Latest Forum Posts by: Bastelfan

All our clocks change automatically, except for my wristwatch.

So once again, I’ll have to get used to the new time.

Thank you, Petra :-)

Thank you all. It was a bit unusual, but I actually felt very comfortable in it.
Everyone at the dance said I looked chic.

Ina, you’re right—there aren’t that many opportunities like this here. Maybe again for Carnival :-)

Have a great weekend, everyone
I’m off to dance class again, and on Sunday to the tea dance

Dear Inge,

belated best wishes on your birthday from me—wishing you happiness, good health, and hoping that some of your dreams will still come true.
Stay just the way you are, and keep up the great work with your creative ideas, which always bring us so much joy.

Warmest regards from me
Andrea

For small doll bags or similar delicate items, I crochet the cords to use as handles. There are lots of beautiful and simple crochet tutorials out there. I then sew them on. They turn out nice and round and don’t look so bulky.

Thanks for your feedback.

Thanks, Petra—I’ve already spotted those, too.

Here are some more ideas.
My brother is getting a little beetle as a birthday present.

What do you think?

The weekend is almost over now. On Saturday, I went to my dance class (ballroom dancing—a mix of styles: waltz, samba, tango, merengue...)—I signed up for it. That was the second session. So it’s every 14 days.

And today was another afternoon dance class.

That’s exactly how I’d handle it, too.

But if I need a crocheted border for my amigurumi or dolls, I’d use very fine crochet yarn with a 1.75 needle—it looks very delicate that way.

For movable amigurumi, there are these joint discs in various sizes that you crochet or insert between two body parts, allowing you to move the arms, legs, or head.

You can make crocheted figures slightly movable by crocheting or knitting all the body parts individually and then sewing them on separately—for example, both arms— First, use a long doll needle to sew through one arm, through the body, and out the other side (the second arm); you can sew on a button at the same time, then bring the thread back the same way and sew on another button on the other side to secure it. Do the same for the legs.
I did this once when sewing a little teddy bear, and I was able to move the arms and legs a little.

If anyone has any other tips, please share them.

If you’re crocheting with multiple colors, I’d always end each round with 1 sl st and 1 ch—that way it turns out nice and even and not “staggered.”

When increasing, stagger the stitches (as previous posters have mentioned), and it’ll come out round.
That’s how I always do it, anyway.

Thanks for the tip. I tried it out right away. It works great :-))

Good evening,

everyone—I’d also like to wish everyone here a wonderful weekend. Enjoy it, whether you’re in the garden or cozying up on the couch when it rains.

Our vacation is over—it was really, really nice traveling along the Main, Rhine, and Moselle rivers. We saw and experienced so much, though I can’t even remember exactly what we saw and did, when, and where. So many impressions to process first.
Anyway, we rode the cable car three times, visited the Niederwald Monument and Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, saw the Porta Nigra, and went to Cochem, Rüdesheim, Mainz, Koblenz, Drosselgasse… and so on.

Food in abundance—six meals a day—we couldn’t possibly eat it all, but everything was so delicious.
Now it’s time to go on a diet.

Sorry I couldn’t check in while I was away. Internet is just too expensive on the ship.
I didn’t bring any yarn with me either—which meant a 14-day forced break from crocheting, but I wouldn’t have had time for it anyway.

Tomorrow, Sunday, I’m going dancing again; I still have Monday off, then it’s back to work.


Hugs, Andrea

Thank you, and have a wonderful weekend as well.

Inge, I hope you feel better soon, and I hope you can keep crafting for a while longer.

I know what it’s like when you can’t do any crafts. I have to be careful, though. For the past few days, I’ve had pain in my left hand. One small, odd movement or twist of the hand, and I couldn’t even hold the kettle or my coffee cup anymore.
I take several breaks, and then it’s fine again. No idea what it is. Then it’s fine again.
After my vacation, I’ll have to go see a doctor—they’re on company vacation right now, after all.

This weekend I have to get back to work—early shift.

