Caron Cotton Cakes review

     Hi, all! I hope everyone is doing well despite the pandemic. Here in northern New Jersey, our grocery stores are running out of supplies like toilet paper, bananas, laundry detergent, etc. On the bright side, I got a commission via my Etsy shop, Green Owl Crochet, for a granny square lap blanket. The customer wanted an acrylic and cotton yarn. I chose to use Caron Cotton Cakes. I love this yarn so much that I wanted to write a review about it. 
    I bought two skeins of Caron Cotton Cakes for a commission. The customer wanted a soft, acrylic/cotton yarn. I went to Michaels (the craft store) and they had a lot of a yarn called Caron Cotton Cakes. I love Caron Cakes, so I figured I would enjoy using their Cotton Cakes. Sure enough, I love them! This yarn is 60% cotton and 40% acrylic. It comes in 8.8 ounce (530 yard) skeins. It is a worsted weight yarn and Caron recommends that you use a size H/8 (5.0 mm) hook with which to crochet this yarn. The yarn is soft and luxurious-feeling. I usually dislike cotton yarns, but again, Caron Cotton Cakes is soft and lovely to work up. 
    I bought two skeins of Caron Cotton Cakes in the colorway Fruit Tropics. Later on, I bought one skein of the colorway Blue Hawaiian. I am not sure what I will do with the skein of Blue Hawaiian. However, as I previously mentioned, I am using the two skeins of the Caron Cotton Cakes in colorway Fruit Tropics to crochet a granny square lap blanket. I am using a size K/10.5 (6.5 mm) hook to work up the lap blanket. 
     Have you ever worked with Caron Cotton Cakes? If so, how do you like it?

the granny square lap blanket I am working on

Fruit Tropics (left) and Blue Hawaiian (right)

another view of Blue Hawaiian

late February crochet projects

I've been hooking up a storm! It's late February and here in New Jersey, it's still nice and cold. We had a snow day last week. I was stuck in the house all day, so I used the down time to crochet a whale stuffie, finish a hat, and start on a cactus stuffie. I still haven't finished the cactus stuffie, due to lack of a dark brown yarn (for the cactus's pot). In the past two weeks, I've also crocheted two cat beds, an ear warmer, and two cowls, and I started on a fall-themed wreath for a customer. Speaking of customers, have you checked out my Etsy shop yet? If not, please check it out! It's Green Owl Crochet. Thank you!

deep fall crochet goodness 2018

Hello, beauties! I've been having a lot of bad days, due to my severe pain and fatigue. However, I've still been able to crochet a lot. In the past month, I've made a scarf, a blanket, and two hats. One of the hats is for my dad for one of his Christmas gifts. Speaking of Christmas, what are you all doing this year for the holidays? My mom, dad, and I are driving to Massachusetts to see my aunt, uncle, and cousins. I love going to see them! Alas, car rides make my fibromyalgia pain much worse, so I hope the pain won't be too bad this year. As a friendly reminder, I have an Etsy shop where I sell items I crochet. I also accept crochet commissions. I would greatly appreciate your patronage. Ciao! 

Lion Brand London Kaye LKYC yarn and hooks

     Hello! As I've stated before, I've been working with super bulky yarns a lot lately. I've mostly been crocheting cat beds and cat mats for the local animal shelter. So far, I've made eleven beds and six mats for the kitties. I've also made some other fun projects, like another large rainbow and two mason jar cozies. 
     I first heard about Lion Brand's London Kaye LKYC yarn and hooks through the JoAnn website. I visit their website about once or twice a week. In late March, I noticed that JoAnn's website had a special advertisement featuring London Kaye's work. I had heard of London Kaye before, because of her yarn bombing pursuits. I clicked on the advertisement and it brought me to a page with Lion Brand's London Kaye LKYC yarn, yarn packs, and hooks.
     I needed some more large hooks, so I decided to buy the set of her three crochet hooks. The pack is currently 9.99 US dollars on JoAnn's website. However, when I bought them back in March, they were on sale for 7.99 dollars. The set contains all three of London Kaye's crochet hooks: a 9 mm, an 11.5 mm, and a 20 mm. They are lime green, hot pink, and electric blue, respectively. 
     These hooks are great! I love the way the lightweight plastic feels in my hand. The plastic is light, but does not feel cheap. The ergonomic handles do not tire out my hand,wrist, and arm as much as some other kinds of hooks. However, I have to admit that London Kaye's crochet hooks do not allow yarn to glide as smoothly as Clover's Amour hooks. Also, a small complaint I have is that there was a rough plastic nub on the tip of the 9 mm hook. I was able to file the nub down with a nail file, though. All that being said, I'll stick to using Clover's Amour hooks most of the time. I will, however, keep the London Kaye hooks for when I teach crochet, or for when I want a little variety. 
     Now let's talk about the yarn. The yarn is super bulky and 100% acrylic. It comes in twenty three colors. At first, I bought three of London Kaye's yarn packs: London Eye Blue, Roy G Biv, and Spread the Love. I used these packs to crochet the London Eye, two rainbows, and a heart. I got the idea for these projects from Lion Brand's video tutorials, which feature London Kaye herself. The yarn packs come with five skeins each. Plus, each yarn pack comes with an inspiration booklet. The inspiration booklet is interesting eye candy. However, it would be better if there were few patterns, or even just some yarn bombing and/or general crocheting tips, included.
     After quickly using up all the yarn from the packs, I went on to buy twenty one skeins of Lion Brand's London Kaye LKYC yarn in the middle of April. I feel conflicted about the yarn. I appreciate that the price is low, the yarn soft, and the colors vivid. I also love that I am supporting London Kaye, whom I admire. I do not, however, enjoy that the skeins are so small (only twenty yards!). I've also found that almost every skein I've used has one or two knots in it, which is such a pain. 
     All in all, I'd recommend Lion Brand's London Kaye hooks. I'd say that the yarn collection is worth buying, with some reservation. I'd especially recommend Lion Brand's London Kaye yarn if you're looking for an affordable yarn in small amounts, say, for yarn bombing or another project that could benefit from the yarn's attributes. 

