The grand finale for 2011...another pair of fingerless mitts (50 of 50). For these mitts, I used an uber soft 100% alpaca yarn (Plymouth Indiecita Alpaca) and this pattern.
These mitts were finished the night before I left for my vacation and I didn't get a chance to weave in the ends...but they're done now!
I had an insanely huge stack of magazines, catalogs and miscellaneous print media waiting to be recycled. Before I tossed them in the recycling box, I went through some of it and pulled out pages that were green. Yes, green...with a specific purpose in mind, of course.
Not long ago, I came across a picture of some Anthropologie-inspired earrings made with paper beads and decided I needed to make some paper beads. 
The earrings do not appeal to me, but I thought the basic concept was neat...and had the 'duh!' moment of realization that they might make cute tree ornaments! Yep. So here's my tree ornament (49 of 50)...and the second picture is truer to the actual colors. 
Came across this lovely pattern (48 of 50) for a cabled hat and decided it would be perfect as a thank you gift for my secret santa (who totally surprised me with all kinds of awesome goodies). Hope she likes it!
but it sure looks colourful! I was planning to stick with ultraviolet blue, but the girl who does my hair really wanted to try Pravana's Wild Orchids on my hair. Meh, it's just hair, so I agreed. We (yeah, I say 'we' like I had any say in this) decided to try for a gradation effect as well, so the strands deepens from fuschia, violet, to purple. Did I mention that I love it? I really do.
It'll be awhile before I pick up another cross stitch project, for sure. Still not quite sure if I should just frame this or sew a decorative door hanger pillow with the finished piece. Oh well, at least the stitching is done (47 of 50). 
or rather a modified version (46 of 50) of it. Didn't care much for the faux picot edging, so I subtracted that portion of the pattern from the top edge of the mitts and left the lower edges unhemmed. I am loving the slightly longer length of these mitts though! And for posterity, I've made gobs of notes about the modifications on the pattern sheet in the event that I decide to knit another pair of these mitts!
Back on a knitting kick! This pattern (45 of 50) called for 5 different yarns to create the stripes, but I decided to go with Debbie Mumm's Reminiscence yarn in a sea glass colorway. Not quite sure if I'll like the buttonhole thumb bit (most of the other mitts I've knitted offered more thumb coverage) but as I tried it on, it occured to me that the lack of the usual thumb guesset also means that these mitts may do double duty as cuffs! Awfully convenient, no?
Note: Dangit. I can't find these mitts *exasperated* Where did they go? They obviously hate being photographed
ETA: Found them! They were hiding in a bag with another knitting project! Yay!
More simple sewing and more destashing. I love baskets in all shapes and sizes, and lining them with pretty fabrics (44 of 50) makes me happy. It's darn near impossible to get one clear picture of the lined baskets, so I went a smidge overboard! 
The ho ho ho one is for sis, but the other one is perfect for the growing stash of mitts that I've knitted in 2011!
for my mama. She requested a pair of mitts (43 of 50) after seeing the ones I made for Q & S. This pattern has been on my ravelry queue for awhile, so I'm glad I had a reason to knit it! I found some Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino in my stash and thought it was perfect for this project. It's soooo soft and I loved working with it...that is, until I encountered knots in the yarn. 
Yes, more than one knot in a skein. Totally unacceptable, in my opinion, for high end yarns. Ugh. I only ended up using one skein of it (and had approximately 1 yard of yarn left), and I'm not sure what I'll do with the remaining skein. 
Anyhow, I like the finished product. It feels so soft...I hope my mama will be pleased with it.
Well truthfully, the shawl (42 of 50) was completed in October...but I was rather lazy when it came to blocking it. So glad it's done...and just in time for Christmas gifting. I hope the recipient will like it!
Simple is good. These dishcloths and barmops (41 of 50) are spiffed up with fabric strips from my stash. The Christmas themed barmops are for my sis, and the rest will be gifts as well! 
I was obviously optimistic about my ability to do cross-stitch. Early in November, I downloaded a freebie pattern ("Christmas Morning" by Felicity Hall) and figured I could get this done in a couple of weeks...right?
Here's what it looked like on the first day...
and here's where I'm at 4 weeks later.
Oy vey. Will I get this done by Christmas 2011?!?
Meet Mikey, the mischievious monster minion (40 of 50). I found him hiding among my teacups and mugs...probably up to no good, per usual. He was made with the RevoluzZza Monster (aka Monster Ninni) pattern! Eep!!! Mikey has been shipped off to his new home (hopefully he'll be good and won't cause too much mayhem there...), but I will be making a couple more to hand out to friends and family because I think everyone needs a wee monster in their life!
Measuring in at 18" by 21" or so, it's a decent-sized tote (39 of 50) for a quick trip to the library or market day. The design of this tote is based on a beautiful pillow I saw online.
It has been ages (hmmm, at least 8 years?) since I've played with polymer clay...and I've forgotten how much fun it can be. Saw some cute birdie-shaped pendants and decided that I could easily make a batch of them (38 of 50). I used translucent polymer and painted and sealed the pieces after curing.
ETA:
The birdies were missing something...and I finally figured out what!
I adore buntings! There's something quintessentially festive about them...and just having one hanging in the craftroom makes me smile! I used this tutorial (okay, I'll be honest, I used the template but didn't read through the instructions :P) for the owl bunting (37 of 50). Hopefully, the recipient of this bunting will be pleased with it!
Text from a French book, textured cardstock, lots of glue...and voila! We have note cards (36 of 50).
Squishy, squishy merino...
and some fine domestic wool for fun!
In all my years of knitting, I can't believe I've never knitted a washcloth till now. For one of my swaps, I decided to make a stack (one for each day of the week!) of nubby washcloths (35 of 50) for my partner. The pattern I used for these washcloths may be found here. 
For her...
For him...
Both pairs of mitts (34 of 50) were made using this pattern, with minor modifications. Yarns used were Deborah Norville Collection Serenity sock weight in Pink Sugar and Charcoal.
Haven't been crafting much lately...work is getting in the way of my play time! Having said that, it's hard to stay idle, even when I'm tired. I looked through my growing stash of fibers waiting to be spun and came across this little bundle that I received a couple of Christmases ago. MM carded these batts for me and I love the sparkle that comes from the firestar fibers. The bright colours and sparkle reminds me of carnivals!
Carnival - mill ends and firestar, sport weight (plied)
Halloween! How I love thee. Tricks, treats (candy, candy, candy) and fanciful spookiness. And speaking of tricks, we have tarot cards! For this batch of chunky houses (33 of 50), I incorporated three-card-tarot readings for each house...purely for entertainment value, of course.
And this particular chunky house is the odd one in the bunch. Nary a tarot card card in sight but an ominous crow...waiting to make mischief, no doubt.
