Raffle Alert! Win A Red Heart® Super Saver® Yarn and Susan Bates® Crochet Hook!

I am giving away these yummy items in a raffle!

You get a Red Heart® Super Saver® yarn (in case you are not familiar with this, this yarn is long - 333m long!) and a Susan Bates® Silvalume® Crochet Hook (size 5.5mm - a good hook for this yarn). If you are not familiar with the Silvalume® line of hooks, here's a description from the official Coats site:

"Designed for comfort, Silvalume crochet hooks feature our exclusive in-line crochet hook, which helps reduce wrist motion and helps you maintain a consistent gauge...."

This is how you can be eligible for the raffle:

1. Go to this LINK on my Facebook Page.

2. The link leads you to my workshop poster this May. Click "Share" AND...

...Make sure you include the following text on your status: "Gantsilyo Guru and Red Heart® bring you this beginners' crochet workshop this May! Click on the image for details."

....AND make sure you tag my Facebook Page, Crochet by the Gantsilyo Guru, in that status

4. A winner will be announced on May 6, 2013.

5. This raffle is only applicable to residents of the Philippines (well, even if you aren't, feel free to share it as well!).

Participants And Their Works

Proud crochet teacher showing the students' works. Of course, credit all goes to them. They just got their kick-start from the crochet workshops they attended. Crochet takes a lot of practice. You have to try different projects to discover different techniques. As time goes by, the seeming presence of the hook and yarn on your hands disappears - you get so used to the motion of manipulating these tools that they become extensions of your own hands as instruments of creation.

Here are some of the works they have done.

These are Mercy and Lorn's versions of the "Cute Kitten" pattern from Annie Obaachan's book, "Super Cute: 25 Amigurumi Animals." They even added scarves to the kittens!

Pictures c/o Lorn Laanan and Mercy Iso

Kristina made her own original amigurumi!

Picture c/o Kristina Cabochan

Gigi crocheted a bag! Wow! I love the colors! The crochet designer of this bag is Lucy of Attic 24. Check out her site. She has lots of colorful crochet going on!

Original bag design by Lucy of Attic 24

Vickie is also working on the crocheted bag. She's also did some flowers!

I'm dying to see what former crochet workshop participants have already done! If you've attended my workshop, share your crochet progress by posting it on my Facebook Page!

All Hail The Counter App!

If you're a crocheter and you've done some projects already, you realize there's a lot of counting involved - from single stitches to rows and even to pieces of motifs. If you don't have some method of remembering, you tend to lose count. I've been quite old school when it comes to counting my stitches or rows.

That's how my small notebook looks like. Sometimes the numbers get interspersed with my notes (or the other way around). Sometimes I write them on tissue paper or on whatever medium there is on hand that can be written on (I even tried writing on my skin, just because I had nothing to write on). Then I realized how ugly my notebook has turned out. This is actually my pattern notebook. The back pages have been filled up with sticks. I didn't want to buy a stitch counter (yes, there is such a thing - check a sample here), because there is a big chance that I'll lose it (like losing a pen - it's a sickness). So I go where people go for guidance and wisdom - the App Store. I always have my iPad with me so it's practical to look for an App. My boyfriend Rob was the one who told me to look for an App. I said,  "Yeah right, the App store would have a stitch counter." 

Lo' and behold.

Well, it's not a legit stitch counter. I found authentic ones though, but they looked complicated (and some had to be bought). I saw this App called "Counter Pro." And it's making me happy :) I use the 2 counters. Basically the counter on top is for the number of stitches or rows I need to make and the one below shows my progress (how many I've done so far).

I also like that you can have a "clicking" sound every time you add (or deduct) a row (nothing significant, really...I just need some affirmation I've done progress :p). It's now there, a standalone on my iPad menu. Thank you, technology!