Check-In Post May 6th 2022

[badly_knitted]

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.
Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.


Today's Question: No question today.


If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Comments

[badly_knitted]

I had hoped to get out in the garden today, but it didn't happen. I spent too long writing a piece for a challenge, so in the end I stayed in and did a bit more work on the long eared owl had. The second colour (cream) is now stitched, so I still don't have much to show for the time I spent, but it's still progress.

[darkcedars]

Do you get to move into darker colors next that are easier? Or does it have many more lights.

[badly_knitted]

I think the rest is various shades of brown. I always start at the bottom of a design though, and on this one that meant starting with the white, then the cream... Think the next one is a greyish brown, then a couple of lighter browns. When I started this one I was wishing I'd picked light blue for the fabric. It'll be fine though.

[glossy_mat_finish]

I'm trying my hand at crochet. This is my first real project - a granny stitch shopping bag. The pattern calls for a square, I'm making a hexagon. It's slow going and contains mistakes that I didn't catch until I was well beyond that round.

My purpose is to practice how to maintain tension and basic stitches. The errors don't affect my objectives and the item is still suitable for a shopping bag. I'll live with the errors and consider them a learning experience.

[darkcedars]

Tension is definitely best to focus on early. Good luck!

[badly_knitted]

That's an excellent plan! You can learn, practice, and have something useful at the finish. I must say, crocheting a hexagon sounds quite daring. I can do a couple of basic granny square patterns, but I've never tried crocheting anything more adventurous.

Good luck with your shopping bag, may it serve you well once it's completed!

[yarnofariadne]

A learning project is always fun. Best of luck!

[darkcedars]

Last night I finished the current set of dishcloths (5 of the same color) and have made 1 of 2 little crochet stars today. They're decoration for birthday cards. I'll probably finish the other shortly and then mail them off tomorrow.

I am trying really hard to do just a tiny bit of yard work every morning so I don't overdo it. Today I raked some leaves from under the hedge, and put a tomato cage next to the climbing rose and tied a few canes to that because it was really flopping around. The rose will have a trellis later, but general porch repair is still in progress. Also, it was raining. :laughing:

[badly_knitted]

Well done with the dishcloths and the stars!

A bit a day sounds like a good plan. It was my aim to get outside every day, but things keep conspiring against me and now it's raining. Of course it's also the middle of the night where I am, so I wouldn't be gardening right now even if it wasn't raining.

Poor floppy rose. I'm sure it will appreciate the canes to support it until it gets its trellis. My own climbing Alexandra rose has wended its way right up into the may tree, which is a little problematic...

[darkcedars]

This rose looked really sad when we moved in (black spot and hardly any leaves) but has really taken off now.

Rose in a tree is a look some people go for, but I don't think I would want to mess with them being tangled!

[badly_knitted]

Poor rose, at least it's recovering.

It does look pretty but the flowers are way out of reach. It made its way up there back when the old conifer I had removed last year was blocking out the light. I'm hoping now the conifer is gone the rose might put out some new shoots lower down.

[darkcedars]

I wondered if there's anything extra you can do to encourage new canes. Internet just says fertilizer etc of course. Hope it does.

You're probably not at the point of doing a hard prune to start it over.

[badly_knitted]

I wouldn't dare risk pruning that hard, it was one of my late mum's favourites and I'd be devastated if I killed it. I definitely need to get some fertiliser in there though. The stupid conifer probably drained the soil of nutrients.

My garden is such a mess, I never seem to make much progress with it.

[yarnofariadne]

I'm impressed you got any yard work done if it was raining!

[darkcedars]

Haha, it's been rainy all week. I had started getting frustrated with the tiny to-dos piling up. It was a light rain so I went for it.

[cathyw]

my gauge swatch proved to be a disappointment; my gauge was pretty good but the fabric was "rowed out" (ie, my purl rows and knit rows were at visibly different gauges in stockinette stitch). I have started another, more reasonably-sized swatch with a slightly different technique for purling in hopes that this one is better-behaved.

[badly_knitted]

Oh, what a nuisance! Hope the second try will turn out better *crosses fingers* Good luck!