Finished Crafty Things of 2009.. Part Five

Okay, so hubby used to manage a Christian Book/Gift store.  For years I have made scarves and sold them there.  This year was no different.  Well, I guess it was  a little different because I only sold 2 scarves.  Usually I sell a bunch of them.

I tend to blame myself for it.  This year instead of buying novelty yarn and just knitting it on really big needles, I played around with different stitches and made my own patterns.  Problem is that they turned out so cute I kinda wanted to keep them.  In fact I was maybe a little bit hoping to get them back, so I could have them.  Even though I don’t wear scarves. 

Anyways here are 4 of them.

Pattern-  My Own, Crocheted Granny Rectangles
Hook Size – I
Yarn – Patons Merino Wool in Pink and Black
Notes – I think this turned out so cute.  My little girl now has her eye on this one.  🙂

Pattern– My Own, Ripple Scarf
Hook Size – I
Yarn – Michaels brand Loops & Threads Impeccable – Brown and Aqua
Notes –I love the way this scarf ended up looking.  It might become a gift, or I might keep it.  Haven’t decided yet.

 
 

Pattern– My Own, Knit Scarf with Crocheted Flowers
Needles – US size 13
Hook Size – I
Yarn – Michaels brand Loops & Threads Impeccable – Purple, Gray, Aqua, and Brown
Notes – I adore these scarves.  If I don’t keep one for myself I will be making myself one soon.

A Week of Happy (Jan 24-30, 2010)

1. 75/365 days of happy, 2. 76/365 days of happy, 3. 77/365 days of Happy, 4. 78/365 days of happy, 5. 79/365 days of happy, 6. 80/365 days of happy, 7. 81/365 days of happy

1. Sunday– Another scarf for a friend.  I love the color of the Rose.

2. Monday-Knitting on a gift for a family member.

3. Tuesday-Bisquick Biscuits.  Odd?  Maybe.  It’s one of the first things that my mom let me cook on my own.  My grandfather to this day still talks about those wonderful biscuits Mandi makes.  His constant praise over the simple things I would cook, made me want to cook more.  I credit him for my love of cooking and baking today.

4. Wednesday– More knitting.  I’m so happy to be working on a simple garter stitch project.  It’s about all I could handle this week.  Plus this was me starting another block on it.

5. Thursday– Apple Pie.  I’ve been wanting one for weeks.  Thanks largely in part to one of my favorite movies (Waitress) and watching the DVD sets of Pushing Daisies.  It was so yummy!

6. Friday– The hubby’s last day of work.  He brought home supper to celebrate.  Although he loved his job and the people that he worked with, the job had become a bit of a headache over the past year.  So much so that he has been dealing with a bleeding ulcer for the past 5 months or so.  So he is looking forward to what the future brings.  I was a little too upset over it being his last day of work to manage cooking.

7. Saturday– We got SNOW!  And Ice… which was a little scary, but oh so pretty to look at.  I can love the snow and ice, because we only get it in small amounts about once a year. 🙂

Monday Musings…

All day today I’ve had a song stuck in my head.

“Every other day, every other day,
Every other day of the week is fine, yeah
But whenever Monday comes, but whenever Monday comes
You can find me cryin’ all of the time” (Yep, the good old Mamas and the Papas)

Random maybe, but it’s Monday, and I’ve been crying.  So for me it fits.  I’m such a sap.  Every year on the eve of my children’s birthdays I’m a wreck.  I’m always fine on their actual birthdays.  But, that night before.  The last hug before they go to bed.  It kills me.  It’s the last time I get to hug them while they are __ (insert age there). 

Today was the last Monday that the hubby will go to work at the bookstore he has managed for the past 7 years.  I’m trying to believe that we are on the edge of something wonderful for our family.  But, the side of me who always sees the glass as half-empty… is trying to hold on to the “lasts” of this week.

It’s the lasts in life that do me in.  So, no real purpose in this post.  Just random thoughts and where I am on this Monday.  I’m trying to make myself post at least 5 times a week.  So you might end up getting a few random pointless posts from time to time. lol

A week of Happy (Jan 17-23 2010)

I’m still working through my 365 project.  Every day I try and find something that makes me smile, or has made me happy.  Here is the past week.

1. 68/365 days of happy, 2. 69/365 days of happy, 3. 70/365 days of happy, 4. 71/365 days of happy, 5. 72/365 days of happy, 6. 73/365 days of happy,          7. 74/365 days of happy

1. Cleaning out our Bedroom.  I hate to clean, but seeing the trash bags of stuff lined up makes me smile.  Maybe it’s because I know that I won’t have to deal with it anymore.

