We do the best we can to make ends meet. When our hearts are open, inspiration unfolds.
I call this Simply Collectible because I am looking to cherish every breath, every tear, every drop of rain, every bit of laughter and every morsel of life.
This isn't about me. It's about my son, Seth, and the therapies and education that will help him flourish!


7.27.2011

"Viper" Cat Toy

FREE Crochet Pattern~ "Viper" Cat Toy inspired by Seth's imagination of Kung Fu Panda's Furious 5. (I think it looks like a grass snake.)
Materials needed:          
  •  Worsted weight yarn                      
  •  I-hook
  •  Scrap Yarn

magic circle or ch 2

R1 sc 6
R2 sc 2 in each stich around
R3-4 *sc8, dec1* repeating from * to * around
stuff with scrap yarn
R5 sc in front loop around and around until you get to the desired length
fasten off & sew in the end if you desire.
Personally, I think leaving the tail out could add intensity for Kitty.
OR even stick a tassle on the end!

Doing this in the front loop only allows it to stretch out and it gets really skinny.


All the crochet patterns I have here are FREE. I have an Etsy store where I offer many more patterns for a suggested donation. 100% of proceeds go to benefit my son's therapies. 
If you feel lead to leave a donation, there is a secure Donation button in the right hand margin. It is secured by Paypal. THANK YOU!

7.18.2011

Changes for Seth's Schedule

Seth still doesn't have a diagnosis and we are still not concerned about it. He is 5 now and showing more signs of being GT (gifted and talented).

We had him at the fantastic private school (CSA) which busted him out of his shell and he began speaking more and following instruction. His "report card" was 100%. We couldn't be surprised because it was about recognizing letters and shapes. He has been reading since he was 2 and learned the basics of geometry at 3.
It's now time to focus on individual speech & occupational therapy.
CSA was group therapy- 4 hour intensive each day, 5 days a week.

We found a school for GT children. He needs to be speaking well enough to be evaluated for entry.
I don't even know the costs for this new school but I have an answer on the individual speech.

I need to sell about $400 a week to make this happen while Seth is at home. WOW.
If you are looking for my free patterns, please check the left margin and consider donating a dollar or 2 to our cause.

This is a new series of baby afghans coming in to play and I'm just waiting on the photographer to post those new images. I took this one in home because I just couldn't wait.
Ps. 37 is on my heart today!

7.15.2011

The Sun- Solar System Crochet Amigurumi Series- Free Patterns to Share

This pattern is from a Free Crochet Pattern Series for the Solar System.
My name is Celina and I operate Simply Collectible to raise money for my son's therapies. (There is a donate button to the right of this post if you wish to donate $2 or $3 to help us out? Thank you!

This is definitely a series. Go to the left margin to find other FREE patterns and posts including the patterns for Uranus & Neptune. Use these for a mobile, hang from the ceiling or just toss around. If you stuff them lightly, they will not roll very far and help encourage babies to walk, crawl and strengthen their upper bodies and core. 

I will be updating my notes as I add planets or satellites- per my son's request. Join my page. Join us. Share them. Pull out the scraps. Really, it's just a crochet pattern for a ball! I'm just changing the colors up and doing different sizes while I share my "experiment".

This was unbelievably fast and proving to be a great way to use up scraps. I actually increased my scrap stash with this one. See the picture below.

The characteristics of the Sun are such that with so many colors and so much movement it is difficult to imagine duplicating. I stuck with yellows, though I really wanted to add that "magma like" color. This is NOT to scale. Making it to scale would have been the size of a large beach ball. At this point, I'm throwing scale out the window. Hahaha

This one is the size of a large grapefruit. Not quite a medicine ball for a baby, but I think the large stitches would make it easier to hold. It might weigh as much as a burger.

Here are the colors I used for the sun. These were from random scraps so I can't tell you brand. I can only say they were all worsted weight yarn.
  • 2 strands of bright yellow with a tinge of orange
  • 2 strands of bright yellow on the lemon side.
  • 1 strand of off white
Once I started, Seth instantly said, "Sun spots!" and started bouncing about.

This ball hardly needs stuffing because it is as stiff as a rug. I joked with my husband that it could break a window. If you want to do this with one strand, see my suggestion that follows.

Essentially, follow the same size hook & succession as the patterns for Uranus and Neptune while increasing to Row 20, 25 or 30. (The link follows.) You will probably need about 10-15 rows of "single crochet around" before you start the decrease and it will probably take as long as a baby blanket. I only say that so you know your commitment. This 5 strand is stiff and a single strand would be very flexible.
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=239971539360235&comments

The Sun Crochet Pattern:

5 Strands of Worsted weight of your color preference
N-hook
Yarn Needle

magic circle or chain (ch) 2
R1  sc6 into the circle or first ch
R2  sc2 in each st around
R3  *sc1, inc*
R4  *sc2, inc*
R5-6 sc around
(Now work backwards.)
R7  *sc2, dec*
R8  *sc1, dec*
Decrease around until you can slip stitch shut, fasten off & sew in the tail.

