Crochet Vintage Lantern Bag

Just keeping in touch.

I am currently working on a crochet vintage lantern bag.  I work them just the way the instructions are written but this sure isn't the way I work a star stitch.

This always confuses me, because I can never seem to figure out what is really right.  The vintage patterns or the way I was taught. These do not look like stars at the current moment.

Regardless, I stick to the Designer's scrip, maybe when done it will line up, but I just don't see that happening.  If not, I'm still liking the look of it.

Maybe someone will interrupt the instructions differently.

I figured this bag would be perfect for holding my scarves.  And I have something other than just scaves planned for the bag.

Be on the look out for the final results.

Have a great weekend,

Debra

Slow Cooked Baked Apples With Caramel

What a great fall treat. I eat mine as is, but a scoop of ice cream would really top this off.  I love the smell of the apples and cinnamon throughout the house.


Ingredients:

3 apples of your choice (I picked Gala)
1/4 cup of instant oats
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 tablespoon of cinnamon
3 pats of butter
3 dabs of caramel (I used the Dulce de leche I made)

Wash your apples really really good.  I used a citrus juicer to take the core out of my apples and then trimmed around the sides and bottom with a paring knife.  I wanted to be all about the apples, so I didn't hallow it out too much.  Just enough to make sure I got the core out.

Mix your oats, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Pack this mixture in your apples.

Place a pat of butter on the top of the mixture.

Place the apples in your slow cooker and if you have any left over oat mixture, sprinkle it on top of the butter.

Cover and cook on low for about 3 hours.  If you wanted to add a little water to the bottom you could, but I can't resist opening the lid, the condensation from the lid defiantly drips down to the bottom of the slow cooker to meet that need.

I check to see if it is done to my desire, I like the apples soft but not mushy, so mine took about 3 hours to cook.  I test it by inserting a fork into the sides of the apples.

I then added a dab of Dulce de leche that is in my refrigerator and place the lid on the slow cooker and let  the Dulce de leche warm up a bit, for me that was about 5 minutes, I couldn't take it anymore, I had to eat one.

There you go, cut open, serve with ice cream, maybe add some chocolate, your call.

Enjoy,

Debra

Adapted from the recipes of: http://missouri.u-la-la.com/dangerously-red-delicious/

Crochet Bottle Cap Bat Pattern

Supplies Needed:

1 bottle cap - I used a regular soda pop bottle cap
4 ply yarn - black
2 small red beads

F/5 3.75mm Hook

The pattern I am giving is basic and you will need to modify the rounds based on the size of the cap.  The cap I am using is a standard soda bottle cap.

This is in American Standard Terms.

Ch = Chain
Rnd = Round
Sc = single crochet
YO = yarn over



Here we go:

Body:

Ch 2
Rnd 1:   Sc in the second chain from hook (5 times), do not join (5 sc)
Rnd 2:   2 sc in each sc from the previous round (5 times), do not join (10 sc)
Rnd 3:   2 sc in each sc from the previous round (10 times), do not join (20 sc)
Rnd 4:   1 sc in each sc from the previous round (20 times), do not join (20 sc)
Rnd 5:   1 sc in each sc from the previous round (20 times), do not join (20 sc)

At this point, test and make sure that the crochet rounds you have made cover the outside of the bottle cap.  Place the cap inside the crochet rounds you have made. You should see only the opening to the bottle cap.  If you are using a smaller bottle cap, you may need to only do one round of 20 single crochet.  If you are using a larger bottle cap you may need to do another round or two of 20 single crochets.  Just make sure that when you place the bottle cap inside of your crochet rounds that the last round you completed goes up to the top rim or just a little over the rim on the cap. 

Now to decrease:

Rnd 6:   Place the hook through the next sc, yo, pull through, place your hook through the next sc, yo and pull through, you should have three stitches on your hook, now yo and pull through all three stitches. You will need to do this 9 more times for a total of 10 sc decreases. 

At this point, when looking at your work, you are starting to form a ball, go ahead and place your cap into this ball with the rim at the top of your last crocheted round. 

Rnd 7:   Once you have the cap inside the ball that you have made, with or without the yarn scarps, you will continue to decrease until closed. I did 5 more sc decreases.  Fasten off and weave in ends.  

