So the Goober decided she wanted to try crocheting again and dug deep into the closet to find a massive bag of yarn that had been hidden away for years. Inside the bag she had many balls of yarn and a book called “The Easy Learn to Crochet in Just One Day.” She sat down next to me and held the book towards me and said “Find an easy pattern for someone like me who is stupid.” I hate it when she says things like that. Ignorance of a topic is a lot different from stupidity. She’s one of the smartest people I know and it really bums me out when she puts herself down. But to continue on with the topic..
First, American School of Needlework.. no this is not a learn to crochet in just one day book! Who does bobble stitches right out of the gate? No one, that’s who. Thankfully I did find a pattern written by Mary Ann Sipes that was rather simple but still beautiful and written in a fairly straight forward manner.
At first I just tried reading the pattern to her as I continued to work on the project I had going on but quickly decided that I should just work the scarf with her. So, I snagged a ball of Red Heart Super Saver from her bag in this lovely pale green color and started working along side her.
The pattern is repetitive enough to still be “calming” but not so much that you don’t have to pay attention. I think it’s a very good balance between the two. I really love the border, it’s super simple but interesting at the same time. I enjoyed working on a project together even if in the end she actually crocheted faster than I did and finished a full day ahead of me. How does that happen huh!?
I haven’t blogged I think in three days, maybe even four now. I have been seriously working on things and not forcing myself to stop and sit at the computer to blog. I’ve been working on the super secret project, a pattern that is kicking my tail. I’ve worked it up three or four times now and keep having to frog it because it isn’t coming out well at all. It’s the repeats and I am getting warping that isn’t laying down properly. I frogged it all again last night and started fresh, yet again. We will see where it leads.
I filmed for a few hours on Saturday after being out of the house from 9am – 2:30pm then got tricked into taking a “break” to watch a movie which turned into two which turned into three which turned into “Oh, I’ll edit tomorrow.” Well, tomorrow came and all the footage I had filmed on Saturday was useless. So I refilmed everything on Sunday and edited one video to upload.
That video was the first in my “Learn to Crochet – Basic Stitches” series that I told you guys I was going to start last week. I still don’t know what I want to do on Wednesdays.. and my Friday project has hit a massive wall.
I’ve emailed over 50 designers of free patterns that I thought would fit with the project well. So far I’ve only gotten one response from the emails. Thankfully that one person said yes but if I cannot get a good number of designers to respond with a yes then my idea for Friday will be thrown out the window. I don’t feel comfortably recording videos on patterns other designers have made even if they are free. I have spent years working with artists (video game developers) who have to deal constantly with their art and content being stolen. I refuse to do it to others.
At some point I would really like to create a series based on different fibers we find in yarn. I get asked, probably more than any other question, “What yarn is good for xxx project?” I think a series like that could be very informative. But, that requires purchasing many different types of yarn and I’d have to make room in the budget for it and then purchase over time to have enough to start the series.
Am I doing the typical me thing where I am making excuses which will lead to my own downfall? I don’t know. I certainly don’t want that to happen. I want to continue making content for my Facebook Group and be a part of their journey to becoming healthier.
I did take a step today though. I cancelled my BoxyCharm and Sephora Play subscriptions and subscribed to Roberto Blake’s Awesome Creator Academy. He has a ton of information on his YouTube channel, most of which I have watched but I want to be a part of the private, smaller group of people so I can focus more and get his back end information, the stuff he doesn’t release on his channel. If you haven’t checked him out I think you should.
I spent a decade of my life working in an online graphical social environment where all I did was help artists and content creators brand themselves and their products. I was pretty good at it too, not to toot my own horn of course… but I was. I knew what people wanted, I knew what was on trend (in the market) and was able to forecast it and more importantly, I knew how to reach the people who needed to see it in order for the content creators to see results, money in their pockets.
I think that background is how I was able to gain over 100 subscribers within my first two weeks of having a channel. All I hear is that your first 100 are your hardest, well.. goal reached. What now? All I can do is what I know from the past but I feel like what I can learn from Roberto will fill in the gaps for me and allow me to become even more successful in this adventure. You can’t put a price tag on education. It’s priceless in my eyes because it stays with you.
Bonus: It’s the only school I’ve ever signed up for where I can get away with crocheting AND learning at the same time!