oh the fatigue

So tired, too tired to knit, but I made brownies. How did that happen? I've been eating a lot of junk today. I had half a bagel with cream cheese, eggs, pizza, fun size candy (baby ruth, reeses peanut butter cup, etc) and the brownies were the icing on the cake. Ate way too much brownie. Need to stay away from the brownies and not spoil my dinner.

lelah got me on my knees

I've been trying to finish the Lelah top, but that takes a while. I don't pick it up unless I can concentrate on it, take a little bit to get into it. It's coming along slower than I would like but it's my first adult size garment. I'm still not completely confident that it's going to fit the way I want it. I have a feeling there's going to be some trial and error involved when I get to the bust line. I don't really know how to do shaping or shoulder straps. Should be a learning experience I won't soon forget.

so um yeah long time no see

I guess it's been a while since I posted. I've been in a funk lately but I'm hoping to get out of it. The change in seasons always throws me off. I finished my bag made from shopping bags. I made the handles with plastic and twine for reinforcement. Used a crochet hook and chained right into the bag and chained some more and then back in the edge of the bag and did a single crochet row back without the twine. Did that on both sides of the bag and voila all done.

What about the knittting?

Recycled Plastic Carryall

I guess this blog has also turned into a personal blog. Sometimes things take shape as time goes on. I was so busy this weekend I didn't have much time to knit. I was knitting in the car when we we're going to the city for some tapas and drinks. I'm trying to finish my recycled plastic carryall. It really is mostly done except for the gusset and some seaming. I need to figure out what to do for handles. There are no handles in the instructions. I was thinking of crocheting some handles onto the bag when I'm done putting it together. I usually throw those things together on the fly.

Yeah....I'm a slacker

I've been slacking lately. Maybe because I've been tiring myself out, mostly because I'm impulsive. I get ideas and I want to do them right away. I wanted to fix up the closet in my apartment for the longest time, so this weekend I prepped the walls and painted it. I was tired after all that.

Monday I did some errands and I stopped at the store because I wanted to make this pizza recipe that I have wanted to make for a while. Well actually it was two recipes (that was a bad idea) and I had wanted to do it over the weekend, but I was busy. I spent about an hour in the store grocery shopping and by the time I got home it was 8pm. I shouldn't have but I did it, and it came out good. Artichoke, goat cheese and chicken pizza and Margherita Pizza with Arugula. The Margherita pie came out a bit too heavy. I think it had too much sauce on it. By the time I was done cleaning, it was around 11pm. This morning I couldn't wake up and I've been slacking all day.

I think it's good to indulge myself once in a while. It makes me happy. A lot of times I hold back and I feel as though I'm tied down. I want to feel like I have the freedom to do what I want, when I want to. There are so many responsibilities in life that people get tied down with. We all have to find a good balance between being responsible and being relaxed. Sometimes it is good to have structure like following a sleep schedule so that you don't fall asleep at work. It also can get it the way of being spontaneous and having a good time with friends. It's good to have a routine but it's also good to be flexible. I need to have structure in my life that is not too loose that it falls apart and not to firm that if feels like I can't break free.

Second Chance Handbag

Today I finished the strap on my new handbag that was made from the scarf. I need to find a button for it and I want to see what i can do to make it practical. I want to make a lining with pockets and stuff for money, cell phone, etc. I think it would be nice if i could take it out when I'm going out for dinner or some event that I don't need to carry so many things. I was also pondering adding an outer pocket on the backside of the bag in the same knitted fabric. I want to make it a few inches smaller than the bag and I want to use rest of the scarf that still has knitting in it. Maybe I can try steeking. I have to see if I can use my sewing machine. That would be awesome.

My mom's infamous unfinished scarf.

My mom's infamous unfinished scarf.
My mom did about half a scarf in seed stitch and ran out of yarn and it got discontinued. She got frustrated and gave it to me to dispense of. She wanted to toss it in the trash at first, but then I said maybe someone else could use it. She just wanted it out of her sight. So I was about to give it away and my knitting friends said that it was nice and that I should keep it. Maybe it would look good as a table runner or something. So it ended up in my stash. Looking at it then, I had to do something with it. I didn't know what, it was long but only about 8 inches wide. So the only thing I could think of doing was a handbag. I looked at it all ways and then decided the ultimate shape. So i cut it and unraveled a bit to make a button hole and I started making a strap. Looking at the strap, I realized that I had two options. Sew it to the top of the bag or make it part of the side seem to give the bag more depth. I chose the latter. I got so excited that I started sewing the strap on right away which may have not made sense since I was still working on the strap. But it actually helped ground the strap while I was knitting it. So now I have quite a bit of strap. It's narrow so it's a lot of back and forth. I have about 3 other projects in progress as well. I didn't really need to start up another thing but it shouldn't take me that long considering the bulk of the work was already knitted for me. I wonder what my mother would think when she sees it all finished as a bag. I don't know if she's into that sort of thing. She mainly uses big pocketbook type of bags, so it's not that practical. She is a practical woman.

Here, there and everywhere

So Tuesday I was a bit off...

I was not focused at all, I kept bouncing all over the place. I didn't make much progress at my job. I was driven to distraction. I kept thinking how I wanted to craft and be creative and how there really isn't much time for me to sit down and do all of the things that I think of doing. I was looking in my crafting bin and I saw all sorts of things that I used to do that I have abandoned. I saw a beaded bracelet kit that I never started. Right at that moment I just wanted pick it up and dive in. I saw some pretty glass beads. could string them on some yarn and start knitting with them", I thought to myself. It's so easy to get caught up in it all and then a little further down the line I lose interest.

First Entry

I've decided to start a blog to capture all my adventures in knitting. You're welcome to come along for the ride...

I am relatively new to knitting. I first learned when I was a young girl. My mom has always been knitting and crocheting. I remember knitting blocks with the needles and crocheting granny squares. My mom had to start it for me of course. I didn’t see how I could make anything practical with blocks and squares, so I lost interest.

More recently I came across a show on the DIY Network called Knitty Gritty and I watched a few episodes to see what kind of projects were on there. Also around the same time a friend told me she was interested in knitting. I tried my best to show her what I knew, but I didn’t know much. Then I became interested in doing it myself so I could learn and share my knowledge.

One day my mom found a project bag with some yarn, needles and an instructional manual and I sat down and started doing it. I started with casting on and then I started doing only knit stitches and made some swatches. After I got the hang of knitting, I picked up purling and I just kept going. I just practiced and practiced on that yarn until my stitches looked good.

After a few weeks of practicing I decided that I wanted to start a project.
I decided to go to the store and just pick a yarn that I loved and make a scarf. I started with a fur yarn “Wild!” by Moda Dea in Denim. It wasn’t the best idea to start my first project with a novelty yarn, but at least no one could see any of my mistakes. With a lot of time, patience and determination I finished that scarf. I remember starting with it at 12 inches long and finishing 3 hours later and it was 10 inches long. It got pretty hairy a few times, but I hung in there.

From that point on I kept going and going. I enjoyed doing it and was full of ideas and inspiration. I couldn't wait to get home from work and pick up my needles again.

I have a bunch of projects so far and with each one I embark on is new and different. I suppose that keeps me interested considering that I have ADD.