I love thrifting. Thrifting or buying secondhand is a great way to save money, prevent waste and support local nonprofits. And for those that are a little icked out by thrift stores, then please, instead of tossing your unwanted items in the trash, please, please, please donate them to thrift stores so those of us that aren’t bothered by the ick, can keep the cycle going.
Whenever I need something, I will often look at a thrift store first before buying new. And sometimes I just stop by local thrift stores to see if they have something I didn’t know I needed. 🙂 That’s what I did earlier this week. My husband and I had gone hiking at Project Chimp-if you are ever in north Georgia, check it out! We hiked the very steep white trail and were able to see a couple chimps from the observation deck using binoculars . We also heard them a lot while hiking. It was neat and I hope to one day manage to get tickets to one of their public events to see the chimps up close. After hiking we had lunch at a fantastic Cuban style restaurant in Blairsville, GA called Nani’s. Check them out if you are ever in the area-no website but Google it. The fried plantains and the Chicky plate are fantastic and consistently delicious. After lunch we went to a nearby thrift store that supports the local Humane Society. This place is huge. I was lucky enough to find a set of double pointed knitting needles and a skein of yarn for 50 cents each. Whenever I buy something at a thrift store, the first thing I do when I get home is clean it, aka remove the ick. The yarn didn’t appear dirty but had a slight smell like it had been in storage and therefore needed to be cleaned before using. So how do you clean a skein of yarn? Easy!
First, wind the yarn into a hank or a loose circle. I use my yarn swift but you can do this manually by winding the yarn onto the back of a chair or something else that will create a large circle of yarn. See photo below.
Next, tie the circle of yarn four or five times evenly spaced out around the circle. Make sure you tie up both ends of the yarn. The purpose of this is to keep the yarn together so make sure you knot the ties well.
Now wash the yarn! Check your yarn label for washing instructions. My yarn label stated machine wash and dry so I placed my circle of yarn into a mesh delicates laundry bag and washed and dried it along with some towels. I did remove the yarn from the dryer before the end of the cycle as I knew the towels would take a lot longer to dry than the yarn.
Once the yarn was fully dry, I placed it back on the yarn swift and wound it into a ball. Now the yarn smells fresh and is ready to use! It’s that easy.
In my last post, I wrote about two baby blankets and two bears I made for the North Georgia Pregnancy Services Center. When I dropped of the two granny blankets and bears, I also included a third blanket and bear. This blanket was made with scrap/stash Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice yarn. For this blanket, I gathered all the Vanna’s Choice I had left in stash and separated it into two groups, muted cool colors and warm autumn like colors. I’ve been playing around with the muted cool colored yarn in a different project and will post about it once it is complete. For the the warm autumn like colors I decided to make a baby blanket.
I used the Cute as a Button Baby Blanket as my pattern but had to mix it up some to make the pattern work with the yarn I had. Rather than making the middle a solid color as written in the pattern, I opted for diagonal stripes in order to use all the small amounts of multi-colored skeins. And, since the middle was made with a variety of color, I opted to make the edging solid rather than the multicolored edging as written in the pattern. Finally, I left off the buttons as with the striped center, buttons would have been too busy.
This pattern starts in one corner then increases until half the main section is made, then starts decreasing to finish the second half. My goal was to use as much of my scrap stash as possible without running out of yarn at the end. So I set aside the yarn I planned to use for the edging, weighed what was left, split it into two equal parts and placed into separate bags. The goal was to work the pattern increases until the first bag of yarn was used up then start the decreases with the second bag of yarn. This worked!
I was so excited to use this awesome yarn for a baby blanket that looked really cool. The edging was stitched with a different, but very similar yarn that was given to me. I’m glad I had it as it gave the blanket the perfect edging. And while I had A LOT of ends to weave in (seriously close to 90) I used up all but a teeny tiny bit of off white. Don’t worry, it will get used in a future project. 🙂
Once the blanket was done, I made another Easy Peasy bear to donate with it. I’m really excited with how well they came out and hope they find a nice home with a new mom and her baby.
With a little bit of imagination and creativity, you can make two items from the same pattern that look completely different! Modified version above and original pattern below.
