Fantasy Archives at Jessie At Home

Spring Breaks 2015

April 21, 2015| Cooking, Family, Fantasy, Home Decor, Stories, WiP

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

That’s right. Spring breakS. Pural. Last week the girls were on spring break, and the week before it was Doug. It’s such a bummer that they do not have the same spring break. But we make the most of it. Doug took 3 days during his spring break off of his second job (tutor for Huntington Learning Center) so he would have more time with the girls. They loved when he would pick them up from school and then be home the rest of the day.

While they were at school, he managed to clean Vada’s walls, caulk the trim, and base paint her room. She is going to have a fairy forest room. However, we do not have the time or finances to do that all right now, so it just got a good start. We had to replace the ceiling in the fall, so that was done already. Now the room is painted a light blue (walls and ceiling) and the trim around the windows and doors are a medium blue. This summer we will add some bookshelves that are tree~like (how that works is yet to be determined, though we have a few ideas), we will sponge paint a few clouds on the ceiling, paint the baseboards green, and paint a few trees on the walls, grass coming up from the baseboards, and flowers. Plus fairies. Lots of fairies. Oh, and lay down a new floor. We must be crazy.

Anyway…here is a cute snap of the girls reading together. If you want to see more adorableness as it happens, you should follow me on Instagram. I post yarnie stuff there, and I post some of our crazy life as it happens over there as well! (more…)

0 comments

The Best Laid Plans ~ or ~ When does school start again?

August 18, 2014| Art, Crochet, Family, Fantasy

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

So I had these grand plans for the week. I was going to run to AC Moore this morning to grab some yarn for the process photos that I am adding to the Fall Leaves wrap, along with a 2 color leaf option (this means I will be making another wrap to show the 2 color option, made in yarn that can be bought from most craft stores.) Then I was going to make a Stitchopedia video for the linen stitch and get that up today. That way by the end of the week I could have the pattern for the Baker’s Tee up for you. That pattern will be free here on this blog, and I wanted the linen stitch Stitchopedia post done first as the Baker’s Tee is made with the linen st. Then there were other videos and patterns to be worked on over the week, along with getting more posts up. Oh the plans.

I have been staying up to late. WAY to late. Last night was the earliest I have gotten to bed in about a week. When I pulled up the covers it was 12:42. Oops.

Consequently, it was 9:20 before I was showered, dressed, and downstairs ready to start the week. Not the best way to get started. Somehow, catching up on my social media/email from the night managed to take an hour. Ugg. Eventually I got the girls into Thor (Doug was working until 1 today) and off we went to the craft store.

After much debate, I found a craft store yarn that would work for Fall Leaves Wrap 2.0, Red Heart Boutique Unforgettable. They have just released new colorways and I am quite excited about how this is going to turn out! Remember, you can buy the pattern from Ravelry for the rest of the month for just $4.50. After that I will be adding the chart, process photos, and 2 color leaf option, and the price will go up to $6.00. Everyone who has bought it will get the updates, so you are best off to buy it now while the price is low!

By the time we got home, it was pretty much lunch time. So I fed the littles and came downstairs with my coffee to get going on the videos. I started to set up the camera and decided it was time I find a better way to set up. Over an hour later, I was finally ready to get started. So, I did. I started the same video 4 times before I finally stopped tripping over my tongue. Things looked good for the next take, until just over a minute in, when Doug came home. I work in the basement. Children running above me do not make for good background music on my videos. I went upstairs to find out if there was going to be quite any time soon. Doug said once he got settled he and the girls would watch Star Wars. So back down I went, working on a few other things while I waited for the girls to tell me they were going to start the movie so things would be quite. I should really know better. The girls and I have super hearing, but even with his hearing aids in, Doug does not hear that well. The movie was far too loud. There was no way to make the videos without having Star Wars in the background. I don’t hold out hope for any quite once it is over, either.

Doug will be working for several hours tomorrow, and I will send the girls out back to play at that time and film as many videos as I can while I have some quite. Once school starts I will have the house to myself during the school day and it will be much easier to get work done. Until then, I just have to plan a lot better!

So, want to see some pretty pictures?

Have you heard about the “design a shawl for Stevie Nicks” contest? Well, it appears as though I am crazy enough to give it a go. I doubt a crochet shawl will win with just a sketch, so I bought some yarn (like, really fruu fruu, expensive, crazy yarn) to make a swatch to show with the sketch. Like I said, crazy.

The girls made some art yesterday. Here is a snap of a little unicorn Kyla drew.

And here are the artists with their creations. Sorry, it was too bright to get a good shot, but the girls were very proud and wanted a picture.

I have had so many ideas for patterns that have grown out of the Kat and Katherine patterns. Of course the next 2 will be the crochet kids coat, and the crochet adult coat, but then I think there will be a whole line of patterns that grow from there. So I decided they all need fairy names. The pattern I am working on right now is the kids coat, and it’s name is Lunette.

Here is the start of Lunette in size 3/4. Some of the panels have an advanced option and an easier option. The 3/4 coat I am making while I write the pattern will have the easier options. I will then make 2 in the 7/8 size for the girls, using the advanced options. I am hoping to start testing this at the beginning of the school year, at which point I will start writing the pattern for the adult version.

OK, sometimes I get a little silly with dinner. This was a side we had the other night, and it was pretty, so I took a picture. It’s just mini cucumbers with a little salt. It happens to be one of our favorite sides in the family. Just a little salt though, too much ruins it, but just a bit brings out the flavor. 🙂

I had to put together a few new images with some of my sale patterns and my logo because I am one of the designers who has donated prizes (free patterns!!) for the Crochet Lounge Birthday Party!! Hop on over there and join in the fun, there are tons of great prizes!

