Tag: crochet

R&R

by eileentroemel, posted in Writing
There are times when I’m exceedingly productive and accomplish everything I’ve set out and more.  This weekend has been one of those weekends.  I’ve finished the third graduation gift, pre-production work on another manuscript, and had time to chat with all my girls.  It has been a good weekend.
The graduation gifts are done.  I can set them aside until I get gift bags and wrap them up for my student workers.  Now I can focus on the two baby gifts I want to make.  Vicki asked me to make bibs for one of her co-workers so I’ll be doing those.  Plus I want to make something for my faculty who just adopted a sweet little girl. 
Moon Affirmations is nearly done.  I’m waiting on some illustrations and information from the illustrator.  Once I have those then I’ll be moving forward with that.  I keep thinking I’ll just start on the next document that I need to create for publishing but I know it is best to wait until Smashwords accepts the current document because then I know it is in good shape for the KDP.  It all builds from one to the next but in my excitement I want to jump forward to get more done.  My battle with myself for patience will be tempered with crocheting. 
I have coupons to go through before I head back to the recliner for crochet time.  Once the coupons are done I will probably be a bum the rest of the weekend with tv watching and crocheting. 
Recently I’ve watched The Butler and Philomena.  They were both very good movies.  Both are thinking movies rather than action.  In Philomena, Judi Dench was fabulous as an Irish woman looking for a baby the nuns adopted out.  It is based on a true story.  She did an amazing job and it is worth seeing.  The Butler was the same.  This man came from the south and became a butler at a hotel who was noticed by a white house staffer.  It was a good movie covering a large span of history both in the white house and in our country.  There were many stellar performances in there.
Tomorrow it is back to my day job and reality.  I’ve enjoyed my longer weekend and down time.  I feel better than I did last week and feel like I’ve accomplished what I needed to with taking Friday off.  I’m feeling less overwhelmed by work and more relaxed.  Apparently I have a warped sense of what R&R is supposed to be but if it worked that is all that matters.
Coming soon!  Moon Affirmations
Secret Past is available here:
Barnes and Nobles:
Smashwords:
Amazon:

Two Down

by eileentroemel, posted in Writing
Last night I finished another graduation gift.  This came as a surprise to me because I was very tired since I’d spent the previous night reading a book until 1:40 in the morning.  I thought I’d go to sleep early and accomplish little but no. I was able to crochet the last seven items (three groups) of things. 
Today I’m off work and my plan was to be up early – that didn’t happen – and to work on Moon Affirmations.  I’m mid-production on this meditation book.  I’ve got a lot to do just to get it out there in one media.  I’m home alone with my music playing so I hope the quiet time will allow me good production time.
Whenever I work on the computer, I have this whole routine where I have to settle in.  I check my email, play the Hoyle games I love, and wander around to a few sites I almost always check.  After this routine, I’ll work on the production.  I have pictures to place.  I started this process but I discovered for Smashwords I have the wrong size document and I don’t think I’m working with the images correctly.  I have to figure out the best way to work through each one.  I may just take one and figure out the best way and then outline the steps. 
Pictures and photos are not my strong suit.  I’m good with words and formatting but adding in these other elements is not something I’m great at.  Part of the reason for this is because I’ve not done a lot of it.  It is time for me to learn I guess. 
Once Ken gets home, I’ll set aside book production and work on the last graduation gift.  I’m hoping to finish it off this weekend.  Ken plans to gather wood this weekend I think (depending on weather).  If he is out of the house tomorrow then I’ll most likely work on book production again. 
Those are my goals for the weekend at least – book production and graduation and baby gifts.  Making progress on all of those will mean I’ve had a good weekend.  Oh and I suppose I should probably try to get a bit more sleep than I have the last couple of days too.  Most nights I manage on six hours of sleep but the last few it has been much less than that.   
Secret Past is available here:
Barnes and Nobles:
Smashwords:
Amazon:

What I did over spring break….

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting

This is of course the variation on what I did over the summer.  I didn’t even wait for the actual spring break to start.  Friday the week before I left work at 10:30 and headed for home.  Alex met me at my house and I finished getting packed.  He loaded the van.  We hit the road about noon I think.

