Pixi

Spinning

2010-02-18T11:26:00.000-08:00

Hello! I wanted to write a very quick blog before I run out of the door to get to work...do any of you spin wool? I started spinning my own yarn from wool about a year or so ago on a self-made drop spindle. It's not something that I do with any regularity and find that I never really get better at it. I think that I find the dyeing of the wool to be more rewarding than spinning it. My yarn is always very uneven and over spun and I still have to pre-draft my wool. Any suggestions on how to improve my spinning skills or are there any websites that you know of that could help me out or is this just a matter of practice? Thanks for any suggestions!

City kitty, New job, and Statement pieces

2010-02-17T11:34:00.000-08:00

Due to my erratic work "schedule" I haven't been able to regularly update this blog. Also, the computer that I had been using for nearly 5 years was infected with a Trojan/virus which caused my computer to eventually stop working. The Boyfriend wound up having to buy us a new computer. I'm pretty sure that my lack of attention to my blog has caused me to lose most, if not all of my regular readers. I have not abandoned this blog and I intend to continue updating when I get the chance. On to the updates...

After becoming increasingly concerned about our cat, Kaya's, constant grooming (which was causing her to go nearly bald in some places), the Boyfriend and I did some research and talked to our vet. We decided that there is a good chance that she is very bored with being the only cat after coming from a home full of foster cats. This decision had us searching for a new cat that could be a companion to Kaya. This past weekend, I finally picked out a sweet black and white cat and brought him home. Kaya HATES him. It always takes a while to get two cats acquainted with each other, but I'm becoming worn out from having to monitor them. Although they do better each day, the Boyfriend and I still have to break up a fight (instigated by my sweet-angel-baby Kaya) at least once a day. Additionally, I'm busy trying to turn a country cat into an apartment dwelling city cat. Although new cat had been very well taken care of by his foster pet parent, he needed his nails trimmed and his ears cleaned and treated for mites, just in case. Kaya has a perpetual ear infection (that she's had since long before we got her) and we've been treating it since we got her. Ear mites would be no good. He still needs just a good ole bath and some flea meds before I can feel like we've transformed him into a city kitty. We're also working on getting new cat to stay out of our plates and cups while we eat and to stop clawing EVERYTHING. Despite all of this, new cat's "cat-onality" is very sweet, quiet, and gentle-just like we wanted! If you've made it this far into my cat rant, then you've noticed that new cat still has no name :( All four roommates have been thinking up names for this little guy, but we just can't agree on anything. The Boyfriend and I had hoped to stick to a music themed name, as Kaya is named after a Bob Marley song. Any suggestions? After I collect a list of potential names, I'm going to post a poll containing each of these names on here for you all to take, just for fun.

So did you all enjoy the sneak peek of the crazy scarf that I had been working on? I finally finished it last month and I adore it. It was a real challenge but tons of fun to knit. Like I mentioned in the last post, I ran three strands of worsted weight (4) yarn together to make a scarf that is now named "psychedelic spaghetti." I have to give all credit to my roommate, Micah for that name. I can't wait to post some pics of me wearing it. I finished it just time for one of the biggest snows that our city has seen in years. It was super warm! The day that it started to snow, the Boyfriend and I decided to walk from our apartment to the gas station that sits on a main road to see all of the snow and get some hot drinks. Because everyone was leaving work at the same time to avoiding getting trapped at work, the main road was bumper to bumper. I wore the psychedelic spaghetti scarf during our walk and half of the city got to see it lol. A friend and neighbor of ours saw it from nearly a quarter of a mile away as he was walking back from the grocery store. I'm considering it to be my first statement piece. There is a chance that I will offer a smaller and tamer version of it in my Etsy shop.

I'd like to update you all on my new job but I fear violating any HIPAA laws! So, I'll just say that I love my new job and am learning tons everyday. It lets me know that I chose the right field.

I hope that you all are well and surviving the constant snow!

Knitting Progress, Honey, and Haiti

2010-01-14T11:28:00.000-08:00

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?

Colors, Glass, and New Ideas

2010-01-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

The Holidays have come and gone and I have to admit that I'm relieved. I truly enjoy spending time with both my family and the Boyfriend's family, but it is an exhausting experience. It's also been nice to have the traffic back to relatively normal again here by my apartment. Now, I can just sit back and enjoy all of the wonderful gifts that I received! Oh, before I get this blog started, I wanted to note that I often have links to sites throughout each post. Keep an eye open for these links in case you want to know more about the various products that I mention here.

For Christmas, the Boyfriend's step-mom gave me 14 skeins of yarn in various bright colors. I've never had so much yarn at one time! I've spent everyday since Christmas sifting through my collection of knitting and crochet patterns trying to find something epic to make. The yarn that she gave me is Red Heart's Super Saver yarn. It's worsted (4) weight yarn made totally from acrylic. The colors are freaking awesome, but the feel of the yarn is a bit...well, scratchy. It's difficult to make any wearable items from this yarn, which doesn't make it a bad yarn, it's just not a wearable yearn. Despite this I've already started making a scarf using pink, orange, and blue yarn. Oh yes, it's going to burn your retinas when you see it :)

Because each of the 14 skeins has 364 yards of yarn (that's like a zillion football fields), I asked everyone for ideas on stuff to knit or crochet and got some pretty good suggestions. While trying to decide on what to make out of all this new yarn, I've come up with some new ideas for knitting and plan to use my Hobby Lobby gift card to follow through with these ideas. My hope is to eventually get my hands on some bamboo yarn. I've been dying to knit with bamboo as it is super soft and it's a sustainable material. Also, I'd like to try to do more felting with real wool rather than the soy wool I've been using. Because my Rasta scarves get so many complements, I'm cooking up new ideas using the same color combo.

