Back to the Kitch-en

I was inspired by a very nice lady on Ravelry named Kim, who featured the Strawberry Potholder in her projects. I thought it was terrific, so I asked her where she got the pattern. She wrote and told me it was from the Leisure Arts Leaflet # 851. Somewhere in the back of my mind, that sounded familiar, so I went into my pattern file and, lo and behold, I HAD that leaflet! So I made the Strawberry Potholder, but I couldn't stop there. I also made the Rose Square and the Ridged Hexigon. I dug deeper into my patterns and found the #281 leaflet and made the Heart Potholder. I also did the hexigon potholder from leaflet #429. These are all older leaflets from the 80's and I dont think they are still in print but you might be able to find them on E-bay or a similar site.

And then I thought about one more. So I went into my copies of free online patterns and I found the Polish Star Potholder. Something tells me I tried this one years ago and gave up. Well, this time I was able to figure it out and I have to admit it came out pretty nice. You can find the pattern for that one at http://www.freepatterns.com/ . It would make a nice afghan if I had about 10 years of my life to devote to it...LOL!

I will probably sell these, since I already have plenty of potholders. Or if I end up involved in a potholder swap, I am all set. :)

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The Flamies

Here ye, here ye! All crocheters, newbies or old timers! Its time to vote for the best in crochet. Time to vote for The Flamies Awards. Laurie Wheeler, founder the the Crochet Liberation Front, has created these awards to honor and acknowledge those talented people responsible for the best in crochet. Just click on THIS LINK and vote for your favorites. This event coincides with the beginning of NATCROMO (National Crochet Month) in March. So go and vote....support your favorite yarn craft and on behalf of all those nominated, thank you!

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12 to 24 Point Round Ripple Afghan

Ever since I saw this design about a year or so ago, I have been wanting to try one of these. Its not as elaborate as some I have seen, but I didnt want to drag this project out too long. I bought the yarn months ago....the Bernat Chunky was being closed out and the price was great for those 11 oz. skeins. I finally decided to give it a go about a couple weeks ago. And you see the result. I think it came out rather nicely. I used the round ripple instructions on Crochetville as a guide but the increase they use from 12 to 24 is to make small granny squares, sew these on and then continue in the ripple pattern. I am way to lazy to bother with that :D So I improvised a way to stitch diamonds into the ghan for the increases. It worked. I found out later that someone else did their increases in their ghan in a similar fashion. You can find the proceedure HERE.

I gave the ghan to my b/f.....he really liked it. I only wish the Bernat wasnt discontinued....it was a great yarn for this project. If I can find a similar yarn, I may make another one. My son has a round bed and can you imagine how cool this would look on a round bed? :)

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It's Finally Finished....

.....and I can cross another WIP off my list. This is another Lotus Bag, which I promised my D I would make for her over a year and a half ago. I had the bag crocheted....it was the hand sewing that made me put it off. Well, this morning, I got up and said to myself, "I am going to finish that bag today."...and I did.

She is going to faint......she thought I would NEVER finish it....he,he,he...

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More Socks

I have been working on this pair of socks for my SIL for a couple weeks, off and on. I think this is the nicest pair I have made yet. I used Regia Silk Color....its a very soft yarn. And not stiff like some sock yarns I have used. Not splitty, either. I am going to get more of this yarn and see if I can find similar types. I want to try making myself a pair.

I have sock making down to a science, now. I can make a pair of socks without a pattern. As long as you understand the parts of a sock and how each relates to the other, its fairly easy to construct one. And if the yarn has enough stretch, it can be very forgiving and you dont have to be perfect on the measurments. After all, socks you buy in a store stretch to fit many foot shapes and sizes. Crocheted socks should do the same.

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Sweetheart Ripple Afghan

I have the flu......lucky me. So I am housebound again...sigh....

But that made it a perfect time for me to start working on this ghan. I am making it for my mother for Valentines Day, so that forces me to finish it :) This design can be found in the current issue of Crochet World Magazine.....its on the cover. Kim Guzman is the designer......she is so clever! I love the fact that this ghan is reversable. The heart design is so cute....I know my mother is going to love it! I had to use different yarn because the specified yarn (Simply Soft Heather) wasnt available so I went with RH Soft and its working up just fine.

I didnt work to gauge so this ghan is smaller than it should be, but thats ok because I really want it to be a coverlet for her bed in the nursing home. Because its a hospital bed, everything has to be tucked under the mattress so there is nothing interfering with the bed guards and the mechanism. I didnt want this to be tucked in, so its just wide enough to lay on top of the sheets.

Go out and get this magazine if you can and give it a try. I will post a photo of the finished ghan when I am done.

1/27 - Here is the finished afghan!

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Merry Christmas!

Here is our tree....with gifts ready to be unwrapped in the morning. It takes up most of the open space in the living room....its a wide tree but I think it looks great.

I want to take this opportunity to wish you a very Merry Christmas! Enjoy your holiday......be safe.

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P.S. I Love You Cap and Keyhole Scarf

I had no intention of doing any kind of designing until after the holidays but this was rather unintentional. I made a pair of the Fingerless Mitts (same pattern that I used last year) for my son's g/f but I couldnt find a scarf and hat pattern that would match it so I made one up. I like the way it came out and am considering writing the pattern down next year.

The P.S. in the pattern name comes from "post stitch", which is what this set is entirely made of. Its a very thick and warm set and I hope she likes it. I know I do :)

Hope everyone out there is enjoying their holiday season. I know things are tough all over but they WILL get better....I have faith :)

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And the Winner IS......

I am sitting here with slips of paper that have the names of the entrants to my contest. And I am about to choose one of the pieces of paper and announce the name of the winner of the Elann Esprit yarn. Good luck, ladies!

Drum roll please.....brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrump!

And the winner is....

NAIDA!!!

I am sure you all join me in congratulating Naida on winning the contest! And I want to thank ALL the entrants for participating.

Naida, I will contact you by e-mail to get your mailing address so I can send your prize out to you. :)

Although the contest is ended, I will have another one next year. And I want to ask anyone who is interested to make more swatches of your favorite stitches, take a pic and send it to my e-mail address identifying what stitch it is. I want to start an online stitch collection that will be available to anyone who comes to my blog and accesses the page link. I will put the link to the left and it will permanently remain there.

Oh...btw....you may notice at the bottom of my posts there are REACTIONS. Even if a visitor to my blog doesnt want to write a post, they can still check off one of the selections. I hope more people will utilize this....its totally anonymous and, I think, fun :)

I hope everyone's holiday crocheting is going well. I have finished a poncho for my SIL and am just about finished the last of my charity pieces.....a hat and scarf set for a little girl. If I dont get back before Thursday, I wish everyone of you here in the U.S. a VERY HAPPY THANKSGIVING! And if you are traveling, take care and come back safely!

Crochet, Away!

Contest Update- Entries

I am little disappointed that I have so few entries for the contest despite extending the deadline. But HERE are the entries so far. You still have time to get your entry in...it only takes a few minutes to do up a 5" swatch and e-mail me a photo. Again, the address is sandy42@hotmail.com.

Crochet, Away!