Wings (2)

On the side of your cap you will have at least one row of 20 sc that run along the side.  What you will want to do, is put your hook through one side of a sc post and up through the other side. It gives the appearance of a stitch on your hook.  Then attach your yarn with a slip stitch by pulling the hook back through the post that with your sl and sl this to the post.

Ch 1, this counts as an sc.

Complete the process on the next post to the left but instead of sl, complete a sc.  

Complete this step 3 more times.  

Ch 1, turn

Sc in each sc across, for a total of 5 sc, chain 1 and turn.  

Completed the previous round 4 more times.  

Decrease 1 sc in next 2sc, sc in next sc, decrease in next 2 sc's for a total of 3 sc on this round, ch 1 turn.

1 sc in each sc for a total of 3 sc, ch 1, turn.  

Decrease 1 sc in the next 2sc from previous round, sc in next sc, ch 1 turn.

Decrease 1 sc in the next 2c from the previous round, ch 1, fasten off and weave in ends.  

Skip 4 sc post from the ending of the previous wing made and make another wing as instructed above.  

Ears 

Decide how you want your wings to look and determine which side you would like your ears.  Once you have determined this, then you can observe that there are 4 post to work with.  

I place each one a little bit differently, but the stitch is the same.  

The first post from the top right, you will want to slip stitch your yarn onto the post and ch 2.  

Sl into the 2 ch from the hook.  

Sc into the first sl made.

Sl into the next post.  

Sl into the next post.  

Ch 2

Sl into the 2nd ch from the hook.

Sc into the next stitch, which is the sl made for the ch 2.

Sl into the next post.  

Fasten off and weave in ends.  

Tail

Complete the tail the same way your would one of the ears.  

Work from the bottom and use post 2 and 3 to complete the tail.  

Eyes:

I attached two small red beads for the eyes.  


I made three of the bats and ran a fuzzy stick through the back of each back.  I then attached the two ends on each side of the pumpkin web and then formed the fuzzy stick to my liking.  The wings are flexible as well, for forming into different shapes.  

Tomorrow, I will bring a another insect of some type for the web.  

I am not sure what to make.  Any suggestions:

Enjoy,

Debra

Crochet Gift Card Holders

On the weekends, I try and create new patterns.  I am working on a series of Christmas gift card holders.  I am finding, that it cost me more to mail gifts then what I paid for them.  Gift cards seems to be the alternative for cutting that expense down.  

Now for the fun part and coming up with some whimsical ideas for the gift card holder.  Gift cards seem so impersonal to me, so I am working to take that feeling away.  Be on the lookout for a new series of crochet Christmas ornaments.  They are all about fun whimsy.

I do have a new trinket for our pumpkin and I will share that on Monday  I just need to write it up.  And yes, it is with a bottle cap.  Think Belfry.......have you guessed?

Until then, hope your weekend is going spectacular.,

Debra

Vintage Crochet Bib Apron Pattern

Pleased to bring to you, my newest addition to my shop.  This is a lovely vintage crochet bib apron pattern.  What a classic style and come back in recent years.

This design and pattern will entice the imagination with possibilities of adding your own person touch to this apron.  So many ideas, needlepoint, appliques, maybe even the idea of adding a crochet lace to the bid section.

A great classic apron to add your own creative touches.

You can find this pattern here:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/166182896/crochet-vintage-bib-apron-pattern-pdf?ref=shop_home_active

As always, you can sell products made from my patterns:

Debra

Slow Cooker Dulce de leche (Caramel)

This is the easiest thing I have done all day.

This is call Dulce de leche and a lot of people refer to it as caramel.

This is so much better than caramel.

The original recipe called for me to leave it in for 8 hours, but I searched around because I am invited to watch the football game at 5 and I found a recipe that stated different times. I left it in only 5 hours, thank goodness, because it was in the process of being overcooked.

All you need is sweetened condensed milk and a slow cooker.

Take the labels off of the can and fill your slow cooker with water.

I placed a tea towel at the bottom of the slow cooker so that the cans wouldn't scratch the Teflon.

Place the cans in the slow cooker and add more water ensuring the the cans are completely covered with water.

