I suppose there are some knitters out there who just find a project and start on it, but most of mine have a long history before the yarn is even cast on.  Like Shrek….I guess I am kind of like an onion and so goes my knitting process.

A year or more ago, a good friend took a trip to Portland for a wedding.  Unable to help myself, I said, “if you see a yarn shop, pick me up some yarn.”

As the story goes, they hunted down an little independent yarn store and asked for a little help.  I am not sure what they told the salesperson but they found the perfect gift for me!  It is this gorgeous yellow, grey, brown and white variegated cotton/wool mix.  AND to sweeten the deal and assure my devoted friendship forever, they bought me a pattern for a lace wrap and enough yarn to complete the project.  **Just in case you ever need to get my “friends forever” status buy me a pattern and the yarn to complete it.  I digress.

I have been swooning over this yarn and project ever since.  “Why then did it sit in its beautiful skeins for over a year,” you ask.

Because, I have guilt issues.  Guilt that this was too nice of a gift to utilize until I return the favor.  Guilt that the yarn is so beautiful and I might ruin it if I mess up the pattern.  Guilt that I really promised so and so that I would knit/or do such and such.  Guilt that I will have to periodically ignore Law Man when the lace pattern changes or I miss a YO.  Guilt that I really can’t knit other things when I knit lace.  **note to non-knitters…I have a one track mind and lace is just something you can’t cheat on.  Like I said, I have guilt issues….don’t even ask about my obsession with what to do with all of the left over cardboard from Christmas.  It almost ended in divorce.  But, in case you have guilt issues too, Goodwill recycles cardboard, any kind of cardboard.  !!!

So, I figure, what better way to start off the new year than beginning a project that is just for me, just because I can.  New Year’s Day 2012 I cast on and I have no idea when I will finish it since I have had to start over three times already.  But, I will not feel guilty I will just lust over this beautiful yarn until it becomes my beautiful wrap.

 

The idea was to finish a project and start a new one on New Year’s Eve/Day.  Knitting is my go to craft and my obsession.  Then I had to decide what to finish.  That was easy, the hat for my sweet nephew, Jude.  He was the lucky recipient of the unfinished handmade Christmas gift this year.  If you do handmade Christmas gifts, you know what I am talking about.  Two nights before Christmas Eve I was down to his hat and it was essentially finished.  Simple stockinette with a seed stitch edging.  Then that little word that makes me shy away from this type of pattern.  Kitchener.  For you non-knitters, this is basically hand sewing, which I don’t do.  Hand sewing in a way that makes the stitches look knitted.  Now, I can knit most anything, but sew.  I am terrible.  Back to two nights before Christmas Eve….I was pulling my hair out and my living room look like it had been yarn bombed.  I had reknit the hat twice just to get it “set up” properly my phone and ipad were streaming how-to videos and tutorials.  The two colors were all tangled up and I had used three different sizes of needles to help with the several attempts to salvage what I had thus far.  The children were ignored, Law Man was snapped at and dinner was neglected.  Finally, I surrendered, left the mess strewn about the sofa and rug and stomped off to bed.  The next morning, December 23, I woke up, made breakfast and sat on the couch next to my yarn.  I regained my composure and *it* came to me.  I gathered things up and stuffed them into the ottoman and went on with Christmas preparations…mind you I was hosting 12 people the next day, roasting a rack of lamb for the first time and trying to make my house look like a family Christmas celebration straight out of Norman Rockwell painting.

Fast forward 30 minutes or so, Law Man calls and anxiously asks, “How are things going.”

“Great.  I decided to finish the hat after Christmas.”

With a sigh of relief, he had the nerve to try to convince me to give my nephew the hat as is, with the promise of finishing it.  But I did have some pride left and a knotted up mess of yarn that didn’t even resemble a hat was not going to leave the depths of the ottoman until after Christmas.

So, here lies the perfect project to finish and I would learn a new technique to boot.

Voila!!!!  It turned out great!  I can’t wait to give it to him.  Happy New Year!

