It’s just easier with the iPhone. Bing. New e-mail. Mid-day inspiration while my children are fighting over light sabers in the backyard. What’s not to love?

Since I cleared my reader, I found a few projects I love that you might as well, so I’m dumping them here. Seriously, it’s my blog, I can do post what I like, even if it’s just for my own convenience. <wink>

First up, for those who love embroidery or want to learn. I firmly believe anyone can pick up this skill and should. Lots of tutorials online, lots of free patterns, lots of uses for this skill. On to the find…

From my internet friends over at Sibling Craftery, a quirky wedding present, embroidered tea-towels of LOVE.

There are three images in the FREE set, but the macaroni and cheese is my favorite. Click over to see ‘frosting on my cupcake’ and ‘cookie to my milk’. Who doesn’t love embroidered food with faces?

For those who crochet, check out these adorable and not too kitschy Fruity Trivets and Pot Holders from The Purl Bee.

I love that it’s the same pattern for all 3 fruit, and they give you the exact colors used on each. The photos are beautiful and easy to follow, especially the demonstration of how to create the seeds.

Make sure if you plan on making these you read the instructions carefully. To be practical and actually protect you from heat, the yarn is doubled and the pattern uses a size K crochet hook.

Please don’t forget your crafty internet etiquette. If you download or use these patterns, leave the creators some comment love and if they have Flickr groups, upload images of your finished project to their group. They are sharing their hard work for free, so it’s a nice way to say “Thanks”.

It’s only been within the last 12 months that I have truly begun to make meaningful friendships with Christian women locally, in real life. It has truly revolutionized my life. We have a need for friendships, women we can hug (sorry bloggers) and call or text when life gets sticky. You need that friend that will bring food, pick up your kids or hang out in your living room with your kids so you can have your first shower in 3 days. The problem is, in many places, especially larger cities with large churches, this isn’t always easy to find. We attend a large church & have morning Bible studies, so I frequently have to leave early to pick up my half-day kindergarteners.

For me, the change came when a group of divinely inspired ladies started a Bunco group. Sometimes we as women need an excuse, a reason, and more importantly a starting objective or common goal to give us reason to create friendships. I think TerryAnn understands this well. Rather than a traditional Bible study group, she proposes a knit or crochet (or both) group which also studies the Bible. Much like Bunco was for my group, needlework is the starting place for the Bible study. The accompanying discussion, prayer and sharing of life is what will weave bonds for life.

Now on to the knitty gritty of what you’ll find in the PDF Knit and Crochet Bible Study. For the purchase price of $27, you gain reprint rights for each member of your group. If you’ve priced study books lately, you’ll find this a real steal. Some studies are book and workbook combinations, with each member needing to purchase their own. I love that TerryAnn provides this at a reasonable price, especially considering how much work she’s put into it. With 6 members, it’s less than $5 each. Yet it’s also feasible for a single person (group leader or small church) to afford. The PDF file is a whopping 40 pages total. There are 10 lessons total, perfect for a weekly summer Bible study.

My favorite things about this study:

• Each lesson begins with scriptures printed at the top of the page in 4 different translations.
• While lesson focuses on Proverbs 31, study includes cross-references to other scriptures.
• Each lesson is 1-2 pages long, with a few questions at the end to facilitate discussions.
• It’s not homework intensive, which could exclude new members joining mid-study.
• You could choose to assign work a week in advance, or choose to hand out sheets each week as members arrive. While more time for meditation could enhance the group, if that’s intimidating for your members, it’s not necessary.
• Lesson is on one page, with questions on a separate page. This makes it easy to print and disperse as needed to fit the needs of your group.
• Uses PDF format which is easy to read for any user with free Adobe Reader download. Or, if you are like me, go paperless with Dropbox and an iPhone!
• Written by a woman, mother & crafter for women. TerryAnn addresses many of the mental and emotional issues such as inadequacy that women face in a very honest manner.
• Study begins by setting the tone and “rules” for the study. Many studies don’t address this and assume members all understand issues like gossip and keeping confidences within a group.

My only critical comment about this study is that at the time of my review (I received a preview copy) there was only one crochet pattern included. But, on the website there is a post entitled Where to find FREE Patterns. I’m sure this is because a blog post is much easier to update with new information than a PDF file.

Update: Terry confirmed that the final purchase copy does contain additional knit/crochet patterns!

