A New, FREE Holiday Cables Throw Pattern Just For You...

Photo by Caleb Barker @ Caleb BarkerMedia.com

Looking for that special afghan that invites the holidays into your home?  If you start now, this free pattern could be completed for December.  Using Red Hearts "With Love" yarn, it won't break your budget, and the easy care acrylic will last for many, many seasons.  Click here for the link.

You can also check out the link under patterns on this website.  Don't forget, if you get stuck on any of the stitches, check out my free instructional videos under Aran Stitches.  Happy crocheting!

My Dream Trip to Ireland and the Aran Isles

If I had to pick a country to visit, Ireland would have topped my list.  So when my husband told me that his job would be sending him to Ireland and that he wanted to take me along, it seemed almost too good to be true! Not only did we go to Ireland together, but he surprised me by spending the first few days on the west coast where we could visit the Aran Isles, which is the inspiration of many of my crochet patterns.  Rather than tell you all about it, I want to show you....

Inisheer, the smallest of the Aran Isles...

I bought this beautiful, hand-knitted sweater from a lovely lady on Inisheer. Her "store" was her livingroom. 

Here's my adventureous husband Craig with our mode of transportation while on the island.  We biked for about 4 hours, but the time flew by. I will admit that being in the passenger side of our rented car was a wee bit more exciting as Craig learned how to drive on the left side of the road!

 

One of the friendly residents of the island...

 

This is where my sweater came from! 100% Irish wool.

 

A 1960's shipwreck. All the passengers were rescued by the Inisheer residents, and the ship washed ashore a short time later.  You gotta be careful about those "Three Hour Tours"....

 The Cliffs of Moher...Everything about this place simply shouts the glory of God.  These cliffs are over 750 feet tall and all of my hundreds of photos still could not capture its majesty.

 My best friend and me...

Another view of the Cliffs of Moher...

 

A whistle player busking near the cliffs. I found it ironic that he was playing a Susato whistle, which was made by a German gentleman in the mountains of North Carolina! Being an Irish whistle player myself, I guess I expected him to have one made in Ireland, considering the location and all.  Ahhh well...

One of the highlights of our trip was meeting Martin Doyle, a world-renown Irish flute maker. I had a chance to try one of his beautiful flutes hand made of African black wood. Mr. Doyle is also a master at playing the flute too!

Celebrating Crochet at the County Fair 2012

Q:  What is sweeter than winning ribbons at the county fair?

A:  Seeing your students win ribbons at the fair!  This week I've had the joy of seeing several of my crochet students - ranging in age from 8 to 48 win awards at our local fair.  Through the process of this local competition I have seen improvement in my students as well as my own work, as we strive to learn from our mistakes as well as our victories from year to year. In selecting the winners, the judges carefully scrutinize each piece looking for evenness of stitches, color & yarn appropriateness, level of difficulty and how well the loose ends are tucked and hidden away.  Even one loose thread can make the difference between a blue ribbon and a grand champion. Detail is the name of the game.  

If you've never participated in your local county or state fair, I would encourage you to get involved.  You will meet some wonderful volunteers, and get to see firsthand some truly spectacular needlework of all genres.  You may even take home a ribbon or two as well!  See you at the fair!

My neighbor's bealutiful Aran Poncho and her blue ribbon!  Yeah Lynda!

My daughter's original design leg warmers...

An original MP3 carrier by another young student.  Good job Lela!

A blue ribbon for Airyanne's basket weave scarf!  Excellent!

Proud Mama Moment:  Becky takes a champion ribbon for her lovely doily...

Montgomery County Fair Entries Today!

Today and tomorrow we will be taking entries for the Home Arts Building at the Montgomery County Fair. Today the time is 4 to 8 PM, senior citizens can start coming at 2 PM. Tomorrow the time is 2 to 8 PM for everyone. Should you have any questions about any step in this process, please contact me at BonnieBay@me.com.  

This is one of my favorite times of the year to see what everyone has been crocheting, knitting, quilting, sewing, latching & baking this year.  I personally don't know of any other organization who supports and encourages the home arts in our culture more these days than the county fair.  If you have never volunteered at one, you are really missing out!  Sure, the pay isn't much (or rather, non-existent), but the intangibles are sweet.  Some of the nicest and encouraging people you will ever meet volunteer at our fair.  It is not too late to get on board for this year.  If you want to get involved, let me know!

If you get a chance to stop by the home arts building during the fair, take some time to check out the decorated cakes.  My kitchen officially has an additional layer of sugar just about everywhere from our cake decorating experience yesterday!  About 10 of the cakes that you'll see in the display cabinet came out of our kitchen - all original creations decorated by children and teens.  Be on the lookout for a Micheal Phelps Bear, a world map, a doll, Tweety Bird, a lamb and a Hobbit hole just to name a few!

Scarier Than Running Out of Yarn...

So, what's IS scarier than running out of yarn?  How about teaching two new teen drivers to drive?  As of yesterday afternoon, two more of my children have their learners permits!  Thankfully I had plenty of yarn in my bag for the MVA.  (I finished a hat and part of a scarf waiting for our turn for testing.)

Actually, it's not really so scary for me.  You see, my nerves have been turned to steel years earlier with teaching my older two children to drive. Back then the only vehicle we owned was a big, green, 1999 Ford 350 van - you know, the one that holds 15 passengers and seems to be about 1/2 block long from where the driver sits.  It would intimidate most experienced drivers to take this baby out on the road, and I got to teach teens how to drive with ours.  Of course driving a normal sized car is a breeze after learning on the "Green Hornet" as one of my sons call it.  Yes, we still have our van, but I think I'll start my new drivers out on our car.  So consider yourself forewarned if you live in Montgomery county...  Happy driving! 

Aran Crochet Bag/Backpack Class

For those of you who live in the Metropolitan DC area, I will be teaching a class on how to make an Aran crochet bag or backpack.  The class will be at the yarn studio of Svetlana Ford called 'So Original' located off of 108 in Olney, Maryland.  The dates are August 15 & 18.  Her website is Sooriginal.com.  This is not a beginners class, but anyone who has the basics down (single crochet, double crochet, treble crochet, chain, slip stitch) could easily get on board with these fun and "knit-look-alike" stitches.  I will also be selling my two Leisure Arts publications (Aran Afghans, Noggins & Necks) at 40% off to all attendees.

Grow It, Sew It, Show It! Let's Get Ready for the County Fair...

In only 2 weeks we'll be at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds registering the entries for this year's fair!  If you live in Montgomery County be sure to mark your calendars for August 8th & 9th if you are planning on entering anything in the home arts building.  I'll be working at the outsides tables, so please stop by and say hello.  If you have never entered a project and have some questions, please feel free to contact me (BonnieBay@me.com) and I'll try to help.  

The fair opens its doors to the public on August 10th, but the home arts entries won't be available for viewing until August 12th.  See you at the fair!