There are six new crochet patterns available on Amazon and Smashwords. They will be available more places in a couple of days. These have been done patterns but I just haven’t had time to go through all the steps for publishing. I hope you like them.
Thread Bookmarks Need a small gift? Looking for items to make for a craft fair? Try these eight easy bookmarks. Made with crochet cotton, they work up quick allowing you to build inventory. Amazon Smashwords Braided Scarf For the beginner, this pattern is easy to assemble while offering a stunning end product. The chain group weaves into a braided look for this extra long scarf. Amazon Smashwords
Spiral Hat Round and round you go, working two colors in tandem. This styling hat is warm and fun. Amazon Smashwords Tree Hanging Made with single crochet, this wall hanging adds a seasonal touch to any room. Use the copper (as shown) for a fall flare, or green for a summer flare. Use white or silver for a winter look and spring, simply add some small light green French knots. Amazon Smashwords
Triangular Doily Light and different, this doily works up nicely to provide a beautiful decoration for any room. Worked in crochet cotton size 10, this is durable as well as decorative. Amazon Smashwords Triple Triangle Afghan Worked with triple crochets, this works up in under twelve hours. The pattern is easy for the beginner and makes a beautiful blanket for your home or as a gift. Amazon Smashwords
As I make gifts, I usually write my own patterns. These throws were made for gifts for student workers and for one of my daughters.
All four of these I crocheted in under 12 hours. They work up quickly because you use a large hook and the yarn is so thick. More than that, they are gorgeous and a wonderful gift.
Here’s a little more information:
Five throws which can be done in a weekend. Each of these throws are simple patterns and work up quickly. Four of them are made with Bernat Bundle Brights and the fifth is made with Buttercream Luxe Craft Mohair Metallic purple, blue & silver. These make an impact when given as gifts. They are warm, easy to make, and fit any color scheme.
I usually end up binge watching something while I crochet projects like this. I think I was watching Midsommer Murders while I worked on the four for my student workers. The one for my daughter I worked on while we were in Georgia.
My day yesterday did not go as planned. This is not a surprise to me – rarely do my days go as planned. But last night I was kicking myself for taking a nap instead of getting things done. Vicki went to bed early and I opted to work on the computer.
This meant the publishing I was going to do in the morning got done last night instead. I have eight new crochet patterns out. There are links to them on my website. They are all on the Crochet Patterns page.
My niece asked me for headbands so I created new ones for her. In doing so, I took pictures and wrote the patterns. This means there’s a new Half Dozen Thread Headbands available. She also wanted a bandana which lead to me creating Bandana X.
I had two student workers graduating – one wanted an afghan and one wanted scarves. The blanket is called Framed Tipped Lattice and the scarves are Climbing Vine, Lattice, Shades of Blue, and Sparkling Squiggle. I finished an experiment for my daughter which is really a mini scarf – Puff Chain Scarf.
I’ve got a couple more in the works but they aren’t quite ready to be published. The patterns are done, I need to work on the components.
Today, I’m working on publishing stuff until my niece gets here, then I’ll be working on cleaning and organizing my office and hopefully tackling some of the dining room. It depends on how long stuff takes us. I’m hoping we can get a long list of things done but I know my plans never work out. I’m going to go with the flow. Anything finished is an improvement. If it reduces the chaos we’re living in right now, that’s all that matters. I have two more places to market my stuff. Then I’ll be getting off the computer and start on the other stuff – I hope.
This week I’ve finished the scarves and the afghan for my student workers’ graduation gifts. I’ve given one gift which is why I’m posting the two pictures. For the afghan, I need to take pictures. I plan to publish four of the scarf patterns and the afghan pattern. This adds to my list of crochet patterns to publish. I have a bandanna, log cabin afghan, and set of headbands to publish.
