Fast and easy gifts sort of in the last minute and shameless self promotion

I don't really have anything new and exiting to show, because most of the things I am working on at the moment are Christmas presents, even though we have bought loads there are still plenty to make... And making takes time, even something as simple as a knitted hat.



But I do have another finish here are the headbands I finished for two small boys (well, eleven and nine years old so rather big small boys). I made them simple since I didn't have much time and the boys really don't care that much for soft things. Both are the made the same way, except the darker one is a bit bigger.

Well, anyway, both boys get some money, a star wars rub-on tattoo and a reflective headband. 

When the pattern is simple I think it is important to use some yarn with a flair, and things that glow when the cars drive by so they see you is kind of nifty I think. And maybe the boys think it is kind of cool? I don't know, I have never been a ten-ish year old boy so I have no idea what they think is cool.


I also want to talk about packaging a bit. You know those leftover threads that are too small to really do anything with? I use them to wrap gifts in... And suddenly the two gifts are different.

I do sometimes buy real wrapping thread, but I do think it is somewhat wasteful so I try to buy the paper or twine ones rather than the plastic ones. But I think using up leftovers is nice.

*

How I made these super simple headbands? I can tell you, however remember that I am no knitting expert so these are super easy and don't really need a pattern, but hey, at least then I will know what I did if I have trouble remembering.
These are also so easy that a child can make their own ear warmers, but these boys are even less interested in crafting than wearing something handmade so it is better to make things for them.

I finished one during a movie this weekend so they are easy, fast and fun to do, if you ever need a quick present.

I used a 6mm needle and cast on 10 stitches for the small one and 13 stitches for the slightly bigger one, then I knitted ribbing back and forth for about 30 cm (or as big as the head that will receive the ear warmers) and cast off and sewed the ends together. (If you leave your ends a bit longer than needed you can use them to sew your headband together.) And Voila, a finish or two, in time for autumn and darker days.

Also, don't forget the competition over at gachastitches, you can win both the pattern and a pair of lovely crochet wrist warmers V for finurlig. And there is a free rabbit crochet square pattern up too.






Multe the rabbit is a free pattern, but we at gachastitches are in the process of making a baby blanket using several other bunnies. If you do want to make a bunny blanket using only Multe you can, but here we made a potholder using the pattern...

Multe is Norwegian for cloudberry.

Tuesday Tunes again

So because it is Tuesday and I like to share, not just to you, but to myself kind of like a diary of hits, here are this weeks selection.

This song is a bit older and I think this is one of the songs my friend Evi wanted me to listen to, I know I have heard and liked it before, but I found it again while looking at men dancing morning musume and then found this song.

Jump like me.

The dance looks easy but I am pretty sure I could never dance like this;)

踊りたい

odoritai. 

I want to dance! So I am dancing around to this and singing, although I must confess that my moves look nothing like this >.<

And I will miss Kanon, the one in blue talking and DJ-ing who just graduated. I have felt too bad to mention her and my two favourites of Angerme graduating. (Tamura Meimi and Fukuda Kanon)

At least Fukuda sings on her IG sometimes.

 And I have not been idle, I have crocheted our pattern Søtten in pink and purple for a summer party.

Almost two balls of yarn, I haven't weighed them though, and some white scraps for the thread on top.

What do you think?

And we are very close to releasing our next pattern as well.

Easter Crochet Patterns

I have been searching for Easter decorations that are not egg cozies (because we don't eat that many boiled eggs) or baskets in our house and I have had a hard time finding any.

 I did however find some gems I thought I would share with you (and me next year). 

Some patterns are just for fun, but some are useful and I did share a egg cozy or two too, because one is useful even if you only eat boiled egg once in Easter.

All patterns are free and the pictures are taken from the links.

Bunnybutt bySteenistugan

This pattern is really fun, it is in Swedish however, but I am sure with a little help from Google you could make this. I think I will make these, so many patterns so little time... 

(Just remember that bunnies don't have the pink on the bottom of their soles.)

Easter Bunny basket or doily by MammaNicole

Another favourite, I really need a bunny doily or two, maybe I should go buy some sweet dusty pink or light blue yarn for this, white is a classic but I would rather have them in colours, usually colours I don't have so I have to buy more stash;)
This pattern seems to just have a diagram.

The Green Dragonfly

 Bunnies are also very Easter-y and I love these little dudes, they seem easy and fun, since they don't look very natural you could go berserk with colours to make them really spring into spring-y-ness.

Crochet Egg Cozy Pattern by Kara

Here is the coolest egg cozy I saw, it looks really useful and decorative and fun but you better hurry up and eat your eggs or they will get cold with this particular pattern.

Easter Egg Coaster by Doni Speigle

I made these for my friend Evi for Christmas so I can recommend this pattern, it was easy and fun and I could use up some scraps. The white thread in-between is carried over so there is less yarn to sew in in the end which is always a good thing.

Amigurumi Hatching Easter Chicks by Toma Creations Blog

I remember in Kindergarten we made decorations like these with real egg shells and pom poms, mine is looking rather sorry now and I think it might be time for a crochet one, might last longer, but it needs shell on the top of the head as well, mine in kindergarten did.

EasterBunny Mug Cozy by Haak Maar Raak

If I didn't already have a yellow Easter bunny mug I would make this, although come to think of it, this could go as a everyday mug cozy too, I think I need this on my list after all.

Drops Chick bookmark

A bookmark, In Norway Easter is the season we eat eggs but also we read crime books, go cross country skiing in the mountains and have lots of oranges and chocolate so a bookmark is most useful.

Kvikk Lunsj blue by Herdagsmagi

This is the chocolate most Norwegians eat lots of in Easter, so I had to add a pattern of this hat, it is in Norwegian though but free, so just try and see if you can crochet it ^^

Henny Penny

My friend Tinkerbell and I had a teacher named Penny in high school and I remember we called her Henny Penny Filli Fenny.

I don't think she liked it much, but she never said anything.

This is useful, look, it is for bread and stuff, I eat bread more than I eat boiled eggs.

Drops Sunny Morning Doily

A doily is always useful, if I had proper yellow yarn I am sure I would make this, and a doily that is not so fragile looking were you don't use a tiny needle is more up my alley anyway. I love the look of the thin thread, I just don't have the patience or fingers for it.

Drops Sunny Side Up

Another useful kitchen item, this is not just for Easter, it is a fun pot holder, I do love fried eggs and I eat that a lot with bacon. Omnomnom.

Drops Kikiri-Key

 This little chick pretends he is all useful and all, but a Key fob just for Easter seems a bit excessive in my book, but you could always use him for something else, although nothing useful comes to mind. Mind you he could always just be decorative.

Chicken Vanes

 Another decorative chicken, but I am sure you could adapt this into another pot holder if you really want something useful.

Did you find anything you liked? Did your to-do list grow as much as mine did? Think you could finish all this easter?

Merry Christmas

From Bunny-chan. We had to bribe her with pellets, but she doesn't seem scared of the hat anymore^^ Maybe next year, we can try it on;) 

Here is the last of the Baubles series. What do you think?

I never did finish that last present, because I screwed it up. oh well, maybe for her birthday then?)

Last halloween I gave you my heart

The last Halloween design, actually I am quite pleased with this one, I think it might be my favorite out of the set of four Halloween designs.... Trust me to like the rabbit design best :p My cat-loving friends like the cat design best, so I guess it comes to show our partialness.                                          
What do you guys think? I am going to put up a poll where you can vote which of the Halloween designs you prefer and it will be open until Halloween.

It is coming

Since the first snow this season came here yesterday  (it didn't stay btw) I got a reminder that Christmas is not too far away, at least for us crafters, busying away to get the presents finished in time. So, I decided to get cracking and made a pattern for you. A christmas bauble. I quite like it. 