My mom got me way too much for Christmas, but I'm very thankful for it. Part of my move towards being more eco-friendly involves the conversion from plastic to glass. Mom helped me get started by buying me 4 beautiful glass bake ware/food storage pieces from Crate and Barrel. I'd love to link you to the pieces that I have, but I can't find them on the website anymore and think that they may no longer be available. Mom also gave me two glass milk bottles from Farmhouse Wares that I plan to keep filtered water and juice in. By the way, Farmhouse Wares has very pretty stuff for those of you that dig rustic, country, or French Provincial decor. They even have things like honey and tea. I used the cash that I received from family for Christmas to buy a glass canister for our sugar. Pretty much if it's normally packaged in plastic, I want to transfer it to glass.

Summer can't come fast enough for me. I have a topsy turvy that I can't wait to use and may even have the chance to make a composting bin (free soil, yay). Kaya will be happy if I can successfully grow catnip again :)

With a lot of help from my family, I've now got several new items in my apartment that make it far more personal and less like a hotel. I'll save the details on this for my next post and will have some pics for ya.

What gifts did you receive during the Holidays?

Etsy Seller Friday (and a brief update)

2009-12-18T12:09:00.000-08:00

My attempts at starting a regular Friday post have been just that-attempts. I'm still not sure that I will keep this as a regular part of my blog, although I really enjoy doing it. This means that at the least, you will see random Etsy seller reviews on this blog. Etsy is a crazy-fun website that needs more attention from the general public, not just from fellow crafters. I tend to feature sellers that make some really unique and sort of kitchy things that I adore, but there are plenty of folks on Etsy that craft unique yet fashionable/chic products. On a similar note, I intend to start blogging a lot more about eco-friendly living. I want to write about eco-friendly living in a tone that is not "preachy." Instead, I hope to share some knowledge and advice that I have learned from my personal experiences as well as get advice and ideas from my readers.

This review is going to be a bit different. Today I'm going to share a little bit about several different sellers and let you do the shopping. I tried to pick a theme that would tie each of the sellers together...so if you're into boho, rustic, Earth-tone chic, you will enjoy this review.

(Photo: Sparkle Philosophy by Flora Bond)

This first photo is a necklace made by Flora Bond. Pretty much all of her peices are "statement" pieces. Each item has a sort of vintage feel to it. Most of her necklaces would be perfect for weddings and other special occasion that call for getting all dolled up.

(Photo: Shabby Rose Corset Skirt by Patches and Rags)

This gorgeous patchwork skirt was made by Patches and Rags. These are some of the prettiest patchwork skirts I've ever seen. They could be both casual or dressed up with the right shoes and jewelry.

(Photo: Grey Ruffle Tank by Sue Bradbury)

Sue Bradbury (her seller name is ellainaboutique) makes all sorts of clothing and accessories. Mostly she has tops, skirts, and handbags in her shop. You'll find plenty of warm, Earth-tones in her Etsy shop. I love that Sue Bradbury's tops look great with a pair of jeans or with slacks. Go look for yourself!

I'm dating Buddy, the elf...

2009-12-14T08:39:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post, I promised that I would share some photos of the Boyfriend's Christmas decorations. No surface in our apartment is safe from a santa, snowman, or Christmas tree. Even since I took these photos, the Boyfriend has added more decorations. Only a few decorations are mine and I'm pretty sure I didn't capture any of them in these photos. I apologize for the poor quality of these photos...it tends to be pretty dark in our apartment at this time of the year and my camera just can't seem to deal with that. Maybe Santa will fix that for me ;)

Yes, the Boyfriend has a Christmas village.

Most of his ornaments are sports themed. I tried to capture a picture of my one fairy ornament but the light was just too low. My poor fairy ornament looks lost and confused amongst all of the football players.

Yep, that's a Miami Dolphins Santa. Because Santa was tired of the old red suit this year. The Boyfriend also has a Vols Santa and nutcracker.

More snowmen, more Santas. The counters in our kitchen are also covered. There is a third Christmas tree in the kitchen and several Christmas hand towels. This really may require two posts.

Too Long

2009-12-01T12:09:00.000-08:00

I apologize for not having posted anything in so long! Thanksgiving, work, and a few special events have taken up nearly all of my time. The boyfriend and I successfully crammed two Thanksgiving dinners into one day! We started the day by eating with his mother's side of the family and ended it with dinner at my aunt's house. He and I had already had Thanksgiving dinner with my dad's family early in November, which made things immensely easier on everyone. We ate at my step-sister's place and got to see some of her newest flower arrangements. She puts together these amazing arrangements with dried, silk, and fresh flowers. I'm hoping that she will soon start selling these arrangements or maybe even doing events like weddings. If I had photos to share with you all, I would, as you have to see her work to believe it.

I worked Friday through Sunday and attended the boyfriend's step-sister's wedding on Saturday. Her wedding was really beautiful. She and her husband are both Georgia football fans and found a classy way of doing the whole wedding in red and black (the team's colors, of course). Both the wedding and reception were at an old train depot in Georgia. I was surprised to see how nice it was on the inside! Because the train tracks are still functional, a train passed by during the reception, which was an unexpected but cool addition.

