Time Flies Crochet

About 21 years ago, when my youngest son was a newborn, I had a brilliant idea to crochet a baby afghan for him.  At the time I was also doing a lot of counted cross stitch and found this Better Homes and Gardens crochet book with patterns using the afghan stitch (a grid like pattern) which lends itself to doing counted cross stitch on the finished crochet blocks.  So, I crocheted a few squares (and then begged somebody else to do a bunch more).  Then I put everything in a bag on a shelf and completely forgot about it !!!    So, now my baby is a 21 y.o. , 6'1" tall  college student at Penn State University  and ......

.....he requested a "slouchy beanie" hat to keep his dredlocks warm  (yes,  dreds ........hoping it's just a phase .....).    So, this is what I've got so far ...... this is a Leisure Arts pattern booklet ("Celebrity Slouchy Beanies for the entire family"). I've never crocheted anything round before (just flat granny squares etc)...... so I had a hard time figuring out the instructions .  After a few frustrating episodes of ripping out rows because of not getting the increase in stitches I was supposed to have,  I turned to Pinterest .   There I found a very helpful blog post on "How to read crochet patterns" on Gleeful Things.  Another helpful crochet blog post on how to read crochet patterns I found here :  Slugs on the Refrigerator

So,  I guess no point in finishing that baby afghan for my 21 y.o. baby since it would only cover one of his big feet now ........ maybe I'll just use all those crocheted squares for dish cloths  ....... or give them as gifts !!!! ( so be warned friends and family  ......next Christmas you're all getting crocheted dish  cloths from me !!! )

Be back soon !
Toodles,
Mary Anne (aka Mare)

Color Inspiration from 1961

I LOVE old movies like this one ,"Lover Come Back",  with Doris Day and Rock Hudson from 1961.   This was on this afternoon and I happened to really take notice of the kitchen  ...... since the modern quilt movement is in full swing along with a revival of mid century design  ...... I'm thinking  the colors used in this kitchen would be perfect for a modern quilt design !!!

 So, of course , I had to drop everything and go rummaging through my cluttered stash and pull out fabrics  ....... (actually the yellow is much softer in person .. it shows up here as kind of bright).      Now to (eventually) put these fabrics into a modern quilt design !!!!  (and it kind of cracks me up since I was about 2 or 3 years old when this movie came out ..... so does that make me modern too ???? )

Be back soon !

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare )

Bitten by the Downton Abbey bug !!!!

So do you watch Downton Abbey?  I made it through 3 seasons of not watching it ......I didn't want to get involved with something I knew I'd be totally addicted to and nuts if I missed it .  However, thanks to my sister and nieces who are devoted fans,  I have been (happily)  persuaded to spend this gloomy month of January in the lovely make believe world of GORGEOUS clothes !!!!  (and I'm sure this obsession will extend beyond January for me !).

  Once upon a time, when I was a young single gal in 1983 , I temporarily quit my job as a physical therapist to follow my whim to work at the  Laura Ashley Store on Walnut Street in Philadelphia.  This was when Laura Ashley fashions were very much like what Downton Abby costumes look like today.  I had a few blissful months of wearing Laura Ashley clothes (had to when you worked there) ,  helping decorate the store window for Christmas,  and  measuring and cutting Laura Ashley fabric in the home decorating section of the store (my department since I was the one with sewing experience).  However, after about 3 months working there, I realized I had to go back to work as a physical therapist in order to pay bills and save enough $ to move to California (chasing after my then boyfriend, now husband ).   After I got to southern California ,   my love for historic style Laura Ashley clothing didn't fade ( and I couldn't wear that kind of stuff as a physical therapist .... nope, khaki pants, polo shirts, and sneakers is pretty much the work uniform) .   At one point, I even thought of taking classes in historic costume design and construction .... thought it would be fun to work in the costume dept of a movie (what the heck .... might as well while I was in California ! ...... I was so young and naive !!).   Well,  I never actually got around to that ..... reality and life of course marched on........ Anyway,  the latest issue of  Victoria magazine has an article about the costumers of Downton Abbey with lots of pictures of the BEAUTIFUL clothes !!    Also,   if you want to see some of these gorgeous costumes  in person,  I found out that  Winterthur Museum in Delaware will have them on display with other Downton Abbey type activities starting in March and running until next January !!!   (the first picture I posted is from the Winterthur Museum site).  

 Well,  back to reality on this dreary January day ...... lots to do .... take down the Christmas tree and decorations (yes, they're all still up );  laundry;  a stack of notes to get into my work laptop; bathrooms to clean ;  help kid #2 get organized to head back to PSU  tomorrow ;  stacks of unfinished Christmas projects to sew (or shove on a shelf until next Christmas !)  ....... at least I have my fantasy world of Downton Abbey to look forward to on Sunday night !

Be back soon !

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

New Year's Day traditions.......

New Year's Day traditions ......  simple little things, but without them,  I don't feel like I've really let go of the old year and welcomed the new one .  First, I watch The Tournament of Roses Parade (and reminisce when I lived near and worked all around Pasadena for Pasadena VNA .... about a million years ago!)

Then , I take down the old calendar, and copy important dates into the new one (almost always a Susan Branch calendar .... my FAVORITE !)

After that,  I make  some type of pork and sauerkraut for good luck !

So....... 2014 here we go !!!!

Be back soon !
Toodles,
Mary Anne (aka Mare)