June Craft Challenge

It's almost June! I can hardly believe the year is nearly half over! I've been so busy so far this year, that time is just whizzing by me.

I have quite a few projects that I want to finish. I have a tendency to start projects when I see a pattern I really like.....and then I never get them finished. I can't justify buying new patterns or yarn when I have so many projects that aren't done.

I am not going to join any more swaps, or start any new projects until I have all of my UFO's completed. I can do it, if I put my mind to it!!!! Anyone else want to join me???

Ffor the month of June, I am challenging myself to start finishing all my UFO's (unfinished objects for those who don't speak internet crafty), so that I can move on to things on my WIM (works in mind) list. If the month of June isn't enough, then I will continue into the month of July. Anything new I want to start, I will put on my WIM list. Whenever I reach my goal, I will treat myself to a nice yarn shopping day, and get started working on my WIM list. BUT....I am not going to start more than 2 projects at once.

Think I can do it??? :)

I have already finished one project. I was making two stuffed animals for a swap at crochetville. I made two crocheted toys first, and didn't like them. Too bumpy and just not all that cute. So, I asked my partner if I could start over, and fudge a bit. Her kids are getting 2 knitted toys instead, or the "K-word'' for crocheters who don't like knitting. :)




Both were made from Red Heart acrylic. The patterns come from AA Knit Animal Friends (designed by Michelle Wilcox). There are six patterns in the book: teddy bear, puppy, rabbit, pig, elephant, and cat. :) When I get to my WIM list (after June), I will make an elephant for Baby Josh.

One project down.....lots to go. lol.

UFO List (just off the top of my head) - All Crafts

Knitted diagonal pillow from Family Circle Easy Knitting - 2/3 done.
Cable sweater vest - started months ago. Two fronts done. Back and finishing left to complete.
Sequin applique/embroidered Christmas tree skirt -- about half done. Started in 1999 and packed up for a move. Never unpacked. lol.
Kitten latchhook kit - started 1999. About 1/2 done. Packed up for a move -- never got unpacked.
Scraps of Beauty crocheted afghan -- started 3 years ago. Color change every two rows...got annoying. But very pretty pattern. About 1/3 finished. Will look great on the couch when it's done!
Kitchen swap for C'ville - Need to finish up kitchen items and get it mailed by June 15.
Bookmark Swap - Need to make several cute bookmarks for c'ville swap, plus bookmark/book swap group.
Baby scrapbook - scrapbook stuff bought, and pictures/baby stuff in box marked "scrapbook''. That's as far as I got. LOL. Gotta get this done before joshua is 27.
12" square swap - Have about six more crocheted squares to make.
Items for SP8, c'ville SP, and Knitting Pal swaps - Finishing up a felted totebag, and other items for my swap pals. :)
Accessories swap - making 2 jewelry/accessory items for swap at c'ville.
Knitted scarf - in LB wool from Scarf Style pattern book
Branching Out scarf from Knitty in multicolored mohair
Ankle Socks - pattern from Bernat site.One sock done, one to go. Pretty knitpicks variegated sock yarn.

That's a lot to finish in one month......and some of these projects have been sitting for years. I'm going to work at it until I get it all done!

Then I can start on my WIM list!! So far I want to make:

lace weight shawl
lace scarf
a felted totebag for myself :)
2 more knitted pillows from Easy Knitting
Block scarf from Scarf Style
Stuffed elephant for Joshua
All sorts of felted handbags
Christmas stocking for Joshua
Remote control caddy
Several pairs of socks

On the needles right now is a felted totebag I'm finishing up for a knitting pal. I'm nearly ready to felt. Here was a picture of my progress I took a few days ago:



Finishing up Icord and some decoration for the outside, and should be able to felt it tonight. I'll take an updated picture when it's felted and drying.

I really like working with Lamb's Pride wool. :) It keeps its color, feels soft, and the colors are so pretty. This bag is made in amethyst.

Next, I guess I will pull out the cabled sweater vest that I'm making for my mother in law. It takes a lot of concentration to do the pattern correctly......so with the baby, I had to take a break from it for awhile. It's time to get it finished and give it to my mother in law. I will work on finishing up the vest and the knitted pillow this next week. I'll work on the pillow when the aran project makes my eyes cross. :) We'll see how far I can get.

TTFN!!

The Dyslexic Vulcan

May the force be with you! LOL

Today's Letter is B

Books, Baby and Band.....and blogging! :)

Let's start with Band. My son and stepdaughter played in their high school's spring band concert last night. It was just excellent!! They played the William Tell Overture and then a medley of armed forces music. It was great! And then they played their marching band music from marching season. I was so proud of all of them! Sonya got an award for being the flute section leader for marching band. And Mikey's girlfriend won an award for outstanding freshman band member. :) Way to go Alex!!!!

