How Long Have I Been Crocheting?

That was the question I asked my husband Saturday night. He didn't have an answer (well, it was sort of a rhetorical question), but I can tell you that it is most of my life. And yet I managed to screw up not 1, but 2 projects that I worked on Saturday.

While I was online Saturday morning, I learned that the new Crochet Me issue was up and available. It turned out that Deneen had a pattern published in this issue, a really cute hat, and I decided to try out her pattern and make another hat/scarf set for the Salvation Army. I doubted that I had 2 shades of green to use, but I found a pair of stretchy gloves in orange and decided that a green/orange combo was the way to go. The green is Plymouth Encore and the orange is Red Heart Soft. However, in my infinite wisdom (said with heavy sarcasm), I decided to try the child size and go down a hook size as well. And I ended up with a perfectly sized hat for a toddler. Not exactly what I was going for, but it will still work for the donation. However, when I use the pattern again, I will use the correct hook size.

Then I decided to start the scarf, despite the fact that is was now late afternoon. I was going along great guns, but at the end of row 5 I finally realized that I was adding a stitch on each row because I was putting my first dc in the same stitch as the turning chain, and then crocheting my last stitch into the turning chain on the next row. I honestly know better than to do that, but there you are. I'm chalking it up to fatigue, but I'm not thrilled at the prospect of frogging the scarf down to the first row. Probably why I found something else to work on yesterday, but that's a topic for tomorrow's post.

It's Not Finished...

...but here's the preemie blanket I have been working on. I almost got the edging finished last night, but when I got home from work I had to fulfill my highest function - providing a bed for the cat - for at least half an hour. I finally figured out that no one had turned up the heat, hence the need to cuddle with "Mom". Hopefully I will finish this up tonight and move on. I'm using this pattern and Bernat Softee Baby yarn, one of my favorites for preemie and baby things. I used a wooden F hook that I don't use very often. And, in what seems to be a theme this week, it doesn't lay completely flat. I know you aren't supposed to block acrylic, but I may try to gently block this. I think it would help. I would like to make another one in more "girl" colors, and I may go up to a G hook to see if that helps.

Pictures Today!

Today I have some pictures to go with Monday's post. I finished up the hat and scarf set last night:

Specs: Simply Soft Shadows in Pearl Frost colorway, H hook for the hat and K hook for the scarf. The scarf is 7.5" X 45". The set should fit an older child or teen. I used a new (to me) stitch for the scarf, something called an alternate double crochet. It's a little softer yet more textured than a regular dc, and I thought it worked quite well for a scarf. I added a couple of rows of open work at either end of the scarf and at the bottom of the hat, but those don't show up well in the picture.

And here is the round ripple I have been working on:

It doesn't want to lay completely flat, even when spread out on the table, and I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. I will take it to my guild meeting on Sunday and consult with my fellow crocheters before I make a decision, though. Pattern is available here. I'm using Red Heart Soft and an H hook.

I also made progress on the preemie blanket last night. The squares are sewn together, and I will try to finish the edging today and post pictures tomorrow.

Lots of Crocheting Going On...

...but no pictures. I don't seem to have time or inspiration this morning to take pictures. I have been working on several different projects over the long weekend, but I didn't manage to finish anything, and there were one or two "issues" along the way.

Let's see, on Thursday I played around with some of the design ideas from the Create Along. I made a hat and started a scarf with Simply Soft Shadows. The scarf gave me a good travel project for the weekend. However, I worked on it yesterday while talking with the parents, and I missed a stitch, which I didn't realize for rows and rows. So now I have to frog and redo. Probably why I'm not up for taking a picture of it this morning.

On Friday, I had the bright idea to make a granny square for a preemie blanket I am working on. It requires 4 squares, and I had 2 done, so I thought I would make a 3rd quickly and then work on something else. Well, I grabbed the wrong hook, made the square (all 10 rows of it) and didn't realize what I had done until it was finished. So I frogged that one and then had a pile of yarn sitting on the arm of my chair. By the time I had remade the square correctly, the day was almost over, so I just kept going and made the 4th square too. But now the squares need joined and the blanket needs edged, so I will wait on a picture until it is finished.

I also worked quite a bit on a round ripple baby afghan that I had started last Wednesday. It is very pretty, but it really confused my mother, who informed me that "babies aren't round". I'm thinking, well they aren't exactly rectangular, either. {LOL} My MIL and I finally convinced her that once the afghan was big enough, someone would be able to wrap a baby up in it, but it was a tough sell!

