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Monday, March 31, 2014

I Love Surprises

The past seven days have been a week of surprises...some for me, but mostly the kind that I'm creating with hook and hand. Lovely springtime weather was a wonderful and welcome surprise when I arrived last week (back in Germany) after a long visit with my family in Chicagoland.

Yesterday, it was warm enough for me to hop on my bicycle and take a two-hour ride along the Rhine River. Mother Nature delighted me with one visual treat after another as I enjoyed the wind in my hair, and the peace and quiet that awaits me in nature.

One of many rapeseed crops (used for canola oil) with their honey-scented yellow blossoms.
This path along the Rhine stretches on for miles through cities, villages and farm areas.
My favorite biking route takes me past several horse farms.
On the crochet side of life, I've enjoyed many surprises, as well. I was delighted by all of the surprises I found in the crafts and creations of my last "It's Finally Friday Link-a-Long". Be sure to take a look at what my blogging friends have been up to in the month of March. I'm so impressed by all the creativity going on, and love hosting my weekly party and joining others. I've made such wonderful new friends in Blog Land. :)

Hook and yarn has kept me busy during every possible free minute as I've been working on some crochet surprises for family members. I can't reveal the complete finished products (which are also new designs I've created for an upcoming crochet pattern eBook) because I don't want to spoil the surprises for any family members that read this blog post, but I'm excited to give you a glimpse.
The 100% cotton in the middle was fun to work with and the colors remind me of cotton candy.
A glimpse of a just-finished cotton yarn design I created.
There is one crochet surprise I can show you, which I'm calling my Happy Project right now because the colors make me smile (although most every crochet project makes me happy). Allow me to show you the progress I've made on my Cath Kidston-Inspired Giant Granny. As of now, it's stroller-sized and will eventually be big enough for a queen-size bed. It will take me a while to get there, but I'm completely enjoying the process of watching it grow.
Go Crochet Crazy -- Progress on Cath Kidston Inspired Giant Granny Crochet Afghan
What surprises delighted you this past weekend? And what are you creating, crocheting or crafting this week? I can't wait to hear about what you're up to!

I'm Currently Linking Up With:

Erika's Crafts Corner Link Yourself Monday

9 comments:

  1. No surprises here, but I am continuing to work away on the blanket for my son and DIL. Well, maybe I'm surprised at how fast it's growing now that I'm using the HDC stitch.

    I'm already halfway through that part of the blanket and will soon switch to DC. I'll also be rolling up new balls of yarn so I can work more quickly. ;)

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    1. The longer the stitch, the quicker it goes!

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  2. Mary, your pictures of where you live are a wonderful sight. We woke up to 4 inches of heavy wet snow with a lovely layer of ice underneath here in PA this morning. C'mon Spring!!
    I love how your giant granny is coming and I've always wanted to make one big enough for a bed... Great colors!
    This weekend I spent rearranging and reorganizing my craft studio so I didn't get to work on many projects, accept for a couple of necklaces, one of which I posted on Saturday. But organizing that room was a must before I did anything else, for sure! :)
    Planning on finishing my doily this week and starting an afghan for a charity cause that I just found out about. It will be in rainbow colors... Happy!!! :)

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    1. Monica, I'm beyond done with snow so I feel your pain! You're fortunate to have a craft room... Enjoy it! I saw the necklace you made and it's just beautiful!

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  3. Good Morning Mary! Thanks for sharing your adventures with us. Really enjoyed once again your pictures of Germany. I will vicariously live through you in my home country. At one point I lived in Ruedesheim for two years. Beautiful area with rolling hills.
    I think your Granny Blanket is going to look gorgeous and the colors really stand out.
    Enjoy your week!

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    1. I'm fairly sure we've gone motorbiking in Ruedesheim. :)

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  4. You live in a lovely area. I love the pictures. :)

    Those crochet surprises look interesting, so hopefully you'll be able to show them at some point soon.
    Loving the blanket, it has the most lovely colours in it. It's going to be beautiful.

    :)

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    1. Thank you, Kim! I can't wait to reveal my surprises! :)

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  5. What a lovely trail you have to bike on. The field of rapeseed looks gorgeous. Your blanket is going to be beautiful. I agree with you...every crochet project is a happy project! Hope you have a lovely week.

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