In this Issue:

- National Craft Month

- CraftStyle Online Magazine

- Tip for weaving in ends

- Dishcloths

Hello Everyone,

March is National Craft Month! Therefore, in celebration of National Craft Month, Joann has a lot of special deals.

I just learned about this craft magazine. JoAnn.com CraftStyle Online.
You may have to enter "CraftStyle" in the search box to bring it up. I got it loaded this morning from the link, but now it is showing a different page. So I used the Search Box and it came up.

Marge, posted this great tip on my Crafts Forum at: http://pub44.bravenet.com/forum/3703436600

"I want to take time out from a busy day to tell everyone the importance of leaving long ends and weaving them in both with yarn and thread.

This morning I was mending a doily I made for my sister in 1954. (53 years ago). It has 11 roses around it, each with white then green worked around them. There were 15 places where the thread had come undone.

Back then I did not know the importance of leaving long ends to weave in. Every place I mended is where they came loose. The thread is fine just a stain or two. No breaks in it and the doily had been used a lot of those years. My niece sent it to me for Christmas and I am framing it. It is such a treasure for me as my sister is no longer with me.

So please, when you spend the time to do your beautiful work, don't cut the thread too short or it will eventually work loose. I am sending this to every crochet site I am on. Hugs, Marge"

Thank you, Marge! That IS very important.

In the last issue, I talked about how I prefer to knit dishcloths, rather than crochet them. I find the crocheted dishcloths come out too thick and are hard to wring out. I searched for finer cotton yarns and found some but the price is four to five times higher than the regular cotton!

Anyway, Karen gave me a great tip. I haven't tried it yet, but as soon as I use up my cotton, I will do it. I can't wait to try some different finer yarns for my crocheted dishcloths.

Karen says:
"Sue, I have a secret about crocheted dishcloths. Since you are so helpful, I am going to tell you what I use for crocheted dishcloths. I buy that funky squishy yarn -- I get the one at Hobby Lobby -- called Pitter Patter eyelash yarn -- but it isn't the same eyelash yarn that Walmart carries. It is VERY soft; 100% polyester. You wouldn't think that polyester would make a good dishcloth, but once you saturate it in the dish pan, it becomes soooo soft and easy to ring out. One other huge advantage is that it doesn't sour nearly as fast in the summertime, as cotton does."

Thank you, Karen. You are so brave for experimenting. You dared to go "beyond" the cotton! :) I think it's great to experiment with yarns other than those that are required by the patterns.

I started a new topic on my Crafts Forum about different yarns, other than cotton, you may have used for the dishcloths. If you want to give your comments, opinions or stories about dishcloths, come on over to http://pub44.bravenet.com/forum/3703436600
Hope to see you there!

That is all for today.

Sincerely,

Sue Norrad
CrochetandKnitting.com - Free Patterns, Craft Discussions
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