Stitches South, Always a Pleasure

Posted on May 30, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Stitches South and Halos of Hope

A few weeks ago I volunteered to help Pam with Halos of Hope and the booth at Stitches South (Stitches) in Atlanta. For those not familiar with a Stitches event, it is an event put on by Knitting Universe; basically a yarnie convention. There are classes for knitters and crocheters, a fashion show and a market where you can buy yarn (surprise!) but lots of other vendors are there too; local yarn shops will get booths, manufacturers of various knit and/or crochet related gadgets, local guilds, yarn companies and many more. Halos of Hope had a booth to promote the charity, sell fundraising patterns and collect hats. Last year Pam put out a call to help man the booth so she could take a break or two and I eagerly offered. When she asked again this year, I was the first to raise my hand.

This is me donating hats I made.

I absolutely love experiencing the stories of those who stop by. Although many are happy, some are sad. Those who told stories of loved ones who lost the battle to cancer made my heart weep. But being able to talk of their loved one, if only to a stranger and for a few minutes, helps them heal and allows their memory to live on. One woman came by and told how her husband was recently diagnosed. Pam instantly pulled out the big bin of donated hats and found some manly ones for him.

I love the stories of the survivors who stop by and the nurses who work in centers where the patients receive donated hats. And I love when others come by with hats they made, whatever their motivation to knit, crochet or sew for Halos of Hope may be, they come with lovingly handmade hats to bring hope to others who need it most.

This year the Halos booth was located across from the Cascade Yarn booth. I recently had the pleasure to work with Cascade Yarn’s Avalon when I designed the Picture Perfect Baby Blanket or Throw. It is a lovely super-soft cotton yarn. Pam introduced me Shannon Dunbabin with Cascade Yarn-a very nice woman who could knit without looking at her work-an accomplishment I hope to achieve one day with my crocheting.

The event took place just south of Atlanta which is about an hour and a half drive from where I live. So I made a day of it and spent a little bit of time enjoying the market before and after my shift was done. After I strolled around the market and returned to the booth to collect my things, I found a bag full of yarn samples Shannon had given Pam to share with me! How sweet! and when I walked over to thank her, she gave me another beautiful hank of yarn! WOW!

I’ve already started working with the red Avalon yarn. Can you guess what I’m making? I’ll give you a hint-it has to do with Halos of Hope’s current campaign,the Kanine Kap Kampaign and has something to do with a dog who is red (obviously) and big. : )

2014 Stash Bust Challenge for Hope

Posted on February 15, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Update, February 2014 Stash Bust Challenge

Stash busting for Halos of Hope is in full swing. It’s mid-February and I have two hats to share! I’m so proud of myself for getting this month’s goal done early. I *hope* to complete one or two more this month to catch up for last month.

The first, The Frostberry Hat by Sarah Jane Designs, is a hat I started back in November, but had to put it down for a couple of months while I worked on other projects. I made a couple unintentional adjustments to the pattern. I really shouldn’t crochet while watching TV as I got my row counts off. The hat still looks great even with the adjustments. I love this pattern and plan to make another, as the pattern is written.

The second, The Happy Puppy Hat, was made for a co-worker’s daughter, Sarah, an adorable 2-year old, who is currently going through chemo treatments. The little girl recently received a new puppy so I thought this Happy Puppy hat would put a smile on her little face.

The weight of the two hats came to 6.5 ounces

Total hats made in 2014 challenge to date: 3

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 8.25 ounces

Working in the back horizontal bar, crochet

Posted on February 5, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

You want me to put my hook where????

Have you ever had a pattern tell you to hdc-whb or whb-hdc? Huh? Half double crochet worked in the horizontal bar (also called ‘back bar’) is a pretty easy stitch and creates beautiful ribbing. After watching the video, take some time to work a few rows of hdc-whb and you’ll feel like an expert crocheter!

Stash Bust for Hope 2014, January

Posted on February 2, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

January 2014 Stash Busting for Hope Update

Wow, only one month in and I’m already falling behind in my goals. I’ll get there, I PROMISE! I did manage to get one hat for Halos of Hope completed during January. If you are on Ravelry, plynn (blog) has started a CAL/KAL forum for Halos of Hope hats. Since I don’t really knit much, I’m participating in the CAL. For January she chose the Shells and Trellis hat by Melody Hamor. It is a really cute hat and easy pattern. With a few modifications, you can use just about any yarn. As always, I made a few tweaks. You can read my notes on my project page. This pattern has been on my radar and I’m glad to finally have had a reason to make it-thanks Pat!

Stash Bust 2014 hats made to date: 1

Total weight made to date: 1.75 ounces

Want to see more hats made for Halos of Hope? Check out this Pinterest board!

