WIP Wednesday

I hope everyone's been enjoying the cold weather!! It was zero degrees yesterday when I got up for school, and it barely got warmer than that.

My students are taking exams all week, so my teaching is minimal, and I've had a little bit of spare time to crochet. I started a Juliana again, this time with the proper yarn. It is definitely turning out better this time, and I love the colors. I'm using Knit Picks Palette in Mulberry and Chroma in Gossip. I doubt I will use all the yarn up, so I'm planning what to make next. I really love this Chroma colorway, and I'm sad that it was discontinued. You can't tell from the photo, because I hadn't gotten far when this photo was taken, but the pink in this colorway is AMAZING!

When I need something a bit more brainless, I go back to working on infinity scarves. I'm in the middle of my fifth this month. Making infinity scarves is an ongoing project, and I really hope to finish up many more between now and graduation.

My fiance was over this past weekend, and brought a book with him-- he thinks I have time to read. Oddly enough, he's right, as I've been able to read nearly 3 chapters of Service, by Marcus Luttrell. Luttrell is a Navy SEAL who lost his team and wrote about it in his first book, Lone Survivor. This second book is much more palatable for me- one, because my fiance is no longer deployed, and two, because I'm not walking into the book knowing that everyone dies. E keeps bringing around these military books for me to read, to help me understand what he went through. It's eye-opening and sometimes scary, but we really do need to face what our military personnel go through to defend our freedoms.

Linking up with Tami for WIPW and Ginny for Yarn-Along.

Getting Back in the Groove

It is taking me longer than expected to get back into a regular routine. This past week has been full of ups and downs, with my downs being particularly low. Part of it may be the sinus infection that E and I think we both have, which is leaving me more fatigued than just pregnancy fatigue. But we're coming closer on the end. That is my main encouragement. My only 'worry' is that once I find my new groove, the baby will come along and give me something new to adjust to. I just keep coming back to changes, and adjusting to those changes.

A finally finished blanket in use

There have been a few good days, even when E was working. I've been making precise plans, and  actually got done what was needed. My extra time then became dedicated to finishing my biggest WIP, the 'wedding' ripple. In my typical fashion, I simply crocheted until I was sick of it, then called it done. It's not quite as big as I originally wanted, but it is finished. There are a few ends to weave, but I'm calling it.

Baby Owl

Riding on the coat-tails of that finish, I was motivated enough to finish one of my baby hats. There are several in progress, but I told myself I would get at least one done before Baby is born. Now I'm hoping to have two or three. Only two of them are actually for him, but getting extras done can always be a plus. My craft show stock on hats is low this year, so I've been hoping to get it up in these last few weeks.

This green-- one of Vanna's Choice Baby-- was initially difficult to match, but after thinking it over and halting multiple times, I just decided to stick with another shade of green. Not living with my artistic sister can be such a drag sometimes, because she has always been my main color-matcher. I'm a lot less adventurous with my color choices, and mainly just stick to colors that are next to each other on the color wheel. My sister tells me that her method is exactly the same as mine, but I don't really buy it. She has some magical sense that just allows her to coordinate colors better than most people.

Getting one hat done means I'm just a bit closer to getting more done, which is extremely motivating. Which brings me to more projects that need to get done.

Half-finished Granny Squares

I've come back to my baby granny blanket, and added to that as well. It was started at Christmas time, when I brought a bag of Vanna scraps with me to my in-laws, because my oldest niece wanted some crocheting tutoring. My brother-in-law was extremely frustrated that I was working on something that really had no coordination or purpose-- randomly colored granny squares can do that to even the most relaxed person-- so it was more an effort to tease him than anything else. But it turned into a baby blanket, now intended for our new little one.

 In an attempt to not overwhelm myself, I keep switching between projects. By finishing small things, the big picture looks tidier in my head. My sinus headache is still awful, but the edges around my crafting mess are starting to get smoother. 

