Refashioned Tee

  This old tee shirt was stretched out and way too low cut for me. I decided to give it a makeover. I made a few cuts, keeping the neckline in tact, for the most part. I cut off the sleeves and the top part of the back piece, then sewed the edges. I had a little trouble sewing because the material is so stretchy. I really need to get some sewing lessons so I know how to deal with that. I'm still contemplating putting words or an image on the front. Maybe some embroidery or crochet. What do you think?

Lime Rasta

   Here is a custom hat made for my cousin. The pattern for this hat is found in the book "Get Your Crochet On! Hip Hats & Cool Caps" by Afya Ibomu. It is called Kinky Reggae. This one is made in size small. I love these hats, especially when going to the beach or the pool. It is so easy to put my hair up in it and not have to worry about how it looks after being in the water. It's also great for "bad hair days" or those days that I just don't feel like doing my hair. 

Show -N- Tell

  This is Sara's Floppy Sun Hat. She made her's a little larger by starting with 8 puff stitches instead of 6 and adjusting the pattern as necessary. I know some people were saying that the hat was coming out too small so, here's proof that starting with more puff stitches can work well to make it a bigger size. Also, if you still feel like you're making baby hats, make sure that starting in round 5, you are adding an extra chain between the puff stitches. It will feel like you are chaining 2. Thank you for the picture, Sara! It looks great!

Sara's Floppy

 I love seeing finished products from my patterns. If you want to be featured on my blog with your finished items, just shoot me an email. If you don't want to be featured but still want to send me pics, that's great too! Just let me know in the email if you want me to post your pics or not.

daperfectmix@gmail.com

I am a Zumbaholic

  I have to admit, I am addicted to Zumba. I love to dance. I used to go out to clubs, but I'm too old for the drama that goes along with going out. Zumba is perfect for me. I can dance and get a good workout at the same time. I love the music. I wish I would have thought of it a long time ago so I too could be reaping the benefits of this worldwide craze! I'm still happy just dancing in a class though.

  My cousin got his Zumba license recently. He asked me if I wanted to make a video with him to submit to Dizzy Feet Foundation for National Dance Day. All he had to say was ZUMBA! So that's how I spent my weekend. I learned the coreography for the Zumba song and the rest is history. I meant to bring my digital camcorder, but ended up forgetting it so we had to work with what we had, which wasn't much. Tell me what you think!

  For more information on National Dance Day, visit dizzyfeetfoundation.org. It's not too late to participate!!

Fire Cracker Mesh Bag Pattern

  This bag can be made with any worsted weight yarn, nylon, or twine. It would make a great beach bag, or make it longer to carry your yoga mat. It could even be a laundry bag. Whatever you want to use it for. The strap makes it easy and comfortable to wear. Mix and match your favorite colors or just make it in a solid color.

Materials:

• size L crochet hook
• size I crochet hook
• worsted weight yarn, colors A, B, and C
• yarn needle for fastening off

Abbreviations:

• ch = chain
• sl st = slip stitch
• dc = double crochet
• hdc = half double crochet
• sp = space
• rep = repeat

Instructions:

Mesh Bag:

 Note: You will join to the top of first chain at the end of every round. 

 With color A and size L hook, ch 4 and join to make a ring.

Rnd 1: ch 2 (counts as first dc), 9 dc in ring, join in top of ch 2 (10 dc)

Rnd 2: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, 2dc in between each dc around, join (20dc)

Rnd 3: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, *dc in next sp, 2dc in next sp*, rep around (30dc)

Rnd 4: sl st in next sp between dc, ch2, dc in same sp, *dc in next 2 sp, 2 dc in next sp*, rep around (40dc)

Rnd 5: sl st in next sp between dc, ch3, *dc in next sp, ch1*, rep around, join (40dc)

Rnd 6: sl st in next sp between dc, ch4, *dc in next sp, ch2*, rep around, join(40dc)

Rnd 7-12: repeat round 6

Rnd 13-14: change to color B, repeat round 6

Rnd 15-27: change to color C, repeat round 6

Rnd 28: ch2, *2hdc in next sp, 1hdc in next dc* rep around, join, fasten off.

Drawstring:

 With color B and size I hook, ch about 200. (This can be longer or shorter depending on your preference). Trim ends evenly

Weave the chain in and out of the hdc round of bag. 

Shoulder Strap:

 With color B and size I hook, join yarn in a sp on the top of the 5th round of bag (bottom), on the opposite side of your drawstring opening. (You can adjust your drawstring if it isn't exact.)

Row 1: ch2, hdc in same space, *hdc in next sp* 7 times, ch2 turn (9hdc)

Row 2: hdc in each hdc across, ch2 turn

Row 3: hdc in back loop only of each hdc across, ch2 turn

Row 4-40: repeat row 3

Join in top of last dc round of bag (row 27), sc across hdc of strap and in the spaces between dc of bag

Fasten off and weave in ends.


