Arm Knit Scarf

I didn’t invent the design, but I wanted to try it and give a run down/review of the process. The tutorials I have found also call it the 30 minute scarf. Depending on the thickness of your yarn and the length you want, you may need varying numbers of skeins. Most I have made use about two normal size skeins. The thicker yarn will take more skeins (3-4). And for this particular method thicker yarns look best. The most challenging part of the process is understanding and completing the first row of stitches. If you know how to knit it may not be as difficult. I am a novice knitter, but have found that learning this process has helped me understand knitting with needles much better as well.

Starting out

Starting out you will have your skeins or yarn balls side by side and run the two strands together. Pull about 8-10 feet of both strands and place at your feet to one side. Then form a loop at that point on the yarn that is big enough to slip over your hand and onto your arm. Make sure it is neat but not too tight. In the Starting out grid, the lower right photo is the starting position to start the second stitch.

Follow these steps with the pictures below

 

 

 

1 Gather both double strands with your pinkie and ring fingers and use your thumb and pointer to keep the loop open.

 

 

 

2 Pull your arm with the stitch on it (pictured is my right hand)  lower than the other hand and straight down.

 

 

 

3 Slide your right hand fingers under the two strands on the outside of your left thumb.

 

 

 

 

4 Pull those strands to the right and you can pull a little extra yarn to make it easier to continue.

 

 

 

5 Keeping those strands on the back of your right hand, curl your right fingers under the two stands closest to you on the left pointer finger.

 

 

 

6 Pull these “new” strands under the strands on both thumbs.

 

 

 

 

7 Slide your right hand through the loop you are making.

 

 

 

 

 

8 Slide the new stitch down onto your forearm

 

 

 

9 Pull on both sides of thread to snug up the stitch

 

 

 

Once you have mastered this sequence repeat it to create 12-14 stitch loops on your forearm.

 

Next you begin to transfer all of the work onto your other arm. The initial 8-10 feet you put to one side should have mostly been used on the first series of stitches. So from here on the working threads are coming from the two yarn skeins.

1 This is how the completed first stitches look on your arm. Let the short loose end threads hang, those will be tied in at the end but no longer used in knitting.

2 Hold the working thread in the right hand (from which you will be slipping stitches off).

3 Grip the working threads as you slip the top loop off your arm and over your hand.

4 Pull those gripped threads up after you slip the stitch over and create a new loop.

5 Put the new loop over your left hand.

6 Snug up the thread (but not too tight).

7 Again hold the working threads in your right hand, taught from your left wrist.

8 Grip the threads and pull the next loop over, continuing the same process on all stitches.

 

You will continue in this way “transferring” one arm to the other until the scarf is the length you want (longer if you would like it to double over). When you get to the length you want, you need to cast off the stitches to a “finished edge”.

 

 

1 Bring the first two stitches over normally.

2 Grab the bottom stitch (which is closer to your elbow).

3 Pull the bottom stitch up and over the first stitch and off your hand.

4 This is what the remaining stitch looks like.

5 Bring over the next stitch and you will repeat bringing the bottom stitch up and over until you have only one loop at the end.

 

You will tie off that loop by cutting the working thread about 18-24 inches away from your knitting and pulling that yarn through the loop.

 

This is what the back or inside of the knitting looks like.

 

Fold the outside edges together. You will weave your 18 inches of remaining yarn back and forth between the two edges to secure the infinity scarf ends together. Weave all the way to the opposite end.

 

Then weave back toward the center a few inches (be sure not to go through the same holes and undo the securing of the edges). Then tie a knot to secure the end and cut off. Weave the beginning threads in similarly, tie and cut off also.

Flip your scarf right side out and try it on. Once you get the hang of it, making a scarf will take far less time than it took for me to write this 🙂

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Planning to roll out lots of new projects, arts and crafts soon! Follow on Instagram Diymillennial

Grapevine Wreaths for Gifts or Home Decor

Wreaths can be for all seasons. I have often thought of them around the holidays but I have been trying new floral and ribbon combinations which can make a decorative statement in a room or on your front door for any season. Start with a simple grapevine wreath, ribbon, and a handful of silk flowers. You will also need wire cutting pliers, scissors, low temp glue gun, and green floral wire.

I like to start by wrapping a ribbon loosely around the entire wreath in a complimentary color to the flowers. I like to leave plenty of the grapevine showing which keeps an earthy texture to the wreath.

Next prepare the flowers for applying to the wreath. Most flowers you will trim the stems to about 2 inches (maybe shorter depending on the size of your wreath and the amount of flowers you’re using. If you have a full bunch of flowers you may need longer stems). Since most flowers are wired stems, I prepare most of them by putting a 90 degree bend just under the flower so the face of the flower presents outward from the wreath.