Depression is an odd thing. I don't know even if these blues I've had for most of my pregnancy qualify as depression. But it's been a struggle. These moments of accomplishment, though sometimes small, are sometimes all I have to cling to in dark times. E has been amazing through all of this, praying with me and for me and taking on more than his share of the burden. Without his constant reminders, I think I would lose sight of who's really in control. 

These little accomplishments help me get back on track, with everything. Being grateful for the small things helps so much. And these small things get added to the list. I am grateful that I finally finished a baby project. I am grateful that even though he feels as sick as I do, my husband still helped with the dishes. I am grateful that our family has been blessed with life. I am grateful for changes that stretch me, and for normal things that give me comfort.

Linking with Tami & Ginny & KCCO

Working Hard

I've been working quite a bit on my sock blanket project. As I mentioned before, it is a great project to have in my bag, for those spare minutes. I've completed my goal of seven base squares, though it's possible that I will add if I see fit. Yesterday I started joining them together, which is what you see below.

Kinda blurry....

The 3 yarns you see here are all from different places- the pink is from a Harry Potter mini-skein pack I got in a swap ages ago; the purple/blue is Candy Skein; the cream/gray is Knit Picks Stroll Tonal Pearlescent. You will definitely see more of all of them in the future, as I still have some left. If my calculations are right, I can get 2 squares out of a mini-skein- and many of my leftovers are larger than mini skein size. 

Sneak Peek!

The above is a quick look at what I've been crocheting, which will be revealed on Friday, since it is finished!!

Reading has slowed down again. I have many of the same books on my shelves as I've had for the past 2 or 3 weeks. Hopefully with the school year winding down, I will be able to get a few new ones in!

Check out:
WIP Wednesday
Yarn Along

A New history book! Also, yarn

I love being busy with crafting things, and these weeks leading up to the holidays are quite busy. There is one final craft show this weekend, and I am hoping to have some new items in new colors for the final shopping push to Christmas.

New things!

From my fuzzy ipad photo, you can see my new book, all with two new projects that I've started. The dark blue yarn is another infinity scarf- lion brand has put out several new colors this season in their homespun yarn, and I am taking full advantage of fun and new colors.  The lighter blue that you can
kinda see it a third slouch hat, in a similar style to the red one from last week.

My new book is a gift from my husband, for St. Nick's Day & St. Lucia Day. Traditionally, with his family, books are the gift for St. Lucia, and food or candy is the gift for St. Nick. I've never celebrated Lucia Day before


Joining up with Tami & Ginny!

How Summer Flies.

You can see some happy butterflies!

I finally got the butterfly section to work on my summer flies. After frogging twice, I was ready to give up, but I gave it one more shot, putting more space between the first row of eyelets. It isn't perfect, but it's much better than before. The picture does not do this Candy Skein yarn justice. It's the June colorway, from my brother for my June birthday. Because my gauge is a bit different from the pattern's, I'm working additional butterfly and eyelet rows to make the most of my yarn. Besides, I *love* the butterflies, and I think that section showcases the yarn best. 

The weather has been cool; we're hoping it stays this way through my wedding next weekend. 

E's sister and family get into town sometime this weekend, and I expect I'll see a bit of them. Between moving and getting ready for the new school year and getting ready to get married, these next few weeks may be too busy for new yarn projects. With most of my stuff packed up, it'll be hard to start new projects anyway. I'm hoping being exclusive to one or two projects will help me finish them sooner. 

Linking up with Tami and Ginny!

Wednesday

I did not realize how horribly blurry this photo was until I looked at it properly on my laptop. I'll get a nicer one up tomorrow. 

In progress- a shawl design. 

I'm trying something, attempting a narrower crocheted triangle, without the pointy bit. We'll see what it looks like in a few days. It's been a bit slow going, but with fingering weight yarn it always seems to be slow. It's mainly double crochet, which works up a bit faster, but again, we shall see. 

Love this book

On my shelf- a book I actually finished! I read this book from start to finish yesterday, and found it really enjoyable, especially compared to my most recent books that got returned before I was halfway through. It is enough of a true story to appeal to my historical side, and the characters, though fictional, felt real and realistic. 

