Latest Forum Posts by: Bastelfan

Good evening, my dears,

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Here the weather was sunny, but very windy. When you sit inside and look out, you think goodness, how warm it must be, and then you go outside—feels like 2 degrees. Not fun. Luckily there is still yarn on hand.
You were all so busy again.

Monika, when I saw the picture, finally new yarn, and such gorgeous colors, I know exactly how you felt. It made me feel such a longing for new yarn too.
You have no idea what you set off in me. I clicked on your pictures right away to see which types of yarn you prefer, since you knit a lot too.
Then I first searched Google for all kinds of Garnbuttikken pa nett in Norway, and I did partly find some (theoretically for now; I haven't bought anything yet).
I went to the site where you ordered them and was amazed at how cheap it was. But here in the shops, no luck with that Drops You; it wasn't available. And I found the Safran, but they all cost around 3–4 euros per skein, everything is so expensive here, I can't really splurge, which makes me envy you all the more, so many pretty skeins. I'm sure you'll conjure up something beautiful from them.

So I have a yarn question for everyone (e.g., what is the yarn like, is it easy to work with, does the thread split when crocheting/knitting, is it scratchy, is it soft and fluffy, is the stitch definition even...)

1. Viking Garn 100g/500 m  , that's more of a delicate crochet thread for doilies, right?
2. Viking Garn Bambino 50g/176m
3. Viking Garn Baby ull 50g/170m (ull means wool)
4. Drops Safran 50g/160m
5. Drops Flora 50g/210m

Here are 5 yarns that would be my kind of weight. What do you think?
I would be very grateful for your help.

My friendly colors are slowly running out.

Sleep well then, see you tomorrow
Andrea

Here’s my Bundt cake—or what’s left of it

Have a nice Saturday,

Ruthk—that looks great. I hadn’t even thought of crocheting around T-shirts like that. I actually still have some thin yarn. Thanks for the inspiration.

I’ve finished another project, too—a coaster, nice and thick. It seemed too good to use just as a pot holder. I love this Entrelac crochet technique. You don’t have to sew anything together. Everything is crocheted right in place. Ta-da!

I had to read that twice, too. Turtles in the fridge. *laughs*
There’s so much to keep in mind and know, but it’s great that your turtles are doing well—and they’re such beautiful specimens.
I hope you continue to enjoy your little pets.

Wishing you all a lovely afternoon

Wow, Ines, your potholder looks great. I haven’t tried Tunisian crochet yet.

I also crocheted a little something—entrelac. I’m going to make a second piece, crochet them together, and use them as coasters.
I crocheted a few two-tone cords following a YouTube tutorial.
My shawl has only grown a tiny bit—just a few rows.

I’ve also thought about making an entrelac blanket. But one thing at a time.
I’m flexible about that.

In a bit, there’ll be coffee and Bundt cake with almonds, lemon, and rum flavoring. Delicious.

 
And I made mini books for the dollhouse following a purchased tutorial

Monika, I had to Google how to knit picot stitches first. It’s actually pretty interesting.
It’s like a row of holes that you just fold over and knit together. Or how do you do it?
Learned something new again. I haven’t tried it yet, though. The things you learn :-)

It’s always nice when things are blooming and turning green somewhere. The forsythias are just starting to bloom here now—they were already blooming where you are around Easter.
But it’s just still too cold for this time of year.

Oh man, I had to scroll quite a long way up to catch up.

Sonja, your “Paris” placemat looks absolutely stunning. That really is true knitting artistry. Much too good to use. So many color changes—that would drive me crazy. Hats off to you.

Monika, it’s great that you finally got your new windows, and as Anja already said, you’re on a knitting break because you have to clean all the new windows. After that, you’ll have a clear view again and can get going with your yarn again *lol*.

Anja, I’m just picturing you scrambling around in that tree to hang up your decorations. It wouldn’t be worth it to me, since it’s so big anyway.

We only have a small tree on the lawn (it belongs to the landlord’s property). It looks so spindly and ugly (except when it’s in bloom) that decorations would be far too good for it.
The other two trees (fir, birch) were cut down a long time ago. Unfortunately. But at least we have more sun on the terrace now, and those old leaves aren’t lying on the car anymore.

Thank you very much for your get-well wishes. My eye has already gotten a bit better. I guess it’s not a pollen allergy, because then both eyes would be red and bloodshot. It’s only the right one. I must somehow have gotten a draft from the wind. It was really swollen, as if I’d just come from a boxing match. It’s still watering a bit. But that didn’t stop me from doing a little crocheting today.
Here in the forum, the colorful entrelac potholder inspired me, and now I’m experimenting to see what I can make from it. I’m still on a yarn diet, so I have plenty of leftovers.

I wish you all a pleasant night, and later on, happy crafting.

