Turning to the Dark Side.....part 2

Or, My Own Method for Preventing Alzheimers

As if loving socks on two circs wasn't enough.....I've taken another step to the dark side of fiber arts.

Yes, that's crochet. Crochet! What is the world coming to? (See how confused the cats are? Almost as confused as my children were when they saw me doing it.)

I said on the Gaea Creations blog a couple of days ago that I was in a slump. After finishing so many knitted projects over the last few weeks, nothing interested me. So, I came to the conclusion that I needed to try something completely different.

Other than the occasional provisional cast on or the cuffs for the Granddaughter Socks, I haven't picked up a crochet hook in years. I certainly haven't worked on any 100% crochet projects since I learned how to knit. And now...here I am. This is one evening's worth of work. It's going really fast. It already measures 22" across.

This is the Lacy Leaf Cocoon designed by Annie Modesitt for the Spring 2006 Interweave Crochet magazine. Here's a closer look at the center:

A year ago, I was gushing over this garment. It's so pretty. But I was very disappointed that it only went up to a 38" bust circumference. Come on, Annie, you aren't a small lady either! You should know that us Big Girls like these types of jackets too! But, I digress. The point is, I decided yesterday that I needed to have this jacket. I'm a smart girl (if I do say so myself), so I think I can figure out how to make it bigger. And I'm considering leaving out the sleeves, sort of like the Cha Cha vest from Berroco. We'll see. If I get to that point and decide to add sleeves, then that's what I'll do. Or maybe I'll leave the sleeves off for now, and add them this fall. That's an idea.

At any rate, I'm having great fun working on this garment. The yarn, by the way, is Plymouth Shire Silk. Very nice. I wasn't sure I would like the tweediness with this pattern, but it works somehow. It's not as crisp and smooth as the original garment (which called for Cascade Pima Tencel), but it has a certain charm to it. A little more rustic, but the silk is wonderful.

Another project that has jumped out at me is the Larger Than Life bag from the current issue of Interweave Crochet. It didn't really jump out at me at first, but then I saw Jamisyn's version and revisited the one in the magazine. I think it might be next on my list. The only part I'm dreading is the sewn fabric liner. But, Maybe I can get my mom to do that. She used to be an amazing seamstress.

So, this is my turn to the dark side of fiber arts. But even Darth Vader turned back to the light in Return of the Jedi. So, I think there's hope for me too.