The weather is typical for April.

Thank you, dear Claudia :-)

Great job, Inge. What a lovely housewarming gift. Anyone would be happy to receive that.
I like both of them—I couldn’t pick just one right now.

Have a great day crafting!
Best wishes, Andrea

Those news photos are terrible.

Fortunately, here in central Germany, everything is still “under control.” We’ve had heavy rain now and then, some clouds, and today it’s sunny and windy—and warm and humid.
No major flooding.

Thank you so much for your congratulations, and to you, dear Claudia, best wishes on your wedding day as well.

It really is something—three weddings in one day. The merry month of May. Yes, it’s really got us hooked.



Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone.

I’m off to my afternoon dance class again—I have the day off, after all

To everyone who’s been feeling under the weather or sick: get well soon. Hope everything’s going well.

I’m on vacation next week. Maybe we’ll take a few days to go to Magdeburg or Potsdam—stay one or two nights, take a castle tour, or maybe catch a musical somewhere.

Then in July, we’re going on our river cruise down the Moselle to the Loreley. I’ll just let myself be surprised by what happens.
We’ve been looking forward to this for two years. It’s booked—*yay*

I also signed up for a class at the adult education center (painting class—drawing like “Monet”); it’s a two-hour session. I’m going to take that.

Petra, it looks so cozy at your place.

Everyone else is getting started on their gardening.
We—or rather, my parents—don’t have a garden anymore (because of their age); it was always such a lovely, relaxing time among the flowers, fruit, vegetables, and birdsong.

Instead, we’re making ourselves comfortable on the balcony. But now that the sun has come around, you can’t stand it for more than 10 minutes.
Unfortunately, I had to work today, but now it’s the end of the workday and I’m doing a little crafting, with beads

Have a lovely May 1st day off, everyone

I also wish everyone a sunny May 1st. Ideally with a May carnation and a little waving flag.
For me, it brings back memories of my childhood. It was a big festival; we had the day off from school, and there was ice cream and bockwurst. Those were good times.

I had to work today, so I decided to pull a prank.
So I went to work today, and the positive laughs were on my side. Wonderful.

It still fits

Gee, Inge, thanks for reminding me. I totally forgot about it. I still have to do that, too.
I completely forgot with all the work I’ve been doing.
I have the weekend off, so I hope I can get it done by then.

You’ve got some pretty colors. Bring on Easter!

Thank you, dear Inge, and to all the wonderful users here as well—have a successful New Year 2024. Stay healthy, everyone.

Exactly, let’s make the best of it.
Veronika really hits the nail on the head. I wish everyone would take it to heart; then a lot of things would be more bearable (speaking from my own experience right now).

First of all, I wish everyone a healthy New Year—I hope you’ve all started 2024 healthy and happy.
I started my early shift today feeling a bit tired after only two hours of sleep, but now I get to rest for two days and sleep in.

My only wish is for the best of health for each and every one of us, and that people treat one another as equals and with respect.

Warmest New Year’s greetings
from Andrea 🐞🍀🫂♥️🕰️

I’m familiar with the “hanging up laundry” thing too (though I don’t remember who told me that). I also don’t hang up any laundry between New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. I’m not superstitious, but I still don’t do it. They say that doing so carries old or bad things over into the New Year, or supposedly someone might take their own life—which already sounds creepy. Who knows.
I’m not familiar with the other customs.

I just hope that we all stay healthy, and that in our later years we’re still able to enjoy the few dreams we have without any health issues, and that some virus doesn’t come along and ruin everything for us again. We only have this one life.

Stay healthy, everyone, and have a great start to the New Year.

Get well soon, Veronika. I’m sure you’ll be back on your feet by then.

I had the early shift, and after that I went to my afternoon dance class. Now I’m exhausted—feet up, a little time browsing the computer—then I’ll sleep well tonight. I’ve been up since 4:00 a.m.

Have a nice evening, everyone

Oh, how lovely, Inge—this sleepy little doll just begs to be hugged. I really like it.

