Finished sweater, what’s next, and my tiny Christmas tree

I recently finished the lovely Rainbow Smiles sweater (pattern by Dora Does), and plan to pick up a couple more projects this weekend. It took me a bit longer than planned to finish this particular article, because I kept doing other projects ahead of it. So glad it’s done and I can finally enjoy it.

The sweater is a raglan style that uses double crochet. Instead of Dora’s fitted sleeve suggestion, I changed up the pattern and left the sleeves loose and “poufy” until a dramatic decrease before the cuffs. The cuffs are made using a simple front- and back-post double crochet rib stitch. The yarn is Cascade Heritage merino in Color# 5660 and Mothy and the Squid rainbow mini skeins. I’ll wear it in one of my future posts so you can see the “pouf.”

I’ve been thinking that I really miss making toys and amigurumi, so I have one in the works right now – it’s something I’ve wanted to make for several weeks and I will reveal something adorable in the coming days. I am also finishing up another sweater, a rib-stitched turtleneck in a vibrant fuchsia yarn that I can’t wait to wear. This weekend I will also start another hat! Busy, busy… These three projects should be easy to finish by the end of the year.

I hope to get back to paint sample art very soon, too. I’ve neglected it for too long, not because I’ve grown tired of it, on the contrary. It’s mainly because paint samples are really hard to get in South Korea. I love paint samples’ texture in my portraits, the whimsy of the paint color names, and their “rawness” when cut, so it would be hard to find a substitute for them, although I have been on the lookout for different kinds of paper that could still work for me in a similar way.

For now, I will leave you with some photos of my tiny Christmas tree! I crocheted a tiny tree skirt for it, rimmed with jingle bells.

In a near-future post, I will tell you about all my Christmas ornaments, which were hand-made by my Dad over the past 30+ years! He is still making them to this day, and I’ll share as soon as his newest one arrives in the mail. Happy Thanksgiving and Merriest of Holidays!