Pardon me, while I break my blog....

So some of you may know I have been having a terrible time with my blog lately....  There's lots of reasons that I don't have a lot of time right now to get into, so I will save that for another post.  Anywhooo, While it's already broken, I'm going to do some more breaking, and tweaking and putting it back together while I work on deeper internal issues.  If you can't find something that you are looking for, please feel free to shoot me an email at contact.lilu.studios@gmail.com and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!!!

~Lori

It Is What It Is Pillow {Knit/Crochet Chart}

This is really such a fun piece.  I actually worked it up on my knitting machine, and then filled it with a prestuffed pillow.  (I didn't want to mess with stuffing it myself)

Use the chart below to work up your piece.  If you are knitting, you'll knit one stitch for every grid on the graph.  If you're crocheting, it gets a little weird.  I find that 1:1 works well enough for single crochet (sc) but that you can also use double crochet with 2 stitches for each square.

You can work the same on the front and back or you can work up a solid piece for the back (which is what I did).  If you're going to do a solid back, just work the same amount of stitches and rows from the graph and it will work up to be the same size.  You could also sew on a piece of fabric if you don't want to work a piece for the back.

You can find the chart for the pattern here, and it comes with an additional 9 quirky sayings graphs for you to use!:  It is what it is Pillow Pattern

If you like this one, I have a whole new line that I'm going to be putting up in my shop very soon!!!

Feel free to ask any questions you have in the comments section below!

My Pattern Experience: Racing Arrows Hat [crochet pattern review}

For Christmas this past year, I decided to make a set of 6 hats that would all go together yet each one be unique and different. It was because of this that I found this Racing Arrows Hat on Ravelry. This was the perfect hat to tie in to the set and I loved working the pattern up.  It was fairly easy to do if you are familiar with working the front post dc (fpdc), and the color patterning is very visually striking so people are always wondering "how long did it take you to make that!?!"  I have plans to make many more of these hats!
Overall, an easy to work fun hat with great detail!

The LAST! in a long long list of WIP's!

I never thought I'd reach the end, but we finally have!!!  Here's the last of the WIP's that I've been working on.  I'm working through the box and hope to have either frogged, completed or repurposed everything in this box!  Some things have already been frogged or finished and I'm glad that I'm making some progress through it finally!!!  Hopefully a lot of it will make great gifts!

WIP #45

The weather scarf.  I think it was Caron who put on this crochet along.  You were supposed to assign colors to different tempurature ranges and then crochet a couple of rows everyday.  Sounds easy, but I just couldn't keep up.  It didn't help that I decided that I wanted to also designate different stitches to different weather conditions, ie cloudy, rainy, snowy, etc.  I ended up giving up on it after probably 15-20 days and stashed it away.  I have actually already frogged this piece as of writing this. :)

WIP #46

I have absolutely no idea.  Really, seriously, I have no idea what this little circle was supposed to go to, or why I held onto it.  It's in the frog pile.

WIP #47

This is an interesting little strip.  I think it was meant to be the start of a cardigan or something.  I'm not sure why I put it away, but now that I'm looking at it again, I'm thinking it might make a great cowl with a few adjustments.  We'll see.

WIP #48

This was the start of a vest that I was making for my sister in law.  I didn't end up liking how it was coming out with the yarn that I was using, so I pulled out the needle and left it laying around.  I'll frog this piece as well. 

WIP #49

I was trying to make an autumn themed shawl.  I started this and switched patterns.  Frog pile!

WIP #50

My first attempt ever at a sock.  The shape is perfect, but the size is too big.  I need to reduce the stitches, but that won't happen with this one.  It's in the frog pile.

WIP #51

This was a first prototype for a quilt like blanket that I wanted to make for my grandmother in law.  I got this far and realized it was starting to look like a swastika so I stopped.  Onward!

WIP #52

I was going to make a diaper bag.  This was to be it's pocket.  I was tired and pregnant and went out and bought a diaper bag instead.  This will be frogged.

Whew!  We made it through the ridiculous list of WIP's that I have in store for myself this year.  The next time that you hear me talk about them, there will be progress!!!

What are you working on right now?  Leave me a comment!

Sweater WIP's, New Year's Resolution Post... Again!

Today's WIP sharing session is brought to you by SWEATERS!  I have several in different stages that got stashed at weird points and I even forgot that I had a few of these!!

WIP #40

This sweater actually started its life meant to be the Uptempo Vest I found on Ravelry.  After I worked the two panels, however, I found the vest to be a little long for my liking and a little lacking in the flair department.  I pinned it up to my mannequin and went to work.  I added this small pineapple in the back:

As well as pineapple sleeves in gray and a nice gray trim.  Now I'm just waiting until my next trip to the craft store to find some buttons for the front, then all I have left is to join the arms to the piece and sew in all the ends.  It could probably use a good wash and block as well. :)

WIP #41

This is a simple sweater dress that I started based off of the Spiralis pattern on Ravelry.  I added a cable coming out of the pocket and am probably about 40% done with this one, but I can't find the notebook with my project details right now!  Not to mention that whatever yarn is attached to the piece is the last I have of that color until I can get to the craft store.  bummer!

WIP #42

This one is pretty much done, but needs to be cleaned up (the dryer was not nice to this one!) and the armpits need to be reseamed.  

WIP #43

Since this picture, this piece has undergone a lot of change!!  I'm working on a new pattern for a sweater dress for my youngest child.  She loves all things frilly so there's lots of ruffles involved but it's still not quite done.  When I took the picture, I just had these two front and back pieces for the top of the sweater. :)

WIP #44

This is my attempt at the Paris sweater.  I started it on knitting needles, but then got my knitting machine and went... wow.  I need to do this on the knitting machine instead!!  So I worked for a good 4 hours one night and cranked out this large piece, bound it off, and discovered that it needs more length.  I will have to reattach it to the knitting machine and add about 20 more rows before I can finish it off. 

The more I talk about these, the more I mentally note for myself in the future!  I've frogged a ton of projects and also finished a few now, and I'm so glad there's only going to be one more installment of WIP's before I can start sharing finished projects!!!

What are you working on?  Share below!!!