Whimsical Workings

Catching up

2011-08-02T11:02:00.002-04:00

I have been keeping busy for the last month or so. In fact, I can't believe how quickly June & July have passed.

We have Heritage beefsteak tomatoes & cherry tomatoes in our garden. The Heritage tomato plant is about 5' tall. The 3 cherry tomato plants are 8' tall and the regular beefsteak tomato plant is 5' tall. We're having a little trouble though. We weren't planning on quite so many tomatoes. Looks like my Mom will be taking tomatoes to the Seniors' Centre again this year.

It's been super busy at work for the last two weeks. My colleague burnt her arm and sprained her ankle in a kitchen accident and has been unable to work for the better part of the last two weeks.

I have been working with Mom on a queen sized blanket for my brother. In this hot weather, we haven't gotten many squares completed, but at least we've gotten a couple done. He lives in a basement apartment where the air conditioning keeps the temperature very cool.

I'm working on a new set of designs for the Hallowe'en pads I make. I made a set of four a few years ago to give out at Hallowe'en to the kids. Whats left I will donate to the Children's library and make my new ones.

I have been working with my brother to arrange a 25Th wedding anniversary party in August. My brother handles most of the food. I get to work on the decorations. So far I've worked out silver crocheted streamers and blue crocheted roses. Mom and Dad's wedding colours were blue and silver, so it should work well.

Gotta get back to work now. Stay cool!

Sound of Music Festival

2011-06-20T14:45:00.003-04:00

The Sound of Music Festival was last weekend. We went to see the parade on Saturday morning and I have to say, the bands were excellent. There was a wide variety of music played, from traditional ballads to jazz and swing.

I was very impressed with the performance of the MM Robinson band. Along with playing, they're synchronized movements were excellent. The little extra performance we received at the band stand was very well done.

The Scottish dancers, Irish dancers - particularly the young gentleman who gave a little extra performance as well - danced beautifully.

All the bands played well and it was great to see so many bands out on such a hot day. I'm sure those dressed all in black (including the Top Hats Marching Band) were feeling the sun beating down on them.

My congratulations all around for a successful performance!

Victoria Day Weekend

2011-05-24T09:28:00.004-04:00

Hope everyone had a great Victoria Day weekend. There was quite a bit of rain in our area, but it didn't put a damper on our weekend. We got some gardening done and some lawn work done (Dad did most of it as seen by his sunburnt neck). Mom assisted Dad on where plants needed to be planted and I helped with the marigolds in the front.

Yesterday, my brother and I went to see Pirates of the Carribean 4: On Stranger Tides. It was a great movie. The special effects were excellent. The movie was funny, but kept you on the edge of your seat. It was just over 2 hours long. I recommend anyone who has seen the other Pirates of the Carribean movies should definitely see it, but even if you haven't seen the others, go see this one anyway. This movie is not a continuation of the previous movies. It's a movie on it's own. Definitely a movie worth watching.

Well, back to work!

Catching up

2011-05-16T13:12:00.009-04:00

It's been a while since I was signed in. No excuses. I finally downloaded my camera with the finished pictures of the Alice Dress I was working on. As mentioned it worked up fast.

Once I completed the Alice Dress, I also finished a little girls sweater. It was one of the free patterns that I picked up when buying yarn, but I used pixie instead of baby yarn. I think it worked up well.

I finished two other children's sweaters and a baby blanket. I also tried a pattern for onesies. They were all very cute.

When I wasn't working on crochet, I have been working through tax season. This is our busiest time of year at work. Fortunately, it made the days go fast.

At the end of April, I went to the CreativFestival at the International Centre. There was plenty to see for sewing and scrapbooking. I was very disappointed at how very little crocheting there was. With no CreativFestival Spring show last year, I had hoped that this year would be packed. Sadly, it wasn't. I went by the A Needle Pulling Thread booth on Saturday afternoon, but I didn't recognize any of the artists at the booth. Well, I'm sure they are all very good at the craft they make. Perhaps the Fall show will be more exciting.

May is a busy month for our family as well. We have 5 birthdays and Mother's Day. So far, other than a lot of rain, it hasn't been too bad.

My brother and I went to the Photographic, Video and Digital Imaging show at the International Centre last weekend. It was super busy, but there was plenty to see and some great ideas to be found. The magazines that were there had plenty to offer and of course, if you want to know what the best photographic equipment is, this was the place to be. Henry's was there in full force with at least 5 booths. I visited Canon, Nikon and Panasonic. There was a variety of photographic equipment for everyone whether novice or professional.

With the spring weather here (in rain and shine), it's been a great time for photographing the wildlife. I had the fortunate pleasure of leaving work at just the right time last week. It was pouring rain, but just back of our building were two sets of Canadian geese with their goslings. I couldn't resist standing in the rain to get the picture.

With the gardening season almost upon us, we've been working out what to plant in the garden. We started our tomatoes back in April and I can happily say they are doing well. Last year we thought we were planting beefsteak tomatoes and once they were started, realized they were not. They still tasted delicious, but when you get your heart set on beefsteak, the rest just don't cut it!

Already, our garden has lilies of the valley, tulips, a trillium and our rose bushes are showing new growth. We only need to add a few plants to fill in the bare spots. Out front, we have lavender which I thought was killed off last year. It apparently was not and has come back with plenty of new growth. It's surprising what lives and what dies in the garden over winter. We were disappointed to find our blue rose didn't make it, but realized that it had been very difficult to grow it in the first place.

I think I've covered everything to date, but I'm sure there will be more to write before you know it.

Alice Dress

2011-02-24T12:54:00.006-05:00

I started the Alice Dress featured in Crochet Today March/April 2011 issue. The size I'm working on is the 8 years dress. The pattern calls for 3 colours for the bodice and it's worked from the bottom up. Each row has 2 colours, one main colour and then the other two are switched each row. While this makes a beautiful pattern, it also makes for a bulky bodice because the opposite colour is supposed to be carried across the next row. Rather than making the dress carrying the yarn across each row, I opted to finish off at the end of each row. While this is a little more work, I find that it still looks good and it's not too heavy.

The skirt is worked from the bottom of the bodice after the front and back bodice is completed. As you can see from the picture, the back is already completed and even though there are quite a few tie-ins, it worked up nicely.

Oh, if only all projects went so well.

Helping paws

2011-02-17T13:24:00.004-05:00

While working on a new baby blanket using Bernat Baby Blanket, Stormy, our male main coon cat, decided to try and help me crochet by pulling on the yarn like it was rope. Although this worked well for him, it didn't help to have to recrochet the same stitch a few times. When I took it away from him, Stormy tried to bite the yarn and found my fingers instead.

When I ran out of Bernat Baby Blanket yarn, I decided to do a little creative combining. I took some 3 ply yarn and combined it with two strands of pixie yarn. Smokey, our female main coon cat, decided that the pixie yarn ball would make a great toy. I was working away on the blanket and suddenly, my ball of yarn was rolling down the hallway with Smokey hot on it's trail, and the ball of yarn unrolling as it went.

Mom has been working on an afghan and got a box to put the squares that she had completed into. The whole point of putting the squares in the box was so the cats wouldn't lay on them. Did that stop our cats? No! Smokey climbed into the box, made herself comfortable and lay down for a nap on top of the squares.

Who said animals weren't helpful to your creative juices? Surely not someone with cats!

