Knit to be Tied

There was a time when I knitted and crocheted.  It was a relaxing, creative way to spend some of my time.  I made many gifts for others this way.  Often, my cats would grab the ball of yarn, and run with it.  At other times, they'd sit beside me, while I granny-squared, or knit one, pearled two. 

The first thing I learned was how to knit scarves.  Then, it was booties and hats. Here is a set that I made for my brother's first child:

The colors could go with either sex. Back then, we didn't know until the baby was born, which it would be.  

But I guess not everyone appreciates the "yarnly" gifts.   

For many years, each Christmas, I would bake dozens of chocolate chip cookies for my family, gifted in coffee cans that I would save throughout the year.  My siblings especially looked forward to these edibles.

One year, I decided to do something different, and crocheted granny-square afghans, one for each sibling (I had 7 at the time).  This took all year, and many trips to TG&Y for yarn.  

I even made a special one for my brother Joe, who was a big San Francisco Giants baseball fan. 

I presented the afghans, and most of the recipients seemed to be pleased, but I could see them looking around, questioningly.  My brother Tom asked: "But where are the COOKIES?"  

At least my sister was kind enough to take a photo of the one that I made for her.

The last time I crocheted something was in 2011, for a charity called "Blankets of Hope".  Here is the one I donated, after 3 months of crocheting:

 Knitting figured in my artwork once, as well, in one of my "Bizzart" drawings:

After that, I put away the crochet hooks and knitting needles...and took up sewing.