2023 Reflections + My Word for 2024

Posted on December 31, 2023 by Mominthegarden

Hi there! Well here we are, on New Year’s Eve, reflecting on the past twelve months. I’ve enjoyed watching on Instagram other people’s reels of their favorite moments from the past year. I had a very difficult time, myself, limiting my pictures to create a ‘year in review’ reel. My garden produced so many beautiful flowers this year! It was an absolute joy to tend to them.

If I had picked a Word for 2023, it would have been ‘Create’. With two large crochet blankets, a crochet sweater, a few wreaths and so many floral arrangements, I was able to use my creative energy in so many ways! It was such a fun year for creating.

Following on from Páraig’s post on The Three Hairs, I’m going to pick a word for 2024. It’s the same word that Páraig picked, actually: Purpose. Between a church sermon, a book, a tv series, and a blog post, too many sources were trying to teach me about the importance of purpose to ignore it.

For me, I’ll be focusing on doing everything with purpose. I’m going to work on eliminating ‘going through the motions’ and instead, concentrate on being present – especially with repetitive tasks.

Of course, there is the task of finding my purpose. That’s possibly a big task, but I think my purpose is to serve in small ways. My (or your) purpose doesn’t have to be to solve the world’s problems, but could be to bring joy to the world in the little things that we do. We’ll see how my journey goes. 🙂

collage from 2023: Gardening pal Susan, Traveling with husband Páraic, two crochet blankets, roses from the garden, crochet sweater, meeting with family, a dried floral wreath and biking with my husband.

I truly have had so many wonderful moments this year. I really enjoyed visiting with family and friends. I have one friend in particular with whom we love traveling to gardens together. My husband and I continue to travel and explore new places. And I’ve enjoyed lots of biking this year, especially with my husband.

It’s not always sunny, the flowers don’t always grow and sometimes the bike rides are really hard. But it’s important to remember that ‘this too shall pass’ – sometimes quickly and sometimes not so quickly. I’m grateful to have learned to be patient in this regard.

I’m thankful to be celebrating another New Year’s Eve! I wish you and your loved ones the very best for 2024. May all of our dreams come true! ❤️

In Peace,
Dana

A crochet granny square ‘Elmer’ sweater

Posted on March 27, 2023 by Mominthegarden

Hello! Well, Mother Nature has decided to keep us chilled a bit longer with another cold snap. The timing is perfect for me, as I just finished crocheting what I am calling an ‘Elmer’ sweater. Elmer is a colorful elephant from a children’s story, by David McKee, who teaches that being yourself is the best way to be. I made an Elmer blanket for my daughter a few years ago (you can see it here). The difference this time is that I added black while connecting all of the colorful squares, and Elmer the elephant doesn’t have that. I’ve been told by friends that this gives it a stained glass look. 🙂

Making this sweater was a huge challenge for me because I did not have a pattern, and I have not made many sweaters. All I had was an idea in my head. It was definitely a learning process, but in the end I was happy with how it came out. I made tiny granny squares, just two rows each. It took me about two months to make, and required way more squares than I’d originally thought! But I loved working with all of the different colors (29 Caron Simply Soft colors in all). A few years ago I switched to Amour Crochet Hooks by Clover. They have made a huge difference with comfort.

The colors should be random, but I did try – really hard – to make sure they were spaced out. This picture is of the back after I took apart my first block of sewing them together. I realized I needed more rows in both directions, so it was easier to unravel the joined up squares and start again. I had a tough time deciding which color to fill in that space with!

This image shows the original block, mentioned above and that was too small, on the right. On the left is the draft of the front of the sweater – including the ‘v’ neck, but without the ‘half squares’. I ended up going with 10 squares across and 8 squares down. The half squares took some fiddling with to get the stitches right – I needed to have 10 stitches on each side. I eventually figured it out! 🙂

in the process of putting together a patchwork granny square crochet sweater

My patience were very low with this project as my excitement was very high! Also, since I wasn’t sure what would have to be re-done or re-worked, I kind of rushed through parts to see if they would work. This picture shows the front, back and one sleeve pinned together to see if the sizing worked (it did!).

neckline of finished crochet granny square crochet sweater

I knew I wanted a ‘v’ neck, but I wasn’t sure what that would look like. I decided that I would keep the border for all three edges (neck, sleeves and bottom) a simple three layers of black. It just felt right.

So many colors!

Dana with finished crochet granny square crochet sweater

Ta-da! That was a fun project. I’m glad I did it, despite not being sure if I could figure it out. And it is a very warm sweater! 🙂

Thanks for stopping by!

In Peace,
Dana

“Me time” to crochet a Rainbow Poncho

Posted on November 10, 2018 by Mominthegarden

fingers with red nailpolish, rainbow colored yarn

Having some “free time” = “me time”!

