Hello Melissa!

Meet the lovely and talented Melissa Le apman! My first encounter with a published knitter or crocheter. :-DAbout a dozen of us squeezed into the Elegant Ewe to learn about crocheting shawls and hats. Two three hour classes held back to back followed by Melissa's mad dash for the airport to catch a flight back to NY.

It was hard not to dive across the table to gleefully explore this stack of samples that was dangled under our noses while things were being organized to begin class. Too enticing!

So it was a mostly day of making miniatures. Here are tiny versions of two hats and a stole. The smallest hat is worked flat then stitched together. The one to its right is made of granny squares which are stitched into a circle before stitches are picked up to make the crown. That one has got my little brain whirling with ideas about different ways to work the lower part. If any of my experiments are successful, I promise to share. The stole was very simple and has infinite possibilities as you pick a base color and place contrasting colors anywhere you wish as you work along. Also the fringe, which is not complete in this picture incorporates the ends so...no weaving in! I LOVE patterns like that.

Then there were the shawls and a full size hat. I just adore the shawl all the way on the right. Soon it will be a full sized one worked, perhaps in the laceweight alpaca I've been hoarding. Best tip of the day? Work edging into the chaining stitches rather than around the end of the rows. It makes a neater finish.

All in all it was a fun day. Melissa is personable and talented. Here's to a day of crochet and creativity!