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February 1, 2021
Time for Cake from Becca's Crazy Projects

I received a bunch of yarn from Aunt Betty last year. I decided I wouldn't use it if I didn't get it wound up into cakes so I could just grab it and get knitting or crocheting. I grabbed my swift and my ball winder and got cranking. 
I ran into one snag along the way. Straightening this one out took almost as much time as winding the entire hank into a cake. 
When I was done I had all this yarn ready to go. Now when I am inspired I can just grab and cast on. Now ...

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January 27, 2021
Crochet Crazy from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been working on this mosaic crochet blanket for a while now. I'm using some of the Knit Picks Wool of the Andes worsted a received from Aunt Betty. 
This is a one-row repeat made with two contrasting yarns. I made color changes when I reached the end of the ball of yarn while maintaining contrast between the two colors. There was so much blue yarn that it became my main color and I moved through others trying to keep the color moving between like colors. The result is just awesome! Mosaic crochet is my new favorite technique ...

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January 4, 2021
Fiesta Crochet from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been wanting to try more mosaic crochet. I've been eyeing the Fiesta mosaic crochet design on Ravelry. 
If you want to try your hand at this kind of crochet I recommend you check out Tinna's YouTube channel. Seriously, if you can single and double crochet you can do this with your tutorial. 
This was my first try at the design. I know what I would do differently next time but this was an excellent learning experience. 
The yarn is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes (100% wool) and the pink is Cascade 220 (100% wool). I ...

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November 2, 2020
Fiber Projects from Becca's Crazy Projects

I'm still making progress on my mosaic crochet blanket. It isn't fast but I really like how it is working up. I learned this design by watching a YouTube by Tinna. You can find her on Ravelry. From there you will find her patterns and links to her videos. Totally worth your time if you want to learn about mosaic crochet. 
I finished a row on my Tunisian crochet shawl. Pattern is Ard-Ri, available on Ravelry. 
This is a project that has been set aside and I think I'll try to get back to it this week ...

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October 26, 2020
Creative Clutter from Becca's Crazy Projects

Since Aunt Betty dropped off al this fabric I have been a little stressed about my creative space. Too much fabric and not enough room for creativity. 
Bags of yarn, stacks of fabric everywhere!
This little bookshelf wasn't doing anything so I brought it upstairs and made room for it. 
I filled that little shelf rather quickly with fabrics I really like and think I will use. Other fabric was stacked up and put back into the trash bags in which it came. I can see when there is more fabric than I can possibly ever use. I really ...

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October 21, 2020
Wardrobe Wednesday from Becca's Crazy Projects

Welcome to another Wardrobe Wednesday! Another wearable sewing project brought to you by Aunt Betty. 
 
My goal on Saturday was to make this pile of cut knit fabric into a finished garment. 
It seems I am limited when it comes to green thread. I often mix and match with the looper thread, considering the leading needle (left-most needle) as the most important when it comes to colors. 
Sadly, by the end of the day on Saturday this is how far I managed to get. Any time I have to switch my serger from overlock to coverstitch I slow down. It ...

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October 19, 2020
Odds and Ends from Becca's Crazy Projects

 
I saw a fund video on YouTube from Bigger Bolder Baking and wanted to give it a try. These are hand-held apple pies made from mostly scratch (purchased pie dough). They are Devine when warmed in the microwave, broken into thirds, and served with a scoop of ice cream. 
Aunt Betty made another delivery. 
I will never manage to sew with all this fabric.
This time there was some yarn, too. I have so many ideas for this yarn. I'll be busy all winter. 
I worked on my Tunisian crochet shawl after dinner on Saturday while watching television. Even ...

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October 14, 2020
Wardrobe Wednesday from Becca's Crazy Projects

There was supposed to be another fun garment sewing project here today. Sadly, there is only a partial post. 

The best part about buying pdf patterns is the instant gratification of getting that pattern in your inbox or downloading it. The not so great part of that is printing and assembling that pattern. This is another Ellie & Mac pattern. I love that designers now make patterns with layers so you can print only the size you need. Granted, this means if you want another size you have to print it again but that time is about the same as tracing ...

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October 7, 2020
Wardrobe Wednesday from Becca's Crazy Projects

I may have an unnatural relationship with this raglan pattern (link below). This time paired a fun stripe with a navy solid. 
This time I added side seam pockets. Half the fun of making your own clothes is adding details you really like. I like pockets. Pockets big enough for my hands. Pockets big enough to hold my mobile phone. You know, appropriately sized pockets. If you don't know about pocket inequality, you should do some reading. This article from Medium is a good place to start. It just scratches the surface. I'm sure you could find more ...

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October 2, 2020
Going Home Sweater from Becca's Crazy Projects

I stacked up some of my glorious loot from Aunt Betty so I could settle on something. 
I pulled this cute little print and a coordinating solid. 
The pattern is the Going Home Sweater by Ellie & Mac
I want to tell you I love this pattern but I don't. I love the quality of the pattern and the directions. What I don't love is that neckline. I'm not one to show off and I wear t-shirts with a crew neck almost every day. Yes, every day. For work. This neckline just didn't suit my comfort zone ...

