Pikachu is finally done

I'm not quite sure he looks like the character... but I did what I could.

Here's the finished Pikachu:

Yeah... not perfect.... but eh... my son loves him anyway.

The yarn I had started him with was more neon-shaded... but I ran out and couldn't get more... so the new yellow is a bit brighter than the photo would appear... it's a good color.  I didn't get the face/head quite right. But I love the ears and the tail. Tail is made in seed stitch with lots of zigs and zags and a bit of darker color at the base. I added stripes to his back with duplicate stitching.

Sadly, he looks a bit more like a pillow than a pikachu... but I can live with it since little 'a' loves him all the same.

Of course, five seconds after he took Pikachu back to his room after he was finished he came back to me asking for a Snorelax... because it 'ought to be easy and really good for cuddling'.

While he ought to be easy enough to make.... I'm not sure I'm ready to sign up for coming up with him from scratch with no pattern... not yet anyway. Maybe. Good news is that his face is pretty straight-forward embroidery - so at least I'd be less likely to mess it up. So, for right now,  little 'a' is just going to have to settle for 'let me think about it'.

Super-fast necklace

A couple of months ago there had been a class prompt that asked you to use some metalic colored yarn as one of the options. I wasn't going to do it... but in the craft store I stumbled onto a rack of Lion Brand BonBons and kept eyeing the package of metalics.  The package contained six little 35-ish yard mini-skeins and the metalics package had silver, gold, copper, etc. Super cute and super fun... and I broke down and brought the package home.  I ended up whipping out a super-easy, super-fast bracelet...

Basically, I knit three different I-cords; then braided them... which was inspired by a thought I had around making a braided rag rug - but instead of using rags; I wanted to use scrap bits of yarn and make I-cords from them. Making the bracelet  helped me think through the process and experiment a little.

This month, along comes another prompt... this time it was to be inspired by keys... and I couldn't resist adding a necklace to match:

It took only about 5 yards of each yarn. I used big needles to make it go quick... an dit did. About one hour from first cast on to trying on.

July EOM Post (ha! Not so late, this time)

Hats - I ended up making one hat for my son, and SEVEN charity hats!

Here are the five that I turned into Charms and CoMC that haven't been posted here yet.

After finding that I had miscounted some of the earlier hats... my new total is 28 charity hats out of 50... 56% of my annual goal.

Finished the Mario baby blanket.

Aran Square - number 1. Number 2 was just too much to tackle... mostly because it took me three times to get guage on this square.

Instead, I did another yarn-eating baby blanket. I held four strands together of various yarns... to get about 4000 yards used up and represent # 7 of the finished blankets completed out of the 13 in my goal.

And last, but not least... the finished top that I 'just had to make'.

July planning - and mid-month progress report - all-in-one

First thing finished in July was a hat that I started the evening of June 30th (was bored and didn't feel like working on the Mario blanket... odds are it will look a LOT like OTHER hats completed recently (kind of in a rut, I know).

Second Charity hat -  Turned into DADA simple ribbed edge and stockinette body - fits a prompt to cover your eyes from the vision of the basilisk.... see? -- I did have fun digging for scraps... will do more like this.

Quidditch called for another hat (or... ball carrier...) you decide. More scraps.

That brings my annual total of charity hats to #21.... which is a little shy of goal. I'll probably make one more hat this month - for Charms.  And then take a little break next month and focus on getting at least 20 or more completed during the next HPKCHC term (Sept - Nov).

Additionally, I finished the Mario blanket (picture in last post).

And Quidditch #2 - is another hat. For the first time in a long time though... it's for family instead of charity. My son lost his ski mask and in February had asked me to make him one. Of course, starting it at the end of February ensures that the weather would turn nice (it did)... so I procrastinated making it until this summer... it's already in the winter hat collection basket ready and waiting for it to get cold again.

I'm about half-done with my Aran Square of the month (which is actually Aprils - I am a bit behind since I haven't made any since March. Divination has a pretty easy fit where you can tie it to something seen in ashes after a Phoenix's burning day.

I'm also planning on a second Aran Square this month. It'll take a little storytelling -  but this one will go into Potions, I figure the complex potion can be inspired by Prof. Snape, the Half-Blood Prince.

And then I'm nuts enough to think I can do another summer top for myself in the last 12 days of the month. Sleeveless, tank top... something pretty simple. I LOVE my tank I finished last month and got inspired to try to use up some yarn that I had stashed for making a top.  I'll turn it in for History of Magic and take a photo of wearing it while walking the dog.