greetingarts

pintail whale

I know a Pintail is really a type of duck, or a kayak, but I just liked the name Pintail Whale, the way it was so appropriate, and rolled so easily off the tongue...

... so here is my creation for the March/April Pincushion Challenge.  The Sea was the theme, and this little guy is knitted with US size 3 double pointed needles (no reason they have to be double points, I just like the length of them, especially for a small little project like this) from 100% cotton fingering weight yarn, Paton's Bumble Bee in Morning Glory (fancy name for light blue).  He measures about 3" from the tip of his nose down to his flippy little tail.  I found the pattern on the Knitted Toy Box, a gem of a site.  So now you can go knit up one of your own!

lunchbox swap

I mailed off my package for the Lunchbox Swap today, making the deadline with several hours to spare.  Quite unlike me, don't you think?

For my little lunch tote I decided to incorporate a lot of different crafts.  Knitting, crochet, and sewing.  The outside was knit from hemp twine, and is a one time only deal.  I'm never going to use that particular kind of hemp again.  It really wasn't meant for knitting, it's literally just a thin rope, and was the roughest thing ever.  "Difficult to knit" would be putting it mildly.  Especially since I have a very tight gauge.  My hands were rubbed raw and I had to take very frequent breaks.  But I think it looks nice, and that's what matters.

I sewed a little lining for the inside, out of fabric I've used before, which I thought was perfect for something that's supposed to hold food.  Then I used some cotton crochet thread and steel crochet hooks (1.5mm and 2.35mm) to make the handles.

I included some Hello Kitty sandwich bags and summery, barbeque napkins just for fun.  I really hope my swap partner likes it.

And now, I get to show you all the goodies I received from Christina.  In the photo, it looks black, but this cute lunch tote is a dark denim, with the red/green paisley print apple on the front and inside the handles,

and one of my favorite color combinations of pink and green for the lining and ribbon closure.  There are pockets on the inside,

and even one on the back.

And look at all the little treats she stuffed inside!  More pink and green, buttons, fabric, a yummy fun magazine, and rubber stamps.  I love my little tote and it really does fit my style.  I've already got a little knitting project settled inside it.  But you know, on second thought, since it was supposed to be for lunches, I think I should find some food to put in there... I'm sure there's a bar of dark chocolate around here somewhere.  That's a good lunch, right?

lucky, lucky me

I've won a few drawings lately.  Wanna see?

Every month, when I go to the quilt shop to attend the Block of the Month class, they give me a little red raffle ticket.  In two years, I never won anything.  Until March, that is.  Now, I've won two months in a row.  First, it was this adorably packaged fat quarter bundle.

Then, the first week of April, it was this chubby little roll of 5" strips.

Look at all those prints!  And they are *exactly* my style!  Love them.  Thanks, Mary, and the wonderful people at The Fabric Patch.

But my luck extended to the internet and the crafty blog world, too.

Hillary's original doll arrived last week.  I've since had to put her high up on a shelf, far from sticky fingers (literally).  But I can still see her every day, and she makes me smile with her sweet simplicity.

Then Sarah picked my name in her April giveaway, and I received the cutest turtle magnet to adorn my fridge.  Again, the little darling is placed well above the danger line, at my eye level where no one can love her to death.

So much luck and cheer in a very difficult month.  Thank you so much, I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate your generosity.

artichoke head

Happy Earth Day!

For dinner, we're going to eat the largest artichokes I've ever seen.  I think it's going to take at least an hour to steam, and maybe about that long to eat... dipped leaf by leaf into a little sauce made of mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper.  So yummy!  And guess how much they cost me?  $1 each.  A dollar!

Too bad I missed National Artichoke Heart Day on March 16^th.  Oh well, I guess we're making up for it today.  Better late than never, right?

baby turns three

How did this happen?  When did my baby turn into a three year old?

Who is this strong-willed, independent, "I can do it myself" girl who knows how to add (thanks to this awesome CD/DVD)?  You're unpredictable, protective, loud, competitive, unbelievably cuddly, and a thousand contradictions all wrapped up in a compact little bundle.  No one can mess with your sister, but you find a dozen different ways to get under her skin every day.  You want to wear high heels and dresses, but like to scoot your butt along planters and curbs.  Each day is a surprise with you, and you keep me on my toes.

I love you with every cell in my body.  Happy birthday, my little Jemsicle.  Donuts and Disneyland, my dear?  Sounds like a perfect day to me.

one saves four

Thank you so much for all your comments and kind words on my last post.  They mean a lot to me, and to my family as well, I'm sure.  My grandma was a knitter and was also the first person I ever knew who cut up plastic bags to crochet with them.  This was years and years ago, long before crafting with recycled materials was so trendy and mainstream.

So I'm sure she would have approved of this market bag I've knitted up.  I can't say enough good things about this bag.  It's stretchy, but not too much, it's sturdy, flexible, scrunchable, so very fun to knit, and took up about a skein and a half of Cotton-Ease (I used Bubble Gum pink from the old line, but I think the new yarn is the same as the old, just in different colors and with new labels?).  The pattern is by Chrissy Gardiner, who I've mentioned before.  It was published as the Rutabaga Bag in the Spring 2007 edition of Knitscene.  But if you don't happen to have that issue of the magazine, or can't get your hands on a copy, don't worry!  It will be available as a separate pattern sometime in June (and no, this isn't a paid endorsement).

Here's a closeup of the ingenious, easy to memorize, fast and fun-to-knit mesh pattern.  I scrunch up this bag inside my purse and for the past seven days it has prevented me from having to use at least 4 plastic bags.  That's pretty awesome for such a short amount of time, I'd say.  Just think of what it will save in a month, or by the time summer is here, or in a year!

I think I'll give this bag to my mom, if she promises to take it with her to the grocery store.    The color is so bright and cheery, and will remind her of Rebecca. 

I need to go make many more of these.  Just one can help so much.

goodbye, grandma

You can rest now.

done is better than squared

This month's block is called Godspeed.

And though it did go together rather quickly, it's not exactly square.  As in, the sides curve slightly outward.  More like a circle than a block.  But, hey, the points match so nicely!