Crafty Intrigue

Universal Craft Blog Directory

2012-02-13T17:28:00.000-08:00

The author of the blog, CraftyRie has started a Universal Craft Blog Directory. On the page you will find a huge list of craft blogs to read for inspiration. I have decided to add my name to the list. If you write a crafty blog, feel free to add your name. You just need to add your link to the list, blog about it, and add the button for the craft blog directory to your blog. Here are instructions on how to add you name to the directory and a list of the other blogs.

New Bracelet Project

2012-02-07T14:20:00.000-08:00

One of my big resolutions for 2012 was to do more beading and jewelry making. One of my first goals was to finish the projects that have been sitting on my desk unfinished for months. This bracelet I recently finished is one of those projects.

I used a pattern from the book, Adorned Wrists by Monica Katz. I used a technique called brick stitch. To make the bracelet, I used size 11 triangle beads. I have mixed feelings about the finished product. I loved how the squares looked linked together and I like the colors. However, the clasp just isn’t strong enough to make the bracelet wearable. I may redo the clasp. However, I am glad I finished it.

Great Video on Creativity

2012-02-04T10:59:00.000-08:00

Lately, I have been fighting procrastination and feeling very blocked on my creative projects. I have been reading motivational stuff on creativity to get inspiration. I also have been looking for pointers from other successful creative people on how to set up a good creative practice for myself and regularly getting work done toward my goals I came across this video on my Facebook page. It was posted by a Facebook friend who is a talented artist. I also saw it on the site Lateral Action. I watched it and found it so inspirational. Here is a link to her speech. I was never a huge fan of her book, Eat Pray Love but I think she is great speaker and makes some very good points here.

Wire Crochet

2012-01-31T19:31:00.000-08:00

Lately I have been playing around with wire crochet. I recently made this necklace and pendant. Over the past several years, I have done crochet, knitting, beading and several jewelry making techniques. I have wanted to do projects that combine these skills. I thought that crocheting with wire would be a good project for that. I learned to wire crochet from the book, Crochet with Wire by Nancy M Wiseman.

I started by making a stand using the colors, blue, beige and orange. When I finished, I didn’t look done to me. I decided to add a strand using blue beads. Crocheting with wire takes a little getting used to. You can’t hold the wire the same way you hold yarn. Also the wire doesn’t lie flat. When I finished this project, it curled up more than I would like. The beads had a tendency to move from one stitch to the stitch below. Next time, I want to use beads that are a little larger to see if the strands will lay any flatter.

I also made this pendant. I started out by making the circle in the middle. I had the idea to crochet a circle with pink glass beads throughout. I then added the 2 circles to the sides. I am not sure what I want to do for the strand and the clasp.

Unexpected Good Things

2012-01-28T20:28:00.001-08:00

Sometimes a sincere compliment or kind comment can have unexpected rewards. This week has been a long week where I wasn’t feeling well and struggling with a creative block on a project. I have also been thinking a lot about how I want my life to be like and how to get there. Those are never easy questions and I was very discouraged.

On Friday, I was reading blogs connected to FO Friday. One of the bloggers had survived cancer and was doing a giveaway to celebrate. I congratulated on her being cancer free and went on to read other blogs. I didn’t even think I had entered the giveaway. I just wanted to wish her well for surviving such a major illness. I found out the next day that I had won the giveaway. It really cheered me up after a difficult week. It made me think about doing giveaways in the future. I won a skein of yarn, a book and some beads. I am so excited to receive the items.

Another time a couple of years ago, I was looking at pictures of beadwork on a craft group on Facebook. Someone had posted pictures of her beautiful projects. I complimented her on her beadwork and told her it made me want to start beading again. The next day she friended me on Facebook and encouraged me to start beading again. She introduced me to some great beading and craft business websites.

Current Projects -WIP Wednesday

2012-01-25T13:27:00.000-08:00

Right now, I feel a little bogged down with projects. I am hoping to finish a couple of these in the next week. Since I started beading more often, I haven’t knitted or crocheted as much. Here are my current projects. In the first project, I have made a lot of progress since I last blogged about it. I would like to finish this project soon. I want to start a shawl that is more appropriate for winter. I think it is a pretty pattern and a good use for the yarn. The yarn is Caron Country. I had bought it for another project that didn’t work out. I think it will be a nice scarf to wear over a dress in the spring or summer when it is finished.

