Part 1 Countdown: 5 Days Left. Loom Knitting...Days Away!
Yesterday, I came to my blog, completely uninspired. I had the worst case of writer's block, that (I am quite sure) the world has ever known. I looked at the blank text box, for the longest time, trying to find a word, to even start yesterday's post. For half an hour (at least), I just looked at the screen, and wished that there was some magical way, a post would write itself.
Then, when I was finished with yesterday's post, I read over it. "Well," I said, aloud, as I got to the end. "This has to be the worst blog entry, EVER!" I was not satisfied, with yesterday's post. Not at all! But, at least it was something.
1 point for at least trying, to write a half-way decent post, yesterday.
Oh well...Not every day is going to be magic. There are some days when the words flow, from my fingers, to this blog, with great ease. And then, there are days like yesterday...Days where writing becomes torture. Days when I am sure my brain has left, and all that is in my head is cobwebs, and empty space.
After writing yesterday's post, I had breakfast (homemade waffles, with syrup.) I watched TV, for a bit, and then, I went to my chaise.
I know I said, in yesterday's entry, that I would work another 2 beanies. I got two rounds, into the first beanie. (I was planning on making a black beanie, with a variegated (green, blue, and yellow) band. And, I just couldn't do it. I looked at the 2 rounds, and decided that I had had enough. I needed a break, from the beanies. I mean, doing the same project, over, and over...and OVER, again. To say it was monotonous, would be putting it kindly. It was beyond mind-numbing. (No friggin wonder, I was so uninspired, yesterday.)
I needed a change...PRONTO!
I went to my stash, hoping that, while I looked at my yarn, a new project would let itself be known. I played around with my yarn, for a long while. I ran wool, across my cheeks. I rolled skeins of Red Heart, in my hands.
Nothing was coming!
Then, right as I was about to close my yarn cabinet, I saw it. A faint glimmer. I knew what it was, as I reached for it. The size "G" hook, my mother gave me, a while back. It was just a standard (older) Boye hook. Aluminum. A gold color. The gold tint had worn off, at the tip of the hook. It had belonged to my grandmother. She was big, in the whole crochet scene. After she passed away, a few years back, we were going through her stuff, and my mom had found this. For whatever reason, she had decided to keep it. Now, doing The Yarn Project, I am glad she did not decide to throw it away.
I held the hook, in my hand. And, I instantly knew what I wanted to work on, yesterday.
A doily.
I don't have any crochet thread. But, was I about to let that stop me? No, sir. I remembered my grandma's favorite color. Pink! So, I grabbed some thin, pink acrylic yarn, from my stash. Yarn, instead of crochet thread? Why not?
With my yarn, and hook, I went to the office, and turned on the computer. I went online, and searched for a basic doily pattern.
I found it.
"Simple Doily", by Nancy Hearne (www.nancyhearne.com/drawingboard/simpledoily.html). I looked at the picture. It looked JUST like the type of doily, that my grandmother would have enjoyed making. So, I set off.
'15 Rounds', I remember thinking, as I chained 6, and formed the ring. 'This will be a piece of cake!' I worked the first 5 rounds, with a great ease. I was all smiles, as I crocheted away. I imagined my grandma, taking a break from Heaven, to watch me, as I worked this. Invisibly sitting, in the corner, of the very room, where I was creating MY VERY FIRST DOILY!
Round 6...I started asking if this was such a good idea. This doily was taking a bit longer, than I had anticipated. (I thought I would be way past round 6, in this amount of time.) It was while working this round, that I came to learn (or at least be reminded of) one simple truth. 'Simple' and 'Quick', are NOT synonymous! Still though, I was having a good enough time, working this simple (NOT QUICK) doily. So, all was good.
Round 10...WHY DID I CHOOSE TO MAKE THIS FRIGGIN DOILY!!! If my grandmother was in the room, watching me, well...I can guarantee, she was laughing her ghostly butt off. (She would find it quite humorous, that it was taking me so DAMNED long, to work one MISERABLE doily.) If I was going to spend ETERNITY, making a pink yarn doily, I decided that I should, AT LEAST, be able to enjoy a beer.
Round 11...I have come to decide...Anything with more than 10 rounds, does NOT deserve to be called SIMPLE! The dogs all gathered, in the very room where I was (not so merrily) crocheting this doily. They had conspired, I am sure, to make this whole thing, even more miserable, for me. Once they were all in the room, they began barking. NONSTOP BARKING! I wanted to cry! I am sure nobody would hear me, as I sobbed away. Not over the loud dogs.
