40 New Things to Celebrate Turning 40: Carol created a monster!!!!

38 - learn to crochet Done 5/2012

I used to love my summers spent at North Shore Day Camp. I had the best times & I met some of the best people. Luckily through the magic of Facebook I have reconnected with several of those people. So to all my North Shore friends….Myra, Carol, Morris, Mike, Vicki & Carol…I love knowing you all! I love that we had the best summer stories to share! And I love that we all found each other again! You all bring back amazing memories for me!

And then of course there is the magic of Facebook.

So a few months ago I posted a Facebook status asking my friends if they knew how to knit. I wanted to get moving on this celebration mission & I figured I had to know someone who could get me started. And sure enough, I did.

Myra.

Lovely Myra.

Myra the fish who taught me to swim.

Myra the crafter who taught me to make a God’s Eye.

Myra the amazing group leader who made my very first year at camp the best!

Myra who taught me to pick up trash otherwise I wasn’t going to the pool or the movies or the roller rink or Adventureland.

Myra the lady who always had the best jokes.

Myra suggests I talk to Carol. Carol was a Ruby right alongside me during my first year at camp. We were also in the Ravens together. And I remember how much I liked Carol. She had a good heart then as she does now. Carol was one of the nicest people I met at camp. She was the summer friend that I looked forward to seeing every year. And sadly, when we lost touch I didn’t realize how much I was going to miss her. Guess it’s a good thing we are back in connection……

So I friend Carol on Facebook. Luckily she remembers me. I explain my plight of needing to learn to knit & how Myra suggested I contact her. After a few messages back & forth we are stunned to find out we live merely two blocks away from each other! Talk about a small world, right? You would think with the small neighborhood we live in that we would have run into each other at some point. Especially at the local supermarket….but no, we didn’t. That is until we reconnected on Facebook. And then the stars aligned & we ran into each other one night at the supermarket. Carol caught me coming in as she was leaving. One thing led to another & we made plans to get together.

It was four weeks ago today that we started our Thursday night crochet lessons. And I have to admit, I love Thursday nights! I like knowing it’s going to be spent with Carol & her niece Amanda. And I love how fast I felt at home around them. I love that when I show up Carol is excited to see what I have made since the last lesson. And she seems happy that she is creating a crocheting monster!

It started with a simple double crochet stitch & making a scarf. Carol offered to loan me a crochet needle & some yarn. She figured that if I didn’t take to it I wouldn’t have to waste any money. Clever. Very clever. So I accepted her offer & I finished the scarf within a few days. I was amazed at how good it looked. Just a simple black scarf. Nothing fancy about it, but my niece Stephanie will call dibs on it. Carol will show me how to finish off the ends. She also whipped up a purple flower for the scarf to give it some pizzazz & she added tassels on the ends. Stephanie will love it! And yes, I did make Steph aware that Carol made the flower & tassels. It’s all good. These are after all just the beginnings of my lessons!

I will pick up my own crochet needle & some yarn during a trip to a craft fair. We stopped into a local store & I decided I couldn’t wait to get more yarn. I was eager to start a new project. More scarves! I made a brown one & a black one. I figured they both work well for me during the winter. I love scarves!

Carol & I will plan a trip to a local craft store….AC Moore. She will introduce me to the yarn section & my head will implode! All these beautiful colors just staring back at me! Decisions, decisions….how am I going to decide?

I tell Carol I want to make a blanket & she gladly picks out a great yarn choice for me. It’s a cream color, with flecks of brown, black & grey. Simple, but really pretty. And let me tell you….so soft! This is an on-going project. I will need some time to finish this. And of course I will need several skeins of yarn.

Quick tip – when buying several skeins of yarn for a project, make sure you check the dye lots numbers on them. Thank you Carol for this sound advice!

Last week’s lesson was going over making flowers. Oh the flowers! Where do I even begin??

Carol tempted me into a new venture….making flower barrettes.

It started with the flower she made for Stephanie’s scarf. And then I was interested in making more. I thought it looked pretty on the scarf. And once Carol said they make great barrettes, I thought that was a great idea. So now I’m hooked.

I hit AC Moore again with some friends & I picked up a few more skeins of yarn. Seriously, don’t pass on the $1 bin. Sometimes there are awesome colors in there waiting to be used! And I picked up a hot glue gun, glue sticks, barrettes, & embellishments. Oh yes, it’s time to get down to fun & make some barrettes!

So I practiced making some flowers at home. I figured I’d surprise Carol by making tons of flowers. I want my teacher to see how much fun I am having. And oh what fun! I think I made about 20 flowers over five or six days. And I’ve been making more during my lunch hour at work. In addition, I’ve made some with Carol when we hang out. I love how much fun this is!!!

And I really have to say it, I am so relaxed when I am home sitting on the couch listening to music or watching TV & crocheting. My new cat Jack is happy to keep me company & he purrs up a storm while I am busy making something.

To date, I have made four scarves, started a blanket, & I’ve lost count on the number of flowers made, but I have put together six barrettes….with more on the way!

I’ve got plans to make a little wristlet bag for myself & I have this beautiful ombre yarn with shades of blue, green, yellow & white that I am going to use for another scarf for myself. In addition, I’m going to make more scarves for friends for the holidays. I’ve already told people to start picking out colors. And at some point, I think I might venture to make myself a sweater!

My days at North Shore Day Camp were the best. I met some amazing people. And I have amazing memories from my times there. I wouldn’t have missed those times for anything! And it’s thanks to those times & those people that I am now a Crocheting Queen! And it’s all thanks to Myra for keeping in contact with Carol, & Carol for offering to share this amazing skill with me.

I hope to someday pay them both back!

The first scarf I made, that my niece Stephanie called dibs on....Carol added the purple flower & tassels....