Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

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Nancy
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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby Nancy » Wed Nov 19, 2014 7:33 pm

I am thinking of crocheting a fancy Nancy doll looked for a pattern today w/o success.

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FelineFriend
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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby FelineFriend » Wed Nov 19, 2014 7:47 pm

I've never heard of a "Fancy Nancy" doll. Would a crochet website on-line have a pattern? Sometimes this site's helpful:

http://www.ravelry.com

Also, Crochet Pattern Central's a good place, and the Red Heart's site. Sometimes, if you "Google" search, to look at photos, things from Pintrest come up, and blogs have many different patterns. :idea:
"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe

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Nancy
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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby Nancy » Wed Nov 19, 2014 10:49 pm

Thanks FF. I have the Fancy Nancy tea party book so that can help with colors I think any doll pattern would work even a knit one.

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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby FelineFriend » Thu Nov 20, 2014 1:24 am

Good luck with finding a good doll pattern, Nancy.

I have a Fairbanks, Alaska pen pal who is sending me a hand-made gift. She asked me my favorite season (Spring) and favorite colors. I told her I like red & white, for Valentine's Day.

I'm going to make Alberta a pair of potholders, origami ones, to match her kitchen colors, blue & green, and she doesn't have a finished kitchen, so the walls are visqueen. I did a "Google" search, Home Depot showed that visqueen is on rolls, it's a plastic sort of material. If Alberta's visqueen's white, the P 'n' C cotton yarn I've picked, will do nicely. It's variegated, with white as the MC, with bits of greens & blues. I've crocheted myself a cone of facecloths, from the same colors, so know how pretty it is, when it's made, especially in SC.

Then, I've been "waffling" as to what to crochet for DGS-5.5 and DGS3.5 for their upcoming b-days in 2015, in Feb. & April. I finally got out my crochet pattern calendars, for years 2009, 2010, and 2011. I found an easy-to-crochet child's cap. This pattern is so easy to make, too!

Chain 37, HDC in 3rd Ch from hook, and across. Ch2, chains = 1 HDC.
Row 2: HDC in each stitch across, ch2, turn,
Repeat until you have 38 rows. It's a rectangle then, you leave a 38" long yarn string for sewing it closed, & for sewing it shut at the top, securing stitches so they don't show. Turn it right-side out, take a matching OR CC yarn, to SC the edge, which makes a cuff, if you care to cuff it. Also, if you chain over 37 chains, starting out, it makes a taller cap, so you have more of a cuff or double-cuff, to roll up. Also, if you add more rows than 38 rows, the hat will fit a bigger kid, teen or adult.

I picked out camo yarn with a soft brown, for edging. When I made the April b-day boy hat, I'll probably crochet a solid color, and edge it in a variegated bright color, so he's not identical to his brother. :idea: :mrgreen:
"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe

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Nancy
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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby Nancy » Thu Nov 20, 2014 11:02 am

I finished the rainbow hat I was knitting on this week.

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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby FelineFriend » Fri Nov 21, 2014 7:52 pm

I'm crocheting the 1st origami potholder in a set of 2, for an Alaska friend, who's made me something, for Christmas, so I wanted to reciprocate.
"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe

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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby BookSaver » Sat Nov 22, 2014 10:03 am

I was able to register Thursday afternoon for a Friday quilting class because someone else had cancelled and left an open slot.

I have gotten into the habit of leaving my basic sewing tools in a to-go kit since my sewing group does so many retreats and charity sewing events. It's just so much easier to leave everything in my roll-up travel bag than to try to pack a tote for each individual event. I have even learned that it doesn't help to customize or downsize the kit -- actually relearned at the last retreat when I had taken out and left home a tool that I was sure I would not need that weekend, but of course that's the very tool I needed on the first day.

Anyway, having the kit ready to go made it easy to get ready for the last-minute class.

The class was a hands-on one to learn how to make a quilted table runner with a pieced chevron pattern. I'm sure it was actually a marketing technique to sell the brand new machines that we got to play with, but the store owners know that I'm not going to buy a new machine anytime soon. However, they also know that I'm in the big sewing group, and now I can go to the group and talk about how nice and easy the new machine is to use and how much fun I had with the new features.

