Review: Simple Round Back Newborn Baby & Cocoon

I had a request for a baby bonnet and cocoon recently. After considering a lot of free patterns on ravelry, my customer chose the "Simple Sound Back Newborn Bonnet" by Aimee Collins. It's a darling pattern, simple, unisex, and easy.

All the Christmas Projects

I don't even know how to coherently relate each item to the next. We have from penguins to ballet slippers, I've been busy making them all!

Crocheting gifts and working on patterns!

I'm in progress with a new aspect of crochet--writing patterns. I've been amazed at how much harder it is to write down and explain a pattern than to just go go go and make something. I hope to have a Valentine's themed amigurumi up by next week, and then a cute spring critter after that. That Valentine's one is KILLING me though--I have three prototypes that are looking at me sadly from my crochet bag with wonky parts and pieces. But I'll keep trying, because I sketched it up and thought it was cute :)

Here are some projects I finished:

Another Toadette! My sister asked me to make her one for her birthday. I think it turned out alright, but now that I've seen Toad's Treasure Tracker, I wish I had made her in that cute khaki outfit! Her feet have been weighted so that she can stand on her own.

A friend of mine had a cute, chubby baby in the fall and I made him a hat and shoes. Unfortunately, I gave it so late I don't think he could wear it... Oh well, it's the thought that counts! I also used a "crab stitch" for the finish. I like it, but it took me forever to figure it out!

Alright, alright, those Valentine headbands DO come in traditional colors, too.
And I forgot to post this proof that Emmy WILL wear some things I crochet!! Don't mind that I'm holding her hand away from pulling it off. :)

Back to the drawing board.

Crochet Your Costume - Roman Helmet

I regularly harass my friends with hat-wearing babies for something I can make them. Seriously, it fuels some deep need in me to frequently make and give away crocheted baby items just so I can feel fulfilled, rather than have it lay discarded in the closet by my daughter. So when one of my college besties mentioned their little boy was going to be a Roman soldier for Halloween, I had to leap at the opportunity. 

There's a rumor in St. Petersburg

Let me tell you, this blogging thing is not as easy as some people make it look! My hat's off to them.
I've been working on this project for a long time now. It's a completely handmade, original pattern, custom commission for a Princess Anastasia doll that needed to be SPOT.ON. I wish I could share the story behind why this customer requested this doll, as it is very sweet and heartfelt, but in summary this is a doll that will be a family heirloom. No pressure or anything, right? (I may or may not have redone each part of the doll two or three times...)