A Week to Make a Veil

I recently delivered the good news that the veil for a long-time friend's wedding had been found, only to be told that the veil was white.

The dress is ivory.  It seems I now have a week to make an ivory veil, so I'll be taking a sewing break.

Grannies for Granny Finish

I have my first Christmas gift for next year finished.

I can hardly wait for December, because I know my darling Grandmother is going to LOVE this ornament.

Grannies for Granny

I've been meaning to start on this since I saw Dawn's Vintage Granny Square Christmas Tree, and finally got to it a day or two ago.

I just LOVE how the beads I happened to have on hand from a broken bracelet perfectly accent this green thread.

Perhaps when I give it to Grandma next Christmas, I should put it in a gift basket with Granny Smith apples.

Grannies with Grannies for Granny?

Knitting Break (Plus Some Good News)

A couple of weeks ago, I picked up some needles, bound and determined I was going to learn how to knit.

After some cursing and a ton of persistence, not only have I learned the basic techniques, I have created this adorable cat-ear hat.

The best part?  I improvised the pattern using what I know of shaping from crochet.  It will soon be available for paid download on Ravelry, for the low price of $2.50.

Lastly, and perhaps most important, the veil for the wedding has been found!

The Veil

A week ago, I was asked to take a look at a the veil for a long-time friend's wedding, and scheduled a time to do so.  The day rolled around, and I received a message with terrible news--The veil was nowhere to be found!

It had been in their car when it was stolen, and the thief had the nerve to throw the veil, which had belonged to a family member of the friend, away.

It was an important memory for them in many ways, and losing the item attached to it was a horrible tragedy.  However, life continues.  All we can do is look to the future and shape it as we go.  That doesn't mean we have to or should forget about things in the past--It just means that when something precious is lost, we gain something even more precious, and form new memories that can be shared.

I have been asked to make a new veil for the wedding, and I hope to make something that can be treasured for many years.

Christmas Presents

It's that time of year again, and I'm crocheting, knitting, or sewing all but a single one of my family's Christmas presents.

For my mother, a hat and scarf with a novelty yarn we picked out together.  For my grandmother, a lovely Christmas doily.  For my *wonderful* cousin Briana, a knitted hat with adorable cat ears!

Sadly, I'm a little behind schedule, and only have one of six projects finished and wrapped, but as soon as I get to the store, I'll be able to finish the rest--I've got quite a bit of dexterity in my fingertips, at least, so I should get done rather quickly once I have the necessary materials.

Ravelry Made my Day

I've (finally) signed up for Ravelry.  The account's not particularly exciting just yet, but something really caught my eye on the profile edit page.

Don't see it yet?  Look a little closer... Bottom row...

That's right.  Favorite curse word.

That's a little personal, isn't it, Ravelry?

Just My Luck.

After my slump, I came back to my work only to notice something absolutely horrifying: insect larvae and shed carapace.

Kill me now, I thought, but, the rational, non-wasteful part of me was reminded of the proper way to deal with such a problem, and decided to share it with my readers.

First, gather several plastic trash bags.

Second, place the yarn inside, along with any other fibers that have touched it and may have eggs on them.  (This includes but is not limited to blankets, pillows, clothing, and stuffed animals.)

Third, seal it off.  Instead of using the ties at the top to seal it, tie a knot in the bag itself--this prevents air from getting into the bag.

Fourth, store the bags for a while.  Depending on the life cycle of the insect in question, this can be anywhere from a week to a few months.  Luckily, the variety my stash has been infected with should be dealt with by Thanksgiving.

Fifth, thoroughly clean yarn stash.  If yarn stash is made with plant or animal fibers, do not store yarn here again after it has been sealed in the bags.  (Many people disapprove of plastic tubs as yarn storage in the crochet and knitting community, but they happen to be the best for keeping yarn in good condition and out of reach of insects.)

Sixth, remove the yarn and crochet, carefully eying the yarn for dead insects and shed carapace.  You will need to pick these out by hand.  (Rather gross, I know!)

Seventh, thoroughly wash the finished product.

If infestation returns, repeat process, storing yarn for a longer period of time, and making certain to do so with all fibers that may be harboring eggs.