Our drive down was long.  With Alex driving, we went through Chicago – downtown Chicago.  I don’t like to go that way but as passenger I don’t get to pick.  Alex thought it would be shorter and mileage wise it was.  Time wise it ended up taking us like seven hours to get there.

Vicki fed us on arrival and Alex unloaded the car.  Everyone has made fun of my craft bag that I took but I did get to a good bit of my crocheting.

I’ve been playing with lace patterns.  I’m not big on working with thread so I’ve been using different threads to make lace projects.  One of them was a lace purple sparkle scarf which I gave to Vicki on Friday:

Friday and Saturday I worked on scarves.  Here are a couple of pictures of the different ones I made:

 

Vicki and I went to JoAnn Fabrics on Saturday and got some great deals.  They had yarn on sale and I tried out two new ones that I discovered I loved – Red Heart Shimmer which is a smaller yarn and soft.  It is easy to work with and sparkly which is always fun.  The other yarn was Deborah Norville Serenity Chunky – crayon box.  It is a heavy yarn and the colors were stunning – bright and fun.

Now in case you haven’t heard this before when I get new yarn I want to dive in and start creating with that new yarn.  I had new yarn from the shopping trip and I had new yarn that Vicki had sent to me (but wouldn’t let me touch – it was TORTURE!).  Friday and Saturday I worked on ruffle scarves.  These are quick and easy projects.  Of the haul of yarn, Vicki picked out the ones she wanted so I just sat and worked on scarves.

I could not resist the new yarn I’d purchased and started with the Crayon Box to make a hat, scarf and wristers.  The array of colors were just stunning and both Vicki and I loved how these turned out.

 

After the crayon box yarn, I picked up the shimmer yarn.  Oh that turned out BEAUTIFULLY!  Vicki’s favorite stitch is the crocodile stitch and I had that book with me so I handed it to Vicki and told her to pick out a hat pattern.  The crocodile stitch is a yarn eater and she picked two patterns.  I ended up making her one of the hats in the book.  I also made a scarf and added the flower from the hat pattern to the scarf.  I also made her wristers using crocodile stitches and the stitch from the scarf.

  
I’ve also been putting off making slippers for her.  I’ve had the pattern for months but the yarn she wanted me to use was thicker and heavier than the pattern called for so I had to make adjustments.  I stayed up until three in the morning one night and finished her slippers.

 

In addition to all of Vicki’s stuff, I worked on kitchen sets for two of my nieces.  Dish towels, dish clothes, sponges, and pot holders for both sets.

 

When I left Vicki’s, my craft bag was significantly lighter – mostly because Vicki kept a lot of the items I made.  This last Friday on the drive home I worked on mesh bags and make up pads for myself.  I got those done on the drive.  Saturday Ken and I helped a friend move.  I drove and he packed the van.  While sitting in the van, I worked on potholders.  I got four of them done yesterday and today.

I also worked on Vicki’s afghan.  It is octagonal and takes a long time to do one row.  However, I did work on it and got several rows completed.

Today I worked on a solution for Vicki.  She has to put Tiger Balm on her back.  Unfortunately she can’t really reach where the lotion has to go.  In order to reach it she is using her back scratcher.  However, she is concerned about the balm having an affect on the wood.  So I crocheted her a cover for it so she can put the balm on the crochet cotton to go over the top of it.  I’ll be mailing it to her this week.

In total, I’ve made the following:

17 scarves
4 dish towels
8 pot holders (4 of which were actually for me)
5 sponges
2 hats
2 pair of wristers
2 dish cloths
1 pair of slippers
2 mesh bags
10 make up pads
and a strange cover for a back scratcher

In addition to the crocheting, I made homemade pizza and meatballs for Vicki as well as putting tiger balm on her shoulder daily and cooking the meals with Alex.  It was a GREAT week, very relaxing and productive.

Crochet Addiction

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting

I’m going to visit Vicki for a week.  Ostensibly it is to help her with her shoulder – make sure she gets the Tiger Balm on it and isn’t doing too much with it.  However, that is not the only thing I will be doing while I’m gone. 