Over the years I have posted about using up stash yarn on charitable projects. It’s now 2025 and yup, I’m STILL working on my yarn stash. At one time my yarn stash was HUGE. Not like yarn store big or anything, but somehow I had accumulated a lot more yarn than I had reasonable storage space for. So I’ve been working on it (for a number of years) a little at a time and I’ve recently completed six projects from stash that have been donated to a local charity. The charity is called North Georgia Pregnancy Services Center (The Center) and it provides some medical services and support to women who are pregnant and their newborn babies. When I stopped in the office to ask if they could use baby blankets I received an enthusiastic “YES!” as they like to include a handmade blanket in the package they give to each expecting mother using their services. I was super excited to hear this as I love to crochet for charitable organizations and very pleased to find a local organization to support.
Last year I completed two granny square baby blankets with no recipient in mind. They were made with stash yarn-super soft Knit Picks/WeCrochet Mighty Stitch 80% acrylic, 20% superwash wool. I stored them for a few months until I decided what to do with them. Once I found out The Center would like them, my decision was made but before I donated them, I wanted to make bears with the leftover yarn from each blanket. I remembered the Easy Peasy Teddy Bears I made a number of years ago for a group called Team Lewis, read about it here. So I took some more stash yarn (yipee! using more stash!) combined it with the leftover Mighty Stitch, and made some coordinating bears.
Since I had made the two blankets a few months ago, I wanted to wash them before I dropped them off at The Center. After a little research, I found some lingerie bags on Amazon that are huge. They are perfect for washing handmade baby blankets. I bought six and decided from now on I will include one of these with each baby blanket I donate or give as a gift. The blankets washed up perfectly and were safe in the bags from washing machine/dryer damage. The bags I bought were 24″ by 24″ and about $10 for a pack of three. After the blankets were washed and dried, I added the washing instructions by cutting the information off the yarn label and securing it to the blanket.
The two blankets and two bears were dropped off along with a third bear and blanket. I’ll post about them next time. The Center was having a staff meeting when I came by and they all seemed really excited about receiving the donations. I’ll be making more for them and have already started on a fourth blanket with, of course, stash yarn.
Pattern information: The baby blankets are basic granny squares work with a pattern repeat of three rounds of main color and one round of contrasting color. Blankets were then edged with six-seven rounds (I had less blue than pink) of main color and finished with a round of sc and then a round of slst.
My latest crafting passion is upcycling denim jeans. I’ve been wanting to do this for awhile now but didn’t have a sewing machine capable of handling the thicker fabric. I also don’t have much in sewing skills but I’ve never let me stop that before. 🙂 I recently purchased a used, almost vintage, Bernina sewing machine and really love it. It was a great buy, sold to me by a woman I met at a weekly craft group I attend who really just wanted it to go to someone who would use it and enjoy it. Well, I’ve done that and more. I’ve been playing around with the machine a lot and came up with this fun, thrifty and eco-friendly hot pad.
My final hot pads are approximately 9″ by 9.5″ and use inseams from four or five different jeans. Please note, my instructions are not designed to be presented as a professional pattern. I am a beginner sewer and therefore just explaining the steps I used to make the hot pads.
Prepping inseams: Turn the jeans inside out and cut out the inseams leaving 1/4″ of fabric from the inseam. Save the rest of the jeans for another project. Press the raw edges together with an iron. Seal the raw edges of the inseam with a zigzag stitch along the edge using a matching thread. I did two rows of stitching, all the way down and then back up over the same stitches to really seal in the ends and prevent fraying. Trim any loose ends. I used Coats and Clark all purpose thread color #4660 Denim. This color seems to blend in fairly well with most jeans. Once the seams are sealed, cut into 10″ strips and press again to completely flatten and straighten out any curves.
Seal in ends with two rows of zigzag along raw edge.
Trim any loose threads.
Supplies: 12-13, 10″ inseam strips from four or five different jeans with different colored threads prepped as mentioned above.
2, 10″ by 10″ denim squares. If necessary, sew two smaller scrap pieces together to use on the backside of the hot pad.
10″ by 10″ batting/insulation. I used pieces of an old, damaged, felted 100% wool sweater sewn together to form a 10″ by 10″ square but you may also use quilt batting, old mattress cover, a few layered t-shirts sewn together, or anything that will give enough thickness to insulate from heat.
Contrasting thread, I used a golden brown.
Steps:
First, line your prepped inseams side by side on one of the 10″ by 10″ denim squares. I used clips to hold in place. With a matching thread, run a quick stitch across one end to secure them to the denim square. Then using a straight stitch, stitch down the middle of each seam.
