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My New Kitchen Lights

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ScannedImageI usually chat about crochet, and how crochet has influenced my life, my designs, and my way of life, however today I am sharing another project, my new kitchen lights.

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My Mason Jar Pendant Lights

My husband and I have been working on refurbishing our older home. It was build in the 1920’s (by California standards it is almost historic), and over the last ten years, we have added such modern conveniences such as insulation, and current electrical wiring. Along the way we have attempted to keep the older charm.

Along with the house we obtained a root cellar full of canned goods. Now most of these items were canned a good thirty years ago, so they were not on a list of things to be consumed, but we found many of the jars interesting, and after cleaning them up an doing a little research we learned that a vast majority were from the 1930’s. Many ideas for their use came to mind, but one that was settled upon, and that my husband helped me to execute was to create pendant lights.

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Mason Jar Lights at Night

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Mason Jar Pendent Lights during the day

Fortunately my husband has tinkering skills, likes working with tools, and fabricating things, so together we managed to make the vision into a reality. We are pretty happy with them. So even though it is not in any way related to crochet, it is still related to the principals that I believe crochet holds, to create, to share, to enjoy.

Nothing Ever Stays the Same

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ScannedImageI usually see an image of what I want a particular yarn to be, by simply holding it and letting my mind wander, but that is where things actually become difficult. Now I need to play, okay, it is swatching, but I have never been good at creating swatches, I want to get on to making something not just make squares of stitching.

However, I usually need to figure out how to get my image translated into an actual creation, and that often means finding the stitch patterns that will accomplish this.DSCF0868.1

Sometimes I get into the process and realize that I like something else better, and either re-create my idea or create something completely new. Okay, this happens in many aspects of life; from everything like what to have for dinner of what I am wearing to that holiday party. Ideas constantly evolve. This is my reminder that nothing is a constant; the only thing that I can accurately predict is that everything will always change. I will admit, this keeps me from getting too attached to any one idea for very long, and I hope helps keep my work fresh. One can hope at least.

Realizing I Have Something, That Has Probably Always Been There

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ScannedImageThis time of year has always been a time of reflection and re-connection, almost a little melancholy for me, and this year is no different.

I had an epiphany recently about my designing. In the past I would have probably laughed if you would have considered me a “designer”. I would never consider myself as “fashion forward” or anything like that. My personal style is pretty simple and definitely reflective of northern California, meaning my wardrobe primarily consists of jeans, T-shirts and flip flops. However undertaking another home improvement project really helped me to focus and realize that I do have a style, I may not have a word to define it, but it is there.

Paintbrush with Blue PaintFor the last decade, my husband and I have taken on various projects of home improvement on our 1920’s farm house. Last week, I tore everything out of the kitchen (yes, a little ambitious just before having people over for the holidays, no one ever accused me of being sane). While getting my “kitchen vision” on track I realized that I approach my crochet designs in much the same way…I need a starting point. I need something to expand from, my ideas do not come from a void, and they need to grow around an inspiration. In the case of my kitchen it is my new sink. I was unable to refinish the sink that I already had, and after some hunting found a great deal on a copper one, and everything else has expanded from that…the counters, the colors, the style, everything from the sink. In past projects the most difficult undertaking I had was re-installing a bathroom, it was a blank slate and I remember how I felt completely overwhelmed with the project, until I finally found a small piece of tile that became my “jumping off point”.

In comparison to my crochet designs, the same thing is true. I need a point of inspiration. Some of those are as simple as a challenge. Such as “What can I create with just this single skein?” or randomly reaching into a bag of yarn and then having to create something with what I pull out. Some inspirations come from architectural designs (believe it or not, I find a lot of ideas from The Old House), or even hotel carpets. The common point that they all have is a point to begin.

I guess I have been designing for much longer then I might have realized, it is just my style seems so everyday to me that I just take it for granted. It is simple, and clean, I attempt for balanced visually not necessarily symmetrically. It is, I hope, a little classic, and not trendy and date-able. It is warm and not afraid of color. I may not have a name for it, but one thing at a time, I only just realized I had one.

Keeping the Holiday Spirit… In My Shoes

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ScannedImageI am attempting to get into the holiday mood….the last few years that has proven to be a little bit of a challenge. This is, I feel, that I have felt overwhelmed with everything that is expected and all the extras that need to be done…the decorating (guess I should clean the house), the baking (hope these cookies actually make it to the neighbors instead of in my dessert pile), the gifts (what do I get so-&-so? I need ideas), wrapping (hide in the bed room, attempting to make that roll of paper last for one more odd sized package), and the cards (okay, I actually like this one, it is the one time a year that I actually sit back go through my address book, the old fashion paper book kind, and think of friends and family…realizing yet again that too much time has passed since our last visit).

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Elf Slippers, adult and child sized

So far I have not hit my “holiday wall” yet, and to help keep that spirit alive and not turning bitter I have been working on a holiday design. Elf Slippers. My kids love these, and I admit that they are pretty fun. They are worked in Red Heart Super Saver, and 1 skein actually makes at least a couple of pairs. I have them sized for adults and kids, as well as notation on how to customize them for any size.

They are a quick stitch pattern, and the addition of the bells gives them quite a bit of charm. So if you have a love for stitching, want to create some quick gifts, or just want to keep the spirit alive, check them out at:…

Ravelry or Craftsy

Thankful Crochet…Not What You Might Expect

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ScannedImageThanksgiving is the time of year that Americans take a moment and ponder what they are thankful for, families and friends come together over a hearty meal and various traditions are followed. Some gatherings are small, some are large, but all are focused on those we love.

I wish that we took time more often to ponder our thankfulness, and personally try to do this at least once a week (okay, sometimes this actually becomes once a month, but at least I try). Over some of this ponder I have realized how thankful I am for crochet, and it may not be in a manner that you have thought about. I am thankful for crochet being my social lubricant. Don’t misunderstand, I am quite a talker and can get into conversations that are no longer counted in minutes but hours and days, I can usually find some comfort in a room full of people that I have never met before, however crochet allows me to engage with some new people in a very different way.DSCF0849.1

By crocheting while sitting and enjoying the family get-togethers of the holidays, I can actually think before I speak (a trait that I always need to work on). I can crochet at my husband’s work holiday parties and it becomes an icebreaker within a group of other spouses that may only see each other during these events.

Not only can crochet help me within situations I know, it opens dialogs in places I don’t, such as the park, the coffee shop, the grocery store, the doctor office, actually just about anywhere. By working on some stitches it helps engage with others; people feel like you are approachable and want to understand more about what you are doing. It might bring back fond memories for them, or questions of how they could try and create for themselves.

DSCF0848.1By wearing my hook in my hair (yes, I do actually use a hook to hold my hair up) people might identify me as the “crochet lady”, and that is alright, I wear it as a badge of honor, and have for years, because it opens different doors and helps me to connect with the larger world around me. So thank you crochet, for being my longtime hobby, and current career, that allows me to engage with the rest of mankind.