New Year

2011-02-08T10:39:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year! A new year means a new opportunity to try new patterns, to work on old unfinished projects and yes, to delve into your stash and find yarns that you forgot that you bought, how many years ago?

That was my big project this year. I went into my basement with the intent of inventorying my stash and in the first bin I opened, there were yarns I hadn’t remembered purchasing. No surprise there because up until December, I really didn’t have much access to the bins. They were buried in the back of the room. The other decision I made was anything that was only a small amount either had to be used up fairly quickly or gotten rid of. In going through my bins, I also found yarn that contained some percentage of wool. This may not be an important point for some people, but since Mom is allergic to wool, it was a definite issue. So I passed that yarn on to a co-worker who also enjoys crocheting.

It’s amazing how stash can build up without realizing. I mean, honestly, would you pass up on a sale of a two pounder for seven dollars if you knew about it? Certainly not! Just because I have over 20 bins of yarn doesn't mean that next ball might not be perfect for the poncho pattern I just saw.

Anyway, this is a great time of year to be working on this project. You get a workout lifting the bins around. You stay warm because you’re working with yarn and inside. You get organized and know what you have so that you can start a new project or finish some of the old projects.

I know they say you should finish the old projects first, but when you see the new Crochet, Interweave Crochet, or Crochet World come out and check out all the fabulous new patterns, who wouldn’t have trouble deciding whether to finish an old project or start a new one?

Back to work. Eventually it will be done and I'll be adding more before I empty out what I have.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T10:47:00.002-05:00

I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and all the best of the holiday season. I'm hoping to destress with some new patterns. You never know how much you'll accomplish when you're sitting watching your favourite Christmas movies with a crochet hook and yarn in hand.
May all your Christmas dreams come true.

Tools of the Trade

2010-11-18T10:13:00.000-05:00

With numerous projects on the go, I have a tool kit to make it easier to work on projects on the go.

1. One of the tools I use is a French safety pin and numbered and lettered beads. With the beads I can spell out what size hook I am using (5mm). By putting the beads on the safety pin and attaching the safety pin to the work in progress, whether the hook is still with the project or not, I know what size hook I need to use to finish the project.

2. I also use a project journal. In this journal I include the name of the pattern, the source of the pattern, yarn colours, and hook size, when I started the project and special notes. If I plan to use an eyelash yarn to finish the pattern, this would be marked in special notes. Also, if there is an error in the pattern, it’s important to make note of the error in the notes section for future reference.

3. Stitch markers are an important tool for marking the beginning of the round when working in continuous rounds. They are also used for marking sections of a piece. For example, if I am working on a sweater and the sweater is being done as one piece, I would use stitch markers to mark the start and end of the back section. The can also be used to marked the right side of a piece when a pattern says “mark as the right side”.

4. Yarn bobbins are an excellent tool when working with more than one colour. Particularly when I am working on a Tunisian project, I like to have a box of yarn bobbins handy. Not only does it make it less tangled, the yarn bobbins keep the yarn from unrolling all over and make it easier to carry the whole project.

5. A needle to weave in ends in a definite must. Although it doesn’t have to be done right away, it’s better to weave in the ends sooner than later. Imagine a project with 20 ends per piece. If you wait to weave the ends in until the project is completed, the amount of time it would take to weave in the ends is daunting.

Have fun, try not to get frustrated and let the crochet take away some of your stress. With the holiday season fast approaching, using any technique you can to alleviate stress will make you enjoy the season all the more.

Happy Crocheting!

Crafting Mysteries

2010-11-12T09:42:00.002-05:00

For those of you who enjoy a good mystery as well as crafts, there are a number of authors that offer craft mysteries. Some even include patterns, hints & tips. I have enjoyed the work of:

Laura Childs – Scrapbooking Mysteries, Tea Shop Mysteries
Monica Ferris – Needlecraft Mysteries
Maggie Sefton – Knitting Mysteries
Betty Hechtman – Crochet Mysteries
Mary-Ellen Hughes – Craft Corner Mysteries

Other authors that offer craft mysteries (which I have not had the opportunity to read) are:
Sally Goldenbaum – Seaside Knitting Mysteries, Queen Bees Quilt Mysteries
Amanda Lee – Embroidery Mysteries
Terri Thayer – Stamping Sisters Mysteries
Elizabeth Lynn Casey – Southern Sewing Circle Mysteries
Lucy Lawrence – Decoupage Mysteries
Cathy Elliott - Annies Attic Mysteries

If you know of any authors not listed above that you would like to recommend, please email me at rosep.langley@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you.

Great stores to shop for yarn in Ontario

2010-10-28T13:13:00.005-04:00

For those of you looking for great places to purchase yarn in Ontario, below is a list that I have found some great deals at.

Mississauga:
Knit 4 Less, 154 Queen St # 110, Streetsville Owned by: Gary Aldridge
Hours:
Tuesday to Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Cambridge:
Lens Mill Stores, 215 Queen St W, Cambridge
Hours:
Mon to Wed : 10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Thurs & Fri : 10 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Sat : 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sun : 12:30pm to 4:30pm

Cambridge Fibres Ltd., 215 Queen St W, Cambridge
Hours:
Mon to Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Fri to 8:30 p.m.
Sun 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Listowel:
Spinrite, 230 Elma St W, Listowel
Hours:
Mon to Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Paris:
Mary Maxim Ltd., 75 Scott Ave, Paris
Hours:
Mon to Sat: 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Sun and Holidays: 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Warming Families Winter Items Challenge 2010

2010-10-28T12:53:00.003-04:00

For those of you with generous souls and some time on your hands, there is a winter items challenge that is being run by Warming Families. Warming Families is a charitable organization that helps families in need by providing them with hand-made or new items. The coordinator for the GTA area is Dalyce Newby. Dalyce has been coordinating the pick-up and delivery of items in the GTA area for over 10 years. The Winter Items Challenge 2010 is to collect at least 400 hats, scarves, mittens, gloves, ear-warmers by December 31st. If you have any that you would like to donate, please contact Dalyce at mdnewby267@yahoo.com to make arrangements.

A great pattern for beginning crocheters is using granny squares. Join together 8-8 inch granny squares to make a scarf.

Granny Square:
Round 1: Chain 4. Join with the beginning chain.
Round 2: Chain 3 (replaces the first double crochet). Double crochet twice in the hole that you just created. Chain 2. Double crochet 3 times in the same hole. Chain 2. Double crochet 3 times in the same hole. Chain 2. Double crochet 3 times in the same hole. Join with the top of the beginning chain 3.
Round 3: Slip stitch into the first chain 2 space. Chain 3 (replaces the first double crochet). Double crochet 3 times in the hole. Chain 2. Double crochet 3 times in the same hole. * Double crochet 3 times, chain 2, double crochet 3 times in the next hole (these are your corners). Repeat from * 2 more times. Join with the top of the beginning chain 3.
Round 4: Slip stitch into the first chain 2 space. Chain 3 (replaces the first double crochet). Double crochet 3 times in the hole. Chain 2. Double crochet 3 times in the same hole. * Double crochet 3 times in the next hole (this is in between your corners). Double crochet 3 times, chain 2, double crochet 3 times in the next hole (this is in the corners). Repeat from * around. Join with the top of the beginning chain 3.

Repeat round 4 until the square measures 8 inches.

For more information on the Warming Families organization, please see the below link:

Warming Families

I know that with all the crocheters out there, this challenge can not only be met, but exceeded.

