Wow! What a great mail day!!

The postman brought me 3 packages today!!

One was an RAOK package with the #10 knitting needles I have been searching for!! I am soooooo happy to get them. I'm taking a learn to knit class at our local community college starting on April 19th and I couldn't find the short #10 needles anywhere locally. A wonderful Crochetville angel (you know who you are) sent me this set:



Thank you so much!!!

I also got a yarn swap puffy from Laura V in NJ. She sent me 9 skeins of Bernat Boa yarn with a pattern book for a knitted or crocheted wrap. The yarn is an eyelash yarn and so silky feeling. The color is a deep purple and shiny pink variegated.

I also got a box from rebeccav from Crochetville. We traded some yarn. I sent her cotton and she sent me beautiful burgundy thin chenille. Not sure what I'm going to make with it yet -- might use it as a carry-along yarn or by itself.....not sure yet. But I do love the color!! Here is a picture of my yarn swap goodies and the chenille:



So, the mail today definitely made me smile!

Busy day here today. My mother is flying in tonight for a two week visit with us, so we have to drive to Charlotte tonight to pick her up. I'm doing laundry and all the last minute stuff to get ready for her to be here. Things are finally getting back to normal after last week. Read my previous post if you don't already know why last week was bad here. lol. I was about to officially change my name from Juli to Job there for awhile. :o))

TTFN!!!
Juli

WIPs

This week was not a good one for crochet time. First my husband and I both got sick. Then a day later, both the kids got sick. And my mother is flying out to see us on Monday, so now I'm rushing around wildly trying to get the house ready.

Ever had a week where you feel like Job?? Almost everything that could go wrong did go wrong. We got back last Sunday from a trip out of town -- and the hotel double billed our bank account for the room charges, which of course overdrafted our bank account by nearly $200. Got that taken care of (the hotel cancelled the extra charges and will be paying all the bank fees for their mistake) -- then everyone in the household gets sick. I had the house completely clean and ready for my mom to visit -- now 4 days later, it looks like a demilitarized zone. lol. And this morning, the ignitor button for our gas logs broke. Luckily we are expecting nice spring weather, so we won't really need the fireplace. And the puppy chewed through the power cord for the lamp in the livingroom.

I have to sit back and laugh about things.....what an awful week. It ought to make us all really appreciate it even more when things go well.

It goes without saying that I really didn't get any of my crochet Works-in-Progress completed this week. I do have a couple WIPs that I can show though:



I'm making a poncho and headband set for my 7 month old niece. I'm glad to have baby Joshua here at home because I can try it on him. If it fits him, it will fit Bethany. My teenager informed me that as soon as I sew the flower on the poncho that Joshua can't model it anymore. lol. :o) I am also planning to make ponchos for my other two nieces who are 2 and 3, and for a friend's daughter who is 7. I bought 3 skeins of pink yarn and I have some confetti Tiki on hand for the older girl's poncho. I'm going to make hers pink with the Tiki as an accent -- I think she'll really like it.

I wanted to get all of them done by Easter. I don't think I'm going to make it -- this horrible week had really bad timing. :o)) I will have to give them their Easter presents a bit late.

The other project is a pair of socks I've been working on. I'm about half way through the first sock. I'm using the Bernat Sox yarn I got from Herrschner's. I really like the yarn so far -- it's so soft and easy to work with.

My mother's flight lands in Charlotte tomorrow night at 8 p.m. Hopefully, I can have all the bed linens washed, the regular laundry done, the house at least mostly clean and things back to normal by the time she gets here.

TTFN!!
Juli

Gotta love the thriftshop!

When we first moved here to Spindale in January, one of the first things I did was to find the local thriftshops. Over the years, I've found some great stuff at thriftshops, junk stores, re-sale shops, etc.

The baby has outgrown a lot of his clothes, so I've been rebuilding his wardrobe....and looking for craft goodies at the same time. I go about once a week, and have a great time. Here's a couple pictures of some things I got on my last two thrift outings:





I found some great thread on both trips. I think it is actually serger machine thread, but I've used it for thread crochet many times. I got a huge bag full of autumn colored thread today for 50 cents. And last week I got the pretty blue and deep pink cones for $1 apiece.

Not to mention the wonderful baby clothes I have been finding -- some still had store tags on them. And I have bought several cookbooks, a Dr. Dobson perpetual calendar on children and family, a wonderful Christian women's devotional book and workbook, and several great mystery books. I also found two really neat Christmas cross-stitch pattern books.

Both trips together, I spent a total of $11.

Gotta love a bargain!!!

TTFN!
Juli

I took a neat quiz this morning about what side of my brain is dominant. Kinda neat! Give it a try! Here's my results:

You Are 40% Left Brained, 60% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning. Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others. If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic. Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet. The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility. Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way. If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art. Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

AreYou Right or Left Brained?

Sock yarn!

I've been waiting a week for my Herrschner's order to arrive. The postman brought it to me today! I got several skeins of sock yarn on sale at 50% off. Here's the different colors I bought:



Now I have to find a pattern that I like, and get busy.

I sure have a lot of WIPs going at the same time -- 63 square afghan, a remote control organizer, a kitchen set, various swap items, and now socks. I like having several things going at once though. Then if I get tired of working on one thing, I can switch to another project.

TTFN!

Juli

63 Squares Afghan 4/63

I just finished square #4 for my 63 squares afghan. I thought I'd start a photo gallery of my completed squares. I'm really HTML challenged and have been figuring things out as I go, so if someone could help me get this set up correctly, I would really appreciate it. For now I will post them one at a time. Maybe I can get a real gallery set up soon.

Square #1: Single Crochet (G Hook)





Square #2: Half Double Crochet (G Hook)




Square #3: Double Crochet (G Hook)




Square #4: Triple Crochet (G Hook, modified pattern by taking out 2 stitches on width and increasing by those 2 stitches in 1st border row to achieve gauge)



My gauge has been perfect with a G hook, except for the triple square.

With a G hook and 25 stitches across, it was 1/4" to 1/2" too large in width. And with an F hook, I could get the width, but then the height of the square was 1/4" to 1/2" too small. After trying this square 4 times and frogging it out, I measured my trc's and found that I was getting a consistent tension but that the square just wasn't going to come out a perfect 7" before the border rows. After reading that several other people had this same problem, I modified the pattern to get it to be 7" across and then put the border rows on it. Perfectly 8" square without having to try and crochet tighter or more loosely. I think it looks better that way because the stitches are still uniform and not pulled too tight or not tight enough -- and when I join my afghan there won't be any puckering or squares that won't lay flat because they aren't quite the right size.

So, 4 down.....only 59 to go. LOL

TTFN!!
Juli

Old, New and Cool!!

I've been terribly neglecting my blog this week. Just having one of those weeks where I can't find enough time to get everything done I want to do. Finally getting some computer time today!

THE OLD






I went by the thrift shop this week, and found a great old magazine from 1976. I had to smile at all the old Bicentennial ads. :o) I got the magazine for a quarter, and its full of crochet and knit sweater patterns. I will definitely put it to use. The old style sweaters, hats and scarves have definitely come back into fashion.

THE NEW

My order from Handy Hands Tatting was delivered on Friday.






I sat down last night after the baby went to bed and tried it out with some fingering yarn and an #03 needle. After I got the hang of it, it was easy. Took me a couple tries to hold the yarn against the needle and do the loops around my index finger correctly. I will try with #10 thread tonight.

Want to learn needle tatting, or other fiber arts/crafts?? The HOW TO site has links to tutorials for all sorts of crafts. There's a huge range of topics from basics like knitting and crochet to how to do Celtic Knotwork and weaving. Check it out!

THE COOL

I had a bad morning on Friday. But the postman made my day. Not only did I get my tatting supplies, but I got a Crochetville Random Acts of Kindness (RAOK) puffy. A sweetie pie from Crochetville (you know who you are) sent me a beautiful beaded book thong and some handmade stitch markers. I love them!! Thank you so much!!






