Author: Deirdre K. Bentley

Past Couple Weeks Crafting: 4.30.23

/ Deirdre K. Bentley / 1 Comment

I know I missed a post. I have been working frantically to complete TWO crochet pattern tests. This means I have not done a lot of other crafting in the last month. I learned a very valuable lesson: Only test one sweater pattern at a time! It was totally worth it though 🙂 I did sneak in a couple other things as well so here we go!

The Apricity Color Block Sweater by Lindsey Roe of Off the Beaten Hook

This sweater pattern will officially go live this week. I so much fun to make and move pretty quickly due to the bulky yarn and large hook. There are also so many color combinations that you could do with the three colors. Highly recommend.

The Shiloh Sweater by Oxana Sorokin

This sweater moved a bit more slowly but the texture is so worth it! The construction is also once of my favorites, sewing the front and back together at the shoulder then the arms then the seam up the body through the arm. The best part is that the sleeve and bottom bands are worked right in to the fabric so the only edging you have to do is the collar. It turned out great!

New Pattern Test! – the Beyond Cardigan by Hanna Gough of Germander Cottage Crafts

Yes, yes, I know I just finished two tests but this one is designed specifically to be beginner friendly and I have until June to finish it so no pressure at all! I got through the back panel and am working on the sleeves so far. It is a great binge watching project and I am enjoying it for sure.

Candle Making

I received some egg shells from a friend and then realized I had no real idea what to do with egg shells. Turns out they can be used for all kinds of things, both magical and mundane. Great in compost and great for protections spells! I made protection candles with them and I will be doing this again. The process was so soothing and it was nice to focus my energy into a magical direction for a while.

I also was not sure how much melted wax I was going to be left over since the eggs are small, so I prepped a candle holder that I have been saving and refilled that as well!

Even if the magical part of this is not your jam, I highly recommend giving candle making a try.

Mixed Media Art Hour

As I’ve mentioned before, I am a member of the Bright Collective through the Making App. This month we had an Art Hour and it was a space to just put material on paper and see what happened. I loved the suggestion to frame your art. So many people don’t identify as artists because they did not go to school for it or don’t get paid for it, but truly, the act of framing something you made makes it official. We can all be artists!

Stamp Carving (again!)

I love this craft because it is quick. When I really needed a break from the sweater-a-thon, I was able to carve a few stamps, making progress on my calendar vision. I feel like all told, each stamp tool less than 15 minutes to get into usable shape. I will likely clean up a few spots here and there but these really could just be good to go.

And because my kittens turned 1 on the 27th, I will leave you with a cat picture. Be well!

From left to right, Agnes, Michi and Maynard

Past Couple Weeks Crafting: 4.2.23

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This has been a light crafting period for me. I have been steadily working on a couple test sweaters, which have taken up a lot of my time. I have also been working more on processes than actual products, taking workshops and focusing on organizing myself. So here are the few things I have managed to do in the past couple weeks!

The Apricity Color Block Sweater by Linsdsey Roe

I got the front and back panels done, seamed and started on the bottom ribbing.

The Shiloh Sweater by Oxana Sorokin

I finished the front panel.

Temperature Snake Catch-up (Planet June)

I got all the rows through March done. I am adding additional rows for birthdays and as it turns out, I have 7 important people in my life with birthdays in March!

Random Watercolor 🙂

In keeping with my loos goal of making art each day, here is a water color doodle I did this week.

So, that’s really it for the past couple weeks. Hopefully I will be able to work on a couple other things that I have brewing in the back of my head in the coming weeks and can show you them soon!

Be Well,

Deirdre

Hook Holder Recipe

/ Deirdre K. Bentley / 4 Comments

I received a request for how to make the hook holder I posted and while this is not my most refined pattern ever, here are the basic steps.

Use a hook slightly smaller than needed for yarn to get a tight fabric

*written in US terms

Ch 63

1: sc in 2nd ch from hook, 2 sc in same space, sc to end, 3 sc in last st, sc back up the other side, join to first st

2: ch 2, dc around (no increases), join to ch 2

3: ch 2, dc through both sides created 8 times (8 dc), dc one side only 3 sts, dc both sides together next st, 3 dc one side only, rep to last three sts, dc both sides together last 3 st, turn *this creates one side of a “pocket”

4: (button row) ch 1, sc to first gap, dc side without dc (other side of the pocket), sc in next st, rep through last pocket, sc in next two sts, chain 4, skip 4, sc last 2 sts, turn

5: ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in next 2 sts, 4 dc in ch sp, dc across in the part of pocket facing you and dc in between each pocket, dc to end, turn

6: ch 1, sc to pocket, dc across in part of pocket facing you and sc in between each pocket and to end, turn

Rep 5 and 6 once more then button row

Rep 5 and 6 once more then alternate row 5 and row 6 in only one half of the pocket, creating a flat fabric

Button rows after two repeats of 5 and 6 (will be an sc row)

Sc around edge

Surface sc across inside part of pocket, creating an edge

Add buttons

I would be very interested to get feedback and see anything that is made from this recipe!

Past Couple Weeks Crafting: 3.19.23

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The big news is that I finished my Learn to Tech Edit Crochet (LTTECrochet) course and have started to offer this as a crochet pattern designer service. My landing page is here and I am very excited to start this next adventure. I will be figuring out marketing and all that good stuff as I go.

Meanwhile, I worked on a few things this past couple weeks and here they are!

More Stamp Carving

I pulled out my stencil for my month grid in preparation for starting work on my Pagan Calendar for this next year. The rough edges need to be cleaned up a bit but otherwise is tis good to go.

I am hand carving the months and years that will be in the calendar. I also made stamps of the kittens names and did to caring doodling to play with patterns. I will be planning the large stamps for each month and hopefully getting stared on this in April.

Pattern Testing: the Shiloh Sweater

I was selected to pattern test this sweater for designer Oxana Sorokin through Yarnpond. I volunteered to make the 3XL size. This is a very fun pattern to work so far and I am excited to see how it turns out.

Pattern Testing: the Apricity Color Block Sweater

I was also selected to pattern test the Apricity Color Block Sweater for designer Lindsey Roe of Off the Beaten Hook. I am also testing the 3XL size for this sweater. The color blocking is starting out really well and the bulky yarn and larger hook make this project work up quickly.

Markers and Paint Pens

I may have mentioned “mark making” in my last post and as an update, I did in fact go out and buy a bunch of mixed media for more of this process. I really only had colored pens, crayons and watercolors for my first try and will be playing with paint sticks and oil pastels and all the things for my next go round.

Tarot Card Tapestry Patterns

I continue to work on getting my Major Arcana tarot card tapestry series off the ground. I have been working on this one for a year or so now and think I have finally cracked the code on getting the grid counts done in an efficient manner. I am sort of re-working the first two cards and I think after they are done the process will go much more smoothly for the rest of the cards.

That’s all for now, see you all in a couple of weeks for the next batch of crafting!