2010-10-07T16:00:00.003-04:00

Last evening Mom and I spent a wonderful evening teaching a beginners’ crochet class at the Burlington Public Library. With 15 students, the room was buzzing. We taught a granny square class and the students were excellent. It was a slow start, as is expected, but each student took home a base knowledge of chains, double crochets and slip stitches. With a pattern, reference material and will to continue, the students are ready to continue “on the dark side”.

Stitches learned were:

Chain:
Make a slip knot and slide it onto the hook. Yarn over the hook from back to front.
Slide the yarn at the end of the hook under the loop already on the hook. One chain completed.

Double crochet:Yarn over the hook (yo). Remember to yarn over from back to front.
Insert your hook between the 2 front loops of the chain or next stitch. Yarn over the hook. Pull the hook back through the center of the chain stitch or next stitch you are working on, carrying the yarn through the stitch. You should have 3 loops on your hook. Yarn over the hook. Draw the yarn through the first 2 loops on your hook. Yarn over the hook. Draw the yarn through the last 2 loops on the hook. You have not completed a double crochet

Slip stitch:
Make a chain that's 4 chain stitches (ch 4) long. Don't forget to begin with a slipknot on your hook. Insert the hook into the first chain you made, forming a ring. The first chain stitch is the one farthest from your hook. If you don't want to form a ring, then insert the hook into the second chain from your hook.
Wrap the yarn over the hook from back to front over the hook (yo) and with your hook hand, rotate the hook toward you. This step positions the hook and yarn to form the stitch. Pull the hook back through the stitch and then through the loop on the hook in one motion.One slip stitch is complete.

With an enthusiastic group of ladies, I have no doubt that there will be some very beautiful work produced.

Getting Ready for Christmas

2009-12-02T09:35:00.002-05:00

I don't know about anyone else, but I have been busting a gut trying to get ready for Christmas. Every year I say I'm going to start earlier, and every year I end up starting early and putting it aside, then at the last minute rush around trying to get everything done in time. Actually, this year, I'm fairly far ahead on this. I've only got 2 more things to complete as Christmas gifts. Most of my Christmas cards have been sent and I just have to finish my Christmas letter and print it to go with a few of my cards.

The Christmas party season is just beginning. Next week is the company Christmas party and the Heritage Crochet Christmas party. I'm looking forward to the Heritage Crochet party.

To all my friends, crocheting buddies, family and crazy cohorts, I wish you all the best of the Christmas season. Don't stress yourself out. There's always next year.

Tunisian Skirt and Vest

2009-12-02T09:28:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I finally finished the Tunisian Skirt and Vest and have downloaded the photos from my camera. This is the best view.

Happy Winter!

2009-11-18T15:17:00.001-05:00

Happy Winter! The Christmas and Hanukkah season are fast approaching. Last weekend was the kick-off with the Toronto Santa Claus Parade. Hopefully by now you’ve started your Christmas presents for friends and family. The one thing I’ve found is that at this time of year, there never seems to be enough time to get everything done. That’s not a bag thing; it just means that I have to manage my time carefully and prioritize which projects are most important. Not to sound preachy but if you have a few minutes at lunch time, it’s a great time to de-stress from the morning. Once the kids are settled to working on their homework or off to bed and you’ve got a few minutes to watch TV, it’s a great time to continue on the project. Before you know it, you’ll be done and onto the next project.
So happy crocheting!

1st Day of School

2009-09-08T15:14:00.007-04:00

Today is the first day of school. Not for me, of course, but does it ever effect the traffic. It's hard to believe how many more cars there are on the road.
I have recently added two new sweater designs to www.whimsicalworkings.etsy.com - both are Halloween sweaters - one is hip length, one is calf length as shown above. I have also just finished a fall skirt and vest set. The vest originally started out as a tunic, but I just didn't like the way it was going, so it's now a vest. But I think it looks pretty good. Once I've finished the belt, I'll post the picture.
Once that's completed, I've already got a few more "dozen or so" projects to work on, plus for those of us who plan to make some gifts for Christmas, now is the time to get started.
Happy Crocheting!

Hot Summer Days, Cold Summer Nights ... or Not

2009-08-21T11:50:00.001-04:00

Hot summer days, cold summer nights… not really. The past few weeks, it’s been hot summer days and hot summer nights. So how can you crochet in this kind of weather? Well, start by pulling out the thread work. Set aside your yarn or wool projects, because chances are you’re not going to work on them anyway.
You say you have to get this project completed? It’s really important, and you’re on a deadline? Well, find yourself an air conditioned area that will let you kick back and work on your project.
What thread projects are in the works? Well, you could be starting on the Christmas ornaments. Or what about that doily or table cloth you started but haven’t quite gotten around to finishing? Are you a fan of filet crochet? How about the baby outfits that you started, but never finished. Now is as good a time as any to complete that project.
Perhaps you’d like to start planning ahead for your fall projects. Keep in mind that Mary Maxim has their tent sale starting August 20th and going right through to Labour Day weekend. That’s one sale you wouldn’t want to miss.
If you don’t feel like crocheting or knitting, why not pull out your cross stitch or embroidery project? The summer is a wonderful time to work on “Works in process” and it’s not the best time to work on wool or yarn projects.
I have to finish a yarn project for the Fall CreativFestival. But it’s almost complete now. The good thing is even in hot weather, I am usually cold, so unless it’s very humid, I can still work on my yarn projects. I have finished the first half of the project, but I still have the second half to complete and I may end up ripping part of it out and redoing it if the finished project isn’t what I envisioned. I should know in a few days.
Now is the time to get as much done as you can, because when the fall comes, it’s going to get hectic with all the shows and festivals and school starting and groups getting back together to start a new year.
Enjoy the rest of your summer. It’s gonna get busy.

Happy Spring

2009-05-25T13:19:00.002-04:00

This year has started out very busy. Even with the economic situation as it is, the creative urges still come as strong as ever. New on WhimsicalWorkings.etsy.com is a design by Violet Langley of a Tunisian baby blanket for a little boy. Coming shortly will be the pattern for the Tunisian baby blanket for a little girl.

In April, Mom and I attended and taught at the Spring CreativFestival. It was a busy event. There were a number of vendors missing from previous years, but you can’t keep creative people down. There were also less people on Saturday due to the Knitters’ Frolic being scheduled for the same day. It was unfortunate scheduling however, those who attended the festival were in good spirits. Our Tunisian crochet classes had good numbers and the students were enthusiastic. In the “A Needle Pulling Thread” booth, it was quite busy, with a number of people stopping in to see the various designers. June Gilbank of PlanetJune was at the opposite end of the booth. June did a class on crocheting Amigurumi animals and also on crocheting a decorative rose. Mom and my brother took the class on crocheting a decorative rose and both enjoyed the class immensely.

I will be continuing to work on some new patterns throughout the summer and will add them to www.whimsicalworkings.etsy.com as they become available.

Happy Spring and crochet away!

Updates

2008-08-18T20:56:00.002-04:00

It's been a while since I've posted. I have started a new job in Burlington. I have met a new group of fabulous people. I have continued on with Heritage Crochet in Mississauga and been working with Heritage Mississauga on the Santa Claus Parade float. The design is complete, it's now the building stage.

