I find it hard to believe that it's already May. Where does the time go?

Loveknitting.com, a cool site which features both amazing patterns and the drool-worthy yarn needed to make them, is dedicating the month of May to Indie Designers. I'm proud to say that my designs are a part of this special promotion and celebration of all the amazing indie designs out there. You also can't beat the 10% discount on yarn. ;)

You can check out my patterns on loveknitting.com by clicking the image below. They also have a sister site at lovecrochet.com if you're looking exclusively for crochet patterns, even though both crochet and knitting patterns can be found over at loveknitting.com.

Enjoy! :)

I seriously think I was born in the wrong decade (or even era) sometimes. I don't know why but I always seem to gravitate towards the fashions of long before I was born, in particular those of the 1920's and 30's. I love black and white movies and when it comes to tv shows, I usually have Antenna TV, MeTv or Cozi in the background as I knit.

I guess it makes sense then that I'm totally bonkers over cloche hats. I especially love crocheting them and have in fact sold quite a few through Etsy and even eBay a few years back. And I certainly love designing them as well. I have both knit and crochet cloche designs in my collection: Cloche Hat with Two Flowers (crochet), Esther Cloche Hat (crochet), Laces Out Cloche, Northern Belle Cloche... and now, the Shells Cloche Cap (photo further down in post).

Cloche Hat with Two Flowers

Here's a funny story (at least I can laugh about it now) that's somewhat related... I've been cutting my own hair now for about 2 years. Usually it's just an inch off the bottom and I'll add in a small layer to calm it down a bit since my hair is pretty wavy. This last time though, for whatever reason I really wanted extremely short bangs. I guess after throwing all of my hair up in a ponytail for like ever with a center part I was getting pretty bored. I have a relatively high forehead too so felt like I needed some coverage. Well, I cut bangs into my hair and they looked pretty cute but now they didn't go with the rest of my 'do which was a shoulder length bob. Long story short (pun intended), I hacked off a good 4 inches plus added tons of layers. I freaked out at first thinking what had I done but then realized that it felt so light and I felt so free that I wondered why I hadn't done this before. My hair is now a breeze to style (just some mousse and I let it air dry) and it looks a bit different everyday depending on how wavy it decides to get. I guess it's a cross between Amelie and Molly Ringwald's 'do in Pretty in Pink. Also, and here's the best part... it looks great in a cloche. :) Perhaps my subconscious was secretly guiding my scissors... hmmm. Here's to happy accidents!

Here's the Shells Cloche Cap without further ado (you can see how short my hair is)...

Shells Cloche Cap

I usually don't look so serious. I think it was the hot weather and me having to wear a hat in it.

The Shells Cloche Cap can be made from any Aran or Worsted weight yarn you wish. I personally think that a slightly thicker yarn weight really helps to make the wavy edge of the hat hold its shape better. I used Bernat Super Value yarn in Soft Gray to make this one.

The pattern is available on Ravelry here.

Spoilers! (you can tell I'm also a Dr. Who fan) I'm currently working on a website where I make and sell nothing but cloche hats. I'll feature a few styles in various colors. I plan to officially launch it in the beginning of September.

I am admittedly quite the yarn snob. I even wrote a post concerning this a while ago. For some reason I just couldn't bring myself to either purchase or use any acrylic yarn. This lasted for well over a decade. 

Well, it's Summer and money for materials after all necessary expenses (food, rent, medicine etc.) is a bit tight. I can't shut my brain or my hands down though so I took a trip over to my local AC Moore store and purchased some Bernat Super Value acrylic yarn in the shade Soft Grey. I was seriously taken aback at how many more yarn brands and contemporary colors they had in stock. I had to walk through a couple of aisles before finally making my decision and settling on the Bernat. Acrylic yarns overall are a lot softer than I remember. Perhaps I'm turning over a new leaf and will certainly consider using them a great deal more in my designs.



The Arched Shells Cowl crochet pattern features a lace design composed of shells or fans and arches. It can be made from any Worsted or Aran weight yarn and the size is totally adjustable. The pattern includes instructions in case you wish to make the cowl longer and/or wider.

The Arched Shells Cowl pattern is available on Ravelry here.

Most people are still in the grip of Summer's relaxing vibe, including myself, so tackling a huge complicated project may still feel a bit daunting. Here's a quick, easy and addictive crochet cowl that can be worked up poolside, while at a BBQ or even in the comfort of your own home under the air conditioner.

The Simple Mesh Cowl can be made from any DK or even Sport weight yarn you wish. It works up wonderfully in cotton and cotton blend yarns and has a wonderful drape. I made the cowl shown here in Rowan Purelife Cotton yarn. Sadly, it has been discontinued so I also made another cowl out of Blue Sky Alpacas Skinny Cotton yarn and found it to be a wonderful substitution.



The Simple Mesh Cowl pattern is available on Ravelry here.

For those who have medium to long hair, do you ever feel like you're stuck in style a rut? Do you always wear your hair in a ponytail or bun style? I'm guilty as charged, especially in the Summer. I detest feeling any hair on my neck or even forehead for that matter. Even though I did just chop my hair into a chin length bob I still have enough to make a cute ponytail or bun.

This lacy bun cover is a quick crochet project that can be made from any Sport of Fingering weight yarn. And it'll help dress up that hair bun. The back and sides of the cover are worked in a double crochet stitch to give it (and your hair bun) a more rounded shape and it also prevents hair strands from peeking through.

I made the one below from M & K Eco Baby Bomull cotton yarn in the shade Pink. This yarn is ultra soft and really nice to work with.



The Floral Bun Cover pattern is available here on Ravelry.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! :) I purposely waited until today to launch this ebook. It's a collection of four crochet baby patterns and includes the following:

• Baby Headband with Flower
• Baby Flapper Beanie with Flower
• Flower Power Baby Beret
• Griddle Stitch Baby Beanie Hat

You can find more information about and purchase the ebook here.

Well, everything seems to be up and running again and I'm so unbelieveably grateful for this. In case you haven't read my last post, my computer died taking all my files with it. I really did believe that I lost EVERYTHING I worked so hard for in one fell swoop. A few days of "mourning" and putting things into perspective made me realize things weren't that bad and maybe this needed to happen because the frantic way I was working was impacting my health and loved ones.

While things are not nearly the same, they are definitely for the better and I've managed to dust myself off and approach everything with a new outlook. I'm now using my fiance's computer. It's a smaller laptop but I'm getting used to it. He even made me my own folder on his Desktop to keep my new files in. That's true love. :)

Besides, a computer is just a computer in the grand scheme of things. I still have my health, my family, friends, cats, a roof over my head and food on the table.