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Showing posts from March, 2006

So close you can taste it

At this point, I have finished one of the sleeves on my sweater. So, just one more sleeve, and some assembling and finishing touches to go. I am excited and both getting tired of rows up rows of single crochet and front facing single crochet. I do want to get it done this week, though, as soon my sister will send me the supplies for the shawls she wants me to make. And I want to use some of my scraps to make a cat bed for CeeCee. And there are probably a ton of other projects out there for me to try.

Feeling my Mortality

This is going to be a bit off topic, but I need to get this out. I know people have car accidents all the time. It's a fact of life. I don't expect to have a front row seat for them while walking the one block between my apartment, and where I catch the train to go to work. This morning, as I was waiting for the light to change so I could cross the street, I heard the crash of a vehicle accident. My head automatically turned to look, and I saw the car flip over and land on it's roof. It was pretty horrifying. While I did wait to see if the police would want my statement, (they didn't, I didn't see the cause, just the aftermath) I couldn't look at the car. No sounds, no movement that caught the corner of my eye. I hope they were wearing their seatbelt...I hope they got out of the incident able to heal their injuries, but I just don't know. All I wanted to do was turn around, go back home, and spend the day cuddled with my boyfriend. I was thanking my lucky st

Simple Pleasures...

Or, "Small things amuse small minds". Like many crocheters who use the net, I belong to several online message groups. On one of them, the topic evolved into how a member didn't like scrap yarn projects because she hated all the joining of different colours, and all the subsequent weaving in of tails. Another member posted this link and OMG, I am so completely excited by this simple concept, it is unbelievable. No ends to worry about, no trying to carefully tie the knot in such a spot that it ends up on the "wrong" side of the work. (And yes, I know about "spit-joining", but that only works with natural fibres). So, after reading the message this morning, I was impatient all day to get home from work to try it. I must say, it works like a charm. Isn't the internet wonderful?

The agony of Dye lots

This morning I bundled up, and trundled myself out into the cold on a quest.... the quest to purchase enough yarn to finish my sweater project. I was prepared....I had the stone cold stare-straight-ahead-and-maybe-the-crazy-people-on-the-train-won't-talk-to-you look fixed on my face..I had the label with the dye lot of the original in hand, I had the money in my wallet just waiting to be spent. I entered the yarn store, and saw success in sight...There was the brand, with the right colour name, and it looked the same as what I had at home. Fingers trembling, I turned the label over to inspect the dye lot... NUTS...not the same one. But as I despaired of actually getting the same dye lot, I decided to risk it and purchase anyway, perhaps the shade would be close enough to work. Back home, through the slightly chilly light snow that has passed for winter this year. Back on the train with it's perils and unique smells. I grabbed a skein from my original supplies, and held the two

An update

It's been almost a week since I posted last. It's been an odd week. I've been pretty tired, and I think I may either be fighting an oncoming cold, or one that isn't quite completely out of my system from before. So between that, and work, I really don't feel like I have accomplished much at all. Not even normal housework. On the plus side, I have made some great progress on my modular crochet sweater. I had thought I had gotten to the point of starting on the sleeves, but it turns out, I didn't make it wide enough. Not a huge deal with modular crochet, it's easy enough to add more width, but I am now unsure I bought enough yarn to complete the sweater. I am hopeful that they will still have some matching from the same dye lot tomorrow, and as I went with an acrylic blend (I wanted my first sweater to be easier to wash, etc) I have more hope that I will be able to get it. I would be feeling less hopeful with a more designer yarn, such as a hand dyed pure wool

You Will Feel My Wrath

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Yes, it's yet another off topic post. But after our cat, CeeCee got himself dirty enough to need a hand with his grooming, we had no choice....into the tub he went. He behaved himself very well, really. No hissing or scratching or biting. But that look in his eyes he had afterwards....I am feeling very scared.

Two Steps Forward...

....And so far, no steps back. At least not this evening. I'm feeling pretty good because I have finally made some decent progress on my sweater project, after numerous times of frogging, recounting, etc. etc. I really don't know what was going on with it, I normally don't have this kind of issue with dropping stitches, or mis-counting. I think now that I have hit a decent mid-point on it, I may take a little break, and make some squares from my scrap yarn or something, just to take a mental break from it. I may have burnt myself out a bit on my crochet-a-thon this weekend. Hope you all have a great week.

