Latest Forum Posts by: Bastelfan

Here’s a little glimpse into my relaxation exercise. It’s called doodling or Zentangling. It’s a lot of fun. All you need is a pen and paper.

Palm tree

Well, I definitely take yarn and a crochet hook with me on vacation. But only for projects that don’t require stuffing—it would be impractical to lug that around because I can’t estimate how much I’ll need.
I mostly crochet flat pieces (shawls, granny squares, or bags that don’t require a pattern).
If there’s a craft store nearby, I have to go in—just to look around at first. I usually buy things that I can’t get here in Norway, or that are very hard to find. A lot of things are cheaper in Germany.

Hello, everyone!
I’ve actually been here for over 5 years now. It was more of a coincidence that I ended up here—I was searching for crochet patterns—and I was welcomed so warmly. I feel right at home here.
I look younger than I am, though I’m already approaching 57. I have two adult sons (ages 31 and 33), I’m married for the second time, and I have a lovely husband who also has his own hobby. We complement each other well. I moved to Norway eight years ago, and I live and work there. The scenery is gorgeous, but the winters are long and cold—still, it’s beautiful here, and it’s quiet with pleasant, crisp air.
I’ve had several jobs (secretary, healthcare and nursing assistant—I worked in several nursing homes, which I loved—and now I’m a hotel employee). I also once worked for a master carpenter as a temp and driver of a small van, delivering and picking up chair parts from the lumberyard; that was fun. The master carpenter was my landlord at the time; we were on a first-name basis. I’ve also planted trees (as part of a job creation program), and I worked as a “finisher” at the Bad Kösen stuffed animal factory. I picked up a lot by watching others, bought myself a sewing machine, and sewed a doll from a pattern. I usually had fun at work.

A warm welcome to the “newcomers” as well, and to everyone else. I’m just realizing how quiet my life is, compared to yours (lots of kids, lots of pets, a garden…). Hats off to you for still finding time for hobbies. Amazing.
I have several hobbies, like crocheting, diamond painting (painting by numbers with adhesive stones), embroidery—I used to make more cards (including those thread art cards, where you embroider cards with thin, colorful thread and beads). I also string bead figures from patterns and make my own bead jewelry.
My latest “relaxation activity” is doodling or Zentangle. There’s so much inspiration to be found online.
I’d also like to give a big shout-out to the sellers—you come up with such great ideas; it’s often hard to choose, but that’s part of the fun.

Carnations

Yes, Ina, you could count yourself lucky. Such great gifts. Mmm, and that cake looks absolutely delicious. I’d love one like that too. Far too nice to bite into.

Onion

Canoeing

Willow catkins

Night hike

Mmm, a delicious barbecue—I love that, too.
That’s great, thank you. 😎😉

Hydrangea

Yay, we have the day off, and we’ve moved our coffee break outside. It’s wonderfully warm in the sun. You’ve got to make the most of it here.

The weather’s been unpredictable here, too. So I’ll be doing some crafts and crocheting. Let’s see if I can finish my unfinished teddy bear project.
Otherwise, I’ll just enjoy my time off and do whatever I feel like.

Wishing you all a wonderful, relaxing weekend as well

Fishing

Willow catkins

Swimming in the sea

Celery

The second pillow is finished. It turned out a little bigger.
I used up some leftover yarn.

I have something to show, too. We only have these two bushes, though.


I’m currently crocheting a mini pillow made of squares with a bobble stitch pattern

Carnations

Jumbo ice cream sundae for two, mmm, delicious, with lots of whipped cream

Hyacinth

I only use these plastic stitch markers, but the larger ones—they have a pointier end that goes through the stitch more easily than the smaller ones.

Calla

Daffodils

Thank you very much for this information.

Your natural bouquets look really lovely. I’m a big fan of things like that, too. They cost almost nothing, yet they still bring us joy.
Thank you so much for sharing, and

appelino , I’d also like to send you my warmest birthday wishes.

Iris

Christmas rose

Fun-Design, that doesn’t sound good at all. Your poor sister. I hope she gets well soon, and I hope everything goes well for her.

Things are slowly looking up for me at work—I’ve already been able to work at the hotel for a few days. Hygiene is a top priority, but we don’t have to wear face masks while working. On trains and buses and while shopping, face masks aren’t required here, but we do have to maintain social distancing.
Otherwise, everyone seems to be in good health.

So my question is, are Entrelac and Tunisian crochet the same thing,
or are there differences?

We had a cozy evening watching TV today.
Things are slowly picking up again at the hotel too, which means going to bed early—I have to work tomorrow.

Quince

Wow, your sailboat already looks great.

I’m currently working on the square “Strahum” tablecloth by JRuschDesign.
I’m also doing some smaller crochet projects here and there—we’ll see how it goes.

Jasmine

Lilac

[x ] I didn’t buy any yarn in June and therefore rightfully earned the title of Yarn Emperor/Empress for June.
[x ] I’ve been taking part in the yarn diet since January 1, 2020, and will
either diet for one month, a full quarter, half a year, or
a full year, thereby earning the title or titles
Yarn Empress/Quarter Empress/Half-Year Empress/Wool Mountain Conqueror
for myself.
[ x] I am and will remain brave, meet the respective requirements ( disinfecting, washing my hands thoroughly, keeping social distance,
staying home, wearing masks, etc. ), won’t lose heart, and
hope for the best.

Iris

Dahlia

Belated happy birthday! I hope you had a lovely day with your close friends and family. Wishing you good luck and good health.

Love, Andrea

I’m still hard at work on my “wool diet.” It’ll last a while longer, and I’m doing just fine with it.

jasmine

So, one painting is now hanging on the wall

Thank you all so much.
I used to do a lot of paint-by-numbers projects, too. The finished paintings are still lying around somewhere—I don’t really have a place for them.

No more weekend for me. After being on short-time work, I got to go back to work again today, and of course tomorrow too. I’m so exhausted and tiiiired today.
Of course, it’s check-outs at the hotel. Only 40 rooms are occupied.
Let’s see how all this develops.

Wishing everyone else a nice, relaxing Sunday all the same.
Rain is in the forecast here, and it was so hot today.

Hi Monika,
sure, I can explain it to you. The picture is printed on a kind of thick plastic sheet, with an adhesive layer on top, like on a piece of tape. There’s also an extra layer of regular film on top for protection, which you can remove or peel off when you start your picture.
It’s basically “paint by numbers,” but with tiny stones (they come in square or round shapes). They’re as tiny as computer confetti. It comes with a little stylus and a kind of wax—you can press the stylus into it every now and then if the stones don’t stick to it; the stylus is there to help you place the stones more easily.
I usually stick them on from top to bottom, row by row (after sorting the stones into little boxes first). It comes with a small, grooved dish where you can place the stones and pick them up more easily because they’re lined up in rows.
It’s kind of hard to explain. You can also Google it—it’s explained there too.
But it’s a lot of fun; you could even do it with your grandkids, but be careful with the stones—choking hazard, so only under supervision.

Thank you both for showing us. It’s really interesting what was still “in” back then, or considered normal.
ruthk, oh, so that’s what this hook looks like. I once saw one at my ex-mother-in-law’s. Wasn’t that thing also used for knotting?
My grandpa always knotted wall hangings; does anyone still do that?

Happy birthday, best wishes, and good health—that’s what matters most.
I hope you can celebrate with your family again.

Warm regards, Andrea