The Awesomest Bed Throw In The World!!!

At least in my own point of view :p And unfortunately, the pictures I have are not taken on a bed :p

But it's still awesoommmmeeee!!!

This is how it was packaged before I gave it to the owner.

I really won't say much about it because I have said a lot about it already in my past blog entries. Check out my old entries (in order of my progress) about it here, here, here, and here.

And here it is!!! Tadaaaaaa!!!

The pictures are outtakes from the shoot with "Good News Kasama si Vicky Morales" (GMA News TV) early this month. I was sensitive about it being on grass, so I required that a thick cloth be placed underneath it and those who touched it had clean hands!

I've never seen so much attention given to a bed throw :p

Here is a model holding the bed throw. I should have volunteered to hold it, but then she had long flowy hair and was made up :p I, on the other hand, was very oily and sweaty.

They just can't get enough of this bed throw.

I'm sure to post another blog entry when this bed throw gets a picture on an actual bed.

Here's the video of the segment we shot for GMA News TV.

Workshop 4: Basic Crochet on Dec. 22 at Craft MNL

I have another basic crochet workshop on December 22 (Saturday) at Craft MNL in Makati City, 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM. If you're interested to learn crochet, and even if you have not held a crochet hook in your life, this will be your introduction to basic crochet techniques.

It will also be our goal for you to finish a simple motif at the end of the workshop. Even if takes some time for your hands to get used to the motion of manipulating the hook and yarn, it is possible for you to accomplish something :)

Check out some outtakes from my first workshop last October 27 at Craft MNL here.

Workshop fee is P1,000. This is already inclusive of your very own crochet kit: 2 sets of acrylic yarn, 3 balls of mercerized cotton, double-ended steel hook, scissors, and patterns.

To register for this workshop, please go to this link.

Craft MNL is at Unit Y, The Collective, 7274 Malugay St., Brgy. San Antonio, Makati City. To see where The Collective is, check out its location on Google Maps here.

Workshop 3: Amigurumi Love! Crochet Workshop on Dec. 15 at Craft MNL

Thizzz izzzz it!!! For those of you who've always wanted to crochet your own amigurumi, this is the workshop! It will be on December 15 (Saturday) at Craft MNL in Makati City, 2:00 - 5:00 PM.

Pattern for the amigurumi in this poster was taken from the Nov. 2010 issue of Crochet! Magazine ("Noggin," p.46) and designed by KJ Hay for Canon International.

Participants must have basic experience of crochet. When I mean basic, if you know how to make a chain, do single and double crochets, and slip stitches, you're qualified! We want to make sure that we make good use of our workshop time by teaching you an amigurumi pattern and tips on how to eventually create your own. We'll cover amigurumi basics.

Workshop fee is P1,300. This is already inclusive of your very own amigurumi kit: 5 sets of acrylic yarn, double-ended steel hook, fiberfill, scissors, patterns, and 5 pairs of googly eyes.

If you're curious, the amigurumi on the poster is Muymuy :p Check out my blog entry on him here.

To register for the workshop, please go to this link.

Craft MNL is at Unit Y, The Collective, 7274 Malugay St., Brgy. San Antonio, Makati City. To see where The Collective is, check out its location on Google Maps here.

Christmas Ornaments 2 & 3: Snowflake and Christmas Tree

Here are the other 2 ornaments we will be making for my workshop at Bungalow 300 this coming Saturday (Nov. 24, 2:00-5:00 PM).

Here's a snowflake.

And a small Christmas tree.

Apart from hanging them on your Christmas tree or anywhere in your home as trinkets, you can also place them in Christmas cards to add your personal touch to your holiday messages. You can even make them part of your gift wrapping decor. So many possibilities! Scroll down for my previous entry on the crocheted picture frame to complete the 3 ornaments we will be crocheting.

To know more about the workshop, read up on my blog entry about it here.

Basic experience of crochet is required. To register for my workshop, please click this link to fill up the form.

Christmas Ornament 1: Small Picture Frame

Placing handmade trinkets on your Christmas tree or home decor for the holidays adds some personal warmth. This crocheted Christmas ornament can make storytelling during holiday reunions worthwhile by displaying memorable images of the family.

