Branded!

I haven't been posting or listing lately because i've been consumed with getting my brand together.
(I'm sure you noticed the new look of this blog, I've also tied it into my Artfire studio as well as my Etsy shop Banner. I know that simply changing colors doesn't equal a brand, but I think that these are some nice little steps to get me on my way. I'm hoping that this winter, I'll make enough sales to be able to purchase some custom stickers which will be added to my packaging. I also plan to send all orders out with my shop's colors used for packaging, too.
It's gettin serious! (FINALLY, right?)

I figured that since I already have 100+ items available, taking time to do this wouldn't hurt too much. I've been working on some new things to list while I've been working on this branding thing- they're not listed yet, but check em out--

I had a lot of fun making these hair clips. I think I've been working on them for a whole week or so. But that's because I've been trying to get the part that you don't see here just right. The bows are attached to small, rectangular hair clips which I've covered in a coordinating fabric.
I ordered lots of little clips and still have even more ribbon left, so you'll be seeing a greater variety of these in the future.

The yarn I used for this black and white set is called zebra. I originally got it to use in my favorite bag inspired bag, but since it didn't look like that would ever come along, and because the yarn was so soft, (and a nice break from using cotton), i decided that a hat would be a great little side project. The edge has a decorative finish that will also help it from stretching too much- unless your head is totally huge =-)

My last little FO I have to show is a black clothes pin bag which has a red and a beige button on it. I think it will be my last of the season.
It's a bit smaller than the other 2 I've made, but I'm sure that it will be able to hold the same amount of pins.
It's the perfect thing to help you go green. Let's use all this free wind and sunshine along with this nifty clothes pin bag to dry our clothes rather than those power pulling dryers, eh?

Broken Hooks, Crochet Flowers and Granny Daughters

A long time ago- perhaps more than a year, I bought a size c Crochet Lite hook from Michael's. I think the only reason I got it was because it was on sale, so I had not used it until recently. ( Its design doesn't fit well with the way I usually crochet)

But when I did decide to finally use it, it broke after a few minutes! I guess I should have been a little cautious of the small size and clear plastic, but when I realized that I could crochet in the dark with that thing- it was on!
It's not TOTALLY broken, but I could just bend it back and snap it off right where the one part starts getting narrow again.

I'm kind of disappointed, but what can I say- there are other hooks in the sea.

In other news...
I've been working on this pair of clips for about 4 days now. I'm wanting to cover some toddler clips and place the bows in the center, as I did with my 4th of July Clips, but I didn't consider the fact that the fabric that I'll be using to cover the clips is way lighter than the denim I used on the others. So, gluing won't really work as it kind of darkens the fabric and makes it look all yucky.

I grabbed the color scheme from a popular kid's clothing website. There are quite a few cute tops for toddlers which include purple, pink, and white along with other colors.

The colors are a bit off here

I have some polka dotted (along with a lot of other cute girly) fabrics that I purchased in a pack of remnants from the lovely ladies of bstep401 on Etsy.

Rather than struggling to find a way to get the regular, triangular shaped hair clips into a cover that still looks decent, I ordered some rectangular ones which will hopefully be easier and quicker.

Along with that, the crochet group I'm a member of, C4L has started a monthly challenge and this week's theme is Granny Squares or Motifs.
We are supposed to crochet anything that uses squares or motifs and requires some assembly.

I've decided to go with using a bunch of Granny Daughters (about 46) and assembling them into a shoulder bag.

Because this is still my favorite bag ever, and I wanted to make something fashioned after it, I decided to take the challenge to create something using the bright pink and blue yarn I for this purpose. I also had some zebra yarn(to use for the strap), but used it up on a hat and scarf set.

With only12 squares made so far, I still have a long way to go, and need it to be done by the end of this month, but I'm sure I can and will do it. I can't wait to have something to show for the idea finally!

Red, White, and Blue Toddler Hair Bows

Hey!

I've added a couple new hair bows to my shop and studio. They're cute and toddler hair friendly. And, rather than placing the bow on the end of a hair clip, as would be done normally, I've covered a 1.25 inch hair clip in a denim fabric and placed the bow in the center.


It's awesome for placing at the base of ponytails, or, because they're sold separately, you could place one to the side to keep those fluffy curls out of her face.

There are 2 available of each.

Something new! I'm excited about this one

Not too long ago, i splurged on some pretty bright roving from TheRainbowRoom on etsy.
(the colors are amazing- as vivid as pictured)

My vision for this roving was to spin it into color combinations for flower hair clips.

Then i wanted to needle felt it, and well- that didn't go too well. It seems like the easist craft in the world to do, but for some reason, it wasn't coming together for me.

Long story short-
I'm experimenting with making my own felt sheets to be formed into flowers for clips and pins.

here's what i've got so far.originally, the whole thing was going to be this royal blue with yellow marbling, but it seemed a bit too dark for me.
wanting more contrast, i thought i'd add a bit of shimmer to accent the yellow parts buuuuut- that didn't go too well either.

so, i've decided to add solid yellow petals to the back- can't wait til it's finished.

the combinations of shape and color are innumerable! way exciting!

i'm hoping that this whole felting thing will evolve lanee's crochet into a fiber art shop rather than just crochet.

When i figure out how to form and stiffen my felts- o0o0o0oh, ya'll better watch out! ☺

New flower hair pin

I wanted to pop in and show you this real quick.
I worked it up last night before i drifted off to sleep, and i think it's just awesome!


I made it using yarn that i spun- ( my first official spinning)

It's 100% silk, fuchsia and cool blue and is only $12.00 in my etsy shop =-)

It's kind of inspiring...

A while ago, I blogged about some photography on etsy that i found myself relating to.
This is that post, only instead of being about Emerald Blue Studio, it's about BonnieBoden's Etsy Shop.
Bonnie is in the process of transitioning from one shop to another- while she's still offering the lovely photos I've featured here and more, I just thought it would be nice to give an update to let you all know that's she's still around- (in case you went clicking the old post)


In a huge cyberspace, i've been feeling a lot like the little, not yet blossomed mums. This picture kind of reminds me of Alice in Wonderland- when she was going through the garden and all that



These photos, which i found in BonieBoden's Etsy shop made me feel like they knew what i was going through.

Some times, new freind ships are so hard to forge for some one like me.
(that is a - give me my yarn and cup of tea, perhaps some good music or maybe an old show and i'm GOOD!- type of girl)

Perhaps with a bit of effort and an extended hand, I'll be on my way to being a big beautiful Mum.
Until then, I'll be blogging and bookmarking, chattin and tweeting and trying to produce the best that i can.

Fuzzy Cream Flower Hair Clips

Trying to keep up my momentum, I re-listed this fuzzy cream flower hair clip(there are 2) last night.

While i love this yarn, i only had a little bit of it, so it was hard deciding what it would be good for.

It's an acrylic,nylon,mohair blend, so finding something to make that didn't need to be laundered was great.

I really enjoyed making these clips.  There's something about these little flowers that make my hands move like rockets when i'm crocheting them.  (perhaps because they're cute and simple, and i just can't wait to get on to the next).

They are priced at $6 with free shipping and can be found in my Lanee's Crochet artfire studio.

I never did show the finished product, huh?

Looks like i forgot to post the finished afghan pic here.
TA DAA!

I'm happy with the way it came out. my mom loves it, too!