A Crocheted Sunflower

One of the fun things about learning to crochet is that your family and friends can ask you to make things for them.  Sometimes it’s something you wouldn’t have thought of making on your own.  That’s how I ended up making the cat couch for my sister.

Last year, Nick’s mom, Susan sent me this link and asked if it was something I could make.  This one is knitted, but fortunately, there are lots of crochet sunflower patterns out there.  Unfortunately, most of them start with a magic ring, which I cannot seem to master.  I think it must actually involve magic, and I’m not magical.  On a side note, if you’re a crocheter, and you have any tips for mastering the magic ring, please share them.  

I finally found this one, that had a left-handed tutorial and didn’t start with a magic ring.  I modified it a little bit by shortening the stem and doing a chain to hang it from the rearview mirror.  I don’t remember how many I chained for the hanger.  I just took it out to the car to finish it and quit when it would go over the rearview mirror, but not hang down too far.  Yes, I did sit out in the car in the rain and crochet.

The flower was curling a little bit when I finished it, so I decided it needed some flattening.  I read a little bit about blocking for granny squares and decided to improvise a flower flattening method.  I lightly sprayed it with water and then set some heavy cans on top of it to flatten it.  It seems to have worked. 

 

It’s not perfect, but overall, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, and Susan was very happy with it.  

Crochet Cat Couch

I think I’m a very, very slow crocheter.  Back in September, I decided I was going to make my sister, Gabby, a crocheted cat couch.  She first asked for it in 2020.  In 2021, I told her it was beyond my skill level.  In 2022, when The Crochet Crowd released a left-handed tutorial, I decided to give it a try.

My original plan was to give it to her when we had our early Christmas celebration in November.  That didn’t work out.  My next plan was to give it to her at Christmas since we were planning to go to her house.  That didn’t work out either. 

We finally made plans to go stay with Gabby and Amy this past weekend, so I got to work on the cat couch in earnest. 

I had done the gauge swatch back in November. 

I also made the dust ruffle and got started on the couch. 

The pattern was largely a repeat of single crochet, double crochet.  It sounds simple, right?  For some reason, I couldn’t manage to remember the stitch and count the stitches.  I pulled out a few rows, then started relying very heavily on stitch markers. 

It was VERY slow going.   It took me days to finish one side of one cushion.  I also learned that I HATE slip stitching, which the pattern has a decent amount of.  I’m convinced it’s called slip stitching because of how often the hook slips out of the yarn when you do it. 

I’m in a few crochet groups on Facebook, and quite a few people who make the couch say they’ll never make another one.

I looked on Etsy to price them.  They’re all over $100.00, and some are close to $200.00.  I understand why!  I did notice, though, that some seemed to be based on a different pattern.  So, I started looking for more tutorials.  I found this one that I liked.

I finally decided to cobble together my own pattern based on these two tutorials and started over on the couch.  I kept the dust ruffle, though.

I didn’t tell Gabby I was working on it.  I wasn’t sure I’d succeed in making it. 

Fortunately, it worked.  I’m sure you can tell that there are a lot of mistakes.  I have ideas on how to fix most of them, and I think the next couch will look a lot better. 

I was running out of time and energy, so I didn’t make any throw pillows.  And I went really simple for the blanket.  It’s just a continuous granny square based on this tutorial.  I think it might have been a little neater if I’d used a smaller hook.  Next time!

When we got to Gabby and Amy’s. Gabby was cooking dinner, so Amy helped us carry stuff in.  Actually, she helped Nick carry most of the stuff in while I was in the kitchen with Gabby.  As soon as they brought the cat couch in, Amy told Gabby she had to come see what Nick had just brought in. 

Gabby was very excited!  She said she didn’t think I’d ever make it since I had told her it was beyond my skill level.  She and Amy both say it looks nice and looks like something they’d be willing to pay for from a store.  I’m not sure about that.  It’s definitely cute, but there are mistakes and things I could have done better.  But, I’m very glad they like it.   And, honestly, I’m still kind of proud of it, even though it’s not perfect.  It’s the biggest crochet project I’ve done thus far. 

More importantly, their cats like it.

Dobby is their most adventurous cat and he was on it within a few minutes.

I also need to make one for our cats.  Caroline was very interested in it.  She was even on it while I was sewing on the dust ruffle.

Gabby sent me this picture today of another one of their cats, Flitwick, on the couch.  It’s definitely cat approved!

Thursday 13: A Busy Week

I was hoping to post again before this, but since I didn’t, I decided another Thursday 13 was in order.  It has been a busy week.

