NatCroMo 2017

It's really hard to believe that another National Crochet Month has rolled around!  I'm so honored to be part of the Crochetville Designer Blog Tour again this year in celebration of the enduring life skill and art that we all love so much. 

In anticipation of NatCroMo, I started offering my Pollie the Octopus pattern for free, hoping that each reader will feel inspired to make at least one to give to her local hospital to help premature babies!  More details on why octopuses are so comforting are in this post.

Also, I'm going to be having a little crochet mystery giveaway near the end of March through my Facebook page, but you have to "like" and follow my page to be in on it (a winner will be chosen from among the page's likes and privately messaged for shipping information).  I'm closing in on 500 likes, so please help me get over the top!  I'll be dropping hints about the goodies included, so check back here on the blog and on Facebook often!

This year's blog tour theme is Glamping.  Now, I am not at all the camping type, but I'm really enjoying the virtual trips we're taking this month through Crochetville's NatCroMo Facebook page, and be sure to click on Vedetta Lodges in Tuscany, Italy -- bellissima!

But still, my post is indirectly related to the theme of loving crochet and being inspired by exotic getaways and everyday locations.  This month (and throughout the year), we are going to be motivated to visit some of these amazing yarn stores that are participating in the tour and start a number of the beautiful patterns that this month's featured designers generously have posted.  But, March has 31 days in it, and, at some point, the abundant offerings of NatCroMo are going to be overwhelming -- I'm here to say that it's ok to give yourself permission to NOT crochet (only you can let yourself off the hook so to speak). 

Treasonous talk for the month in which we celebrate all things crochet?!  Hear me out.  I'm not advocating giving it up totally or taking a break if you don't feel like it; but, there are times when NOT crocheting will actually deepen your love and appreciation of crochet and help you see it all with fresh eyes (and hands!).  Frankly, I've gone through a few periods like this recently and wanted to share my experiences:

1.  Do NOT crochet when doing so gives you more angst and stress than it takes away.  Whether it's a project that's on a very tight deadline (real or imagined) or a new technique that's giving you fits, if crocheting is causing stress, you need to step away.  Life is already full of enough stress, something you love should not be adding to it.  Sometimes just a few hours away will do the trick; sometimes you'll need more time to decompress and center again.  The point is, trying to power through is going to set you back more than stepping away for the time you need to love crocheting again.

2.  Do NOT crochet when it's adversely affecting your physical health.  Whether it's the fact that you've been sitting on the couch not moving (except for your hands) for hours or that you're giving yourself carpal tunnel, it's time to put down the hook and get active!  Sometimes I try to justify watching TV by telling myself that, hey, I'm also crocheting, I'm doing something productive and meaningful.  That's true, but when hours have gone by, I realize that I feel stiff and sluggish, my eyes and neck hurt, and that I should have been pacing myself.  As they say, moderation is key.  Now, I keep an eye on the clock; I don't crochet for more than an hour at a time -- once I get to a natural stopping point, I put my project down and go for a walk.  Even if it's only for 10 minutes and just around the apartment, I get up and move!  It's usually all I need to feel better, plus this approach makes for a better crochet project in the end because I then take the time to look over the crocheting I've done and assess.


3.  Do NOT crochet when it feels like a burden.  Usually, I love making all different types of crocheted gifts for relatives and friends, and I love designing and posting new patterns, but sometimes the whole process just feels like one more thing that you have to do rather than something that you love to do.  Now, for my sister designers who are thinking to themselves, well, I'm not going to be able to make a living if I don't stay on top of all my projects, I'm especially going to encourage you to take a break.  Stepping away, even for just a day, to regroup, rethink, RELAX, can make all the difference in approaching your work with a fresh eye and renewed spirit.  Inspiration for a new crochet project is all around us, but we won't see it if we don't stop to take it all in.

So, to end on a high note, it's amazing how the love of crochet is spreading far and wide, with such variety in techniques and designs.  It's obvious that the fiber arts for many is not a short-lived fad but a lasting lifetime endeavor.  Enjoy the journey and please stop by to visit me on my blog or Facebook page during your travels.  Here's to many, many more NatCroMos!

I"m Back!

Hard to believe my "little break" turned into the whole summer!  And more than half of September is already gone as well.  But, no mind, we're up and running again.