I have added a number of new patterns to my www.whimsicalworkings.etsy.com online shop. The following patterns have been added in August:
Double Cross Hooded Scarf
Seahorse Square
And added in July were:
Basic Tunisian Vest
Tunisian Unicorn Square

I am continuing to add more patterns as soon as I make them. I am in the process of completing two Tunisian purses. They are crocheted in pieces then double crocheted together.

I bought a fantastic book recently called Car Advice for Women (and Smart Men)and would like to recommend it to women, men and anyone who owns a car or is considering buying a car. Written by Susan Winlaw and Alex Law, this book is full of tips, tricks and things to watch out for. To review it further and purchase it, please go to www.caradviceforwomen.com. I know you won't regret it.

More to come. Talk to you later.

New online shop and show follow-up

2008-05-27T13:14:00.002-04:00

I am finally catching my breath after the CreativFestival. It was a very busy show and I would like to thank all the wonderful people that came to visit me in the "A Needle Pulling Thread" booth. It was a pleasure talking to all of you.

The classes that I taught were full and busy. I hope I was able to help each of you that came into the class, but please don't hesitate to email me with any questions you might have come across since taking the class.

I am happy to say, I have taken the advice of some of the fabulous designers that I met at the show and opened up an online store at www.etsy.com. My new store address is www.whimsicalworkings.etsy.com. I hope you will take a few minutes to pop over and have a look around the store. There are 4 patterns that were also featured at the show and it offers a few payment options.

I will be adding new patterns to my online store as I finish them, but look forward to not only Tunisian patterns, but basic crochet patterns as well.

I hope to be sending out a follow up letter to the various people who asked to be kept up to date very shortly, but again, if you have any questions, I'm an email away.

Thanks again for visiting and for the interest in Tunisian crochet.
Talk to you soon.

CreativFestival

2008-04-23T13:20:00.004-04:00

I will be teaching Tunisian Crochet at the CreativFestival on the following days:
April 25
1:30 pm Beginners Tunisian Crochet
6:30 pm Advanced Tunisian Crochet

April 26
3:30 pm Beginners Tunisian Crochet

April 27
3:30 pm Advanced Tunisian Crochet

The classes will be taught at the Knitters Market. Please join me in trying some new stitches and making a take home bookmark (Beginners) and potholder (Advanced).

I will be at booth 150 with A Needle Pulling Thread throughout the show with patterns for the following available for purchase.
Tunisian Snowflake Sweater
Tunisian Snowflake Hat
Tunisian Eagle Vest
Double-Cross Shell

I hope you will join me for what I hope will be an exciting and memorable weekend.
See you there.

CreativFestival Spring 2008

2008-02-12T10:19:00.000-05:00

April 26-28, 2008
International Centre
6900 Airport Rd
Mississauga, ON
Halls 1 & 2
Admission: to be advised
FREE PARKING

Tunisian Crochet at the Spring CreativFestival

2008-02-12T10:17:00.000-05:00

I have again been asked to teach at the CreativFestival. This spring I will be working with A Needle Pulling Thread magazine, which features Canadian designers only in the various fibre arts forms. I will be teaching basic Tunisian Crochet and Advanced Tunisian Crochet throughout the weekend.

This will be my second year working at the CreativFestival with Carla Canonico and John Fusco from A Needle Pulling Thread. In the Fall CreativFestival, I sat in the booth promoting Tunisian Crochet and A Needle Pulling Thread.

This magazine promotes the hard working Canadian designers, but also lets you get up close and personal with them at the CreativFestival. It also allows you to ask questions and learn new techniques as the designers work in the booth on the various projects. I hope to see you at the Spring Show.

Early beginnings

2008-01-16T15:54:00.001-05:00

Although it may seem early, I have started the process of planning for the 2008 Santa Claus Parade float for Heritage Mississauga. I have made contact with the city, set up for the first meeting of the year and am starting the design process. Seem like a lot of work? Not really. This is the easiest stuff. Getting the physical work done is when it's going to get difficult. That will be done when the warmer weather comes into play.

I can't believe how much the weather keeps changing. Yesterday, it snowed, but was still pretty mild. Today, it's cold, but not snowing. Tomorrow, they're calling for rain or wet snow and warmer temperatures. How do you dress for this kind of weather? It changes regularly.

I am also in the planning stages of the class for the CreativFestival which is to be held in April at the International Centre. I am teaching Basic Tunisian Crochet and Advanced Tunisian Crochet. I'm excited because it's the first time I've taught more than one class at the show, but I think it'll be fun.

Gotta go for now.
Talk to ya'll later.

New Year - New Beginnings

2008-01-08T15:38:00.000-05:00

How many have already started working on your New Years Resolutions? I have. I've already got half my Tunisian Snowflake Sweater back finished. I have the pattern written up and am trying it out to make sure I didn't miss anything. I have made a list of the pattern that I am taking to the CreativFestival. I have made a list of the paperwork and equipment I will need for the CreativFestival.

I read a fabulous book this past weekend by James Rollins called Map of Bones. It's a great archeology/adventure book.

I also went to see National Treasure: Book of Secrets with my brother. It was a good movie and again opened my curiousity to some of the historical and archeological events. I have to say though that the first one was a better movie.

And, I have already been given the go-ahead to start planning for the 2008 Santa Claus Parade Float for Heritage Mississauga. I'm so excited.

Got to go. Talk to y'all later.

2008 - 1st day back at work

2008-01-02T14:15:00.000-05:00

Well, I made it to January 2008. I don't know why it's starting out the way it is, but I came into work this morning to find we had no water. Apparently a car slid into the side of the building yesterday and we have no water today. Confusing? Definitely! Anyway, so while that's going on, we're having the joys of system changeover because of the lowering of the GST to 5%. Now, on the one hand, yeah, lower taxes! On the other hand, argh, system problems! Oh well, I suppose it could be worse, it could be Monday.

Anyways, it's a very quiet day at work. Not everyone has returned and a lot of companies are still closed for the week.

Normally I would say that's good because it gives us time to prep for the new year, etc. but things are really slow, so I'm working on make-work projects. Not so good. Makes the day go by very slowly.

I finished my monthly newsletter a week ahead. I changed the format a little, but I think it's a definite improvement.

I did a little bit of research this morning and copied and pasted rather than working on the internet throughout.

Well, it's back to work.
Talk to y'all later.

Happy Holidays

2007-12-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

Christmas has come and gone and what a great day it was! Christmas eve my family and I went to Midnight Candlelight Service at St. Peter's. It was a beautiful service. We got up Christmas Day at 7:30 a.m., opened our stockings which were full of absolutely nutritious CANDY. Nutritious?! Not really, but yummy anyway. Plus my stocking also had hair accessories, lotions and other fabulous goodies. We had a nutritious breakfast of ham and eggs before we started opening gifts. It seemed to take forever for everyone to finish breakfast, but the important thing was to eat before opening presents. I got spoiled with new videos and clothing and accessories and cool dancing and singing penguins. I made a lapghan for Mom this Christmas and a knitted vest for Dad. I also made a felt snowman for my brother that had the chef's hat and gingerbread man and candy cane in the pockets. I made crochet covers for some Christmas ornaments that I gave to my brother as well. We had a scrumptious turkey dinner with all the trimmings which tasted absolutely delicious. And as soon as lunch was over, my mind started spinning on everything that I wanted to start working on for the new year. AAAAAAH! Too much, too fast. Then I sat down and started working on a cross-stitch lapghan and completed two sections. It's the most I've completed in six months. It's actually starting to look pretty good - if I do say so myself. We then relaxed the rest of the afternoon and evening watching new videos. Well, then if that day wasn't excellent enough, my brother and Mom got up yesterday and baked cookies. The smell of spices permeated the house. It was incredible. To all, I wish you a happy and memorable holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year.
Talk to y'all later.