Hi there! We were away at my daughter’s Irish dancing competition last weekend, which meant I had lots of “free time” before and after her competitions. Now that my daughter is 14 and does all of her prep work herself, the free time was really all mine (and better for my daughter’s stress levels when I keep myself busy!). I took full advantage of that time and started a new crochet project.

In the beginning… starting at the neck.

This project was actually a long time in the making. The yarn, called “Caron Cakes” in the color palette Rainbow Sprinkles, was bought for me by my husband about two years ago when he was in the U.S.A. on a business trip (isn’t that nice?!). He thought I’d like the colors, which was 100% correct as I LOVE the colors!

Caron Cakes yarn in Rainbow sprinkles color with start of poncho

watching the colors unfold

My problem was that I didn’t know what to make with these colors, and I only had two skeins (balls) of yarn. A poncho seemed the best choice, and I began my Pinterest search of patterns. Lots and Lots and Lots of patterns!

cat on lap with crochet poncho in progress

Kitty was convinced I needed her support while crocheting.

Eventually, I found the poncho which I thought would be perfect. The pattern I finally picked is called Mountain Breeze Poncho and was designed by Lorene Eppolite. It is a free pattern (I love those)! I would still consider myself a novice when it comes to reading patterns, so it took me a few go’s to get it right in the beginning. But once I figured it out, it was rather easy.

Mid-way progress picture!

It is meant to sit slightly off of the shoulders, which seems a bit unusual, but I think it works well. The front “pointy” part and the back “pointy” part are actually different. The front has a pattern of raised lines, whereas the back does not. A bit quirky. 🙂

Here is a look at the back while still in progress.

The yarn is soft and I enjoyed working with it, and the poncho itself has a lovely feel. I used a 7 mm crochet hook which is HUGE compared to what I usually use. That took some getting used to! I’m not able to whip through projects, as my hands tend to cramp up (I hold the yarn too tightly!). But this poncho came together quite quickly.

The finished Mountain Breeze poncho in Caron Cakes ‘rainbow sprinkles’

I fiddled a bit with the neck. The pattern had a more open neck, and I preferred a more closed neck. I won. 🙂

A back view of the completed poncho.

I also added on a bit to the outside edging, as I wanted a more defined look. I think I can still wear it with the raised line pattern a bit more on my shoulder, I’ll have to play around with that look!

Completed Mountain Breeze Poncho in Caron Cakes ‘Rainbow Sprinkles’

I loved that this was a quick and relatively easy project, and that I was able to use these fabulous colors! Back to last weekend’s dancing: My daughter danced beautifully at her competition. It was a big competition, and she didn’t place as well as she’d hoped, which is tough. But she’s resilient, and is determined to work harder.

mom in the garden with her daughter in Irish dancing dress

My daughter and I at her Irish dancing competition

There is a funny story that happened over that weekend when we were away for the dancing. A woman who was sitting next to me, looked at me and my crocheting and said “You don’t like free time, do you?”! I laughed and replied that this was my free time and I loved it! I guess it all depends on your perspective.

What do you do in your “me time”?

In peace,
Dana

mom in the garden kneeling at flowerbombed pipe in the garden wearing rainbow poncho

And this is me, kneeling at my yarnbombed (sewer) pipe in the garden. I just like adding a bit of color to life!

A Childhood Crochet Blanket “Remake”

Posted on October 15, 2016 by Mominthegarden

In the beginning

Some things are just worth holding on to, don’t you think? The picture above is of the first blanket I ever made. I was 10 years old, and staying with my aunt and her family for the summer. They lived in Florida, so for this New Yorker it was a huge treat. But what was my aunt going to do with me all summer when we weren’t at Disney World or at the beach? Being an avid “crocheter” herself, she started me on my first blanket.

granny “squares” that were anything but squares

The blanket has done fairly well over the past 30 plus years! But recently it became clear it was in need of some serious repair. My aunt had me sew the squares together, instead of crochet them, and the sewing was coming apart. I think I figured out why she had me sew them together instead of crochet: they weren’t squares at all! I did a TERRIBLE job of counting my stitches, so none of the squares were the same shape.

every shape imaginable except “square”

Yeah, I was 10. 🙂 So I decided to “Square them up”! I did the same border on all of the squares so I’d have the same number of stitches.

crocheting everything together

There are a million and one different styles for granny square blankets. I looked at ALL of them on Pinterest! I like nice clean white lines. It is so easy. And neat. I like that.

crochet together with a simple stitch

Next to decide: the border. I like to try something different with each project, so I played around with the border.

White & Pink edging

I wanted to make the blanket a little more substantial, so I went a few times around, each time with a different stitch.