Veronika , I usually crochet with cotton yarn (from Katja) too, because I make a lot of figures and dolls, and I want them to keep their shape. I just really like this yarn—it comes in lots of pretty colors, and it’s not too thick. It’s just right. Especially since I can buy it and feel it right here locally (at a little craft store that’s still around).

Ina , snow is something special for the kids. It’s so rare for it to stick around here. Sledding is so much fun—maybe even a snowball fight; I’d be down for that, too.
It’s still on the ground for now, and the sidewalks and streets are clear. That’s good when you have to go to work early in the morning.

glg👩

it’s amazing what they have in the shop. Thank you, dear Ina, for the tip.

It really is quite large. Thanks, Inge. Good luck with it 😍 and take good care of your little angel

Thank you all—that was very informative. I didn’t know that either.
Learned something new again.

Have a great weekend👩🧶☕

I don’t own a single dirndl, even though now that I’m older I’d actually be willing to buy one—but they’re so expensive. I don’t have that many opportunities to wear one. And when it’s time for the Oktoberfest dance (with my parents), I just put on a pair of long black lederhosen, a plaid shirt, spiced up a bit with jewelry or a scarf—and I’m all set.
The older, sprightly ladies who dance there all wear dirndl dresses, and they look so great.
I’d never dare to sew one myself, like Inge does.

As a child, I used to have a dirndl dress like that. It was black with red roses on it, paired with a little white apron—I loved wearing it. I think there was also white trim along the hem of the skirt. I thought it was chic.

It turned out really beautiful—I’ve already been admiring your soul warmer in the gallery.
It’s great that you found your way to us. Have fun here at CP

Lots of love, Andrea

That’s so cool. I didn’t know that either. I definitely have to try it out.
You’re always learning something new. Thanks for the tip.

I agree. You did a great job, Inge. I’d want to keep one for myself, too.

My vacation’s long over—nothing left. But I have 3 days off in October (60th birthday) and 3 days in late September/early October (craft fair).
Other than that, we’re just muddling through.

That’s right—I remember the slide rule from my school days. They came in metal and plastic, with a sliding bar and that movable transparent sliding part for reading the result. I thought it was great. Too bad it’s gone missing.
Do they even make those anymore?

That wooden coffee grinder with the crank on top—my mom used it a lot, sometimes even at the campground, since you didn’t have electricity there. As a kid, it was really fun to grind coffee with it. Later, I kept it on my kitchen cabinet as a decoration. No idea where it ended up. It’s a shame, really, about such great treasures.

Is that offset printing process still around? It involved thick white sheets of paper, and you needed that purple tracing paper that rubbed off so much and stained everything (not carbon paper). You’d type on it with a typewriter, and there you had the master for the thermal copying process— or whatever it was called.

Scrap pictures for poetry albums or similar things. I think you still see those every now and then. Decal stickers?

Thank you so much, Monika.
Crocheting these patterns is really fun, and you can arrange them however you like.

I’d also like to wish everyone a relaxing weekend, and a speedy recovery to anyone who’s feeling under the weather.

Yeah, the ups and downs of the weather really get to you. I’m having a hard time dealing with it, and so are our residents at the nursing home.
I can’t drink nearly enough to keep up with how much I’m sweating. Then there are these hot flashes—they’re exhausting—plus the stress at work because everyone’s going crazy. Today was another one of those days. A total disaster.

But… starting Monday, I’ll have two weeks of vacation, and I really need it.

Warm evening greetings
Andrea

Marion, I like the upper part of the pattern better. That was a good solution.
Petra, what a great idea to embroider the signatures. That’s a beautiful, lasting memory. Really great.

Oh dear, I still have UFOs sitting in my box, too. It’ll be a while before they get to “land.”

Have a great start to the week, everyone!
Best, Andrea

Hi there, everyone

I have the day off. That means it’s the weekend , and the sun is shining—clear skies, but pleasantly cool, not too warm.
I’ll either keep crocheting my blanket or we’ll put up a shelf. I still need to make a birthday card for a resident’s granddaughter (for her 3rd birthday).
So I won’t be bored.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone, doing whatever you enjoy.