The Road Less Traveled

I know that this is primarily a crochet blog, but it is still my personal blog, and so I feel the need to stray a bit off topic and discuss a matter that is right now rather a huge deal for me. I am a unionized employee at a company that in November ended a 4 month labour dispute. Bitter is not the word to describe what went on before, during and after the whole debacle. I spent those 4 months standing strong with my brothers and sisters, even though it was tough, emotionally, physically and financially. I saw the end of friendships as people found themselves on opposite sides. I saw the dark and ugly of union and corporate politics. To say that this dispute was difficult, and ended rather dismally for those who chose to stand in solidarity is an understatement; still I would not change my decision. The only change I would want is that I was not very aware of the issues, or involved in effecting changes prior, and I now wish I was. I could probably fill 3 pages with the details of the

Frustrations and Yearnings

Well, my sweater project has been coming pretty slowly. I got the front panel finished, and then had to frog it all because it somehow ended up a great deal shorter than what I wanted. So, I am starting again. I really hope this turns out well, I have spent so much time envisioning my sweater that if it doesn't turn out, I may be inconsolable. Hopefully, I will make some good progress this weekend with it. It's supposed to be kinda chilly here, so sitting watching movies and crocheting is sounding like a marvelous plan. I also have decided to save up and get myself some silk yarn from this site as a treat for myself. I need to decide on a project worthy of such beautiful yarn first, though. Maybe a classy handbag, or a summer-weight shrug or shawl. Other than that, I have been very distracted by some non-crochet things, dealing with the union of which I am a member. It's a pretty long and complicated issue, and I'm not sure I want to take the space here to rant abo

Modular Crochet: The Quest Continues

Well, I was a bit disappointed that the publisher of Judith Copelands book did not have her contact information to forward my letter to her, as she is the one who still owns the rights, and not the publisher. Then, it suddenly occured to me the whole reason I am aware of her book is that the magazine Crochet Fantasy interviewed her, and published a pattern from the book. So after this rather delayed revelation, I marched along to their website, and sent a letter off to Ms. Copeland via email. I have my fingers crossed that they will pass it on. Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing in hopes that you will be able to pass this on to Ms. Copeland, as the company that published her book no longer has an address to forward correspondence to. Dear Ms. Copeland, After reading the article in the Winter 2005 edition of Crochet Fantasy, I became very interested in your book, Modular Crochet. Sadly, all my efforts to procure a second hand copy have proved fruitless. The copies that I have found avai

Modular Crochet by Judith Copeland : Update

As I mentioned in my post here , I wrote to the last publisher of the Modular Crochet book to ask If there was enough demand for the book, if it would be reprinted. I recieved my response today, and while it's not overwhelmingly good news, I am very impressed with how quickly they got back to me, and how helpful the response was, considering how little the publisher could actually do. Kudos to Jen Linck of Rowman & Littlefeild publishing group for her response and time. (I feel since her full name is easily available on the company's website, I am not breaching her privacy to post it here.) Here is her response to my letter: Since the book is out of print, then the rights have reverted to the author. If she wanted to publish the book again and could find a publisher who is interested, then she'd be the one to make the decision. We only acquired M.Evans in the Fall of 2005 and don't have contact info for their authors as far back as 1978. We also don't have any
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Well what kind of crochet blog would this be if I didn't post pictures of some things I've made? I tend to give most of my finished items away, so I didn't have alot to post and show you here, but I promise, any new projects, I will take pictures of. The first picture is of a "Navaho Afghan" I made using a pattern from this site: http://www.steffosborne.com/knit/c-navajo.txt I decided to weave all my ends in rather than leaving them as fringe (if you read the pattern you'll understand). It's a nice effect, but wow, it was pretty tedious to finish off that way, although a simple pattern in and of itself. I don;t have the edge of the afghan in the photo, but you can get a good feel for the overall effect. The second picture and last picture are the too-short practice run of the modular crochet sweater I mentioned in my first post. There are obviously a couple of issues with it, but I think in a nicer wool, making the neck a bit smaller, and tapering the sl

Odds and Ends

As I mentioned in my first post, I am currently working on a modular crochet sweater. Since I read the article in Crochet Fantasy where I got this pattern, I have been attempting to find the original book mentioned in the article, "Modular Crochet" by Judith Copeland. When I can find it on E-bay, amazon.com, etc, it's incredibly expensive, as it is rare and in high demand. I've tried other books, searching for content that would be similar, and so far, just gotten alot of disappointment. After doing some research, I found the name of the publisher, so I decided to try and write to them, to see if with the apparent demand for the used book if they might consider reprinting it. This is the letter I sent: Dear Ms Linck, I am writing to you as I hope that either you will be able to answer my query, or at least be able to re-direct me to the proper person or department who can. I am writing in regards to the book "Modular Crochet" , author Judith Copeland, publis

Well, here we go

Ok, so I am completely new to the concept of blogging. Well, alright, I knew what it was, but never created one, cuz really, who really wants to read the ramblings of me, besides myself. But it occurred to me this might be a way to keep track of my projects, get feedback on things I have made, and possibly some new ideas. As the screen name implies, I primarily crochet, though I am interested in honing my knitting skills and learning other types ones, such as tatting. Right now, I am working on a modular crochet sweater, inspired by the winter edition of the magazine "Crochet Fantasy", in which there is an article and a pattern for a sweater made using modular crochet. According to the article, this technique is from the book "Modular Crochet" by Judith Copeland, published in 1978. I actually did a practice run on this sweater using some leftover yarn I had from making an afghan, which ended up too short (and trust me, no one but my boyfriend has ANY desire to see