My last post was "How Long Has It Been...."

How long has it been since I started this lovely crochet pattern? It's called "Journey Scarf" and was created by Kim Guzman.  Journey Scarf for certain... if you click the link you will see that it has been over 18mos since I started this project and that there have been some u-turns and route changes along the way.  I decided the baby yarn I was using was too bright and tiny and so switched to the denim and ivory colored cotton yarn I found on sale at Walmart (in the states).  I also decided to make a shell stitch doggy scarf for my girlfriend's intelligent and much beloved Shih Tzu.  Their photo is included below. I hope she likes them!

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" -Lao Tzu

Dollin'

I've been negligent. Beth at By Hook, By Hand has an amazing blog with lovely images; simply extraordinary, beautiful dolls; and wonderful sewing, crochet, crafting patterns and tutorials. It is one of my favorite spots in blogland. I am a beginner crocheter, but I so enjoyed using her skirt and top patterns.


Thank you again Beth!

Work in Progress? Wednesday

Do you remember the old parable...

"For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him...."

Well, I'm not that well-planning man. I'm always getting in to the middle of crafts without having taken everything in to consideration. I get excited (some may say impatient) and plow ahead only to find there's some pertinent thing that I need. At this point, I often feel overwhelmed and give up in discouragment. (This latter consequence would be the reason why I, now, seldom get started in the first place.)

Anyway, such is the case with my crocheted afghan. Marie Anne created this lovely pattern. And I began it joyfully (actually, I did have to start over once); but soon realized that I was lacking the yarn to finish. I did go back to my favorite little corner knitting shop to see if they had any more skeins; but alas, the store was torn down. So now I am contemplating transforming my afghan into a scarf, but I'm not exactly sure how to finish it off. Any ideas?

American Picker Wannabe and Work in Progress Wednesday

Can you live in China and still be an American Picker Wannabe? Anyway, I was out looking at furniture with my friend yesterday; and we stopped into a used furniture market (think small shed like shops crowded with dirty kitchen supplies, press board end tables, and padded foam sofas). But occasionally there will be treasures. I've been looking for a desk and cabinet, but this little folding Chinese chess table below beckoned to me. I was hesitant to ask if it was for sale, because it was tucked behind the short metal stool where the vendor sat chatting with some other women. But then my puzzle working passion and desire for a temporary space for putting them together made me bold. It still needs to be cleaned up, but I think it's pretty fun. Now I need to keep an eye out for old wooden Chinese chess pieces.



You can find a true American Picker Wannabe here at Jenny Matlock's "... off on my tangent..."

I also began a new crocheting project yesterday. As you know, I really like the scarf I am working on; but it requires mental attentiveness to figure the pattern out. I wanted to do something more carefree; so I started this lovely shell afghan that Marie Anne mentioned in a recent post.


As you can see, I haven't progressed very far. I've never made anything this large; so it may take a while. But I'm sure having fun with it.

Work in Progress - Journey Scarf

The scarf pattern that I choose to work on for my friend comes from the NaturallyCaron.com website. It's a wonderfully delicate scarf pattern created by Kim Guzman called "Journey Scarf." As you can see, I haven't progressed very far in these past few weeks. The motifs are so pretty and easy to make. Kim gives excellent instructions. If all I had to do was crochet motifs, we'd probably have a hundred scattered all over the house by now. But the joining has been my downfall. The motifs are meant to be joined as you go. I tried to interpret the instructions several different ways, but it just was beyond my skill level. Finally, I contacted Kim Guzman at her website. She was very gracious and kind and pointed me to a video that explained this method of joining. Seeing a similar technique was very helpful and I have sort of developed my own way to progress. But I have to really think about it every time; thus the slow progression. I hope it turns out even half as beautiful as Kim's.

Work in Progress - Beginnings

Look what I made! I know this motif is probably not all that impressive to those of you who really know what you're doing, but I was just so proud of myself for figuring out how to read the pattern. Only 28 more (and a lot of chain stitches) to go. I'll post more about this pattern as I hopefully progress. (Aren't the towels my friend embroidered for me sweet?)

I have also been attempting to learn to make hearts, but they don't seem to be coming out quite right. Any suggestions?

Work in Progress

Marie Anne at Every Day Crochet is hosting a Work in Progress Wednesday. I've been working on a scarf in natural from the Wavy Edge Shells Skinny Scarf pattern by Sandi Marshall (merely requiring a long chain and five double crochets to one single crochet every third stitch). I should be finished by now; but I had to set it aside when I ran out of yarn, and just haven't picked it up again.

Learning to Crochet

This past July while my husband was traveling, I decided to see if I could learn to crochet. I was greatly motivated by the lovely crochet work of a dear friend and mentor in all things related to being a loving wife & making the home a place of hospitality and beauty. Unfortunately she doesn't live very close by. So with the help of the internet and YouTube, I went about the learning process. I am extremely grateful to:

Crafttown.com's free crochet lesson's page which includes illustrated stitches and a chart explaining crochet abbreviations.

About.com:Crochet Many excellent and helpful links usually with photos. About also hosts some free crochet patterns.

The Knitwitch on YouTube - Crochet videos!

Crochet Pattern Central for free crochet patterns.

Below is a picture of a headscarf, the first thing I actually made (before I realized that you were supposed to pick up both strings of the loop with the hook and not just the front or the back ones). I also decreased in this pattern, but I'm still not certain whether I did it correctly or not.

You can find instructions for this pattern by Sandi Marshall at About.com: Single Crochet Triangle Scarf Pattern.

I recently finished a scarf that I crocheted out of some milk cotton which I picked up on a visit to WanChai Market in Hong Kong. Not being familiar with different kinds of yarns, I had never heard of milk cotton. One website said that this kind of cotton yarn is really soft because it contains 30% milk protein. I just know it had a nice feel and color mixture. I don't often know the weight of the yarn I am using, but I really like working with cotton. This pattern was easy and fun to crochet.

Free pattern by Marie Anne St. Jean is called One Skein Scarf to Crochet. I did use about one and a half large balls of yarn for mine.