Frogging, cursing, frogging, and more frogging (and finally some progress)

Okay, so I may be giving my crochet ability too much credit. I absolutely fell in love with a sweater I saw this summer and decided I absolutely must make it. Of course, I completely ignored the fact that I am a very new to crochet. Well, after a few frogging sessions (okay, maybe not just a few), I finally have made some progress on the first sleeve and the body of the sweater.

Now that I have done a few repeats of the pattern, it is really quite fun! I love how easy it is to tear back if you make a mistake - a common occurrence still, I'm afraid. Tearing out my knitting literally brings me to tears (and dangerous acts of tossing stuff around the room). Ripping back crochet is still frustrating, but much easier - the lack of hundreds of slippery, live stitches really takes so much of the pain away!

The sweater is "Patti" from Melissa Leapman's book Cool Crochet. While the rest of the book is not exactly my style, this sweater is absolutely perfect. I like it SO much that I think I could rip the whole thing out and start over if need be to make it fit (a first for me). I have looked everywhere for a picture of the finished sweater and cannot find a single one. The pattern isn't even in anyone's project list or queue on Ravelry. As far as I can see, this is a very rare thing. Just about every pattern I've searched for seems to be indexed there. Let me just say, you all are seriously missing out :)

The other great discovery I've made on this project is Addi crochet hooks! I can't believe how very much easier this inexpensive little upgrade makes the entire process. Just like the other Addi products I have tried, these hooks are comfortable in your hand, sturdily built, and the metal is oh-so-smooth. Every other hook I've used (not that this is a long list, mind) has been a little snaggy - not so here! The way the hook curves down the neck really grabs hold of the yarn and keeps a firm grasp on it while you are negotiating your way through the stitches (even if you aren't doing this gracefully). I often have problems keeping the yarn around the hook when I dip into the stitch to begin another stitch - but no longer! I don't think I've had more than two stitches fall off.

After much thought about the utility of a heavy wool pullover in the south (I really never even wear a jacket in the winter here - maybe a sweatshirt), I do think I may make some changes. Yeah, yeah, yeah... here I go... I know. The sweater as it is designed is a mock turtleneck with the aran panel (shown in the pictures) up the front, back, and sleeves. What I'm thinking is to make the sweater into a cardigan with a round (maybe) neck. Possibly, I will just modify the aran pattern to a smaller version to run up the right and left side of the front. I haven't yet worked out all of the details, but this would be so much more useful. Maybe the weeks of 90+ degree days have finally made me realize that I may NEVER stop sweating. The thought of cloaking my body in wool actually makes me feel like I might vomit. By the time I get finished with this sweater, it should be much cooler out. Let's just hope it won't be hot again.

Great new book

I recently purchased this awesome little book by Amy Karol.

This book is geared toward beginners, but the projects just beg to be expanded upon. While I have found quite a few typos in the book, most of them are so incredibly incorrect, that there is no problem. The author also has a Flickr group devoted to the book and she seems really, really quick at answering questions.

So far, I've finished a couple of projects... as is always the case, some have turned out much better than others. My poor old sewing machine just doesn't care to sew through multiple layers of fabric and she seems to have a REAL problem if there is cotton or polyester batting involved. Needless to say, I will be making a trip to JoAnn's to get more needles (they seem to break if you just look at them wrong).

My favorite project in the book to make so far was the "Easy Lap Quilt." I only wish I'd used nicer fabric... it was a really quick project, but still. Why, oh why, do I always do this? Prepare to see a recurring theme here.

My apologies about the color (I think the bottom photo is closest) and the not-so-appealing backdrop. As it turns out, there is only one place in my entire house/yard where you can get enough light to take pictures - yup, the trunk of the car when you can catch glare off of the paint job. Wouldn't you think there would be some benefit to having weeks of 95+ degree days... like sunshine?

I've also made a couple of bags featured in the book. My favorite is the Charming Handbag.

Again, the color is way off... in reality, it is much more pastel and pleasing than these pictures show (maybe the bottom photo is close-ish).

Last night, I started on the Pleated Beauty Bag. This is where all of the sewing machine trouble really started. There are a few "blips" in the sewing (every time an effing needle broke), but I decided that it is just a bag... well, maybe I didn't really decide that. Until next time, though.

I used the same green fabric as for the Charming Handbag (got a really good deal on a remnant, but I am not such a fan... but now it is gone ;) It turned out a little gaudier than I had intended, but the shape is great and it holds a lot. I did make one change to the pattern: the reinforcement that should be sandwiched between the lining and the outside of the bag is a little flat piece that sits on the floor of the bag so that it can be removed for carrying different kinds of loads. I've found that certain things (laptop, books, etc... many things I always carry around) tend to put permanent creases in these types of reinforcements. We'll see how this works.

You can see some of the great projects created by those who've bought this book at the Bend-the-Rules Sewing Flickr group.

That's all for now... back to work.

... and we're off...

Starting a knitting, spinning, general crafting blog has been in the back of my mind for over a year now. Until now, nothing has really motivated me to actually begin it! Thanks to Jess and Casey over at Ravelry (https://www.ravelry.com/), I finally have no excuse other than to just get started! I've had the chance to look at so many great projects and inspiring blogs that I just couldn't put it off any longer!

Recently, I received some good news about someone close to me expecting a tiny addition to their family. This is such a great excuse to knit and crochet small, cute, soft, and cuddly little clothes that most of my knitting time has been taken up with this.

I discovered a new LYS and I just love it! Super friendly staff and a great selection of sock yarns (especially for a newly opened shop!). Of course, I had to make a few purchases (you know, to be supportive of the new business, and all).

So far, I've started a bunch of baby socks:


(For some reason, it didn't occur to me just how many tiny socks you could get from a single ball of yarn.)

I am using Crystal Palace Panda in the Misty Greens Colorway (a bamboo, cotton, and elastic blend) which I really like. It has a nice amount of stretchiness and it is SO soft. May have to experiment with making a full sized pair of socks from this stuff.

I've also started to make a baby-sized blanket from some Patons Astra that I bought for the heck of it because it was on a super sale! Nice to have a use for it. I am planning to make it using a series of granny squares and other crocheted squares from this book: 200 Crochet Blocks by Jan Eaton. I bought this book a while ago to try to hone my very new crochet skills and I love it - so many fun little squares to make!

Well, more later. I want to make sure this thing actually posts correctly before I invest too much time!
[Not so good the first few times... this is take four and I think I've got it!].