I have also started this hat pattern. One of my first knitting projects was a scarf made out of the same yarn and color. I used the yarn, Brown Sheep Lambs Pride Worsted. I wanted to make a hat to match the scarf. I am almost done with the hat. I am wondering how it will fit. I may have made it a little too long.

Since I last posted about this granny square blanket, I have only made a few squares. I wanted to show some squares with bright pink yarn. I think the color adds some brightness and contrast that the project needed. I have been feeling blocked about this project. I am not sure how I want it to look or how I want to arrange the squares. Last night, I reviewed how to join squares and that helped. I also reserved a book from the library on different motif patterns. I may add another motif to the project in addition to the granny square

The last project is a knitted lace dishcloth. I wanted a challenging knitting project and I like lace. I thought that a dishcloth would be a good project to try out a new lace stitch. I really like the pattern it will make a pretty dishcloth. The author of this pattern has many more dishcloth patterns in different knitting stitches. I have already had to start this project over because I messed up on the stitches. Lace knitting takes a lot of concentration.

FO Friday

2012-01-20T15:58:00.001-08:00

I started this scarf last summer. By the time winter came, I had been working on this project the longest. For a while I put it aside to work on holiday knitting and other projects. I finally finished it almost a month ago and I wanted to report on my progress. I didn't use a pattern. I came up with the idea for this scarf after I had taught myself to do cables. To learn to knit cables, I used instructions from the book, Stitch and Bitch by Debbie Stoller. After I knitted a couple of test swatches, I realized that if I added ribbing on either side of the cable it would make a pretty scarf.I am very happy with how it turned out.

Beading

2012-01-19T13:23:00.001-08:00

Before I started knitting and crocheting, my main creative outlet was beadwork and making jewelry. The last few years, I have mostly been knitting and crocheting and I have been beading very little. One of my goals for this year is to do more beadwork. Over the past couple of years, I had three projects on my desk that I would work on every once in a while. One of my first goals is to finish these projects.

The square piece in the first picture is part of a bracelet pattern. When this is finished, they will be linked together. Here is a picture of a few of the links. In the second picture, I had made several diamond shaped pieces out of black and white beads. I sewed them together into this piece. I was going to use it as a pendant for a necklace. My original idea was for a choker. When I tried this idea, it just didn’t fall right. I am not sure what I am going to do with that piece right now. I may make some red pieces in a similar shape and decide how I want to join them together.

The third piece is a choker. On the bottom edging, I tried a new technique. It was supposed to lie flat but I made the stitches too close together and it turned out like a ruffle. I like it though. Since I took this picture , I added an edging on the top. I ran out of the crystals I was using for the edging though. I need to wait until I get more crystals to finish this.

Smaller Pieces

2012-01-16T12:38:00.000-08:00

At the end of last year, when I wasn’t working on holiday projects, I worked on several small projects. I was working on some ideas I had for crochet jewelry and small purses. I didn’t finish them all. I was mainly experimenting. I made some crochet leaves out of cotton yarn. I was thinking of using them as either a pendant or as part of a choker.

I also experimented with making change purses. I used some light blue cotton yarn I had lying around. I like how the flap turned out. I had the idea to make it asymmetrical and use contrasting yarn.

I also worked with wire crochet. I used a B hook and 28 gauge wire. I tried to make a leaf out of wire but it didn’t work at all. The leaf is supposed to be the one on the bottom. I like how the top piece looks though. I used a mesh stitch. It worked well with the wire. I could see that as a choker with a ribbon in the middle.

Finally, I used this pattern to make a choker. I need to get a ribbon to finish it. This is the only piece where I used a pattern. I like the pattern but if I was going to make it again, I would use a lighter weight yarn.

Granny Squares

2012-01-05T19:18:00.000-08:00

Until recently, I never thought I would make an afghan, much less one made out of granny squares. Growing up, I thought granny squares were ugly. When I started crocheting, I never wanted to make a blanket. It never interested me. However, over the holidays, I was often stressed out and not feeling well. The idea of making a blanket sounded very comforting. I had a bunch of odd bits of yarn hanging around I wanted to use up. One night, I decided to use some of it and make some basic granny squares. Once I made a few squares, I decided that a blanket made out of granny squares would be a good stash buster project.

