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The Happy Hooker

| Verónica

I love it when someone can take a simple object like a crochet hook and make it come to life bursting with personality. That’s what Stephanie of Obey Crochet does with her irreverent and oh-so-funny hook humor.

She doesn’t mean to incite a battle between crocheters and knitters, but it is too funny to resist.

Even though I am mostly a knitter and only an occasional crocheter, I can’t help but crack a smile at her hook humor. Then I come to discover that she’s a fellow Texan! Go grab some more laughs at Obey Crochet. I will close with one more drawing that all hookers and sticksters can surely agree on.

{All images in this post belong to Obey Crochet.}

Wooli – Bespoke Yarn from New Zealand

| Verónica

This package crossed an ocean to reach me. As you can note by the postmark, this has been sitting in my queue for some time.

This thick yarn is designed by Nikki Gabriel and produced from recycled fabric remnants. The fiber contents include wool, alpaca, silk, cashmere and possum. The raw fibers produce this color which she calls Greige. Other dyed colors are also available.

Then there are these sturdy needles handmade from recycled Rimu wood, which is a tree native to New Zealand.

I like the concept of naming them “construction” tools.

I even got this nice thank you note from Nikki Gabriel herself.

In addition to creating yarn and needles, she is also a knitwear designer. She designed these beautiful flowing costumes for a performance of The Australian Ballet.

{source}

I would like to visit New Zealand some day and go to her shop, Gather, in Napier. In the meantime, I am content with reading her blog.

A Very Crafty Evening

| Verónica

This is my second year attending the annual Artisan’s Market presented by the Contemporary Handweavers of Houston (CHH). The market runs from September 6 – 8 so if you are near Houston, you still have Saturday to stop by.

I am so glad that I went on their opening night. I did my usual walk around the rooms to look at all the displays. I then picked up a small plastic basket from the front so I could begin collecting the beautiful handwoven textiles, baskets, handmade jewelry, handspun yarn, and felted ornaments that I had singled out. I was too slow. Those ladies are fierce! Several items I had on my mental checklist were gone! Nonetheless, I had a great time looking, touching and taking pictures.

I saw beautiful handwoven textiles.

There were felted bracelets, handmade cards, woven rugs and artwork.

There were felted baskets, silk baskets and other sculptured baskets.

There were ghosts and goblins and catnip wrapped like mice for the upcoming Autumn holidays.

Even Saint Nicolas’ helpers offered their wares for the yuletide season.

Of course, there was yarn.

A huge round of applause to all of the fiber artists who produced these beautiful handmade items. By the crowds and the long line at check out, I am pleased to say that Houstonians truly appreciate the handcrafted arts.

If you want to see more lovely items like these, this is the post I wrote about last year’s event.

A long, hot summer

| Verónica

It seemed fitting to close out this HOT summer in flames. Andrea and the wonderful Miss D from I Love Schnauzers shared the Blog on Fire award with Agujas. When I came across I Love Schnauzers, I was hooked. Andrea knits a little bit of everything and makes the cutest doggie sweaters – and Miss D is the perfect model. Thank you Andrea and Miss D for heating up my day!

The rules are to share 8 unusual things about yourself (or your pet) and then share the award with 8 other bloggers who are on fire! Since this honor was bestowed by a line of dog lovers, most of them wrote about their pets, so I will too. My pets have been gone a long time, so this is in memoriam.

  1. Despite their spirited names, Tequila (terrier-schnauzer mix adopted from the SPCA) and Vodka (blonde pomapoo adopted from friends) only imbibed non-alcoholic beverages.
  2. Tequila liked his on the rocks. Give him an ice cube and he would slip and slide all over the kitchen floor chasing it until he crunched it all up.
  3. Tequila was the athletic type – extremely agile and fast. He could jump 2-3 feet into the air like a jackrabbit on steroids.
  4. Tequila had cat-like qualities. He could jump onto the sofa or bed without making a single sound.
  5. Vodka was the dreamer. He would follow Tequila faithfully on their romps but was easily distracted. He would give chase to butterflies and then look around in panic when Tequila was out of his line of sight.
  6. Vodka would nudge his nose under my hand until he was nestled under it so that I could rub his neck.
  7. Vodka was clumsy. If he ran too fast, his short legs would give way under him and he would run into things.
  8. They were mischievous. Once I left them in the backyard to get fresh air and sunshine. Apparently, they broke out of the yard and roamed the neighborhood because when I drove up to the house, there they were both sitting at the front door with very guilty looks on their faces.

Here are Tequila (black-bearded fella) and Vodka (blondie). DISCLAIMER: This picture was taken a LONG time ago.

In the spirit of these blog awards, here are 8 blogs that are on fire that I encourage you to visit.

  1. Grackle and Sun – learn how to use natural dyes for your yarn
  2. Buscando Comienzos – colorful crochet
  3. Salty*Mom – fun do-it-yourself projects
  4. Deep in the Heart of Textiles – knitting and quilts, lots of quilts
  5. Spinayarnknit – see pictures of traditional Peruvian textiles
  6. Land of Bread and Honey – ripple crochet afghans and recipes
  7. Daisey Jayne – loved her hand sewn dresses for little girls
  8. Big House, Little Prairie – loving life on the farm

And to end summer on an even lovelier note, thanks to Seascapes AUS for sharing the One Lovely Blog award with Agujas. Since this honor was already bestowed, I just want to say thanks and encourage all of you to go see the lovely paintings of the sea.