Having been disappointed with the last three books I checked out from the library, I started my week out reading Harry Potter. Harry's always consistent. I love reading the language, especially with the British terminology thrown in. Yesterday though, this book came in for me. It was among the ones I had ordered based on Amazon's historical fiction bestsellers. Due to my previous disappointment, I was reluctant, and didn't even open the book until I came home from errands after work. I sat out in the sunshine and opened it. Absorbed would be the best word for it. The world in this book absorbed me. I couldn't put it down. Part of me just wanted to have a book that was new and different, and I wanted to savor it, but the other part of me wanted to know what happened next. It was definitely a quick read, but definitely an adult book. And the history's good too. 

Linking up with Tami & Ginny today!

New Home WIP

While I have been working on some crocheting and knitting, this weekend I've been working on a piece of furniture for my/our new apartment!!!

There are no before pictures, just halfway to step one pictures. 

On the first day, I got to play with paint stripper, a power sander, and ended with really sore hands, arms, and back. Being liberal with paint stripper (not that I have experience) was difficult, and I ended up probably doing more work than necessary. 

All the white paint is gone, but still needs work!

Day two was work on the drawers, as well as paint that I missed on day one. I also put stain on the top (the only bit that is completely sanded and stripped of paint), which is helpful in motivating me to work harder on the other bits. 

The reason for this dresser makeover? Fiancé really dislikes painted furniture. It was in a little girls room, and it needed either a new coat of paint or a complete overhaul. I counted at least 4 layers of paint, plus the most recent color. If I slapped another coat of paint, it would've needed to be touched up the next time we moved. So I'm striping all the paint, sanding, staining, and then topping it with a coat of poly. It's a lot of work, but I enjoy it. 

Even though I've been busy with home projects, I do have some yarn to share!!!

Decorating my books: a scarf and a shawl

My stack of books increased yesterday, as I decided to pursue the historical fiction section on Amazon. I didn't expect to get them all at the same time. Titles, in case you can't read them: The Age of Ice, The Light between Oceans, The Kitchen House, and Red Templar. It Starts with Food is obviously not fiction, and I'm still working through it, a bit at a time. 

And here's a close up of my crocheting, Hitchin' a Ride. 

Lovely self-striping Felici!

Linking up with Tami & Ginny!

True Blue

This is the third shawl I've posted about in at least as many weeks: MAD Cap Designs, True Love. I like that it is shallower and longer than the previous MAD Cap I made. It helps that I really like the color blue, too. I seriously recommend any patterns by this designer- she makes an effort to make purchasing a pattern worthwhile. There are stitch counts and clear charts and se has a fun Ravelry group too!

I've also advanced since my last post, and am reading it starts with food. Very interesting so far. Behind the scenes at the museum wasn't really working for me, so that's been returned already. I'm hoping to find some new historical fiction...

Linking with WIP Wednesday & Yarn Along!!

Books & Hooks

Wedding preparations are getting really busy-- just over a month left now!!

But amid all the hub-bub of bridal showers, moving, fittings, bachelorette parties, and general preparation, I've found time for my hooks.

First Love
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette fingering in Mulberry
Hook: H

Little Star Dishcloths
Yarn: Sugar'n Cream scraps & the like
Hook: I keep switching between G and H, though I like H best.
True Love
Starting this one as soon as First Love is finished!

I've also found time for new books. One was suggested by a follow Yarn-Along-er, the other by a co-worker.

Thieftaker, D.B. Jackson-- pre-Revolutionary War era

Movement of the Stars, Amy Brill-- mid 1800s

I'm enjoying the historical angle of both books, though they are from two different eras and have completely different story lines.

Linking up with WIPWednesday & Yarn-Along!

Still Here!

Over the past month or so, I've found myself on my laptop less and less. A new phone for my birthday and my borrowing of Fiance's tablet, both of which are way more portable, means I don't often sit in front of a screen with a proper keyboard. All of these things means less blogging.

