Juneteenth 2023 at Leimert Park - Day 1

Yesterday was the kickoff to our yearly Juneteenth festival in Leimert Park.  As you can see from the photos, everything was rather mellow; there was a decent-sized crowd, but Saturday was more of a warm-up.

Degnan Boulevard, a Leimert Park staple

The only sucky part about yesterday was that I didn't have the cash to buy lunch from the Shabazz tent.  At the same time, it's probably a good thing because I don't need to be eating a bunch of fried food anyway; I had a nasty 3-week bout with gastritis from Kwanzaa 2021 to mid-January 2022, so I'm trying to lay low on anything fried.  But one day I'll have some Shabazz after all these years, maybe during the Taste Of Soul festival.

Shabazz Good Foods

I mostly spent my time in the park working on a custom order and chatting it up with some longtime friends, then left to go buy groceries for dinner on a tiny budget.  When you can't always eat what you want, then a struggle meal will make for some of the best comfort food.

A Beautiful Sista taking the stage

Well, this is the part where I throw in that infamous "to be continued" line, because today's the second day of the Juneteenth festival.  And because it's Sunday, considering that it's in Leimert Park, the event is going to be much livelier than yesterday.  While I'm at it, let me praise TMH for allowing me to wake up this fine morning to experience something as wonderful as celebrating my ancestors.

Àse 🙏🏾👑❤️🖤💚

Dipping My Toes in the Payhip Pool

A little over a week ago, I came across a website called Payhip after reading about it.  Took a look-see and I thought I'd give it a try.

I currently offer my crochet pattern book (both US & UK editions) on the platform, but I should have some new stuff on there down the line.  I'm still a newbie to Payhip, so I need to gain a little traction first.

In the meantime, let me give you guys the link to my barely visible store:

Stitches & Similes on Payhip

I call it "Stitches & Similes" for a reason; it's because of my exploits in the world of crochet, and also something I haven't touched on in this blog, which is writing.  I have a couple of books out at the moment (two novels and one nonfiction).

I shall return with some more goodies, so take it easy!

A New (Regal) Listing on Etsy

The Empress's Majesty Drawstring Tam

I had made a visit to the local library some time ago and saw this pattern book that I thought would have some designs I'd like.  It's called Crocheted Beanies & Slouchy Hats by Julie King, and I absolutely love it!

First, let me give credit to Ms. King as the hat you see in the top photo originally came from this book.  The actual pattern and design come from the Festival Slouchy Hat (see below); I just used different colors and added a drawstring to it.

Image of the Festival Slouchy Hat

I listed my rendition of this cute little hat on Etsy, so go on ahead and check it out.  While you're at it, visit my Soulful Stitchery channel on YouTube.  I'll see you guys on the next one!

I've Published My First Pattern Book

For the first time ever (and after years of writer's block), I've just published a crochet pattern book.  A lot of trial, error and chicken scratches went into putting this compilation together, but I finally did it!  Now the next step is to get some of these patterns into other publications.

Here's a couple of places where you can buy the eBook; the reason it's in eBook form is because I don't have enough pages to have it printed up.  But hey, in due time...

You can purchase these patterns on Amazon

And it's available on Gumroad too

Besides all this, I've still got a ways to go if I'm going to make my mark in the world of crochet.  Just one step at a time is all it takes.

Farewell, Sell On Etsy

Late last month, Etsy decided to deprecate their Sell On Etsy app in favor of their oft-tweaked and updated Etsy Seller app.  Though I've gotten used to the latter fairly quick, I do miss the former for its ease of use.  The only sucky part about it is that I couldn't throw in any calculated shipping prices on my listings, depending on the weight, height and length of the package; I had to do all that on the actual website.

As a result of the app deprecation, I freed up some space on my phone by (sadly) uninstalling it.  I can't be too sad about losing Sell On Etsy; it helped me take care of my orders with no problems.  I just hope that Etsy Seller will do a bang-up job as well as the previous app, because I love hearing that "Ka-Ching" sound go off.  😊

A Crocheter's Ode to Hip Hop

I've been a Hip Hop head since birth, since the first time I heard Freaks Come Out At Night by Whodini, Sucker MCs by Run-DMC, and Fly Girl by Boogie Boys (Rest In Peace to Ecstasy, Jam Master Jay, and Boogie Knight).  And I wanted to make this post as my way of commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the culture.

Obviously, I'm also a crocheter.  I love that shit like I love my Hip Hop music.  As I've done for my Etsy store, I've made, listed, and sold pieces that were inspired by some of my favorite Hip Hop joints.  Here is my most recent nod to the culture.

You remember the Kangol bucket hat?  The same one made famous by LL Cool J back in the day?  Well, the hat you see in this photo is my take on it.  I don't even have a pattern for it yet, but I need to go ahead and write one up.

Speaking of LL, one of his albums was called 14 Shots To The Dome.  Well, you can say this hat is "three hundred some-odd stitches off the dome"; I only incorporated what I learned from one of my favorite crochet pattern books, which I'll talk about on another post.

In the meantime, I've got that listing on Etsy:

The OOAK Custom B-Boy Style Bucket Hat

See y'all on the next post!  One Love

Soulful Stitchery Is Now On YouTube

I already have my blog and Etsy store, so why not start a YouTube channel?

I just created it a couple of days ago, so I still need to get it off the ground.  Click on my little banner that I grabbed from Etsy, and it'll take you straight to the channel.

Or if you want to bypass all that, here's the link below:

Soulful Stitchery on YouTube

Seems like I'm making short and sweet posts these days, but I will be churning out some content.  😉