Place your slow cooker on low and cook for five hours.

I transferred mine to a jar and I am letting it cool down just a bit and then I will refrigerate it.

I couldn't help myself, I was eating it right out of the can.....Delicious!!!

Adapted from the recipe of:  http://comfortablydomestic.com/2013/04/29/crockpot-dulce-de-leche/

Enjoy,

Debra

Crochet Bottle Cap Worm

I know, I know, I said a ghost but I went with a worm.

Here is a new addition to our crochet pumpkin.

The Worm

Supplies Needed:

1 bottle cap - I used a regular soda pop bottle cap
4 ply yarn - I used a variegated scrap yarn, which has browns, greens and white in it.
F Hook

F/5 3.75mm Hook

The pattern I am giving is basic and you will need to modify the rounds based on the size of the cap.  The cap I am using is a standard soda bottle cap.

This is in American Standard Terms.

Ch = Chain
Rnd = Round
Sc = single crochet
YO = yarn over



Here we go:

Ch 2
Rnd 1:   Sc in the second chain from hook (5 times), do not join (5 sc)
Rnd 2:   2 sc in each sc from the previous round (5 times), do not join (10 sc)
Rnd 3:   2 sc in each sc from the previous round (10 times), do not join (20 sc)
Rnd 4:   1 sc in each sc from the previous round (20 times), do not join (20 sc)
Rnd 5:   1 sc in each sc from the previous round (20 times), do not join (20 sc)

At this point, test and make sure that the crochet rounds you have made cover the outside of the bottle cap.  Place the cap inside the crochet rounds you have made. You should see only the opening to the bottle cap.  If you are using a smaller bottle cap, you may need to only do one round of 20 single crochet.  If you are using a larger bottle cap you may need to do another round or two of 20 single crochets.  Just make sure that when you place the bottle cap inside of your crochet rounds that the last round you completed goes up to the top rim or just a little over the rim on the cap. 

Now to decrease:

Rnd 6:   Place the hook through the next sc, yo, pull through, place your hook through the next sc, yo and pull through, you should have three stitches on your hook, now yo and pull through all three stitches. You will need to do this 9 more times for a total of 10 sc decreases. 

At this point, when looking at your work, you are starting to form a ball, go ahead and place your cap into this ball with the rim at the top of your last crocheted round. 

Rnd 7:   Once you have the cap inside the ball that you have made, with or without the yarn scarps, you will continue to decrease until closed.

Rnd 8:        Ch 20

Rnd :9        sc in 2nd ch from hook 3 times.  

Rnd: 10      sc 3 times in next ch.

Rnd:11-28 Repeat rnd 10

Sl by the 1st ch made.

Fasten off but leave a long tail for attaching to your web.

If you are not going to use this for other projects, fasten off and weave in ends.    

Enjoy,

Debra

Cinnamon Dough Ornaments

I just love this time of year.  It is starting to cool down in the Desert and the Holidays are approaching.  I can't help but get into the spirit of it all.

3 major Holidays in 3 months.  Thanksgiving of course is my favorite.  All that food.  Cooking the night before and all through the next day.  Then we sit down and eat for 15 minutes. And then eat again and again.

I would have to say Christmas is the most stressful for me.  I don't like to get out into the crowds.  I do love the Holiday but I try and make sure that I have all my gifts bought or made by August and then I spend October and November focusing on how I am going to wrap gifts and picking up or making those last minute gifts. December is about the tree.  I spend a month just on the tree.

Last year I bought these tiny trees that I can sit on the bar area in my kitchen.  They look pathetic.  But for .50 cents, I can change that.  I bought them with the intentions of sitting them on the bar in the kitchen and putting cinnamon dough ornaments on them. Cinnamon always reminds me of Christmas. With that in mind, I need to make the ornaments now, so they ready by December 1.  I'll make a small batch here and there and make the house smell good and then they will be ready when I need them.

Here is my recipe for cinnamon dough ornaments:

I use a 2.37 oz of ground cinnamon
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of applesauce

I first put the cinnamon in a bowl and then add 1/4 cup of applesauce.  I mix this and then add 1 tablespoon of the applesauce.  I mix this with my hands.  We are trying to comes up with a consistency that isn't too dry or too sticky.  I needed to add another tablespoon of cinnamon and it made it a little sticky.  At that point I just sprinkled cinnamon lightly from the container and mix until the dough was not sticky and didn't have cracks in it.  Below is a picture of what we are trying to obtain.  

