Week 9 Creative Challenge : Crocheted Shamrocks and a Green Trimmed Doily

Hello! Here's my Weekly Creative Challenge Update (as introduced in this post).

I had my mind on crocheting some things I could use to decorate for St. Patrick's Day.

I wanted to make some small shamrocks to scatter around a vignette scene, so I looked for a pattern online. There are quite a few different ways to make them, but I liked the look of this one at Naztazia.com.

Hers end up being bigger than I wanted, though, so I adapted the pattern to use crochet thread rather than the thicker yarn she has chosen. I also reduced the size of stitches, from treble crochet stitches to doubles, for example. This resulted in shamrocks that are about an inch wide.

Naztazia demonstrates the pattern in a video, but I'm much better at following written instructions, so I wrote out what I did to make these small ones. For any crocheters reading, who would like to make one, here are those written instructions, with the acknowledgment that they are an adaptation of Naztazia's work. Also, you might want to check out her site for all kinds of other crochet patterns, too.

Not only are these really cute, but they’re also a lot of fun to make, and they’re only 3 rows so don’t take much time at all. I plan on making a whole field of shamrocks!

Week 8 Creative Challenge : An Embroidery Project and Homemade Hot Chocolate

Hello! I hope you've had a good week. Here is my weekly post for my challenge to create something every week for a year, and to keep myself accountable by telling you about it here (as introduced in this post).

I love what I have to show you today -- I completed one of the embroidery kits from Knitted Bliss Stitching! Full disclosure, Julie, the artist who made this kit, from drawing the image to putting all the pieces needed to finish the project together, is my friend, but I can honestly say that embroidering this was an enjoyable thing to do, regardless of who offered it.

There is quite a lot of stitching to do, so I didn't complete this in one week. Rather, I worked on it, a bit at a time in the evenings over about two weeks. But, if you're a fast stitcher and really want to get it finished quickly, you could probably do it in a week.

The kit comes with everything you need, including the printed cotton, the bamboo hoop, cotton floss and 2 needles. It even comes with a couple of useful yet attractive extras that aren't necessary to finish the project but that are really fun to have. These are a metal needle threader and a magnetized "needle keeper". After you're finished the kit, both of these items can be added to you sewing basket for use on other things.

Week 7 Creative Challenge : Two Vintage Vignettes for Instagram and a Blog Post

Hi! This is the weekly update for the Creative Challenge I set for myself for this year (as introduced in this post).

#1 - I put together two vignettes of vintage items to suit some themes over on Instagram.  (My account is Loulou Vintage Home , if you'd like to see.)

The first was for #vintagetoytime where they asked to see a toy paired with a valentine. For this one, I pulled out one of my favourite vintage cards, which dates to the 60s, and features an adorable elf giving out treats from a tray. If you've been visiting this site for a while, you've seen it before because a Valentine's Day doesn't pass without it coming out somewhere.

At the Gallery – “Leonard Cohen : Everybody Knows” Exhibition at the AGO Toronto

Hello! My friend Julie and I had a Galentine and belated friendiversay (our 10th!) outing this past week, at the Leonard Cohen Exhibition at the AGO (aka the Art Gallery of Ontario).

“Leonard Cohen : Everybody Knows” runs until April 10, 2023.

To quote the gallery's description of the show, with more on their website here :

"An enduring artistic force, Canadian novelist, poet and singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen (1934-2016) is renowned the world over for his meditations on beauty, death, loss and the human heart.

The first museum exhibition to present the holdings of the Leonard Cohen Family Trust, Everybody Knows immerses visitors in the many facets of Cohen’s creative life. Rare concert footage and archival materials, including musical instruments, notebooks, lyrics and letters are featured alongside photographs, drawing, and digital art created by Cohen across several decades."

Week 6 Creative Challenge : Handmade Valentine Decorations – Crochet and Embroidery

Hello! In keeping with the creative challenge I've set for myself for 2023 (as introduced in this post), here is what I completed this past week. It might look like a lot, and granted, I usually do end up making quite a few things for Valentine's Day because I love the colours red and pink and the shape of hearts, but these things were made over a few weeks and finished last week. In fact, many got the final touches last night because weaving in the ends of crocheted pieces is always my least favourite part, so I sat down and did them all at once while watching Netflix (I watched "Your Place or Mine", the new movie with Reece Witherspoon and Ashton Kutcher. It was fun and, although romantic comedies are not usually what I choose, I quite liked it.)

Even though I've been crocheting since I was 7, I only made my first "real" doily last year (the one in this post about St. Patrick's Day decorating). But, now I've tried quite a few different patterns and I'm hooked (haha) on making doilies. What makes them fun is that every row of them is different and you don't really know what is coming up next, so it's kind of like a treasure hunt in crochet form.