greetingarts

freezing cold warm crazy

The weather here in Southern California is totally schizophrenic.  Last week when I was driving to work, it was 36 degrees.  We don't turn on the heater at home because of bloody noses and stuffiness, but it was about 55 every morning when we woke up, which is just too chilly!  Rebecca asked me to make her a cowl, so I started after Christmas.

I finished it up yesterday morning, and the temperature was 80.  Seriously.  Today it's supposed to be 81.  Absolutely insane.  Rebecca chose the color and the yarn, and I modified the pattern from this one on Ravelry.  My details are here.

It's really hard to take a picture of black knitting, but the texture is nice, and Rebecca likes it.  The length is just perfect to double it up once for warmth.

So then, of course since it was 80ish, I finally started my other project, making handwarmers for me and my co-workers.  I work in a book warehouse, and when I get there at 8 in the morning it is usually about 38 or 39 degrees.  Regardless of the weather outside during the day, it rarely reaches even 50 by the time I leave in the afternoon.  So I took the girls' toddler socks, the ones that lost their matches and that I knew I'd been saving for a reason, and turned them into handwarmers.  I cut off the foot, turned the cuff inside out, sewed up the cut end, flipped them back right side out, filled them with feed corn I bought from a store I'd been driving past for years and years, and stitched the other end closed.  45 seconds in the microwave, and the little 3.5" square things actually retain heat for about half an hour. 

I made little flannel covers for a few of them out of scraps leftover from making baby quilts so they can be taken off and washed, and the girls love them.  I think we can put them in the freezer and use them as ice packs, too, which might be more appropriate for the next few days?  But I'm going to make lots more for my coworkers, because we'll definitely need them to keep our fingers moving for at least another month or two.  I'm trying to experiment with different ways to make them stay toasty for longer than just 30 minutes, like maybe packing more corn in muslin (less stretchy) bags?  A little bit more work, but if it helps to retain the heat longer, it would be worth it. 

Or maybe I'll just set them outside in the sun.  Ha!

focus

I've got so many irons in the fire, sometimes it's hard to concentrate on one thing at a time.

1.  Embellishing bracelets to pass out during the class party.

2.  Putting together treats and decorations for the teachers' lounge.

3.  Making costumes at the last minute, with input from the designer.

4.  Attempting to knit up ghost necklaces, to add to a growing collection, but realizing that was one thing that just wasn't going to get done.  And letting it go.

Being able to focus is so important.  And my little lady can certainly vouch for that... she got glasses last week!  It was inevitable, and certainly no surprise to me.  She took to them very well, and now Jessie laments the fact that she's the only one in the family without them.  She can't wait until she needs a pair, too.  Silly girl.

another school year

Can't believe today was the first day of school.

And this was the only photo I got!  It's back to work for me soon, too, and even though I love what I do and where I work and who I work with, I realized how much I could get done at home just by myself, all week long, during school hours.  Today was a luxury, going grocery shopping and running errands on my own schedule, with just me to worry about for a few hours.  Next week it will be back to constantly rushing around, dropping off the kids, racing to work, then trying to squeeze grocery shopping and laundry in between school pickup and homework, cooking dinner, getting the kids ready for bed, and finally taking a breath when we read our bedtime story.  Makes me tired just thinking about it!  But we really did savor the summer days, I don't think we wasted a single one.  Even when I locked us out of the house last week in 100 degree weather, we managed to make the best of it and had some fun.

Today I sent them off with backpack snacks, for them and their past and present teachers, and made my traditional softies - reminders for the girls that I'm missing them, thinking of them, and waiting to hear all the stories and details from their first day in fifth and second grade.

Rebecca's last year of elementary school.  Mind boggling.

angry knitting

Remember the angry crochet I did last summer?  I can't believe it's been that long, and I also can't remember if I ever posted about the one I knit for my mom this past Christmas.  Must be old age creeping up on me (tomorrow is my birthday and I'm less than enthusiastic about it).  Anyway, Jessie had a birthday party to attend, and since the invitation was Angry Birds, she wanted me to knit one for her friend just like I did for Grandma.

I used the awesome free pattern from Knitterbees again, but this time I sewed on some felt eyes instead of doing that tedious duplicate stitching.  The unibrow is a little strip of single crochet that was sewn on, and I'm happy to say that the birthday boy loved it.  I do, too, especially knowing that everything came from my stash.

appreciating it all

Two weeks ago was teacher appreciation.  I took a few days off work so I could help with setting up posters and decorations at the start of the week, and the faculty luncheon on Wednesday.  It was wonderful to be back in the classrooms, and I was surprised at how easy it was to fall back into the volunteer thing!