I then looked at pictures of granny square blankets online and liked some of them. I realized that blankets leave a lot of room to be creative. The project is big enough that you can create a picture. You can play around with color and size. I liked the projects best that mixed up the size of the squares and used bright colors. Ironically, I bought more yarn for my stash buster project. Once I started to make the squares, I quickly realized I wasn’t going to have enough yarn. I also wanted to add some new colors to the project. I started out using grey, purple and beige. I added some blue yarn to the project. I also added another shade of purple and magenta yarn. I am not using any pattern so I am not sure what it will look like then it is done but I am having fun with it.

My Christmas Projects

2011-12-30T14:01:00.000-08:00

There is a joke among my family that starts with the phrase, “You are not going to like this.”When someone makes a dish for the first time and isn’t sure it turned out, we will say “You are not going to like this.” I felt like this about Christmas presents. I made all my Christmas gifts and I agonized over what to make for people. The first projects I did were scarves for my dad and brother. I used knit 2 purl 2 for one scarf and the basket weave stitch for the second scarf. I posted a picture of the basket weave scarf. Both are easy stitches that turn into scarves that make great gifts. I wasn’t sure what to give my mom. I tried and rejected many ideas. I finally decided to make her a hot pad. She had a hot pad she loved that a friend of my grandmother made it for her. She would often say she wished she could find another like it. After doing a search on Ravelry, I found this pattern. Here is a picture of the hot pad.

I made a friend some Christmas ornaments. She just bought her first house. I thought some ornaments would be a good gift. I made this robin and this Santa hat for her. I loved the robin pattern. I want to make on for myself. My friend loved it; she even told me her mother would want one too. My mother loved the hot pad and my dad really liked his scarf. I am very happy they liked their gifts. At one point I was ready to give gift cards next Christmas. After seeing how much people liked their gifts, I may make gifts next year too. I have a year to think about it.

Crafty Christmas Links

2011-12-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

When I was looking for ideas for Christmas presents, I found links to a bunch of projects. Here are some of the projects I found. Some of these would be good for last minute gifts. Others are more time consuming. I included a lot of ornament patterns. They are quick to make and it is only 8 days to Christmas.

An adorable crocheted robin

A crocheted dove

A little sweater ornament

Yarn basket ornament

Crocheted Snowflake

Salt dough Ornaments from the blog Rosmademe.

Homemade sugar scrub and lotion bars- I really, really want to try this, I love bath stuff.

Strength Courage and Wisdom

2011-12-10T16:03:00.000-08:00

I saw this video on my Facebook Feed and I had to share it. It is by India Arie and the song is called Strength Courage and Wisdom. Lately, I have not felt well. This video cheered me up and inspired me.

Inland Crafts

2011-11-27T12:09:00.000-08:00

A little over two weeks ago, I volunteered at the craft show, Inland Crafts . I love to go to craft and art shows so I thought it would be a good idea to volunteer. I was hoping to meet other artistic people in the area and have a chance to see the show. I also was hoping to find some ideas and inspiration for my own projects. I was nervous about going. I had never volunteered at this show before.

At the show, I had a great time. The other volunteers were all very nice. They had all been volunteering at the show for years. I was a ticket taker and I had a good time chatting with the customers. I found out about other craft shows in the area. I also found out about many artists I liked. The show had artists from the inland NW area and beyond. In case you are interested, Here is a list of artists that participated in the show. If anyone is interested in crafts and visual art, I highly recommend volunteering at a craft show

Warm Up America

2011-11-23T12:52:00.000-08:00

One Night, I was out looking for buttons to mend a shirt. I had gone to 2 stores and I couldn’t find a button that matched. I was frustrated. At one craft store, a woman was crocheting at a table. I went to see what she was crocheting. It turns out that she was there to let people know about Warm Up America. The group makes blankets for needy people. For Warm Up America, people crochet or knit squares and drop them off at a collection point. Then, they have a joining party and make the donated squares into blankets that they give to the needy. I think that it is a good idea. Hearing about Warm Up America cheered me up a little when I was irritated. I have some odd bits of yarn and I haven’t known what to do with it. One example is some bright yellow acrylic. I am not crazy about the color or cheap acrylic yarn. I definitely would like to make some squares for this. It would be a good way to use up some of my odd yarn and help others during these hard times. Here is a link to Warm Up America.