2 Weeks to Christmas

2007-12-12T16:07:00.001-05:00

It's 2 weeks to Christmas and I'm almost ready. It's been hard keeping the Christmas spirit this year. I can't believe how close Christmas is. We've had 2 deaths in the family in the last month. For me it wasn't as difficult because I wasn't close, but they were special to my Dad, so I can see him hurting.

I have almost all the Christmas gifts ready, I just have to finish for 2 more people. This year has been a homemade Christmas, but I shouldn't need to rush the last two, they won't take too long to finish.

We had our Christmas party at Heritage Crochet last weekend and it was a special time. I gave out my Christmas cards and received five more for the card string. We had a potluck lunch - turkey with all the trimmings. We then had a class on wreath ornaments and lots of laughter and story telling and remembering. It was a relaxing time that felt like only a few minutes though it was part of the morning and all afternoon. The exchange gift I received was a necklace with a handmade charm and a hand-dyed hankie. It was a pleasant surprise. There were hugs and best wishes all around.

I was also told at the Christmas party that I have been designated as the Chairperson for the Santa Claus Parade 2008 Float Committee. Our first meeting is in January. All I can say is - IT'S ABOUT TIME! I'm so thrilled that Heritage Missisauga will be putting a float in the parade next year and that we're getting a head start on the planning.

Got to go and get back to work. Can't wait for what comes next this year.

Enjoy the holiday season.
Talk to ya'll later.

Mississauga Santa Claus Parade

2007-12-07T16:38:00.001-05:00

This was the picture taken before the Santa Claus Parade. I have to say, it was a long wait for the parade to start, but once it started, it was over so quickly, I couldn't believe it. The shawl I'm wearing is the batwing shawl I made the week before the parade. I thought with the festive colours it would be perfect for the day. It turned out better than I thought it would. I was concerned the pink would clash with the red, but the more it worked up, the more I realised it looks like candy cane striping.

Here comes Santa Claus

2007-11-21T16:16:00.000-05:00

It has been a busy month, but Mom and I managed to get through the Frosty Fair Craft sale at Cawthra Park United Church. I have to say I was not impressed with the sale. We showed up for set up and got a 4' table instead of "approximately 6' table". That was fine, but as people started showing up, it was obvious when they headed straight for the lunch room that they had no intention of supporting the craft tables. I can certainly see why the church looks for new vendors every year. You're lucky if you make the cost of your table back.

Anyway, once the sale was done, I was able to start working on Christmas projects. The unfortunate thing was I woke up the Monday after the sale with a cold, so for the last two weeks I have been fighting a cold and trying to get things done.

Last Friday, I got an email asking if I would be interested in walking in the Mississauga Santa Claus Parade. I was so excited. I have been trying to convince Heritage Mississauga for 2 years that it would be good to participate and they received an invitation from Museums of Mississauga to join them this year, so I'm going to be in the parade. Yeaaaah!

I started another batwing shawl on Sunday and should be finished it this evening. It's red with candy cane stripes in the middle. I think it looks pretty cool, even if there is pink in the striping.

I also finished one Christmas present off on Saturday, although I can't say what it was, I can say I have been working on it for over a year and finally finished one project.

Take care, have fun and talk to ya'll later.

Fall update

2007-11-02T14:40:00.000-04:00

So much has happened in the last few months, it's hard to know where to begin. I spent most of September with various strains of the flu. On September 15, I was outside Clarke Hall dressed in 1920's attire as Louisa Clarke. I spent the entire afternoon opening doors and greeting visitors.

For most of October, I have been trying to prepare for the Frosty Fair Craft Show that is scheduled for November 10th from 10am - 2pm at Cawthra Park United Church, 1412 Leda Ave, Mississauga..

On October 22, 2007, I was in Springcreek Cemetery from 7pm-9pm dressed as a Victorian lady portraying Jane Gable. As part of the Heritage Mississauga Spirit tour we try to give people a bit of history of the area based on real people and what they may have gone through.

On October 26, 2007, I was at the CreativFestival in the "A Needle Pulling Thread" booth. For those that I had the opportunity to meet, thanks for stopping at the booth and it was great speaking with you. I was in the booth from 10am-8pm. There were many people that I had the opportunity to share my passion of Tunisian Crochet with. Many thanks to Carla and John for the opportunity to sit and demonstrate in the booth.

I have worked on a number of crochet patterns. Patterns for the Tunisian Apache Eagle Vest, Tunisian Snowflake Hat and Scarf are now available for purchase. I also have a new Halloween sweater and long coat partially finished.

I have also been crocheting at the Heritage Crochet Circle. It's a group of crazy and wonderful women who laugh together, cry together and learn together. A group of women who came together to learn an age old craft have continued the learning process at each monthly meeting, but also come to share our lives with each other.

So, I must get back to work. Talk to y'all later.

Victorian Baby Capes

2007-07-23T19:56:00.000-04:00

These are the Victorian baby capes that I created using granny squares. I had leftover squares, but not enough to make into an afghan, so I put them together, added a hood, and the photo shows the finished project.
Talk to y'all later.

Tunisian Eagle Vest

2007-07-23T19:54:00.001-04:00

This is the vest I created using a photo of a sweatshirt that I used to borrow from my Mom when I was in high school. I loved the Apache Eagle motifs on it and decided to photocopy, enlarge and graph the eagle. The vest is what came of the motif. Talk to y'all later.

Tunisian Crochet Scarf

2007-07-23T19:29:00.000-04:00

This is the scarf that was published in "A Needle Pulling Thread". Talk to y'all later.

Tunisian Crochet Hat

2007-07-23T19:27:00.000-04:00

This is the hat I made to match the pattern. I finally am able to upload photos onto my blog. Small filtering issue.
Talk to y'all later.

Trying to write patterns

2007-07-23T19:18:00.000-04:00

I have been busily working on trying to get my patterns written up. It's great that I have finished the two sweaters and some doilies and bookmarks, but not much good if I can't get them on paper. I just recently finished a Tunisian hat to match the Tunisian snowflake scarf that was featured in "A Needle Pulling Thread". Now I just need to get the pattern written so that I'm not the only one who understands what needs to be done. Easier said than done, that's for sure, but I will continue to work on it.
Talk to y'all later.

Busy Bee

2007-04-13T16:55:00.000-04:00

Wow, this past month has gone so fast, I can't believe it's the middle of April already. I have been working on a knitted sweater that I finished late last month (my first - the body turned out well, but the sleeves ended up crocheted after I frogged them 4 times). I finished a crochet sleeveless sweater in a double crochet cross-over stitch. It turned out great.

I finished a couple more dishcloths and a few squares.

Then I switched to sewing and cut out two costumes. I have a Victorian jacket and skirt cut out and a medieval style dress cut out. The medieval style was a lot more complicated to cut out. Hopefully it won't be as difficult to sew.

This month, almost every weekend there is a show or a trip on the go. I will be working on most of my projects on weeknights and not by choice.

Have a great weekend.

Talk to ya later.

