Tag: crochet

Star Trek Corner to Corner Pixel Crochet Blanket from Two Magic Pixels

On By Michel McDonaldIn craftsLeave a comment

Well, I’ve chosen a pattern, bought the pattern and then bought the yarn. The yarn will be here later next week.

I decided to use blue yarn instead of purple because I wanted to use the color of one of the uniforms. At first I was going to use red, but then I looked at the color and realized it’s probably going to hurt my eyes. Also, there’s that whole red uniform always getting killed on alien planets thing in TOS, so perhaps blue is the logical choice.

When I made the Betty boop 007 blanket, I had posted some videos on YouTube of the blanket as I was still making it and then eventually I made another video after it had already been finished. Many people asked me to make a tutorial on how to do Corner to Corner crochet and I tried making a video and I just wasn’t focused enough. I just decided to tell people to just go find the video that I used to learn how to make a corner to corner crochet project. But I think that when I get the yarn and I start working on it, I might just try to make a tutorial and see if I can finish the tutorial. It will take me probably a few weeks to make the blanket, so it’ll be awhile before the video is completed. But I will try to do it.

I went into the listing for this particular pattern and it says that the pattern is 100 squares wide by 100 squares high and that translates to 100 inches by 100 inches. The Betty boop blanket was 80 squares wide by 120 squares high. So this blanket will be a perfect square. The G hook is my go-to hook, but if the stitches are too tight, I might use an H hook. That will determine the size of the blanket in inches.

Let me know what you think about the pattern that I chose as well as the colors. I chose Star Trek because I seem to be on a bit of a Star Trek binge. I’ve been watching Star Trek Strange New Worlds and I just decided that I wanted to catch up on the original series which I don’t really remember that much from childhood. I’ve also been watching Star Trek Discovery, Star Trek Lower Decks, I’m going to be watching The Next Generation again and of course Deep Space Nine and Voyager. I have also been watching the movies again. I’m literally in the Star Trek world right now, so this makes perfect sense that I would want to make this blanket.

I am going to say that it is a bit hot right now and I’m not quite sure I want to be crocheting anything that’s going to make me sweat, especially since I will probably have to rest it on my legs as I crochet and that will heat me up a bit much. But I would like to work on it before it gets cold when I actually need to use it. I will update this when I start working on it.

Two Magic Pixels C2C Pixel Art Crochet

On By Michel McDonaldIn crafts, Uncategorized1 Comment

I made this blanket for my Aunt several years ago. I found the pattern from a website called Two Magic Pixels. I wrote a blog post about it.

I learned to crochet when I was no longer homeless when I turned 18 years old. Never in my life did I think I would ever make anything like this.

The last few nights I have been going through Two Magic Pixels patterns because I wanted to make another blanket for myself. Last night I went to log in to my account on their website, but I didn’t have my password available, so I clicked “forgot password” and it asked for my email address to send me a link to reset my password, but it said we don’t have an account with that email address. I had only bought a few patterns, and I know I have them on my computer, so I thought ok, that’s fine. I’ll just create a new account. When I did, it said we actually found the patterns you have bought because you used that same email address to buy patterns using Paypal. So yay for me lol.

I bought these 3 patterns and they are all in my account, although I only made the Betty Boop 007 blanket. I bought the Mini Spiderman and Mini Superman patterns because I thought they were cute and I thought I would make them, but I never did. I am considering buying a different pattern to make for myself though. I’m thinking more of a rainbow pattern or something abstract, but I do know I want to buy it from Two Magic Pixels again because they have some really cool patterns. There are a few others I would like to make, like a Buddha or a Star Trek pattern, maybe the Scooby Doo pattern lol. I just cannot commit to one.

They have so many patterns and it’s really hard to pick just one pattern. The reason I have to choose is because it took me a month to make the Betty Boop 007 blanket and it cost me $60 for all the yarn. Not to mention the fact that I have carpal tunnel syndrome, so I can only make 1 blanket, and then I won’t be able to make another one for a very long time.

I really like the rainbow flower one because it reminds me of when I was a kid in the 70’s. I can also use that as a backdrop if I decide I want to continue making videos for my YouTube channel, then I’ll have something fun to look at.

