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Star Stitch Crocheted Hand Towel

By Christina Lee| March 28th, 2020|Crocheting, Handmade, Yarn Addict|

It’s been about three weeks with the Shelter In Place order and all of us are doing the best we can staying indoors and only going out when absolutely necessary — or when my dog gives me that look. And since then, we’ve all taken extra precautionary measures: standing a minimum of six feet away from one another, covering up when you cough or sneeze (you should have been doing that if you haven’t already!), disinfecting common areas, and washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. You can count to twenty, sing your favorite song, hum the birthday tune or do a happy dance, but make sure to wash your hands thoroughly.

In the spirit of hand-washing, I decided to go back and crochet some hand towels, since I found myself stocking up on paper towels. I landed on the Star Stitch crochet pattern because I wanted to do more than a single, double or treble crochet, but didn’t want to get too complicated and count. After all, when you’ve got a glass of wine in hand, some munchies and your favorite Netflix show going, you deserve to make it easy on yourself and enjoy the show.

Now sit back, relax and crochet!

No better time to start a hobby

By Christina Lee| March 20th, 2020|Handmade, Punch Needle, Yarn Addict|

With the Covid-19 pandemic and the Shelter-in-Place order mandated by Mayor London Breed, there’s no better time to pick up a new hobby than now. Flipping through my Instagram feed inspired me to land on punch needle embroidery.

Since Michael’s was closed, I ordered the Wool Queen punch needle starter kit on Amazon and it came with everything I needed to begin my first project. The kit includes an adjustable punch needle, two natural 11 by 11-inch monk’s cloth, two no slip 8.6-inch hoops,12 colors eight-strand coarse yarn, five inspirational drawings and basic skills introduction. While the instructions were very basic and it didn’t teach you how to thread a punch needle, it was easy enough to find a quick tutorial on YouTube. Once you’re able to thread the punch needle, you’re well on your way to start your project.

I wasn’t a fan of some of the drawings it came with, I took matters into my own hands and decided to draw my own. I was going back and forth between doing an abstract or actually coming up with a scene, but since my kit includes two monk clothes and hoops, I could do both. For some reason, I was compelled to draw a sheep and this drawing, which was overly simplified, brought me back to art class in grade school.

It’s important to keep these drawings basic and save the complexity layer in for my next project. The fun part is usually changing colors and seeing the progress. Since the Wool Queen yarn is pretty thick, each stitch took up a fair amount of space on the canvas, so you could imagine that progress was quick. In fact, I ended up finishing my first piece within two days.

I’m thrilled that I was able to use this time and discover a new hobby. What are you doing to keep your inner creativity alive and well?

Who’s up for a little ‘Stitch & Bitch’ Sesh?!

By Christina Lee| August 8th, 2019|Crocheting, Handmade, Yarn Addict|

It’s easy to go days without dusting or even weeks, but who’s really counting? The fact is, you’re going to get to it… once you have the time and that perfect cleaning companion. I decided now was that time, so I better crochet myself a handy dandy dish towel that’s going to leave my place spotless — and using this organic white cotton yarn was going to be my proof of cleaning.

I decided with the Moss Stitch crochet pattern to give it body and texture for when I really need to beat down on those tables and counter tops, and scrub. But hopefully, we don’t get to that point. I’ve been there and it doesn’t make cleaning any easier. Plus, at the end of the day, I do hope to hang this crocheted dish towel on the rack proudly and make sure it’s not too bent out of shape.

The final touch I added were there sea green stripes to mimic the look and feel of my bath towels. I love adding those subtle accents to give it that homier feel and go beyond a simple white dish towel.

What kind of accents do you add to your crochet projects? Do tell.

Crocheting down the Ljubljana Canal

By Christina Lee| June 30th, 2019|Craft Day, Crocheting, Yarn Addict|

By now, you must know that I hardly leave the house without throwing a knitting or crocheting project in my handbag — and you better believe that going on vacation is no exception. One thing I do know about traveling is that it’s long and tiring, and the last thing you need is a complicated crochet pattern. I decided to go with the Shell Stitch Pattern. It’s repeatable, easy on the eyes and a pattern that I’ve been wanting to try. Lucky for me, I’ve got a good hour going up and down the Ljubljana Canal, so it’s time to take out my crochet hook and get going.

If you can double crochet, then you can easily do the Shell Stitch.

Going along with the beach theme, I picked out Lily Sugar N’ Cream cotton yarn skeins in Coral, Cream, Beach Glass and Sea Breeze and switched colors every two rows. So far, I really like the color, texture and pattern. I am making a kitchen dish towel, but think this pattern would ultimately look better on a big long, plush blanket. Maybe that will be my next project. Who knows?!