Second, layer your second piece of denim square with wrong side facing, then the batting/insulation, then the top piece with the attached seams, right side up. Your batting/insulation should be sandwiched between the two denim pieces with the right sides facing out. Clip together. Trim any pieces that are too long. Make sure all edges are flush.
Third, using zigzag stitch and a contrasting thread, sew around the perimeter of the hot pad securing all three layers. I went around three times I believe.
Last, Enjoy!
Note on the jeans I use to upcycle: I buy thrift store damaged/clearance items and rarely pay more than 99 cents per pair. I use all types of denim, most have a mix of cotton, spandex and some with polyester. If my project requires it, I will add interfacing to prevent stretching. My goal is to use as much of the jeans as possible including the inseams, hems, waistbands, zippers and pockets.
Hello All! I’d like to share a fun, cute project I just completed…three plarn flowers to adorn a doormat! Earlier this month my husband and I took a three week adventure in our new-to-us travel trailer. About mid-way through we realized we really needed a doormat to help control the amount of dirt/leaves/grass that was being tracked into the camper. I jokingly mentioned the vintage green doormat with the daisies in the corner would be perfect and surprisingly, he agreed! A quick internet search indicated the vintage style doormat is available online and also offered at some ACE Hardware stores. We stopped at the first ACE we could find and unfortunately, they did not have any in stock. Disappointed but knowing we really needed to deal with the debris being tracked into the camper, we purchased a plain taupe doormat. It worked great and a day later I decided I would crochet some plarn daisies to decorate our doormat.
I decided to use plarn (plastic bag yarn) so the flowers would not be damaged or grow mold when the doormat got wet. You can find a great tutorial on how to make plarn here: http://thecrochetfoyer.blogspot.com/2012/03/how-to-make-plarn.html. Keeping with an upcycle theme, I pulled three random dark blue buttons from my button jar for the middle section. I followed my Spring Blossoms hair clip pattern, only I made five petal flowers instead of seven petals. I sewed the flowers and the buttons to the doormat and then gave each a little squirt with a glue gun both under the button and the back of the doormat where they were sewn.
I’m really excited with how cute the doormat turned out and how great it looks with our blue and white campground mat! We have another trip planned for the last week in October and I am really looking forward to using our new, adorable doormat!
A couple years ago, the image below showed up in my Facebook feed with a challenge to use less plastic in during the month of July. Plastic drives me INSANE. I don’t want to use it but it has become almost impossible to avoid, particularly at the grocery store. Produce is pre-wrapped or pre-bagged in plastic, sour cream comes in plastic, lunch meat, bread, cereal, snacks are all packaged in plastic. Juice and vinegar and milk are bottled in plastic. It is EVERYWHERE. So what do you do when you want to do what is right for the planet and cut out plastic? That is where the 3 R’s come in. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Say it with me… Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Did you notice recycle is last? It is last for a reason. Recycling, while better than tossing plastic in the landfill which leaches toxins into our ground water and may eventually find its way in our oceans, should be your last option. Recycling is expensive and uses energy. The best thing you can do is reduce your use of plastic. And when you have plastic, reuse what you have. And when you can no longer reuse the item, recycle it.
So what does this have to do with crochet? A lot. Because when you add crochet to anything you add fun. Adding crochet to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is nerd heaven for me. I’m passionate about the Earth and I’m passionate about crochet. While there are lots of ways to reduce your use of plastic, below are a couple suggestions on how you can use crochet to help reduce your plastic use.
First #1! BYOB. Bring your own bag is #1 on the list above and by far the easiest way to cut back on single use plastic. Really any bag will do but if you like, you can crochet a bag or two or more. When my oldest was in kindergarten (he is now a senior in college) I made a bag out of plarn (plastic yarn made from used plastic bags). I love it and it is super strong. I always load it up with cans and jars when I grocery shop. I didn’t use a pattern but there are a bazillion patterns out. A quick Ravelry search yielded over 1,000 market bag patterns.
2. BYOW. Bring your own water bottle. I’m not going to suggest you crochet a water bottle as that would be weird, but you could crochet a water bottle carrier. This would make it a lot easier to bring your own water with you. Here is a quick Ravelry search for water bottle carriers. Next time you go to restaurant and they ask if you would like a drink/straw, you can say, “No thank you. I’m doing my part to reduce the amount of single use plastic waste and brought my own water in this awesome water bottle carrier that I crocheted myself!” or something like that.