2. I saw this post on a blog I enjoy reading and was inspired to make my own list.  Although I couldn’t do a 30 things I want to do before I turn 30.  I hit 29 last September and I am holding there. ;)  So, it’s a 29 things to do before I turn 29 to the 2nd power. lol

3.  Not having to cook supper for the first time in weeks.

4. An emergency can of Coke and some Chili Cheese Fritos.  It was the first soda I have had since Christmas.  A very nice treat during Criminal Minds.

5. A lovely lovely lovely new cookbook!

6. My first knitting stitch guide.  I adore the size of this book.  I need to take another picture with something beside it so you can see the size.  It’s so cute.

7. Cooking dinner for my family.  I really enjoy cooking, when I want to cook.  This is a Rachael Ray recipe for Baked Shells Casserole.  I used different shaped pasta and topped it with Mozzarella Cheese.  Super good, and my children ate spinach! 🙂

Finished Crafty Things 2009… Part Four

Just a short blog today, but lots of pictures.  Remember, how I said I made the Anthro Inspired Scarflet for my Sister In Law Heather.  How I said I loved making it because it’s such a fun pattern.  Umm yeah, here are photos of my 2nd and 3rd Anthro Inspired Scarflet.  My 4th one just came off the needles two days ago, but I am determined to blog about all my 2009 crafty items before I move on to 2010.

So yeah, I love this pattern. 🙂

Pattern– Anthro Inspired Scarflet
Needles – US size 8
Yarn – Michaels brand Loops & Threads Impeccable – in various colors
Notes – Love this pattern, so fast and fun. Love the finished project too. The Michaels brand yarn is surprisingly soft and squishy for arcylic. The rose pins are the Irish Rose pattern.

Obviously, the scarflet can also be worn plain without the rose pins.  But, I really think they are cute with them.  I just hand stitched a felt circle on the back of the roses and then hot glued a pin back on. 

Finished Crafty Things 2009… Part Three

It’s rainy and gray here today.  I love rainy days.  I don’t know why.  It seems like they should make you sad.  What with the sky being all gray and dreary.  Instead they have the opposite effect on me.  A gray dreary day will always make me happier then a nice bright and sunny one.  I’m just odd that way.

The only downfall to this lovely gray day, is that the yard is wet and I can’t take the pictures I had planned on.  I wanted to get pictures taken of Kathryn’s Babette blanket and my shawl.  But, I don’t really have room in the house to spread her blanket out enough to get good pictures.  I had planned on doing it outside.  So it will have to wait. 

So instead, I will show you the rest of my brother and my sister in law’s birthday presents.

One of the many things my brother and SIL and I have in common, is that we all love Fall.  The colors, the cooler weather (though not much cooler in Alabama where they live), and the food.  It’s just a wonderful time of year.  So I knew I wanted to make them something for their house that was related to that time period.  Especially since their birthdays are towards the end of summer.  Add to that my obsession with the little square dishcloths that KrisKnits puts out, and the choice of what to make wasn’t hard.

For my brother I made her Halloween Creepy Cloths.
I knit these on needles sized US 4. She calls for a 3 in the pattern, but for whatever reason it’s too hard on my hands to use that size. I love knitting these on size US 5 needles for me. For a gift though I really wanted the picture to pop out so I went down a size. I love the way they turned out. Even though it’s hard to see in the pictures.

The purple cloth is bats, and the green is Frankenstein.

The black cloth has a little headstone that says RIP, and the orange cloth is a pumpkin.

The cloth on the left is a ghost and the cloth on the right is a picture of a witch on a broom. I tried forever to get a photo of the black cloths where the picture would show up, but it just didn’t happen. So you will have to take my word for it. In person it’s really easy to tell what they are.

For Heather (SIL), I decided to make the Thanksgiving Autumn Cloths.  I love the way these turned out.  The colors are so cute together and the pictures on these cloths are just adorable.

The first one is a live turkey and then next to it is a cooked turkey on a platter. I think the cooked turkey is my favorite of the bunch. 🙂

The first cloth is a Cornucopia, and the second one is a scarecrow.

The first cloth is a Pilgrim Hat and the second a lovely leaf.

I love these little cloths.  they don’t take very long to make.  They end up being a really cute size.  It’s so fun to knit them following the pattern and slowly see the picture start to show up.  Plus it’s all just knits and purls.  So simple.

Oh and once you stack them all up and tie them up with a cute ribbon they make the sweetest gifts!  I found the ribbons I used for these in the dollar section at Target.  For a dollar I got 3 different type of ribbon.  Each ribbon was just long enough to tie around these cloths.

 

I have been buying up her patterns for a while now, so I certainly see many many more of these cloths being made for gifts in the future!!

