Hankie Pankie

I was glad to wake up this morning - I kept dreaming my car had been stolen and I was trying to get to work without my car! I checked on Frank and was very relieved to find him safe and sound in the driveway. We got a fair bit of rain yesterday evening and last night, so I was hopeful all the spiderwebs and dust and grubbiness had been washed away but no such luck! I was embarrassed when I dropped my car off for a service after work, it's absolutely filthy.

Another thing I got yesterday (along with wet) was my Crochet Australia order and I'm very pleased - I started my first #30 (European #50, apparently) thread project and it's turning out much better than I thought it would. I'm attempting a hankie edging, just a very simple one but still, I feel enormously proud. #30 thread and a 1.25mm hook.

I'm making the pattern up as I go along and I am not sure when it will be finished - strictly speaking, I could've finished it after Round 3 but it was a bit on the plain side so I wanted to try and jazz it up a bit in the next round. That is an idea I may come to regret but the good news is, I have another three hankies to play with and I only need one really nice one to show. The others I can give as gifts (and yes, I do know people who would appreciate a crocheted-edged handkerchief). It is not turning out exactly as I envisaged it but never mind, I am having fun.

I looked at my edging patterns and there were quite a few I liked but I couldn't make heads nor tails out of the patterns after I read through them. They just didn't make sense to me at all.

Secret Pal, I am really looking forward to seeing your PCB, how exciting - round 25! I do like that pattern a lot, I will start my one soon.

If the weather is alright tomorrow, it looks as if I may be a passenger during a Very Long Drive for work so it's quite possible I can make some good progress on two of my projects. Of course (because I get this opportunity every so often, although not for as long as tomorrow), it's very likely I will make many mistakes because I am not paying enough attention and then when I get home, I will have to undo it all. Note to self: be extra careful!

A few of us from work are going out next Monday night as a pre-Christmas thing, since C will be going away until almost Christmas, so I need to get Sweet Pea washed and pulled into shape (as much as it can be pulled into shape). That is one gift I am really looking forward to giving, I do think C will like it. I haven't finished anything for K yet (just a few stitches for that Crinoline Doll Tea Cosy that I just don't feel like touching) but I have a bit more time for hers. I think I will scrap the doily idea for her, as well - I've come up with something better.

One more order to receive this week and another new technique to try...with lots of projects on the go and no photos, these seem to be very boring blog entries. I'll try and get some things finished ASAP and post photos.

The Emperor's New Clothes

I'm glad I bought a fully-clothed Barbie - it will be a long time before I make her something to wear. My CrochetAustralia order came in and I had a look at the pattern - I think it might be quicker for me to crochet my own wedding dress and quite possibly cheaper, too. I was thinking I would use this thread but that was before I knew I'd need 4000 yards of it. Yeesh, that's a lot of thread! Particularly when you compare it to the Viceroy Butterfly Shawl which is in size 10 thread and requires about 1500 yards (or something along those lines). Maybe I will try that pattern with the metallic thread instead of the Dress...

I also received the Crinoline Tea Cosy pattern and items, it seems straightforward enough for me - but things are not always as they seem. I have half of K's present 'organised' now - the Cosy and a pattern book (Crocheted Jug Covers - another Vicki Moodie one) and the other half will be some thread, a few steel hooks and the Crinoline Runner. I will work out the thread I want to buy for the Runner and put an order in again soon, even if I don't buy any for the Wedding Dress.

Secret Pal, I am looking forward to seeing your "PCB", I hope you are better at reading patterns than I am! I am sure you will be very happy with your blanket when it is done. I am reminded of a question I have been meaning to ask - to adapt a pattern from a finer yarn and smaller hook, to thicker yarn and a larger hook, how do you convert the requirements? I can't work this out - (and even if I did, I'd get it all wrong) but I'd like to know because I think I'd like to do my next PCS in a thicker yarn but I have no idea how to work out how much I will need.

Speaking of Secret Pal, yahoo is telling me it can't deliver my e-mail to Spoilee because my IP address is blocked - I don't know what's going on there but it is Very Frustrating! I will keep my fingers crossed that it's just a glitch in the system...if I don't hear back in a few days, I will ask the Hostess to contact her for me and find out - at least we're heading into the last of SP11 now so it's not too much of a disaster but I did have some questions I wanted her to answer for the last package.

I think I can get a start on Crinoline Cosy before I go to bed.

I'm a Barbie Girl...

I was a bit grumpy yesterday morning – I went to Lincraft to buy some #10 crochet cotton for the Crinoline Runner (for K's Christmas gift)…and do you think there was any #10 to be found? They had #20, #40 and a lot of other weird stuff, like “3-ply” and “#5” and “Candle Wicking Cotton for Embroidery” but no #10.

