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Turning regular handheld radios into a fun and personalized tool.
As a pilot car driver one of the most important, if not THE most important piece of equipment is our radios. Both the mobile radios that are mounted in our vehicles and the handheld radios, commonly known as Walkie-Talkies, are used to keep in constant communication with the members of our Superload or Oversize load team. They have to work properly and be loud and clear to help ensure not only the safety of our teams, but the motoring public as well.
This job can be flat out dangerous. That’s all there is to it. The motoring public doesn’t care much for us being in their way and sometimes negotiating the nation’s highways and byways with 200’ plus superloads can be pretty stressful. It can also be very pretty boring and repetitive.
Anytime I get a chance to make one of my team members smile or manage to get a chuckle from them, I take full advantage of it. So when I got my new handhelds I thought; “I’m gonna bedazzle my radio’s!” That’s just what I did!
At the top is a “Jewel Picker”. Most of these come with sticky ends used to pick up and place the rhinestones easily on glue. E6000 glue should be in every household junk drawer as it can literally be used on anything. Flatback Rhinestones in size “ss20” or “4mm” were the perfect size for this project.
My CB handheld has a green accent stripe so I found some iridescent greenish rhinestones to go with it and my VHF handheld had a plain black plastic casing so I opted for a muted pink rhinestone for it. I had a tube of E6000 glue so I just ordered the rhinestones and away I went!
Placement of the rhinestones on your mic/speaker is very important. Look closely at the picture above and you’ll see the stones have been glued onto plastic strips and don’t block the open spaces where you’ll speak into and hear from.My CB handheld is a “President” brand. The mics are pretty small and the size ss20 or 4mm flatback rhinestones worked perfectly. They really sparkle in the bright sunlight. Once at night, A lady stopped to ask me what the little reflectors on my vest were. “Must have been my Rhinestones!” was all I could think of that she had seen.
I had to be really careful of the placement of the rhinestones as they couldn’t interfere with any part of the speaker, microphone or buttons/keys. I wanted them to stand out and look cute, but not too over the top.
I opted to try to stay as minimalist as I could, which with rhinestones is next to impossible. I think I found a happy medium. None of the embellishments interfere with any of the radios’ buttons, microphones or speaker holes and I get the greatest reactions from the rough and tough truck drivers and other pilot car operators.
“Only you Miss Sarah!”, “I wouldn’t expect anything less!”, “No one will wonder who they belong to!”. These comments are always combined with chuckles, shaking heads, smiles and sometimes an out right belly laugh.
A moment of happiness in what can be a very stressful and dangerous job does a heart good.
Being the reason a person smiles is pretty cool too.
Just the right amount of bling-y wonderfulness that says “I belong to Miss Sarah”!
*sometimes the glue and jewel pickers can be a little hard to find. I’m including the amazon links below for the glue, flatback rhinestones and jewel pickers.
My 2014 Samsung Galaxy Jelly Bean tablet I bought from Costco.
In my job as a Pilot Car driver or PEVO, I spent 90% of my time in my pick up truck and even sleep in a bunk built in the back where the seats were. I spend about 10 months at a time away from home and my office space is the drivers seat and center console. Space is tight so I choose to work on a tablet with a bluetooth keyboard instead of a laptop.
My old beat-up Galaxy Jellybean tablet from 2014 was gettin’ a bit wonky on me. It was time to replace it and I absolutely couldn’t stand the thought of it. I knew I wanted to stick with the Galaxy devices simply because of how much abuse my Jellybean had taken. I prefer androids and the old one had just been so great, even though I’d dropped it too many times to count, I’d used it way more hours at one time than I’m sure it was designed for and it was just plain abused. All of my computer work while I’m on the road is done on my tablet and I knew it was time to replace the old Jellybean that had been such a great little device.
The original Rose Gold tablet color had faded over the years from the case being on it for so long.
Unfortunately it takes me forever to decide on a purchase when I’m buying tech stuff. I have to check reviews, talk to people and research buyers guides. But after all that I decided the Galaxy was the brand I really wanted to stick with. I ended up buying one of the new Galaxy Tab A9+ 256g tablets off Amazon. They had the most reasonable price and returns are way easier than going to an electronics store. It took a while to get all my stuff transferred over from the old JellyBean, but I was so tickled to death with it! I’m a gen-xer and not very tech savvy. Like the Jellybean, the new one is easy to navigate and user friendly. I’ve already dropped it a couple times and about had a heart attack thinking “these newer ones aren’t gonna be as tough as the old Jellybean”. No worries though, it’s just as tough as the old one.
