MD Bash 3:51 pm

Chillin' (with beers).

Sittin' pretty. 

Smile for "The Internets"! 

The Giant SlipNSlide

Watch out, Dewey!

Goat on the fly. 

Go Drew, Go Drew!

MD Bash minus 11 hours

The pre-party has begun! The keg beer is flowing freely. Ok, so this picture doesn't look like it. That's because we are rednecks, y'all. We put our keg beer in cans so we can still use a coozie. True hicks.


The Best One Tire Crew.

Here piggy, piggy. 

We also had an incident. I'm not sure I can rival Aunt Purl's bus on the freeway fire story, but here goes. We caught the pig on fire. Yes, on FIRE. It's OK though, we just happened to have a member of our wonderful local volunteer fire department on hand to fight the blaze (he's one of the Best One gang). It may have been worse than you can tell by the pictures, but the flash on the camera is slow. Sorry folks, it's hard to blog properly when you're a redneck.


Fire! Fire!

Nice hose Mitchell.

Everything is A-OK! 
Hopefully tomorrow's party will be as fun as tonight. I will probably post throughout the day when I'm taking a break from the sun.

MD Bash minus 1

There is one day left before the big partay, and I have been spring-cleaning my butt off. I LOATHE spring cleaning. But someone has to do it, right? My reward at the end of the day will be decorating all the newly cleaned surfaces in my house with some Wal-Mart acquisitions from this morning and previously. I hope to get my office/inspiration area done, and put pictures in all the frames that I've bought and are now just sitting around. I also have everything I need to redecorate the bathroom. Wow, I should go clean so that I can get started with the fun stuff!

A Few Random Thoughts

There has been a sock frenzy going on around the vicinity of my hands. I finished one pair yesterday and started another this morning, with thicker yarn and a bigger hook. I finished one and started another, and they are just as cute as the first pair but will fit a much older baby. When I wasn't crocheting I was drooling over sock yarn in my new Knit Picks catalog (you know the link).
I won the EBay auction, so expect yarn porn in the near future. And possibly a lot of it. Let's say I've had a prosperous week at work.
Monday will be the Memorial Day Bash at my house, a party for the people I work with and our other friends. Beer and BBQ. I expect to spend a large portion of the day on the deck knitting before my girls come home at 7 or so. I'm going to work on my tan. It needs a lot of work.
I really want a cell phone.
Check out AmyLovie's cool new shawl/poncho thing. It rocks!
That's all for tonight, folks. I'll have pics tomorrow of the bigger baby socks.

Beautiful Baby Socks

Project Specs:

Rainbow Baby Socks
Pattern: I got this think from the CrochetTalk group website link section. The link directly to the pattern is here.
Yarn: Bernat Hot Sox in 40706, Crazy Hot
Impressions: These socks are darn cute! And so quick. I made these babies yesterday afternoon while visiting with a friend and basking in the sunlight on her deck, with minimal work to finish them up after work today. The pattern needed some small adjustments, but nothing major, just a stitch here or there. Quick, fun, and attention-catching. The socks have garnered much oohing and aahing. Love it.


Rainbow Baby Socks

I greatly enjoyed my day off yesterday. I cherise those few days that I have off because it seems that they are way too far apart. Memorial Day is fast approaching and with it, a three day weekend! Gasp! I have not had three work-free days in a row in so long that I cannot remember. Can you imagine all the crafty things I will accomplish in three whole days? I am very, very excited.
I should have plenty to work on. There was a short stash enhancing expedition yesterday morning, where I acquired the previously mentioned Hot Sox yarn, a giant roll of JoAnn's Sensation Rainbow Boucle, The Yarn Harlot's bookbookbook, and some cute mesh storage thingies. The blue thingie is now a WIP basket next to my bed. I have plans for the boucle, and I also want to do some stashbusting, because I also bid on a couple (hah, a couple) rolls of yarn on EBay and I need to make room.
I have so many works-in-mind that I am afraid I might become buried under all this yarn. Stay tuned to see if I will ever find my way out.

My First Original Knitted Design

The Siren bag is officially done. It took me awhile to post pictures, but I was so busy creating more stuff that I didn't have time to blog. Whew! So much to craft, so little time! And let's not even talk about the housework. So anyway, here she is in all her glory.


Siren Bag Completed

Details, Details!

Project Specs

Siren Makeup Bag
Yarn: Moda Dea Cache in Siren
Pattern: This is my first original knitting design. I think it turned out fairly well for a first go, but there are things about this bag that I would tweak.
Overall impressions: The Cache yarn is very nice. I wouldn't use it for anything worn close to the skin, because due to it's thin and thick, bulky texture it is a bit rough. This makes it perfect for bags, purses, and other accessories, however. I have about a third of a skein left, which I bought at Village Crafts with a 40% off coupon. Button and all this bag cost less than $4.50 to make. Not bad.
Despite the small adjustments that need to be made to the bag, such as the width of the flap after seaming, I like the bag and it's fun to take along in my purse. I've already had a few compliments. These bags may pop up again for Christmas gifts and the like, reincarnated with different yarns, needles, and buttons.


Siren Bag Open


Siren Bag Back

Crazy Creativity

Things have been hectic around here lately, but in a good way. The creativity is flowing freely and I am riding the wave for all it's worth. I finished the Siren Makeup Bag, and I will post pictures later. I have another secret project that I'm working on, and it's finally coming along the way I want it to. The sewing is also shaping up. I borrowed a friend's sewing machine for the weekend, and last night I cut all the pieces for the tie-dyed bag with my new rotary cutter and cutting mat. I've also sketched out a design that I would like to try for the new Lion Brand design contest.
I must take advantage of these creative spurts when they come, so I will post details on these projects later this week when I run out of energy. Till then, Happy Crafting!

A New Obsession

I need a new hobby like I need a new hole in the head. Which is to say, I've acquired a new hobby (no new holes, however). Over the last few days, I have suddenly become determined to learn how to sew. Actually, that's not true. I've been brewing over learning for the last couple of years, and simultaneously saving yards and yards of fabric from the clearance bin at Wal-Mart. Now I'm actually going to learn how to do something with them.
I can't sew by hand worth a darn, so two of my friends have been showing me how to set up a sewing machine (bobbins, stitch settings, etc.) and cut the fabric out. I'm starting with a bag to cart around current WIPs. The material I picked out is a sort of tie-dye cotton, 2 yards of pink and 2 yards of orange. So far we've done everything freehand, without a pattern, from a sketch I did earlier this week. No actual sewing has been accomplished, but all the pieces are almost ready. I can't wait to see how the bag turns out.
Fear not, my other WIPs have not been forgotten in my preparing-to-sew frenzy. The wedding blanket is almost halfway done, and the makeup bag can probably be finished in about a half an hour. Hey, now that I think about it, my little bag will match my sewn bag. Cool beans!

A Big Round of Applause

Congratulations to my little sister Tiffany, who is graduating from high school this afternoon. I am SO proud of you, Tiff. Best of luck in whatever you chose to do from here on out!

Jealousy Part 2

Yeah, OK, so I only got more jealous after seeing all the great blogging photos that were taken at MS$W. I will not link to the various blogs with these pictures because it would take me hours (and cause I'm mad here, people!). Just kidding, I will live vicariously through all of you! I knew this would happen, but I just can't stop looking at them, for hours at a time. My WIPs are now angry at the festival also, but my arse is planted in the desk chair and I can't seem to get up and do any real knitting.
I did make some progress on my wedding gift blanket while at a friend's house last night, and the Siren makeup bag is bound off. Thanks, Melissa! (She gave up a night of knitting to let me borrow her size 10s. How sweet.) At some point over the weekend I completed the Bernat Boa scarf, so I'll get pics up as soon as I can of that.
I guess my UFOs are dwindling after all. Hmm, I wonder if that's an excuse to buy new yarn? After all, everybody else's stash grew while they were in Maryland, and I just need to catch up. Right? (OK, maybe I'm stretching it here.)

Happy Mom's Day!....

