More Off the Hook

During February and March, I managed to crochet more than 2200 yards.  No, my wrist still hurts but not as much since I'm started wearing a splint to immobilize my wrist and thumb at night.

FEBRUARY Projects

  First out of the gate was the MacKenzie Tartan Bookmark, made from some vintage thread purchased at an estate sale several years ago. The Fan Bookmark pattern was designed by Crochetroo.  Named in honor of the the primary color in the MacKenzie Tartan, this will be a gift to someone in a Ravelry swap I'm in.  Made from Collingbourne's Luxura, Size 20 crochet thread,  (marketed as artificial silk thread), this actual spool was manufactured sometime between the mid-1920s to as late as 1943.  After a slow start, this bookmark worked up fast.  I will definitely make a few more.  Yardage = 25 yards

During February I took a stab at knitting. I even went so far as to attempt stranded color knitting.  I made two different versions of Lindsay Koehler's Piano Hat.  The first hat was completely knitted (with crocheted ear flaps added as an afterthought), while the other was crocheted with the keyboard knitted added before the crocheted ear flaps.  These ear flap hats were crafted for DN #1 and her buddy, both cheerleaders at their local junior college.  They wanted hats in their school colors (green, white, and gold) to wear while cheering during outdoor games. DN#2 calls these "Henry Hats."  Long story.  Total yardage = 415 yards

MARCH Projects

I started the month off with Mondo's Scrappy Key Lime Dish Cloth.  Having been tasked to craft something out of scrap yarn, I took inspiration watching Project Runway when Mondo Guerra pulled together and won! with this little dress made of different fabrics. I alternated two different balls of cotton yarn -- one was solid green and one transitioned from white to various shades of green.  The texture is created using the SC-Ch stitch combination.

I was then tasked to find inspiration from a Gustav Klimt painting.  I love images of trees, so naturally when I saw this picture, I had to craft something!  And would you know it, I had three skeins of Lion Brand Homespun in the exact same colors!  Thank goodness for bulky yarn because my Birch Forest Homespun Shawl went from start to finish in less than 10 hours.  I used the Half Granny Square Shawl pattern by Anastacia Zittel.  Despite a wingspan of more than 70 inches, the shawl weighs just over a pound.  A perfect shawl for the office.  Total yardage = 555 yards

 

Next up was a felted tote that started out as a wool watch cap for my father.  My sister Constance has always said that my father has a big head so I made it a bit large.  Knowing that it was going to be felted, I made it a bit bigger. However, when I finished crocheting the brim, I realized that it was waaaaay too bit, even for my "big-headed" father.  So, I turned it upside down, added on the straps and button, and felted the hell out of the new tote. This will make someone a great project bag.  Yarn used was Patons Classic Wool and Lion Brand/s Wool Solids.  Yardage = 762 yards

This little baby bib was a simple project to craft, using almost a skein of Ornaghi Filati Gong, a plush mercerized DK cotton yarn.  Its trimmed in a single ply of red cotton pulled from a scrap of 4 ply TLC Cotton Plus. Yardage = 121 yards

I made this Massage Ball Sack to use as part of my physical therapy. This sack is designed to hold two tennis balls next to one another to aid in trigger-point therapy, an alternative type of massage used by physical therapists to break up the trigger points or muscle knots that are the source of pain throughout various parts of the body. The balls effectively reach either side of the spine, upper back, and other targeted areas of the upper and lower-body, as well as thigh and calf muscles.  I used Lion Brand Sock-Ease in Grape Soda.  Yardage = 219.

Hooked Up

After a bit of a hiatus, I finally have gotten back into crocheting.  What finally got me going after nursing a sore wrist and a college freshman through her first semester?  My Outlander Fans swap that started January 1st.  Based on A Breath of Snow and Ashes (ABOSAA), the sixth book in Diana Gabaldon's excellent Outlander series, the swap features the Highland Games in which four clans (Beauchamp, Fraser, MacKenzie, and Murray) compete for points.  For this gathering of the clans (i.e., swap), we are crafting things in response to a series of challenges tied to ABOSAA.  Bowing to my competitive streak, I have submitted an item for each of the six January challenges. 

 JANUARY PROJECTS

Beauchamp Felted Cap:

This lightly felted helmet (above) was made for a friend of my eldest, one of a set of twins who helped her survive her first college semester.  DN #1 (dear niece) is always a willing, if not a jokester, of a model.  I used 3 skeins of Lion Brands Landscapes.  I gifted DN with the remaining 21 skeins -- 24 skeins or 1,320 yards gone from my stash.

Book Tie-in:    We had to craft something for a friend.  I chose to do so in in colors reminiscent of the Beauchamp clan colors.