I recently polled my Twitter followers about what are the best projects for beginner knit or crocheters. Two resounding answers came back: baby items and dishcloths. If you were beginning a study group, either of these would make fantastic projects that could in turn be donated to charities. Baby items can be donated to hospitals, crisis pregnancy centers, Newborns in Need or many other great organizations. Dishcloths could be sent to organizations that help families rebuild their household after flood, fire or homelessness or if your church has a kitchen, just gift them to that ministry.

If you are looking for that perfect summer study that is full of value, but not overwhelming with homework, you should check out Knit and Crochet Bible Study, Book 2: The Proverbs 31 Woman . You’ll notice on that page that there is a previous knit/crochet study available as well, or you can buy both at a significant discount.

I received a complimentary previem PDF copy of this study to read and review from TerryAnn Porter of Knit & Crochet Bible Study. These are my personal opinions, no other compensation was received for this post.
For more information please see my Disclosure Policy.

First up, the hats. What began as the bartering chip for an “at home” party became the centerpiece of the whole theme. Last October, I created Mario and Luigi hats for Halloween costumes. I told the birthday boy I would make a hat for each of his friends IF he agreed to a party in our home. He countered that the girls invited should have Princess Peach style crowns. I agreed, on the condition that we only invite a few children, 1 for each year of his age, and his brothers were automatically invited as well. The terms were accepted by all parties and I began crocheting hats in February.

I used the same pattern I used last fall, Mary Jane Hall’s Purple Newsboy Cap. This time I chose the Caron One Pound yarn in the scarlet color. I caught it on sale for about $5 a skein (pound) and I was able to make 4-5 hats out of each skein. Quite the deal! Also helpful is the fact the Caron One Pounds are dye lot free. That way if you run out, it’s easier to pick up a new skein without having to worry about the colors being ‘off’.

For the badge, I used acrylic felt. I grabbed a drinking glass from my kitchen cupboard that matched the size I wanted. Tracing around the edge of the glass helped to keep my circles uniform. I folded the red felt in half using the same technique you would to cut out a heart, and I free handed the letter M. On my original hats, I hand stitched the badges to the hat, but since we were making so many, I opted for hot glue as a quick solution. They turned out just fine. One tip: if you use hot glue, make sure to place some newspaper inside the hat so the hot glue doesn’t accidentally drip onto the back portion of the hat. It’s possible that it might render the hat unwearable if you miss this step.

For the Princess Peach crowns, I found a lovely tutorial from Juicy Bits and just adapted it to mimic Peach’s design.

The birthday boy chose a “Fire Mario” design for his hat, it was made with Red Heart Super Saver in white and the badge is the inverse of the others, a white letter on a field of red.

The hats were a huge hit and all the guests were thrilled to have a special hat to take home with them!

Join me later this week for details on the food and party activities.

First, I’d like to introduce you to Owlishly. Quite possibly the cutest amigurumi crochet patterns I’ve seen in my whole life. Seriously, so sweet, you might need an injection of insulin after browsing her shop. Owlishly is run by Mia, and you can stop by her blog to learn more about her life & her art. I love her signature style and can’t wait to crochet some of her dolls for the little ones in my life. The patterns are digital, so that means you’ll receive the PDF within 24 hours of payment receipt (or less). Who doesn’t love near instant gratification? If you want to see what others have done with her designs, check out the Owlishly Flickr Group. The Owlishly sale runs from today until 11:59pm PST November 28th, 2009. Note: the discount is given as a refund. (Etsy really needs to work on a better way for sellers to run temporary sales!)

The second great 29% off sale is for 3 or 4 pattern packs in Wild Olive’s Etsy shop. My newest craft infatuation is embroidery, and if you like cutesy stuff or inanimate objects with faces on them, Wild Olive is for you! Again, these are digital patterns, delivered to you via e-mail for you  to print on your home printer so you can get started right away. One of the things I really love about Mollie’s creations is the emotion on the items. Check out the 1 + 1 is one patterns and see how sad they are until they join together. Sweet! Not a stitcher? Don’t worry, Wild Olive has some great printable crafts as well! You can find out more by reading Mollie’s blog and see what others have done with her designs in the Wild Olive Flickr group. The Wild Olive sale only runs through Friday, November 27th, so don’t delay!

