Ruby firmly believes that she would be a remarkable crafter if only I’d give her the chance. Cat-like, she wants to jump in your lap and help you knit or crochet or glue buttons down to a wreath with hot melt glue. Poor silly girl . . . that whole no thumbs thing really gets in the way.
This is also a sneaky way for me to write about my crafting on Ruby Tuesday. Ruby and I consulted and decided that my “tangerine dream” was an ugly orange nightmare. Soooooooo, I moved on to bigger and better things. Above is the knitting that I did with some amazing alpaca yarn. Totally yummy! Alpaca yarn is amazingly soft and easy to work with. Everything that Julie Zickefoose has been saying about Alpacas must be true! I am utterly in love with alpaca fiber.
But then, we had Crafty Chix on Saturday and I learned how to crochet. And, I was — if you’ll pardon the pun — hooked! I am seriously thinking about ripping out the knitting and crocheting it instead. And, that is even though my scarf did not turn out — although, I think it’s still wearable. I’m thinking about ripping it out too and starting over but I’m not sure I can really do that — it was a lot of work! We’ll see — I would really like it to lie flat the way it’s supposed to. Decisions, decisions!
This was a big home improvement project this weekend (hmmm, note to self, get out the shop vac and clean up that debris!). Greg put in a dog door for Ruby. It is supposed to be electronic so that Ruby can go in and out but her little squirrel/raccoon/skunky friends can’t decide to follow her in. So far that is proving a little bit problematic. We had fun training Ruby to use it and still have to remind her about it but it has greatly cut down on my door monitoring hours. Yay! You can’t tell but it’s in my laundry room (the most awkward room known to womankind). The way the room is set up, there is a ludicrous angle that we have to sort of ignore. I’ve always shoved boxes into this corner to at least fill the space with ‘storage’ (aka, out-of-my-sight-clutter). That’s going to have to change now because I’m already tired of moving boxes to make sure the path is clear for Ruby! 🙂 For more on our home improvement projects, go see my house blog. We got a lot done this weekend!
mother. wife. friend. teacher. writer. reader. photographer. birder. quilter. blogger.
Liza Lee Miller 
Loving Crochet as well at the moment – rediscovered it on the weekend and now am halfway through a blanket for my daughter!
Have fun – like the way your crafty chix sounds….
Crochet rocks!
Ohhh…alpaca….yum! One of my most favorite things to knit with. You will love it! As for the tangerine nightmare, I think that was some Lana Grosa yarn called Hopla. I knew I would come up with it sooner or later. Have you tried blocking your scarf that won’t hang right?
Ruby’s toenails are, what? pretty? Alpaca colored?
Okay, moving on to crafty stuff. Alpaca is the absolute best fiber to work with, wear and handle. That’s because it comes from the best creatures ever. Alpacas rule. I’m glad you abandoned the orange; I felt bad being so negative but that stuff was scary. Still, I don’t think you should start ripping out finished goods, even if they curl. You could block it? Steam iron it? In the future, on scarves, knitting the first four stitches at the beginning and end of each row, no matter what stitch you do along the rest of the row, makes for a nice, flat edge. I’m working on a lace scarf now that is driving me nuts because knitting lace does that but I’m putting that edge on it and it looks very nice- and stays flat. I’ll post a picture for you in the next day or two.
I love to crochet but I’m not as skilled at it as knitting, which is odd because it’s actually easier once you get the hang of it. Did you see that post I did on Crocheting the Hyberbolic Coral Reef?
If not, do a search for that and you will be simply astonished. Really.
I learned to knit before crochet and I liked the latter better. I’ve never felt alpaca fiber. But, hey, it’s been years since I’ve crocheted anything. Might like to try it again :o)
Ruby reminds me of Chloe a lot. She sits on my lap while I paint woodwork – annoying but funny at the same time!
Ah ha! Crafty girl. 😀 Can’t wait to see the finished product. And we seem to be on the same page regarding color… that lilac/orchid color looks similar to my new project (at least on my screen.)
YUMMY!!
And that dog’s paw is just so dainty! 😀 Ruby is darling.
Whootywhoot! Tell me, Liza Lee, that you tried alpaca because of the blogposts, and I will wear a camelid smile all the day.