The Craft Yarn Council approached me again this year to create a new pattern for Stress Awareness Month (which was April!) after the success of our Lemon Stress Ball. This year, I decided to GO BIG with this huggable and squishable Lemon Pillow! We’re using big yarn and a big hook, so this big project should go by more quickly than you think. I have a video tutorial on YouTube for the visual learners, and the free pattern is below. A friendly, printable PDF has been available on stitchawaystress.com for the past few weeks, plus they have a knitted version, too!

I hope you have lots of fun adventures with your gigantic lemon!

crochet pattern by Twinkie Chan

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Creativebug.com added this cute crocheted carrot to my Fruits & Veggies crochet classes! I was going to wait to post about it until I had time to whip up some more carrot samples and take cute photos, but I wanted to let you guys know sooner rather than later! I LOVELOVELOVE seeing all of your finished projects from my patterns and classes, and I know you are going to love this addition to your fruits & veggies amigurumi collections! Click to see all my classes at Creativebug. –> Crochet Time!

(This post contains affiliate links, which means, if you make a purchase, I’ll get a tiny portion of the sale.)

Warning: amazingly cute yarn ahead!

The folks at KnitCrate asked if I might want to look at one of their yarn subscription boxes. I’m kind of out of the loop these days and hadn’t heard of them, and I was really upfront about not being a full-time crocheter anymore. I don’t want to make promises I can’t keep about posting photos or video for other companies right now. But they were super nice and said they would just send me one and see, so I said ok!

Okay, so like was this perfectly orchestrated or what? Last month’s theme was SUGAR SUGAR, and they sent me this gorgeous yarn in a cotton candy pinky lavender. AND IT HAS SOME SPARKLE 😍.

You know I love some yarn that just looks YUMMY. With Knit Crate, there is a monthly theme (like Sugar Sugar), and you receive 1 of 3 surprise colorways. The box also comes with a link to that month’s knit pattern and crochet pattern. March’s crochet pattern was some adorable socks.

If you know me, I don’t really work with fingering weight yarn, nor do I ever make socks, but look how cute those socks are! I would totally wear those! Have you crocheted socks before? I’ve never tried. But this is the perfect opportunity to do so.

For the monthly subscription cost of $24.99, you get about $63 worth of yarn and patterns (plus coupon codes from the designers), and shipping is included, worldwide. I liked that I also got cards for Destashio – an online marketplace for buying/selling yarn that I hadn’t heard of – and information about a charity partner they work with so that you can donate any of your finished hats, scarves, wash cloths, etc. to refugees in the United States.

I was really pleasantly surprised by Knit Crate. They did provide me with free product, but I wasn’t paid to make a post. I’m mostly surprised by how much I loved the yarn (which was specifically hand-dyed for Knit Crate) and how cute I thought the project was. I don’t know that I honestly have enough time to try the sock pattern any time soon, but I’m jealous of any of you who are!

I actually just received the April Knit Crate yesterday! The theme is Golden Hour, and I’m going to open it right now!

Hello, friends! I know it has been super quiet on my blog, but that’s life with a full-time job… and a small attempt at a social life… plus maybe some sleep.

I do have some more surprises coming up, so don’t fret!

For now, I have a new pattern in my Etsy shop: this cute shrimp / prawn!

I guess it’s technically a prawn. Google the difference between the two. When it comes to how the different plates on the body overlap each other, this fella falls more into the prawn category.

I originally created this pattern for my friend Eat Me Do. You can read about that on this post here. Since they sold out, people have been asking me for the pattern throughout the years. To be honest, I’m not 100% happy with the pattern, but I haven’t taken the time to fix it. There’s nothing WRONG with it exactly, it’s just me being super anal about certain parts of it. BUT ANYWAY. It’s still a dang cute project, and I can’t wait to see all of yours!! And yes, everyone is saying that it would make a really cute cat toy. I don’t have a cat, so that’s not really my thing, but I can see how that would make a lot of sense, and you should do it up.

Each lil shimp prawn guy only takes about 10 yards of yarn, so it’s a great stash-buster and something you can finish in one sitting. Remember to tag me if you post photos so I can see!

A reader kindly let me know that my 3rd and final guest column for Simply Crochet Magazine is out now in the UK and online! Info on how to get your copy is here. I downloaded the Zinio version for my desktop!

The magazine editor usually asks me to write about what is currently inspiring me. As you may know, I’m working full-time now as the social media manager for a local company that designs women’s clothing, bags, and home accessories. I have much less time and energy to crochet than I ever could have imagined. My inspiration for the article was: LACK OF TIME. And how to fit crochet into your busy life. The article also notes that you can find bento buddy patterns in my Etsy shop. THIS IS MY PLAN. But they are not in there yet. My plan was actually to have in them in the shop before the holidays, but it just didn’t happen. My friend Candace is helping me design a booklet for the bento buddy patterns. She showed me a sample AND IT WILL BE SO CUTE. It’s gonna be worth the wait. I just have a few big projects I need to get out of the way first (something with the Craft Yarn Council, and a private commission), and then I will do my best to get back into the crochet seat for 2018. It’s been a rough transition, but I’m doing my best and also trying not to stress myself out… which is tough for a workaholic and perfectionist. Giving myself a break is not a forte of mine, but I know it’s important too, sometimes.

Ok, rant over! Thanks for your patience! More crochet soon, I promise!