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The Challenge: Create a terra cotta pot person

The Twist::  It has to be displayed with a plant in the pot

Congratulations to Freddy Fernhead!  DIY Twisted Sister Erin completed her DIY Pot Person in 3 hours and spent only $15.00 on the craft.  Read more on her post – Erin’s Process: Freddy Fernhead.

Check out the finished project below!

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Read more about the competition’s post – Brenna’s Process: Who’s the Fairy-est of them all?.

Check out next week’s Challenge: What’s for Brinner?.

Thanks for voting!

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And the Winner is… The Challenge: Create a terra cotta pot person The Twist::  It has to be displayed with a plant in the pot…

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  Oh. My. Gosh. Can I just say that this is my favorite challenge so far?  I have seen images of these little terra cotta lovelies on Pinterest and always gazed upon them with a grin on my face because they are so durn CUTE! #durnisaword  This project put a spring in my step and a light in my heart.  I now know how to cure the world of all its sickness.  Just have everyone create their version of a Freddy Fernhead and display him on their front porch.  I dare the neighbors not to smile!  So. Flipping. Cute!!!!  I just can’t say it enough!  I had everyone in the house “oooh-ing” and “aaah-ing” and making cute little baby noises every time they walked by and saw my progress.  I really hope you try this craft, that you enjoy creating your little character and that you love the results as much as I do.

Materials:

12 – 1” pots

4 – 1” saucers

2 – 6” pots

Jute or twine

Stick or large pin

Paint

Plant

Newborn baby clothes

Potting soil

Instructions:

Drill all the holes in the pots:  My 1” pots had tiny little holes in the bottom that were not big enough for my jute to fit through, so I had to take a masonry bit and drill bigger holes in the bottom of all of the 1” pots.  Be sure to keep the pot wet so you don’t ruin your drill bit or crack the pot.   I also took one of the 6” pots and drilled 2 holes on either side of the pot about 1” up from the bottom of the pot.  These are for the arm holes.

Cut 2 long lengths of jute.  You can trim them later, but make them a couple feet long.

Fold the jute lengths in half and tie them at the middle to the stick or large pin. (Note: the stick must fit inside the bottom of the 6” pot, but not fall through the hole in the bottom.

Pull the ends of the jute out the hole in the bottom of the 6” pot without the armholes.  There should be 4 lengths of jute coming out the bottom of the pot.

Flip the 6” pot with the armholes upside down (so that the arm holes are positioned higher).  Pull all 4 jute lengths through the hole of the 2nd 6” pot.  Take 2 of the lengths and pull one out each arm hole.

Using a hot glue gun, glue the bottoms of the 2 6” pots together. The top pot will be the head.  The bottom pot will be the body.

Dress the body of the pot.  I used newborn baby clothes.  First I pulled the shirt on, stringing the jute lengths for the arms out the arm holes of the shirt and cut it at the bottom of the pot.  I then used mod podge to secure the clothes to the pot.  After the shirt is secured, I put the pants on the pot.  I cut them off long enough to wrap them up the inside of the pot.  I modpodged the pants to the pot and then modpodged over all the clothing to make it waterproof.

Cut the remaining pants into strips and wrap around 6 of the 1” pots.  Modpodge the fabric to the pots and then modpodge over the fabric to make it waterproof.

Using the jute lengths coming out the bottom of the pot, run each length through 3 of the 1” pants covered pots.  Tie a knot inside the last 1” pot to secure the pots onto the jute.  You can make this length as long or as short as you desire.  Trip the remaining jute.

Using the jute for the arms, run each length through 3 of the 1” pots, wrapping the sleeves of the shirt around the pots.  You can hot glue your arm pots together if you wish.  You can also hot glue the arms to the side of the body to keep them in place if you wish.   Tie a knot in the jute to secure the arms in place.  Trip the remaining jute.

Hot glue the saucer to the bottom of each 1” pot.

Paint the face.

Insert the plant in the top pot.

Now is that not the cutest thing EVER?  I hope you try this and love it.  It has brought me so much joy, I just might have to keep making these things!!!

