Freebie Friday!

The fifth Friday of January, May, July, and October is Freebie Friday! Tune in to find out how to enter my exciting giveaways. You could win yarn, patterns, findings, and more!

This Friday's giveaway prize will be... any three of my paid patterns that you desire! That's right, the winner of January's Freebie Friday will be able to choose any three of my patterns for free.

So, how do you go about winning? Here's the deal! You have to go on a scavenger hunt. No, you won't have to go to your neighbors' houses asking for eggs or pennies like in middle school! It's a blog scavenger hunt. All of the answers can be found somewhere on my blog. Use the 'sparks' on the right sidebar, the tabs under the banner, and the search feature in the top left corner to help you. The first person to email me at illuminatecrochet@gmail.com with the correct answers to the following questions will win the patterns!

1 - What is my cat's name?
2 - On what website have I been featured most often?
3 - What official crochet organization am I a member of?
4 - Which of my patterns uses the Catherine's wheel stitch?

Good luck! I'll be waiting to see who emails me with the correct answers first.

Crocheting for Cats: Important Things to Remember

Do you have a little crochet buddy? A ball of fur who keeps you company as you work? If so, you'll probably be tempted at some point to crochet them something of their very own. Here are some tips to help you out as you make a gift for kitty.

- Never leave cats unattended to play with balls of yarn. If they decide to eat it the yarn could cause problems in their intestines. Instead, supervise play and then put the yarn ball out of reach until next time.

- When making toy mice or other toys that have strings hanging, reinforce the tails and tassels so they aren't easily chewed off and swallowed.

- As with babies, eyes on stuffed animals made for cats should either be safety eyes or sewn on. Never use small beads or buttons on a project for cats.

- If you can possibly do so, choose washable materials for cat toys.

- Avoid very lacy items for cats as their paws/claws may become tangled or stuck in the holes. 

- Cats love textures so choose an interesting stitch pattern.

- There is some research to suggest that cats prefer cool colors such as green, blue, and purple, so choosing those colors of yarn for your project might please kitty.

- If you're making a stuffed item for your cat you may wish to lace the stuffing with catnip.

Have you crocheted something for your cat that they enjoyed? Let us know about it in the comments.

Silver Lining Headband

Have you ever tried crochet cables? Yes, you can do cables in crochet! They're not just for knitters. I just love the way crochet cables look. If you've never done cables and you're interested in learning, my new pattern is a great choice. The Silver Lining Headband has gentle cabling. It's versatile and easy to wear.

As always, the pattern is available on both Ravelry and Craftsy.

From the Source Friday: Pronkin Pastures

The fourth Friday of every month is From the Source Friday! Show your appreciation to these dedicated fiber farmers as they teach you all about where your yarn comes from. Today's featured fiber is alpaca. Originally from South America, alpacas have become popular with fiber lovers for the soft fibers that they produce. LeeAnna of Pronkin Pastures Alpaca Ranch on Whidbey Island, Washington is here with us today to tell us about her furry friends.

Life on the ranch...
We started our business 10 years ago with the purchase of 3 pregnant female alpacas, 2 gelded males, and a rescue llama.  Over the years our herd has slowly grown. We currently have 36 huacaya alpacas, 2 suri alpacas, and the llama.  We raise them for their fine fiber which is harvested once per year - usually in late May /early June.  This timing  gives the animals relief from the summer heat and allows enough time for fiber to grow back before it gets cold again.  With 38 alpacas, shearing is a full weekend of work.  We hire a professional alpaca shearer - a husband and wife team that have become personal friends to us.  The shearer brings all the tools, equipment and expertise needed, and we have several friends and family members that help us over the course of the weekend, so we try to make it as fun as possible.  I look forward to shearing as it is always exciting to see the fiber our animals have grown - especially the new animals that are being shorn for the first time.  We save as much fiber as possible and depending on the quality and other characteristics decide on how it will be processed.  The fiber from each animal is evaluated and processed individually.  Ideally, we like to have the fiber processed into luxurious yarn and roving, but not all fiber lends itself to that end.  The lesser quality fiber is not wasted though; it is processed into batts for felting, or into actual felted sheets.  We use 3 local mini mills to process the majority of the fiber, but hand process the cria (baby alpaca) fleeces.  The cria fleeces are generally tender and quite dirty, so we take extra care with those and process them by hand from start to finish.