This episode covers the following topics:
* how to use stitch markers
* the stockinette portion of our pattern
* twisted stitches
* combined knitting
* slipped stitch edging
* how to bind off
* how to make a single crochet edging
* finishing, weaving in ends

all of this and my addiction to Dr. Pepper. Watch it now:

Another bonus of Swaptree is their software will automatically generate the postage for you to print from your home computer – SCORE! All I had to do was dig around my house to find some old bubble wrap envelopes or brown paper envelopes, shipping tape, scissors and I was ready to go. If you choose to use the Swaptree shipping system, they will charge you $2-4 for shipping (depending on item type & weight). They calculate charges a month at a time and bill your credit card on the 7th day of each month. You do have the choice to send ship you item on your own. I personally find the convenience of it well worth the small price difference. Who wants to drag four children into the post office every few days? Swaptree also recommends reusing packing materials whenever possible, how very green of them! Lazy me is not going to complain one bit… lol

The system for listing your items couldn’t be easier, simply key in the UPC or ISBN code and it does the rest. You select the condition of the item, and there is an optional field for fine details. I should note that users are happier and will leave positive feedback if you leave as many details about the condition as you can.

You can then initiate trades with a couple of short clicks, the other user(s) then have 48 hours to respond. This is kind of an important thing to know, it’s best for people who check their e-mail at the very least daily. If you’re not that person, Swaptree is probably not for you. They do allow you to put your account on hold for a period of time, say for vacations or travel.

Swaptree does allow you to reject trades initiated by other users. It gives you a line about it negatively affecting your account if you reject too many, but don’t let the stern wording discourage you. I’ve rejected several trades and have a positive user rating. I suspect you’d have to reject quite a few with little to no reason to have your account suspended. It does allow you to state your reason for rejecting the trade, and says that all rejected trades are reviewed. I rejected one that wanted me to send a “high value” Wii game for a paperback novel in the first week of trading, haven’t received another similar request since.

To date, my family has traded several Wii games, books and DVDs. If your a mom, it’s fantastic for when you children grow tired of a DVD or video game and want a new one.  For crafters, it’s a great way to trade that book you bought for a single pattern for a new one you are interested in! We’ve participated in 18 trades in the last month receiving items like Tinker Bell, Brain Age 2, Wii Music, Mario Party 8, The Creative Family, 2-at-a-Time Socks and more! According to Swaptree we’ve saved $141 and decreased our carbon footprint by 71 pounds!

If you have a stack of DVDs you haven’t watched in years, craft books you wish you hadn’t purchased on impulse, or video games that are collecting dust, check out Swaptree.com!

No really, I mean again. Make sure you log in so that you can access all the free patterns.
In case you aren’t signed up for their newsletter, a few days ago Lion Brand Yarn released this statement:

In these tough economic times, we know that every dollar counts.

So in order to help you make the most with your yarn crafts, we have made all of the patterns that Lion Brand owns FREE.

That’s over 2,700 patterns including amazing items like the Tree of Life Afghan, the Cable Luxe Tunic, the Argyle Crochet Afghan, and so many more!

We hope you enjoy these patterns and that you get even more enjoyment out of your yarncrafts!

Now, it’s not all the patterns, but it is quite a few. This Heirloom Baby Blanket was featured in the recent catalog with a pattern price of $3.95. Now it’s listed as free. So try some searches, it’s a great time to start thinking about holiday gifts!

Don’t know how to knit yet? Stay posted, more information is coming in the next few weeks about my online class with MomTV where I’ll teach you how to knit. It’s interactive via chat and webcam (if you choose) so it’s a great way to learn!

By now you should know I LOVE TWITTER. I’ve been tweeting for a long time, so I recall the good old days when Fail Whale would show up several times a day. I wouldn’t want to leave out my crochet friends, so here’s an adorable WhaleBoy Toy for your Friday Find. Again, click the photo to go to the page, leave some love for Catcro in comment form, and download the pattern. Don’t forget if you make either of these patterns to let the designers know when you blog or add them to your own Flickr account. We all love a “Good Job” pat on the back, even in cyber form.

While cruising through a friend’s bridal registry, I was really inspired by a set of lovely monogrammed towels in a modern type. Of course they were order online only items. Bummer! I couldn’t shake their simplistic, modern beauty, so I grabbed my yarn and needles and went to work. Several hours and a few froggings later, this custom monogram design was born.

Then, my preschool children took notice. They LOVE letters. If only I could hire them out as actors on Sesame Street, I’d have it made! They inspired the next version of the cloths, full of color and life.I think the colorful version could be great for many gift occasions. Right now I have several younger cousins graduating high school and preparing for whatever life brings next. I think these would be a great gift for a grad you know that is looking ahead to dorm life in the fall. They would certainly never get mixed up in the restroom or laundry room and mistaken for anyone else’s washcloth!

They are also an obvious choice for baby gifts as well. I’ll be listing some other color choices in the future, but if you can’t wait, contact me with the colors you are interested in and we’ll work something out.