This picture frame is just 1 out of 3 Christmas trinkets we will be crocheting in my upcoming Christmas Ornament Workshop at Bungalow 300 this coming Saturday, November 24, 2:00-5:00 PM. Fee is P1,200 and this is already inclusive of your very own crochet kit (double-ended steel hook, 5 balls of yarn, scissors, and patterns). Part of the proceeds from the workshop will also go to the Virlanie Foundation.

This workshop is part of a series of craft events organized by Craft MNL in various places within Metro Manila. For more details on this event, read my blog entry on it by clicking this link.

Basic experience of crochet is required. To register for my workshop, please click this link to fill up the form. Hope to see you there!

The Blog Entry on Unfinished Projects

I think every crochet blog has one entry about unfinished projects. This is my version.

I used to crochet a lot in-between jobs (or when I'm depressed). I've amassed a wealth of crochet projects. I've given some to friends and kept some for sentimental reasons. A probable "bane" in every crocheter's work space (or cabinet) is that looming sight of the unfinished work - because you lacked time, lacked the motivation or inspiration to continue, changed priorities, or simply got bored with it. It's that project you had so much drive to make but end up keeping on your shelf or hiding in a box because you don't want to see it anymore - because you dread the idea of not finishing it all.

Did that make sense? It's like catch-22 (my version at least). Because it's an unfinished project, you are obliged to finish it at some point but then you hide it to avoid being reminded of something that you have to finish. Thing is, every time you see that unfinished work on the shelf or that box where it is hidden, you feel an irk. That irk :p

So these are the 2 sources of my irk: an unfinished bag and unfinished bedspread. Pretty bigtime, huh?

See more of the 2 unfinished projects by clicking the link! Click click click!

Uses for Crochet 3: Pin Cushion

When I made my 3D Christmas Tree back in high school, I had leftover yarn, so I crocheted another pattern from the same book the tree pattern was taken from.

It's a pin cushion this time. It's stuffed with fiberfill. I even placed a lovely ribbon, embellished with some flowers I recycled from a Christmas gift package, around it.

Pattern for the Pin Cushion was taken from the "At Home With Crochet"  book ("Quick Pincushion Bonnet," p.69) and designed by Shobha Govindan.

I think working on this book honed my crocheting skills. I crocheted a lot of patterns from it. Back then, it was my only crochet book so I was stuck to it and I was somehow "forced" to crochet any pattern out of it - I worked on the Christmas tree, a doily, picture frames, a pin cushion, and even crosses. I was able to explore different stitches and techniques, and from then on, it was easy for me to follow other patterns and even make my own.

Maybe that's a good takeaway for all you aspiring crocheters (for any reason, whether to pursue it as a hobby or as a business): focus on one book as a start. You may be too distracted jumping from one book to the next and might even end up with unfinished projects along the way. I learned a story about a friend who's pretty good (and kind of famous now) making music. He said he learned everything he knew about music by playing all the Beatles' songs, and because of that he figured out how to make his own. It's also true for me somehow. As grandma-ish this book might be, I guess I owe what I know about crochet from it.

Panda Earrings Represent!

A friend asked me to make earrings for his friend. I said ok. But then he said he wanted panda earrings [insert the sound of crickets in the background].

I figured it could be boring if I just crochet a flat surface with white and black yarn to make it look like a panda, so I made a small amigurumi of a panda head.

I hope it somehow looks like a panda. I did my best :p

I didn't want to put eyes anymore. I tried but they looked weird on them. I guess the black and white color already suggests they're pandas (or chubby dogs).

Each head is a bit more than the size of a 5-Peso coin. It has some fiberfill in them for the chubiness. But they're light on the ears.

Workshop 2: 13 Days of Christmas with Craft MNL at Bungalow 300

Craft MNL is teaming up with various crafty venues to host handmade gift-making sessions for the holidays. Make your holiday gift-giving extra special :)

Part of the lineup is a Christmas ornament-crocheting session at Bungalow 300 in Alabang with me! It will be on November 24 (Saturday), 2:00 - 5:00 PM. I recommend though that you have some basic knowledge of crochet to attend this workshop. Basic would be knowing how to make a chain, single crochet, double crochet, and a slip stitch and knowing how to read some basic crochet patterns.