I try to keep arrangements simple with 3-5 larger flowers and a few bunches of smaller flowers to accent. You can also use longer stems and greens for accent which may require extra wiring or glue when applied (I have used a longer accent flower with leaves here also).

After the stems are cut I like to loosely lay out the potential design to help visualize the final layout.

It will look a little sloppy but will help you decide if there are enough flowers for what you want and if the placement is right before you start wiring and gluing. It can be difficult to remove flowers once you’ve applied them.

To apply the flowers I use wire and the glue gun to make the flowers more stable. It is possible to use only wire. Whenever possible I try to slide the ends of stems and connecting wires under the decorative ribbon or other flowers and leaves.

Start from the ‘bottom’ of your flowers. In this example I have sunflower leaves [1], then the wispy accent flowers/greens [2] and the full sunflowers [3] are the front focus. Layering up makes it easier to hide the wires and glue lines for a more professional final product.

When attaching the flowers wrap the wire end around a stick within the wreath. I the like to secure the wire with a strip of hot glue.

After all of your flowers are applied you can stop there or add a bow if you like. A simple bow can be easy made with wired ribbon and a 4 inch piece of floral wire. I simply fold the ribbon over itself (3 layers) [A] and make sure one end is a few inches longer for the center of the bow. Pinch the center of all layers together and tie together (like a twist tie) with the green wire [B].
Then pull the longer end around the center to cover the green wire and twist tie into the back. Now apply the bow much as you applied the flowers.

When done, fluff the bow and trim any stray edges or greenery. If any flowers seem loose use some hot glue to secure them down (being careful to conceal within the design).

Now your wreath is ready to hang up or great for a gift!

Frog Hat for Kids Project

 Originally posted at http://crystalgh.hubpages.com/hub/Fun-Frog-Hat-Kids-Crafts-Ages-5-8

Kid Friendly Project Fun Frog Hat

This fun frog hat is a quick easy project. Some grown-up help is needed with the low-temp glue gun portions. It can be a quick put together or a little extra creativity and embellishing can be added. These can be pre-made by a parent for a frog themed birthday, baby shower or kids’ play. These can also be a great rainy day project since the materials are fairly common “craft closet” items. Get kids away from TV or video games! Long winters, rainy days or just a little creativity time – Let’s get started!

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Materials

• Green foam sheet (thin is best)
• Plain cap (we got them for a dollar from a local craft store)
• Regular School Glue (or Elmer’s)
• Low-temp Glue gun (to adhere foam to front of hat)
• Large green pom poms (about 1-2 inches – OPTIONAL eyes can be glued directly to foam)
• Googly eyes (OPTIONAL – markers can also be used to draw on eyes)
• Pink Pipe Cleaner (OPTIONAL)
• Scissors (safety works fine)
• Marker (black)
• Ruler
• Optional extra stickers, gemstones or ribbons for decorating

Time to make – approximately 10-20 minutes

Foam Cutout Front

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This is the mostly finalized shape of the foam cut out (you may cut the top edges to cotour in a later step).

Source: CGH 2014

1. You will make the front foam piece wide enough to cover the entire front of your cap and the height a little taller to make the eyelid bumps . Sizes vary, ours needed about 7 inches wide and I did 4 inches high (the actual cap was about 3 inches tall). Painter’s type caps work great since they are fairly straight up and down and inexpensive material. Ours were a dollar apiece at the local craft store.

Measure and draw out the rectangle (7×4). Then find the center along the width and you can use a cup or similar item to help trace the top part of the eyelid. Note: On the “outside” edge of the circle you will probably have a little left over space to the end of your foam rectangle so just draw a straight horizontal line to the edge (see photo).

Be sure that your cut out shape looks like the full cut out shape above and that it fits over the front part of your cap. If not, trace and cut a new one (one sheet should have room to do three or more projects).

Creating the Shape of the Foam Front

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Start with a rectangle that will cover the entire front of hat above the bill. Our hat need a “rectangle” of foam about 7 in.x 2.75 in. Then find the center, you can use a cup or other similar size circle object to help you trace the shape.

Source: CGH

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2. Have an adult use the low-temp glue gun to glue the foam onto the cap. First put a quick line of glue along the bottom straight edge of the foam, then press quickly to the vertical part of the cap just above the bill. Work a horizontal line of glue every 1/2 to 3/4 inch up the foam piece up to the top. Secure edges with additional glue as needed. If the top corners stick out you can trim and curve them with scissors (shown bottom right).

3. With the school glue, put a generous amount on the back of the googly eyes and push firmly to the pom poms. Let these sit for at least five minutes to partially dry and secure (kids can do this while the adult is gluing the foam to the cap).

Finishing the Fun Frog Hat

4. Glue the pom pom’s (with already attached googly eyes) by putting a generous amount of glue on the foam and pressing pom poms down firmly. I recommend having the adult use the glue gun for extra strength.

