Bouncing Back to Blogland (Update)

Introducing
a new friend!

Well! Here I am, quarantining myself at home–what better opportunity to get back to blogging. As services shut down, appointments cancel, and the clamour of outside demands subsides, the slower pace is welcome.

My goal is to use this time to catch up on a lot of things, especially crochet and blogging, and I would love to have you along if you will join me.   

The Weekend Project That Took A Whole Week

 This is the story of a very quick and easy project which could have been quicker without my tinkering!

Access All Areas: Disability Pride Parade

Today is the International Day of People with Disability (IDPWD).

A white placard with purple writing
"Access-A'laide NOW!"

It is a United Nations sanctioned day celebrated internationally which "aims to increase public awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability and celebrate the achievements and contributions of people with disability."

I celebrated by participating in my first ever public rally! A Disability Pride Parade through the streets of Adelaide, South Australia.

Out to Lunch!

How lovely! An invitation to a reunion lunch.

I'm on the phone straightaway.

Etsy Adelaide Community Market

It was a happy Saturday because I visited a market:
the Etsy Adelaide Community Market at Tonsley.

  
 

Crochet at AVCon

Last weekend was the weekend for pop culture festivals.

San Diego, USA hosted the massive Comic-Con convention and, at the same time, Adelaide, Australia had its own annual AVCon festival.

Maker Faire Adelaide 2017 Call for Makers

It's that time of year again and in case you hadn't realised, 

Maker Faire Adelaide have put out their 'Call for Makers' 

to participate in this year's event.  

Be quick! The deadline is 14 July 2017

You can find more information here:

http://adelaide.makerfaire.com/participate/cfm/

What will I do this year?

Shall I be an exhibitor again or offer a workshop?

Happy Photos

If you think this blanket looks cute …

… you should meet its new owner!

A Touch of Tricot

People often think that tricot (or Tunisian crochet) means only this …

Afghan/Entrelac/Tunisian Simple Stitch in rainbow stripes of purple, pink, orange and yellow.

when tricot can actually be all this …

A sampler strip of twenty different tricot stitches in lemon yellow.

… and this …

A sampler strip of tricot lace stitches in lavender.

… and more!

Tricot with a Double-ended Hook (Tunisian Crochet)

A long, long time ago … in a galaxy far, far away … NO!  

That's not it!

Well, maybe it feels like it because I've had the striped tricot scarf completed for more than a year but, despite promises and a few teasing pictures, never got around to blogging about it properly … until now.

A pair of tricot hooks

To Help or Not To Help (Part 1)

This blog entry is a response to questions asked by CatDownUnder on 15 July 2016 about the complicated business of offering and accepting help. It truly can be fraught with many issues.

As I considered my own experiences and those of friends with chronic illness or disability, my reply to Cat became ever longer. The etiquette of offering and accepting help seems lost on many people. The ramifications of people's behaviour extend beyond a mere verbal exchange and go to the heart of self-identify and self-worth.

There were too many discussion points for a quick comment so I have chosen to publish the first part here, to be continued in instalments. Perhaps by the last one, we will have a better understanding of how to help each other.

Flower Power Exhibition, Adelaide 2016

After much anticipation, I was lucky enough to see Prudence Mapstone's "Flower Power" exhibition for myself, in real life, when it came to Adelaide as part of the 'Stitches & Craft Show' in May 2016.





This post is full of photos of the amazing crochet and knitting work that makes "Flower Power" so awesome.  Greetings and thanks go out to Prudence, Stephen and Cat who kindly gave me permission to take as many photos as I like and to share them here.  Enjoy!

A busy time

When a run of good health occurs, I can't help but make the most of it by getting busy!

Mount Lofty Botanic Garden

Here's an update on recent activities:

Harmony Day Postcard

What did Kwokkie Doll do for Harmony Day 2016?

Today I received her postcard …

AKA Amigurumi Apparel: Harmony Day

Kwokkie Doll is ready
for Harmony Day

It's "Harmony Day" and Kwokkie Doll is ready to participate!

A Secret Crochet Confession

Can you keep a secret?  If so, read on and be prepared for a shock …

AKA Amigurumi

My name is Kwokkie Doll
a.k.a. AKA Amigurumi!
(Made by Jodiebodie 2013)

G'day! 

It's me again, in my Christmas hat, wishing everyone hope and goodwill for the holiday season and beyond.

I first popped up on Lupey Loops at Christmas in 2013. 

Do you remember?  Jodiebodie promised to give me a blog entry all to myself.  I thought she was going to introduce me properly in April 2014 but that must have been an April Fools' joke because nothing more ever came of that.
How disappointing.

Not to worry! I am here to tell you myself! 
My name is "Kwokkie Doll" and this is my story …

Adelaide Mini Maker Faire 2015

On the first of November I went to the Adelaide Mini Maker Faire.  It is all about 'makers' and 'making'. The first 'Maker Faires' were held in 2006 in the USA to promote the 'Maker Movement'. It sounds to me like fancy words to give a modern label to the old DIY (do-it-yourself) and home-made trends (some call them 'granny skills) which are experiencing a resurgence.

It's the second Mini Maker Faire to be held in Adelaide (the first was in 2013) but the first one for me and I have some photos to share.

What Happened to All Those Poppies?

Did you guess the number of poppies
in this pile?
The answer is in June's blog entry
 "Poppies Shaping Up"
 


 

In June, I was busy making poppies for a special project.

Today, Remembrance Day, poppies come into prominence again.  These poppies were used in a commemorative project so today is an appropriate day to show you the results.

Sunshine Award

Last week, Raphaela of the blog, Hummingbird Redemption, nominated me for a Sunshine Award!

Thank you so much for your kindness, Raphaela!

It is an honour to be recognised by someone who is a beautiful ray of sunshine herself.  That is what this award is about: 
to add 'sunshine' to other bloggers by sharing blogs that bring joy and inspire with creativity, positive outlooks and the overcoming of adversity.