3. BYOC. Bring your own cup. Post-covid this one is a little harder as some companies are not refilling reusable cups or offering refills. Like everything, I think this will eventually pass but if you need a coffee fix every day, just brew it at home and bring it to work with you. Or get your own personal coffee machine for your office. I make coffee using a French press and use this homemade cozy to keep it warm while brewing. Or you could crochet a cozy. Skip the lines, save time and money, and make your coffee yourself.
4. BYOL. Bring your own lunch. Pre-covid I would bring my lunch to work and intend to again once I’m back in person next month. I pack it in an old personal sized cooler that one of my boys used to use in grade school. The strap is broken and the zipper is messed up on one place. But it still keeps food cool. So I carry it in-you guessed it-a crocheted bag I made. I use reusable containers for my lunch and do not use single use plastic baggies. I bring real forks and spoons and a cloth napkin.
5. BYOU. Bring your own utensils. This one is my favorite because this one took me awhile to figure out. When we eat out, we often go to casual dining places (pre-covid and we will begin again, eventually). Not quite fast food but you still order at a counter. These places often have plates or baskets that get reused but tend to offer plastic forks/spoons/knives and cups and straws (see above for BYOW) that end up in the trash. The light bulb turned on one day when we were eating out and I now use an eyeglass case to carry my own utensils with me. I keep it in my purse and never need to use a disposable fork/spoon/knife while away from home. Read about it here, Eco-Craft, Plastic Utensil Carrying Case
6. BYOPB. Bring your own produce bag. Yup, there is a pattern for that! Crochet Produce Bags. I never understand the purpose of produce bags. You are going to either peel or wash the produce before you eat it. And you are going to put it in a bag after you check out. One day I watched a guy put bananas in a plastic produce bag and then tie it shut. WHY? They are already bunched together and sealed in a natural wrap that you don’t eat. I’ve seen some people single items in plastic produce bags. One butternut squash in a bag-again, why? you are going to peel it before you cook it. Oh well, not my job to judge. Unfortunately, so much produce is pre-bagged in plastic. But if you feel you need another bag for them, try crocheting a light-weight bag to transport the loose fruit and veggies.
7. Eat at home. I think covid has taught us all that this is not only possible but a great way to slow down and enjoy dinner time. Dinner doesn’t have to be eaten in the car. However, if you can support restaurants and businesses struggling to come back, do. Just do it Eco responsibly and make the trips to fast food the exception, not the norm. Crochet some hot pads and placemats and enjoy a home cooked meal.
Pizza! Pizza!
8. Food storage. No need to buy plastic or even glass storage containers. Clean and reuse what you already have. And why not dress them up while you are at it?
9. Share the tips. Done.
Do you have any other ways you use crochet to reduce plastic usage? I’d love to hear them.
Happy Crocheting and Happy Reduce Plastic Usage! Darleen
For a long time now, my husband and I have been wanting to buy an RV and drive off into the sunset. We began looking over eight years ago. We used to drag the boys with us but they quickly got bored of it and so we would usually go look on our own. We looked at EVERYTHING. New, used, Class A’s, B’s and C’s, 5th wheels and travel trailers. We looked at 40 foot million dollar motorhomes, (just for kicks) to tiny teardrop campers. It was entertaining for us and helped us determine what we wanted. Eventually we decided we wanted something less than 30 feet so it would be easier to drive and allow for smaller campsite options but also big enough to allow for a little elbow room. We also decided we would get either a Class A or B. For those not familiar with motorhomes, that is either the one that looks like a bus (A) or one that looks like a UHaul (C). Neither of us wanted to drive a large pickup truck on a regular basis and that is what would be needed to pull a trailer or 5th wheel the size we wanted. Purchasing a new motorhome was cost prohibitive so we looked at used. However, finding a used one that passed the sniff test was a challenge as so many smelled of either smoke or mold. There were some that smelled so bad we wouldn’t even get up the two steps into the house because the stench overwhelmed us.
Eventually we did find an RV that checked all our boxes and this past January, we purchased our first RV. We purchased a 1998 Safari Trek 2480. Yup, an RV that is over 20 years old. Some thought we were nuts but we are excited about it. Our first step was to get the “motor” part of the motorhome up to speed and we brought it to a repair shop. It was there for almost three months. I don’t like to complain so that’s all I’m going to say about our experience with that shop. Right now it is with a local mechanic who is finishing up on our needed repairs. We are excited we found a local guy willing to help us get this awesome coach back on the road where it belongs.
