officially the worst blogger ever

I think the title says it all.

Why?  Because I barely blogged last month.  I think I had one entry throughout all of April.  Dry your eyes, though, because I'm updating now :)

With what, I'm not sure.  I joined a 10,000 meter challenge on Facebook where we have to knit or crochet 10,000 meters by the end of June.  You know how much I've done?  68 yards.  Pathetic.  Luckily, I have a few custom orders coming in that will help with that number, but my motivation is lacking.

I blame it on the weather.  And also the fact I just invested in a Nikon D5200 that's been keeping me entertained.  Exhibit A:

Yes, that's my puppy and yes, he's wearing a bow tie.  We've been having fun being outside taking fun pictures together, just experimenting with my camera's features.  I only had to take 42 photos to get this frontal shot of him.

I also can't tell if I'm suffering from allergies or a wee bit of a cold.  I've felt disgusting all week and haven't wanted to indulge in crafts, so there's been a lot of reading and watching the first three seasons of "Arrested Development" in preparation for Season Four on Netflix.  Exciting, I know.

But I did get a huge box of yarn yesterday, so I plan on taking some artsy photos and updating with a haul in the coming days.

I hope you've all had a great month since my last post and are enjoying the beautiful weather that May has brought with it.  Summer is right around the corner and I, for one, am looking forward to what that will mean for my life.

finished: crochet easter bunny for mom

Remember when I posted awhile back asking you to guess what I was making?

Well here it is: a little guy that I was making as an Easter present for my mom:

Project Description: I posed this pattern on my Facebook page a few weeks ago and mother oh-so-subtly hinted that she'd love it if I could make one for Easter.  So I did!  I chose the colors that most appear in my parents' house and then added sparkle - of course - with the green accent color.

This was the first time I had ever used safety eyes.  Here's the thing: I always wondered why safety eyes were fine on toys given to children.  I thought they'd just be easy to tear out and chew on and I guess it's still possible.  But my fingers almost fell off trying to get the stupid things in.  I love how they look, though, and wouldn't have done it any other way.

PS: I got that amazingly pink feather wreath for 40% off at Michaels.  Totally worth the investment.

Yarn Used: I used four yarns to complete this pattern:

• Caron Simply Soft Party - Spring Sparkle
• Loops & Threads Impeccable Heather
• Loops & Threads Impeccable Soft Rose
• I Love This Yarn Ivory
  

Pattern Used:  Easy Crochet Bunny - A Green Dragonfly Tutorial

Life Updates:

• My world is a little crazy.  My mom was admitted to the hospital unexpectedly last week, so I've been trying to help out as much as possible.
• I'm leaving for San Francisco on Friday, so I'm trying to take care of stuff around the house and need to do a crap ton of shopping in preparation.
• Easter was really nice, even though my mom couldn't be there physically.  I got lots of candy - how could you go wrong?

That's it for today?  I'm hoping to update at least once more before traveling to Frisco - I'm excited!  It should be a great time and productive because it's work-related.  I'm planning out my travel knitting projects as we speak for optimum efficiency :)

Hopefully nobody tricked you yesterday!

my craftsy class wish list

If you follow my Facebook page regularly, you'll know that I'm obsessed with Craftsy classes.  I've purchased a few and, due to time constraints over the past couple months, haven't been able to fully indulge.

But last summer, I was able to work my way through most of a spinning class.  I didn't have much luck and I blame it on the fibers I was using.  Still, I had fun and plan to master the art of spinning my own yarn.

There are still tons of classes I'd like to take, including the smaller workshops.  Below is my wish list.  If you've taken any of these classes, let me know what you thought of them.  I need to prioritize, so I'd really appreciate the feedback :)



My Craftsy Wish List:

1. Amigurumi: Design Your Monster -Learn pattern design by doodling a monster and bringing it to life. Combine body shapes and parts to create wild crocheted creatures.
2. The Seamless Artemesia Sweater - Worked from the top down, the Seamless Artemisia Sweater features set-in sleeves, knit-in pockets and lace details. 
3. Handknit Garment Design - Shirley Paden, author of Knitwear Design Workshop, brings her concepts to Craftsy! Learn her comprehensive yet simple process for beautiful fabric and knitwear.

Make sure to check out all of the other great Craftsy Classes by clicking here.  If you're not into the fiber arts (which - I can't imagine you'd be on this blog if you weren't!) or if you have other hobbies, there are classes like pizza making, sewing (beginners and advanced), baking, paper crafting, and more.

Have you checked out Craftsy yet?  What have been your favorite classes?  What projects have you made?  Let me know in comments - I'd love to hear what you have to say.

custom order: custom mommy/child pilot hats

I'm going to try something a little bit different for my project posts in the hopes that I'll be able to update more (and communicate clearly instead of babbling like I usually do :P).  So let me know what you think!

Project Description: These hats are a custom mother/child order for my etsy shop.  My customer, Tamera, requested pilot hats in both baby and adult sizes; over course, I was more than happy to oblige!

I hadn't made a pilot hat before, and the pattern I found needed severe tweaking for both worsted weight yarn and an adult head circumference.  I spent the better part of an evening figuring out the math and making swatches until it just worked!  I'm pleased with myself - it was actually quite easy and I'll be able to adjust the hat for a variety of sizes now.  Made-to-order pilot hats, anyone?

Yarn Used: I used three yarns to accomplish this fun zig-zag look:

• I Love This Yarn - Grey Beard
• Red Heart Soft Yarn - Navy
• Vanna's Choice - Dark Grey Heather

Pattern Used:  Baby Pilot Hat Modified by Gerda Porter


Life Updates:

• Fritzy ate a foil candy wrapper the other day, so Hubby and I kept a less-than-entertaining vigil for the next 24 hours to make sure he was okay.
• I've started getting into baking doggy cookies, which I love because I've always enjoyed baking, but never kept up because I didn't want to eat everything myself - so now I can just make my dog fat!  (Not really).
• I can't believe Easter is this coming weekend considering we still keep getting snowed on
• I'm traveling to San Francisco in just over a week for a marketing conference/a little girl time at some delicious wineries.  I'm trying to figure out which project to take on the plane with me and might leave it up to a vote by my loyal readers :)

That's it!  Let me know if this format works for you guys.  I feel like it's more organized, so my thoughts are put together a little bit better than normal.  Also, you can skim to the areas you actually want to read.

Hope you're all having a great week and have a lot of spring projects to work on!

ridiculous yarn haul from tophatter

By now, we all know I have a problem.  An addiction, if you will.  To yarn.

I suppose it could be worse, but it's to a point where someone who loves me may want to stage an intervention.

Exhibit A: My latest yarn haul from Tophatter:

I purchased a grab bag, which pretty much means the seller took a bag and stuffed as much yarn as possible in there before shipping it out.  The yarns would be random (although she did contact me to see if I had a preference - I didn't, but that was sweet) and I would have no idea what I'd be getting.

Obviously, I made out pretty well since I only paid $10.

I can't believe that... and I can't believe I'm even promoting it because I love the fact nobody's there to bid on the yarn auctions.  Try bidding on jewelry - it's not easy!  But I love going there for craft supplies because I've found some adorable, unique things to add to whatever it is I need to make.

Check it out if you'd like and let me know how it goes!  I used to have some issues with the site's load times, but it seems to have fixed itself.  They also changed the interface around slightly since the last time I purchased anything, and I found it pretty easy to use.

Also, congrats on the two winners in my weekend giveaway of Inspired Crochet!  I've sent over your contact information and will be in touch as soon as I hear back :)