Reusing Yarn

2011-11-16T17:18:00.000-08:00

When I make something that requires a gauge swatch, I will put the swatch in a bag and set it aside. A gauge swatch is a sample made to see how big your project will be. You knit a sample of the stitch used in the pattern and measure how many stitches per inch you knit or crochet. I don’t want to throw them away but I am often not sure what to do with them. As a result, I have a bag of gauge swatches that sit on my shelf.

Lately, I have been thinking more about repurposing. One day, I was straightening my craft area and I looked at my bag of old swatches. It occurred to me that I could unravel the swatches and reuse the yarn. Lately, I have wanted to do some smaller crochet projects like headbands, motifs or granny squares. The swatches would produce the right amount of yarn for small projects like that.

The beauty of crochet is that even small bits of leftover yarn can easily be used for projects. Granny Squares are great for using up odd bits of small yarn. The book, The Happy Hooker has a beginning granny square pattern. For this project, I unraveled two beige and two gray swatches. I used some of the beige yarn to make a headband. I used the grey yarn to crochet an edging I have wanted to try. Here are pictures of some of the yarn I unraveled and the two projects I made with the yarn.

WIP Wednesday

2011-11-09T14:56:00.000-08:00

I haven’t made much of any progress on the Kigali lace Wrap or the Cable Scarf. I have been spending most of my time knitting a Christmas present. I am not sure if the intended recipient reads my blog and I want it to be a surprise. So I am not going to say what it is or post a picture. I am almost done with it though.

I decided to unravel the summer top. I realized that it was going to be much, much too long. I also wasn’t that that excited about the project. I like the yarn though; t is Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece. I will have to find something else to do with the yarn this spring.

FO Friday

2011-11-04T13:09:00.001-07:00

I finally finished the Short and Sweet and I am happy how it turned out. I enjoyed the stitch pattern. I will enjoy wearing this. I would definitely make this pattern again. Next time, I would make it a little longer though. When I was crocheting the second sleeve, I was afraid I was going to run out of yarn. I was going to unravel the other sleeve and make the other sleeve shorter than the pattern calls for. Instead of unraveling, I took a break from the pattern for a day. As it turns out, I wasn’t doing the sleeve right. I was adding in an extra repeat without realizing it. Once I realized that and crocheted the sleeve correctly, I had just enough yarn.

If you make this pattern make sure you read the errata sheet. Some versions of the book The Happy Hooker printed the pattern with errors. Also the front part can be confusing. The designer wrote up this to help. Also, the website knithappens.com has this resource to help with that. As I stated before, I found the sleeves confusing. When I was crocheting the first sleeve, I wasn’t sure I was doing it right. I had to redo the 2^nd sleeve 3 times before I finally finished it.

Fall Colors

2011-11-02T19:02:00.000-07:00

I grew up in Western Washington where we have 3 seasons; rainy, not rainy, and a short summer. The local joke is that we get our week of summer each year. I always wanted to live somewhere with 4 seasons.

I currently live in Eastern Washington where we have changing seasons. I like experiencing the different seasons. However, it comes with a little melancholy. If you are enjoying good weather, there is always the thought in the back of your head that this will not last. For example, I was not ready for summer to go. It has been a good fall though. The fall colors have been great this year and the weather has been nice.

I took these pictures of the fall colors not too far from where I live. When I would go for walks, I noticed that the fall colors are especially bright this year. On one of my walks, I brought my camera along and took some pictures. I am not sure the pictures do the colors justice. Of course it is supposed to start snowing soon. I also hear it could be a hard winter here so I am enjoying the fall while I can.

FO Friday

2011-10-28T17:05:00.000-07:00

Lately, I have been trying to finish a couple of my projects that I have been working on for a long time. In the meantime, I did this quick project. When I was at the mall a couple of days ago, I saw a headband with a flower attached. I immediately realized that it would not be that difficult to make one. I went home and crocheted the band using the double crochet stitch. I joined it into a circled using a slip stitch. I attached a flower I had made earlier when I was on a crochet flower kick. I used this pattern for the flower. I am very happy with how it turned out. Make sure to check out the other blogs that have made posts for FO friday.

