Stitchboard Admin message #62
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 20, 2013 at 10:16:43 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #1)
 
Sherry,

Oh, yes, I like red, too...but I agree...if you're working with a particular color for something, you definitely run the risk of getting tired of it.    Ugh, been there, done that.  I made a beaded purse out of a blue I loved...by the time I got done with it, sigh, I didn't like that blue so much.  I also made a box that I've had to tear back at least three times now, on account of broken beads , and even though I used two blues that I love and an iridescent black, let's just say the damn thing isn't out of the penalty corner yet , though it's been at least a year.  After the third time a bead broke and I had to tear back, I didn't have the desire to look at it again. 

I've since entirely avoided those shades of blue.

I agree...purple goes with so many different colors, from black, dark earth tones, to contrasty colors.  And light earth tones/white.  LOL, I'm so with you on the earthy neutrals!  Bleah, never much cared for them.  Especially not for garments.  I remember I'd once bought a beige-y color for someone to make me a blouse, and she brought me over to a mirror, wrapped the fabric around, kind of under my chin and over my shoulders, and then she said, "Look.  This color does nothing for you."  It was true...that's where I learned to wear jewel tones, not neutrals.

Sometimes "safe" isn't really safe!

I'm so glad your son likes the dishcloth!    Hmm, I wonder if there might be some way to make a dishcloth that's specifically meant for scrubbing?  Of course, one can make scrubbies out of plastic, but I like the idea of using yarn (and not having to buy something else)!

LOL, awwww, how cool that he wants a sweater in TKS! 

Which dishcloth do you like the best (e.g., done in which stitch)?

LOL, I can't stand things that don't look right, either!  I rip back a lot.  Speaking of ripping...when I was working on the beaded box and that stupid bead broke the first time, literally, it was the last bead that I was going to pull the thread through.  Yes, the very end.  Talk about frustrating!  

I could have left it.  I'm probably the only one who would have noticed it was gone.  Instead, cursing the whole time, I tore it back.  It didn't look right, and I couldn't ignore that missing bead! 

Oh, I see, not a chained lp, just a loop of yarn...I've done that!    I did that for an entire sweater yoke...my thumb was tired after, LOL! 

It's so hard to write things down!  I've been crocheting for 30+ years and still struggle with how to write it all down!

I think it would be wonderful if you made a new dust mop cover and developed a pattern so others can make them, too.  I've seen all kinds of covers for similar things...you're right, that stuff is expensive!    It's not made to last a long time, either, sigh.  At least a cover you make will last.

I knew a friend who swore by her Swiffer...until she had to start replacing covers. 

Oooh, wouldn't a crochet machine be fast?!    In that sense, it would work, because it would produce!  But as something to enjoy...sigh...not so much. 

Oh, yes, stores carry a tremendous amount of overhead.  A friend of mine had a candle shop for a while...her merchandise was fantastic, her prices reasonable...but she couldn't make it in this economy.    I think the only ones who can have either been in business for a while and have a following or find a really good location.

Otherwise, it's just way too hard to find a great location and to start bringing in customers where you pay your entire overhead and have at least a little left over. 

It would be so nice to be filthy rich and not have to worry about making a profit from a yarn store, wouldn't it?!  You could sell exactly what you want to your heart's content, and if you didn't make decent money at it, it would be no biggie.    What a dream come true, huh?! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #64
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 21, 2013 at 6:25:01 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #3)
 
Sherry,

Woo hoo, purples and blues...love the combo! 

I'm so with you about earthly neutrals.  I look at them and think, why?!  They serve their purpose, but sometimes they're way too overused.    There's a house that I love nearby...it's a light pink.  Most of the houses around it are the same old blah, blah boring earth tones...not this house!  We call it the "candy house."  It's very eye-catching!  It's not overly bright, but the pink just makes it so unique and gorgeous when compared with the earth-toned houses around it.

LOL, I'm happy for you, but so jealous of you escaping from chocolate land, sigh, as that's what most of our house is.    It wasn't our choice.  I don't know what I'd be able to get my husband to agree on color wise.  I doubt he'd go for purple. 

Oh, yeah, those mistakes would pop out at us every time we looked at them!  Nobody would ever see, but we'd see a big red flag saying, "Look at me!  Look at me!" 

Argh, I'm disappointed about the TKS being too thick for dishcloths.  I'm going to perhaps either go with straight crochet, then, or actually knit something...LOL, what a concept, thinking about TKS and going for knitting! 