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September 30, 2020
Aunt Betty Strikes Again from Becca's Crazy Projects

In case you haven't heard of Aunt Betty, you should check out my tagged blog posts on the matter. If you want a quick primer, you should check out this Professor Pincushion video which explains it all. 
Over the last couple weeks a friend of mine has been cleaning up her sewing room. Partly to clear the clutter and partly to make room to work. Some of that decluttering went to the thrift store and some came to me. I am like an overzealous fosterer when it comes to fabric. I love it so much I can't say ...

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September 23, 2020
Mosaic Crochet from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been working on this mosaic crochet blanket for a couple weeks. It might look a little wonky but blocking will fix that. 
The fabric is very nice and has a nice weight to it. This is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes. I'm just changing colors a I come to the end of a ball of yarn. It's so nice to not have to think about it too much.

If you want to check out mosaic crochet I recommend watching some of Tinna's videos on YouTube. She is very patient and has so much to ...

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July 17, 2020
Totes Totes from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been digging through my fabric and pulling out pieces I think will work for masks. When I find pieces big enough to make totes (about 1/2 yard of fabric per tote) I press it and set it aside. I did that all week. 
I sat down to assemble them on Sunday. I didn't even count them first. 
When I sew these I move through them rather quickly, sewing a piece and dropping it beside me. 
Assembly-line sewing at its finest. These are constructed using my serger then finished on the Juki. 
They do stack up nicely ...

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June 10, 2020
Crochet Crazy from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been working through this Mandala yarn that Aunt Betty gave me. The Granny Hack shawl works up relatively quickly and is easy to pick up and put down. 
This is the colorway Sprite
Each cake gets you a full run of the colors. Mine started with yellow and ended with orange. Then it was on to the second cake for another repeat. 
Such a simple design that turns out looking more complicated than it is. 
This is a free pattern on my Ravelry. Check out the Granny Hack and share what you're making on Ravelry by linking ...

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May 22, 2020
Odds and Ends from Becca's Crazy Projects

I tried to make a quick-disconnect holder for masks. Progress was spotty, needs more work.
I worked on another Granny Hack shawl that turned out too short and will end being a cowl. 
I made some Tunisian crochet swatches to test an idea. 
Because my set of Tunisian crochet hooks arrived.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Knitter's Pride Dreamz Tunisian Crochet Hook Set
Plastic Quick Side Release Buckle
KAM Snaps Starter Fasteners Kit

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May 18, 2020
Crochet Crazy Granny Chevron from Becca's Crazy Projects

Last week I shared my progress on this granny ripple shawl. 
I reached the end of the yarn, so that means the end of the shawl. 22" wide and 60" long.
I must admit I like this fabric more than I thought I would when I started. 
Two cakes of Lion Brand Mandala resulted in this substantial shawl. 
This is a pretty simple design and you can find the basic directions for the stitch in several crochet stitch dictionaries. I used my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways to design this ...

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May 13, 2020
Crochet Crazy Granny Chevron from Becca's Crazy Projects

I've been eyeing this stitch pattern in my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary for a while now. I decided it was time to make a swatch and plan a project. This was my first swatch. Very good start. So I ripped it out and cast on for a shawl.
That got me to here, five happy little chevrons and the certainty that I would run of yarn well before I got to a suitable shawl length. So I ripped back again.
I cast on for four happy chevrons and I think this will work out so much ...

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May 11, 2020
Paper or Plastic? Neither! from Becca's Crazy Projects

Pulled out the serger this past weekend to make some quick totes. It took me almost as long to set it up for 4-thread overlock as it did to make my totes. I'm not saying it is difficult to change the set-up because it isn't. It just takes a few minutes to find the cheat-sheet and tools to get it set up correctly. Threading is a breeze!
My aunt sent me these fabrics a couple years ago and they've been sitting on a shelf for entirely too long. I went over to the Green Bag Lady's ...

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May 8, 2020
Odds and Ends from Becca's Crazy Projects

Happy Friday! This is one of my strawberry plants making with the spring!
Last week I finished this fun crochet cowl/infinity scarf. I even managed to navigate the process of self-publishing through Ravelry. Check it out: Crashing Waves Cowl.
I grabbed my favorite crochet stitch dictionary and started a new crochet project.
I machine knit and finished a pair of socks. One of the nice things about mostly working from home is the fact that I get to wear socks I knit almost every day of the week. Okay, it is every day, but Monday barely counts because I ...

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April 22, 2020
Tunisian Crochet Update from Becca's Crazy Projects

I finished another dishcloth using the Very Pink pattern for Tunisian Shaker Dishcloths. It was super fun to watch the colors of the variegated yarn work up. I still have cotton yarn, so I will likely make several more of these. 
I also found some really amazing Tunisian crochet patterns for shawls. This is just the beginning of one called Saoirse. It's a stunning shawl and the designer has so many other great Tunisian crochet patterns. Check out her work if you want to try something new. I don't think this is quite the right yarn for this ...

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