My pictures came out pretty bad because of the lighting in the auditorium.



The girl furthest to the left is Alex, Mikey's girlfriend. She plays clarinet. The girl in the middle is my step-daughter Sonya. She plays flute and piccolo. On the right is Mikey. He plays flute, melophone and the french horn.

Baby Josh went to the concert with us and sat inbetween his daddy and I. He enjoyed it. He didn't weigh enough to keep his seat down though -- it kept folding up with him in it. lol. And he couldn't see very well since he's so little.



He was really having to stretch his neck to try and see the stage. So daddy came to the rescue!



Daddy's lap was the best seat in the house! :)

We had a great time!

Signups are coming in for the Great Bookmark Exchange! We're exchanging hand-made bookmarks along with a book. Check out the details here.

Here's my survey answers for the exchange:

1. What genre of books do you enjoy most? (i.e. mystery, romance, horror, historical, biographies, autobiographies, fantasy, sci-fi, etc) I enjoy mystery, fantasy and sci-fi the most, but I'll read just about anything!

2. What sort of bookmarks do you like best? (long, short, lacy/elegant, fun/cute, corner, tasselled, etc) I like bookmarks that are bright colored, fun and cute!

3. What are your favorite colors? Bright colors, jewel tones, deep autumn shades, sunset colors. My favorite color is blue -- bright blue, teal, turquoise. It's all good!

4. Are there any colors you don't like? I really don't care for light pink. Pastels in general aren't my thing.

5. What sort of "theme'' would you like your bookmark to be? I love anything fun/cute/whimsical/sassy/funky, etc. But any theme would be fine! I enjoy seeing other people's work!

6. Are there any "themes'' that you wouldn't like?? Can't really think of any.

7. Can you send internationally? Yes

8. If your partner wants to send along extra goodies (like tea, candy, cocoa, etc), what do you enjoy? And is there anything you don't like/can't have?? I love tea and coffee! But please no candy. I'm diabetic and on a restricted diet.

9. What crafts are you going to use to make your bookmarks? Is there a particular craft type you would like to receive? (knitted bookmarks, plastic canvas, etc) I knit, crochet, tat, cross stich and embroider. So I could make bookmarks using any of those crafts. Plus I have done applique, beading and other sewing crafts before too. I'd love to receive any sort of hand-made bookmark! I enjoy seeing a variety of crafts! And it's just fun to receive something handmade from a friend!

If you like to read and craft -- please consider joining in on our exchange group! We're going to have a blast!! C'mon over to the bookmark blog and check it out. We're just getting started, but soon we will be posting bookmark pattern links and ideas, book reviews, pictures of the bookmarks we make/receive. Join the fun!

TTFN!!! :)

New Bookmark Exchange!

I thought it would be fun to exchange bookmarks, and books, with my crafting friends! So, I set up The Great Bookmark exchange!

Swappers will make a hand-crafted bookmark and send it along with a used book to their swap partner.

More information is posted on the swap blog at www.makinbookmarks.blogspot.com Those who want to join can just drop me an email with the answers to the swap survey, along with mailing information. Answers to the survey can also be posted on your blog.

There are lots of places to get cheap used books: library sales, yard sales, thriftshops, your own bookshelf, used book stores.

Let's have some fun reading and crafting!!! :)

TTFN!

X-Men 3, and the AI finale

the movie X-Men 3 is fabulous!!! If you like action movies, have seen the other 2 movies and enjoyed them -- don't miss this 3rd movie! I was totally impressed.

If you didn't see the other 2 movies, rent them and then go see this movie. You'll love it!

My husband got lucky and won free passes for us to go see a special early viewing of the movie in Greenville, SC.

So last night right when he got home from work, we jumped in the car (sans kids!!!) and drove down to the Hollywood20 in Greenville. We got there an hour early to make sure we got seats since they always overbook promo events. It was well worth the wait!!!

I can't give anything away. I will say that Kelsey Grammer was GREAT as the Beast. Some have said his costume was a bit cheesy.....but hey he's playing a huge great big blue guy. How can you avoid a bit of cheese? And, it's a comic-book based movie........you have to expect just a bit of that. I thought he looked great, and played the part well. I couldn't visualize him in the part at first....but his was by far my favorite performance.

The action sequences are awesome. The CGI is seamless, and there are a few scenes where I was just taken aback. Very well done!!

And one bit of advice: DONT LEAVE BEFORE THE CREDITS ARE DONE. There is an extra scene at the end of the credits that you don't want to miss.

And, the PG-13 rating on this one is pretty accurate. I wouldn't advise taking any kids under 10 to this movie. The action sequences in this one are a bit scarier. There's no gushing blood or anything disgusting but some of the action sequences would be too much for younger children. You'll know what I mean after you see the movie.

