There are good people out there. I ordered a new refrigerator shelf from ebay seller aaapplianceparts. They sent me the wrong one. My husband said to consider my money lost, but when I contacted them they immediately apologized and sent out the right shelf the same day.

There are people who make HUGE mistakes out there. Trendsetter Yarns. Wingspan. Enough said- although you can read it all here if you want.

Yarn bowls are subject to possession by evil spirits. Okay, it’s not really possessed, but my yarn bowl has been “pinging” for over a week. This one is going to get it’s own blog post.

The warning signs for heart attacks in women. A lovely blog post interview by Lorna’s Laces with designer Andi Smith who recently had a heart attack.

The sweater is worked from the top down in basic stitches. You can try it on your little one as you go.

The fringe on the collar and sleeves is super easy to stitch and really makes the sweater sing. I knew it would be a hit when my daughter started begging me to let her keep it.

The size range for this sweater is 4-12.

Buy the pattern here, and get started on a cardigan your little girl will absolutely love!

(c) Soak

From the Soak website: “Handmaid is a luxury hand creme from the experts at Soak. Enriched with Shea butter, olive oil and vitamins A & E, Handmaid rejuvenates skin and protects overworked hands.”

That’s what they say. I say that this baby is 3 oz of pure fabulous. I seriously love my Lacey scented Handmaid, and now you can too. To enter, leave a comment on this post before 11:59 pm EST on March 14th. Open to those in the US and Canada.

When I was young, my Bubbie (grandmother) would make flower bookmarks out of bits of yarn. She passed away a long time ago, and unfortunately, I don’t have any of the bookmarks she made. This is my best guess reproduction of her bookmarks.

Materials:
I used a G/6 4.00mm crochet hook and DK weight yarn*. Feel free to use whatever yarn you have on hand and the appropriately sized hook.

Guage:
Gauge is not critical.

Pattern:
Ch 40, or until ch is approximately 8 inches long.

Rnd 1: (2 dc, ch 2, sl st, petal made) in 3^rd ch from the hook, (ch 2, 2 dc, ch 2, sl st, petal made) 3 times in same chain as first petal, end off.

Weave in the end, or use it to attach a pretty bead or button to the center of your flower.

Abbreviations:
Ch = chain
Dc = double crochet
Rnd = Round
Sl st = slip stitch

As part of the NatCroMo celebrations, Amy Shelton over at Crochetville has organized a Tour Through Crochet Country. This special blog tour will last the whole month and take you through a whirlwind adventure of 48 different designer’s blogs. Click the link above to see the full tour schedule as well as find out about the charity the blog tour is supporting this month, Project Night Night.

My stop on the tour is Tuesday, March 5th. Make sure to come back for a special, free crochet pattern.

Recently I had the opportunity to work with a fabulous new yarn being offered by Lorna’s Laces called Haymarket*. Every time I looked at it, the first thing that would pop into my mind was “bunny rabbit”. I just knew that this yarn would make a fantastic bunny rabbit.

To up the cuteness factor I made Basil with a pompom tail. But if you don’t want to make a pompom, or are giving Basil to a small child, I’ve included instructions for a solid tail as well.

Click here to get more info on Basil , and make your very own bunny rabbit to love!

*Haymarket is made with 100% Bluefaced Leicester wool. Ever since my first NY Sheep and Wool Festival,  Bluefaced Leicester have been my favorite type of sheep. I love ‘em!

The Ridged Whirl Hat pattern was one of the first patterns I put out when I started Poetry in Yarn. I already have a video tutorial showing how to do front post stitches. Now, I’ve added the following:

How to do the Dc + Fptrc called for in the pattern.

How to do the beginning version of the Dc + Fptrc.

How to work the dc + fptrc in the pattern when it is used to decrease (Rnds 10 and later).

I hope you find these videos useful. If you can think of any other video tutorials you would like to see, please let me know. I’m a teacher at heart, and it’s my pleasure to help others learn.

PS: Some errata was discovered for this pattern. So if you purchased it prior to 2/14/2013 make sure to download the most recent version. Ravelry and Patternfish automatically should have sent you an e-mail with a link to the latest version. If you need help, e-mail me at support@poetryinyarn.com

What you’ll love about Texting Mitts:

• Super Fine Weight Yarn (think sock yarn) means warmth AND flexibility.
• Designs that work well for showing off fun, variegated yarns as well as solid colors.
• Variety of designs means you’ll find something for everyone on your gift list.

As a teacher, the booklet has some features I love. Pattern numbers for different sizes are in different colors to make it easy to follow along for your size. Leisure Arts also has a number of stitch tutorials available on their website. They’ve marked different techniques in the book with a video camera graphic to let you know you can go online if you need help with that stitch or technique.

Leisure Arts has been kind enough to provide a copy of Texting Mitts for a giveaway! To enter, leave a comment on this post before 11:59pm EST on February 20^th. Tell us what you love about Texting Mitts. This contest is open to those in the US or Canada (or with mailing addresses in those two countries).

Starbucks locations are offering reusable cups with reusable lids for only $1. Not only is the low price great, but you get 10 cents off each time you use it. Pair a reusable Starbucks cup with a crocheted or knit coffee cup sleeve for a fantastic, very affordable gift. If you really want to go all out, include a Starbucks gift card too.

Add a crochet or knit cup sleeve for a lovely gift.

For my reusable cup, I made a sleeve with some leftover Cascade 128 bulky weight superwash wool yarn.  It’s simple stockinette stitch with a single crocheted edge. Then, I sewed on a decorative button for a bit of pop.

Chervil Hamster is a cute, quick crochet pattern.

Chervil is a cute little guy. I love him, and so do my kids. He’s really quick to work, and a single skein of yarn will make a whole horde of hamsters. Best of all, though, is NO SEWING REQUIRED. His adorable little paws are attached as you crochet! I’ve always loved the look of stuffed animals, but dreaded the sewing most of those projects require. Well, as a math teacher, I know that there is often more than one way to do things. Using a little educator ingenuity, I developed a way to attach the limbs as I crocheted. Best of all, this method can be used on many other patterns as well. So how does it work?

Step 1: Fold the foot in half.
The top of Chervil’s foot has six stitches, so when I fold it in half there are 3 stitches in the front and 3 stitches in the back. The diagram below uses X’s to represent stitches. The gray X’s are showing you some of the body stitches. The black X’s represent the foot stitches after it has been folded in half.

The 6 foot stitches folded in half in front of the gray body stitches.

Step 2: Single Crochet to attach the leg.
To attach the leg,you stick the hook through 2 of the foot stitches AND into the next body stitch. Then you make a standard single crochet with a yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over, pull through 2 loops on hook. This is a regular single crochet, the only difference is that instead of sticking your hook through 1 stitch, you are inserting it through 3 stitches at a time.

Here’s a photo showing how the hook is inserted through the first two folded foot stitches and a body stitch.

Here’s a diagram showing how to insert your hook for the first attaching single crochet.

You are going to repeat Step 2 as many times as you need to attach the foot. For Chervil’s foot, I have 6 stitches, which folds in half to give 3 stitches in front and 3 stitches in back. So, it will take 3 sc to attach the foot. Here are photos and diagrams to show what the next 2 single crochet will be like:

How to insert the hook for the 2nd attaching single crochet.

How to insert the hook for the 3rd attaching single crochet.

Inserting the hook for the 2nd attaching single crochet.

In this photo, I’ve inserted my hook through the last 2 single crochet of the folded foot, but I haven’t put my hook through the body stitch yet.

Give this a try with Chervil, and then try using the technique on other crocheted stuffed animal patterns. Once you get the hang of it, I know you’ll love it!