What I've Been Doing...

Hello, Dear Bloggers...  Throughout the Christmas season I kept telling myself I would post something on my poor, neglected blog!  But with knitting/crocheting gifts, shopping, baking cookies, and finishing school, I haven't had a chance! 
A few Christmas presents I made I didn't get a chance to take a picture of, because as soon as they were off the needle, I wrapped them so I could check that off my list!  The presents that didn't get a picture were: four knitted scarves, and a pair of those warm crocheted slippers (see first blog post) for my mom, made out of pink and purple yarn, because she's quite sassy. 

Here's a pair of mittens I made for my brother's fiance.  I searched the internet for the longest time (about twenty minutes, but when you're itching to start a new project, that short time can feel like an eternity) for a plain and simple mitten pattern.  I could NOT find one!  So, I made my own...  I'll give the free pattern out eventually once I have more blog followers.  Yes, yes, I am holding my pattern ransom until I get more followers!  Also, the mittens are, in fact, purple... my devilish camera insists on morphing colors...

This purse in the above photo is another pattern I came up with that I will be holding for ransom ;).  After seeing this lady walking in the store a while ago who had this purse (well, pretty darn close to it), I HAD to have it!  I Google searched every possibly granny-square messenger bag word variation, but couldn't find anything close to it!  This one was a bit harder for me to come up with, as I'm a fairly new crocheter.  However, I like how it came out and I'm almost positive the pattern is error-free!  I ended up giving this to my younger sister for Christmas, as she loved it just as much as I did.  I plan on making myself one that's a bit bigger so I can fit all my stuff!
I think those are most of the projects I've made in the past few months.  If I find any stragglers that I forgot to mention, I'll be sure to post!

On a noncrafty related note, this is what happened over Christmas! 

My dad got my mom a puppy!  He's adorable!  Only three pounds!  His name is Oliver.. yes, Oliver.  The name fits him perfectly in an odd way.  My baby, Ginger, is completely irritated with the whole ordeal, and doesn't seem to realize why we're making such a fuss over him!  Needless to say, when we leave the house, we make sure Oliver is safe in a Ginger-proof room....
Happy crafting!

Crochet Me a Doll...Finish!

Every year for Christmas our family draws a name out of a hat and the name that you draw is the person you're supposed to make a special gift for.  Well, one year I made a doll for one of my sisters, another year I made another doll for my other sister, and this year I was lucky enough to pull my sister's name who hasn't gotten a homemade doll from me yet.  I only have three sisters, so this is the last doll I will be making.. well, for Christmas anyway ;).      I was browsing the internet and this is what I came across!  I was so excited to try out this pattern!  It was so easy to follow and I learned a few new stitches!  I had to make a few adjustments in the feet and hands, but otherwise, the pattern was lovely!  This is my finished doll:   

I'm quite surprised that I was able to complete this without my sister finding out... well, my basket fell over and an arm rolled out, but besides the suspicious look, I don't think it occurred to her that that arm was going to be part of her Christmas present *phew*! 
     It's chilly in New England today!  Off to make a cup of peppermint green tea (my favorite!) and pop in a movie.... and, of course, crochet.  But that goes without saying, doesn't it?

Snuggly Tootsies!

This is my very first blog post!  So please, bare with me...  I made this blog so I can share some of my knitting and crocheting experiences, as well as a bit about my life.  I'm a very seasoned reader of blogs, just not a writer.  I woke up the other morning with this idea of starting one of my own!  I'm not sure why this hasn't crossed my mind before... Well, here goes!
     When I was in the store a few weeks ago I heard CHRISTMAS music playing... I did the "uh-oh" look at my mom and knew I better get going on my Christmas presents.  So between school work, I've been very busy crocheting, which is a new found love of mine=].  Here's why I'm addicted to crocheting at the moment: it works up quicker than knitting, if you make a mistake it seems like they're all easily fixable, it's portable and if you're sitting next to someone, you're not constantly jabbing them with your needles!
   I found this fantastic tutorial and was able to make these without a problem!  When I called my mom over to show her the darling slipper pattern, I found that she printed the same tutorial earlier that morning! Ha!  I guess it is true; great minds think alike! ;)  Here's a picture of my finished pair:

 So first I would like to just say that no, there is no fire in the fireplace... but because I want my picture to be blogtastic, I took it in front of the fireplace anyway... +1blogging point for me, right!?  I also made the straps a bit too big, so I just twisted them.  Voila!  They fit perfectly!  Well, the oven just went off which means a deliciously warm lemon meringue pie just came out of the oven!  Mmm...