Hooked on Hooking

I must start this post off by saying how much I love Interweave Crochet magazine. The designs are contemporary and beautiful, and I love how they write the pattern instructions. I'm not a "normal" sized person, and because of how well the patterns are written, I have a much easier time adjusting things to fit me. On to the post at hand. When I saw the Spiderweb Cardigan pattern designed by Marty Miller in the Spring 2007 issue if Interweave Crochet, I just had to make one for myself. I love how it turned out. The pattern had a great flow to it, and I found it worked up quite quickly. I also loved that it started off using a technique they termed "foundation double crochet" rather than a starting chain, a technique I plan to adapt into other patterns wherever I can. It makes the foundation row look exactly like any other dc row, and whereas with a foundation chain, I usually have to use a larger hook than in the rest of my work to prevent warping, With this tec...

I actually completed this well before Christmas, but never got around to taking pictures of it. This is made from a pattern I purchased from this site . The pineapple rounds took awhile, but I really love it. I made it with a slightly heavier yarn, as my office can get cold, and I wanted a shawl-type thing to wear that wasn't constantly falling off my shoulders. I am very pleased with the versatility of this pattern, and would not hesitate to recommend purchasing the pattern.

I haven't updated this blog in quite some time; as you can imagine, I have several finished projects from that time I will be adding now. So, let's get started! First up, we have a little cap I crocheted for myself after picking up a skein of recycled cotton yarn. I was curious to see what it would be like to work with and what the result would feel and drape like. I wish I knew where I put the label, because I quite liked it, and would recommend it to anyone wanting to give it a try. Next time I am out yarn shopping, I will purchase some more for a project I think it would be perfect for, and I will update this post with the name. I didn't really use a pattern for this. It's done in sc, I started by chaining 4 and joining. I then crocheted in the round, increasing until it was just less wide than the diameter of my head. I then worked sc in each sc around until it was almost the length I wanted, and then decreased for about two rows to give it a bit of holding on to my...

Well, this is my first update in awhile. Things got fairly hectic, and I haven't had as much time to crochet as I would like. I did recently finish a shawl for my mom, using the pattern for Seraphina's Shawl . I think it turned out quite well. I decided not to fringe it as it is intended for evening wear, and thought that might make it look more casual than I wanted. I've included some pictures of both the entire shawl and a close up of the stitches. Let me know what you think!

My older sister is getting married in July, in an evening ceremony at the top of a mountain. So while it will be summer, it might get a little chilly, and she asked if I could make her some shawls for herself and the wedding party. She chose a pattern from Fiber Trends done in a lace weight mohair. I have just finished the first one, and think it turned out rather pretty. In the pictures here, I have one overall shot of the shawl and one close up, to show the stitches and edging better. Now, just 4 more to go.......

Well, I am doing a little happy dance as my sweater is finally finished! It's a little shorter than what I would have originally liked, but overall, I am happy with how it turned out. I made it using the Modular crochet technique described in the Winter 2005 issue of Crochet Fantasy magazine. It's done mostly with single crochet and "front facing single crochet". I will definitely be making another one sometime, but for now, it's time to turn to other projects, because too much single crochet all at once will eventually make you go a little loopy. I plan to use some of my scrap yarn to make a bed for our cat, and will probably use either strips or squares and join them together. I have also recently joined a group called "Hugs from the heart", which is an offshoot of an online Yahoo group I belong to, Crochet Talk. Hugs from the heart has members who donate a minimum of 10, 12" squares a year, which are assembled into an "afghan hug" to ...

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.

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...

....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.

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...