          Erin’s Process: Freddy Fernhead Oh. My. Gosh. Can I just say that this is my favorite challenge so far?  I have seen images of these little terra cotta lovelies on Pinterest and always gazed upon them with a grin on my face because they are so durn CUTE!

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The Challenge: To create a game.

The Twist: The entire game; board and pieces must be homemade.

Congratulations to…it’s a tie!  DIY Twisted Sisters Brenna and Erin both created uniquely twisted homemade games.

Check out the finished projects below!

Checker this out!

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Run, Run, Run!

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  Check out next week’s Challenge: Who’s Your Pot Person? .

Thanks for voting!

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Did you vote for your favorite DIY game? Check out who won last week's craft challenge! The Challenge: To create a game. The Twist: The entire game; board and pieces must be homemade.

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Have you voted yet? This week's #craftchallenge pits a weight bar against sweat bands, which do you prefer #workingout with? #diytwistedsisters

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Reveal: Working Out is Hard to Do

Reveal: Working Out is Hard to Do

The Challenge:  Make something for a workout

The Twist:  No crochet! Must be handmade.

Challenger: Brenna Name of Project: Hot for Yoga

This challenge was just that, CHALLENGING!  Not only did I have to reacquaint myself with a barely used sewing machine, but I had a lot of trouble finding the right material.  Who knew there were so many versions of Terry Cloth?  I actually made two sweatbands…

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  My little sister has always been really good about exercising.  I would venture to say that out of the (how many kids in our family?  7?) seven of us, she is probably the most health conscious and in the best shape.  Does it make a difference that she is also the youngest?  #ageisastateofmind  I also like to work out, but sadly, I definitely feel my age. #ageisastateofmindunlessyouare50   When I do exercise, I give it my all.  That’s probably why I’m always in pain…. Sigh!  For this challenge, I actually did two projects.  The firs project was to make a miniature set of parallel bars (paralettes).  I only made them because I saw some on Pinterest and thought they looked cool <smirk>.  They were really fun to make – kind of like putting together a puzzle.  And it was very simple (Hint:  Make the guys at the store cut your PVC for you.  They weren’t entirely happy that I asked them to make so many cuts for me, but it would have been 1000 times more difficult if I had to cut my own!).  Check out this great infographic for details: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/310396599297458590/

And here is my result:

What a fun little project!  But, I didn’t feel like I met the spirit of the challenge.  Maybe it was just too easy.  And, I really wanted to come up with my own idea.  I feel dishonest if I make something I copied from Pinterest.  And then – WHAM! – I got my idea!  And I KNOW it is a WINNER!!!! #Ilackconfidence #humbleismymiddlename

I came up with the idea to make my own heavy bar.  I know – brilliant, right?!  Seriously, I was so excited about this idea.  It may be even more simple than the paralettes to make AND I’m pretty sure I came up with this idea on my own! #Ihadanoriginalthought

Time: 10 minutes

Cost: $5.00

Materials:

1 – 3 ft section of 2” PVC pipe (I found pre-cut pieces at Home Depot)

2 – 2” caps

~ 5 cups redimix (concrete mix)

PVC glue (I bought the kind that can do in one step vs 2 steps)

Spray paint

Markers

Process:

Folks, this could not have been easier!

Spread glue around the inside of one of the end caps and around the end of the PVC pipe.  Slide the cap on the end of the PVC pipe.

Wait about 10 minutes to make sure the glue is good and dry and then fill the empty PVC pipe with the redimix.  Tap the pipe on the ground to help the redimix settle so you can completely fill the pipe up with the redimix.

Repeat step 1 for the other end of the pipe. The heavy bar is made.  You can be done if you want.   The rest of these steps were strictly for aesthetics.

Spray paint the heavy bar and let it dry.  I used a nice clean white primer.

Using your markers, write inspirational messages to yourself to read as you are exercising.

That’s it!  Isn’t it awesome?

  Erin’s Process: Pain is Gain! My little sister has always been really good about exercising.  I would venture to say that out of the (how many kids in our family? 