I like forum games, too, and I’m in. Telling stories is great.

But I noticed that the last story-based forum game somehow didn’t really go anywhere—which is a shame, actually.

Once again, Inge has amazed us with her great ideas. I think it’s a really lovely idea to sew a pretty keepsake pouch out of these openwork fabrics. They turned out so great.
Your daughters will surely be thrilled.

I’ve never heard of a “memory teddy” before. The things people come up with.

I actually have a “memory blouse” at home because I once sewed a short blouse (that ties in the front) out of my favorite nightgown. To this day, I still don’t know how I managed to pull that off. It even has a collar and buttonholes.
I’ll have to dig it out sometime and take a picture.

Cool gadget.
Someone's gotta keep things cool, after all 😀

Oh dear, hail too. The weather seems to be doing whatever it wants everywhere.
It’s sweltering here—it’s supposed to get over 30 degrees tomorrow. That’ll knock all the residents out again. We work on the 4th floor of the nursing home, and the heat up there is unbearable.
Luckily, I’m on the early shift, so it’s still manageable.

It’s not a holiday here.

To everyone else, have a good rest and a nice evening

Here you go

Cinnabar red

I wish that for all of you, too, and for Josefa as well. Thank you—

The weather was fantastic today; it was almost unbearably hot on the balcony. I moved my crocheting outside with a cappuccino, ice cream, cake, and whipped cream. Amazing.
I took a long stroll through town today and did a little shopping (no yarn).
But the wind was still blowing, so there’s tons of pollen flying around, which I have to deal with again.

One more thing: when I got back from town, there was a commotion at our place. Fire alarm in front of the building.
There’s a construction site across the street (they’re converting a hut), and a container there was on fire, with thick clouds of smoke.
A few minutes later, three fire trucks arrived and put out the fire with water and foam.
Luckily, we had all the windows closed, but the stairwell stank.
The moment you’re not here, everything goes up in flames.

Take it easy and relax with some crafts, sitting in the garden by the pond with your feet in the grass.

Love, Andrea

We had sunshine here; the clouds came later, along with the wind.

I copied everything over, it reads better this way. Then everyone can copy the text and add their sentence. :-)

Everyone was really happy because
after a long stretch of rain, the sun appeared in the sky again today for the first time..... 
.. and nature awoke from its sleep.
Of course the children wanted to go outside right away to... ..play soccer ⚽ and
finally ride their bikes around the neighborhood again.
Pia zipped around the corner of the house on her red bike and....
she almost crashed into Paul.
Luckily, though, nothing happened.
Since the two of them had already run into each other ....
...they immediately arranged to meet tomorrow to...
... try out a new game...
But they still needed lots of other children for this game. So ....
tomorrow during the big break they wanted
first to make a long list...
Pia and Paul were the first ones on the schoolyard and 
were amazed at what they saw.
There stood a gigantic truck, loaded with...
colorful crates...
and of course they went straight over to the driver...... 
But what is inside the crates?
In a green crate there are lots of...
green tree frogs. In a red crate they found...
loads of toys.
..there was a trampoline, too.
The children were really excited and...
first tried everything out until...
... one of the children discovered something else ...
Wow, among all the crates they found something that looked like a ......
..gigantic surprise egg! They tried to crack it open,  but...
they needed help from ...
adults.
Paul ran to the janitor, but....
... he was nowhere to be found just then...
So what now?
I could get my big brother, Pia shouted ......and ran off right away.
Meanwhile.... .. the bell had rung and recess was over. Then...
...of course everyone had to go to their classroom, but... where is Pia, she still wasn't back.
Paul went back and....there came Pia and her big brother, already walking toward him.
She had brought him along because he...always has good ideas and
is strong, but... ... here he was stumped at first, but... ...suddenly he had a brilliant idea..
He organized a gigantic crane.