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indigo bunting purse

Love this little purse! I was able to finish it during the last show of Annie Sunday night, and I immediately moved stuff from my other purse into it and carried it out at the end of the show. I'm having fun using it this week.

crocheting in the orchestra pit

It's showtime! We're doing Annie, which has some good chunks of time for knitting. Or crocheting, in this particular case. I brought my big orange basket into the pit with lots of yarns for the indigo bunting purse.








I've been surprised at how it has been possible to manage doing freeform crochet and attach it to the purse during the show. There are so few strings in the pit for this show that it's a little roomier than usual, so I've been able to spread out and get lots done. Today's the last day, and I can't help but wonder if I'll have the purse finished when the curtain goes down. Seems possible....

a new freeform purse

Finally getting all these lovely yarns together to cover another purse. The colors are based on my new favorite bird, the indigo bunting. I saw one in Atlanta in May and was immediately taken with the vivid colors.

Most of this freeform piece was made last night in the pit at Annie. It's almost big enough to cover one side of the purse--it's not a big purse! 5 more shows this weekend, so maybe I'll have a finished purse when Annie closes.

sock knitting

Here's one, only one, of the Wanida socks I'm working on right now. The second one is really just an idea, a plan, a little thing barely cast on. The yarn is Malabrigo Sock in the Archangel colorway. Yummy!

fiery blanket

Last summer I made blankets. This summer I did not expect to want to make another, but then Joyce came into Cozy and showed me her granny square blanket, a work in progress using lots of greens. It really got me going, and I decided to make another granny square blanket, but this time I used a granny variation from the 200 Crochet Block book by Jan Eaton. This fiery red blanket is the Chocolate Box Granny, lots of fun to do.

contained freeform

I like freeform knitting and crocheting. I like doing it, but I don't like trying to plan for it to take a certain shape that will fit a body. For this reason, I've done handbags and scarves only. No garments.
But the idea of inserting freeform lace into a pattern that uses a lace section finally occurred to me a few days ago. OK, this is a way of making a garment that I can control! At least a little.
This is the back of the "Hey Teach" cardigan from Knitty. I saw a customer in Cozy wearing one a few months ago and decided to cast on for my own last week. After I got started, I realized that I could abandon the lace charts and do my own thing.
The yarn is SWTC Bamboo.

International show is on line now

The International Freeform Crochet group's 2010 show is on line now, click on the link to see http://www.freeformcrochet.com/. The picture above shows my piece in the show. The colors are inspired by a print of a painting by my stepfather, Allan Nance. There's a photo of the print on my page at the show's website.

There are lots of interesting entries to see, lots of creative ideas in the show. I'm looking forward to being able to leaf through a book of all of the freeform pieces. Our group publishes a small book of each show as a fundraiser for an international charity (not sure which one it is this year), and we'll be able to order books in a couple of weeks from blurb.com. Myra Wood is the one who puts it all together, and she always does a beautiful job. I'm glad to have finally entered one of these challenges!

knitting ahead of season

Too bad it will be a while before I can wear this, it's the Pas d'Arbres scarf by Spirals on Ravelry. If you are a Raveler, you can buy her download for only $2.00. It's a simple design, easy to knit. The way it spirals naturally is lots of fun.
I used almost 3 hanks of Koigu purchased on vacation last year at Purl Soho.

(almost) finished freeform purse

The Cardinal purse is newly finished, all except for the strap. The one that came with the purse is a bit homely, but I haven't found a replacement. Until I do, it will just have a homely little strap! Must get to the craft store.......
BTW, there is still room in the freeform class at Cozy this Sunday. It will run from 5:00 - 8:00. Call 919-286-3400 to register by tomorrow!