My mom just sent an old album with pics from my first dance recital. Funny stuff, especially since I am the executive director of a dance company now. Who would have guessed?! My artistic director got huge laughs about bright orange pre-spandex costume.

I'm impressed that you decided to try crochet - and you are SO good at it right from the beginning! It's a nice break from the hand movements of knitting. While that yarn is Red Heart, at least it is a step up from Red Heart Super Saver. The Soft Yarn doesn't squeak through your fingers like the Super Saver does. It's great for an eventually well-loved (i.e. frequently-used and washed) project. I can't wait to see the finished project!

You were so cute;-)
Ha, ha, ha you are hooked! But, my heart is saddened that crochet says 'Red Heart' to you. :-(

Curse you Cara... you are going to get me to buy Red Heart! I love those colors, but I can feel the hives starting to emerge at just the thought of that much acrylic... what am I going to do? LOL (Oh, and your crochet looks beautiful, btw)

On a more-sane side note, how do you get all of your photos to glow? It is like your camera is using every bit of natural light available. And the colors are so saturated! Is it your camera, your flash (or lack thereof) or your obvious mad skills?

I've made a quite a few crocheted afghans and I always use acrylic. It's not as nice as wool, in my opinion, but it's so much easier to care for. It really softens up nicely in the wash, it doesn't bleed, and it doesn't shrink or bloom. I'd say that if you were going for easy care, you chose the right yarn!

My dad has blankets that my mom crocheted many, many years ago out of Red Heart and they're in great shape! She used to buy all of her yarn from Woolworth's, and though she used wool for our sweaters, she always used acrylic for blankets and afghans so they could just get tossed in the washing machine. Your granny squares look great, and have me tripping down memory lane. Good luck with your niece's recital. My daughter's first recital is this Saturday!

I especially love the bruises and band-aid on the knee!

Cara you're already a pro! the square looks perfect from here and I really like that new Red Heart yarn. It's really soft and good for charity knitting for preemie babies since we can's use wool for them. Awesome colors - you will love that tote - so cute/funky and functional! You'll be finished with it before you know it and say "what in the world will I do with all this extra yarn?" Might have to make another one! heh

Your crochet looks as if you've been doing it for a while! Well done.

I'm a long time lurker and I just had to come out of hiding to say how much I love the picture of your niece - especially the buises on her shins and the bandaid on the knee. Too precious!!

As I go back into hiding, I just want to thank you for your great blog :o)

two cute little Twinkle Toes! I like all that sparkly light in your ballet picture.

That's so funny. You're right -- acrylic is perfect for this project :) You're starting to sway me towards learning how to do this.

If the pigs weren't flying by yesterday, they sure are today! First crochet, and then acrylic?

uh oh. i'm going to have to go buy interweave crochet. i love that bag...

Acrylic & crochet both have their places - loving them is knowing when to use them. And you've got to give credit where credit is due - there's no brighter or more extensive colour range available from any other fiber!!
I'm glad that you're enjoying this dalliance with one of the darker arts. (j/k ... really!!)

Welcome to the world of crochet, it appears that your hooked. Once you're done with the bag I highly encourge you to crochet a Ripple Blanket -- you'll absolutely love the color play.

those look great, I might even like the one out of the cheaper yarn BETTER. Something more fun about it, the other one feels more delicate and antique.

I have wanted to learn crochet for a while now and I can do stitches, I just don't know how to read directions! I have a cute little book of baby crochet that is adorable and I would love to make something out of, I even have the yarn and hooks for it.

You are absolutely correct about the rules. If you're making a granny square then it's imperative that you use acrylic. My favorite acrylic yarn has to be Caron's simply soft (Shhhh don't tell anybody). I personally perfer the second square than the first one. It seems to "pop" more than the first one. You'll be hookin' right along with the rest of us.

p.s. just don't try the ripple stitch, I hear it's very addictive.

Red Heart is my "go to" yarn for bags. The damn yarn will last through an apocolypse. This way I never feel bad about all the abuse my bags go through.

Ok, super secret confession. I want an afghan sooooo bad. However, there is no chance on this green Earth that I have the patience to knit one. I ogle your miters and wish I could, but for all that seam sewing. Some nights, when my husband is away on business and I'm watching some chic flic on the couch, I think about crocheting an afghan. There I said it. Sometimes I think about crochet. You are a better person than me. It's so cute, and again... the colors. So purty.

