Cupcake Beanie pattern

Here it is, friends!  I was asked to write up my version of a Cupcake Beanie.  A few years ago I came across a bootleg internet copy of a similar hat made by Twinkie Chan.  I worked her pattern up and liked it ok, but it didn't work once my daughter wore the hat...it barely sat straight on her head and the cake part kept getting bigger and bigger the more she wore it.  No bueno.  So, like any crafty/crocheting, frustrated mom, I decided to make up my own version and out came this little number.  It's a little slouchier so the frosting looks super-swirly and the cake part fits around the head a little tighter to help keep in on.  If you have any questions or need help, feel free to contact me on FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/Spicy-Tuesday-Crafts/167303963320859?ref=hl and I'll see if I can sort it out for you.  Enjoy!

 Cupcake Beanie

Materials:  I hook (5.5mm)

                  WW yarn in your choice of frosting color

                  WW yarn in your choice of Cake color

                  Pony beads, sequins, pom poms...whatever type of decoration you'd like

 Frosting:  Ch 28, turn

            R1:  1 hdc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 hdc in each st across, ch 2, turn.

(work in BLO from here on)

           

            R2:  1 hdc in each st across, 2 hdc in last st, ch2, turn.

            R3:  2 hdc in next st, 1 hdc in each st across, 2hdctog in last 2 sts, ch 2, turn.

            R4:  2hdctog in first 2 sts, 1 hdc in each st across, 2 hdc in last st, ch 2 turn.

            R5 through R50:  Repeat, alternating between R3 and R4

            FO, leaving a long tail for sewing.

            Sew R1 to R50 to make a tube.  FO, but do NOT cut the string.  Set frosting aside.

Cake:  Ch 14

(work in BLO for the whole cake section)

            R1:  1 sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 sc in each st across, ch 2 turn.

            R2:  1 sc in each st across, ch 2, turn.

            R3 through R90:  I sc in each st across, ch 2, turn.

            FO, leaving a long tail for sewing.

           

            Sew R1 to R90 to make a short tube.  Carefully and evenly, sew cake piece to bottom edge of frosting piece.  (You'll be sewing 90 sc rows to 50 hdc rows so try to keep the sewing stitches as even as possible around the cake.)  FO and weave in ends.

            Using the left-over sewing tail on the frosting, weave it in and out along the top edge of the frosting, around the tube. Pull gently to cinch the top edge closed.

            FO and weave in ends.

            Add "sprinkles" - pompoms, sequins, etc. - or whatever embellishment you'd like.  For my sprinkles, I used Pony beads, sewing them on and tying the knots on the inside of the hat to hide them.  

sock monkeys and owls...

 I'm currently climbling out from under a huge pile of yarn, hooks in hand.  This summer I signed up to have a table at our local craft fair in Nov. to sell my Ouchie Owls, Boo Boo Birds and sock monkey hats.  Thinking I'd have plenty of time to stock the table, I started slowly working on some hats and other assorted baby/kid gear to put out for sale.  Ha!  Since I started working on stuff for the fair, I've gotten 10 separate orders for monkey hats, two of them while I was sitting on the bleachers at a football game.... my tiny friend slash amazing baby-sized advertiser Quentin was also there sporting his sock monkey hat and causing quite a stir with all his cuddly cuteness.  With all those orders coming in I've hardly accumulated much of anything for the fair but I do still have a month and a half.  Those last few days I'll no doubt be up at all hours.  Here are a few of the items I've finished in the last few days:     

I love Sock Monkeys!

I freaking LOVE sock monkeys! I always have, although "always" for me didn't start when I was a kid, but after my son was born in 2007 which was when I first saw one. I guess I'm way late to the game. My mom showed me a package of the Rockford Red Heel Socks (which I later found out is the original socks the monkeys were made out of) and printed on the back of the package was instructions for sewing your own sock monkey! They actually printed it on the package! Brilliant! Anyway, I still haven't made an actual sock monkey toy yet, but my friend Valerie showed me a photo of a sock monkey hat and asked if I thought I could do it. Um, whether I can or not, it was way too cute to pass up! She wanted him in a gray/blue/white color scheme for her youngest son who's just 3 months old. I made it a little big, partly because I had to estimate his head size (I was so excited to get started that I didn't wait for her to send me his head measurements) and partly because it's the middle of summer here and the hat won't really be needed for a few more months. And I'm so excited -- she wanted him as an earflap hat! I LOVE earflap hats on little boys! Makes them look so cute! Okay, I'll be honest -- I love earflap hats on anyone. I wish I skied so I could wear them on the slopes.
He's a keeper! I was so happy with how he turned out -- and I'm just a big enough dork -- that I'm making one for myself for our christmas tree cutting expedition this winter. We'll see if Kev will be seen in public with me and my new monkey hat. :) More of these will be in my etsy shop soon, in any color scheme you want; stay tuned!

