Hunkered Down

I've been wanting to knit granny squares really badly, but have been having serious trouble figuring the darn thing out. When I was at the library the other week though I spotted Maggie Righetti's "Crocheting in Plain English." I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I liked the cover so much I checked it out sight unseen. Chalk one up to being a graphic designer.

Last night I sat down (armed with a glass of wine) to try to figure out how to crochet a granny square. After a couple minutes it just clicked - something I owe to the crystal-clear descriptions in the book. Different strokes for different folks, but the whole thing finally made sense and I have been struggling for months to get this. Now I have visions of afghans and pillows dancing in my head. I probably should play it safe though and start out with a scarf or something.

And I am still working on the nieces' nightgowns. There is pink floral flannel everywhere. Two down, one to go is the status report. I was super disappointed I couldn't get them done in time for Christmas, but it actually worked out better perhaps because I got to check out how much the girls had grown since I'd seen them last and now I can adjust the hem-lengths accordingly. I'm hoping to get the nightgowns finished up before the end of the month. That's the good thing about a craft blog; the glaring reality of what projects I still have on my plate. Keeps me slightly more honest, right?

My Mom gave me a stem of tea roses from a bouquet she'd bought recently. Most of the buds shriveled up (*shakes fist at grocery store*), so I cut off a few stems before throwing the rest out. They're looking a little worn, but it's nice having something green and growing in the dead of winter.

Oh, and I just realized Spud and Chloe yarns has some free patterns on their site; super cute! I'm totally in love with the apple hat and am dying to knit one for my youngest niece.