5. Draw on nostrils near the center bottom of the foam. These can be like sideways commas, two dots, glued on gems or however you like.

6. Optional pipe cleaner toungue. I cut a pipe cleaner in half. Bend about 1/8 inch of one end, tuck under center of foam frog face and use a dab of the glue gun and sandwich it between the foam and cap. Let it rest on the bill and curl the end up for the frog’s tongue. You can draw a fly or other bug for his snack near the tongue for fun. We also glued little gem eyes on our fly.

How to make a Butterfly Cupcake Cake

Originally posted at http://crystalgh.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-make-a-Butterfly-Cupcake-Cake (my other blog)

DIY Butterfly Cupcake Cake

Cupcakes and “cupcake cakes” are a huge trend right now, especially for children’s parties. Not only can the layouts be very creative but you also do not need a knife to cut the cake – just pull it apart one cupcake per serving! This post is one example of a cupcake cake that was made (for a baby shower). By following the easy step by step instructions anyone can create this cute and simple alternative to the standard cake.

• First bake as many cupcakes as you need for your design. This butterfly is 36 cupcakes arranged on a half sheet cake cardboard. Use cupcake paper liners that go with your theme (these will be visible on the side of the cupcake cake since only the top is decorated).
• Next you will begin to layout your cupcakes into the shape you want. You will need to use ribbon to loosely bind your cupcakes together (which will prevent gaps where frosting will fall through and keep the entire “cake” in one piece until serving). Any ribbon will do, choose one with a color that goes with your theme.

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Left side complete wing

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Right side upper wing only

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• With this design I tied four separate areas to keep the design tight. The upper right, lower right, then upper left, and lower left. Remember that the cupcakes need to fit very closely together, so a little squishing is necessary. Be mindful to tie the ribbons toward the bottom center so you can leave a decorative ribbon curl at the bottom of the butterfly. See photo left and below.
• For the butterfly, you can add antennae by wrapping one pipe cleaner around a popsicle stick and simply putting it under the center of the butterfly.

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Fill in color blocks of frosting.

• Once your cupcake cake is assembled you need to add frosting. Any quality frosting will do. It may be necessary to put the frosting on a bit thicker than a regular cake since the cupcake tops vary in height and have a rounded shape. Cover with enough frosting so you can smooth it flat. A trick is to use a icing bag to pipe the frosting on and then smooth it down with a spatula.
• Pipe the frosting into your desired color blocks and smooth flat. Generally work from the center out.

•  Once all of the base is covered and smooth, add a border and details as desired.
• The example also has white chocolate booties and pacifier decorations. Additional decorations can be added for interest just like any cake.

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With white chocolate decorations.

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•  Finally add any writing or final touches to the cake.

It is just that simple. Now impress your family and friends with your own creation!

Halloween Ghosts

Today the kids asked if we were going to buy Halloween decorations. There are a lot of cute garlands and frightening props out there. But, while the kids are still young (and need to be entertained) why not use some of my craft closet to make some fun decorations?
All it takes are a few simple items and maybe 5-10 minutes.

Materials:
White fabric (an old sheet works great)
Cardboard ball (ours came with a hanging string already attached from the craft store) you can also use any kind of foam or other lightweight ball
Sharp scissors to cut fabric (adult help with the sharp scissors)
White yarn or other white string
Black marker

Drape the sheet over the ball and bunch the fabric tightly around the bottom. Cut the fabric to the length you would like your ghost (no need to be perfect or hem).

If you have a ball with a hanging string: remove the draped cut out fabric, fold it into quarters (in half and then once again in half). Then snip a tiny bit off the corner toward the center of the cloth. Then unfold and feed the string through the hole.

Use several inches of white string to tie tightly around under the ball to hold the fabric.

Give your ghost some personality and draw him a face with the black marker. Easy as that!

Difficulty rating: *
This project is as easy as it gets

Kid Rating: Age 4 and up
Only adult supervision/help needed for the sharp scissors. When kids are able to tie knots they can pretty much assemble and draw the faces on their own.

These can be hung outside (as long as it doesn’t rain) or string together like a garland to line your wall or drape from the ceiling for your Halloween party.

Parachute Cord Bracelets

The past few days I have decided to try making a few cord bracelets for the kids (and myself of course!). There are about a million tutorial videos and step by step instructions out there. I found it to be quite simple and quality results are easily replicated.

I worked on a two color version, but you can use a single color for both cords or I am sure there may be more complicated variations.

Difficulty Rating: *** Easy for an adult if you are crafty or easily understand patterns.
Kid friendly Rating: ages 8 and up.

I think my 8 year old could make the project if he were interested and would sit and focus. However the ends of the cords must be burnt (or hot glued) to keep the cord from fraying. For that reason I recommend a teenager or adult to assist and supervise.

If you have made these parachute cord bracelets, let me know how you felt about the project in the comments. Difficulties, tips, new patterns?