Fat Bottom for a Friend

Here is the Fat Bottom Bag I crocheted for my friend Pam:

Fat Bottom with Rusty Wheelbarrow

It was supposed to have been a birthday present on September 18th but I procrastinate when it comes to sewing because as you can see below, I don't do it very well but my friend knows that and doesn't mind. She's a good friend that way.

Since it was a very late birthday present for her, it ended up being a thank you present because around September 27th, I had the biggest, hugest, most important deadline of my life and I had a melt down. Complete, total, ugly cry, tears, stuff running out of my nose, stomachache from all the crying meltdown. You see I spent the summer writing a book. My deadline to have the manuscript completed was September 30th. It had to be in my editor's hands by October 1st.

I had plenty of material, the book was done(at least the first draft), but it still wasn't a book. It was a pile of essays, all uncatergorized, all crossing over into each other. I tried to organize it, it didn't work. My friend Pam said, "Give it to me, I'll get it organized for you." Did she ever. Without her I couldn't have done it. You see, I can type, I can send an email, I can open Microsoft Word, but I have no idea how to use the program other than to open a document and write. Oh and I can use word count, I love the word count tool. But Pam could move stuff around. She could type in a keyword or search term and find the essay we were looking for just like that. I had no idea such magic existed.

So the Fat Bottom Bag that was intended as a birthday present became a thank you gift and I stuffed a can of Pepperidge Farm Chocolate Hazelnut Pirouette cookies in there--because they are her favorite.

So Pam--THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

Doris Day Mat

In the early part of 2006 I fell in love with the Doris Daymat designed by Faith Landsman for Deb Stoller's Happy Hooker Stitch 'N Bitch Crochet book. For the better part of 2006 I searched high and low for the Bevis Rope Medium Duty Jute Twine the design called for. I had absolutely no luck tracking it down and the twine I did find I thought was really too thin for the job. The other day I decided what the heck, I have some Ace Gardening Twine, Twisted Jute Light Load--how about giving that a try? So I did. I couldn't make it look like Faith's, her's is all curly and scrunchy looking but this twine just didn't do it for me. Faith's design is pictured below, the picture is from the Happy Hooker book:

After thinking it through and working with what I could find, I opted to do the mat itself in a half double crochet. It makes it ridgey and kind of open. Since our soil and I use the word soil loosely is mostly sand when you wipe your feet I'm guessing the sand will go right through, I can shake out the mat and sweep the concrete and keeping the porch looking nice won't be too hard. I used Faith's pattern for the edging and for the flowers. Mine is pictured below, I need to add two more flowers and really secure the ones I already have on there. This picture was taken when I was doing a test run to see how it was going to lay, feel on bare feet and I give it two thumbs up. Let's pretend I've already blocked it ok?

It definitely needs another flower in the bottom right corner there.

Here's the view coming up from the sidewalk. Not too shabby. I love this mat. I loved it from the first time I saw it. It had me at hello, ok? (yes I know there's one grey pot mixed in with the terracottaesque ones, whoops!)

The people at Ace Hardware kept asking me what or who I was tying down, hahaha, they thought they were so funny. Then when I told them I was crocheting a mat for my front door they all stepped back from me a few feet. People just don't "get" it do they? After my third trip for more twine(I used 7 balls of the green) the cashier lady asked me if I would bring it in and show it to her when I got it finished. I told I'd bring it in one day next week.