Total Crochet Fashions

Although this book is new to me today it has been around for quite a long time. My niece bought the book a few years back and I crocheted the cover shawl for her in black, the second photo bolero and the last green round fronted jacket. I had always meant to buy the book for myself back then but somehow never got around to it.

The book Total Crochet Fashions by Leisure Arts is quite retro inside, with flower chokers, halter neck dresses etc but a few of the designs are still very wearable today.

The shawl was beautifully fine and I made it in black for my niece's holiday abroad. It was so pretty that I always wanted to make one for myself but never quite got around to it ( story of my life!)

The charm school shrug turned out lovely when I made it for my niece although I must admit to jiggling the front edge shaping as when I made it the shaping as the pattern rows weren't as rounded as I like so I altered it slightly. It wouldn't be me if I didn't do some Jan modifications to a pattern!

Although, in general, I am not a lover of crochet bags there is something about these three that I like. The retro granny square bag is one that I would love to make as a knit/crochet tote for my WIP's. I would have to line it,of course, or I would be shedding hooks and needles as I went along. The tweed bag and the striped bag look nice and firmly crocheted which is why they appeal to me.

What can I say about the granny square tank top except that it is very retro. It is a style though that is coming back and brings back many memories of my youth when I had quite a wardrobe of crochet tank tops many with granny squares in them. Perhaps I should release the inner hippy within me and make something like this once again. What is the fun of old age if I can't be a little eccentric?

The green jacket turned out lovely for my niece. It has very narrow sleeves at the top but bell shaped at the end. Once again reminiscent of my old hippy days.I think that I am reverting back to them in many ways. Wearing shawls is just the start and looking at retro pattern sites and ordering some that I think are still wearable. I do wear long skirts a lot as they are practical for my life style. They keep me warm and also keep my legs warmer when I ride on my mobility scooter than trousers do. I can put an underslip under them or even a pair of crop stretch trousers under when I am out and about doing shopping. It can get a bit chilly around the lower extremities.

When I was searching through my old patterns the other day I found myself gazing longingly at some of the crochet poncho and cape styles in the old Phildar books and wondering if I could get away with wearing something like that nowadays. I could cut quite a dash zipping up to the shops with my cape flying behind me. Slight exaggeration here as Pearl only does 4mph on the flat or downhill.

As you can see from the bottom photo I made a complete mess of the two fronts for the baby machine knit cardigan. I thought that I did everything the same as the back but obviously not. One front turned out frilly and the other came out with too many rib rows so was a different size to the back plus it had a hole at the edge of the ribbing. I will unravel them and start again. Perhaps I should watch the 'how to' video once again and write some pointers down this time.

The charcoal cardigan now has a back and two sleeves and last night I did the rib for one front. I am getting there slowly but surely. I will have a change tonight if I go to the Knit Club as I will have to take something with me that is lighter coloured as there is no way that I can see an aran panel in charcoal grey in the dimmer pub lighting.

I think that I am liking my massage cushion as my back feels a lot easier and I managed to bend down yesterday without all of the pain and huffing and puffing that I usually do. My spine feels like it can bend that bit better. Before I felt like I had a few inches of lower back that just would not bend and yet the specialist had said that it wasn't because of the repair, that it was muscular and would come back to use with time. Maybe my muscles just needed a bit of a jump start as I never had any physio after my spinal op. It could have been the way that I was tensing my back to try to shield myself from any pain.

Time for a coffee and perhaps a bit of knitting whilst I watch Loose Women on TV. Firstly I must drum up some enthusiasm for the dishes. I was offered a dishwasher a couple of weeks ago but I had to turn it down as my kitchen is so small there is no where to get it plumbed in.