The Hat Saga Continues

Have you been counting?  This is number 3 out of 5 if you haven't.  Only 2 to go, and I'll finally have all the hats I need to give to people.  It's a good thing that there isn't really a deadline for when I need to have all 5 of these hats finished, because I have a feeling I would have already missed it.

On a side note, I would love to give some attention to the Johny Jump-up's I have sitting on my window sill.  These little guys were lying on the cement ready to be thrown away when I thought I might give them a second chance.  The little plant now has 3 new blooms on it, and so far I haven't forgotten to water it!  I'd say things are looking pretty good for it, and it sure is nice to have them to look at when I'm sitting on my desk.  Nothing too big or hard to care for, and it's one of my favorite flowers.

So the epic quest of the 5 Hats continues, as we march past the half way point with confidence and procrastination in our steps.  When will we see the end of our journey?  Only time, and this blog, will tell.

To be continued...

Em

Pie and Blankets

A week filled with delicious pies and snugly blankets.  What could be better?

It was just yesterday that I found out the 28th of April is nation blueberry pie day, and this was not an opportunity I could pass up.  So I went searching through my stack of library books.  I knew I had brought home a pie book sometime in the past month.  It was just a matter of finding it.

Using the super easy recipe from the book for the filling, and our own all butter crust, I made not just one, but two blueberry lemon pies with crumble topping.  I ate nothing but pie for dinner.

And then some more for dessert.

As you might know after all that writing in March, I had decided to let all 28 of my rough drafts sit for a month before starting to edit them.  That month is almost over now, but during it I have begun work on toddler sized blankets to sell in an online shop.  The two blankets above are ones I've made progress on in the last week.

Over the rest of the spring and summer I'll continue to make blankets, and write out patterns for them, as each and every one I do for my future shop comes straight from own noodle.  My hope is to have this thing going by the end of the year, so cross your fingers for me, pretty please.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna have to cut this post a bit short.  I have a whole other pie yet, you see, and it's just begging to be eaten.....

Em

55,000 Words and One Hat Latter...

    National Craft Month didn't see any of my UFO's finished like I had thought, but I did manage to pull off a few crafty things of the material sort before March took an expected turn.

    Another hat for another friend.  That makes 2 out of 5 finished.  It's a wonder I managed not to lose it amongst the chaos that was sitting on my desk at the time.  Then, from the madness, a dreamcatcher sprang.  It was a spontaneous and random decision to make it, and I enjoyed it all the more because of that.  It was the first time I've worked with lace weight crochet thread, and it wasn't at all frustrating like I thought it would be.  I got to dig into my jar of vintage buttons from an antique store to decorate it, and after having it sit on my desk for 3 weeks, I finally hung it a few days ago ( on the wall, not my drawers ).  I started a rag rug made from all the scraps of my other sewing projects, braiding them together and then hand stitching them into a coil.  It's still in progress, normally only worked during late night TV shows, but it'll get there one day.

    And that's about where my crafty-ness ended for National Craft Month.  At least, as far as fabric and yarn are concerned.  Writing, on the other hand, well, I still can't believe I did what I did.  I might have just kicked out more writing in March then I did last November.  Certainly more then I did in January and February this year combined.  To give you a bit of a visual, let's look at my calendar.  I use those colored yard sale dots to keep track of when I write and how much I write.  Different colors mean different things, ect. ect., but I won't bother you with all my nonsense on that.

So here we have January... 

February...

and then March.

I did the math.  I averaged at about 55,000 words in those last 3 weeks or so of March.

    Now, what on Earth was I doing? you might ask.  Well, I finally shook myself up and got all 28 rough drafts for my children's short stories that I would like to publish one day typed up onto my computer.  I wrote 5 new ones, and all the others I had to copy over.  I originally hand wrote all of them, you see, and it took a lot more time than I thought to get them into digital form.  But I did it.  As a matter of fact, aside from my job, this crazy new running habit I've gotten into, and Learn Storm 2016 ( which I could brag about because after 9 weeks of competitive math I think I might have earned it ), working on those stories was about all I did.  I didn't have time to do anymore crafts, play any Fallout, or, sadly, read.  But it was all worth it in the end.  I completed my goal, I completed Learn Storm, and now it's time for the next challenge.

The editing.

But first, some reading.  Did you see that big stack of books on top of my drawers, back up in the dreamcatcher picture?  That's right people, all 12 of the 'How To Train Your Dragon' books.  It's time to drink iced tea and kick my feet up outside.  'Cause I'm gonna be here a while.

Em

A Hat For a Friend

    I attempted to make an arm knitted hat over the weekend, and I failed.  But I didn't give up entirely.  No, arm knitting is still something I will reign champion over.  More on that journey later.
    Not wanting to go into a long list of YouTube videos on the matter while trying to watch an episode of Downton Abby, I switched to regular knitting and managed to make a hat completely free style, no pattern necessary.

     Now, don't feel all that impressed.  I mean, I'm impressed with myself, but not for making the hat. This hat is so simple yet looks like it used a pattern, which in a way seems to remind me of a Bob Ross painting.  It is nothing more than a rectangle, wide enough to go from the top of your head to your forehead, and long enough to go around your head.  When you're done making the rectangle, stitch the ends together to make a tube, then cinch one end up.  I made a flower to cover the cinching on top, but a pom pom would look cute too, I think.  Then I just single crocheted around the bottom to make the edge look cleaner.  See?  Nothing impressive.

     No, I'm impressed with myself for how I was able to untangle the mess of yarn that barfed out of the center of the skein.  It takes talent to wrangle such an unruly beast, a talent all yarn users can boast, I think.

    Alas, this hat is not for me to keep.  It is one out of the few I will be making for some people close to me.  This thought does not sadden me though, for the people who will be receiving them truly deserve a gift far greater than a hat.