the power of flowers

I love it when people help people, and I love it even more when those people get other people to help even more people...that probably makes no sense, but it is very likely the most times you will see the word 'people' in one sentence. What I'm eventually getting around to saying is that there is this lady on the Crochetville forum named Krystal, and some time back, she was looking for a daisy square for afghans and other projects for the various charities she was involved in, but she couldn't seem to find one, so she cleverly made up her own. Then she went one better and decided to offer the pattern to anyone who emailed her for it, and all that she asked was that each one who gets the pattern make and send her a square for her charity blankets. Here is my contribution:


This square is 8", and as you can imagine, the possibilities for colour combinations and project ideas for it are endless. Plus I think it's pretty groovy. Krystal has already made one charity afghan with squares donated and is now working on her second. If you would like to read more about her efforts or get this pattern for your very own self, you can check out her blog: Krochet Krystal , and you can also email her directly at krochetkrystal (at) yahoo (dot) com for the pattern.

Last night I dragged out the DPNs of death and cast on to knit some Monkey socks for my niece.


Pink is her favourite colour, and I think it will showcase the lacy pattern pretty well, at least that's the story I'm telling myself, since this yarn colour faintly reminds me of Pepto Bismol.

I have a pet peeve about double pointed needles; if lots of people design patterns that use 5 DPNs, why can I never find sets of 5?! Why do I always find sets of 4 but never 5?? Am I looking in the wrong place? In all the sets I have, I have only one set of 5 double points, and the pattern I needed them for at the time only called for 4, which is pretty much par for the course in my life. Is it me?! Is there some conspiracy at the yarn stores that when they see me coming in to buy DPNs, they rush to take the sets of five off the shelves and replace them with the fours? Why can't the needle makers and the pattern makers get their stuff together? This is truly a crocheter's lament on knitting, because when you crochet, you buy A hook, and with this one hook, you can make anything, work in any direction, and at any length. Sure, hooks come in different (mm) sizes just like knitting needles, but they are all basically the same size in length and can all do a multitude of things. Not so with knitting needles...12" straights, 14" straights, circulars with at least 3 different cable lengths, double pointed (in sets of 4 and the ever-elusive 5!), interchangeable...so very many needles to buy and use...why why why? Did I lose you?

Anyway, what bugs me about this 4 or 5 needle thing is now I have to work out how to fit the stitches on the needles, and now this may effect how I knit the pattern of the Monkey Bismol socks, and thinking like that makes my brain hurt, and I try to avoid the brain hurt whenever I can...unless I use one of my other DPNs of a different size, but that will surely make a difference...right? I suppose I could just shut my yap and buy two sets of DPNs, but then they would win, don't you see?! I know I know, shut up & knit.

P.S.--If you were wondering just what Monkey socks were, you can find the pattern here at Knitty.