Another year

Last year for Eriq’s birthday I asked you to help me choose a goal number of caps for the year. We decided on 18 Q’s Caps. I worked on them off and on all year and at final count, I made it to the goal. Now I need to get them tagged and delivered. Happy Heavenly Birthday Eriq. 

Happy Birthday Eriq

Obviously, I should have posted this two days ago (January 4) but better late than never. January 4 would have been Eriq's 56th birthday. Strange the dates, numbers and random things that are significant. I decided to make a cap in "Eriq colors" so I found a skein and went to work. The cats slowed me down, as they really like to do, crocheting with cats is fun!

I mentioned in my last post that I wanted help setting a goal for this 2024. I appreciate the comments, both here and on social media sites. I have had votes for 12, 18 and 24 so anyone else want to vote? Since I haven't been able to figure out the technical difficulties, please feel free to send email or use Facebook or Instagram to send comments or questions. 

Merry Christmas!

Has it really been over 3 years since I posted? I've never enjoyed writing like Eriq did but I found blogging to be a good way to share information and some of you may still find time to read what I post.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with family and friends and are getting ready to take on 2024. 

I still crochet and donate caps, but I haven't been super intentional about a specific number completed or having special dates or deadlines for donations. I also hadn't had any requests so I have just completed and donated them here and there. Recently, my mom asked if I had any she could take to a center she visits and I was happy to have a place in mind and I was able to get some made before we visited at Christmas. I dropped off the pictured caps and they are heading to BSW Sammons Cancer Center in Duncanville.

If you are still reading this, I am asking for your vote, how many caps should I make as my goal this year? 

Option 1: 12 caps (2024 will mark 12 years since Eriq died)

Option 2: 18 caps (one for each year we were married)

Option 3: 24 caps (it's 2024 after all)

World Kindness Day

2020-need I say more? This has been such an unbelievably crazy year. Then, the school year started again, while in the middle of a pandemic, with no real relief in sight. This brought additional chaos and uncertainty for our household. I've struggled to find a work/life balance and I haven't had the energy nor motivation for many things, including crochet. 

But here we are on World Kindness Day and I'm reminded that giving of myself always makes me feel better. Yes, it helps the person or the people that I have helped but I also am the recipient of something, the good feeling I get when I do something for someone else. Recently I had a rough time planning a Veterans Day event, people kept dropping out and I was left with too much on my plate and an event to plan. But I kept working on it and other people stepped up and helped and I was rewarded with some appreciative veterans and knowing that I helped some high school students see what an impact they can have. 

So, the moral of this story (blog) is get out there and be kind. 

In Memory

During this pandemic, zoom calls have become the way to celebrate birthdays, play games and generally connect in a way we haven't been able to do in person. The advantage is this allowed for people to "gather" that never would have been able to do so in real life due to their varied locations, from all over the world to all over the United States or even just all over Texas. During one of these sessions, I chatted with Nancy for the first time in several years. 

Nancy lost her battle with cancer at the end of September. She was a crocheter herself so I never made caps for her to wear but I am making some in her honor. She loved the beach and darts so I have started working on caps in blues. I have to say, the darts idea is harder than I thought but I'm still hoping to come up with a great idea. Anyone have a great pattern for a dart themed cap?

Special Request

 

It's been a few years since I had a special request. Over the years there have been several but the most recent was this past week. The request came from the sister of a friend via Facebook. There are certainly positives and negatives with social media, but I get many of my requests and ideas from someone that I wouldn't otherwise. Here in 2020, with the chaos of this year, it's proven even more of a resource. The recipient's favorite color is peach and she likes bright colors. For this request, I learned some new methods in mailing and set up an account with USPS for some better options for mailing packages. I can send from one to about five caps for the same price, so my new goal is to get a minimum of 5 ready for each new request. 

If you know of someone that could use some caps, please contact me and let me know how I can help. 

Kerrville

I never was a good writer, maybe because it something I don't really enjoy. Despite writing other on older blogs and then this one, I don't feel like I really got any better but perhaps if I start working on this blog again I can improve. That being said, it's been two and a half years since my last post. Despite the lack of posts, I continue to work on caps and find places to donate. Since we moved to Kerrville a few months ago, I found a new local place to drop off a few and I finally went today. They had this great crochet decorated hanger and it was empty so I filled it up with my caps. This hanger design is perfect and I am going to look into making one that I can take to a donation site that doesn't have one. I left about a dozen caps and hope to need to refill the stash soon.

July travel

 This past week we made our annual trek to visit family in Kansas for the fourth of July. This year, we were able to be away for an entire week, with a couple of days of driving each way. Of course, I brought along yarn and hooks for the time in the car. I wasn't very focused on crochet this time for some reason but I managed 4 and a half caps along with another several small bags and purses that I was finishing up for other projects.

One other stop we made on the trip was at the cemetery. The last time I went, there was a wasp nest that nearly scared me to death as I was moving the flower vase. Thankfully this time I was able to clean up a bit (the cemetery does a great job with maintenance) and close up the vase without any unexpected visitors.

Birthday Caps

Each year for my birthday, I love to celebrate and have fun! Seriously, who doesn't? I mean, why wouldn't you want to do that? But I also want to do something for someone else, a reminder that I am a piece of a larger world especially on my special day. There are so many ways to do this, volunteering, donating, or otherwise contributing. As you know, or figured out reading this blog, I have my own little charity in "Q's Caps" and it is something I work on often, although I have continued to get worse about updating the blog. While this is certainly not the only way I like to be a part of the bigger picture, this is my most frequent activity. This weekend, I picked up the hook and yarn and got a couple of caps made while we were in the car. I had hoped to make more but I had some fights with my yarn! The troubles of crochet (and knitting) from time to time. I also worked on one of the scarves I'm making for the 2018 Special Olympics Scarf project (see my last post). Also during my birthday weekend, we visited with some of the volunteers (Friends of Galveston Island State Park) and decided maybe I'd better start learning a little more in a specific area (or two) so I can become a Texas Master Naturalist and volunteer at some of the State Parks in the future. I challenge you all to find something you can do and share it with others. That is my birthday wish.

Stash buster project

It's only been a couple of weeks since my last post, I know you are shocked :)
I would like to share a project I'm working on that some of you might be interested in although it's not specifically related to caps. Special Olympics Texas holds annual games and they give scarves to the participants. These scarves are made (crochet or knit) by volunteers.  Each year, there is a set of colors and this year's will be really fun for anyone who has done yarn arts for awhile, it's black plus at least two other colors. That means you can use yarn from your stash and make some fun and funky scarves. I'm hoping to try some new stitches from a book I recently checked out at our library.


Here is the information from their site:
"This year’s scarf project is taking on a new look, and it goes like this……
When your drawers are full ….Ain’t got no room…..Who you gonna call? STASH BUSTERS

So, this is a year to use up your stash but with one caveat. We will have only one MAIN COLOR this year -BLACK- and you can complement the black with as many beautiful stash colors as you want (minimum of 2 colors ). The common thread of black in each scarf will signify that it is the scarf for 2018, but it will be complimented with many other colors.

Our theme this year is “Every scarf will be as unique as the athlete who receives it.”

The other guidelines are similar to years past:
1) Dimensions are 6” x 60” (approximately)
2) Machine washable and dryable yarns
3) No Ziploc bags
4) Attach a small personal note with yarn to your scarf encouraging and/or congratulating the athlete who receives it.
5) Include your name and mailing address on a separate piece of paper so that one of our athletes can write you a thank you note.
6) If you are sending in a box of scarves, a note on the inside with the number of scarves included would be so helpful to those that open and count.
7) Please remember to visit your locally owned yarn stores. They have really been supportive of the project. If the stores in your area are not yet on board, let’s talk to them this year and get them involved!
8) Please talk to everyone you know about the project."

If you would like to join in or follow the project, here is the link to the Facebook page for the 2018 scarves: https://www.facebook.com/events/1846357842302104/

If you have yarn that you would like to donate for this project, please let me know. 

