Mood Afghan Day 7 of 365

Day 7: Bullion stitches in magenta around a green circle.

Freestyle crochet

Daily Mood Afghan for 2015

Hi everyone. I'm always trying to find a way to stay on top of my works in progress. I just started a big one through the mood blanket crochet-a-long on Facebook. So I think I'll make a separate blog page for that and try to keep track of it every few days. Since it is a freestyle project with no pattern this should be entertaining. MOOD BLANKET 2015

Day 1: Two color spiral

Day 2: Six Pink Circles

Day 3 and 4: Purple and Lavender Motif

Jester Hat in Freestyle Jigsaw Crochet

This is my latest jigsaw project. So far it's light and dark purple, dark blue and gray.  It will be a jester hat with three tubes for my hair to feed through. I want to wear it on Saturday so I better get going on it. Today we have to move a bed from Arcadia to Anaheim, so I won't have much time, but maybe I can crochet in the car while he drives to and fro.

Circus Hat With Tubes For Braids

Using freestyle techniques to create a hat is a lot of fun, but you have to keep a careful eye on the shape so that when you are all done it still turns out to be a hat. I just finished this one and started a new one yesterday. I think it's good to always have one in the works. Because of the way the braids go through the tubes, I don't have to worry about it falling off during a juggling show if I take a bow or pick up my next props out of the bag on the ground.

Three New Tutorials Coming

I'm working on three new tutorials for freeform crochet. One is for a headband, and one is for an embellished store bought sweater, and the other is a techniques video.
I made the sample piece. Working with small needles and yarn makes my hands tired faster, so I figured I better let my hands rest a few days.

Hyperbolic Crochet

Science meets crochet in a crazy and vast reef project. http://theiff.org/oexhibits/05b.html This is similar to the curly whirly scarves I've made before and I can't wait to explore it further. Not to mention a great use of all those odd balls of yarn we all end up with.

More Jigsaw Crochet

Today when we were going through boxes of old projects, I found some jigsaw knitting so tonight I got to add some orange and some teal to it. I did single crochet, double crochet, half double crochet and bouillon knots. It's very colorful. I hope I have the guts to wear it.

Two Necklaces

This morning I finished one free form crocheted necklace with beads and almost finished a second one. Then I got the thread tangled and had to remove all the beads and start over. But now it looks great and gave me an idea for some brooches and hat medallions and hair ornaments. One idea leads to another. People often wonder where to find inspiration. I have the opposite problem which is more ideas than I can use in a lifetime.

Freeform Scarflette Necklace Multi-colored

I spent the day assembling this necklace. Some of the circles were already made and in my pile of goodies. Even so, it took me nearly every bit of available time I had to finish it and do the photos. I ran out of time before I even got it listed in my Etsy shop. Hopefully I'll get to that tomorrow. I'd like to make more of these but they take so long I don't see how I can ever make a profit. It's not like I can ask $100. Well, I can, but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for a buyer.

I display my necklaces on a gourd, because some buyers get very upset if they think a person ever wore the item. So I almost never display them on people. Then others will complain that they want to see it on a person, so there is really no way to win.

When people buy a shirt at a department store, I don't think they want to think about how many times someone else might have tried it on before they did.

Knitting and Crocheting Combined

I'm glad to see more TV shows on with both knitting and crocheting. There is a station called Create TV that shows how to do something like cables with knitting and then shows how to do something similar with crochet. It you are going to be working with your hand and with yarn anyway, it doesn't make much sense not to learn both. Once you know both there are so many more things you can make. And it speeds things up in many cases. For example a crocheted purse handle is much faster to make than a knitted idiot cord handle. And it's easier to crochet around the edge of a veil than to knit around one.

There are many books out on knitting and crocheting edgings. If you are tired of boring t-shirts for example, you can cut off the collar and cuffs and crochet around them instead. You can also crochet edgings around handkerchiefs, dress hems, pocket edges, and the tops of socks. Have fun exploring.

Witty Knitting

My friend sent me this very cool 'witty knitting' site. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/9809

This is definitely the year of the knitting and crocheted cupcakes, intestines and bottle hats. What is the zaniest thing you've knitted or crocheted?

I'm working on a faux rubber chicken. Or would that be a faux faux chicken? I'm also crocheting a squid.

Freestyle Poncho

Twice yesterday I tried to start a crocheted loop to make a poncho out of. Both times I ended up with a mobius strip. So I decided to give it a rest. I'm glad I did because this morning my mind solved the problem. I'll just make a straight piece the right length, then crochet a few rows of double crochet to give it some stability and then join the ends together and start my rounds at that point. I believe that will work. Plus that will give me a little leeway if I want to add a button and clasp fastener down the road.

I got the idea from a poncho I saw in a book yesterday that was not only crocheted, but also beaded and embroidered with a cowrie shell fringe on the bottom. While I was doing research I came across this page of free poncho patterns which wasn't of use to me at the time but might be of use to one of my readers. http://www.crochetpatterncentral.com/directory/ponchos.php

Making a vest

Today I got an idea from a rug I saw on Etsy, only instead of a rug I'm making a vest out of some fire yarn I bought originally to make an afghan. The vest will have a squarish front and back like a vest I loved in the 70's and then straps to hold it all together. I might use black or brown for the borders to hold the piece together. First I need to make about 50 circles of various sizes.

Choker Work in Progress

I got some more done on the freeform choker yesterday. I switched to a smaller hook and crocheted a flower motif to attach to the main band. I'd like to add some more color to it by dyeing some of the thread, but I will be out of town so much this week I don't see how I'll have time.
I may take the project on the train with me on Thurs.

Freeform choker

I just started a freeform crocheted choker out of DMC Baroque ecru thread. I haven't done thread crochet in a long time and I feel like I'm all thumbs this morning. But onward I go.

Etsy Items for Sale in my Shop

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade Pigglewiggins.etsy.com

I just signed up for Tagfoot. http://ping.fm/lfV6m Come see all my links and comments and my wishlist.

Want to join ping.fm too? Go to http://www.ping.fm.Use the code 'legendofping' and you could have the luxury of posting to all your blogs in one fell swoop like I do. Way more efficient than doing it one by one.

I'm not sure what 'ping my default' means but I guess I'll find out when I hit send.

The week sure went by quick. I had a lot more planned but didn't have the energy to do it. My hands are still sore from woodcarving, and so I've had to lay off the knitting and crocheting. I'm looking forward to the weekend. My daughter may visit. We'll see.