Now on Etsy: The Potbelly Farm Animals Pattern!

At long last--and after way-too-many trials and errors--I'm pleased to announce that I've finally launched my Amigurumi Potbelly Farm Animals Pattern set. You'll find it at my Etsy site.

There's a piggy:

A rooster:

A duckie:

. . . and a bunny:

They all build off of one potbellied body structure. Oh, they bring such plushie goodness to the world!

Next up: potbelly zoo animals!

Hook on!

Christina

Yes, We Have No Swine Flu Here!

Sometimes a coincidence can be so serendipitous that the event becomes just downright eerie. How is it that I've been finalizing a pig pattern right at the exact same time that the swine flu blows across the globe?

Recently, I've been struggling to rediscover a potbelly amigurumi shape that I used last spring to create some Easter duckies. After discussing this struggle (and my lament for not jotting down the pattern at the time) in a previous post, I went forward and created two more morbidly obese plushies before, finally, I got the "stitch mix" just right!

First, the last of the fatty failures (that are--c'mon, admit it--exceptionally cute).

There's Eddie:

And Mucho:

But then it happened. Things went right. Now I have a four-animal pattern set, all based on the "potbelly" body shape:

While I've already taught a class using this pattern, I'm doing one final proofread before I post the pattern up on Etsy.

Someone in my knitting group asked me how I proofread a pattern. Great question! For me, I proof each pattern by suspending my intuition and using my pattern as if I were reviewing the instructions for the first time.

So far, so good.

Here are the original images of the duck I created while writing the pattern:

. . . and here's the test plushie (using a much thinner yarn and one hook size smaller):

Here are the original images of the rooster I created while writing the pattern:

. . . and here's the test plushie:

Here's the original piggy:

. . . and here's the test plushie (named HiNi, after the H1N1 virus. Sorry, I couldn't resist!):

Now, all that remains are a few edits to the current pattern and a test plushie of the bunny pattern.

Once the pattern's ready, I'll be sure to make the announcement!

. . . ah, now, hopefully, those amigurumi piggies I just created can serve as talismen that will ward off the flu virus! :)

Happy Hooking!

Christina

Sixty-Six Percent

Six down, three to go! My DePaul Blue Demon "Good Eggs" are settling into their new digs quite well. So far, they declared today DGEAD--Demon Good Egg Awareness Day--and paraded across my couch.

This evening, they decided they'd make a great cheerleading squad, and they tried their "hand" (well, figuratively, since they don't have hands) at getting into pyramid formation.

Overall, these little demons are quite cute and sweet. Perhaps I'm procrastinating completing their army because I'll be quite sad to see them go.

Dekvenga Made Me Do It, But My Couch Says It All

Dekvenga, My Invisible Friend, Lounging on That Which Contains My Darkest Secrets

My invisible friend, Dekvenga (Deck-venge-uhh), is driving me crazy. She's served as my council since I was nine years old, and rarely has she ever steered me in the wrong direction. She's been with me through my crushes on Han Solo (Star Wars) and Simon LeBon (Duran Duran), and she even endured graduate school and the dozens of workshops where I eventually churned out an over-intellectualized-now-permanently-shelved novel. (And she's watched me move through all these phases without even one eyeroll. Then again, she is invisible, so who can say?) Dekvenga knows how I work and what works for me; however, when she thinks she knows what I "should" do but feels that I'm moving too slowly, she can get downright annoying.

This blog is partly the result of one of those things.

I've wanted "to blog" for about a year now, and I made the mistake of mentioning this notion to Dekvenga back when "the blog" was merely a germ within my imagination. She jumped all over the idea and then bit into it and asked, "when?" with such frequency that I began to wonder whether or not she had a bit of a terrier in her.

I might live in Chicago and have a splash of hot pink in my hair, but I don't really consider myself cosmopolitan. Most of my leisure time (r)evolves around yarn. . . and it takes a heap of talent to turn yarn into something glamourous and gossip worthy.

Then I thought about the couch I bought earlier this year--and I realized it was time to unleash a deep, dark secret: I didn't buy the couch just because it's pretty. . . I bought it because of what it might hide.

Beneath that pretty green-blue pool of plump cushions is a wonderful big "bonus:" space.

Regard! Here's the dirty little secret under my couch cushions:

That's right: my couch holds most of my yarn stash.

Under each cushion (including those on the two ottomans) is a deep, sealed-bottom bin where I keep my stash well-organized and clean.

I have heaps of chunky, chenille and boucle (left)

. . . and more lash and novelty yarns (right) than many craft stores carry.

But wait, there's more:



Despite all my couch's storage space, I still need to stash under my bed and in the one built-in bookcase in my teeny-tiny studio apartment.

Here (left), you'll find all my wool, acrylic and scrap yarns. The tins and bins on the top shelf hold notions, various knitting needles, pom pon makers and all the safety eyes and noses for my amigurumi creations.

. . . and, in case you were wondering, yes, those four conical things atop the case are giant bobbins of chenille weaving yarns that I use to make plushies.

Because I want to keep all my yarns clean and untangled, I've become "basket crazy." There might be a method to my madness, but, after all is said and done, it is the madness that feeds my stash.

I have so many unfinished projects (promised to many near and dear friends) and Works In Progress (WIPs) that I could nearly weep:

A Family Photo: all My WIPs in One Location

The Skull Scarf I Promised (and continue to promise) Bob, My Ex--

I Started This Before He Became My Ex

So, what does all this mean?

While sitting and crocheting on my couch with Dekvenga this past week (as we chatted yet again about erecting a blog), I began to ponder what my stash might look like in another five years. I freaked, and then I realized that I am the only one who controls my stash's destiny. Before I begin to bust my stash by becoming a yarnifactor (i.e., one person's overflowing yarn bins is another yarn-lover's new treasure), I want to try and work through all those skeins I adopted and brought into my home.

This blog will document my progress (and, likely, stumbles) as I bust my ass to get through my stash. I will not rush, and I will not churn out crap just so say that I've knocked out another skein.

Where will I begin? Right here, with a few of my current WIPS:

The First WIPs to Watch

Curious to know what these things are or what they might become? If you answered, "yes" (and I hope you did), then subscribe to my site--or, at least, stop by every so often--and see what I'm pulling off my hook and needles.

Also, here's another reason to stay tuned: I hope to post a free pattern every so often!

Okay, I need to put away my stash and get cracking! Wish me luck!

In Yarny Goodness,
Christina