From once a month to once a year

I've never been a great writer, writing was never one of my passions or skills. Why do I start my blog with this statement? Obviously because I've let it go 14 months without a post. Basically, I need an event or a special reason to force me to write. Despite my lack of posts, I continue my work on Q's caps. Recently I took a few caps (pictured) to Kansas with me so my cousin can deliver them to the Cancer Center in Salina. Also, for those of you that recall, it's a rather long drive and I like to get some crochet done while we are in the car. I finished a few additional caps and a scarf during our time driving the 1460 mile round trip. Special thanks to those of you that have followed this journey since the beginning and still pay attention when I finally get around to posting!

Memory Yarn

Over the years, I have received various donations of yarn. They were added to my "stash" from my own purchases and yarn I received from my grandmother. Although it's been awhile since I received any donations, for some reason, I usually remember who gave me which specific yarns. It wasn't something I tried to memorize but there was a special attachment I made mentally. Where the yarn came from isn't important to making the caps, I thought those of you that made donations might want to know that I remember and appreciate the donations again as I use the yarn.

Variegated Yarn

I've been meaning to type up my monthly post but as always happens at this time of year, the start of school has kept me both busy and exhausted. That doesn't mean I haven't crocheted but I haven't done much! However, I wanted to share a little bit about yarn in this post. Some of you that follow along on my blog crochet or knit but many of you don't and maybe don't know much about yarn. So, here is the lesson of the month :) Yarn has a variety of options including of course color. It can be made of acrylic, wool, cotton, bamboo, alpaca and many more options. It has different weights (thickness) depending on what it is made of and what is the usual expected use.  One interesting thing about yarn is that many forms of variegation (changing of colors) exist no matter what the material, weight, etc. These yarns mix colors in various ways and they create patterns naturally as you crochet (or knit) with the yarn. Here are 5 complete caps and one in progress, all using different variegated yarns. I've left the one incomplete so you can see what the yarn can look like in it's skein before use. Notice some make a striped pattern, others make a blocked pattern, others just have a slight tint change. I love working with variegated yarn because even without any fancy stitches or added embellishments, each cap is unique and colorful.

Cycle for Hope

Q's Caps for Cycle for Hope

Every August, I go out to west Texas for a bike ride. Specifically, the Cycle for Hope (https://www.cycleforhope.net/About) ride at the UMC & Texas Tech campuses in Lubbock. This ride raises funds for the Southwest Cancer Center which has supported my mother in law. It's a 7 mile loop that can be completed once, or multiple laps and then again later in the day for the "Hot Seat Ride" which surprisingly wasn't too hot this year. This past weekend, in additional to riding along with the family team which includes Eriq's parents and sister/brother in law and nephew, I made caps to donate to the cause. I was able to finish up 14 prior to leaving on the trip and another couple simple ones on the road to Lubbock. It's a special time to spend with family and it forces me to get back on my bike :) On a side note, I also finished a couple of blankets to donate to the Linus Project and was able to leave them as well. Those work up fairly quickly but I hadn't worked on any in awhile. It was nice to wrap up a few of those and I plan to finish up a couple more of those soon, it is HOT now but the time for caps and blankets will come quickly for those in need.

Car Caps

Little Caps

I tried my hand at something slightly different and made a handful of baby caps along with a few baby sized blankets. The caps work up very quickly but I found that it was hard to make them unique and change the pattern in such a small size. I was able to come up with a few changes, aside from just changing the yarn to create different looking caps. I made a few flowers and pom poms and got really good at the scallop edging. I also made the blankets in three different patterns. These caps and blankets were donated to a hospital a couple of weeks ago and are already in use :)

Travel days

Over the past week, we travelled from south central Texas to north central Kansas and back home to visit family. It was, as always, a wonderful time with family and especially so this year as we had all 22 of us (4 generations) together at the same time on multiple occasions. This also meant approximately 24 hours of driving time to and from our destination. Thankfully, I have a husband that is willing to drive most or all of the time. I don't much like driving and I do like to crochet. He drove all of this entire trip and that allowed me to get 18 caps made in the car. I made a few adult sizes and the remainder in child and baby sizes, as I'm working to finish off and send a box of baby sizes soon. It was great trip with wonderful family time and I was also productive while we were on the road. That's an all around good week on this front.

