crochet

I worked on a few crochet projects yesterday. Finished one.

When I started to crochet in Dec and joined Ravelry soon after that (a local yarn shop suggested it), I wondered what items I would make. For a few years I did wood carving, but the craft takes concentration and focused effort because the work is done with very sharp tools. Not something to do while doing some other task, like watching a movie. The other side is that the finished objects are just that: objects that sit around on a shelf. Toys are the exception to that, but our daughter didn't have much interest in wooden toys. Another aspect is detail. I preferred the stylistic approach, focused on the form over realism, like duck carving.


In 2006, did a version of the Cloud Gate, which is a monumental-scale stainless sculpture in Chicago.

There are a lot of crochet patterns for women and women have a much broader palette of fashion accessories and decorative items ("a woman's touch" in a house) to draw from. There are lots of things I could make for my wife and our daughter, but not much for me. On Ravelry, I have listed a bunch of different projects I have completed that were mostly for a couple rounds of swaps (a scarf and another of kitchen and bath items). Interesting variety in that set of projects, I suppose. I seem to keep finding something to do, but aside for a hat or two and scarf, the things have been for other people and simple. I have done one afghan. It was simple too, just big, so it took a long time.

A swap came up recently that I debated joining, but finally did. The project I finished was a practice item for that. It's a jock. I don't wear them and I'm not interested in seeing other guys wearing them, but it was a guy's project, so I joined in anyway. I've never made a fitted garment before, so I figured that would be good practice for me too. Hats are pretty simple to make and, aside from being too small or too big, the sizing is not complicated. Getting the pouch to conform to the body, getting the pieces sized, and putting the elastic into the waistband was new. Now that I have some idea of how to do this, I have to make one for some other guy, my swap partner. I don't need to see him in it when he gets it, but would like to know if it fits, but I suppose potential changes don't matter because I doubt I would ever do this project again.