More on Coloring

Words cannot express how much I enjoy my newest coloring book- Whatever is Lovely. The combination of Scripture and other words of encouragement throughout the book keeps things interesting while still being great for reflection and worship

It starts with this great image. Simple for those just starting, but still engaging. 

took a pause because I ran out of greens

I've been using both markers- Papermate Flair or Crayola- and colored pencils, which gives me a wide range of color and texture for my coloring. The paper quality of this book is great, and works well with markers, something that can sometimes be hard to find with all the coloring books that have been released over the past year or so. 

My favorite colors, and a great reminder!

I would highly recommend this book, especially if you are into adult coloring books. Meditating on one Scripture passage or something equally inspiration while coloring is very soothing.

Inspiration

My sister in law is a great inspiration for me. She lives on a farm with her five kids, husband working for the local school and their church. Recently she started selling faux-chenille blankets, inspiring me to try making one of my own. 

All the texture!

But with the habit that is buying fabric, I ended up with two! One pink/orange/yellow/green, the other red/white/navy. 

This is much brighter in person. 

My binding job is not great, but definitely an experience. Clare uses the wider satin binding on all of her blankets, which adds another bit of texture to the already amazing feeling blankets. She sells them through Facebook, at her page Mydea. I know she would appreciate the traffic and the likes. :)

I have many improvements to my own sewing that need to happen, but practice makes perfect. Already, I am working on a third blanket, and hope to have it done sometime in the new year.

Summer Summation

For all you people complaining that school starts in three weeks, take note. My professional development starts this coming Monday. As I reflect on my lack of productivity this summer, I realize that I have had a decent amount of time to relax, which has been good. 

My companion has been Whatever is Lovely: a coloring book for reflection and worship, which has been a huge help for me in terms of relaxing. (Follow me on Instagram if you are interested in more) 

I have also been knitting some mitered squares for a sock blanket, and will intersperse with crocheted mitten ornaments to break the monotony. 

What has your summer been like? 

Joining Ginny's yarnalong today

Adult Coloring

Is an overly detailed coloring book for you?

My answer is yes. I've been working on the above image for about a week now, and I love it. Neither of the two previous pages were finished, but I needed the message of this page. 

My book of choice is 'Whatever is Lovely: a coloring book for reflection and worship'. It has proven to be just that. Using this book with my daily prayer time helps me to relax a bit and refocus. 

Peace has been my word for the last two weeks. First I was at camp, and now I am preparing for a new school year. Peace is definitely what I need.

Vacation

Another hit

I don't remember when I first read The Five People You Meet in Heaven, but it was something my mom and I both read.

When I saw Mitch Albom's new book at the school book fair last month, I thought my mom would enjoy it. Turns out, she was on the waiting list at the library, and was thrilled to receive it for Christmas. 

I think it took her under two weeks to hand it back to me, saying I would love it.  The First Phone Call from Heaven was not as I expected, but it gripped me from front to back. Luckily, I was reading it during finals week, and I did actually have some free time on my hands. 

I'm so bad at giving book overviews without spoiling the ending, so I'll just share my favorite parts:
- it was set in Michigan, so I was familiar with many of the places
- the modern day narrative was broken with short bits of telephone history, focusing around Alexander Graham Bell and his love story
- the main character didn't even know his own story fully
- there was more than one main character
- it did not make any one faith look good or bad

So, definitely worth reading if you've enjoyed Mitch Albom before-- that's my recommendation :)

Cold Sheep

Ravelry, if you've never been, is a great place for community, conversation, and- of course- yarn. Several of my favorite discussion boards share patterns and host swaps, but as it is January, a popular one is the Cold Sheep (and Friends) group.

Now, you may ask, what is a cold sheep? Basically, it's a crafter's term for not buying any yarn. Every once in a great while (for some of us, more frequently), crafters realize that they have purchased more yarn then they could ever use up in their lives-- this is called SABLE (stash acquired beyond life expectancy). The Cold Sheep group exists to motivate crafters to knit and crochet and spin and weave their yarn into useful/beautiful/warm items.

The group runs little challenges throughout the year- some with prizes, some without- to help its members to think outside the box when working with their stash. My favorite is the You Can Do It! CSAL, which tracks participant's yardage output over a period of time- in this case, three months. For every 1000 yards you use up, you earn an entry into their prize drawing. I find that the motivation from getting a prize entry can help me finish languishing projects.

Who doesn't love motivational sheep?

Another group that is helpful for "stashing down" is the KnitPicks (and more!) Stashdown group. Similarly structured to the Cold Sheep group, challenges to use up yarn and motivate crafters to have manageable stashes abound. This year, they are doing 2 big challenges- a "no yarn" tiara and a "weight loss" tiara. I joined in on the "weight loss" one, because moving 6000g out of my stash would be amazing-- and it also allows for some freedom in purchasing new yarn if needed. Of course, the crowns are virtual, but in addition to the larger, year-long challenge, various group members have smaller, shorter challenges that may have real-world prizes.

One of the group mods made these images. <3

As it is January, and many people make resolutions, these groups could be useful for crafters. I am finding them useful for me, as I am taking this year to reorder my stash and put it into a more manageable, useable space. Avoiding aimless purchases is the first part, using the yarn is the second.

Return

It's been forever and a day since I last wrote. Well, really only about five months. I suppose I let life get away from me. This little space is odd. Many of you, my readers, are people I don't know very well. People that I have never met. So sharing personal details always seems weird.

I've been in a weird place in my life. I'm sure some of you have been there. A place of transition and confusion. Bouncing between depression and "okay", hoping that the number of good days will outweigh the bad. Many of my low days were/are strongly influenced by my near-chronic back pain. Fixing that problem is going to be a journey, but I think I'm on the road to recovery and have the tools I need.


This blog has been a therapeutic place for me, and I'm hoping I can make it that for me again.