“The opposite of war isn’t peace….its creation!”  –La Boheme

This line applies to so many things, but in my attempt to find peace through the life changes of parenthood and losing my mother….it has really resonated with me.

So, although I have been quiet on the blog, I have been creating.  Here are a few sneak peeks….

I designed this based on the Rube Goldburg Machine to be part of the invitation to Little Guy’s 5th Birthday Party…..the Invention Convention.

A hat for my niece….Tinkerbell

I have been taking a lot of pictures with my iPhone.  I realize that I always have it with me and when I use the filters on Hipstamatic I can “create” almost anywhere.

1. Old Tree FPC Enid, 2. First Presbyterian Church, Enid, Oklahoma, 3. Enid High Football Stadium, 4. Fall Leaves, 5. One of my favorite times of the year to live on this street., 6. Front following me home from NM, 7. I love this sign!, 8. NM telling us goodbye on the morning we left., 9. Winter coming in over Hermit’s Peak

I have done my share of making things….a lot for Christmas, but quite a bit of other things too.  I am most proud of the Spy vs. Spy costumes I made for the boys on Big Guy’s Request.  They are my favorite Halloween Costumes yet and the only ones I have made.

1. Christmas Surprise, 2. Take to on a Favorite!, 3. More Christmas Surprise, 4. Scarf for Emerson School Sale, 5. Spy vs. Spy Costumes for Halloween, 6. My KNITWitch Costume, 7. Spy v. Spy process, 8. Scarf for Arabella in NM, 9. Pixie Hat for Lucye Bird

Finally, I have had the opportunity lately to admire so many other peoples creations and their process.  I think it is contagious!  

1. Burritos from Arabella in NM, 2. JD Creating…or trying to!, 3. Adam’s Creation, 4. Adam’s Full Creation, 5. Nathan trying to build a “real robot”, 6. Yarn Bomb….Victory Ranch, NM, 7. Tosha made Pumpkin Bowling for Jack o Lympics, 8. Tosha Made food for Jack o Lympics, 9. Aunt Mimi Made the boys Witches Broom treat bags, 10. OKC Myriad Gardens Opening Weekend, 11. Uncle Devin created this amazing cake for my niece’s birthday., 12. Aunt Michelle created these awesome aprons for my niece’s birthday.

When I stop to realize that all of this has been going on in just the past 30 days, it is no wonder I have been quiet on R&TM.  Now, I need to get back in the groove and create and post!!!

What have you created lately?

Here is the rub…..well, I guess there are several.

1.  You miss out on the ambiance of the art and design of the blog.  When you are reading content using Byline, you are looking at a white screen with words and pictures only.  If you follow a blog that does not have the appropriate settings, then you only get words and no pictures.

2.  You do not show up as having visited the site.  For a fellow Blogger, this is really frustrating.  I like to know that people are reading.  Numbers are just numbers, but they do keep me motivated.  Comments are best, but I have a lot of shy readers.  I know you are reading because you ask me about things I post on my blog all over town and Law Man now has quite a following of people downtown who address him as such.  THAT IS AWESOME, by the way….keep it up.  I love it when he comes home and reports that ‘so and so’ called him Law Man.  **BTW, I know you can change settings on your blog so that it forces you to “jump” to the actual post on the web, but that makes me feel like I am being told what to do and I despise being told what to do.

3.  Finally, I find it hard to comment using your mobile device.  It is possible, but depending on the blog, the security settings and your mobile device typing ability commenting can be anywhere from tedious to impossible.

Long story a little bit shorter, when people have asked me how I keep up with the blogs that I do, I gave them a very vague answer to avoid them falling into the number of lurkers who read my blog and I have no idea they are out there.

A few weeks ago I discovered something that has apparently been out since 2007. Someone really should have told me this, I feel betrayed.  I will not betray you.  Here is the secret.

Step 1:  Set up an account with Google Reader.

Step 2:  Go to upper right hand corner of Google Reader home screen and click on the settings button.

Step 3:  Go to the Goodies Tab

Step 4:  Add Subscribe Bookmarklet

If you find yourself repeatedly visiting a website to check for updates, or if you just stumble across a page you want to keep track of, you can easily subscribe to it in Google Reader using the subscribe bookmark.

