Knitting Progress, Honey, and Haiti

Remember the retina-burning-scarf that I mentioned in my last post? Well, here is a sneak peek at it :) It is taking ages for me to knit up, but I'm really enjoying it. I'm running three strands of worsted weight yarn together and using size US 17 needles. To date, size 17 needles are the largest needles I've used. I just can't seem to stop making chunky stuff. Chunky yarn (usually) knits up quickly and my friends and family seem to like my bulkier scarves more than my dainty neck warmers. This scarf is going be mine all mine, but I'm very much considering knitting something similar to this to sell in my Etsy shop.

I have been inspired by one of Amber Dusick's recent blog posts to give honey a try as a facial cleanser. I've been following her blogs for several months now, after having watched her "Handmade Portraits: Woodmouse" video on Etsy, and love the content of her blogs. She focuses on crafting, eco-friendly living, and crunchy parenting. She recently wrote about using honey as a facial wash. I'd heard of this being done before but knew little about how to do it-should I use raw or processed honey, should I add brown sugar to exfoliate, that sort of thing. I found that it's incredibly simple and appears to be effective for many people. You can use raw or processed and you can add whatever you'd like to it. Many folks are claiming that washing with honey prevents acne breakouts and that it soothes dry skin, which sounds perfect for those like me that have that annoying combination skin type. Starting tonight, I'm going to give this honey facial wash a try. I'll let you all know what I think :) Honey is a much cheaper and healthier alternative to the current facial cleanser that I use.

I assume that, by now, you have all heard about the recent earth quake in Haiti that has resulted in the death of thousands of Haitians. I can't even handle reading about it or looking at pics. It's all too sad, but I really want to help out. I'd like to make a (albeit small) donation but I can't decide which is the best organization to donate to. Later, I will donate a knitted/crochet blanket as I think it helps to receive more personal items after losing so much. Does anyone have a favorite organization that they like to donate to for disaster relief?