Upcoming class - crocheting rag rugs

A lot of people love the look of traditional rag rugs, but they're not thrilled with the idea of having to sew together miles and miles of braid with stiff thread and a heavy duty needle.  Luckily, you can get a similar result with the same materials much more easily - with crochet!  

And better yet, it doesn't require any special stitches or equipment - just single crochet and a size Q hook.

On Sunday, September 11, I'll be teaching a class on the rag rug crochet technique at River Colors Studio.  I'll cover fabric selection and preparation, different shapes you can make, how to make an extra-reinforced version that will stand up to heavy wear, and more!  I'll provide a written pattern to make a circular rug, and in class we'll work on a project that can either be the beginning of a rug, or a chair pad or trivet if you don't want to make something quite so large.

Call soon to register - there's been a LOT of interest in this project when I've brought it to the sit-and-knits on Saturday afternoons.

Having my own craft show

We're having a garage sale today, and I figured that since I had a captive audience anyway, I'd try to convince them to Gsee things as a Lazy Mama.  Translation: I set up a table of items from my etsy shops in the middle of my garage sale.

It's not beautiful, but it gets the job done, and I've already sold more SWAK blankets in 2 hours than I have all year on etsy.

So if you've ever had a hankering to check out my stuff in person (and you're near Cleveland, Ohio today), come on by and chat!

If I had a hammer (and a decent staple gun)

My craftiness has been channeled into our new patio room, where I have traded my knitting needles for a hammer and some panel adhesive ...

While I had the paint out for the paneling, I rehabbed a wooden bookshelf I pulled off of a trash pile last summer.  One coat of paint and a yard of fabric later, and voila! Instant happy bookcase!

Simplest fabric project ever.  Fabric, scissors, staple gun.  I didn't even measure it, just cut it to fit as I went.

This won't be the last thing I'm making for the room, so keep your eyes peeled for more projects soon!