To use the subscribe bookmark, simply drag the link below to your bookmarks bar. Then, when you’re on a web page, you can click the bookmark to view it in Google Reader.

Once you see the feed preview, confirm your subscription by clicking the “Subscribe” button within Reader

Step 5:  Add Next Bookmarklet

The next bookmark is an innovative way to read your subscriptions. It allows you to use Google Reader through just one link – clicking on it takes you to the next unread item, marking it as read in the process. It is particularly useful for subscriptions which only include snippets or when you want to read an article in context.

To use the next bookmark, simply drag the link below to your bookmark bar.

You can also create a next bookmark for a specific tag. To do so, select a tag below and drag the resulting link to your bookmark bar.

You are set.  Now you can keep up with all of the blogs your heart desires, comment and participate and get the full experience of the art and design on each site.  It will continue to sync with Byline or any and all other Google Reader apps you have on your computer and mobile devices.  Yay!!!  Problem solved.  I love it.

By the way, Instapaper and Pinterest both have Bookmarklets too in their Goodie Section.  I also have one for Ravelry and Ziplist.  Check them out and let me know what you think.  If you have any technical questions or problems leave them in the comment section or shoot me an email.
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A good friend and fellow Knitter, Knitterista A.K.A. Erin, hosted a Stash Bash at her hubby’s brewery yesterday afternoon.  “What in the heck is that?”, you ask.  It is the best way to spend a Sunday afternoon if you are a knitter, crocheter or other needle crafter.  About 20 people gathered with our stash, a “collection” of yarn kept by someone that knits, crochets, or uses yarn for some other purpose, and sold, traded, gave away yarn and then spent the rest of the time knitting, crocheting, beading, gabbing, and enjoying free COOP Ale.

I was able to chat with a few of my favorite local crafters…..

Knitterista, of course

Craftyminx

Early Bird Special

Marilyn Artus

and I met Sara Cowan of the Deluxe Indie Craft Bazaar.

Erin teaching her mad skills!

Chatting it up!

Inspecting the variety of hand work.

A portion of my stash….I have a problem…I really do.  See something you like, I can hook you up!

Did I mention that we had access to an unlimited supply of COOP Brew?  Need I say more?

It was a fun afternoon and was just what I needed to get knitting again after all of the family excitement.

Here is a sneak peak of my latest WIP…work in progress…any guesses on the design?  I will show you more tomorrow.  This might be the time to put your mind in the gutter.

I have also used Logos as a pre-reading tool for my little guys.  I am always pointing out a logo around town and asking them to tell me what they think they are trying to sell or market.  Now, they point them out to me.  Sorry…..I digress.  Back to typography.

I guess I can categorize my Logo Love in to three areas….

1.  Script typography….I abhor my own handwriting.  I am not sure why, but I do.  It keeps me from a lot of things, especially hand written notes, but with the perfect font, I can almost express the same sentiment.  I especially like the Pea Gretchie it is so much like my mother’s handwriting it creeps me out sometimes.  Creeps me out in a good way.

2.  Ampersands…. &&&  I just love the ampersand.  Perhaps it is because I always have more to say about everything, or maybe it is just because I like how it sounds when you say the word.  Either way, I search and search for fonts with a great ampersand.

3.  Creative Ornamental Typeface….these are what I use in a lot of the themed birthday parties.  Some examples are:

I used Comic Book when I did the Superhero Theme.  And several Dr. Seuss inspired fonts for the Dr. Seuss Party and to add text to the Classic Children Stories themed nursery/playroom at our old house.  Click on the examples and you can download them free for your personal use.

If you have a similar adoration for typography, you will love this video.  Enjoy and happy Techy Tuesday!

Erik Spiekermann – Putting Back the Face into Typeface from Gestalten on Vimeo.

Last year, we made precious handmade crayons….I loved how they turned out.

This year, I threw out several ideas….all were quickly turned down by my big guy….but, finally I hit on a winner.  VALENTINE ROBOTS.

They turned out so cute…..here is what we did.