Flash Mob in Copenhagen

2011-10-27T17:49:00.001-07:00

I saw this video on a friend's Facebook page. I am a big music lover and had to share it. The Copenhagen Philharmonic did a flash mob at the Copenhagen Central Station on May 11, 2011.

Chanel Crochet Purse

2011-10-25T18:56:00.001-07:00

One night, I was looking for makeup tutorials on YouTube. I had found this picture of makeup artist, Lisa Eldgridge holding this purse. It is by Chanel and costs $4525. It is from their summer 2010 collection. It is made using a crochet technique called broomstick lace. On Ravelry, many people were shocked that a crochet purse would cost so much. Other people thought paying over 4500 dollars on a purse was obscene and/or wrong. The price doesn’t bother me; if someone has the money, Why Not? So many crafters who sell their work under price themselves. This purse shows that some people are willing to pay top dollar for crochet or handmade items if marketed right

If you don’t have 4525 dollars to spend on a purse, a couple of people have figured out how to make a less expensive version. Here is a link to a bag someone made and posted on Ravelry. If you are interested in making your own version, someone else published a pattern of the purse. The author of the pattern doesn’t say what yarn she used. The person in the first example used Worsted weight yarn for the purse and lace weight for the flowers. I am thinking that you could also use crochet thread for the flowers. If you haven’t made flowers before, I would recommend making a few to practice first. Here is a a link to a group of tutorials on Broomstick lace from the Stitch Diva Studios website. I have also included a video tutorial from the Crochet Geek YouTube channel. I don’t know broomstick lace so I haven’t tried the pattern. If anyone makes this, let me know how it works.

WIP Wednesday

2011-10-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

I am almost finished with the Short and Sweet. I just need to do the sleeves. I am hoping to do a FO Friday post this week about this project. I have been working on the Summer Top. I have made a lot of progress. This is a recent photo. The pattern is row after row of stockinette stitch. It is can be a boring pattern but it is relaxing and good for stress relief.

I just started this crochet shawl. I am using the yarn, Caron Country. I had bought the yarn a few years ago to make a tank top. I never made the tank top. After I abandoned the tank top pattern, I had 4 skeins of yarn that I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with. I had printed out this pattern several months ago. I wasn’t too excited about it but it was a good fit for the yarn. The pattern is from Naturallycaron.com. Now that I have started the pattern, I am really enjoying it. I like the color of the yarn and the lace pattern. To take a look at other projects, make sure to check out Tami’s Amis (http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/) website.

Crochet Skull

2011-10-16T10:48:00.001-07:00

With Halloween coming, I started to think about Halloween themed projects. I have wanted to crochet a skull for some time. I had this crochet skull pattern from the book Craftivity . The book has a lot of great ideas. However, when I tried a couple of the patterns, I thought the instructions weren’t very clear or detailed enough. The skull itself didn’t take long to make. However, I found the wording in the pattern confusing. I don’t think I did the jaw right. The pattern instructions said to apply a mixture of glue and water to the finished project to stiffen the skull. I used Modge Podge instead. I brushed it on with on old paintbrush. I couldn’t be bothered with mixing glue and water together when Modge Podge is water based anyway. The skull turned out OK. If I made another one, I would probably use a lighter gauge yarn and a different pattern.

Fall in Northeastern Washington

2011-10-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

This year is going by too fast. I wasn’t ready for summer to end. Now that I am in the middle of fall, I realize I like a lot of things about fall. The crisp, cool weather, hot cider, baking, and fall colors on the trees.

This past weekend, I went on a road trip with my dad to explore Pend Oreille County in Northeast Washington. I saw some beautiful scenery. The trees are starting to change color. It was perfect day weather wise.

I saw this old shed with a tree growing through it and an old barn along the side of the road. I love the look of barns and old broken down sheds. I had to stop to take a picture of this. I was fascinated with the tree growing out the top of the building.

Here is a closer look at the shed and the tree.

We also drove along part of the Pend Oreille River. It was a sunny day, so the lighting was very nice. I took this picture of the river with the mountains in the background.