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Remember that workout series, Sweatin’ to the Oldies?  Richard Simmons was my mom’s guru, and as a pre-teen, I remember doing the dance moves with her in our living room.  We’d shake our hips and wave our arms.  We’d kick our feet out like the Rockettes we thought we were (even though we’d barely make it to hip height), and whoop and cheer each other on at the end of each song.  I hope I am not embarrassing my mom with these memories.  I am totally proud to say that Richard’s energetic aroma (can he give off an aroma from a VHS tape?) totally got me hooked on exercise, and made it a fun activity that has lasted for almost thirty years.

Fast forward (the VHS tape) to today…. exercise is still a ritual I have come to rely on, probably just as much for the mental benefits as the physical.  If I go a few days without a good sweat I start to get anxious, and I like feeling strong, like I could defend myself or my family if needed.  So when my back decided to spasm to the point of using my hubby as a crutch to shuffle across the room, I knew I was in trouble.  My jumping, sprinting, leapfrog, burpie exercise days were over (or indefinitely on hold).  I needed to reinvent my routine, and that is what I am in the process of doing.

This was my mind set behind the Let’s Get Physical challenge.  I was ready to get back into the game, or hit the yoga mat, and I wanted a little craftiness to motivate me.  After my first Hot Yoga class, I realized that the regular exercise towel might not cut it.  When you are in downward dog, or a balance pose, breaking your concentration and position to grab a towel is really distracting.  I needed something on hand, or wrist, literally.

A wrist band was an easy solution to come up with.  I know they are totally 80’s, but if they are practical and useful, then it shouldn’t matter if the style is retro.  Unfortunately, I went about making these things all wrong.

Let me first say that I am a very beginner sewer.  I own a sewing machine, and a few months ago pulled it out to practice sewing straight lines.  So prepping the sewing machine, winding the bobbin, and figuring out what all the different knobs meant, took more time than it did to sew the bands.

I found a “how to” pin from Craftsanity, you can read the blog post here.  I didn’t follow the directions completely, but she has a lot of good tips when making sweatbands.  First, she recommended using stretchy terry cloth.  I didn’t know there was more than one kind of terry cloth!  So the first 1/4 yard I bought was straight up towel fabric.  They didn’t stretch at all.

I loosely measured my wrists and cut three pieces about the same. I cut one of the pieces in half and the two pieces became a “middle” for the wristbands.  I folded the bigger pieces in half, lengthwise, and sewed along the long open end, and one of the shorter ends.  I then hand sewed the middle piece to the long end, and turned the entire thing inside out.  I hand sewed the open end to create a nice hemmed piece.

Because I did not use “stretchy” terry cloth, I attached velcro to each of the ends so I could put the band on and take it off.  Then to decorate it further, I used fabric paint and a stencil  to create a nice design.

They turned out nice, but I wasn’t totally sold on the velcro closing.  So, having an afternoon left in our week long challenge, I decided to try again.

This time I used French terry, which is the type of material you’d get in a sweatshirt.  Still not the elastic terry, but it stretches better.  I used a similar process to make it.  I cut an extra piece for absorption.

This time, though, because it was able to stretch to get on, I just sewed along the length of the folded cloth.  I then turned it inside out and sewed the two ends together, made sure it was tightly stitched, and then cut a close edge.

I like the fabric of the French terry better.  It is soft and thin, but still absorbent.  I would like to make fingerless gloves with this material because I think it would grip the yoga mat better since the Hot part of the class really heats up.

I’ll have to try them both out to see which sweatband is the best, but at least now I have options!

    Brenna’s Process: Sweatin’ to the Oldies Remember that workout series, Sweatin' to the Oldies?  Richard Simmons was my mom's guru, and as a pre-teen, I remember doing the dance moves with her in our living room.  

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The Challenge:  To make a pouf.

The Twist:  The pouf needs to be made of repurposed material.

Congratulations to Big Fat Outdoor Pillow!  DIY Twisted Sister Brenna completed her repurposed pouf in 3 hours and spent no money on the craft.  Read more on her post – Brenna’s Process: Pretty Little Pouf.

Check out the finished project below!