And, I thought I'd post an updated picture of our new puppy Max. Hubby gave him to me and the kids as a Valentine's Day present. He's growing like a weed. He has found his favorite place to nap:






The baby and the puppy are both rapidly outgrowing the bouncer seat. :o))

TTFN!!!!
Juli

Angelic Charm Bookmark

Here is my original angel bookmark pattern. And the usual disclaimer:

This pattern is copyrighted material. You may print it for your own use, but please don't post it to other websites or sell my original pattern as your own. You can link to this page, but please don't post the pattern on other websites or groups. Yadda Yadda. :o)

**If you like my blog and patterns, please vote for me on the Crochet and Hook list. Vote by clicking the blue box towards the top in the left margin of my blog. Thank you so much!! Let me know what you think of my patterns -- just click the email link (also in the left hand margin).**

Angelic Charm Bookmark




Supplies:

#10 or larger crochet thread in two coordinating colors
1 inch plastic ring
1 nugget bead, or other large bead
1 charm of your choice (optional)
1 button of your choice
Size 8 steel hook, or size needed for thread size

Head:

Attach thread to 1” ring with an sc.

Row 1: sc around ring until totally covered, join, ch 2, turn

Body:

Row 1: (Ch counts as first dc now and throughout) dc in next 3 stitches, ch 2, turn (4 dc)

Row 2: dc in 1st dc, dc in next 2 dc, 2 dc in last dc, ch 2, turn (6 dc)

Row 3: sk 1st dc, V-stitch (dc, ch 2, dc) in next 4 dc, dc in last dc, ch 2, turn (10 dc, 4 ch2 sp)

Row 4: sk 1st dc, V-stitch in ch 2 sp of previous V-stitch, repeat across to last dc, dc in last dc, ch 2, turn

Rows 5-8: Repeat row 4. At end of Row 8, finish off.

There should be 9 spaces at the bottom of the angel’s skirt.

Join thread in the middle space with a sl stitch. Using the ch stitch, make a long chain and FO, leaving a 4 inch tail. Join thread in the same space, and make a long ch of the same length, also leaving a 4 inch tail. Thread both ends through a large nugget bead and push the bead up against the ends of both long chains. Then tie on your choice of charm at the bottom.

Wings (worked separately, then attached to body):

With coordinating thread color:

Ch 5, join to form ring.

Row 1: ch 2, 1 dc into ring, ch 3, (2 dc, ch 3) 3 times, join in 1st dc

Row 2: sl st over to next ch 3 space, ch 2, 1 dc, ch 3, 2 dc in ch 3 sp, dc in next 2 dc, *2 dc, ch 3, 2 dc in ch 3 space, dc in each dc across to next ch 3 sp, repeat from * around, join in 1st dc.

Row 3: sl st over to next ch 3 space, ch 2, dc, ch 3, 2 dc in sp, * dc in each dc across to next ch 3 sp, 2 dc, ch 3, 2 dc in ch 3, repeat from * around, join in 1st dc.

Rows 4 - 6: Repeat row 3. At end of row 6, FO, leaving a long tail.

Turn square so that the corner with the tail is at the bottom, forming a diamond. Fold the opposing corner down to form a triangle. Putting fold at the top, place behind angel body so that the fold lines up with the top of the neckline. Using a small button of your choice, join wings to angel body.

Skipping stitches at the body’s neckline, join coordinating thread color (used for wings) with an sc in sc on ring, leaving a 4 inch tail. Ch 1, sc in next sc. Continue ch 1, sc in next sc around to where the ring meets the neckline on the other side. FO, leaving a 4 inch tail.

Working on back of angel, Using 4” tails and a needle, run thread through a couple stitches on back on wings and then up through a couple stitches on head. Do this on both sides. This will secure the stitches and also give the head and wing area a more finished look.


My friend Karla was my pattern tester. She did a great job and helped me tremendously. Here's the bookmark she made:






Thanks Karla!!!

Please feel free to leave comments and suggestions about this pattern. I can also be reached by email using the link in the left sidebar of my blog. :o)

TTFN!
Juli