The collar or cowl scarf shown on the left turned out gorgeous. I’m really proud of it because it was outside my normal and preferred type of project. The smaller yarn and projects like this are hard on my hands but it was worth it to do and redo some of the stitching. The other scarves turned out excellent and I’m excited to publish the four new ones. The necklace type scarf I love making. It uses up small bits of yarn but is stunning and versatile.
Tonight I’ll be working on dish towels and dish cloths to make for someone who is helping me out this weekend. After I get those done, I’ll be back on my other projects. Currently I have bibs for a former co-worker of Vicki’s, a skirt, a couple of afghans, and a few smaller projects which aren’t designated for anyone yet.
This weekend Ken goes off to Atlanta for twelve days. I know he’s excited to visit the girls down there. It will give him a nice break from work and our messy house.
Vicki and I plan to play a bit on Saturday. Sunday we will have help with getting things organized and settled. Next weekend will be busy with working on the house as well.
However, I’m taking off work on the 11th and hoping to get some writing stuff done – like publishing patterns. I’ll have two days with no one in the house so I plan to get up and work on anything I have for writing – publishing, writing, marketing, editing. I have a number of projects in the works so I want to make progress on them.
Ken may be gone for twelve days but it will be a busy time for Vicki and I. Hopefully by the time he comes home, the house is better organized. I’m hoping this will lower everyone’s stress levels.
It’s done! I finally finished the big blanket for my youngest daughter. It took a lot of work and time but her Packer emblem corner to corner graph afghan is done. In the picture on the left it is laying on top of my king size bed and a few inches hang over on the left and right side. At the bottom you can see the G better. With it across my bed, it hung down about a foot on each side. It was a big blanket.
It feels odd not having a BIG project to do. I’ve started an afghan for one of my nieces. I have a couple of other projects but I’m starting to wind down on the crocheting.
It might be time to work on writing again. I’ve started the next Wayfarer novel and am looking forward to where it will take me.
It’s been an extremely busy few weeks. The two daughters in Atlanta came home for a weekend. We celebrated the youngest getting her master’s degree. We are really proud of her. We had a family gathering at our house over the weekend.
It was good to have them home to get after Ken for doing too much. He still hasn’t passed his kidney stone. He has good days and bad days. I’m hoping it passes soon so he is out of pain.
I did the middle daughter’s taxes while she was home. This weekend I have more taxes to do. I’ll have to tackle ours as well as doing two other people’s taxes.
This month is zooming by with one thing after another. One of the things I’d like to stop is the ER and Urgent care visits. It would be nice if everyone could be healthy for maybe two or three weeks in a row so we don’t have to go to either ER or Urgent care… I’m not holding my breath.
Seven crochet patterns have been published! I’m thrilled to have finally had time to get them out. These have been on my todo list for quite some time.
I was off work yesterday and was going to do it then but I’ve got upper respiratory crud on top of my gout flaring. I slept most of the day – not even crocheting until evening.
Last night I was trying to sleep and couldn’t breath. I tried different levels of reclining but realized none of them were going to work. I also tried having a cloth with eucalyptus, lavender, and rosemary on it to inhale but I couldn’t get any air through my nose. Eventually I got up and took a hot shower with the essential oils. It helped a lot until I sat down to sleep again. It was after 2 am before I got to sleep though.
Sadly, Ken has the same crud so we are both struggling to accomplish anything other than breathing, coughing, and surviving.
I’ve been working on an afghan for my youngest daughter. I’ve got it about half done but I need to have Ken hold it up so I can see it. I think the graph caused a flaw and I need someone to hold it while I look to see if I have to rip out some rows and adjust so it looks right. It is a corner to corner graphgan.
For those who don’t speak crochet, this means I’m working from one corner to the opposite – diagonally across the piece. It also means I’ve taken a picture and made it into a graph. This happens to be the Packer’s G symbol. The issue is the G is surrounded by a circle which is difficult to do on an afghan. When I looked at it last night, I thought the circle part wasn’t quite right but I double checked my row against my graph and they match.
