I've just been overall crafty

New tags for things I make, originally uploaded by jennlikesyarn.

I needed new tags to attach to my finished products. I just did. In the past, I've used big floppy business cards and, though cute, they just weren't cute enough for me. Everyone has business cards, so to me, they're kind of like... whatever. I wanted something more unique.

So last weekend, I made a trip to my local ACMoore (not unlike most weekends) to check out scrapbooking punches. I have a small collection, but nothing with shapes. Mine are all kinds of fancy, like a lace edger from my idol Martha Stewart. That just would not do, especially since I didn't have ones that cropped out corners in pattern.

Needless to say, I got really distracted and picked up not just a circle punch, but a scalloped circle punch. It's 1.5" and pretty freaking cute, if I say so myself.

In Illustrator, I put together a really simple circle design that says "Made with love by jennlikesyarn" and then listed my website. I then glued the printed sheet of logos to the back side of some fun scrapbook paper (don't have a heart attack - it wasn't the Mariposa stack or anything :P). Then I punched out each logo and used another punch to put a hole at the top for attaching to products.

I think the results are fabulous. You have all the information you need one side, and fun pattern on the other. In future generations, I may put an email address on there, but I think this suffices for now :)

How do you guys use tags on your products? Anything fancy? I think these are my favorites so far, and I think they're unique. What are the best tags you've seen? I love getting new ideas!

Help, I'm surrounded by too many crocheted roses!

Welcome to Day 3 of my "catching up on blogging for all the photos I took last weekend because I have had endless projects out the wazoo" series.

Today, I'm sharing some sparkly obnoxiousness for a flower swap I'm participating in.  Everyone in our group had to make two different kinds of flowers and enough for each person.  One of the requirements was that we embellish the flowers in some way, so I sprayed both flowers with fabric glitter and added bling to the blue ones.  Here's a pretty photo:



This was before I went out and purchased more posterboard to take nice-looking pictures, so I apologize for the fact the turquoise blue isn't burning holes in your retinas as it should be.  I promise, it is much brighter than the photo allows for.  But they still look pretty!  I made them on my flower loom using some new skills I had learned to make a fun "swirl" effect around the center.  You can see this effect better in my next photo:



The other flowers were some really cute rosettes I made from a Lion Brand pattern.  I really hate making rosettes, so I was thrilled to find a pattern that didn't make we want to rip my hair out.  It's fun, easy, and the results are really cute.  Plus, they give you instructions to make the roses bigger or smaller, depending on what you want, so you really don't need to worry about gauge.  Check them out:



And as thanks to Sonya for hosting this swap, I made her a little thank-you hat featuring one of those adorable rosettes! 



It's one of my latest designs I'll be selling this fall, and I've already made three with more on the way.  I'm even working on some baby ones for a custom order I received earlier in the week.  I already heard back from Sonya, and she loved it!  I'm surprised how quickly it got to her (I mailed it from PA on Saturday and she received it in CA by Monday - how did that happen?!), but I guess it's the little things that make life fun :)

I'll be receiving everyone else's roses over the next few weeks, so I'll keep you posted.  I'm sure you'll be waiting with baited breath, haha, but I'm excited to see what they make!

My swap partner loved me - Favorite Hats PicSpam

See?  I told you I got spoiled.

Before going in to the other contents of the package, I should mention that there used to be Swedish Fish.  Unfortunately, they didn't survive this photoshoot; Hubby and I had already torn through the bag.  Okay, so it was mostly me, but he helped!

Anyway, the purpose of this swap was for my partner to make one of my favorited hats on Ravelry.  Little did I know that she would be making me three!  I win!  And Jess has the greatest taste in yarn ever (she does a really cool thing where she attaches the yarn label to the hat so I know what it's made from).

Here are some closeups of each hat.  Control your drooling!


Bobble Beauty (rav link to pattern)


Phannie (rav link to pattern)


Olivia's Butterfly (rav link to pattern)

If you click here, you can visit the Flickr page where I've noted each individual item and what they are :)

But look at all the cute things!  I especially love the little paw punch that I can use for scrapbooking.  It's adorable.  Jess is the swap partner I've had before who has my cat's twin (or so it seems).  They look so much alike, it's scary.  So we've taken to including little kitty gifts in our packages, and Jess did not disappoint.  I've heard Chucky and Petey tossing their new blinky ball around in our living room.  In fact, they were so happy about their new toys that they hijacked my photoshoot:



They were just too cute to shoo away.

I hope you've enjoyed downloading the 87 photos on this page. You're welcome! Haha. Thank you so much, Jess, for another great package. I super loved everything and can't wait until it gets a wee bit chilly so I can wear all these wonderful hats. MWAH!

Sockhead Hat - A Two-Week Time Sucker

There it is: the project that consumed two weeks of my life.

At first glance, you wouldn't think it would take so long.  After all, it's only 4" of ribbing followed by approximately 9" of stockinette.  I looked forward to this project because it was mindless and great for catching up on the season premieres of our favorite shows ("Mad Men" is back, everyone!).

What I failed to remember is that anything worked with sock yarn is going to be painful if you're under a time constraint, even if the pattern is easy.  Hence why I have a huge pile of sock yarn building up in my craft room, but have yet to finish a sock.  I just lose interest after that 30,000th stitch, when I realize I haven't even reached the heel.

It was made for a Favorite Hat swap over at Ravelry.  It's the second one of its kind, and after much success with the first swap, I knew I had to join the second.  For this swap, we had to comb through our partner's Ravelry favorites and make one of the hats on the list.  Simple enough, and lots of fun to finally have the hats you've wanted to make for two years and haven't gotten around to.

My partner's favorite colors were jewel tones, so I immediately knew which of my yarns I was going to use.  This particular yarn was purchased on an outing shortly before our wedding when I was looking for a fun honeymoon project.  I decided to attempt socks and bought these skeins at A Garden of Yarn in Chadds Ford, PA.  The place lives up to its name, by the way, so it's worth a stop if you're in the area!

Well, as mentioned above, socks get really boring (I give major credit to people who like making them) and the pair never got finished.  So it was nice to be able to recycle the yarn and make something useful, even if I had to give it away when all was said and done.

The great news is that my swap partner loved it, as well as the other goodies I included in my package.  I was sad to see it go, but I look forward to the day my patience rebuilds so I can make another one out of my stash.

Here is a link to my project page over on Ravelry, and here is a link to the pattern (it's free!).

I have so many blog posts to make this week, so prepare for some flooding :)  I took a bunch of pictures over the weekend, and there are more I need to take for the JennyHats Fall Collection, so I'm in dire need to catching up.

Tomorrow: the swap package I received with my favorite hat.  Or should I say hats?  I was really spoiled!

Vickie Howell Craft Yarn 50% Off at Stitch Steals!

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

If you're looking for a great deal on fiber, make your way over to Stitch Steals where you can buy Vickie Howell organic craft yarn for 50% off!  I know I will be indulging.  I haven't tried her yarn yet (though I've coveted it for so, so, sooooooo long).

I'll purchase some and leave a review here, okay?

But hurry because these deals only last for 24 hours!

The Knit Kit Now Available - Review and Free Shipping Offer!

Hi, all! As you know by now, today is the launch date of my superbly awesome new shop over at The Open Sky Project. This shop is where I will provide products to you, my fellow craft addicts, that I'm able to review and recommend so you know you're getting only the best products!

I'm really excited to not just open the shop, but to feature this first item that I received as a free sample yesterday. Presenting The Knit Kit:

Commence drooling.

Okay, so what is this thing, anyway? Well, it's a helpful little accessory that the craft industry has coined "The Swiss Army Tool for Knitters." That means that in every Knit Kit, you'll receive:

• A stitch counter
• A measuring tape with release tab
• Thread cutter
• Collapsible scissors
• Point protectors
• Stitch markers
• A crochet hook

A crochet hook? Why the heck is that handy? Well, if you're anything like me, you get really excited about your projects and work so fast you drop stitches like hot potatoes. Crochet hooks are perfect for going back and fixing any dropped stitches. And not only is it a crochet hook, it's a double ended crochet hook with two different sizes to use, depending on the type of yarn you're working with.

The best part about everything is that it's all TSA compliant. That means The Knit Kit is totally safe to take on planes. I've been jonesing to get my hands on one of these for awhile because I'm traveling to Dallas in September and Nashville in October. Do you understand the nightmare that traveling with all these supplies usually is? Not anymore! Now I can't wait!

If this sounds like something that would benefit you, then make sure to check it out on my Open Sky shop, or click on the "Add to Cart" button below:



PS: Get FREE SHIPPING until August 16th by entering code FREESHIPPING at checkout.  If you have one or purchase one, let me know what you think.

For more information, visit the official website, where you can even watch a clip of my idol Martha Stewart promoting it!  And if my review and Martha aren't enough to sway you, then how about a kitty?  Petey recommends it, too!

New product in shop: Crochet Flower Headband with Pearls and Feathers

Crochet Flower Headband with Pearls and Feathers, originally uploaded by jennlikesyarn.

Introducing my new line of headbands!

So far, I've made a whopping one of these, but there will be more coming in the next few weeks as classes wind down for the summer (and I have a glorious 14 days off before Fall session begins).

This was my prototype, but it came out so well that I decided to just go ahead and sell it :)

My inspiration was my brief stint into scrapbooking. For the record, I still really enjoy scrapbooking; I just don't have the time right now to indulge. Anyway, one of the latest scrapbooking trends seems to be handmade flowers with embellishments like rhinestones, buttons, distressing, glitter, pearls, and feathers. I thought these flowers would make really fun hair accessories and decided to try my hand at them.

Because my medium of expression is fiber, I crocheted a black flower, neutral because I wanted to be totally obnoxious with the feathers. Then I sprayed sparkles all over the flower. You can't see the detail in any of the photos, but it looks so pretty in person!



There's a super sparkly rhinestone in the flower's center, and multi-hued pink feathers coming up from behind. In between, I've added a string of pearls to make it somewhat classy :)



I really see these being a fun accessory for events like bachelorette parties. I mean, they're awesome for any night out on the town, or to spruce up an otherwise simple ensemble. But I can custom make the flowers and feathers in any color to match a bridal party's theme, and they do come out really cute.

If you're interested, you can buy the finished product in my etsy shop. There are also more pictures there, so feel free to check it out!

What else can I add to these? What colors would be great? I'm thinking of making one that's all white and seeing how that looks, maybe with gold glitter spray. I've got my work cut out for me!