Yay!

I'm posting 2 blogs in 2 days! I've been so busy lately, so posting so often just seems odd sometimes. But I'm glad I can do it.

Today I decided to work on my one project a lot, until he's done, which should be tomorrow. But today I did some more fun creative stuff!
I've been scouring Etsy lately for fun jewelry. Some that I've become huge fans of are anything that relates to acorns (or fall in general) and any kind of fun stud earrings. I've bought a few pairs, but really wanted something else fun. Then, while at my Michael's today, I realized something. "I can buy plain posts and make my own!"
So, I set out at Michael's with a goal: find anything small to glue onto earring posts. So, this is what I came up with so far! And seriously, so awesome and cheap! I've only made these so far. So, instead of paying about $10 for a single pair, I paid a total of about $5 for the opportunity to make about 30 pairs of earrings!

I bought these super teeeeeny buttons and just used some amazing Aleene's instant glue to glue them on.


And this picture is just to show you how tiny those little buttons really are! I'm excited to make more too. They were really fun and super easy, which is even better!

And this, was a request for my friend Jackie. Jackie sends me a lot of amazing yarn, so I've made her a small thank you gift. She requested a pumpkin family. So, using this pattern again, I've made Mr. & Mrs. Pumpkin so far. They're going to have kids, I just haven't made them yet. And beware, I will be making more patterns from her blog, because, well, they're pretty awesome. And she more that are just way too cute not to make!
So, here they are. :)


And, since I haven't received anything from the giveaway, I will be doing another one probably in a few weeks after some things cool down here. I would love to do one to get more followers to my blog! So stay tuned for that. :)

NINJAS!!!!

This is going to be a SUPER QUICK post.

First of all, I have yet to receive any responses to my super duper giveaway and sadly, I might have to just not give anything away, which is truly a shame considering my new heads that I have up in the shop!

Which brings me to my next point, I have new heads up in the shop! Yay! These have been sitting for quite a while. My inspiration for crafting lately has been lacking, so I haven't been doing much. However, I've decided that I WILL FINISH my main project this week. There's no more procrastinating!!! I will post it SOON, and please hold me to that. :)
So, here's the new heads! They were SUPER fun to make, and might be some of my favorites too!





The purple ninja might be my favorite, but I really love the albino Cthulhu too. Which one is your favorite?!

Halloween Wreath

I just realized that I haven't posted this project on my blog yet! I think I've posted it everywhere else. lol.

I made this Halloween wreath to hang outside my apartment door this year. I've never decorated much for holidays because we were in such a tiny apartment, but now that we're in a bigger one, I can't wait to decorate!
And I know that I posted a lot of these before, but this is it all together. The smaller things around the side are all free patterns that I got from Lionbrand.com. The pumpkin is found here and the pattern is really fun!









That's all for right now. I've been in a bit of a slump lately and haven't had tons of inspiration. However, I'm working on a few things that will hopefully be done soon and then I can share it with you. :)

A Long Time Coming...

Well, not really. In all reality, this has only taken me about a week.

I've been terribly spoiled by my amigurumi, and how I've really grown with it. The thing is, I love amigurumi. I love making things and seeing them take shape. It's really just wonderful to watch it as I create more. However, every once in a while, I come across an amazing yarn, and then I find the amazing pattern to make with the amazing yarn.

My amigurumi is all made with acrylic yarn. Every once in a while, I might throw in a wool detail, but for the most part, it's all acrylic. I don't like using some amazing expensive yarn on something that's not worn, it just doesn't feel right. So, as mentioned in my previous blog, I got some amazing yarn from my friend Jackie. Here's the story of my newest project:

I got 2 skeins of this amazing Soft Silk (50% Merino Wool, 50% Silk) about 2 months ago in the mail. I didn't know what to do with it, so it really just sat in my stash. A couple weeks ago, I decided that since my cold weather is coming up really quickly, why not use all of the awesome wearable yarns for some winter stuff for me?! So, I pulled out this truly amazing burgundy yarn. After, I found a pattern on Ravely for a hooded cowl. I had to make the amazing hood in the amazing burgundy.
After VERY QUICKLY using up the 2 skeins, Jackie was nice enough to drive the 2 hours into New York to buy me SIX MORE skeins of the yarn. She got it for me, and sent it immediately, so that I could actually quickly continue onto my project. Everyone say YAY FOR JACKIE!!

