Thursday Art Walk

 

In Which I Made Art I'm Very Proud Of!!!

I woke up late this morning. I usually get up around 9AM and do Serious Artist Things (drink too much coffee and argue with the cat before doing anything remotely like a productive task), but it rained again last night and I am still on High Alert from the Halloween Flood of 2021 so sleep wasn't really a thing last night (despite starting to doze around 11PM or so). This whole week has felt like I just couldn't get started, but when I look back, I've accomplished more than it feels like.

Today was especially rough, though, because not only did I get up later than I wanted, nothing went the way I expected it to!

Sure, I argued with the cat and made coffee, but when I sat down with my mug, Evie came stomping up to me and decided that, despite the fact that I was sideways-pretzeled on the couch, I must be sat upon. So up she hopped, but my mug was in the way of her sudden desire to sleep tucked under my chin and atop my chest like a fluffy facehugger.

I ended up wearing most of that cup of coffee and had to dislodge her before she settled in so that I could clean up.

Major bummer.

My second cup went better, though Evie was pretty mad at me and let me know by both yodeling and, more annoyingly, biting me. And of course she couldn't hop on the counter like a normal cat and bite my fingers, no.

She bit my foot.

She never bites feet, but she leaned down and took a mouthful of sock to air her fury.

She still decided that I was cuddle-material when I finally sat down after fully drinking my second cup. She tucked herself under my chin and kneaded little pinholes in my collarbone because she's an adorable little monster made of knives and cuteness.

It took until almost noon to get her off of me so I could do some chores - like pick up snacks. Unfortunately, my usual store was closed (despite multiple cars in the parking lot), so I went to the Food Service and bought bougie local chips (which are delicious, but kind of expensive) and Reese's Cups (which are delicious and not at all expensive). Also Unfortunate - the once-a-ceramic-shop storefront that has lain empty since mid-summer has now been filled with yet another "medical" marijuana dispensary.

I'm all for people combating their ills with whatever helps, but...

Come on.

If it was really a medical marijuana facility I wouldn't have been able to smell it from the church a hill and a half away. The other place in town is next to a bank and I never smell anything from them.

Pretty sure I got a contact high from that. 0/10 do not recommend. Also ended up with heartburn.

So I came home in a foul mood and probably a little toasted, but I was all ready to start doing my work...

Except I really didn't want to.

I was tired.

I was cranky.

The cat was yodeling again.

I just wanted to eat a bag of Cheez-Its and sleep.

So I ate a bag of Cheez-Its...

and zoned out.

Instead of working.

But then I realized I needed to do the damn work, so I put on my Big Artist Britches (okay, they're just a pair of plaid leggings bc all my pajamas are now in the wash) and dragged out my Good Sketchbook and my Good Watercolor Pencils and DID THE DAMN WORK!

And here it is:

"Stop, Thief!!!"; watercolor pencil on paper; 2021

Here we see a very happy groundhog escaping with a stolen pumpkin! It bounds towards freedom, not for a moment heeding the cries of dismay from the human whose edible lawn ornament has been snatched.

I want to thank my boyfriend for commissioning this one - it was so fun to draw, and even if groundhogs don't often canter like a racehorse, I love the motion it has! I am also inordinately proud of that pumpkin - it looks delightful!!!

There's one more commission to fulfill, but... that one will require quite the concerted effort on my part, as it's probably the biggest work I've ever tackled. Look forward to more updates on my Thanksgiving art in the coming week!

I think that'll do it for me today - I'm exhausted and excited and eager to rest up and start on the Big Commission tomorrow!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Fiber Monday

 

In Which I Experiment

Anyone remember way back in 2019 when I made a bean-stitch pumpkin for my mom? Well, because I am a masochist, had some leftover orange yarn, and learned a new stitch, I decided to make another lil pumpkin!

This one will be made using something called a "waistcoat stitch", which I learned via this video on YouTube (strongly recommend you watch it - it's so cool!!!)

I had so many false starts it's not even funny. Did you know that it's almost impossible to find the V's of your single crochets using a medium weight wool and an F/5 3.75mm hook? It is! And an H/8 5.0mm hook is too big, leaving unsightly gaps and feeling too loose!

So I compromised with a 4.0mm hook!

I tried a few different approaches to begin with - stitching a flat 60 stitch wide piece (too hard), chaining 2 sts and then putting 6sc into the first chain (looked like a butthole, tbh), and a single loop magic ring (kept falling out) - but I ended up with my usual 6sc into a double-magic-ring (plenty of places to look this one up, and it's so stable!!!)

