Week of 4/1/2015: Be a Fool!

Happy April Fools' Day!

It's a great week to have some fun with Your Weekly Crochet Challenge. The challenge is to crochet a jester hat or slippers for yourself or a little one.

Here's a photo of my hat, it's the Crochet Tripod Hat from Yarnspirations:

It's toddler sized, and I'll be giving it to my niece. I added bells on the points just to drive her parents crazy!

I enjoy a good prank, and this is one of my favorites (courtesy of prankked.com):

What is your favorite April Fools' prank?

Join us on Ravelry for the discussion

Your Weekly Crochet Challenge - 175 members and growing!

Week of 3/4/2015 - Whoo hoo! It's a Celebration!

It's a brand new Ravelry group: Your Weekly Crochet Challenge

Kicking off just in time to celebrate National Crochet Month. So jump on in and join us for new challenges, new friends, and all things crochet!

http://www.ravelry.com/groups/your-weekly-crochet-challenge

Whoo hoo! It's a Celebration!

Week 52: Hurray! What a Fun and Challenging Year it's Been. What Was Your Favorite?

Wow! It is so hard to believe that a year has gone by already. This is the final week of the 52 Week Crochet Challenge, and the last challenge is to discuss your favorite challenge and why. (But, they are all my favorites!)

The most challenging and time consuming, for me, was Week 38: Create an analogous color scarf. I had the squares completed around the date of the challenge, but it took me much, much, longer to actually complete the scarf and take pictures. I am so happy that I completed it, and I have a colorful and bright companion for the last few weeks of winter.

On the flip side (pun intended!), we had a challenge to make a beach or summer fun project for Week 17. I designed a pair of flip flop socks (which I am so looking forward to wearing again!), and I included a tutorial on how to make them on my blog. This challenge progressed very smoothly and seemed to come together in no time at all.

This year long project has been a challenge in many respects. When I created it, I told myself that I would not beat myself up if I did not complete every challenge. This attitude made it much more enjoyable, and I did have a lot of fun with it.

In the beginning, my intentions were to keep my blog updated and to keep a blog roll of participants. I really wanted to discover new things about crochet and to inspire myself to design some new patterns. Over time, my focus moved towards my Ravelry group. This group has been the most rewarding part of the project. I learned some new things, met some terrific friends, read their heartfelt, funny, wonderful (and sometimes sad) stories, laughed a lot, and found myself loving crochet even more.

Thanks so much for a great year!
Julie

Beginning March 4th, 2015:

Inspire… Motivate… Create… Share… 

YOUR Weekly Crochet Challenge

Join us!

Week 10: What Was Your First Completed Crochet Project That You Made?

The first complete crochet project that I finished was a baby blanket and a stuffed bear to go with it in. This was in June of 2002. This was also the beginning of my pattern organization (which you can read about here).

I have absolutely no idea where the blanket pattern came from, but it is a basic rectangular blanket. I think the stitch pattern is probably something like the cobblestone stitch (sc in next, dc in next, working on an even number of stitches). It has that look to it also. The bottom chain is much tighter than the last row, which is common for newbies and this made the blanket crooked. But I was (and still am) terribly proud of that blanket. It was a gift for my newborn niece and I made it with my own two hands. I loved every minute of making it (maybe with an ounce of frustration in there somewhere!), but I FINISHED it. I had a big sense of accomplishment, which made me want to make something to go with it.

The bear is an even bigger accomplishment for me because I think it was quite complicated for a second project. The pattern is Boo-Boo Bear from Irene's Crochet Class website, which sadly, is no longer available. But, I have my copy that I printed out and made notes on.  I think it turned out really cute, and I made a bib for the bear too.

Here's a picture that I had to scan because the original was photographed on film (remember that? lol).

I've crocheted hundreds of projects since then, but I won't ever forget my first (and second). Not only was it special to me because of that, but it was a gift for a loved one, a new life in our family, and what a happy celebration that was!

Thanks for joining me for Week 10 of the 52 Week Crochet Challenge! 
It's never too late to join in the fun and there's no need to catch up, just jump right in:

52 Week Crochet Challenge
Ravelry Group - 135 members and growing!

Week 4: How did you learn to crochet, or who taught you?

My crochet history isn't very glamorous or a heartfelt tribute to someone who lovingly taught me to crochet. Nope, I taught myself. But, I guess in a way it is a tribute, a tribute to books and how important they have been, and are, in my life.

Learning to crochet had been on my to-do list for some time. A former co-worker of mine had crocheted me a set of the most beautiful place mats. I imagined that they took her a really long time to make, but she assured me that it hadn't. She taught me how to make a chain, but we never really got beyond that point. It wasn't until a few years had passed that I decided I was going to take the time to learn. So, I bought myself a kit and I went through the instructions step by step. I was "hooked". I wanted to learn as many stitches and techniques as I could, and books were (and are) my best teachers.

Books, for as long as I can remember, have been a constant in my life, and since I learned, crochet has been too. And I am so grateful! Gratitude grounds me, and reading and crocheting truly are simple joys that I enjoy every day. I hope that others will be inspired to learn something new with this Challenge, and hey, I know a great book that can help . . .

Welcome to week 4 of the 52 Week Crochet Challenge! It's not too late to join in the fun:
52 Week Crochet Challenge
Ravelry Group

52 Week Crochet Challenge - Are You Ready?

March is National Crochet Month, so now is the perfect time to launch my 52 Week Crochet Challenge!

I devised this Challenge as a way for me to explore crochet in ways I haven’t done before. I’m going to share my weekly discoveries and progress here on my blog and I hope to connect with other crocheters.

Click the link below to download a pdf file that includes all the Challenge information. Each page is loosely sectioned to a season, and I’ve included week numbers as well as dates, but this guide is meant to be inspirational, so feel free to add your own creative twists.

Please link to this blog and the 52 Week Crochet Challenge pdf, and email me if you
are taking up the Challenge. I would love to see your responses and to post a blog roll of participants.

Let’s celebrate and have some crochet fun!

Julie Oparka
Red Berry Crochet
redberrycrochet@gmail.com 

Join the Ravelry Group, 52 Week Crochet Challenge. Not on Ravelry? It's free to join, what are you waiting for?

Download 52 Week Crochet Challenge

1. Click the above link.
2. When the page opens, click on File in the top left tool bar.
3. Then click download in the drop down menu.
4. Open or save the file to your computer.