Kouvèt Baptinm

Mo té kroshé ça pou in ti kouzinn.  Çé té pou sô batinm çafé mo mèt kèk lakrwa laddan.  (M'ap kouvrí sô nom.)

I crocheted this as a baptism blanket for a little cousin.  (I covered her name which is down the middle)

                                                (Çé in désiñ par Mari Maxim mo té shanjé in ti brin.  It is a design by Mary Maxim that I changed a little))

Kompær Lapin

Kan mo té in ti fiy mô popa té dí nouzòt kont-yé apré Lapin ki çé byin smat é byin kanay.  In fwa mo té dí li, “To volé kont-çála en Bugs Bunny.” Li té dí mò, “Non, Bugs Bunny volé ça en mò.”  Mo té pa komprenn ça’k li t’apé di.  Astœr mo komprenn. 

Moun-yé en Lamèrik Nòr é Lamèrik Sid té viní konné kont-çálayé paske lèsklav.  Yé rakont kont-layé yé té aprenn en Lafrik.  Shak plas di diféren kont-layé apré Lapin.  En Lalwizyan, yé pèl li Kompær Lapin.

Kouvèt ròz-çila to wa Kompær Lapin apé soté é apé galopé.  Li probab té fé lembara ou paré pou fé lembara.  Bòr-la çé minm kom zérons-la ayou Lapin té né.  Mé toukèkin ja konné li té né lá eksèp pétèt Bouki.

When I was a little girl, my father told us stories about the smart, slick rabbit.  One time, I told him that he stole a particular story from Bugs Bunny.  He told me that Bugs Bunny stole that story from him.  I did not understand what he was saying.  Today, I know.

The stories of the smart, slick rabbit are stories that have been told orally in the New World for generations.  These stories came to the Americas by way of enslaved people from Africa.  The tales vary in different regions.  In Louisiana, the rabbit is known as Kompær Lapin/Compère Lapin. 

This pink blanket shows Kompær Lapin hopping along probably running from or headed towards some kind of mischief.  The border of the blanket is a thick ruffle which depicts the brier patch where, as everyone except probably Bouki knows, Lapin was born.

Louisiana Creole Flag Blanket

Kouvèt-çila çé kom Drapo Kréyol Lalwizyan-la ki çé pou lèritaj Kréyol Lalwizyan.   Prémiyé Drapo Kréyol Lalwizyan-la té kréyé par Pyær Bergeron en 1987. 

Mañær mo kroshé drapo-la çé diféran.  Mo kroshé flœr de li é shato-la pli gran paske kouvèt-la pou in bébe.  Çé kofær kouvèt di « ti Kréyol. » Çé in tap pou in krèsh.

Drapo-la gin : in flœr de li pou lèritaj Frans; drapo o Sénégal; drapo o Mali; drapo o Castille pou léritaj Spañòl; lakrwa blan pou léritaj shovaj (kat diréksyon) é pou tradisyon Katolik-la.

Plin moun té viní ensemb en Koloni Fransé, é Koloni Spañòl pou kréyé in nouvo lakilchi, Lakichi Kréyol Lalwizyan : Atakapa, Bambara, Fransé, Fulani, Shakta, Shitimatcha, Spañòl, Wolof, é plis.

Nouzòt toujou isit.

This blanket is like the Louisiana Creole Heritage Flag.  The original Louisiana Creole Flag was designed by Peter Bergeron in 1987.

I made the fleur-dê-lis and the castle a little larger because the blanket is for a baby. That is why it says ti Kréyol. It is made as a cover for a baby crib.

The flag has:  a fleur-de-lis for our French heritage; the Flag of Senegal; the Flag of Mali; the Flag of Castile for our Spanish heritage; a white cross which represents both our Native American heritage (the four winds) and our Catholic traditions.

The Attakapas, the Bambara, the Chitimacha, the Choctaw, the French, the Fulani, the Spanish, the Wolof, and others in French and Colonial Louisiana formed a new unique culture, the Louisiana Creole culture.

We are still here.

Fé dodo mô bébé

Mo té kroshé kouvèt-çila pou in zami ki çé Kréyol Lalwizyan kom mò.  Kan li té dí mò li té gin in gro vent, m’olé kroshé kishòj Kréyol pou sô bébé.  Kouvèt-la di, “Fé dodo.”  Fé dodo çé mañær pou di va dromi a piti-yé.  Mô zami té dí mò sô granmomanm mèt sôchènn momanm a lî avèk fé dodo itou. 

Astœr mô zami pe envèlopé sochènn bébé vèk lakilchi Kréyol.  Astœr, l’apé di fé dodo a piti-yé minm kom nô vyé paren-yé.

(Fé dodo çé in dans Kréyol lakompañ mé çe in kont pou in nòt kouvèt)

I crocheted this blanket for a friend who is also a Louisiana Creole.  When she told me she was pregnant, I knew I wanted to make something which expressed our shared culture.  The blanket says fé dodo ti bébé.  Fé dodo is a way to tell little children to go to sleep.  My friend told me that her grandmother tucked her own mother to sleep with the words fé dodo.