These patterns are all free. If you feel lead to leave a small donation, we would gratefully appreciate it, but it is not necessary.
Thank you for having fun with me!
Visit my Etsy shop for fun patterns.

This is only 2 rows and it worked up in about 2 minutes.


I set aside WAY too much yarn for this. I barely got through 1/2 of this.

 A little blurry, but it turned out really cool! It is as thick as a rug and as heavy as a burger. GOOD workout for baby and their little fingers fit nicely between the stitches.

7.13.2011

Rockets, Planets & Stars. Oh My! Seth loves his new room.

For the last 3 mornings- around 4am- Seth wakes up chatting and laughing. He finally mentioned this morning that it's because he loves his new room. (I can't tell you how good that makes us feel.) He doesn't even want to go anywhere. Yesterday, I introduced latitude, longitude, degrees, the Equator & Prime Meridian while reviewing the different countries. I think we'll get him a globe today and a science workbook.
This is the rocket we put up in his room & in the other picture, he is holding Uranus.I sell these Rocket Kits, by the way. I just haven't posted them in my online store. Please contact me on Facebook. I will post the Rocket Kit online this week and come back to add the link here.
 

7.12.2011

Uranus & Neptune- Solar System Series Free Crochet Pattern

 
If you feel lead to donate toward my son's therapies- for which I sell my goods and patterns- you may add a donation using the donation button on this blog page to the right. This support assists us in so many ways. Seth will soon be taking individual speech/language & occupational therapy.

Recently, he was in a private school which, through group therapy, supplied those needs for 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. We will be selecting from 2 different schools and continuing with individual therapy within this next semester as he busted out of that shell and is needing a lot more information.

Thank you for your support!

Gratefully, 
Celina


It's taking a little time to get this down, but I think it will be so cute, it's worth sharing. There just aren't that many things out there to crochet for boys. This will be good for any age.

Stuff them slightly so they don't roll very far. That will encourage babies to strengthen their core, back, arms, legs... as they are forced to reach for it. Also, they don't roll so far that you have to worry about chasing it under the sofa or other furniture. PLEASE make sure they cannot fit in to Baby's mouth.

Uranus & Neptune
  • These planets are essentially the same size.
  • I made them both differently and they did not turn out the same size. No biggie as these will be for my son to play with. If they were for a customer, I would be more exact and use exactly the same method for both with different blues.
  • Uranus took some time- 2 days- using only one strand, but appears tighter.
  • Neptune, using 2 strands, was finished in 30 minutes.
  • The actual patterns will be in bold.
  • Suggestions or instructions will be in italics.

You can decide which suits you and your project better. If I use more than one strand on any given planet, I will give my recommendations to modify the pattern to be worked with a single strand for each of those planets. The main difference is that tighter look and like I said, it may not be important depending on your project. For my project, my son wants it now and I want it finished now. In the future, I will probably make the tighter ones for most planets as I would love to see how it looks.

PLEASE share your photos with us, on my Facebook page, of your completed planets or tag me when you post it. This is going to be too cute!

Pick one of the following for uniformity or do them differently. The idea was to get them the same size, but ultimately, it doesn't matter that much when it is a toy. Abbreviations are in the first note on my Facebook page: Solar System Amigurumi- Starting Tips.

Materials:
Worsted Weight Yarn
F-hook
Yarn Needle
Stitch Marker or Scrap Yarn 

Work in the round using your stitch marker to mark the beginning of your row. The asterisk (*) means to repeat that grouping until given another instruction.

The Pattern for tighter stitches:

magic circle or chain (ch) 2
R1  sc6 into the circle or first ch
R2  sc2 in each st around
R3  *sc1, inc*
R4  *sc2, inc*
R5  *sc3, inc*
R6  *sc4, inc*
R7  *sc5, inc*
R8  *sc6, inc*
R9  *sc7, inc*
R10-17  sc around
(Now work backwards.)
R18  *sc7, dec*
R19  *sc6, dec*
R20  *sc5, dec*
R21  *sc4, dec*
R22  *sc3, dec*
R23  *sc2, dec*
R24  *sc1, dec*
Decrease around until you can slip stitch shut, fasten off & sew in the tail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fast Method- Pattern using 2 strands of yarn:

Use an H-hook, hold 2 strands together.

magic circle or chain (ch) 2
R1  sc6
R2  sc2 in each st around
R3  *sc1, inc*
R4  *sc2, inc*
R5  *sc3, inc*
R6  *sc4, inc*
R7  *sc5, inc*
R8-11 sc around
R12  *sc5, dec*
R13  *sc4, dec*
R14  *sc3, dec*
R15  *sc2, dec*
R16  *sc1, dec*
Decrease around until you can slip stitch shut, fasten off & sew in the tail.

There it is!

Please share this pattern and continue the series as long as you like.

If you feel lead to donate toward my son's therapies- for which I sell my goods and patterns- you may add a donation using the donation button on this blog page to the right. This support assists us in so many ways. Seth will soon be taking individual speech/language & occupational therapy.

Thank you for your support!