Earlier last week I had a sort of casual job interview. I didn't get the position that I had applied for, but did get a different position with the same company. Yesterday I stopped by their office and picked up the largest packet of information and forms that I've ever seen! Because of this, I will be busy filling out papers and getting copies of every type of identification just short of my DNA. Hey, I'm just happy that I got another job. Gotz to pay the bills somehow. The individual who is hiring me gave me the name and number of someone that could help me get yet another job at a mental health facility. I called as soon as I returned to my apartment and of course got no answer. Despite leaving a message, I know that I will never get a return call (and I realize that no one will ever answer my calls). I will continue to try, though. If you want a job in which you get a phone, but don't ever have to use it, consider a job in the field of psychology...just sayin'

On a more crafty note, I did knit up a really cute teal/aqua cowl neck scarf. I've been messing with it by adding bows and ribbons. I'm still totally undecided on how to finish it off. Also, I'm a bit frustrated that my circular-knit stockinette stitch curled up. Even after blocking it, the edges still stubbornly rolled right up. You can really see how bad the curl is in this photo:

For lack of a real model, I used the alien head candle:

I've also started on a crochet shrug. The stitch is really pretty and I'm loving it so far. The only problem is that I'm out of yarn and I'm not even half way done :( Boo, I guess I will have to make a trip to the craft store after I get some extra cash this Christmas. Speaking of Christmas, the boyfriend is a Christmas fanatic...now surface in our apartment is untouched by Christmas decorations. This story requires its own post, which I hope you will be seeing tomorrow.

Crafting Mood

2009-11-04T10:00:00.000-08:00

Today I've wanted to do nothing but knit and crochet. The dishes need to be put up, the floors need to be swept, and the towels need to be washed, and...I don't care. There are so many crafting projects that I would rather be working on right now. One of the first things that I want to work on is knitting a cowl neck scarf. I have some yummy burgundy and gold scrap yarn that may be perfect for this. If this is the case, then I hope to have it done by next week :)

Speaking of scrap yarn, I've seen a lot of beautiful scrap yarn blankets in the past and I have been recently inspired to try one out for myself. I've gathered up a little pile of yarn in various colors and textures and have begun crocheting 4x4 inch squares. Each square only takes a few minutes to make. Because of all of the variety of color and texture I don't have to do any fancy stitches to add interest to the blanket. Despite the quick crochet time of each piece, I have a feeling that this blanket will take a long time to complete. Once all of the squares are done, I will have to sew or crochet them all together. If all goes well with this project, I do intend to sell it. All of the blankets that I have sold in the past have been custom made rather than a piece that was entirely my idea from start to finish.

For years I've been saying that I would love to try knitting a headband. I'm thinking of a headband that would be cute with a pony tail or curled hair. I'm far more timid to try this out (which is why I've never tried it) as it will have to be knitted in the round. I despise knitting in the round despite it's wonderfully seamless results. I'll let you know how this goes...if choose to accept this mission.

Oh, I wanted to share a crafting success with you. Just last week, I finally got around to creating a cute felt fabric cupcake applique. My stitching is very sloppy and needs work but I truly enjoyed making this piece! Felt is a little tricky to work with as it is very easy to tear, but is far easier to sew (for me) than any other fabric. I added my new applique to an old scarf that I made ages ago and I think that it really perked it up and gave it a cute focal point. Observe:

What do you think? The details of the cupcake get lost a little in the blurry photograph :( I would love to get my hands on a better camera. The cupcake also adds a bit of kawaii to the scarf as well, which was my intention.

For far too long I have not done any dyeing or spinning of wool. I've still got a ton of wool just waiting to be made into yarn. Spinning is something that I'm still very new to and would love to improve on. Right now I'm spinning on a drop sindle that I made myself. For a first time drop spindle, it's fairly well balanced. It's my drafting skills that need the most improvement. I still have to predraft all of my wool and the yarn always comes out very uneven. Selling yarn that I've spun is a goal of mine, but the uneven quality of my yarn makes it a novelty yarn at best. I'll end this blog with a few photos of yarn that I've either dyed or spun.

This wool was hand dyed using Kool-Aid

I bought this wool from a craft supply store rather than from a local farmer.
I spun it myself, but did not dye it.

Finally!

2009-10-27T20:27:00.000-07:00

After about four or five days without any internet connection, I finally have access to the internet again :) Comcast sent yet another technician out to work on our cable internet. Just as the boyfriend and I thought, it was the modem that was the problem. We'll see how long this one lasts...

Right after I got over the flu, I came down with a mild cold. At least colds are not as bad as H1N1. I was able to work this weekend, despite being sick :) My only concern is that I may have passed my cold onto someone else. Sorry, general public, but I have to pay the bills somehow. Of course, my sales really suffered since I wasn't as perky or as outgoing as one needs to be for my job. Oh well, I get paid no matter what.

Only a few days before I came down with the piggy sniffles, I crocheted up some cute catnip toys for Kaya. She LOVES her toy. I immediately started churning these things out in pretty fall colors. I believe that I mentioned these in a previous blog post. Due to the flu, I was never able to make more than maybe five toys. My mission is to make a crap-load of them before Christmas gets here. I'm a little worried about trying to sell catnip toys that don't actually contain catnip. It's up to the pet parent to add the catnip to the outside of the toy (which would be great for those that use catnip spray). I suppose that I could stuff a little catnip into the inside of the toy, but the real fun happens when "fresh" catnip is added to the outside of the toy. Hopefully, I will get some pics up here soon and you all can give me your opinion on them.