Mud Puddles

2007-03-14T15:55:00.000-04:00

Wow, was it wet last night! I went for a walk with Mom and Dad and got soaked up to my knees. Mom didn't get wet at all and Dad got almost as soaked as I was. It must be a Mom thing being able to avoid all the mud puddles and water holes. Oh well, it was nice and wet and I had a nice walk. I was ready to sleep as soon as I got home, but stayed up a little longer.

It's amazing what a good night's sleep will do for attitude. I didn't offer to strangle anyone today. It was so unusual. I got some typing done at lunchtime and didn't get any self-esteem busting emails from my boss today. It was surprising, to say the least.

I didn't do any crocheting last night. Too tired. But I'm hoping to do some work on some of my projects tonight.

Talk to ya'll later.

It's been a Tuesday

2007-03-13T16:33:00.000-04:00

It's been a Tuesday, that's all I'm saying. Follow procedure, get in trouble. Don't follow procedure, get in trouble. Do as my supervisor tells me, get in trouble from my other supervisor. It's been one of those days when the alarm went off, I should have thrown it out the window.

Last night I put together a couple of rows of granny daughters to add my to my granny daughter lapghan to hand in instead of granny squares. Oddly enough, I just can't get into the granny squares. I know I'm supposed to make up twelve of them, but I just can't seem to get into it.

Yesterday, I found a few patterns for historical costumes that looked pretty good. I think the next step is finding the right material for it. Again comes the research. The good news is, it's not like I've got a lot going on at work.

At this point, if I missed a week of work, I think I could probably catch up in an hour. Sad as it is...

Oh well, time to get ready to go home.

Talk to ya'll later.

Happy Monday

2007-03-12T16:15:00.000-04:00

I got a lot accomplished this past weekend even though I spent most of Saturday sick. I finished tie in's on a shawl. I finished my knit sweater with crocheted sleeves and tie ins. I finished tie in's on the baby vest, I just have to add an edging.

On Sunday I taught the Tunisian crochet class which I think went fairly well. We had chocolate cake to celebrate the 87th birthday of one of our charming members. It was quite the surprise and a nice treat for all of us.

It's been a good day at work. I got quite a lot of scanning done that I haven't been able to accomplish over the last month. I had a quiet day on the work side, but did a lot of invoicing.

Well, it's just about time to clean up and get ready to go, so...

Talk to ya'll later.

Thank God It's Friday

2007-03-09T16:46:00.000-05:00

All I can say is thank God it's Friday. This week seems to have lasted forever. The good news is, 10 minutes more, then the day is over. I finished my first draft of Garage Sales 101 this afternoon. I think I've covered the basics.

Last night I went to bed early because I had a splitting headache. Tension and a change in the weather, but today is beautiful. The sun is shining and it's not freezing cold.

Wednesday night, I worked out the pattern for a sweater, hat and scarf for a stuffed snowman for our Tunisian crochet training session at Heritage Crochet Circle on Sunday. I will probably start with the scarf because it takes a little getting used to, but at least the whole pattern is done.

I also have a sample to take in so they can see what it looks like. I look forward to it.

Anyways, I hope everyone has a Happy Friday.

Talk to ya'll later.

Holy Frosticles

2007-03-06T16:00:00.000-05:00

It's a cold, blustery day, but the sun is shining and I'm inside. I finished twelve dishcloth tie ins yesterday. Yaaaaay! That gets them off my list.

I had four meetings this morning at work at which point we discussed the same thing we have discussed at the last three Sales meetings and still have not changed. Oh well, you can't change a leopard's spots.

I have been making notes on my writing throughout the day and I finished my newest newsletter "Froggin' It" for this weekend. I'm looking forward to giving out my latest issue to the ladies of the Heritage Crochet Circle. I'm also looking forward to teaching a class on Tunisian Crochet.

I will have to get back to work now since it is almost time to leave.

Talk to ya'll tomorrow.

Busy Weekend

2007-03-05T16:03:00.000-05:00

I finished a lovely variegated blue shawl, a little girls blue and white vest (very lacy, too frilly for a little boy) and some dishcloths.

I also made a few goals and decided to get my act together and start living again. Thanks to a pep talk from my Mom (#1 Mom in my books), I realized that I had stopped doing everything that I love doing.

So... it's back on the horse again, hitting the writing, designing and having fun trail again.

Talk to ya'll tomorrow.

March in like a Lion

2007-03-01T11:35:00.000-05:00

First day of March and she's coming in fast and fierce. Nice ice storm to start off the month. The city has been so beautiful in a coat of white, adding ice might not be such a good thing from a driving standpoint, but since the gas shortage has put a stop on a lot of long distance travel, timing could have been worse.

I have finished 8 dishcloths in the last 3 days. I thought I would take a break from the sweater since I was getting bored with the sleeve. When I get bored, it takes me three times as long to finish a project. Last night was a good sign it was time to change projects again though because it took me all night to make one dishcloth.

It looks like I'm going to need to make a comfortghan in the next few weeks though. I'm sorry to say that a friend's brother is very ill. The important thing is to keep him in our prayers and wish the best for him. I know it must be very hard on the family.

I have had to cancel my weekend away this weekend because of the gas shortage. As frustrating as it is, I can't afford to be 200 km out of Mississauga and run out of gas, so the weekend had to be cancelled.

Oh, well, there's always next month. Well, back to work - what little there is. Eventually I will have lots to do. Hopefully ...

Awards and Fun

2007-02-27T10:46:00.000-05:00

I received an award last week from Heritage Mississauga for my volunteer work - Special Recognition Award. Very scary. I didn't think I would have to give a speech so I prepared nothing and I ended up giving a speech. I froze at the podium, forgot to breath and then as soon as I sat down, breathed again. I almost cried at the podium as well. Oh well, Mom said I looked like I was in pain and she thought I was going to hit the Executive Director instead of hug her. Most of the people there were over 80 years old, so it was a little intimidating, but as I said there, if I didn't have fun I wouldn't do it.
I was also at Square One Shopping Mall the weekend before dressed in an 1812 Jane Austen style dress walking through the mall as part of the Heritage Showcase. Now, that was fun. There's nothing funnier than having a teenager walk up and ask if that was what I wear everyday :)
I am almost finished my first circular knitting needles sweater. It's in baby yarn - pastel - and it's so easy, I couldn't believe when I finished the body of the sweater in less than two weeks. I am taking a little longer on the sleeves because I'm not sure that they're right. I guess I'll know when they're done, but it's still going pretty good.
I have also been making dishcloths for the last couple of nights. It goes really quickly and I am using up quite of bit of cotton.
I read the most amazing book by Karen Fenech the other weekend. I had it finished in just over a day. It's a medieval romance called Betrayal and it is fabulous. If you get the chance to read it, definitely pick it up.
Oh, well, back to work. So much to do, so little time - especially when it's not work related :)

New Year

2007-01-03T08:33:00.000-05:00

Here's to the New Year. A new and better year. I forgot to mention last week that I finished three granny square baby capes. I have been using a variegated yarn with pink, green, blue and white that is soft and sweet. I bordered the cape in soft green. I have also been using up a ton of granny daughters. Last weekend I mapped out three vests in granny daughters. I am now on tie ins and will hopefully finish the first vest tonight. Very easy pattern, I used a previously made vest to map out how many squares I required for each side. We'll see how it looks when it's put together. The first one is varying shades of green joined with mint green. The mint green tones down the brighter greens. Anyway, it looks pretty good, but we'll see once it's completed.
Ciao for now!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2006-12-28T15:10:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I definitely did. Lots of presents, some time off. Who can ask for more? I got clothes and DVD's and lots of candy. I'll be on a sugar high for at least a month. No problemo!

