Posted on 11/01/2023 7:39:04 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
“Write it. Shoot it. Publish it. Crochet it, Sauté it, whatever. MAKE.” ~ Joss Whedon
The Monthly Create, Make and Share Thread is a monthly gathering of people that love to create and make. From yarn (crochet, knitting), fabric (sewing, quilting), threads (embroidery, weaving), wood crafts, ceramics, artwork and anything else you create and would like to share, this is the place to do it. Sharing something you’ve created and/or made is pure joy...and we need joy in our lives!
From complete Newbies that are looking to start that first project, to experienced artists, we would love to hear from you. If you have questions or would like advice, there’s probably someone on the thread who would be able to help.
It is impossible to hijack the Monthly Create, Make and Share Thread. Knitting, crochet, sewing, quilting, weaving, general crafting, art, wood working, patterns, articles on any of these topics, or even your own writing. There is no telling where it will go, and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us! Send a Private Message to Diana in Wisconsin if you’d like to be added to our Ping List.
NOTE: This is a once a Month Ping List. We DO post to the thread during the month. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest to other Create, Make and Share fans are welcomed any time.
I watched this in the summer. It’s long, but a fun video.
I Designed and Knitted My Wedding Dress in 6 Weeks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSOxw2H_IO8
Thank you SO much for posting this video! It was so charming because she is so charming & wow, is she talented. Loved the yarn, loved that cat .... the dress is gorgeous. The ‘flare’ at the bottom really turned out well. The whole dress is absolutely stunning & what a great ‘at home’ wedding. How special that her dad composed the music, too. This video just sort of ‘made my day’ ... and now that gardening is definitely over, I need to knit, knit, knit! Thanks again!
Thanks, that video still makes me smile..... ;)
Such a beautiful dress! Such an incredible amount of knitting (and some crocheting ;) ).
This is going to a friend from church, she’s 38 and has one of those turbo cancers. So very sad.
It’s gorgeous, mabarker1
BEAUTIFUL!!
This article just floored me. A local couple who travels to unusual places, visited a woman in Italy who spins a rare thread made by mollusks. Just read it! Just amazing.
!
How cool! It’s been in her family for 24 generations. During the process, the thread is 1/3 the size of a human hair. Thanks for sharing this.
I also googled “byssus” and found more info.
I will start this post with “Oh LUCKY LUCKY DAY!!” I went to Michael’s for yarn for Christmas stockings - needed 10 skeins. They had the yarn I needed AND the colors - woo hoo. The yarn was $5.00/skein. I searched my phone & found a coupon for 25% off, regular & sale price .... good deal, if the coupon worked. When the clerk rang up the yarn, I started seeing “minus” signs ... I had not realized the yarn was “buy one, get one half price” .... yay!! After she rang it all up, the price was $37.50 .... would the coupon work? YES IT DID!! So my yarn price was $28, plus tax, just over $29. That’s about $15/stocking .... a reasonable price.
No joke, I was so excited that when I was handing her my money, I was shaking - we both laughed about it.
So what stockings am I making?
For my little great-nephew (6 months old now), he is named after my dad. My dad’s favorite shirts were plaid & he had a lot of “buffalo plaid”. The stocking I found is a plaid one - I will change out the white for red, so it will be red, gray & black. I might exchange the red for the gray & then gray for the white ... just depends. It’s a really cute stocking.
Plaid Crochet Stocking
https://www.hookedonhomemadehappiness.com/plaid-crochet-stocking-pattern/
For my niece, she posted some pictures recently & she was wearing a really pretty, long dress that looked like it had bobbles on it ... quite a disctinctive, feminine look. So I found a pattern that had ‘bobbles’ .... with all males in the family, I think this more feminine but not ‘girly’ stocking will suit her well.
Bobble Crochet Stocking
https://www.hookedonhomemadehappiness.com/bobble-crochet-stocking-pattern/
I hope they turn out - I’ll post pics if they do.
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The stocking ‘story’ .... for my 1st great-nephew’s Christmas present 2 years ago, I made him a beautiful, giant crocheted stocking. His mom/dad were using their childhood stockings that were very small. Dad was jokingly ‘whining’ that his little son’s stocking was so much bigger than his .... boo hoo (it was funny). So last year, I made dad the same stocking, but in different colors - I added a few rows so his stocking was just slightly bigger than the first one ... so dad now had the largest stocking.
Mom still had a tiny stocking, plus my 2nd great-nephew came along in May. I told mom I would make her & the new baby Christmas stockings, too. With all that has been going on the past year, I totally forgot about it, until this week and then it was a YIKES!! moment. Today was the first day I could go shopping early in the morning to beat the crowds and with my great success finding yarn, I will now be crocheting my fingers off ... I would like to give my niece the stockings when they are in town for Thanksgiving.
