holiday crafting ideas & roundup!

 *this was originally posted this week on luvinthemommyhood but i thought those of you popping in over here on versus might like it too :)

i don't know about you guys but i'm in full on christmas crafting mode!  i thought i would give you all a hand and remind of you the fun roundups we had last season to help keep us inspired and a tad less stressed for the holidays.

wreath roundup

garland roundup

christmas stocking roundup

remember my my paper wreath?   i still have up what was my fave christmas craft from last year. i turned it from a wreath (paper leaves taped onto a cardboard base made from a pizza box...lol) into a mirror.  easy peasy and one of my fave things in our home.

paper mirror wreath

paper wreath

and just for fun....here's some fabulous tutorials from me and other fabulous guest bloggers that would make some wonderful xmas pressies for loved ones :)

1. the mallory cowl pattern 2. the carefree cowl pattern

1. infinity & beyond scarf tutorial

1. sunburst pillow  2. everest: the ultimate knitting needle organizer

1. legwarmers

1. jardain coasters  2. nesting cups

1. lace belt  2. dad's tie to gadget case  3. the buff cuff  4. organic dishcloths

to find more fun roundups to get inspiration from check out all of my link luv roundups and theme months here that include a ton of awesome guest posts for adults, babies/kids and your home. alos don't forget to head over to the headquarters of  comfy sews vs cozy knits on "versus". check out both the tutorials and the roundups there too!  lots of goodies galore to be sewn, knit or crocheted!
 
happy crafting!!!!  i'm hoping to put together another xmas roundup for you all this month...what would you like to see the most?  what is the one thing you make for xmas decor every year?

jardain crochet coaster tutorial with guest rebecca of nook

you all know i have a love affair with knitting & sewing but i also adore crochet.  it's the one craft that often get's pushed aside for me though.  it's not that i love it less, or don't enjoy it as much, i just for some reason always have my knitting & sewing battling it out.  so in honor of throwing some crochet love your way i asked one of my good friends rebecca of the blog and shop "nook" to come give us a fun, easy and very fun tutorial on how to make one of my favorite crocheted things - coasters!

 for my birthday this year i got this lovely little package from becca filled with the coasters above, a mug cozy (you can buy these in her shop) and the fabric she used to wrap it!  how sweet is that!

rebecca is one of those people you meet who eats, sleeps and breathes knitting but she also crochets.  i mean seriously people, check out this blanket!!  LOVE!

she knits faster than anyone i know (her hands are like a speedy blur at our knit nights) and i know a lot of knitters. she also seems to have some strange knack for knitting in superhero style...she can be baking bread or making dinner - knitting, talking to me on the phone - knitting, i bet she even knits on the potty..lol. needless to say if there's a chance my bud can pick up her sticks she will.  she's got an adorable etsy shop filled with some of her handmade goodies, a pretty blog and if you live in my city (victoria, bc) she also teaches some pretty rad classes at the cloth castle.  check out her fall listings..where else can you take lessons for jane richmond's super stylish patterns?  plus you get to hang with rebecca and take it from me....she's super fun to be around.  i heart her.  she feeds me and makes me coffee....a lot.

so get those hooks & yarn out and get ready to whip up some jardain coasters!  happy hooking..lol...now let's hear from rebecca....



 i have been looking forward to being a part of versus for a long looooong time now. i'm so happy to be here, thanks so much for having me!

it is my honest opinion that a home can never have enough coasters, inside or out.... well... almost. meet jardain. these little cuties are so adorable, you'll wanna be sure to make a set... or two... ! it's enough to make your fav tea cup or mug or even mason jar of homemade smoothies exclaim "oh la la!" so quick, grab your hook and let's get started!

this is a great project even for the very beginner crocheter. and they make perfect gifts from house warming to stocking stuffers.. (eeks! already??) to just because... they're a fairly instant gratification project. i know what you're thinking... "sa-weeeet". yeah, i know.

so here's what you'll need:

4.0mm/US 6 hook
worsted weight yarn. ... each coaster really really doesn't take much, just use up some scraps for this little project.

directions:

with your crochet hook, loosely chain (ch) 4 stitches (st). then join with a slipped stitch (sl.st.) to the first ch to make a ring.

