Finished! :)

The extra yarn I ordered came in REALLY quickly!  A week ago today, actually.  I'm proud to say that the shawl is finished.  I have a couple of hats to make to send with it before I pop it in the mail.  I really hope my cousin likes it.  The pattern (a beautiful one by Rowan) is called "Birch" and is available for free when you register at their website.  The pattern calls for a mohair yarn but I wanted something a little more "meaty".  So without further adieu, here is my lovely finished shawl:

Having never blocked a shawl before (this is my first one!), I didn't realize what a task it was.  I chose to pin it instead of using blocking wire but I'm happy with the way it turned out even though it took me HOURS to pin..  Pinning a shawl + OCD= Me kind of wanting to pull my hair out.  It wasn't so bad as to prevent me from making another one though and I actually have another one on the go.  Same pattern but in a medium weight yarn.  

The pattern was an easy one, I had the repeats memorized before too long.  A great pattern for my first try at lace knitting!

Everything is better dipped in Chocolate

My husband and I aren't the kind of people who spend a TON of money on Valentine's Day.  Not a day goes by without us saying "I love you".  He buys me little things all year long to show me that I'm always on his mind and vice-versa. Our plans for tonight involve dinner at home after our darling daughter goes to bed.

 I'm a sucker for all the lovey-dovey quotes, crafts and heart shaped things that the day brings- I can hardly wait until my girl is old enough to do valentines crafts and baking with!

They're not baked but today I whipped up a batch of chocolate-covered strawberries- yum!  They're so easy to make (though I'm a little disappointed I forgot to pick up white chocolate to drizzle them with- they would have looked REALLY fancy).

Find the recipe for them here.  Wish I had a nicer way to display them (and a nicer camera to take pictures of them with but you get the idea!) but I still think they look pretty darn good!

They'll definitely be tasty after a nice dinner with my wonderful hubby!  Happy Valentine's Day!

My Pretty Valentine..

I look after a little girl in my home a couple of days a week.  She's a year older than my little girl and because of that I'm able to do a few things with her that I can't do with my own, like little crafts and stuff.  

I decided today that since Valentine's day is coming we could make some really cute cards for her family.  I'm a hoarder of all things crafty so of course I had blank cards, acrylic paints, heart stamps I made from compressed cellulose sponges (last night) and little rubber letter stamps.  I let her choose the colours and we got a little messy.  I'm really happy with the way these cards turned out and I hope her family likes them.  Brings a new meaning to "handmade" as well :)

So cute!  I also made some play dough and the she loved it!  I'll send her home with a chunk but I'll keep the rest of it here for next time :)

Hooked on Pinterest

I am so obsessed with pinterest that I could scream..  I am literally going into "amazing thing" overload.  I've only had an account for a couple of days but already I have so many ideas for things I want to do.  I have a huge bin of odds and ends that were given to me by my mother in law and I've been trying to think of what I want to do with everything.  Now I'm bursting at the seams with ideas!  A million thanks to Tracy who sent me an invitation in response to my lamenting on Facebook about how I requested an invite weeks ago and was still waiting.

Someday soon, my husband is going to come home from work to find me waist-deep in a pile of lace scraps and scrapbook paper with glue in my hair and my kid munching on rickrack and tempera paint. Maybe I should warn him... naah.  It would be more fun if I didn't!

Coming up short.. eep!

So the beautiful yarn I ordered from The Wooly Rhinoceros came in a little over a week ago.  I should have taken pictures of the yarn before I started working on my shawl but I was so excited to cast on that I completely forgot about it.  The yarn is BEAUTIFUL.  I want to eat it.  Seriously.  The colours are so vivid and the way they fade in and out of each other is amazing.  I'm so happy with it.

The ONLY issue I've had?  I didn't order enough.  The lady at The Wooly Rhinoceros put a ball aside for me in case I needed it but I was fairly certain I would be ok.  GAH!  I guess I should have known better.  This being a time sensitive project (my cousin isn't doing very well from what her sister relayed to me the day after I got the yarn in the mail) I should have had the foresight to just order the extra ball.  I have my fingers crossed that I get it to her soon, or even better that she beats this and is able to wear her shawl for years and years to come.

Since I don't have the shawl finished, I won't post a photo of the whole thing but here is a nice close-up of the detail:

Because it's not finished I haven't blocked it yet but it is SO pretty.  A great first attempt at lace knitting AND I've been wanting to make a shawl for a while now but was afraid to (it being a larger project and I tend to have a touch of ADD when I'm knitting/crocheting- not to mention the fact that I need things I can easily put down so I can keep after my little one and make sure she doesn't get into too much trouble).

I'll make sure I post pictures once it's finished :)

Go to Sleep Already!

I'm quickly coming to the realization that if I want to get any sleep at all, I'm going to have to start writing things down before I go to bed.  I've never been good at falling asleep.  I lie there for at least an hour before I drift off and if I think about falling asleep?  Forget it, I'm done for.  I'll toss and turn and all the while, things are spinning around and around in my head.  Nothing earth-shatteringly important.. nothing even remotely so.