But I'm still around. I'm checking out Yarn-Along, WIPW,  and FOF. I'm seeking a happy meduim, and hopefully I'll find it.

So for now, even if I'm not posting, I'm still around. Weddign preparations are getting even more busy than I had guessed, and with that comes moving and job searching. I just have to remember:

"For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Jeremiah 29:11

More Shawls than I can count

Shawls have been the order of the day with me, as I have been trying several new patterns. I'm nearly finished with my Michele's Lace, and am planning on starting on another of Julie's designs, either Kendall's Lace or Leah's Lace.  I'm also working on a First Love, and just cast on a Summer Flies. And there's a lace shawlette that might be in progress.... So both my hooks and needles are flying!

Being bicraftual definitely has an advantage, as the yarn I'm using for Summer Flies is Candy Skein's June colorway Bubblegum Ice Cream and it is VERY variegated. Now, variegated yarns dont always play well in crochet patterns, so I switched to the knit pattern, where it does not overwhelm the pattern too much.

Summer Flies
using US size 5 circular needle
Candy Skein Yummy fingering Bubblegum Ice Cream

First Love
using US hook size H
Knit Picks Palette in Mulberry

Michele's Lace
using US hook size H
Serenity Sock dyed by me (shades of blue & purple)

Linking with Tami & Ginny for WIPW & Yarn-Along

Going Nowhere Fast

Even though I'd like to say that I am an awesomely fast crocheter, and I finished all my projects from last week, it is not so. I'm stuck in the middle of 2 big projects, and probably will be for the rest of the month.

The ripple's folded in half, in case you wondered.

Crocheting: I'm up to 6 skeins for my wedding ripple-- with 10 more waiting to be worked in. Stephanie's Wrap is going slow and steady. I'm about halfway through the second section, and I'd really like to get to the third by the end of the month.

Reading: Halfway through The Two Towers. Still getting through The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Really want to read something new....

Linking up with WIP Wednesday & Yarn-Along!

A Pile

A pile of WIPs, that is. And it looks something like this:

Are four things too many?

The pink is my Stephanie's Wrap, pulled out of hibernation. The cream is a knitted piece that makes me want to throw everything. The granny in the front is the beginnings of a Rectangular Sampler Blanket, part of a CAL that just finished over at Underground Crafter's blog. Last is my wedding ripple, and I am convinced that it will be finished by August.

It will be pretty when done, but I still dislike the rows upon rows of knitting

I'm listening to The Fellowship of the Ring still, mainly because I can listen and don't need to focus too much on learning the story, since I've known the story since 6th grade or so. I'm nearly finished, so Two Towers will be up next. Also, I love the voice of the narrator, which I am convinced can make or break an audio book.

In more yarn related news, I properly stated my June Goals in the Cold Sheep group on Ravelry.

1. Finish knitting poncho-- commissioned item, on section 8 of 20
2. Make Calorimetry for a friend
3. Finish rectangular sampler blanket from stash yarn
4. Use up at least 6 skeins on wedding ripple to be about halfway done-- not sure if I have enough yarn for this…
5. Get to third section of Stephanie’s Wrap
6. Make at least 3 dishcloths & 2 coaster sets from cotton that is hanging out.
7. Buy no new yarn, unless to finish any of the above projects.

So far, only 5 days into June, and I'm doing pretty good. I'm on section 10 of the knitted poncho, finished & gifted the Rectangular Sampler (pics on Friday), hooked 2 new dishcloths-- ready to make more!- and nearly used up 2 skeins for the Wedding Ripple. 

Linking with Tami & Ginny for the Wednesday Link-ups!

Sick of Petals!

Yes, today I am definitely tired of petals, but not in the way you may think. While thoroughly enjoy the warm spring weather and the flowers that accompany it, my hands have been busy making little flowers for hats and hairclips, and they've about had it!