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

9 Comments

So Busy!!

May 4, 2014| Baking, Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Friends, Knit, Star Wars

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

My, I have been busy. I took a few days off of Kyla’s room reno to work on some secret designs (designs I have sold and can’t share with you until they are published.)

There is still quite a bit to do in Kyla’s room, and I hope to be done soon. I really need to buckle down and finish it, because we are having over night guests on Wednesday night, and we will need all the sleeping space we can get!

Speaking of guests, we had several friends over today. One couple brought this awesome pan of brownies:

My friends are so awesome!

Doug and I spent the most of yesterday and this morning cleaning the house to get ready for the company. The house cleaning had kind of gotten away from me. There were boxes of yarn all over, tools in every corner and hall, bits of Kyla’s room in the oddests of places. It was crazy.

It’s a lot better now, but there are still a few things I want to get done before Wednesday. Plus I need to finish laying Kyla’s floor, put up the trim, put in the fabric behind the bed, and buy her bed. Oh, right, she still needs a bed! I will not let the reno win! I will be victorious!!

OK, I may be a bit sleep deprived.

OH…I have some great patterns that are coming out of Kyla’s room reno. You are going to be so happy!

So I may be a bit scarce over the next few days, but there are fun things for you after that.

In the meantime, VadaBell says have a great week!

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

0 comments

Big things in the works! (yarn and home)

April 25, 2014| Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Knit, WiP

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Wow, I have a lot of things in the works right now!!

First I have some big news that will make a lot of you happy.

I have started the CROCHET versions of the Kat/Katherine coats!!!

First I will be making the child’s pattern, sizes 3 to 12, same as the knit version. I am using Lion Brand Heartland for this one. It is soft, shiny, and oh, so pretty. Plus it is washable and made in the USA. It will most likely be fall before the child version is ready to send to the testers, and then 3 or 4 months with the testers before the pattern is ready for the public.

Once the child version is with the testers, I will start on the adult version. Sizes XS to 5X, just like the knit version. I am thinking of using Heartland Thick & Quick, but I’m really not sure on that one. I am very excited about this! Fairy coats for EVERYONE!!!

Have I told you my parents were transferred? Mom is now teaching on a base in Sicily (I think it’s in Sicily). I’m not sure if it is an Army or Navy base, but my guess would be Navy.

I received a package in the mail from my mom today. This fun yarn was in it. It is called Balocco, and it is from Tropical Lane. I have no idea what I am going to make with it, but considering I have about a million WiPs, maybe I should just think on it for a while…

Speaking of Mom, a while back she told me about a gentleman she worked with who had a great scarf that his grandfather had made for him. I had her take some photos and send me an email with a bit about it.

Here is the email she sent with the photos:

This is Jack. His grandfather made him the scarf when he was 12. His grandfather was a carpenter and made the scarfs to supplement his income. Jack didn’t see him make it but was told that his grandfather took a board, pounded nails in it, and somehow wove the scarf. I thought of you as soon as I saw it.

Love,
Mom

I wonder if it was something like the knitting looms that are so popular now. Or maybe it is something else entirely. If you have any idea, let me know. I would love to figure this out!

Back to my home, I have way more knit and crochet WiPs then I would like to admit. So what is there to do, but start another?

This is going to be a rug for Kyla’s Pink Princess Room. I am using 4 strands of Red Heart Super Saver at a time with size 35 knitting needles. As you can see, I am knitting it in panels, and using a join~as~you~go method to add on to it. This way it fits on my needles, and I can easily make color stripes.

Yes, I am writing down the pattern as I go, and I will share it when I am done. The cable pattern is one that has been floating about in my head for a while. I am thinking of making a smaller version for a pillow as well.

As for the Pink Princess Room…

We went to Home Depot on Friday and bought most of what we would need to fix up the room. Those floor boards are as wide as the box. They really look like something you would imagine in a castle, and it was still less than $100 for enough for the whole room!

We ended up pulling down all the plaster from the ceiling. It just was not going to look good if we patched it. And really, it only took 3 sheets of drywall to do the whole ceiling.

Most of my renovation knowledge comes from my father, and I have to thank him for that! I don’t even want to know what would have happened if he hadn’t taught me so much. Not to mention the vast amount of awesome tools in my garage. Doug’s friends come over, drool over the tools, and then are shocked to learn they are MINE!! Anyway, there is one thing I have to thank the DIY network for: teaching me about the drywall lift! For less then $30 we rented that thing for 4 hours and got the ceiling up without any injury or even much strain.

There were a few little hiccups, but considering neither of us had ever put up a ceiling before or even watched someone put up a ceiling (other than on the DIY network), I think it is pretty good!

Ready for some paint. Did you know there is special ceiling paint. I had never really thought about it before, but ceiling paint is a bit thicker so it doesn’t drip. You know, gravity and all.

One coat wasn’t cutting it. The green from the mold and mildew resistant drywall was showing through.

Kyla helped Doug with the second coat. Do you like my paint roller extender? That would be one of those nifty tools. Thanks Dad!! The silver part spins back into the rest, making the length adjustable, and the storage size just about 2 feet tall.

Doug laughed at me when I got so excited about that thing when Dad gave it too me a few years ago. Guess who isn’t laughing anymore?

With the last of the ceiling paint, I had Doug go over the nicotine stained walls. They were so gross. (No, we do not smoke, this room was an office before, and the previous owners smoked in there.)