Day to day with the alpacas is pretty low key.  Alpacas are not the type of animal that crave human attention or interaction, so feeding, watering and cleaning up after them is really all that is required on a daily basis.  Alpacas are not washed or groomed, but we do trim their toenails on an ‘as needed’ basis.  We always trim toe nails at shearing time, but some require an additional trim once or twice in between shearing.  Since we are breeding alpacas, a little more is required during the summer months when new arrivals are due.  We like to be on the farm when the moms are close to their delivery date so that we can be on hand in the event that she or the newborn baby require assistance.  Alpacas are generally trouble free in that aspect as well, so most of the time we are just on hand to witness the miracle first hand.
 
An Alpaca Story
I think my favorite farm story is that of the conception and birth of Destiny.  My blog post dated 9/8/14 gives many of the details.  What is not in the post is that Caelia (Destiny’s grandmother, and female that we had to have put down) was one of the first 3 female alpacas we bought when we started with alpacas 10 years ago.  Lily (Destiny’s mother) was the first born female on our farm – so she holds a special place in our hearts.  Destiny is now 4 ½ months old.

Have a look!

My website is www.pronkinpastures.com.  My blog is also on my website at http://www.pronkinpastures.com/blog .  I don’t maintain an Etsy site – most of my sales are done at my shop (located on the farm premises) or by vending at local fiber related events and spin-in’s.  I usually participate in the St Distaff’s Day Spin In, Whidbey Island Spin In, Whidbey Island Fiber Quest, Whidbey Island Farm Tour, and Fiber Fusion Northwest.  I’ll be adding a few additional vending opportunities  this year as I am enjoying the off-site vending experience and reaching a wider target audience.

Wow! Thank you so much for all of the detailed information and wonderful pictures, LeeAnna! A major high five goes out to you and to all the other alpaca farmers out there for providing fiber lovers like me with awesome yarn!

Ballard Crochet Sighting

The other day I was out walking in Ballard, a Seattle neighborhood, when I spotted a bit of crochet in a wedding-themed window display. The doily appeared to be vintage and a bit worn. I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures to share with you!

I love finding crochet out in the wider world. Keep your eyes peeled and you'll likely see some neat things, too!

Journaling Through Crochet

A while back I featured an awesome Remix of the Amineko Cat pattern. Karin used the temperature of each day to craft a one-of-a-kind cat.

Temperature projects like blankets, scarves, and this cat are a form of journaling through crochet. Taking a moment of each day to work on a single project slowly over time can provide a very different kind of satisfaction than working on a project for hours at a time and finishing it much more quickly. Interested in trying out this type of project for yourself? Here are a few ideas!

Sampler Afghan 
Work up a different, large afghan block each month and combine all twelve at the end of the year for a special blanket.

Mood Project
Select a different color of yarn for each mood (happy, sad, angry, bored, excited, etc) and then work up a row on a scarf or blanket in the appropriate color each day.

Skill Builder
This is a great one for beginners. Choose a small pattern like a flower motif. Work the same pattern once every month for a year. At the end of the year you'll be able to see how much your tension and accuracy has improved. You can then use all of the bits and pieces together in a big project.

Have any other suggestions for journaling through crochet? Share them with us in the comments!

Reach Out Friday: Project Linus

The third Friday of every month is Reach Out Friday! Learn about ways that you can use crochet to help others through special charities and groups.

Overview
Today's featured charity is Project Linus. Project Linus provides security blankets to comfort children in need, often children who are struggling with illness or trauma. They have provided millions -yes millions- of blankets to deserving children. I think it's wonderful that they focus on handmade blankets. They think it's important to give these young ones blankets that have been imbued with the love and care only a handmade object can carry. The charity also accepts monetary donations. As an aside, don't you just love the use of Charles Schulz's Linus character in the logo?

Mission Statement
"First- Provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer 'blanketeers'.

Second- Provide a rewarding and fun service opportunity for interested individuals and groups in local communities, for the benefit of children."