Evy's brown hat

Evy, the new daughter of my close friend Shannon and owner of the cupcake hat from a previous post, is also the new owner of this little brown number. It's an open-weave summer hat, with a lacy trim and a detachable teal flower. Shannon told me exactly what she was looking for (for newborn portraits) and I searched through loads of free patterns online trying to make one small enough but breezy enough for the summer. I really should give up the pattern hunt because none are exactly what I want and I usually end up making up my own anyway. But then I run the risk of reinventing the wheel . . .

This little hat is so tiny; when I was working on it I kept thinking, "This will be way too small for her, even if she is brand new." Well, apparently you do lose some of the memories as your own kids grow up because when I tried it on her, it was just a little too big still!

As requested, I made the flower detachable on a pin back so her mom could switch out the flower depending on what she was wearing at the time. Love love love it! And in honor of its tiny owner, when I write up the pattern it will be called Evy's Summer Hat! Look for it in my etsy shop, coming soon!

Ellie's Bucket Hat, request #2

When I went to deliver the first two bucket hats (to her mom at the school where she works) another lady saw it and immediately requested one! I love when that happens! Same size and style, but a different color scheme. This one totally reminds me of strawberries and cream! Yum!

And that giant red flower - I just love it.

summer hats

I love it when I get commissions for projects . . . not commissions as in "income besides salary," although the little extra spending money is nice (it supports my yarn addiction) but as in "requests to make stuff." My friends have been hooking (ha - hooking, get it? as in crochet hook? yeah, I'm a dork sometimes. and it's late) me up with new ideas and projects lately and I've been up to my elbows in soft fibery goodness. Recently I was asked to recreate a hat that had been a baby gift but that the little girl in question had grown out of. The original was crazy cute, but it had been handmade and bought at a bazaar in Seattle (I think) and there wasn't really a way to get a new one so with the original in hand, I went to work. The original was brown and light pink, soft and floppy, with a small brim and a cute flower just off center. Her mom wanted the same basic shape and style, but bigger and in more summery colors so she could wear it right now. I loved it so much when it was done, I made two. In honor of its tiny owner, I named the pattern Ellie's Bucket Hat. Now my daughter wants one. . . :0)

cupcakes!

Recently, our close friends had a baby (Yay, Shannon & Jerrid!) and their theme for her room is cupcakes. . . so of course I had to contribute! I've made rag quilts before but this was my first foray into the world of applique. I drew out the cupcake onto cardstock (and erased it so many times I wore through the paper) then cut them out in pieces. I used my old-school Singer sewing machine (given to me by my husband's grandma soon after we were married -- and I LOVE IT!) to "draw" on the frosting lines and affix the cupcake cups, then sewed the whole thing together. I wanted a more finished look to the edges so I put on the border pieces instead of just ragging the edges -- I've done both types of edging and like both about the same. Then into the dryer to begin the ragging.

They also wanted a couple of crocheted cupcakes for her decor so I made 4 little cupcakes, each one topped differently. I think my fave is still the swirled frosting with sparkly sprinkles.

And because I think that every little girl deserves a cupcake on her birthday, I made her this little cupcake hat. I was planning to bring it to the hospital when we went to visit her but she decided to make her appearance a little early and we were out of town. My friend Valerie saved the day and brought it to her for me.

I love that they love cupcakes as much as I do -- I had a complete blast making all this cupcake stuff. Mmmmm, cupcakes.......time for a bakery run.

#31 - Krista's chocolate beanie

And I made it! 31 projects in my 31st year! My beautiful sister (pictured above) found a photo of a beanie she liked but didn't want to pay $48 for (especially when she has a sister who can make one for free from the extra yarn sitting in her closet) and asked if I could make one like it for her. She and her husband came to visit over Christmas break and while we were all sitting around visiting I gave it a try (mostly because I can't just sit still anymore -- my hands MUST be moving; you should see me fidget at church!) By the time they were ready to call it a night, I had this little number worked up:

It's the first one I've made without a pattern to follow . . . and she loved it! It's a little different than the photo she found, but it fits her perfectly (because she was there to try it on mid-process). Of course, I'm a dork and should have written down what I did so I can do it again but hopefully I can work it up again from memory.

And because I'm an overachiever (wow, that's soooo not the truth -- ask anyone!) I did finish a few more things and have several more in the works that will be finished before my 32nd b-day in March. Stay tuned!

#21-27 jolene's hats

It's been a while since my last post, but please don't think that's been because I had no new projects to work on. I've been up to my eyeballs in yarn, crocheting my little heart out for friends and family . . . and myself, even! . . . and now that I've finished up some things I can post photos for all to see. My darling friend Jolene asked me to make some beanies for her to give to her neices and nephews for Christmas and I was thrilled to comply! Here's their finished photos:

And I'm counting them in my 31 Projects count . . . just because I can! . . . so now I'm up to 27. Four to go before March -- I think I just might make it!

Stay tuned for another batch of hats and some other fun baby gift things!