Crochet star stitches seat cushion

Recently, I crocheted this *star* stitches seat cushion.

In case you are not familiar with star stitches, they are decorative crochet stitches that add texture to the projects.  As you can see, the individual stitches really look like *stars*!  I also learned that these stitches are called "daisies" or "marguerite" stitches.

Here's the close up of the star stitches... I really like the lumpy *stars* on my new seat cushion! 

First I was a bit intimidated to master these stitches on my own, but after playing around with yarns and hook for a while, I learned that these stars  are made simply by the combination of chains and several half double crochets (中長編み）。

I followed instructions from this Japanese crochet book to make this seat cushion.  Although I made the cushion size a bit bigger to accommodate my big b*** (lol)!

Book title: Winter Projects with Crochet Star Stitches

ISBN-10: 4579113683

ISBN-13: 978-4579113682

Publisher: Bunka Shuppan-Kyoku

There are also many helpful online resources out there to learn how to crochet "star" stitches.

http://crochet.about.com/library/blstar_stitch.htm

youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Voo3D3l_mpE

 I used these "Thick & Quick" chunky yarns from Lion Brand...

The chunky yarns, crocheted into the puffy stitches, really add thickness to the cushion.

Back side of the cushion looks like this.

 Crocheting star stitches is really addicting that I can't stop making more stuff with them :)   

I plan to crochet another seat cushion (possibly in a larger size) for my mom in Japan.  

Happy crocheting and happy star stitches ;)   

Handmade door mat

We had guests from Taiwan staying with us for a while, and before welcoming the guests, the first thing I did was to whip up this door mat!  Our old door mat was getting so dirty from heavy use, so I definitely had to replace it with a new one.

To save time for quilting, I used pre-quilted fabric for the reverse side.  For additional softness, I sandwiched fleece batting in between the outer fabric (gray floral) and the pre-quilted fabric used for the reverse side.  Also to prevent the mat from slipping, a non-slip mat is placed underneath the mat, as you can see.

The reverse side of the mat looks like this.

Mitered corners...

As for the fabrics, I used my favorite DS quilt collection line from our local Joann store.  

 I don't even think that our guests will even notice my handmade door mat (lol) and despite the fact that I was in a big rush to make this one, I'm happy with how it turned out!

Thanks for visiting and hope all is well for my fellow crafty friends out there :)

***Love, Amy***

Rilakkuma mini tote bag

I finally had a chance to make this bag for my twelve year old girl  - a Rilakkuma mini tote bag. 

She has been nagging asking me to make this mini tote for her for the past few months, but because I had a long list of "sewing to do" list during the holidays and for my shop, her request got pushed back until this week...  Sorry, girl!

The Rilakkuma fabric used to make this tote bag has a canvas feel, which is heavier than the normal cotton.  I also used home decor fabrics (in navy dots) for the bag handles and bag bottom for reinforcement.  The tote bag is fully lined with fleece batting and interfacing for extra durability.  The bag has a zipper opening.

She plans to use this mini tote as her lunch bag. She even bought a matching Rilakkuma bento box (lunch container) with her own money to go with this bag. (The red plastic container placed inside the bag).

Today, she brought her brand new mini tote bag, with her lunch inside, to her Saturday Japanese language school.  As you can imagine, getting up early on Saturday mornings to attend Japanese school every weekend is not the most exciting thing for our kids (or for any kid!)    I always tell our girls that it takes effort to grow up being a bilingual person, but the hard work will eventually pay off when they grow up... hopefully.   (Fingers are being crossed... lol.)

Anyways, so on every Saturday mornings, I try to pack our girls' favorite lunch for their school.   Today I fixed homemade gyoza potstickers and rice for them, and  a new lunch bag like this one will hopefully make going to school on Saturdays a bit more fun  for them :)     Well, which means that I must make another lunch bag for my younger girl soon, too \*~*/ 

Thanks for reading and hope you continue to enjoy your weekend! 



Crocheted scarf with flower corsage

After working on it for the past few nights, I finished my crocheted scarf :) 

I used one entire skein of yarn to make this scarf (and the corsage), so it was a quick (and inexpensive) project.   You know, as a "fru-gal" (lol), I love something that doesn't cost a lot of money and that is also quick to make, so it was a perfect project for me :D

The scarf measures approximately 34 inches (86 cm) in length and 6 inches (15 cm) in width.

After going through several jars of my old buttons collection, I picked up two large buttons to go with this scarf.

Near one edge of the scarf, I attached one large dark brown button with yarns.

I also placed another large button (this one in light brown) to the center of the matching flower corsage that I crocheted.

The crochet flower has three layers of petals...

The button works to hold the scarf in place around my neck like this.

The handmade scarf keeps my neck warm and comfy (taken with my iPhone).   Simple crochet pattern chart of this scarf can be found here.

Thanks for visiting and happy crocheting!

Crocheting again

Hello everyone!  I'm happy to post about my very first project in 2012.  I just began crocheting a scarf using mix colored wool yarn (Patons classic wool merino).

It's a three day weekend here in the U.S. (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday) and for the past two nights, our girls' friends are staying over at our house for sleepovers.   When the girls giggled and laughed and played games and painted their nails and stayed up late together at night time, I started to crochet this scarf to enjoy my own time from the room next door from them and while I kept my eyes (and ears) on them...

Here's the close up of my new project.  I love the mixture of brown, ivory, pink, and dark pink colors of this yarn.

I got this (Japanese) crochet pattern chart from my friend a while ago.  As you can see, it's really a simple combination made up of chains and double crochets.

