I'm sorry, you want me to what??

It was bound to happen. A failed "pin" attempt. I just didn't think it was going to happen this fast! I wanted so badly to make this scarf, but it was proving to be a lot more difficult than I had originally assumed. I have taught myself to do fun/challenging things in the past by using a combination of Google and YouTube (LOVE), but reading and understanding Chinese just isnt one of them. Have you ever tried to read a crochet pattern?? It is NOT English!

SCARF

Ch 32.

Row 1 (RS): Dc in 4th ch from hook (beginning ch counts as dc), *sk next 2 ch, (3 dc, ch 1, 3 dc) in next ch, sk next 2 ch, dc in next 2 ch; repeat from * across, turn—4 pattern repeats.

Row 2: Ch 3 (counts as dc here and throughout), sk first dc, dc in next dc, *sk next 2 dc, dc in next dc, ch 1, (dc, ch 1, dc) in next ch-1 sp, ch 1, dc in next dc, sk next 2 dc, dc in next 2 dc; repeat from * across, turn.

Row 3: Ch 3, sk first dc, dc in next dc, *sk next ch-1 sp, (2 dc, ch 3, 2 dc) in next ch-1 sp, sk next ch-1 sp, sk next dc, dc in next 2 dc; repeat from * across, turn.

Row 4: Ch 3, sk first dc, dc in next dc, *(3 dc, ch 1, 3 dc) in next ch-3 sp, sk next 2 dc, dc in next 2 dc; repeat from * across, turn.

Repeat Rows 2–4 until piece measures about 58"/147.5cm. Do not fasten off.

Joining Row: Fold piece, bringing first row up to meet last row, working in chains across opposite side of foundation ch and sts of last row (through both thicknesses), sl st in each st across to join piece into a ring.

Fasten off.

FINISHING Using yarn needle, weave in all ends. Block lightly, if desired.

HUH?? Ok, so I was able to decipher what most of this meant from my minimal experience in knitting and crocheting. I was then able to translate more of the pattern after googling some of the abbreviations secret codes seen above. So I decided to give it a go. Well, after ripping out the stitches and starting over twice, I decided that this was just too challenging for me right now and that I will have to come back to this scarf when I am more experienced. The pattern shown above is the actual pattern provided on the site...feel free to tackle this on your own. If you are successful, please share that with me! I would love to see your results!!

I still really wanted to make myself a new scarf. With the negative temperatures we have been having I am really glad I did!! I really like infinity scarves, and I wanted to crochet something rather than knit. What to do? I decided to google easy crochet infinity scarf patterns and I happened to come across this!  This is exactly what I wanted. BUT, looking at a video of a nice scarf isn't exactly going to teach me how to make said scarf. (For all you lazy people out there who didn't click the link, it's actually just a video of still images of the scarf being all like, "look at me, I'm a scarf!") So after some searching, I found a link to this tutorial video in the comments of the original video.

This video is actually a great starter video for people who are just getting started in their crocheting adventures. Once you can get past the instructor's eclectic nails, her directions are clear and concise and this was a very fun/easy scarf to crochet. She doesn't use any crochet jargon at all; unless you know of a crochet step referred to as "little loop," and to me, this added to the ease of the scarf.

Normally this scarf would probably take me about 3 hours total to make. But for some reason, it seemed like whenever I would sit down to work on it, Sam (my 4 month old) would decide it was time to cry for mommy. Therefore it took me the better part of 2 weeks to get this done. It was definitely worth it though; it just means I got an awesome scarf (that keeps me super warm) and I got to spend special time with Sam. Sounds pretty good to me!

This style was referred to as a "snood"...funny

Now, if I've learned anything from facebook (which is basically the source of most things I learn), it's that giveaways are definitely the way to get popular. Therefore, you guessed it....I'm having my first very own giveaway!! AND, if you're super smart, you probably already figured out that this giveaway will be for an infinity scarf to call your own! Entering is pretty easy. All you have to do is sign up to be a follower of my blog, share my blogpost on your facebook page, and then send me a facebook message letting me know that you did. The drawing for the winner will happen Wednesday night, January 30th and will be announced on Facebook. Good luck everyone!!!

Pincerely yours,

Rachel 

Family Time (aka An Excuse to Bake)

Those of you who know my family probably know that when we get together it's always a good-- and loud-- time. Someone is usually the butt of the jokes (my brother Noam), and there is almost always tons of laughter. This weekend happened to be one of those fun times. My older brother Adam recently got engaged to his fiance Ilana (whom we love and adore!), and this past weekend was their engagement party at my parents house. And of course, those of you that know my mother know that she gets a bit stressed out and crazy when planning for events like this (she baked for the entire last trimester of my pregnancy) and has been baking since they got engaged Thanksgiving weekend.

I decided to let this little shindig be an opportunity for me to explore my cake decorating skills. I recently took a cake decorating class at Michael's, and wanted to put my skills to the test. Truthfully though, I think I've learned more decorating techniques from youtube, but that will be an entire post on its own.

I've seen many different rose swirl cake tutorials on youtube and decided, you know what, I can do this! It seems pretty simple. Guess what? IT WAS! I am being 100% serious and honest when I say that if I could do this, you most likely can too! This was a very simple technique to learn as well as execute.

Decorating this cake was so much fun! My friend Amanda came over to help/hang out. She also ended up taking the awesome pictures shown below. Originally we were going to try to do an ombre effect with the frosting, but after hemming and hawing for a few minutes decided to just stick to one color. (An ombre cake is definitely on my list of things to do though! I hereby promise a future ombre cake.)

Once the frosting was made and the cake was dirty iced, it was time to pipe the roses! After the first row, I was getting nervous and skeptical about how this cake was going to come out. The frosting didn't feel right and the roses seemed wilted already :( .

The second row gave the cake more promise and I began to feel a bit less nervous about how it would turn out. I was still having an issue with the frosting though, and Amanda suggested that we add more powdered sugar. GENIUS! It worked! If you looked closely, you will see that the roses on top are smoother/cleaner than the other two rows.

The Finished Product

When that very last rose was piped, the cake truly came to life, as did Amanda and I. My husband can attest to this as he was studying for his bar exam in the basement. (Probably wasn't too helpful to have two grown women squealing like giddy schoolgirls in the kitchen). Needless to say I am very proud of how this cake came out, and can't wait for the next excuse to make one!

Here are a couple action shots, courtesy of Amanda's awesome photography!

The Final Rose (no Bachelors here)

The other cake that I decided to tackle for their party was a "Petal Cake." This cake was much more time-consuming, but just as rewarding to make. Each petal is individually made one by one. After the first 30 or so, it becomes more natural and the cake really starts to flow. I was so nervous while I was making this cake. Imagine the scene. It is Saturday night and my mom is running around trying to set up the house. Some of our very good friends came over to help set up, which was very nice, but also somewhat stressful. Let's just say there was a lot of pressure and I felt like I was on display while decorating this cake. Lots of questions and oooh's and aah's. All I wanted to do was decorate!! Come on people!

In the end, the cake came out very nicely. I was not 100% satisfied with the finished product, and was being really hard on myself about some imperfections that I saw. But, after taking a step back and looking at if from a different perspective, it truly was a beautiful cake.

You'll notice my petals go in the opposite direction than the cake I was trying to imitate...shoutout to all the lefties out there!!!

The engagement party was a blast, and it was so nice to have (practically) the ENTIRE family home at the same time! (My younger brother's girlfriend wasn't able to make it, we missed you Haviva!!!!!) Here's to Adam and Ilana! May they have a long, happy, and healthy marriage! Can't wait to party June 2nd!

Pincerely yours,

Rachel