Crochet flowers - Myosotis sylvatica:LISUI's

Ok, I lied. I'm not in Ohio yet. I'm up early in an attempt not to be terribly jet-lagged tomorrow morning. I'd thought my flight today was super early, but I was wrong. So I just set my alarm for 6:30 (really, it would have been more effective if I'd set it for 5:30, but I'm not masochistic enough).

So here are some links I've been surfing while trying to be quiet so as not to wake up the very-appropriately sleeping man.

Aren't these crocheted flowers stunning?

And speaking of stunning, check out Helle's post about the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef plus her own Rubbish Vortex in New York. I wish I could go!

Check out Charm & Whimsy's cottage tea cozy. Such attention to detail!

The Purl Bee is at it again, this time with a crocheted baby blanket in lovely, muted colours. I love baby stuff that isn't pastel.

Danielle Kassner is at it again (she designed the amazing tapestry crochet socks in the current issue of Interweave Crochet), this time with one of the most stunning combinations crochet and knitting I've come across. Rock on, Danielle.

Finally, I adore this rag bag by Boutique Pink Designs. Not only do Iove rag projects, I also love thinking that spring might eventually get here, and the colours of this bag make me smile. (Actually, I believe spring will arrive in Vancouver today, just as my plane takes off.)

Make some yummy crochet this week, eh?

I'm unplugging for the weekend! It doesn't happen often, and I'm looking forward to it (with, you know, that kind of gnawing trepidation that precedes such things).

To honour the event, a question for you. Leave a comment with the following info: What's the last project you completed? What are you working on now? What's up next?

The last project I completed is for something I'll blog about when the spring issue of the magazine comes out in a couple of weeks:

In an attempt for instant gratification, I'm currently knitting a superchunky wee sweater from the Anthropologie-inspired Capelet pattern (though it's not a capelet). I love this colour! I'm thinking I might finish it during this unplugged weekend...

And next. Mmm. Next. Likely something crocheted. But what? It would figure that I'd ask a question I can't yet answer myself. Hmph.

So. What're you working on?

UPDATE: The preview of the Spring 2008 Interweave Crochet is up. I hope you enjoy!

Kids, I missed CrochetMe.com's fourth birthday! It was two weeks ago. Happy birthday to us!

Also, I'm over a third-of-a-month tardy in shouting out National Crochet Month. Doing anything special to celebrate or promote crochet this month? There's a giant hoo-ha going on at the NatCroMo group on Ravelry.

It's always exciting to see crochet covered in the mainstream media. And though it's not the best writing the New York Times can offer, this article about the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef project is awesome.

I've been surprised over the last year to read occasionally about people's confusion when beginning to make squares for the Babette Blanket. After overcoming my assumption that the squares are super simple, I did a demo on how to make them at the Knit Out & Crochet Too. I blogged about it at the magazine, and hope my drawn-on images don't do more harm than good (Skitch is so cool, I don't know when to stop).

Moving on to very-well-done images, Sister Diane recently posted a great tutorial on How to Crochet a Wire Flower Pendant [via Craft].

Finally, today is my sixth wedding anniversary. In a sea of magazine submissions, copy editing, and tech editing (with an added sea of marking, homework, and studying), the Mr and I are doing our best to carve out good time to celebrate. A wildly expensive night out is planned!

Ok, so it's not a huge number of links. But they're good ones.

Wishing it were Saturday already (heh), our favourite admirer of the day wrote quite nicely about crochet on her blog. From there, I discovered that none other than the Yarn Harlot recently wrote about how crochet can be used to help stabilize knitwear. I'm often asked why a crochet design is worked in a seemingly roundabout way, and I like explaining the clever ways designers have of solving pesky problems with stretch, structure, and shaping. As a knitter, though, these things often remain a mystery to me, and I learned a lot from Stephanie's post.

Moving on from my glee from reading great pieces on crochet, I'm excited for the Fibrefest next weekend in Abbotsford, BC. I don't yet know which day I'll attend, but it should be great fun. (Say it with me now, I will not touch a loom. I will not touch a loom.) And speaking of local goodness, check out this great CBC piece on Birkeland Bros. Wool shop. They show the hundred-year-old carding machine in action!

Aaaand, that's what I've got this day that comes only once every four years. Enjoy it!

south park afghan finished:sukigirl74

What's open in my Firefox tabs today? Here's what's open in my Firefox tabs today:

• This hilarious Tunisian crochet South Park afghan (above). I wish they were looking at each other, a la The Brady Bunch.
• There's a great article in the Etsy Storque about photo styling. It's geared toward product photography (for sellers), but it's just as relevant to plain-old project photography (for crafters like us). (Big news from Etsy yesterday. Also, I second Robert's recommendation of Deep Economy. It's a great read, despite it's less-than-enticing title. If you look closely, I think you might be able to spot my copy of the book in the winter issue of Interweave Crochet.)
• Annette has opened her pattern shop! (En francais, aussi.)
• Check out this way cool postcard project [via Murketing].
• Finally, Natalie at CRAFT blogged about the enormous crochet art on the walls of Urban Outfitters HQ.