I have several really nice patterns to choose from, and I have some yellow cotton plus some of that blah earth tone stuff I bought a long time ago.  I'll probably turn the earth tones into dishcloths, as well as the yellow.

That's a great value if you think you'll get 5 or 6 8" dishcloths from one skein!  My "dishcloth" (the failed coaster) isn't quite that big.  I forget how many coasters I got from one skein.  I made 6, so not that many.  Not sure how big the skeins were, though.  Pretty small, actually.  I used two skeins for 6 coasters, plus had that seventh failure coaster-turned-dishcloth.  Maybe I got four coasters from a skein.  Guessing they were about 5" wide.

I've only tried the plastic scrubbies you can get from the stores.  Uuuuuugggggghhh!  They start to fall apart after only a couple of days.  Maybe it would be best to make a bunch of cotton dishcloths for that purpose alone, to replace the stupid deteriorating plastic scrubbers.

I'm thinking perhaps something with sc, and maybe some ch loops on the one side, for scrubbing.  Maybe that would provide enough abrasiveness to scrape the stuff off of non-stick and glassware.

LOL, having never had a need for any kind of diaper, cloth or disposable, I'll have to take your word for it!  I guess that must have been quite a find for cleaning! 

I haven't tried microfiber.  Sounds like something people either love or hate.  Though I keep hearing about all of these incredible technological advances in things like fabrics...and what filters down is pretty disappointing.  Microfiber...but has there been anything else?!

I think you're probably better off making covers for things like Swiffer...the expense can otherwise really add up...and I'm guessing they're not made to last...as with everything else in this "disposable" society, groan.    I like the idea of more "green" cleaning, anyway.  It can be way less expensive and less toxic, too.  I have several books on "green" cleaning, and I look forward to making my own cleansers at some point, like using the dishcloths instead of those awful sponges. 

If you give away (or sell) your patterns for Swiffer and things like that, I bet you'll have a lot of people who will want them!    If I had a Swiffer, I definitely would...what a money-saver, as well as a pretty quick project! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #66
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 22, 2013 at 7:29:44 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #5)
 
Sherry,

I'm so glad your husband doesn't dislike purple and trusts you with your choices!    I'm not sure what my husband will say...we've never really talked about it.  We haven't done much decorating.  About all we've done over the years is paint our shutters, so at least we did get away from "earthy" tones there.  And we managed to agree on a color we both liked, though we never got around to painting the house and it's really not worth the bother now, as we're working toward moving, rather than staying for any length of time.  So now I really don't care what color our shutters are, and though our house is in the "earthy tones" area, sigh, I don't want to waste the money on something we'll be leaving behind, anyway. 

It kind of sucks because we originally had big plans for the place, especially on the inside, such as a lovely chandelier in the living room (as opposed to the floor lamp we already have), but obviously, it's not worth the money to put in a chandelier, either.

I love that blue and I bet your house looks gorgeous, especially with the flowers in full bloom and the rest of the neighborhood being all drab, earthy colors!    Love it!  Let the rest of them have their blah earthy shades!

Wow, what a great bargain, then!  I would definitely have gone for the larger skeins rather than the smaller...they would certainly be the better bargain at the same price for almost twice as much yarn! 

I hope the Tunisian elasticity does work out for the dishcloths.  Anything to get away from those horrid sponges is an improvement, IMO!  I'll no longer wash things like the kitty's bowls with sponges.  Even if it's brand new and not stinking, I don't have the heart to perhaps clean it with something where I can't smell the stink, but she can.  Their sense of smell is way superior to ours, after all.  Just because we can't smell it doesn't mean they can't.

LOL, I can't help it...I adore my nonstick!  Nonstick and glass.  I hate scrubbing things.  Some things are so stubborn, soaking only helps so much.

So then you have microfiber covers on your furniture?  Now, that I could see.    It's something I want to do, now that I know it works...thanks! 

I guess sometimes with things like cleaning rags, it's better to go with the old tried and true.

It's so cool that you're going to come up with your own pattern for the Swiffer cover.  I'm sure it will be far more efficient than buying them! 

Do you want to send me a private message?  Anytime!    Mi message box es su message box. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #68
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 23, 2013 at 6:01:30 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #7)
 
Sherry,

For now we're trying to stay fairly close by.  It will make it easier to initially stay in the vicinity, then ultimately get out of here (because the cold winters are really getting to us! ).

I do wish we'd been able to fix the place up over the years, but that never materialized, sadly.

I'm so glad to hear the dishcloths work that well...and that's in addition to the advantage of being able to throw them into the washer...again...not sponges...hmm!    Dishcloths for the win!