I already had a great little tablet holder that clamps onto my steering wheel and although the new tablet had a bigger 11″ screen it fit fine in the holder with a little room to spare. I put a pillow on my lap for my wireless keyboard to set on and I’m dialed in and ready to blog or get work done on my website.
This tablet holder was designed to go on the handle of a stroller. It fits perfectly onto the steering wheel in my truck. Here is my tablet set up when working in my truck. The tablet holder is clamped onto the steering wheel with the new tablet mounted into it with the bluetooth keyboard laying on top of an old throw pillow.
Of course I had to get a new case for the new tablet and my old bluetooth keyboard had the letters worn off of it. It was a folding model and had been duct taped on the hinge and it just wasn’t holding a charge like it had when it was new. I opted for a case/keyboard combo and found one that had a mouse pad on it. Wow! What an upgrade! I also got one which had backlit keys. I didn’t realize I could change the colors on it when I ordered it. So just like my pink hardhat, I chose the pink backlighting. But boy howdy! It was REALLY bright! I needed the lighted keys to be able to work at night, but not so bright as to go blind! I read through the instruction leaflet (actual instructions??? No way! Easy for my old brain to understand too!) and it was super easy to adjust the brightness.
Another thing I got a kick out of was the keyboard had magnets on bottom for attaching onto the base of the case/stand. I didn’t even realize it when I bought it. I don’t usually use it with the keyboard on the case flap, but when I do it sure doesn’t go anywhere. Those little magnets work surprisingly well! A screen protector is a must for me. My sister often calls me “Grace” due to my tripping over air or constantly dropping things. Between the heavy duty case and the screen protector; I know my new tablet is gonna be safe in my clumsy hands.
I’ve hung onto my old one and re-formatted it. Even as old as it is, I use it for my mahjong and solitaire games. I’ve also been able to stream my favorite channels on it as well. Sometimes people laugh about how ratty it looks, but I’m happy it can still be used and will use it until it finally sputters and quits working.
I’ll add links below to my new tablet and the products I got to go with it. It’s a nice feeling to be able to say this is a great product to my followers and these really are! Hopefully this post will save you some time in trying to choose your new tablet and give you some ideas of things to go with it for working while in your vehicle.
As an Amazon associate I earn from qualified purchases. Links at the end.
Pot holders are a great way to start figuring out Free-Form crochet. Start with a basic granny square pattern. These pot holders are made up of ch, sc, dc and tr. ALWAYS use stitches you’re familiar with.
I think it was Paul McCartney who said
“I don’t go to therapy, I have my music and that’s my therapy”.
I totally get it because after nearly 50 years of crocheting; crochet is MY therapy.
As with anything that any of us may enjoy doing; my crochet abilities kept growing until my understanding and talent grew until I got to the point where I found myself bored with the same old stitches being used in the same old order.
I could change things up by using new fibers such as Bamboo (a SERIOUSLY advanced type of fiber to work with!), or Merino Wool. I still got bored with the easiness and needed a challenge. I started seeking out advanced patterns wherever I could find them.
To the left is a really simple example of Free-Form Crochet. A truck driver I work with asked me to come up with something he could throw over a load with a light rope attached for pulling heavy straps over the top to avoid damaging Wind Components. I had an extra Tennis ball (Thanks to my road dog Dakota), an old carabiner and #10 crochet thread from my doily bag. Using 2 strands of crochet thread, sl st and ch I made a net bag around the ball and closed it at the top by working the carabiner into the loops of the net bag. Easy peasy! Months later, the driver is still using it.
With the world at my fingertips and the irritatingly quirky sound of Dial-up internet; I found a what seemed like never free crochet pattern websites. No more ordering pattern books from Annie’s Attic or Kirschner’s. I even had a subscription to a small sized crochet pattern magazine, whose name completely escapes me but as they say “if you know, you know”. *Insert here 5 minute blank stares at the wall while biting my lip in a vain attempt to remember the name of the aforementioned crochet magazine.
Although “I was wet your pants” excited about all these patterns I was able to store in a cool little folder on my dial up computer; it was really just the same stuff over and over. Well DAMN it! Don’t get me wrong, I made some beautiful clothing, home decor and just general bazaar type stuff that made its way to many-a-thrift store donation box.
ENTER FREE FORM CROCHETING!