We're starting to really gear up to go to press on the spring issue of the magazine. Putting my head back to PDFs now. (It's nice to be thinking of spring.)

Boteh Scarf:kpwerker

The high from finishing my ripple blanket last week coupled with several consecutive days of sunshine has put me on a project-finishing spree.

Behold, my finished Boteh Scarf [Ravelry]. In my continuing quest to champion crochet at its best, this design blows my mind. It's simple (s-i-m-p-l-e). It takes advantage of some of crochet's unique qualities — the ease of shaping, that you can stick your hook anywhere to make cool shapes. I memorized the pattern after the first motif, and I'm pretty dim when it comes to achieving such feats.

Ok. Enough gushing. Here are the deets:

Started: 4th January 2008
Finished: 22nd January 2008
Pattern: Boteh Scarf, by Kathy Merrick (Interweave Crochet Spring 2007)
Yarn: Koigu KPPPM (unknown colour; larger-than-normal skein)
Hook: 4mm
Modifications: I only had enough yarn to make 13 motifs and edge in single crochet instead of half double.

In the end, the scarf really isn't my style, and I'll be finding it a good home. I certainly see more of these in my crafty future.

So, TNNA. As always, Clara Parkes has written up a great recap over at Knitters Review. My take can be summed up in four points:

1. Yarns are trending lighter-weight, which is great news for crocheters. Lots of new DK and sport weight yarns are coming out, and some companies are even introducing lighter-weight versions of their worsted and bulky weight yarns.
2. Yarn blends are all the rage. Lots of companies are experimenting with some really cool blends. It's a very, very good time to learn about traits of various fibers and fiber types, and to experiment with how these blends will behave. Way, way cool.
3. Green is also in. Some new certified organic yarns are coming out.
4. People were happy to talk about crochet. 'Nuf said.

I've had a bunch of links open in my browser for days, waiting for this moment at the end of the week when I have a few minutes to blather about them. It will feel good to close those tabs.

Wicked crochet in home decor! Check out these crocheted bowls from the-home-project, made strong by salt crystals [via Craft]. And Raveler elleemmiss pointed out these starched Crochet Pendant Lamps from RianRae.

Speaking of Ravelry, have you heard about the Bobby awards? I was psyched to see my Float Away scarf design nominated (*hint*), along with Amy O'Neill Houck's Sweet sweater (*cough*) as Best Free Pattern. The Crochet Me CAL was nominated for Best Crochet-Along, which is way cool. If you're a member, go vote! One member's Babette Blanket was nominated as Most Colorful Project, too. Now that I've finished my ripple, I'd better get back to Babette. Poor baby; it's been languishing in little piles of squares.

I'm thoroughly enchanted by the idea of Misio. Adopt (ok, buy) a crocheted cat (so cute) and document the character's development online. Character and personality are what I find so great about designing toys in the first place. What a cool combination of adorable crochet and online community/personality-building.

I've been really bad with blog-reading lately, but one I try to pop over to whenever I can is futuregirl. Her photos alone are so pretty and inspiring. A couple of weeks ago she posted a crocheted pentagon ball pattern. Neat!

Continuing on this neato-website kick, Lion Brand's teaming up with Instructables for their Slideshow Challenge is a pretty awesome example of online collaboration. It looks like pretty much anybody can enter, using any yarn (not just LB).

Did you notice up there that I mentioned finishing my ripple blanket? No fanfare yet, as Vancouver in January doesn't exactly = lots of great light shining in through windows making for great completed-ripple photography. But it's done. It even has a border. I'll spare you more details until I have some eye candy to go with it. But man, does it feel good.

Have a great weekend!

I'm heading down to the TNNA trade show this morning, for three days of non-stop yarn action, chatting with fab crochet professionals, a class I'm teaching on crochet in the LYS*, and new boots that make my heart sing (and don't make my feet ache).

*Let me know by comment or email what you, specifically as a crocheter, want from your LYS (local yarn store). I'll be speaking with store owners, kids!

And now, about that TV thing. Below is the first official press release about the new, in-production public television show Knitting Daily TV, of which I'll be co-host along with the most amazingly talented and fun yarn and thread women I know: Eunny Jang, Liz Gipson, and Shay Pendray. Good thing our Vancouver basic cable carries the Seattle PBS station! The show won't begin airing till July, but I'll be sure to post pics from our April taping, along with any neato information I come across. I admit: that it will soon feel normal to have a mic pack stuck in my skirt is not something I ever anticipated.