I completely agree that sponges are breeding grounds for bacteria.    I've never gone for the "just nuke it" idea, either...they still seem so unhealthy!

LOL, sigh, that's so true!  Why, why, why would someone use antibacterial soap with a groady, germ-filled sponge?!  It's like eating three boxes of doughnuts, two pounds of steak, five potatoes with a lot of butter...followed up by a diet soda. 

Oh, yeah, I'd never thought of that, but you're absolutely correct...if you're used to using a sponge, TKS would thinner than that, so the thickness of a dishcloth wouldn't be an issue...just the opposite, IMO.    It would feel better! 

LOL, hey, use what you're accustomed to using!  Nothing wrong with that.  Though...doesn't tin foil scratch stainless steel and enamel?  Hubby does use that for cleaning the grill...that, of course, is a regular metal grill.  It does work great for that!

We don't have any cast iron, of course...I wouldn't know how to work with it, as I know it has to be well-seasoned.  How cool that yours is now non-stick! 

I can't imagine waiting 24 hours for something to dry on furniture...bleah!  What are you supposed to do about pets...put a huge chain link fence around it?!  That's just crazy.  You're much better off with the microfiber covers.  A nice advantage, too, is you can change colors as you want by just changing the covers...and you can wash one and have another one on it at the same time!  Try to do that with a protective coating that has to be renewed.    I think you made the absolute right choice!  And that's great how you got the money back, too!

Woo hoo...fantastic on the Swiffer cover! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #70
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 24, 2013 at 8:46:29 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #9)
 
Sherry,

I'm so glad you don't get the really bad cold weather...ugh, I hate it!  OTOH, you pay for it with the hot, hot weather in the summer, and I don't like that, either.  I like it right in between.

That is afghan making weather!    I hope your lows aren't terribly low.  I've heard this year it's supposed to be a very cold winter for us...hoping that's wrong.  Last year was supposed to be very cold, and thankfully, it wasn't, but I'm not holding my breath about this year.    Can we really get away with it two years in a row? 

Actually, now that you mention it, I think you're right about 5 - 5 1/2".  The failed coaster that I sewed up and am using as a dishcloth is probably around that size, maybe 6" at the most, though I doubt it's that big.  (It's round, though, not square.)  And that seems to be a decent size.  Anything else would be kind of too big, I think.

I haven't seen the RH Comfort cotton anywhere!  Do tell!

It's nice to know steel wool and tin foil won't scratch stainless steel.  That always scares me...what products are safe to use with what. 

Cast iron does last forever!    Even better that it "becomes" nonstick with seasoning. 

LOL, glad you resisted the urge to give away your Swiffer cover before you'd photographed it!  I had a similar situation with the coasters for the wedding gift...I gave them to my husband to give to the couple before I'd had a chance to take any really good pics, sigh.  Unfortunately, though, I was under a time constraint, as I didn't know when he'd get a better chance to see them, so I only have a handful of so-so pics.    Better than nothing, though! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #72
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 25, 2013 at 7:44:28 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #11)
 
Sherry,

It sounds like a great bargain...though I have to look at the yarn I have to compare...I think the skeins are smaller...but there's a tiny warm body sleeping right on the vent and I don't want to disturb her by walking by to grab a skein.    If I could guarantee she wouldn't get up, I would!

That's a great idea to buy smaller skeins to track your usage!    I bought two skeins today...sigh, cranberry-colored.  I don't dislike it...but the color selections at Walmart since they remodeled are pretty limited, especially on the cotton.  

I haven't decided what to make yet for holiday gifts.  Coasters are out, because we already gave coasters to the one couple as a wedding gift...I'm thinking spa cloths or dish cloths...leaning toward dish cloths...LOL, smaller.    Well, seriously, I do want to maximize my time.  I told my husband to decide, since these are people he knows...I would only know one person out of the entire group (most of which is one very large family) and that one person is not related to the large family!  I have four sets of whatever to make, and I guess I'll just use different colors for each one.  LOL, hubby's going to have to decide who gets what color...NMP - Not My Problem!    I'm thinking if it's dish cloths, wouldn't four be about right?  Or six?  They'd be going to couples, mostly, and the one couple has one child, but most of them are just couples.  LOL, most of them are all related...except the one couple! 

I told him I needed to get some yarn today, though, as I need time to make stuff, and every day I don't work on it is less time for me to get anything done.  Though the candy corn cap is still my top priority!  I'm hoping to finish it tomorrow.