In the midst of my moving and cleaning operation, I sat down to take stock of my craft show wares. Hovering comfortably between a dozen and 20 of each of my main items is a safe place to be in May, especially when I don't start attending craft shows until September. However, I wanted to bring all of my totals up to 2 dozen before tackling the quicker projects or the better selling projects. So I grabbed a few small balls of yarn and some hooks, and spent a lot of time making flowers- which I use both as embellishment on hats and on hairclips.

Add caption

Even though I over-dosed on flower making, I have not had my fill of new books yet. I'm still reading Jasper Fforde, this week One of Our Thursdays is Missing. Kathy Reichs just recently released her third Virals book called Code, and I finally have it in my hands. A few months ago, one of my students was reading it, and I was insanely jealous that their small-town library had a copy in before my library even ordered it! Along with those 2 books, I finally have a copy of Around the Corner Crochet Broders, to finish my parents' autumn colored afghan. I've browsed, picked a couple, and now just need to establish a stitch count before adding on the border. If nothing works out, I'll wing it, but having the book reassures me and makes me feel like 'at least I tried'.

Joining up with WIP Wednesday and Yarn-Along!

Changing Progress

I definitely dropped the ball on KCBW. Those weekend blogging days kill me, plus my fiance was over... I definitely could make the list longer.

But I am making some visible progress in the cleaning & moving of my possessions to my fiance's home-- less than 4 months now!

You can see a bit of the border/join here

Due to that steadily nearing deadline, I have been compelled to work on several of my larger projects. The afghan I was supposed to have done for my parents' anniversary/Christmas/etc is finally in the finishing stages. I had 6 groups of four blocks each, which I joined using the JAYG method from Edie Eckman's Connect the Motifs (LOVE this book!), and decided that it probably should be a little bit bigger. So I made 6 more squares, and am joining them together the long way, to go in between the sets of joined squares.

The new squares I added

Joining the last group

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the extra yarn-- I believe JoAnn's takes exchanges, but I'm not sure how long ago I bought the yarn, etc. (It has been within the last year).

New colors: Olive, Sweet Pea, Sapphire, Aqua, Baby Aqua

Even with all the other stuff I am doing, I had to give myself another project, as about a month after getting married, I will properly be an aunt! My fiance's sister is due a few weeks after we get married, and I really want to make a baby blanket. So of course, I have the yarn already... 

On the book front (finally!!) I am reading Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series, which is really funny and fairly decent.

Linking with Tami & Ginny!

Always a Work in Progress

I love this pattern, and I wish my camera would capture the colors better.

There are 2 big WIPs in my craft basket, and they've been there for 2 weeks and many months. The one above is the more recent of the two. Below is a creamy knitted poncho. Both are using KnitPicks yarns. 

5 sections out of 20

One is for me, one is a commissioned item. I really need to get on task and work on the knitted poncho. Friday night, it was the only project I worked on. I love the mindlessness of the knitting, now that I've figured the pattern out. I mentioned this in my Friday post, and a visual will probably help-- as you can see, it is knitted in sections (well, the lace part is) and each lace wedge has 7 yarn-over "ladders", I guess you could call them. So instead of keeping a tally, I now am able to just count the ladders to check my progress. It's a pattern that the friend who commissioned it picked up at a LYS "up north" as we say in Michigan, and I don't think the pattern is written well. Not trying to insult the designer, just saying it could be easier to understand if written better.

If nothing else, I like working on the knit better than my Steph, as the rows are over 100 stitches and take pretty much forever. I'm not even on the short rows yet!

You can see a bit of the size difference here. 

Even though I'm in the midst of KCBW, I wanted to share what I've been working on. And its not too late to get in on the fun!

Linking with Tami & Ginny for WIP Wednesday & Yarn-Along 

Making New Things!

I am so excited to have pictures to share of the new things I've been making.

Both of my WIP shawls

Ananas Crocheted Shawlette

testing new settings on my camera- B&W except for blue things :)

Stephanie's Wrap

My hand-dyed tonal pink.

