Friday Funnies ~ R-Chee asks Where is The Beef?

 

Happy Friday everyone!

 

It is me...

R-Chee!

 

I have a bone to pick with my momma!

 

She keeps getting me these boiled wool bones to chomp on that have extra fiber!

 

I want the ones with extra BEEF!

 

 

These are impossible to chew!

 

...and they smell like wool socks!

 

I Tug...

 

 I Chomp...

 

I Give Up!

 

Please send me advice or protein...

 

Either one will gladly digested faster than this fiber filled bone!

 

Tee Hee!

 

xoxoxo

Yer Pal

R-Chee

 

Magical Gnome Dolls ~ Moe & Ollie

 

Happy Thursday everyone!

 

It is me...

Corgi Cousin Moe!

 

I am having FUN playing in the snow today and want you to come over to build a snowman with me!

 

I thought we could make a totem pole with each snowball sporting a different face or character!

 

I got the idea from the softies my Auntie Melissa got for us from etsy!

 

The are magical look alikes of me and my birdie brother Ollie along with a guardian gnome to look out for us!

 

I am so glad the gnome is here to look out for me because the last time we played outside, I tried to teach Moe how to fly off the steep rocks around our house and well...

 

Let's just say the afternoon ended with a few bumps, bruises and band-aids on both of our knees!

 

Gnomes are known to have magical fairy dust in their pockets so when we play this afternoon, I promise we will all get air and will soar!

Come on over!

 

No Boo Boos today!

 

PLUS I have a back up plan!

R-Chee is all suited up in his favorite protective Sweater Vest & Barkclava Helmet,

um...

 

I mean Winter coat & hat and will be our test dummy for the fairy dust! :)

Safety first! 

I am one smart birdie! :)

xoxoxoxo

Cousins Moe & Ollie

Two is Twice as Nice ~ Crochet Kokeshi Twins

 

Happy Wednesday everyone!

 

I am so excited to show you the little Kokeshi Twins I just made for Melanie and me!

 

I recently did an exchange of them with my friend Lynne and loved making & receiving them so much that I could not wait to make two more for us to enjoy too!

 

 

I used luxurious Lion Brand Baby Alpaca Yarn for the faces and hair and a happy variegated combo for the bodies.

 

I found the flower buttons at Joanns Fabrics and the special little goldfish buttons at the Quilt Affair Show that Melanie and I went to together in September. :)

 

I think it is so FUN that the way I take a short break from crocheting orders is to either learn a new form of crochet ~ Tunisian Crochet ~ or make other crochet art pieces.

 

I truly LOVE what I do and LOVE sharing it with you!

 

Thank you for always playing with me and R-Chee!

 

Have a Super Day everyone!

 

xoxoxo

Melissa & R-Chee

 

 

Toasty Tuesday ~ Smiling, Snoozing & Shopping!

 

Happy Toasty Tuesday everyone!

 

R-Chee and I are so excited to show you some wonderful photos friends have shared with us in the last few days!

 

 

 

Meet Sluggo, Brigitte & Wilma

The girls are enjoying their Sock Monkey and Sunflower Sweater Vests while snuggling in their bed while their brother Sluggo watches over them!

 

...and here is Mancha enjoying his Snow Cone Sweater Vest while doing his holiday shopping today!

 

I have lots of sweater vests available as Ready to Ship Sweater Vests in my Etsy Shop today!

 

If they are sold out or you do not find the colors and sizes you would like, No Problem!

I am thrilled to make you any color combination that you choose!

Please let me know if you would like me to make you a custom Woofie Warmer, Barkclava Dog Hat or Sweater Vest.

 

You can make up your own color combos or...

 

You can see all the possibilities anytime in :

 

The Sweater Vest Gallery at

http://www.dogsweatervests.com/

 

The Woofie Warmer Gallery at

 

http://www.woofiewarmer.com/

and

The Barkclava Gallery at

http://www.barkclava.com/

 

I am happy to make any color combos you would like and set up a special listing for you in my Etsy Shop.

 

 

xoxoxox
Melissa & R-Chee

Tunisian Crochet Project ~ Scarf

 

Happy Monday Everyone!

 

Archie and I are so excited because we have learned a new Craft that we just LOVE!

 

It is a form of crochet called Tunisian Crochet that is a marrying of knitting and crochet all in one!

 

It is so FUN!

 

We learned in our new Tunisian Crochet online class on Craftsy.com that once you  purchase the class, it is yours forever! 

 

The class includes amazing instruction through Video, PDF Lessons, Patterns and help from the instructor!

 

You take it on your own time and can never be behind in the lessons. :)

 

I love Craftsy.com and will show you another project next Monday from the Crochet Embellishments class I just took too! :) 

 

 

 

In addition to the class, I also bought this book on Amazon.com to learn each kind of stitch and use for a printed & bound guide.

It is a great book & is filled with patterns, photos and directions on how to make each stitch.

There are several stitches that you can master and choose to use for your projects.

So far I have learned the Tunisian Simple Stitch (TSS).

Here are two great blog tutorials that I also found that I think are helpful ...

http://crochetingthedayaway.blogspot.com/2011/10/tunisian-crochet-how-to-basic-tunisian.html

http://thingsbright.com/welcome-to-tunisian-crochet-week/

For my first project in Tunisian Crochet, I made Fred a warm and wonderful scarf.

He just loves it!

 

It was so FUN to learn a new form of crochet that uses a longer hook that you crochet the stitches onto and off of like knitting and also has a structure when you form the stitches that is similar in appearance to knitting. :)

 

Here is a close up of the scarf where I used the Tunisian Simple Stitch for the long brown body part of the scarf and then added a row of crochet bobbles and several rows of single crochet at each end for a neat effect.

 

 

 

This is an example of a Tunisian Hook that is also called an afghan hook.