Best regards

I’m glad I got you all dreaming. You just have to hold on to these moments, enjoy them, and soak them in.
Because today the sun is already gone—instead, thick clouds, wind, and rain.
Crazy. But that’s just how it is here.

Yesterday I was still enjoying the sun and the sound of the waves, eyes closed; in my mind, I felt like I was lying on the beach by the Baltic Sea. It felt a little like vacation, and I even felt a bit homesick. That’s just how it is.

I can believe it, Christina, that people look forward to seeing others again and doing things together. People need company; otherwise, they wither away.

I’m already longing for the day when I can finally hug my family again—it’s been two years since I last did, and there’s still no end in sight. Unfortunately. :-(

Just saw this, CreatOwl—wow, that looks really pretty. You’re crocheting with a hook that’s even smaller than mine. Impressive. My smallest crochet project is made with a 1.75 hook.

Hello everyone,

After yesterday’s wonderful sunny day, today’s weather is unpleasant again—rain and wind. So I have time once more to admire your lovely pieces.
Thank you so much for your feedback.

I probably won’t be able to knit much today, because ever since yesterday’s bike ride, my right eye has been kind of swollen shut. I’m guessing it’s birch pollen—I haven’t had this happen in years. No idea. Hope it clears up soon.

Anja, your colorful knitted shawl already looks great. It’s a simple but interesting pattern—I think I can manage that too. I’m not quite ready to tackle difficult knitting patterns yet.
Monika, the little dress for Juna already looks very pretty. I can’t wait to see it when it’s finished. And I’m happy for you that things are moving forward with your windows.
Ines, thank you. Yes, those English terms are always very misleading. Can’t we just call it a “knitted edge”? You never stop learning. And here in the forum, you really do learn a lot and meet nice people—that’s wonderful.
DieausdemGartenkommt, your sweater is looking very promising too. I took a look at the Järbo website—the pattern is simple, yet so strikingly beautiful. Great

Have a wonderful afternoon, everyone

I’ll be relaxing on the couch today

Of course, I’d also like to thank you for this helpful information—until yesterday, I didn’t even know what an I-cord was.
I’m currently working on a triangular shawl where an I-cord edge is knitted on, which I’ve only just learned how to do. It’s great, isn’t it?

Last week, when I was in Oslo, I found spring. I had forgotten to upload the pictures here.

 

Yesterday and today, I’ve been feeling good. The sun is shining, it’s wonderfully warm, and you can finally sit outside on the patio with your knitting. Then I went for a short bike ride and got some exercise, and that made me feel better right away. Now all that’s missing is my family.

They’re forecasting lousy weather again for the next few days, so you have to make the most of every ray of sunshine, and that’s exactly what I did. Great!

Have a lovely week, everyone, and stay healthy.

Hey Josefa,

yes, I really like this picot edge. It’s a very pretty finish, especially for small, delicate crochet projects.
I also like to crochet this edge on my amigurumi dresses—it just looks prettier.

This picot consists of 3 chain stitches, and you work a single crochet into the 3rd chain stitch.

Took a short bike ride earlier to the Drammenfjord (stopped to listen to the sound of the waves), then continued on. I have my usual route there—it’s enough for me. It was lovely in the sun.

And we were actually able to sit outside on the patio in short sleeves for a bit. Of course, fruit cake is a must. Today we’re having the last two slices. A little knitting. The laundry’s drying, too—everything’s great.

Have a great time, everyone!
Andrea

Here are a few snapshots from our weekend walk—the other side of the Drammenfjord. It was still jacket weather, but the sun was glorious.

 A lot has happened here again. You don’t check in for just one day, and before you know it, you can’t stop marveling at all your lovely creations.

But I just had to take advantage of the gorgeous sunny weather yesterday, so I knitted outside on the patio. It was so nice and warm—finally—that I even got a little tan.

That’s why I’m just popping in for a quick look, then I’m heading back out into the sun.

To everyone: you’ve conjured up such amazing things again. I’m thrilled. Mäxchen looks cute in those pants, and the four-leaf clover pot holders are so great—I’ll have to try making some myself when I get the chance.

Here’s my progress so far. I’ve been knitting in black and white. I still had two leftover skeins that match. On the swatch, I tried out the I-cord edge. That is knitted on separately. It’s not that hard at all. It’s explained really well in a video (Kerstin Landherzen).


 

Wishing everyone a lovely Sunday. The sun is shining here, the temperature is finally pleasant, and the birds are chirping. Maybe I’ll even sit out on my patio. Finally.

I did another knitting swatch.
Here in the gallery, I admired this striped knitted shawl and promptly found a pattern that explained it really well.
Now I also know what an I-cord edge is. Learned something new again. No, I didn’t know that before, and it’s so simple.

