Spring is Closing In!

This weekend I was busy with multiple crochet projects.

I decided to attempt a new technique of crocheting 2 strands of yarn together. You can choose 2 complimentary (or contrasting) colors or 2 different textures of yarn for entirely new looks. My friend Sue, who donates yarn to me for creating soft comfort hats for cancer patients, presented me with a skein of Simply Soft Sunshine and a skein of Simply Soft Soft Sage. I decided they were nice colors and decided to make a hat holding both yarns together. It was turning out beautifully, a nice thick double crochet post and the colors were really very nice. It also ended up a bit stiffer than I'm used to, so I increased the size to compensate for the lack of stretch. WELL . . .

The hat soon became too large. I was holding it up on my palm with the top down and the sides up explaining to Sue that I would have to pull out a few rows to shrink the size, when she pointed out that it looked like a pretty basket! I looked at it again and sure enough, it was a pretty Spring basket! So I thought, "what the heck!" we'll use it as a candy dish in our department.

Long story short, I continued for a few more rows, topped it off with a crab stitch row and made a pretty little crocheted daffodil for the front and here is my Spring basket!

This weekend was also a Women's Health Fair at our small local hospital. This being the first year for this event, I decided to bring a small skein of yarn to keep me busy while waiting for some of the free sessions that were offered. I had a small amount of pink / white yarn from my very first cancer hat, so I thought I'd try my hand at making a necklace choker. I knew I had a couple of loose pendants (without chains) that might work nicely as charms on the choker, so I quickly worked up rows of a single crochet / double crochet pattern that looks pretty and in less than an afternoon, I had this great necklace. My hubby helped me chose the charm and button for the clasp and I finished this up lickety split!

What do you think?

New Year

Well, it's a new year. To be honest, I'm glad to be rid of 2010 and hope that 2011 will be a bit brighter for my family and friends. It seems that this last year was trying for everyone -- my Mom suffered a total of 7 strokes that has finally left her in a near coma, but at home with my Dad under home hospice care. One of my dear younger friends has been struggling with her sister's lymphoma and slow recovery. My DH is still getting weaker and experiencing more and more difficulty getting around. And everyone is suffering from the sluggish economy and high gas prices. Sigh!

I have been crocheting my little fingers off (well, not really) amidst all of this turmoil. I completed both sides of my lacy tunic, but without a way to properly block it, I haven't finished this wonderful project. I really need to block the pieces before I sew them together into a warm lacy cowl tunic. Then I made 9 Nubby Mitts for my co-workers holiday gifts, one basket weave, shell edging baby afghan for another co-worker, and warm, soft, fuzzy mittens for my younger friend in Dekalb. I also made Mukluk slippers for my soon-to-be granddaughter (who is going to be 2 years old in April) and men's wristers for my son and lacy wristers for his fiance.

Finally, my biggest project was making a Helmet Liner / Ski Mask for a friend of my older sister. Her son is stationed in Afghanistan and requested one of the liners. It was my opportunity to work with 100% wool, which I've avoided for years. Since this was a special order and going to a member of our military, I used Lion Brand's Fisherman's Wool in dark brown. It contains lanolin and is waterproof as well as warm. I started with a pattern I found online by Ann B. but as I tend to do, I started making changes from the get-go. The pattern did not have any finished dimensions, and when I began the standard hat increases, I realized that the crown was going to be way too small. So I just keep increasing until the diameter of the crown reached 7 to 7 1/2 inches across (the difference is that wool tends to make the circle a hexagon where the stitches are increased. I measured 7 1/2 inches from a point to a point). The next change I made was at the opening for the eyes. I did one single crochet decrease in each side of the opening after 3 rows. This actually shaped the opening a little better than a slash. Finally, after crocheting 7 more inches from the eye opening, I found the halfway point in the front and back and worked more single crochet decreases so that the head tapered slightly to the neck. Since the pattern creates a full head with the yarn continuing down to cover the neck, I decided that the subtle shaping would help keep the warmth around the neck.

After all is said and done, I'm glad that I had the opportunity to make this liner, but I couldn't afford to make any more as the Fisherman's Wool was pretty expensive. Add to that the fact that I think I had a skin reaction to the wool (not certain, though), I think this is one charitable project I will pass up. Hats for cancer patients will continue to be my passion.

I hope this new year will bring you happiness, health and a wealth of fun projects!

P.S. For images of my recent projects, please visit my Photo Gallery page.