Our week is going to consist of a lot of me nagging her to stop doing stuff, watching movies or tv shows, and for me crocheting.  I’ve started organizing what I will be taking and realized my crocheting will take up more space (i.e. a bigger suitcase) than my clothes. 

In my defense, we aren’t doing anything other than hanging out in her apartment so I have to make sure I have enough to keep me busy.  Plus I have to take stuff to do when we hang out with her friend who is coming over to craft with us.  Plus I have to have contingency projects in case I get bored with what I am currently working on or if I finish them all.  The hard part will be in narrowing down on the things I have going on in my head for projects.  I have definite ones I’m working on with deadlines but after that I have things I want to experiment with.  For these, it is a difficult question of how much to take.  When I’m at home, it is easy enough to just grab what I want but with going to Vicki’s how much of these possible projects do I want to commit to taking with me and how much space will I have for these types of things.

My daughter suggested I make a to-do list – something I’ve been avoiding because I seem to have an addiction to those as well.  I’ve started one – a bit detailed as is my usual obsession with them.  It is a spreadsheet with different columns for the different parts of each project. 

I’ve got plastic bags with zippers from sheet sets and comforters that I’m using to pack projects together.  This is great for keeping everything organized and preventing damages from occuring while I’m traveling.  I really like these and when I return I may use them for storage in my craft room as well.  When I finish the projects, I’ll be able to put them back in the bags to keep everything organized.  Does this sound obsessive? 

On top of my crochet projects, my daughter wants me to bring down my stuff for the quilts I make for the girls.  Don’t get excited – I’m not a quilter.  Essentially I take large sheets and pin them with batting and then sew them together.  I use yarn to tie them.  I made each of the girls one when they were little and I’ve told all three of them it is time to get rid of them.  They refuse until I replace them.  I’ve had the material for a long while now but can’t kneel on the floor to pin them together.  Vicki says she will do it for me.  This may require a third suitcase. 

People are going to think I’m moving in for a month when I show up at her place.  The good thing about this is everything will be on wheels so should be easy to get in and out of her apartment.  I may have a bit of an addiction when it comes to crafting and crocheting. 

Productive!

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting, Life
It has been a busy and productive weekend.  Ken and I have knocked off the errands in record time.  My todo list for the weekend is nearly all done.  More sorting and organizing got done in the office.  The weekend is still not done.
My goal this weekend was to get the errands done and prep for a contest which is due next Monday.  This involved sorting through two large stacks of writing paperwork.  I thought it would take me a long time but essentially I sorted into categories and will do the fine tuning once my organizational items get here. 
Ken and I got through all the errands yesterday except grocery shopping which he did this morning.  We went to Shopko, the post office, and Walgreens.  We also prepped the house for Kelly and Dominic coming over.  They called mid-errands and wanted to get together.  This was a wonderful thing as life has been so busy for all of us. 
In prepping the house, I was able to cross off several things from my todo list, like organizing for the few projects I want to get done in the next week.  Everything I need is at hand so I just need crochet time.
This morning I got up and allowed myself one hour of time wasting by playing Bookworm Adventures.  It is addicting and I can’t stop but I allowed myself the fun of playing while I woke up. 
Then I worked on reorganizing things.  Ken helped by taking things off high shelves and putting them where I wanted (like on other high shelves).  I have the items where I want them now – mostly decorative stuff that is good to look at but I don’t need to deal with much.  I sorted through my huge stacks of paperwork.  I also got the doilies a friend made me put on display with some knick knacks (mostly stones) and a bowl I got for a gift.
It is amazing to me how many little details can get taken care of in a matter of just a day or two.  Last night while I watched tv I worked on another kitchen set.  I have two more pot holders to make and some sponges.  After which I will work on bibs for those who requested them. 

The office is coming together.  Lots of things have been organized and arranged.  The living room got cleaned, which involved me clearing off and organizing the stuff on the couch and much of my crocheting stuff.  Shortly, I’m going to take my manuscript and go sit in the recliner to do one more edit before I submit it for the contest.  I think I can officially say it has been a busy and productive weekend!

