don't forget to check back on friday.

Just a reminder that this Friday November 4th is "first friday freebie"! We have something special planned so be sure to check back...

kim and tara.

photo gallery - "tadaaaaaa...another scarf" from happybee.

Dany of Happybee just completed the Pretty Triangle Scarf and we just had to share pictures of her gorgeous scarf with you! We love it when others share their project pictures with us as we find it to be an interchange of inspiration and creative encouragement!!! Don't these photos make you want to dig out your crochet hooks?

Dany is from Italy and in her own words, "she loves to sew and make quilts, handmade crafts, bags, pouches, crochet lariats, scarves and cowls, pencil cases etc." To see more of Happybee's creative talents visit her etsy shop and have fun browsing:)

kim and tara.

measurement bilingual.

I was 9 yrs old and part way through grade 4 when Canada switched from imperial measurements to the metric system. Having been taught both measurements in school I thought that it was just my generation that was "measurement bilingual", but I realize that my grown daughters also have this talent.

As Canadians we seem to switch from one measurement to the other with out any thought. For example, when I go to the fabric store I buy one meter of material and when I get home I sew a 5/8” seam which I trim to 1/4” and I don't even blink. If I was to make a trip to my local lumber yard I would drive 50 to 70 km and hour and once there I would buy 2x4's and 3/4” plywood.

It wasn't until I started writing crochet patterns that I even noticed. When I sat down to write my first pattern I figured that since I am Canadian I should write the pattern using Canadian spelling and measurements. This is what I was taught in school. So, I spell colour with a "u" (even though my word processor tells me I'm wrong), I use metric measurements and I crochet with metric hooks. This was all fine until I added sewing. I have never sewn anything other than a 5/8” seam and I have never heard it called anything else. My daughter had just finished a sewing course in school so I asked her what she was taught, and she also calls it a 5/8” seam. My other daughter was in wood works and she was using imperial measurements. This was when I first realized that in Canada we are still using both systems of measurements, hence the term “measurement bilingual”.

For a while I added both imperial and metric measurements to my patterns, but most of our customers were American and adding both measurements was tedious. I started adding both metric and US hook sizes, but I seem to own some crochet hooks that are oddly sized. For example 3.00 mm and 4.50 mm crochet hooks are missing from the US size charts. As hard as Tara and I were working to remain consistent we were running into problems.

In the end what does all of this mean? Well, although there may be slight variations on some of our older patterns we will do our best to include both metric and imperial measurements. However, a 5/8” seam will still be 5/8” seam and we may or may not spell colour with a "u", but for the most part we will do what we can to accommodate the needs of all our customers. In Canada when we buy a box a cereal the ingredients are written on the box in both English and French so it only makes sense that our crochet patterns should include both forms of measurements and hook sizes.

kim.

new crochet pattern - boyfriend cowl.

by kim miller

Skill Level: Easy

Whether you are just learning or if you have been crocheting for years you will love this quick and easy pattern. Although this cowl is super easy to make the unique construction really adds to its shape and you will be delighted with the results. Also, if you don't want to share...then don't tell your guy that it will look equally as good on him.

This well written crochet pattern calls for 2 balls of Patons Classic Wool and the finished cowl measures approximately 28” (71 cm) in circumference and 12 ½” (32 cm) wide.

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working in yarn ends as you go.

Whenever possible Tara and I like to work our yarn ends in as we crochet, but what do you do when you are working a granny square? Well, we found this excellent tutorial that shows you how to work your ends in as you go. Enjoy!!!

 

kim.

sneak peek.

"Boyfriend Cowl"

Just a little taste of a soon to be released crochet pattern...

Whether you are just learning or if you have been crocheting for years you will love this quick and easy pattern.

kim.

beginnings.

We were just going through our files when we stumbled across some of our very first etsy photos from 3 and a half years ago. Not only did they bring a smile to our face but some of them actually made us chuckle so we just had to share them with you.

This was our very first banner...

We both really liked this banner but as we evolved we found that it didn't really go with the rest of our etsy shop. 

This was one of our first icons...

We liked these pictures of the sunhat with our sweet little model but the first few months were all about trying to figure out our look, our branding and how to take photos. This is just one of the looks that we played with.

Is it just me or is this next picture blurry?



When we first started I had little to no experience with taking photos or of editing them. I remember Tara so patiently teaching me how to crop and save photos. Obviously, from this picture of the Market Bag you can see that I was still struggling and had lots to learn. I must have improvised by placing the word "Pattern" half way between the grey and the white so that it would look like I did it on purpose.

This next picture really brings a smile to my face...

I'm not sure what look I was going for here but my model is just a couple of baby fingers away from looking like a gangster! No wonder my children run whenever I bring out the camera:)

All of this retrospect makes me wonder what we will think 3 years from now when we look back.

kim.