These Free-Form form flowers were made with vintage buttons and size 10 cotton crochet thread. When choosing buttons to make flowers with, choose ones with holes big enough for the hook your using to go throught the holes. I used a size 7 steel crochet hook for these. Stitches used: sc, dc, tr, dbtr, ch and sl st.I used a fabric pen to draw stems and leaves. They turned out so Cute!
After surfing Pinterest for crochet projects I stumbled on a Free Form applique flower pin. There was no pattern. I thought “why wouldn’t they include the pattern?”. I kept reading on and realized there WAS NO PATTERN! I must have looked for a pattern within the pin for 10 minutes! Finally I started to study the crocheted flower image trying to figure out how they’d done it.
It didn’t take me long to figure out the stitches used were dc, sc and ch. Easy peasy! After fudging around with these simple stitches and studying the image from the Pin, VOILA!!!! I had it! My first try at Free-Form crochet was a complete success!
This epiphany was such a game changer for me. I started looking at images of crochet patterns, zooming in and dissecting them. This meant I sometimes had to download the images and really look close at what stitches were used. But not just the stitches, but the size of the yarn which was used too.
I think one of the first crochet projects I tried as a kid was a potholder so I thought this would be a great little project to try for my first Free-Form project. As I was crocheting a long I realized I had been doing Free-Form crochet off and on for years and just didn’t realize it had an actual name.
A very basic desk set using veggie and tunafish cans. After peeling off the paper labels and running these cans through my dishwasher, I used worsted weight yarn to crochet a sleeve around each can using sc. When I got them tall enough to be just above the edge of the can I used a yarn needle and wove worsted weight yarn around the top, pulled on it a bit to go over the edge of the can, tied it off and tucked the ends of the yarn down in between the can and crocheted sleeve. I keep a bag of crocheted motifs in my yarn stashand have them handy for projects just like this. There were a bunch of button flower motifs and they worked perfectly for this project.
What I needed was a crash course on new crochet stitches. Pinterest has been a mind boggling experience when it comes to finding new crochet stitches and methods. I started a sub-board titled “Stitches” within my crochet board. At this time this board is up to 115 pins on JUST crochet stitches.
I see my crocheting in a whole different light. I now get an image in my head of what I want to make and combine the stitches I know to create a finished project. This didn’t happen overnight though. I consider myself to be in between a moderate to experienced crocheter. I did have to break the habit of looking at a pattern. I keep a notebook near my crochet chair for notes on more intricate or repeat stitch patterns.
HOLY MACKEREL!!!!
I have a few tried and true Afghan and sweater patterns in which I use the basics of the pattern and go from there. I call this “the bones” or the basic structure of the pattern. One of those patterns is “Baby Rings”; a mile a minute baby Afghan pattern from a pattern book I bought from Annie’s Attic years ago. Except for the basic rings I have changed that pattern every time I make one. I’ve added clusters, PC’s, DC’s, TR’s which are pretty basic crochet stitches. After learning stitches like Bead, larksfoot, bullion and box stitch the end product has turned from the same old, same old into intricate and eye-catching works of art.
Above is one of my versions of the “mile a minute Baby Rings” baby afghans I’ve made. This beautiful little girl lives in Calagry and her daddy and I worked together on an 83m wind turbine blade project going from Washington State to Hannah, Alberta in Canada. I changed things up by using non-traditional worsted weight colors instead of pastel baby colors. Adding cluster and popcorn stitches added texture.
I’ve probably made a dozen of these little baby afghans and each one is different. The only thing that stays the same are the bones of the original pattern which are the rings. I call them “Snuggies” and make them for friends and family who are expecting. For whatever reason babies like texture and lots of color. For me, being able to make something in which people of all ages really like and USE is the most flattering compliment they can give me!
Take the time to learn new stitches and start easy by making swatches of Free-Form crochet. The worst thing about this method of crochet is Frogging and this is where the practice swatches come in as a useful tool. There really aren’t any rules to follow. There aren’t any classes to take or real instructions to follow. Dig around in your scrap yarn for a ball of old yarn, find your favorite hook and let your stitch knowledge run wild. You’ll be surprised at what you come up with. This is such a fun and ever changing way to change up your crochet game.
Check the examples of my Free-Form and let your mind go crazy!
Happy Crocheting! Later Gators, Miss Sarah
Links to Materials Iive used to make my Free-Form projects. I’ve used these brands for years and stand by them 100%. Some brands, Boye crochet hooks are the only brand I use after trying others just to donate them to stick with what works best for me.
Miss Sarah Etc. 