1.     Duke has pancreatitis again.  We’re not sure how he keeps getting it.  He had it in April, and we’ve been careful about not giving him too much people food since then.  We took him to the vet on Tuesday, and Dr. M. wanted to hospitalize him.  We’re hoping he’ll be able to come home tomorrow.  He’s eating again (always a good sign with Duke) but still has a fever. 

 

They sent us this picture of him today.  He likes everyone there, so he's happy.

2.     Dr. D. had us bring Howard in on Saturday morning and show her exactly how we were giving him his insulin injections.  Given Nick’s EMT background, no one was really expecting an issue with how Howard has been getting his shots.  Howard’s insulin dose was due before the appointment time, so Dr. D. had Nick demonstrate with our syringes and a bottle of saline. 

3.     Everything was right.  I bought the right needles, and Nick has been doing the injections perfectly.  I didn’t demonstrate (Yay!) since Nick does most of them, and I do exactly what he does. 

4.     Howard went to the emergency vet last night.  He started having severe gastrointestinal issues, and I called in case it was something to do with his insulin.  We were there for about three hours, and they gave Howard fluids and antibiotics and did bloodwork.  His glucose level was finally good!

5.     I really liked the vet we saw.  It’s always a gamble at the emergency clinic; most of the time, they’re great, but it seems like when they’re bad, they’re really, really bad.  This vet was awesome, though.  I hope we don’t need to see her again, but I’d be happy with any of the fur kids seeing her when we do need an emergency vet.

6.     I mentioned Duke’s pancreatitis to the emergency vet, in case it was related to what Howard had.  She said it most likely wasn’t and was just terrible timing.  I talked to Duke’s vet (Dr. M.) this morning and Howard’s regular vet, Dr. D., and they both agree that it’s only a coincidence that Howard and Duke are similarly sick at the same time.  Dr. D. was thrilled about Howard’s glucose when she got the report from the emergency vet.  He has an appointment with her next week to check it again, and we’re all hoping the level stays where it is.

7.     I hate that Duke and Howard are both sick, but I’m relieved that we don’t need to worry about the other five cats having the same problem.  That would be a lot to deal with!

8.     In non-vet visit news, I’m going to try to make my sister a crocheted cat couch for Christmas.  She doesn’t read my blog, so I’m not worried about her finding out.  She has been asking for one for two years now, but I’ve been scared to try it.  There weren’t any left-handed videos, but Crochet Crowd posted one recently, and I’ve been practicing the stitches.

9.     It only has three different stitches; single crochet, double crochet, and half double crochet.  I used the half-double for most of the mask adapters I made, so I’m pretty comfortable with that one.  I think I’m getting better at the single and double.

10.  I like the UK crochet terms better than the US crochet terms.  The UK terms seem to make more sense for what you’re doing.  I like the videos from this website, and she gives you the UK and US terms, so it works for me to learn from a UK site. 

11.  I ordered the yarn I’m planning to use, and it arrived this week.  I really like the gray and rainbow yarn in the pattern, but that yarn was more expensive, and I’m not sure my first attempt will be gift-worthy, so I opted for the less expensive yarn.  The gray is for the couch.  The multi-colored one is called Fiesta, and it’s for the afghan and the dust ruffle. 

 

12.  We bought the foam on Saturday after we got back from taking Howard to the vet.  Nick will be in charge of building the couch.  I’m terrible at things like that, and he says the pattern/building instructions make sense to him.  I’m sure the couch will take me a while, so I’m hoping to get started on it this weekend, assuming we manage to stay out of vet’s offices.

13.  We have cherry tomatoes again.  We’re pretty sure 2016 was the last year we planted cherry tomatoes, but we have some come back every year.  I think they should be called something other than cherry tomatoes.  Maybe immortal tomatoes would be a good name for them.

So what have you been up to this week?  

My Masks Need A Mask

Now that the recommendations for avoiding the spread of COVID-19 include wearing cloth masks in addition to social distancing and hand washing, I’m trying to learn to make masks.  As are a lot people.

The more popular choice seems to be sewing pleated masks. 

I can’t sew.  And I positively hate the idea of sewing.  We don’t own a sewing machine.  We don't have fabric.  I think we have some needles and thread somewhere, but I wouldn't swear to that.  Honestly, there are have been times that I’ve super glued (or even hot glued) a button back on or a hem back in.  I.  HATE.  Sewing. 

But, there are also patterns for crocheted face masks. 

I’ve been trying to learn to crochet for about a year now.  I’m left-handed, which makes it a little harder to find someone who’s willing and able to teach me.  And I’m really NOT good at trying to learn something like that from a right-handed person.  My mom is right-handed and my dad is left-handed.  Dad ended up being the one to teach me to write, tie my shoes, and all of the things like that.  So my crochet progress has been slow.  Very, very, very slow.

