Month: December 2023

Stash buster hats

On By CarynIn Craft

I’m still working through the bag of acrylic yarn odds and ends gifted to me by another avid crocheter. I made a couple cat beds, and now I have defaulted to my standard double crochet hats. These work up fast, can have many color changes, and are great to donate to either a cancer center or local charity.

Photo description: Teal, white, and pink crocheted hat with scalloped rim, sitting on my knee in the car.

These start with a magic circle and 10 double crochets. Each row has ten increases until the hat size is reached; hat sizes are typically the diameter, so a 7.5 hat has a 7 1/2” diameter circle. These hats are stretchy and form fitting, so they fit a range of heads, but I still like to make different sizes. Once the initial circle is the right size, the sides are double crocheted around with no increases. I like to use a slip stitch join when I’m not changing color, and an invisible join when I am changing color.

I added a scalloped edge, which on this hat is a double crochet five times separated by a single crochet, all in the same stitch. Skip one loop, slip stitch, skip another loop and go again.

I’ve been working on these while waiting for school pick up.

Cat flap

On By CarynIn Cats, Craft

When we built the catio almost six years ago, we set up a window as the access point. To keep the flies out I cut a cat flap in the screen (because window screens are relatively easy to fix). Well, this is fantastic in the summer, but in the winter it gets a bit chilly in the living room. I had been using a scrap piece of clear plastic to block some of the incoming draft, but it was getting old and brittle so I ordered a larger piece. With a larger piece I was able to cover the whole screen and cut a new cat flap.

Photo description: Window screen on the floor covered in clear plastic.

I cut the plastic to size and adhered it to the screen frame with glue dots. I then put it back into the window. It took the cats a couple days to really get used to it, but it makes a huge difference reducing the winter breeze through the room.

Photo description: View from inside the newly lined window screen with Thor the gray tabby on the windowsill investigating the new smells.
Photo description: View from outside the window, actually showing the reflection on the window plastic and Izzy the calico cat being cold and refusing to use the weird flap. I had to carry her inside for a couple of days until she figured it out.

Found!

On By CarynIn Craft

I knew I had another box of blended fiber by Anniewhere, and I found it while looking for what to spin next in my prepped fiber box! Yay! I think I’ve spun 4 oz of this blend so far, which consists of Merino wool, Blue Faced Leichtester, Alpaca, Tussah Silk, and Finn Wool. I’ve been using it to test out different spindles, so I continued that and dug out a 3D printed Turkish spindle that I bought at a fiber festival. It spins beautifully and even though I have to use a half hitch at the top, rather than a hook or notch, I haven’t been dropping it as much as I feared.

Photo description: From the top, a rosewood ring distaff with cord and handkerchief, a 3D printed Turkish spindle with turned wood shaft and the start of a yarn turtle, bakery box full of carded and blended fiber.

I even used a small ball of a single spun from the same fiber that was left over from plying to start the yarn turtle, and in so doing had a gauge for how thin to spin, and saved more yarn from the scrap bin!

Floof

On By CarynIn Cats

Both Mr Tom and his Shadow are in full glorious long winter coats. They still come over for brushes, and I caught a couple pictures of their rubbing ritual. This cat greeting behavior is how I convinced Shadow to get brushed, because he would rub on Mr Tom and I would sneak in a brush stroke. For the longest time I think he thought the brush was Mr Tom not me. He knows now though, and likes his coat groomed even more than Mr Tom.

Photo description: Long haired white cat next to a long haired black cat with his tail over the white cat, both walking along a rug covered with leaves.
Photo description: Same two cats, tail positions reversed.

Mama cat is also long haired and performs the greeting ritual. I actually managed one brush stroke along her back, but she is much more wary than even Shadow.

Yes, they are my neighbor’s cats.

Box modification

On By CarynIn Cats, Craft

We’ve had a small collapsible bench for several years. At one point I added cat flaps to give Sophie the cat a hiding place. Then it underwent a transition to a litter box hide, but the dogs dug at the door flaps trying to get to the sand treats (ew).

Photo description: Fabric box with cat flap that has had the trim torn off.

I have mentioned that Thor, our newest cat, is becoming a big boy, so I modified the bench yet again to allow him access, turning it back into a cat hide. Since the box was constructed to be collapsible, the side panels were split in two. It was an easy modification (much easier than the first flap I cut) to remove one side panel from each end.

Photo description: Same box, same side, but with half the side panel cut away. A gray tabby peers out of the hole.

I put a wool pad inside the box a d Thor’s rectangle bed on top. He is quite pleased with the offering.

Photo description: Gray tabby cat in a rectangular fuzzy bed with rolled sides on the lid of a fabric bench with side holes.

The holes are on opposite sides of the bench to retain some rigidity.