Wednesday Blog Along #22

Thank you for all the well wishes, July was certainly a bitch to our family and August is just flying by. Husband's grandmother is still in the hospital but, is showing some progress, my grandmother is recovering and giving her physical therapist heck, and my dad has healed from his run in with the chainsaw.

This week is the kids' last of Summer. YAY! They've been fighting non-stop these last few days and are driving me crazy. In my attempt to keep some of my sanity I've been knitting/crocheting and reading quite a bit. Though, there is not any noticeable change in Helix and the new design. I've about 4" more on Helix and about 10" more on the new design.

The motifs that I'm working on (Wednesday Blog Along #18 ) has had a set back. The blue yarn I had chosen were scraps out of my stash. It's label has been lost to time and I was hoping that I would be able to match it up at the store. NOPE! Not even close. Sorry Charlie. So, reluctantly I bought another blue that I felt went well with the brown and began ripping out all the previous blue.

This picture doesn't portray the color very well. It's has a nice sheen and is in the same tone as the previous blue, a few shades lighter. Cautioning on the side of just in case, I bought 2-1 pounders :)

I have been commissioned for a project that will be taking up a lot of my time. It's very intricate crochet lace and no sharing 'til I've completed. And I SO want to share, it is very beautiful. This project combines two of my loves; history and fiber arts.

Currently, I'm reading Caressed By Ice by Nalini Singh. I've enjoyed the other books in this series and this one is no exception. The Guardian  by Sherrilyn Kenyon was an excellent read and has been put on my keeper shelf with all of her other books. Tomorrow I'm getting my eager little hands on her new book Time Untime. I really can't express how much it means to me for a modern/main stream book to tell a story featuring Native Americans as the lead characters and for the story to be based on Native American mythos. This is something that is very near and dear to me.

We took the kids to a local zoo last week.

The goats are waiting for their turn for the kids to feed them. Aren't they so cute! Smelly. But, cute. And very impatient : p

Hop on over to Tami's Amis and Small Things for more awesome WIPs in action.

Wednesday Blog Along #18

Like a good little crafter, I've been working loyally on two, yes, just two knitting projects. Recently though, I have been longing for others to the point of distraction. I fought valiantly for days to resist. Alas, I've lost the battle, for the motifs' siren call is too strong.

These crocheted motifs have been silently plotting to find a way to pull my attention back to them. And on Friday they finally succeeded. I knew I wanted to make a blanket with them but not the little details of it. Now, I do and they are my new affair.

Still, I'm reading Born of Silence by Sherrilyn Kenyon. It's a good read and I'm trying to savor the book and not to gobble it up too quickly.

Hop on over to Tami's Amis and Small Things to view more awesome WIPs.

Wednesday Blog Along #12

Whenever my guard slips, with three cats, this happens. They are always looking for an opportunity to run off with my yarn. And act in all innocence when they get caught, "What yarn? Oh, that yarn. No. I wasn't messing with it. Honestly."


I tried to start my official first pair of 2-at a time toe-up socks. The longest circular needles I have are 24" and my local yarn store (Micheal's :( ) doesn't carry anything over 24". We had three yarn stores once then Micheal's moved in and put them out of business. Now Micheal's doesn't stock half the stuff they used to. Very disappointing.

The pattern I'm hoping to work on soon is the Helix out of Toe Up 2 at Time Socks Melissa Morgan-Oakes. I did start the socks just to see how my new yarn would look. It's Stroll Fingering from Knit Picks in Tree Fort.

The yarn looks very lovely but, I can't continue on with these needles. The stitches on the sides are starting to stretch. Bummer. I hate waiting.

Currently, I'm reading Fitness Rx and Interweave Knits magazines. I'm still chugging away at Ghost Story by Jim Butcher and A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. But, it is only in passing, a line here, a paragraph there. Just so much going on, I really don't have the time to do more than that.

This morning after waking Husband for work and making sure he was up and moving around, I fell back to sleep and dreamed that I was tired. In the dream I kept trying to find a place to lay down and take a nap but, people kept finding me and waking me back up. It got to the point in the dream, where I was running away from these people, desperately looking for a secluded place to sleep. When the alarm went off to get the kids up for school, it felt like I hadn't slept at all. You know you are really tired when your subconscious is trying to tell you to sleep. Today, looks like a nap day (I wish) :p

Now, for wonderful WIP viewing, hop on over to Small Things and Tami's Amis.