I found some paint to further decorate them….but I kind of like how they look without.

What are you making during this snow storm?

Since I have had the boys, I had set out on all types of creative endeavors.  Some have worked out…..others have not.  I have enjoyed the ride, none the less.  One thing that has not changed is that when someone comments to me something to the effect of “You are so creative!”, I still think, “Man..I really have them fooled.”  This recent interview has caused me to think about things in a different light.

I do not think of everything I do completely on my own.  I have a lot of venues that give me inspiration.  One that I use a lot are other blogs.  I especially use these when I am planning an event like a birthday celebration, dinner party, or a wedding/baby shower.  I try to post about these events as I go….although I still have not posted on the the awesome Bug Birthday party from December…..soon, very soon.  When I post, I always try to link to the specific ideas I use, borrow, steal.  But…those of you who are faithfully following me, my blog, etc.  Here are my absolute favorite blogs by which to glean party ideas.

Hostess with the Mostess

One Charming Party

Living Locurto

Chicabug

Tom Kat Studio

I use countless more, but these are on the top of my list.  Sometimes I just use them for ideas…other times I use a lot of what I find.  What I have found the most rewarding is to take a small aspect of a party I love and form an event around that with my own flair.

Where do you get your ideas?

An idea is never given to you without you being given the power to make it reality. You must, nevertheless, suffer for it.

–Richard Bach

I knit this shawl a couple of years ago for a firm event that I went to with Law Man.  I decided that it would be fun to wear something that I made to this very formal event.  I was right….it was very fun.

Fast forward a couple of years and I was fondling yarn at Victory Ranch and decided I needed to make myself a shawl out of their Alpaca.  I had this book with this pattern so I bought this yarn.

(Do you see the mistake?  It is right between my fingers.  This was just before “weighted it down and frogged back to a pearl row and picked up stitches with a smaller needle”….to fix the mistake….and it worked.)

Then, I read this blog and I was really inspired to get started.  I started, I frogged, I started, I frogged…..and well…..I am going now.  I hope to get it finished before fall is over.

Art studio

Artist Jane Frank in her studio, 1960s or 1970s. The studio of a contemporary mixed media artist can be quite a messy affair.

The studio of a successful artist, especially from the 15th to the 19th centuries, characterized all the assistants, thus the designation of paintings as “from the workshop of…” or “studio of…” An art studio is sometimes called an atelier, especially in earlier eras. In contemporary, English language use, “atelier” can also refer to the Atelier Method, a training method for artists that usually takes place in a professional artist’s studio.

The above mentioned “method” calls upon that zeal for study to play a significant role in the production which occurs in a studio space. A studio is more or less artful to the degree that the artist who occupies it is committed to the continuing education in his or her formal discipline. Academic curriculi categorize studio classes in order to prepare students for the rigors of building sets of skills which require a continuity of practice in order to achieve growth and mastery of their artistic expression. A versatile and creative mind will embrace the opportunity of such practice to innovate and experiment, which develops uniquely individual qualities of each artist’s expression. Thus the method raises and maintains an Art studio space above the level of a mere production facility or workshop.

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My dream is two fold……1.)  to have my own studio 2.) to spend several hours a day embracing “the opportunity of such practice to innovate and experiment, which develops uniquely individual qualities of each artist’s expression”.  Well, I have one but not two…yet.  However, I am well on my way.

For this fall, I plan to post something from the studio each Thursday.  I am not sure how this will progress….but, I have a lot going on.  Today’s project…….Hats for the men in my life.  I love to knit for the boys so I picked out this yarn and combined a couple of patterns for a more unique, but still manly look.  Then, Law Man decided he needed a coordinating one.

Hence…..the set of Hats

It does not seem to matter how many hours it takes knitting…..I never want to “finish” the project.  It will probably take the first cold day or a need for the needles before I actually have three completed hats, but I am less than 5 minutes away from a coordinating set of hats for my men.  Yea me!  I feel so domestic.

See Law Man, I told you that all my summer knitting would pay off when your head was warm this winter.  You hunt and gather…..I will knit!  ***Please note the sarcasm. ***