sketch and photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

or,

It can be a nightmare.

In the case of  opera singer, Deborah Voigt, the LBD was a turning point in her life.

She got fired by Covent Garden for not fitting into the costume-

You guessed it…..

A Little Black Dress.

Humiliating.

She took her life in hand, and lost a phenomenal amount of weight, and by gum, she was invited back to Covent Garden, and wore the Little Black Dress.

She made a very tongue in cheek video about The Little Black Dress:

I hope that your experiences with your Little Black Dress are MUCH happier!

A couple of my designer friends will make sure that you do have a very happy time, indeed, with your Crocheted LBD!

Jill Hanratty’s gorgeous Little Black Dress is featured in the current issue of Crochet! magazine.

photo copyright Mary Jane Hall used with permission

And, Mary Jane Hall’s wonderful book, Crochet That Fits features a gorgeous LBD on the cover! Yum!

Thanks to Mary Jane and Jill, we can all sing the praises of the crocheted, perfect, Little Black Dress!

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I’ve been thinking about classic designs lately, and wondering-

What exactly is THE PERFECT LITTLE BLACK DRESS and can you crochet it?

sketch and photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

The perfect little black crocheted dress absolutely must:

1.Be Comfortable – it has to fit without binding, drooping or emphasizing places that prefer to be blessed, not blushed over.

2. Be Versatile- The Perfect Little Black Dress must be a champion of  multi-tasking. It needs to be able to be worn in several different ways, and be suitable for many different occasions and events.

3. Be Layer-able- Worn over, worn under, worn with …. shrugs, shawls, sweaters, fancy tights, bluejeans, leggings, bare legs

4. Be  Timeless- Well, perhaps not ~quite timeless~ but certainly needs to be able to stand up to several seasons of changing fashion.

5. Be Fun to make- That may mean that it is incredibly complex or it could mean that it is super simple. Both are definitely fun.

6.  Be Yarn appropriate- It must be made in a yarn that is a pleasure to work with and wears well.

7. Probably have drape through the skirt.  Having drape integral in the skirt is going to mean that it moves beautifully and won’t get pulled out of shape by sitting. Nothing looks worse than having the bum of a skirt go all droopy.  A little flex and drapability goes a long way in alleviating humdrum bumdrop on the back of the skirt.

8. Have a stitch structure that gives stability over the shoulders. Have lots of stability through the upper bodice and over the shoulders is essential. It’s going to make the dress much more durable and will sustain the shaping, which will make it fit better.

9. Make you feel absolutely DIVINE! There has to be a certain something that is totally magical about it, that makes you want to hug it to you like a teddy, but makes you feel like a million dollars when you wear it.

10.  Inspire your Creativity! Perhaps the PERFECT LITTLE BLACK CROCHETED DRESS  IS NOT A DRESS!  It might just be a wonderful tunic, like Doris Chan’s, or a spectacular skirt (like the tunisian stitch skirt that I designed for Crochet! magazine), paired with a brilliantly designed little top ( like Angela Best’s Sweetie Pie Top) , or Halter top (Like Amie Hirte’s spectacular Amelia), and possibly topped off with Doris Chan’s fabulous circle jacket

11. The most important and final rule: It has to be something that you will enjoy. So, get out your hook and black yarn, and a really good light (crocheting black yarn can be challenging!) and  ENJOY your perfect LBD!

So, tell me, have you crocheted your PERFECT LITTLE BLACK DRESS? I would love to see pics!

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Well, now you can treat yourself to that shirt and upcycle it by crocheting simple flowers to cover the unwanted logo.

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

The other day, I was looking at my summer clothes (finally – what a long winter!)

And, I realized that I needed a new black t-shirt.

My old ones  are beyond wearing, and are destined to become fabric strips for weaving.

They’ll also become rags and other ‘green’ options.

Later that day, we were at a garage sale, and Tah-dah!

There was the PERFECT shirt- black, short sleeves, cute button front…. perfect!

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

The only problem was that there was a very obvious company logo on the back of the shirt , just below the collar.

I had been working on the Simple Crocheted Flower Jewelry tutorial, so immediately, it struck me-  Whee!

I could use the crocheted flower motifs to cover the unwanted logo!   YES!!!

(click the link in bold letters to go to the tute and instructions)

So, I got out one of my most favorite ever threads: South Maid mercerized cotton in Mexicana, and a ball of Aunt Lydia’s Size 3 Fashion Crochet thread in Warm Blue, and a ball of Red Heart Hula in Orangina. I used a 1.75 mm hook for the rainbow thread and a 3.5 mm hook for the orange and blue. I crocheted up a medley of flowers and pinned them over the logo:

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

Then, I stitched the flowers to the shirt, and added a couple of vintage buttons, and a bead or two:

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

and the ‘new to me’ shirt is now gloriously and completely mine all mine!

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

I am really pleased with the way this shirt turned out. I have another one that has an unwanted logo on it, and guess what?

It’s going to get upcycled with crocheted flowers, too!

Post from: Hankering for Yarn

Of course, if you love winding hanks of yarn into balls by hand, then by all means, skip the winder. Your local yarn shop may even offer the service when you purchase yarn there (for a small fee). I’ve had online vendors offer yarn-winding, too (again, for a fee).

However, a ball winder can be a good investment. You can find a decent one that costs around $40.00. I’ve seen some for half that price, but can’t say how reliable it would be. And you can always find some that cost a lot more. For now, my kitchen chair backs work almost as well as a swift, but it’s nice to not have to wind 400+ yards of laceweight yarn by hand.  