Once the dough is mixed you will want to lay it out on wax paper and put a piece of wax paper on top of the dough.  Then roll it out to about 1/4" thick. Then remove the top piece of wax paper.

I then use my cookie cutters and cut out my shapes.  Since I am going to be making these periodically, I focus one one design at a  time.  With this small heart, I was able to cut about 20 ornaments.  

Once you cut them out, poke a hole in them with a toothpick and lay on a foil covered pan.  Any left over dough, just form back into a ball and start the process over again.  

I use my toaster oven for this project.  Set it at 200 degrees.  Turn them every half  hour or so.  If I don't have enough room for all the ornaments, then I just set a piece of foil on the top of the toaster oven and put the excess ornaments on the foil to air dry.  I turn them as well. If your using your oven it is the same process with the exception they they will all fit in the oven.   

It only takes a couple of hours to bake.  I have to admit though that I stretch that out, just because I love the scent.

When they are done, place a ribbon or twine through the hole on the ornament and tie the two ends together and they are ready to hang on your tree, use as gift tags, or whatever your imagination comes up with.

I store mine in airtight containers until ready to use.

Recipe adapted from: http://www.mccormick.com/Recipes/Other/Cinnamon-Ornaments

Enjoy,

Debra

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Are you ready to make some roasted pumpkin seeds?

Here we go:

Fill a large bowl with warm water.

Scoop the stringy fiber and seeds from the pumpkin and place in the bowl of warm water.  I let them soak for a little bit and the seeds float to the top or loosen up from the fiber, so they are easier to clean.

Scoop out the seeds and place in a strainer.  I rinse them in the strainer and continue to remove the real small fibers stuck to the seeds.  

 At this point you can fill a pot with water and get the water boiling.  I pour in about a table spoon or so of sea salt and let it disolve in the boiling water.  Then I pour the pumpkin seeds in and let them boil for about 15 to 20 minutes.  This infuses the salt into the pumpkin seeds. 

Once your seeds are boiled and strained of any excess water, place them on a tea towel.  Use another tea towel and pat them as dry as you can.  

Roll them up in the tea towel and squeeze on the towel to get even more of the moisture out.  

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Use a cooking tray or casserole dish, butter down the bottom.  I just pull back the paper on the butter and rub it on, or use a paper towel.  I am generous with the butter, because I like buttery pumpkin seeds.  

Pour your seeds on the tray or casserole dish and with your hands mix them around so that they get coated with the butter.  I spend about 5 minutes doing this, so they are coated really well.  

Place them in the oven for about 12 to 15 minutes.  They will be golden brown.  Check after 12, since ovens cook differently.  

It looks like I am going to be watching a movie tonight, these beat out popcorn every time.  

I don't know who to credit this to, I have been making them for years and I am sure there are similar recipes.

Enjoy,

Debra

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Puree

What an excellent puree for making pies, pumpkin rolls, muffins, breads, puree baby food.  It smells so good. The first thing you will want to do is buy a baking pumpkin.  They are the smaller pumpkins and they do have them labeled as such.  I got mine at Walmart for $1.98.  They are all about the same size.  I should have weighted it but I didn't.  This small pumpkin made 4 1/2 cups of puree. That is enough for 3 pumpkin pies.  Wash your pumpkin really, really good.

If your pumpkin fits in your slow cooker, all you want to do is poke holes all over it so the steam can escape while cooking.  Mine was just a little bit to big.  I cut it into thirds and placed the pieces in the slow cooker.  No need to gut, save yourself the aggravation.  When it done cooking, the seeds and stingy fiber spoon right out.  Put your slow cooker on low and cook the pumpkin.  Since I cut mine up, it only took about 5 hours, if it is whole it might take a little longer.  Test it with a fork.  If the fork goes through the skin with ease, you know it done.  

When done cooking, take it out of the slow cooker and let it cool down so that you can handle it without burning yourself.  

