Crochet Queen: Royal Ramblings

Monday, April 15, 2013 We have a fairly new magazine, Fiber Art Now , which follows in the footsteps of Fiberarts magazine. It started in 2009 as a blog called Valley Fiber Life by Marcia Young. Life goes on and I am glad that once again we have a beautiful magazine that strives to inspire and connect the fiber art and textile community like Fiberarts magazine once did!. I have been receiving my Fiber Art Now news on line for a while and have just received my first hard copy with my subscription. I am happy to be in the fiber art loop again and am really enjoying it. Since my upcoming book, The Fine Art of Crochet (June 2013), fits into the genres of fine art and fiber art, I want to be on top of the most current information as to where to share the news. Whether a single issue features crochet or not is not important to me. There is much to inspire crocheters: just the pure color that abounds is sure to inspire along with news of exhibits, shows and manufacturers who may feature c...

Friday, April 12, 2013 We took a ride in the country this past Sunday to Grayslake, IL  grayslakehistory.org  to the historical museum to see an exhibit of aprons. I happen to enjoy aprons for their colorful and unique designs as well as the historical perspective of their use. It was worth the trip; even though the exhibit was small, I enjoyed it  and found the ubiquitous crocheted apron. That made my day! As an added bonus, there was a chair and "aparatus" that was used in the late 19th century for ladies to get a permanent wave. ...and I thought getting highlights used to be a hassle!

Wednesday, April 10, 2013 The food metaphors seem to abound this week. This past Saturday, I attended a Yarn Tasting sponsored by Mosaic Yarn Studio  and Classic Elite Yarns . The staff at Mosaic Yarn Studio was very gracious. They served us our wine and appetizers and modeled that garments made in the yarns we were "tasting." This is the swatch I made during the two hours of experiencing the Classic Elite yarns. It consists of (from bottom) Classic Silk Giselle Kumara Alpace Sox and Fresco The yarns were all good to work with, but then I love most Yarns and I really love color. It was fun to see all the different color combinations provided to each of us by Classic Elite to stitch with. It was a fun and relaxing evening attended by about 18-20 women pretty well split between crocheters and knitters in a friendly, bi-stitchural setting!

Tuesday, April 9, 2013 Feeding Alice - A Love Story by Shelly Schachter My blog has always been about family, life and the intermingling of crochet into my everyday functioning. For my brother-in-law, Shelly, life is about food; and more importantly, life is about showing his love for his wife with creativity in the kitchen.  This full-color, self-published book is a feast for the eyes and a smorgasbord of taste-tempting recipes. The life Shelly and Alice have created in picturesque Carmel Valley, California has evolved over many years. The fantasy-like setting and the colorful, seemingly perfect meals that are pictured did not happen magically. Much dirt under the fingernails, sweat on the brow, and experimentation in the kitchen brought this book to fruition. Shelly is a house-husband who manages the home fires while Alice assumes her high-pressure executive duties. He works the soil caressed by the California sun; he prunes and harvests; he plays in the kitchen. B...

Wednesday, April 4, 2013 Opening my email box on Monday proved to be quit exciting as the cover of my new book and galley for the interior was waiting for me! I've spent these last two days going over each word with a magnifying glass to make sure there will be no errors upon publication. I wish I could post an image of the cover here and now because I love it. But alas, one word needs to be removed so I will resist temptation and keep you in suspense a little while longer! Even though I spend intense days on the computer, I always make time to crochet. Although it took me 3 days to load up the size 11-0 seed beads for Little Dots & Spirals bangle bracele t,  it was gratifying to bead-crochet it in just two evenings.  I won the pattern from Linda Lehman in the 2012 contest over at The   Bead Crochet  Exchange on Ravelry   and it is quite an amazing design. I once commented to Linda that her designs are so complex that she must have a br...