Since we purchased it in January, most of the time it had been in the shop but we did have it at home for about six weeks total. In that time we have been cleaning and cleaning and cleaning some more. While it didn’t smell, it is over 20 yrs old and in need of a deep clean. We have also been making repairs to the house, getting it ready for paint and other updates as well as learning the systems. I hope to have some before and after photos to share with you. One of the great things about the Trek is the amount of cabinet storage. As I’ve been cleaning I found three awesome hideaways for yarn and WIPS. 🙂 Eventually we will be taking the Trek out on extended adventures and yarn storage is a must.
While the Trek was in the shop, I spent my free time scouring thrift stores for kitchen must haves for the motorhome. I’ve always been a huge fan of buying second hand when possible. This is no exception and I believe I have just about everything now to fully stock the kitchen. I also missed the Trek and designed a new hot pad. I then made a second that matched our RV. I think it’s a pretty good likeness!! I’m looking forward to cooking meals in our Trek and using the hot pad.
Although we aren’t quite ready to drive off into the sunset, we are excited about our new home on wheels and the adventures that await. Stay tuned!
Happy Crocheting! -Darleen
EDIT: 2023 update-we traded in our Trek for a small travel trailer. Super excited about our upcoming adventures!
Did the Easter Bunny bring you a new RV? NO?? Well, you can make the next best thing, an RV Motorhome Hot Pad!! This adorable hot pad is the perfect hot pad for your RV kitchen. Still dreaming and not yet an RV owner? Crochet one and keep it in your “sticks and bricks” home. The pattern is easily adapted to match your RV or RV to be. Change the colors, the stripe pattern and tag line to whatever you desire. It’s your RV, your DREAM. Go for it and have fun.
Eco-Craft: Making a Laptop Stand from Household Materials
If you follow my blog you know that in addition to crochet I am passionate about the environment. So whenever I feel like I need something new, I often look for environmentally friendly options first. Can I make it? Can I pick one up secondhand? Can I buy a handmade option vs plastic junk? Sometimes there are no great options and I end up having to order online from a big box store, but when I can, I do try to come up with an alternative.
DIY laptop stand made with mason jars, cutting board and crochet!
With COVID shelter-at-home orders in place, my work transitioned us all to work remotely. I’ve been working at home for over five weeks now. I really do like it although I am missing my work station. In my office I have a variable height desk and two massive monitors. It’s been an adjustment working on just a laptop, but one that has been surprisingly easy. After a week I realized I needed to raise my laptop to eye level. Too much looking down was bad for my neck. I found a box that was the right height and used that for a couple weeks. But I got sick of looking at that ugly brown box. Stuck at home without access to thrift stores had me initially looking online for a laptop stand. Once I saw how basic and how expensive it was for plastic junk, the DIY in me knew there had to be a better, Earth-friendly option.
Like most projects, I thought about this one for a few days trying to figure out the best way to make the project work. I decided on using four mason jars and an old cutting board. The jars were saved from store-bought salsa. The cutting board was one that I have been meaning to replace. It was old and had started to split as ***someone*** ran it through the dishwasher a few times. Split cutting boards are not good to use as bacteria can get in the cracks. I knew it was important for the jars to have some weight to them to add stability to the laptop stand. I had enough sand for two jars. The third is filled with blue sea glass purchased at least 15 years ago. The last is filled with shells collected from one of our beach trips. The two sand jars were a little plain looking so I added a display of some of the nicest shells in one. The second I decorated with a crocheted motif using stash yarn. This was inspired by my Zinnia Votive pattern. I used the motif from the pattern and secured it with a crocheted band around the back. The cotton and linen yarn (CotLin by KnitPicks) in Raindrop, looks great, is the perfect dusty blue, and contrasts nicely with the white sand. The jars were secured to the cutting board with hot glue. Now when I’m working on my computer, not only is my neck happier, but I am surrounded by crochet and memories of good times with my family at the beach. All for zero dollars and zero impact on the Earth.
Crochet used to decorate a mason jar in a DIY laptop stand. Sea shells my family collected on one of our beach trips!
And an added bonus is the space under the laptop. Underneath the stand I placed a basket. Now my computer glasses, cleaning cloth, and lip balm are close at hand but out of the way.
Ta-Da! an awesome laptop stand!