Enjoy your new bag!

bottom of strap

top of strap

I'd love to see your finished projects! I can even feature them on my blog if you'll allow it. Just email the pics to daperfectmix@gmail.com. If you don't want the pics to be on the blog, just let me know, but I would still like to see your projects.

~daperfectmix

Refashioned Army Shirt

  I took one of my old Army tee shirts and made a cute tank for Isabel. She's actually wearing this in my last post. We had ourselves a little photo shoot and just got everything photographed.
  This shirt was simple. First I cut the sleeves off, a few snips across the top to square it off, then fold it over and sew to make a casing for the straps. I cut the hem off of the bottom to use for the straps. Thread through and tie together. I cut a slit on each side at the bottom and tied the ends together to make it a little more fitted.

Back to the Grind

  After two weeks of vacation, it's back to the hustle and bustle of everyday life, back to metro area traffic, and back to work. I still haven't really gotten back into the swing of things. It's my second day back to work and I'm ready for another vacation. I need to go back to looking forward to the weekends.

  On our long drive down to Florida, I did manage to make a few things. I only brought four different color yarns, so they are all the same colors. I chose these colors because the first project that I wanted to make was this tam for the 4th of July. I'm not sure if I like the drawstring, I think a solid color might look better. Or maybe I should just use elastic instead.

  
  I really like how this bag came out. If made with nylon or twine, it would be a perfect beach bag. I actually managed to write down the pattern for this one so look out for that soon.

Show -N- Tell

  I haven't had a show and tell in a while. I got this email while I was on vacation from Lynette in Puerto Rico. She made her floppy sun hat using twine from a hardware store. It came out beautiful and she said people can't believe she made it herself!  Thanks for the picture Lynette!

Lynette's Floppy

  I love seeing finished products from my patterns. If you want to be featured on my blog with your finished items, just shoot me an email. If you don't want to be featured but still want to send me pics, that's great too! Just let me know in the email if you want me to post your pics or not.

daperfectmix@gmail.com

Tyndall Beach, FL

  My kids found some cool shells and sand dollars in the low tide of Tyndall Beach. This beach is beautiful and secluded. The sand is so white, my three year old said it looked like snow. I only had my cell phone so I don't have many good pictures yet. I do plan on going back before we leave to get some better pictures. Hmmm, what kind of crafts can I make with shells and sand dollars? Isn't nature beautiful?

Balancing Act

 
  How do you balance your time between work/blog/home/crafts/kids?  I love making new things, experimenting with sewing and jewelry and of course I love crocheting. I also have a full time job, full time children, and don't forget hubby. On top of all that I like to stay fit, try to keep up with my blog, and new technologies. It's hard work and a lot of times I have to sacrifice what I want to do with what I need to do. It's life. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying..

  Do you do anything special, or have a way of doing things to make time for your crafts or hobbies?

Refashion

   Ok, don't laugh at my amateur sewing job.  I am well aware that I have tons of learning to do in that department. I think it turned out way better in my mind. I should probably take a class sometime.Well, on to the project.

  I took this thrift store shirt and made some alterations. 

First I chopped off the sleeves and made the shirt a little more fitted. 

Then I added crochet, of course. This is an applique that I wrote about in another blog post. I just pinned it where I liked then hand sewed it in place. 

I carefully cut out the fabric from behind the crochet.

This shirt is for my daughter, so instead of leaving the open back, I added a contrasting color to the inside. Conveniently, I had a sample swatch of stretch cotton jersey in the exact size that I needed. Not the prettiest stitches, but they do the job. I had to make sure to stay behind the crochet so the stitches weren't visible on the other side. 

And the final piece. 

33

   I read an article that said that age 33 is the happiest age of people's lives. According to a survey that was done, over 70% of people over 40 chose that age as their happiest.  Well today marks the first day of my happiest year. We shall see. I did enjoy my cookies and cream, ice cream cake (in the pic) with my family after dinner this evening. Do I need to set goals and plan, or just go with the flow? I'm a "go with the flow" kind of girl. The article ends with a quote from a psychologist named Donna Dawson who says, "The age of 33 is enough time to have shaken off childhood naivete and the wild scheming of teen-aged years without losing the energy and enthusiasm of youth."  It sounds like a good age. I'll make the most of it. At what age would you say you were the happiest? 

   By the way, happy birthday to all the Geminis out there!

Jamrock Earrings

  As I was making my latest rasta tam, I started playing with the yarn to see if I could make the flag in different sizes for other accessories. I was trying to come up with a different way of making the "x" with the yellow yarn. On the hat I made it with a single crochet, stitching the two colors together with the yellow. This time I made a whip stitch using a needle. I used a size E crochet hook for the green and black. I came up with these cute earrings. They are a great accessory to go along with the tam.

