Sunday Pinterest Crochet Favorites

Okay! We are up to 2,967 pins on Pinterest for my Crochet board. Here are some favorites from this week.

All of these pins lead to real sites with free patterns. Enjoy!

Designs by KN

I love this hat by Designs by KN. It provides protection for the neck and looks very "Downton Abbey" ish.

Lion Brand

This poncho by Lion Brand looks comfy and stylish! It doesn't look like an easy pattern but it is. The secret is in the yarn. 

freevintagecrochet.com

If you love vintage crochet, this is the site for you. This beautiful shawl is not an easy pattern, but the results would definitely be worth the work.

makemydaycreative.com

Isn't this scarf gorgeous? Made with a lace weight yarn in silk, linen or cotton, it would be the perfect accessory for summer. Esther Chandler, who developed the pattern, has also included a tip to make your hook more comfortable while crocheting with lighter weight yarns. 

PetalstoPicots

For those who want to get ready for Christmas, Kara, at Petals to Picots, offered free crochet Christmas ornaments on her blog this week. You may want to go over and take a look. 

I hope you enjoyed your weekend. There are some changes taking place at Writing Places very soon that are very exciting. Stay tuned for more to come!

Blessings,
Lisa

Crafters and food vendors have chance to sell products every Sunday in South Fork

On our way home from Mesa Verde, we stopped in South Fork, Colorado at the Visitor's Center that is run by the South Fork Chamber of Commerce. We were surprised to find that the city of South Fork allows crafts people and food vendors to set up on Sundays and run a nice little sale. 

The sale was right on the highway so people traveling west could see it. The very clean bathrooms at the visitor's center for people who just traveled over Wolfcreek Pass, where there are no bathrooms,  gave travelers another incentive to stop and take a look as well. 

Here are pictures of the show:

Ask Organics sold Himalayan salt lamps and vegetables. 

These people had a good selection of Hatch chile products, and sold other spices, birdhouses and homemade soaps and lotions.

Mike Steeves

Mike Steeves

A master baker from Pagosa Springs sold wonderful breads, home canned goods and dried mushrooms from the mountains, among other items.

Mike Steeves

Sky Farms sold vegetables and beautiful stained glass.

Mike Steeves

This is a jewelry sale. Another lady sold hand made jewelry and felted items.

Mike Steeves

I bought some elk fleece from this vendor. She also sold homemade goat cheese and other items. 

Mike Steeves

What ever this food vendor was selling smelled delicious! Unfortunately, we did not have time to stay. We had to get back on the road again, but it was fun while while we were there. 

Mike Steeves

Wouldn't it be great if every chamber of commerce provided a venue for crafters, artists and small business people during the summer months? The people who sell could pay a booth fee that would raise money for the chamber or for another cause. Maybe you could help organize one for your town or city. It might be worth a try!

Pictures from Mesa Verde National Park

I promised to share some pictures from our Mesa Verde trip this week. The views were gorgeous. The National Park Service even has a lodge in which visitors who do not want to camp can stay. There are no televisions but all of the other amenities are there - even Starbucks coffee in the rooms! Who needs a television, though. God's creation provides a much better show. 

The first two shots are taken from the road that goes up to the mesa, where the lodge and all of the sites are located.

 Mike Steeves

 We had gorgeous skies and clear views of the valley below.

 Mike Steeves

 Here is a moth that was happily sucking on thistles outside my parent's room. At night we sat on the balcony and watched the moths, bunnies and mice scurry around while the scenery faded with the sunset. 

Mike Steeves

 Here one of the views from our balcony in the Far View Lodge. This is the moon shining, not the sun.

Mike Steeves

 Here is another picture taken from our balcony. The peak in the center right is Shiprock, one of the holiest sites to the Navajo nation. It is in New Mexico - about 58 miles away as the crow flies.

Mike Steeves

Lisa Steeves

 Here is Spruce Tree House. It is a relatively short walk down from the Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum. As you can see from the following pictures, there are many artistic views. I loved taking pictures there!

Mike Steeves

Lisa Steeves

Lisa Steeves

Lisa Steeves

Lisa Steeves

 And here is the park resident that we met walking back up to the museum. I was way too close to him. He was right on the path! Fortunately, he bolted into the bushes and didn't bite anyone. Mike took this picture with my camera because I was not going anywhere near that snake for any reason. 

Prairie Rattler, Crotalus viridus, Mike Steeves

Despite meeting the snake, we had a wonderful time. If you go, be sure to take plenty of water and pack your own food. The lodge has a restaurant that looks wonderful, but if you are on a budget it is not a good place to eat. The park also has a cafe which is probably a lot less expensive. It was nice, however, to have our own food because we were able to have a picnic lunch while we were driving around. That was very pleasant. Isn't it wonderful that we have such nice places to go? 

Last week for Christmas In July at WritingPlaces

This is the last week for the Christmas in July sale at WritingPlaces. All crocheted items are 15 percent off until July 18. 

Here is a sampling of what is available:

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

WritingPlaces

Ancient crafting methods improved life for makers and tribes

This past weekend, our family went to Mesa Verde National Park, located in the south western area of Colorado. Cortez, Mancos and Durango are some of the nearby towns. If you ever have a chance to visit this place, do it. The views were outstanding and the cliff dwellings were amazing. The National Park Service has even provided a nice lodge in which to stay. 

I plan to show you more pictures this week, but first I want to talk about our visit to the Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum. The museum fascinated me because it focused largely on the arts and crafts used for survival by these tribes. The artifacts it contained were left by the Ancestral Puebloans who lived in the area for approximately 700 years. For unknown reasons, they left the area in the 1200's and their descendants now live in Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico. However, while they lived in Mesa Verde, they thrived and used the land around them to fashion items that improved their lives. 

