pineapple rose garden & an exceptional finish

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And Spring arose on the garden fair,

Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;

And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast

rose from the dreams of its wintry rest.
—Percy Bysshe Shelley
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Such warm & wonderful thoughts as we begin our wintry thaw. And what better way to usher in the springtime than to crochet.......oh! I know......

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....a doily!

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Why, of course -- can't stray from the obvious.

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I am using this book:

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and crocheting the Pineapple Rose Garden topper.
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Size 10 crochet cotton and my size 5 steel hook.
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The topper begins with this pretty rose in variegated pink hues. And believe it or not, I am learning a lesson about tackling crochet projects rated as EXPERIENCED -- because these are something I would have never attempted before.
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Duh --take one step at a time. One teeny tiny direction at a time before rushing into the next stitch. Because you see before, I would always read the entire row and groan inwardly that there was no way I could ever understand this, much less attempt it with hook & thread.
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For example:
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Rnd 28: Slip st in next FPtr and around post next FPtr,

ch 4, work FPtr around each of next 5 sts

3 dc in next ch-2 sp, work FPtr around each of next 6 sts,

work Split FPtr, * work FPtr around each of next 6 sts,

3 dc in next ch-2 sp, work FPtr around each of next 6 sts,

work Split FPtr; repeat from * around; join with slip st

in fourth ch of beginning ch-4.

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What?!

In my previous life (ha) I would glance at the whole set of directions and k.n.o.w. there was no way I could ever crochet that row. But then the aha! moment came and I starte to read just one tiny section of the phrase -- worked it -- then moved onto the next phrase -- worked it -- and oila! progress & more importantly -->success!

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Yes, I know. Slower than most, but because I finally got that through my thick head, I actually completed for-experienced-only-crocheters EXCEPTIONAL doily!

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And the flowers -- from my husband for our 19th wedding anniversary. Perfect combination, don't you think?

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