Actually, I made five, but you will see the others next week, so stay tuned^^

Another Halloween

This one is the scariest I think^^
At the moment I am really tired, I have done almost nothing but sleep for something that feels like forever.

We have finished "Deep Space Nine" and are on full speed towards "Voyager".... I really do not like changes:P

Owling at the moon

 So here are my owls. What do you think? I quite like them ^^

In english: What is up with the retro-owls colours?

Just hanging out.

I want to make them into something someday, but at the moment I don't quite have the time for anything because of this course. Hopefully it will get me a job though, so I will persevere.

Så, her er uglene mine. Hva synes du? Jeg liker dem. ^^

Jeg har lyst til å lage dem en dag, men for øyeblikket har jeg ikke tid til noe pga dette kurset. Forhåpentligvis gjør det sånn at jeg får en jobb, så jeg skal gjøre mitt beste.

Almost there.....

Here is another Halloween-chart, as promised. I think it would look great on black aida also.
I love Halloween, and I have a lot of ideas for different finishes too. But I don't have time before this halloween, but I will surely have it done by next year;)

Still doing my course, and hopefully we will start learning more than just the basics and really start to learn the program. ^^

Last night I left my crocheting needle on the couch, moments later, bunny had stolen my needle and was running around the living room with her trophy. But I did get it back before she had eaten any of it.  
Maybe I should just learn that it is impossible to own any wooden items, because the rabbit thinks they are toys for her...

Oh, and regarding "Deep Space Nine", we have only 16 or so episodes, surely we will have seen all of them in time for the convention?


Her er enda en Halloween-oppskrift, som jeg lovte. Jeg tror den kan bli fin sydd på svart stoff også. Jeg elsker Halloween, og jeg har masse ideer til hvordan man kan lage de ferdige broderiene til forskjellige produkter også. Men jeg har ikke tid innen denne Halloween er ferdig, så det får bli til neste år;)

Holder fortsatt på med Arkiv-kurset mitt, håper at vi snart starter å lære litt mere innviklede ting, selve programmet vi skal bruke. ^^

Igår kveld så lot jeg heklenålen min ligge fremme på sofaen, ganske snart hadde kaninen stjålet nålen min og løp rundt i stua med trofeen sin. Men jeg fikk den tilbake før hun hadde fått spist på den. Mulig jeg bare må lære meg til at vi ikke kan ha ting lagd av tre, fordi kaninen er overbevist om at alle ting av tre er leker bare for henne.....

Åh, og på "Deep Space Nine" så er vi kommet omtrent så vi har 16 sider igjen, vi må da klare å se alle innen vi skal til London?

Since it is Bunday, here is bunny, sneaking some hay from a different angle than usual. She opened the lid by herself. #cleverbunny

Bah, on you

As promised, I made a sheep pattern, it should be sewn on ecru aida. What do you think?

It is another lame pun. :P Which goes something like this. Bah on you. Leave me a mail if you want the pattern. Viljeblomst(at)hotmail.com

Som jeg lovte har jeg lagt ut saue-oppskriften min, den skal sys på ecru aida. Hva synes du?

Det er et annet teit ordspill. Bæ på deg.
Send meg en mail så kan du få oppskriften.

Soon It will be October

At the moment I am doing a  intensive course on digital archives, which means that I don't have that much time to play around in Mac-stitch. Still, I will make sure to meet my deadline and faithfully put up charts on Bundays. So if you want to make a small cross stitch before Halloween, here is your chance. I am going to make a few charts until  Halloween dawns upon us. ^^

Oh, and I promised some people I met this weekend to make sheep, stay tuned.

For øyeblikket går jeg på intensiv-kurs i digitalt arkiv, så det betyr at jeg ikke har så god tid til å leke  rundt på Mac-Stitch. Men, jeg skal passe på å rekke fristen min og hver søndag trofast legge ut en oppskrift på korssting. Hvis du har lyst til å lage et lite Halloween broderi, så har du sjansen nå. Fram til Halloween gryr skal jeg lage og legge ut noen Halloween-oppskrifter. 

