Knit and Crochet Bible Study

Category: Projects and Patterns

  • Gift Idea

    I am putting together a couple of gift bags I am donating to a local single mom’s ministry.

    A friend saw them and thought it was a great gift idea for a friend of hers. This made me want to share the idea with you.

    First, a disclaimer, there are links in the posts to which I am affiliated and may receive a small royalty.

    Now, on to the project.

    I have prepared one with a knit focus, and one focusing on crochet.

    Each started with a Knit and Crochet Bible Study tote I purchased from Zazzle.  I watch for sales and discounts, then order several for my use.

    To each, I added the two Knit and Crochet Bible Study Devotional/Journals I have posted to Amazon.  As a side note, if you purchase the paperback, you are eligible for a Kindle version at no cost – give the paperback, keep the digital version.

    Then I went to Hobby Lobby where I purchased a pattern booklet for each, and one skein of yarn and the proper sized needle/hook to complete one project in the book.

    Who will you encourage with a similar gift idea?

     

  • Unfinished–But Not Frogged

    While working on the final edits of the Proverbs 31 Woman personal devotional my husband pointed out I needed a better cover.

    So I headed to my craft room to find a WIP to possibly photograph and use since the subtitle of the devotional is “God’s Work In Progress”.

    I found something I had totally forgotten I even started.

    IMG_20170201_142820

    I found this in one of the dozens of tote bags I have hanging in a closet. I found the original pattern and my notes for a sweater, though I did not mark what size I was making.  I found the right front complete and the left front 1/4 done.  Unfortunately it is a lace pattern with a 16 row repeat while decreasing. I had a bit of trouble deciphering my scribbled notes and determining where I was in the pattern.

    I am too far in to this sweater to frog it. Determined to move forward, I placed a lifeline in the row before I attempted to move forward. After a rocky start I did mange to determine where I was in the pattern and work through 2 full repeats.  I am on my way.

    I am excited to know that as God’s work-in-progress He never puts me in a tote bag and hides me away in the closet.  He didn’t frog the whole project (rip-it, rip-it, rip-it). He is always working on me.

    I look back at how God has brought me to this point in my life. I made a lot of mistakes and turn some wrong turns. But God has never left my side.

    Just like the Proverbs 31 woman was not born with all the qualities describes, I must learn, make decisions, and grow.

    I am a work-in-progress on God’s knitting needle.

    Now to get back to that sweater. I wonder what weight point I was at when I started it. Will it fit?

  • It Came Undone

    A few years ago I made a spiderweb afghan for my grandson. He loved that aghan. He could use it as a cape or wrap up and hide in it.

    spideyghan_cape spideyghan_caught spideyghan_hiding

    —Okay, before you ask, you want the pattern.  I got the pattern free. I checked the link and it is no longer valid.  It is written by ‘Gail of Sitch ‘n Frog”  I did find it on allfreecrochetafghanpatterns.com .  I hope it is a legitimate share.—

    Then one day he brought it back to me.  There is a whole section where the yarn broke!

    BigHole1

    I was devastated!  I made my 1st afghan when I was 11 or 12. My grandmother taught me the granny square. I have never, in over 40 years of making afghans had this happen.

    Life happens like that too.  I get things all lined up exactly as I want them, my TO DO lists all prioritized and I am ready for the day. Then suddenly, life comes undone. It could start with a phone call or email, pain could tell me my body is not going to participate that day, a pipe bursts, an unexpected bill arrives…… you get the idea.

    Jesus was often interrupted. He walks through a town and crowds chase after Him.  He stops to rest and a group gathers. He tries to sleep and is awakened. He never let the interruption stop Him from doing what He had to do.

    How do you respond when your life becomes undone like the afghan?

    I recently read a book about a woman who looked at her life become UNDONE. It is written by Michelle Cushatt.  As she reflects on the various interruptions in her life where she unraveled and became undone, you will surely relate.