Okay, Cara, now I have to stop at the store on my way out and look for Interweave Crochet. I popped over to their website and it's your fault that I just have to make the granny square bag, and did you see Drew Emborsky's bag? It looks awesome! (and it's done in wool)

the crochet looks nice!

i've been crocheting much longer than i've been knitting, but i've never really made garments (or bags) with crochet before.

That is a nice looking square, good job! Your niece is too cute and I am sure she will love seeing you as a young ballerina. Oh, and I got my notecards- I love them!

You know, I've been teaching myself to crochet off and on for the last couple of months for the express purpose of making granny squares (ultimate goal - an afghan). I've been practicing with Knit Picks Shine. The only time I ever tried Red Heart I felt like I forgot how to knit. The colors you picked are awfully pretty though. hmmmm.... you make it mighty tempting to try it again...

Those miters, er, squares are looking SO good! Very exciting that you've got a new thing -- and that you are obviously brilliant at doing. Go on with your bad bad self, chica.

I swear I heart your blog! You give us such great pictures, colors and inspiration. I've been trying to decide whether to make that bag or an afghan. One of my issues was the YARN. Now.. I see another option.

I swear I heart your blog! You give us such great pictures, colors and inspiration. I've been trying to decide whether to make that bag or an afghan. One of my issues was the YARN. Now.. I see another option.

You scared me a little with the granny square yesterday I have to admit. But today? The PURPOSEFUL aquisition of That Much Red Heart? Now I'm downright terrified.

omg...
first you crochet.
then you get acrylic.
**mouth agape**
the granny square looks awesome!
you are rockin' that crochet hook! :o)
and i know what you mean about the left hand thing--i too can manage the yarn in my left hand for crocheting but for knitting? no way.
and those are mighty cute pictures of little girls in tutus and leotards! reminds me of all the ballet and tap classes i had to take as a kid too...great post! :o)

Very nice! I've been crocheting since I was 8, and, well, let's just say that I'm over 35 now. Your crochet looks just beautiful!

As both a knitting and crochet instructor, I will tell you that if you keep crocheting, you'll do better with holding the yarn in your left hand after this, and will eventually be on a good track for two-handed fair isle!

Pretty pictures of acrylic yarn. Never thought I'd see the day.

What fun! I'm very excited to see the progress on the bag. And have a great time at the recital, I'm sure she'll be adorable! That photo of you is great.

Cute ballerinas all around! Thank you for the link to Laura's tutorial. Vicki's squares won me over. Of course, I don't crochet...yet.

I agree with the crochet/acrylic combo! It's like wine and cheese. Awesome colors, and kewt pictures!

OMG, that first part made me laugh out loud. Please report back on the dance recital - too cute!

Wow, looking great. And all those pretty colors. Hmm makes me want to look into this whole crocheting buzz. :)

I love Red Heart's Soft Yarn . . . because it really is soft. And dirt cheap! I made a scarf with it last year when the pattern called for a silk blend. Same sheen, same softness . . . different price point. It knit up wonderfully and, here is the real beauty, I am not kicking myself in the head now that I can't find it! Just think if it were made out of the silk blend.

Rock on with the crochette, but don't let the dark side pull you in. Sorry Lola ruined "GH" for you . . . that damn sister.

Very good, indeed! That's one perfect square!

I learned to crochet in my late 20s, ten or so years after I learned to knit. When, after the crochet binge, I went back to knitting, I [icked up the yarn and needles and started knitting Continental style right out of the box. Before I had been a right-hand thrower. It may happen to you, too.

I learned to crochet in my late 20s, ten or so years after I learned to knit. When, after the crochet binge, I went back to knitting, I picked up the yarn and needles and started knitting Continental style right out of the box. Before I had been a right-hand thrower. It may happen to you, too.

If someone could explain why acrylic and crochet goes together, please tell me! I made my entire Ripple out of that same Red Heart.

I love the bandaid on the little fragile ballerina!

I'm really thinking crochet now too. You people suck!

your granny squares look fantastic. i'm usually just a lurker on this blog, but i had to come out and say, girl, you've got a way with color. your choices are always so amazing together!

dear God Cara...first crochet and now acrylic?? You need to get yourself checked out :P

Only you can make acrylic look so good Cara!!
The photo of your niece is adorable!!! Have fun at the recital. I'm sure she will love seeing the photo of you. (In which by the way, it is quite easy to spot you!)

You simply crack me up...between the crochet avoidism and admissions...now the Red Heart admissions...you're a stitch, as they used to say, whomever "they" are...

Gee...you're photos even make acrylic look good!!

I've been using that yarn for some charity knitting (preemies = soft and washable). It does have nice colors available.

