Of Course I Started a New Project

I always have multiple projects going at any given time. Over the last few days after looking at my scap bins and realizing I have more than enough to make what I had in mind I got started. What I had in mind was rag rugs done with two ply fabric yarn. To make my yarn I need one inch wide strips that are at least 12 inches long to be useful. I spent time sorting scraps and piles of old sheets and other fabric given to me by my sisters. I set aside any scraps not good enough to make strips but could possibly work later in scrap quilts. 

Here's where I am so far...

A pile of fabrics waiting to be made into strips.

Strips waiting to become fabric yarn.

Yarn beginning to become a rug.

The method is simple. To start I get 2 strips and put a knot very close to the end. Remember I am left-handed for this next part. Imagine the strips being upper and lower. I twist, with my right hand, the upper strip away from me and then bring it forward and down. I now have a new upper strip and I do the same thing. Twist it away from me and then bring it forward and down. To add a new strip overlap old and new strip about 4 or 5 inches. That will make sure your yarn doesn't easily come apart. Try to stagger the joins so you don't have that double layer thickness in both your upper and lower strips at the same time. There is a lot of twist in my new yarn so after I have made several yards of yarn I stand up and run the yarn through my hands from the old to new end to get the excess twist out.

Next step is to crochet the new yarn. I use a very big hook and single crochet. I find it is easier on my hands to make some yarn and then crochet and go back and forth so my hands get a break. I have made 3 of these rugs so far and plan on making more, that is as long as I can give scrap fabric a life extension before it ends up in a land fill. In some of my first rugs I used some of Jims old shirts that were stained and frayed at collar and cuffs so they weren't donatable. Any lightweight woven fabric will work. 

I love these rugs. I kept the first on for myself and it is holding up very well after a few years of use and machine washing and drying. The rugs I make are heavy and cushion your feet very nicely when you stand on them. I plan on having a couple of these at the craft shows I will be doing with my sisters later this year. I wouldn't ever put them online because shipping would be too much.

In other crafting news I finished one sleeve and started another on a top down raglan cardigan I will be finishing to take with me to Scotland later this year. I also put some more rows on a red baby blanket.

I am looking forward to, while being a bit anxious about, the presidential debate later this week. I don't know if these things ever change minds. I know my mind can't be changed and I am now and always will be a democrat, so I am rooting for Joe. To me the choice is clear between a crazy wanna be dictator and the man who actually cares about the middle class and doesn't want it to disappear.

Back with more again soon.

Take care and stay cozy!

Rethinking My Daily Routines

Yes, the coming new year has me thinking about how I can change routines. The need to change has to include a logical improvement somehow. I have priorities to consider including my home and my health, to keep one clean and organized and the other to stay healthy as I age.

Added to that I want to keep the brain busy with learning. That is why I am a lifelong crafter. That is why I write here and hope to continue this habit for a long time. That is why I love the idea of an online shop even if I have agreed for now to put that on hold while Jim wants to spend so much time traveling. I want to be ready to go when that slows down. In the meantime, I may go back to local craft shows because I can't stop making stuff and have no desire to stop anyway. Making is a very big part of my life and very important to my mental wellbeing. Have you heard the phrase "I (fill in craft here) so I don't kill people"? That's me.

I think it boils down to the fact that I want to wake up with a sense of purpose even if I have to make it up for myself. If I didn't do this, I am afraid I would sit in the recliner and turn into a daytime TV watching, old, wrinkled vegetable. Not gonna happen. These thoughts are what I do in place of resolutions. I design routines and for the most part try to stick to them. If I miss a day for whatever reason, there is no guilt since tomorrow is a fresh new chance to do it better. 

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy!