MOD CROCHET MICROWAVE HOT PAD MITT; Castle Rock-WA

MOD Microwave Hot Pad Mitt; Castle Rock-WA

This mitt is NOT FOR REGULAR OVEN USE!

This hot pad mitt was designed out of necessity - the cloth ones I had purchased, are nice; but they are pretty stiff and awkward to use. I want something more pliable for microwave use.

So, this morning, I designed & whipped a pair up for myself: and if I can talk Holland into using one, I'll make 1 for his hand.

I made traced hand tracings for pattern guides - but really didn't need to use them.

I used an acrylic worsted weight yarn, single thickness … and it works just fine. I don't want anything heavy - just something to guard against the generated heat of testing a microwaved 'baked' potato.

I'm a small woman, so my hands are small: 

MOD Crochet Microwave Hot Pad Mitt

Materials: Worsted Yarn, chosen color = make a separate small ball of yarn from this skein before commencing work (this ball will be used for the thumb work); a 12" length of Scrap Yarn for a marker #H/8 crochet Hook; Scissors;  Tapestry needle

Terms Used:

ch = chain

dc = double crochet

sc = single crochet

inc = increase

dec = decrease

sl st = slip st

beg = beginning

EA = each

x = repeat sequence

EO = end off

This pattern is worked from the top, down.

Oven Mitten Portion: With hook & yarn, ch 3 - and work 9 dc in circle; jn (10 dc's) and begin working in rounds from this point on.

Row 1: Holding scrap yarn in place, work a row of sc, inc'g in EA sts around - 20 sc; do not turn work, just keep working in rounds - moving marker yarn upwards each row.

Row 2: Inc in 1st st, then *1 sc in next st, 2 sc in following st *; rpt * to * around - end sc x1: 30 sc

Row 3: Inc in 1st st, then sc x7, inc, sc x6, inc, sc x7, inc, sc x6: 34 sc

Rows 4 thru 22: Sc evenly around: 36 sc; ch 6 … skip 6 sts & sc about 5 sts ahead - loosely tie off (you will return to this row later to finish mitt).

Sc evenly around.

Ch 6 … skip 6 sts & sc about 5 sts ahead = for thumb placement.

Checking for pliability & correct thumb opening placement.

Thumb Portion: Attach separate ball of yarn at corner of thumb & work 1 sc in same space, 1 sc in EA ch, 1 sc in corner st (the beg st of ch 6), & in EA skipped st: 14 sc.

Rows 2 thru 8: Work in rounds.

Row 9: Work a round of dc; EO with a length long enough to thread through tapestry needle & draw through sts, pulling tight and securing on back end.

Dc around thumb portion.

Run tapestry needle around tops of dc & pull tight, for closure.

Finished thumb portion.

Finishing: Return to the tied off portion of the mitt body & continue working in rounds for an additional 5 more rows (count these rows from bottom of thumb portion). EO and weave in loose end.

Trim (opt.): The mitt will be closer to your wrist without the trim; but I like trim on everything … so, my mitt, got trimmed.

Pattern: *Slip hook through the backside of next st & pull yarn backwards through st, yo and make a sc, ch 1*; rpt * to * around

Slip hook through the backside of next st

Pull yarn backwards through st ...

Yo, and make a sc

Ch 1, & rpt sequence around mitt bottom edge.

Mitt finished: 7-3/4" length - 6-1/2" width, including thumb portion, 4-1/2" width (without including thumb)

IN THE MEANWHILE~Shabbat Eve; Castle Rock-WA

The older I get, the more I understand that I’m not looking for a big life… I’m seeking a peaceful one - a Life that is steady to wake up to, feels soft & gentle to walk through, and calm enough to truly enjoy.

I also recognize that I need an adult in my life.

A friendly female friend to enjoy local activities with - would be nice.

Someone to talk with; someone to share my life with - strangers met along the are okay - and not to be overlooked, as they could be angels in disguise. But, I miss MY persons: Bob is long gone, living above the clouds these past 7-1/2 years, & Holland is now gone, too - and though I do miss him, I'm savoring the peace.

For myself, my Days are busy with living, but … I miss my persons. Being in this area of WA does take my thoughts down rabbit trails involving Bob, but grief is no longer a constant companion, & I don't get lost on those trails anymore. And when I think of my current husband, I rein the missingness in sharply, reminding myself that I do not miss being disrespected - that reminder keeps things in perspective. I don't know what tomorrow holds - or what we - if there is still a we, come December - will be doing, but I know that today, right now, things are peaceful. I like that.

Holland is taking care of the bills, and he's keeping me supplied with asthma inhalers: he may want to live a separate life while in the redmill stronghold region, but he does worry about asthma flareups and my faulty heart (angina & arrhythmia). But I've lived with these issues all my life & came to the point a looong time ago, that I trust Elohim with my life 100%: and I will live as long as He dictates. I refuse to freak out about physical death. It happens: it will happen to me some day.

In the meanwhile I continue to thank Elohim for His grace towards my waking up every morning, I tend to my own business, watch a few movies & listen to some rockin' tunes; while designing & crafting in a housebound period, forced on me by the whacky WA weather cycle.

Doing whatever it takes & turning it a thanks filled Day, with a joyful outlook.

New asthma inhaler.

