I just finished one of Pixie's Birthday gifts last night, a sack full of froggies!

I fell in love with some of the cute free Amigurumi toy patterns on the Lion Brand site, namely the frog. Of course they were all crocheted so I decided it was time to embrace the hook and give it a shot. I a am knitter by 'trade' and my crocheting has been limited to attaching a decorative edging to knit items. So this was my first fully crocheted project. The first frog turned out so cute that I decided to make a whole froggie family. I can't keep the older kiddos away from them... so I'm taking that as a good sign.

There's an old maxim...You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. I'd now like to start a new one...you can't make a drop dead gorgeous outfit out of a potato sack! When Michelle asked me to "cuten up" a couple of plain jumpers, I tried, I really tried! But the outcome was not one of my finest hours!

Couple of problems, really. First...fabric content. Both jumpers had obscene quantities of polyester. I'm just not a polyester kind of gal. I like working with natural fibers like cotton, wool, linen. Second, neither jumper fit the girls well. In the pictures, we slipped the jumpers over the girls' play clothes just to check for size. Fairy's fit fairly well, put Pixie's was...hmmm...let's just say she looked like an extra on the set of Annie! 

I actually liked the embellishments. Fairy's has a traditional Dresden Plate appliqued on her dress with an embroidered stem and curly leaves. Pixie's has a flower and leaves from felt, blanket stitched on, with a meandering embroidered stem. But the designs and jumpers just didn't play nicely together!

But, clothes are clothes, and the girls will wear the jumpers...perhaps not in public...but they will be used! And besides, Fairy and Pixie think they are beautiful! Yesterday Michelle mentioned how Pixie had a melt down when Michelle tried her dress on Fairy. So, big or not big, tacky or not tacky, the girls will wear their jumpers...proudly.  And, hey, they only cost $2.00 a piece!  

Note: Tutorial for the peasant skirt can be found HERE.

It seems like lately everything I make for Pixie turns out too big and ends up in Fairy's possesion. I think, in part, this is a fear of making something too small with no one else to hand it down to, but it also has a lot to do with funky pattern sizing (I swear I follow the directions).

This weekend Pixie was wearing her "cutened up" jumper (mentioned previously) and multiple people commented that it looked like a potato sack. I thought it was time to try it on Fairy. Oh, the tears. I was quite literally taking the shirt off her back! I must say it did in fact fit Fairy much better... and actually looked kind of cute on her (it did look like a potato sack on Pixie), but we quickly gave it back to Pixie. Poor girl.

So yesterday I was determined to make Pixie something, anything, cute that fit! I threw aside all patterns...figuring I couldn't do any worse winging it! I rumaged around and came up with some scrapes that matched an Elf Hat I've been knitting for her.

A Peasant Skirt seemed like a great idea and definitely something I could just make on the fly. I managed to whip one up during nap time. The girls were up at the end, eagarly awaiting the finished product.

It wasn't until later that I realised all the scraps I grabbed were left over from her baby blanket. It really was the perfect fit for Pixie!

I am working on typing up the pattern. Actually, I have it typed up... I just need to test it on a couple different sizes. Look for it shortly.

About this time each year, I begin to fill a basket with homemade Christmas gift items. While making them, I don't have a particular recipient in mind. They are usually things I can make in an evening or two, and ultimately they find their way into stockings or as a last minute gift for an unexpected visitor. There are hats and mittens, socks and small toys. I am always thrilled when I find a new gift basket contender. 

Last week I was checking out the brooklyntweed blog and came upon one of Jared's creations, a wonderfully shaped, quick knit cap. I'm in love with this pattern! I've already given a couple as gifts, but am starting to stockpile them. The hat's called Turn A Square and it is a totally fun design to knit...also pretty much a no brainer. After getting it started, I can easily let my thoughts run amuck! I would rate its difficulty at intermediate only because you need to use double pointed needles. I'm having fun dinking with colors and patterns. I will undoubtly play with the pattern a bit to scale down the size for my smallest gift receipents!

This weekend I'm going to help Tim's daughter learn to sew. She wants to make a messenger's bag. Ambitious lady!  Have a great weekend all!

A couple days ago Bug asked me for some fabric. His Lego Knights needed capes. So we went to the scrape pile and pulled out some natural muslin and he set to work dressing them up.

I love it when the kids come to me with their own craft in mind. He knew what he wanted and proceeded to spend the rest of the morning making capes for all of his knights. What is a Knight without a Cape and Sword?