In the meanwhile, I am working on prayer shawl #5. The original 3 were for recent widows, then a 4th was a ‘friendship’ shawl for a friend of my mom’s who had to move away. This friend is missing all her friends, including my mom, & her daughter said she was ‘withdrawing’ and somewhat depressed. I did the shawl for her so she knows we miss her too & every time she snuggles up in it, she should feel like she’s getting a hug from us. Then widow #4 happened - I had enough yarn for another shawl - I’m about 1/4th of the way to finishing, so a long way to go yet. The shawls are knitted, so it takes a while, but the responses I’ve gotten on the first 4 make every stitch worth it.
Off to crochet stockings!! :-)
Yes, it worked - cute!
My biggest issue with my ‘stash’ (and I do have one), is organizing the yarn so I can actually SEE what I have. I’ve tried lists, all sorts of organizers, etc. What I do not have room for is something like Mikey has on the Crochet Crowd - a wall with a ‘bookcase’ like arrangements with cubbies where you can actually see what you have. It can be organized by weight, color, whatever works.
I finally got the use of a 6’ x 6’ walk-in closet for a “kitchen” closet so I have all my stuff (slow cookers, big pots, electric frying pan, wok, canning jars/pots, etc.) on shelves where I can see it & easily grab them for use - just wonderful. I originally had my eye on that closet for a yarn/stash/crafts closet, but I needed it in the worst way for the kitchen stuff. Maybe one of these days, I’ll be able to stash my ‘stash’ in a more useful organized manner!
Just gorgeous - I am sure it will be very much appreciated.
I have all my yarn in bins in a small spare room. I’ve seen walk in closets bigger than this room. We have an old desk in there and I have my swift and yarn winder attached. It works. I keep a bin of useless balls of yarn that I eventually make into a scrap blanket. I’m probable due to make one this winter. It’s those useless balls of yarn that take up a lot of space.
All my too big/once a year kitchen stuff is stored in the basement.
Last night, I started the Plaid Stocking for my great-nephew. I have the pattern figured out & the heel portion ... also, changing the colors to make a ‘buffalo plaid’ sort of color pattern. I’m actually past the heel & on the main portion headed for the cuff. What I’m not liking is how ‘dark’ the stocking is - black toe/heel, red, black & gray for the plaid. The cuff would be black, too.
The pattern has a a black heel/toe/cuff & the plaid is in black, white & gray. What I am thinking of doing, to brighten it up, is do the heel/toe/cuff in red & keep the plaid in black, white, & gray. The white really brightens up the plaid, much more so than the red I substituted for the white.
The other thing I am thinking - why doesn’t the pattern just work the stocking in the round instead of slip stitch, chain two & turning? It seems to me that ‘in the round’ would be easier ... also, when you are carrying yarn on the inside of the stocking, it’s fairly awkward because the ‘carry’ is on the side towards you. If working in the round, the outside of the stocking would be towards you all the time & the ‘carry’ would be on the back & that is very simple.
In a short while, I am hightailing it to Michael’s - I need a skein of white & one of gray to do the color pattern switch - I could “frog” what I have, but I sort of want to keep it as insurance. I have had to cut the gray & reattach, would like a whole uncut skein. I am making another stocking (red background, white bobbles) & I might change those bobbles to green, if they are out of white - I really need white for the plaid. I just have my fingers crossed they still have one white & one gray skein!
The stocking has worked up fairly fast despite all the tangled yarn, keeping 3 colors attached, & switching every 3 stitches, etc. If I can get working in the round going, it will go even faster! I need the stockings by Thanksgiving.
You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!
I wouldn’t even know where to BEGIN a project like that, let alone complete it!
As with sewing and crochet, I’m all about straight lines and simple patterns. :)
The color pattern is working out great & so is working in the round - yay!! I am just thrilled that I changed the color pattern - it’s going to be cute. It looks SO much better ‘in the round’, too. Joins are easier as is carrying the yarn.
Now I am at the heel. I don’t like the pattern heel (so what else is new, right? LOL!). Just got to make things harder for myself. The stitches are all double crochet which works great, but trying to get the color pattern to work while crocheting in the heel is going to be a “trick” - might not work out, but we’ll see. I’m using the heel pattern from the first two stockings I made - it’s pretty clever. There were 40 stitches to account for on that pattern - I have 48, but I see how she’s got them laid out, so I should be able to adjust. If it works, you may hear me celebrating :-)
Ooh ooh ... just had a thought. The heel is red. I could just do a red dc (maybe sc) row around to get the heel crocheted in - it would look like part of the heel, then I could pick up the color pattern after that - I think that might be ‘the ticket’!!
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