All in all -- we had a fabulous time!!! With a collection of teenagers and a 2 year old, we don't get to go out alone very often.

Big thanks to my teenage son who babysat the baby (and did very well -- he had on a clean diaper when we got home, was happily playing and had been fed a sandwich for supper) so we could go out. :)

Right when I got home, my son and I jumped on the couch to watch American Idol.

On the way home from the movie, I turned the radio off because I didn't want some DJ giving away who won before I got home to watch the finale on Tivo.

I admit I actually watched the show all season long. Usually we just watch long enough to see all the bad auditions at the beginning of the season. This year was a bit different. We had to watch through Hollywood week to see what Crazy Dave did -- he certainly had fun! And it was good to see him on finale week. What a kook! Then I noticed that they actually had some people that were DIFFERENT this year -- Mandisa was overweight and a Christian singer, Paris had a jazz background, Elliott was a funky blues singin' hebrew (very COOL, very talented young man!), and Taylor had grey hair and played one heck of a harmonica, and Kevin "chicken little'' made it into the finals.

We kept watching. The show stayed interesting! I wanted to see how far Taylor would get. He was my favorite from the beginning. Mostly because he was not a cookie-cutter performer. And when he performs, he has a GOOD TIME. I just love his STYLE.

I was all ready last night for Kat McPhee to win. She's 21, beautiful, and yes....extremely talented. But she fits the mold that Fox wanted -- she would be the easy winner to market. Taylor on the other hand -- he doesn't really sing pop music, he doesn't look like the typical pop star, and he has grey hair. He reminds me of a southern, funky Michael McDonald. And he has a great stage presence -- he jumps around, has fun, and is just entertaining to watch.

For me, watching Taylor dance around in a bright purple velvet jacket belting out a song and making the audience go wild is much more entertaining than Katherine sitting down on the stage warbling out a weird arrangement of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow.''

I thoroughly enjoyed this season of American Idol. And last night's finale....I thought the top 12 contestants performances were great! I enjoyed seeing the guest stars as well, with a couple of exceptions.

What was up with Toni Braxton? She sang horribly and was acting.....well gee, do you really think the bump and grind is appropriate during "In the Ghetto''??? I imagine the producers were glad to see the number end before she had a wardrobe malfunction. And Meatloaf -- it was great to see him, but not everyone realizes that he is ill. I'm sure people were wondering why he didn't sing very well and was shaking, etc. He has a neurological disorder.

Prince was....well, he was Prince. lol. That man either has Dick Clark Anti-aging syndrome, or a VERY good plastic surgeon. He looks just like he did when I was in high school dancing to "Little Red Corvette'' and "1999.'' He sang well -- but I think his song choices were a bit suggestive for a family program. But then, what Prince songs AREN'T suggestive. The man is like one big penis.

Dionne Warwick is a such a beautiful person. And she was wonderful! Looks fabulous!!

My question is.......why don't they ever let Paula Abdul perform?? We all know she can sing....at the end of the season she should get to belt one out. :)

Well, that's my take on my little dose of reality TV and the new X-men movie. :)

TTFN!!

Sorry for the long break between posts. With the school year almost ended, it's been a really busy month around here. My blogging time just went right out the window, and I became Mom's Taxi Service. lol. But I declared today a "Mom Day'' and I'm gonna knit, play outside with the baby, and....believe it or not!.....hubby and I are going out on a DATE tonight. No kids....just us!! WAH-HOOOOOOO! :)

Hubby won tickets to an advanced preview of X-Men3. And we're gonna go see it tonight! :)

Craft wise, today I'm working on finishing up some toys I'm making for a swap.



The teddybear is all done, except for his face. And the puppy dog has a few more rows to go, and then has to be assembled. Almost done!

I'm also making bookmarks for an exchange. I love working with thread, and it entertains our new kitten.

Kato loves attacking my thread. And anything else that doesn't run away. :)



He's a feisty little thing! If he's not attacking my yarn or thread, he's hopping in the bathtub with the baby. :) And he attacks and pounces on evvvvverything! He definitely earned his name. Kato is from the old Pink Panther movies with Peter Sellers. Remember Kato - Clouseau's little asian butler who always attacked him unexpectedly? :) "No Kato...do not attack me tonight!''

I finally gave the silly kitten his own ball of thread to play with so he would leave my bookmark projects alone! :)

Speaking of bookmarks, I have started a bookmark/book exchange -- I thought it sounded fun! I'll give a link here, and also post separately about it. More info is available on the swap blog at
www.makinbookmarks.blogspot.com Read the blog entries, and email me if you want to join the swap! It's just starting out. I'll post info about starting dates, etc., once enough people are signed up to start the exchange.

I realized something when I was downloading photos to blog this morning. NEVER leave your digital camera out when your husband is bored..... It's FRANKENHUBBY!!!!!



