Reveling in Ravelry

Greetings fellow knitters.  I am having a wonderfully peaceful Sunday "morning".  I use quotations, because it's nearly noon, and I've only been awake for about an hour.  Busy day yesterday, and the fibro kicked in along with the tail end of my chest cold.

Part of the reason yesterday was so busy is because I began rearranging my soon-to-be Knitting Knook.  We got the over-stuffed chair my mom so graciously donated into the room, and I stored the sewing machines.  Turns out, I didn't have to break down the table the machines were on, so I can use that as a crafting table, if the mood strikes.  I'll also be able to pull out the machines if/when I want to use them.  There's still quite a bit of work that needs to be done, but it's more than usable -- I'm sitting down here as I type -- and it's quite comfortable.

I've spent the "morning" sifting through Ravelry.  My login is TheFiberNerd, for those interested in befriending me.  The woman whom I hired to clean my house just -- a month ago! -- had a new baby boy, and I want to do something for her.  So, I'm thinking of knitting him a pair of tiny little booties.  December/January babies -- all babies, in fact -- need warm feet, so I thought I'd start there.  Oddly enough, I'm not finding "the perfect" pattern.  Does any one have a perfect baby bootie or baby sock pattern that is their go-to?  I'd love to see them.  I'd like it to be DK or Sport, if that helps/hinders any.

I haven't forgotten about my tutorial.  I just have a few more pics to take of the process, then I'll write it up.  Probably tomorrow or Tuesday.  I know, I know, I keep pushing it out.  Cope.  It'll get here when it gets here.  Hehehe...

Alright, Happy Sunday,
~j.b.

Attack!

I'd post a picture of what's been attacking, but I feel that if I don't visually acknowledge them, then they might go away and not exist any longer.  So, you ask, what's been attacking? 

Moths.

Tons and mega tons of moths.  I believe we brought them into the house in a box of wood we purchased from Whole Foods a couple weeks ago.  We haven't used the wood for fires because it's been so warm lately -- 70+ degrees today -- which is part of the reason they HATCHED!  I mean, eww.  I've been slowly killing off their family-members for the last two+ weeks.  And I'm still finding them.  It's so bad, I ran away to my mom's house for the week ( I can't get Terminix in until Monday!).  I just couldn't handle them any longer.  Especially on top of having a nasty cold this week -- by the way, I'm in love with DayQuil.

But as a God-send, the Moths have been graciously avoiding my fiber and fabric perfectly.  I haven't see even one in my yarn, fiber or fabric since this all started.  Not even in my clothing.  Thank GOD!  I'd have run away from home, screaming if this was not the case.  I really dislike hate insects of any shape or size.  Mostly it's spiders I hate -- yes I know they're technically arachnids, thank you -- but even flying "bugs" make my short list of things I would rather not have in my house.  I'm honestly fine with them outside.  But once they venture in to my domain, I kill them.  Repeatedly, if need be.  I'm an equal-opportunity bug murderer.  But, I believe it's justified.  They don't pay the rent.

Enough about bugs.  I have this waiting for you:

 

These will be available two ways.  One) I will have a limited supply of them for sale in my Etsy Shoppe (I'll edit with a link when updated) and Two) I am going to be posting a tutorial on how I made these for those who would rather do the work for themselves.  

Sound good?  I can't hear you!  Heh.  So, keep a look-out the next couple days for the tutorial to make an appearance.  Might be as late as Monday, too.  Might not.  You never know.  Ever.  

Alright, that's it for  tonight. 

Praying for no Moths,

~j.b.

First Swatch is a Disaster!

Well, I managed to "finish" the first swatch for the Master Hand Knitting Course I'm taking.  I knit 2" of K2P2 (knit 2 purl 2, for those who aren't "up" on the lingo) ribbing, increasing by five stitches "unobtrusively" on the last row of ribbing, then knitting what I thought was four inches of garter stitch.  But no.  Not.  Four.  Inches.  I should have knit four and a half inches in Garter Stitch.  Ack!  So, I get to knit this stupid cute little swatch all over again.

~the wrong size swatch~

I guess it could be worse.  But, not all was lost.  Just the length.  And I don't actually mind re-knitting the whole thing.  It truly is good practice.  And I've already learned something I didn't know at the outset.  I learned how to unobtrusively increase at the end of ribbing.  

(for those of you interested: it's a k1fb in the last knit stitch of how ever many repeats it takes to get the correct number of stitches)

So, I'm fairly thrilled, actually.  And I'm only a few weeks days behind on my "Complete this Course in a Year" Plan.  I have also learned that there is a group of knitters that meet every Wednesday at the local Yarn Shop (YarnDogs) who are all doing this Course.  So, health holding up, I plan on going this Wednesday.  I'm pretty excited.  It will be nice to meet others who are fighting with loving these swatches.

That's about it for tonight.  Hopefully I will have some more to write tomorrow or the next day about my class.  For now, I will leave you with ~

~ Some Beautiful New Yarn ~

So ogle, covet and plan away.  This picture doesn't really do the color justice, sorry.  The color name is Garnet, and it's a fairly accurate description.  I believe this will be turning into mittens to keep my freezing fingers warm this winter when I take walks with the Husbie.  