Read more about the competition’s post – Erin’s Process: Sit Back and Put Your Feet Up.

Check out next week’s Challenge: Let’s Get Physical.

Thanks for voting!

Did you vote last week? Find out who won the DIY Pouf Challenge! The Challenge:  To make a pouf. The Twist:  The pouf needs to be made of repurposed material.

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Challenge: Let's Get Physical

Challenge: Let’s Get Physical

Brenna: Hey Erin, feel like chatting? Erin: Hi Brenna. Absolutely! How is your week going?

Brenna: Hectic. Ever feel like you forget to take care of yourself?

Erin:Excuse me? Take care of myself? You mean I’m allowed to do that? I thought I was only allowed to take care of everyone else. What a blow! #SarcasticWhat’sSarcastic? Brenna: Ahhhhhh, you know…

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2 Twisted Sisters = 2 Twisted Games! Vote for your favorite today! DIYTwistedsisters.com #diygame #craftchallenge #diytwistedsisters

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The Challenge: To create a game.

The Twist: The entire game; board and pieces must be homemade.

Challenger: Erin

Name of Project: Checker this out!

Why this should win:

Remember those moments when your checker made it to the other end of the board and you proudly proclaimed: “King me!”

A checkerboard is fairly commonplace.  But who out there can say they have a homemade checkerboard and checkers?  And to sweeten the pot, who else’s checkerboard converts into a carrying case?   It is convenient to bring on road trips and is self-contained.  And what’s more, the checkerboard box will never fall apart on you!

Won’t you vote for me this week?

Cost:  $0.00

Time: 4 hours

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    Opponent: Brenna

Name of Project: Run, Run, Run!

Why this should win:

Run, Run, Run as fast as you can!  You can’t catch me, I’m the gingerbread man!

This fast paced counting game is perfect for the four year old and the 104 year old.  Run your gingerbread man around the “board” aka egg carton, until all the stars are turned over.  Collect the sweets, and the person who’s sweets add up the most amount of points wins!  This is a great game for families to play, especially for little ones just learning to count and add.

Voting for Run, Run, Run! is a vote for family fun for everyone!

Cost: $0.00 

Time: 4 hours

Vote!

Take Our Poll

Reveal: Games People Play The Challenge: To create a game. The Twist: The entire game; board and pieces must be homemade.

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It has been a ho-hum week and I needed something to perk me up.  Leave it to my sister Erin to offer me a craft challenge to stretch my mind and creativity!  This project was a great distraction from the Summertime Blues that always seems to get to me after the 4th of July.

The flower pot character was a tough one for me.  I had never thought of making one before and so I wasn’t sure where to start.  Well, a wise man once said, start at the beginning.  Which for me was the pots.  I bought two.

The left pot, when turned over, looks like a flowing little dress.  That did it, I decided my character would be a fairy.  Since I had created a fairy garden this year, a fairy was always an option, but the pot sealed the deal.  The pot on the right is the fairy’s head, it is a smaller terra-cotta.

Let’s start from the top down.

Head and Body:

*terra-cotta plant, craft paint, brush

I didn’t have a flesh colored paint, so I mixed a tan, pink, red, and white together until I got the desired tint.  Pretty good, eh?  I’ve never mixed color and got my desired result, so I’m proud of this one.  I wanted a blonde fairy, mostly because my kiddo is a blondie and I thought she’d like it.  So I did the top band of the head terra-cotta yellow.

The body, or dress, is another terra-cotta pot.  I chose bright green as my color of choice and spread 3 layers onto the pot.  The photo below has only two layers on it.

Decoration:

*Stencil, craft paint, sponge brush

I wanted to add a whimsical design to the dress.  I found some butterfly stencils and thought it would be perfect for a garden fairy.  I got all set.  Taped the stencil on, and used the sponge brush to apply the purple paint I chose.

I was feeling so hopeful I thought I would title this post “I’m Bringing Stencils Back”.  Unfortunately they were a tad messy.  But, as another wise man once said, beauty is in the imperfections.  I decided (after much thought) to keep the butterflies.  I also added a purple “trim” to the dress.