He's going to just love me for blogging that. LOLOLOL.

TTFN!!!

Happenings

Lots went on in our household this weekend. My step-daughter had prom on Saturday. And my son played in the local symphony orchestra's spring concert today at the local college.

For the first time, my teenage son wore a suit and tie! He looked great!



We were back a bit too far to get good pictures, but I did manage to get one without anyone's head in the way. The orchestra gave a great performance!



And here is Sonya in her prom dress with my husband, Mikey and baby Josh. :)



TTFN!! :)

You scored as Emma Woodhouse. Emma is possibly one of the most loyal characters of Austen, always wanting better for those around her and doing all she possibly can to make it happen. Her motives sometimes get in the way of her good intentions and her own opinions can end up ruling her actions, but she has a good heart. She loves to be social and is welcoming to most, unless they are too silly to tolerate. While she sometimes changes her behavior to make others feel comfortable, she knows who she is and is always bettering herself.

Which Jane Austen Character are You? (For Females) Long Quiz!!!
created with QuizFarm.com

SP8 Survey and blog excuses....lol

Gee, no posts from me in awhile. Life has been very busy in our household lately, and I just had severe blogger's block for a few days. I'd sit down with a few minutes to blog, and my mind would go totally blank.

But I have accomplished a lot. In the past week, I have taken my step-daughter out to get her prom dress. We got the dress, shoes, jewelry, etc at a very good price. Prom is on Saturday evening. She's really excited!

And I found a dress shirt, black suit and dress shoes for my son who has his first city symphony concert on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. He looks SO nice in a suit! This is a boy I have never been able to get to dress up --- so it was really a big change to see him in a nice, perfect fitting black dress suit. I'll make sure to take pictures on Sunday when he has on his suit and bow tie for the concert. :)

And I've been religiously going to the gym for the last 2 weeks. Gotta whittle down the ..... knitter's butt. LOL. You crafters know what I mean. Hee hee. That rear end spread catches up with us! So I'm running around trying to lose the extra pounds. It's going to be a long endeavor. But I can say that I feel much better already.

Ok, on to the SP8 survey:

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? Sock yarn and wool, mostly because I love to make socks.
What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Really stiff acrylic like Pop 'n Yarn (used to be sold by Walmart) mostly because it rubs the skin dry on my hands.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? A wheeled plastic storage container with drawers.

3. How long have you been knitting? I have been knitting since March 2005. But I've done needlepoint and embroidery since I was a little girl, and crocheted for 16 years before I learned to knit. I picked it up easily.
Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? Intermediate to advanced.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yes, there is a link to it in the left hand margin of my blog.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) Spice, cinnamon, patchouli. No floral scents please -- they make me sneeze for some reason.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? Please no candy unless it's sugar free. I'm a diabetic.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? Crochet, embroidery, needlepoint, miniature painting, furniture refinishing, plastic canvas. I'll try about anything! lol. I want to learn to spin, but I'm having problems finding a drop spindle and rovings where I live. And I don't want to invest in a spinning wheel or anything more expensive than a drop spindle if I can't get the basic supplies here.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I don't care for Rap or screamer metal, and country really isn't my thing....but I like pretty much anything else, especially classic rock.

9. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand? I like deep colors -- autumn and jewel tones, especially teal blue. I do not like pink. Please please please....no pink. :)

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I have one step-daughter who is 17. Two sons. One is 15, and the other turns 2 in July. I have a great husband. :) We have four cats -- Fooful, Grover, Frenchie, and a new kitten who is yet to be named.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? No ponchos please. I do wear scarves, hats and mittens though. And I like shawls instead of ponchos.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Socks! But I also make a lot of dishclothes, potholders and towel toppers as little projects for some relaxing knitting time.

13. What are you knitting right now? A diagonal 14" pillow, two dishcloths, and a toy teddy bear.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Yes, Love them!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? It depends on the project. If I need the cable to hold stitches, I use a circular. To make socks, I prefer aluminum dpns. But I do also have bamboo dpns. Plastic needles are great when you need some give, but I have had them break before.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? No, but I wish I did!

17. How did you learn to knit? I took a class at the local community college to get the basics and then taught myself.

18. How old is your oldest UFO? 3 years old. It's a scrap afghan that will be gorgeous when it's finished. But it's a pain in the heinie to work on.

19. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween. I just love costume parties!

20. Is there anything that you collect? Teddy bears, and knitting patterns.

21. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? I'd love to have the Folk Socks book. I have subscriptions to Interweave knitting and Creative Knitting.

22. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I'd love to learn to do more with lace weight....like shawls or really airy pretty scarves.

23. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Yes! I wear a women's size 9. I can provide more detailed measurements if needed.

24. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) July 11th

TTFN!!