Once you can handle the pumpkin, if it is whole, go ahead and cut it in half so you can start scooping out the stringy fiber and seeds.  I filled a bowl with warm water and scooped out the stringy fiber and seed and put it right in the bowl.  Don't forget, we are going to use the seeds later, to make roasted pumpkin seeds.

Isn't it awesome how easy it scoops out with a spoon?  Be sure and just scoop out the seeds and stringy fiber.

Get yourself another bowl and start scooping the flesh into the bowl.  You should be able to pull the skin right off the flesh. Discard the skin.  

I'm old school, so I just use a whisk and mix and mix till it turns into puree.  You can use whatever gizmo you use to puree.  Measure out 1 1/2 cups and place in a freezer container.  1 1/2 cups equals a can of pumpkin. I put my in freezer bags, making sure I get all the air out of the bag and then I can squeeze the bag to finish up the puree process.  

Don't forgot to taste test this before you freeze it.  It is so fresh and delicious.  Or better yet, start baking some of your favorite pumpkin recipes.  

These keep in the freezer for several months.  I make mine in October so that I am ready for November and December Holiday cooking.   

Once you have placed your puree in the freezer, you are ready to make roasted pumpkin seeds.   

Recipe Adapted from: http://healthyslowcooking.com/2010/10/11/beyond-easy-pumpkin-puree/

Enjoy,

Debra

Muti-tasking Today

I am busy, busy today.  I don't think I will have updates until later this afternoon.

What I have in the works:

Making homemade pumpkin puree (this is in the works)
Making cinnamon ornaments
Pumpkin seed snacks
A new crochet trinket for our pumpkin decorating (and I think it will be a crochet bottle cap ghost)
Slow cooker caramel
A new crochet pattern design and I won't mention what that is but it is functional and cute.  I know I won't get this done today.
A re-image of a vintage crochet apron.

Not sure I can get it all done, but I am going to give it my best shot.

Any particular order you would like me to do these in?

I really need to know that I am not just entertaining myself out here......

Encourage me,

Debra

Bottle Ring Crochet Pumpkin Eyes Pattern

I love these bottle ring eyes, because I can move them around to get different facial expressions.  Here is a picture of the eyes, but you can be pretty confident that I will move them around in the course of making this pumpkin.

Here is the pattern:

Written in American Standard Terms.

Supplies Needed:

2 plastic bottle ring- (I used ones from a regular soda bottle)
2 shank button slightly larger then the bottle ring
4py worsted yarn- (or whatever you have handy that you want to use)
F Hook-or whatever size is comfortable for you

Here we go:

(Make 2)

You will want to slip stitch your yarn onto the ring and chain 1.

Single crochet around the ring until it is covered.  ( I had 18 single crochet and the chain 1 counts as a single crochet)

Join by slip stitching into the first chain made.

Chain 1

Single crochet into the same chain 1 space.

2 half double crochet into the next stitch.

2 double crochet into the next stitch.

Repeat previous step 7 more times.

2 half double crochet into the next stitch

2 single crochet into the next stitch.

Slip stitch into the next 6 stitches.

Slip stitch into the first chain made and fasten off and sew in ends.

If you have a different number of stitches on your ring, always do the 2 single crochet, and 2 half double crochets and adjust your double crochets accordingly to cover about 2/3 of the ring.

I attached the shank buttons to the spider web and placed the shank buttons 1 1/2" apart.  This will probably change several times before I make a final decision.

Then I took the crochet bottle ring and slide it over the shank button to secure the whites of the eyes in place.

Now the really cool thing about this, is you can turn the ring to give your pumpkin different looks.  Right now I have the whites at the top, but when I get ready to do the nose, I may just position those rings so that the pumpkin is looking at his nose.  No telling what will land on this pumpkins nose, when done.

Tomorrow,  I think I will make a bottle cap insect or leaf of some type.  I am not ready to complete the face quite yet.

Enjoy,

Debra

Contest

I wanted to share this with you before I present the crochet eyes for our pumpkins we are working on.

Sarah from: http://www.repeatcrafterme.com/ is having a contest.

I had to enter, for the free granny square purse.