Depending on the type of infestation, you may wish to consult with a professional exterminator, as infestations such as carpet beetles and specific species of moth can be damaging to furniture and carpeting, and such infestations will return to your yarn stash unless properly taken care of at the source.

Slumps

There has been an image going around the internet lately that I think fits my situation perfectly, entitled "Patch Notes: Human v1.1."

As I do not hold the image copyright, I have no intention of posting it, but there is one particular part that made me laugh.  "Fixed bug where motivation module randomly fails to load."

Motivation failing?  Happens to me all the time!  I've recently started a hat, scarf, and glove set with my blue-green baby yarn after frogging an overzealous project, but I can't find the slightest bit of motivation to finish it.

It looks like until I get my motivation back, I'll have half a scarf and one glove.

At least tomorrow (Today, for you east-coast and later) is Halloween.  I'm not in a storm zone, and it's the first time in years I haven't been sick on this date, so I think I may just go around once or twice.

Irish Lace Choker WIP

I've taken on yet another project that I may never get the chance to wear.

Why does this thread have to be so beautiful?

Colors of Love Finish

My miniature "Colors of Love" granny square blanket has taken a place of honor atop the bench for my piano.  Perhaps I should make a pun about 'the key to my heart...'

Crocheted things are definitely that key.

Choker Finish & A Crash Course in Photography

Now that I finally have batteries for the camera, I asked a certain family member for a few photography tips, and they've made all the difference.  I can finally share my excitement over this lovely finish!

I do have a confession, however.  I don't own anything yellow or orange to wear it with!

(This item has been listed for sale on Craigslist.)

One of Those Days

We all have those days when we feel like changing up our routine a little bit.  For me, today was one of those days.

Instead of crocheting, like usual, I spent my day baking.  The entire apartment smells like pumpkin and chocolate, thanks to the numerous cookies now littering the table.

Life feels good.

Everyday Life

It's amazing just how much touches like these become a part of everyday life.  The apartment is slowly but surely becoming our own, filled with things that make it clear this is our little place in the world.

I'm glad.

Memorials

It's already been eleven years?  Time goes by so fast.  I haven't got a specific memorial project planned, but maybe you all can do something special with this motif in memory of those who died on 9/11/2001.  Closed meshes are colored, open meshes are white.  For best results, use against a white background.

I'd love to see what you all can do!  E-mail me pictures of memorial projects made with this and I might even feature them in a post.

Sewing Patterns Repurposed

My sewing pattern collection consists of impulse purchases.  All of them.  When I was younger and had money for such things, I would always find my wallet a little lighter when I saw something particularly pretty.

Now that I'm older and more sensible, I find myself wondering how I'll ever use them all... and then it hit me when I saw this video from Ira Rott.  Cutting and sewing is wonderful and all, but crochet is my real passion. I hope to get started on making an Irish Crochet cloak as soon as possible!

Ah, Memories... (+Yet another free filet grid)

When I found this, it sure brought back memories.  This lovely little creation was the first doily I ever made.  It was my experiment with Filet Crochet, a double-mesh with a larger hook than I normally use these days.  I call it the "handkerchief doily," and it's also the first time I used Microsoft Paint to create a black-and-white grid pattern for Filet.

Combine it with the doilies and Irish Roses made and given to me by Great Aunt Lilly, and it still adds that perfect decorative touch.

A USC2 hook and size 10 thread were used when I first made this doily.

Tiny Butterfly Experiment--Continued.

I've decided.  My little butterfly motif will be paired with a lovely heart-pattern hdc-mesh filet choker.

The bright colors are a little strong for Autumn, but Spring will come along before we know it.  Besides, the latter half of the year has always been much too cold for my tastes.  I need a bit of sunshine like this to get me through Winter, don't you?

I thought about adding some yellow Irish Roses, but it seems to me like three motifs might be pushing it.  Guess we'll see, hmm?

