"Hi I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs!!!!"

I spent A LOT of time trying to find the most *authentic* looking Olaf pattern. There are lots out there, but some of them just don't look like the real deal. Thankfully, One Dog Woof has a FANTASTIC Olaf pattern, and to top it off it's 100% FREE!
I've made him twice, and the second time I made just a few minor changes. I found that he was a little wobbly when I brought the head/upper/lower body to a full close at the bottom (down to 6 single crochet), so instead I stopped the pieces a couple rounds before the pattern suggests, giving the pieces a wider hole. That way I could sew them together at the final round of each piece. I found this really helped stabilize Olaf, but if you prefer to close all the way, that works well too (maybe you'll be more successful than me).
The first Olaf was a gift for a graduate, so I opted out of the hair and instead gave him a cute little grad cap. I just kind of guessed a pattern for this, but basically I made a long strip, sewed it into a ring, and then crocheted a square and sewed it on top. I also gave him a cute tassel in my high school's colors.

Some people are worth melting for. :)

Ooooooooooooooooooooo Tannenbaaaaaaauuummm

I'm home for Christmas and I couldn't be happier to crochet and sleep and eat and do very little else. I took a small small small break from making things for other people to make myself this sweet little Christmas tree. The pattern is FREE and comes from Pops de Milk. I saw it and decided I just had to have one, especially since I have so many buttons. I added a pom-pom to the top instead of a star, mostly because I didn't have a star haha. Here's mine:

Merry Christmas!!!

FREE Printable Tags

Since I started crocheting for friends, I have found that a lot of them like to give my creations as gifts. I LOVE that they feel like these make good gifts, but I wanted to make sure that the receivers of those gifts knew the work was mine. I found these FABULOUS free printable tags on Pinterest thanks to the wonderful Everything Etsy. I bought some brown card stock from Michaels, and printed a whole bunch of them to attach to my creations. I love how they look professional but also personal. They come in all different shapes and sizes, but I've found that the round ones best fit my needs (mostly because they are small). I just punch a hole in them and attach them with a little bit of yarn and a knot!

Polar Bear Twins!!

I made these for a friend's niece and nephew and I am TOTALLY OBSESSED with how they turned out!!! I think they are just sooooooo sweet and will make such a perfect Christmas gift.

I used the Leopold the Polar Bear pattern from Amour Fou and I loved every minute of it. I am a HUGE fan of amigurumi that is done largely in one piece - it means less sewing for me and therefore a more sturdy finished product. I also think they just generally look a lot neater and more even. The scarf on the pattern is knitted, but as we have already established, I am not a knitter! So, I crocheted the scarves on these guys. I made them really long so that I could double them over and tie them, imitating the scarf in the pattern.

I also used buttons for the eyes rather than safety eyes. I use buttons on most of my amigurumi. I like how they look, but also in order for me to even get my hands on safety eyes,  I'd need to order them since no place in town sells them.

I added a smile to snout as well, even though there's not one in the pattern. I just thought it would make them look friendlier!

Music, Crafts, Books and Cults

I always start writing projects but I never finish them. I love to write and I think I have a lot of things to say about a lot of *topics* but all I can never manage to actually *post* are Facebook statuses and Tweets. I spend a lot of time worrying that what I'm writing isn't good enough when it doesn't really matter since probably there are a lot of people out there that are worse writers than me. So I'm going to share some things about ME and what this blog may or may not be about.

FIRSTLY, I am Hayley and I'm 22 years old. 

I have a BMus from MUN (I was a piano major) and am currently in the first semester of a 1 1/2 year Music Education program (also at MUN). I guess that makes me a musician, a student, and a teacher, by trade. I've been at the musician and student thing for a pretty long time, so hopefully I can offer some valuable info on those topics. 

I am also a major crafter. I am WAY INTO DIY, and I spend all my free time cross stitching or crocheting or doing some other crafty things. I am totally obsessed with all things crafty. A friend once called Michael's (the craft store) my "place of worship." I am obsessed. I'll probably talk about that a lot. You know, since I'm obsessed.

I LOVE to read and I watch A LOT of Netflix (mostly while I'm crafting). I read a lot as a kid and I make an effort to read during the school year but sometimes it's tough. I try to always have a book going, even if it takes me a little while to get through it. I binge watch a lot of TV shows while I'm crafting and I love a good Netflix documentary about cults. Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you about how much I love cults. It's weird. It doesn't make any sense. Cults are kind of creepy. Anyway, I love em.

So that's me I guess. We'll see what happens. I need to let my brain live outside my body for a while so I'm hoping this might be a good way.