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Loveland, Colo., January 9, 2008: Aspire Media today announced the launch of “Knitting Daily TV” on many public television stations around the country beginning in July 2008. Bringing a fun, contemporary new approach to needle arts how-to programming, this PBS magazine-format TV series is a makeover of Needle Arts Studio with Shay Pendray, the first and longest-running program on public television to focus on the needle arts, which Aspire Media acquired from host and executive producer Shay Pendray last year.

“Knitting Daily TV” will be hosted by a cast of popular magazine editors: “Interweave Knits” Editor Eunny Jang, “Interweave Crochet” Editor Kim Werker, “Handwoven” Managing Editor and former Managing Editor of “Spin-Off,” Liz Gipson, along with Shay Pendray. The 30-minute themed episodes will cover a variety of needle crafts—from knitting and crochet to stitching, felting, and spinning—and guide viewers in learning to make fun yet smart one-of-a-kind designs using the latest products in yarn and fiber.

Industry experts and renowned designers will appear as guests and join the “Knitting Daily TV” team to bring fiber fans great projects for the beginner to advanced, updates on tools and materials, in-depth technique tutorials, and creative ideas that are sure to inspire.

The makeover of Needle Arts Studio starts with a new name, set, music, and graphics, but the changes are more than cosmetic. “The growing community of DIY-ers doesn’t just want to watch, they want to be a part of it. “Knitting Daily TV” will merge how-to television programming with the online community of knitters in an exciting new way,” said Executive Producer Kathie Stull.

KnittingDailyTV.com is the online companion to the TV show. The site will feature video clips, episode recaps, patterns, interactive discussion, local TV schedules, and more. In addition, “Knitting Daily TV” will have a presence on MySpace and Facebook and episode previews will be available on YouTube.

The show will regularly invite the Knitting Daily online community to be a part of the program by incorporating segments such as “You Asked It,” where hosts answer everyday needle-arts questions of people in the online community or “You Made It,” featuring their handmade creations—bringing a fun twist to the traditional knitting circle and the viral concept of the online knit-along.

“Knitting Daily TV” is produced by KS Inc. Productions and will be offered in the same public television time slot as Needle Arts Studio.

Beach:kpwerker

I hate resolutions. I prefer to let time pass and then look back to see what sorts of funny new habits I formed.

2007 was a year of habits I'd prefer to break.

Although I see no particular problem with starting crafts projects and never finishing them, I'd actually prefer to have some more completion in my yarn life. I'll do my best to revisit this topic here.

I don't much like being ill, and I spent more days in bed in 2007 than I ever had in a single year. Not that I consider that to be a habit, but it's certainly a trend I'd like to buck.

I worked all. the. time. Good work. Work I'm proud of. But I neglected my friends and idly watched my home fall into disarray. My sense of humour suffered, as did my generally vibrant disposition. 2008 will be for reconnecting with people I love, and for having a more intimate relationship with my vacuum cleaner. The telephone, that old-school contraption: I will pick it up.

In a feat not entirely unrelated to the amount of time I spent feeling awful, I watched an insane amount of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on DVD (thanks to an alert from a snappy Raveler, I recently bought the box set for a low-low price on Amazon). In addition to geeking out over some great crochet throughout the series, I also watched the first season of Angel (not so great; debating watching more) and Firefly (damn brilliant), thus making me, for the first time ever, a hardcore fan of a person (that would be Joss Whedon). This is both exhilarating and creepy. Related to this kick of television fandom, I've been reading the Buffy comic books, and am growing more and more obsessed with the medium. As such, I'm into the third volume of Neil Gaiman's Sandman, and also read his very good novel American Gods. I'm two books into the His Dark Materials trilogy, and of course read the final Harry Potter book the week it was released. I'm not intending to imply that comic books must be linked with young adult fiction, but I have been enjoying both very, very much. This is a habit I'm quite happy to have formed, and see it colouring a good chunk of my 2008.

And, alas, Crochet Me. Immortalized in print! My workaholic year involved revamping the website, and battling desperately with the multitude of work I still have to do on it. That said, a lovely community has started to develop here, and I'm enjoying it immensely. I hope you are too. 2008 will certainly involve a more regular schedule here on the blog, and some much-needed (if not awaited) improvements to the site.

This photo (above) is from last week. It's of a beach on the Mayan Riviera. My first experience of that bizarre beast: the all-inclusive resort. Not a habit I'd like to form, but an excellent, perfect setting for the end of 2007.

I wish you all a very happy, healthy 2008, filled with yarns your fingers won't put down, creations that satisfy your mind and conscience, and only good things.