...to my Mom and to mothers everywhere. I've had an absolutely wonderful day (other than having to be at work for two and a half hours). Dear Hubby took care of everything, starting with very cute cards and cleaning the house while I was gone, to cooking supper, to bathing the kids. It was awesome. Score points for Dear Hubby!
I gave my mom a card and the bookmark I made for her:


The Crochet Dude's Gingko Bookmark

I'm not the biggest fan of thread projects because they take so long, the thread is teeny-tiny, etc, etc. I liked this bookmark though, mostly because I finished it in about an hour and a half, and my mom loved it too. You can find the pattern at The Crochet Dude's site. I used a ball of thread I dug out of my stash, and a size 5 hook. I also changed the last round of the border, chaining 2 and single crocheting into every other stitch instead of every one. Shout out to the Crochet Dude! Great job on this one.

Hey, hey, jealousy.

Do you know what today is? I bet you do. It's the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, and I'm stuck here in Illinois. What is up with that?! I'm so jealous of all the knitbloggers who get to meet up there (did I mention they'll be meeting WITHOUT ME?). Somebody better take some kicka** pictures for their blog. I'll be relentlessly stalking said photo-bloggers for the majority of next week.
On a more positive note, I started another "instant gratification" project. Funny how I have not finished the last "instant gratification" project. This one is important though, I swear. It's a bookmark for my mom, and I should go work on it now, because it must be done tomorrow for Mother's Day. I'm hoping to lose myself in the stitches and forget about all the fun everyone is having in Maryland WITHOUT ME!

Gratification!

I did what I said I would last night. I buckled down, took some friendly advice, and wove in the ends of the blue scarf last night. And I am so glad that I did. Finishing the scarf and being able to wear it all day today gave me that instant gratification feeling that I've been looking for. I didn't take it off the whole time Allison and I ran errands today. I did, however, keep kicking it all the time, because it was too warm and sunny to wear it wrapped five times, and this scarf is VERY long. Allison refers to it as "The Snake."


My pretty fuzzy blue scarf.

Project Specs

Fuzzy Snake Scarf
Pattern: My own, I'm not sure you can even call it a pattern because it is so, so simple.
Yarn: Red Heart Supersaver in a variegated colorway I can't remember the name of, it's mossy green, pale blue, off white, and a sort of tan
Fluff from New York Yarns in a pale blue

This is my first knitted scarf, and I think it came out pretty well. It was supposed to be about 3 inches wide, but when I started it I didn't know that stockinette rolls. When I noticed what was happening, I figured I would just block it, but it turns out that I like the rolled effect. I'm going to leave it. The approximate length of this beauty is 11 feet, and it can be wrapped just once to hang long, or several times for a shorter length and warmer neck.

Another Celebrity Yarn Sighting

After dinner the scarf and I spent some high-quality time together, doing some high-quality reading.


(I'm so excited that Britney is pregnant, isn't she cute with the little tummy?)

Saw this while I was flipping through:


Kate Hudson buying yarn. Cool.

Let Me Rephrase That.....

Ok, so maybe unmotivated isn't the right word. Indecisive, spacey, wishy-washy? I don't think those are right either. (Well, maybe spacey.) See, the problem is that I'm not motivated to finish any of the projects that I've alreadly started. Such as the scarf, or the shrug, or the blanket, or cleaning the bedroom closet, or organizing my stash....... I could go on and on here. However, there doesn't seem to be a problem with my motivation to start new projects. Witness Exhibit A:


Salsa Scarf

I started this scarf while I was supposed to be working on all of the other stuff. I needed a quickie project to satisfy my impatience and hopefully bring back my enthusiasm for some of the neglected ones. It's Patons Cha-Cha in #2004, Siren, knitted on size 13's. I wasn't sure when I started, but I definitely love the striping of the yarn now. It's turning out very pretty, very soft, and very quick. I started it yesterday and it's already almost two feet long.
I'm getting ready to head over to a friend's to stitch and chat, and I'll be taking this scarf and the other to work on. I promise to accomplish something on both of them tonight. Really, I do!