Super Stitcher Goals for 2014 and a NEW Stash Busting for Hope Challenge

Posted on January 5, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Goodbye 2013, Hello 2014

2013 was a great year for me crochet-wise. I met some of my 2013 goals and completed a 6 pound stash bust challenge. Crochet by Darleen Hopkins on Facebook is establishing a cozy community (come join us!), Pinterest is up and running and even a monthly Newsletter (Feelin’ Loopy) is getting ready for its second issue. So what is there to accomplish in Crochetland for 2014? LOTS!! A few of my top goals or to-do’s for 2014 are listed below. The Super Stitcher in me is determined to complete them all.

1) Complete the Crochet Guild of America’s Master Crochet Program. I’ve signed up and received the materials, now it is time to start stitching.

2) Work from yarn stash and only purchase yarn when absolutely necessary for a specific project; don’t buy yarn just because it’s on sale! This is ongoing. I started it in 2013 and plan to continue until I can get this huge stash under control!

3) Stash Bust for Hope Challenge 2014. This is my favorite goal. Last year I crocheted 6 pounds of Bernat CottonTots into soft hats for Halos of Hope. In addition to the 32 hats completed in that challenge, I also crocheted many other hats for Halos of Hope that were made from other stash yarns. So this year I challenge myself to crochet 7 POUNDS of my stash yarn into soft hats for Halos of Hope stitching at least 2 hats a month and, like last year, post photos and report on the total stitched yarn weight.

4) Continue to work on left-handed crocheting. Every once in a while I give this a try. I’m not there yet but I’d like to be comfortable enough using my left hand so I may be able to one day teach a lefty.

2013 flew by in what seemed like a nanosecond. The years are going faster and faster and sometimes I feel like my hooks can’t keep up, but I’m going to try. What are your crochet goals for 2014? Be a Super Stitcher too and have fun with whatever you make. Last, enjoy all the new year has to offer.

Darleen

Calculating yardage used, it’s easier than you think!

Posted on April 20, 2013 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

I love math. It was always one of my favorite subjects in school. I find comfort in numbers-nerdy, I know. Maybe that is why I love crochet designing. I thrive on finding the proper stitch repeats to manipulate yarn into creating the vision I have in my head. Many are afraid of math, don’t be. Math CAN be your friend. For example, if you need to calculate the yardage used in a project. Maybe you are testing a pattern for someone and they want the actual yardage you use, or maybe you have some yarn, not a full skein, and want to know if it’s enough to make that special hat pattern. Maybe you are math geek like me and are just curious. Whatever your reason for calculating your yardage, you can do it and it’s easy.

Supplies needed-

yarn
the yarn label (this is key)
kitchen scale (digital is best and one that measures in grams is even better)

1. Determine how many yards per ounce (or grams).

Yarn labels state yardage and ounces/grams. Say your skein has 3.5 ounces and 220 yards. Divide total yardage/by total ounces. In this example, that works out to approximately 63 yards/ounce. (220/3.5=62.857).

2. Determine how much yardage you used.

You need to weigh your yarn BEFORE you start your project (if you aren’t using new skeins) then weigh your yarn AFTER you finish. Subtract ending weight from starting weight to determine weight of yarn used. Then multiply by amount of yards per ounce as determined from the label in the first step. In the above example, if you used 1.5 ounces of yarn then yardage would be 1.5 X 63 = 94.5 yards. That’s it!

There are 28 grams per ounce so if you measure in grams, you will have a much more accurate calculation. I have a digital kitchen scale. I believe I bought at Wal-Mart for about $20. I know some people use the scales at local post offices. Just remember to always save the yarn labels of partial skeins. That way, you can calculate how much yardage you have on hand. If a pattern states estimated yardage needed to complete the project, you’ll know right away if you have enough or not.

Have fun!

Last Minute Handmade Halloween Costume

Posted on October 21, 2012 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

10 Days and Counting to my FAVORITE Holiday. I LOVE Halloween. Some of my favorite Halloween memories are of dragging the costume box down from the attic and putting together that year’s spooky creation. That box contained some old miscellaneous costume pieces and a few of mom’s old wigs and 1960’s housedresses. I had a lot fun with that box and created some pretty wacky costumes both for Halloween and for just silly play.

Now that I have my own family, we have a costume box too but with only boys, it’s full of mostly bloody swords and capes. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with bloody swords and capes. We just don’t have anything pink or fairy-like. So when I started thinking about what would work as a last-minute costume with just bloody swords and capes, I thought of this.

What I love about this is the child’s face is not covered with an obstructing and hot mask. I dislike full face masks. They smell funny, are hot and make it hard to see, especially at night. Another awesome thing is once Halloween is over, you have a great hat to wear throughout the winter season.