Wednesday Blog Along #11

Wow! A lot has happened since I last posted for WIP Wednesday. I was gearing up for our local Spring Festival Art and Craft show when my upper back molar broke. Went in for a consultation to see what could be done for it, luckily it was a freak accident and the tooth was perfectly healthy. The dentist said he could fix it with a filling but, the day they could work me in was the day of the show. I was extremely bummed that I had to cancel doing the show but, relieved that the tooth could be fixed so easily.

I participated in the 3rd Annual Knit and Crochet Blog week 2012. It was lots of fun, I enjoyed reading everyone's post, and my contributions can be found here.

Now, for today's share.

I've already made one pair of the tutorial two at a time toe-up socks. Following the recommendations in Toe-Up 2 at Time Socks by Melissa Morgan-Oakes, I made the socks in two different colors. So, wanting matching pairs, I'm doing the tutorial again. Which is really good practice.

I've made some progress reading Ghost Story by Jim Butcher and A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. But, what little "free-time" I've had has found me in front of the TV numbly watching it. I don't know why, I've just not felt like reading, which is really unusual for me.

Hop on over to Tami's Amis and Small Things to view awesome WIP's in action.

Crafting Balance 3KCBWDAY7

~Are you a knitter or a crocheter, or are you a bit of both? If you are monogamous in your yarn-based crafting, is it because you do not enjoy the other craft or have you simply never given yourself the push to learn it? Is it because the items that you best enjoy crafting are more suited to the needles or the hook? Do you plan on ever trying to take up and fully learn the other craft? If you are equally comfortable knitting as you are crocheting, how do you balance both crafts? Do you always have projects of each on the go, or do you go through periods of favouring one over the other? How did you come to learn and love your craft(s)?~

My crafting started with crocheting. I’ve been crocheting for some 29 years now. Then eight years ago I got tired of seeing patterns that I liked but, was unable to do. Solution, I taught myself to knit.

Balancing the two is non-existent for they are both fickle lovers and need my constant attention. Therefore, I have multiple projects going at once, stashed in various locations around the house. I do have affairs with one over the other for periods of time, while the other whispers, “come back we have better more beautiful projects.” This is why I have multiple projects. I am easily seduced from one to the other.

Some of my FO's hiding behind my couch.

I come from a family of people who like to work with their hands. My grandmother is a painter, my mother a seamstress/fiber artist/jewelry maker, and my grandfather is a woodwork/basket maker. Someone is always making something. And it is rare to see any of us without a small craft bag in tow wherever we go. It just came naturally to pick up some kind of craft (or more) and get my hands busy.

A miniature rocking chair my grandfather made for my daughter.
 

And now the next generation is taking up the call. Every time I turn around Daughter is making something. So, far she has learned to cross-stitch on plastic canvas and single crochet. But, her first love is drawing and scrapbooking isn't far behind. Son is also getting the crafting bug and likes to sculpt with model clay and paper art. Husband has joined my family's madness and has taken up woodworking. Many an evening he hides in the dungeon (basement) to play with his wood :p

I've enjoyed the 3rd annual Knitting and Crocheting Blog Week and I hope that everyone else has too!

Improving Your Skillset 3KCBWDAY6

~How far down the road to learning your craft do you believe yourself to be? Are you comfortable with what you know or are you always striving to learn new skills and add to your knowledge base? Take a look at a few knitting or crochet books and have a look at some of the skills mentioned in the patterns. Can you start your amigurumi pieces with a magic circle, have you ever tried double knitting, how's your intarsia? If you are feeling brave, make a list of some of the skills which you have not yet tried but would like to have a go at, and perhaps even set yourself a deadline of when you'd like to have tried them by.~

Not tooting my own horn but, I believe that I am fairly knowledgeable in my craft and am confident in my skills. Though, there is always something I can improve upon. I am always looking for a new technic to try to further my knowledge.

Currently, I am learning how to knit two socks at a time toe-up on one needle. I’m using Toe-Up-2-at-Time Melissa Morgan-Oakes to learn this new skill. She has a great starter pair of socks to make that is a simple pattern to follow that I breezed through it quickly, finishing my first pair in two days.

