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.

writer's blocks

i made some more progress on the 200 blocks afghan, this picture is of the squares that will be the centre of the blanket, at least that's what i've decided so far:

another random square, loved the pattern, not sure about the colour placement, but that's something i can decide as i go along.

the pictures are not that great, i'm having a harder and harder time trying to get decent shots out of this camera, and end up having to do a lot of editing, but you get the general idea.

the last one i've done is called 'old vienna', not really sure why, unless the little filigree designs are suppose to emulate some sort of bavarian decoration.

i quite like this pattern, again the picture is just not doing it justice. somehow the colours seem to look different in every picture, but they are all the same, trust me.

incognito...

this camouflage item may be a hat for cee, or it may be a tea cosy, he hasn't decided yet.

i also have a similar ball of yarn that may or may not be masquerading as a pair of matching gloves...it hasn't decided yet.

blog blanket blatherings

so yeah...i think winter is officially on its way...we've already had the ceremonial 'turning on of the furnace' and the rest, well it's all inevitable...like making afghans...for me a 'winter' thing to do.

this square (and the next) is from the "200 crochet blocks" book--which i love, just ask cee, and he will regale you with stories about me hugging this book--was that so wrong?!--the colours look much better in the real, but don't most things? Plus our camera isn't exactly the newest anymore...it serves its purpose, i suppose. the dark square is a plum/purple, then sage green, what i would call a delft blue, and then gray.

i have been having the hardest time picking just a few squares out of this book...there are just so many that look good to me...incidentally if you are thinking of picking up this book, do so!! i really couldn't recommend it any higher--come on, if a grown woman hugging it isn't a good enough review of it i don't know what is!


i will probably only go with about 4 or 5 different squares for my first afghan, all with these four colours.

hopefully by the end of this winter i will have decided on which square patterns to use, but i wouldn't bank on it....it's a bit strange, really, i'm not usually this indecisive. no wonder though, because the possibilities are endless...in case you were wondering, i really do love this book!


i joined the crochet along over at the 'ville so hopefully seeing everyone else's projects coming together will inspire me to stick with it.

hey, that looks oddly familiar...

well it should...that is, if you are a faithful reader of my blog...okay, stop laughing, it could happen...but for those who don't frequent this corner of my fuzzy brain, this is my yo-yo scrap afghan that i started...oh...last may and i abandoned it when the humidex made our temperatures go over 47 celcius last summer (that's 117 F for all you fahrenheiters) plus when i realized all the little ends that have to be woven in with the joining of each little yo-yo, i kind of stuffed it away in favour of less tedious projects.

but with the falling of the leaves and the lowering of temperatures comes the instinctive need to crochet blankets, afghans, throws, rugs, anything with which you can cover up. I dragged out ole 'scrappy' and started working again. i have disciplined myself to try to join at least five yo-yo's a day...this way it will get done, albeit eventually. i think in spite of all the tedium it will look nice and 'homey' once it is done.

there is another ghan started...it's a bit of an experiment though so no pictures...i don't know how far i'll get with it but we'll see...it all sounds so mysterious, doesn't it? like some freaky weird science project or something. really it's not that bad....or is it? (cue spooky music...fade out)