I purchased a new cutting board to replace the one used in the project. I did have to go online to a big box store but at least it is made from bamboo-an environmentally friendly material.
My office/guest room is the latest room painted in my quest to repaint my whole house. I first blogged about it here and my last post was about the first thing I added to the freshly painted walls in this room. I’ve got a couple more crochet themed projects planned for the office/guest room, if I can ever get to a thrift store for supplies!
You can easily make one yourself. If you can’t find a old cutting board, a book, mirror, or any other solid, flat board will work. Just be sure to add some weight in the supports as you don’t want the stand to be top-heavy. If you are using glass jars, you can fill them with decorative stones, loose change or marbles. Your neck will thank you. 🙂 Happy Crocheting! Darleen
Turning Grandma’s vintage crocheted doilies into wall art.
I have fond memories of visiting my grandmother and uncle. My parents, brother, sister and I would drive from Long Island to Columbus, Ohio just about every Christmas break. Grandma always had an assortment of delicious homemade cookies ready for us when we arrived and the holiday meal always came with fruit suspended in green jello. My uncle would take us to the A&W for a root beer float and we would play ping pong in the basement and canasta in the living room. My brother usually won the ping pong and canasta games. He was always good at all types of games. I remember my grandmother teaching my sister how to sew and her showing me how to make french knots. I also remember all the doilies. My grandmother had them all over the house. She had many Dresden dolls (I always called them “Lacy Ladies”), Hummel figurines, and other collectibles. Each was placed upon a doily. These doilies are some of my earliest memories of crochet. Although I’m sure I didn’t realize how they were made, I remember I always loved the beautiful lace and symmetry of them.
Grandma’s vintage doilies
My grandmother passed away in 2003 (98 yrs old!). My uncle continued to live in the family home until he passed in 2008. And when he passed it was time to clear out the house. In doing so, we all brought home items that were special to us. One of the items I kept was a collection of doilies. Ever since I have been wanting to do something with them but not sure what. My home isn’t the doily and figurine type so I knew it would have to be a project. Eventually I figured out I would frame the doilies and display them as art.
Not only is this project special because it is a reminder of the good times with my grandmother and uncle but it is also a reminder of my brother. When I graduated from college (1991) he let me live with him for three months while I completed a management training program. I’m sure that wasn’t the most exciting thing for him, having his little sister crashing in his new duplex, but we made it work. And it was a huge help to me as I didn’t know where I would be transferred to once I completed the training program and therefore did not want to commit to a lease. While I was living with him, I started collecting items for my future apartment in the corner of the room where I slept. The pile grew as I often stopped by yard sales on the weekends. One of my purchases was a framed print. I moved that print to my first apartment in Elmira and to many other apartments after that. Eventually the print faded but I always kept it because I loved the wood frame. This is the frame I used in the project. Seeing it reminds me of my brother and his generosity to open his home to me. It is a reminder of how important family is and of how we need to make time for each other. My brother passed away in July, 2019. He was only 57.
The print, now faded, purchased at a yard sale while I lived with my brother.
So, how did I make it? First I cleaned up the glass and revived the wood frame with Old English wood polish. I spent about a week trying to figure out how I would make the background. My original thought was to purchase a solid framing mat but with the COVID-19 pandemic, the local framing store was closed and my shopping options were very limited. I looked at poster board online and even thought about painting cardboard for the background. Then, on my essential once-a-week-outing of shopping for food and supplies at Walmart, I took a quick look in the craft section and found a pre-cut section of beautiful blue knit fabric for $2!! It was perfect. I selected nine doilies from the collection to be displayed. Seven are crocheted, one is knit and one I believe is tatted. The doilies were steamed flat, placed in position, and voila!, beautiful crocheted wall art.
Beautiful wall art made with vintage crocheted doilies.
I didn’t start crocheting until a year or two after my grandmother passed. It saddens me that I didn’t get to share this craft with her. My grandmother was extremely talented in crafts and could sew just about anything. Years ago I had asked my uncle if Grandma crocheted and he could only remember her making an afghan. My father doesn’t remember either. So I’m not sure if my grandmother made the doilies or if they were given to her by friends or other family members. But I do know they are beautiful and bring comfort of warm family memories when I look at them. The total cost of this project was less than $6 (fabric, hanging hardware and poster board to seal the back), but to me, it is priceless. It is a beautiful reminder of childhood memories and of family who are no longer with us.
Crochet By Darleen Hopkins 