My Carved Santa Featured in Zibbet's Fantastic Five!

What a great honor to have one of my Santa carvings featured in this week's Zibbet's Fantastic Five! 

Check him out here and be sure to check out all of the other items that made the Fantastic Five!

Have a great evening, everyone!  ~ Debra

Free Crochet Coaster or Mug Rug Pattern Thick, Absorbent Cotton!

These mug rugs or coasters would make a great (and super simple) Christmas gift for someone you know this year.  Just think of all of the gifts you can cross off of your list simply by whipping up a few mug rugs/coasters each day.

Very easy, very quick, very inexpensive.  Give them alone or tuck them into a gift basket - so cute! 

Note:  These are NOT your grandma's coasters!  These coasters (mug rugs) are triple thick, sturdy, absorbent and oh so modern!  :)

Teachers, coworkers, friends, and others will love these.   Give one or give a whole set in the colors they love and you'll know you've given something from your heart that they can use for years to come.

Here's how your finished mug rugs will look (I used Lily's Seaside and a mix of blues and greens):

Now, I've never written a crochet pattern and didn't use a pattern to make these so please bear with me and feel free to ask any questions.  I've been making my coasters like this for years with just a simple combo of stitches that I use for lots of projects. 

Finished size will be about 4 1/2" square.

Now for the supplies, you'll need:

cotton yarn (I really like Lily's Sugar 'N Cream) any 3 colors
any size crochet hook (I used a size H but gauge really doesn't matter)
tapestry needle to weave in ends

Working with 3 strands held together, Ch 11.

Row 1: Sc in second chain from hook and in each ch across, ch 1, turn.

Row 2: Hdc in second sc from hook, sc in next sc.  *Hdc in next sc, sc in next sc*.  Repeat from * across, ending with a single crochet at the end of row.

Repeat row 2 until desired size.  (I make mine square)  Do not turn.

Border:  Ch 1, sc evenly around perimeter using 3 sc in each corner.  Slip stitch to beginning border sc.  Finish off.  Weave in ends.

You will love the sturdy feel of these coasters (mug rugs).  They are nothing like the old fashioned, single strand coasters your granny made.  Btw, if you make these a little bigger you will have some great potholders!

AND you can make them in any color or combination of colors you like.  :)

Enjoy!

Have a great week, everyone!  :)

Debra

Finished Carved Santa Ornament with Light Blue Hat

Here's the little guy I painted yesterday.  Remember how he looked here?

What a difference a day makes! 

This my newest hand carved Santa ornament today:

Hand Carved Santa Christmas Ornament Wood Carving, Light Blue

 

I like the way he turned out - he looks happier than he did yesterday, lol.  What do you think?

 

You can see more pics of this guy by clicking the link above or clicking my shop here.  :)

 

Have a great weekend, everyone!  ~ Debra

 

One of My Newest Santa Carvings - Carved Santa Ornament

Here is my newest Santa carving.  He's a hand carved Santa ornament and I love his long, saggy hat and curvy beard. 

I carved him yesterday morning but got distracted later in the day.  I brought him into the studio and painted him today so I'll get some pics of him tomorrow to show you all of his finishing touches but this is what he looked like when he was still out in the woodshop.

Cute, huh?

 



I carved this Santa ornament using my favorite method to carve.  No pattern!  Just doodle on the wood and start chipping away - you'll end up with a one-of-a-kind carving every single time.  :)

 

I also have a few of the wooden tool handles carved so I'll try to post some pics of those tomorrow, too.

 

Happy weekend, everyone!!!  :)  ~ Debra