Rare Orange Puffle Sighting!

Kids who are members of Club Penguin know how rare an orange Puffle is. I even found a GetOrangePuffle Blog! One day Chippy the cat must have captured one in the wild because look:


The Puffle seems as comfy as Chippy and Bob, so maybe "befriended" is a better word than "captured."

This is a 99% crocheted Puffle, even the eyeballs! The remaining 1% is whatever embroidery stitches I was able to recall on the fly from childhood. I was able to do the Satin Stitch reasonably well for the eye pupils--they came out nicely once I rimmed the stitches with short chained stitches. I watched my fingers do that stitch (for the mouth too) with wonder, because my mind doesn't remember it even though my fingers do!

What do you think of the eyes? I like the embroidery but don't know if I like the white part. My son loves it :-)

Free Crochet Patterns from the School "Mini-Mall"

If kids were crochet designers....we'd just plain have different designs for kids!
Bob the Toy Tester put on his Toy Developer hat last week. He needed to make products for his classmates to buy with class dollars at his school's "Mini-Mall" event.

This is Bob's second Mini-Mall and he was anxious to create something that would thrill enough kids to bring about bidding wars. He had also seen other "vendors" be successful with raffles (he calls them "rambles"), so he needed a special item to feature.

He decided that a '70's hippie theme would have wide appeal. For him this means rainbow colors with beads and peace signs. The key specific items for him were headbands and peace sign necklaces. I came up with simple, speedy designs which were officially tested and approved by Bob.

The next step was Toy Production. Bob could prep the materials for mass production but by the time we knew what the products would be, I had to make them myself quickly. I was able to make roughly:

10 headbands
1 peace sign necklace
2 hemp bracelets for certain teachers
10 diamond "Bow-Tie" rings (an idea we had before the '70's hippie theme)

Sales Figures:
100% SOLD OUT.
Under what sounds like extreme peer pressure, Bob took orders for more.

Sales Trends:
Any obvious crowd pleasers? He could have sold 3 times more headbands, and the peace sign necklace was a clear sales incentive.

Bob's instincts for what kids will want most were better than mine! I humbly offer it as a free crochet pattern:

Children's Choice '70's Hippie Headband

I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook
Any cheerfully rainbow-colored and soft medium-weight yarn (I used Universal Yarn's Reef: A slightly stretchy, chenille-like novelty yarn made of 31% Polyamide, 44% Acrylic, 25% Wool.)
2 medium-sized wood beads

1. Chain 12.
2. Insert hook in second chain from your hook, yarn over and pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through one loop (1 chain made; place marker in this stitch, or pinch it with your fingers). Yarn over, pull through both loops on hook (1 single crochet made). *Insert hook in marked (or pinched) chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (2nd single crochet made).
3. Repeat from * 43 times (or to fit a child's head comfortably).
4. Join headband into a ring without twisting: slip stitch in first single crochet and chain at the base of it. Then chain 7 and fasten off.
5. Slide a bead onto each yarn tail, knot bead in place, and trim tail close to bead.

As promised on my DesigningVashti blog, here is the Hippie Hemp Teacher's Bracelet.

Crocheted '70's Hemp Teacher's Bracelet

1 ball of craft hemp cord available at Wal-Mart or craft stores
I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook (aluminum is better with hemp)
6 small Jesse James Company's Dress It Up "Tiny Collection Retro" buttons
1 larger flower button (same brand) for clasp
2 small wood beads (optional)

1. String the 6 small buttons onto the hemp and then string on the larger button.
2. Chain 1. Slide up the larger button close to hook and chain 1 so that the button is locked into the stitch.
3. Insert hook in 1st chain made, yarn over, pull up a loop. Yarn over, pull through 1 loop on hook (1 chain made; place marker in this stitch or pinch it with fingers), yarn over, pull through both loops on hook (1 single crochet made).
4. *Insert hook in marked (or pinched) chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (2nd single crochet made).
5. Repeat from * once.
6. Insert hook in next marked chain, yarn over and pull up loop, mark that chain, slide up a smaller button close to stitch, yarn over and pull through both loops on hook (beaded single crochet made).
7. Alternate #5 and #6 until all buttons are used. Then repeat #5 twice.
8. Chain 3, double crochet in last marked stitch, turn, slip stitch in the chain space you just created. This is the buttonhole. Fasten off.
   
9. String a small wood bead onto each yarn tail, knot end to secure bead, clip yarn close to bead.

Holiday Frolic with Jelly Yarn: Free Pattern!

Silly me, after using Jelly Yarn to make some personalized bungee bookmark gifts for my son to take to school (see pattern below), I rather foolishly left it sitting out on the day that he had two friends sleep over.

That's right, 3 grade school boys in a room with 1 ball of Jelly Yarn and a tempting pair of scissors. 

Everything and everyone got wrapped and tied. You could try counting all of the cut ends in the photo but you'd miss some :-)

I'd say there's less than a half of a skein left. Note to self: if providing Jelly Yarn as a party favor, allow 1 skein for every 3-4 kids.

Ready for the....Happy Holidays 2008 Free Pattern? This pattern is very simple and easy and requires only the most basic crochet skills. Full copyright held by Vashti Braha; for personal use only, please share the link to this pattern, not the pattern itself. Thank you.

Book Bling Bungee

Supplies Needed:

• 5mm/H/US8 aluminum crochet hook
• Jelly Yarn, fine weight: small amount
• Some bling (I found these giant acrylic 'crystals' in a holiday display at Michaels)
• 2"x2" (approx.) scrap of Foamies (foam rubber sheet-also at Michaels); I cut mine into a tree ornament shape and punched a hole in the top.
• Hand lotion, small amount (for hook)

1. Don't use hand lotion yet. String bling onto Jelly Yarn ("JY"). Make a very tight slip knot with a loop to fit over your hook. Chain 3.
2. Don't use hand lotion yet. Pull up one bling bead close to hook, chain: this is a beaded chain stitch. Repeat for the rest of your strung bling. You can use hand lotion now.
3. Insert hook into hole that you punched into your foam piece, pull JY strand through, chain 1.
4. Chain about 54--it depends on how tightly you chain and the size of your book. Finished bungee will stretch.
5. Stop using hand lotion (so that your fastening off will stay tight.) Slip stitch into each of first 3 chain stitches to form a ring, slip stitch into the next 2 beaded chains, chain 1, fasten off as tightly as possible. Hide ends behind bling. Write something on foam piece with magic marker if desired.