 

I purchased all the Tunisian hook sizes ~ F through K ~ (also called the Afghan Hook) that I will need for most of my projects on Joann's .com

 

My favorite brand of crochet hooks is Boye so that is what I chose but lots of companies make them in more than just aluminum.  You can get bamboo in these and even larger sizes and they have kits you can get for working Tunisian crochet in the round too.

 

The instructor of the Craftsy.com class, Jennifer Hanson, has a wonderful website called stitchdiva.com that has her original tutorials, classes, yarn, patterns and lots of hooks & supplies that you can purchase too.

To further celebrate my new craft and hooks, I purchased this neat vintage ceramic vase on Etsy.com that is the perfect container to hold and display all of my new hooks. :)

I love shopping on Etsy.com!

You can also find lots of hooks and patterns for Tunisian and traditional crochet & knitting on etsy.com!

Please let me know if you learn or already practice this fabulously fun art form.

I would love to hear all about your projects and favorite places to shop for lots of neat things to use to further learn and enjoy this craft!

I would also love to hear what other new things you have been learning in classes, the kitchen, books, online or in daily life that you enjoy and want to share!

Thanks for taking the time to see what I have been working on in the evenings while relaxing with Fred & R-Chee.

Have a Super day everyone!

xoxox

Melissa & R-Chee

Friday Funnies ~ We Have Our Thinking Caps On!

 

 Happy Friday everyone!

 

It is me...

R-Chee!

 

Guess what I am doing today!

 

I am working with my momma.

 

See... besides filling orders my momma is having FUN thinking about all the new things to create for next year for you to enjoy!

 

I wanted to help her do that so I suggested that we put our "Thinking Caps" on today!

 

Barkclava Hats are perfect for this mission as I have found something very special about them besides keeping you warm!

 

The Bobble makes you smarter! :)

 

 

Just look how smart I look!

 

 

 You can see the ideas swirling in my head!

 

 

Here is my momma working hard today!

 

Look at all of the bobbles on her hat!

 

She must be thinking of a ton of ideas for us to enjoy!

 

Oh how FUN!

 

 

Oooooo! I have an idea!

 

Maybe I can get my one bobble to talk to her hat bobbles and see what she is thinking up!

Hmmmm... I think it is working!

 

Keep thinking momma!

I am getting my mind reading powers turned on today!

The new ideas will be revealed soon in our Winter 2013 January Newsletter!

Please sign up to receive one of your very own copies in your inbox by filling out the little green box at the top left side of our blog or you can email us and we will sign you up!

xoxoxo

Melissa & R-Chee

Our Lives Are Made Up of Magical Moments!

 

Happy Thursday everyone!

 

Today I am reminded that in some small but wonderful way ~

 

That our lives are all intertwined to make up a patchwork of magical moments for us to share and enjoy with each other!

 

My sweet friend Peta, just sent me this fabulous blog post she found while looking inspiring quilt blog posts today!

 

 

My Groovy Pugs are Dancing with Glee today!

She shared true Magic with me!

 

I always love hearing from all of you!

 

Please leave us a note and tell us something that made you smile today!

 

We cannot wait to hear all about it!

 

xoxoxo

Melissa & R-Chee

Fabulous Friend's Art ~ Eggshell Ornaments from Germany!

 

 

Happy Wednesday everyone!

 

R-Chee and I are so excited because our new Eggshelll Ornaments have arrived from Karen Cruz in Germany.

 

She recently relocated from Guam to to Germany with her family and now sells her wonderful art from there too!

 

We have collected all of her pug dolls over the years and I just love these new pugs she has made to share with all of us from her Etsy Shop, Paddywak Pugs.

 

She even made us a wonderful card that we will save forever! :)

I hung them on my wool bulletin board that is right above my favorite chair where I crochet all of the time.

Aren't they fabulous?

You can follow Karen on her blog and Facebook Fan Page and shop in her Etsy shop anytime!

Please stop by and say hello!

 

I know she will love to meet you!

 

xoxoxo

Melissa & R-Chee

Handmade Gifts By L is Open!

Happy Monday everyone!

Archie and I are excited beyond words to share that our friend Lynne has opened her own Etsy Shop...

Handmade Gifts by L!

Lynne is our friend from England that Archie and I are craft penpals with and do lots of crochet exchanges over the sea that are filled with love and smiles.

Friends always ask me if Lynne sells her art too and now she does!

We are thrilled to show you that her shop is now filled with little Kokeshi dolls with all different kimonos and hairdos, Snowman Ornaments and Crochet Covered Hangers :)

 

 

She even has a little pooh bear available complete with a honey pot!

How sweet is that?

Please visit her shop when you get a chance to see all of the art she is adding everyday.

She also has a wonderful blog where yo ucan connect with her and her 3 Chihuahuas, Elliot, Dip and Bridge!

I know she would love to meet you!

 

xoxoxo

Melissa & R-Chee

Friday Funnies ~ Archie Exposed ~ The Pinup Post

 

Hi Everyone!

 

Happy Friday Funnies!

 

It is me...

R-Chee!

 

I have been busy practicing my best embarrassed face today!

 

Look at what my momma and daddy think is a funny photo of me!

 

Archie EXPOSED!

 

 

They might as well put me on a glamour shots bear skin rug and make this their Holiday card!

 

I thought pawrents only do this to human children!

 

I guess since they do not have any...

 

"Tag" ... I am it!

 

Oh my Goodness!

 

Quick! someone pleeeeaze help me find a fig leaf! :)

 

Well, you know what I will be doing this weekend...

 

What will you be up to?

 

Have your pawrents ever embarrassed you?

 

Please leave me a note and let me know!

 

I cannot wait to hear your stories too!

 

xoxoxo

"Blushing" Archie