White, Pink, White, Yellow & White border

I love the yellow border best. They are like little puff balls all the way around. The funny thing is, that is the BACK of them. I crocheted them the entire way around before I discovered the “puff” that I liked so much was on the back of the blanket! So I undid it, and turned the blanket around, and crocheted them on “backwards”. I felt better after I did that.

almost finished … one more border to go

I was tempted to call it quits after the yellow border. VERY tempted. But I decided to see how it would look edged in a frilly white.

frilly white edging

This gives it a bit of a different look, but I like it for this blanket.

full blanket all finished

I’m really happy with it, and glad that I took the time to remake it. That summer was pretty special to me, especially since we didn’t go down to Florida very often. That side of the family is my American-Italian side, and there is something quite special about that heritage. I have very fond memories, especially of my aunt. Unfortunately, she has since passed away, and this blanket is my special connection to her.

blanket remake

really happy with the end result

I don’t spend a lot of time crocheting, and I tend to take long breaks between projects! But I do love it, and I find it to be a relaxing past-time.

What about you? Any projects keeping you busy at the moment?

In peace,
Dana

The garden with its fall color on

Acts of kindness last a lifetime, as remembered through a crocheted flower blanket

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Mominthegarden

It all started with some pink and green…

When I think of acts of kindness I think of “the little things”. That is because I still have fond memories from when I was young of how certain people were patient, supportive, and kind to me. Let me explain…

trefoil … little touches of sweetness

I learned to crochet way, way, way before it was fashionable to do so. I was ten years old (ha! O.K., maybe I shouldn’t say that it was that long ago?) and my swim coach and his wife were a lovely retired couple with no children. I became their surrogate granddaughter and Mrs. Emerson’s love of crocheting was passed on to me with many wonderful afternoons of lessons. I still have and use the set of crochet needles she gave to me.

I have such happy memories of our times with them. Mr. Emerson was my very first swim coach. Boy did he have a tough job! But I remember that he was quite patient with all of us beginners, and always kind. Being a part of the swim team really felt like being a part of their family. It was a very fun time!

The centre pink flower is the very centre of my flower blanket

So now when I crochet I find myself thinking fondly of the times when Mrs. Emerson taught me a new stitch, or showed me a new project, or generally of the wonderful times we had together.

Pinks, yellow & green all lined in white

As for swimming, I am now a coach myself and I absolutely love it! I think of all of the coaches who were patient with me, encouraged me, and supported me all through my many years of competitive swimming. Now it is my turn to ‘pay it forward’ and do the same.

an evening shot giving a different hue to the colours

As for the crocheted flower blanket, it all started while I was away with my daughter at a swimming competition! We popped into a wool shop and I simply loved the spring colours they had (it was March last year): pinks, yellow, green (especially the green)!

spot the pattern…

This is the part where I could write “lessons on how not to make a blanket”… I just bought balls of wool. I didn’t have a project in mind but I had a vague idea that it would be a blanket. 🙂

I had a couple of books, too many ideas, and not enough yarn!

getting ideas from books

I found a flower pattern that I really liked. To make it fit a blanket and with other granny squares I just added stitches to the outside. The picture of the blanket above is what I had in mind for tying it all together. I really liked the white lining and border.

There is a yellow cross through the centre, and two diamonds of flowers. Can you see it?

I won’t show you the many pictures of failed attempts at “randomness”. Random just did not work for me. I needed to have some order to my madness! I also had white and light pink granny squares that just did not go well with these colours. This is the tough (silly) part when you just crochet without a pattern. I finally disciplined myself to create a pattern of colours and flowers. Life got much easier then!

natural sunlight

I have green flowers on a yellow square at the centre point of each border. From there, I alternated pink and yellow flower colours in a diamond shape. There is also a diamond shape around the very centre pink flower. To add more flowers, I decorated the corners. I think I mostly worked diagonally!

spot the pattern…

The flowers took a long time to make. WAY longer than I wanted them to. The granny squares are a cinch to make. Crocheting it all together actually made my hands get all cramped! huh? I must have been holding everything together too tightly. There are 121 squares. That is because I ran out of dark pink yarn and decided I was totally done with this project! Having started in March, done a bit in April, nothing over the summer, and then started again in September, this project was dragging on way too long! The blanket pattern with the white border simply said to crochet them together horizontally first, then vertically. It would have been helpful to say “slip stitch over the already crocheted together rows”… Nevertheless, I figured it out.

Yep, I have the blanket hanging on my clothes horse.

I waited on the border until I found something a bit different. The tiny trefoils are simple to make and I liked the look (makes me think of shamrocks).

Here is where my border came from

I only put them at the corners of each square. I tried more but didn’t like the look. I should tell you that there were many times I unraveled my work because it just wasn’t good enough. Now I can honestly say that I really like it. O.K., I love it. 🙂

looking very sweet on hot pink!

And that is my story of how acts of kindness can last a lifetime!

I hope there is kindness in your life today!

Dana

Mom in the Garden

Enjoying life. In Ireland. With my family.

Tag Archives: crochet