Check-In Post June 7th 2023

[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 got my craft punches out of their hiding place and did a lot of reorganising =)

There are too many punches to fit in one drawer though, so they take up 1.5. I have 4 edge punches, and 5 multi corner punches, three that do three different corner designs, and two that do four. Then there are three single design corner punches, and at least 30 others. I didn't count. I also have a Strong Arm, which I'd forgotten about. It makes using the smaller punches with a button on the top a lot easier. You can wreck your thumbs pressing those buttons down by hand >.<

Moved the DVDs back onto the landing because I cleared a better spot for them. Now I can get at them more easily. Second-hand DVDs are so cheap these days. I need to make a list of what I want so I can look out for them in the charity shops.

Oh, and I made 15 sets of spider legs. Going to make some more in a bit.

[wiseheart]

Jesus wept, that's an industrial amount of punches! I've got two single design corner punches and that's it. The others are simple motifs: hearts, flowers, stars, snowflakes, tree leaves and different sizes of circles. But even all together I won't get as high as 30! Clearly, I am in desperate need of some more punches! *g*
(I've been eyeing one that could make three different corner designs, but it was so expensive that I gave up on it. When I changed my mind a few weeks later, it was no longer available.)

[wiseheart]

I spent the morning with peeling asparagus, cooking potatoes, making a salad and a soup, so basically no crafty times were available. I cut out the bases for a couple more tags, but that was basically it. Still, every little bit helps.

clumsiness & crochet

[house_wren]

On my journal page I posted a photo of a crochet flower blanket I made a few years ago. I wanted to make a link here but, like many things on Dreamwidth, I don't understand how to do it. I'm not sure if this inability to figure things out is a sign of my weakening powers (age, illness) or what. You can go look if you are interested.

Anyway, I was enjoying my cat & my crochet when I knocked over my glass of iced coffee onto the bed. Ha! So much for resting!

I've finally got everything cleaned up. The wool was rinsed then rolled in a towel & now it's draped over the string hammock in the shade on the porch. It's not great to let wet wool hang but I have no good place to put it where it can dry. The sheets have been washed & are on the drying rack & clean sheets have been applied. I love getting in the bed when it's clean so this is a plus.

I have used up all the spoons for the day which means anything else is not going to happen. All I'm going to do is watch - actually re-watch - the 2019 k-drama V.I.P while horizontal.

[badly_knitted]

Food takes precedence over crafting, you have to eat of you'll have no energy for the fun things.

Re: clumsiness & crochet

[badly_knitted]

Oh no! What an annoying and draining disaster. Hope resting helps you and you have more spoons tomorrow.

I can also empathise on the disaster front. I one dropped a pot of yogurt on my cross stitch. Luckily it was only a small design for a card because trying to wash it was noir terribly successful and I had to start again with a clean, yogurt-free piece of fabric.

The easiest way to link to a post from your jour journal is to copy the URL from the top of the pages (the https thing) and just paste it into the comment box. I know there's a fancier way to do it using HTML coding, but I never mastered it so I just you the copy & paste. Might not be pretty, but it works.

[badly_knitted]

They are ridiculously expensive. The only reason I have so many is that I was able to get some of the bigger ones for bargain prices in sales and mum found most of the smaller ones in charity shops and car boot sales. They were bought over a period of 15 or so years, back before her stroke, when she was still mobile. I remember one Christmas when I unwrapped punch after punch after punch, it was brilliant! Another Christmas I unwrapped a big boxful of rubber stamps. Found that the other day too. I need to gather all my stamps together and see what I've got.

So sorry you weren't able to get the multi corner punch. They're really good, you get three times as much for your money.

[darkcedars]

That's a lot of punches! Glad to hear they were assembled slowly over years.

[darkcedars]

I had never heard of peeling asparagus. But, when we have asparagus we have loads.

[badly_knitted]

It is a huge number! Like most of my craft items, we bought them when we saw them.

Re: clumsiness & crochet

[darkcedars]

Oh no, so annoying and all that work cleaning up. Old blanket still looks good though!

[spiralicious]

Taking a bit of a knitting break today. The shawl has gotten big enough that whenever I get to the row that is all "knit 2 stitches together", my knuckles lock up (also why I haven't been checking in).

We've also been very distracted by the summer reading program at the local library and preparing for fire season. The reading program is obviously more fun. It's supposed to go on for 2 months, but my mother is almost done after less than a week. She would have been done on Monday, if she hadn't had other things to do outside the house. Basically, she found out the prizes were enamel pins and saw that some of them were cats and she must have them. Not that I blame her, that is my motivation as well, I just read much slower. We had to go to the library to find her a couple more books and place some holds, which turned into a chaotic adventure. I hope the library staff enjoy our antics.

I did craft today though! I added more shells and some marbles to my beach light jar and rearranged the lights a bit. It will need some minor tweaking with the big tweezers to get the lights around the bulk of the shells better, but it's basically done now.

[spiralicious]

You were quite busy!

That is an impressive amount of punches.

*\o/*

Hurray for more spider legs!

[spiralicious]

I am a firm believer that salad and soup making should be considered crafting. I mean, you are essentially making a three-dimensional vegetable collage and a potion.

Re: clumsiness & crochet

[spiralicious]

Oh, dear. I hope you enjoyed your rewatch.

[badly_knitted]

Yes, knitting can make hands cramp up unfortunately. You might be gripping your needles too tight. Try to relax your hands as you knit, and take breaks.

The summer reading program sounds great, it encourages people to read more, which is never a bad thing (says the person with... 8 books on the go. Or it might be 9). Cool prizes. Libraries are fun places =)

Yay for a nearly finished light jar!

[badly_knitted]

I love the way you think!

[badly_knitted]

Yes I was, but very pleased with all progress =)

[wiseheart]

I've learned it in Germany (had never as much as seen asparagus before) that you have to peel white asparagus (except the peaks, of course), while you don't have to peel the green ones. Since I don't really like the green version, I have to peel. *g*

[wiseheart]

I never thought of it that way (I don't really like cooking), but you are actually right! *g*

[wiseheart]

Working with shells sounds really interesting - but also complicated. Do you have to glue them on?

[spiralicious]

In this case, there is no gluing involved. It's basically a canning jar that has the battery pack (with on & off switch) already attached to the inside of the lid. You arrange the shells and whatnot as you like inside the jar. Then you work the string of lights around what's in the jar until things look how you want it.

After that, just flip the switch and screw the lid on.

[spiralicious]

I'm pretty sure I am gripping the needles too tight when I do that row. I'm having a lot of trouble doing that part of the pattern. The rest of it is going well, just that one row. I am taking breaks after I get to that point each go through. It's helping.

Our library's activities director really works hard at his job to make sure we have engaging programs. People have been really enjoying this year's summer reading program. I love my library. (My mother turned in her book tracking card today and not only got her pins, but he let her pick out an extra one for being the first one done.)

*Confetti*

[spiralicious]

:D

[spiralicious]

:D

[badly_knitted]

That's good, hopefully your hands will get used to the activity over time.

Well done to your mum!

[spiralicious]

Thanks!