My Rose Valley and Princess' Wool

"My Rose Valley" is a beautiful blog by a Swedish woman living in Switzerland with her American husband and three children. She covers all sorts of crafts and has some great crochet patterns. I especially love her Maybelle Crochet Flower that she is working on translating into Swedish in her latest post (her English is so good).  I aspire to have such a seamless, special look to my blog. Mmmm, it might be time for some more revamping...

On another note, I just got the shipment of chunky yarn made from Princess' wool (remember, this year I said I was NOT going through that whole skirting and cleaning process again!  I still haven't carded, much less spun, her wool from last year). There's a lot of yarn in that bag!  I can't believe this is it, that's all the wool that I'll ever have from her :-(. So, that just means that I will have to come up with a really special crochet project for it!  Help me decide what to make!

A New Frontier...

I love to crochet, but I have to admit, the knitting bug has got me!  And it's got me thinking...  Why not combine the two?!  How about using the best techniques from both to create some awesome new patterns?!  I really think that's going to be the next development/evolution in terms of crafting with yarn.  I'm hoping to get a whole new line of baby items designed soon, though of course, right now, I'm obsessed with making myself a sweater that I can actually wear in public :-) and trying not to get pulled into too many other directions (bright, shiny objects are a weakness of mine...).

As I've been working my way up the learning curve in developing more skills in both crochet and knitting, I came across this blog post on How to Read a Crochet Pattern.  The author does such a great job of breaking it down and explaining each step in a sample pattern round.  I know one of the toughest things about taking the next step after learning basic crochet stitches is being able to do something with them, and I hope this article will help you decipher that new crochet pattern you've been wanting to try.

Learning how to knit has really made me appreciate the importance of fundamentals and going back to basics, and I think it might actually help me be a better crocheter too!

Oh Happy Saturday

Yes, I am still in my sweats, trying to create order out of chaos!  The mittens pattern should be up soon, and the fabulous Maiah took some wonderful pictures of the Scalloped Baby Hat and the mittens, so here they are:

Oh, and you'll see a new button to the left for blogcatalog.  I just joined, and it's a great directory of blogs in all sorts of catagories.

Now, I think it might be time for a nap :-)

Free Crochet Golden Bangle Bracelet Pattern!

Just posted a fun free crochet Mother's Day project up on Ravelry (click on the icon to the left) and it should be available through FaveCrafts.com soon too!

Too Soon?

Well, I've already got  a free Valentine's heart pattern posted on my Ravelry designer page and on FaveCrafts (http://www.favecrafts.com/Valentines-Day/Pink-and-Red-Crocheted-Hearts)!  It's probably too soon, but it's nice to be thinking about Valentine's Day, mainly because it means that we will be half way through winter by then!  Though I did just see candy heart boxes in Macy's today, so I guess I've got to go with the flow :-)

Also, I am extending the special pricing on the Yarn Club for Crocheters until January 15, 2010, because I've been having some technical difficulties in advertising the discount.  But that's it, so sign up soon ;-)

Today's Thought:  Having trouble keeping the sides of your crocheted blankets straight and even?  Hope this newly-posted tip on http://www.crochet.lifetips.com/ helps!  Check under the category "starting a project".