Asclepian Comfort Pack:

This little 8 x 10 cotton pouch features a lined hot pack filled with lavender-scented flax seeds.  It's Egyptian cotton construction allows it to be heated in the microwave or cooled in the freezer.  Let me just say that Knitting Fever's King Tut 100% Egyptian Cotton yarn is one of the most scrumptious cotton yarns around. The sc-ch stitch pattern produced a wonderfully textured yet soft fabric.  Previously selling at $15, this yarn been discontinued but I have a few skeins left.  Easy to make, Donna Hulka's pattern can be found on the Crochet Me website.  182 yards gone from my stash.

Book Tie-in:  The rod of Asclepius, also known as the asklepian, consists of a serpent entwined around a staff and is an ancient symbol associated with medicine and healing. The name of the symbol derives from its early and widespread association with Asclepius, the son of Apollo, who was a practitioner of medicine in ancient Greek mythology. This comfort pack makes a fantastically relaxing and comforting combination that soothes the body and mind. Use this pack on your back, neck, feet, or anywhere that could benefit from a little TLC.

Stone Circle Hat:

Hat number 2 was a gift to the friend of DN #2.  Said friend loves purple so hence Lion Brand Yarn's Sock-Ease in Grape Soda.  Unfortunately, the wool-nylon blend of  is a bit scratchy.  I only hope it gets softer with washing.  285 yards gone from my stash.

Book Tie-in:  Many members of the Beauchamp Clan are not linked by blood but rather by their ability to be transported by the circles of stones that only they can hear. In ABOSAA, Donner is looking for a safe way back home, through the stones. In addition to the stones encircling the hat’s edge (see unblocked version at right) , lines of stones are aligned along 8 spokes or axes, drawing the travelers to its center, to their destinies. In Wiccan spirtuality, the number 8 vibrates: power, practical endeavors, status oriented, power-seeking, high-material goals, sacrifice, money-oriented, decisive, and stern -- traits that travelers like Otter Tooth and Donner were seeking to fulfill in their journeys to the past.

Roger's Neck Garter:

This slim cowl is made from Kraemer Yarns Tatamy Tweed DK acrylic cotton blend.  Although the manufacturer calls for 3.75 mm needle, I used a 4.5 mm hook combined with what I call a “back bar hdc” stitch to create a slightly loose gauge without losing the drape or being holey. Crocheting into the back bar created by the original yarn over results in a reversible plush fabric. Despite the “thickness” the fabric does not feel knotty or cumbersome.  Nice yarn.  250 yards gone.

Book Tie-in:  This little neck garter is a gift for Roger from Bree, to warm and sooth his throat from the winter chill. Bree wants Roger to know that she understands his pain and will do what she can to help alleviate whatever discomfort she can. Although Roger loves Bree in the muted colors of homespun, Bree hungers for the brighter colors of her own time. The muted tones of this blue-green homespun styled yarn represent a bit of a compromise, but, as we know, Roger lets Bree have these little victories.

Jenny's Wedding Pouch:

This little cotton bag used a full skein of Gjestal Baby-Bomull, a Swedish yarn that translates simply to Baby Cotton. 197 yards from my stash.

Book Tie-in:  Jenny Fraser, like all the Frasers, is verra proud. Wanting to put her best foot forward, she made this little bag as her only outward luxury during her 18th century Highland wedding to Ian Murray. Forever practical and lacking the resources to spare pearls for something that would be used infrequently during her lifetime, Jenny imitated the look with a bobble stitch. Always practical, Jenny intends to pass the bag to her eldest daughter upon her marriage.

Firecracker Beret: 

The third of three hats made this month, this one for sister Connie Jean down in Houston.   Constructed of Lion Brand Yarns Amazing (yeah, that its name), the yarn at times felt a bit scratchy while working the hat but luckily produced a hat soft to the touch.  'Twas a quick project started in the wee hours of the new year as I awaited phone calls from family living out west.  176 yards gone.

Book Tie-in:  Playing on the firecracker red and orange Aurora colorway, the beret represents the wee matches Briana spent much of the winter of 1773 creating.  Despite the threat of a house fire hanging over her parents heads, despite her husband's uneasiness about possible fire in their own home, Brianna insisted upon experimented with bringing instantaneous fire to her hearth.  This hat would serve to keep her fiery red hair under control as well.

All in all, six projects totally 1,222 yards -- all out of my stash..  I'm gearing up for the February challenges where I plan to finally make the Stone Path Hat, item number 2 on my Bucket List.

As an aside, I am the chieftess for Clan Beauchamp, as well as the chief chieftess for our biannual gathering.  The Games have been played five times before, and I am proud to say that we Beauchamps have triumphed each time.  My clan sisters are a wonderful set of women.

A Crocheter's Bucket List

The Bucket List is a movie about taking the time to find the joy in your life.  In that film, Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson hit the road to complete a wish list of to-dos before they "kicked the bucket."  Naturally, I have a few far reaching things I want to accomplish before I shuffle off this mortal coil, including walking atop the Great Wall of China, identifying my grandfather's father (try finding a oriental rug salesman from India who made his way to Kansas City only to have an affair with a mulatto woman from Sherman, Texas!), and getting a tattoo (okay, done that twice).