I sewed some ruffled streamers for the decor, made Jessica's Chinese Cabbage Salad (again!  I love this dish), and baked three dozen devil's food cupcakes, decorated to look like apples.  I saw the idea on a blog some time ago, but I can't for the life of me remember where now.  Anyway, I thought they turned out quite well, and even though it was super hot, there was a minimum of frosting droopage.  I used mini pretzel rods for the stems and fresh spearmint for the leaves.  The cupcakes turned out quite moist, too.  I love my two-tiered cupcake carrier that I bought years ago.

For our past and current teachers, I crocheted some pencil bookmarks with perle cotton and a steel crochet hook (one I inherited when my grandma passed away, I thought about her as I was crafting), and knitted an i-cord pencil keychain charm.  No patterns, I saw the bookmark online a while ago but just winged it, and then made up the keychain pencil as I went along.  I made five gifts in all, but forgot to take a group photo.

We only have one more Monday left of this school year, and by the end of this month, we'll officially be on summer break.  It's been a very difficult year for me personally at home, at the girls' school, and adjusting to work.  I'm really looking forward to slowing down, enjoying my girls, and clearing out the clutter in my house this summer.  Well, maybe not the last thing so much, but I'm sure I'll be happy *after* it's clean.

over the rainbow

A belated birthday gift for Jessie, a 65" long rainbow scarf, less than 3" wide.  I used all scrap acrylic yarn, garter stitch, and size 10(?) needles.  The fringe was made just by cutting the yarn extra long after every row and leaving a long tail before beginning the next row.  But if I ever make another, I won't do it that way, I'll make white fringe afterwards so that the white could signify clouds.  That would be cute.

 

birthday socks

Can I tell you again how much I love doing the 2-at-a-Time Socks?  These were officially my first finished items of 2012, but since they were a test knit for Gardiner Yarn Works and also a birthday gift, I couldn't/can't blog about them.  If anyone's interested, I'll let you know when the pattern is released.  They are a fun knit.

Pop on over to Regina's and see how great they look on her feet!  I'm so glad they fit.  She takes *way* better photos than I do, too.  Happy birthday, my friend.

can't see the forest

Well, Christmas vacation has officially started.  Kids are out of school, parents are arriving tomorrow, and yesterday was my last day of "work" (it was a traditional Christmas party at the owner's home with turkey, ham, and all the fixin's) until February, and most of the decorations are up.

There was a lot of hubbub leading up to the kids' last day of school before Winter Break.  Remember those candy corn necklaces I made for Rebecca's class for Halloween?  Well, she decided long ago that I should start a collection.  So she wanted the Christmas trees from Teeny-Tiny Mochimochi.  Good thing I started early (before Thanksgiving?) because when Jessie saw them, she wanted them for her class, too.  I made a few snowmen (winged it myself, but Anna's pattern is inexpensive and up for sale here) in case some people didn't celebrate Christmas, but those took a lot longer.  I ended up making 56 of the minis, more or less... 31 necklaces for Rebecca's class, 20 necklaces for Jessie's, and 5 pins for the teachers.

But I stayed up until 1:30 the morning before, and forgot to take a group shot!  So you won't be seeing the forest of Christmas trees, or the fleet of snowmen.  You'll just have to take my word for it.

And I think I'll start doing the Valentine's hearts on January 1st.

making Halloween

Here's a bowlful of Mochimochi Land's knitted candy corn, almost ready for passing out to Rebecca's classmates on Friday.  I need to add jump rings and cord for necklaces, maybe sew pin backs onto a few for her teachers.

And I'm doing something entirely different for Jessie's classroom favors... not done yet, so I'll wait to share that.  I'm room mom, too, so have a paper plate mummy craft planned, and a fun spiderweb yarn ball game with treats and prizes.  Can't wait!

i do

I do still craft (a lot, actually), even if I hardly blog anymore.

This little couple was made for Rebecca's 3rd grade teacher (last year - she was so great!), who got married a couple of weeks ago.  I used Jean Greenhowe's Little Gift Dolls book, and it all went together pretty simply.  There are a lot of little parts that need to be sewn on separately and it's not knitted in the round so there is seaming, but all the characters in the book are just too cute not to attempt.  I'm glad I finally found a reason to make two of them.

They were probably about 6" tall, and I used acrylic worsted weight yarn.  I pretty much followed the patterns exactly as written. 

They were very well received, and the newlywed said the dolls would have a special place in their new home.  I hope they bring them good luck and good fortune, and a long life full of happiness together.