"Thank You" Projects (+Snowflake/Holly Border Pattern)

I try to make a point to work on something as a thank-you project whenever someone gives me yarn.  At the moment, my list includes a filet tablecloth(or table runner, depending on how long my baby yarn lasts) for my great aunt, a pillow for my great aunt, and an as-yet-undecided project for Aunt Suzie.  Aunt Suzie is a fashionable lady, so I've got a general category to work with: clothing and accessories.

While I contemplate what to do for that, here's the progress I've got on the tablecloth/tablerunner:

Soft leaves that also form the icy snowflake border, and a small berry between each set.  A perfect border motif.  I'd know-I made the pattern myself for that purpose.




 





Here's a little more detail on the filet motif...

And here's a little three-month-early Christmas present for you all.  I put 15x15 squares between the motifs on my project, and used a USC2(2.75 MM) hook with Red Heart Baby Yarn.

Have fun!

The Colors of Love (Granny Square Blanket WIP)

Recently, my grandmother gave me the task of fixing an old granny square doll blanket. Fitting, right?  So, I got to work figuring out exactly how it had been originally made and mimicking it until the blanket was 100% good as new.  It inspired me to start making one of my own...

I looked in my yarn stash, and found this.  It was a Christmas gift from a family member, but I've been saving it in case a project came along that would really make it shine.

Clearly, this is that project.  Don't the squares just look so vibrant?








I'm almost giggling like a little girl.

Finally, some detail! (+Free Filet Crochet Pattern)

As I promised almost a month ago, here's some more detail on the filet lace on those curtains of mine.

Isn't it just so gentle-looking?  I just love pink and white!  Of course, I'm one of those people who loves practically everything.  I guess you could say I'm sort of like a dog that way, hmm?  "A walk in the park?  My favorite thing!  Chasing my tail?  My favorite thing!"







I have a lot of favorite things.  Just living in such a beautiful world never really ceases to amaze me, and everything I see is always so much more vibrant in reality than it is in my memory.

These are the filet charts I created (using Microsoft Paint of all things).  For the size seen on the curtains, size 10 thread and a size 6 hook are used.

Forgot to Nag.

I still need to grab the higher-quality curtain photos from a certain family member.  You wouldn't think things like that would be so tough to remember!

On another note, my birthday was September 1st, and darn, do I feel loved.  Sixty dollars in cash, a huge bag of yarn and thread found in the back of an aunt's closet, a gift card, and Hercules on DVD.  Somebody remind me to make something Hercules-inspired one of these days.  I love that movie so much.

I of course made sure to put some of that money to good use, and bought myself a nice set of crochet hooks for use in threadwork.  When I got home, I was really itching to try it out, and grabbed some orange-and-yellow thread from the big bag.  The result:  A tiny butterfly, which I promise I'll give a higher-quality image of as soon as I remember to nag!

It's shown next to my new set of Boye crochet hooks.  I love that they're interchangeable heads!  I tend to crochet a lot in the car on the way to pretty much anywhere(I'm not the one driving), so having something to put them in instead of just stabbing whatever yarn happens to be closest to me is a big improvement.  That isn't to say that stabbing the yarn can't be fun too, of course.  It's just a little sad when you start needlessly being mean to inanimate objects, is all.

Little Hanging Witch

First and foremost, I hate webcam-quality photos, but at the moment I have to nag a certain family member for weeks if I want anything else, so here it is.  This little witch amigurumi was adapted from a perfect sphere pattern found here, which makes a perfect base pattern for lots of things.








The little kitten on the end of the broom is my favorite part.

Organization: The Most Irritating Key to Success

This is my yarn storage when I started with it.  What a mess!  I had intended to work on Irish Lace, but the thread I needed was all the way at the bottom, so I set to work organizing.

Clearly, there was a lot of work to be done if I wanted to get my precious blue thread.

 I worked...

And worked.

Finally, it was done, but I found something else at the bottom that I'd been procrastinating on completing, so I worked some more, getting these darned curtains up.

The lace at the top and the lace on the window ties are both filet, hand-sewn onto curtains made from the lovely pink fabric I bought when the local Joanne's Fabrics location was bought out by the SNHD.  The buttons used to fasten the window ties were also a Going-Out Sale find, which I bought for just pennies per card.

More Going-Out Sale finds to come, as well as higher detail on the curtains.