I’m planning on making a second to go with the first so I have matching socks to donate to my local charity.
Also, I am learning about Irish Crochet and the traditional technics used in this craft. Interweave Crochet has been having a great tutorial on it in their magazines to follow along with.

Amongst my goals for 2012 is to learn Tunisian crochet. I’ve picked up Get Hooked Tunisian Crochet by Sheryl Thies to help me along with this. And also, I would like to learn how to build a sweater from scratch. Luckily, I just won Custom Crocheted Sweaters, Make Garments That Really Fit by Dora Ohrenstein from a Knit Picks contest.

Something a Bit Different 3KCBWDAY5

~This is an experimental blogging day to try and push your creativity in blogging to the same level that you perhaps push your creativity in the items you create.There are no rules of a topic to blog about but this post should look at a different way to present content on your blog. ~

 My hands, an Artist’s hands, irreplaceable tools. They are callused, hard, scarred, cracked, and banged up.

My cuticles are dry and split, nails chipped and broken.

Nail salons cringe upon looking at them and scold me for the ill treatment of my hands.

But, they are my greatest beauty. Without them I couldn’t caress soft fibers or run yarn through my fingers.

Without my hands I couldn’t create my dreams.

A Knitter or Crochet for all Seasons 3KCBWDAY4

~As spring is in the air in the northern hemisphere and those in the southern hemisphere start setting their sights for the arrival of winter, a lot of crocheters and knitters find that their crafting changes along with their wardrobe. Have a look through your finished projects and explain the seasonality of your craft to your readers. Do you make warm woollens the whole year through in preparation for the colder months, or do you live somewhere that never feels the chill and so invest your time in beautiful homewares and delicate lace items. How does your local seasonal weather affect your craft?~

Looking through my FO’s reveals that I don’t stick to any real pattern when it comes to the seasons or anything else really. Mostly, though I do work on a lot of baby items. This is due to the fact that there are lots of babies being born in my circle of friends and family these last few years that needed cuties baby items. And, of course, I come across adorable patterns or design my own that I make extra to sale in my store, KnitPurlHooked.

Knit baby blanket and hat

 There is one seasonal item that I don’t like working on in the summer months and that is blankets. The only way I’ll work on one is if it is made in sections. Like a Granny Square blanket.

Celtic Crochet blanket that was worked in separate pieces then connected together.

Crochet Motif for a blanket I'm currently working on.

 And then, I don’t like putting it together until the weather cools down. It is not fun sweltering under masses of worsted yarn in the summer heat.

Your Knitting or Crochet Hero 3KCBWDAY3

~Blog about someone in the fiber crafts who truly inspires you. There are not too many guidelines for this, it's really about introducing your readers to someone who they might not know who is an inspiration to you. It might be a family member or friend, a specific designer or writer, indie dyer or another blogger. If you are writing about a knitting designer and you have knitted some of their designs, don't forget to show them off. Remember to get permission from the owner if you wish to use another person's pictures.~

This may come off as corny and cheesy but, my fiber craft heroes are my mom and maternal grandmother. Both of these lovely ladies are always striving to learn and try something new; always improving on their skills. Can’t isn’t even in their vocabulary, which makes them awesome role models in the crafting world.

My grandmother is the one who taught me to crochet. When I was 4 she handed me some yarn and proceeded to teach me how to finger chain. Once I mastered that she upgraded the lesson with showing me how to chain with a hook. By the time I was 8 I knew all the basics of crocheting and with a little help with reading patterns and charts was able to make my own FO’s. 

She doesn’t crochet much anymore, mostly focusing on her painting, but she still works on expanding her knowledge in her craft. My grandmother is a watercolor artist and recently she has informed me that she is taking up acrylics.

Two charcoal sketches my grandmother gave me.

 My mom is the type who has many, many (and I mean many) irons in the fire at once. Her first love is all things sewing. Embroidery, cross-stitch, plastic canvasing, etc. And when I was a child she taught me these same skills; including trying to teach me how to use a sewing machine. To me they are a necessary evil and I only use one when I can’t talk her into doing it for me.

Cross-stitch and crochet items my mother has given me.

The baby blanket my mother made for me 34 years ago. It fits a full size bed and I still use it.

