Crafty Rantings

I'm Crafty. I Rant. These are Crafty Rantings!

Sunday, April 03, 2011

A Very Long Project


OK this is probably one of the longest projects I have worked on in quite some time. Of course since it was for me it was on my low priority list. I remember I was working on it when my brother came to see me in October. I finished it in January. It's a crochet bag. The picture isn't the greatest but it'll give you an idea. It's pretty tall. And although it may not have been intended, when I went from the round bottom to starting up the sides, it created little "feet" which make it cute. The biggest challenge was making the long ties. But I finally managed to do that. It's something that probably requires two people because you're supposed to twist these long strands. I solved the problem by using the knob on top of my lamp that holds the shade on. Whatever works, right?


This pattern came out of "Crochet Patterns for Dummies". See, I had made a really small crochet bag a long time ago for someone and I thought this would be small, too. Didn't look at the number of rows. Boy, let me tell you this was a lot of work. But worth it. And in case you're wondering and even if you aren't, yes, it took a lot of yarn. I don't want to offend anyone but I thought if I was going to be USING this, I wanted it to be sturdy. So I bought a one pound skein of worsted weight and it's perfect. It makes a good project bag!


I just remembered to take a picture to post which is why it's a few months late.


Would I make another one? Only if I had a lot of time to kill and no deadline. This is not a project to do on a deadline.


But it sure is pretty. And useful!

Cowl Obsession


I found a really easy knit/purl pattern for a cowl and have become obsessed with making them. This one was done with Homespun and is by far my favorite pattern and cowl that I've made. I was wearing it all the time until the weather got hot again. Ugh. Anyway I also made one in a berry color with Vanna's Choice but I made that one too big because of the difference in the texture of the yarn and so I may not wear that again and just consider it an experiment.


For a swap someone sent me a crochet cowl that I *LOVE* and so I thought I would go looking for a crochet pattern. I'm working on a really simple one now that's just single crochet one row and double crochet the next and then you join the short sides with a slip stitch. I'm doing it in grey Wool-Ease yarn. I had to change the pattern because I couldn't quite figure out what they meant about "short side" so I am making it such that I have the width and am working up to make the height. I also thought that would look better in terms of the pattern. When I finish it I will post a picture.


Yes, another fast and fun project to add to my collection of things to make!

For Mom


I made this for Mom for Mother's Day. It's hard to tell but it's a shawl. It was crochet. If I made another one it would be wider and longer. It's rectangular but it just doesn't seem big enough to me. It's big enough for her, I'm sure, but I'd like something bigger.

Washcloth Mania



Well I finally decided perhaps I should get back to making a few washcloths. They usually only take a couple of days especially with these kinds of patterns. Thursday is one of my bosses birthdays and I have never made him anything so John is getting a washcloth with a "J" on it. Later in the month Roger (who has been gifted with two tie blankets in the past) will get the "R" washcloth. Not much but customized. And something I'm sure their wives and/or children don't do.


The I thought about what I could make Andrew for when I visit in May. Here's what I made him: