Introducing Cro-Shayley

Hi Red Heart Blog readers!

My name is Haley and I love love LOVE to crochet. You can call me Crochet Haley, or how about this, Cro-Shayley!? Ha! -- I'm a dork and I know it! I'm also very random and I ramble on and on so since I'm new to blogging, please bear with me as I try to get to the point.

I learned to crochet about 2.5 years ago when I started working for Red Heart/Coats & Clark. I had no intentions of becoming an avid crocheter as I thought needlecrafts were for shhhh, whisper this... old people. (No offense you old-timers, just being honest here). But, boy was I wrong! When I walked into the lunch room one afternoon and saw the awesome things that the not-so-old people were making, I was hooked! Get it? With the help of my very nice and patient co-workers, I now am able to follow patterns and the items I make actually come out right! Woo-hoo! What an awesome feeling that is.

One word of advice that a very wise needlecrafter gave me that I must relay to you is to make things for people who appreciate the hard work you put into it. How very true! Have you ever made something for someone and when they opened the gift you could totally tell by the look on their face that the item was going straight to a dresser drawer and never pulled out again? (Insert your disappointed face here) :( But hey, you learn from experience, right? Next time, no more gifts from the heart for that person. They'll get a card!

Anyhow, back to what's important here... crocheting. Once I got the hang of it, I decided to try some fun and easy patterns. I have 2 nieces and 3 nephews to use as guinea pigs so I make tons of things for them. I subscribe to Crochet Today Magazine and shooo-weee, my to-do list won't stop growing. I need more hands and more time in the day to make their ohhhh-so-many fantastic projects. But, I found my passion so BRING IT ON Crochet Today!

Here are a few Crochet Today projects I wanted to share that I have completed in the past few months. Many many more to come! I'm still learning and getting more crochet experience so my projects don't always turn out perfect. You'll see... read on.

Growing up in a baseball family, I thought how perfect this Spring Training Cap woud look on my little nephew, Chandler. I hand embroidered the letter "C" to personalize it.

SpringTrainingCap ChandlerCap

You know you are getting good at a hobby when someone makes a request! My husband and his brother are golfers and both were in need of some Golf Club Covers. My brother-in-law wanted a "W" added to his to personalize it.

GolfClubCover WCover

My nephew, Wynn, received this Giraffe Hat when he was just a few weeks old. How fun is this?

GiraffeCap WynnGiraffe

This past Christmas, my nephew Walt, received this Rudolph Hat. My gauge was a little off on this project, so it fit perfectly on my sister-in-law. Ooops! He'll grow into it right?

RudolphHat SILRudolph

I made this Little Bo' Baby Sheep Hat for a friend who is due next week. The theme for the baby girl's room is lambs so when I saw this pattern, I just had to make it! Hope this one fits better.

BoBabySheepHat