The Face and Neck:

*buttons, Mod Podge, black Paint pen, glass beads, wire, hot glue gun

Originally, I planned on some black eyes, but I had these brown buttons that were the right size, so I Mod Podged them right on.  I free-styled the nose and smile with a black paint pen.  Then I spray painted it with a clear-gloss sealer to protect the paint from the elements.

To fill in the space between the face and the dress, I strung a necklace of glass beads on a wire.  Using a glue gun, I glued the necklace onto the neck.

Wings:

*craft mirror, scissors, glue gun

I scoured the craft store looking for “wings” I could either make or attach to the pot.  I thought of wire, vinyl, foam sheets, but none of them spoke to me.  Then I found a craft mirror.  It is thin enough to cut, so I cut out a wide heart and glue-gunned it to the back of the fairy.

Ta Da!  Or should I say, Bibbity-Bobbity-Bo0!  I was done.  All that was left was potting the Succulent that I bought.  It will be a perfect plant for my Fairy garden, which is shaded.  I think my Fairy is the Fairest One of All!

  Brenna’s Process: Who’s the Fairy-est of them all? It has been a ho-hum week and I needed something to perk me up.  Leave it to my sister Erin to offer me a craft challenge to stretch my mind and creativity!  

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It has been a ho-hum week and I needed something to perk me up.  Leave it to my sister Erin to offer me a craft challenge to stretch my mind and creativity!  This project was a great distraction from the Summertime Blues that always seems to get to me after the 4th of July.

The flower pot character was a tough one for me.  I had never thought of making one before and so I wasn’t sure where to start.  Well, a wise man once said, start at the beginning.  Which for me was the pots.  I bought two.

The left pot, when turned over, looks like a flowing little dress.  That did it, I decided my character would be a fairy.  Since I had created a fairy garden this year, a fairy was always an option, but the pot sealed the deal.  The pot on the right is the fairy’s head, it is a smaller terra-cotta.

Let’s start from the top down.

Head and Body:

*terra-cotta plant, craft paint, brush

I didn’t have a flesh colored paint, so I mixed a tan, pink, red, and white together until I got the desired tint.  Pretty good, eh?  I’ve never mixed color and got my desired result, so I’m proud of this one.  I wanted a blonde fairy, mostly because my kiddo is a blondie and I thought she’d like it.  So I did the top band of the head terra-cotta yellow.

The body, or dress, is another terra-cotta pot.  I chose bright green as my color of choice and spread 3 layers onto the pot.  The photo below has only two layers on it.

Decoration:

*Stencil, craft paint, sponge brush

I wanted to add a whimsical design to the dress.  I found some butterfly stencils and thought it would be perfect for a garden fairy.  I got all set.  Taped the stencil on, and used the sponge brush to apply the purple paint I chose.

I was feeling so hopeful I thought I would title this post “I’m Bringing Stencils Back”.  Unfortunately they were a tad messy.  But, as another wise man once said, beauty is in the imperfections.  I decided (after much thought) to keep the butterflies.  I also added a purple “trim” to the dress.

The Face and Neck:

*buttons, Mod Podge, black Paint pen, glass beads, wire, hot glue gun

Originally, I planned on some black eyes, but I had these brown buttons that were the right size, so I Mod Podged them right on.  I free-styled the nose and smile with a black paint pen.  Then I spray painted it with a clear-gloss sealer to protect the paint from the elements.

To fill in the space between the face and the dress, I strung a necklace of glass beads on a wire.  Using a glue gun, I glued the necklace onto the neck.

Wings:

*craft mirror, scissors, glue gun

I scoured the craft store looking for “wings” I could either make or attach to the pot.  I thought of wire, vinyl, foam sheets, but none of them spoke to me.  Then I found a craft mirror.  It is thin enough to cut, so I cut out a wide heart and glue-gunned it to the back of the fairy.

Ta Da!  Or should I say, Bibbity-Bobbity-Bo0!  I was done.  All that was left was potting the Succulent that I bought.  It will be a perfect plant for my Fairy garden, which is shaded.  I think my Fairy is the Fairest One of All!