Crochet in Fashion

2011-10-07T12:32:00.000-07:00

Recently, I bought the Vogue fall fashion issue. In the magazine, I saw this picture of Stella Tennant wearing a crocheted sweater and top by Christopher Kane. Lately I have been seeing more fashion that uses crochet. This picture is a good example of that. I am honestly not crazy about the top and sweater Stella Tennant is wearing. But I like seeing crochet used in high fashion.

WIP Wednesday

2011-10-05T09:59:00.000-07:00

For a while, I was spending most of my time on the Galaxy Top. I didn’t want to post a Wip Wednesday about it until I finished it. I finally finished the Galaxy Top last week and posted about it on last Friday. I decided not to do the shawl pattern. I wasn’t enjoying it much and I found the pattern confusing.

I decided to do this tank top pattern. It uses yarn I have had for a while. I wasn't sure how I wanted to use the yarn. I didn't pay enough attention to the yarn label before I started the project. I thought the yarn was worsted weight but is a dk weight. I managed to get gauge though. I also like the pattern. Of course, I am out of season, it is a summer top and it is now fall. I am hoping I can use it as a layering piece though. It is an easy pattern and good for knitting while I watch TV.

Before I started the summer top, I had a lot of trouble finding a knitting pattern I liked much. Now that it is fall, I am hoping I will be more inspired on knitting projects. I am thinking of knitting a sweater after I finish the summer top. I am making progress on the Short and Sweet. I am enjoying the pattern. I also have made some progress on the cable scarf. Here are recent picture of the scarf and jacket.

FO Friday

2011-09-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

After more than a year, I have finally finished the Galaxy Top. It was the hardest project I have worked on. It took so long because I didn’t work on it for months on end. It is very time consuming. I crocheted 60 motifs, cut and hemmed the top of the shirt, attached them to the shirt, then connected all the motifs. Connecting all the motifs was the hardest part. It is a process that is somewhat freeform. I wasn’t sure I was doing it correctly. I am not sure how the finished project would hold up, time will tell. It seems like such a delicate shirt.

I learned a lot from the project. It has given me ideas for other projects. When I shop, I see a lot of shirts with lace inlays. After doing this project, making something similar wouldn’t be as difficult for me. The pattern calls for a row of motifs attached to the bottom edge of the shirt. I decided not to do the bottom part. I was burned out on the project. I also felt like that adding more motifs would make the short too frilly for me. I am happy how it turned out. I have several of the circle motifs left over. I am thinking of making shawl or scarf with them.

Basketweave Dishcloth Pattern

2011-09-29T11:17:00.001-07:00

Here is the dishcloth pattern I made for my mom's birthday. I wrote about it earlier this month. This is the first pattern I have written. If anyone has any questions on this pattern, feel free to contact me.

Basketweave Dishcloth

Skill level beginner
Finished size: 9 ½ by 9 inches
Materials needed
Yarn: Sugar and Cream 1 skein
Needles: size 8
Scissors
Tapestry needle

Rows 1-4,
CO 40 sts work 4 rows of seed stitch,
Row 5
Work seed stitch pattern for first 4 stitches *k4 p4 rep from * to last 4 stitches work last 4 sts in seed stitch
Row 6
Seed stitch for 4 sts, *k4 p4 rep from * to last 4 sts work 4 sts in seed stitch
Rows 7 and 8
Repeat rows 5 and 6
Repeat rows 5-8 until washcloth is the length you want minus the last 4 rows
Work 4 more rows of seed stitch BO weave in the ends.

Seed stitch,
Row 1, K1 p 1 to end of row,
Row2, P 1 k1 to end of row
Rows 3 and 4 Repeat rows 1 and 2 for seed stitch pattern

Basketweave Stitch
K4 p 4 rep to end of row
Rep for 4 rows,
P 4 k 4
Repeat for 4 rows
Repeat first 8 rows to the length you want

Abbreviations
CO Cast on
K knit
P purl
Rep repeat
Sts stitches
BO Bind off

The Happy Hooker

2011-09-26T17:00:00.000-07:00

A while ago. I went to JoAnne’s to buy sewing needles for a project. I bought the needles and a new copy of the book The Happy Hooker by Debbie Stoller. I had used my old copy so much it was falling apart. The spine had broken and pages were falling out. Tossing out the old book mad me sad; we had been through a lot together. After it was first published; I bought a copy as soon as I could afford it. I remember asking a bookstore clerk when the would be available to buy. She thought I was talking about a book on prostitution. After a little explanation, she realized I was talking about crafts not sex work. I thought that was funny.