We bought a can of eggshell paint and a can of dark pink paint, with the intent of making 3 colors in between the eggshell and the dark pink, so 5 colors all together. The plan was then to paint the panels of the wood paneled walls in the 5 colors, and put the polka dots of the 4 pink on the ceiling.

Well, once I started painting one of the eggshell stripes, it became quite apparent the the eggshell was actually grey in comparison to the ceiling white. So, that meant I had to paint that little valley between all the panels in the eggshell in order to give the whole room a unified look. Don’t worry if that didn’t make since, as the project goes on, you will see…

Here we have the start of the first pink. I am going light to dark. After finishing the eggshell, I poured some off into an old Rubbermaid container for trim and touch ups; and then added some of the dark pink to get the lightest shade. We actually have a color card we are using to to determine the shades.

Once I finished the light pink, I stored some of that in another container, and tomorrow I will repeat the process twice more for the 2nd and 3rd pink. The last pink will be the dark pink from the can, so I won’t have to mix that one.

OK, I have to get to my yarn, I have been neglecting it for paint, and it is sad.

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

0 comments

Lion Brand Studio Trip and Other Fun Times!

April 8, 2014| Crochet, Fantasy, Friends, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

It’s odd, I’ve lived here, in northern New Jersey just outside of the Lincoln Tunnel, for about eight years; yet until Sunday I have never taken public transit into the City. That’s not to say I haven’t gone into Manhattan, I’ve just always driven in. Before I lived here I lived in Queens, and I took the train of the subway into the City all the time. Yet for some reason, even though it’s quicker to take public transit into the City from here and then it was where I lived in Queens, I just never really went.

“So,” you ask, “what changed on Sunday?” Well, my fabulous, wonderful, amazing, lovely mentor Andee, came in from Colorado. She spent a long weekend with a friend of hers who lives a little farther south in Jersey. She decided the best way to connect with her various friends who live in this area was for us all to meet at Lion Brand Studio in NYC. So a date was made for Sunday from 1 to 3 for a bunch of crazy designer/yarnie types.

I felt like having a little more time in The City, so I hoped on the 10:16 bus, set to arrive at Port Authority at 10:38. Really, I’m that close to Manhattan. I should be scolded for not going more often!

Of course, I had to bring some crochet to pass the time on the bus. I tend to crochet in public more then knit, it just travels better.

When I walked out of Port Authority, I felt a wave of “Ahhh, I’m home” sweep over me. I really missed the City.

Of course, I was so used to arriving at Penn Station, that I forgot Port Authority is basically in Times Square, smack in the middle of tourist central. So no sooner had the “Ahhh, I’m home” feeling swept over me, then so did a swarm of Elmos. You gotta love NY.

After escaping ~~Sesame Street~~ Times Square, I turned down Broadway and headed to 15th st, between 5th and 6th Ave. Lion Brand Studio. Yes, that is a yarn Taj Mahal.

I was the first one there. After getting a giggle out of the sign saying that Lily Chin was teaching classes there that day (wasn’t she going to be surprised when she saw a bunch of her fellow designers hanging out in the studio), I took a seat at the project table and crocheted and waited for others to start arriving.

And eventually arrive they did! Here we have Deb, Mary Beth, Maven, Andrea, and Andee. There was lots of love and lots of hugs!

It was so wonderful to see Andee! She is about as awesome as they come. I am so lucky to have her as my mentor!

Speaking of lucky, this awesome lady, Mary Beth Temple, also gives me wonderful advice! Here she is holding a very blurry (OK, it may be the picture that is blurry not the magazine) issue of Knitsimple with one of her patterns in it. We were all having fun showing off our work in the various magazines in the store. It was a blast for me to be able to participate in this act, as the summer issue of Crochet! Magazine has a preview of what will be in the autumn issue on the last page, and my Octie Throw is in the preview!

Do you see the fuzzy wrap that Mary Beth is wearing? It is from her Arm Knitting book. She had some copies of her book with her and Oh. My. Goodness! it is so cool! I never thought about increases and decreases in arm knitting, but leave it to Mary Beth to take it up a notch (or 10). There are some really nifty patterns in the book, you can see pictures of them all and learn some great techniques over at the website for the book.

When Mary Beth was looking for her pattern in the Knitsimple magazine, I happened to notice the back cover, (sorry, another blurry one!) and there was a Red Heart ad with Lorene’s hat and cowl! ~ The blue and pink set the woman is wearing.

Here is the whole gang. As you can see, more arrived. I met most of these awesome ladies at the Knit and Crochet show in October, and most of us will all be together again at the next Knit and Crochet Show in July.

Oh, and we did surprise Lily when she come down for her break between classes, it was quite amusing! She was especially shocked to see Andee, seeing as Colorado isn’t exactly close by. Another funny thing: her morning class was Join~As~You go knitting, and the skirt of my coat is Join~As~You go. I do it a bit different than her, but it is still Join~As~You~Go. At one point, a lady came up to me and said “Lily Chin just told me I need to look at your coat.” It was one of those “I have arrived” moments.

Stealth photo of some of the ladies chatting.

I saw these and thought they were neat! I may have to design some slipper socks with these. They come in a bunch of sizes.

Eventually it was time to leave. I was going to have to wait a while for the 5:10 bus back home, but Shari drove in and had to drive by my exit on her way home, so she offered me a ride. It was nice to have some time to chat with her. She is the one sitting behind me in the picture of the whole gang.

Of course I couldn’t leave without buying yarn!! I had to buy something from the LB line, as that is not in the craft stores. The LB line is only available in the Lion Brand stores and online. It is full of lovelies like this super soft superwash merino!

Ok, other news…

About medical enigma me: It looks like what was causing all my pain last month was a generic infection. The only way to really diagnose it is to rule out everything else, so that is still where we are. I had a fancy~pants blood test a couple weeks ago that got sent out to San Diego, and it will still be another week before the results are back. That is to check for markers for Crohn’s Disease. Even though they saw no signs of Crohn’s Disease after the last procedure, I guess I could still have markers? I don’t know, if I asked for details about every maybe I would be living in a bubble, so I just go with it and when they have an answer I will ask more questions. I had a CT with and without contrast a few days after I finished all the drugs they gave me so they could be sure everything was looking normal. I have an appointment in a couple weeks to talk about all the results. As I said, at this point it is looking like it was just an infection. But a bad enough one to mimic a few other things. If that is the case, then it isn’t something I need to do anything more about, as it is gone now. So, lets hope that is the case!

That was the good news. I have been avoiding sharing some rather sad news with you…

InsaniTea has closed. No more Fiber Arts Club. No more tea with Ingrid, at least not at InsaniTea. I am going to have to have her come over here and have tea now and then. I don’t think I could go too long without my Ingrid fix. It’s been so sad to go in there. After the shop closed, I have gone back to pick up my stuff, to hang out with Ingrid, and to buy some of the fixtures and left over stock. I have tons of to~go coffee cups with lids! I figure they will come in handy when we have birthday parties and such.

I may have gone a bit overboard with the fixtures. We have a few more shelving units for the garage, a dresser for Kyla’s room, and various bookshelves and organizational aids for Doug and I. Next week the girls are on Spring Break, and I am going to have them help me really clean upstairs and get it ready to finish Kyla’s room. The week after Doug is on Spring Break and we are going to finish Kyla’s room. I don’t think she will actually be moving in anytime soon, though. As soon as she realized it was really happening she started bawling because she didn’t want to sleep without Vada. So we told her we would finish her room and not move her bed in until she is ready to sleep there. I actually am hoping to buy a new bed anyway, as they are still sleeping in the toddler Ikea beds.

We (and by “we” I mean Doug) brought a few of the bookshelves downstairs to my little studio. I added some extra holes to put in more shelves. Then I spent the better part of Monday cleaning them like mad. Eventually they were ready for yarn.

Here we have my Red Heart yarnshelf.

My Lion Brand yarnshelf. Clearly I need more Lion Brand yarn.

My Berroco yarnshelf, with room below for my Takhi/Prism/other LYS yarns. I would love to just spend a few days and get my studio all finished, but I have other things I need to work on as well, and I don’t want to neglect you, my lovely readers! So it may take a while, but it will get there.

The girls LOVE my Shine On Sun Hat so much that they both want one. So I am now working on a child size (20″) sun hat pattern. here is a peak at the first go for Vada. I will tweak the pattern when I make Kyla’s.

The other day I found these gems waiting for trash pick up when I was on the way home from taking the girls to school. I think a lion trainer may be moving. The hula hoop has already seen a lot of love in the backyard, and the stool is going to be a yarnbomb project for me at some point.

Normally when I have to wait for something, I knit or crochet, but I had a meeting at the school on Thursday, and while I was waiting I worked on a knit design that has been rattling around in my head for a while.

Remember this project? I shared it in a knitting group I am in on Facebook so people would encourage me to finish it, and boy did they! The front skirt inset for the jean skirt is done, and I am working on the back inset. This time I am writing the pattern as I make it, because not only did they encourage me to finish it, but they wanted a pattern as well. So, when it is all done there will be a tutorial which will include the patterns for the knit and crochet bits.

I really need to get back to my yarn. Have a nice night, my friends!

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

2 Comments

The Katherine Coat pattern is DONE!!!!

April 4, 2014| Fantasy, Knit, Medieval

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

I am so excited! After a year of writing, re~writing, testing and editing, the Katherine Coat pattern is finally done! Sizes XS ~ 5X, all in one pattern! I will share the pattern details with you here, along with lots of photos. You can buy the pattern on Ravelry, Craftsy, or Etsy.

The photos of my coat (the rainbow one) were all taken by my amazing photographer Emily; you can see more of her beautiful work here.

Here is the pattern info and more pictures:

This fun, fanciful, Faerie Frock will bring out the whimsy in you! It features vertical stripes of knit panels in the skirt, which are connected as they are made, thus there is no need to have multiple balls of yarn all being used at the same time. The frock can be made with or without a hood and there are many variations on the skirt, hood, and sleeves. Several line drawings are included so you can plan out your colors. As for the number of colors needed, you can do what makes you happy; use a different color for every part, or use just two or three colors for the panels or even stash~bust and wing it! The whole point of this pattern is to have fun and to bring some joy to the one who gets to wear it.

There are several videos linked to help with various parts of the pattern. There are also many full color photos to show the various options within the pattern.

This pattern was inspired by the remarkable Kat of Katwise.com who can also be found on Etsy.
Her amazing upcycled elf coats were the starting point of these knit patterns.

Photos of the Rainbow Coat were taken by Emily of http://lifeisjustperspective.tumblr.com/

Sizes: Use the actual bust measurement to determine the size. The measurements listed are the maximum for each size. The pattern is made to allow room for clothing underneath.
XS (S, M, L, 1X, 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X)
30 (34, 38, 42, 46, 50, 54, 58, 62) inches

Yarn:
Berroco Vintage Chunky (other yarns can be used as long as the correct gauge is obtained)
Here is an ESTIMATE of yardage needed, please note that depending on the variations you use the estimate may be off.
500 (550, 600, 650, 850, 1050, 1300, 1500, 1800) yards of main color (MC)
1200 (1600, 2000, 2500, 3000, 3200, 3500, 4000, 4500) yards total of remaining colors (Just divide the total amount by the number of colors you are using to determine how much of each color is needed. Buy at least one extra skein of each color and keep your receipt so you don’t have to worry about running out of yarn.)

Needles:
US 10 (6mm) recommended, but use whatever size is needed to obtain gauge.
You will need a set of long (at least 32”) circular needles. If you do not want to use the magic circle for smaller parts, you will also need a set of double point needles. You may also want a 16” set of circulars.

Gauge:
14 sts and 18~19 rows = 4 ins [10 cm] in stockinette

Other Notions:
Extra circular needles or long piece of scrap yarn for holding waistband stitches.
Yarn needle for weaving in ends.
Many stitch markers or scraps of yarn to use as stitch markers (up to 25, depending on what variation is made)

Stitches and Skills used:
K ~ Knit
P ~ Purl
S ~ Slip
St(s) ~ stitch(es)
SSK ~ Slip Slip Knit
K2tog ~ Knit 2 together
M1 ~ Make 1
PCO ~ Provisional Cast On

And of course, I need to give credit to my fabulous testers: (I tested the 2X)

Fairy-Coat-Knit-Pattern-Katherine-Coat-made-by-Dianne — XS: Dianne Croker

Faerie-Coat-Knit-Pattern-Katherine-Coat-made-by-Lisa — S: Lisa Janowiec-Young

Fairy-Coat-Knit-Pattern-Katherine-Coat-made-by-Brittany — L: Brittany Umbaugh

Fairy-Coat-Knit-Pattern-Katherine-Coat-made-by-Deb — 3X: Deb Loundagin

There you are. After a year, I am not sure what to do with myself now that it is done. I guess it is time to make a crochet version…

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

2 Comments

Box Car Races! and other fun

February 23, 2014| Crafts, Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Knit, Music, Video, Winter

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend my friends!

When I trudged downstairs yesterday morning, this is what greeted me:

Kyla had swiped a Coats box I was planning on sending some stuff to a friend in, and the tubes from some Baker’s Cotton that I had used recently. She was having too much fun for me to be upset. I was planning on giving the tubes to the girls for crafts anyway!

Vada was taking a break on the couch, so Kyla showed me her creation as well. She had swiped the box from my new camcorder that I hadn’t gotten around to flattening out for recycling.

They were making race cars.

Would you like to see the first race?

As you can see, some repairs were required after the race. So more time was taken for improvements, then there was another race. Then more improvements, and another race. Then more…this went on all day. Seriously. From the time they got up in the morning until I made them move the boxes into the corner, clean up the craft supplies and go to bed. It was awesome!

Somewhere in the middle of the day I took another race video.

Here are the finished racers:

It was a crazy, fun, day!

I also have some snaps from the last week to share with you. After shoveling one day last week, Doug left me a note.

One morning a few days ago Kyla came downstairs in this skirt. It needed a little TLC. It took about an hour, but I painstakingly wove some quilting thread through the net to strengthen and repair the net. Kyla was very happy.

Not that long ago I ordered some brimlock (the stuff that goes around the outer edge of a brimmed hat to hold it’s shape) and heat shrink joiners. A few days later they arrived with this wonderful quote! How many ways do I love Judith M after this experience?! They are quick, the prices are reasonable, and they have a great sense of humor!

I’ve never used the heat shrink joiners before, I always used the metal ones that you crimp. I thought I should give these a try because they will not show as much through the crochet, and I was worried the metal kind might snag the yarn. I’ll let you know what I think of it once I have used it.

So, crochet (and maybe knit) sun hats to come!! It may be a month or two, but there will be some sun hats!!

School was cancelled on Valentine’s Day, so the celebrations were rescheduled for this past Friday. The girls had fun signing all the cards for their friends!

Kyla wrote up a Valentine’s wish for Daddy. Yes, she wished for a contract for him (4 years with no contract and a pay freeze for Paterson teachers!)

On the yarnie front, the Stitchopedia is just 2 weeks old and there are already 6 posts. Just imagine all the wonderful skills you will be learning as it grows!

On Monday of last week we went over to my photographer‘s house to get some pictures taken. At one point, there was a dance/music break.

It was far too much fun.

Would you like to know why we needed pictures? Well, I finally finished the Emma Skater Skirt crochet pattern!!

It actually went up for sale a few days ago. It is on sale for $5.00 for the rest of this month, and then it will go up to $6.00 on March first. If you “like” my Facebook page you will hear right away when new patterns are out, and there are also occasional coupon codes for my Ravelry store that I only post on my Facebook page.

You can find the Emma skirt on Ravelry, Craftsy, Etsy, and Crochetville. Even though all the photos are kids, this pattern does go from child small to adult 5x. It is worked top down (with my unique less~bulky crochet waistband) so it is easily made to the length you want!

Oh, and there were some snaps of the Katherine Coat as well. The testers are making good progress, I am still planning on releasing this pattern by Easter. So start saving up for a large yarn purchase now!

I also needed a photo of myself. My wonderful mentor, Andee Graves, told me I need to put my face on my business cards (and all my social media avatars/profile pictures.)

One more fun thing to tell you!! Remember the In Love With Color Throw I designed for Red Heart?

Well, I checked with Red Heart, and they said it would be fine if I made video tutorial for each of the motifs to help you along as you create this colorful throw! So I will be recording away next week, with the goal of putting up a post with all the videos by the end of the week! I would LOVE to share some photos at the bottom of that post showing off the blankets YOU have created so far with this pattern. I know some of you have. I’ve seen them over on Facebook!! If you would like your In Love With Color Throw to be shown off at the bottom of the video tutorial post, then share your photo over on my Facebook page, and let me know you would like it in the Video Tutorial post on JessieAtHome. Be sure to include your Facebook page, Ravelry profile, blog, or crafty website that you would like the photo to link back to.

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

0 comments

Shhh…It’s a sneak peek…

January 24, 2014| Family, Fantasy, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

I have finally found a photographer to work with!! I had been looking for a college or high school student photographer to team up with for a while. I like the idea of being able to provide someone just starting out with a way to expand their portfolio, and get some advertising/publicity. It turns out there is a young woman who lives just few blocks from me who fits that bill! Her name is Emily, do you want to see some of her work? Here it is.

Over the next few months you will start to see her photos featured in my patterns. I also am hoping to get some shots of myself for a new business card (my mentor told me to put my face on my card,) and also some shots of my Katherine coat. I have shortened the hood so it actually stays on, and finished the belt and pockets since this photo:

The Katherine pattern is currently with my testers. My goal is to have it up on the sites and ready to sell by Easter. In the mean time, you can always make some coats for the little ones! You can find the Kat Coat in child sizes on Ravelry, Craftsy, and Etsy

That way, by the time fall arrives again you can have a family set!

So…testers…Do you want to see what they are up too? Look at all the fun colors for the Katherine coats they are creating!

And here is the progress of a few of them:

Katherine-Top-Lisa — Lisa has a cool collection of blues and greens for her coat.

Katherine-Top-Dianne — Dianne is using fun contrasting colors.

Katherine-Top-Brittany — Brittany is using whatever yarn fits her mood each time she has to change color.

Aren’t they fun?!

I have made a bit more progress on my fan shawl. I will leave you with a photo of that. Have a nice weekend!

©Copyright 2014 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

0 comments

Holiday Catch Up!

December 24, 2013| Cooking, Costume, Crafts, Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Holidays, Knit, Medieval, Winter

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Wow, things have been busy around here. I have some exciting news I should be able to share with you next month(ish). Between that and Christmas, I got a sort of neglected my blogland friends this week.

I still love you!!

I have lots o’ pretty pictures to share with you, so how about I just post them all with a bit about them and leave it at that. It is Christmas Eve and all…

If you hover over the pictures, a short description will pop up, as always! You can also click on the pictures to see them larger.

The Holiday Gift Shop at the girls’ school was at the beginning of the month. It went quite well. Vada had fun playing in my booth while waiting for things to wrap up at the end of the day.

A couple of weeks ago we bought our Christmas tree. We got all bundled up and went off to the nursery around the corner.

I found this in with Kyla’s school work one day. I thought it was so sweet to see this note her teacher left for her.

The girls both made Christmas lists last week. Vada wants a Hess truck, and an ornament, but not a breakable one.

Kyla wants a Sophia Doll, a Mommy Toy, a Rudolph Toy, and a Firestar Toy. A Mommy toy is a doll that looks like Mommy, so when I am not home and she misses me, she can hug it. I hope she is not too upset when Santa does not bring her a Mommy toy.

Last weekend was the Yule celebration with our Medieval group. We all had a great time. I was given the Order of the Artisan, which I apparently was supposed to get over a year ago, but every time they had the award for me at an event, I was not there. Oh, and at the end of the event, I took the leftovers of Marsha’s yummy hummus, along with her bowl. That way she has to come and visit me!

We made cookies today. Santa needs cookies.

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

0 comments

Katherine Hood, take 2

November 18, 2013| Crochet, Fantasy, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

I am determined to finish the Katherine coat and pattern this week and start testing it! It has been in the same state as it was when I wore it to the Knit and Crochet show for over a month!

The hood was a bit too long. It was very fun, but it just wouldn’t stay on, so I frogged it. See, here is the hood:

It didn’t stay that way for long. I rewrote the pattern so that it was only half as long (still down to the waist) and got to knitting! Kyla was helping me with it on Saturday night.

Oh, and about Kyla…Doug walked the girls to school on Veterans Day. His school district had off, but ours did not. On the way, Kyla tripped over his foot and smacked her head on the sidewalk rather hard. She had quite the bump! It is almost gone now, but the bruise is falling as it heals, so now she has little green spots on the inside of her eyes.

While she was helping me with hood, she decided it was time to ham it up for some photos.

I have a few patterns to get written up for you. They are a hat in 2 strands of chunky yarn, and another similar hat in 2 strands of worsted weight. Also corresponding scarves or cowls. They work up very quickly (around an hour) and are great for gifts! I would like to have these patterns up this and next week. However I also have a few other deadlines, so we will see.

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

0 comments

Once more into the breech

August 28, 2013| Crochet, Fantasy, Knit, Tea

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Hello my friends! Do you remember how far I had gotten on the Katherine Coat over the spring/summer? Well, here she is now:

That’s right, I frogged the whole coat. It had to be done. I took a couple of weeks and re~wrote the entire pattern, I did warn you I was going to do that. I am much happier now. I was not impressed with the boxy look of the coat on the first go around, and I want to provide you with the best possible patterns.

So yesterday the time came to once again cast on for Katherine.

It was so nice to finally get the Berroco Vintage Chunky yarn back on my needles. I was quite giddy at the thought of finally having my very own faerie frock! Even with everything else I had to do yesterday, I still managed to get almost down to the underarms yesterday!

I would REALLY love to be able to wear this coat to the CGOA/TKGA conference in October. I have also been working on another free pattern for you. Do you want a peek?

These are the first 4 attempts. As you can see, the pattern changed a bit with each go. I am finally happy with it and ready to make more and write out the tutorial. It will need some blocking to get a good shape.

The other day was a fun Fiber Arts Day at InsaniTea. I thought it would be fun to yarn bomb some old chairs. So I started with a leg.

I took some pictures of my various goodies for sale at InsaniTea. I love this way of displaying the Tea Cup coasters!

These are in the window. More of the coasters along with some bunting made from the same pattern.

Ingrid loves to keep these bracelets right at the register. They sell pretty well. I need to make more!

I have a bookshelf full of pretties for sale.

I also recently put up a display next to the bookshelf. I bought the various parts from a Blockbuster that was going out of business. Going out of business sales are a great way to get display and organizational items!

There are quite a few Natalie Wraps and Shawls for sale!

Way back…oh, maybe 2 years ago…one of Ingrid’s checkers from her table top checker board went missing. Various items have been used to replace said checker. I decided it was time for my solution. We’ll see how long it lasts. I should really sew a label on that guy. Free advertising!

I am leaving the chair at InsaniTea with a sign about the Fiber Arts group. I would love for more people to show up, so this seemed like one way to advertise.

I managed to get three legs done. I work a bit slower over there. I tend to socialize a lot.

So, here is some fun news for you! I will be the guest on tonight’s Cre8tion Crochet Live. Tune in at 9 pm Eastern for fun with Lorene and I. Not only that, but 2 or 3 chances to win 3 of my patterns!! There will be a winner chosen during the show from those in the chat room attached to the show. I will also pick one or two more winners tomorrow night. If you want to be one of those winners here is what you have to do: Watch the show. I will ask a question and tell you to post the answer as a comment to this blog post! Then tomorrow night (8/29/13) at 9 pm Eastern time, I will use a random number generator to chose a winner from the comments. Also, I am really close to 500 likes on my Facebook page. If I get there by tomorrow night, I will choose a second winner. So go and like my Facebook page if you have not already, and then go look through my designs (knit or crochet) and decide which 3 you want if you win! Don’t forget to tune into the show tonight for your chance to win in the chat room, and to find out the question to answer for your chance to win here. Good luck, my friends!

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

7 Comments

Chugga, chugga, chugga, chugga

August 16, 2013| Crafts, Crochet, Fantasy, Knit, WiP

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

That’s me, just chugging along. I try to do one thing at a time, but sometimes that doesn’t seem feasible. Oh well, I just make the best of it and do what I can.

I received a special order for a Max hat. A couple saw them at InsaniTea, and fell in love, but didn’t see one in the size and color they wanted. So above is a picture of the cute colors they picked out for their 6~12 month Max hat.

Now, I do have a bit of a yarn problem, and my children seem to be enablers. So when we went to the craft store on Wednesday, we saw this fuzzy and bulky yarn in crazy 80’s colors, and couldn’t resist!

The fuzzy yarn (Premier Lash Max) is destined to become scarves for all of us, and the super bulky yarn (Read Heart Vivid) will become hats. Kyla has the pinks, Vada has the greens, and the blues are mine. We are going to be hard to miss this winter!

On the way back from the craft store we stopped at the market. We got a little happy in the dried fruit and nut section.

I think this is my favorite snack mix so far! Mmmm…

Oh, big news for you now.

My next pattern will be out by the end of the month.

It is a skirt! It is sized from child small to adult 5X. All my testers have finished theirs and turned in some beautiful photos. I just have to get some good pictures of myself wearing my skirt, and format the pattern so that the page breaks are in good places, and give it one last look over.

The dress form is too small for this skirt, hence the need for some good pictures of my skirt. This one has a draw string, but the pattern is written with my uber-cool and very unique waistband. It is less bulky the other crochet waistbands, and there is no fold over at the top to make it look messy. It is a great way to make an elastic waistband!

Here is a peak at a free pattern I am working on for you. It may be a while still. I need to futz with it a bit still, and make many more!

OK…Let’s chat a bit about the adult version of the Kat coat. First off, rather then continuing to call it “the adult version of the Kat coat,” I have finally giving it a name ~ Katherine. It makes sense to me!

I started this pattern a while ago, but I was just not happy with the look. I decided I needed a bit of a refresher on the best way to get the look I wanted, so I took this fabulous class from Craftsy:

It was just what I needed. I really knew most of it already, but sometimes we need a little reminder. Plus, she did have a few things to teach that were new to me, and better then what I had been doing. Craftsy has some GREAT classes. Some are free, some you buy, but all that I have taken are really worth it!

Anyway. I have started over with the pattern. I want to be sure it has the finished look I want. As always, I am using the Craft Yarn Council standards for my measurements. This is what the knit and crochet guilds of America approve, and therefor what I use.

I have finished most of the math at this point, so now it is time to re~write the pattern and test it out myself before sending it on to my testers. Plus I will need to take process photos, and maybe add in a few helpful videos as well, for those of you who like videos in your patterns.

Well, I have much to do, so I will share more news with you another day. Have a wonderful weekend, my friends.

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

2 Comments

WiP Wednesday 3/6/13

March 6, 2013| Crochet, Scarves & Cowls Crochet, Fantasy, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

I can’t believe it’s Wednesday already. It seems like I just can’t fit enough into the days! Well, here we have a bit of my Wips, and some finished objects as well.

I have made a few more ruffle scarves for street fair season.

I have been working on red and black Max hats for my friend who wants to put them in his dojo gift shop.

Lots of spa sets being made. I plan on releasing the last pattern tomorrow or the next day.

A few days after that I should put up a post with links to all of the spa set patterns.

I have been having fun hanging the bath poufs everywhere!

I am thinking of making a bunch of these to go cup cozies for street fair sales.

I have finally finished the sleeves and collar on my Kat coat.

Now it just needs a zipper, and a hood, and a skirt, and a belt, and some pockets. But it’s getting there!

Vada seems to have acquired this little plastic lizard, I think it was in a goodie bag from a classmate’s birthday. Vada says she keeps it to look at when she wants to remember Princess. Did I tell you Princess died a few weeks ago? She had a long life for a little lizard. The girls handled it very well.

I will leave you with this cool picture. I believe it is actually fabric covering this chair and ottoman, but it sure is cool and yarnie~looking!

Well, I should get this posted before it isn’t Wednesday anymore!

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

2 Comments

WiP Wednesday ~ 2/27/13

February 27, 2013| Crafts, Crochet, Fantasy, Knit, Tea, WiP, Woodworking

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Well, it’s Wednesday again. That means it’s time for me to share what I have been up to for the past week. As the girl’s vacation wrapped up, Doug and I made a cover for the radiator in the back corner of the playroom. I wanted them to be able to sit and read and have a place to lean against.

We made the cover out of scraps of lumber found in our garage. It’s not the prettiest thing in the world, but it works. The girls were very happy to have a little reading nook.

Sunday was an InsaniTea day! I wasn’t sure if I was going to make more rainbow bracelets, or if I was going to work on the never ending K1P1 scarf.

The scarf won out. Knit one. Purl one. Knit one. Purl one. I was actually quite happy when a friend I hadn’t seen in several months showed up! It was so nice to catch up.

I have been working on the adult version of the Kat coat. Here it is ready for sleeves. And a collar. And a hood. And a skirt. And maybe a pocket or two. Oh, and a belt and zipper. OK, so it’s only just started…

The pattern includes a variety of sleeve options. Fitted, straight, flared, belled, reg length, mitt length… Mine has a straight sleeve, mitt length, with a thumb hole.

Progress is being made! I hope to have the other sleeve and maybe the collar by the next WiP Wednesday.

Yesterday I had to go to the laundry mat. We are hoping to have our new (to us) machine here in a week or two. I’ll be glad to be washing laundry at home again. While at the laundry mat, I worked on another sample for my next skirt pattern.

I have been working on the head forms I told you about. I now have 3 infant size forms. They are all about 15″ around. I ended up using a 4.5mm hook to get the 15 1/2″ I wanted for my fitting form. I will use the front one here for fitting patterns and photos, and use the other two for displaying hats at InsaniTea and craft /street fairs.

Today I have been working on my Spa sets. Here are a few bath poufs, and mitts. I should be posting the pattern for the mitt in the next day or two.

I have also been making a few ruffle scarves. I made some with this pattern, and I made some just by single crochet 4, ch1, turn repeat.

I should get back to spa sets. Have a nice evening!

©Copyright 2013 Jessie Rayot / Jessie At Home All my videos, patterns and posts are my own work. Do not copy them in any way. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

1 Comment

Thank you Katwise

February 3, 2013| Family, Fantasy, Friends, Stories

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

It’s not enough. Just saying thank you. But it is all I have.

You all are familiar with my Kat Coat pattern. I know I told you it was inspired by Kat of Katwise, and her beautiful upcycled sweater coats that can be found at her Etsy store.

(more…)

1 Comment

Frenzied Friday & Spectacular Saturday

February 2, 2013| Crafts, Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Friends, Organizing, Tea

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Yup, an interesting couple of days over here. Friday morning, after dropping off the girls at school I made a run to the local Girl Scout council. I had to pick up all the Daisy uniforms. The girls are going to be so cute, but boy were those boxes heavy!

(more…)

0 comments

I missed a few…

December 18, 2012| Crochet, Scarves & Cowls Crafts, Fantasy, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

As I have been organizing my blog and my patterns, it has come to my attention that I have missed sharing a few patterns with you. What a sad thought! I love to share. So here they are!

First is the Tosh Chain Scarf. (more…)

0 comments

What a week!

December 11, 2012| Coffee, Crafts, Crochet, Family, Fantasy, Holidays, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Last week was quite long and short, all at once. Do you know what I mean?

Before I get into it, I should share that I finally released my Fanny skirt pattern. I am having a give away for any one of my patterns (winners get to choose which one they want) over on my facebook page. (more…)

0 comments

New patterns!!!

April 9, 2012| Clothes, Costume, Crafts, Crochet, Fantasy, Knit

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

Finally! New pattern day is here. Here is a bit about each pattern with a “buy now” link for those of you who can’t wait to get started. I will let you know the full price, but if you buy any of the patterns from the links here you will get a 15% discount through Wednesday, April 11th at 6pm Eastern time. After that the links will charge you full price. These links, and going directly to my Ravelry store, will give you immediate access to the pattern PDF to download. You may also go to my Etsy store, where everything is listed at full price, but you can type in the coupon code “bloom” to receive 15% off your entire purchase, not just the new patterns. Just be aware when you buy a pattern from Etsy, you will have to wait until I receive the notification email of your order at which time I will send you an email with the pattern PDF as an attachment.

ETA: The sale is over at this point, though there are others on occasion These patterns can also be found in my Craftsy Store.

So without further ado; here are the new patterns! (more…)

0 comments

Story Time at School

March 15, 2012| Fantasy, School, Stories

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of these links I will be compensated. Thank you.

The girls and I went on a little adventure yesterday afternoon.

Doug was working on reading to children with his public speaking class. They wanted a practice audience before some of them got to go over to the elementary school to read to a whole class full of little ones. (more…)

0 comments