From The Craft Room

Archive for the ‘Miscellaneous’ Category

Yesterday I decided it was time to get back to working on the crocheted Popcorn & Cranberry Christmas garland (Ravelry Link) that I’ve had as a WIP for almost 10 years (I started it when I got the issue of Crafts back in 1998). Heck, it’s been over two years since I drug the project out of storage and found the instructions. If I really concentrated on it, maybe in the two months before Christmas I will finally have enough of this stuff to decorate the tree!

Well, I sat myself down in my rocking chair, refreshed my memory by reading the pattern instructions and set to crochet. OMG, I’ve turned into a yarn snob. I worked on this last Christmas season with no issues, but after a year of knitting and crocheting with “good” yarns, this acrylic baby weight crap I am using for this project felt horrible. It’s coarse on my hands, it splits, it doesn’t slide well on the hook. *sigh* Maybe this is why it has taken me a decade to produce such a measly amount of garland.

I should have realized I had turned into one a few days earlier. I was making a practice pom pom for my eyelet hat with a gizmo I bought (more about that in a future post) and grabbed some acrylic from my bin. I kept holding that pom pom after I finished it and felt that something was off. I almost didn’t make one for the hat at all, but I did and it is fine. Now I realize that I prefer the feel of natural fibers.

In just a few hours, I’m going to be taking a crocheted sock class from crochet designer and author, Robyn Chachula. I’m hoping it will be a good time. After the last few months I’ve had, I need it.

I’m hoping I’ll have some good pics to post later. Must remember to take camera.

I was on Ravelry today and found this pattern for an awesome pair of Tux Mittens. How cool are these? I wish Marcus wore mittens so that I could make him a pair, but since he doesn’t and I can’t, I think I’ll just make them for me.

So, I realized two nights ago that my knitting and crocheting supplies are officially out of control. I’m starting to avoid going into my craft/computer room because I don’t want to face that mess. I also can’t find things. I know I bought a set of size 0 bamboo DPNs to make a Harry Potter bookmark that I need right now can’t find anywhere. I’ll be darned if I’m going to spend good money on new ones. I have several skeins of yarn sitting around that I bought with a purpose in mind, but now have no idea what that purpose was. Every time I go into my craft room, I cause skeins of yarn fall to the floor. I also have lost the Chibi needles I purchased. I still have the case, but the needles are nowhere to be found (shhh, don’t tell Marcus — he hates it when I lose pointy metal objects. They usually find their way to his hand).

It’s time to get this stuff in order. No more new yarn until I find a way to organize my current stash, including what project it is meant for. My hooks and needles need a permanent home and I need to catalog them on Ravelry. I just bought a duplicate hook the other day because I couldn’t find one in the size I knew I had to have had, but it’s probably hiding with another project or just somewhere it shouldn’t be.

I realized that the totes of my acrylic yarn (that I rarely use) is taking up valuable space in my craft shelving. I think I’ll relegate those to the closet and store the new yarn in that space. Maybe I’ll actually be able to get to my embroidery machine and my work surface and get some quilting and embroidery done.

I deal with enough nonsense and chaos at work everyday. I shouldn’t allow it at home in my “me” time. My crafting is what usually brings me peace and saves my sanity. Right now, not so much.

While browsing around the Internet yesterday, I found an article that September 12th is International Crochet Day. I wish I had found this sooner.

So, what did I do to celebrate? I had planned to go to the park at crochet, but Mother Nature had other ideas with the arrival of some much-needed rain yesterday and today. Oh, well. I crocheted in front of the television while watching Regis and Kelly and I’ll crochet in public later when Marcus and I go to Wing Stop for dinner. I always bring a knitting or crochet project every Friday night. I still have my crochet sun hat to finish (though my plans of having it finished before Summer was over are shot to heck). Either that, or I’ll keep working on my Rust Goes Green market bags. I didn’t like the way the colors I had picked out were looking together, so I found a better match for the variegated and will get some more green to make a second one solid.

Speaking of plans shot to heck, I didn’t finish squat for the Summer KAL-CAL. Between the surgery and work, I didn’t complete either of the bag projects I started. Oh, well. There will be a Holiday KAL-CAL, so hopefully I can finish something for that.

Speaking of crochet, Robyn Chachula is going to be in the Denver area in late September. I’m particularly interested in taking the crocheted sock class she will be teaching on Friday, September 26th down at Purls of Wisdom down in Parker. I’ll be signing up for that class tomorrow when I head down there to visit.

One thing I’d like to complain about: The variety of colors of cotton yarn in this town kind of sucks. The national craft store chains carry a very limited number of colors of the Sugar ‘n’ Cream, as does Wal-Mart with the Peaches ‘n’ Cream. Even most of the yarn stores carry very little cotton and the ones that do carry the higher end stuff. I’m not making dishcloths and the like out of good yarn. It’s kind of a pain when you have a particular idea in mind and can’t find the yarn. I hate ordering online without seeing it first. I’m thinking I’ll have to get one of the Peaches color cards.