IntrinsicTina

Tina snuggling her beloved ALS afghan. Got a great idea to weed out my yarn stash.  I was an avid knitter and crocheter, as well as a budding spinner and novice designer, and have accumulated a nice stash of specialty yarns over the years.  Since getting limb-onset ALS, I lack the fine motor skills to participate in this beloved hobby/therapy.  I know I can gather it all up and take  it to any senior center but I LOVE these fibers and each skein and ball has a story behind it and I want to be the one to decide who gets each gorgeous piece.  Most will go to my daughter who followed in my footsteps and knits and crochets beautifully.  Check out the lap afghan she knitted for me in ALS colors last Christmas! (Regrettably, no, I did not teach her.) Jennifer crochets first blanket - 2006 Through the years crocheting bonded me to my grandmother and knitting bonded me to my mother as each had their specialty.  I crocheted to my heart's content with ...

March brought serious surprises to my life. Although I haven't mentioned it, I've been struggling with an increasing disability.  Since late last year, I've been plagued with an unstable spinal condition. What started off as a troublesome pain in my neck (October/November) has deteriorated into diminishing control over the fingers in my right hand (January) and arm (February).  This condition left me without any other option but to file a claim with our state's department of Labor and Industries. (March).  The tenacity of this condition coupled with the state's lethargy to diagnose and treat my condition, spurred my employer into cutting me loose (April). Unfortunately, because of this relentless deterioration, I've had to give up many of my preferred activities and pastimes: personal computing (blogging, social networking, learning new programs). Digital photography (capturing, uploading, captioning, classifying, and printing), knitting and crocheting, p...

Sounds erotic, doesn't it? Touch Me is actually a yarn made by Muench. It is the softest and silkiest (and one of the spendiest) yarns in my stash. It is a chenille that tends to "worm" but I love it all the same. My first project with this spendy fiber was a red and purple crocheted scarf that is perfect for the discriminating 'red hatter'. The yarn was actually a birthday gift from my father and mother and they had bought two balls of the stuff at about $15 per ball. I added a third ball to complete my project. Again I bought this "splurge" for a friend going through chemotherapy for breast cancer. I knitted up a delicious hat in a deep burgundy but alas! I never saw it grace her head even after she lost her hair. I pondered asking point blank if she didn't care for it because I would have loved to wear it. I did no such thing. Between the last two Local Yarn Store tours (a.k.a LYS tours) in the Seattle area I bought another two balls in ...

About a dozen years ago, I received a box of beautifully hand-crocheted pastel granny squares partially pieced together by my husband's ex-mother-in-law's mother. This box languished in the depths of my closet until about a few months ago when I decided it was more likely to receive my attention if I brought it forth to the light of day. I looked at it each week until one day - enthusiasm struck. I was going to finish this WIP even if it did belong to someone else. Initially, I thought to give it to a young expectant couple in my husband's family but as I held this project in my hands, I imagined a different scenario. I felt that Marie would want a member of her family to receive this precious gift. I became enamored of the idea that one new unsuspecting member of Marie's family which she would never meet, could be swaddled and comforted in her creation and by extension, perhaps even in her arms. I imagined that one day perhaps someone could finish one of my WIP...

I'm sittin' there mindin' my own business, sewing together a crocheted baby blanket when I am accosted by none other than, Frankie. Frankie is the mascot at Madeline's nursing home. What a pistol!