So, I set off, crocheting away on this hood. Now, again, I make more creatures than anything else, so I'm just not used to stuff like this. And, because I've been spoiled by making a creature in about 2 hours, when something takes DAYS, it's just taking too long for me. lol. I ran into so many problems. First off, I love the cable pattern. I've never done too many cables, but this I truly loved. I love that you can even crochet and even make it look like knitting. I ran into my first trouble when I seamed the hood up. One side would have made it way too big, so I actually had to turn it so where my head is, is actually supposed to be the bottom. lol.




When I got to the ribbing, this change really made it a bit more difficult. The cowl also was not going to work out for me, because of this change that I had made. I thought of some other ideas. At first I thought I would make it into a hooded mobius, but in the middle of making that, thought that maybe I should just turn it into a scoodie (a hooded scarf). I was dying last night, just wanting to get it done. I ended up setting it down and going to sleep and get a fresh mind in the morning.

This morning, as I picked it up, I thought, "Why can't I basically stop the scarf right here, and just bring it across to a big button, and make it a cowl again?!"
And so, after so much trouble and a HUGE pain in my elbow and hand last night, my hood is now complete! All in all, it was totally worth it, and I love it. I think I will try another one some day, but when I do, I will probably make my own pattern. The hood part was actually quite simple, so I definitely think I will use the same method when I make my own. :)

It's been a while...

But it's because I've been so crazy busy. And, this is going to be a somewhat short blog for the same reason, because I'm just working on so much.

First up is a request that I got from a friend. She wanted a giant orange jellyfish to put on her bed as a throw pillow. So, this is what I made! I'll also be taking any custom orders for these, so if you're interested, feel free to email me!


And this is the only picture I got of it before I sent him off. He was really fun to make though!!

I also recently made my friend Jackie a Kirby! We're both really excited for the new video game, Kirby's Epic Yarn, so I made her this to celebrate. :)



And now, I'm working on a few more projects. I've made some heads that I need to put on plaques and into the store, and did I forget to mention last time that I made it to the front page of Etsy?! OMG! I was so excited when I pulled Etsy up, and there I was!!
And, for now, I'm also working on a fun project for myself. Here's a little bit of a background story.

My good friend, Jackie, lives in New Jersey. She has amazing yarn sources there, and since she has taken up knitting this past year, she has also become a bit of a yarn whore. Something else interesting about Jackie is that she loves a good sale. She finds yarn for CHEEEAP at warehouse sales, and sales all over New York too. So, while at a sale one day, she picked up a bunch of yarn for me! I loved it all. Well, there were these 2 hanks of this beautiful burgundy yarn. She also told me shortly after sending it to me that she was going to make me a swift, so I couldn't roll that yarn until I got the swift. So, I got the swift a few weeks later, and it's been sitting, I just haven't rolled any of the hanks. Until last week.

I found an amazing pattern that I knew I wanted to use the burgundy yarn for. So, I got out the swift, and started rolling so I could work with the yarn.
Here's an action shot!

The swift is amazing! I don't buy yarn in hanks much, but when I do, it's such a pain to roll it. I'm so glad I have the amazing swift now!
Well, after running out of the wonderful burgundy yarn, Jackie was kind enough to make yet another trip to New York to get me more!!! So now, I'm back and SUPER excited about my newest project.

So, that's all for now. Is everyone feeling Fall now? We're feeling Winter, because it snowed here today!
Also, don't forget about the giveaway!! I need a fun new banner!

GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Alright, I've never done a giveaway before, but I thought I would do a little contest!!! I'm really excited about it, and this will be a somewhat longterm one too!

Here's the deal:

• I need a new fun banner for my blog!
• You can enter up to TWO BANNERS for TWO CHANCES to win!!
• Want to know what you win? Any mounted head of your choice!!!

Here's the rules:

• Email me your banners at AmyLDice@yahoo.com with "Banner Giveaway" in the subject line.
• I will pick my favorite banner from those sent to me to use for my blog.
• How will I know that you personally made it? I won't! Have a friend that does awesome graphic design? Use them!
• This also means that you don't even have to be a follower of my blog if you don't have a blogger account, just email it to me! (Although you really should be a follower of my blog. lol)
• You have until the end of September to email them to me. That gives you almost a month!
• It doesn't necessarily have to be the colors of my background, because I can change that. I just want something fun and creative.
• It can say either The Mad Crafter or Diary of a Hooker.
• You can use ANY of my pictures that I've posted on either my blog OR my store. Remember though, you can ONLY use the pictures for my banner. Feel free to use them on your blog or website, just throw me some credit. :)

If there's any other questions, feel free to leave a comment and I will answer them!