I finished a scarf for a friend in just over an hour. She liked it (I'm so glad ... ) I finished a sweater for a customer the second week into December and am just finishing another sweater for a friend for her birthday Saturday. I have a sweater for my cousin's son almost done and am working on mapping a pattern for a sweater of granny daughters that will use up a ton of them and still look good. Oh well, I should be getting back to my day job before they notice I'm not doing the company work.

All the best of the holiday season to you and yours and looking forward to taking on the world in the New Year !

Is it Friday yet?

2006-11-28T16:27:00.000-05:00

I have had another day of very little to do. I could have a lot to do if I were to do some make work projects, but should I have to? After 6 years with the company, I don't think I should have to go looking for work.

I was offered another job last weekend, but it was part-time, so I don't think it would work. It's too bad, because the job involves working with kids and I love working with youngsters. The great thing is they have no limit to their imaginations. The only thing is I would have to work on my colouring, I'm a little rusty :)

I was working with kids last weekend, and one little girl said the cutest thing. She asked if reindeer are real because Santa arrived and the reindeer weren't with him. I told her they were but they were on the roof at the time. She said okay, but then she asked how they got up there. I told her the reindeer are magic and she said, oh yeah, they are because they pull Santa's sleigh. How cute is that?

I finished crocheting a sweater last night. I just have to finish the tie-ins and add the buttons, but I have to admit, I'm glad it's done. It seems to have gone on forever. I have a second sweater that's almost done. I'm hoping to get them both done this week. They seem to be taking longer than they usually do.

I've also started working with granny daughters to try and use them up. It's amazing how many it takes to make a long scarf. I did five rows of thirty-six granny daughters and joined them using double and single crochets. I now still have to join the rows using single crochet. But that shouldn't take too long. I only finished one bag and I still have about ten of them left, but I couldn't see putting seven hundred of them together for blankets. I might try doing some sweaters with them, but they would have to be done in pastel colours. I certainly wouldn't use dark colours for baby sweaters.

I usually send my Christmas cards out on December 1st. I haven't even started them yet. I'm having a little trouble staying in the Christmas spirit. Maybe once the decorations start going up, it will be easier to stay in the holiday spirit. Hopefully ...

Anyway, maybe I'll have some more work to do tomorrow. Otherwise, I'd hate to think I might actually have to play on the internet to keep from being bored :)

Well, anyway, back to work ... hahahahaha

Here Comes Santa Claus

2006-11-27T14:10:00.000-05:00

Wow, it seems like forever since I blogged. Almost six months. I have been making sweaters, scarves, hats, and many other projects. I taught at the CreativFestival (snowflakes). Lots of fun.

I also took part in Haunted this year. That was a chilly night. We sat outside for four hours in a wind tunnel.

I am working on a cookbook with one of my volunteer organizations. It had some setbacks but it's coming along.

Last week was the Volunteer Recognition dinner. The music was great. CPR (Cawthra Park Rock) is an excellent band with potential to go very far. Dinner was delicious and the company was delightful. I look forward to the next year of working with the energizing people.

I just went to see The Santa Claus 3: The Escape Claus and Happy Feet last night. Great shows! Happy Feet has tons of upbeat music. The Santa Claus 3 took another new storyline for Santa.

I also volunteered with a Christmas party for children yesterday that was just amazing. Happy, smiling kids, how can you not get into the Christmas spirit with that kind of a day.

Brilliant smiles all around.

Gotta get back to work (boring). Hoping it will pick up soon. Happy Monday everyone!

Design mode

2006-06-23T09:46:00.000-04:00

I seem to be in design mode this month. I have a pattern for a really cute sweater jacket for a little girl, but I wanted a sweater jacket for an adult, so I took the pattern, expanded and added as required to make it into an adult sweater. It's coming along very well.

I received my copy of "A Needle Pulling Thread" magazine yesterday. Looks good! Julia Bryant has a fabulous pattern for a little purse in there in Tunisian crochet. I love it! If you have never seen Julia's work, it's just amazing. Very easy to work with, the colours are bright and well blended.

I have also been working on sewing projects this week. Although it has been awhile, I pulled out one of my many bins and sorted into what could be done, what needed ironing, what was ready for sewing and started sewing. I am half finished a flannel nightgown, half finished a pants suit and half finished a pair of shorts. It's amazing how quickly things go together when you actually work on them. I finished the shell of two pop tops as well, but I thought I might crochet an edging on the top and bottom.

Well I suppose I should do some work today.

Busy month

2006-06-14T11:35:00.000-04:00

The last month has been very busy. With a birthday and Mother's Day every weekend in May, it was hard to keep up. But I made it through...

I just got through the Mississauga Heritage Garage Sale last weekend, which was long. I arrived at The Grange at 5:50am and left at around 5:00pm. As I said, long...

Sunday, I taught a class with my Mom assisting on Basic Crochet. It was a three hour class held at Mississauga Heritage. I think it was a success as we talked about having another class in July.

I have recently been moved to the Sales Department. Although the desk has changed and I rarely do accounting functions, everything else is pretty much the same. I still do travel arrangements, print liaison, filing, phones, couriers, etc. The only thing is now I don't have twenty things to do at once, I have one maybe two. I think I am going crazy with boredom.

Ah well, lunchtime... be back later.

Retreat Recuperation

2006-04-28T08:10:00.000-04:00

I am slowly starting to recover from last weekend's retreat. The classes were fun. The food was not up to their usual standard but it was still great to be waited on anyway. I learned to knit continentally and I already knew how to knit English style. I also learned how to do a beaded crochet cuff. Trying to move beads from one string to the other was an experience. The Christmas ornaments class was super. I had no idea how easy it was. I'd never tried to cover glass balls in the past because I was so sure I would break them. Now I know a trick to help avoid that. I finished my Apache Eagle Vest and am just finishing a Victorian baby cape. I also finished a Western style vest only to realise that I had attached one front right side out and the other inside out. I am about to start in on my Unicorn afghan again and go for broke. This time I'm going to finish it, even though I decided not to use the squares I'd had already made for in between the unicorns. They were baby pastel colours, but the rest is bright pastel. It just didn't look right, so I've decided to use those squares for something else altogether.

I am working on a Cookbook Committee at the LAC and we are in the first stages of planning a fundraising cookbook. I think it's going to turn into a very interesting project. I am on the layout subcommittee and am looking forward to working on the layout side once the format is decided upon.

I am also working on a Garage Sale Committee at Heritage Mississauga. I am on the layout subcommittee of this one as well. Now this is going to be fun if we can get the community involved the way we planned. Again we are in first stages, but it definitely has potential.

Well, since I am supposed to be working on my day job, I best be getting started.

My first batwing shawl

2006-02-28T10:33:00.000-05:00

This is my first effort at batwing shawls and it took approximately 10 hours to make over a couple of months due to problems understanding the pattern. Once I understood the pattern it was easy.

Doily Design #6

2006-02-28T10:32:00.000-05:00

For a 7" doily exchange. It turned out to be quite different than when I started.

Doily Design #5

2006-02-28T10:31:00.000-05:00

One of my designs for a doily exchange. It was a lot larger than I planned it to be.