Oh, exactly...why do dishcloths have to conform to any "conventional" shape?  I'd much rather go my own way than to rely on convention.  But then I roll a little crazy, anyway.    Loving the idea of those interesting shapes you mentioned, such as the hearts and flowers! 

11x11 for a dishcloth?! That sounds way big.  Towels are a great idea, as well.  I know someone who wants some custom towel toppers...may do them in TKS, or just sc.  She wants four of them.  I said four skeins, keep the receipt and she'll likely have to bring back two...but I'd rather she initially spend the money and then get a refund!  Anyway, for us, though, I was thinking how nice it would be to have handmade towels, perhaps in TKS, with a topper on them to hang from the refrigerator.  We have some dish towels...I like the regular hand towels better than dish towels.  Dish towels are sooooo thin!    I figure if I'm drying something large like a pot or pan, that dish towel will be soaked through after drying only one thing.  So lately, when we've purchased dish towels, they've been the hand towels for the bathroom...hey, I don't care, anyway.  Better colors than the conventional "kitchen-y" stuff, too!  Though I love the idea of picking our own colors from yarn. 

It's fantastic that your son is talking favorably about your dishcloths!  That has to be a hit for sure, as guys usually don't rave about things like that! 

I'm glad you like the heat, because you get a lot of it!    Hawaii...paradise...I would love to live there!  Those temperatures are perfect for me.  The only thing that scares me about Hawaii is that there are the volcanoes, sigh, and it's pretty much in the middle of the ring of fire... 

For a while, I wanted to live in a place called Ceuta, because the climate was ideal...that's located right across the water from Spain, at the tip of Morocco.  The high in the summer was something like 75 degrees and the low in the winter was 54 degrees.  Sigh, now it's changed...last I looked the highs in the summer were 80-something and lows in the winter were lower, too.    And the other reason I don't want to go there is because there's a lot of unrest politically...it belongs to Spain at the moment, but Morocco wants it.  I do not want to go to sleep in Spain and wake up in Morocco with soldiers at my door, telling me I'm no longer welcome to live there! 

I bet only a few days of cold are a welcome change from Iowa, where it gets extremely cold for a long time!    Yuck, too cold for me.  Though I used to know a guy who moved from New York to Iowa...willingly!  But then, he loves the cold.    Bleah!

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Stitchboard Admin message #74
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 26, 2013 at 5:10:10 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #13)
 
Sherry,

Thanks!    So glad to hear you think four is a good number.  (And maybe someday we can have four, as well!  Still using a combo of the one failed coaster and sponges until we do...but the gifts are way more important to us than our own needs.)

Thanks also for letting me know about your son's assessment of the TKS for the dishcloths.  That's VERY helpful!  Hey, remember our experiment of going knit to TKS?  I'm thinking of doing that to play around with some dishcloth designs.  Or perhaps converting a crocheted (sc) dishcloth design to TKS.  Half-baked idea!    (Always the most fun kind to play with, IMO!)

LOL, GMTA (Great Minds Think Alike) on the hand towels instead of those crappy thin dish towels!    I've never understood the value of those.  They're immediately soaked from just drying hands, never mind drying a large item like a pot or pan!    Whoever invented dish towels apparently never used them.

Maybe they like dish towels to merely hang around and look pretty?    Kind of a silly and wasteful use for them, if you ask me. 

Ugh, less than two months left to make sixteen dishcloths!    Hope you have less work than that left to do.  I had originally planned on just those sixteen, but there are three other special people for whom I've decided to make things that I'll mail out...but then, I can get away with sending those late.  The one friend loves getting things after the holidays, especially, because then everything is over and nothing is going on, so it's like the holiday is happening all over again! 

Ewwww, brown...EEK!  Sigh, some people love some awfully blah colors.  So happy you can work it with other colors and not just brown!

Oh, yeah, Hawaii is terribly expensive.    Because it's...paradise!  Argh, and I have no doubt you worried the entire time they were there.  That must have been agonizing.  

Definitely...stability is the most important thing to us, and climate is another.  Which doesn't make it any easier, of course.  Sadly, there's no ideal place.  

Ugh, snow in September?!  I would die.  Bad enough when we've had it in October.  We had snow that thankfully didn't turn into anything but wet roads a few days ago, but I remember a number of years ago when it snowed heavily before Halloween.  It was awful.  Poor hubby had to go out in it, too. 

I don't blame you...I wouldn't miss shoveling snow, either!  Well, think of me when you hear about the snow you're missing out on...LOL, I'll be the one shoveling snow and cursing under my breath about it.  LOL, seriously. 

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