Friday, July 20, 2012

Not a Doctor Who Scarf :-)

Here is the finished hat I made with my sonic screwdriver.


Shortly before this photo was taken, I realized the mannequin was actually an Auton, so I had to use the sonic to kill it and save our household. (Yes, I know this is just a head, but Auton body parts can function independently of the rest. See http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/File:Doctor_kills_arm.jpg )

I also finished another scarf, but those who are not into Doctor Who will be pleased to know it is not a DW scarf. However it WAS made with my TARDIS crochet hook. :-)



The pattern is my Three Bobble Scarf (pattern on the Charity Patterns page at Crochet Cabana). Finished size is about 7" x 64 1/2".


The reason I made this scarf was because I needed a photo of a blue scarf. LOL


As some of you may know from my Facebook entry, Crochet Cabana will be celebrating 15 years online this coming October.

If you've been following for a while you also know that the program I used to create and update the site (FrontPage) is no longer supported so I've been looking for a substitute.

NetObjects Fusion Essentials was suggested to me. My daughter and I (mostly her) are attempting to recreate the site using that program. We are optimistic that this will work. There is a learning curve, but she is thankfully doing most of the learning and will instruct me later on what I need to know if this works out. If you know anything about that program, do holler out.

We are trying to make the site better organized, updated technologically, and more streamlined so there is not so much duplication.

When I began the site in 1997, I just wanted my small place on the web. As time grew and my knowledge of both crochet and how to make web sites grew, the site also grew. Now it is so huge I myself don't remember what is on there. Some of the tutorials are very old and are being updated as time allows. Some information is on multiple pages on the present site so it is easy to update one page and not the other. Tutorials, patterns, and resources are scattered all over the site. We are hoping the newly created site will use space more economically and look clean and professional.

Updating the pictures of all the tutorials is too daunting a task for me. Since most people can access YouTube today, I've considered eliminating text and photos entirely for many of the tutorials and just adding video.

I'm still learning much about how to create good videos, but I truly enjoy teaching this way. Of course, I don't know everything there is to know and there are others out there making professional videos and doing a bang up job of it! If you search for video on a particular topic you will find many videos on that topic. I feel that is good. Sometimes just hearing a technique a different way makes it click. Since most of these videos are free, why not take advantage of the knowledge offered? Each videographer does things his or her own way so you can see different ways of doing things and decide which is best for you - and do it in the privacy of your own home.

Over the years, there have been occasions when unscrupulous people have stolen my photos and even the text of my tutorials and patterns. There is generally nothing one can do about this. I've reported things and nothing was done so unless one has the financial ability to pursue it in the court, it is just something we have to live with or get off the 'net. I've considered shutting down, but so far I've persevered. As long as the site seems to be useful and as long as I am physically able to, I hope to continue. Only God knows how long that will be.

Videos have my hands and my voice on there not that it makes much difference, but I feel it is easier proved. The videos are allowed to be shared since they can be embedded. They have to be that way so I can use them myself on my various sites.

All that said, my daughter just did a video for me so it's her hands and her voice in that one. :-) It is the foundation single crochet video below.



As we discover things, I try to change them on the current web site as well, but I'm sure some things will be missed.

Page names are going to change so if you are bookmarking pages, those links may not work when the new site is uploaded. I suggest linking to the home  page since that won't change.

This changeover won't happen for many months, however. It is a big job and we've only just begun. I don't have a huge staff to spend all their time working on this. It is just my daughter and myself.

I've met so many wonderful people through the web site and crochet. Hopefully, I can continue to do that for a while yet.

Happy crocheting!
Sandie