The worst thing that has happened to me this month was, by far, the cancellation of the Miyavi concert that I had tickets to. Only an individual that has been a Japanophile for 14 years would think that contracting the swine flu and having a roommate breakdown and move out during the same week are both not as bad as missing out on a Miyavi concert. Of course our money was refunded and fans are being told that the concert is merely "postponed." I was so broken hearted by this that the boyfriend came home with flowers and took me to dinner at Na Go Ya. I'll post some pics of my beautiful flowers later. It turns out that not only was Miyavi having a difficult time obtaining some sort of permit to perform at certain venues, but he was also suffering from an injury that he sustained during one of his European shows. I hate it for him, but I'm also terribly disappointed. It's not often that I get to attend the concert of my favorite Japanese music artist (aka: this has never happened for me, ever). *sigh* I still have a little hope that he will finish his U.S. tour as he now has an American label.

There are a couple of good things that have come out of the show cancellation. First, it gives us a little more money to go towards the extra large rent that we will be paying this month as we are down by one roommate. Also, our Friday night is now free to spend time with friends and indulge in some Halloween fun :) We plan on going out to eat some place nice and then we are heading out to the Voodoo Bayou, where I will most likely lose my nice dinner. Hopefully having my 6' 5" former wide receiver boyfriend with me will make me feel less freaked out while working our way through a haunted maze. Happy Halloween everyone ;)

Brr

2009-10-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

After making what may be a poor decision to stop taking my Tamiflu a day early, I'm finally starting to feel much better. While I was sick, the weather also made a big choice-it became winter. At the beginning of last week it as very mild and pleasant outside. Now, it's in the 40s and 30s! The boyfriend was thoughtful enough to bring my plants in while I was sick so that they wouldn't freeze :) Aww I didn't even have to tell him to do it. The sudden change in season has been a real shock. It felt as if it was suddenly Christmastime. Seems like everyone around here thought so too. The traffic was terrible around the mall area yesterday. I can only assume that everyone woke up to a very chilly morning and realized that there was nothing else to do but get started on early Christmas/Holiday shopping.

About a week ago I crocheted up some cute catnip toys. The first one I made got tested out on our cat, Kaya. She went nuts over the toy! I was very flattered :) It was probably one of the best responses I've gotten to any of my crafted items. She grabbed the toy between her two front paws and rubbed it in a larger circular motion over her face and head. I was hoping to have them available at Little Pink Elephant this week, but for obvious reasons, I wasn't able to get many of them finished. Kaya's adorable reaction to the toy really needs to be caught on video, which I can do, but I'm totally clueless as to how to upload the video.

As of late, I've been leaning more towards crocheting. Partially this is because I wanted to get more practice (for various reasons) but also, I find that crochet moves more quickly than knitting does. Another thing that I've noticed about crochet is that gauge doesn't seem to matter as much as it does in knitting. Has anyone else noticed these differences? Eventually, I hope to be as comfortable with crochet as I am with knitting. I really like the idea of combing these two needle crafts to make some new and interesting items.

For what seems like ages I've been wanting to make various things from felt fabric. What I'm most interested in making is felt appliques to add to my knit/crochet items. Seeing as I'm still not fully mobile, I'm going to give this a try today. I'm actually looking forward to trying something new and not feeling guilty for just sitting on my butt crafting rather than doing housework or something else productive. Crafting is producting though, right?

H1N1

2009-10-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

This has been one of the worst weeks of my life. The boyfriend and I came down with H1N1 at the same time. My poor mother (who is also recovering from a respiratory illness) had to take care of us for the past two days. We really owe her a lot for this! Of course I got much sicker than the boyfriend and lost 4.5 lbs in one day. Please, please, please wash your hands frequently with soap and water. Wash for twenty seconds and rinse for 10 seconds. Make sure that if you are in direct contact with someone that has been diagnosed with H1N1 that you go immediately to your doctor. The boyfriend acquired this from a coworker who sits directly across from him and of course I got it from him. I'm going to cut this very short as I'm still doing feeling well. I hope that you all are able to avoid getting this!

Sick

2009-10-12T22:35:00.000-07:00

My poor boyfriend came home early from work today sick with flu-like symptoms. He has been coughing like crazy (which always worries me since he has asthma) and has a nasty fever. One of his coworkers is out of work this week due to swine flu. Of course I'm taking him to the doc's office in the morning. I really hope that he just has a cold or even the "regular" flu. He told me that he hasn't been sick like this since he was a child. Poor boyfriend :( I too am starting to develop some similar symptoms but have been experience these off and on for over a week now. As long as we are both well by this weekend, I will be happy. Not only do we both work on the weekends but my best friend's son's birthday party is this weekend! Any suggestions for an awesome gift for a 4 year old boy? Ooo I should make the boyfriend my "big veggie soup" that I came up with a few years ago. It's yumtastic:

On a totally unrelated topic, my mom recently asked me if I would be interested in going Christmas shopping with her this week. It was pretty good timing as I feel obligated to get my Christmas shopping done before Thanksgiving. My apartment is very close to the largest shopping mall in the city, which means that I most likely won't even be able to get out of the parking lot of my apartment complex between November and the first of January. The traffic in this area during Christmastime is freaking insane. This was something that I pondered over when we first moved into the apartment. I just kept wondering if emergency vehicles would be able to get to us if we really needed them. My roommates are totally convinced that all will be well...did I mention that all of my roommates are boys? I guess the one good thing about living so close to so much shopping is that I don't have to drive very far to get to the stores :) Online shopping is something that I considered but every time I think about the trouble that I had with amazon.com during Christmastime last year, I think better of it. Have you all started doing your Christmas shopping yet?