What's normally going on in my head is this: (insert random song.... for example's sake let's do "Conga" by Gloria Estefan) "Comeonshakeyourbodybabydotheconga.... I wonder how hard it would be to make my own vest pattern.  I'll do a little online research... I could really use a dress form.  Where would I put it though? ...Iknowyoucantcontrolyourselfanylonger... Maybe in the spare room?  Naah.. not a lot of room for it there.  Ugh.. I have to get those hats finished soon and start on that book for book club. ...Feeltherhythmofthemusicgettingstronger... What?? 2am already?"

Silly things.  Definitely not worth keeping me awake but it happens. If I jotted some things down before bed, I'd know that in the morning I could pick up where I left off.  Ahh, who am I kidding?  I'll probably still end up thinking about random things.

At any rate, here I am at 1:30, knitting and drinking sleepytime tea hoping I'll be tired enough by 2:00 to go back to bed.  It'll be an early morning tomorrow so maybe tomorrow night I'll be able to get some rest. :)

PURGE!

Yesterday while we were out and about on Hubby's day off, I bought myself a day planner.  I only have my name and cell number written in it but already I feel  more organized.  Maybe it's the potential for organization that makes me feel that way.

I have a bunch of hats to make but I think I'm going to take some time today to do some organizing around the house.  My place is in desperate need of a purge.  I do it from time to time, usually with my closet but this time around the whole house needs it.

My husband and I may both have pack rat tendencies.  Mine tend more toward craft supplies (I once decided that I was going to start making more things from the tons of stuff I had downstairs but that in part sparked my obsession with hats and now my house is full of more yarn than any sane person would ever have at one time) and my husband has a few small collections of this and that.  After a little while of accumulating things, I start to feel as though the air is thickening and it's almost a little hard to breathe.

This is how I roll..

One of the things I really want to do this year is get more organized.  My yarn stash is kind of an organized chaos (though my husband miiight argue that it's just a mess).  I never seem to be able to find anything that I'm looking for.  The worst is my collection of crochet hooks and knitting needles.  I took care of this issue though and had another local "mompreneur" make me a couple of knitting needle/crochet hook rolls.  They're SUPER cute!  I had her make them in a pink leopard print with black lining (who says crochet can't be sexy?)- they're going to make my life so much easier... so long as I remember to put them back in when I've finished using them!

When I was putting my knitting needles in, I realized just how many pairs I own.  Shh.. don't tell hubbs.  I might have to ask the lady to make me another one just so I can put all my dpns (double-pointed needles) in it.. I don't have room in the other one!

It's really nice to support other local small businesses.  I know I could probably have made these myself or even bought some on Etsy but because I rely on other locals for their business, I like to buy locally when I can as well.  I know it's a little early to be thinking about Christmas already (especially since I'm still cleaning up the frickin' glitter from the one that just passed) but I'm thinking this year I'm going to make or buy locally as many gifts as I can.  Better quality and more thoughtful gifts for all! :)

Slip, Slip Hooray!!

I took a break from hats this morning to make myself some slippers.  A quick Google search yielded this pattern by Carmen Statham.  They worked up pretty quickly (about an hour) and were exactly what I was looking for!  This is definitely a pattern I'm adding to my stash!  There are also patterns for baby and toddler slippers.. perhaps I'll make a pair for my little bumblebee.. if she'll keep the darn things on!

Should Auld Acquaintances be Forgot..

Happy New Year!  Here's what I posted on Facebook last night:

This year I've been lucky enough to forge new friendships and rekindle old ones. I have spent some amazing time with my amazing family on both sides of the country. I've laughed and cried and measured my success in the number of moments that made me feel truly blessed- which were many. I've heard good news and bad news, sometimes had good days and sometimes had bad ones but always tried to live each one them never taking for granted who/what I have in my life. 365 days lived one at a time makes for one whole year of understanding who I am and feeling thankful that I have the life I have. Looking forward to the New Year and all the surprises and adventures it has in store. Happy New Year everyone, from my heart to yours ♥


I'm entering 2012 the same way I enter every new year- Hopeful, excited, ambitious.  My daughter will be walking before I know it (That's going to be an adventure in itself!), I have big plans for my little hat business and I am bursting at the seams with ideas and inspiration for new projects!


Instead of making the same New Year's Resolution I make every year (lose weight, get in shape- I still have plans to work on "me" but I'm not calling it a resolution), I resolve to do more nice things for others.  One of the first things on my list?  I have a cousin with cancer and I'm going to make her a soft, warm shawl.  We haven't been in touch for a long time (not for any bad reasons, we just never lived close to each other when we were younger, grew up and got involved with our own lives).  I've never knit a shawl before but with the help of a friend have found a pattern that shouldn't  kick my butt.  I'm excited!  I've been wanting to make one for a while but have been intimidated by the idea (until now I've only been working on small projects- ones that are easy to put down and pick back up without getting lost).  I can't think of a better reason to make my first one.


Because we live on opposite sides of the country, a shawl would be a perfect gift.  It's warm, comforting and you wrap it around your shoulders- it's just like a hug!  I found the most beautiful hand-dyed merino superwash yarn on Etsy in a bright magenta and purple mix.. I can't wait to see how it works up!


My other plans for 2012?  Making hats and donating them either to the maternity ward of the hospital or to the homeless.  I also want to do more little, everyday kinds of things- like buying a stranger a coffee or paying someone's bus fare.  Little things that are easy to pay forward.. maybe I'll start a movement!