People commented in my Betty Boop videos that they wanted me to teach them to crochet like that and I’ve told them that they should go to the same channel I learned to crochet like this from, which is the crochet crowd.

Anyway, it’s a big decision because I will have to live with that pattern. I can still buy the patterns whether I make them or not, but I still want to choose one. I think I really want the rainbow flowers blanket.

Teddy bear C2C crochet baby blanket

On By Michel McDonaldIn Uncategorized5 Comments

My previous post was about a Betty Boop blanket I crocheted for my aunt, this it’s a baby blanket I made for My cousins son who is 5 years old. I honestly didn’t think he would use it for anything but like sleeping, so My mind wasn’t anywhere like a Linus blanket.

So he opened it on Christmas and he said “Oh, it’s a blanket.”  My aunt warned me that he’s 5 and he already has a blanket that he carries everywhere and nothing will ever replace it. That’s not what I was hoping for. I just wanted to make him a blanket, that’s all.

So later that night he was playing with his new video game in his parents room and I brought his blanket to him and he paused the game and said “I like your blanket, but I already have a mommy blanket that I use so I will probably use your blanket when I sleep in bed.”

LMAO I looked at him like hey no problem. My intention wasn’t to give him a Linus blanket, I just wanted to make him a blanket. How he uses it is really up to him, and it was cute and funny how he explained to me that he was basically going to use, but only on his terms.

I think he’s the cutest little thing and I hope to be able to watch him grow up, which it’s nearly impossible since I live so far away, but I’ll try.

Betty Boop C2C crochet blanket

On By Michel McDonaldIn Uncategorized18 Comments

In September and October I was crocheting a blanket made out of squares with many colors each with a black background. I was making this for my aunt for Christmas.

I was watching a video on YouTube and came across one from The Crochet Crowd that was teaching how to make C2C crochet, which stands for corner to corner. I thought it seemed interesting because you could make a blanket with pictures. I then thought hmmm… I wonder if they have a Betty Boop pattern, and I found one from http://www.TwoMagicPixels.com.

I started making this blanket right away. I had some white, but not enough, then found out the new yarn isn’t the same shade of white or texture, and I had trouble finding the right shade of skin for Betty, so I made a piece up to a certain point, then when I bought white I just started over fresh, and it took me a month to make this blanket.

I had to buy different brands because one brand didn’t have the same color for the skin, so the skin and the black, white and red are all different textures.

My Aunt loved it. I was hoping to make her a couch blanket because she takes a daily nap on the couch, like a ritual, but it’s way too big and heavy for a couch nap lol. It would probably be way too warm and she’s probably have to take it off after 5 minutes lol. Her bed is king size, the blanket is queen size, so that’s not good, but hey, I tried right?

Anyway, so yeah I learned a new pattern and gave an awesome gift.

Here is an example of how it’s crocheted along with the pattern next to it. It’s literally worked from corner to corner.

10 Sizes Bamboo Handle Alumina Head Crochet Hooks Needles 1-6mm

On By Michel McDonaldIn Products I LikeLeave a comment

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I bought a pack of 10 sizes bamboo handle alumina head crochet hooks needles ranging from 1mm to 6mm on August 16, 2014 and they shipped from China Post and arrived in less than 2 weeks. I received them on August 29, 2014. I am very surprised they arrived so fast because according to the delivery estimate, I should receive them from September 11, 2014 to September 29, 2014.

These are numbered in millimeter and I had to find out from Google what it was that I had. 5 of them are for Filet crochet and 5 of them are for yarn. Although 2 of them are really too small for yarn, but they are too big for filet. The 3 largest sizes are G, H and I which are what I am most interested in anyway. I never do filet crochet because of how difficult that can be, but I was curious to see just how easy or difficult it would be to use them.