rnd 1: make 8 single crochet (sc) inside the ring. sl.st. in your first sc

rnd 2: ch.2. 2sc in the second ch. from hook and continue with 2sc in every stitch around. you have now doubled your stitch count to 16 sts. make a sl.st. in the first ch. of this round. ... in this way, you are basically crocheting a spiral. see?

rnd 3: ch.2. sc in second ch. from hook and in every st. around. sl.st in first ch. of round.

rnd 4: ch.2. 2sc in second ch. from hook and continue with 2sc in every ch. around. sl st. in 1st ch. (36 sts.)

rnd 5: ch.2. sc in second ch. from hook and in every ch. around. sl.st in 1st ch. of round.

rnd 6: ch.2. sc in second ch. from hook, sc, 2sc in next ch, *(sc, sc, 2sc)* repeat from * to * around until last ch. sc. join with sl st. to 1st ch. of round. 46 st. total.

rnd 7: ch.4 sl st. in 5th ch. from hook. *(ch4, skip 4st, sl st. in 5th ch)* repeat from * to * around until 6st remain. ch 4, sl st. in 3rd st from hook, ch4, sl st. in last st. of rnd. you will have created 10 loops.

rnd 8: 6dc in 1st loop space created. sl st. in previous rnd's sl. st. continue around in this manner. 6dc's in every loop space, with a sl. st. in between.

draw a knot through final loop. sew in ends.
and you're done!

see? easy peasy lemon squeezy. enjoy!

thanks so much for joining in on the fun here on versus rebecca!  i'm gonna go sip some tea out of my cozy mug sitting on my fave coaster :)  you can find more nook here:

*blog *etsy shop *facebook *pinterest *ravelry

do you love coastsers too?  what's your fave way to make them?  sewn, knitted or crocheted?  have a fave pattern you want to share? i'd love to hear about it!

Round 4 - Comfy sews VS Cozy Knits Skirts

1. shiroshakar 2. flower gathered skirt

i posted this roundup on hideous! dreadful! stinky! for the "summer of no pants series" last week. here's the full roundup in case you missed it over there. bring on the skirts ladies!

let the battle begin...ding...ding...ding...

1. nederdel

1. soft linen single gore skirt 2. lanesplitter 3. swirl skirt 4. prairie skirt

1. baile 2. #12 skirt 3. flamenco ruffled drawstring

1. fit-n-flare trumpet skirt

1. eave 2. agnes

1. chelsea skirt 2. ruffled mini skirt 3. bell curve 4. flouncy skirt

1. sugar 2. linen skirt with flounce border

1. elastic waist skirts

1. midi-skirt 2. flirting the issue

1. charlotte russe inspired skirt 2. denim skirt refashion 3. circle skirt

1. favorite frills skirt

1. paperbag skirt 2. everything coming up roses 3. vintage bowtie skirt

1. maxi skirt

1. reversible scallop skirt 2. reversible skirt

1. drape wrap skirt 2. skirt with deep pockets

1. gyspy romance 3 tiered skirt 2. skirtdress 3. simple long flora skirt

ok...get your vote on (here's the link to the poll in case it doesn't show up):




happy sewing ladies! may you all enjoy a pants free summer!

Summer of no pants guest post!

1. shiroshakar 2. flower gathered skirt

hi everyone! i'm over on the fun blog hideous! dreadful! stinky! for the "summer of no pants series" today! i love this series! it's a fun challenge where people make an effort to only sew and wear skirts and dresses. marigold asked me to join in with a round of "comfy sews VS cozy knits" on skirts for you all (you can find dress showdowns here)! i love skirts and dresses. i would prefer to wear a skirt/dress over pants any day. in fact i just made my very first dress for myself (check out the tutorial here)! i'm so happy i did!

so here's a fun roundup so that all of you will feel encouraged and inspired to whip up some skirts this summer! the only question is which side will you be on? knits or sews?

1. elastic waist skirts

get in your seats gals, the battle is about to begin...

1. fit-n-flare trumpet skirt

...ding...ding...ding...ding!

click here for the full roundup & to join in on the "summer of no pants" series!

you can find all things hideous! dreadful! stinky! here...

