This will be my most ambitious crochet project ever! I plan to do a pictoral freeform depiction of the most beautiful place I have ever been, Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawai’i.
I plan to frame 2 sides of it with exotic flowers and leaves, so I hope my designer-for-a-day mates include some of them in their instructions! (hint, hint)

Plan to just use stash yarn, including some from Maui that was purchased on my trip.
The top photo shows a painted template I made, with the crocheted pieces placed where they will go. The flowers & leaves will be oversized and used as a frame on 2 sides.
I had to start a second project page for this, called “More Freeform Pieces” because there are already 21 photos here!

Update 5/14/11:
I tried to use flowers I actaully saw on my trip to Maui, with the exception of the pink ones on the top left. I made them from the Bruges Lace instruction and Lupa’s dome - and loved them & wanted to use them. The others are (from top left counter-clockwise) Plumeria, Yellow Hibiscus, Red Ginger, Orange Ilima, Pink Hibiscus, Lobster Claw/Heliconia, Bird of Paradise, Yellow Plumeria (with a hyperbolic leaf based on King Kamehameha’s numbers), and Anthurium. The leaves are not true-life representations because most of these plants have huge leaves & they would have overtaken my piece.

I did not want to over-embellish so the background is basically devoid of life, but it is serene. I found the vintage sun brooch on eBay, for 97 cents!

The best thing about this poject is not only did it bring back memories of my trip, it holds memories of some of the wonderful friends I’ve made on Ravelry. In particular, Hummywinger who sent me beads and the sequin yarn (sorry I could not use the feathers); Truknit for the gorgeous hand-spun variegated green yarn which felted so beautifully and for the metallic golds used on the beach.

Thanks to all the Dfads in the Cro-Kween group and all the CAL participants who made this year-long extravaganza possible! And thanks so much to Gwen aka Crochetkween for hosting this in her group.