Now, my friend can wrap her own baby in the Creole culture and say “fé dodo” to her children just like our ancestors.

(Fé dodo is also a country Creole dance but that is a story for another blanket)

Breast Cancer Awareness Month/ Lung Cancer Awareness

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Although I have not been able to do much crocheting in the past couple of weeks, my sister has been quite busy.  I saw her today at Sunday dinner and she showed me these wonderful hats she is making for her co-workers.

She also made a purple hat for a co-worker whose mother has lung cancer.  The ribbon on this hat is white with a set of pearls on one end.  Lung Cancer Awareness Month is in November.

Love them.  She just needs to sew the ribbons on.  Both of us do not mind sewing clothes or curtains. However, we do not like to sew our crocheted items.  You can tell we are sisters.

Òktob çé mwa pou aprenn pou kansè de sîn-layé. Ça fé dé smènn mo pa kroshé.  Mé, mô sœr, li çé bizé avèk louvraj-yé de kroshé.  Li té montré mò vayan shapo-çalayé pou fenm-yé ki travay avèk li.

Li té fé un shapo vyolèt avèk un riban blan.  Riban-la, li gin perl-yé sî un bout. Shapo-çila, li té fé pou un femn ki maam gin kansè de pwatrìnn-layé.  Mwa-la pou aprenn pou  kansè de pwatrìnn-layé çé Novem.

Linm ça!!! Li bezwin pou koud riban-layé. To ka konné nouzòt çé sœr-yé akòz nonpli li ni mo linm pou koud kan nou kroshé.  Kan-mèmm, nou sé koud linj-yé ou rido-yé é pa fé trin.

Aprenn kréyol Lalwizyan (Learn Louisiana Creole)

Frogging This

I crocheted two houndstooth scarves so far.  I like the black/white and the brown/beige scarves. I started another one, but I don't like it. Two reasons: I used a different brand of yarn and both colors are dark. The gray is so dark that the pattern cannot be seen.  It looks not so good in this picture and in person, it is worse - a hot mess.  So, I'm frogging it.  I guess I'll try a lighter gray. Hmmm, what to do with the dark gray yarn? Make a hat, of course.  I think the dark gray will make a nice cable or basketweave hat for a man.

Démonté ça isit
Mo té fini dé ésharp kroshé den-shin. Mo linm ésharp nwa/blan-la é ésharp brun/béj-la. Mo té komensé un lòt, mé mo linm pa ça.  Dé rézon: Mo té sèrvi un difil diféran épi tou lé dé koulær çé fonsé.  Gris-la çé tro fonsé pou wa patron-la. Ésharp bordo/gris dan pòrtré semb lèd a mò. Mé vrémen, si vouzòt té isi, vou sé wa ésharp-çála çé sakré fraka.  Insi, m'apé démonté ça. Mo devinn m'alé séyé un gris pli klær pou ésharp. Ebin, kwa fé ak difil gris fonsé? Fé un shapo, byin sûr. Mo pens m'alé fé un shapo pou un nonm avèk ça - pitèt un shapo ak dê pwen kròsh (tordé) ou un shapo ki semb un mann. (Aprenn kréyol Lalwizyan. Learn Louisiana Creole.)

On the Lookout

People have requested this hat more than any others I have crocheted. This is the only multi-color one I crocheted.  It is brown, purple, and beige.  I kept it for myself, but I rarely wear it. Although I LOVE to crochet hats, hats and me - I don't know.

I made this hat in terracotta for one of my best friends, but she lost it while on vacation.  She has been asking me to make another one ever since. I would have done it already because I love her dearly.  However, there is one problem. The yarn I would use to make this hat was discontinued. Boo!

Therefore, Labor Day weekend, I will go out looking for a suitable replacement yarn.  I hope it comes out nicely.  It will be nice to surprise her for Christmas. The pattern is Lion Brand Suede Cap.

Shærshé (kréyol Lalwizyan)

Moun-yé envi mò pou kroshé shapo-çila pli'k lézòt mo té fé.  Ça isit çé sèl unn mo té kroshé avèk trò koulær-yé.  Çé brun, vyolèt, é béj,  Mo té chin ça  pou momèmm mé mo pòrt pa ça  un ta. Mo LINM kroshé shapo-yé mé shapo-yé é mò - mo pa konné.

Mo té fé un shapo dan koulær tèr pou mô zami.  Li té perdí ça. Li toujou mand mò pou fé li un nòt. Mo té sé fé ça déja akòz mo jolimen linm li.  Mé yé fé pa enkò difil-la.

Ça fé, m'alé shærshé un lòt kalité difil-la finlasmènn ki vyin. Mo swèt nouvo difil fé un bon louvraj o kroshé.  Ç'alé dèt vayan pou étoné li pou Krismis.  Patron-la çé Lion Brand Suede Cap. (Aprenn kréyol Lalwizyan - Learn Louisiana Creole)