Saturday, April 12, 2008

Found Roots


At the beginning of the year I blogged about creating my own roots and that is finally starting to happen.

The hubby and I have found a house we would like to call home. We are under contract and if the next few weeks go smoothly we will be home owners by the end of May. For real and for true. If this works out that will be what I post about for some time and hopefully more crafty goodness.

My Flickr is filled with pics I should post about, but somehow I haven't managed to get the gumption to do so. My most recent finished project is the stroller blanket I knit for a dear friend's baby using the Mason Dixon Modern Log Cabin Blanket pattern.



She had a little girl at the end of February but my friend is not so excited about dousing her little girl in pink. The nursery decor is jungle/rainforest with the main colors are browns, light green and yellow. I choose to use Lion Brand Nature's Choice Organic Cotton yarn in Pistachio, Macadamia, Pecan, Walnut and a little bit of Strawberry to give it a wee bit of girly-ness. The browns, green and cream match other things that were purchased for them and the organic yarn will please my eco-conscious friend. It is super soft and the only worry I have is that the yarn appears to be a bit linty so I am hoping a nice wash will help with that.

I greatly over estimated the amount of yarn I needed so I will probably make some coordinating accessories...hats, sweaters, booties, another blanket! ;)

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Japanese Craft Book

This past weekend the hubby and I drove over to the Japanese market and bookstore in Edgewater, NJ. I had been their once before and the hubby had never been so it was a nice Sunday adventure.

From the market we picked up some edamame and shrimp shumai (yum!) and learned that in Bergen county you have to wait until 1pm to buy alcohol but there are no small appliance purchases allowed. Yup. A strange blue law. That aisle of the market was roped off with signs. Why I could not buy a rice cooker is beyond me!

From the bookstore I purchased a new Japanese sewing book. It is published by Ondori and the title is in Japanese but Google translate the title as "Hand out your grocery store is small cloth of (Japanese characters left untranslated )." Um, yeah. The ISBN number is 978-4-277-43117-0 in case you want to look for it.



Here are some pics of projects that I am considering...


The projects seem to focus on things for the home...of the organization variety. For some reason I am totally in love with the toilet paper wrap. I do not have a clothesline but when I someday do buy a house I want one just so I can make the clothespin holder. I could go on and on, but given the chance I would make it all!

Swap goddies finished!

I just sent off my swap partner's package in Craftster's Typography Swap this afternoon and I am anxious for her to receive so I can post pics and talk about the fun new techniques and materials I tried out and ended up turning out quite well.

All I can say is there was some sewing, stenciling, and other crafty goodness that resulted in projects inspired by my partner's font interests. I can not wait to share...and I hope that she likes her package!

Saturday, February 09, 2008

A Very Nasty Flu...

This is not something I would wish on anyone. Not even someone who I was not fond of!

I have what my doctor called "a pretty classic case of the flu with the added bonus of a sinus cold." Great.

All I can say is this is the first day since Monday that I have felt somewhat like myself and even that is a stretch. I have had a fever (ranging from viscious to lo-grade) everyday since Tuesday that causes chills, hot flashes, aches and pains that will not go away, sniffles, cough, and general crappy feelings that are just plain miserable! I was out of school for a whole week. I actually wanted to go to school, but could not will my body to cooperate. It might not have been so bad if there was something to watch on TV during the day.

Ugh...here is to feeling human again soon!

Saturday, January 19, 2008

A new year...in double digits!

Since my birthday is so close to New Year's I always use the 17 days in between to reflect and come up with resolutions, observations and plans for the new year.

This year I turned 33...not a terribly exciting number other than the double threes. I know I am closer to 35 which feels much more monumental. I did go to work this year (a break from tradition) but I have to say the birthday wishes and hugs I received from many students was well worth it!

So what do I hope for this year? Well, the eternal quest to be healthy is in my mind, but no major resolutions about that other than make good use of my gym membership since I am paying for it. I would also like to get healthy in prep for the next major step I would like to make which is expanding our family. The hubby and I have not yet made plans to start, but the thought is on my mind and I am certainly not getting younger. Getting healthy in preparation seems like a good idea anyway.

I also hope to take another leap in to "grown up" life...buying our first house. Hubby and I have rented for a long time. Now that I am gainfully employed we can seriously consider a more permanent housing plan. We took a drive around our area to see the neighborhoods of a few house we could be interested in seeing internally.

I think this year will be about creating roots of my own. I have always had the roots of my family and home town that are a part of me, but I feel the need to settle in and establish new roots now that I am embarking on a new career, past the one year mark living in a new state and feel the desire to have a child (which has never been a strong priority). I feel that creatively I have already made art making, knitting and now sewing a constant in my life, now for the rest.

It will be interesting to look back in 2009 to see what roots took hold in 2008. Hmmm....I think I can use this root idea in some art.