This link will show you a detailed lineup of the workshops in various places within Metro Manila and it will also lead you to the sign up form for my workshop. Make sure to scroll down to the Bungalow 300 section to see my workshop :)

I will be making a blog entry soon on what to expect from my workshop!

Check out Bungalow 300's Facebook Page here. Bungalow 300 is a concept store in Alabang that showcases vintage modern furniture and objects. It's a cool place to hold crafty gatherings and workshops!

Part of the proceeds from the workshops will benefit the kids of the Virlanie Foundation, an NGO that cares for children in need of special protection.

Screen print grabbed from Virlanie Foundation, Inc.'s website: http://www.virlanie.org/

You can know more about this foundation by clicking this link.

Went On A Vacation In Bohol...But I Still Crocheted

My mom, brother, and I spent our long weekend in Bohol to celebrate my mom's 59th birthday. It's been quite some time since she had a good vacation, so we went all out for this one.

To start things off, we got this view from our balcony. This is the Panglao Room of Bohol Bee Farm. If the doors are open, this is the view you get when you wake up in the morning (because the bed is literally facing it). [Insert the sound of the trumpets of heaven]

I kid you not in saying that one of the first things I thought of was, "Where can I crochet?" It's been a fantasy of mine to crochet in a serene place where you can hear the birds chirp, the wind blow, and the sound of the sea waves envelop you. Yes, I found it. Here comes my serene crocheting pic on the balcony. I'm crocheting a shawl here.

Click the link to see more of Bohol Bee Farm (and my yarn in Bohol)!

Good News Kasama Si Vicky Morales: Going Gantsilyo!

Gantsilyo in the limelight! Woot! Woot! The segment was shown earlier in "Good News Kasama Si Vicky Morales" on GMA News TV.

Got the (surprise) call more than a week ago about the feature on gantsilyo for this show. We shot my segment just last Monday. I'm happy that gantsilyo is being featured!

Here are some "behind the scenes" pics. Can't believe my more than a minute part took almost 5 hours to shoot! We shot the scenes in the La Mesa Ecopark.

All-out for all of my crocheted creations.

This is me attempting to explain how to make a crocheted flower petal. Since explaining and demonstrating a pattern on video can take so long, my line was practically reduced to just "crocheting a chain and single crochets" to make my spiel fit the limited air time.

The segment (on the last part) also debuted my crocheted African Flower Bed Throw! Although it was already shown in the video, I'm still holding back from showing pictures in its entirety (as if I have not killed the suspense already).

Thanks to the "Good News Kasama Si Vicky Morales" Team of GMA News TV for the feature! Thanks to my brother Genesis as well for being our impromptu production assistant for the shoot.

Here's the video! My segment starts on 0:34. You can also see my African Flower Bed Throw on 4:35. This segment also features crocheters Shannen Chua and Milli Reyes.

Another hooray for crochet! 

I Think I Made a Badass 3D Christmas Tree

Because the wind feels a bit colder and more Christmas-y, I am finally revealing THE crochet project that started it all for me.

I was taught how to crochet in 3rd year high school in Poveda. The craft just clicked with me the moment I started making those chains and single crochets. I liked how I became so zoned out when I was practicing my stitches. So I decided to buy my very first (brand new and expensive) crochet book and crochet a pattern out of it. I wanted to challenge myself if I could do what that book was showing.

Honestly, I don't know why I chose the tree as the project to submit. I could have just given the doily seen on the cover (by the way, I did the doily, but I didn't submit it). I bought my yarn from DMC Megamall. I think I used the itsy-bitsy size 9 steel hook. Dealing with a small-sized steel hook (at the beginning of my crochet life) gave me the best training because overcoming small stitches made me a better crocheter. Bigger sizes of yarn seemed sooooo easy to deal with.

Without further ado, here's the tree...Kabammm!

I think it's been almost 13 years since 3rd year high school. This doesn't look bad at all after 13 years.   I starched it for my project submission in class but haven't washed it since then (ew). And no, it's not standing on its own. There's a cone under it that supports it.

What was your first crochet project?