Corner to Corner Washcloth

This weekend involved some craziness with my husband's work schedule so last night I wanted to relax and just crochet something easy like a washcloth.  I decided to follow the same technique as my Corner to Corner Afghan .  Now, you would think a pattern that I completed not so long ago would still be fresh in my mind but it still took me a good 20 minutes to get started.  I'm going to blame the lack of sleep on that.  But once I got going it was easy as pie. I don't remember the exact name of the color since I threw away the label but it's obviously yellow and is from one of Bernat's 14 ounce cotton skeins.  Thank you Joann's for having a good sale on those awhile back because I sure stocked up.

Beginning of the Herringbone Afghan

I decided to start another afghan yesterday because our spare bedroom is overflowing with my recent yarn purchases from Joanns.  This is starting to tick off my husband because he likes to store most of his military items in that room as well.  He has more of a tolerance for completed crochet items rather than boxes of unused yarn.  So I went searching for a new afghan pattern.

I've mentioned before that I like to try something new when I make an item.  The pattern for the Herringbone Afghan uses the double treble stitch which I had never used before.  I also have to make double crochet stitches either behind or in front of the double treble.  It's slightly awkward but I'm getting the hang of it.  I don't have to do this for the whole afghan, just the sections where I'm using Red Heart Super Saver in Aran.  The sections using RHSS Soft Navy are half double crochet in the back loop. 

I'm not sure when this will be finished since I'm already freaking out that I won't have enough of the Soft Navy color.  I have the suggested amount but I have a feeling it's going to be close. If I do run out of yarn, I will just have to put off ordering until after we move.  Hopefully we will find out some more info soon.

May Charity CAL

Here's what I've been working on for the May Charity CAL over at Crochetville.  These hats will eventually be donated to Bridge and Beyond.  I'm getting closer to my goal of 100 hats donated this year.  Even though I have made 3 yarn purchases at Joanns this year, I still don't think I will have enough yarn to finish my goal unless I place another order.  I almost have another box to ship off to Bridge and Beyond and after I count all those hats I'll have a better idea of how many hats I still need to make.  So far I've been able to make 4 hats out of each Caron One Pounder skein.  .

More Yarn!!!!

I received order #2 from Joanns today.  I bought 2 Caron One Pounders in Black and one skein each in White, Scarlet, Rose, Country Rose, and Soft Sage.  I also decided to try Red Heart's With Love yarn in Lettuce since it was on sale and I've never worked with it before.  Most of these will be used towards making hats for the Bridge and Beyond.  Not sure what I will do with what is left over but I'm not complaining because at least my acrylic yarn stash is growing again.

Favorite Hat Pattern

I've been working on hats for the Bridge and Beyond this past week.  These 11 hats are a step in the right direction of reaching my goal of 100 hats donated this year.  I've been using the Total Fpdc Hat pattern lately because it makes a pretty thick and warm hat.  All of these hats were used with the Caron One Pounder yarn that I received in my Joanns order.

Good things come to those that wait

My yarn order from Joanns finally arrived.  They had a sale on One Pounders for $6.99 each.  I have to say I miss the days when I could go to Michaels and use a 40 or 50% off coupon and get one for under $5.  However, since this yarn is regularly $8.99, I can't complain too much.  I ordered 2 skeins of Kelly Green, and 1 skein each of Cape Cod Blue, Deep Violet, Espresso, Nutmeg, and Ocean.  I will be using these skeins to make hats and maybe a few scarfs for the Bridge and Beyond.  I still am hoping I can reach my goal of 100 hats donated this year. 

My yarn is almost here!

I checked the status of my package from JoAnns yesterday and it looks like it might arrive this week.  I took for granted being able to go to Michael's or Hobby Lobby whenever I wanted before I moved to Germany.  Oddly enough there was a JoAnns in my hometown also but I never shopped there.  Other than occasional purchases of cotton yarn from some local German stores, I've depended on Joanns online for all my yarn purchases  I only wish that they were more like Amazon where my packages usually get here within a week.  Waiting around for a month or two is slightly ridiculous.

Here are some potholders I have been working on this past week.  They were both made with Bernat Handicrafter yarn.

And here are some washcloths I made with the same yarn that will be donated to Bridge and Beyond

I finally went to see the tulips!

As I mentioned before, I spent 4 days in Amsterdam with one of my good friends.  One of the days we took a day tour to the famous Keukenhof Gardens.  Seven million flower bulbs are planted in the park each year.

Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate with us so it was cold and rainy most of the day.  Overall, we were glad we did the tour.  According to our guide this place has been the site of the most photos taken in the world.  Don't know if that is true or not but according to my camera I definitely took more photos here than anywhere else in Amsterdam.

All of the pretty flower colors has me anxious to finally receive my yarn order from Joanns.  The navy blue skeins that I have been working on just aren't cutting it anymore.  But since my acrylic yarn stash is pretty low, I don't really have a choice so I will keep on plugging away with what I have left. 

Boxed and ready to go

Finally got around to packing a box full of items to send to the Bridge and Beyond charity.


4 matching hat and scarf sets:

2 scarves and 7 hats (There's a red hat at the top that you can barely see peeking through.  My photography skills leave a lot to be desired.)

And 10 washcloths:

So if I counted right that is 6 scarves, 11 hats and 10 washcloths packed and ready to go.  All of the scarves and most of the hats were made with Red Heart Super Saver.  I used Caron One Pounders for a few of the hats.  The washcloths were made with Bernat Handicrafter Cotton.  Joann's had a sale a few months back and I got 14 oz skeins for $4.99.  I wish I would have bought more since that was such an awesome deal.

2012 Goal

I have decided to set a goal for myself and will attempt to make and send 100 hats to charity this year.  I already have a decent stockpile that I am waiting to send next week.  And yes, technically some of the hats were made last year but either way 100 heads will be warmer and that's what counts.

Now I am patiently waiting for my shipment from Joann's to arrive here.  That's is one of the bad things of living on an Army base in Germany, having to wait at least a month for your yarn shipment.  There are yarn shops here in town but I really do like the affordability of Red Heart and Caron yarns so I buy the majority of my yarn online from the States.  Unfortunately, it looks like I will have to continue to do this when we get to Hawaii because it doesn't look like there's going to be a lot of yarn stores on the island.  Oh well, I guess I will just have to jump on the online sales and buy enough to keep me occupied.