Pinterest

So I recently received my invitation to Pinterest. If you have not yet joined this website, proceed with caution. Pinterest is basically a website that allows you to create virtual pinboards. I was immediately intrigued at the possibilities. I saw some great potential for using this website to organize all the craft projects I had bookmarked on my computer, and I quickly discovered that this is a great use for Pinterest. I now have all my crafty inspiration and ideas and plans in one place. Organization is a new thing for me, so I was understandably excited.

I decided to get even more organized. I really like to read and keep lists of books that are recommended to me or that sound interesting. Recently I wanted to read a particular book that I recalled writing on one of my many lists, but I couldn't remember the title. I searched everywhere I could to find that list, but alas, it was nowhere to be found. Aha! Why not use Pinterest to organize all these ideas too. A whole virtual pinboard to help me remember all the books I want to read. Another wonderful use for Pinterest.
Then, I found myself looking at other people's pins to find new inspiration, and all of a sudden, I am excited about things like nail art. I just have to wait for two of my nails to grow a little bit more and then I can start trying all of these creative designs. Who knew that I even cared about nail art? Not me, but now I am excited about buying some nail polish and going for it :)
So if you are a Pinterest addict like me, check out my boards and follow my progress as I organize my current projects and search for new inspiration.

If you haven't tried Pinterest yet, proceed with caution. It is addicting, very, very addicting. Make sure you have lots of free time to dedicate to your new obsession: pinning!

Marian Cowl Complete :)

Pattern: Marian Cowl

Knit for: My sister

Needles: Size 19, 29 inch circular

Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick and Quick in Grey Marble (1 skein)

Modifications: I used a longer circular needle than the pattern called for and added 6 extra stitches. I also knit a little longer than the pattern called for, since I still had yarn :)

I love this cowl. I might have to knit one for myself :)

Marian Cowl

I am currently knitting the Marian Cowl for my sister. It knits so quickly with the super bulky yarn and large needles. It is my first time knitting with this size yarn and needle, and I l♥ve it.

The seed stitch looks really nice in this yarn. This cowl has a neat twist in it. I can't wait to finish it and post final pics before I mail it off to her.
Back to my knitting :)

Swirl without the Sleeves

The swirl is now almost complete. All that is missing are some sleeves. The only problem.... I don't have enough of any one of the four colors to make two sleeves. I can make two different colored sleeves, and I think that is what I am leaning towards. I also need something to use as a closure, maybe a red button. Anyway, here is a picture of the front. My hubby agreed to help with the photo shoot, but only if our friend Woody was in the pictures too :)

And here is a picture of the back, and the swirl :)

I am really loving this cardigan, and it fits really well. Yay!!

Books I Read in 2011

January

1. Superbug: The Fatal Menace of MRSA by Maryn Mckenna
2. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger

February

1. The Corrections by Johnathan Franzen
2. Bogeyman by Gayle Wilson
3. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

March

1. It was the Best of Sentences, it was the Worst of Sentences by June Casagrande
2. The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo by Stieg Larson

May

1. The Giver by Lois Lowry
2. Good Calories Bad Calories by Gary Taubes
3. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Annotated by Martin Gardner)
4. Alice Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll

June

1. The Priest by Gerard O’Donovan
2. Year of the Dog by Grace Lin

July

1. The Weird Sisiters by Eleanor Brown
2. Sphere by Michael Crichton
3. Pop Goes the Weasel by James Patterson

September

1. The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
2. Always Time to Die

October

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (I want a sequel)
3. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
4. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

I spent the last two months of the year plodding my way through The Long Night of the White Chickens, and I still have not finished it. It really hurt my count :) The good news is that I totally enjoyed every book I read this year.

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year everyone! It's time to review my resolutions from last year and make some new/similar ones for this year

Resolutions for 2011
1. Complete a sweater

I have completed all of my swirl sweater except for the sleeves. Post with more details and pictures to follow.
2. Read more than 33 books

I managed to read 22 books. Post with more details to follow.
3. Keep my craft room organized

I actually did this one!!! I organized my craft room this year. It's beautiful :)
4. Get my craft business going

I'm going to try again on this one.
5. Stick with my diet and exercise

This was my biggest failure this year. I ended the year by skipping almost all my yoga classes :(
6. Enjoy life everyday

This was the easy one, but I did not enjoy everyday,not even close :(

Resolutions for 2012

1. Read more than 33 books

2. Start my Etsy shop

3. Finish my novel

4. Complete my sweater (only needs sleeves :) should be easy)

5. Diet and exercise

6. Try new things

7. Start playing the guitar again

8. Blog more frequently

Hopefully I will do better this year. I do like to have goals and projects; I am just not always great at seeing them through :)

Snowflakes

So recently, I have been noticing snowflakes everywhere, and there is not even any snow on the ground :) That's because I am talking about paper snowflakes. I made these 3-D snowflakes with my students.

This picture is from http://www.wikihow.com/images/c/c6/74621550_44bb79776f.jpg where you can also find great instructions on how to create these awesome snowflakes.

If you prefer the 2-D snowflake, you should check out this link where you can find folding and cutting instructions for super detailed snowflakes. Finally, and this may be my absolute favorite, the Star Wars snowflakes. I see some Darth Vader snowflakes in my future. Much better than actual snow :)