Sashay Ruffle skirts and diaper cover

Recently I was killing time and walking around the local big box store. And of course I found myself wandering through the arts and crafts section,because it really is the best aisle in the whole store. And to make things even better I found the clearance yarn shelf!!! Now my husband's voice ran through my head, "Buying something that's on sale, isn't saving money if it is something you don't really need." But let's be honest here, I always need yarn. I justified it as a business investment. So I proudly left the store that night with a bag full of Red Heart Boutique sashay yarn that I scored for a great price.

I had never used this brand before. It resembles a mesh ribbon more than a yarn and I'd only seen it used to make ruffled scarfs. While the scarfs are pretty, I don't see them being a big seller. So with a glass of wine in hand and a Hallmark movie playing in the background I went to my favorite place, Pinterest for some inspiration. After browsing the patterns I picked 3 to try out this skirt, a diaper cover and a cute top. If you want to see the patterns I followed go ahead and follow the links.

I am thrilled with how my projects turned out! I've made several diaper covers now and a couple of skirts. The top is next on my to do list. Here are a few pictures of my creations. Enjoy! 

Cookie Grandma Booties

I'm told that my husband's maternal great grandmother was a wonderful crafty soul.She was known as Cookie Grandma for she always had cookies and handmade goods galore. How I wish I could have met her! My mother in-law has saved several crochet items that Grandma had made, and since no patterns exist I've been attempting to re-create them. The pattern I have to share with you today is based of a pair of baby booties Cookie Grandma made for my husband when he was a baby. This pattern is recommended for those of intermediate or advanced beginner skill level.

Materials

worsted weight yarn (I used Red Heart Super Saver)

small amount of contrasting yarn for pom poms

tapestry needle

Stitch marker ( i use a piece of yarn in a contrasting color)

H-8/5mm Hook- for 6-12 month size

Abbreviations:

sts-stitches 

CH- chain

SL ST- slip stitch

SC- single crochet

HDC- Half Double Crochet

DC- Double Crochet

BLO- Back Loop Only

FPDC- Front Post Double Crochet

Instructions

The bootie is made starting at the toe, working in the round with main color. move stitch marker up with each round. Make 2 booties, 2 strings and 4 pom poms.

ch 3 sl st to form circle

Rnd 1:  ch1(does not count as stitch) 12 HDC in circle, sl st to join (12)

Rnd 2:  BLO DC in 1st 2 sts (2DC in next st.DC)repeat. 2DC in last 2 sts.  (18)

Rnd 3:  DC around. Sl st to join (18)

Rnd 4:  Inc 1 in first st, DC next 17 sts, Inc 1 last st (20)

Rnd 5-6:  DC around, sl st to join (20)

7-10 will be worked in a row instead of a round

Row 7-10: DC across,ch2 turn (20)

Fold in half and turn inside out. Sl St across rows to attach the 2 sides together to form the heel

fasten off, weave in ends

Cuff: Starting at the center front of the bootie

Rnd 1:Evenly SC 26 times around the the top of bootie (26)

Rnd 2: DC around (26)

Rnd 3: 2 DC (FPDC, DC)*12 times (26) this is wear the string will go later

Rnd 4: HDC around

fasten off and weave in ends

String: 

ch 70

leave extra yarn on the ends to attach pom poms

make 2 pom poms in CC

weave string behind FPDC row of cuff

attach pom poms at end of strings

The Original Booties

Happy New Year!

It's a new year and you know what that means, time for the dreaded resolutions. If you are like me, every new year starts with a long list of lofty goals that seem to be forgotten by March. Not this year my friends, not this year. I'm not even making resolutions this year instead I have 2 goals. Yup just 2. I want to better myself and better my business. At the end of 2017 I want to look back and be proud of the progress I made. 

Here is a short list of things you can expect to see from TR Talents this year:

1. A more active presence here and social media
2. 1 pattern or Tutorial posted monthly 
3. Increased inventory in my facebook shop
4. Participating in a minimum of 4 craft shows
5. More Giveaways

Now that I have some goals the next step is setting up some timelines to reach them. I'm excited for a successful year of reaching new clients and fellow crocheters.

 I hope you check back often and have an amazing 2017! Comment below and let me know what your goals are for the year. Or any new patterns or items you'd like to see.

Ring-a-ding Rattle

What's a girl to do with 6 skeins of brightly colored cotton yarn? Make some baby toys that's what. I've had a few patterns in mind for a while now I was just waiting for the materials. I'm a big fan of cotton yarn for its durability and it's the perfect medium for something that will most likely end up in a babies mouth. My inspiration for this pattern came from loop baby toy from Herbst Handmade. I didn't follow her tutorial instead just used the picture as a starting point and did my own thing.

My circles aren't completely round but I'm still excited on how the toy turned out. My VP of product testing has really taken to this project. It is one of his favorite things to play with.

Stay tuned I have more fun projects with cotton yarn in the works. Thanks for stopping by.

Welcome to TR Talents

Hi and welcome to my new blog! Crafting of all kinds has always been a passion of mine and for a very long time it has been just a hobby. Until recently when I thought hey, I should turn my love for creating and handmade items into a business. And so TR Talents was born. Its a slow and steady process to switch gears but I'm resilient and look forward to the progress to come. Currently my focus is on crochet items for the whole family. But I have a special place in my heart for kids and baby items.

I started a Facebook page, you can find it here.  Its been a great place to get my products seen and a wonderful tool to reach new customers. But I wanted a place to share more detail. A behind the scenes look at what I do. And a place to share patterns with my fellow crochet artisans. I want to connect with people in as many ways as possible and I hope that this blog helps me do that. Thank You for stopping by, and please come back soon.

This is the first lovey I made. Now I offer over 8 different styles for sale.

Crochet Baby Moccasins

I have over 400 pins on my fiber craft Pinterest board, my husband calls it virtual hoarding. But hey at least they aren't taking up physical space. Some are patterns, others are just pictures for inspiration. After much deliberation I've challenged myself to crochet as many items as I can by the end of the year.

And since I'm up for a challenge I started with a project that I knew would test my skills. I've only attempted one other baby bootie pattern and that was for little cowboy boots. There was a lot of stitching and then ripping out of said stitches and stitching to get them both the same size. Then I gave up making any booties for years but that didn't stop me from pinning patterns. Which leads me to these little baby moccasins from This Lovely Life, I fell in love with them and knew it was a good place to start.

The pattern was pretty easy to follow and I'd say anyone with basic crochet skills would be able to make these. I used the recommended H hook and worsted weight yarn. I didn't have enough tan yarn to create the moccasins so I used dark brown. Here is what my booties looked like before the fringe. The possibilities are endless using this basic form. I'm already planning on making some ballet slippers using the pattern and adding my own embellishments.

I discovered that I need to buy a new sharp pair of scissors if I plan on making more of these. My fringes ended up a little shorter than I would have like due to fraying yarn and dull scissor. But the final product looks great and was the confidence booster I needed to make baby booties again.

I even got so brave as to combine 2 different patterns to make a high top version. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to come back often to get a behind the scenes look at my projects.