A wonderful tea cozy made by a reader! -- My Workbasket

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Recently my friend Heather, who reads this site and is learning to crochet, completed this tea cozy! She used the basic design of the Hygge Hat, and the ribbed stitch from the CAL (which she participated in and finished) and she completed this great tea cozy! She said she did two panels, 35 stitches each, and then just seamed them up. Way to go Heather!!! What She Used: The Hygge Hat The Rib Stitch Tutorial The CAL (We’re done, but it’s not too late!) Recently reader Leslie bought some amazing finds in a mystery bag, and I’ll be sharing those soon too! If you have aRead More →

Fun and easy ornament making with this beautiful starch and salt dough! -- My Workbasket

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A 1965 issue of Ladies Home Journal featured this fun salt and starch clay in their special Christmas issue. I was determined to make it, because why not really, and we now have some finished ornaments to show you and share the recipe! The recipe is pretty easy but does take one special ingredient. Don’t panic though, I was able to find it online with a quick search and even from Amazon. The clay itself is divine! Much smoother than salt dough, and it takes paint beautifully! Ours were painted with cheap regular craft paint, and even though our paint really is thin and awfulRead More →

Fun videos with a dose of yarny goodness! -- My Workbasket

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I made a Yarn Tube! Yarntube 2 is below. I show off the current Christmas Projects I have going, and more. Just a bit of goofy fun on this snowy day! Yes it’s snowing here again!!!   Some things I reference in this video: The Ann Shawl The Hot Mat Fail The Puff Stitch Hat The Tunisian CAL   I hope everyone is toasty and warm, and cozy, and just working on all your own projects and getting ready for the holidays! I love you guys, thanks for sticking around!Read More →

The Advent Calendar that wasn't, and how I was suckered by my 10 year old.

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Several weeks ago I got the idea of making an advent calendar. I wanted to make mini mittens and hang them on a line. I decided not to crochet them though because I wanted my son to help, so I opted to use felt. Cut to shape, sew, hang. I was going to share the pattern and directions here with you. I bought a stack of felt. I mentally prepped my idea. I asked my son about 20 times if he was ready to make it. I ordered a case of 20 Hot Wheels cars to put in it. (I was going to grab moreRead More →

Puff Stitch Crochet Hat with Mandala Yarn

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I have fallen in love with Lion Brand Mandala yarn (and no, I’m not getting paid to say that, would be nice though!) The vibrant colors and the ease of use, not to mention the large amount of yardage in a cake and the very affordable price and I am hooked. It is the yarn I’m using for my Euphoria Cardi that I’ve mentioned a ton. I also made a shawl with it that I still need to give you the pattern for. (Hint: It’s the same as the Ann Shawl, the row count is just different with the smaller yarn, but you can totallyRead More →

Crochet Hot Mat made from a 1964 pattern- My Workbasket

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You guys, what happened to November?!?!?!?!!? Seriously. I know it’s December (omg!) but I DID do a project from the November issue and never got a chance to show you. I actually made this a few months ago, which makes it that much worse that I’m showing it to you late. The November issue featured this Hot Mat set that I thought was just SO fun, funky, and adorable, and I got straight to making them. Well, I got straight to trying to make them. Slight problem though, I could NOT get it to work. So I sent the pattern to my mom and askedRead More →

An overview of a Pack-o-Fun Magazine from December 1968 -- My Workbasket

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I’ve mentioned my Pack-o-Fun stash here before. In fact, since I won an eBay auction in August for a decent stack I since got a great deal a thrift store for another stack just a few weeks ago. My collection is quickly growing! Even more exciting is two random stacks and not a single duplicate! Just for fun, I wanted to share a few highlights from this December  1968 issue. I’m hoping to even make a few of these crafts this month! I have to say, that nativity, that’s a lot of matches. The mobile is quite simple and cute. You could probably make oneRead More →

Have fun and make this adorable chocolate house!

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I’m going to go on the record and say that I pretty much eat my weight in gingerbread every December. It’s true. I have a family recipe that makes about 500 cookies (seriously, it uses almost 5 pounds of flour) and my family eats it day in and day out, constantly. Three cookies will constitute a breakfast or lunch. That said, I was over at The Chocolate Belles – cake decorating and candy making supplies website the other day, and saw a chocolate house mold and HAD to have it. I wrote them a quick note and they sent it right over. This chocolate cottage isRead More →

The cover and craft highlights from a December 1960 magazine issue-- My Workbasket

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December 1960! When this magazine cost 15 cents to pick up at a newsstand, and as the handwritten note says shows “knit cuffs!” Also in 1960, the US was the first to legalize the Birth Control Pill. Queen Elizabeth made it known her family would be known as the House of Windsor. The Beatles made their very first ever public performance. Perhaps you were reading Lady Catterly’s lover, this year it was unbanned in the England after 32 years, or maybe you were more of the To Kill a Mockingbird type.  If you could afford $219.95 for a 23″ tv then you could watch theRead More →

An honest review of the Knook from Leisure Arts. Can you really knit with a crochet hook? -- My Workbasket

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I’ve mentioned several times that I’ve been trying the Knook from Leisure Arts. I was provided a The Knook Value Pack and Cozy Knits with the Knook book, for free at my request. I’ve been working with it for awhile. I think I got my items at the end of September or the beginning of October. I’ve used them multiple times a week since. I’ve been working hard to really bring the best, most thorough Knook review that I can. Here’s the rub: The hooks in this particular kit are plastic, and not the most impressive quality of plastic, BUT it is an amazing valueRead More →

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I know I’ve told you how much I LOVE Granny Squares. I just discovered this book and immediately added it to my wishlist. I just spent the day photographing vintage magazines to feature more Christmas crafts or else I would be buying this book right now! How CUTE is this!!?!!?!?!?! Only $8.99 for the ebook, of 15 patterns. So Cute you guys! I may not be able to resist it, even though I know I shouldn’t order it my fingers are itching to. If you think it’s as cute as I do, it’s worth noting that Annie’s Currently has a coupon code for 25% offRead More →

Step by step video tutorial for this fun Tunisian crochet stitch. -- My Workbasket

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You guys, this is our last block!!! This last video is super late and I apologize. I mentioned that I was going away, and I think I even mentioned that I was having trouble while I was away getting it uploaded and shared with you. That continued to be a problem, and my trip out of town was also extended. While I was visiting we first decided to stay just one extra day for fun. Then my Mom’s car was put in the shop and I decided to stay to help out. Then it takes a full day of travel (8 hours at least) to getRead More →

With step by step video tutorial for this great stitch! My Workbasket

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It’s that time again! The next tutorial video! It’s the Tunisian Crochet Honeycomb stitch. I had some issues with uploading so I wasn’t able to share this before I went out of town, so I’m sorry it’s late. Next week’s video will also be late because something is wrong with it. No idea what but I can’t seem to share it or upload it. I may have to even rerecord the whole thing after I get back home. This stitch is beautifully textured and surprisingly easy. The rest of the CAL can be found here.  I can’t believe that our CAL is coming to an end!Read More →