  Brenna’s Process: Who’s the Fairy-est of them all? It has been a ho-hum week and I needed something to perk me up.  Leave it to my sister Erin to offer me a craft challenge to stretch my mind and creativity!  

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Challenge: Who's Your Pot Person?

Challenge: Who’s Your Pot Person?

Erin: Hey Brenna. How is your week going to far? Busy as a bee? Chasing your tail? You’d forget your head if it wasn’t screwed on? hahaha (Can you tell how my week has been?) Brenna: I’ve had more of a Charlie Brown week-said Good Grief in my head more times than I can count. You seem ready to go, though😀. Erin: I am always on the go! I’m actually pretty happy. I had some…

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Challenge: Sharing our Blessings

Challenge: Sharing our Blessings

Erin: Hey Brenna, how is your week going? It was so great seeing everyone last weekend!  Brenna: It was great to see you too! I’m so happy you came up north with some of our family. It was truly memorable and my little one loved  pushing you into the lake!

 Erin: Oh my gosh, she is the cutest ever! But we are all home now and it is back to business as usual. Spending all…

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I have always loved games.  As a kid, if I could have gotten my older siblings to play a board game with me, I’d jump on it.  Unfortunately for me, they are six years or older than me in age, and so, as the littlest, I probably wasn’t the best playmate.

Now that I have a little one of my own, I can understand their point of view.  Any structured game that lasts longer than 20 minutes (with my four year old) usually turns into planning a surprise party for the My Little Ponies.  That is why, when Erin challenged me to make a game, I immediately thought of  playing with my four year-old.

To get the little one excited about playing “Mommy’s new game”, I recruited her in the creation process.  Out came the play dough, paints, a left over egg carton, and a star shaped hole puncher.

Playing with play dough was the obvious first choice.  Little C loves it.  During football season we have Packer’s Play Dough Sundays.  She sits at her table and plays for at least half of the game.  Usually, the My Little Ponies are brought into the mix, and we pretty much let her make a mess.  Having hardwood floors, it is easy clean-up, and it’s a small price to pay to watch the Packers.

This time, though, I sat with her at her table.  We made little “game pieces” from the molds.  I still didn’t have an idea of what the game would be, so we just made a bunch of each.  If you let play dough dry for a few days, it becomes hard and solid.

Next came the painting.  Luckily, I had kept an old egg carton (it must have been my sixth sense telling me I’d need to craft with it).  Choosing primary colors, I painted the outside.  I wanted it to look inviting for curious kids.  I then took one of my hole punchers and created the title of the game, “Run, Run, Run!”.

I finished off painting the inside of the carton’s lid, and making little directional arrows, so players would know where to go.

My daughter had then given up on the whole, “making a game with Mom” idea.  She pulled out her legos, and started to play with the play dough pieces.

I went to work making stars with a hole punch and numbering them.

Lastly, I decided to use the gingerbread men as personal game pieces.  I colored the backs of two, so players can tell who’s who.

To learn how to play this game read on!

Run, Run, Run!

Run, Run, Run! As fast as you can!  You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man! A fast paced counting game is family fun for all ages.

Object of the Game:

Choose a star and move your gingerbread man around the carton cups.  Collect as many sweets as you can.  If your sweets have the highest value at the end of the game, you win!

Before You Begin:

Spread the stars out, number side down, on the open lid of the carton.  Place one sweet in each cup around the board.  Get a piece of paper and a pencil.  Write down each players name (this will be to add point totals at the end of the game). Choose your gingerbread man.

Playing the Game:

Youngest player goes first.  Choose turn a star over, move your gingerbread man the amount of cups indicated.  Collect your sweet.  Switch Players.

Repeat until all stars have turned over.

Winning the Game:

Turn the stars back over, and mix up.  Choose a sweet to add a value to.  Turn a star over, that number is now how much the sweet is worth.  Add your new value to the point board.  Repeat this process with each sweet.  The player with the highest point total wins!

Added Notes:

This is a great game for kids who are learning to count and add.  The numbers are simple, and it moves fast.  It is perfect for kids who are new to board games, and a fun project to make.  Hope you give it a try!

