Okay, Kari is finally back from vacation, so I can reveal my latest project: a new addition to the AmiDogs series: meet my Boston Terrier (click images to see full-sized versions):

Thanks Kari for the idea – I hope you’re pleased with the result!

As always, you can sign up for my mailing list if you’d like to be notified when the pattern is available.

UPDATE: Looking for the pattern? You can find the AmiDogs Boston Terrier crochet pattern in my shop.

With the first chill in the air, I thought it would be fun to make a scarf for autumn. I based this on the One Skein Scarf, with a few modifications so mine is just 60″ long by 2.25″ wide (and only took about half a skein of Red Heart Soft Touch). It was so quick to make – I completed the whole scarf in the time it took to watch a movie!

Maui decided to assist with the photo shoot:

Now I’m going out to test out my handiwork…

No, I haven’t posted for a while. I have been crafting, but everything I’m working on is a commission or a submission and so I can’t show you anything for a while yet. Here’s a teaser of my latest finished work:

More on that in a couple of weeks…

Working with the black yarn proved difficult: I used to keep a large spotlight on a side table next to the sofa that I would keep trained on my work whenever I crocheted. In the new house, the layout is different and I don’t have a side table for the spotlight. I thought I would try a Crochet Lite hook – I’ve been wondering about it for months, but they are expensive and I wasn’t convinced how well they would work.

I bought the size E. The handle is an icky orange colour, but I found it very comfortable in my hand. The hook was smooth and easy to use (although I prefer metal hooks in general), although it did squeak a bit against my acrylic yarn! Now onto the important part: the light. It really works! The bright blue-white LED light shines directly out of the tip of the hook, so I could easily see where to insert my hook, even with black yarn.

My hook was $11.99 (Canadian dollars) from Michaels, but I used a 50% coupon to bring it down to a more reasonable price. I only wish they sold the hooks with interchangeable tops, so you would only need to buy one handle/battery unit for all the different hook sizes. I would definitely consider buying more Crochet Lite hooks, but I’ll have to think carefully which sizes I really need – I can’t justify buying a full set! I think H and maybe G would be most useful for me.

And in other news, my trade with Jen is complete! I received my gorgeous new handmade purse and tote bag this week. The bags are beautifully made, with full lining and interior pockets. I love the colours and patterns of the exterior fabrics too, and the generous sizes are going to be really useful for me – I can’t wait to start using them!

If you’re in the market for a new bag, I encourage you to check out Handbags By Jen!

Mmmm, muffins. What’s not to love about a muffin? Delicious, convenient, and… did I mention delicious?

Of course, a regular muffin usually contains between 10 and 25g of fat, which takes the edge off the pleasure of eating it. Low fat muffin recipes are a lot healthier (e.g. my Quaker Low Fat Banana Muffin Mix contains 1.5g fat per muffin) but tend to be a bit light and unsatisfying, and lack the moist, heavy goodness of a regular muffin.

I have a solution to make a healthy muffin that really does taste good! Mix your low fat muffin ingredients as directed in your recipe or mix packet, then add some magic ingredients (quantities below are for 12 muffins; if you are making a different number, adjust these amounts accordingly):

1/2 cup apple sauce
1/3 cup wheat bran
1/2 cup fruit or chocolate chips (e.g. I like to use raisins or fresh blueberries)

Add these to your mix, then spoon it into your muffin pans and bake as directed. (You may need to add 1-2 mins to the regular cooking time.)

Et voila…

Mmmmm, fresh banana raisin muffins… Are you hungry yet?

I feel sad and stupid. A little over a year ago, I spent $100 and bought a proper sewing machine. It was a Singer, so I thought it would be a good investment and would last me for a decade or two.

Within days, it went wrong. The needle jammed down inside the machine and wouldn’t come up again. When I took it to the repair centre (luckily it was under warranty) the repairman said that the timing was off and Singer didn’t bother to tune them properly in the factory before selling them! He fixed it up, and it worked perfectly after that.

Fast forward to today… I finally have a chance to start on a new sewing project, and sit down at the machine. Clunk. I know that noise. It’s the timing again. The needle either jams in the down position, or goes through the fabric and then hits something and gets stopped before it gets to the bottom.

Of course, the warranty has now expired, and the repair centre tell me it’s going to cost about $40 to fix. But they also warned me that the machine is not a very good one and that whenever I try to sew anything heavy (jeans etc) it’s liable to happen again..!

So now what do I do? Spend the $40 and hope it lasts a while longer before it breaks again? Or give up on it and have to spend even more money for yet another new machine? I think I’m going to have to bite the bullet and go for a new one, but I’m going to do a lot of research this time before handing any money over.

And my project? Looks like I’ll have to put that on hold until I can find a sewing machine that works 🙁

Look who I found in my garden today…

These two are heading off to the US for a trade with Jen.

And a quick reminder for anyone who wants to crochet their own guinea pigs, you can pick up the Fuzzy Guinea Pig pattern from my store.

I have a partial victory! Although I have no control over how many hundreds or thousands of people have already downloaded my patterns without paying, I have contacted the websites where my stolen work had been uploaded, and, in both cases, the pattern has now been removed. Yay!

Of course, I have no idea how many other sites that I’m not aware of also have copies of my patterns on display – I have tried googling and only found the two that are no longer available, so fingers crossed this may be it for now.

Thank you to everyone who has commented – either on the blog or by e-mail – with sympathy and suggestions. I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. (Incidentally, the thief who targeted me obviously didn’t care about my copyright notices which are printed at the bottom of each page of all my patterns – they were still present in the ripped-off copies!)

I don’t have a photo to go with this post, so I thought I’d show off some of the fuzzies from the PlanetJune flickr group:

ClinkscalesArts has made this lovely bear (from the Fuzzy Bear pattern):

Capps83 made this monkey for a lucky co-worker (from the Fuzzy Monkeys pattern):

Hildeguard based her Inspector Mole on the Mini Fuzzies Woodland Creatures pattern – love that magnifying glass!

I’d love to see what else you’ve been making from my patterns – please feel free to show off your creations by uploading them to my Flickr group!

To the person who has been stealing my crochet patterns and posting them online: I am not a large corporation who can easily absorb a little petty theft. I am not making millions from my patterns. I work hard to produce quality patterns for the enjoyment of the crafting community and I charge a small amount as compensation for my hard work.

I was shocked and hurt when a member of the Crochetville community drew this to my attention this morning (thanks Maria!). One of the things I love most about the online craft community (bloggers, forum users, etsy shoppers, etc) is the culture of inspiration, and sharing ideas and techniques, that enriches us all. I have created lots of free tutorials and I always offer my customers any advice or help they need via e-mail. So to discover that one of my customers has betrayed me like this hurts even more.

My patterns are protected by copyright… or are they??

To all my lovely honest customers and online friends: Thank you for your comments and your custom! Your appreciation of my work makes all this worthwhile, and I’m not going to let one bad apple spoil everything for me. If you see any of my patterns illegally floating around the internet, please do let me know so I can try to stop them from spreading.

Does anyone have any ideas as to how to combat this kind of thievery?