Known as basket weavers, the Ancesteral Puebloans perfected this art and then moved on to pottery. They made their tools out of bone, sticks, flint and rock and were able to grow crops rather than depending solely on hunting and gathering. Among the artifacts are also jewelry, scraps of food, and craft supplies. 

Yes, craft supplies. There were small bundles of human hair tied with a string on display that archaeologists thought they might be saving for future projects. I was tickled that ancient women were just like us - gathering a stash for later use. Of course, their supplies were much different and fewer in quantity. They could not run down to the nearest craft store for a big sale and stock up. Their supply stores consisted of the natural elements around them - shells, bone, human hair, turkey feathers, fur and plants. 

Here are some pictures we took of one particular exhibit. Please note that we did not use a flash because flash photography deteriorates artifacts. 

Photo: Mike Steeves

In this picture, Indian artisans used a "knotless netting technique" to make a fabric. If you look closely, the hair is neatly coiled into loops over a straight strand comprised of several hairs called cordage. Here is another example, in the Arizona State Museum. And here is a video on how to loop.

Photo: Mike Steeves

This is ancient yarn! The caption underneath the sample says: 

"Downy turkey feathers were split, twisted into two-ply yucca cord and woven into a soft, warm cloth. This technique is actually a form of basket weaving using soft material. The quill is often the only part of the feather that remains today."

Photo: Mike Steeves

Photo: Mike Steeves

Here is another type of yarn that they used. 

"Fur Strip Yarn
Fur yarn was made in the same way as turkey feather yarn by twisting narrow strips of small animal hide into yucca cordage." (Above) "Rabbit (top) and woodrat (bottom) hide ready to be made into yarn." 

Of course, the yucca cordage - fashioned from the yucca plant - had to be made as well.

Here is a boot made from turkey feather yarn using a "finger looping technique". 

Photo: Mike Steeves

Here are some "winter sandals stuffed with grass for warmth." 

Photo: Mike Steeves

The little sign below the sandal reads: 
"Sewing. Although clothing was often a wrap that needed a belt or tie, sewing was not uncommon. Needles were made of animal bone and the fiber of yucca leaves. Cotton, yucca and human hair thread cordage were often used as thread."

Here is a "twilled sandal with side looped tie. Many different methods were used to tie sandals". 

Photo: Mike Steeves

Here are some twill plaited sandals made for a child. According to the sign that reads "Sandals, Yucca sandals were the primary footwear. Basket maker examples show complex patterns made of yucca fiber so fine that it resembles woven cotton. Pueblo 1 through Pueblo III sandals became less intricate and were mostly made of simple or twill plaited yucca leaves. Of the thousands of sandals found, no two pairs are alike." Kind of an ancient OOAK, wouldn't you say?

Photo: Mike Steeves

Later on, the Puebloans began growing cotton, which became the preferred cloth for clothing. Here is a sample of cotton cloth used for clothing.

Photo: Mike Steeves

This picture shows what a male Puebloan may have looked like. According to a sign near the display, the Spaniards who explored the area thought that the local people were well-dressed. 

Photo: Mike Steeves

I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into the lives of an ancient people. It is amazing to see the development of humans as they learned to make items that would improve their lives. How does crafting improve your life? Have you ever made yarn or cloth from unusual items rather than the regular yarn and fabric you find in modern stores? Feel free to leave your comments below. 

A Restful Hike at Cheyenne Mountain State Park

Mike and I enjoy hiking. Lucky for us, we live in Colorado where there are many beautiful places to do that. 

One of our favorite places to go for short hikes is Cheyenne Mountain State Park in Colorado Springs. It's fairly close to us and we can do a two-hour hike and be back home on the same day. We don't have to stay overnight like we do on some of our ventures. 

On Sunday, when our hike took place, there were some cyclists navigating the hills and a few campers left from the holiday weekend. On previous hikes in the park, there were young families hiking the trails, joggers, cyclists and other older couples like us. There are 16 easy to moderate trails - nothing too difficult. The only thing that inhibited us on Sunday was the heat. It was 96 degrees up there! This is unusual; however, we still had a good time. We just sweated a lot and drank copious amounts of water for the rest of the day - during the hike and long after. 

Here is Mike:

Because the bright sunshine tends to wash out the sky, we did not take a lot of landscape shots. We did, however get some floral shots. We were about a week late on the wildflower peak, but we did find some Mariposa Lilies and some orange Butterfly Milkweed. 

Orange Butterfly Milkweed,
Photo: Alicia Gossman-Steeves

Orange Butterfly Milkweed;
Photo: Alicia Gossman-Steeves

Orange Butterfly Milkweed;
Photo: Alicia Gossman-Steeves

Mariposa Lily
Photo: Alicia Gossman-Steeves

Mariposa Lily
Photo: Alicia Gossman-Steeves

As we were walking along the Bobcat Way trail a bunny hopped out from his hiding place and stopped to pose for some pictures. He was even comfortable enough with us to scratch himself a bit. 

Photo: Mike Steeves

Photo: Mike Steeves

We have more photo galleries linked from here:

Cheyenne Mountain State Park

Being out in nature like this certainly is invigorating. It helps clear the mind and reminds me of all of the beauty of God's creation. We need places like this to right ourselves against the negative things that go on in the world and in the craziness of our own lives. That is what a day of rest is all about, isn't it? 

What do you do to right yourself?