I don't know if any of you have ever done a zip line or "superman" swing, but we did both and it is a blast! It feels like you are flying! On the swing, they harness you in and pull you up about 35 feet in the air. You are holding onto a rope that when you pull it, it releases the rope that has hoisted you up and you swing from a center rope back and forth like a bird! Here is me flying through the air on the swing!
Anyway, Cristina is also a very crafty gal and we did a lot of crafting during our free time. She taught me a new method of crochet that I did not know called Tunisian Crochet. You can find a tutorial on it here. It is also called an afghan stitch and uses a long crochet hook that looks like a knitting needle only with a hook on the end. I am going to start a blanket for my room, and I got all the yarn, but I have to special order the hook because I want a really fat one for a big stitch. I think I will order this one. It is really expensive, but I have not found one in any store at all around here. I got a smaller one (6.0mm) at JoAnn's that will be great for smaller blankets, like baby blankets. I made a sample to see what the yarns that I bought for my blanket will look like together. I think they'll look really nice in this striped pattern - but the stitches will be LOTS bigger. You can also see how the back looks a bit like the purl side of knit.
We also took a class on crazy quilting. I pinned together the beginning of a Christmas stocking. I'm not sure I love the fabrics, but it will be a good place to practice. Here's what I have so far.
Half the beauty comes when it is basted together already and you add decorative stitching - embroidery stitches essentially. I looked for a good example online and found this. It is basically a tutorial on the method with some examples of the stitches. I like it because it can all be done completely by hand so I don't have to be at machine to do any of it, but I can sit with the rest of my family. I will probably go ahead and finish this stocking front just to get good practice, but then I will go get my own fabric that coordinates better and that I like better to do one for real. Not that I really need new projects to work on or anything! I have several halfway done right now. Maybe I'll finish some of them and post something finished on here some day!
3 comments:
wow! that tunisian crochet looks really fascinating! i'll have to try it when i get a chance. i'm interested to see how your stocking turns out. that crazy quilting is so popular but i've never really had much appreciation for it. i've never seen it hand quilted though so i'm really interested to see that!! your zipline experience looks like a lot of fun!
Looks like you had a great time! You were able to get a lot done, good for you! I like the stocking a lot, if you get your fabric that you like I am sure you will feel more motivated to make more! I think it looks GREAT! I want to make some stockings but I think right now I have too much on my plate and not enough time, you know how it is! The knitting you did looks so straight and nice. I am to scared of heights to do the zipline thingie, but good for you, you have more guts than me, I would probably have a panic attacking just looking at it and flying through the air! I can tell by the smile on your face you had a good time!
Post a Comment