Halloween Costume

2009-10-07T12:39:00.000-07:00

I am having a heck of a time trying to decide what to be for Halloween! Last year I was a "sexy referee" and the boyfriend was a football player. It cost me around $40 for my costume and I got to wear it 3 or 4 times. It was nice that I was able to attend so many costume parties so that I felt like I didn't waste $40 on something I wore only once. This year I don't have as much money to spend nor do I have as many costume party plans. The night before Halloween I will be at a Miyavi concert (I do a little happy dance every time I think about this), which means that I'll be missing the biggest local Halloween event. Miyavi is worth missing a costume party, heck, he's worth missing Halloween altogether. I digress...my goal this year is to wear yet another sexy costume but pay around $30. Also, the boyfriend and I would like to wear matching costumes again. I'd like to avoid any sports themed costumes since we've already done that. Maybe next year I'll try the cute baseball player costume out. Ugh, it's so dang cute that I might just have to do it!! Anyway, the costumes that I'm looking at right now are the Hogwarts student, Eskimo, and Cotton Candy Cutie. Over time I lean more towards the Eskimo because it's the warmest costume and the boyfriend could easily match me. I've searched the internet like crazy. My boyfriend thought it might be cool for one of us to be a cop and for the other to be a criminal/prisoner. Please share any ideas that you may have for affordable pre-made or DIY costumes. Oh and if you are needing a costume, the aformentioned referee costume is for sale: HERE

Oops

2009-10-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

My bad. I goofed and forgot to do an Etsy seller Friday blog! I'm not sure how this happened, but I do know that it makes me think that I need to change the day that I do these reviews. Especially since there is a chance that I may have to work some Fridays and will totally blank and forget to write a blog. Perhaps I will change it to Wednesdays.

Something that I've been wanting to do for a while is reviews of eco-friendly products. This would include things like household cleaning products, personal care items (I would limit this to things such as lotion or shampoo), and maybe even clothes. I use many eco-friendly products on a daily basis and would love to share a little about them. Oh and while I'm on this topic, I have been searching for a new daily moisturizer. I like the kind that I'm already using but I hate the brand as it is not eco-friendly or cruelty free. I've tried Alba's daily moisturizer but found that it clogs my pores. What daily moisturizers do you ladies use?

Autumn

2009-10-02T14:07:00.000-07:00

The boyfriend and I finally decorated the apartment for Autumn and Halloween. A few weeks ago, the boyfriend pulled out an old box of decorations that he had stored at his parents' house. This box contained some of the most random assortment of Halloween decorations I've ever seen. Some of the items were so old that they had lost their ability to adhere to windows, were falling apart, or were damaged from years of use. Despite this, we were able to find several usable decorations such as a plastic jack-o-lantern and a cute little needle pointed basket made by the boyfriend's grandmother. I was able to contribute my $3 thrift store find, a cute pumpkin-shaped candy dish that sits on the coffee table and the Autumn themed wreath that I mentioned in an earlier post. The wreath was supposed to go on the front door but I'm not willing to spend any money on a hook for the door. Instead I used a thumb tack to hang the wreath on the wall above our couch. It looks a bit lonely there, but it works. Having the Halloween decorations up really makes it feel like it is officially Autumn! I hope that we are eventually able to save up a little extra money for a real pumpkin so we can carve a cool jack-o-lantern for our balcony. How about you? Have you started decorating for the season yet?

Etsy Seller Friday

2009-09-25T11:30:00.000-07:00

The seller that I have chosen to direct your attention to today has some of the most amazing knit and crochet pieces I've ever seen. Her items are truly wearable pieces of art. Fringe , a seller based in California, uses high quality wool yarn to create beautiful cowls, capelets, and scarves. Please make sure to click on the links that I have provided in this post as I do not have permission to post photos of any of her items here. Fringe often chooses soft pastels and earth tones to knit and crochet with. If you like bolder colors, don't fret, there are several dark red, purple, raspberry, and even black items available in her shop. There are so many things to love about Fringe's items. She masterfully blends yarn, fabric, and ribbon to create pieces that are not only elegant, but practical as well. Because many of her items are made from wool, they are going to be very warm and cozy. I also love that she doesn't just stop at scarves, Fringe makes necklaces from acrylic yarn. Acrylic makes them easy to wash, durable, and comfy to wear close to the skin. Her necklaces can also be worn as belts, again making the choice to use acrylic yarn a wise one. It's difficult to choose only one favorite item from Fringe! If I had to choose just one piece, it would be the Darling Clementine Capelet. If you're considering purchasing one of these awesome pieces from Fringe, you may have noticed that the prices aren't exactly Wal-Evil prices. Keep in mind that when you purchase from Fringe, you are buying a handmade product made from high quality wool or acrylic (when it is an item that may get roughed up a bit more than a scarf). If you love art but have run out of room on your walls or just simply prefer to wear your art, take a peek at Fringe (fringe.etsy.com) and see what all she has to offer for your collection.