the tale of the super-bulky yarn

On Saturday, I received a package I'd ordered from JoAnn's. The package had some large hooks and yarn from Lion Brand's London Kaye line. Since then, I've been crocheting up a storm! In the past, I haven't used super-bulky yarn much. Now, I'm loving it! Here are some pictures of the items I've made. Please don't forget to visit my Etsy shop, Green Owl Crochet. Thank you! 

artwork and a lemon

I whipped out all of my art supplies and had a fun art-making session on Tuesday last week. I made three pieces of art on cardboard. I started a painting on a real canvas but I wasn't able to finish it. I find I feel more free to experiment and have fun when I work on cardboard. I also made an art journal page on Thursday. On the crochet front, I made a lemon and started on a banana. I'm very happy to announce that I got two commissions! My one friend wants me to crochet him fruits and vegetables for a bowl and my other friend wants a lightweight hat. It's so great to get commissions! Also, I took a big step for me as an artist. I set up a Patreon page! If you would be so kind, please check it out and contribute and/or share as you're able. I greatly appreciate it! And don't forget my Etsy shop.

crocheted rock cozies

Hello! It's almost spring here in the northeastern USA. This means the weather will be warming up and hoards of winter-weary folks will flock to parks and playgrounds. I'll add a bit of whimsy to these people's lives by participating in some street art. Usually, I'm tip-lipped about my street art activities. These rock cozies, however, are just too jazzy not to share with you all. By the way, I would love it if you would check out Green Owl Crochet, my Etsy store.

June update and culinary arts

     I haven't updated my blog in a while. I have been creating (mostly crocheting and making mail art), but I just haven't gotten around to posting my work to this blog. If you want more updates from me, please check out my Instagram. I'm EricaBerrie on there. A link to my Instagram is here.
     I made some crocheted pieces for a future yarn bomb. The yarn bomb is being organized by the artist Knitteapolis. She is going to yarn bomb at the Minnesota State Fair in Minneapolis. I mailed her some motifs as well as a large mesh rectangle. The rectangle is modeled here by my sister's dog, Harlow. I used Lion Brand's Shawl in a Bawl yarn.

     Here are some pictures of some of the mail art I've made recently.

     Besides crocheting and making mail art, I've been baking and cooking up a storm lately! Most of what I make is for my Dad and his employees. They love the baked goods I make for them! My mom and sister also like to eat what I make. Besides cookies and quick breads, I've also made a quiche and stuffed shells. Today, I'm going to make energy bites and hummus. I don't have a food processor, so I'm hoping I can make the energy bites in my blender. Pictured here is a yummy banana bread I made two weeks ago.

Autumn Goodness

I've been working on some crochet projects. I made a bunch of motifs for a yarn bomber in Arizona. I'm currently working on making five sweaters for an animal rescue in New York City. The sweaters are for some chickens they rescued recently. I've been making some mail art, though I really should make more. I'm going to try to set aside some energy to make mail art this week. I have some "add and pass" projects I need to work on, too. 

crocheted motifs, oh how I love thee! (February 2016 update)

I hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day. I exchanged gifts with two of my friends to celebrate. Alas, because of the post office being sluggish, I didn't get my gifts before the holiday. That's okay, though! I can be patient (sometimes). I also exchanged Valentine's day cards with people from my postcard exchange club and some of my pen pals.

I've been crocheting a fair amount of motifs. I love to crochet them! Do I have a use for them? Not usually. But they are fast, fun, and easy. What's not to love? 

I made two paintings last week. I also started on another one. It felt good to whip out my acrylic paints again. I so rarely paint. I really should do it more often.

November Excitement!

If you know anything about my life, the title of this post may seem like somewhat of a misnomer. However, despite the limitations imposed on me by my disabilities, I'm finding ways to have fun and to be connected with my community, friends, and the world in general. And I think this is exciting! 

Of course, I've been keeping up with crocheting and mail art. Recently, I made an autumn wreath, a cowl, an ear warmer, and a chicken sweater. The chicken sweater is for a chicken rescue in the UK, but the rest of the items I got paid for (yay!). Also, I've been writing letters, keeping my journal current, and writing a few poems. Outside of my usual home life, I've been going to support groups, doing volunteer ESL tutoring, going to church activities, taking a Spanish class, volunteering at an animal shelter, and doing yoga.

Enjoy the pictures of a recent piece of mail art, a jar cozy, and the autumn wreath!