Round 12...'It would be ok, if you just decided to end this doily here.' My internal devil whispered to me. 'It already looks GREAT! Who needs those last 3 rounds?' The internal devil's voice, was then muted, by the voice of my grandmother. 'Don't give up, Michael...Keep going. You are almost there.' (I looked back, at the corner where I had imagined my grandmother's spirit sitting, and I made a very ugly face.) "DAMNED DOILY! I HATE YOU!"
Round 13...My cell phone had become an enemy. While creating round 13, every friggin person I know, decided to call me. Even if they had nothing to say...they had thought that I needed to get a call. Finally, after 10 phone calls, I turned my phone off.
Round 14...There is light, at the end of the Doily Tunnel. I am ALMOST DONE. PRAISE THE YARN GODS!!!
Round 15...Well...It was my last round. How could it not be an awesome round to work?
Here it is...my pink doily.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theyarnproject/5415806549/
No sooner did I finish, than my aunt decided that it was appropriate, to start ragging, on it.
"That's not a doily," she said, shaking her head. "You didn't use thread? Doilies are made FROM THREAD!"
Time to stand up...Stand up, for all the non-thread doilies, out there. Time to stand up, for myself...for my freedom, to make any friggin thing, in any WAY I WANT!
"It IS a doily. I made it with yarn, because I WANTED TO! If you don't like it..." I smiled at her, "well, I don't really give a crap!"
I went, and put this doily, on my black ottoman, in my Yarn Haven. As I positioned it, my mother came over, to take a look at it.
"Wow," she said. (That could have been a good 'wow', or a bad 'wow'...I wasn't sure.) "That is beautiful, Micheal. It is stunning!" (Whew...thank God. It was a good 'wow'.) "I am impressed!" She looked from the doily, to me. "Your grandma would be impressed, too!" (Wow...Talk about a rockin' compliment.)
The doily took just over 5 hours, to make. 5 LONG hours. My sanity was tested, in every way, as I worked. But, in the end, I can say I am very happy.
Looking at this pink doily, sitting on my ottoman, I think. I would have regretted it, if I didn't make this doily, before going to loom knitting!
As for today...
Well, after the tedious doily work, I need a break. I will be going to the mall, today. I may make a beanie, at some point, today. But, for now...I am off, to the mall.
Happy crocheting!
Then, when I was finished with yesterday's post, I read over it. "Well," I said, aloud, as I got to the end. "This has to be the worst blog entry, EVER!" I was not satisfied, with yesterday's post. Not at all! But, at least it was something.
1 point for at least trying, to write a half-way decent post, yesterday.
Oh well...Not every day is going to be magic. There are some days when the words flow, from my fingers, to this blog, with great ease. And then, there are days like yesterday...Days where writing becomes torture. Days when I am sure my brain has left, and all that is in my head is cobwebs, and empty space.
After writing yesterday's post, I had breakfast (homemade waffles, with syrup.) I watched TV, for a bit, and then, I went to my chaise.
I know I said, in yesterday's entry, that I would work another 2 beanies. I got two rounds, into the first beanie. (I was planning on making a black beanie, with a variegated (green, blue, and yellow) band. And, I just couldn't do it. I looked at the 2 rounds, and decided that I had had enough. I needed a break, from the beanies. I mean, doing the same project, over, and over...and OVER, again. To say it was monotonous, would be putting it kindly. It was beyond mind-numbing. (No friggin wonder, I was so uninspired, yesterday.)
I needed a change...PRONTO!
I went to my stash, hoping that, while I looked at my yarn, a new project would let itself be known. I played around with my yarn, for a long while. I ran wool, across my cheeks. I rolled skeins of Red Heart, in my hands.
Nothing was coming!
Then, right as I was about to close my yarn cabinet, I saw it. A faint glimmer. I knew what it was, as I reached for it. The size "G" hook, my mother gave me, a while back. It was just a standard (older) Boye hook. Aluminum. A gold color. The gold tint had worn off, at the tip of the hook. It had belonged to my grandmother. She was big, in the whole crochet scene. After she passed away, a few years back, we were going through her stuff, and my mom had found this. For whatever reason, she had decided to keep it. Now, doing The Yarn Project, I am glad she did not decide to throw it away.
I held the hook, in my hand. And, I instantly knew what I wanted to work on, yesterday.
A doily.
I don't have any crochet thread. But, was I about to let that stop me? No, sir. I remembered my grandma's favorite color. Pink! So, I grabbed some thin, pink acrylic yarn, from my stash. Yarn, instead of crochet thread? Why not?
With my yarn, and hook, I went to the office, and turned on the computer. I went online, and searched for a basic doily pattern.
I found it.
"Simple Doily", by Nancy Hearne (www.nancyhearne.com/drawingboard/simpledoily.html). I looked at the picture. It looked JUST like the type of doily, that my grandmother would have enjoyed making. So, I set off.
'15 Rounds', I remember thinking, as I chained 6, and formed the ring. 'This will be a piece of cake!' I worked the first 5 rounds, with a great ease. I was all smiles, as I crocheted away. I imagined my grandma, taking a break from Heaven, to watch me, as I worked this. Invisibly sitting, in the corner, of the very room, where I was creating MY VERY FIRST DOILY!
Round 6...I started asking if this was such a good idea. This doily was taking a bit longer, than I had anticipated. (I thought I would be way past round 6, in this amount of time.) It was while working this round, that I came to learn (or at least be reminded of) one simple truth. 'Simple' and 'Quick', are NOT synonymous! Still though, I was having a good enough time, working this simple (NOT QUICK) doily. So, all was good.
Round 10...WHY DID I CHOOSE TO MAKE THIS FRIGGIN DOILY!!! If my grandmother was in the room, watching me, well...I can guarantee, she was laughing her ghostly butt off. (She would find it quite humorous, that it was taking me so DAMNED long, to work one MISERABLE doily.) If I was going to spend ETERNITY, making a pink yarn doily, I decided that I should, AT LEAST, be able to enjoy a beer.
Round 11...I have come to decide...Anything with more than 10 rounds, does NOT deserve to be called SIMPLE! The dogs all gathered, in the very room where I was (not so merrily) crocheting this doily. They had conspired, I am sure, to make this whole thing, even more miserable, for me. Once they were all in the room, they began barking. NONSTOP BARKING! I wanted to cry! I am sure nobody would hear me, as I sobbed away. Not over the loud dogs.
Round 12...'It would be ok, if you just decided to end this doily here.' My internal devil whispered to me. 'It already looks GREAT! Who needs those last 3 rounds?' The internal devil's voice, was then muted, by the voice of my grandmother. 'Don't give up, Michael...Keep going. You are almost there.' (I looked back, at the corner where I had imagined my grandmother's spirit sitting, and I made a very ugly face.) "DAMNED DOILY! I HATE YOU!"
Round 13...My cell phone had become an enemy. While creating round 13, every friggin person I know, decided to call me. Even if they had nothing to say...they had thought that I needed to get a call. Finally, after 10 phone calls, I turned my phone off.
Round 14...There is light, at the end of the Doily Tunnel. I am ALMOST DONE. PRAISE THE YARN GODS!!!
Round 15...Well...It was my last round. How could it not be an awesome round to work?
Here it is...my pink doily.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theyarnproject/5415806549/
No sooner did I finish, than my aunt decided that it was appropriate, to start ragging, on it.
"That's not a doily," she said, shaking her head. "You didn't use thread? Doilies are made FROM THREAD!"
Time to stand up...Stand up, for all the non-thread doilies, out there. Time to stand up, for myself...for my freedom, to make any friggin thing, in any WAY I WANT!
"It IS a doily. I made it with yarn, because I WANTED TO! If you don't like it..." I smiled at her, "well, I don't really give a crap!"
I went, and put this doily, on my black ottoman, in my Yarn Haven. As I positioned it, my mother came over, to take a look at it.
"Wow," she said. (That could have been a good 'wow', or a bad 'wow'...I wasn't sure.) "That is beautiful, Micheal. It is stunning!" (Whew...thank God. It was a good 'wow'.) "I am impressed!" She looked from the doily, to me. "Your grandma would be impressed, too!" (Wow...Talk about a rockin' compliment.)
The doily took just over 5 hours, to make. 5 LONG hours. My sanity was tested, in every way, as I worked. But, in the end, I can say I am very happy.
Looking at this pink doily, sitting on my ottoman, I think. I would have regretted it, if I didn't make this doily, before going to loom knitting!
As for today...
Well, after the tedious doily work, I need a break. I will be going to the mall, today. I may make a beanie, at some point, today. But, for now...I am off, to the mall.
Happy crocheting!