A bucket list is, in essence, a list of things you want to do or experience in your lifetime.  Ideally it will contain things that you wouldn't do in your average day.  But by keeping an up-to-date list of your hoped-for conquests, and referring to it every now and then, it stays at the forefront of your mind and therefore more likely to influence your daily activities.

Health issues have hindered my daily crochet activities this year.  So, to get my butt in gear, here are my top five crochet To-Dos:

[  ]  Finish my CGOA Master of Advanced Stitches and Techniques, a course for intermediate plus crocheters to stretch their knowledge and show mastery of advanced techniques and stitches.  Thought this would be a good way to practice those stitches I just can't seem to get a handle on . . . like post stitches.

[  ]  Make Lisa Naskrent's Stone Path Hat:  I hate post stitches.  Don't ask me why because I really can't explain it.  However, I love this little hat, particularly when Claire of Aylin's Woolgathers showed me hers done up in Berrocco Comfort Sock.  So I think I will give it a chance.  Perhaps with a little practice, I might change my mind about crochet post stitches.  Perhaps.

[  ]  Improve my knitting skills.  I know what you must be thinking:  Heresy! What's this talk about knitting on a crochet blog? I'm a firm believer that there are things I can take from knitting and use it to improve my crochet.  Knitters are encouraged to learn a bit of crochet.  I want to learn enough knitting so that I can use it to embellish my crochet.  Besides, what's a knitted scarf between friends?

[  ] Finish writing up the pattern to my Split Personality Shawl, done completely in split single crochet.  Why Split Personality, which is a neurosis in which the personality becomes dissociated into two or more distinct parts? This shawl is crafted using Split Single Crochet (split sc) in three distinct parts. The pattern shifts from a semi-solid mesh of split sc-ch to an open mesh of split sc-2ch mesh to a band of arches. In addition, split sc creates a faux knitted stockinette texture. So, thus the split personality -- crochet or knitted.  Actually, this really should be on my list of New Year's Resolutions but I will take what I can get.

[  ]  Figure out the best way to organize my stash.  Stashes of yarn can be a beautiful thing.  At least that's how it looks on TV.  You know, baskets of colorful yarn positioned in corners, on naked book shelves, that sort of thing.  Why hide them?  Currently my yarn is sitting in plastic bins in my closet or somewhat out of view in that no man's land between the bed and the window.  I think it might be cool to incorporate the good stuff from my stash into the decor.


So, what's on your list of top five crochet things to do before you bite the dust, fall off your perch, give up the ghost, or "kick the bucket"?

Should you choose to accept this mission . . .

A fellow yarnie tagged me with a new mission: find the sixth photo in my sixth photo folder and write about it. Sounds simple enough but then I got to thinking (always a dangerous thing my friend Lisa always says because I say that about her): do I have six folders in My Pictures folder? Do I have even six photos in that folder? Worse yet, what if the photo is stupid, embarrassing, or just plain crass? So, with some trepidation, I embarked upon my mission impossible.

How fortuitous that my sixth-sixth is one of my favorite pics. Here is 4-1-1:

My father, the curmudgeon (I'm being nice), was visiting from Utah and had taken the girls and I out to dinner. My father -- Uncle Earl to a slew of nieces and nephews, and Paw Paw to his grandchildren -- likes to push the parental envelope by teaching his grandchildren and nieces and nephews silly things -- like how to cuss or by telling them slightly inappropriate stories. On this day, Lariat had just gotten braces and was actually quite excited and proud. She looked good in them too, despite the fake tattoo on her cheek. As usual, as we were sitting waiting to order, Paw Paw was regaling his granddaughters with some nonsense or another. I was happily snapping photos with my new phone. I don't remember what story my father was telling but was fortunate to snap this pic just as Lariat registered her reaction with a very vocal "Ewwww."

Now, my father is not the only one who borders on the silly in an effort to entertain. Lariat thought to liven things up by sticking crayons up her nose and exclaiming, "Look at me! I am a walrus!" Go figure the mind of a 13-year old.

The evening ended on a good note. The food was good, and there weren't any arguments. Of all the ones taken that evening, I like this photo best.

Now that I have told you about that photo, I must explain the rules for the five people for whom I have selected to take up this mission.

Linda's Yarn Closet
Wannabe Domestic Goddess
DeltaPurl
Knit One, Purr Two
Unraveling Sophia

Rules:
1) Go to your photo folders
2) Select the sixth file folder
3) Open it and select the sixth photo in that file folder
4) Write a story for that picture, post it and
5) Select five bloggy friends to tag
6) Be sure to let them know they've been tagged

Good luck if you choose to accept this mission. This blog post will not self-destruct after 10 seconds. It's on the Internet, so it is forever.