    With fear and trepidation I worked at the undone area. I carefully picked up each broken thread and gathered it together, hoping I didn’t unravel it further. Gently I stitched through, around, under, and over the large area.  It appeared to hold, but left a scar on the pattern.

    I sent the blanket home with my grandson asking him to tell me if it didn’t hold. I would try something different.

    Just like everything else in my life, when a thread unravels the choices are to ignore it and set it aside, or fix it and move on.

    The disciples thought everything Jesus would be undone at the crucifixion. But the empty tomb made a difference. The veil was ripped, but new life promised was a possibility.

    God is never too busy to stitch your unraveled life if you bring it to him.  He is never surprised either. He is waiting for you to bring it to him. Will you hand it over?

  • You Will Survive

    Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourself.  Rom 12:10 NIV      

    It is easy to proclaim your love for Christ when life is good.  But it is in the hard times that you find the strength of His love.

    One of the hardest battles is cancer in any of its many forms. In my own life I lost a sister as a child to cancer that formed in the brain; a very dear friend battled breast cancer and won, then it returned 2 more times before she went to her home in heaven; and my father joined them after fighting lung cancer and its return in other parts of the body.

    Maybe that is one reason I love and appreciate this free pattern I found online.  This shawl makes a wonderful gift for man, woman or child. It is a quiet expression of your love and concern for the recipient. The pattern is called the “Survivor’s Ribbon Shawl” and offers 2 options: with or without crosses.  SurvivorShawl-leukemia SurvivorShawl-pinkjpg

     

    The pattern also includes a list of the various colors and the diseases linked to each color, a prayer, and care instructions.

    It is difficult to struggle through the cancer in your body. It is also difficult to  watch someone you love as they struggle through. I found this article from CancerCenter on talking with someone with cancer that might be helpful.

    And above all else, pray.  Accept the strength and peace that is beyond all understanding. You are not alone.

  • The Empty Tomb–a fun Easter project

    I love Pinterest, but is so easy to get lost in it.  I pin and I pin with items I just know I am going to make one day.

    Last week my grandson came over and we tried one of my Pinterest pins.

    We made the Easter Empty Tomb Garden. (click here for the pin)

    We could not find moss that day at the store so we went with grass.

    Here is what we came up with:

     

     

     

    It was a lot of fun for us to make.  Try one with your child/grandchild.  They make beautiful table centerpieces and opportunities to talk about what Easter is really all about.

     

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  • Test Me

    Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do”,  says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, will open the windows of heaven for you.  I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!:   Mal 3:10

    I have the pleasure of testing knit and crochet patterns for a couple of designers online. I get an advanced copy of the pattern which I use to create their product. I help determine if the sizing of the item is correct, are the materials proper for the project, and if the pattern is written clearly.

    Once it has been tested by several people, the designer then releases the pattern to the public.

    Did you know God has asked us to test Him?

    We are to accept God’s love and salvation on FAITH. We are to follow His Word on FAITH. We are to trust His Will on FAITH. But there is one area He says “test me” and that is in giving.

    God promises if we will give back a portion of that which He has provided for us, He will pour out blessing upon us.  It is hard, once that paycheck is in hand to turn over from the top, a portion back to Him. Now, this is not a give to me so you can get more type of scenario.   2 Corinthians 9:7 says You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.

    I have attended a couple of churches that offered a money-back guarantee. For 90 days give from the first fruits as God gave to you. If after 90 days you feel the giving has created a financial hardship and you were not blessed, you would get your money back. In the 15 years one church offered this, no one ever asked for their money back.  The same for the short 4 years the 2nd church made the offer.   God keeps His promises.

    If you are not a regular giver, consider God’s offer to test Him and see what blessings He has for you.

    Below are just a few of the items I have had the privilege of testing over the past few months.

  • Unfinished Life–Week 10

    My knit/crochet attention deficit disorder and startitis joined forces and bit me in the tushie this week.

    Several months ago I made these fingerless gloves as a teaching tool for the knitting cables class I teach at Michaels.

    These are made to be bulky so they can be worn over a pair of gloves.

