2010: Fresh off the Hook

Happy New Year!

I know, I know, I still need to blog about my Florida adventures! Soon I will! :)

I did want to share my first finished 2010 Crochet Project: it's a hat based upon one of the main characters, Bella actually, in the Twilight series. In the movie Bella wears a solid crocheted hat featuring raised stitches and cables. Being snowed in and with Mini~Dee's birthday around the corner I decided she needed her own "Twilight" themed cap ... all I needed was the right yarn and hook.

At the time I made this decision, well, let's just say having a fairly large yarn stash to "shop" in (day or night, during rain/sleet/snow storms) can be wonderful! I found a pretty self-striping wool/soy yarn in my stash that matched her new winter coat perfectly. I soon set to work. (Funny, I don't recall when or where I purchased the yarn!) It didn't take long for the hat to take shape, or for Mini~Dee to recognize the hat design for that matter. After weaving in the ends and blocking the hat, Mini~Dee couldn't wait to wear it to school! I've never seen her so excited over a hat before!

However, when she came home from school the next day she had a request for me: make it longer! See, I had created it just a wee bit short as she wanted to show off her nearly pierced ears. With our Connecticut winter weather reading in the teens (and wind chills in the single digits) she decided it was better to have a longer hat to help keep her ears warm! So, I added a bit of length and now she's even happier with the hat! (Why the wolf in the picture? She's on Team Jacob!)

We're seven days into the New Year; what crochet projects are you working on, or have already finished?

Holiday Greetings!

Handmade Gifts are Special

Are you feeling the holiday crunch like I am? The dashing around, trying to find the right gift for that special someone on your list? I'm feeling it a bit too! Plus, I'm preparing for the Crochet Workshop I'll be teaching at the Local Needle on Sunday, and the Crochet Meet-up in Jacksonville, FL, on Monday. Yes, indeed, it is holiday crunch time! And what better way to find a few quiet moments than to crochet up a gift, take a crochet class, or meet up with other crocheters?

And you know what makes me feel it's all worth while? When others comment that Crochet rocks! There I was in Old Navy, looking to purchase leggings to match the sweater you see on the right that I had crocheted for my 3-year old niece. As I held the sweater out to check the coloring of the leggings I received a ton of compliments on the sweater -- even some inquiries as to where I purchased it! When I explained I had made the sweater by hand the gushing just went on and on! :)

If you're looking for a last minute crochet gift to whip up with nearly any worsted weight yarn in your stash, that works up quick, all while you learn a new stitch and/or crochet technique -- and you've been looking to treat yourself to my PDF Tumbling Clusters Scarf pattern -- then you'll be happy to know that for the next 24-hours the pattern will be on sale at my website ... http://www.crochetwithdee.com/! Hurry though, the sale ends at 11:30 AM Eastern Time on December 18th.

Santa Delivers!

For the third straight year, Santa has delivered exactly what I wanted! Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa, and yes, he does deliver people! Especially should that person be a crochet designer named Doris Chan!

Yesterday was my CGOA Chapter's Holiday Celebration; our last meeting of the year. There was food (oh my! was there food!), and gifts (oh my! were there gifts!), and DORIS CHAN!!

Doris brought with her the garments from her first two books, Amazing Crochet Lace: New Fashions Inspired by Old-Fashioned Lace, and Everyday Crochet: Wearable Designs Just for You, which were AMAZING to look at! (I teased her that my holiday shopping/packing is done as I eyed her collection; hey, I only said what everyone else there was thinking! LOL)

Doris also brought an uncorrected proof of her latest book, "Crochet Lace Innovations: 20 Dazzling Designs in Broomstick, Hairpin, Tunisian, and Exploded Lace". I immediately added it to my Wish List!


Of course Doris wasn't done spoiling us. She also had some door prizes ... one of them being the coveted Etimo crochet hooks everyone has been clamoring for ... the same hooks I was RAK'd with by my Fairy Crochet-Mother back in September! She showed us Tahki's new Cotton Classic LITE yarn line -- talk about yummy! and then she taught everyone how to do the Broomstick Lace technique featured in her upcoming book!

Thanks Santa, and thank you Doris! Everyone had a great time! :)

crocheted stitches wrapped with love

Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Festivus (think Seinfeld) ... these holidays all boil down to one common thread: crocheting like mad to finish last minute gifts! Are you part of this tradition too?

For me, I just finished a crocheting marathon, working up child sweaters for two important little girls in my life, and am in the final stages of blocking and assembling. One of the sweaters will be parted with tomorrow, so it's important it is finished today.

Once I'm done with the sweaters comes two more last minute gifts ... something for my mother, which she requested; and something for my Mini~Dee which will be a surprise. For these two projects I will have less than five days to design/crochet them up.

The very last project I intend to crochet is a teddy bear -- for donation to my brother's Fire Station ... that project I'll have maybe a day or two to work on.

