December Projects Part 2: The Crazypatterns Handicraft Group

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January Projects: The Crazypatterns Handicraft Group 2020 (No Advertising)


Dear users, dear authors,
here is part 2 of the December projects.

You can read part 1 there:
December Projects: The Crazypatterns Handicraft Group (No Advertising )

Please remember that there will be no UFO week / awards ceremony in December because of the holidays. The next UFO week will be at the end of January 2020.

Since we’ve been visiting the Frankfurt Zoo more often lately, here’s a photo of two pink pelicans:

Marion, your angel looks great. It’s sure to bring a lot of joy when it arrives.

We’re having spring-like weather here today with sunshine, and we’re going to take advantage of it for a walk right away.
I wish you all here a wonderful day!

Best wishes, Monika

I crocheted this guy here... but I’m not sure if he’s good enough to offer a pattern for—there are just soooo many amazing crocheters out there... I’d love to hear your thoughts. Best regards, Anja

Sorry, I can’t get the pictures positioned and rotated correctly on my phone.

Thanks, Monika.
I’ve already started the second one.
It was another one of those spur-of-the-moment ideas to quickly crochet some little gifts for Christmas after all.
I also managed to make these two from the blog here.

Anja, I think your troll (?) turned out really well; it has something special! It’s a truly unique character, I like it!

In the meantime, I’ve crocheted a few animals, but I still need to write the patterns for them. I’ll probably do that between Christmas and New Year’s.

My crochet Advent calendar—it’s a 10-point star blanket—is slowly getting finished. Today or tomorrow I will have crocheted the whole Bobbel. I’ll show you the finished product in the next few days. I think it turned out very beautiful, and this year it will be used as a blanket under my Christmas tree. But I probably won’t become a Bobbel fan. Somehow I don’t really get along with the plied yarn. Something always gets caught in it now and then. I think I’ll stick with twisted yarn. There are also great yarns with color gradients, and I usually like the transition better.

I’ve neglected my embroidery picture a lot lately. It has hardly grown in December. But the Christmas preparations were simply more important. And besides, the light was often too poor for embroidering. Well, it’s a long-term project anyway. I think I’ll have more time for it again starting at the end of December.

If only it weren’t for all the many new ideas in my head that absolutely want to be brought to life too....

Thanks, Ruth, I’m really glad to hear that!

Yes, I know those unplied Bobbels too. I really can’t crochet properly with them, so now I only use twisted Bobbels. They’re a bit more expensive, but there’s a great selection there too.
I’m already looking forward to your Advent calendar!

I’ve just finished my new colorful crochet shawl, but I still haven’t quite finished the pattern yet... it’ll be coming in the next few days.

Things aren’t going particularly well for me right now: I’m knitting some balls (following patterns by Arne and Carlos) and crocheting a few small items (the tail stars by elke-eder), but my Christmas spirit took a serious hit on Monday because we had to put our Minka, our 13 1/2-year-old tabby cat, to sleep. We miss her so much; we keep looking at the door to see if she’s sitting there, begging to be let in.

Wollbärli, I’m so sorry to hear that! I totally understand—we have three cats and a dog, too. All the best to you!

Wollbärli, I’m so sorry to hear that. It’s hard to let someone go after such a long time. It hurts so much. 

Anja and Petra: Thank you for your sympathy! It’ll probably take a while for us to get used to the fact that no one is rubbing against our legs anymore!

Christina, that’s really sad, and I completely understand how much you miss your furry friend. Maybe a new cat will find its way to you. I wish that for you with all my heart.

Many years ago, we had to put our budgie to sleep, and I grieved for a very long time.

I’m really sorry about that, Christina. You just can’t help but grow attached to a little creature like that.

Today I finished my star blanket from my yarn Advent calendar. I actually thought I’d be working on it until December 23, but that’s all the better—this way I won’t be rushing at the last minute. Plus, I’d like to stretch it out a bit more. It’s going to serve as a tree blanket this year.

I’ve now finished a little gift to bring along for New Year’s Eve 

I got stuck on the envelope. My first thought was to crochet it, then I thought I’d rather just sew it quickly. But somehow I’ve got a really bad cold again and haven’t had the strength or desire to sew over the last few days. There’s still plenty of time until Christmas Eve  :-))

Despite the rainy weather, we visited the Winter Lights at the Palmengarten—here are a few impressions from the event:





@CreatOwl that must have been great. We went to Christmas Garden in Stuttgart last year. Since I enjoy photography, it was very impressive for me.