Coral Crocheted Hand Towel

By Christina Lee| February 18th, 2019|Craft Day, Crocheting, DIY Home, Handmade, Oh My Crafts!, Yarn Addict|

This crocheted hand towel is just so fun that I was inspired to make another one. It’s an easy project to bring with you when you’re on the go because the white portion of the towel is just single crochet all the way through to about 90 to 100 lines (depending how long you want to make it). I tried other patterns such as double or half double, but it just made this hand towel seem too ornate — especially with the decorative edging at the bottom.

Having made this before, I decided to buy the cotton yarn in bulk instead of two to three separate balls. It made for less clean up in the middle of the pattern — and sewing in loose ends is not one of my favorite things to do. However, the fun part of this project was choosing the accent color and just about any color goes with white. I previously made this with purple edging, so this time I went for coral, a color I thought would really pop in my bathroom.

The edging itself while it might look complicated is really simple. In fact I just made up this pattern using a combination of single and double crochet, and threw in some loops. You can really do as you please and customize the length. I thought two to three inches worked well for the overall length of this towel. If you’re unsure, you can just eye ball it to a store bought towel.

Well, how does it look? I think it makes a great addition to any bathroom. When I wash my hands, I secretly prefer to use this handmade towel over the others because it just feels luxurious.

Happy Crocheting!

Putting My Christmas Present to Good Use

By Christina Lee| January 6th, 2019|Crocheting, Knitting, Yarn Addict|

Coming out of the holiday season, there’s always that afterglow that lingers on when you finally get to put your Christmas gift to use. After numerous failed attempts at keeping my ball of yarn beside me when I knit or crochet, I finally got tired of my ball of yarn rolling around on the floor and getting twisted up in dust particles and my dog’s fur. But before I could even huff and puff about the problem, my sister gifted me this finely crafted, wooden yarn bowl from Laborwood. One of the perks using the yarn bowl is that it keeps your yarn clean and fixed. It also regulates your yarn tension while you knit or crochet, and it has holes on the side to hold a pair of knitting needles when you need to take a break or sip on your glass of wine. I like it because it’s practical, functional and the handiwork is just beautiful. It’s far from just ordinary. Oh, and it sits on top of four silicon stems that fix to the bottom of the bowl to prevent it from sliding. Thanks to my sister, who knows me so well, I no longer need to worry about my yarn tumbling off the couch and falling victim to dust mites. Instead, I can now focus on my knitting and crocheting while knowing that ball of yarn is safely tucked and conveniently located beside me.

The Gift-Making Holiday Rush

By Christina Lee| December 3rd, 2018|Craft Day, Crocheting, Handmade, Humbling Hobbies and Habits, Oh My Crafts!, Yarn Addict|

Well, I thought I’d get ahead of the gift-making ‘holiday rush’ when I packed several skeins of yarn and my crochet hook, and took it halfway around the world with me during the Fall season. However, when the skeins of yarn were still intact in my suitcase on my way home, I knew I was in trouble and I was in for a rude awakening during the holiday season.

Despite a busy work and travel schedule, I was able to come up with a few projects that would be creative and fun, doable in a short timeframe, and make warm and “cozy” Christmas gifts. One trip to Michaels left me grabbing skeins of yarn left and right. Since I had recently made a couple of hand towels, I stuck with yarn that was 100% cotton for its durability and absorbance. Plus, I kind of like the organic look and feel of the blue gradient and olive green blend.

Over on the left, I decided to go with the classic double crochet and on the right, I went with the Moss Stitch. While both make for great patterns, I’m going to have to say that I prefer the moss stitch because of its tension and density. The double crochet pattern is a bit too springy and I may just need to throw it into the wash, so that it shrinks down in size. Either way, they are both made with 100% love and they’re ready to be wrapped well before Christmas.

A Special Gift for a Special Friend

By Christina Lee| November 23rd, 2018|Crocheting, Handmade, Humbling Hobbies and Habits, Yarn Addict|

Obviously, celebrating friends and special occasions just gives me another reason to start a new crochet project and learn a new stitch. For my friend’s engagement shower, I thought I’d pick up one of these beautiful lavender soaps and natural bath sponges I got from a boutique store on my trip to Belgium and pair it with a handmade crocheted towel for the bathroom. I love hunting for treasures you can only find meandering the streets of a foreign city or town. Don’t ask how many of these I brought home, but I can assure you that my travel bag smelled luxurious as if I just got pampered at a day spa.

To make it extra special and semi-handmade (a tribute to Sandra Lee’s “Semi-Homemade”), I decided to crochet a purple hand towel. I was mesmerized by the Moss Stitch and its woven texture that blends a slip stitch and a single crochet. It’s a great stitch for those who are learning to crochet and it’s super quick and pretty “mindless.” One of the thing I like most is that it provides a thick texture that is durable and absorbent. I think it’s going to look great in her bathroom and give it that “handmade” feel.

Well, off to sew in the loose ends and wrap this baby up.

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