I haven't started to panic -- yet. Then again, I strongly advise you don't get caught alone in a room with me -- I just might press a crochet hook into your hand and demand you "crochet like your life depends upon it!" ... I'm just saying...

Is the rush worth it? I think so! I know the people who will receive my crocheted stitches wrapped with love will appreciate the time (even if it was done during a marathon) I put into their gifts. Just as my Auntie who loved receiving the crocheted hat she requested! :)

Question From Reader: Yarn on the Cheap

Kenzie from punkymonkeymissions wrote:

"I just learned to crochet and decided to start doing it for missions and to make stuff for the homeless. Do you have any ideas how I can get yarn for cheap? My mom will only buy me 1 or 2 skeins a week and I ran out of my own money. Here is my blog if you want to see my scarves"

Dear Kenzie,
Thank you for visiting my blog; it's always nice to meet a reader! ... and especially one with a big heart for their local community like yourself! :)

Being on a tight budget myself, I know it can become costly to purchase yarn for our charitable projects. Fortunately, I do know of ways you can get yarn cheaply, and possibly even for free!

1. Visit you local dollar/discount stores. Often times they'll have yarn for just a buck a skein. I was just at my local Christmas Tree store last week and even they had some for just a dollar!
2. Join a local group, such as a CGOA Chapter. As a group that crochets for charity you can write to local yarn companies asking for "seconds" -- this is yarn is "not quite right" due to dye lot/quality control issues. Tell them of your charity and they might send you some yarn for free.
3. Check your local paper for Estate sales. Many crocheters (and knitters) have WAY more yarn than they can use in a lifetime. This leaves family members finding it stored in many various locations in the home. When the family believe they found it all, often times they'll have a sale. (one of the founders of my Chapter recently passed away; her husband has been finding yarn everywhere--including in kitchen cabinets!)
4. See if there is a "Freecycle" Yahoo group for your area. If there is, join the group and post that you are looking for yarn to create items for charity. Many of these freecycle groups will let you repost your request after X number of months. If a reader has yarn to give, they'll send you an email.
5. Check the website CraigsList. I'm not a big user of the site, but do know many who have scored yarn there.
6. Have you seen the auctions on eBay? There was a time I scored 250 pounds of chenille for a song... You might find also find bargains for yarn on Amazon. You never know, so it's worth checking repeatedly.
7. Are you a member of the Ravelry.com community? If so, check around, as there is bound to be someone who is looking to dee-stash for a good cause.
8. Sometimes yarn companies have a Free Yarn Giveaway ... at the moment Caron International Yarns is giving away a skein of their dreamy NaturallyCaron.com Country yarn ... go here for details; the offer will be available as long as supplies last.

Readers, do you have other ideas on where to obtain yarn on the cheap -- or possibly free? If so, please share! There may be other crocheters (and knitters) out there that want to help their local community by donating crocheted/knitted goodies too but are on a shoe-string budget. :)

Making the Path of Crochet Easier: Lily Chin

I've been crocheting since I was a youngster. Not always has my path of crocheting been easy. If you've taken a crochet class with me, or have been a long time reader of my blog, then you've heard my story of how it took YEARS for me to figure out (as a child) to go from the crocheted chain to stitches to projects. My problem was I rarely bumped into people who crocheted and could help unlock it's secrets to make it easier for me.

Flash forward to today where my own Mini~Dee crochets. As I watch her make her stitches, sometimes I tell her how lucky she is that she can come to me, or members of my CGOA Chapter, or a great number of crochet designers she personally knows, and can ask questions. When I was her age I was stuck. Yes, she's clearly very lucky to have access to so many experienced crocheters.

As if Lily Chin were here listening to this conversation, she has come up with the perfect solution for folks like myself (when I was first starting), and those experienced with crochet (as I am today), offering us her Crochet Tips & Tricks in a handy sized book! So yes, we can have Lily in each and every crocheter's home, having her provide answers to so many questions crocheters have, such as:

• how do you find the center of a pull skein?
• based upon my swatch, how much yarn will I need for this project?
• how does Lily keep her nickel-plated hooks so slick that she's able to crochet so fast?
• what do those numbers on cones of yarn mean?
• how does Lily make seaming nearly painless?
• the edge needs a million stitches spaced evenly across; how do I do that?
• OMG, I missed a stitch; how do I fix that?
• how does Lily stop ribbon yarn from twisting?
• how does Lily avoid crocheting a million chains for a project and being short, or over, in her count?

If you've ever asked yourself these questions, and more!, then I highly recommend checking out Lily's new book based upon her often sold out class of the same title, "Crochet Tips & Tricks." It's written in Lily's voice so it's like having her sitting beside you as you get help from the master! Her book is filled with shortcuts and techniques that will make your path of crocheting easier! Makes a great holiday gift for yourself, or your favorite crocheter! :)