Jamaican Rasta Tam

   I crocheted this special Jamaican tam for a customer. She wanted it in the colors of the Jamaican flag with the "flag" in the back. She saw a previous hat that I made like this, but she didn't want it to be mesh like the other one. This tam also has a drawstring closure around the crown for a perfect fit. This is how it turned out. I really like it. She is going to wear it at a reggae festival in July. Sounds like fun times, ya mon!

Show -N- Tell

  Michelle did a lovely job on her first crochet hat projects! I'm happy that she chose my pattern. She made these floppy sun hats for her daughters and plans to make one for herself. She said she completed one hat in one day and the pattern was "easy peasy!" Thank you for sending the pics, Michelle.

 I love seeing finished products from my patterns. If you want to be featured on my blog with your finished items, just shoot me an email. If you don't want to be featured but still want to send me pics, that's great too! Just let me know in the email if you want me to post your pics or not.

daperfectmix@gmail.com

New Rasta Hat

  I whipped up a new rasta hat. It was made with a size L hook and hdc stitches. It ties around the crown for a perfect fit. Just pull and tie. This will be going in my online store for sale.

  How do you like my new model? Her name is Marianna and I got her from the online Goodwill auction. There was only one other person who bid against me so I got her for a really good price. They have so many different items like yarn, jewelry, and antiques.

Retirement Gift

  My mom just retired from Hershey, the chocolate factory. She has been slaving over your chocolate for years and she is finally free! Just kidding, but she has been working there for a long time and is happy to be retired. I could not come up with a good retirement gift. A perfect one would have been a trip to Hawaii, but I don't have that kind of money so that's not an option. I was thinking of getting her a tablet, but my parents don't have WiFi in their house, so that would be worthless. I thought of a Kindle, but she doesn't do much reading. Some Zumba DVDs would have been good, but she beat me to it and bought it herself! She likes gardening, but she has everything she needs for that. So, I decided to make her a custom tee shirt.  I wanted to incorporate Hershey in there somehow, so I came up with this:

 KISS THIS, I'M RETIRED!

 

   Simple and to the point. I probably should have used a black shirt. I used iron-on letters, and for the picture of the "kiss" I used an iron-on transfer sheet. You just print a picture (or you can make your own art with markers or crayons) onto the sheet and iron it to the T-shirt, following the directions of course. I messed up a couple "kisses" by not following directions correctly. 

 
 Good thing I tested it out on another shirt first. I don't know if you can tell that they are messed up a little, but it doesn't look too bad. I used some of my leftover letters and you can guess who I'm giving this one to. My daughter will probably wear it tomorrow. Ha. I'm glad she likes my creations.

   Can you give me any other ideas for a retirement gift?

Show -N- Tell

  Here is Sari's Floppy Sun Hat all the way from Finland. Everyone seems to be using multicolored yarn. Maybe I should try that too! I love the pinks. Thanks for the pic, Sari, great job!

Sari's Floppy

  I love seeing finished products from my patterns. If you want to be featured on my blog with your finished items, just shoot me an email. If you don't want to be featured but still want to send me pics, that's great too! Just let me know in the email if you want me to post your pics or not.

daperfectmix@gmail.com

Crochet at Victoria Secret

  I was looking through this Victoria Secret catalog that I got in the mail today and guess what I found? Oh yes, it's crochet! So do they have people who actually crochet these designs or is there some kind of crochet machine that I don't know about? They are beautiful. My favorite is the brown maxi dress at the bottom. Just in case anyone wanted to get me an early birthday present, I wear size small. ;) just kidding.. I would love to find the patterns. You can get these dresses online at Victoria Secret's website.

Crochet Maxi Dress at Victoria Secret

The Crochet Sun Dress at Victoria Secret

Crochet Racerback Dress at Victoria Secret

Cotton Crochet Maxi Dress at Victoria Secret

Flower Hair Clip



Flower Power



  These flowers are too cute not to share. The free crochet pattern is called Ecliptic Crochet Flower by Teresa Richardson and is found here. If the written pattern is hard to follow, her video tutorial will clear things up. I found this pattern a long time ago and used it to applique a bag that I made as a gift. There has been countless times that I've found myself on Teresa's blog or YouTube channel. She is a great teacher and she knows a lot. I love that she shares all her knowledge for free. Thank you, Teresa!

  I made these flowers with colors that are not usually flower colors, like the green and black. I think they look funky. I'll have to dig in my stash and see what other combinations I can make. I really like the neon and brighter colors.

  
  My daughter chose the colors for this one and wanted it to be a hair clip. I added some bling with some small rhinestones that I had. I used a dab of fabric glue to keep them on the flower. Then I added the hair clip to the back of the flower with hot glue.