03.26.08
Tip Toe through the Two Loops
Overhearing a class that was being conducted in the shop, I kept hearing…tulips…tulips…two loops!
It was just Master Jeff (ravelry link) doing what he does best, teaching others to crochet. March is National Crochet month and in celebrating, we had a few wonderful crochet classes at The Local Needle.
Jeff has created the perfect beginner class. Using single crochet, students learn how to make a rolled brim hat. They work around and around and about a week later, ta-da!…they have a great hat to wear.
Nobody really knows where crochet originated, a writer/researcher, Lis Paludan mentions a few theories: a primitive South American tribe was said to have used crochet adornments in rites of puberty and in China, early examples were known of 3-dimensional dolls worked in crochet. Amigurumi? Perhaps.
A great many sources state that crochet has been known as far back as the 1500s in Italy under the name of ‘nun’s work’ or ‘nun’s lace,’ where it was worked by nuns for church textiles.
Regardless of it’s origins, I personally have learned a new respect for the craft. Jeff has shown me and other Local Needle customers that crochet does not have to look…for want of a better word, tacky. I can only assume that most of the crochet I have seen in my lifetime was made by a beginner and also made with poor quality yarn. I have now been exposed to expert workmanship and use of lovely yarns, the difference is unbelievable.
To show you what I mean, here is a dresser scarf made from JaggerSpun Zephyr laceweight, and Jeff’s favorite…the pineapple stitch. It’s simply gorgeous.
So thank you Jeff for sharing your knowledge and expertise with us at The Local Needle, we are now a Retail member of The Crochet Guild Of America and cheers to National Crochet Month, may this craft continue to grow in popularity and technique!
03.16.08
Just a beautiful day!
Today was a day that most of us dream of..not a cloud in the sky, a cool breeze in the air, and butterflies.
The yellow ones.
Butterflies are something that I just don’t know by name as I do birds so…they are named by color. At one time there were 6 in view…bouncing this way and that, looking for that special flower to rest on (I tried to capture two, on left.)
There’s a smell of mud flats in the air, the river out back is just now back within it’s banks. Reminds me of my childhood, down Dion Ave in Kittery, Maine. When the tide was out we’d walk out as far as we could… barefoot, and come back with mud up to our knees. Mud…the smell of spring.
I finished the Dream In Color Tulip Cardigan the other day, it is as fun to make as it looks!
After placing it on Savannah (yes, we have named her), we decided she was a little too bald and needed something on her head as well. So here you have the Tulip Hat complimenting the ensemble (thank you…Mistress Stash Enhancer).
THIS is Dream In Color, isn’t it just yummy?
You can check back later this week for the sweater kits for this cardigan; several sizes for the Tulip Cardigan (girls) and the Rocketry (boy’s) pattern as well. In addition, you can download both patterns, as well as other Dream In Color patterns, from here.
Here’s to Spring 08 and all it’s beautiful blossoms!
03.11.08
Old-fashioned Clothespins
I don’t remember where I saw this, most likely on another blog a year or more ago.
I used regular clothespins from Wally World, printed out some old-timey pictures from the web, cut them to size, and then applied Modge Pod over all of it.
Next time I’ll use some better quality clothespins, but these are great for displaying things at the shop, a pattern, a sock…I think there’s even a few on the orchid stem.
Lacey Lamb at The Local Needle
We have had this yarn for a month or so now, but I have never “introduced” it here on the blog. So…blogging community, here is Lacey Lamb, Lacey Lamb…blogging community. For those that love to knit lace, Lacey Lamb is an absolute wonderful yarn to use.
It’s 100% extrafine lambswool, 825 yds per ball and believe it or not, machine washable…lace?
Lacey Lamb was featured several times in the very popular lace knitting book, Victorian Lace Today.
When people are in that corner of the shop, it reminds me of that old Charmin toiletpaper commercial…”stop squeezing the Charmin Lacey Lamb”.
We have already sold a lot of what you see here, but we have more on the way! If we don’t have the color you want, we’re more than happy to order it for you.