Image: KnitPicks

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You know how sometimes, there are accessories you need, but you don’t even know you need them until you see them?

That’s how I feel about these Knit Klips, available from Webs.

It can be kind of tricky to line up the edges of pieces of a sweater or blanket. You can, of course, use pins, but these knit klips are bigger, easier to grab and maneuver into those pieces that you need to neatly hold together while you join them.

They come in packs of five or 10 and are one of those inexpensive accessories that just make life easier.

Image: Webs

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The designer at SprattersandJayne knits enormous, cosy cowls.

Check out Chloë’s  posting: cowls on Her Accessories

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The Woven Bag….

On the last day of the shoot, we finished shooting the step-by-steps  before we went to lunch.

We were scheduled to shoot the author portrait in the afternoon, so since I looked be-draggled, weary and snuffly, we went off to Aveda to get a makeover.

Michelle Marx is a wonderful makeup artist! She has her own company, freelancing with makeup artistry.

Her contact info: Michelle

Pinkie decided that she needed a makeover, too, and, luckily, Michelle had the perfect makeup for a small bear!

I went urk when I saw the ‘before’ shot of me, so I deleted it! LOL!  And, then we zooted back to get ready for the portrait.

Pinkie wanted to be sure that Christine and Jenni would have good Guardian Angels to look after them when she wasn’t around, so she helped me to make Guardian Angels for them.

Our work in Cincinnati was done, so off Pinkie and I trotted to the airport to trundle on home!

Pinkie liked the flying pig sculpture in the airport, but thought that it really should have been a teddy bear…..

Image Source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

This was a Blogtoberfest Sponsored Post.

Here’s what the prize was and who won it: Blogtoberfest Prize #1

GUESS WHAT!  There is going to be another giveaway of a very neat prize (something electronic that has nothing to do with yarn or hankering for it, LOL!) during the week of Oct 13- 17, so keep checking back to see when and to enter.

Good luck!

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The original Pinkie got lost in a move along the way, so in my early 20’s, I made a replacement Pinkie.

Pinkie has been  my travelling companion ever since.

And, when Jim and I got together, I made him Bluebear.

Bluebear fell madly in love with Pinkie, and they got married and have had oh so many adventures together.

We have photo albums of their travels.

Anyhow, Pinkie accompanied me to Cincinnati last week to help with the photo shoot for my new book, The Woven Bag.

(Bluebear declined to leave Jim, so he stayed at home, keeping Jim company, while languishing for Pinkie).

Pinkie checked out Christine’s camera and decided that it was just right.

She found the photo shoot terribly boring, so she noodled around the studio, checking out the props.

She was particularly fond of the planets toy and enjoyed her space travels enormously.

She behaved herself fairly well at the lunch where I got to meet all kinds of lovely people who help to bring the book out into the world.

She loved the quaint street that the restaurant was on.

And agreed to have a picture taken with me.

Then she took a picture of Christine, me and Jenni.

Tomorrow: Pinkie gets a makeover!

Image source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

Post from: Hankering for Yarn

It was for my  new book, The Woven Bag.

Here’s the photo studio at F & W Media where we were working:

There are the tables with 35 woven bags, looms and other equipment:

This is Christine, ace photographer and Jenni, editor extraordinaire, playing ‘Vanna’

Here’s Jenni at her lappy and Christine at her huge screen computer.

The camera is digital, and cabled across to Christine’s computer so we could see the pics up on the screen.

And, here I am, getting ready for a ‘how to’ shot.

Another shot of the tables full of bags…. sorry!

Can’t show you the bags yet…..

We worked reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally hard all week….

but- there were some fun and goofy moments, too:

Our brains got all scramblie, so, suddenly, Christine and Jenni decided to dance the tango!

We got a huge hysterical giggle out, and then got back to work.

More pics tomorrow!

Image source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

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I’m so excited! They have confirmed that the title is: (drumrolls, puhleeze…….)

The Woven Bag: 30+ Projects from Small Looms

I am publishing it with Krause Books, which is part of  F & W Media. And, yep, the publisher chooses the title of the book.

I am really happy with it because they’ve nailed it. yay!

I am sad though, because the release date has been moved to November of 2009 from July of 2009! boohoo!

anyhow……….

Last week, I was in Cincinatti (finally learned how to spell it!) working with my WONDERFUL editor, Jennifer Claydon, whom I adore, and the fantastic photographer and totally delightful person, Christine Polomsky.

Let me tell you about my editor.

Having a great editor who is smart, funny, feisty, and knows her stuff AND that you really click with is a HUGE bonus!

Happy happy happy happy me!

So, I am THRILLED to bits to be working with Jennifer Claydon.

Not only is Jenni a fabulous editor, but she is also an author.

Her book: Spin, Dye, Stitch  is being published by F&W Media and will be released in June of 09.

She is a spinner extraordinaire – her handspun silk has to be seen to be believed. I swear, you will swoon when you see the pics of the knitted cobweb shawls that Jenni makes…. unbelievable!

She’s just written a fantastic article for Spindlicity on spinning silk.

Check it out: Jennifer Claydon’s article

AND!!!! wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Jenni blessed me with a skein of her hand dyed roving…. ohmigosh….it’s too beautiful for words!

I am just squeezing and fondling it like crazy.

I don’t want to start spinning it, because then, I won’t have it as roving anymore.

Know what I mean?

Okay, this is getting really long, so I’ll sign off for now, but will be posting lotsa pics of the photo shoot. Soon!

Image Source: Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

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