I had all the yarn for my Steph wound into balls on Thursday last week, using my cousin's eldest daughter M for my swift. (Note to self: KnitPicks makes their skeins small. Drill new holes on Lazy-Susan swift.) M is really great, and she loves helping me with yarn-y stuff (I sense a new student as soon as my schedule slows down). As much as I wished I had, I didn't officially start crocheting until Sunday night, when I alternated between 3 projects.

Sunday night, my "Ananas" were just starting to appear on the shawl. But the rows were really long! So, I didn't get as far as I had wanted to, but finally added the second skein. The pineapples are starting to be visible too-- I totally love watching these sorts of patterns develop.

This was my afternoon- popcorn, tea, Rav & crocheting

With Spring Break ending and classes starting back up, my crafting time diminished. However, I will be done teaching this week, and finish all the student teaching paperwork, etc, next Friday. So, crafting time will again be a large part of my day.

Joining Tami's WIP Wednesday & Ginny's Yarn-along!

If the internet actually worked.

Of course, the internet gets super frustrating when I am home for a whole week, on and off my computer for school and crafts. Its slowness can't even be blamed on too many laptops using internet in the house because neither of my brothers are home, and my sister and I are only doing super basic stuff with our internet. All this to say that I am super sorry for no pictures today. I uploaded a few to Rav early today, but forgot to grab my WIP pics.

So, in progress this week I have Ananas Crocheted Shawlette, a LB Homespun infinity scarf (color Tulips), and yarn drying for Stephanie's Wrap. Also, a few plain hats for fall craft show stuff, but those usually get pushed to the end of the list. I am honestly trying to stash-down, and all of the projects are using stash yarn-- I even had to make do with what I had on hand so I could start working on Stephanie's Wrap. Both of the shawls are part of CSW's Support a Designer CAL, where all those participating in the CAL pick a pattern made by a member designer. A few of the participants are crocheting the same pattern, but the idea is more to get project pages attached to patterns that might not have as many projects.

My Cold Sheep progress for March was pretty good, especially with help from the CSAL. I was able to use up 2400 yards of stash. I'll admit that some of it was new yarn, but the out was greater than the in. My goal for April is to only use stash yarn, no purchases at all, and to beat my yardage total from March. Since I'm already nearing 500 and it's only April 3, I think my chances of surpassing 2400 yards used are pretty good. We shall see.

I'm linking up with Tami for WIP Wednesday and Ginny for Yarn-Along, as both share lots of yarny goodness on Wednesdays!! :-)

another Wednesday

I'm grateful for Spring Break, which is just around the corner.

My busy school schedule has been keeping me from crocheting as much as I'd like, but in these last few weeks, I'm thinking my schedule will get back to normal.

Slow progress...

Last week I was working on fingerless gloves to go with my slouch hat, but on Monday, I decided that I just wanted a scarf. So I'm making up a pattern as I go for an infinity scarf that almost matches the hat.

I'm tired of the crazy weather, and am hoping that spring will finally come our way. Not much else around here.

Linking with Tami & Ginny!

One Wednesday Closer

Getting closer to the end of my student teaching! Teaching the 3 branches of government and Renaissance & Reformation for the next few weeks, cut in half by Spring Break. Woo! Going to read some Shakespeare with my World History kiddos-- wish me luck!! :)

Working on the Pineapples for Everyone CAL, in Caron Simply Soft Paints. I just finished up the first skein, and am starting on the second. Hoping the yarn will be enough. Love the yarn, might be too busy for the pattern, but feels so soft!!

My little hands for size comparison

I shared another project earlier this week, a slouch hat in Chroma & Bare (KnitPicks), and have since started to make a pair of fingerless mitts to match.

Not true to color

This is closer to accurate color. 

I'm still trying to keep up on the Cold Sheep Along, as it runs through April. So far, I've crocheted almost 1500 yards! (My monthly best so far this year is 2070 yards, and I'm hoping to surpass that this month.)

(Anyone in the Midwest sick of the snow yet?!)

Head over to Tami's & Ginny's to check out more progress & happy yarn-y things!