Saturday Skill: Learn to Crochet

A crocheted piece is the lovely manifestation of a thought, expressed through hand, heart, hook and yarn.

~Francine Toukou

The history of crochet is difficult to track down but appears to have been developed in the 16th century in the form of lace.  (Crochet Guild of America) 

 While the history may not be as old as knitting, embroidery or weaving, the skill of crochet is an honorable one to learn.  In fact, crochet helped alleviate the poverty in Ireland that happened during the potato famine.  Men, women and children in Irish crochet cooperatives crocheted beautiful lace to be sold to buyers abroad and brought much needed income to the country. (Crochet History)

If you already are skilled at knitting, you will find crocheting to be an easy craft to learn.  If you don't do any needlework yet, you will find crocheting easier to learn than knitting since you are only manipulating one hook to create your work of art.  

Crochet can be applied to sweaters, hats, mittens, scarves, socks, blankets and even the finest lace curtains.  The craft is highly versatile.  One of my favorite projects to make is the baby blanket.  The blanket pictured is always welcomed as a gift for a new baby.  The best part of the pictured blanket?  It can be made very quickly.  This one was made in six hours.

This blanket was adapted from this pattern:  Never Ending Granny Square and was just made to be baby sized and with baby colors. 

Crochet is easy to learn so either seek out a willing teacher or use the valuable tutorials you can find on the internet. (Like the ones at Yarnspirations)

By learning to crochet, you will increase your self-sustainability and have a relaxing skill to occupy your hands in the evenings. It is one of the skills I most value.  The tools are inexpensive and free patterns are easily accessible so what are you waiting for?  Start hooking! 

Peace be with you, 

Star Schipp

This post may contain affiliate links which means if you make a purchase using one of those links, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you.  It is a great way to support your favorite hobby farm blogger.  Thank you!   

Emergency Preparedness: Back Up Lighting

Weather forecast for tonight:  dark. 

~George Carlin

On this blog, we plan for emergencies.  We've talked about food and water storage and also plans to stay warm in a power outage.  Now we are going to review having a back up lighting plan. 

Stop and consider how long it is dark on these February nights.  Around here it gets dark enough to need a light on in the house around 6:00 pm and in the morning, the lights are on until after 7:00 am. That's eleven hours of darkness. 

If you lost power today, how would you spend those eleven hours?  Probably around eight would be spent sleeping but, without a doubt, you would want some source of light to get through the emergency. 

What is your plan? Power outages in winter storms can often last a week or more.  Let's plan accordingly for a longer-term solution.   

Candles are an obvious choice but there are at least two drawbacks.  The first is that the open flame is dangerous.  The second is that it is difficult to read by candlelight.  Have you ever tried it?  When you are accustomed to reading by electric light, candlelight reading seems dim and the flickering of the light distracting - at least it is for me. 

Kerosene lanterns are another option but still have the fire hazard and the drawback of the smell which I intensely dislike.  

My very favorite solution is to use solar lights, flashlights and headlamps.  The headlamp may look silly but is really useful as a hands-free option for reading and walking around in the dark.  Have some on hand and store them in a sunny spot and you will have night-time light whenever you need it. 

In fact, why not go ahead and replace some of your regular lights with solar versions before a power outage and save money on your electric bill month after month?  There are many tutorials out on Pinterest for solar lights.  Get out there are learn to build your own to increase your emergency preparedness.  

Your level of preparedness can make the difference between a disaster that tears your family apart or an event that is fondly remembered as a great family time together. Which would you rather experience?

Thank you so much for stopping by for a visit today.  Tomorrow's post will be a review of the February GREENBOX from Homegrown Collective - it has a great collection of ideas for DIY Shampoo.  I hope to see you then!

Peace be with you, 

Star Schipp 

This post may contain affiliate links which means if you make a purchase using one of those links, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you.  It is a great way to support your favorite hobby farm blogger.  Thank you!