I've been so anxious for this week (this month!!!) when I get to begin incorporating new colors into my 2023 crochet temperature project. I cannot wait to see what new color will look like. Each day as I make a new motif now, my imagination runs wild with what the summer months will look like. I was so excited on February 22 when I was able to put three different purples together for the first time! Even though all three motifs have the same green in the center.
Of course, we had a polar blast the very next day; that happens a lot in Colorado. That's why I am so drawn by temperature projects. We have the most outrageous temperature swings!
I have to share a very funny story. I was telling my mom about our most recent polar dip. We were talking about snow and temperatures. At one point, she thought I was saying we had 60 inches of snow the day it was 60 degrees just hours before our record-breaking -11. (We got only four inches out of that storm.) My mom couldn't fathom how we managed to accumulate 60 inches in 60-degree heat!!! Oh, did we have a great laugh! It's really fun to jot down these kinds of memories so you can cherish them later on in life. Don't let your most favorite memories slip away!
a fun memory from our good old days
Another thing I'm really loving about my 2023 crochet temperature project is that so far, the lime green I'm using for 35 to 39 degrees has been so fleeting. I absolutely love this shade of thread (it's one of my favorite dye colors to mix), but I think if it was showing up more often (which it totally might later this spring), I don't think it would be quite as magical. I think it just absolutely sparkles because the radiant hue is so sparse.
And isn't it bizarre that five seemingly common mercury readings might be so rare? Especially when my two lighter greens (40 to 44 and 45 to 49) AND my true greens (25 to 29 and 30 to 34) show up SO often. If I had designated my colors differently, I don't think this project would be as beautiful as it is. (To me, anyway.) I remember in January when I was bored with using so much of those common greens every single day. Now those "normal" colors in my project make the rest of the colors stand out so well. Again, I guess this is one of the reasons I'm so drawn to temperature projects.
Are YOU working on a temperature project? I would love to see (and share) your progress! I love seeing the different patterns people are using, and I love seeing the different color charts people have chosen playing out in their various locations. I don't think I'll ever get tired of seeing temperature projects!!! I'll be back on April 3 with my next 2023 crochet temperature project progress report.
Today's snowflake, inspired by my temperature project, is named for a 2022 winter storm that never happened. Each year, the Weather Channel comes up with a list of 26 new names for winter storms, and pretty much across the board, all other weather outlets turn their noses up at those names because... I suppose because they weren't bright enough to come up with the idea themselves.
After spending many long years in the field of journalism, it really cracks me up that any news organization assumes it isn't helpful to give impactful winter storms official names, as they do powerhouse summer storms, just for a point of convenient reference. I guess they haven't figured out yet they are going to run out of Storm of the Century, Snowmageddon, Snowzilla and Bomb Cyclone variations, especially after a winter as snowy as 2023 has been so far.
I've often wondered if cool names that don't get used will be added to a new list sometime in the future (which is why I didn't call today's snowflake Winter Storm Xandy). Xandy is just such a cool name, it HAS to be used, even if only for a snowflake.
We seem to be going through the official list of 2022-23 winter storm names at breakneck speed this time around. I'm hoping we make it to Z, and not just because the west so needs the moisture of these winter storms. We will have a snowflake by that name here on Snowcatcher if the 2023 Z-storm name becomes official! That name has some very special meaning to me. Fingers crossed we make it through the alphabet in the next month or two!
You may do whatever you'd like with snowflakes you make from this pattern, but you may not sell or republish the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!
Finished Size: 6 inches from point to point
Materials: Size 10 crochet thread, size 7 crochet hook, empty pizza box, wax paper or plastic wrap, cellophane tape, water soluble school glue or desired stiffener, water, glitter, small container for glue/water mixture, paintbrush, stick pins that won't be used later for sewing, clear thread or fishing line
Xandy Snowflake Instructions
Make magic ring.
Round 1: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in ring, take loop off hook, insert hook through 2nd ch of starting ch 2 and replace loop on hook, pull loop through ch (starting popcorn stitch made), [ch 10, 1 dc in 7th ch from hook, 1 hdc in next ch, 1 sc in next ch, ch 1, 5 dc in ring, take loop off hook, insert hook through top of 1st dc and replace loop on hook, pull loop through top of 1st dc (popcorn st made)] 5 times; ch 1, 1 dc in top of starting pc st to form 6th ch 3 sp of Round; 1 fsc (foundation sc), 1 fhdc (foundation hdc), 1 fdc (foundation dc), ch 3, 1 tr in bottom of fdc to form 6th ch 6 loop of Round. (NOTE: If foundation crochet is too difficult for you, complete 6th spoke same as previous 5 spokes, sl st in top of starting pc; bind off. Begin 2nd Round by working dc into top of any ch 6 loop instead of beginning with ch 2.) Don't pull magic ring too tight.
Round 2: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc over post of tr directly below, [ch 3, 1 sc in 3rd ch from hook (picot made), 9 dc in next ch 6 loop] 6 times, omitting last 5 dc of final repeat; sl st tightly in 2nd ch of starting ch 2.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.
Round 3: Ch 4 (counts as 1 tr), 2 tr in same ch as sl st, 1 dc in next dc, 1 hdc in next dc, ch 10, sk next 4 dc (skipping over next picot), [1 hdc in next dc, 1 dc in next dc, in next dc work (3 tr, ch 3, * 3 tr), 1 dc in next dc, 1 hdc in next dc, ch 10] 6 times, ending * on final repeat; sl st in 4th ch of starting ch 4; bind off. Weave in ends.
Finish: Tape wax paper or plastic wrap to top of empty pizza box. Pin snowflake to box on top of wax paper or plastic wrap.
If using glue, mix a few drops of water with a teaspoon of glue in small washable container. Paint snowflake with glue mixture or desired stiffener. Sprinkle lightly with glitter. Wash paintbrush and container thoroughly. Allow snowflake to dry at least 24 hours. Remove pins. Gently peel snowflake from wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach 10-inch clear thread to one spoke, weaving in end. Wrap fishing line around tree branch (or tape to ceiling or any overhead surface) and watch snowflake twirl freely whenever you walk by! Snowflake also may be taped to window or tied to doorknob or cabinet handle.
Xandy is a great name for this lovely flake!
ReplyDeleteI've been calling all our winter storms Snowpocalypse, in honor of the breathless announcing-of-doom and flurry of school closings that precedes each one.
Happy Spring, by the way!