NatCroMo 2016

Hi Crocheters, Happy National Crochet Month!!

Welcome everyone, thank you so much for joining me on my blog post day for Crochetville's celebration of all things crochet.  There are so many wonderful crochet designers and local yarn shops involved this year, and the best way to keep up with all of the goings-on is through Crochetville's Facebook Page for NatCroMo.

I've been working on all sorts of projects lately, and those of you who know me know that I'm easily distracted by bright shiny objects.  But, I have focused long enough to bring you some fun things for the month of March:

1)  The Sunset Planner Portfolio

One really important project I've been working on for myself but that hopefully you will find helpful as well is a crochet bag in which to keep my daily paperwork organized.  The Sunset Planner Portfolio pattern is now available on Ravelry, and a kit with all of the needed ingredients will be available in my Etsy shop soon.  In celebration of NatCroMo 2016, the crochet pattern on Ravelry is 50% off and our kit on Etsy will be 20% off for the whole month of March with code NATCROMO2016.


At the beginning of every year, I struggle with finding, and utilizing, the "perfect" planner to keep track of all of my personal and business tasks, appointments, bills, ... everything!  This year, I think I'm a step closer to really having the tools and system I need to keep on top of everything, and I'm hoping my research into different methods of keeping track of items will be helpful to you too.

First, you might want to check out my previous post on being both organized AND creative and some steps to take in that direction.  Also, I've got another follow-up post coming up later this month with some great resources I've come across AND FREE PRINTABLES that I've been using in building my own paper organization system and crochet projects system.

2)  The Imminent Launch of "Global Crochet"

Like it's not hard enough to get organized and keep up with Many Creative Gifts, I've decided to launch a companion site, Global Crochet, that explores crochet styles and techniques from around the world!  We're going to be partnering with some amazing and creative people to offer some unique crochet projects and accessories and exploring exactly what the "crochet lifestyle" is all about.  For now, please visit us on Facebook, like our page, and get up-to-date information about the launch!  

And the best place to start is home -- the District of Columbia!  There's more than just politics going on in this town; we've got a very vibrant fiber arts and handmade movement here. Our new project bag celebrates DC and will be available for pre-order in our Etsy shop by March 14th, with delivery in about 3-4 weeks.

3)  Meet Clownie's Friends!

Here's my Clownie from last year's DCWBC Holiday Bazaar!  For those of you who already have made Clownie the Crochet Clown Doll come alive, many thanks from the bottom of my heart.  I know how special Clownie has become in a lot of families (he's the least scary clown you can imagine :-), but I've been worried about Clownie being a bit lonely ...  So, stay tuned to meet some new companions for Clownie and hear more about their adventures together!

Again, thank you so much for spending part of your NatCroMo celebration with me, and I hope to see you back here again and on Facebook later in the month for some updates, freebies, and surprises -- to get the latest, please sign up for blog post emails in the left column of this page, only one or two a week I promise, and connect with me through my Facebook page anytime :-).

Twas the Day After Christmas

and all through the house ... was a big fat mess! 

We've been enjoying the holiday season just a bit too much since Thanksgiving, and now the time to clean up has come!  I find that as my creativity (aka last-minute gift making) goes up, my time on the computer goes down.  But, hopefully you will forgive me, and I will try to get back on a more regular schedule come the new year.

But, here is the Long Clownie I made for a family out west to replace a long lost one ...

Here's hoping you and yours had a wonderful Christmas, and many happy wishes for the New Year!!

The Clownies Are Ready!!

The clownies are all finished!  I hope my friend likes her pink one, and the green one will be posted on Etsy pretty soon.  Once the finishing touches are on the pattern, it will be posted as well.  Whew!  Oh, and a big shout out to Margaret, the best pom pom maker I know :-)  Contact her at her shop, WinterCrochet, on Etsy for your own wonderful poms.

Pom Poms and Ducks

What do the two have to do with each other?  Oh, nothing, just trying to come up with compelling titles ;-)

But, I do have something to say about both.  First, the pom poms.  I think I've found someone to make them for me, whew.  Just working out the details, but all I'll say right now is that Etsy is wonderful for finding artisans and crafters who can make just about anything for you to your specifications.

As for ducks, there has been a continuing saga at my condo complex all summer.  We have a beautiful fountain in front of the building, and a mother duck has made it her home.  She started out the summer with 4 baby ducks, but alas, only 1 seems to have made it.  Can you imagine the trials and tribulations of trying to protect your chicks in the middle of DC?!  I saw her leading 3 of them down the street towards a major thoroughfare earlier in the summer.  What has been amazing is watching the humans become fascinated by her and her struggles.  People were stopping traffic to try to protect her!  Thankfully, she finally seemed to figure out that the fountain was the place to stay put.  She and her baby would snuggle together on the ledge, or she would sit while the baby would swim around and around. 

Last weekend, though, another duck came for a visit.  The three of them hung out all weekend, but then on Monday, the visitor duck and the mother were gone, and the baby's been there by him (or her)self all week :-(  I guess it's the way of the duck world, but it just seems so sad by human standards.  Well, the saga is not over -- mama duck is back this morning!!  Maybe this was a test run to see how baby would do without her.  I guess she's just got to start toughening up baby so that s/he will be ok when it's time...

Again, what's been so interesting is the reactions of the humans around here.  There seem to be two camps:  one that worries about the ducks bringing diseases or nuisance, so they seem more concerned about keeping the ducks away and the other camp that seems to want to be sure the ducks are comfortable and taken care of.  The latter camp saw to it that a ramp was propped up in the fountain so that the baby could make it up to the ledge when people saw s/he was struggling to get out of the water.  I admit, I think I'm in the latter camp -- I find myself looking out the window all the time or stopping by the fountain to be sure that the baby is still swimming around or resting on the ledge.  Mmmm, I think we need a webcam!

The Clownies Live!

Ok, so they are still without pom poms, but both have been put together.  The green clownie still needs his collar too, but I should be able to whip that up soon.  The pom poms though...

I'm realizing that I think I used a different yarn than Nana did for her clownie -- it's just not as soft, so apparently, that is the big difference between Red Heart's SuperSaver and Classic yarns.  I'm not the biggest fan of these yarns, considering there are so many other, more natural yarns out there that are reasonably priced as well, but I admit that this is a great yarn to use for making the clown doll because it does work up uniformly and keep the spiral shape pretty well.  Now I'm itching to make one using the Classic yarn, so I will report back on that.

Now, about those pom poms... 

It's Coming!

A beautiful new yarn store in Dupont Circle!  It's called Looped Yarn Works, and you can read all about it on their website at http://www.loopedyarnworks.com/.  I will start teaching there in the fall :-)

Clownie is also coming, but the pom poms are turning out to be very challenging.  Even got some gadgets to help in creating the pom poms (instead of having to resort to cardboard), but they are still not coming out round and fluffy :-(  Back to the drawing board tomorrow.

Clownie Has A Face!!

Oooof, it has been so hot around here this past week, it's been hard to do anything, but I keep plugging away on Clownie.  And now, he's got a face.  I wanted him to have a sweet face since I think this particular clownie is intended for a baby.  What do you think?!

My friend rightly pointed out that a pom pom nose is NOT appropriate for a baby, so I am going to experiment with sewing on the nose also.  Now, I'm really getting to the fun part, putting clownie's pieces all together!

I've been adding some new tips to the http://www.crochet.lifetips.com/ site.  I don't know why a number of patterns these days use the term "2dctog" rather than "1 dec".  It's the same thing -- make a decrease stitch -- but I think the latter term is more descriptive.  Anyway, just wanted to mention it since I've gotten a number of questions recently on how to make a "2__tog".

Ok, back to clownie!

The Mind is a Terrible Thing...

No, seriously, it can be a terrible thing, to waste or not!  Have you ever tried to define what the "mind" is?!  And never mind the subsets -- attitude, behavior, smarts, etc.  Well, that's what I've spent part of the weekend doing, both for the newsletter and the website.  In trying to figure out how to present helpful and interesting information, I thought I had better define some terms or at least have a starting point.  Well, it has been challenging, but as I always say (but not necessarily do), just take it in bite-size pieces :-)  Ugh, and I haven't even started on Spirit yet.  I think the key is going to be to keep things simple -- let each reader define things for him or herself, but offer what will hopefully be useful and maybe thought-provoking selections.

Update:  Clownie has a head!  But, strategically, I'm discovering that Clownie should have a hat first, so that I'll know how to position the face, so that's the next aspect of this project to nail down.  Famous last words, but the hat should be quick and easy.  I'm getting excited about putting him all together!

Ok, time to pay some bills before hitting the road!

A Real Website?!

So, of course like many small business owners, I've been struggling with getting a real website up and running.  I have my domain name and hosting services with Network Solutions, which of course is more than willing to sell me an expensive package of design services, etc.  And, I have to say, they've been very nice whenever I've called or written in with questions, so no complaints, but you are on your own with that service.  But, alas, all I have is a one-page site directing visitors to other sites (thank you honey!).  Oh, to have a real site that truly provides a one-stop resource!

Well, recently, I was trying to catch up on some old issues of Entrepreneur magazine (totally worth picking up) and came across http://www.yola.com/.  You can use their templates and build a free site.  For $50 a year, you can get rid of the yola branding at the bottom of the site and get more services.  For $350, they will put together the website for you.  So far, so good -- I have found it to be very user friendly, and they responded very quickly when I sent a message about being able to publish the site to my existing domain name and service.  Now, I haven't actually hit the "publish" button yet, but as I said, so far this all seems legit and good, so just saying...

Ok, Clownie is coming along well, his head is almost done, and then, I will tackled the pom poms.  I hope I can find that video on YouTube again about how to make them!

The End is Near...

Hubby comes back on Sunday and my Phyllis time is almost over :-)  I'm ready for him to be back, though I have enjoyed the time to revel in cleaning and organizing and crafting and leaving things wherever I put them and knowing that it will still be there when I return!

My latest project is a clown doll for a friend of mine.  Her Nana used to make them for all the kids in the family, and I think she's hoping to fill the role now.  You know, I usually don't like clowns, I guess I fall into the camp that finds them creepy.  But, I have to say, this crocheted clown is actually pretty cute.  I've been reverse engineering it, though I did Google it, and sure enough, I think I found a starting point for the pattern (Nana made modifications, and my friend and I really like her version, so I'm trying to stay true to it).  Pictures soon.

And, the self publishing blues continue...  An update on that will be coming soon too.  Stay tuned!