It’s just that this black yarn—which I had left over from my stash—isn’t really my thing. It has glittery threads in it. It always feels so scratchy. Oh well. It’s good enough for trying it out.
Here it is.

Wow, Monika, that looks delicious—and it smells so good in here.

We had fruit flan again. Baked today—half of it’s already gone. Simply delicious.

Bake any kind of cake

The weather today is wonderfully sunny, but there’s a cold wind.
We took a short drive earlier to the other side of the Drammenfjord. We had a nice walk around there, stayed by the water at a seating area, climbed around on the rocks along the shore a bit, and let the wind blow in our faces.
Standing on the shore with our eyes closed, listening to the sound of the waves—it felt a bit like a Baltic Sea holiday. One can dream, after all.

I still have to upload the pictures.

Next time we’ll bring folding chairs, a thermos, and some cake. This was just a short trip, after all. We can’t really do long trips anyway—because of COVID, the public toilets are closed. Pretty stupid.

Thanks, Josefa, and have a lovely weekend too, everyone.

I don’t like jute at all. I think it’s scratchy, and it reminds me of the old days, of those coal sacks.
You used to get your loose coal delivered in those sacks—dirty and dusty.
As I’m writing this, I can practically feel that coal dust in my nose.

Have a lovely evening, you busy bees,

once again, such wonderful things have been created for us to admire. I’m always amazed at how fast you all are.

Christina, your dishcloths look really interesting with that pattern. I’d love to know how you made them too; I can’t quite tell.
Sandra, your candy jars are great. Your crumb-cookie monsters are totally funny.
Monika, I’d love to be a doll at your place too, if I were dressed so prettily. Your potholders are a lovely eye-catcher in any kitchen.
Sonja, your DF projects keep surprising us again and again. You can already make out the patterns. Could that be the Eiffel Tower?
Ina, your jackets look great, and I’ve already spotted the AL. But it may be a while before I get to that point. I really like the one in orange, though, and I’d love to have one like it. The stitches are easy. I had to look up the horizontal strand first; I wasn’t familiar with that.
Your temperature blanket is growing and growing; the colors already look interesting.

I’m not making any progress on my crochet blanket right now. Crochet break. I didn’t crochet anything yesterday; I was out and about (doctor’s follow-up appointment) and also stopped by the hotel, where two colleagues are still working. They were happy, and so was I. Checked out the situation a bit. I got out for once, and the weather was sunny too.

By the way, yesterday was my lucky day. I chatted with my gynecologist (she’s German) about everything under the sun, and along the way I got a tip for a place to visit. We also got onto the topic of “pimples,” since I had one on my face, and she said her colleague (a dermatologist) could take a look at it, and he removed it right away without an appointment. Great

While I was waiting in the waiting room, I checked out the skincare products on the shelf. And the receptionist promptly spoke to me. Afterward she brought me a bag with samples in it; that was a lovely gesture. I thought that was really nice
I felt so happy all day. That’s how it should be. Those little moments of success.

Next time there will surely be pictures of my crochet progress again.
Now I have to make dinner first.

Have a lovely evening, everyone

There’s a lot going on here again. It’s hard to keep up.

I’m taking a short break from crocheting. I’ve been spending some time in the world of miniatures.

Savoy Cabbage Stew

Hungarian Goulash Soup

Wow, Ina, those are absolutely beautiful examples.
I used to do a lot with stencils and that embossing stylus, too.
With embossing, I always thought the final result was great, but I never did it myself. Plus, I already had so many supplies for other techniques. It just seemed too complicated to me.
But I still have a die-cutting machine at home that can emboss and cut. You place the stencils between two plates with a piece of cardstock, and then you run the whole thing through, just like a pasta machine.

I’m also familiar with that pricking technique using a pen and stencils, which you can then embroider with thread.
Oh my gosh, all the things we used to try! (Ceramofix and casting molds, and those clay pot figures, the artichoke technique, Skubidou, Window Color..., decoupage)

Oh, I misread that, Monika. All right.
My parents used to grow them in their garden, too—they tasted delicious. But due to their age, they gave up their garden—or rather, sold it—a long time ago.

That makes me happy, thanks

Meatballs

The letter Y from “Russisch Brot” — delicious!

It’s so nice to look back at your old photos.
Awesome, Ina. Yeah, I think we all used to look like that. Right now, I can’t find a photo of myself with that hairstyle.

But do you guys still remember those blow-dried, tousled hairstyles?

That’s me at 14 or 15 years old


And in the other photos further up, yes, that’s me too

Wow, I’m green. Thank you.

Oh my goodness, Monika, yes, there’s really no comparison.
I just hope your pretty mandarin tree survives this.
A mandarin tree sounds interesting. Did you grow it yourselves, buy it, or how should I picture it? Trees like that are pretty rare in gardens, after all. I certainly like eating them.