Crafting Projects

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting
I’ve been very productive with crocheting lately.  I finished a kitchen set for my nephew, which included dish towels, dish cloths, sponges, and potholders.  I finished a sort of similar set for one of my nieces.  Vicki asked me to make bibs for one of her student workers who was becoming a first time dad.  I asked if she wanted a small blanket and she said YES (of course) so those are done. 
Now I’m down to the octagonal blanket for Vicki I’m working on.  I’ve worked on it the last two nights.  Last night I did two and a half rows.  That is because it is circular (sort of) and I’m working my way around the outside edge.  It gets bigger with every row.  I’m about half done with it. 

When I work bigger projects like this I like to have little projects I can intersperse so I feel like I’m making progress.  It also keeps me from feeling like I’m in a rut with my crocheting.  I’ve got three more kitchen sets to do and two pairs of slippers to do for smaller projects.  I was going to give it a few days before I picked up another little project but my niece Cristi stopped in to my work yesterday. 
She totally threw her cousins under the bus and said she should be the next one to get her kitchen set.  I like to find out what sort of options they want – more pot holders or sponges vs dishcloths or whatever.  I have her very specific order so I guess I’ll pull out her colors and switch baskets.
Vicki got me this lovely basket with handles last summer.  It holds a LOT of crocheting.  She recently picked me up another one.  I have small projects in the one and large projects in the other. 
After I finish all the stuff I’ve mentioned here, in the lineup for definite projects I have an afghan for my oldest daughter, a faculty member, and one niece, kitchen sets for three nieces, graduation gifts for three students workers, a wrap for me, and berets for two of my faculty members.  Off the top of my head I need to get that all done fairly soon because I need to start thinking about what I’ll be making for gifts for the holidays and get to work on them.  I have some beautiful fleece that I want to use for shawls or scarves or – well I’m always open to suggestions.

Bouncing Off the Walls of My Mind

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting, Life
Driving home today, my mind could not seem to settle on any topic.  My brain bounced from topic to topic.  Here is a little preview:
            What to pack for going to Vicki’s – how many days should I pack for?
            Story idea
            Blog idea
            Web site idea
            Crochet idea
            Story idea
            Pick up prescription
            Crochet project
            Problems with the van
            Different vehicle?
            Coupons to the girls
            Crochet to pack for trip
            Story idea
I only have a 25 minute drive but my mind just bounced all over the place.  The key here is to remember all the stuff I was thinking about during my drive and make sure I can take these fragments of thoughts and develop them or create a to do list from them. 
This rambling in my brain is often what happens when I can’t sleep but that is solvable by just getting up and writing a to do list or writing down the story idea.  Generally that is what keeps me awake – the story idea.
Once I’m home it is a matter of what I will work on first.  Today – blog idea… next probably crochet idea or project but you just never know where my odd mind will go and what trouble it will get me into next.  I’ve always said my mind is a scary place to be.

End of Vacation and Return to Work

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting, Life, Writing
While I’ve been off, I worked on cleaning my office and crocheting.  I have a box of stuff ready to ship to the girls in Georgia, a small pile for a friend, and a scarf to go to Vicki.  Here are some of the pictures from these projects:


 

My office is a multi-layered job.  I’ve taken the piles of paperwork on my desk and sorted them into piles of organized paperwork on the card table.  Next is to work within each of those piles to get them into organized chaos instead of just chaos. 
During my time off, I have enjoyed quiet and calm days with little to stress me.  I think my toughest decision has been what to watch while I crochet.  I’m now working on season two of Charmed.  Today I will work on a few writing tasks and crocheting. 
A wonderfully talented and generous friend has taken pictures for me to use for my cover of my romance novel.  I’m going to have a difficult time choosing just one from the group of pictures she sent me.  Somehow with just a brief description she has managed to capture what I wanted in several photos.  I’ll have to figure out which ones to try and which one to finally use. 
After I’ve made up a few samples to ponder over, I will probably go back to crocheting and watching tv.  It is cold – only about 8 degrees with wind chill taking it down to about -5 outside.  I’m not likely to go out if I can avoid it today.  Tomorrow I will deal with what I have to.
Next on my list for crocheting is starting the kitchen sets for those who have asked for them.  I have a list (of course) and the colors for the first person.  I will use this to determine how much I need to buy of the other colors. 
Tomorrow I return to work.  I am sure once I’m there I’ll get easily back into the groove but right now it feels very foreign.  I think that is because I was so worn out at the end of the semester from school and work.  However, I will only be dealing with work when I go back so that means less stress.  I won’t be rushing off to class and then trying to get back into work mode in between classes.  I will go to work and focus on work.  When I come home I can focus on my writing or crocheting or nothing at all if that is what I choose to do. 
I know some of you who know me well are laughing at the idea that I will do nothing but I took a whole day where I did nothing.  I played on the computer and was completely unproductive.  It happens – just not very often.  

