Check-In Post - January 3rd 2025

[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.


This Week's Question: If you're making any, what are your crafting resolutions for 2025?


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]

No crafting for me today. Real life is being a pain.

I did get some writing done though.

[wiseheart]

Same here. With the only difference that I didn't even get any writing done. *sigh*

[badly_knitted]

Sigh indeed. Some days are just not meant to be helpful.

[bunn]

I hope RL manages to stop being such a pain soon!

[badly_knitted]

So do I. This year was supposed to be a better one than last year, and so it's not playing nice.

[bunn]

Well, I haven't done any carving yet today, though I did take a photo of my lump of tree that I am working on, which is still looking very rough:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNy5iVOrMnIsWc4E7h1mzm_YzbAYv9GR5g7dQx-KYuwvPiWXowTNqIXqRzwBzFKM9kgRo0wak-RZbW1-q0ySrLXjCONz4Y2ErxZKa66PDY-xM-uaI2HmYl35KxlcxDLBiyGuFZxH4IUwLgvJx9yF0ll=w1260-h945-s-no-gm?authuser=1

and I dug out a photo of last year's carvings, which were rather quickly done because I'd fallen a bit behind and had three years worth of carvings to catch up on:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczO27ncFYyWECzzW97RDapza8jSts-OFAxP4qF4l3I2QVodLbdtcLIXkR1NqbgMSGWcMm3DjO_pdBrOgmdSmphYvY4YjPUEfTY3x5QDQRyD99_o88swd0s9YrGOxmGvklNFwgLuyOHfu4jcsmnz-c0sq=w1260-h945-s-no-gm?authuser=1

Here's an older one that I found a photo of:
https://ic.pics.livejournal.com/bunn/5531459/576280/576280_600.jpg

[badly_knitted]

I love things made of wood, it's so tactile!

The chunk you've got to work with looks good and solid, hopefully it will carve well. The ornaments are lovely. Even quick carving can produce an attractive decoration.

[alexcat]

1. Get my right shoulder well enough to crochet.
2. Make a dent in my bags of WIPS.

[badly_knitted]

Fingers crossed for you. It must be so frustrating, not being able to do what you want to do.

[althea_valara]

I worked on the cardi some. I had swatched with a D hook as recommended by the pattern, and my gauge was loose and I didn't like it. Switched to a C hook, and it's coming out neater but now it's TOO tight in gauge.

For those that don't do US sizes... a D hook is 3.25mm, a C hook is 2.75mm.

So, I have ordered a 3.0mm hook, as Michaels now carries Prym hooks. I've used Prym circular knitting needles and really liked them, so I'm hoping I'll like the hook. It's ready for pickup but it is DARK now so I'll go tomorrow sometime.

I also considered a yarn tension ring, but am opting not to get one. The reviews of the ones on Amazon all say they're really cheap metal (at the prices they sell at, I'm not surprised).

I've had loose crochet tension for years now, and it's frustrating. I was able to fix my loose knitting tension with a double-wrap around my finger, but that's not working as well for crochet. So I googled a bit, and as expected, everyone says "Try a smaller hook!" but my tension is still uneven with smaller hooks. I'm a knife holder, so I decided to try pencil hold but I can NOT do it, my hand cannot figure out how to pull the yarn through without pain. So that's out.

I really hope I can find a solution, because I LOVE the look of this cardi and bought the yarn specifically for it.

[badly_knitted]

How frustrating! I hope the 3mm hook works better for your tension, and that you can find a crochet method that deals with your unevenness. Sometimes all you can do is keep trying different things until something clicks. Good luck!

[nagi_schwarz]

Managed to tat a handful of stitches while on one of the plane rides home (it took three). Bookmark almost complete though.

[badly_knitted]

Yay, well done!

That's a lot of changing planes.