I thought I might buy some Panda 4ply and give it a go in that, but they only had the Sullivan’s (and I hate the Sullivan’s 4ply cotton with a passion). Hmph. I will have to go to Spotlight, which is not a problem because I love Spotlight but I couldn't be bothered doing any more shopping yesterday and I probably won’t go through the week so it’ll have to be next Sunday…

Then I went to Target and I bought… a Barbie! It’s been years since I’ve even looked at Barbie and, I have to admit, I have never actually bought one before. By the time I was working and earning my own money to spend, I was well and truly out of the Barbie phase. Prior to that, Barbie dolls were bought by Mum or as birthday / Christmas presents from family & friends...and I didn’t actually have that many Barbies or dolls at all.


I didn’t want Rock Star Barbie or Fairy Princess Barbie or Desperate Housewife Barbie (or whatever they are currently called), I just wanted Plain Ol’ Barbie (actually, I wouldn’t mind a Fairy Princess Barbie now that I think of it!)...and while I’m on the doll topic, I think those Bratz dolls are ugly and Barbie is much nicer.

I ended up buying Fashion Fever Barbie (“Raquelle”, I believe) because I thought she was prettier than the other few I looked at…and, hopefully, she’ll look very nice in the “1960’s Bride” pattern I have ordered from CrochetAustralia. I had a lot of trouble deciding between all the patterns but I liked the wedding dress ones and I thought that one would be okay. Of course, it requires #10 cotton (I don’t know how much yet)…and now, as the light-bulb flickers on over my head, I’m kicking myself because I could’ve ordered the thread through CrochetAustralia for the Crinoline Runner had I thought of it earlier but I didn’t. I’ll wait and see how much I need for Barbie’s New Dress and then I think there will be another CrochetAustralia order in the very near future…

I took some photos of Fashion Fever Barbie (I made her sit on my banana because it amused me, and because she had nothing else to sit on - buying one Barbie does not mean I want to buy Barbie's "Dream House" and all the furniture to go with it). I was delighted to notice that, despite her ‘perfect’ figure, I had to undo her jeans before she could sit down. Who knew Barbie and I had so much in common!

Anyway, that's about it from me - I have some Actual Crochet Content to write about (the sharp-eyed will know what it is) and I'll do that this afternoon when I get home.

I'm Making A List...

...and checking it twice. So, about those Christmas presents - I don't have that many to make. Only a few close friends are going to get crocheted gifts, other friends & colleagues can have bought presents.

Sweet Pea Shawl & Fat-Bottom Bag
4 x 4ply doilies (2 cream, 2 variegated)
1 x shawl (still undecided on pattern or yarn)
1 x "Crinoline Lady" table runner

That's about it, unless I can think of someone else who I can crochet for. I'd like to make something for mum but she is a bit fussy, so I'll have to keep brainstorming.

Two of the four doilies are going to be the Pineapple 4ply pattern I like - I can make one in an evening so they are nice and quick. I might even go so far as to make three of them (one cream, two variegated) and then I just have to pick another pattern for the other cream one - or I might try two other patterns, I'm not sure yet.

The Crinoline Lady runner is going to be a bit tricky, the pattern calls for thread (and, by now, my aversion to thread should be obvious) but I don't know if I can make it in the 4ply. I think I'll probably try it in the 4ply and see how much bigger it ends up...I might have to go with the thread version, but at least it's a 1.5omm hook - and we know I'm going to use a 1.50mm hook for the Knotwork Socks anyway, so I might as well get used to it.

There are two other patterns that appeal to me for a gift for K, "Crinoline Doll Tea Cosy" and "Porcelain Doll Tea Cosy" - I think the Crinoline Doll one is prettier so I think that is the one I will make. She likes fussy, girly, old-fashioned things (and there's nothing wrong with that!) so I think the doilies, runner & tea cosy will make nice gifts for her Christmas and Birthday presents...and, to be honest, I just really want to make that tea cosy so I'll use whatever excuse I can.

About my day yesterday, I got hit with a headache at about 8:30 in the morning, while I was at work and I didn't have any painkillers with me so it just got worse and worse and worse...if it was any other day, I think I would've gone home but we had some compulsory OH&S / Fire Safety training to do so I stayed.

By 4 o'clock, I felt beyond dreadful so I headed straight for the painkillers as soon as I walked in the door. They kicked in relatively quickly and an hour later I was headache free. I was tired and worn out though so I went to bed after a little while and slept for about 10 hours with a slight break in the middle. As a result, there was only a teeny, tiny bit of progress on PCS (about three-quarters of Round 39). There's not much point showing photos because it still looks about the same, maybe just a wee bit bigger. A new pattern is starting to emerge (still haven't hit those Pineapples yet!) but it's not really obvious. I'll try and get some more done tonight and I'll take some photos. I might actually see if I can finish Round 39 now...