Let's see, anything new to report?  A few things:  

1) Next year's NatCroMo celebration is going to be bigger and better than ever before!  I think Crochetville is going to outdo previous years by gathering not only crochet designers but indie yarn makers and shop owners to participate as well.  Even though NatCroMo isn't until March, I don't think it's too early to start planning.  I'll probably be giving some hints about my March 10th submission here and there as they develop, and I hope to add to last year's Tiny Squares project.

2)  I've been using this time off to make a few baby gifts and learn some new techniques, which I plan on sharing in future posts.  I've really been thinking a lot about how to combine crochet with knitting in different but easy ways, so I have a feeling you'll be hearing a lot more about that as well.

3)  And speaking of thinking, I've got my friend Charlene helping me with a little bit of strategic planning and niche building, so I'm sure I'll be sharing some of the ups (and inevitable downs) about that too.

So, I think these Fall and Winter seasons will bring some fresh and fun things to this blog, please join me on this adventure!

NatCroMo 2015 and Tiny Square 1

Happy National Crochet Month (NatCroMo)!  It's my pleasure and honor to be a part of Crochetville's Designer Blog Tour in celebration of this wonderful time of year. 

First things first, I want to be sure you check out Halos for Hope and try to help in any way you can.  Many Creative Gifts encourages growth as a crocheter as part of our mission, and I can't think of a better way to do that than to make a crochet hat for this amazing organization.  Halos of Hope is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization committed to providing volunteer-crafted hats to cancer centers across the country. The founder of Halos of Hope, Pam Haschke, herself is a survivor of inflammatory breast cancer. As a result of her experiences, she has a passion for helping make sure cancer patients around the country have access to free handmade stylish hats to keep their heads warm while they undergo cancer treatment.  Please try to make at least one hat and/or make a financial donation directly to Halos on their website.  A 100% of donations received from the general public are used only for the costs of shipping hats across the country. All administrative and other costs are covered by private corporate donations.

Mail hats to:
Crochetville LLC
103 Scarlet Oak Circle
Harvest, AL 35749

Now for my contribution to NatCroMo 2015 -- some tiny squares :-).  The Granny Square and motifs trend seems to still be going strong, and awhile back, I came across the French crochet designer/artist Sophie Digard, who uses luxury yarns and intricate small motifs to create her masterpieces.  She's truly talented, but, upon seeing her prices, a little voice inside me said "Oh, Phyllis, you can do this too, they're just a bunch of little squares!"  Well, as proud as I am of these 1-inch squares that I've designed and hope to create something wonderful out of (I've got "only" about 100 of them so far), I now totally appreciate the price point Mlle. Digard is charging and her stamina in creating her famous scarves!  The time and effort to make enough squares for a scarf, shawl or other large project is a bit overwhelming, but it can be a wonderful take-along and long-term project ;-)

I've designed three squares, utilizing six coordinating colors in different combinations, for a total of nine motifs.  The yarn I chose, Rowan's Siena 4 Ply fingering weight 100% mercerized cotton, is truly wonderful to work with but seems to be getting hard to find (isn't that always the case when you find something you love?!).  Below is the pattern for the first square.  Please come back next week to find out about the two other squares.  I'll also be posting some possible projects using the squares, but in the mean time, I'd love to see what projects you come up with -- please "like" and post on our Facebook page:  www.facebook.com/manycreativegifts, and we've set up a special "Tiny Squares Projects" board on Pinterest as well (with some sneak peeks too!).

Here's Square 1:

With a size D crochet hook and Rowan Siena 4 Ply 100% mercerized cotton yarn in color # 669,

Round 1:  Ch 2, 8 scs in second ch from hook, sl st to top of first sc
Round 2:  Ch 5, 1 dc in same st, [ch 1, 1 dc in next st, ch 1, (1 dc, ch 2, 1 dc) in next st] 3 times, ch 1, 1 dc in next st, ch 1, sl st to third ch of beg ch-5.
Round 3:  Ch 1, [3 scs in ch-2 sp, (1 sc in dc, 1 sc in ch-1 sp) twice, 1 sc in dc] 3 times, 3 scs in ch-2 sp, (1 sc in dc, 1 sc in ch-1 sp) twice, 1 sc in same st as ch 1, sl st to top of first sc, fasten off.

Have a wonderful March discovering or rediscovering your love of crochet!

10 Things We Love About Crochet

It's National Crochet Month (NatCroMo)!  And, as I'm preparing a special blog post for March 6th in anticipation of participating in Crochetville's Blog Tour again this year, I came across some interesting tidbits about crochet and a wonderful online application at Zanifesto to create a free infographic, so enjoy!