We'd been looking for some coasters for the new coffee table yet it was harder then you could imagine; they were either non existent or costing the Earth - even the Sally Army was wanting $4 a coaster [how?! They weren't even anything special]. Then I had the sudden and somewhat random brainwave to make some out of the wool scraps of wool we have. A quick Raverly search and twenty four hours later i've made four coasters and two larger sized ones. I'm geekily pleased with them, I haven't crocheted for ages after getting bored of making doilies, but having a purpose for making things for the apartment has helped immensely.
Wandering to Jo Ann fabrics which to a crafter [even an on off one like myself] I found as a total heaven. For some reason the UK doesn't do big craft stores as such but here, oh my! I have never seen so much crocheting or craft products and patterns under one roof. There's scrap booking, wool, fabrics, glitter, fake flowers, photo frames. One of the things I could never find in the UK was crochet patterns; to walk in and see rows of crochet patterns was amazing. I ended up getting a small booklet on crocheting blankets and four huge balls of the softest wool to make one of which I've already started [see the bottom photograph] - for less then the equivalent of £15 its cheap indeed. I'm even tempted to make another and some scarfs. The crocheting bug has been re-caught - this and baking.
Are you making anything crafty at the moment?
You can find the free coaster pattern which I used here.