Fuzzy Winter White Beaded Garland

In addition to setting up my sample trees to organize my ornaments for sale on my Etsy Christmas Shop by theme, I've been using the opportunity of all these trees around me to photograph my garland more 'in situ'.  I think it shows it off nicely, and the 2 1/2 foot trees make it relatively easy to prep for a photo shoot.

Pretty Purple and Silver Sparkle Crochet Christmas Tree Skirt

I've started working on smaller tree skirts. They are just perfect for a 3' or abouts Christmas Tree, which I often use for testing when I'm working on my ornaments.  They're such a great size and so pretty on a table top.  I've sketched out a number of patterning styles and this is a great way to more quickly test the concept for a larger tree skirt.  This smaller size is based on 12 rows and measures approximately 19.5".

Crocheted Garland: the Royal Collection

Well, gosh it's been a while. Spring is springing forth (finally, it seems this year!) and thoughts of Christmas may be nowhere near to mind for most, but around here it never truly stops.

November ... time to get some jobs done!

Crikey, it's November already.  Can you believe it?  I can't.  It seems no matter how much I spread the Christmas activity throughout the year, I feel a sense of panic come November.  Time to finish up some of those work in progress projects!  First job done, another tree skirt.

Fuzzy and Festive Knit Christmas Hat with Crochet Holly and Button Berry Adornment

I've made a Christmas hat. It's very luxurous with soft and chunky Charisma yarn worked with faux fur eyelash yarn.  And it certainly is festive, in bright Christmas red with a fur band of snow white, adorned with crochet holly leaves and a berry button.

Faux Fur Yarn Crochet Beaded Garland

It was a grey stormy day today bringing lots of leaves down and there may not be too many unseasonable summery days left in our near future, fall seems to be here. Time to get a shufty on and catch up on photography and posting for my Christmas Etsy shop.  This is one of my new styles of garland.

Mini Skirts for Mini Trees #2, 3 and 4!

Last week I posted about my first mini skirt for my mini trees, and this week I am happy to update that three more are complete.  There are at least four more to do, if I can manage it, and perhaps more hiding in boxes I haven't yet opened.

Crochet Christmas Stocking

Sir Stands-a-Lot models the new stocking

 I was looking for some crochet coaster patterns when I came across a little Christmas booklet for Loops & Threads Impeccable worsted.

Crocheted Bead Garland

Gold Beads with Red Cotton Thread with Gold Flecks

I am beginning to feel a bit beaded out. It will be temporary, I can assure you, but after many weeks of beaded ornament hangers, snowflake ornaments, diamond dangles, button whimsies and the like, my brain is in bead overload.  Now you might be thinking ... "hey, those look a lot like beads"  and it's true they do, but the difference is that I didn't string them.   No beading required!  This is a project for the crochet category. So, for a beading break, my work in progress is to finish up some of my garland to crochet.

Christmas Tree Skirt in Traditional Colours

Christmas Tree Skirt in traditional holiday colours

I've finished my first tree skirt of the year and I've kept this one simple - without fancy stitches or fancy yarns - and it has worked up pretty quickly.

Traditional Tree Skirts with Faux Fur Yarns

Traditional Tree Skirt with Faux Fur Yarn

Stop the presses -  my in-laws have a Christmas tree. For the first time since I met my husband (many, many, many moons ago) my mother and father-in-law put up a Christmas Tree last year.  They would decorate, but because of many animals in the home avoided the tree.  I just couldn't let such an exciting development as this go without making them a tree skirt, so this is the one I made for them - and it is loaded with a variety of the faux fur yarns.

Victorian Pinks Tree Skirt

I'm calling this my Victorian Pinks Christmas tree skirt and it is a nice large size. In addition to the faux fur and eyelash yarns which really give it texture, I've incorporated a popcorn stitch - for more interest.  You can see in the detail photo that one row has the popcorn stitch in the same colour - the darker pink - while another banding has it in accent - pale pink amidst the cream rows.  Totally different looks that you can have fun playing with.

Winter Wonderland Tree Skirt

Drum roll please. Perhape even some fireworks .... another job done! I thought before I set off making all sorts of things with my wool 'bits', I had better first determine whether they were in fact 'leftover bits' or wool I still needed for the myriad projects on the go. So first up in the pile of projects, this Christmas Tree skirt.

My First Tree Skirt

Reading through other crafters' blogs I feel much less guilty about the amount of projects I constantly have 'on the go' - this seems to go hand in hand for a lot of us. And this blogging format is definitely motivation to get out that (insert any project) that has needed just a teeny little bit more work for (insert any number of weeks/months/years). So, just needing to sew in some threads and add some ties, the first of my crochet Christmas tree skirts is done!