"Julie and Julia" crochet-style

Never let it be said that I am consistent. I am a creative person and I love that about myself, but I want to be good at everything. In the long run, my dabbling in other crafts, hobbies and skills generally results in me having a lot of unfinished projects. I also suffer from "jack of all trades, master of none" syndrome. 

Lately, I've been writing fiction (nothing remotely publishable) and creating YouTube videos about postpartum depression. (YouTube.com/warriormom) If you know me, you know I've been going through it. I hate to co-opt battle terminology, something about that seems like it's not enough of a struggle unless we make it sound like Gettysburg. But it has absolutely been a struggle to get better. I'm not going to sugarcoat it. Happily, the status of my brain's ability to cope continues to improve day by day.

Shooting and editing video, oddly enough, does seem to be like the proverbial bicycle in that it was not hugely challenging to pick it back up. I shot two videos, and I have plans for a third. I'm not sure where I'll go from there. I would love to do interviews with other moms who have overcome ppd or other ante-natal mental disorders, but I suspect it will be challenging to find moms willing to be as candid as I've been. 

If you're wondering what the hell the title of my blog post has to do with anything, I'm getting to it. The point of what I've said so far is hopefully clear: that's what I've been doing instead of crafting. 

However, one event has refueled my ardor for fiber arts:  a Hobby Lobby had its grand opening in my town this week. 

That Mecca of model cars, yarn and art supplies finally is within my grabby clutches. 

I found a book called "200 Crochet Flowers, Embellishments and Trims," by Claire Crompton, and I've decided to make one of every pattern within the book, somewhat like "Julie and Julia" minus the deboning of poultry. 

I've tried the first three flowers so far. I think with the volume of patterns and their simplicity, I will probably do five to a blog post. 

It's extremely likely that no one gives a damn about my journey through this pattern book, but I thought it would be fun. Also, I thought it would be a way to improve my crochet skills that's really tangible, and I might make some kind of display featuring all my work once I'm done. 

So that's what I've been doing and what I'm going to be doing this summer, that and going to the pool.