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The coaster on the left was made using a size G hook and the one on the right was made with 1.5mm crochet hook. It is about the size of a silver dollar, well, maybe a bit bigger than a silver dollar. It is cute and if it were to be used as a coaster, it would only work for a shot glass, and come on, who uses a shot glass long enough to use a coaster? A friend has already claimed it for herself, in fact, she wants me to make a duplicate and turn them into a pair of earrings lol. Someone else suggested Christmas tree ornament. I have seen several Christmas crochet projects like Christmas trees and Candy Canes, so perhaps that is a good idea to make with filet crochet with embroidery floss and turn them into earrings.

20140829_184500_AndroidI made another coaster with a size I hook, which is the biggest hook they sent me. It’s the same pattern as the peppermint candy, but it’s not peppermint because I didn’t use the white and red, I used tan and Painted Desert. It is a good size bigger than the red and white one and it feels so much softer. I really like the bigger size, but my partner told me that he thinks they should be the smaller ones with the G hook.

How do they feel?

They are really nice to hold. I have carpal tunnel syndrome, so when I crochet, the nerves in my palm pinches and it hurts. My hands get numb whether I’m using regular or ergonomic crochet hooks, so that didn’t change. When I was crocheting with these hooks I wasn’t feeling any pain or pinching but then again I also wasn’t crocheting for a few hours either. I don’t know if using these for an extended period of time will cause the pinching, but I don’t intend on finding out because I won’t go crazy crocheting everything in sight.

So it was a good purchase. I paid $6.23 and got free shipping. I bought them on Smile.Amazon.com and a donation went to DoSomething.org.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

On By Michel McDonaldIn crafts, Daily Blog, Etsy, Health, Hobby5 Comments

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I was diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in 2007 after 20 years of crocheting started to take its toll on my hands. I didn’t just have it in one hand, I have it in both hands. I was given wrist splints to wear at night when I went to bed. I was told I didn’t have to wear them during the day, that they should help me when I sleep. Okay, no problem. I’ve worn them every night since then up until last year when I stopped using my bipap machine for my sleep apnea because I didn’t need it anymore because I had lost 70lbs. Wearing the bipap mask became uncomfortable because suddenly the pressure was too high.

I wore these wrist splints faithfully for 6 years from 2007 to 2013. They did help and last year I started making keychains and opened an Etsy shop. Since then I have added dangle, hoop and stud earrings and hemp and friendship bracelets. I received an order for 8 tassels for a company who makes purses, then they placed another order for 34 tassels and that took a huge toll on my hands. Someone else ordered 60 rainbow keychains. I made 36 of those and had to stop because it was hurting too much. She wanted them for her June wedding which apparently has been pushed back to November. That gives me more time to finish the rest of them, but I’m not quite sure they will follow through with buying them from me. I’ve had several people place a custom order and then not pay for it.

I’ve been working day and night making friendship bracelets over the last week. I really love making things. I don’t know if it is a gift or a curse. A gift that I can make something wonderful out of raw material with just my hands, but a curse that something I love to do can cause so much pain.

The pain is just too much on my hands. I wake up every morning with painfully numb hands and this morning my right hand was still numb for an hour after I woke up, and it was extremely painful. I put my wrist splint on and the pain and numbness eventually went away, but I am going to continue wearing the wrist splint for the rest of the day and perhaps wear it every day and night while I take a rest. I hope that helps.

Here are just a few things that I’ve been making. I am very proud of the hard work that have been doing that is ruining my hands lol.

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I had all these plans for the camouflage bracelets. I bought the different colors to make a red version and a blue version. I also had planned on buying the different shades of brown to make a brown one. People have suggested I go with a complete rainbow and make orange, yellow and purple camouflage bracelets. I can’t see that happening now.

The rainbow braid bracelet on the bottom is actually a bracelet I wanted to make for a very long time for a specific person. I actually wanted to make 2 of them, and I made this yesterday and last night I started a second one. I listed it just because it was very easy to make and if someone ordered it, well I could make another one. But now I’m not so sure about that. I do still plan on giving this one and the other one away to the specific people just because I like to give people gifts.

Well, that’s all for now I guess. Today is the first day of my new vacation from crafting. I love what I do, so I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to stay away from it. It’s addicting for sure lol. I will try though, because my hands are more important to me than making something that no one will appreciate or even buy even though they asked for it.