Jen/NJ

Well, I just had to go get the Interweave Crochet after following your link to the bag on their website. Sigh. Now I just need to learn to crochet...

Did you like the Gilmour Girls finale?? I didn't watch much of this season, but came back for the end.

Happy Hooking to you!!

The squares look nice to me. I love that your niece has a bandiad on her knee, she's a cutie!

Why are Granny Squares so comforting? I swear, every time I see them I feel cozy. Yours are lovely, and it's hard to believe these are the work of someone new to crochet. I have some small ability to hook, but my squares look much worse than yours, and I've been trying off and on to make them for a number of years now. Perhaps it is unwise to admit to this in public. I'm apparently granny square impaired.

Crochet? I have to admit that I like the look of the finished square.
I love you niece's band-aid. :)

I was thumbing through my issue of IC last night and saw the large bag. Not really my taste in bags (I'm just picky), but I love the square that is used for it and I think I'll be using the square for a baby blanket I need to make in the next 7 months or so. Your square looks good and has good tension from what I can tell from the picture. You'll be flying through this bag in no time!

The crochet looks great! I have a life long wish to be a ballerina too, I'm 27 now, is it too late? I can really see the family resemblance between you and your niece in those pictures! P.S. I like how on the label for the acrylic yarn they had to specify that it is "Soft Yarn".

oooh - are granny squares the new miter squares?

You know, that would be my lifelong dream, too. My little bro' really is a ballet dancer, though, so I get to do it vicariously. Me? Apart from anything else, I'm six foot tall in my socks. On pointe? You don't want to know.

And I don't know about crochet, but I'm finding that it's OK to weave with acrylic. Well, you've got to figure out what you're doing before you start sacrificing the good stuff, right?

Cute photo. Your niece looks a lot like you did at that age!

I am one of those knitters who also enjoys a bit of the hook. Your granny square looks great, and is currently lighting a fire under my ass to revisit the craft. If you're not opposed to crochet, maybe you would reconsider using your leftovers for Babette?

Gorgeous squares! I, too, have caught the crochet bug after 20 years of knitting only. There is just something addictive about that hook... And I agree with you that crochet wants to be done in cheap yarn. Why is that?

Holy crap! YOU HAVE BEEN SEDUCED BY THE DARK SIDE! Granny squares, Crochet and Red Heart? What's next, scrapbooking?

There is still good in you Darth Cara...I can feel it. Come back to the knit!

Yeah, kid is extremely adorable, but STILL!

It's already been said, but dude, if you can make Red Heart look like something I really could get into, I'm very scared. What will you make me lust after next? Use your power for good, please :-)

As I was reading this I was crocheting hot pink acrylic and hot pink fun fur for my daughter's super hero costume. She's going to the dance as "Anemone Emily" and we're attatching pink tendrils to a black toque. It's fun. She's also designing a t-shirt.
I didn't know that crochet was the opposite of knitting until I entered cyberspace.
I'm truly a knitter, but I have always crocheted, too, until it just brutally destroyed my hand. Now I knit continental in snobby wool, silk and alpaca. Yay.

Love the colors (and the photo of you as a little ballerina - adorable!) but still not sure I can bring myself to work with red heart. I am still a little scarred by my early knitting experiences with homespun . . .

oh, shit, Cara, now that you're crocheting, I may have to start.

Hey, good job on the granny square! Not many people can pick up a pattern like that having never had crocheted before! I am so proud of you :-)

Marly
knitthing.blogspot.com
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Great square! The second one looks a lot better than the first. They'll get easier, too, as you get a bit of practice under your belt. You go, girl! Next thing we know, you'll *crochet* your next afghan! ;-)

Nothing says Muppet Pelt like 100% plastic. But hey, there's a time and a place. I wonder, would 100% cotton from Elmore Pisgah work just as well?

Your square looks great!! Oh and I know what you mean about holding your yarn in your left hand and it being very strange-I knit with my yarn in my right hand, so this was yet another obstacle I had to get over in order to crochet. I can't wait to see your bag!

Any thoughts on doing a tutorial? I haven't found instructions yet that make sense.
Your squares are so cute that I dug out my hooks and sat down and all I came up with was a goofy triangle swatch. Second try came out s little better but I'm really not seeing how you get it to make a cute little circle in the center.

And i have to agree with other commenter, your photos "glow" beautifully. Mine are either dull and flat or rilly rilly bright. Tell us all your secrets!! :^D

Thanks for all the great info, your blog is awesome.