The next step is to decide if I need to adjust the graph / pattern based on how it looks. I might but I need to see it held out and a little away from me. I can’t really do that – so Ken will hold it up for me.
The rest of today will be spent napping and crocheting until the daughter gets home. Once she’s home, we will see what happens. It depends on what she needs / wants. Unfortunately, she has the same crud we have.
For the crochet patterns I published today go to my web site to find links. The Amazon links aren’t up yet but should be by Monday or Tuesday. My todo list is still quite long but at least I made progress.
I’ve not crocheted since Saturday. I’m antsy to finish my project but my arm has been bad. I woke up Sunday unable to move it without pain. My hand was swollen and I couldn’t close it. I spent the day reading a book with a heating pad on my arm.
At this point I am taking Tylenol regularly and I can tell when I am past the time to take it. I’ve been reading and writing rather than crocheting. I can almost straighten my arm. It is much less painful.
Tonight I’m going to try crocheting again. I’m hoping I can get a full section done so when I get to Georgia to visit my daughter (who the afghan is for) she can tell me if she wants another round or not.
I’m packing it up tomorrow right before we leave because I might have time to work on it before Ken gets home from work. My arm still hurts but I will make an effort to finish it while I’m down with her. Then I will stop crocheting for a week or two to give my arm a chance to heal.
I can’t decide if it is the yarn or the amount of crocheting time but I’ve never had my arm hurt like this just from crocheting. I guess I’ll have to be more careful about the time I spend crocheting.
I still have a long list of things I want to get made. I have three lists of things other people want. It will be fun to work on them but not while my arm is so cranky.
In an effort to have an afghan done before we go visit our daughters, I’ve been putting in a lot of hours crocheting. Probably more than I normally do. Yesterday, I noticed that when I tried to straighten my right arm, it hurt.
I have aches and pains all the time, so I didn’t think much of it. But this is a muscle twinge rather than the ache of arthritis. Every time I reached to the right with my right arm, I’d get this twinge in my arm.
It finally dawned on me, I have crochet arm. I’ve been spending my time crocheting. This means my arms are folded in to my body and not stretched out. Apparently I’ve been doing this so much, I’m now getting issues when I do straighten my arm. My muscles are saying what are you doing? We don’t move that way anymore.
When I told my daughter this, her response was “but it doesn’t hurt when you crochet so you’ll be able to finish my blanket right?” I laughed. I will finish the blanket and listen to another JD Robb book but really where was the concern?
With luck, I’ll have the afghan done this weekend. I’m on the third repeat of rows and think it will only take five repeats to be long enough. Then I will turn my attention to the border – which has 13 rows in it. Now I’m going to check yarn because I have gone through enough I’m concerned about having enough to finish the project. I think I have six skeins left but need to check my basket to see if have more. I am hoping I have more because I think six is enough to finish the afghan but not do much work on the border. I’ve already spent about $200 on this afghan so I don’t want to purchase more if I can avoid it.
Meanwhile, I’ve been massaging my arm, stretching it as I work, and trying to avoid moving it in such a manner that makes it hurt. I know in the end, the afghan will be gorgeous. I’ve already had several offers for others to take it. I don’t think my daughter will allow it to be borrowed or taken by anyone else though.
It’s mother’s day and all my kids are out of state. I’m okay with that. For one thing, they were home last weekend.
Yesterday Ken and I went to a yarn shop Vicki discovered. It was an interesting experience in that I was lucky to be able to get in the store. There was a ramp leading up to the second floor and a locked door. The ramp itself was damn scary as I could hear the boards moving as I rolled over each of them. Ken ended up going in to ask if there was a way in. Of course there was – up the ramp and through the locked door. When we got there (finally) the ramp was about 4 inches below the door. I couldn’t just roll into the building. I had to get off my scooter and lift it up. It’s a good thing I’m still mobile and not completely wheelchair bound.