Not gonna lie - the first couple rounds of waistcoat stitch are almost nightmarishly hard for me. I almost gave up and just single crocheted the first few rounds! But I persisted and now...

It's really cool looking!

It's harder to see in photos than in real life, but it looks... it looks knit! I know it'll look more and more knit the more I go along, but the V's of the stitches are all so nicely interlocked! I do have to wonder if a straight increase would have looked better than the staggered ones I do, though.

STRAIGHT INCREASE:

1. 6sc in magic ring or double loop magic ring (6 sc)
2. 2sc in each sc (12 sc)
3. *2sc in first sc, sc in next, repeat from * around (18 sc)
4. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 2 sc, repeat from * around (24 sc)
5. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 3 sc, repeat from * around (30 sc)
6. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 4 sc, repeat from * around (36 sc)
7. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 5 sc, repeat from * around (42 sc)
8. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 6 sc, repeat from * around (48 sc)
9. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 7 sc, repeat from * around (54 sc)
10. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 8 sc, repeat from * around (60 sc)

STAGGERED INCREASE

1. 6sc in magic ring or double loop magic ring (6 sc)
2. 2sc in each sc (12sc)
3. *2sc in first sc, sc in next sc, repeat from * around (18 sc)
4. *sc in next sc, 2sc in next sc, sc in next sc, repeat from * around (24 sc)
5. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 3 sc, repeat from * around (30 sc)
6. *sc in next 2 sc, 2sc in next sc, sc in next 2 sc, repeat from * around (36 sc)
7. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 5 sc, repeat from * around (42 sc)
8. *sc in next 3 sc, 2sc in next sc, sc in next 3 sc, repeat from * around (48 sc)
9. *2sc in first sc, sc in next 7 sc, repeat from * around (54 sc)
10. *sc in next 4 sc, 2sc in next sc, sc in next 4 sc, repeat from * around (60 sc)

Regardless of how you increase, you should end up with a 60 stitch-around disc. In my case, instead of single crochets I'm using waistcoat stitches (which are just single crochets that go through the v of the stitch instead of the top!). You can really make a circle with any kind of stitch using this pattern of increases, and by adding rounds of one-new-stitch-per-stitch-below (60 sc rounds), you can build this into anything from a basket to a sphere to a bolster or anything round or cylindrical, depending on where you begin your decrease rounds.

The decrease rounds will, of course, be the reverse of increase rounds, so you'll be single-crocheting in two spaces to form one stitch (or waistcoating in two stitches to form one waistcoat stitch). I'll cover that next week, I think, since it took me forever to a) get up and b) get to work today lol.

It's a rough transition to the ol' Spring Ahead, what with my state observing Daylight Savings Time and all...

And it was freezing today - we were at 50℉(10℃) not long ago, and today stayed around 14℉(-10℃)!!! WTH?!?!?!

Lemme cry ya a river, right? lol.

Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed today's lil peek into my deranged attempts at crochet :P

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Fiber Monday 246: I Made A Thing!

In Which I Finish Another Pumpkin!

Not to put too fine a point on it, but I feel like I've been on fire lately for crochet :)

Here are all of the bean stitch rows finished!

I ended up having to tear out the final stitches about a dozen times because I literally cannot figure out the tension so that it's not too spaced-out! Regardless, I eventually reduced down from 30 to 24 to 18 to 12 to 6 stitches and ended up with a finished pumpkin!

And then I jammed a stick in it.
Apparently, they used hot glue and rolled up felt in the original pattern.
I had neither, so a stick it was.

After I got the stick in place, I began to use the very, very long tail I had left over to slowly section off the pumpkin so it wasn't just a blob with a stick in it.

Here's one view of the finished pumpkin!

Here's another!

I wish I had been able to take better pictures of this project, but it's a gray and gross day, so better pictures will have to wait :| Such is life.

So that's another gourd finished! Are there any requests for the next project? Any suggestions for future attempts at this pattern?

Because that's all for me, today!

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Fiber Monday 245: A New Pumpkin

In Which I Make Another Gourd

It was mentioned to me in passing that a pumpkin centerpiece might be nice for Thanksgiving, so I looked around for a new pattern, and I chose this one.

Here's my progress so far:

I'm not 100% sold on the size hook I'm using, but I'll keep going until things are done, and if it's too big, I'll start over with a smaller hook, like a 5.00mm or less, maybe :)

That'll do it for me today!

Go Enjoy Something!
FC