She picked up crocheting again in my pre-teens and I remember how odd it was that she would ask for help from me from time to time when she would get stuck on a stitch or reading a pattern. Recently, my mom has decided to learn knitting. And again there are these moments when we are talking over a pattern that it strikes me how odd it is that I’m the teacher.

Also, I blame her for my penchant of having multiple projects going at once. Every time I talk to her she has some new endeavor she’s working on. Last month she was making feather and ribbon hair barrettes and now she is doing something with a laminating machine and peacock feathers (don’t ask, I don’t know). My mom has given me a sense of wonder at what I can accomplish if only I set my mind to doing it; there is nothing I can’t achieve. 

Photography Challenge Day! 3KCBWDAY2

~Today challenges you to be creative with your photography, and get yourself in with the chance to win the photography prize. Taking interesting photographs in this instance isn't about flashy cameras or a great deal of technical know-how, it's about setting up a story or scene in a photograph and capturing something imaginative. Your photograph(s) should feature something related to your craft, so that might be either a knitted or crocheted item, yarn, or one of your craft tools. One example of setting a scene would be to photograph a girl in a knitted red cape walking through the woodlands with a basket of goodies, as in the Red Riding Hood tale, or you might photograph a knitted gnome hiding among the flowers in your garden. Photo editing is permitted for competition photos. Here are a few examples of my own photographs to illustrate an imaginative use of photography, but you can do much better than these...~

                                       Spring Flowers

Color Lovers 3KCBWDAY1

~Colour is one of our greatest expressions of ourselves when we choose to knit or crochet, so how do you choose what colours you buy and crochet or knit with. Have a look through your stash and see if there is a predominance of one colour. Do the same with your finished projects - do they match? Do you love a rainbow of bright hues, or more subdued tones. How much attention do you pay to the original colour that a garment is knit in when you see a pattern? Tell readers about your love or confusion over colour.~

COLORS! I love color. Lots and lots of color. Which is contradictory to the type of music I like listening to. I’m really into Heavy Metal, Emo, and Goth, but I don’t dress the part because I love color so much more.

Choosing what colors I’ll buy to knit/crochet with depends on the project, who the finished object is intended for, or what will catch my eye and scream, “buy me, buy me!”

My stash is a rainbow explosion of color. I have it organized by color in 20 quart bins stacked five deep on either side of my two dressers. Blue seems to be bulging at the seams, grey isn’t far behind. Variegated though is my favorite by far.

(I couldn't get a picture of the bins in my room because it is too dark in there. So, I offer you one of a basket full of yarn that sits on top of one of my dressers. They are there because I have not felt like putting them away yet :P)

The only stand out theme of my FO’s is that nothing matches the other and most is made with variegated yarn. So, yes, I guess, my FO’s represent my stash well. My stash in all over the spectrum. Neon green sits alongside taupe and blood red next to pastel pink.

Almost never will I make a project exactly as the original. I like making a project my own, putting a little twist to it, change it up a little. So, it stands out, not a copy and says, “I was made by Sarah.” Even if all I do is change the color. Plus, for me most projects that are found in mainstream look washed out and too neutral.

Wednesday Blog Along #5

Are WIP's like Gremlins? Every morning I wake, my WIP's have multiplied. On the needles I have: A sweater jacket, secret project #1, secret project #2, Husband's hat #2 (finally), hexipuffs (of course), and a motif blanket. My God, there are more there than I thought!

Plus, I'm "helping" Son make his derby car for cub scouts.

I carved it out with a small bow saw yesterday, was down to my last pass with the saw, after two hours of work, and sliced across the top of my left thumb. Much cursing ensued. And bleeding. Then more cursing when I poured alcohol on it. Luckily, I didn't cut my thumb off, it's just a surface wound.

Husband's hat #2 is in its infant stage.

The motif blanket was cast on, when my new craft book arrived. 150 Knit & Crochet Motifs by Heather Lodinsky

Any one else have cast-on-itis? With all this madness, I haven't really made any progress on the reading front. Just a quick word, sentence, or paragraph here and there.

Hop over to Tami's Amis and Small Things to view more fabulous work.

FO Friday #6

I'm late! As always. There are times that I find it hard to get to the computer in the mornings.

I've been following along with Interweave Crochet's Clones Lace along. Okay, this week's FO

is an Irish Rose (which was in the last issue) and a 3 Ring Clover with a buttony center (from this month's issue). Next issue there are going to be grapes. I'm enjoying making these as I learn a little about crochet's history. My two favorite things together, history and crochet/knitting. If you too are interested in these two check out PieceWork magazine. I LOVE it!