Have a wonderful night, I'll talk to you all soon.

Happy Crafting,

~j.b.

Sewing Room Confession

Oh my goodness, two blog posts in one week.  Don't get too excited, it's not likely to happen very often, if ever again.  So, just enjoy it while it's here.  No expectations though, you hear?

I've decided to redo my sewing studio.  Not necessarily permanently.  Just for the foreseeable future.  I haven't been sewing much, if at all, over the past few months, and every time I walk past my sewing room, I get really sad, because I miss being in there so damned much.  So, instead of shutting the door -- literally -- and forgetting about it, I have a plan to turn in into a cozy little knitting-nook.  I am truly excited about this prospect because not only will in allow me to use my favorite room in the house, it is going to give me a perfect place to work on my knitting class and my knitting in general.  So, for now, I am looking for a chair:

The Perfect Chair

This is my ideal.  It's a Restoration Hardware chair that I am currently coveting.  I've even seen almost it in person.  We have a store literally down the street from where we live.  It's very dangerous, to a point.  The point is where we can't afford anything in the store.  And stealing is hard because I'd look somewhat suspicious walking shuffling out with a couch stuffed under my jacket.  At any rate, this is the goal.  I am going to be looking at thrift stores for something that will do perfectly.  I *may* have it re-covered.  We'll see.  It depends on how much we spend on the initial chair.  If it's cheap, then I'll spring for some nice new fabric.  But, I don't necessarily want to recover it myself.  Don't know if I'm up to that much physical labor at this point.  We'll see.

So, I'm also looking for side table to place next to the Perfect Chair.  And this caught my eye this morning:

YardStick Side Table

Something like this would be perfect, as well.  I have a small sewing cabinet that my Mother-in-law gave us quite a few years ago.  It is being used as a side table in the living room, though.  Maybe if I can find a new table for there, I can take it down stairs where she would feel more at home.  :)

Now, I also have some furniture I am going to have to store for an indeterminate amount of time.  Namely, my sewing table.  It's an Expidite desk from Ikea.  I love it, don't get me wrong.  I just don't have room for it and the Perfect Chair.  So, it will be removed and stored for now.  As will my cutting table.  I think the cutting table will fit in the corner where my spinning wheel currently lives.  And my spinning wheel is going to make a comeback as well.  As I plan on doing some spinning here soon.  My mom gave me a bunch of amazing fiber last week that I can't wait to dive into.  Literally.  I want to lay in it.  It's that soft.  I have silk, and Alpaca, and Llama waiting for me.  Plus some merino blends and cotton that is still in its husk.  Cotton spinning is something I've been wanting to learn to do for a while, now.  It has such interesting tools.

Alright, I'll keep you posted on the Studio Redo as I make progress.  I truly can't wait to make the room useful again.  And thank you for your patience with the lack of blog posts these past few weeks.  You all knew I'd be back, right?  Right!?!?  Ahem...

Happy Crafting,

~j.b.

A quick hello...and a book review.

So, it's been a while.  And it's been a while since I've needed to write that pesky little sentence.  It's been a fairly crappy couple of days weeks here.  And while I have been trying to live them gracefully, I am worn the heck out doing so.  I've been getting migraines basically everyday for the past...well, nearly 8 years, if you must know, and the last six months have been really taxing.

Because of this health-forced hiatus from all things crafty, I have resorted to reading and watching TV.  I hate TV.  Let me be a little more clear.  I hate commercials.  I yell at them, bad mouth them, and pretty much make watching any sort of program with me very uncomfortable for any and all innocent bystanders.  I don't mean to.  But because of this, we don't have cable.  I watch TV with Netflix and Hulu.  I know, Hulu does have commercials.  I can deal much better with one to two commercials per break than six or seven.  The anger scale stays within tolerable levels.  As does the yelling.  And my marriage is saved.  Which is good.  I like being married.  Specifically to Jon.  But he only likes me when I'm not yelling at commercials.

So, watching TV, I have discovered Downton Abbey.  It's a great period piece set in turn-of-the-century England.  The costumes are amazing, and the acting isn't bad, either.  I'm also not allowed to watch period piece with other people, but that a different story, all together...

I've also been reading Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's book Knitting Rules.  It's hysterical.  She does an amazing job of making me feel creative even while I'm wasting away hours watching Netfilx.  I highly recommend her blog as well.  The Yarn Harlot.  Her writing is amazing, and her sense of humor seems to be what gets her through her roughest times.  Which is very familiar to me.  If it weren't for my sense of humor, the past eight years would have ended me.  Or, I'd have ended me.  Either way, not so good for the crafting.

Speaking of crafting, I recently found The Master Hand Knitting Level I correspondence course over at TKGA.com.  I found this a couple of weeks ago, and just signed up for it two days ago.  I'm so excited I could run around the house like an amped up on sugar two year old singing at the top of my lungs.  Fortunately -- for my marriage, and sanity -- this is not possible given the current fibro-flare.  Maybe this is a blessing in disguise?  I'm going with that.  Yeah.  That's it.  A blessing.

