Domestic Harmony and balls

Often, the key job of a domestic diva, is to keep peace in the home.  In our home the biggest bone of contention is money.  I am currently waiting to hear whether I will be deemed as disabled by my Fibromyalgia.  Husband's income is our only income.  Our first year as a couple, it was the opposite with me making a comfortable enough living to support us both.

All that being said, to keep peace and harmony in the house, I look for ways to save or make money.  To save us money on Christmas gifts I taught myself how to crochet so I could make gifts.  YouTube was a wonderful resource to learn with tons of great video tutorials.  By far, I felt the best YouTuber was Bobwilson123.  Her tutorials are very easy to understand and she offers written patterns for a lot of the tutorials.  I made over 20 gifts for about $20 worth of supplies.   Then I got my first commissioned work.  A friend saw a toddler hat I made and asked me to make her daughter a hat/scarf set for Christmas.  I suddenly realized that I could translate my new hobby into a money making venture.  Dont get me wrong!  It will never make me rich, nor will I ever want to be in a position where I have to push myself very hard to get things done for other people.

My newest money making venture involves a local Inter-tribal PowWow.  I am making a couple things to sell that have seemed to be a hit among my friends.




Hacky Sacks/ Balls
I use size H/8- 5.00mm hook and #4 medium yarn

Rnd 1 - Ch2, 6 sc in 2nd from hook, join with slst
Rnd 2 - 2sc in each sc, join
Rnd 3 - alternate 2sc/sc, join
Rnd 4 - alternate 2sc/sc/sc, join
Rnd 5 - alternate 2sc/sc/sc/sc, join
Rnd 6 - alternate 2sc/sc/sc/sc/sc, join
Rnd 7-9 - sc, join
Rnd 10 - alternate sc2tg/sc/sc/sc/sc, join
Rnd 11- alternate sc2tg/sc/sc/sc, join
Rnd 12- alternate sc2tg/sc/sc, join
Rnd 13 - alternate sc2tg/sc, join
*stuff with your choice of filling
Rnd 14 - alternate sc2tg, join
close with running stitch, pull tight and tie off

*There are a large variety of things you can stuff with depending on what you have and what you are using the balls for.  For some of mine I lined it with the toe of an old stocking and filled with rice, using twist tie to close stocking.  I also used feed corn.  Another great filling for hacky sacks is plastic pellets found at local craft store.  I went the least expensive route.

Water Bottle Sling
I use J/10- 6.00mm hook and #4 medium yarn
Gauge isnt important but you may want to have a water bottle close by to make sure it fits after Rnd 5.  It should be and will be a little snug.  It will loosen up with use.

Rnd 1 - ch 4, 12dc into 4th stitch from hook, join,
Rnd 2 - ch 3,  2dc in each dc, join, ch 3
Rnd 3 - ch 3, alternate dc/2dc around, join,
Rnd 4 - ch 4, tr in every other stitch
Rnd 5-11 - ch 4, tr in between each tr
Rnd 12 - create strap by ch 180
Rnd 13 - dhc in each ch, tie off.
Securely attach both ends of strap to bottle sling

Summer Loom Knit Beanie
Im not enclosing the whole pattern here because its pretty simple.  When using round knitting looms they recommend that you use 2 or more strands of yarn.  To make a lighter weight summer beanie just use 1 strand and knit loosely.