I have no idea how long it will take me to finish this scarf, but I'm hoping that I'm able to wear it before the  spring comes, as I have another scarf  that I started a few months ago but never be able to finish (unlike this one, that was a knitted project).

 So what's your very first craft project so far this year?

Happy 2012!

Happy New Year and Happy 2012!

I hope you all had a warm and restful holidays and a wonderful beginning of 2012!  Sorry for the long absence from this blog... I was out of town for the holidays, and now that I'm back in town and my kids are off to school (phew!), I am finally able to sit in front of my computer without any interruptions :)

Well, I haven't really had a chance to craft anything in 2012 (yet), but today, I'd like to show you some of the handmade Christmas gifts that I created for my family and friends in December...

These are gathered clutches made of imported Japanese prints.  I followed this wonderful tutorial written by talented Anna of Noodlehead. 

I love the design of these clutches, and I've always wanted to try this tutorial.  I'm so glad that I was finally able to!  I love how they turned out.

Back sides of the clutches.

I also crocheted a couple of gifts for the holidays.  As you can see, these are crocheted room slippers.  Here, only one pair of the slippers are shown, but I actually crocheted a couple of these for gifts.

Because I used these thick and chunky yarns of wool/acrylic blend, these slippers were fairly quick to make.  They were so warm and comfy that I made a pair for myself as well.

For quick gifts, I made a couple of these small zipper pouches.  I like to put some chapsticks or small hand creams inside these pouches as gifts to my girlfriends. 



I was in such hurry that I couldn't take pics of other pouches that I made (sorry!) but this one is made of Japanese imported Echino fabric with birds (my favorite).

I don't really make new year resolutions, but my wish for this year is that my family, friends, and all of you kind crafty fellows out there have a healthy and joyful year!  And of course, my another wish is to squeeze in more time to sew and to crochet again this year ;)

Thanks for visiting and hope you have a good weekend!

Recent handmade items (December 2011)

Hello everyone!  Hope you're all surviving enjoying this holiday season (lol). 

I had been pretty busy lately, balancing my day job, kids, family, online shop, writing Christmas cards, preparing for the holidays, and making handmade gifts for my family and friends, of course... that I'm trying my best everyday not to faint and collapse :D

Although I'd been making things, I just couldn't find time to post my recent handmade items here lately.  So today,  I decided to list some of the stuff that I made over the past few weeks.  Some are made for my shop, and some are made for myself, my family members, and for my friends.

Drawstring mini tote made with Japanese imported linen/cotton blend.  I just love this beautiful purple roses fabric.

Drawstring opening seen from the top.

Hello Kitty small carrying bag with handles.  For a pretty young girl.

Reversible market tote made with *lots of windows* fabric.  This bag is very roomy.

The reversible side of the above market tote.  Made of heavy denim with the pink closing ribbons.

Room slippers made of fleece and knit fabrics.  Keeps your feet so comfy and toasty!

Water bottle holder made for a young athlete.  He is a junior baseball player.

Wristlet pencil pouch made with Rilakkuma fabrics.  

My Melody carrying pouch with handles, all lined up! 

Just to let you know that I am NOT posting any of the handmade holiday gifts here (yet), as some things has to be kept secret, right? 

Happy handmade holidays and I wish you all the best during this holiday season!! 

Love, Amy***



Handmade baby hoodie with bear ears

Wow I can't believe it's December already... and hope all is well for you, my fellow crafty friends!  Well, it's been a while since I last posted here, and I'm so glad to be back :)   

Today, I'd like to show you what I had made for my baby nephew a couple of weeks ago.  Baby Joe is my younger sis's 10 month old baby who lives in Japan, and although I have never met him in person (yet),  my sis sends me weekly (sometimes daily!) photo images of him to my iPhone, so I feel like I know him so well just by looking at his pictures!

So, this is the latest project that I made for Joe ... It's a baby hoodie with bear ears.

I couldn't decide whether to make it a "polar bear" hoodie using white furry/plush fabric, or to use a brown plush fabric to make a "teddy bear" hoodie. But I finally decided to go with the "teddy bear" version so that the darker color can hide the daily wear and tear by the messy baby boy...

It has a snap closure.  I used a large snap here and securely sewed it on to the hoodie.

Seen from above, the hoodie has a round arch shape.

For the lining, I used soft fleece, to keep the baby warm during the chilly winter weather in Tokyo.  The hoodie can also be used as reversible.

I made some alterations here and there, but I basically followed directions from this Japanese book to make this teddy bear hoodie.

Book Title: Handmade Baby Items

Publisher: Seibido Shuppan

ISBN-10: 4415301932

ISBN-13: 978-4415301938

This is a well written book with cute baby items, but the only problem I had was the patterns printed in the last pages of the book, which had to be enlarged to specific sizes.  And for this hoodie jacket, the pattern had to be enlarged to 285%, which was something impossible for me to do with our home copier!  So I quite simply draw my own pattern, after many many trial and errors of copy taking and failures :(

Various baby bibs made of soft and comfy fabrics shown.

The baby shoes are so tiny and adorable...

Ideas of handmade fabric baby books.  So creative and fun!

According to the online forecast, the weather in Tokyo today is 46F or 8C, which sounds sooo cold for the auntie who lives in Southern California (me).   Hope this baby hoodie jacket will keep baby Joe warm and cuddly during this winter. 

Well, thanks for visiting my blog and I wish you the best during this last  month of the year!  Yes, it's going to be the craziest month of the year for me, but I'll try my best not to go insane by squeezing in more crafting time whenever possible, to survive the holiday madness around here!!   lol

Happy crafting and hope to see you soon :)

Love, Amy***