Busy

2009-09-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

I wasn't able to do a Friday Etsy seller review this past Friday as I was in the process of being trained at my new job. No, this is not the job that I was hoping for. In fact, I don't have a clue of what happened with the employer that seemed very eager to hire me, only to disappear off the face of the Earth. I really liked said employer and they seemed to really like me...I'm going to just pretend like the entire HR department was kidnapped by aliens. Anyway...Friday Etsy seller reviews will return next Friday as I only work on Saturday and Sunday.

Etsy Seller Friday

2009-09-11T10:55:00.001-07:00

In the past, I mentioned wanted to review some of my favorite Etsy.com sellers. There are just so many awesome sellers on Etsy that I'm dying to share them with everyone. I think that I may begin doing this each Friday. Let's get to it!

(Image: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26214700)

If you love all things cute and pink, then you will love Zefora Creations! All of you kawaii, hime, sweet lolita, and harajuku folks will go wild over the uber adorable hair accessories, phone charms, and the plethora of jewelry that she offers. Many items feature Hello Kitty and or/candy. She even has a few items featuring My Little Pony and Carebear characters. The prices for these items are very affordable, especially for items that are handmade. Most items cost less than $10 and the shipping is always under $3. My favorite items are the Hello Kitty Whipped Barrette , The Purple Bow Lollipop Ring, and The Pink Ice Cream Dessert Necklace .Even if you aren't exactly into the whole cute, pink, Japanese street style thing, Zefora's jewelry is great for gifting to little girls. Also, with Halloween coming up, you might find something to go with your Cotton Candy Cutie costume.
Go check her shop and let me know what you think!

Crafting Success

2009-09-04T12:49:00.000-07:00

I just spent probably an hour trying to change the look of my blog. I still don't have a clue of what I'm doing, so I apologize for the sort of messy appearance of this blog. Perhaps I will eventually figure out how to properly edit this thing.

On a totally different note, I finally did get something right! I've finished making two Rasta scarves :) I'm very proud of them and am super excited that they are finally available at Little Pink Elephant. If you want to show your love for Reggae this Autumn and Winter, go get them now!!

Another crafting success happened for me just this week. Since I've now got my own place, I've been desperately wanting to get a Holiday/seasonal wreath for our front door but have been shocked by how freaking expensive they are (ranging from $25-$75). Not only that but most wreaths were either dripping in cutesy scarecrows or were a bit too hoity-toity for me. After checking out several different stores, including some secondhand stores, I decided that I would just try making my own wreath. Fourteen dollars and thirty minutes was all it took to make a fairly cute Autumn themed wreath. It isn't perfect and could use a few more dollars worth of work. Overall, it was much cheaper than the wreaths I was looking at in the stores. Plus, I got to customize it (which means that this wreath is sans scarecrows, birds, and frosty vegetables). Because I was able to just stick the floral decorations into the grapevine wreath, I didn't have to purchase any adhesive or binding. I can't wait to get started on a Christmas themed wreath lol. I will have pics of the wreath "in action" later.

Job

2009-08-12T08:11:00.001-07:00

Today, I had my first of two interviews at one of the local hospitals that I applied at. So far everything went well but there are still so many steps that have to be taken before I actually get the job. Although I'm super happy about this job offer and am going to take it if they actually decide to hire me, I'm disappointed that only flex hours are available. It's a start though. As I've been job hunting I've been hoping to get two jobs and with so few hours available to me from the hospital, I will have to get a second job. I'll share more details as things progress, but until then, wish me luck!

No camera and new Little Pink Elephant items this fall.

2009-07-30T10:37:00.001-07:00

At the moment, I have no camera. The camera that I was using in the past is actually my mom's camera. I really need to get one for myself. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good, cheap digital camera? I've not even begun to do any research yet. My mom's camera wasn't all that great to me. Nearly all pictures that were taken indoors were blurry and just generally gross in quality. I have a Nikon N80 but it's a 35mm SLR, which makes uploading pics to my blog and myspace, not impossible, but a lot harder.

The reason I'm writing about this is because I have recently knit up a couple of things but have no way of sharing these with you. After seeing the newest Harry Potter film (which was a delicious gallery of knitting) , I immediately came home and knitted up a mug cozy using some left over yarn from a Gryffindor scarf that I made last winter. The cozy knitted up super quickly! It probably took me only a couple of hours and that includes weaving in the ends. This is definitely an item that you should expect to see being sold on Little Pink Elephant this fall (in different colors of course due to copyright laws, but feel free to send me a message).

The other item that I made didn't come out as nicely as my mug cozy, but was a darn good learning experience. Finally, after several failed attempts and years of practice, I've made a hat. Of course, I messed up the gauge and it came out just large enough to fit an infant's head. Because it's knit flat, I decided that the best solution was to just knit a duplicate and sew the two together. Despite a little bit of wonkiness, the overall plan actually worked. My favorite thing about the hat is the colors. I used Rasta colors (red, gold, green, and black). Several people have suggested to me that I knit up some stuff using this "color theme" and so far, I've had a lot of fun with it. From now on, I think that I will knit hats in the round. Every time that I've tried to knit a hat flat, there is a lot of bulge or bumpiness at the crown. The lumpiness is smoothed out when worn, but is very unattractive when it is laid out flat. Expect to see a lot of Rasta themed items on Little Pink Elephant very soon, as I have a feeling that they will be pretty popular.