Who loves board games? Check out my new homemade game its perfect for little kids! I have always loved games.  As a kid, if I could have gotten my older siblings to play a board game with me, I'd jump on it.  

[diytwistedsisters-blog]

Erin’s Process: A Game of My Own

Who doesn’t like to play games?  And what could be more fun than playing a game that you created yourself? I have so many fond memories of playing all sorts of made-up games on the playground at school.  Do you remember those games of kick-the-can and freeze tag and the ever-popular game of red rover (red rover let Brenna come over)? #iknowyouwerethinkingit   And then when it was time to go in for the night, our cell phones were the sounds of our mothers calling us back home.  Every mother in the neighborhood had a voice that could carry down the block and heaven forbid you didn’t hear it.  (Just kidding Mom, you have the voice of an angel.  Love you!)

Well, this week’s challenge to my sister was to make a game.  It could be a made-up game that we created all the pieces and props ourselves, or we could make our own version of an already existing game.  I opted for the latter.  I decided to make a checkerboard game.  My first inclination was to crochet a checkerboard and then attach it to a piece of cardboard so it would be stiff.  But as always, my first ideas are never the same as the end result.  I am constantly thinking of ways I think I can improve it.

I ended up with the cutest idea (if I do say so myself…and I do).  I ended up making the original checkerboard that I had intended.  I wanted to teach myself how to do the afghan stitch on this challenge, because I thought it would be a good choice for all the color changes.  I don’t know if I did it incorrectly, but the back of my checkerboard is a little bit of a mess.  The solution to that was to crochet a back side to my checkboard.  (I know… Clever, right?)  So, as I was crocheting the back to my board (still with the intention of slipping a piece of cardboard inside) it started to look like a bag.  That was when the heavens opened and true inspiration hit. #yesImblessed   I added a drawstring and turned the checkerboard into a bag that will also be the perfect way to hold all of the checker pieces. Tadaaaa!!  Isn’t that just the most clever idea?  I was so psyched when it came to me!!!  I hope you like it!

Materials:

Red, White and Black Yarn Afghan Hook 3.5 mm hook (for the checkers)

Instructions:

Front side:

With red yarn, chain 41, turn

Using an afghan hook, 40 afghan stitches all the way across

Switch to white yarn and complete a row of afghan stitches

Switch back to red and complete a row of afghan stitches

On this row, we will start to create the checkerboard.

Make the first two stitches red, then switch to black yarn and do 2 afghan stitches (this is the edge of the board).

For the checkerboard alternate red and white every 4 stitches to create 8 squares across.

Switch to black and do 2 stitches, then switch to red and do 2 stitches.

Repeat 5a-c  2 more times.

This time, we are going to switch the colors of the checkerboard.

Repeat step 5a

For the checkerboard, if the first square is white, then start with red first.  If the first square is red, then start with white. Repeat 5b instructions.

Repeat step 5c.

Repeat steps 7a-c 2 more times.

Start over with step 5 for 3 rows and then step 7 for 3 rows.  Repeat until there are 8 squares by 8 squares.

Repeat step 4

Repeat step 3

Repeat step 2

SC all the way around the board to create a finished look

Back Side:

Attaching to the back side of the checkerboard, complete 40 afghan stitches across and sl st to each end of the row (to keep the back attached to the checkerboard).

Repeat for each row of the checkerboard till the back side is the same size as the checkerboard.

HDC all the way around (80 stitches)

Drawstring:

I found this really cool stitch I’ve never heard of to create the drawstring.  It eliminates the need to do the foundation SC string first.  It’s called a “chainless foundation”.   Check out this pin: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/AUtKpgGVkBEKQJp6anCo6ULY5fb4boG-GLPCRN2gC_leZHMy7Jnabh0/

Checkers:

I made 16 of each color.  For my colors, I decided to use white and black checkers.

Ch 4 and sl st to the first ch

2 sc in each ch

Sl st to the first sc and tie off

  Erin’s Process: A Game of My Own Erin's Process: A Game of My Own Who doesn’t like to play games? And what could be more fun than playing a game that you created yourself?