch at the point in the pattern when you are sewing/embroidering the rest of the face/features.

Pirate monkey! :-)

Cuppy Cakes!

With a one-year-old, my husband and I are finding that everything we say lately ends in a "y" or "ie" (doggie, birdie, fishy, blankie...etc.) hence the term "cuppy cakes"... It just sounds CUTE doesn't it? :)

And they ARE (cute, that is)! This is a little wool cupcake ornament I made as a thank-you gift for my neighbors.

If you do a Google search for "crochet cupcake pattern" you'll find quite a few different patterns. For mine, I just used the same basic formula that I came up with for the little gingerbread house and added frosting instead of a roof.
I used a 3.50mm hook and only increased rounds to a max of 30 stitches for the base and the frosting. You could probably do the same with any of the free cupcake patterns out there to make a mini ornament size like mine. :-)

Hope you're all having a great week!

Nothing much new...

Another busy weekend!

I don't have much to report today, 'cept that Kai is getting sick and I'm trying not to. :-(

Sorry for being so boring...I'm hoping to have something more to share by mid week!