Rock On!

The Blog Week question for today is: Where do you like to indulge in your craft?


My favorite place to knit and crochet is this rocking chair. It currently resides in the bedroom, but sometimes it is by the fireplace. My chair was hand made by Gary Weeks, an awesome furniture designer and builder. This one is made of pecan wood, and it fits my back like a glove... but it works just as well for other folks of other shapes, and kitties too.

Since I have RLS (restless leg syndrome), the rocking chair helps a lot, because it allows me to keep moving while doing a sedentary task. And knitting or crocheting helps too because just that small amount of physical activity can keep the antsies away for a while.

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(Blog Week Day 5 tag: knitcroblo5)

Stranded Color Work, I'm Ready!

The Blog Week question for today is: Is there a skill related to your hobby that you hope to learn one day?



Here is my knit answer: Uh, really? Am I really ready for this?? Well, I simply must know how to do this beautiful edge on Ceres... and to do that, I’m going to have to break my vow never to do stranded-color work.

Of course, when I was a teenager, I vowed also never to knit with skinny yarn and itty bitty needles, and what do I have on the needles now? You guessed it: dress socks in fingering yarn on size 0 needles. So I suppose I could go back on another one of those teen-aged vows and learn stranded-color.

If you want to see more posts from other bloggers participating in Blog Week, click here to find links:
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(Blog Week Day 4 tag: knitcroblo4)

A Beautiful Drape, Please

The Blog Week question for today is: Is there a skill related to your hobby that you hope to learn one day?


Here is my crochet answer: I want to be able to crochet a beautifully draped fabric that will make for a lovely-fitting shawl. I don’t want it to feel like being wrapped with a quilt or cardboard. I want fluidity, I want stretch and give, I want a crochet version of Cheryl’s Prayer Shawl, which is knitted and pictured above. I have tried using a big hook with skinny yarn, and it came out too stretchy. Next time, I’ll use the same yarn and a slightly smaller but still oversized hook. Wish me luck!

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(Blog Week Day 4 tag: knitcroblo4)

Sasha Evans... One Great Knitter!

The Blog Week question for today is: Who is a great knitter or crocheter that you admire?



Here is my knit answer: This young woman is a designer of knit patterns. A few years after learning to knit, she produced her first for-sale pattern, Bluebonnets, which was lace! But wait, it wasn’t just lace, it was an image of a bluebonnet flower (a lupine) that she worked out and incorporated into a knitted headband. Then on to stranded-color stitch creation for the edges of Ceres, which I mentioned in yesterday’s post.

Holy cow, what’s next?? She’s not sayin’, but she’s got it in the works. You can keep tabs by visiting her blog, Sasha’s Blue Carpet, which is a fun-to-read romp through crafting, cooking, feminism, and other interesting stuff.

Yup, that’s my girl!

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(Blog Week Day 3 tag: knitcroblo3)

My Favorite Crocheter... Absinthia!

The Blog Week question for today is: Who is a great knitter or crocheter that you admire?


Absinthia's Dog
Here is my crochet answer: No, not the dog... I love Absinthia!! She is a brilliant Swedish crocheter, who is innovative, clever, and just a lot of fun. She has been a pattern tester for me on Witch Warmers in Crochet, and she suggested a huge improvement in the way the stripes join up. I had tried and tried to make those stripes jogless, and the combination of stitches just wasn’t allowing it for me. Absinthia to the rescue! She suggested a fix that was perfect... I would never have thought of it on my own. Check out her work on Ravelry.

The photo above shows Absinthia’s child-sized version of the Fortune-Teller Turban in Crochet, modeled by her little dog. How cute is that?? She made the turban for her kindergartener-niece, who wears it when she takes on the character of Scheherazade, spinning tales for her friends.

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(Blog Week Day 3 tag: knitcroblo3)

Inspired by Ceres

The Blog Week question for today is: What pattern or project do you aspire to?



Here is my knit answer: There’s a beautiful pattern that came out late last year. It has a narrow “braid” detail along the edges of the hat and mitts. The name of the pattern is Ceres, and for the first time in my life, I am inspired to try stranded-color work, which is how the “braid” is made. It’s just lovely!

If you want to see more posts from other bloggers participating in Blog Week, click here to find links:
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(Blog Week Day 2 tag: knitcroblo2)

Aspiring to Crochet Socks

The Blog Week question for today is: What pattern or project do you aspire to?

floofle's socks on Ravelry
Here is my crochet answer: I want to crochet socks! So far, I’m still looking for a pattern that I like, and Linda Diak’s Toe-Up Crocheted Socks might be the one to start with. I know it will be challenging to make comfortable, adequately stretchy socks in crochet, and I hope I’m up to the task.

If you want to see more posts from other bloggers participating in Blog Week, click here to find links:
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(Blog Week Day 2 tag: knitcroblo2)