Jobs, Coupons, and Tomatoes

2009-07-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

Despite having applied for tons of jobs, I've yet to get hired. Keep in mind that I've been applying for jobs that require a bachelor's degree, not entry-level jobs. This week I've given up and have applied at an entry-level job at the place where my boyfriend, two best friends, and many of my friends and acquaintances work. Because they are looking to hire someone quickly as well as someone that is a friend or family member of one of the employees, I'm a bit too confident that I will get this job. It will be a full-time day job which means that I am now looking for a weekend job to bring in extra money. One of the best things about this job is that I and my boyfriend live only a few minutes away which means that we can ride in together which will save us a ton in gas. He has been able to and from work for a week with the gas light on.

Because I'm now the primary grocery shopper (by this I mean that I create the menu and grocery list), I've become obsessed with coupons and deals (such as BOGO). I've always been fond of coupons but am finding them especially wonderful these days. Also, I've been trying to find the best place to shop for groceries that isn't Wal-evil. So far, I've found that Food Lion has really good prices (especially on their store brand products). There are still some things like Method brand and Seventh Generation brand products that I would like to buy but can only get at either Target or Publix. I love both of these brands equally but am learning that Seventh Generation is usually a bit cheaper and offers many coupons on their website. With Method you are mostly paying for attractive packaging and some pretty yummy scents.

On a totally different note...this summer I made an attempt at growing heirloom tomatoes. When I lived and my mom's house, she and I planted (actually she did all of the planting) and worked on a veggie and berry garden. Our berries didn't come in at all this year, but our veggies, which included zuchinni, summer squash, and cucumber, were amazing. We have two different types of tomtoes: Brandywine and Moskvich. Neither one of them did too well. I just got my first tomatoes a couple of days ago. They both took forever to ripen (which is fine with me and is typical of heirloom tomatoes). My problem is that by the time they started to turn red they were nearly rotten in places. I've never had this problem with tomatoes before. Does anyone have any experience with growing heirloom foods? I would love any advice that you might have.

I now live in an apartment so obviously I can only grow things in pots and window baskets and am considering getting one of those topsy turvy things. Many of the other residents in our apartment complex have some impressive potted gardens and I'm terribly jealous. The only plant that I brought with me from my mom's house is my aloe plant. It doesn't seem too happy after the move. I fear that we just don't get enough sun on this side of the building. Again, I'm seeking advice here too. Does anyone know what plants (including herbs and veggies) grow best in pots/window baskets/hanging pots?

Packing

2009-07-16T23:13:00.000-07:00

This whole week I've been packing up my things and getting ready to move into my new place. One of the first things that I packed was my knitting needles. I left my crochet hooks out just in case I got bored. I'm glad that I did this as I had to make a trip to my doctor's office one morning and hate just staring at the wall while waiting for the doctor to arrive. I was able to quickly crochet up a couple of dish rags for the new place :) My roommates seemed to like the rags and I really enjoyed making them.

I find that smaller pieces like dish rags, baby booties, and neck warmers are my favorite projects. They don't require much yarn, are finished quickly, and are generally easy to make. With the economy being so wonky at the moment, projects that require little yarn are preferred over things like blankets or long scarves.
Speaking of scarves, I would love to knit another Harry Potter-style scarf. I made one for a friend once and loved the results. Last year I received the Charmed Knits book for Christmas. So far I've only tried the scarf but I look forward to trying some of the other projects as they are super cute :)
Something else that I would like to try soon is bringing some awareness to the amazing sellers on Etsy.com. If you're a crafter, than you probably already know about this site and find yourself drooling over many of the awesome creations that are for sale there. If you haven't heard of the site, I encourage you to check it out. I think that once a week I will devote a post to a different Etsy seller...I will write a little about what they do, why I love their stuff, and post a link to their Etsy shop.
It's late and I've got a lot to do tomorrow, so I'm off to bed.

Updates and Thoughts

2009-07-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

The past few days have been filled with anxiety and impatience for my friends and me. We have been waiting for over two weeks to find out if we were approved for an apartment. We found out that they denied us due to an error on one of the forms that we filled out. The error made it appear as if our combined income exceeded the income cap set in place by the owners of the apartments. *sigh*

We have since moved on and gained energy and determination from this. I didn't intend for that to sound so...epic...anyway, after many phone calls and what felt like a million apartment viewings, we feel that we have found a really great place. They have a deal going on this month which means that we would be paying far less for an apartment that would have normally cost nearly 1,000 a month. The location is great as it is close to several of the jobs that I've applied for. Although, at Christmastime, this location will be horrible but at this point I don't care.

On a more crafty note, I've been thinking about picking up my old SLR again. Several years ago I attempted photography as a hobby, but wound up putting my camera away and was left feeling terribly frustrated with the whole craft. At first, I went at it with the same excitement and determination as I did knitting but never really got the same results (in terms of quality). It also seemed, to me, that photography burned a lot of money whereas knitting and crochet didn't. One can knit a scarf, purse, booties, or any other relatively small but useful item for less than four dollars. Buying film (yes it's a 35mm not a digital) and paying to have the pictures developed (from what I remember) nearly cost me 15-20 dollars each time. 20 dollars and several hours later all I would have was a pile of crappy photos that had no purpose or use.

After several months of seeing beautiful photos posted by other bloggers, I've been inspired to pick my camera back up again. This time I will not take photography so seriously. I think that I'll have all of my photos put on discs and print only the ones that I truly like and maybe post the rest on my blog, if I want to. I want to be able to enjoy using my camera rather than feeling rushed or pressured to come up with amazing results. This time, if I really choose to do this again, it will be done for me and me only.

