Sunday, January 13, 2013

Project Proliferation!

Yesterday is a good example of how I get sidetracked, ending up with four or five projects going at once! I'm working away at my new doggie sweater as planned, then I see Martha Stewart's dog Sharkey wearing this incredible getup to protect the owie on his paw that I simply must try to recreate in crochet form for my Miniature Schnauzers! I really should try to develop some type of regimen to my crochet workflow, but it just never seems to work out that way for me.

I guess that's part of the real fun of crochet designing! You see a need, or get a flash of inspiration, and you must run, not walk, to grab hook and yarn to make it real. If I'm not lucky enough to be home with all my stuff when this happens, it's time to grab pen and paper and start making drawings and notes.

So along with Sharkey's bizarre outfit,  I'm finishing up the pattern for what has to be the world's easiest dog sweater to make, put on, take off, and wear (from the dog's point of view!) The sweater is a version of one I whipped up a few years ago for rescue boy Bailey. You see, Bailey (who is now 12) is our problem child. If you attempt to do things like groom him or dress him up in pretty clothes, he will bite you! Undaunted, I decided Bailey must still have a sweater, but it would be one that I could put on him (and take off) so fast he wouldn't know what hit him!  Surprisingly, Bailey adored his sweater and has worn the same black one for years. (Who knew Patons Voo-Doo would wash and wear so very well!)

Bailey had his t-shirt on when I needed to take the picture, so Winnie got the honor of modeling Bailey's sweater.



Also in the works are a scarf for my grand-goddaughter Lacey out of that new self-ruffling yarn. I finally found a way to work with it that does NOT drive me insane! I'm making it lengthwise rather than vertical, and in only two rows. That way it is not so full, and not so hard on my very weird eyes! It's a gorgeous gold metallic and I can't wait to give it to her though.

Just finished a purple scarf and matching fingerless gloves for my goddaughter Laurie, out of Princess chenille from Hobby Lobby and Enchantment in gold from JoAnn. The yarns are gorgeous!



Made two fun fur mobius scarves for Laurie's other daughter, Chelsea, out of Lion Brand Fun Fur in neon pink and yellow. She can wear them separately or together. I still need to make her matching hair scrunchies! Hey... Chels loves neon!

Dug into my "fancy yarn store" up in the attic and pulled a bunch of pretty blues and purple soft fuzzy yarns to make my friend Heidi and her daughter Nicole each a mobius scarf with 3 strands of yarn held together, nice and incredibly soft and warm. Worked up with a big hook they take me about three hours apiece to make.

The last of the late Christmas gifts was a set of a mobius scarf and fingerless gloves for Melissa, the wonderful girl who works at the infusion center where I get my weekly "fill-up" (transfusion) to keep me pumped-up. She is just a doll, so fashionable and sweet. Her set was done in the white Enchantress sequin yarn held together with Deborah Norville's Jeweltones in Moonstone. Loved how that turned out (so did she!)



In between the Christmas gifts, I managed to whip myself up a scarf to go with my fingerless gloves I made last year. It is the softest, warmest scarf I've ever made and I love it! Yarns were Enchantress sequin, Jeweltones Moonstone, and Buttercup in white (I forget the mfgr, sorry!)

Right now I'm on the border rounds of the Backward Rose Round Motif, which also would make a nice snowflake! It was supposed to come out for Christmas, and my sudden trip to Kansas City delayed that.  I published Celia's Winter Rose Snowflake as my snowflake for 2012 instead, in memory of her Sean, my nephew, who we lost just before Christmas.

There are two new scarf patterns coming out this next week! One will be the "Chain-Chain-Chain Scarf," which is easy enough for the beginningest-beginner but fun enough for anybody! The other is the Treble Lacy Scarf, which works up lightning fast and looks very pretty I think. Watch for the announcements. If you don't get announcements of my new pattern releases, just email me at SheilaSchnauzies@gmail.com with "mailing list" in the subject line. I'll make sure you get the news!


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