421 Bye Bye Stash and a Tutorial

I have decided to make resolutions ... not resolutions for just this year though.  I am making life resolutions.  One of the biggest resolutions I want to stick to is committing to using up my craft stash.  I have a room overflowing with fabric, paper, yarn, and paint! Literally overflowing... You probably think I am kidding, but Hoarders called to ask if they could do a show just about my Craft Cave. I told them "Heck no!" because they might throw away a piece of pretty paper.

One of the things in my room was the book and kit I Taught Myself Knitting from the Boye company.  I used their book I Taught Myself to Crochet several years back and the instructions were clear and easy to follow. They provide words and pictures, so no matter how you learn it is perfect. I knew I wanted to use their knitting book when it was time to learn to knit. I bought it at least two years ago with a coupon from Michael's. I think I paid $8 and considering all the stuff you get it was a BARGAIN! However, it has sat in my room virtually untouched all this time. I did take it out and learned how to cast on, but I got distracted by kids and put it back. Over the years I have flipped through many knit and crochet books, and I have been disappointed countless times because some of the projects I love are knit. I will be intimidated no longer! A few days before New Year's Eve I broke out the book and a ball of yarn from my stash, and I got to learning.  I cast on ... I learned the knit stitch ...

 And then Connor had a meltdown ... Katie had one of her BFFs sleeping over and they were both playing with their pillow pets, but Connor did not get a pillow pet. Santa must not have been thinking clearly. I wasn't about to buy him one, and I knew he would probably rarely play with it anyway, so I set about creating a pillow pet-ish creature for my boy.

First I found one of the oldest pillows in the house, and I cut it in half.

I had this lamb-y type fabric leftover from Connor's Viking costume from Halloween 2009, so I brought it out for this project. Lay it out in a double layer, place a half pillow on top and cut around it. (I have mentioned I am a lazy crafter, yes?)

I was also too lazy to break out the sewing machine... So, I hand-stitched around it leaving an opening large enough to turn and stuff it.  Notice I did cut it out on a fold, so that was one less seam to sew. *taps forehead* I am always thinking .... of ways to be lazier. Turn it, stuff it, and stitch it closed. You now have a pillow ... congrats!

Connor asked for an elephant. Clearly from my fabric choice it would be more of a Wooly Mammoth. And clearly, from the shape I freehanded out of the other half of pillow, it isn't much of either. I did tell you that Connor was a bit upset ... and I still needed to cook dinner ... I was in a bit of a hurry.

And, as usual, I stopped taking pictures of the process in my haste.  Once again, I lay the fabric down in a double layer. I went right sides together so I could trace around my pillow piece.  Trace it. Cut it out. Stitch around it leaving one side of the head open to turn and stuff. Stitch it closed.

I just stitched the head onto the pillow very securely with lots of stitches, and then I stitched some eyes on his face.

Voila! Wooly Mammoth (or an anteater according to my husband) I also forgot to put velcro on his sides.

  

 Easily fixed, a ribbon around his tummy and he is a "pet" ... Connor seems to like him at least!

And eventually (the next day) I was able to work on my knitting a bit more. I am still not great. I dropped some stitches, I probably added a few too. I did learn to knit and purl... I just shifted back and forth between stockinette and garter stitch whenever I felt the urge.

I ended up with a rectangle ... not very inspiring or impressive (not that what I did changed that). I stitched it together along the long sides and made a tube. Perfect for Katie to have an arm warmer thingy. Not a very good size for me though ....  

It is a start toward using my stash. Hopefully I can make a dent in it this year. And even better, hopefully I can come up with some fun crafts to make and share.

Also, I am going to start posting some links to projects I love. I have seen so many great ideas on other blogs, and I just want to share them. If you have a crafty blog please leave a comment with the link and I will add you to my CRAFTY links.