Crazy crochetting guitar playing girl.

Hi there guys. Well what a crazy month or so. Gig/Work/Gig/Wedding/Radio show/Train renovation and More work.....I have been soooo busy that its just blown me clean out of the water. Still I've lost half a stone as a result of rushing around and such so theres good and bad points right?

I've barely had time to pick up a crochet hook but I've suddenly felt this urgent need to create something so I signed up for a swap on craftser thats a monster swap. How exciting is that. I already have soo many ideas tumbling around in my head on what to make. I like really randomly obscure monsters like bugbears and cockatrices so hopefully my partner will want random monsters so I can make some stuff like that.

My last craft swap seemed to go really well. It was my first and it was an easter one,  this is what I sent in the end

It had to be spring themed and fit in a pringle tube. SO I decorated the tube as an easter chick made a little springtime bag, my favourite bits were the carrot phone charm and the be happy cloud/rainbow magnet.  they were made out of shrinkydink plastic and I really had fun making those.  cramming it all into the tube was tricky though.
Anyway i'll be updating more regularly I promise

Sorry I havent been around since Thursday, I was up in aberdeen seeing my relatives.  I have quite a big family and they all live up in scotland.  it was my mums 50th birthday you see.  I got her a book on Macrame because she wanted to learn that.  And I got her a trip down to my place near london so she can go to a west end show.  She's never been so, she was really excited about that.

Today my crochet magazines turned up and already i've done the two crochet techinque squares that go towards building up the patchwork throw.  im excited about that. its going to look awesome once its finished.  But I wonder how much work I am going to get done in terms of arts/crafts as tomorrow final fantasy 13 is released and I plan to be playing it with every waking moment of my life until its completed.

I'm a gamer girl you see, an RPG (role playing game) nut!  I love the final fantasy series and my HD tv and my playstation 3 are going to get a serious playing over the next couple of weeks.  I really really cant wait.  Its the most anticipated game of mine since Little Big planet was released.
The thing is I am also a bit of a cosplayer, thats where you dress up as computer game/anime characters and go to conventions.  I am hoping to see some really inspirational outfits to have a go at making!

Today I made this



I found the free pattern on Sayjai's blog found here http://kandjdolls.blogspot.com/2010/02/pink-little-lady.html
Saw the doll and fell instantly in love and needed to make one right there and then. The pattern was really easy to follow and I really enjoyed making the doll. I named her Amy. the problem is she's too cute. Cute things always have hidden motives. Cute by day, evil plotting to take over the world by night. She has fimo cookies in her basket although you cant see them, they're poisonous so I wouldnt eat any of them if I were you.

Also in other news you won't know this cause I haven't told you but I'm a little on the podgy side and have been dieting to try and shed some stones. in november I was almost 14 stone. Thats not good for someone who is only five foot tall, so I've been trying to lose weight, well today I stood on the scales and im 12 stone 5 thats still not great but its quite an improvement on the 14 stone mark so i'm pretty pleased with myself. Just 3 stone to go and I will be a very happy bunny indeed. Im trying to lose it all before August as I am doing a comedy/music set at a punk/folk music festival and I did a set last year and I was 14 stone so to go back in a years time at 9 stone would really shock people I think. hehehe I can imagine that would feel amazing. So thats my goal. plus to be fitter would be nice.

Do you want to see something funny. My first ever crochet project. I made this in Feb 2008. I'm a huge anime fan and I really love Cardcaptor Sakura so I thought what better way to start my crochetting skills than to make Keroberos

It took me ages to make and I was so incredibly proud. He always makes me chuckle when I look at him now. I imagine him saying " ......kill.....me...." A few months later i June 2008 I tried again...and well this is the result. I took him with me to a cosplay convention where I was dressed up as Sakura from the anime. I even made little Kero button badges to give to people.

I love the fact that I can see soo much progress in that 2nd picture. It really does make me chuckle, and I kept both of them. I couldnt possibly part from my very first crochet project, I love him unconditionally like a first child. Even if he is a little on the rubbish side.

In other news i'm playing a few songs up at The George and Dragon pub in my town tonight. I have 2 new songs in my head that arnt quite finished so theres going to be a battle against time and me to see if I can perfect at least one of the songs before tonights performance. I like trying new stuff out on people. I mean I like all the songs I do, but sometimes I panic that people are getting bored of hearing the same stuff. My songs are funny but they can only be funny so many times before they get dull. Normally I only write one or two songs a year, but this year already I have written 3 (and one of those is the new crowd favourite) So with an extra 2 imbedded in my head i'm set to have written 5 songs before March which is amazing. That means I already have 5 songs ready for my next album. I will make money out of either my art or my music one of these days LOL. I dont want to be stuck in my day job forever

So heres the strawberry hat I finished recently for my best friends newborn baby thats supposed to be popping out tommorrow. I'm really excited for her and i'm really pleased with how the strawberry hat turned out. The pattern can be found at Theartofcrochet its in the members section but I think its free to sign up. It was a really simple pattern and i've already been asked by another 2 people to make them one, so I will probably knock them out later tonight.
I am soo on a crafting bender at the moment, the thing is, being a gemini I tend to go through phases of obsessions. At the moment its crochet but who knows what next week it'll be. it might be me trying to learn japanese again, or robotics, or maybe something new might catch my eye. With a crochet hook in one hand and my guitar in another its tricky finding time to get new hobbies.
Music wise I have a lot of upcoming gigs. I've been asked to play a venue in Shoreditch and I have the usual ones in my home town and now theres also one in hemel hempsted and another couple in couple in camden. Its all getting a little busy but I guess I wont always be in demand so I should do as many as I can now whilst people still like my music. I sing comedy songs if anyone was interested.
JammieSammys Music page Yeah thats all taken off really rather suddenly. I finished recording my debut album in december and its just not something I ever thought i'd do. I mean of course I dreamed about doing it, but thats exactly my problem. I'm a dreamer, I never actually follow through on any of my ideas so this one has taken me by surprise.

Anyway I better stop blogging and actually go do those strawberry hats I promised.

Well this years crafting projects so far whittle down to, a star afghan for my friends new baby, A strawberry hat, a doll which follows Beths Spirit doll pattern found on her blog by hook by hand
And Rigby the wonder dog.

Rigby actually started out as a pattern fround on craftster, one of my most favourite sites online, the pattern was for a bunny pincushion Bunny pincushion pattern I saw it immediately dropped all my other craft projects and started making it, only once I had the main body piece I kinda deviated and made a dog instead, then he looked like he needed underpants and well...thats how Rigby turned out. I love making stories for my characters that I make and Rigby is no different...
Rigby is a bit of a loser really, he worked at a small office firm being an errand dog, fetching paperwork, making tea, he spent most of his working day at the photocopier machine where he daydreamed about being someplace better, and being someone special. He wanted to be in crufts as part of the working dogs events, doing the obstacle course, he wrote to crufts but they rejected him, as hes a bit on the podgy side. The same day he got the rejection letter he was also made redundant. This double whammy sent him over the edge
Now he wants to be a superhero and believes his cape gives him super powers but of course it does nothing of the sort. Completely out of his tree he goes round all day trying to do good deeds but on the whole messing things up.
I also made a crazily long rainbow scarf, doctor who type length and its ridiculously bright, thats for a friends christmas present but I havent seen him since November. the thing is I suddenly realised that rainbows are adopted by gay people as their badge of honour and well my friend isnt gay so I wonder if he'll use it or not. LOL by the time I see him it'll probably be summer anyway.

Anyway off to work I go, wonder what new craft project i'll come up with next?

Sammy