Going Eco with Plarn

This is the first thing I crocheted with plarn.  What is plarn?  It's recycled plastic bags or other plastics that can be cut up and used to make a type of yarn, known as plarn.  All I can say about this is, it is very time consuming if you try to cut up each bag individually.  I decided to expedite it by laying several t-bags flat and then cutting them at the same time on a cutting board using a circular cutter.  It was soooooooo much faster and easier.  This ended up being a gift to a friend of mine that managed our local public swimming pool.  She said it was great for wet bathing suits.  

Here is a link with instructions on how to create your own plarn:  http://www.myrecycledbags.com/2007/02/17/instructions-for-cutting-plastic-bags-creating-recycled-plastic-yarn/  Cut and paste this address into your browser or click on the subject title above and it will take you there.

Pet Collars or Jewelery?

In the beginning of 2009, a friend of mine's dog had puppies.  The puppies looked almost identical.  Aside from looking at their anatomical parts to decipher who was who, it was almost impossible to tell them apart.  By the way there were nine of them.  I came up with the idea of crocheting them temporary collars until they went home with their new adoptive families.  I made them so that they would adjust as the puppy grew and used a different color for each collar.  When a puppy was picked by the adoptive family we were able to tell which puppy went where.  No mix ups for us, the color coating worked great.  I will say this however, please keep an eye on new puppies if you should try this.  Puppies like to chew and we wouldn't want any of them to choke on a button.  Thankfully we didn't have that issue.  I just want to warn you about the possible choking hazard.

Pictured are a few models wearing the collars.  My cat, Spaz, pictured at the top is wearing the original prototype.  She didn't like the collar and hated her picture being taken.  Her personal collar didn't last long.  I found that cats like to scratch more than dogs and it wasn't long before it was shredded.  Oh well...crochet and learn.  I think that they also would make unique bracelets.  They looked fabulous on his golden lab puppies and Spaz.  This is my own original pattern.

 

First Ami

This turtle is my first Ami.  I made it into a baby rattle by using a discarded plastic easter egg.  I placed a couple of pinto beans inside the egg and glued the egg shut and placed it inside the turtle and stuffed around it and then finished crocheting it together.  I gave this to my friend Linda for her new grandbaby back in January.  It was a lot of fun to make and now I'm hooked on making Ami toys.  Linda said her new grandbaby loves it.  I've done my job.  I've brought some sunshine into another person's life.  Doesn't get any better than that.  

V-Stitch Baby Blanket

This is a baby blanket that I made shortly after making my first garment.  I entered it in the county fair when I entered the dress and it also placed with a blue ribbon.  I found this pattern to be really fast and easy to do.  Yes, I actually was able to read the pattern.   

First Garment

I was taught to crochet a basic granny square by my best friends mom when I was in high school.  Shortly after graduating and then marrying, I made several 12-inch blocks to put together for our full-size bed. Because I had never learned how to put them together,the blocks were packed away and brought with us when we moved from Alaska to Arkansas.  Eventually they were sold in a yard sale to a very lucky person because of my lack of knowledge.

Years later, I tried once again to pick up a hook but was unable to crochet because of the factory job I had.  Over the years I had devoloped tendonitis and overuse syndrome of both arms.   I would try to crochet and the pain would be excrutiating.  So, the hooks were tossed and I thought I would never crochet again.  

After working at the factory job for 14 1/2 years, I had enough.  My doctor recommended that I find something less stressful so I began driving school bus.  No stress there.  Ha!  Not physically anyway.  A couple of years later I began work at a local senior center as well.  

When I began working at the senior center, they were without a Meals on Wheels driver and that was part of my new job as Program Assistant to fill in where needed, as well as do my office duties.  I delivered meals for six weeks until another meal delivery person could be hired.  Talk about stress.  I think anyone else might have quit trying to learn two different jobs at the same time.  There were days I even thought, "I can't do this!"  Then I would think of all the homebound seniors that depended on me for a meal.  Heck, many of them didn't see anyone else at all during the day except for me.  I was their link to the outside world.  Although I was a bit stressed, I found my job to be fun and rewarding and stayed on.  Just seeing the smiles of the homebound seniors made my day.  

It was during one of my meal deliveries that I discovered one of the ladies crocheted.  I was really impressed with the number of different type of items she could make.  Then one day I was totally inspired by a baby dress she was finishing.  I told her that I had crocheted when I was younger but never had finished anything.  I'll never forget the smile on her face as she graciously offered me the loan of her pattern.  I told her that I didn't know how to read patterns and she told me I could learn.  I hesitantly accepted the pattern and told her I would return it and show her the finished dress too when I was done.

I immediately enlisted the help of my friend Linda that I had met through my bus job.  I had seen her crocheting before her afternoon bus run each day and asked her if she would help me learn how to read a pattern and crochet along with me.   I was so glad and thankful that she said yes.  I had many questions for her and she was so patient with me.  One day an amazing thing happened, she asked me a question about the pattern and I was able to help her with my answer.  Yippee!  There was hope for the pattern-challenged me after all.  I was ecstatic that I was able to complete the dress.  

When I returned the pattern and showed off my dress, I could see the pride beaming from the face of my senior friend.  She said, "I knew you could do it."  At that point, I knew I could do anything if I set my mind to it too.  Now I'm a crochet addict.  

The dress pictured is the first garmet I made and it is like the dress my senior friend inspired me with.  I thought what the heck, I'll enter it in the county fair.  I was thrilled when I was awarded with a blue ribbon for it and the socks with matching crochet trim.  I was also awarded with a special store gift card for Best Crochet item.  Yippee...more yarn for me.

The moral to this true story is, you can learn a lot from seniors and people that crochet in general.  Keep on hooking!            

First Garment

Sorry this was a duplicate.  I'm blogger challenged now.

Christmas Fun

As a member of Luxury Crochet, I decided to have a go at my first swap. I crocheted a few useable items and also a few fun items for the lucky person that was chosen for me by one of the Luxury Crochet site moderators. Pictured above is just a sneak peak of what is in Jeanut's swap package from me. I can't wait to hear from her when she gets them. I'll post more pictures of what is in the package after she gets it. After all, I don't want to ruin the surprise. Check my blog out in about a week for the update on my swap.

Oh, by the way. The person assigned to me is a guy. I am very intrigued to see what he has in store for me. Bob, if you're reading this, I can't wait! Of course I'm going to have too.  Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving.