Getting Carded by Erin Erickson of Dog Under My Desk

At a recent crafting retreat, this little gem was being made by one of my friends as Christmas gifts. I thought this would be the perfect little wallet to use when you didn't want to carry a purse - like when you're traveling. From personal experience (we just spent Christmas week in New Orleans), it fit perfectly in the front pocket of my jeans!

The pattern and directions were 35 pages long! Crazy, huh?! Actually, 12 of the pages are the patterns themselves. Erin is very detailed in her directions and I really appreciated it especially since there were 21 pieces (including interfacing) along with the zipper and hardware to make the strap. I didn't have the right Velcro so I ended up using a snap instead. The snap worked fine but I can see where the Velcro would be better in keeping it closed up tight.

I also think I'll make a change to the pattern. I didn't use the clear vinyl outside pocket for my I.D. since I didn't really want my I.D. showing. Plus, there was no way to keep anything in that pocket since there was nothing to keep it closed. I think on the next ones I make (yes, that's plural since apparently I'm going to be making 5 more) is make the binding on the pocket a bit bigger and add Velcro to keep what's in it secure. It would be good for a hotel key card, or transportation card.

A zipper pouch for money

Vinyl pocket



3 pockets on one side, 2 pockets on the other

A Knitted Christmas Gift

What do you get a parent that has everything she wants and/or needs? I saw this pattern last year and decided it would be the perfect gift for her. The pattern is a version of the Magic Cake Ruffle Shawl found on Ravelry. It called for 2 skeins of yarn but since I wanted to make it more of a shawl than a scarf so she could wear it to church, I used almost 3 skeins of Cascade Yarns' Sunseeker Multis Color #101 with a touch of metallic out of Seattle. It was a tedious pattern and after having to rip out several rows, several times, I ended up making a chart and checking off each row.

Finished shawl

Ruffle

"Back bone"

Folded in half

Quilted Christmas Table Runner

After my MIL died in 1998, my FIL not only gave me several large boxes of yarn, but miscellaneous other items, including these squares of Christmas scenes. I started this table runner the winter of 2013 when we were wintering in Lake Pleasant, AZ. After working on it off and on, I finally finished it the first of December, 2014. My MIL believed that anything quilted was always to be done by hand, from start to finish. She would be proud because that's exactly what I did - all by hand!