Crochet Fantasy news

I have complained in this blog about the difficulty of getting any information about "Crochet Fantasy". I resubscribed in July 2006 and "Crochet Fantasy" seemed to drop off the face of the earth. I did track down the address of the company that published it last, Fiber Circle Publishing and posted it:
Fiber Circle Publishing
200 McKinney Street
Farmersville, TX 75442

I have written several emails and several snail mails. I have not as yet received a reply. I decided to look up the phone number using the internet and I found it*. I decided to call today and see if anyone knew what was going on there.

I spoke to a very pleasant young lady named Diane. She informed me that Fiber Circle Publishing is trying to get another crochet magazine** to take over the subscriptions. No, there won't be another "Crochet Fantasy" and that's a pity. But the money I paid for the subscription will be used for another crochet magazine subscription. She told me only _1_ person is working on the database and that person is about three quarters of the way thru it. So while it may not be in the very near future, it looks like the "Crochet Fantasy" subscribers will be able to get another crochet magazine in exchange for what they already paid "Crochet Fantasy". I would guess that if you already subscribe to the magazine they turn the subscriptions over to that you would get an extension on your present subscription.

So I said I would post something about "Crochet Fantasy" when I found out and there it is.

Payton update: He's still in therapy, but he's doing fine and is in good spirits.

*if you want the phone number, you can email me through this blog & I'll send it to you.

**She didn't name the other magazine.

7 things you don't know about me

I read the "Crochet with Dee" blog and her blog today was a sort of "tag - you're it". SHe wrote about 7 things you don't know about her, none of them crochet oriented. So since I was "tagged", here you go:

1) I hate going to the dentist. I have been very fortunate in not having dental problems or bad teeth, but I just hate it. I hate getting my teeth cleaned. I'd rather go for a gyn check-up. I know that makes me weird, but there you are. I didn't go to the dentist until I was 28 and while it wasn't a fun experience (_1_ tooth pulled - that's it for all my life), it just bugs me. I usually take 2 tylenol for the headache I cause myself by being tense while my teeth are being cleaned.

2) Hmm, this is another tooth related one, but I almost 53 & have never gotten _any_ of my wisdon teeth. They're not impacted, they are just not there. (However, my older son got extra wisdom teeth - removed.)

3) I love to bake - especially bread. I love the way the dough smells and I love the way bread dough feels. I find it especially satisfying after an ugly week to bake.
(I do most of it on the weekend.) I must have had a really bad week because I baked a total of 4 cakes (2 chocolate, 1 strawberry, 1 orange) and potato bread this past weekend.

4) Whenever I am in a hospital or a nursing home visiting somebody, people tend to think I'm a nurse. I'm not wearing a uniform or a badge and I'm not a nurse, so this is a little confusing to me . (My 3 older sibs are nurses, maybe I just adopted their demeanor or something.)

5) I love to garden but the joke is on me. My "plot of land" is clay and takes a lot of amending to make anything grow. I have had some successes - white butterfly bush, persian lilac, daffodils and hibiscus. I think the failures (or "learning experiences" as I like to call them) outnumber the successes. But I still try to whip the clay into shape.

6) I am an "endangered species" - a natural redhead. There's not too may of them in the world, I think the highest concentration is in Scotland or Ireland. Neither of my parents were, none of my sibs are and neither of my sons are natural redheads. Some of my sisters have had red hair at one time or another, however. I got teased a lot, called the "milkman's daughter", that sort of thing (we didn't even _have_ a milkman). But hair color, like eye color, is not an "either/or" type of gene. Two blue eyed people can produce a brown eyed child - your genetic material is made up of more than what your parents look like and what you and your partner look like. Really.

7) I like to sing, but I really don't have that great a voice. I like to sing along with almost anything that catches my ear, from Ethel Merman to Amy Weinhouse. And I will make up the words as I go along, to fit whatever it is I am doing at the time. For instance, I am fascinated by Amy Weinhouse's song "Rehab". It's such a basic bluesy kind of song that I feel the need to sing it. And quote from it, to the cats and my (poor) family.

now you know more about me than you ever wanted to;) and of course, you are "tagged" to post the 7 things I don't know about you....