So, I received the course requirements via email yesterday, printed them all out -- after searching for twenty minutes for the ream of paper I knew we had -- and ever-so-gently put them in a binder I had lying around from my college-days.  Now, the task is to create daily/weekly goals so as to actually finish this program in the year I'm given.  Sixteen swatches.  In one year.  Plus loads of other fun stuff.  I believe I can manage.  Yup.  Can't wait!!  Now, back to the running and singing.  Even if it is all in my head.

Happy Crafting,
~j.b.

Suck it up? Really, is that necessary?

I spend entirely too much a bit of time on Pinterest (link opens in new window).  And I have noticed a sad, sad trend recently -- beside the stupid silly bucklist pins.  I have been seeing a lot of pins suggesting that the only way to loose weight and get in shape is to be not only hard on yourself, but down right mean to yourself.  This is something I don't particularly like, and it's something I have been working very hard at not doing to myself.  This pin is what inspired me to write this post today.  The person who created this photo, I imagine is a very angry person.  Either angry at her/himself or just angry at the world and all its people in general. 

As the New Year is well under way, and reducing the amount of anger I feel toward myself is one my primary goals this year, this really makes me sad.  Anger is not the motivation I want to use to accomplish things in my life.  All this does is leave me feeling wiped out before I even begin, and in the end.  Then, even if my goal is accomplished I still feel like crap about myself.  So I ask you, what is the point of this?

To shame oneself into action?  Does this really work for any length of time?  It might get you to act in the moment, but action will become increasingly difficult to achieve without also increasing the damage you're doing to your self esteem. 

As I begin to climb down from my soap box, here, I will leave my readers with one final thought.  Having been on both sides of the thin vs. fat battle (120lbs and 190lbs) yes, being thin is nice.  Being able to fit into just about anything at the store is wonderful.  Being thin makes shopping (which I hate doing) much easier.  But sacrificing your sense of self and your self-love in order to become thin?  Totally NOT worth it for even a second.  Because the truth is, no matter how thin you become, it will never be enough for you if don't love and respect yourself to begin with.  Accept where you are now.  Love yourself as you are now.  Learn to make you enough.  And the rest will come and go as it's supposed to.

Alright, off my soap box, for now.

Happy Thursday,

~j.b.

darling finished projects...

I have had this finished Needle Book languishing in a drawer for a couple years, and I finally got up the courage to put it up for sale on Etsy this morning.  There are a few more waiting to be finished, so depending on this first one, I'll get the others up for sale, too.

I had a ton of fun making this, and why I never finished the lot of them is completely beyond me.  Other than the fact that I get very ADD with crafting/sewing/making things.  I do not seem able to complete a group of items.

My ultimate goal is to have a replenishing supply of hand crafted items for sale in my Etsy shoppe.  It's a fun and relatively simple way to pay for my crafting/yarn/fabric/etc. addictions.  Yes, I have tons of grand ideas about become interweb-famous for my crafts and my writing.  Unfortunately, I let these ideas of grandeur affect my ability to actually do the crafting and the writing.  Well, in this New Year I really want to change that.  I want to be able to set a goal and follow through with it.  Let the dreams fly, and then come back down to Earth and do the work.

Happy Tuesday,
~j.b.

Instagram-ish...

So, my dear friend Jamie over at Scissors and Steam asked me to do an Instagram 366 -- who knew this year is a Leap Year? -- with her.  Well, I do not have an iPhone, and Instagram is not quite available to the geeks like me who use the Android OS.  Alas, I had to say no.

But, this got me thinking.  Android has many apps in their Market.  So, I found a Camera app that allows me to edit my photos on the fly, Camera360.  This is not a review of the site I just linked to.  If Camera360 is an app you would like, please check out your android market on your phone.  Do not download apps from unknown sources.  Just a general bit of good advice -- from my techy husband, actually.

That being said, I downloaded this program from my market-place and have been playing with it.  It's super fun!  Here is my first photo:
   (I'll post more about this project at a later date)

The camera app has this Tilt Shift filter that allows me to auto focus on a particular part of the photo and it blurs the rest.  I didn't know this was even a thing until I started talking to my husband about it.  I also edited this photo in Picnik on Picasa.  Which is where I store my not-yet-published photos.

So, all things considered -- and I do mean all -- I believe I am going to participate in the 366 photo "thing".  I think I'll do as Jamie will be doing, though, and post a compilation of photos once a week, so I am not bombarding my lovely readers with photos every single day.  The above photo will act as number 1/366.  And this photo -- being that it actually is the second day of January, 2012 -- will be number 2/366

Even though it took a few days after X-mas for it to arrive -- lost in transit, apparently -- I got Jon and I Nerf Guns as a gift.  And we played with them New Years Eve for a while.  And now, I'm finding these little disks everywhere in the house.  Made for a fun evening, though.  Guess we'll be finding these things for years! 

Happy Day-off-Monday,
~j.b.