Doily Design #4

2006-02-28T10:30:00.000-05:00

Simple, but difficult to block.

Doily Design #3

2006-02-28T10:29:00.000-05:00

Experimenting with ruffle effect.

Doily Design #2

2006-02-28T10:19:00.000-05:00

My Christmas design. It was a little larger than I planned it to be.

Doily Design #1

2006-02-28T10:16:00.000-05:00

One of my doily designs from my aggravated moments.

It's Snowing

2006-02-10T13:34:00.000-05:00

It's a beautiful snowy day and I'm sitting at work watching the snow come down. Oh to be outside. . . I have been keeping busy on projects since my last entry. I finished two little girls sweaters last week that I will be posting pictures this weekend. I tried the Kaleidoscope sweater from one of the Annie's Crochet magazine. They turned out beautiful.

I created a Crochet Journal for keeping track of projects and did a print run of them. I will post a photo of that this weekend as well.

I also finished a vest in knitting that I planned for my Dad but it fits me perfectly, so guess what - I got a new vest!

I've started two leftovers afghans that I have done a few rounds.

I destashed in January two large garbage bags full which I took to the Toronto Hookups for the annual destashing Sale. I made a tidy sum.

I designed a Sewing Journal which I am in the process of preparing for it's first print run.

I finished one tie quilt, tied two others and will be sewing the edges this weekend. I also prepped two more for tying.

I did a major reorganization of my room since I inherited a computer and desk and found that there was no floor space for it under all the piles of paper and crafts. As it was a necessity, I did the works. Then I organized the projects I am working on labeling them and listing as well as set goals for the projects completion for the next 5 months.

So, as you can see, I have been keeping rather busy. Until next time, happy blogging!

Ho! Ho! Ho!

2005-12-21T11:36:00.000-05:00

It's 4 days to Christmas. I've finished my shopping, wrapped all my gifts (I think), finished my commissioning (two sweaters) three weeks ago. Things are good. So why do I have the Christmas blues? I started a knitted vest for my Dad for Christmas and I might actually get it done by then, but I think if I could just do nothing for one full day, it would be amazing. Even when I'm at home on the weekend, there's no sitting doing nothing; there's always something that has to get done.

I remember when I was in high school thinking that Christmas holiday wasn't coming fast enough, now I'm wondering where the year went. I feel like I just started the year and it's already over. Crazy, isn't it? Does the amount of time in a minute change as you get older?

I've signed up for a course on Organization by a Profeesional Organizer. But I just don't think that's what's causing the blues. So much to do, so little time...

While working on my vest, I came up with designs for three more projects. Of course, I wanted to start them right away, but I promised myself that I would finish some of the projects I've already started before I start any more. I would have worked on some of the unfinished projects after the commissioning if it hadn't been for the fact that I promised my Dad I would make him a vest.

Ah well, 'tis life! Enough whining!

I was instructed on Monday of this week that a gift exchange and potluck are happening at lunch on Friday. Surprise! Good thing we have frozen beanstuff and I keep a few ideas in my head for backup gifts. Went out last night, picked up the gift and wrapped in. Whew!

So, last Sunday, Mom and I went to a carol sing at Heritage Missisauga and we may have talked them into crochet lessons in the New Year. All we said was, we were passing on the heritage and that was enough.

Well, back to work. Merry Christmas everyone and a safe and Happy New Year to you and yours.

Gettin' Ready for Christmas

2005-11-23T08:30:00.000-05:00

Well, the Brampton Santa Claus Parade is over, and the kids were warm. I brought some of the afghans and batwing shawls that I made to keep them warm for the two hour parade. I have to admit, I was surprised at how quickly they grabbed up the hand-made blankets before the store bought ones. But it went well.

I am finishing two sweaters and will be moving on to Christmas presents. Since I am doing a conversion with the sweaters, I am writing the instructions for the pattern as I go along. These will go faster because I am not as stressed now that the parade is over.

There is only one problem I am running into though; I just can't seem to find enough time in the day to finish the ten or twenty projects that I have come up with since I started the sweaters ....

Well, back to work...

CSNF

2005-10-18T11:18:00.000-04:00

Well, I made it through the weekend. I spent 4 days and one evening at the Creative Sewing and Needlework Festival. Two Fashion Shows as a model, 1 afternoon with a 1 hour teaching stint and the rest of the time with the Toronto Hookups Crochet Guild Booth. It looked a little bare on the first night, but as each day came, more items arrived for the booth. This was my first time teaching and at first I thought I was going to have a panic attack. (I didn't, thank goodness.) There were about 12 people and they were easy going and fun. (See pic. Thanks Terry.) While I was working in the booth, I did some crocheting and have almost finished a children's jacket called "Kaleidoscope" which is made of granny squares. The pattern is simple and fast. Will post a picture this week.
Now, I guess it's back to work.

Design inspirations

2005-09-23T14:39:00.000-04:00

Hi All,

I haven't posted in a while, been going a little crazy. I have in the last week finished designing two doilies (I design doilies when I'm aggravated or angry). I wonder what that says about me?

I started a Tunisian vest last weekend that I designed based on one of my favourite sweatshirts that I borrowed from Mom when I was a teenager. It had Native Indian eagles in Turquoise with red accent. My eagles are red with yellow, blue and green accent. The vest itself is cream with turquoise accent. It's not quite the same, but I really like how this is working up. Of course, if it works nicely I'll have to make one for Mom to replace the sweatshirt I wore into the ground LOL.

Gotta go for now.

Tag You're It!

2005-08-24T08:35:00.000-04:00

I have been tagged. Sherri has tagged me on her blogger (see link) to mention some of my idiosyncracies, so here goes.
1. I hum, chant or sing while I crochet.
2. I can't seem to concentrate on my crochet unless I have a cat on the arm of my chair or in my lap covering half of what I am working on.
3. I always have at least 20 projects on the go. I get bored easily so I switch between projects and with a wall of projects to do, I am sure I can find something to work on.
4. I trip over air. I'm so preoccupied most of the time that I can be walking on an empty floor and still trip.
5. I seem to get my best new ideas for projects while I am working on other projects. So I stop to write them down only to find that I have forgotten what I was working on when I stopped to write down the new idea.
So you can see I have some strange habits.
On that same note, I managed to follow another one of my habits. Last week I went to the Spinrite sale in Listowel. I am sure that I can find a project to go with each purchase I made in my 2 1/2 bags of yarn and cotton. It may take a day or two... well, all in good time.
Back to my day job!

2005-08-05T12:29:00.000-04:00

I am working on designing a bookmark to go with a magazine article. I have a deadline of Monday and have managed to avoid working on it to this point. Sadly, I haven't done any crocheting this week.
So, today I am scrambling to put together a simple design that has a holiday feel to it in the middle of a heatwave. Wow, that should cool me off.
Tomorrow I am going to be doing volunteer work at Maanjidowin at J.C. Saddington Park, Mississauga, so that pretty takes care of most of the day.

Here I am

2005-07-28T12:02:00.000-04:00

I have finally made it to the blogospere. Yeah!

So here's where I start. I am working on hats for the Brampton Santa Claus Parade Childfind Ontario float. We are expecting 20-25 children and I have finished 3. Got a ways to go.

I am also working on a shawl of my own design and an Entrelac sweater. When I'm at work at lunchtime, I have been making thread snowflakes. Can't keep my hands busy enough these days.

When I finish, I will post pictures.