A Junk Mail Delight

     So, a few days ago, I got a letter from Love of Crochet magazine that nicely begged for my money. You know, the usual "BUY OUR MAGAZINE AND WE'LL GIFT YOU STUFF!" kind of letter. But reading it wasn't a waste, because the letter also contained two FREE patterns! How awesome is that?! 

     I made the second pattern, if only for the reason that it called for the exact yarn I intended to use in my next project. ;)

     Unfortunately, I couldn't find the pattern on my corner of the internet. But you might get the pattern if you sign up to| Love of Crochet magazine.

How to: M1R

     The Make One Right (abbreviated M1R) increase is almost exactly the same as the M1L increase, except it leans (you guessed it!) right.

     To begin, knit up to the point that you wish to make the increase.

     Insert your left-hand needle through the back of the strand between the stitch you just worked and the first stitch on your left needle.

     Now knit the strand you just picked up.

     After a few rows of increasing, your work should look somewhat like this.

How to: M1L

     Make One Left (abbreviated M1L) is a left leaning increase. It's a bit more complicated than the traditional kfb (Knit Front and Back), but is still super easy!

     To begin, knit up to the point that you wish to make the increase.

     Insert your left-hand needle into the front of the strand of yarn between the stitch you just worked and the first stitch on your left needle.

     Knit the strand you just picked up through the back loop, and you now have increased one stitch!

     When you've increased over a few rows, your work should look something like this.

A Dad Sweater

     Here it is... The moment you've all been waiting for... THE DAD SWEATER! *crowd applauds, and I fall out of my chair because I'm alone and that's freaky*

     Ugh, Corky, you look so fabulous.

     If you're wondering why I named this "The Dad Sweater", it's because we got a kitten recently, and Widdy Kiddums (our cat) HATES it, but Corky (pictured above) LOVES it!

     If you would like to make this sweater, you can get the pattern for free at: Cabled Dog Sweater Knitting Pattern

A Curtain's A Curtain, No Matter How Small

     I was in the midst of packing for a trip to Arkansas when I came to a horrible realization: my five bags weren't enough to hold all of my projects. *scream of panic, horror, and general despair*

     So I grabbed some old curtain fabric from Mom's stash (she has a lot of fabric, okay!) and got to sewing.

     Basically, I just made the same type of bag as the Trippy Planets Bag, except it's bigger, I made straps, and added two pockets to both the front and inside.

      "It's the same, but different!" should totally be my tagline on Google+.

     I'm not sure why I made it so large (I was only making my dog, Corky, a sweater), but I think this'll be useful for projects the size of baby blankets.

     If you would like to make a sort-of-close-to-this-bag bag, go to YouTube at: DIY Tote Bag

Organization Was Probably A Good Idea

     I have a lot of circular knitting needles.

     I do.

     And I am proud of this.

     But... All of my needles falling out of their plastic box got pretty annoying...

     So, I browsed the glorious YouTube and found a video on how to make a needle case. I can tell you quite truthfully, my life has not been the same since! Okay, well, that might not entirely be true, but my needles have definitely been more organized!

     I used up ALL of Mom's red and checkered stash fabric to make this, and I am definitely in love! I made two pockets on the inside instead of one, so I have twice the storage space for all of my needles. You can just barely see the outlines of the needles in the photo above, but they're there!

     If you would like to make a needle case similar to this, go to: DIY Crochet Hook Case

Trippy Planets Project Bag

     This bag (I'm lovin' the name I chose for it! lol) was made with some fabric left over from some curtains my mom made once. I had to use some wooden handles because Mom didn't quite have enough fabric for me to be able to sew handles.

     I'm just telling you now, I am very much a beginner at sewing, so my lines aren't particularly straight. I had a good deal of fun making it, though! And it is going to be perfect to hold my Kroy Sock!

     If you would like to view the video I used as a general guideline, go to: DIY Tote Bag