@Arni: your rocket turned out so cute. A great idea

I tried making my first gloves. But what can I say—I paid attention and kept trying them on. I crocheted both at the same time, and yet in the end they turned out to be two left-hand gloves. At some point I must have changed direction at the thumb. When both were finished and I was proud as punch, I noticed it. But never mind, I’ll wear them with pride.



Then I also crocheted some soap pouches as small Christmas gifts. 



Wishing you all a lovely 4th Sunday of Advent. I’m now trying to create a Christmas tree bouquet from our felled tree (yesterday’s project by all the men in the family), because it’s far too big to use as a Christmas tree this year.

Visiting the Winter Lights is slowly becoming a tradition for us, Petra.
This was our third year in a row there.

Have fun creating your Christmas tree bouquet.

Wishing everyone a wonderful 4th Sunday of Advent :)

Ruth, your blanket from the Advent calendar turned out really nice—great colors.

Sandra, your New Year’s Eve project is a real showstopper. I hope you get well soon so you’ll be back on your feet by Christmas!

Marlene, your photos are beautiful.

Petra, the soap pouches look great, and I really like your gloves, too. With gloves that have fingers, it’s not as noticeable if both are the same.

I’ve also finished something else.
The second angel and little snowflakes.   

Yay, my Roland is finally finished, too.

Wow, you’ve all conjured up some beautiful things again. I’m away for just a few days, and things are already in full swing. I especially like the New Year’s Eve firecracker. Sandra, that’s a great idea. It looks cute. I hope you get well soon and are back on your feet for Christmas. It’s probably been a bit much for you lately… especially when I think of Anton. Take some time to rest—you definitely need it.

Marion, your moose must have really wanted to celebrate Christmas with you guys. It turned out great. And your little crochet projects, too.

Petra, your gloves and soap pouches look fantastic as well. Practical items are always a hit. With gloves, the thumb isn’t that important. These two look as if they could be worn on either hand.

Ruth, your star blanket is great, too. It’s actually too nice to put the tree on top of it. It would make a lovely doily.

Marlene, thanks for the impressive photos. Wow!

With my sweater, I’ve now finished the back all the way to the top. It’s on hold for now.

But I’ve finished the two slippers for Linja, with leather soles on the bottom. After the second round of felting, they fit perfectly now.

Using a different pattern, I just whipped up some more slippers in a flash with some beautiful, colorful yarn I traded for. They’re in the washing machine right now. And when they come out, hopefully they’ll fit Juna next year when she starts walking. I’ll add leather soles to those, too.

Now I’m knitting another pair out of purple yarn using the same simple pattern. Those will go in the washing machine later, too. They’ll be slippers that will fit Linja by the end of next year—the next size up.

Photos will follow later...

I wish you all a wonderful 4th Sunday of Advent!

Best, Monika

A lot has really happened here.

Monika: yes, I'm afraid it was all too much. But I'm not stressed about Christmas. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we'll be at my mother-in-law's, and on Boxing Day I'm working. Well, that'll probably be a bit stressful. We'll see.

Marion: Roland looks great. How big is he? He looks huge.
I also think the little angels and snowflakes are great.

Marlene: it's really nice that you share your beautiful photos with us. Thanks

Petra: your gloves look good, and the fact that they are two left ones makes them special. :-)
Here's a silly question: what do you need soap bags for? They look nice, but I don't understand the point, or are they used as gift wrapping?

Ruth: So I have to agree with Monika, the blanket is far too beautiful to put under the Christmas tree.

So. The first gift wrapping for theater tickets is finished. It's for my parents. I'm not 100% satisfied. But it's okay.


I really need one for my husband too. But he wouldn't like one like this at all.

So I do have to sew after all.

You’re all putting in a great final push! Some really beautiful pieces have been created.
Don’t stress too much during these last few days so you can enjoy the holidays too!

I put up my Christmas tree today. My star blanket has a diameter of 110 cm, and I don’t have a tree that big. So there’s still plenty peeking out from underneath it.

Christina, that’s not good news—I feel for you.

Other than that, there are so many great new creations here again, and they’re all so unique and different.
Marion, I especially like Roland.

By the way, I’ve been busy too—I’ve finally finished the Emma for my mother-in-law… I really don’t want to give it away; the yarn she picked out is just wonderful.




Of course, I had to crochet something for my father-in-law, too.
He has bird feeders all over the garden, so now he’ll get one that’s a little different.