Multiple Projects Help Carpal Tunnel

I was just reading Switching Your Stitching by Andee Graves (Crochet Uncut, Fall, 2010 Issue), who was suggesting that if we plan to crochet for a long period of time (say an afternoon or maybe the entire Saturday), you should switch between projects using different size hooks, or maybe even greatly differing stitch patterns. I've been doing this for a while now. I think I mentioned it in  previous post, but I usually have more than one project going at the same time.

This weekend, I'm working on three projects at the same time. The first, is a gift for my supervisor (who loves chocolate), I'm crocheting one of my Nubby Mitts in Sugar N Cream colors of Chocolate, one of their ombre shades. The mitt is actually a little browner than the picture shows. It really does look like white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate sections. Pretty wild! I'm using 100% cotton with a size "I" crochet hook.

The second that I'm working on is another of my designs, the Cabled Fur Hat, that I'm making for my charity project, cancer comfort hats. My co-worker donated a skein of Caron Simply Soft in dark country blue. I'm using a bit of Fun Fur (donated by my friend, Niki, in Dekalb), in citrus color. I start with a basic beanie pattern, but as I crochet down the sides, I create cables every three stitches (3 triple crochet cable stitches, 3 double crochet stitches). This creates a pretty hat and the splash of fur along the brim adds to the whimsy. I hope it adds a smile to the face of someone facing one of the hardest times of their life.

This project uses a size "H" hook, which isn't that different in size from a size "I" hook, but the intricate weaving of the cable requires an entirely different rhythm from the single crochet, popcorn stitch that I use in my Nubby Mitt. My hands feel less strain when I switch to this other project after crocheting a bunch of those, let me tell you. They're just single crochets, and the popcorn stitch uses the same motion as for double crochets. Plus the feel of the Simply Soft is so different than the 100% cotton yarn.

The last project that I'm working on simultaneously, is for ME! I'm making a luxurious Lacy tunic, from Lion Brand's free crochet patterns. I'm going off on my own with gauge and hook size, though. The pattern calls for a size "I" hook, but I'm using a big size "M" bamboo handle hook. The suggested yarn is silk mohair, but I was able to purchase skeins of Rowan Yarn's Cashsoft, which is a merino wool, acrylic and cashmere blend yarn that is yummy! My favorite online fabric source is now carrying luxury yarns and they had a blowout sale of fabrics and yarn. 70% off was just too much to pass up and I'm finally getting my cashmere top that I've always wanted. This pattern is a beautiful shell pattern with intriguing solid areas to make a pretty tunic top. Best of all, this pattern is crocheted in 2 rectangles and are just stitched up the sides leaving an area for the armholes and a turned down neck into a soft cowl. I've finished the first rectangle and now I'm working on the second. No need to tell you that the yarn is simply heavenly to work with. It's soft and warm and just downright pretty!

The change in hook is so drastic with this project, that my hand doesn't get strained by the repetitive motion. The bamboo handle provides an entirely different grip than my Clover Soft Touch ergonomic hooks, but it's still so comfortable. I love the smoothness of the wood.

So I guess I'm doing my hands a favor without really thinking about it. I mean, this allows me to enjoy seeing all of these projects transform into finished pieces. Not to mention this keeps me on track to finishing all of them without getting tired of doing the same thing.

I Love Autumn

Because it finally starts to cool down, but (normally) doesn't get bitter. Because Nature paints the world in brilliant reds, oranges, yellows and browns. Because I also love Halloween! Yes, I just love Fall.

Over the years, my hubby has become known as the Holidayman. Together, we celebrate the year through the holidays -- right down to the house decorations. In the past we would do entire interior make-overs from one holiday to the next (which was easier when we lived in apartments). Now we limit ourselves to one or two rooms of our 100 year old farmhouse for the holiday make-overs. Our Halloween collection rivals most Christmas collections (and yes, we also have a substantial Christmas set up as well).

So naturally, my decorating spills over to my office space at work. Being a 14 year employee, my love of holiday decorating has rubbed off on many of my co-workers. Add to that my recent plunge back into crocheting, well, it isn't hard to fit one love into another.

After nearly a year of cooperative decorating, we hit a snag with Autumn. Sure, I had my desk all decked out, but we always had something on our office door, too -- something that was the whole department's.