Åja, og jeg har lovt noen mennesker jeg møtte denne helgen å lage noen sauer, følg med.

Here is bunny in her digging box, looking for some treats buried deep beneath the paper. 

I dreamt my bunny woke me up...

by sitting on top of me and looking very disapprovingly. But then I woke up, and it was all a dream. I think ;)



I think my rabbit has superpowers. Now she is sitting on the floor eating grass.

Is bunday, is bunday

 Here is my new chart. A small fall freebie. It is not very good. but I love the colours.

Since it is too cold for bunny outside now, here is a picture from this summer. ^^

Opp-Og-Hopp

Tadah, I made another chart, in honor of it being bunday and all. Today boyfriend and I have watched five episodes of DS9 (Star-Trek Deep Space 9), chugging along in the hopes that we will have conquered the series in time for the convention in October.... (As if)

This is a norwegian pun, and it is really funny. Literal translation of the writing is: Up and hop, you dawdle-cup. Haha.

We made a box and filled it with paper, we were hoping the rabbit would dig her heart out, but after a lot of coaxing she still did not approve. So we left the box. Only thing she liked about the box was taking paper out of it and leaving it on the floor. (Ignore all the clutter in the background of the picture)

Mimle is eating herbs, she loves herbs. Look at the little herb in her mouth, she eats really fast too. I didn't know rabbits were magicians. Now you see it, now you don't.

My oh my, indeed

My, oh my, am I active at night. My poor bunny is a little confused about when to sleep and when to stay awake. But I think this pattern is worth it. What do you think?

Because at night I can just listen to a song on repeat and make something. (my man can not stand listening to me listening to a song more than once, even though I am wearing headphones).
I had to look at a lot of different pictures of dandelion to get the colours right.
Oh, and I have finally started to make backstitching, I just didn't feel like anything but the letters needed enhancement. I think it looks better without to be honest.

Oh, and in an inspired moment I made the bunny eat some dandelion, but I still have that chart in my scraps:P Looked too silly without backstitch, like a bunny with green lipstick.

I think at one point Mimle got fed up with not getting cuddles and trying so hard at getting me to cuddle her that she ate a hole in my pants, but doesn't matter. After all the backstitching was done, I petted her a little, so she should not complain, she was the one who decided she itched too much to continue lying still and left.


But I digress. Without further ado, here is the next pattern.

Any thoughts? I do not think I am 100% happy with it, but I can't find out why... So please help.

I was up all night.

And I made this. ^^ I tend to go for less colours so that the piece will be less expensive to make. But I will eventually teach myself to make bigger things with more colours.

What do you think?

/edit: fixed a spelling mistake and made the border more symmetrical.

Bunday today and a treat

I made this, a Star-Trek bookmark. the dimensions is a little odd for a bookmark, but I liked it that way. :)

My new goal is to once a week upload a small free chart for you. We will see how far I come:)
But it is important to have goals, don't you agree?

After all it is bunday today, so a picture of bunny is in order^^

Here is a finished version of the bookmark. In blue, because after all, blue is Spock's colour, and he is the one saying "live long and prosper" so it is only fitting.  If you want the darker yellow could also look nice as a border.

I was out adventuring again, this time in my pretty pink jeans

Once upon a time on Sentimental Bunny I made a few scraps and thoughts, and now finally I have this Macstitch programme that I have been trying out the demo version of for a while, and now I went crazy and bought it. This is not my first homemade by myself cross-stitch, but it is the first pattern I made all by myself. This is the first. So now without further ado, here is my newest and one of my first cross-stitch patterns. And no surprise that it is with bunnies and christmas?  For free, just for you:)

And one day I might be able to upload it as an pdf-file so that you more easily can get it. But I think you can just save the picture and go from there?
So, what do you think?

(And since I am here I can tell you that even though rabbits love carrots, a whole carrot has more sugar than rabbits should eat in a day and should only be given as a treat in small amounts, but hey, it is only Christmas once a year right?Although my bunny actually prefers the greens on top of the carrot)