Is Summer Here Yet?

Not that I'm looking forward to the sweltering heat, but as a school bus monitor, I get the summer off!  No, I am not like most people, who love the summer.  I could live in constant spring or fall, but the summer heat kills me.  Especially since we moved to Iowa from Utah.  I grew up in Indiana but never got used to the humidity.  I wanted to move back east from Utah, but I do miss those dry summers!

Summer, for me, means that I can get back to what I really want to do...crochet!!  This work thing has cut into my crochet time terribly!

I have started another afghan, however.  My aunt asked me to make her one to replace one her mother made her years ago and that she lost to a house fire, also quite a while ago.  She wanted it in the same pattern as my last afghan, but in her high school colors as the one she lost was.  Now she went to the same high school as my dad did.  The enemy!!  LOL  That high school was hated by many when I was a teen...because they kicked everyone's butt in basketball!!  This was back in the '80s.  Their colors are purple and gold so, of course, while they were winning, they called it the purple reign.  If you're from the '80s, you'll get it.  So, also of course, I have to tease her. 

So, since I already shared the pattern, I'll share pix of the work in progress.  This one is going to be queen sized, so in addition to adding stitches to make it bigger, I am also using a larger hook...I used an I hook last time and a J hook this time.

 

about 1/6 done!

 

 

Wash Cloths

This whole work thing is seriously cutting into my crochet time!  *sigh*  I haven't gotten nearly as much done in the last couple of weeks as I would have liked, but I did get some great cotton yarn and made 2 wash cloths out of it.  I got some Lion Brand Recycled Cotton, which, from what I gather, is scraps from when they cut pieces for T-shirts mixed with some acrylic fiber so it's 76% cotton and 24% acrylic, but it feels like all cotton and the acrylic gives it a little extra durability.  I used the color Marine and just love the result!

I used a simple single and half double crochet pattern.  I made one about 10" square and one about 8" square.  The pattern was supposed to make a 9" square, but even after using a smaller hook, it was 10".  I used fewer chains for the smaller one.

Mesh Washcloth
worsted weight cotton yarn
H hook (I used an F hook and it was still larger)

Ch. 39.
Row 1:  sc in 3rd ch from hook *ch 1, skip nexr ch, sc in next ch.  Repeat from * across.  Ch. 2, turn.
Row 2:  hdc in 1st ch. 1 sp *ch 1, skip next sc, hdc in next ch 1 sp.  Repeat from * across.  Ch 1, turn
Row 3:  sc in 1st ch 1 sp *ch 1, skip next hdc, sc in next ch 1 a.  Repeat from * across.  Ch 2, turn
Repeat rows 2 & 3 until cloth is square, ending with sc row.  DO NOT FINISH OFF.

Border:
Ch 1, turn.  In same sp as ch, (sc, ch 2, sc).  sc evenly around edge of wash cloth, working (sc, ch 2, sc) in every corner.  Join with sl st to first sc.  Finish off.  Weave in ends.

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