Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Project Gallery April 2014

Carla is crocheting these soft and practical mittens with extended cuffs using soft Red Heart yarn and a pattern from Red Heart Book of Kids hats & mittens; after selecting the best to submit to the State Fair, she'll donate them to Harriet Tubman  
Sue is still working on this amazing "minion" hat with sirens for her granddaughter. She's using Red Heart yarn and a pattern she found on Ravelry. 
Joy found a tutorial on Cre8tion Crochet  on using alcohol and permanent marker to stain or paint your finished projects, and shared the beautiful results of testing out the method.
Theresa used leftover Mimosa (62% cotton and 38% rayon) and a border of Red Heartstars & moon to whip up this boteh pattern scarflet.  The multi-color mesh bag was made from worsted weight 100% cotton yarn.   When she tied it off, she left a tail that she plans to decorate with beads and add a clip, key ring or caribiner, for a pretty and practical flair.
Mary created this rust bag with yarn purchased at our Hobby Lobby outing.  The adorable little bunny is sitting next to her pop tab bag; amazing how attractive recycling can be!



Thursday, April 24, 2014

4th Saturday Meetup: April 26

Are you ready for some quality crochet time? If you are, it's that time again - 4th Saturday meetup, where we meet informally to crochet, chat, and have a cup of coffee or cocoa - and just relax!

We're meeting Saturday, April 26 2014 from (approximately) 9am - noon at the Dunn Brothers at 530 University Avenue, Minneapolis (basically at 6th and University, up the hill from the Stone Arch Bridge). Drop in at any point and look for the group that's laughing and crocheting!




Maybe you'd like to start work on the CAL sweater






Or maybe you'd like to practice swatching cable stitches 


Or maybe you like to work on another project. Anything and everything is fine, we just hope you can join us!

Monday, April 14, 2014

Meeting Highlights: CAL Sweater Swatch

Joan led us through the business portion of our meeting and there was a lot to cover.  We welcomed a new member.  Sue stopped by our table Friday on at the American Craft Council (ACC) show and decided to join us.  Carol, Theresa & Peggy talked about staffing the demo table at the ACC show at the River Centre and lessons learned for tabling at future events.   Joan reminded us all that she is still collecting the 2"x2" and 4"x4" purple and white squares for the Crochet Twin Cities banner.  Be creative and practice special techniques like hairpin lace andTunisian, try out a new technique like "wiggle" or show off your creativity and skill by incorporating a variety of stitches. Members have the opportunity to sell their items in the gallery show and in the Textile Center gift shop. Interested members should contact Julie for details.  Maxine told us exciting news about monthly door prizes that will be starting next month.  Details how to earn tickets for the drawings will come soon.

Our project gallery will be posted later this month, however I wanted to share a couple of highlights.  Jodi tried out a new technique she read about cre8ationcrochet.com and Sue showed us these great plastic finishing needles for those of us who might want an easier way to thread our needles.


Then we got down to the real business of the meeting: Jodi led us through things to consider when beginning a new project, such as our CAL (crochet along) sweater.  It was so fun to see everyone's swatches and the colorful variety of yarns members are planning to use.  There was a lively discussion about ways to customize our projects for optimum fit and wearability.  It was great to have many experienced crocheters available to give us tips and hints on dealing with the unique features of our individual figures.  By the way, if you are wondering what to do with your swatch when you no longer need it, Theresa has offerred to gather them all and sew them together into a patchwork afghan, which we will then donate. Visit About.com's webpage "How to Use or Re-Use Yarn Swatches" to see more ideas for swatches from all of your projects.

Our April 26th, 4th Satuday meet up will be held during the usual time (9am-Noon) at the Dunn Brothers at 530 University Ave in Minneapolis.  There is a parking lot, but you may want to consider carpooling just in case.

And finally, don't forget we are back at the Textile Center for our May 10th meeting, when we'll learn about knitting.  See you soon!

Monday, April 7, 2014

CAL Sweater Swatch: April 12 Meeting Preview

The meeting for April is CAL Sweater: Let's Get Started. We will be discussing the pattern, gauge, swatching, how to choose a size, schematics, making alterations, and checking measurements as you go. 
To get the most out of the meeting, you will need to bring the following materials:
Bring a 6” x 6” swatch made with any yarn(s) you are considering for making the sweater, along
with the yarn and ball band. You can leave the swatch(es) attached to the yarn ball; you don’t
need to fasten off or weave in ends. Also bring your measurements from the February meeting,
a ruler, your copy of the pattern, a tape measure, and any pattern questions you have.
To make a swatch:
Ch 34 (or an even number of chains to make a 7” length).
Row 1: Dc in 6th ch from hook, *ch 1, skip next ch, dc in next ch* repeat from*  across, turn.
Row 2: Ch 4, dc in next dc, *ch 1, skip next ch, dc in next dc* repeat from * across to last dc, ch
1 dc in 4th ch, turn.
Row 3: Ch 4, dc in next dc, *ch 1, skip next ch, dc in next dc* rep
If you have already begun your garment be sure to bring it along with any questions you have. If you have any questions about yarn substitution or gauge you can get on Facebook chat, post your questions on the Ravelry thread, or contact Carol, Joan or Jodi.

Due to a previously scheduled event being held at the Textile Center our meeting in April will be held at St. Kate's campus in St. Paul. You should have received an email with a map of the campus, directions to the room we will be meeting in and a parking permit you will need to put in your front window, if you haven't please send an email to ctclist@gmail.cm


All interested crocheters are invited to join us on Saturday, April 13 at  St. Catherine University, CdC 495. The meeting will be from 1pm to 3pm but you are welcome to join us from 11am to 1pm for open crochet.

We hope to see you there!