Here is where the actual contest details are:

http://www.repeatcrafterme.com/2013/10/too-yarn-cute-crochet-emagazine-review.html

Check out her site as well.  She has a lot of great patterns and crock pot recipes to share.



Debra

PS: Why am I sharing this contest and lowering my odds of winning?

Vintage Crochet Handkerchief Pattern

I am bringing to you a beautiful vintage handkerchief pattern that is absolutely perfect for all types of occasions.  Weddings, proms, a small piece of jewelry wrapped in the linen section to give as a dual gift, potpourri placed on the linen and then tied with ribbon to make a beautiful lacy sachet, you could also use as a doily.

I like to lightly spray my scarfs and handkerchiefs with a lavender spray and store in my dresser drawers with my clothing.    It's like taking a breath of fresh air in the morning, plus I know that it is deterring any cloth eating bugs.


You can find this pattern here:

 http://www.etsy.com/listing/165979491/vintage-crochet-handkerchief-pdf-pattern?ref=shop_home_active

Enjoy!!!

Debra

Bottle Ring Crochet Spider Web Pattern

My regular occupation is very black and white and in a box.  In other words, it is a set of rules with no flexibility.  That is defiantly not a complaint but just a fact and I love my career choice, but we also need balance and crafting and cooking does that for me.  

I think that is why I like to craft and cook so much.  It brings balance I need, there are no rules when creating and using your imagination and a great deal of flexibility for me, my time to think outside the box with no structure.

I say one thing, I do another, have you noticed that about me?

Wasn't I suppose to put up more vintage patterns and a recipe today?

I bought some pumpkins yesterday and look what happened.

The smaller pumpkins I bought are for cooking and I plan on making homemade pumpkin puree.  I will share that with you soon.  In the meantime, I bought a bigger one, and I am planning to make infused pumpkin vodka with it. They will make great Thanksgiving gifts.  I just like to make them, not drink them.

With that in mind, I don't want to carve into my bigger pumpkin this year, so I will do better and crochet all my Halloween decorations and dress that pumpkin right up.

I am going to try and recycle and share those patterns with you.

We can do a week long series of decorating a pumpkin by crocheting, how about that?

So the first thing I decided, I wanted to do with my pumpkin is put a spider web on.  Since spiders are my theme this year, why not?

Here is how I made the spider web covering for my pumpkin. I did make it larger than the pumpkin, because I want to stretch it out and lay the ends over smaller pumpkin and gourd stems that will be sitting in front of the big pumpkin, because my spider is a busy spider.  

These are really simple to make and easy to modify to your liking.

Supplies:

Plastic Bottle Ring -I used a bottle ring from a milk jug.  I tested it to make sure it fit on the stem.  You can use any size you like, just as long as it fits on the stem of your pumpkin.

This is written in American Standard Terms:

4 ply worsted yarn - you can use any yarn you like, that includes color.

F Hook - you can use any size you want.

Abbreviations:

sl - slip stitch
ch - chain
dc - double crochet
tr - treble crochet
dtr - double treble crochet
trtr - treble treble crochet

Here we go:

Place the hook inside your ring.

Slip knot your yarn onto your hook and pull it back through the ring and slip stitch onto the ring.

Row 1:     Ch 4, *dc onto the ring and chain 1*, repeat between * until your ring is covered, join with a sl into the 3rd ch on the first ch 4 made.  

Using an F hook and 4 ply yarn I made 20 sets of the (dc, ch 1), in row 1.  Depending on your ring, hook and yarn, there may be a variance for everyone and that's ok.

Row 2:    Ch 5, *dc into the next dc on previous round and chain 2*, repeat between * , join with a sl into the 3rd ch on the ch 4 made.

Row 3:     Ch 6, *dc into the next dc on previous round and chain 3*, repeat between * , join with a sl into the 3rd ch on the ch 4 made.     .

Row 4:     Ch 8, *tr into the next dc on previous round and ch 4*, repeat between *, join with  sl into the 4th ch on the ch 4 made.

Row 5:     Ch 9, *tr into the next tr on previous round and ch 5*, repeat between*, join with sl into the 4th ch on the ch 9 made.

Row 6:     Ch 10, *tr into the next tr on previous round and ch 6*, repeat between*, join with sl into the 4th ch on the ch 10 made.