The only cost was $15 for the kit with all the pre-cut fabric pieces, which also included several sample fabrics to practice sewing fancy stitches on different types of fabrics. They gave us green fabric to use for the table runner, not Christmas color but more of a spring green. It isn't something I would normally use in my dining room so I'll need to add some appliques or other decorations to make it work.

That wasn't the point for me, though, because I never expect a class project to come out nice enough to use. The point was to relax, play with fabric for several hours, chat with a bunch of people who like to sew, and learn/practice a new skill.

The most enjoyable part for me was that I was in fact able to fully enjoy the day. In my sewing group events, since I'm on the Board, I'm always "on the job" organizing, setting up, helping other people, cleaning up after; it's always exhausting. With this class, the only thing I was responsible for was paying the $15 and bringing a few tools from home. Other than that, I was there to be nice to the other students and play with the machine.

The only thing I didn't care for was that they didn't provide a printed pattern for the project. The instructions were shown on a screen. As the day went on and the more experienced quilters got farther ahead from those of us who were beginners, we had to wait for the instructor to click back and forth on the computer for the instruction pages. Also, of course, if I want to make a 2nd table runner with this pattern, I'll have to measure the pieces myself and remember how they were put together.

I was able to get far enough into the project that I know how to finish it by myself ... assuming that I do it soon enough that I can still remember where the 3 decorative prairie points are supposed to go, and how she showed to do the mitered corners on the binding.

No one finished the whole project. If we had been able to stay in the building for another hour, most of the students would have been able to finish. The weather was expected to turn bad, though, and the store owners asked everyone if we would mind stopping early so everyone could drive home safely.

We were also supposed to have been able to play a little with a new long arm quilting machine. Unfortunately, there was a delay getting the machine delivered to the room and set up, so only half the class was able to see that demonstration and try it. They invited the rest of us to come to the store at our convenience for an individual lesson.

The store owners will be having their annual huge fabric sale and holiday open house tomorrow afternoon. I'm hoping the roads will be dry enough for me to go over. They always offer free patterns for quick gifts, door prize drawings, and they put a lot of gorgeous fabrics on sale up to 50% off.

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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby Harriet » Sun Nov 23, 2014 7:31 pm


Nancy and FFriend, I thought of the two of you and hats. I had shopped for Barbie items for my little niece, and smiled to see the darling crocheted and knitted hats made for Barbie and similar dolls. Too cute. Several had tiny embellishments (felt?).

Great creative touches for the children's toys, FFriend.

Fancy Nancy is a children's book character - a little girl who loves to dress up. Is that right, Nancy? And then there are dolls of the character. I would think she is a fun doll to dress!

BookSaver, that's the ideal attitude toward a class - good for you. However, it was an oversight that they didn't provide a handout of instruction. could you make some notes soon? I did used to always provide that in my classes (although I made many other mistakes I wish I could go back and correct). I would love to teach again, but am probably in waiting mode until my own church would consider another class, since I really can't take on projects in new directions any more.

In the quiltmaking room, I organized the last bookcase, so my surfaces are nearly clear.

While waiting on HRH in two dentist offices this past week, I wrote prioritized grouped-tasks for several projects such as my mending, hopes for bookmarks, and one potential sewing project.

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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby FelineFriend » Sun Nov 23, 2014 11:44 pm

I'm currently taking a break from crochet because my shoulder I had rotator cuff surgery on on 11-9-10 is acting up. I'll resume on Thanksgiving evening.
"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe

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Nancy
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Re: Art, Craft and Needlework, November 2014

Postby Nancy » Mon Nov 24, 2014 12:00 am

Harriet you are right about fancy Nancy. I have have the book but have not seen dolls I will look so maybe I do not have to make 'em.

I got a couple more dish clothes done this weekend. Did one today watching the seahawks game so that is how long they take to make now I know I got a 20 min walk in during half time too.


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