Why don’t you upcycle a canvas tote (or two) into a pillow? If you’re like me, you have a few canvas totes tucked away in a closet or drawer. If you don’t have a tote to upcycle, upcycle a tablecloth that has a pattern you like. I’ve re-purposed a tote and tablecloth for this pillow project.

Since the canvas tote was picked up in Amsterdam, the front of this pillow is a bit risqué; however, the other side is very tame. Each side of the pillow has its own personality!

My pillow form was 18×18 inches wide. After cutting the tote, I was left with a 14×14 inches wide image; therefore, I had to widen the sides to match the width of the pillow (plus 1-inch extra for 1/2-inch seams). I followed a great tutorial for adding sides to a square and mitering corners (picture-frame style). All corners of the pillow match – a miracle! The tutorial is very helpful!

I recycled a tablecloth to make the back of the pillow.

I love this tablecloth fabric, and its colors match those on the other side. Normally, I would have sewn a zipper into the bottom seam, but I did not have a zipper on hand that was the right color or length, so I sewed up the seam by hand. Here is an easy to follow tutorial for adding a zipper to a pillow cover. Zippered covers make cleaning so much easier.

My next project is to sew a smaller pillow with more of the recycled tablecloth material and red corduroy fabric. I’ll also add piping. I’ll let you know when that’s done.

If you recycle a canvas tote into a pillow, share a link in the comments section. I’d love to see what you’ve done.

It’s the Easter season and that means bunnies, chicks, and lambs. Choose one of these free knitted bunny patterns and knit an Easter rabbit for a child or yourself. I love knitted and crocheted toys. Often it is hard to part with a handmade critter after they are made. A bit of the maker’s heart and soul goes into the animal, wouldn’t you say?

Your guide to the free knitted bunny patterns above:

1. Big Cuddly Bunny
2. Bunny Nuggets
3. Knitted Bunny Pattern (made from a knitted square – even a beginning knitter can make this bunny)
4. Bouncy Bunny Sock Critter (on Lionbrand website, you may need to create a login if don’t already have one)
5. Rabbit
6. Edmund Bunny
7. Knit Bunny
8. Very Tiny Bunny and Very Tiny Bunny Clothes
9. Knitted Rabbits

Here is a bonus link – Tiny Baby Bunnies

Happy Knitting and Easter too!

These easy to make dill biscuits are tasty and a good bread to serve with salads, but I think you’ll like them enough to serve them with any meal. They are buttery and don’t need additional butter when served, but who doesn’t like extra butter?

Ingredients:

• 1 can Pillsbury Grands Homestyle Buttermilk biscuits
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tsp. dehydrated onion flakes
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped finely (I use scissors and cut the dill.)

Instructions:

In a microwave-safe glass container, add butter and onion flakes. Melt butter. Add fresh dill. Open the can of biscuits, roll each biscuit in the butter-onion-dill mixture, covering both sides of the biscuit. Place biscuits on an ungreased cookie sheet / baking pan. Bake according to the instructions on the can (350-degrees for 13-18 minutes).

There’s just a few more days until February 14th, Valentine’s Day. If you haven’t crocheted a heart or two for loved ones, it’s not too late. I’ve discovered several crochet heart patterns that I think are pretty. If you’re a beginner, take this opportunity to learn how to crochet hearts.

The nice thing about crochet, compared to knitting, at least in my experience, is that crochet is a much quicker craft. You should be able to crochet a few hearts in no time.

Here are links to the heart patterns above (you may need a Ravelry account to view a few of the patterns):

1. Springtime in My Heart
2. Sunburst Granny Heart
3. Heart x4
4. Crochet Valentines
5. Lacey Little Hearts
6. Colorful Circle Heart
7. Hearts
8. Hearts and Flowers
9. Hanging Hearts

I really like to crochet granny squares, and I’ve become particularly interested in the granny flower square motif. There are simple and complex patterns to choose from. In my search for interesting patterns, I found those above. You can learn more about each pattern at the links below.

1. Granny Square with a Flower
2. Crocodile Flower
3. Eight-pointed Flower
4. Square #64
5. African Flower Mandala
6. Sucrette’s Square Pattern
7. Starfire
8. Crown Jewels
9. Yarn Clouds Square

What is your favorite crochet motif? How do you typically use grannies? Do you work with shapes other than squares? What is your favorite way to join them?

Granny squares can be used to make afghans, scarfs, bags, garments, etc. There are no limits.

I had so much fun making this crochet baby sweater. The pattern for the sweater was designed by Linda Permann. You can find her pattern on Craftsy (see the class called Crochet: Beyond Rectangles) and on Ravelry (Beyond Rectangles Baby Cardigan).

For the large sweater, I used a 3.75 mm (F) crochet hook, 2 skeins of Naturally Caron Spa (0014 Deep Purple), and 1 skein of Naturally Caron Spa (0012 Foliage). You can find this yarn at Michael’s. I crochet tightly, so if you decide to use this yarn, I recommend you crochet a swatch as Linda directs.

The Amigurumi is based on a free crochet pattern called Pink and Cute.

I’m a big fan of Linda Permann’s patterns. They are easy to crochet, and the final products are lovely to look at. I can’t wait to crochet another baby cardigan. I’m also interested in crocheting a cardigan for myself. There are two sweater patterns by Linda in Interweave Crochet – Winter 2013 edition.