Shipping success

Medical Center Plano

Thanks to some helpful advice from friends and family, a couple of weeks ago, I finally figured out how to ship using Paypal. It allows me to print my own labels, saves a trip to the post office and even saves some money on postage. My first package using this service went to the surgical oncology floor at Medical center Plano in North Texas. The wonderful staff, including one of my former students, took this great picture modeling some of the caps they received.

Anniversary

Today marks 3 years since Eriq's passing, I guess that makes this the 3rd anniversary of Q's Caps. I'm traveling this weekend to celebrate a couple of family birthdays. Celebrating life is a great way to spend the time. Since I don't have to drive thanks to Kenny, I've been able to crochet while we are on the road. I plan to work on more on the trip home as well, but so far I have completed these 4 caps. I wanted to go ahead and share them with you today. I have a box nearly ready to ship when I get home and hopefully I can top it off with a few new ones before I get it to the post office.

Last day of school!

Last 2 weeks of school caps

Yes, today was the last day of school! If you're a student, you appreciate this day, if you're a parent, you're hearing all about this day but if you're a teacher...well, you KNOW. The last few days and weeks are so tiring, no matter what you do, it's just exhausting. This year, I set some goals for myself to get me through the last 2 weeks. One was to get 3 miles of walking in before the end of each school day, and still go for a walk or run most evenings and weekends. The second was to make at least one new cap for each day of the 2 weeks. That would give me somewhere around 70 miles and 14 caps at the end of the time frame. I achieved both of these goals every day and in fact ended with over 102 miles and 19 caps (and that's not counting tomorrow as the last day of the week!) You'll notice the caps come in a variety of sizes. I'm currently making caps for several hospitals that serve babies, children, teens and adults. It is a great way to use ALL my yarn, I can use the scraps for flowers and pom poms, the small to medium amounts of leftovers for baby sizes and then large quantities or full skeins for teen and adult sizes. I have to admit that I may take it a little easier on the walking, running and crocheting for a few days after all this...but it was a great challenge for me and I'm happy to have completed my goals and have another set of caps finished to share.

I'm back!

Most of the caps in box one

Many of you follow me on Facebook so you have seen my comments about continuing to work on Q's Caps despite not updating the blog. I have made quite a few caps and I asked if anyone knew of someone in need or a place I could donate. Thanks to my friends and family coming up with destinations, I was able to make a few for specific individuals and many more for specific hospitals, to share with a variety of people. Then I discovered something I already knew but it hadn't really hit me, the cost of shipping has gone up immensely. In fact, it seems that using priority mail is the best option but that means I really want to make sure I have enough to send (and cram in the box) to make shipping worth while. Again my friends came through and suggested I put a PayPal link on the blog, sent me a donation and posted to a group with my PayPal information. I received a couple of donations and was able to move forward on shipping immediately, though I'm still looking for cheaper or better ways if they should become available. My first box should have arrived at the destination yesterday, although flooding might have delayed the shipment, it will almost certainly arrive by today. I was able to fit 25 caps in that box and I feel that quantity is enough caps to effectively offer options for the patients and also makes the shipping worth while! I have decided to make a few more caps to put into my second and third boxes before I ship them, each has close to a dozen already complete, but I want to fill them up :)

A couple of notes to finish off this post:
1) My goal is to post at least once every month, feel free to remind me if I don't!
2) If you are interested in donating, I've put a PayPal link on the page (top right) for you to use, it's open to any amount (a box of approximately 25 caps costs $12.65 to ship)
3) If you have any great shipping ideas, ways to save, etc. please share that with me.
4) If you know of a person or a group/facility that could use donations, please let me know.