*blog *shop *flickr *facebook *twitter

what do you all prefer? are you more of a pants girl or a skirts girl? could you go the whole summer wearing only skirts and dresses?

ps. the full roundup will be archived here on versus next week :)

The Spring Frills Scarf with Guest Anneliese of Aesthetic Nest

our last guest for comfy sews VS cozy knits is the talented, creative, beautiful mom of 3 anneliese of the gorgeous blog "aesthetic nest". i'm so excited that anneliese is back again this season with a crochet pattern to throw into the mix!!! i couldn't have this theme month without one more crochet pattern :P


anneliese's blog is filled with gorgeous and inspiring goodies. from food, sewing, painting, crochet, knitting and parties galore this talented ladies got it.


her style is gorgeous. her children are oh so cute as are the patterns and items in her etsy shop.


so trust me when i say to pop over to the aesthetic nest and get lost in anneliese's world.

how she manages to find the time to make all these beautiful handmade goodies with 3 wee ones is beyond me but i'm gonna keep bugging her till she tells me. in the meantime though....

let's hear how she makes the pretty spring frills scarf....here's anneliese...

I love these battles Shannon stages, because without the opportunity to duke it out I might never make something for myself! If you ever stop by Aesthetic Nest you know my three daughters are usually the focus of my creative production. So thank you, Shannon, for keeping some luv in the mommyhood--all moms need something for themselves every once in a while.

This project may be the perfect thing if you find a few minutes to work on something for yourself. It's crochet and I'm taking sides this Spring because crochet can travel, you can pick it up for just a minute or two and drop it when someone spills the milk, it doesn't create a big mess you have to clean up a the end of nap time, and it produces results quickly! In fact, this particular project, the Spring Frills Scarf, fits into no time at all. It works up quickly, but more more importantly, it works up rather mindlessly. It's perfect for carrying along to work on while waiting in the car, or for an appointment, or on a vacation--with just 1 or 2 skeins and a hook it can easily fit in your purse, diaper bag or carry on. And the simple instructions mean you rarely have to refer to the pattern--you can just work away. I started work on this in one day on a recent vacation while riding in a car, on windy roads no less, because the repetitive stitch work meant I could look ahead most of the time and avoid motion sickness! It's true!

A scarf may not be the first thing you think of wearing in the spring, but this is lightweight and cotton and offers a number of options for throwing over a work or SAHM outfit. Plus, it has ruffles, and we can all use a few more of those, can't we? It's Spring! Let's add some frills.

If you are new to crochet, you can do this! And if you have been doing it for a while, you can do this quickly! So without further delay, here we go.

SPRING FRILLS SCARF TUTORIAL

MATERIALS:

--2 skeins Omega Sinfonia 100% mercerized cotton yarn in Fresco. It's 100grams/218 yds and available at Hobby Lobby. (You won’t need very much of the second skein and I provide directions if you’d like to make a shorter scarf and use just one skein.)

--H Hook.

TO MAKE:

Chain 283 (or if you want to make this a 1-skein project and have a slightly shorter scarf, chain 253).

Round 1: Work 1 double crochet (dc) in the third chain (ch) from the hook. Dc in each ch to the last ch.

Work 5 dc in the last ch.

Do not turn. Work along the back of the foundation chain working 1 dc in each ch to the first ch.

Work 4 dc in the first ch for a total of 5 dc and slip stitch (sl st) to the beginning dc to join.

Round 2: Ch 3...

Work 2 dc in the same stitch.

Work 3 dc in the next dc and every dc thereafter...

(Your work will start to "ruffle" nicely.)

...working around the end and all the way around the scarf.

Join with a sl st. Weave in ends. Wear!

thanks so much anneliese! i love this scarf! it will look so pretty with jeans and tshirt or pretty summer dress! i can't wait to cast one on! if you all want to see more of anneliese's work...

*blog *etsy shop

the roundups are coming....i've got one last comfy sews VS cozy knits left and a giant crochet one coming your guys way next week so stay tuned :)

do you crochet? are you going to cast on for the spring frills scarf? am i the only one who knits/crochets in the car in between all the errands with the kids?