Since my co-worker, Sue, also donates yarn to my crocheted cancer hat project, I asked her if she had any yarns in Autumn colors. I had previously found patterns for leaves and thought to revamp my Lei-Z Daisy Scarf pattern for Fall with crocheted leaves instead of the crocheted daisies. Instead, I suggested a wreath of leaves. As it turns out, Sue had a bag full of yarn remnants from an old pumpkin making project. There were oranges, red, yellow, greens and browns -- perfect! She also picked up a straw wreath -- we were on!


This is the first layout of the wreath. I attached the leaves with straight pins so that we could move and rearrange them. I used leaf patterns that I found on the Internet and in crochet books. The oak leaves are from Nicky Epstein's Crocheted Flowers. I found the acorn pattern in 100 Flowers to Knit & Crochet by Lesley Stanfield. The circular designed leaf was actually a pattern for felted coasters by Lion Brand Yarns. I skipped the felting part. There are also leaves from another felting pattern by Lion Brand Yarns -- this pattern was actually for a wreath, too. At the last minute, I found a pattern for a maple leaf , which I wanted as a nod to my supervisor who is French Canadian. This pattern was created by Akua and the only change I made was that I used a contrasting color of yarn as a border. Finally, I used the basic premise of the leaf pattern designs and created my own leaf design.

This is my personal leaf pattern. I created mock veins by crocheting front loop sc and then back loop single crochet. It was a quick and easy leaf to reproduce.

Finally, to hang the wreath, I made a slip stitch cord using 3 strands of yarn. I tied the cord loosely at the top of the wreath and then tied a big bow for the final decoration. This cord is so easy! Just make a chain a little longer than you need. Then begin at the second chain from the hook and slip stitch to the end of chains. It creates a very nice cord as you can see here.

After we were satisfied with the layout of leaves on the straw wreath, I replaced the straight pins (which had white and blue glass pinheads) with T-pins, which secured the leaves to the styrofoam under the straw. The T bar top also helped me to shape the leaves to make it appear that the leaves had "fallen" naturally on the circle, with curled edges and gentle draping.

Here is the finished wreath which is now hanging from our office doorway. I'm very pleased with the way this project turned out and am proud every time I enter my office for work.

Fiber in the Park

Despite the cool, rainy day, I took the time to go to the 4th Annual Fiber in the Park (http://www.fiberinthepark.com/) festival in Earlville, IL. I've been attending this small gathering of fiber farmers for 3 years now and look forward to the opportunity to see (and feel) the wonderful handspun wool, alpaca and angora yarns that are raised here in Illinois.

I was specifically looking for a WPI tool (wraps per inch) and remembered that there were a couple of wood workers who particpate in this festival (one gentleman even makes spinning wheels). I found just what I was looking for at a booth where the husband makes guitars and ukeleles, then uses the special woods remnants to make shuttles, WPI tools, hand spinners, etc. He even puts a small hole in one end so that you can wear it like art when you aren't checking for the yarn weight of loose skeins of yarn! :)

I then spent a great deal of time talking to Sharon from Clearview Farms in Waterman, Illinois. She raises American Cormo sheep and the wool is beautifully white and so wonderfully soft. I was able to take home a piece of raw wool (full of lanolin -- I love it!) and she generously allowed me to take a sample of the spun Cormo yarn. Not enough to make anything, but I think I will take apart the thin scarf I made earlier this summer (from hand spun yarn that I bought at the Chaplin Creek Fiber Festival) and together with the Cormo yarn, I might be able to make something I can use (like wrist warmers or maybe hair scrunchies).

Sharon is a knitter and also teaches knitting and she tried very hard to convert me, but I've tried to knit and much prefer crochet - just a crochet girl all the way! :) Still, her knitted samples were gorgeous and I know she's just as passionate as I am.

I did see some wonderful chestnut brown Pygora wool blend yarn that I would have loved for a winter hat. The only problem was the cost (which was not out of line at all). I just couldn't justify $50 for a hat, even if it was as soft as silk and absolutely scrumptious! But I was good and only bought what I originally planned to buy.

If you have an opportunity to attend a local fiber festival, you owe it to yourself to go. These are local farmers who raise alpacas, sheep and rabbits for the wonderful fiber that they provide. Many of these farmers are enjoying the resurgence of the crochet / knit movement and they deserve our support.

Someday, I'll be able to afford to buy the glorious soft hand spun wools from these local fiber farmers and then I'll create a work of art!

