Last year I decided that I wanted to use up a lot of my working stash, even before the pandemic. That worked well. Now in 2021 – all bets are off. I have taken advantage of sales and bought new yarn while still using some yarn that isn’t set aside for afghans. As much as I crochet and make hats one of my favorite patterns is the basket weave stitch or some variation that includes front and back post stitches. It doesn’t make a difference how many new patterns I try for hats: I like the look even in different yarns.
There are many places where I can find yarn and thrift stores are a good source. Though, I want to try to buy new yarn for the projects so the recipients will have something that was selected just for the project. It could just be an excuse to buy more yarn [and I have taken advantage of some great sales lately].
I’ve decided to just stick with what I know and use my favorite stitches to make interesting sets. My latest project combines post work and single crochet to add some texture. The scarf hasn’t been started yet, though this might be a good pattern to try with a different yarn. When I started working on the hat, there was no pattern. I just started with the basic circumference of a hat and made it up as I went along. For the scarf, I need to be more intentional and plan how many rows of single crochet and ribbing I will do so it will be more balanced and that I don’t run out of yarn. Once I figure that out I will definitely use this pattern in other yarns and compare the finished products. The yarn I’m currently using is a color changing yarn. Wonder what the design will look like in a less dramatic color or a solid? This will be a fun challenge to see how the pattern looks in different colorways.
The scarf will be started soon after I sketch things out or at least plan it out in my head, so I will have enough yarn. This will be fun!
Happy crocheting!
2021 will be a great year for crocheting. For this year’s crochet goals I’m thinking 60 hat and scarf sets and 10 red scarves. This will still give me time to make some other things. At first I was thinking 50 sets. But since I finished a set, a hat for a second and have made good progress on the accompanying scarf and the first week of January hasn’t even ended, 60 sets and 10 red scarves is a manageable goal. This will also give me time to work on some other projects or use some oddballs to make hats.
Since I finished my mystery balls with black, I’m looking forward to starting an afghan made with those this year. I’ve been buying yarn with reckless abandon and I’m itching to use some new yarn.
This New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2020 there’s the opportunity to stay safely at home without making excuses for not wanting to go out. I’ve made a casserole and will do what I have been doing in the evenings for the past few months, sitting at home and crocheting, except tomorrow I don’t have to go to work and probably won’t go for a walk because it will likely be too cold. Nevertheless, the new yarn I’ve acquired gives me hope that more people will have something warm to wear in the future.
The beauty of working with yarn that doesn’t have a dye lot is that it’s easy to make a coordinating item or incorporate some of the original color into a hat to make something with stripes or a color block. There are a few unmatched hats and scarves that are going to be donated but I am thinking of working right up to the end of the year since it gets colder in January and many donations are made Christmas time and there’s a lull afterward though the need still remains.
Work, walk, crochet, read that’s about how my days go. The safest option is to stay at home, crochet and watch movies.
On Halloween I met my 2020 goal of 40 scarves, 15 sets and 15 afghans. The other day I noticed that I have cleared out a small space near my favorite chair in the living room. Since I’ve finished the last of my goals – 15 afghans and it’s getting cold, I’ve been making more hats and scarves. A few weeks ago, I thought I had gotten to the creative portion of my stashbusting. I haven’t even gotten close to finishing all the working stash yarn that I have; closer than in March, but there’s a bit more still available. There is a brown fleck merino yarn that I have a lot of, and it’s been making the rounds in projects. I didn’t like it, set it aside but blended with other yarns it’s very nice.
If you haven’t voted in the 2020 election already – there’s still time to vote on Election Day 2020. I prefer to vote on the day itself for sentimental reasons. Plus, there’s never a long wait and I live across the street from my current polling place.
Even in the crafting world where you would think people have something in common to make it possible to share a craft they love, it’s not often so. The craft world is just a microcosm of the world at large and isn’t a place where people can just hide with their materials and create, as much as some people would like to think. Racism won’t go away on Nov 3, there is still a lot of work to be done as a nation.
I’ve found a way to use up more yarn from my stash – using two strands at a time. I’ve mentioned before that I like using worsted weight yarn. What I hadn’t considered was using two DK or sock weight yarns to make something. I’ve used two or three strands or worsted weight yarn together. Even using a larger hook I got tired of it, my hand would cramp and the project would be too stiff or too loose when I used a larger hook.
Though football season has resumed, those are not calls but the number of completed projects. The goal for the year was 15 hat and scarf sets, 40 scarves and 15 afghans. Six and one could also be added to 15, 37 and 14 – six adult hats and one baby hat. One goal down and two to go. The hats were just bonus items because I didn’t have enough of the same yarn to make anything larger than a hat.
Fifteen hat and scarf sets are ready to be donated.
