Guest Blogger Week 15 Lokipan Crochet Designs

I would like to say a huge welcome

to MarieAnge from Lokipan Crochet Designs

When Susan asked me to do a guest post for her blog, I wasn’t sure what to talk about.

 There are so many things that could be covered in a guest post. 

I could talk about my crochet and knitting designs. 

I could talk about attending a university level class last fall that has led me to apply to attend university as a part time student. 

I could also talk about my battle with fibromyalgia, autonomic neuropathy, diabetes, kidney stones 

and a panoply of health issues that make each day challenging 

and so many many other subjects. So what to choose from?!

So how about if I cover a bit of each?

 

My crochet (and a bit of knitting) design blog is called Lokipan Crochet Designs. (http://lokipancrochet.blogspot.ca/) It is a fairly recent blog, started last winter to which I post new patterns I’ve developed and published.

 I’m a fledgling designer, learning the ropes as I go. 

I thoroughly test crochet/knit all my designs before I publish the patterns since that way I know that each size or option works.

 My latest design is for a pair of baby booties called the Origami Booties. 

They involve a bit of folding reminiscent of the Japanese art of origami, hence the name. 

A simple construction, no buttons for baby to chew on, can be decorated however you want and even has the option of duckie booties!

 They come in several sizes starting with newborn up to toddler.

 What toddler doesn’t like to walk around pretending to be a duck, quacking and waddling in their duckie feet!

 I wanted to develop a pattern simple enough for even the beginner crocheter to be successful making these and I think you will agree when you try them.

I will be publishing more patterns in the near future as I have a bit of a backlog in the writing down of patterns which I hope to remedy soon. The joys of shared computer limited access.

And now you must be wondering about this university class. 

Well, it was part of a brand new program called the McMaster Discovery Program (http://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/story.cfm?id=8376) offered by our local university, open to adults who had never had the opportunity to attend university and wanted to experience it. 

The class was about the local history of the city of Hamilton (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamilton,_Ontario) and our final projects covered what we as individuals had learned through the class.

I was one of 20 adults chosen to attend the class and I loved the experience!

 As the class progressed, I had to decide what my project would be about.

 What finally became my choice was the history of the native peoples of the area before and after the Europeans arrived up until today. 

I originally thought I'd write about it, but the more I researched the subject, the more I felt that I had to illustrate my findings. 

I had done traditional pictograph drawings in the past and was familiar with the method, so that became my medium of expression.

I came away from this program with several new friends.

 And last but not least, I came away with a renewed love of learning, a renewed sense of wonder at finding new knowledge, of exploring areas of study that I had given up on or never knew about.

 I also came away with a new sense of value, that I have a voice, that I matter and that I can be a student and do what I want.

 And all this is leading me towards finding out how I can attend university as a part-time student. 

The field I'm interested in is Indigenous Studies, to continue my journey finding out who I am as a Métis woman.

And last but not least, I am disabled.

 It can be frustrating, tiring, at times debilitating.

 But it doesn’t mean that I give up. A long time ago, I heard this quote, “Get busy living or get busy dying.” 

When it comes to facing the ups and downs of fibromyalgia, autonomic neuropathy and diabetes to name only 3 each day is a battle. 

Not long ago I met a Mohawk elder during the campus tour at McMaster.

 She had this quietness about her but when she spoke, you just wanted to sit and listen to her all day. She spoke of things her grandfather told her when she was a little girl at his knee.

 One of those things which applies even today was about people being nay sayers, we keep saying “No I can’t do this because I’m not smart enough” No I can’t do that because I’m disabled” or “No, I can’t do it because I’m afraid to fail”.

 But in order to grow, we have to become people who say “Yes, I can do this”, “Yes, I can participate even if I’m disabled”, “Yes, I can because I am smart enough”. 

And only when we begin to be people who say YES can we truly begin to grow and learn, live our lives and share our knowledge and experience. 

To be able to live our lives to the best of our abilities is all we should expect from ourselves.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my life and what I do along the way. Myself and my patterns  can be found at the following websites:

Lokipan Crochet Designs http://lokipancrochet.blogspot.ca/

Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/designers/marieange-brouillard

Craftsy http://www.craftsy.com/user/pattern/store/49755

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/Lokipan

Hookey http://hookey.org/profile/MarieAngeBrouillard

DeviantArt http://lokipancrochetdesign.deviantart.com/

Crochetville http://www.crochetville.org/forum/index.php

Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/LokipanCrochet

I hope you will join me in thanking MarieAnge for her wonderful post.

I hope you will pop over & visit her.

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Day One Day Two