At the time, I was living in Seattle, unemployed and extremely broke. I could only buy a copy because I had earned store credit from a used bookstore for trading books. I had just learned to crochet not too long before buying this book. I learned crochet by checking out books from the library. This was the most complete book I could find. This book has been my go to guide as I learned to crochet. I have made many of the projects in the book. The second photo is the One Skein Scarf. I am currently making Short and Sweet. I learned to increase, decrease, different stitches and how to make hats from this book. I learned about garment ease the hard way from making this sweater. I had to unravel it because it was much too tight. This is only the 2nd book in my life where I had to buy a new copy. With all the art and craft books I have, that is saying something. Now if only Debbie Stoller would make a book on advanced crochet techniques.

Favorite Quote

2011-09-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

"We become what we habitually contemplate." - George Russell

Dishcloths

2011-09-04T16:34:00.000-07:00

When I first learned to knit about 3 1/2 years ago, one of the first projects I knitted was dishcloths. I made the dishcloths and gave them to my mom. She loved them. In fact she liked them so much she has been hinting that she would love more. So as a surprise, I knitted her some new dishcloths for her birthday at the end of August.

I used two different patterns. The one in the first picture is a pattern I used before. I made up the pattern for the dishcloth in the second picture. When I was thinking about designing the pattern, I kept thinking that a basketweave stitch dishcloth would look nice. I looked at pictures of basketweave stitch dishcloths online. I didn’t like how they looked with only basketweave stitch. I decided to add a seed stitch border. When I knitted them I was very happy with how they turned out and my mother loved them. I used Sugar and Cream yarn and size 8 needles. I made notes on how I made the pattern. I want to write up the pattern and maybe post it on ravelry or on my blog. I think it will be good practice for writing up my own patterns.

WIP Wednesday

2011-08-31T19:10:00.001-07:00

Since I last posted on WIP Wednesday, I finished the motifs for the Galaxy top and wove in all the ends. The next step is to cut off the top of a t shirt, fold over the top edges ¼ inch, and sew it with an overcast stitch using crochet thread. I wasn’t sure what the overcast stitch was so I looked it up online. It turns out it is pretty easy. I found out it is used lot to keep edges of knit material from unraveling. I was nervous to cut the shirt. I didn’t have any white t shirts. So, I went out and bought one. I was afraid I would mess up a new shirt. It turned out fine. I did I had to buy a new sewing needle. I didn’t have any that would work with crochet thread or was sharp enough. Now, I just need to finish stitching the edge, arrange the motifs and attach them to the shirt.

As far as my other projects, I have been making progress on this shawl. At first the pattern confused me a little. Once I got going, it is a fairly easy pattern. I started this pattern in the summer but it will end up being a fall pattern at the rate I am going. I have finished the front and back of Short and Sweet and have started on the body. It is crocheted from the top down, joined at the shoulders and crocheted in the round until it is long enough. I am enjoying this pattern a lot.

Favorite Quote

2011-08-29T14:44:00.000-07:00

"Anything's possible if you've got enough nerve." - J.K. Rowling

WIP Wednesday

2011-08-17T15:37:00.000-07:00

In the past couple of weeks, I started a new job. With the new job, I was suddenly a lot busier and more stressed out. As a result, I neglected my blog for a couple of weeks. In the past couple of weeks, I have made a big effort to finish the Galaxy Top. I started this project over a year ago. I didn’t work on it for months at a time. Lately, my goal was to crochet at least 3 motifs a day. The pattern calls for 60 circle motifs. I just have 3 more to go and I am done with that part. Next, I need to weave in all the ends (yikes), join the motifs together, and then attach to a white t shirt. At first, I wasn’t sure if I needed to leave the ends out or weave them in before I join them together. I decided to weave in the ends as I go. I hate weaving in ends. I am hoping to finish this top before the warm weather ends.

Another project I have been working on a lot is the Short and Sweet. I have finished the back. I have started on the front. I found the front part confusing. Fortunately, the designer and the website knithappens both offer additional help and a chart. I like the stitch pattern and yarn.