    I made these from some Caron Simply Soft yarn I had in my stash. This is not the recommended yarn.  Though we had a mild winter this year, I did wear them often with and without the gloves and they are already showing wear.

    So I decided to make another pair, this time with some Red Heart Super Saver yarn I had in stash.  I finished one glove then got startitis fever and set the project aside.

    Browsing one day I found this beautiful victorian style neck warmer.

    I went shopping and this yarn jumped into my basket.

    Which very quickly became this:

    So when we popped in disk 1 of the 55th anniversary blue ray enhanced The Ten Commandments I decided to work on the 2nd wristlet.

    Unfortunately I forgot I made the 1st one smaller to fit tighter on my hand. Yep, you guessed it.

    I am now making another set just like this one 

    How was your week?

  • UNFINISHED Life–Week 3and4

    It’s been a busy, busy couple of weeks. First, I didn’t get week 3 posted. My husband and I celebrated our anniversary by shopping for a new set of silverware, new bath towels and a kitchen hutch. (we are much more practical than romantic)

    My husband has warned me this is not another horizontal surface in need of clutter. However, he didn’t say I couldn’t stash/hide yarn in the cupboard!

    Then, I got a set of cubby shelves by ClosetMaid for my craft room. That is coming along nicely.

    I am a couple of days behind on my daily Bible reading plan. I use an Android app called You Versionâ. (there is also an iPad version)  It is really cool. I can close my eyes and have the days reading read to me. Sometimes, I get more out of the passage when I hear it. It is a great feature of this app. And no, it is not a computer voice that reads it.

    My local church posts the notes for each weeks sermon to You Version. I can download the notes and edit them on my tablet during the service using a free app called Evernote. I also use Evernote to save some of my patterns. It syncs between my computer and tablet.

    I purchased a slipper kit on clearance at Hobby Lobby and made them for myself .

    The sole and foot is premade in this kit. I knitted the cuff. I later resewed the foot to the sole because their stitching came out. These are so comfy and cosy to wear.

    I thought I had made video of all the stitches used in the Colors of Salvation afghan, but I can’t find them. So either I lost them in the many past crashes of my system or I didn’t get the done. So I am working on that right now.

    Until next week,

  • Colors of Salvation Knit/Crochet-along

    As a child in Sunday School we took colored pieces of construction paper and learned the story of salvation through the representation of each color.

    I have taken each of these colors and various stitch patterns to create a Colors of Salvation Afghan.

    Each stitch and color represents a segment of the story of God’s love, forgiveness, and promise of Heaven.

    Many others joined in 2 years ago for the first Colors Of Salvation Knit/Crochet-along.  It was so much fun I want to do it again.  This time, with videos demonstrations of each set of stitches.

    Whether you knit or crochet, this project is a fun way to advance your skill by learning new stitch combinations; review scripture while working through the project.

    This project is very versatile.  You can make a full size afghan or a smaller lapghan.  One person commented she made it smaller and stitched the sides to make a tote.

    Once you learn the stitch patterns, find your favorite and make that pattern into a scarf.

    I will post a video demonstration of the first set of stitches on Saturday, Sept 17, then new pattern stitches each month.  The colors will be worked as follows:

    • Sept:  Orange
    • Oct:    Gold
    • Nov:   Purple
    • Dec:   White
    • Jan:    Blue
    • Feb:  Green
    • Mar:  Black & Red Edging and Seaming

    You can download the pattern at: 

    ColorsOfSalvation_patternKC_errata1 (2017_10_02 19_31_34 UTC)

    Will you be joining us?   Follow along on the Facebook page for more information and comments.

  • And the Winner is…..

    Congratulations to Ambar, selected via random dot org. I will be shipping to Ambar 7 skeins of yarn, 2 knitting pattern books, a printed copy of the Salvation Colors Afghan, a set of knitting needles and a crochet hook.

    I wish I could send something to everyone who commented. Each of you have a wonderful testimony. I was excited to read each of the comments.

    I will plan another contest soon. This was a lot of fun.