I’ve been working on granny squares.  I think I’m slowly getting the hang of it, now that we’re not going anywhere, and I have more time on my hands.  I found a video that goes through everything, from the slipknot to tying off.  I’ve probably watched the video 100 times.  I’ve almost memorized the pattern.  I enjoy repetition, and it seems to be the best way for me to learn.

My stack of granny squares.

My sister (who has no desire to crochet) now has the idea that I know how to crochet.  She tagged me in a post on Facebook with a pattern for a crochet face mask.  It wasn’t in English.  So I looked for one that was.  I found several, but I’m not great at reading patterns yet.  I looked for videos and finally found one left-handed tutorial. 

I thought I could follow along with that one, but a few of the stitches were ones I haven’t learned yet, and the quality of the video wasn’t great, so I couldn’t quite figure it out.  I watched a few more videos and decided to try to make one on my own, using stitches I know. 

The basic idea seems to be a sort of pouch with straps, and you put a liner (coffee filters and cut up cotton t-shirts seem to be the popular choices) inside it.  Obviously, this isn’t a medical grade mask, and it’s certainly not any kind of sure protection.  But it is, apparently, one more layer of potential protection.  To me, that’s worth trying. 

When you’ve spent the last three weeks realizing that everything you’ve ever learned to do is absolutely useless in the midst of this pandemic, and you’re tucked up safely at home while people you love and care about are out in the middle of it, you grasp at anything you can do to possibly help protect them. 

So began my efforts at making what are surely the world’s ugliest masks.

This is the first one, which Nick wore to work today. 

Our neighbor works in a home improvement store, so I sent her a text (with a picture so she would know exactly how hideous it looked) and asked if she wanted one.  She said she did.  So I made a second one for her.

I don’t think there’s much (any?) improvement in this one.  Again, though, it should cover her nose and mouth, which is all it really has to do to serve its intended purpose.

I posted pictures on Facebook asking friends who crochet for tips on what I’m doing wrong, and how to do a better job.  Apparently I need to keep careful count of my stitches.  A friend, Jane, experimented and made one (that’s far less bulky than the monstrosities I’m making) and wrote out the pattern for anyone who wants to use it.  I’m going to attempt that one tomorrow.   Because, unfortunately, it looks like there’s going to continue to be a need for masks, so I’m going to keep at it.   Wish me luck!

Jane says she’ll have some classes and teach all of us who are trying to learn once this pandemic is over.  There’s talk of a crochet group.  I love that idea!  It’s something to look forward to, for one thing.  

So what about you?  Are you wearing a mask?  Are you making masks?  Have you seen a mask that looks more hideous than mine?  Any suggestions for how to make mine better? 

Lefthanders Day

Today is Lefthanders day!  As a lefty this makes me very happy.  According to this site, we have the right to declare the area around us to be a left-handed zone today.  Yippee!  Fortunately for me, my husband is also a lefty, so our house is already a left-handed zone.  I just wish the rest of the world was a little more lefty friendly.  So here’s to all of the lefties in my life:

My paternal grandfather:  He seems to be the one who got the whole left-handed thing started.  He’s the first lefty in the family anyone is aware of. 

My dad:  He kept the left-handedness going.  He also adamantly refused to allow anyone to try to turn me into a right-hander.  He put a stop to it when he caught my mom switching my toys, bottles, etc to my right hand when I was a baby.  Because of this he ended up being the person to teach me how to write, hold silverware, and tie my shoes.  No good deed goes unpunished, right?

He also went to my school at the beginning of every year and told all of my teachers that I was left-handed, and that my being left-handed wasn’t something that needed to be changed.  He said if they had a problem with that they could take it up with him. Since my dad sort of looks like an extra from The Godfather no one ever seemed to have a problem with it, except one very foolish P.E. teacher, but that’s another story for another time.

My husband:  They always say girls marry men like their fathers, so I guess it comes as no surprise that I married a lefty.  There is some debate as to whether or not my husband actually started off as a lefty.  There aren’t many lefties at all in his family, and he has an impressive scar on his right hand from getting it slammed in a car door when he was a toddler.  So there’s a theory that he became a lefty while his right hand was healing. 

I choose to believe that he’s probably a true lefty, and just did things right-handed in very early childhood because he was surrounded by right-handers.  The right-hand injury just gave him the chance to become the lefty he truly is. 

Either way, I’m glad he’s a lefty, and that we can arrange things in our house to suit both of us being left-handed.  It’s also fun to find each other left-handed gifts.  We’re also in good company, since some very interesting historical figures were also left-handed. 

So what about you?  Are you a lefty?  Are there any lefties in your life?