Bubo Owl Pattern

I have just finished with ANOTHER crochet pattern (I know!) It is for a Snowy Owl, or any of the owls in the Bubo genus. It is just a nice owl-shaped owl, and I originally made it for my son, Badger. I took notes the whole time I was stitching, and it turned out so well that I want to make the pattern available.


Errata: I found 3 errors in the pattern and these have been corrected. Any new download will have the corrected version, and all those who have bought a copy have been sent a new version.

In the directions to the body of the owl: Line 29: stitch count should read (30). Line 30: count is (24). Line 31: Count is (18). Line 32: Count is (12). Added Line 33: sc2tog to the end of the round (6)

In the directions to the wings: Line 5: repeat bracketed instructions twice. Line 8: sc 6 instead of 7.
You can download it here for $5:

Snow Arches Pattern

I just finished writing up the pattern for his afghan block that I designed for the January installment of the afghan block crochet-along at The Knitting Nest in Austin, TX. I have never done a design for an afghan block, other than a granny square - so I was surprised that it worked so well. Pretty, no?

Download it for $3, HERE:

Happy Owlidays!

I hope everyone is having or has had a lovely holiday! I am calling mine an owliday, as I saw one of these fly over the window and land on the roof of my mom's home as we were opening gifts yesterday. It was absolutely beautiful. My mother has been telling me that she has owls, and from her description of the call and from the one I saw yesterday, I can tell you definitely that it is a Great Horned Owl. My absolute favorite!

Which makes the animals that I made for my kids even more fortuitous!

Here is the Snowy Owl I made for Badger. It has barred feather marking on it's head and back. I will be publishing this pattern on Ravelry next week.

Here is the sweet little Horned Owl I made for Rose. The pattern is Owlets from the Roman Sock Blog. Mine came out a little shorter and fatter than I intended, but it is so sweet and soft.

So happy owlidays, everyone! Hoo!

A Gift for You!

For all of you who have commented, and for all of you who have lurked, I have a gift!

From now until midnight on December 31st, get 15% off everything in my Etsy shop (see sidebar.) Enter the coupon code SWEETS4THESWEET when you checkout.

Thank you for reading my random musings!

Love,
Ana.

The end (of December) is nigh!

Oh, holy cow, the clock, the clock is ticking...

That is the way it sounds in my brain anyway. With all of the craft show making and all of the sample knitting and crocheting, and all of the pattern writing I am WAY, WAY, WAY behind in the gift making. It would not feel so bad if had actually made more sales at the craft shows or if more than one person had signed up for the ornament classes (which were subsequently canceled.) I know that the economy is still crummy, but oh, this is not fun at all. I did schedule some last-minute knitting classes, and got a little bit of swatch knitting done for a knitwear company. These are both good, as it means that we can buy food.

However, of all the gifts that I had to make, I have gotten 3 done. And I can't count two, as my kids needed their fingerless mittens today, so I gave them to them early. I will be able to get a few done - but no sweaters for either. Luckily, I was going to knit them quite a bit larger than I needed to, so I can get them done during the summer, and they can wear them next winter. Still, I am bummed. I will get most of their other toys done, but my mom might have to wait 2 weeks for her cowl, and my brother will be waiting on his box at the end of January to the beginning of February. Luckily, it will still be cold in Minnesota. When did I ever expect to use that phrase?

So wish me luck, and forgive me not posting much in the last month. I have been working my fingers to the bone - and have little to show for it. I will not be posting much this month either, as I spend about 5 minutes a day checking my email and then get right back to the making. I miss looking in on everyone, and if I don't say it before the end of the month,

My Very Best Wishes on the Holiday that you Choose to Celebrate (I think that covers all my bases.)

Ana.

Make your own ornaments!

Two knitted stars, an elf hat, a short-row pickle, a mini sock stocking, and a double-knit Norwegian Star snowflake.

An African Flower motif stocking, 2 crocheted stars, a curved crocheted pickle, a lace snowflake, a lace heart, and a little elf hat.

Starting November 26th and 27th, I will be teaching 10 different ornament classes. There will be 5 each of knitting and crochet (being fair to the various needle arts.) Above are the samples I created for each class. Call or visit The Knitting Nest in Austin Texas to sign up. Different ornaments will be offered on different days - knitted ones on Friday the 26th, and on Wednesdays thereafter; crocheted ones on Saturdays starting November 27th.

Escape the house, make your own ornaments (or gift toppers.)

Where am I?

Where am I? In the middle of stitch marker land, apparently. These are sets of knitting stitch markers that I just finished for sale at the Ravelry event at The Knitting Nest tomorrow, November 13. They are all made from 22 gauge sterling silver (so heavy duty, won't bend easily), Swarovski crystal beads (so, sparkly) and clear glass beads (also sparkly) and are all handmade and carefully finished (so not to snag the knitting.) There are 18 sets of 5 markers - and will be for sale from 10-11:30 am and 1-6pm during the Ravelry event. Any leftovers will go up for sale on my Etsy shop on Sunday. I will also have more project needle cases and sock needle envelopes for sale. I have also donated a special set of all 3 of these (stitch markers, project needle case, sock needle envelope) to the silent auction to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. This auction will be taking place all day tomorrow during the Ravelry event. The stitch markers are very special - sterling silver, freshwater pearl, and deep red, silver-lined vintage glass beads. The sock needle envelope is finished with a vintage glass button as well - the only one I've made in the true red wool felt. I made these in remembrance of all of my family members who have had cancer. That would be ALL of them, by the way. Only my siblings and kids and I have gone cancer-free so far. Spooky - the odds aren't good.

Mmm, sparkly and pastel.

Getting brighter.

Brighter still.

Ah, brightest yet.

I am very thankful that I have quite a few years of jewelry making under my belt. It made the process neater and faster. I will admit that wrapping the wire was a little difficult. The headpins that I used are heavier in gauge than I usually use for jewelry - but I wanted them to stand up to a lot of hard use. My fingers are sore - but they turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself.