Have been so busy with personal swaps, Newbie swap, and trying to finish this month's project. I am sorry to say, and I apologize, for not looking at any one else's posts! Will look this weekend, I promise!

In the meantime, my work in progress, the crocheted purse. The crocheting is finished. Just have to add the handle and lining.

Just the purse. Notice the luscious ruffle? I love it!



I'm happy to say, once you get started with this, it goes very fast. It was very fun to do. And the effect was well worth the effort.

PM me if you want to do it and have questions. For the pattern here is the link:
http://crochet.about.com/npattern.htm

Okay, after two very intense and long days of sewing and sewing, and ripping then sewing then ripping more and sewing. . . I finished the skirt for a little girl who probably couldn't afford the latest fashion.



This looks easy, but the bottom piece, well it is over 250 inches long! Didn't think ahead about it.

Any way the little girl tried it on and swirled and twirled. She loved it.

redpopsicles I wouldn't want to hold everyone up, so I'll just wait until I can join round two.



have fun everyone!

PinkyK  --However, I use a very stiff fuseable interfacing that is only "sticky" on one side for just about every project simply because I got 5 yards of it on sale cheap.

PinkyK, I bought a bolt of the stuff, because I had "big" ideas for making little cases with zippers for my friends. . . only I have the whole bolt, and never did the cases. . .  Actually that's on the agenda for my vacation. So I will have tons more for stuff.

PinkyK, love the skirt and the jewelry on your link.

I still don't understand how you'd get a braid with backing. would you lay a giant piece of cloth on the handbag sized interfacing, then scrunch it into a braid shape and iron?

Hi, all!

Here are the button necklaces I have, as promised.

this is just a plain one. One of my niece's first attempts. I liked her color choice.




closeup:



this one was a cooperative effort. I did the big bottom, and my sister-in-law did the "lace" part:


Oh! the flat things are the buttons, we combined it with beads. I use two strands of thread. two through the beads, but through the buttons through diagonal holes.


Here we used beads, but grouped the buttons to look like beads.


This is the one my friends like the best. Actually, I get so many requests for this one, and it is the easiest to do. I thread all the buttons on my crochet ball. Then you do a chain stitch group, slide a button, repeat. This one is for my jeans. I did 5 stitches slid a button, throughout. You do this until you have 12 feet in length. You could make it shorter or longer, of course.



my friends like it as a bracelet, too:



So far I've been asked to do it with black crochet yarn and gold metallic yarn crocheted together. Then assorted metallic/brass buttons and a random number of stitches between them.

Another friend wanted all stretchy metallic elastic and black buttons. Another friend asked for nylon thread, so they looked like they are "floating."

It takes maybe an evening or two.

I'm ready to try your knotted necklace, and see what I come up with. Yours is lacier looking, less chunky.

This will be fun . . .