The yarn shop was small but had a large selection as well as an interesting selection of gadgets. However, the cost of the yarn was over the top. I didn’t see anything under $5.75 and these were tiny skeins (probably about an ounce). Some of the yarn was amazing but the cost ranged from the $5.75 to $40 (or more). Most of it seemed to be specialized yarn but to me this is just too costly to spend money on. I mean an afghan can sometimes take up to ten or more skeins. That is a crazy amount of money to spend to make an afghan.
I did get a crochet hook with stuff on the handle. It is supposed to help ergonomically with hand issues. I bought one and I’ll try it. If I like them and it helps with the cramping I can get I’ll think about getting a set.
Another thing I noticed was a ball holder. Basically, the piece was two wooden plaques separated with a turntable. In the center of the top one, a dowel was placed. You place your skein on the dowel and then can pull from the outside. It should (hopefully) prevent tangling of skeins. They were asking $30 for one.
I like the idea a lot but not the cost. Ken was with me so I asked – Can you make something like this? His answer was sure. He is making one this morning for me and I can’t wait to see how it turns out. He got the materials from Menards for $20 and will be able to make two for that cost. If they work out nicely, I’ll be asking for some more. Vicki will probably as well as she has been doing a lot of knitting.
There was one other gadget there which was essentially the same thing except without the turntable. They had several skeins of yarn on a dowel which was in the center of a wooden plaque. I could see how that would be useful when I’m working with multiple colors, I could put them all on the dowel and just pull the ends to crochet with. I’m hoping I can talk Ken into making me one like that as well (though it being on a turntable would be nicer I think).
When I’m done with this blog I’ll be going back to crocheting. Last night I listened to Promises in Death while I worked on Virginia’s afghan. I got about twenty rows done on her afghan. I sent her a picture and told her if she didn’t like it I could keep it. I think if she had been closer, I would have gotten a smack. It is turning out BEAUTIFULLY.
Yesterday sucked for pain but today is better fortunately. I can at least close my hands today. I’ve created a new pattern for a dish towel I like. I have also found a basket pattern I really like. Now all I have to do is have my hands able to crochet.
Friday I go see John Edward. He is a psychic who I’ve followed for at least ten years. I’ve enjoyed his television shows and his newsletters. I splurged and spent a lot of money on a ticket to go see him while he is in Milwaukee. It will be interesting to see him speak in person and see if I get a reading of any sort.
Aside from that, this weekend will be about prepping for the girls to come home for my niece’s reception. I am hoping to progress further on Virginia’s afghan. Her yarn is such that I have to keep tight tension on it while I work. This is tough on my hands which is why I’ve not been working on it. I’m hoping to make progress this weekend.
Work is finally settling back in to the normal chaos with registration issues calming. It’s nice to go in and be able to get other things done instead of just troubleshooting registration issues for nine hours a day.
Now I can turn my attention to Virginia’s afghan and two novels I’m working on. I was hoping to have her afghan done by next week but unless I get very lucky, I don’t see that happening. My backup plan is to have it done by the time we go visit them. That way, I can take it to her and not worry about shipping it. I’m in love with the material and the pattern. It will be gorgeous when it’s done. This weekend I’m going to listen to an audio book and focus on getting it done even if it means I have to soak my hands in hot water to loosen them up.
I’m also hoping the weather is nice enough I can wander onto my deck and enjoy our backyard a bit. I’d love to take some crocheting or even my journal out there to just sit and enjoy the quiet. Hopefully it’s quiet, our neighbors just put in a trampeline so I guess it depends on whether they are out there as well.
This spring has been cool in Wisconsin. We’ve had a couple of days that are nicer but this week we’re having mid 50s and the nights are in the 30s. While not uncommon for April, it is playing havoc on my arthritis especially when we have precipitation go through.
Braided Scarf
Made with single crochet, this wall hanging adds a seasonal touch to any room. Use the copper (as shown) for a fall flare, or green for a summer flare. Use white or silver for a winter look and spring, simply add some small light green French knots.
Triple Triangle Afghan