Red Scarf project

If you participated in the 2007 Red Scarf Project for the Orphan Foundation of America, you may want to know there have been some changes made. The date the scarves are due has been changed to September 1, 2007 to October 15, 2007. This might seem a bit early, but the group can process the scarves earlier and get them to the recipients earlier when they are more useful. OFA is also requesting each crafter (it can be crochet or knit) to contribute no more than 5 scarves. Apparently, charity crocheters and knitters gave so much for the 2007 project, they had scarves left over.
The scarves can be navy, teal, olive and gold for the guys in the group. (I think black, too.)Please check out the guidelines for more details:

http://www.orphan.org/index.php?id=40

retro or right up to date?

Here's something that caught my eye while surfing the net
http://www.retrotogo.com/2007/07/evans-60s-style.html

These are bright and colorful and in "larger sizes" but since they don't give any size as a reference, I have no clue. I think the price is in pounds, which is approximately $2 American dollars to each pound. (at least right now it is, who knows when you look at it).

I would think they are made of cotton or rayon motifs and sewn together, with a dyed slip underneath. It must be fingering weight or finer because it looks delicate. Pretty cool stuff - check it out when you get a chance.

"Craft" and carving your own crochet hook

If you see this magazine* in the store, you may think it's a bit pricey. I would suggest that you use one of the 40% coupons that a lot of craft stores advertise if you feel it's a bit too high. It really is not expensive for the amount of projects you get in each issue. It has almost every craft you can think of and if it's not there, it probably was in the last issue or will be in the next issue. Similar to a 50s/60s craft magazine (I bought a few on a whim) "Craft" presumes that you wouldn't only want to work a needlepoint pillow, but you'd want to do copper etching or glass blowing or perhaps make new bookshelves. Apparently in the 1950s, people had more time and energy to devote to crafts - probably because cable tv and the internet hadn't been invented yet;)

So what's that got to do with crochet? On the cover is a "crime scene" knitted scarf. Somebody who is clever with their hook and wants a crime scene scarf can probably easily figure out how to do it in crochet (and sell the pattern, too). But I promised how to hand carve a crochet hook, didn't I? Turn to page 130. There's an article by Jim Price on how to make a hand carved crochet hook. And who is Jim Price - here's his blog: jimbosfrontporch.blogspot.com

now you see what I mean. I have never carved a hook, but I do have a hook one of my younger son's friends** carved for me. It is massive and really too big for my hand and I have often thought of making some changes to it but I wasn't quite sure how to go about it. I've never used it for a project because it's so big. Reading this article gave me some tips on how to approach that project. And If I chicken out of carving the hook, well I can always buy one carved by Jim Price at his blog.

Think about creating your own custom hook. It could have a thumb rest (which I like) or not have a thumb rest. You could make the throat as shallow or as deep as you could want. Plus you could experiment with various combinations and sizes. If you ever wondered how to create a hook that would be uniquely yours, I suggest strongly that you check out this magazine. It is much cheaper if you subscribe - here's their info craftzine.com/subscribe .

There's a lot more articles in this issue I want to explore. There's the sourdough bread baking as well as the crochet cocktail ring. I have had a lot of success with yeast breads, but my sourdough bread has never been successful and a look at the recipe given might have a clue for me. Every other recipe I tried called for using yeast as well as the sourdough starter. There's tessalations as well as a stained glass grocery cart. (wouldn't that be cool to take to the yarn shop?P That almost makes want to go grocery shopping. It's just a great read and a great thought provoker.

*"Craft: Transforming Traditional Crafts", Volume 04, newstand price $14.99 US, $17.99 Canadian.
I did not receive any kickbacks from any of these folks, but I can be bought. If I am ever bought, I will definitely declare it so you will know I'm shilling for a product. I hope you check out this magazine, it is _cool_

(I wonder what happened to Ben? His family moved away quite some time ago. He definitely should be working in fashion designs, he could do amazing knitting and crocheting.)


Payton update: He is doing okay and there was a recent fundraiser for him. Here's that link:
http://www.rockyou.com/show_my_gallery.php?source=ppsl&instanceid=78760672