Catch Up

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting, Life, Writing
My semester started with a visit from Stephanie, two new classes, and lots of work.  It has been a crazy three weeks.  I have a grammar class and publication development class.  I like both of them and they are almost completely opposite. 
The grammar class is very structured, with deadlines, quizzes, and dates for everything.  The publication development class is not.  We spend our class times discussing articles, current events, and how all this relates to writing and publications.  I love them both.
My daughter very kindly reminded me as I was telling her about one assignment that I was 30 years older than my class mates.  She was right but it was one of those moments where I gave myself a mental shake of holy shit I’m getting old. 
Stephanie is back for another visit – flying as she has another wedding to attend.  We will get her for a bit on Sunday and Monday.  She hung out with me Friday morning and we went to lunch with Beth.  We are grabbing snatches of time where we can. 
I finally finished a scarf that I was working on.  It was a simple design and turned out beautifully but every time I worked on it I would fall asleep.  Last night I finished it though and now I’m moving on to the next thing.
This weekend I’m swamped with homework, time with Stephanie and errands.  The weather has turned a bit cooler – nicely nippy fall weather.  This is good for breathing but it makes my arthritis complain. 

I have thirteen more weeks to go and I’ll be done with my second degree!!  I cannot wait.  I have a long list of things I want to do once I’m done with school – crocheting, writing, reading… First though I have to get through the next thirteen weeks. 

More Projects

by eileentroemel, posted in Crochet and crafting
This weekend a friend of mine – Ana – visited.  I had a wonderful time just chatting with her.  It had been a long time since our schedules meshed and we had been able to get together.  So this last week I made her two small gifts. 
This long scarf was made with Sashay Twist yarn.  I love the way it turned out and the colors in it.  I’ll be getting this again to make more goodies with it.



This was made with scrap yarn – I had a partial skein left from some other project and hoped it would be enough to make a scarf / cowl.  I also put on there buttons from my mom who gave me a bag of old buttons.  They matched it nearly perfectly and fit Ana’s style.




Vicki picked out this yarn from one of the big buys I’d done.  There were three skeins and I was hoping it would be enough for a shawl for her. 

This is the back of the shawl wrapped around my sister Alicia.  The color is purple, blue, black which doesn’t come through wonderfully in the picture.

Here is the front – it ended up being long enough to wrap around her.  I am certain Vicki will love it. 
The shawl took me about three days to finish – it is a simple mesh using triple crochet and chains. 
The scarf for my niece is a combination of techniques.  I did a zigzag scarf for the base.  Here are the directions:
Ch 5
Row 1:  DC in 4th ch (counts as 1st DC, dc in last ch (3 dc)
Row 2:  ch 3, dc in each st
Row 3:  ch 3, turn piece, work 2 dc in end of row (with turning chain counts as 3 dc)
Repeat rows 2 & 3 until piece is long enough.

 When the scarf was long enough, I did the chain and leaf technique I used on Vicki’s valances with the crocodile stitch.  I worked my way randomly up the scarf making it look like a vine and leaves.  Then using blue and purple I created simple flowers to add to the ends of the scarf.  She will get it on Monday and I hope she likes it. 

 

Today I’m moving on to two more projects that have been sitting in my basket for a bit.  I’m not sure how long they will take but I’m hoping to finish them up soon.  I have a long list of holiday gifts to make and want to start on them before the craziness of the next semester starts.