Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

Isaiah 9:2 & 6

2 The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.

6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

2 Wassails - Alcoholic & Non-Alcoholic

Wassail - Alcoholic

Ingredients:
6 cups ale OR port wine
1 cup sugar
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of ginger
pinch of cloves
pinch of nutmeg
6 eggs, beaten
4 roasted apples

• Heat ale in a saucepan. Add sugar and spices, bring to a boil. Remove from heat and gradually add a small amount of hot ale mixture to the beaten eggs. Return to saucepan and cook until somewhat thickened. Place apples in a heat-proof punch bowl and pour hot liquid over.

Wassail - Non-Alcoholic

Ingredients:
4 cups apple juice
2 cups cranberry juice
2 whole cinnamon sticks
5 whole cloves
1 tablespoon allspice

• Heat juices. Tie spices in cheesecloth and add spice bag to heated juices and leave for about 10 minutes. Remove spice bag and serve.

Pattern Picks - Sampler Blocks Baby Blanket

N.Y. Yarns has up a pattern called Cotton Crochet Sampler Blocks Baby Blanket. It's a very pretty combination of sampler squares and though they have it made in several colors I think it would look very good in one color that accentuates the textures of the samples as well.

Pattern Picks - Santa Baby Hat

Caron has a really cute Santa Baby Hat pattern. Looks warm and definitely in the holiday style.

Charity Spotlight - Operation Toasty Toes

Operation Toasty Toes makes handmade knitted and crocheted slippers, dickeys, headbands, helmets (a.k.a. ski masks), watch caps and wristlets (a.k.a. fingerless mitts). These items are mailed to the Armed Forces stationed overseas. You have to use their patterns only but it's a nice way to support the troops. Click the link to find a chapter near you.

Pattern Picks - Blushing Grannies Afghan

Coats has up a really nice project called Blushing Grannies Afghan. This is done in color faded rows of granny squares done in blush shades but I think it would just as nicely in the favorite color fades of your choice. I think it's a very elegant way to do a granny square afghan. Check it out.

Loopy Thread

The 33rd episode of getting loopy features Kathryn White speaking on thread crochet. She talks about her various accomplishments and about the classes on Crochetville. She shares her love of the intricacies of thread and hook. It's not often that thread crochet gets top billing in anything. She does a great job representing her favorite form of crochet. She also has a real cool Crochet N Beads Etsy Shop.

Hop on over and check out of the archive if you didn't get to hear it. Links and all the info can be found at Getting Loopy. [G.L. link in this posts header and also on the right sidebar]

NOTE: There are no Getting Loopy shows 12/22 and 12/29 because of the holidays but will be back January5.

Pattern Picks - Nooks 'n Crannies Square

I wanted to highlight Sally Ives Nooks 'n Crannies Square. I'm not a big grannies fan but this one I think is very pretty. I like the circular motif inside the square.

Pattern Picks - Scruby Bumpy Face Cloth

Hey folks. Now I'm not much for making face cloths and that sort of thing usually but you may want to head over to Craft Leftovers and take a look at their Crocheted Scruby Bumpy Face Cloth. The bumpy texture is supposed to help with exfoliation but I have to say I think the stitch itself works up really pretty and I like it. So go take a look and remember folks, someone worked to put the pattern together so if you download the free pattern a thank you isn't to much to pay in return.

Creamy Corn And Broccoli Chowder

Creamy Corn And Broccoli Chowder

Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion chopped
1 clove garlic finely chopped
3 tbsp all purpose flour
¼ tsp black pepper
½ tsp tarragon
3 cups vegetable broth
3 cups broccoli chopped
2 cups corn kernels
1 cup half and half OR any kind of milk

• Melt butter in a pot over medium heat and cook onion and garlic for 2 to 3 minutes until tender. Add in the flour and pepper stirring constantly for another minute then stir in tarragon, broth, broccoli and corn. Turn heat to high and bring up to the boil then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes stirring occasionally, veggies should be tender. Stir in half and half and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes until heated through but do not boil.

Makes 4 servings

Pattern Picks - Diamond Hat & Scarf

Crochet World magazine's featured pattern is the lovely Diamond Hat & Scarf. Almost anyone will love this chic and stylish hat and scarf set. You could even crochet it in school colors. It features puff stitch diamonds so you can learn how to puff stitch if you don't already know. Warning: This is a PDF document pattern.

Pattern Picks - Colorful Carryall

If you need a great gift idea for a friend who crochets Talking Crochet's Colorful Carryall is a great solution. This handy little case, as you can see, is perfectly styled to hold a generous set of crochet hooks. However, it can have other uses, too. For example, it could hold coupons for shopping, cards or money. You could insert bills, sorted by denomination, through the different post-stitch bands, and arrange your credit and bank cards in the bands as well. Naturally you could make the colors to suit your own taste

Tutorial Picks - Tunisian Reverse Stitch

Wonder How To has a little video up on how to create the Tunisian reverse stitch. The hook is inserted in back through the middle of the vertical bars and out the back side. Worked into a project it may help to reduce some of that curl up you get on a Tunisian project at the corners. Go take a look and learn How To.

Pattern Picks - Button Ornaments

Taking Crochet's Button Ornaments are fun and easy to make, and they're a great way to use up some of those beautiful leftover buttons in your sewing box. You can decorate the ornaments with additional trims, such as ribbon and bead string, as shown, or add your own choice of embellishments.

Pattern Picks - Angel Bells

There is no Getting Loopy today but instead we have these adorable little Angel Bells, they immediately made me think of that well-known line from the classic holiday movie, It's a Wonderful Life: "Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings." These little angels will add such a charming touch to your Christmas decorations.