Crafty Things 2009… Part Two

I really didn’t knit or crochet at all during the end part of January 2009.  I also didn’t touch a hook or needle for the entire month of February.  Mostly because I was dealing with depression about the hubby’s job situation.  When things get really bad for me I can’t think straight enough to craft anything.  So I read a bunch, and wrote stuff that no one else will ever read.  Not that there isn’t anyone who would want to read it.  It’s just I won’t let anyone read it.  Anyway…

In March, I cast on in hope of making advent calendars for both of my kids, and for my nephew.  Throughout the year I did get all the little stockings finished for Kathryn’s advent calendar.  But I never finished Caedmon’s.  I did make my nephew one as a birthday gift but I will get to posting about that in a few days.  Anyway, here is what I was knitting in March and April.

Pattern – Mini Christmas Stocking
For – My daughter Kathryn
Needle Size – US 6
Yarn – Red Heart leftovers from Kathryn’s Babette Blanket
Notes – Made 25 of these little things. Alternating colors and some plain, some striped. Just whatever I felt like making at the time.

In March and April I also finished up Kat’s Babette Blanket. However, I still haven’t taken pictures of the finished blanket.  Besides, that monster deserves it’s own post. lol

In May I crocheted myself a shawl.  I haven’t taken pictures of it either.  So that will have to get it’s own post.  Hopefully tomorrow.

Moving on.  The summer was spent making dishcloths and potholders.  Most of which haven’t been given as gifts yet, so I can’t share pictures.

Then, I started working on Birthday gifts for my brother and his wife.

Pattern – Anthro Inspired Scarflet
For- My Sister In Law Heather
Needle Size – US 8
Yarn – Patons Merino Wool – Leaf Green
Notes – I love this pattern. I am currently knitting my fourth of these scarves. They are so fun to make. I like making flower pins to go along with the scar,f even though the scarf is so cute without anything extra. The two flowers I made for this one were this Irish Rose and this Crocheted Rosette.

Then I got to work on a Slouchy Hat for my Brother for his birthday.

Pattern – Hand Made Hat
For – My brother
Needle Size – US 8
Yarn – Knit Picks Wool of the Andes – Chocolate
Notes – Cute Hat and a really fast knit.

Okay that’s it for today.  More tomorrow. 🙂

Finished Crafty Things from 2009…. Part One

Okay, so since I neglected my blog this past year I have some catching up to do.  So I’m starting with January 2009 and working my way forward in the year.  Sadly, there were some projects this past year that I never even took photos of.  Mostly dishcloths and stuff, but still.

So starting with January.  I had some Christmas gifts to finish up before we celebrated with my family last year.  After I finished all of them I put all the crafting down and spent a great deal of time reading.  Mostly, because I got sucked into Twilight. 🙂

Forgive the photo quality.  I realized the night before I gave them away that I hadn’t took picture yet.

First a Hat for my Dad
Needles- size 8  using Magic Loop
Yarn – Knit Picks Wool of the Andes – Onyx Heather
Pattern -My own “Design”, which really just means I winged it. A 2×2 rib.

A Hat Fit for My Brother
Needle– Knit on size 8 needles using Magic Loop
Yarn– Wool of the Andes – Cobblestone Heather
Pattern– A Hat Fit for my Boyfriend
Notes– I knit an extra inch on this hat from what the pattern called for. Ended up having about a yard left out of the skein of yarn I used.

Another Hat for my Brother
Needle– Size 8, knit Magic Loop
Yarn– Wool of the Andes – Firecracker Heather
Pattern– Ribbed Beanie
Notes– Cast on 96 instead of the 80 called for. Knit for 7 inches prior to decrease and ended up using about 1.3 skeins of this yarn. I loved this pattern though. I adore the look of the 5×3 rib and the decrease is really neat looking.

A Slouchy Hat for Heather
Needle– Size 6 for the ribbing, size 8 for the rest of the hat. All done Magic Loop
Yarn– Wool of the Andes – Forest Heather
Pattern– Slouchy Copy Cat Hat
Notes– I loved making this hat. I wish I had a better picture of it though. I took this one while it was blocking on a plate. lol It was such a fun pattern. I keep meaning to make another one, but it slips down on the list. It was a lot of fun to knit though. Used almost two whole skeins of Wool of the Andes.

7 Random Things

I read a bunch of blogs.  Like way too many to admit to.  One of my favorites did a 7 Random Things post the other day.  My mind is so full of stuff right now that I can’t come up with a topic to post on.  So I thought I would follow suit.  (Since I’m trying to get back in the swing of blogging.)

So 7 random photos from 2009.

My lovely lovely doggie, Gypsy Rose.  I love how much she loves to play in the mud.  I love how she hunches over like this to look at me.  I adore her blue eyes.

 

The only time while we were at Disney that Caedmon acted like he was a little kid instead of a “too cool for everything” pre-teen. 

All my family in one room.  My mom and Dad, my kids, my Husband, My brother and his lovely wife, and my adorable Nephew.