Taking a Mistake and Creating a Texture

I decided to make myself a new purse. Sounds simple, right? You don't know me!!!! :)

I never do anything the easy way -- crochet included.

I had some left-over, beautiful, Caron Simply Soft yarn in shades of lavender / purple (my favorite colors), so I began crocheting a rectangle in a shell stitch pattern, changing colors about halfway down to a darker shade of lavender, then a stripe of purple, the darker shade and finished the rectangle in the lighter shade of lavender again. I repeated this for the other side of the purse and had a nice front and back. So then, I decided to make the side panel / shoulder strap in one piece in the light lavender.

Weeeeellllllll, it was late and I was determined to get a good start on this long piece, so I began making rows of half double crochet. After a while I noticed something strange happening -- I was getting lines across the yarnwork. I stopped and studied my stitches. I wasn't beginning my hdc stitch with one loop instead of the normal two -- I was forming my stitch as I always did with the two loops. Then it hit me! I was crocheting in 2 loops on the front of the row, not top.

This is kind of out of focus (I still can't get the digital camera to focus on close objects). But I'm trying to show that there's 2 loops on the face of the row. (This is the right side of the yarn fabric.)

In the image here, I'm trying to show the 2 loops at the top of the row which would be wrong side of the yarn fabric.

So, on the right side, I crochet in the 2 loops in the front of the fabric, and on the wrong side, I crochet in the 2 loops at the top of the fabric.

I wish these images were clearer, because I can't be sure if I'm explaining this right.

Anyways, the texture created was great and I had a lot of fun when I realized what I was doing. By the way, I didn't have enough yarn to make the sides and bottom of the purse and also do a shoulder strap, so I satisfied myself with the light lavender on one side and then switched to the dark lavender for the bottom, and finished the other side with the light lavender.

The arrow points out the pretty line that is formed with this stitch "mistake" (and also shows the color change).

Well, after getting the purse shell completed, I was ready for the lining and figuring out some way to attach handles.

Needless to say, I put this project aside for a few weeks while I "percolated" ideas.

I finally ended up buying purse handles and then had to "percolate" ideas once again on how to attach them!

Well, after sewing a lining, tearing the stitches out, sewing it together again and tearing out the stitches a few more times, I ended up with a purse. I put lots of pockets in the lining (for my Palm, cellphone, ID card and credit cards, etc.) and attached the handles to the lining itself. I tacked the lining to the crochet shell purse body with yarn at the bottoms and sides. Finally, I crocheted a cord with the purple yarn (I only had a little bit left) and then attached a button that matched the handles.

Oh, and just to let you know, when I sewed the crocheted sides to the front / back panels, I sewed them inside out and had to tear that out, too. (Sigh!)

It's a good thing that I'm stubborn and didn't give up on this project. I really love the way the purse turned out and I use it all the time now.

So, I guess the idea is, if you make a mistake when playing around with left-over yarn, but it looks good, see if you can duplicate it and create something new!

Back in the Saddle Again . . .

Well, so much has been happening and I haven't blogged in too long a time. I apologize.

I have 2 more designs on Ravelry, my Glam Clamshell Earrings is a Free download and my Nubby Mitt (which I consider to be a 100% unique creation) is available for a small charge.

I traveled with my son to North Carolina for my mom's 86th birthday and gave her the shawl I made. She is recovering from her 3rd stroke and the birthday was a little melancholy for us. But her reaction to the shawl made me realize the power of creating something by hand. It's hard to describe, but it was like she could feel the love and prayers I infused in my crochet stitches and I could feel the energy as I placed the shawl into her hands. You can see it on her shoulders here.

I love how crochet can bring the light into someone's eyes, if you know what I mean.

I also recently began testing my crochet skills with eyelash yarn. After a couple of fits and starts, I've got a good technique going and have made some funky and fun hats that I will donate to cancer patients. It's that time of year again and I'm looking forward to continuing my charity hats.

One or two people have asked me to create hats or scarves for them and though I usually abhor taking on commissioned work, these are good friends. And actually, it gets down to my being a little self-conscious making something for money and having it maybe not turn out right. Still have that old self-doubt pop up, though I know my work is very nice. Just doesn't seem right to accept money, though.

Finally, I've been lazy. I had all of these ideas that I wanted to post and I'd just come home from work and vegetate for the last few weeks. (Crocheted and vegetated, I'll have you know!)

So I promise I'll try to do better and post a little more regularly.

My next blog? Taking a mistake and creating a nifty design texture.