I’ve also finished a few embroidery hoops—those are for my siblings. I hope they like them.




We also made some beer liqueur and onion-tomato jam as little gifts—both turned out really delicious.




I also crocheted something for myself—this light-up hat.

Other than that, we went to a few Christmas markets and enjoyed some tasty treats—and the hat came in handy.





Probably the quirkiest event here in our area is the Cranger Christmas Magic, which is actually a winter fair. We checked that out, too.




There, Santa flies over the grounds with his reindeer and tells a little story from high up in the air—we thought it was quite nicely done.



I also got a new dress that my sweetheart sewed for me.... he really enjoys sewing




I finally finished my felted hat, too; it took four washes before it was properly felted… I’d almost given up on it. That felting wool from a discount store really annoyed me.

I wish you all a stress-free “final push” and a wonderful Christmas.

Sandra, I think your bag for the theater tickets is great—it’s sure to go over well. Your husband will probably indeed prefer sewn gift wrapping.

Claudia, you’ve been super productive. Everything is just wonderful! The fact that your husband sewed a dress for you—wow! By the way, it really suits you.

Sandra, that gift wrapping looks really pretty.
My Roland is really big—he’s almost 80 cm tall. That’s exactly what I liked about him; he’s impossible to miss as a decoration.

Claudia, you’ve been so creative again, and you’ve made such a great man.

I wish you all a lovely, relaxing, and peaceful Christmas, but I’m also already looking forward to seeing your new creations.

Claudia, you’ve been super hard at work, and so has your husband :)
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. My shawl is finally finished. (See above) My neighbor gave me two skeins of colorful cake yarn—even though I was trying to use up my stash. I was still happy to receive them, though :)

Your shawl is beautiful. It must have been a lot of fun to knit it.

Mel, your shawl turned out really beautiful.

Today I started a new project. I’m not sure yet what it will look like when it’s finished. It’s going to be a pillow made from leftover yarn in various colors. This is the beginning.

Thanks, Petra and Marion! It was really a lot of fun. Since I like the yarn so much, I knitted another baby hat today. Tomorrow I’ll make a little scarf and some booties from the same yarn. I think it’s perfect for babies :)
Marion, the start of your pillow already looks very promising!

Mel, you’ve been busy again. Yeah, I’d like that yarn, too. The shawl looks great! It’s nice to see you more active here again. :)

Marion, that looks like a Tunisian crochet pillow. It’ll definitely be very pretty when it’s finished.

I’ll show you a project here that I’ve been knitting for myself over the last few days—slippers made from thick wool. But I didn’t felt them this time. I knitted them using a pattern for cabin slippers by babka, which I modified slightly. What I really like about them is that I only needed a little bit of yarn, and they were quick and easy to make. The part that took the longest was the leather sole. For that, I used Schnuckelina’s pattern. The result turned out really great. Tonight I sewed the leather soles onto the bottom. I’ll take a photo of the final result tomorrow in daylight.

This is what they looked like without the leather sole. I stretched them to fit my foot size while sewing them on. It worked out great.



Using this pattern, I’ve now also knitted some slippers for Juna, though I felted these ones. They’ve already gone through two cycles in the washing machine, and there’s a third cycle to go. After that, I’ll sew leather soles onto them as well. Here’s what they look like now:

Yes, Monika, I’m on vacation right now, so I can stop by more often :)
Your shoes look really cozy. I think I’d have a really hard time sewing on a leather sole.

Monika, your shoes are very pretty.

My pillow has already gotten a bit bigger.

Wow, Marion, you’ve been really busy! It looks great already! I’ve also knitted a baby scarf to match the hat. But that was my last project of the year. 

Thanks, Mel and Marion! :)

Marion, your pillow looks really interesting. That’s a great idea for using up leftover yarn.

Mel, your hat and scarf look great. Very simple to knit but with a fantastic effect. It doesn’t always have to be complicated.

My slippers are finished now—the sole is attached. Here’s what they look like now:



Now I’ve already started on more footwear—baby booties for Juna. I’ll show them to you when I’m done. After that, I’ll make some more little slippers for Juna. Even after felting them three times, the finished ones didn’t turn out as small as I’d actually wanted. Now I’m making an even smaller size. I’ll probably use thinner yarn for this tiny size. She won’t need the shoes until next fall anyway.

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January Projects: The Crazypatterns Crafting Group 2020 (No Advertising)