Mary's Crochet Adventure

Do you remember when you were just starting out in crochet? Sometimes it was difficult. It was hard to make your stitches even. You forgot when you were supposed to yarn over and when you weren't. However, it was also magical. For the first time you were able to take a strand of yarn and turn it into something. You could feel the potential at you fingertips and you started to dream about the awesome things you'd be able to make in the future...

That's where my friend Mary is right now. She's been coming to my weekly fiber group and I've been teaching her to crochet. Here she is during her very first lesson, holding her very first piece of crochet fabric!

She's already come a long way since these photos were taken. She can now make a chain stitch, a single crochet stitch, and a half double crochet stitch. Yay! Whether you're a beginning crocheter or just learning a new crochet skill, I'd like to take today to celebrate new beginnings. We've all got so much to look forward to!

Indie Dye Friday: Hauteknit Yarn

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 we are visited by Mishellee of Hauteknit Yarn. Her colorways are bright, varied, and unique. Let's have a look!

A bit about Mishellee
"I am from Maine but moved to Wilson, NC a year ago to escape the snow. I have an 18 month old daughter, we call her Elle, she LOVES yarn and her hand knit accessories. I couldn't ask for a better husband. He thinks what I do is "cool" and is always willing to help me decide if a colorway needs something or when I need something moved or built. To say I'm a girly girl would probably be an understatement. I love shoes, pretty dresses, pink, purple."

How long have you been dyeing fiber? How did you get started?
"I've been dying for about 3 1/2 years. After working with Madelinetosh and Malabrigo a few times I knew I wanted to dye yarn. I read a few books, blogs, watched some videos, ordered yarn and dyes and jumped in! That is pretty much how I do everything in life.  I figured if nothing else I would end up with a ridiculous stash of yarn."

Where do you get the inspiration for your colorways?
"It can really be from anything. Sometimes it's the colors in the kiddo's outfits, other times it's cars  (my husband is a car guy so there are endless car videos playing in this house). Most of my colorways are completely unplanned and just kind of happen."


What fibers and dyes do you love to work with?
"My favorite fiber to dye is superwash merino. My simple sock base is one of my favorites because it takes dyes great and the end result is really crisp. Another favorite would be a bamboo or silk blend because the sheen is just amazing."






Behind the scenes...

A few colorways... 

Such interesting color combinations! Do you want to see more? Visit Hauteknit Yarn on Etsy, Instagram, and Ravelry. Thanks for joining us today, Mishellee!

Crochet iPhone 6 Case

A while back I made this crochet case for an iPhone 4s. Using the same method, I recently made a case for an iPhone 6. The only thing I changed was that I did turn after every round, making the fabric slightly thicker. Making this case was an excellent way to use up some scrap yarn.

Fiber Arts Friday: Quilting with Phyllis Prom

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 we will be taking a look at the gorgeous art quits made by Phyllis Prom. What is quilting? "Quilting is the process of sewing of two or more layers of material together to make a thicker padded material, usually to create a quilt or quilted garments. The whole process of creating a quilt or quilted garment also involves other steps such as designing, piecing, appliqué, and binding." Prepare yourself to see some truly inspirational quilts. Take it away, Phyllis!

About Phyllis
"I was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest where my husband and I raised two beautiful children, a girl and a boy. We have 6 wonderful grandchildren. I am retired. I love to go on long drives and take a lot of photographs to use in my art work."

How long have you been quilting? How did you get started?
"I have been quilting for 52 years and making art quilts for 11 years. I had never made an art quilt before and with no art history I started making the landscape art quilts after my husband passed away from cancer. He was an outdoorsman, rode horses, and we would go on long drives on the weekends."

What advice do you have for folks who are interested in quilting?
"Find something you love to do, read about it, take classes and do the best you can do at it and it will be very rewarding. I don't just mean financially, it will feed your soul and make you very happy."

Here is some of her work...

Wow. Just wow. If you'd like to see more of these lovely quilts, check out her Etsy shop. Thank you so much for sharing with us today, Phyllis! If you'd like more information about quilting, check out about.com's info.

May Freebie Friday Winner

Ready to find out who won the two hanks of alpaca yarn? It was...

Congrats, Anne! I'll be contacting you shortly to get details from you. The next Freebie Friday is in July, so be on the lookout everyone!

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! Today I am giving away two lovely hanks of Cascade Yarns Alpaca Lace in a beautiful dusky purple colorway. So soft!

Are you ready to enter the giveaway? Here's how. Simply pin any one of my patterns to Pinterest and then send a link to your pin to illuminatecrochet@gmail.com. A screenshot would be okay too :) If you've already pinned one of my patterns, that totally counts! I will randomly select a winning pin on Monday, June 1st at 11:59 pm and I will post the winner the following Tuesday. Don't delay... enter now!

Good luck!

Learning to Knit: Branching Out and Reflecting

Once a month I blog about fiber crafts other than crochet. I do this because I value learning and I think there are many benefits to be gained from trying new things. I have decided to put my ideas into practice and have recently been learning to knit in addition to my crochet. All I did was buy some needles, get some recommendations from friends, and search for good tutorials online. I started small.

I certainly ripped out my work and started over several times. However, slowly and surely I made my way. After learning a simple "cast on" (similar concept to a base chain) I learned to make garter stitch fabric, made by making only "knit" stitches.

Then I learned how to do the "purl" stitch. This meant that I could do all knits on one side and all purls on the other, making what's called a stockinette stitch. See the little v's?

Being a beginning knitter has really helped me to reflect on my crochet and my pattern writing. I have several patterns in testing right now and learning something new reminds me of what it's like when you're unsure and trying your best. I am refocusing on making sure all of my instructions, pictures, and diagrams are accessible and inviting. It's easy to forget that I've spent hours and hours and hours crocheting. Things that used to be difficult for me barely register anymore. However, I'm now sitting and wondering things like "How do I fix that stitch I dropped?", "How do I count my rows?", and "Did I just do a knit or a purl? I don't even know..." Struggle is good for us. It forces us to work hard :)

Have you tried something new lately, perhaps one of the crafts I've mentioned for Fiber Arts Friday?