My favorite part of the Disney trip with Kathryn.  We explored France in Epcot together.  She is in love with Paris for some reason.  We spoke with horrible French accents and tried on Berets.  It was so much fun.

My lovely kids.  A true picture of their personalities.  My son the serious one, and my daughter the dreamer.  Who even knows where her little mind had taken her too while I snapped away.  I ADORE this photo.

We celebrated 10 years of marriage on December 4th, 2009.  This is my wedding band and engagement ring in my wedding bouquet.  Yes I still have my bouquet from my wedding.

My favorite picture from Christmas.  I just makes me smile.

 

-7 Random Questions-

The first two questions I get asked a lot.  The rest I used google to find random questions. lol

1.  How do you find time to knit, crochet etc.

    I don’t find time I make it.  Seriously, I don’t have time to sit and just do crafts all the time.  Thing is, it is important to me.  So, I steal bits of time when I can. 

2.  Do you enjoy homeschooling your children.

     No.  Maybe that’s not the correct answer, but it’s honest.  I don’t enjoy homeschooling the kids.  I do enjoy having them home with me though.  I wouldn’t trade the extra time I have spent with them for anything.  I love that my 8 year old daughter is still into playing with Littlest Pet Shop pets, while the 8 year old girl next door is trying to decided if Edward is hotter then Jacob.  So while I don’t enjoy the actual schooling part, the pay off has made it worth while.

3.  Would you rather have money or love?

     Love.  That’s an easy question.  I think it’s the only reason I’m able to stay relatively happy right now. 

4.  What is your dream vacation?

    It changes daily.  I would love to take the kids and hubby and do a RV vacation through America.  Just a big long road trip.  I would love to go explore other countries, Ireland, Scotland for me.  I would love to one day take Kathryn to France.  Caedmon is obsessed with Doctor Who and really wants to visit Cardiff and London one day.  I would love to go to Alaska some day soon.  So I guess my dream vacation is going somewhere new and exploring the area with my family.

5.  What’s the last sporting event you watched?

     Football with the hubby.  I thought I would be safe from football when College football ended.  Now I’m looking forward to the end of NFL football. lol   But the last, game I actually watched was the Vikings kicking butt against the Cowboys.  Hubby is a big fan of Favre and was thrilled.

6. When you were in school, did you speak up in class?  Did you sit in front or the back?

     I was fairly shy as a kid/teenager.  Heck, I still am.  So no, I’ve never been one to speak up anywhere and I like being in the back of the room if possible.  Since my last name started with a W and we were usually seated alphabetically it always worked out well.

7.  What was your favorite book as a child?

   Mandy by Julie Andrews.  I loved that book.  Which reminds me that I need to read it to the kids.  I bought it just because my name is Mandi (used to spell it with a “y” when I was little).  I fell in love with it though and probably read it a hundred times. 

 

-What are your 7 favorite TV Shows-                                                                              (these are shows that are still on the air.  The list would be different if I included canceled shows that I watch over and over.)

-Criminal Minds                                                                                                                                    -The Mentalist                                                                                                                                       -NCIS                                                                                                                                                        -Heroes                                                                                                                                                     -The Middle                                                                                                                                             -So You Think You Can Dance                                                                                                       -Desperate Housewives

I did it!!

You quickly learn as a knitter that one of the phrases you will hear most often is “I wish you could teach me to do that.”.  Oh if only I had a dollar for every time I have heard that, well that or “I don’t have the patience/time to do something like that.”. 

Anyway, every time someone has said that to me in the 8 years I’ve been knitting I have brushed them off.  “Sure, anytime.”  Thing is I never had any intention to make time.  I knew that I was capable of teaching myself to knit.  I mean I had done that.  But someone else?  Nope.

Last year my daughter decided she wanted to learn.  I bought her a cute little book, some needles and some lovely knitpicks yarn.  It’s been over a year and she still can’t really knit a stitch.  I blamed myself.

So imagine my fear and dread when a friend of mine wanted to learn.  I thought about putting her off and hoping she would forget.  Instead I sucked it up and said sure.  We met last night at Michaels so she could get some cotton yarn and needles.  Then we went and hung out at Barnes and Noble for a while sipping tea, talking, laughing and knitting.

Oh yes we did, because I somehow was able to show her how to cast on and knit.  When we left I was no longer afraid to trying to show someone how to do this craft that I love so dearly, and she was many rows into a lovely bright yellow dishcloth.

I took the picture when I got home for my 365 days of Happy project. That’s the dishcloth I worked on off and on while we talked, and my cup of tea that my friend so lovingly treated me to. It was a really good night.

 

Maybe it’s a little silly to be this excited.  But, I stepped out of my box and did something I didn’t think I could.  Right now, that makes me pretty gosh darn happy. :)  (The white peach tea was really yummy too!!)