Row 7:     Ch 12 *dtr into the next tr on previous round and ch 7*, repeat between*, join with sl into the 5th ch on ch 12 made.

Row 8:     Ch 13 *dtr into the next dtr on previous round and ch 8*, repeat between*, join with a sl into the 5th ch on ch 13 made.

Row 9:     Ch 14  *dtr into the next dtr on previous round and ch 9, repeat between*, join with a sl into the 5th ch on ch 14 made.

Row 10:    Ch 16, *trtr onto the next dtr on previous round and ch 10, repeat between:, join with  sl into the 6th ch on ch 16 made.

That is as far as I took mine.  I did not want to cover to the bottom because I have other plans.  Keep in mind that you may buy a different shape of a pumpkin and want your gaps to be different, just remember that on your next round that you want to increase a ch between each st, or maybe not depending on your pumpkins shape.  Just play with the stitches and get a feel for it then you can decide how you want the web to spread on your pumpkin.

My pumpkin is about 12" tall and 33" in diameter at the widest point.

We need a spider for the web.  If you haven't made my bottle cap spider yet, go to search this blog at the top and search for spider pattern and make yourself a spider and place it on your web.

I want my pumpkin to to have character, so tomorrow we will make eyes for the pumpkin.   Then we can start filling the spider web with crochet goodies for the spider...........

Vintage Ballet Slipper Pattern

I am excited to bring to you a vintage crochet ballet slipper pattern.

You can find this pattern here:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/165770895/vintage-crochet-ballet-slipper-pdf?ref=shop_home_active

I classify these more of  a sandal, I thought it was interesting they called them ballet slippers.

I found the sole to be very interesting in the aspect that you cut a piece of cardboard for the insert.  I would defiantly have them destroyed within a day.  I recommend a leather insert.

This pattern give instructions for a small, medium and large size.  The medium is about a 7 to 8 US size, not sure on the other two.

I am working on vintage patterns today, so you should see a few more patterns posted today.

Tomorrow be prepared for some quick recipes, My plans are to make homemade pumpkin puree and slow cooked caramel.  Would you like to learn to make some crochet bottle cap pumpkins, as well? It is the season.

Enjoy,

Debra

Crochet Hoodie Ideas

Is he the cutest or what?

This hoodie inspires me to pull out my hook.  The possibilities are limitless for a crochet mask for keeping your face warm or to use for a costume event.  

Very ingenious.......just love it.....

My question is, would you design one that is permanently attached or removable?

Super heroes, Princesses, Monsters, Beards, just oodles of possibilities.  

What inspires you?

Halloween excited,

Debra

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Chilli

I love easy and I love good.  Who would have thought?


Ingredients:

1 lb of ground round
2 16 oz cans of chili beans
1 14.5 oz can of beef broth
1 10 oz can of Rotel or canned diced tomatoes.
1 cup of pureed pumpkin
2 tsp of minced onion
1 garlic clove
1 tsp of chili powder
1/2 cup of ketchup

Toppings:
Raw onion
Shredded cheddar cheese
Dab of sour cream

Cook the ground round.  I cook mine right in the slow cooker on high.  Drain any excess grease.  I had just a small amount so I did not drain.  This keeps it from sticking while cooking on low.

Go ahead and leave the slow cooker on high while adding the rest of the ingredients. Pour in the 2 cans of chili beans and mix well.

Pour in the can of beef broth and mix well.  

Pour in the Rotel tomatoes.  If they don't sell Rotel in your area, a can of diced tomatoes will work as well.  Consider adding more chili powder if you don't have Rotel or add hot peppers.  Mix well.  

Put in one cup of pumpkin puree.  I bought the plain puree, no spices added.  Mix well.  I am not brave enough to add the spiced pumpkin puree.  

Add the ketchup, garlic clove, minced onion, and chili powder.  Mix well.  

Turn your slow cooker down to low and cook for at least 4 hours.  I let mine cook for about 6 hours.  

When done, add any topping that you like.  I added a little bit of raw onion, cheddar cheese and a dab of sour cream.  

Enjoy,  

Debra

Adapted from the recipe of : http://www.mommyhatescooking.com/2012/09/slow-cooker-pumpkin-chili.html