Now, hop on over to Tami's Amis to check out more wonderful FO's.

Basic Granny Square Tutorial

Your basic granny square with your favorite hook and yarn. Pattern is written out in long form for clarity.

Chain (ch) 3 and join with slip stitch (sl st) into a ring.

Ch 1, 6 single crochet (sc) in ring, join with sl st to first sc. Do not turn.

Ch 1, 2 sc in first sc and 2 sc in each st around, join with sl st to first sc. Do not turn. There are now 12 single crochets.

Ch 3 (counts as first double crochet here on out), double crochet (dc) in next st, dc in next st, ch 2, dc in next st, dc in next st, dc in next st, ch 2, dc in next st, dc in next st, dc in next st, ch 2, dc in next st, dc in next st, dc in next st, ch 2, join with sl st to first dc. There are now 12 double crochets and 4 ch 2 spaces.

Ch 3, turn, 2 dc in ch 2 space (sp), ch 2, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 1, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 2, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 1, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 2, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 1, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 2, 3 dc in ch 2 sp, ch 1, join with sl st to first dc. There are now 24 double crochets, 4 ch 2 spaces, and 4 ch 1 spaces.

A basic granny square can be easily built upon by changing yarn and hook size, making many single little ones to join up or one gaint granny square. I hope this helps beginners to crocheting or those looking for a refresher.

Good luck and happy crocheting!

WIP Wednesday #5

Hope everyone survived the Holidays and had a Merry Christmas! With all the Christmas knitting/crocheting I did for everyone else, I didn't get any done for my household. And reading the posts from fellow WIPer's and FOer's I had handmade ornament envy.

So, this week I am going to try and get a few done; in dark grey, red, and white to match our other Christmas decor. That way when we take all the decorations down after New Year's they can be packed away with them. I already have a few done that I'll be sharing on FO Friday.

As always, hop over to Tami's Amis to check out other awesome WIP's.

FO Friday #3

Today, I don't have a new FO but, thought I would share an old one.

These stockings I made years ago, probably five, when my youngest was a toddler. They're crocheted in the round and I stitched our names on them. The pattern was out of a magazine that I can no longer recall. Husband's is the blue one on the bottom, mine is the orange/purple, Daughter's is the pink camo, and Son's is the one on top. The yarn that I used for his is vintage. I found it in the bottom of a bin in our local charity shop.

As always hop on over to Tami's Amis for more wonderful FO's.

Hope your Christmas is merry!

WIP Wednesday #4

WIP Wednesday #4

After my marathon of Christmas knitting/crocheting was completed my brain felt like mush and I swear there for a day or so that my fingers and forearms had turned to limp noodles. So, with some mindless TV staring (there might have been some drool involved) for recuperation, I have begun to work once again on my Hexipuffs. Yeah! Hexipuffs!

I now have a count of 23 and one on the needle.

Previously, before my insane notion to start Christmas knitting/crocheting at the end of November, I had started on a sweater coat for myself. I found this pattern in Crochet Today Nov/Dec 2007 issue. It seems simple enough for a busy Crocheter, something that can be worked on while herding the hoodlums or while relaxing in front of the TV.

Dark grey is one of my favorite colors, if not the favoritest one. The yarn is Simply Soft Caron and it is oh, so , soft. You know the yarn is really soft when you find yourself setting there petting your project. I’m looking forward to getting back to work on the sweater.

Knitpick’s pattern holder is awesome.

I’ve been looking for something like what I use for my cross-stitch patterns, but none of the local shops carry them anymore.  Looking through Knitpick’s recent catalog, TA! DA! Found one.

It’s working out well, so far.

UPDATE: Our cat is doing really well. Saturday night he had a set back and then Sunday morning he got up like nothing ever happened and started eating and interacting with his brothers. The vet still has no clue what had been wrong.  We think it might have been a combination of missing the dog (they had been close) and bad cat food. I had opened a new bag Monday last, the same day he had come down sick. The other two didn’t even eat much of it, either. Since then we have replaced the food and he is now recovering. Yeah!

Don’t forget to check out other great WIP’s over at Tami's Amis!