Busy

2009-07-01T20:43:00.000-07:00

It's been a very long time since I've written a blog. Mostly, I just haven't felt like writing, but also, I've been pretty busy. As of this August, I will be a college graduate. I'm currently looking for a job and am having absolutely no luck. There are very few jobs in my field that I'm qualified for and even fewer that are available. I've not had a job since I was a teenager which makes my resume a bit short and puny. The inadequate nature of my resume isn't helping me at all. This disappoints me as I worked very hard to earn the degree that I have and feel as if I'm being told that I should have opted to not be formally educated and that I should have been working "real world" jobs instead. I was hoping to find an entry level job in my field that would be an awesome learning experience and something that would look great on a grad. school application. I think that this is going to be yet another failure for me. I've got my resume posted on at least five different job search sites.

In addition to job searching, some friends and I have been trying to get a place together. We found this nice (new) apartment complex that is very affordable, but in order for us to live there, we have to prove that we earn less than "X" amount of income each year. This is no problem as we meet this limit, but the application process has been long and tedious. After two weeks of paper work, faxes, and multiple phone calls, we still have not been told that we are approved. You know that feeling that you get as you're waiting for the toast to pop-up from the toaster, that sort of happy anticipation? That's what waiting on approval for this apartment feels like.

My crafting has nearly come to a screeching halt. I thought that maybe I had hit some sort of a crafting menopause. Just yesterday, I was going through some of my old scrapbooking supplies and discovered a couple of those thin, promotional refrigerator magnets that you often get from pizza places. I love customizing them. I do this by using a bit of modpodge to adhere paper to the display side of the magnet to create a revamped and attractive magnet for my refrigerator. If I can remember, I will post some pics of the magnets that I've made in the past. Anyway, something about finding those magnets made me really want to craft again. So a I searched a bit more and found a pretty paper bag which I recieved as a gift bag and used it to create a new magnet. It only took me about 5 minutes to make two. This let me know that I've not lost my desire to craft, but rather, have reached a plateau. I'm not bursting with ideas and staying up late trying to get multiple knitting projects done nor have I started putting my crafting supplies away for good. Somewhere between those two is me, waiting for a good idea to come along that will inspire me to create something super special.

Amigurumi

2009-03-01T22:36:00.000-08:00

Several months ago I discovered something called amigurumi. Amigurumi is pretty much the crochet (and sometimes knit) version of plushies/dolls/stuffed animals. As soon as I learned about amigurumi I was eager to give it a try. After looking through several patterns, I found that I preferred the crochet amigurumi patterns over the knitted ones. At first, I was frustrated by this as I'm horrible and crocheting. After several months of working on my crochet skills, I was finally able to sit down this past weekend and create this little guy:

He still needs facial features, which should have been added before his head was stuffed but I was too impatient and chose to crochet on in order to see the whole body come together before the face. I made several mistakes in crocheting him and in sewing together the different parts of his body, but I think that I've learned a lot. At the least I enjoyed making him and think that I may be addicted to amigurumi. The pattern that I used to create him was from this year's Fall/Winter issue of Knit 1 Magazine.

Late Birthday Gift

2009-02-26T14:31:00.001-08:00

I recently finished a shawl I intended to give to my mom for her birthday which was back in October. It wasn't the knitting that took me so long to complete the shawl. It was the fringe that I added along three of the four sides that took me forever.

Despite taking a long time, it is now complete and ready to be worn. This is not my favorite thing that I've knitted. I really should have used a pattern rather than knitting a large rectangle. It may not be the most attractive piece but I have to admit that it's very cozy and warm. I used a boucle yarn which is my favorite to use for pieces that need to be super soft and warm and is especially great for things like baby blankets. This particular project taught me that I hate fringe, still love boucle yarn, and that I should always try to find a pattern first.

2009-01-27T14:02:00.000-08:00

The other night I was having trouble sleeping so I decided to be productive and dye some wool. The only way that I know how to dye wool at the moment is to use Kool-Aid. I do this by filling a glass casserole dish with water and disolving the Kool-Aid in it. I then place the wool in the mixture and heat it all up in the microwave for two minutes and then letting it cool for about a minute. I do this until the water is clear. I learned this microwave and Kool-Aid method from Knitty.com (instructions here). This was how it all turned out:

Clothing Swap Party

2009-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:00

This weekend, I decided to invite a few friends over for a clothing swap party. I learned about this type of party just a few months ago. The deal is that everyone gathers at a friend's house to exchange their gently used clothing that they no longer want for other people's unwanted clothing items. Generally, I think that the rules call for people to leave with only as many clothing items as they brought to exchange. Since the party that I had was so small (only four ladies) and they each brought a ton of clothing, we decided to freely rummage through the clothes and take as many items as we pleased.

One of the ladies looking through the selection of shirts.

Jeans, bathing suits, and more shirts were placed on the table.

The ladies making a decision about a tank top.

All of the ladies seemed to really enjoy themselves and were eager to have another clothing swap with more people. If you decide to have your own clothing swap party, I suggest that you have plenty of wire hangers, shopping bags (so that people have something to carry their loot home in), and a good mix of background music. Clothing swap parties are a great way to get "new" clothes without having to spend any money. It's also a nice way of keeping old clothes out of landfills.