I hope everyone had a good holiday. I worked very hard to stay on Weight Watchers the past 2 days, but I know I ate more than usual. However, I am very happy because as of last Friday, I have officially lost 15 lbs. Not bad considering I have only been on the program less than 3 months. I now have 4 days to get ready for my next weigh in. Hopefully I won't get bad news from this past weekend.

Designing

Kim over at the CrochetMe blog mentioned a new group blog in her entry this morning, and I'm glad she did. I've been exploring the "create along", and my head is spinning with thoughts about designing.

The idea behind this along is to limit the participants to the use of 5 different yarns and then see what they come up with. Most are knitting, but at least on designer is crocheting a sweater. All levels of skill at desiging are welcome, and as a group they are learning from one another's mistakes and triumphs. I think it is going to be fascinating to keep an eye on this blog.

The rationale behind limiting the yarns was especially interesting to me. Not that I do much designing, but often when I crochet for charity, I do find myself choosing different stitch patterns to try. I usually accept any limitations on the projects either without thinking or by chafing at them. It never occurred to me to accept them knowingly and as the beginning of creative expression. I also tend to be overwhelmed by the shear number of design choices available for any given project, so setting some limits for myself might actually help me be more creative.

The tutorial on using Excel as an aid to designing was also fascinating. I played around with it, and it really works. Unfortunately, I don't have a print screen button on my laptop, so I can't show you all what I came up with. But I am going to have fun with that in the future!

So, with Weight Watchers tomorrow and two family get togethers over the weekend, I probably won't be back until Monday. So have a happy Easter and a safe holiday weekend!

Moebius Shawl

I also had a little time on Sunday to work on my next Doris Chan project, the Blue Alleghany Moebius Shawl. I am using Ritratto like the pattern does, but in a different colorway, so perhaps I should come up with a slightly different name! I had started this shawl right after I finished the Blue Curacao shawl at the end of December, and I got a few rows done. Then I put it down for a long while, I think because it just wasn't growing very fast. I guess I thought it would come together as quickly as the first shawl, but it is a very different yarn and pattern which is much slower going. But working on it on Sunday, I began to get a rhythm going with it, and now I think I will be able to finish it fairly quickly.

After discovering that my gauge was off on the Shoop Shoop capelet, I pulled this project back out and measured in carefully. My gauge on this one is spot on, which is good news, but when I looked the piece over, I noticed that it was puckering. So it came to work with me on Saturday, and when Dee arrived to put up the exhibit, I had her look at it too. Dee is my crochet guru - there just isn't anything that woman doesn't know about crochet - and sure enough, she was able to explain to me that the puckering is caused by the combination of all the chain 3s, which create a light fabric, and the areas of sc, which are much denser. Blocking should smooth the fabric out, although that makes me a little nervous. What if I screw up the blocking after all my work on the piece? But I will cross that bridge when I come to it.

I am trying to be disciplined for once and only work on one Doris Chan project at a time. But I am itching to begin the Chrysanthemum Tea Shawl, too. That will definitely be my next project from Amazing Crochet Lace!

It's All About Crochet These Days!

Yes, my knitting is being woefully neglected these days while I immerse myself in crochet. This weekend was no exception.

First up, the highlight of my work day on Saturday was the installation of a crochet exhibit in the library's display case. I have to give a big thanks to Dee and Grace for all their hard work on the display. Grace made the large piece of filet crochet at the back of the second shelf, from a pattern designed by Laura Ingalls Wilder. The display really looks great, and I can't wait to see what my patrons have to say about it. However, for a description of the display, I'm going to refer you over to Dee's blog, because I have more to show you this morning.

Yesterday turned into a finishing day, which felt very good but did have one drawback. I finished up my second Shoop Shoop capelet, but when I laid it out to block it, I discovered that I had made a major boo-boo. If you notice, the left side is flatter than the right side towards the front, and there are only 4 points when there should be 5. Yes, I missed an increase and then perpetuated the mistake for 5 rows. And no, I am not frogging it. I will live with the mistake. I actually wore the capelet all afternoon yesterday and it is very comfortable and warm. I have enough yarn that I may try again some day, but not right now. I've kind of had it with this pattern for awhile.

Then I decided that it was time to finish up this baby blanket as well. I started this last fall, I think, and I got it to the point where it just needed the 2 last rows of edging and the final ends tied in. It has sat at that point for weeks and weeks, and I finally just got sick of looking at it. It is actually more purple that it looks in the picture. I'm not sure what I am going to do with it, but it came out exactly 24" X 36", so it might go to Project Linus. Other specs: Lion Brand Pound of Love and a K hook, and I used the sedge stitch for the main part of the blanket and an edging from Jean Leinhauser's 50 Crocheted Afghan Borders that I modified to include a shell stitch for the final row. No boo-boos on this one. It really did come out perfect.