Aside from the giveaway, I have a bunch more stuff in my store! I'm working on Halloween heads now! These are my personal favorites. Also, the Kirk and Spock Star Trek set is back up in my shop, this time on heart plaques!!
Here's my favorites, a pumpkinhead and an unraveling mummy!





Now go get working on those banners! :)

Not much....

I don't have too much to update on, I just really wanted to give a quick update.

I've have (and let's face it, Montana has) jumped full into Fall. I've been loving it so much. The cold weather is so refreshing and just puts me in a better mood. It looks like the highest it's going to get this week is 67! Today my hubby and I did some fun cosmetic stuff around the house. We put screens in the windows and have had them open all day. :)
So, due to the wonderful Fall weather, this has also transferred into my crafting, of course! haha This is my newest head up in the shop! And don't worry, there's plenty more Halloween heads coming VERY soon!




Now, I have a pretty long to-do list. This, combined with my still going sales (YAY!) I've been really busy lately! I've sent out some emails for some clarification on commission pieces, and my goal is to have them all done in 2 weeks! Please wish me luck! haha. I've been noticing that a lot of people have been requesting/ordering stuff for Christmas already too! Looks like I really have to get some more things stocked for that very soon!
I hope everyone's had a great Labor Day weekend! I will be back in a few days. I sent off a gift for a close friend, and as soon as she receives it, I can post pictures. It's very exciting and I will be DEFINITELY making more very soon!

P.S. Thoughts on my new look here? I always have a hard time trying to pick backgrounds. lol. Any ideas if you don't like it? Also, I would LOVE a fun banner for my page. Any suggestions on that? Anyone want to volunteer to make me a super fun one? lol

New things happening

So, as usual, I've been busy. Actually, lately, I've been feeling especially busy.

First up, my store is really doing great! Last week I got my biggest order so far, and then just 2 days later the same thing! It's really feeling great. I love to see all the wonderful comments and feedback people leave me tell me that they're loving my creatures! It's always great to hear things like that. :)
And, with that being said, I have decided to try something new! I found these top hats on Etsy, and for some reason, I had to have them. Then, I had a grand plan to make a gentleman yeti, complete with mustache. However, the mustache didn't work as planned. Either way, I have a bunch of these top hats, and I definitely see so many more possibilities now! Either way, this guy is now up in my shop. :)

And, a couple weeks ago my husband and I were out thrift shopping, when I came across these little cowboy hats! I immediately picked them up. Hubby looked at me oddly and said, "Amy, what are you ever going to use those for?" To which I replied, "Ummm, cowboy yeti's! What else?! Duh!" And so, the cowboy yeti was born. I actually ordered some more of these online the other day because now I really want a bigfoot cowboy as well. lol


And now, onto my other stuff I've been working on. For starters, I have a few projects that I need to start on soon. I've been getting requests from friends, so I need to sit down and plan everything out for specifics. It looks like I'll have a couple weeks of projects ahead of me. Aside from that, I got a vision the other day.
I've been getting seriously into the Fall mood lately. The weather here has cooled off, and it's just gorgeous outside. Of course because of this I'm now getting sick, but I digress. So, the Halloween stuff in all the stores of course has just caught my eye. I decided that I wanted to also decorate for Halloween this year! I never do that, but I really want to for some reason. So, my big project right now is all focused on that. I went onto Ravelry and found this pattern. I'm not kidding, I fell in love. Not only is it one of the cutest things I think I've ever seen, but I immediately HAD to make it. After making it, I made another and he's on his way to Florida to be with my mom. I've decided that I will be making a wreath with all kinds of my crocheted creatures on it! This little guy is going to be the centerpiece of the wreath. I will hang it by my front door until someone decides to complain because it's related to the devil or something...whatever. It's going up outside my door either way. :)

He's freaking adorable, right?!
And then all of these little guys will be around the wreath. I got all of these patterns from the Lion Brand website, if you just go to patterns and then type in Halloween, they all come up. There's still more that I'm going to make, but I"m happy with these so far. :)




I think the mummy may be my favorite, although I really love them all!!
Well, that's all for now. I have to stain some plaques because I have some Halloween mounted heads coming soon!!