Crochet Hooks.

Over Christmas my husband and I did some house sitting for some good friends of ours.  They have a wood shop - they make hardwood kitchen accessories that are just lovely.  It tends to build up a lot of scrap wood though.

For a while now my husband and I have tossed around the idea of turning hooks from these scraps.  Well, over Christmas break, he showed me how to use their lathe and I just sort of took off!  I finally got around to taking pictures, and I wanted to show off :)  All of the heads were shaped to mimic the Boye head, which is the shape I prefer.

This first hook I turned from blood wood.  It measures approximately 13 mm (there's no letter assigned to 13 mm), and is 7.25 inches long.  I wanted to keep it on the thicker end, since I had never worked on a lathe before, and wasn't sure how thin I could take things without it snapping.  The head was shaped (through much frustration and help from my husband!) with a dremel.  Blood wood is very dense, so the shaping took a looooong time.  It's one of my favorite woods though; the grain is beautiful. 

After the shaping was completed, I sanded it with gradually finer sand paper, finishing up with a 600 grit.  The only finish I used was a few good rub downs with mineral oil.  It feels like silk in my fingers!  I love it!

This next hook I turned from zebra wood.  It measures approximately 10 mm (N/P), and 7 & 3/8 inches long.  I was a little braver and went a little thinner this time!  The head was also shaped with the dremel and went much faster this time around since I had all that experience from the blood wood hook! ;)

I repeated the same sanding procedure, and my husband suggested I use a clear, spray-on finish for this hook.  Zebra wood is apparently very porous and it wouldn't do for it to be snagging the yarn!  He applied 2 coats to the hook, with a drying time of about 30 min in between.  The stripes run lengthwise on the hook, giving it a very striking appearance.

Lastly, I turned this hook out of leopard wood.  It's my thinnest yet :)  It measures approximately 7.5 mm (between K & L), and is 11.25 inches long!  I was going for more of a Tunisian style hook with this one.  I received an aluminum one for Christmas, and decided to try one out on the lathe.

Same shaping and sanding process.  This one's head is closer to the Bates style head, but still has some Boye shaping.  This one was also finished simply with a couple good rub downs of mineral oil. (haha ignore the writing on my hand!!)

So there you have it :)  My first three wooden hooks, and I turned them.  I'm hoping to go back soon and turn some more...it's addicting!

Moving right along!

Things are coming along in the project department.  So far I've experienced little trouble with my Blue Curacao...most of the trouble I have comes from not paying 100% attention.  It is not a tough pattern but it does require focus!

I am going to have a lot of free time on my hands and as such, I think I am finally going to try my hand at dyeing. I have a skein of Baruffa Cashwool in white.  I don't know yet what color(s) I'd like to dye it...suggestions? 

I've also been taking notes - mostly mental, which I need to transfer onto paper at some point - of ideas for dyeing that I've had.  I'd like to do some serious brainstorming.  I'm bandying about ideas for names of a yarn dyeing company (selling mainly through Etsy, of course) if I ever managed to get to that point.  I'd like to...but the logistics part of it scares me.  All the technical stuff...getting a business license, tracking sales, making estimated tax payments or what have you...that's all pretty intimidating.  Making a few casual sales here and there though...that might work.  I guess we'll see.

More (better) pictures of the shawls

The shawl for the swap:

The first 2010 shawl:

I left it at my parents house for my sister. :)

First Shawl of 2010 - Lion Brand Yarn's South Bay Shawlette

A close up of the stitch pattern:

An "artsy" perspective shot:

In it's full glory (blocking):

Thank goodness for swatches.

That's right, I'm thanking goodness for SWATCHES.  Having completed my first motif, I determined that it was impossible to get it to lay flat, even after I applied the iron, with the steam on.  I've frogged it and set it aside for later.  I hate to give up on a project but sadly I don't have the time, dedication, or patience to do that lace piece I mentioned a few posts ago.  I am still going to make SOMETHING...but I need a little more practice in thread crochet before attempting something that work-intensive.

I started my first shawl of 2010 Saturday night though, and that is nearly finished.  I used the two balls of JL Vinca that I bought from someones's stash a few months ago.  It's nice to have the yarn do the color work for you.  <3  My sister has taken an intense interest in it and is begging me to sell it to her.  We'll have to see.

Pictures of the progress (large images!!)

First up, the shawl for the swap.  It really turned out lovely.  I'm quite proud.

Blocking photos...the kitties were not happy to be locked out of the office for the 12+ hours it took to dry.  The office is kind of their hang out place.

The obligatory "wingspan" pose.  I want to go take some obligatory "shawl on a bush" photos next.  When I can find the time.  This thing is lighter than air! And SOFT!  And SQUISHY!!

Next up a couple of photos of the starghan-in-progress: (Gwydion 'helped' with this shot...darn cat)

A close-up for colorwork and stitch definition.  Plus it's just a cool shot XD.

I have more than enough yarn to complete it.  I'm hoping actually to finish it today.  We'll see. :) 

Progress

My shawl for my swap partner is done!  I finished it yesterday and blocked it last night.  I've taken a few pictures, I just need to load them to the computer and post them.  It's turned out quite lovely, and the yarn has stayed so soft and squishy.  I hope my partner is as pleased with it as I am.

I picked a pattern for the baby blanket, and I started that last night while the shawl was blocking.  It's going to be a starghan.  Luckily I have quite a lot of yarn left over from a previous baby blanket I crocheted and I am using that. I think it's going to be cute.

I started a motif for that top and haven't done much past that.  I'm a little intimidated but the pictures of the finished ones are so lovely...I just have to keep on working on it.  I think I will focus just on that for the rest of January and start my 10 shawls in February...if I can resist my start-itis.  I may not be able to, lol!

Caution: Swamp ahead!!

I need a signpost that says that right now haha!

Here's what I have (mentally) committed to for 2010:

~a lace KCAL (Knit-/Crochet-Along, for my casual readers).  Pattern is my choice, yarn and yardage is my choice.  I will be crocheting this (I ganked this pic from the Finished Object gallery for this project) in black crochet thread, size 10:

and quite possibly lengthening it into a knee-length dress.  The skirt would have more motifs gradually added to create a flare effect.  The pattern itself is in Portuguese but it is fully charted.  It will be my first time crocheting from only a chart!

~I currently have in progress the shawl for my swap partner.  It will look something like this:

but in that light pink color I posted a pic of a few entries ago.  I am about 1/4 done with that project.

~two of my cousins are having babies sometime this year.  One is having a girl, the other they don't know the sex of yet so I am waiting to hear so that I can make blankets.  I am in the process of selecting a pattern for the baby girl I know about.

~I will be crocheting 10 shawls in 2010.  I found a group on Ravelry and so help me I joined and am going to do it.  I have not yet picked all 10 shawls but some of the candidates in the race are:

 

and last but certainly not least, and this will DEFINITELY be in the 10 that I make this year, this beauty:

I'm sure there will be more shawls appearing, too as the year goes on and more patterns are designed.  But whew, I need to get myself a little more organized than I am now, and get my nose to the grindstone so I can finish everything!