Awww!!! So cute!! Boy, pictures of kindergarten-age ballerinas takes me back. I think that everyone should take ballet at least once when they're roughly seven years old. It's like a quintessential life experience. Also, the pictures are priceless!

Ah, Red Heart. The stuff's indestructible. I have afghans that I crocheted almost 20 years ago that have been used and abused by various dogs and cats . . . and they are still presentable after washing.

Can't believe you learned to crochet doing that first block. You're insane! Once you've done the bag, try some fine cotton and a small hook and some lace :D

The squares look great and your niece is adorable, but now you've got the song stuck in my head too. And I've never even heard it.

Your niece is the cutest! And your crocheting is fantastic. I applaud your choice of yarn for this project - nothing worse than knitting/crocheting a bag and then being afraid to actually use it for fear of dirt/wear/whatever. Good for you!

I saw that yarn at the craft store the other day. I almost bought some because it had not offensive colors and it was cheap and it was soft and dang it we can't all afford to be yarn snobs 100% of the time.

I, too, have usually seen crochet in less than sophisticated/expensive yarns. However, I think Red Heart is often unfairly maligned. The colors are great, and it is NEARLY INDESTRUCTABLE. I've made baby blankets of it (knitted or crocheted)... and they would survive Linus OR Pit Pen OR wild dogs OR the apocalypse. Really. Roaches and red heart baby blankets extant forever.
Great Granny Squares!

I went on a crochet-related, Red Heart Soft Yarn binge myself not too long ago. Those colors are pretty nice, and I think this yarn is appropriate for something that will take a lot of abuse, like baby things or tote bags. Plus, cheapity cheap is right! Part of the reason that I want to use this yarn for crochet is that CROCHET EATS YARN! I couldn't afford to crochet with STR! :)

Your niece and nephews are TOO CUTE. I knew they must be related to you ... they look very much like their auntie.

You and your niece are WAY too cute!!! I went the gymnastics route, not ballet and didn't have nearly as "cute" or "cool" costumes! Very jealous!

So yesterday you had me doing cartwheels over your crocheting and today, I am sobbing. Red Heart??? Say it isn't so!! So STR may not have been right for this project, but beautiful variegated yarns are SCREAMING to be crocheted. Yes, crochet takes more yarn and that has to be factored in, but RED.HEART. . . . ?

You may need a crochet intervention. Do not be scared if a bunch of us show up on your door step, we come in peace and love. . . .

If you think acrylic is fine for crocheting, try Blue-Faced Leicester yarn. Whoooo, baby! I just whipped through some baby shorts in no time at all. They are so soft and pettable. Not as easy to care for as acrylic, but it makes a lovely fabric.

Thanks to you, I just bought that IC and am plotting a bag of my own. Sigh.

The last two days I have been emersed in Granny- Square-Heaven. I have six squares of one bag done and two of another. It occured to me as I was happily crocheting along that sunflowers would be fitting for this block. It is a Mother's Day tradition at our house to gather many different types of sunflower seeds and plant them together with my girls and the Gkids. I just couldn't wait to see if it was true, thus explaining why not one but TWO bags are in progress.....ah Cara, you got me good this time. Bold colors for one, earthy sunflowers for the other....Thank you! Thank you!

Your granny squares look fablous! Great work for someone who is a beginner in crochet. I have not crocheted in a very long time but have just finished the Boteh scarf from the lastest Interweave Crochet in Lorna's Laces Sock and the crochet bug has struck again!

Your squares are cute, and I love the color selection, and I think Red Heart will work just fine for the bag.

I'm glad to see so many knitters digging the LTL bag. The whole "knitting vs crochet" thing just seems kind of dumb to me anyway. BTW, I knit too, and I love doing both.

I just finished my LTL, and I'm in love with it.

Well now I've seen everything Cara is crocheting! If you ever need an emergency WTF? I'm here. Your niece is a doll baby and so were you!

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Such pretty colors! I feel a new obsession coming on - rock on!

I have a camera question for you - I have about $350 and want to get a new digital camera. I take mostly pics of my little girl, my knitting, my handspun, and my garden. I LOVE macro shots of things (except the little one, who barely stays still long enough for a regular shot!) and wonder if there's a camera for about $350 that will give me good quality shots (even macro). Any advice? Thanks!

Your Cheatin' (Red) Heart, more like.

From a certain point of view one might call this your pop phase. The LTL panels all ranged just so in your colors make me think of Andy Warhol's celebrity silk screens (the acrylic is more Andy Rooney--I just don't think I can go there).