MY 8TH & 9TH "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" FOR JULY 27TH

I'M PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER WITH JESUS" SERIES OVER AT THE PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. CLICK HERE TO VISIT AND TELL LINDA THAT I SAID HELLO.

I AM ALSO PARTICIPATING IN "HEARTS 4 HOME" OVER AT "OUR SIMPLE COUNTRY LIFE". YOU CAN CLICK HERE TO VISIT OR CLICK ON THE BUTTON ON MY RIGHT SIDEBAR.

Hi everyone,
Oh, it feels good to be back to blogging. I think I've been away for a little over a week. If you read my  last post, you know there has been a little bit going on. Not just for me, but for so many of my church family and friends. So much has been going on, it seems unreal. So I missed last week's "Building Our Homes Together" series last week. In any case, it's been quite the week and month. So much I don't understand, but God is faithful. That much is for certain :) :)

So here's my entry for today. These are reusable cotton rounds:

My sweet blogger friend, Nicole, over at My Mad World  posted these recently on her blog. These are reusable cotton rounds. They're about the same size as the cotton rounds you buy at the store to remove mascara and other cosmetics.  So I made some of my own. There's a site called Ravelry, which is a wonderful resource for all things crafty, especially knitting and crochet. You can click here to view the pattern for yourself. My Ravelry friend Heidi Bringhurst wrote up this super cute and super easy pattern.  You do need to create an account in order to view their patterns. Some are for sale. some are free. This pattern is free. It's also free to register and I highly recommend it, especially if you do a lot of needlework. Otherwise, I'll copy the pattern here. This is NOT my pattern, this pattern is written out by Heidi Bringhurst. I copied it here for you because she explains things so well:

Materials



Size G (US 6 [4mm]) Crochet Hook


1/10 oz.(≈ ¼ yd) Worsted Wt. Cotton Yarn


Abbreviations & Explanations


st = stitch


rep = repeat


rd = round


yo = yarn over


ch = chain


sc = single crochet


dc = double crochet


bs = bean stitch

Bean Stitch: Insert hook in desired base st, yo, pull through base st (2 loops on hook, as in sc). YO, insert in same base st, yo, pull through base st (as in dc. You now have 4 loops on hook). YO, insert in same base st, yo, pull through base st (6 loops on hook). YO once & pull through all 6 loops on hook. Ch 1 to finish st.

sl st = slip stitch


ea = each


Pattern


Base: DO NOT slipknot onto hook. You are going to make a “Magic Ring” (Google for a variety of photo and video tutorials):


Make a hoop about 1 ½” in diameter with your beginning yarn, with the tail behind the working yarn, and leaving a fairly long tail beyond what’s involved in the hoop (I like to leave a good 6” at the beginning of every project, anyway).


With your crochet hook, draw the working yarn through the hoop, so you have one loop on the hook.


Ch 3. This counts as 1st dc for rd.


Dc 8 more in hoop, making sure to crochet over tail in ea st.


Untangle tail from hoop, if it has curled around it, and pull to close ring. Your ring should look like a circle with a pie slice cut out. If it doesn’t, make sure you crocheted over tail properly. If you didn’t, you’ll have to unravel and try again. If you did, the yarn probably just got a little hung up on itself. Some cottons do that. Just shift the stitches on the hoop with your fingers until it looks right, making sure to keep the “drawstring” (tail) pulled tight.


Sl st in 1st Dc of rd to close circle.


Rd 1: Ch 2. Bs in same dc as sl st. Ch 1.


*Bs in next dc, ch 1,* rep * to* to end of rd. (9 total bs ch 1 sets, incl. that in same dc as sl st, above)


Sl st in ch 2 space at beginning of rd.


Rd 2: Ch 2. Sc in ea ch and ch space (including top st of bs) around. (27 sc)


Sl st in ch 2 space at beginning of rd.


Ch 1, fasten off, weave in ends.


That’s it! Enjoy.
 
Thank you, Heidi, for making this pattern available for free. Not only is it super cute, it's super practical and a great way to save extra money.  You may want to wash the cotton rounds before you use them.  I used a Size H crochet hook, so my reusable cotton rounds came out a bit lacier than Heidi's version. The next batch will be made with the proper crochet hook :) :) :)
 
Here's the link to Week Two of the Girl Talk 2011 series over at the Virtue for Women site, sponsored by Harvest Church. Click here to view the Week Two sessions. This week is SO good...there's a really nice message about women and finances, plus other things that includes a really neat fashion show, how to use the produce from your garden and making your own baby food...all really great topics. I'll include the link here to the session about women and finances. There are some super simple and practical ideas:


So,  that is what I've got for you today.  There is lots of fun and practical advice.  Let me know what you think.  Have a great day.  That's the news from Oregon today.  Love and hugs, Heather :)