The weather is going crazy everywhere right now.

Exactly. Now the sun is shining again, with wind and thick black clouds. Typical April weather.
It changes like this all the time here.
Spring is still a long way off. The forsythias haven’t even bloomed here yet; in Germany, they’ve long since finished blooming. It’s just too cold.

Rolled Roast

Hey, your grandpas look great. Personally, I like the one on top best.

nadiwagn Maybe you could crochet a small pillow with a nice design for your grandpa, or a little granny square blanket that he can drape over his legs.

I always thought these shoulder pads were awful, too, especially when you could see them through thin blouse fabric. I cut them out, too. But they work great as stuffing or padding for dollhouse bedding.

These pictures are from the ’80s and ’90s. Do you remember those glittery shirts?
In one picture, I’m wearing a blouse made of diaper cloth, embroidered by me, with crocheted edging on the sleeves and a cord at the neck. 
The other picture was taken at work; I’m wearing a sweater I knitted myself. Oh man, those were the days—with the fashion and the hairstyles.

It just started. This is what it looks like here right now. The sun was still shining a little while ago. 

Christina, she’s not really supposed to look skeptical. I thought the upturned corner of her mouth looked cheeky. I’ll have to change that. The facial expression really defines the whole crocheted figure.
Sonja, the motif looks great when crocheted. Sure, knitted items are softer and finer, but as a coaster or pot holder—maybe incorporate the motif into a bag.
Sandra, your grasping bunny looks cute. Is it based on a pattern or did you create it yourself? I ordered some wooden rings like that once, too, and wanted to crochet animals on them—I still need to experiment with that. For Christmas, I crocheted a wreath out of them.


So, back to the doll. For the 1.75 crochet hook, I use thin crochet yarn from Rico Essentials Crochet, 50 g – 280 m, or the Mandarin crochet yarn from SandnesGarn, 100 g – 590 m—that works best.
I still have some old leftover Diana yarn, but it’s too thin even for me to use on such large dolls. I use it to embroider the eyes or for hair on mini amigurumis, or to make little tassels. Somehow, I find a use for everything.
Every now and then I crochet with 2.5 or 3.0 needles—a nice change of pace for my fingers.

The socks are crocheted right into the doll. You could also crochet the shoes right in—start with black, then switch to white for the socks—that works too. But I’d like to change the shoes, just like women do :-))

Have a lovely afternoon, everyone!

Hello, you hard workers!

Here’s Puppi for now—I’ll leave it at that for the time being. I still had some other shoes lying around (they were originally meant to be bag charms) and they fit, too. Actually, she wears lace-up shoes in the AL. But I did give her a necklace. 

Lasagna

Wow, ruthk , you’ve been really busy. That looks great.
I wouldn’t go with a black frame either, since the embroidery is already quite dark. I’d imagine something lighter—beige, a light wood tone, or even red. As for white, you’d have to see how it all looks together. Great idea with the grandchild embroidery design. Did you use a pattern for that? There are programs out there that can convert designs, or did you order it (the embroidery design and kit)?

My doll is about 35 cm tall, crocheted with a 1.75 needle.

Vegetable soup

That’s true, Ina always puts things into words so beautifully; it really does a world of good.
Thank you.
To everyone else, I hope you’ll be able to hug your loved ones again soon.
Wishing your family members a speedy recovery.

It’s always a relief when it’s finally your turn to get vaccinated.
It might still take a while for us. They’re only up to “Group 4,” and we (ages 50–60) are “Group 8.” They just can’t seem to get their act together.

My parents (ages 74 and 76) are finally registered with their family doctor, too. I’m glad about that.

It’s nice that we can share our thoughts here. A problem shared is a problem halved.

Have a lovely afternoon, everyone

First of all, thank you Monika, for the signature. I didn’t even remember that anymore. It worked.

ines, I already like your potholder. I love those heart-and-paw motifs.

Weather-wise, we never get above double digits. Sleet, rain. Just uncomfortable. No sign of spring.
Only yarn helps with that :-)

Kebab

Hi Katharina,

I’ve had this problem before with 2-ply and 3-ply yarn.
But ultimately, it depends on your yarn. Some 3-ply yarns are pretty thick, and in that case, it probably won’t work.
Some 3-ply yarns are quite thin, so the difference isn’t very noticeable. It can be a tad thicker, but not by much.
As I said, it depends on the thickness of your yarn and the material. Pure cotton 3-ply is much thicker.
As Michaela already suggested, just do a gauge swatch. Good luck!

Oh, that looks lovely. What a beautiful display of flowers. Thank you so much for sharing, Marion.
We’re missing that here. It’s all cloudy and gray, not a single flower in sight—really dreary. It’s way too cold for anything to be blooming.
That makes it all the more delightful to look at. Thank you