Craft Venture

I will say my first craft love is crocheting, just love wielding that hook. I sewed on and off for several years, but no where to the extent of making unique garments. My sewing style was geared towards home decorating, curtains, duvet covers and pillow slips. Last year I made a Skirt for my daughter and she's still waiting for the other skirts I vowed I would make...lol. As you know crochet took first place and sewing was put on the back burner. When my daughter was younger, I would take her little outfits and embellish them with appliques and whatnots. We still oohh and ahhh over an outfit that I refashioned... It was a denim jacket and jeans... I had purchased some appliques, two of them were in shapes of a gumball machine that was all glitter and glam, with sequins and other glittery notions on it. I sat there and sewed the applique on to the back of the jacket and sewed the little gumball machine on the leg part of her jeans. Well, you couldn't tell my kid she wasn't chillin' and mackin'.. it was too adorable. I must say I grabbed the attention of a few moms who wanted to know where I'd purchased the outfit... told them I dabbled in embellishing and for a while I was refashioning outfits for her friends... it was fun. When she'd outgrow her jeans and long sleeve tops.. I would refashion the jeans into shorts and the tops into short sleeve tops, sometimes adding cute trimming. When I lived a more social life, that required attending formal functions... I would buy outfits and embellish them with rhinestones or sequins or whatever caught my fancy.

Well, after visiting Real Life Live and Unscripted, Hook and Needles and Life Happens Be Positive, I was inspired to try my hand at some sewing. So ventured to the fabric store Friday and boy-o-boy was it crowded, for a second I thought they were giving out something free.... lol. I purchased a few items and sauntered on home with these...

I brought 2 New Look patterns, 6571, which consist of Dresses, Top, Camisole, Skirt and Sash, and 6515, which consist of Tops. The fabrics are b/w floral georgette, white lace, blue stretch knit and embroidered batiste.

So you know what was next.. cleaning up my little sewing area... which usually holds court for my hair paraphernalia... hair dryer, hot curlers, rollers and whatnots... lol. Ohhh.. yes I do wash & set... lol. Well on to trying my hand at sewing.

Knit & Crochet Meet Up

Last night I had the pleasure of attending a knit & crochet meet-up at the West Hempstead Library. Enjoyed myself immensely. Its been sometime since I'd been to one. One of my New Year's resolutions is to attend more meet-ups. I consider myself the Lone Crocheter... hehe... After working all day I head home and hang with the family and at some point venture off to my craft room and begin my crocheting until late in the nite. On the weekend I will spend an entire day holed up in my craft room only stepping out for brief periods to eat and do whatever else. I have a new name now, my family members call me Home Alone... b/c I spend an exorbitant amount of time cooped up in the room during week nites and into the weekend. But don't get me wrong I manage to get things done at home and then I rush back to crocheting and just crafting. So with all that said and with the New Year here... attending the meet-up last nite was fun. The instructor, Angela was super... let me tell you... she knows everything... and had a project on her needles... she is making a Mardi Cardigan in a peppered cream yarn. Well, I casted on and it was going smoothly until I dropped one of my cast on stitches...b/c I was so busy running my mouth and at the same time absorbing the going-ons of crocheting and knitting . I did note the big difference between knitting and crocheting in that if you drop a knit stitch... its a PITA, whereas with crocheting its a breeze to recover a dropped stitch. I really had a hard time with working the knitting needles (just trying to hold them and manuever the yarn was a challenge), at some point during the 2hr meet-up, I would put the knitting to the side and pick-up my crochet project and then back to the knitting... but in the end, all I have to show for that nite was cast on stitches....lol. At least thats a start... provided I keep practicing.