Special Considerations
Blankets donated to Project Linus can be any size from infant to teen, though they do state that 40 inches by 60 inches is the size they most frequently receive. Take care that all blankets donated are handmade and washable. Also, blankets should be free of smells, hard embellishments, and other contaminants.

Reach Out!
Ready to help by making a blanket or donation? Find the Project Linus Chapter in your area to get started.

*Please note that the Project Linus logo is the property of Project Linus.*

Adding A Bit of Mystery to Your Crochet

As far as traditional craft store yarn brands go, I have to say I really appreciate Lion Brand. They have such a wide array of yarns available that I can always find something appropriate for my project. I recently spent a bit of time on the Lion Brand website while making some design decisions. As I browsed I came across the coolest thing... it's a series of mystery yarn boxes! How cool is that? This seems like the perfect thing for someone who is stuck in a crochet rut. Each box has a different theme so it's not a total gamble, but you still don't know what you're getting which makes it fun and exciting.

I wouldn't necessarily trust just any yarn company to send a nice assortment of mystery yarns, but with Lion Brand you know you're getting quality. If my drawers weren't already overflowing with yarn and my design schedule wasn't overflowing with deadlines I would totally scoop up one of these mystery boxes. They just sound like so much fun! Have you ever purchased mystery yarn? I'd love to hear how it turned out for you!

Learn to Crochet Lesson Two: How to Work a Chain Stitch and Base Chain

Hello, beginning crocheters! Welcome to the second part of my Learn to Crochet blog post series. Now that you've learned how to tie a slip knot the next thing you'll need to know is how to do the chain stitch and make a base chain. Here we go!

Start with your slip knot loop around your hook as before.

Wrap the yarn from left to right around the back of the hook. 

Pull the yarn strand down through the loop that is already on the hook.

Now the strand has become the loop around the hook. You have just created one chain stitch.

Continue your chain by wrapping the working yarn strand around the back of the hook from left to right as before.

Pull the yarn down through the loop on the hook.

There you have it, another chain stitch! Now you have two. See the two "V's" to the left of the hook? Those are your chain stitches.

Continue your chain until you have the number of chain stitches called for by your pattern, or until the chain is the width you want it to be for a beginner's scarf or potholder. 

Have questions? Always feel free to ask them in the comments :)

Indie Dye Friday: Rambling Rose Yarns

The second Friday of every month is Indie Dye Friday! Feast your eyes on lovely yarn in gorgeous colorways developed by talented independent yarn dyers. Today's featured dyer is Teresa Rosello of Rambling Rose. She's here with us today to share a bit about herself and her yarns. Her vibrant colorways really stand out beautifully.

A bit about Teresa
I am a stay at home mom of two little girls.  We live in Maryland, south of Baltimore.  I love to make things from scratch, and things like cooking, sewing, knitting, and crocheting are perfect for me.  I also enjoy gardening.

How long have you been dyeing fiber? How did you get started?
Being a from-scratch kind of person, just knitting wasn't enough for me.  Dyeing the yarn that I use was a natural first step.  If I had the time (and I certainly don't!) I would enjoy learning to spin the yarn first, or even to raise the sheep myself (but don't have the land...  yet).  I started dyeing as well as a creative outlet for myself.  My second daughter had just been born and I needed a non-mommy pursuit.  Making money is a bonus, but having my shop is more for giving myself an outlet.

Where do you get the inspiration for your colorways?
As a gardener, it was easy to take inspiration from nature.  I like bold, bright colors, but am learning to appreciate the subtle colors as well. 

What fibers and dyes do you love to work with?
I love to work with the silk yarn.  The colors are so bright and vibrant!  Plus silk for some reason doesn't tangle as badly as some of my other yarns when I'm rewinding them.  I only use Greener Shades dyes, and I find the lack of diversity in their color to be perfect for me.  I only use a red, blue, yellow, and black from them and mix my own colorways.  I'd never get anything done if I used something like Jacquard, as they have too many options for me.  I would really like to start learning how to make my own dyes from plants. 

Behind the scenes...
[Here are] a few pictures of my dyeing workspace.  It's in my basement, so it's not easy to take nice pictures.  I included a picture of my yarn storage, a photo of yarns hanging to dry, and two ugly photos of my crock pots and a large assortment of the glassware I use to mix up dyes.  