Sarah, Plain and Tall - 1991~The First Meeting:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8yXGk61GwM)

Sarah, Plain and Tall~Skylark: 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYD7rVvhz6o)  

Sarah, Plain and Tall~Winter’s End:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVyd6u7-rPI)

I always thought I would go Home before Bob; I am more than a bit surprised he is gone, and I am still here. And though I have lived 95% of my Life dedicated to walking Yeshua's Way, & I do long to see Yeshua soon … I refuse to let the redmill BS catapult me there, ahead of schedule - I anticipate living my life fully, as long as Elohim grants me that pleasure, & I patiently wait to hear the trumpet calling me to meet Him in the sky.

But since I am here, and I only have but this 1 life to live … I intend to fully LIVE it without the fear of {what if's}, or dodging verbal darts laced with my current husband's "the family" poisoned tactics designed to force a towing of the line: Holland can spend all the time he wants indulging in "the family" hysterics - and now, he is freed up to do exactly that. With all the pollen on the breeze, my lungs are on fire, and every coughing breath I take hurts (I haven't been able to do any workouts at all this week- not even easy ones) - I am not going to fight with my husband over ridiculous people living ridiculous lives … or get sucked into a global fear-mongering wildfire: he can buy a front-seat ticket on the global chaos train wreck; he can scream to high heaven trying to justify "the family" craziness & bemoan & wail his way through the "update!" newsfeed interferences; but I do not have to hop on the hamster wheel, with him. I choose peaceful vibes - if the only way to have peace is to live a separate life, then that is what I will do: and, the redmills, the world; and the rest of the doomsday criers, will just have to find it in their hysterical hearts to forgive me for wanting to halt the hysteria wildfires from encroaching on my life. I have enough of my own concerns to keep my scattered thoughts & my own arrhythmic heart occupied.

Holland has Beast Betsy, & she's available to me, when I need her; but I'm finding that I actually don't mind being hemmed in by the 4 walls of my little home, at the moment - that would have drove me crazy 3 years ago. But, now, it's not an issue: it's actually quite comforting right now. There is quiet. There is space. There is room for reflection, & these things, right now, are enough. It's another complexity in my already complex Life. 7 years ago, there was too much space, too much quiet, and too much reflection in the empty 1,600 sq. ft. home I had then … and I had to get out of the house every Day, all day to feel on an even keel; in my Life, in this moment of Time, sheltering in place & taking the time to be still in my little 400 sq. ft. home, is my even keel. It's a strangeness I am welcoming. I am not worrying about anything. I am not planning anything; I am not really even thinking past what I'm doing in the moment.

Maybe sometime in the near future - when the weather stabilizes, I'll request Betsy for a Day-out-of-house - and see what there is to do and explore, a bit north of here. I want to skip Longview & Kelso, if I can help it. Both have a lot of memories connected to them - Longview, good & sad; Kelso, bad and sad. Something in the other direction seems like a good choice, to chance.

Weather - starting tomorrow.

While visiting some of my blogger friends, I saw that one of my Posts had been featured on a Page … and I'm still doing whatever it takes:

My Post was featured on this Blog Hop

Getting back to “in the present” happenings of today … I've been working on a matching kitchen hot pad set - I need to stay busy and keep my mind occupied with things in the present. Designing is therapeutic to me, crafting is soothing, and the end result brightens up my immediate space. Staying busy with busy work, works for me. I’ve always found calm in designing and crafting: my scattered thoughts need a focus. I completed most of the set last night, and I'm hoping to have the entire set complete by bedtime, tonight.

MOD HOT PAD SET; Castle Rock-WA~April 9th, 2026

And I'll be laying my head down, praying for a friendly female friend to enjoy local activities with, when the weather stabilizes enough to let me outside to enjoy hoped for activities.

MOD TEXTURED CROCHET BOOK COVER PATTERN~Fits 7-1/2" Paperback Novel

MOD Textured Crochet Book Cover.

I designed this textured book cover for the Clive Cussler novels a friend recently gifted me with 😊❤️ - but they novels are longer than regular paperbacks … so, a new book cover design was necessary 😉

********************

Materials: #10 Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Cotton Thread, #0 Crochet Hook, cord trims, large-eye craft sewing needle, small amount of contrasting throw-away thread.

Terms Used:

Ch = chain

Sc = single crochet

St = stitch

EO = end off/cut thread.

Row 1: Begin by making an 85 st foundation chain of sc; ch 1, turn.

Row 2: Sc across row (84 sts); ch 1, turn.

Row 3: Sc in 15 sts, then work *1 sc in front st only, 1 sc in back loop only* to last 15 sts; sc in 15 sts; ch 1, turn.

Row 4: Sc in 15 sts, then work *1 sc in front st only, 1 sc in back loop only* to last 15 sts; sc in 15 sts; ch 1, turn.

Repeat rows 3 & 4 for a total of 7-1/2". DO NOT CUT THREAD – loosely tie end, because you will be using it again.

Sc cover lapels & sc textured pattern.

Count 15 sts from each end, and fold those inwards for the cover lapels (to hold book in place): tack in place:

Tack the 15 sts cover lapels gently in place.

Picking up with the thread again, & working in back loops only … sl st across top 15 sts, ch 55 for bookmark cord (attach trim by drawing a thread loop through eyehole); then sl st back up the length of bookmark - joining to top edge: then sl st across remaining top sts. EO

Attach cord trim with a sl st.

Working in back loops only … sl st across 15 sts along top edge of book cover.

Thread a large-eyed craft needle and whip stitch top & bottom 15 sts of flap pieces. Weave loose ends in.

Book Cover finished.

Ta-da! All done: enjoy! 😊

MOD textured book cover fits a longer length novel.

And the length of the bookmark cord, is 'just right', too.