because it's a marathon, not a sprint
And such is the tale of the little crafter that could.
Ahoy my sweets! Although we just departed it seems like forever since we last met, and I'm glad to say I've returned to my absurdly dirty computer screen to enlighten you on the haps of Sweet Girl as of late. I might not be pretty or rested but I am here, and that's half the battle, isn't it?
I wish I had a binder full of exciting things to tell you about Sweet Girl or even life in general but I'm afraid that while our time apart has been busy as sin the craft bug inside me has been lagging on creative output and my productivity plateaued overnight. So it goes.
So I decided to take a step back from the crafting and focus on web development which is the most obnoxious, frustrating thing in the world.
One of the fundamental reasons I'm so hooked on crafting is because I thrive off of instant gratification. I need to see clear, quick, and direct result from my action in order to feel any sense of gratification or fulfillment with myself-- like the kind you get when you hook an afghan out of string. That being said, I have absolutely no patience and am easily discouraged and understand myself to be very bad at most things so I don't go too far out of my comfort zone. I am a neurotic crafter, even. Christ.
The point is, I hate 'wasting time'. I'd rather hook the same scarf 600 times than learn a new pattern (first tries are never cute). Before I got really involved in the craft my main hobby was writing and I picked up a decent amount of web savvy that left me confident that, although it would be a bore, I had the fundamental tools I needed to make SGC's webpage da bombest eva.
Somewhere along the line my brain must have basically decided it needed to separate the boys from the men and flushed all my acquired knowledge of Photoshop right down the drain along with my remedial coding skills. So I just spent 12+ hours staring at my computer and whittling away at my self worth knowing exactly what I wanted to do but not how to execute the vision.
And then came the plague. And the two blizzards. No joke.
I wish I could remember how it started, but with my schedule the days kind of blur. To sum it up, my mother, myself, and my son have been playing hot potato with two different virus' for the past week and a half and are only just getting back in the swing of things. Poor Teddy's getting the tail end of it now.
So today I decided to take a new approach to web development and I like where it's going. I want to get back to listing items so I hope I can get this thing semi-navigable by the end of the weekend.
Payday was this morning and the first thing on our list of 'needs' was a button. I've been trying to get ahold of the right button for over a week but the selection at Meijer was the pits. As always, Walmart prevails.
Ahoy my sweets! Although we just departed it seems like forever since we last met, and I'm glad to say I've returned to my absurdly dirty computer screen to enlighten you on the haps of Sweet Girl as of late. I might not be pretty or rested but I am here, and that's half the battle, isn't it?
I wish I had a binder full of exciting things to tell you about Sweet Girl or even life in general but I'm afraid that while our time apart has been busy as sin the craft bug inside me has been lagging on creative output and my productivity plateaued overnight. So it goes.
So I decided to take a step back from the crafting and focus on web development which is the most obnoxious, frustrating thing in the world.
One of the fundamental reasons I'm so hooked on crafting is because I thrive off of instant gratification. I need to see clear, quick, and direct result from my action in order to feel any sense of gratification or fulfillment with myself-- like the kind you get when you hook an afghan out of string. That being said, I have absolutely no patience and am easily discouraged and understand myself to be very bad at most things so I don't go too far out of my comfort zone. I am a neurotic crafter, even. Christ.
The point is, I hate 'wasting time'. I'd rather hook the same scarf 600 times than learn a new pattern (first tries are never cute). Before I got really involved in the craft my main hobby was writing and I picked up a decent amount of web savvy that left me confident that, although it would be a bore, I had the fundamental tools I needed to make SGC's webpage da bombest eva.
Somewhere along the line my brain must have basically decided it needed to separate the boys from the men and flushed all my acquired knowledge of Photoshop right down the drain along with my remedial coding skills. So I just spent 12+ hours staring at my computer and whittling away at my self worth knowing exactly what I wanted to do but not how to execute the vision.
And then came the plague. And the two blizzards. No joke.
I wish I could remember how it started, but with my schedule the days kind of blur. To sum it up, my mother, myself, and my son have been playing hot potato with two different virus' for the past week and a half and are only just getting back in the swing of things. Poor Teddy's getting the tail end of it now.
So today I decided to take a new approach to web development and I like where it's going. I want to get back to listing items so I hope I can get this thing semi-navigable by the end of the weekend.
Payday was this morning and the first thing on our list of 'needs' was a button. I've been trying to get ahold of the right button for over a week but the selection at Meijer was the pits. As always, Walmart prevails.
| Even though I only needed one wood button I ended up walking away with a few dozen including that gorgeous gold brooch in the upper right hand. It's so intricate and eye catching in person. I think I am going to pair it with a nice cream yarn. Ideas? What did I need the button for anyways? You might recognize this popular cowl pattern that's flooding pinner's profiles worldwide. Not bad for a 'rough draft'/first try whatever even with the wonky construction issues. |
Like I said, I'm not one to waste time on new pattern's but that's the upside of this map. The woman who introduced me to this cowl mentioned it only took her around four hours to complete from start to finish which was too good to pass up. I find the equation when crocheting for profit is really pretty simple. You must find the pattern that takes the least amount of time to construct but looks the most difficult and/or serves a great enough purpose the consumer doesn't mind paying artisan prices for something they could 'easily pick up at the market'. (Yeah, no you can't.) This pattern qualifies as one of the best in that regard I've come across and I encourage you to try it. You can find the pattern here.
While four hours is a little....ambitious, over all, I think a first timer could finish this bad boy in six or less. I wanted to see how the scarf would turn out with different colors but if this is something you try be sure you really think about how it's going to be braided. Create a virtual image in your mind and really think about it. I had to rethink my plan several times to get all the colors I wanted to use in the spectrum, it works up in no time! |
I love the technique though and am working on a pattern inspired by this design but extremely different. I should finish soon, right now it's looking like a Neapolitan color scheme. Strawberry, mocha's, and cream. I'll sneak you pictures as soon as I can. In the mean time stay tuned and be patient! Share us with your friends, and keep checking in online for changes daily. If you'd like to purchase the scarf above or one similar feel free to visit our online boutique to complete your order or submit a custom creation.