A few colorways...
This is my silk blend yarn, in my Lime colorway.  I love how bright and fun this colorway turns out. 

My alpaca blend yarn is a single ply mix of wool, silk, and alpaca.  I love how the colors blend in the Midnight Blue colorway.

 
My tweed yarn is a fun superwash merino yarn with bits of synthetic material spun into it.  Blackberry is a great combination of purple and pink, and one of my favorite colorways.

Just lovely! You can see more wonderful colorways on Teresa's website and in her Etsy shop. Thank you very much for joining us today, Teresa!

Free Digital Crochet Stickers

Image attribution is very important. Sometimes folks use mine and others' photos without permission which isn't a very nice thing to do. So here's a reminder: Ask permission and give proper attribution when using photos that don't belong to you on blogs and websites.

Now that I've put that out there, I want to reward those of you who always ask permission before using photos. I was feeling crafty and decided to make y'all some free digital crochet stickers. Feel free to use these pictures however you want! :)

Start the New Year Right with these Crochet Resolutions

Happy New Year and a big hello to 2015! This is totally gonna be my year. I can just feel it :) Are you excited for the coming year? Have you made any New Year's Resolutions? One of my resolutions is to learn to knit. *Gasp* Yes, I know, it's shocking...

If you're looking for a little inspiration when it comes to crochet in 2015, why not commit yourself to one or more of these Crochet New Year's Resolutions?

• I will use up x-amount (50%, ten skeins, etc) of my yarn stash before I buy new yarn.
• I will make three things to keep for myself.
• I will make my first x (blanket, doily, amigurumi, etc)
• I will try a new brand of hook.
• I will try a new brand of yarn.
• I will make x-number (3, 5, 13, etc) of projects from my Ravelry queue/Pinterest boards.
• I will learn a new skill (cables, Tunisian, etc). 
• I will finish a project before I start another.
• I will remember to take pictures of my finished projects. 
• I will join an online crochet community.
• I will join a crochet and knit group in real life. 
• I will spend x-amount of time (20 minutes, 1 hour, etc) crocheting every day.
• I will seek out sustainable and fair trade yarns when possible.
• I will try new types of fiber (alpaca, hemp, etc) that I haven't worked with before.
• I will use yarn weights and styles that challenge me (thread, mohair, etc).
• I will commit to excellent finishing (end weaving, blocking, etc) on every project.
• I will invent my own crochet design.
• I will dye my own yarn skein.
• I will visit a yarn store I have never been to before. 
• I will crochet during my commute/while watching TV/while waiting in line.
• I will teach someone to crochet.

Fiber Arts Friday: Cross-Stitch with Brenda Black

The first Friday of every month is Fiber Arts Friday! Join me as we expand our horizons beyond crochet to focus on other interesting fiber and needle arts. Enjoy the beautiful projects and learn something new along the way. Today's featured needle art is cross-stitch. "Cross-stitch is a popular form of counted-thread embroidery in which X-shaped stitches in a tiled, raster-like pattern are used to form a picture."

Brenda Black is a wonderful person and a good friend of mine. I was lucky enough to meet her in my Sunday fiber group, the Rainy Sunday Knitters. Brenda is talented in many different ways, but the craft I've seen her practice most often is cross-stitch. Her work is amazing and I'm pleased as punch to have her here with us today to share her cross-stitching.

About Brenda
I grew up by Sea-Tac airport, have 4 siblings and 7 nieces and nephews. I teach high school and am an Athletic Trainer. That means I work the athletes after school, helping them with their injuries.

How long have you been cross stitching? How did you get started?
24 years. I'd been doing needlepoint and became an aunt.  There weren't many needlepoint baby projects, so I started cross-stitching for baby gifts for the nieces and nephews.

What advice do you have for folks who are interested in cross-stitch?
I was able to teach myself, but I wish the Internet would have been around as a resource. The main thing is to start simple and keep trying.

Here is some of Brenda's work...

If you're interested in cross-stitch you can find kits and supplies in most large craft stores. You can even make up your own designs using graph paper or digital tools. For more information on cross-stitch, visit the National Needle Arts Association website. Thank you for sharing your projects with us today, Brenda!