Technology...

Today, I learned how to use a slide projector. I can't be the only one amused by this..?

Birthday Presents!

Now that both of my family members have received their birthday presents this month, I'm excited to show them off!

Mom had requested some warm mittens sometime this winter. I had the perfect yarn in the perfect color, and even have enough left over to make myself a headband! Alpaca mittens are sure to keep your hands warm even on the coldest days. She loves them, as I knew she would. :)
Raveled here: Some Birthday Mittens for Mom

She also got this pair of earrings I made out of some leftover beads used for stitch markers.

Don't they remind you of Easter eggs?

She claims it was overkill, but I think she deserves it for being the best mom ever!

D's birthday present was a fairly easy project to put together, and I didn't even need a pattern! (O.K., so I used one to reference material yardage, but after that, I just used one of our old pillowcases as a template.) Seriously, from cutting out the fabric to ripping out seams to sewing up the final seams, it took maybe an hour. I'm quite pleased with the result, even if I don't approve of his team choice! ;)

Mostly, I love how well those two fabrics coordinate. :)

He loves them, and I love that he doesn't think it's lame or dorky at all to get new Vikings pillowcases for his birthday.

My sewing machine has seen quite a bit of use during these snow days. (Seriously, because of all this snow that's been dumped on the midwest, I've worked 1 day during the past week! Crazy!) I'll have more sewing projects to share next month...

Happy Snow Day!

When I left for work this morning, the snow was just barely starting to fall. By the time I got home an hour and a half later, we probably already had somewhere between 1 and 2 inches. It's so pretty out, and peaceful. Thankful today to be safe, warm, and have an opportunity to work on some knitting projects. And very thankful for the moisture this snow brings!

Still behind, but catching up

 A few quick photos of some crafty goodness that's been waiting to be shown off... I'm feeling very behind on all my crafting lately (and a few other aspects of life, as it always seems to be). Slowly, but surely, things keep chugging along and projects keep appearing off the needles and from the machine.

Hopefully by Easter I'll be all caught up... wait. That's only 6 weeks away!

A late Christmas present for brother-the-younger. Beer pajama pants! Perfect for the beer snob that he is. :) When I kept telling him that it was taking a while because I was making beer, I'm sure he thought I was kidding. How clever, right? The best part? They even have pockets! (I can't be the only one who gets ridiculously excited about pockets, can I?)

Pattern: Butterick 5572

A little Pinterest-inspired Valentine's decorating. Super simple and cheap! It's amazing how much lighter it is in our living room when I took down the curtains (even though they were sheer and pale yellow). I like having more light, but it really feels so bare... It did give me a good excuse to thoroughly dust the blinds though!

One of my favorite things to look for at the after-Christmas sales are red, gold, or silver ornaments. I use them throughout the year: Valentine's Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, New Year's Eve... you name it, I use them. (I also tend to stockpile tissue paper, ribbon, Christmas cards, gift bags... lots of things that aren't necessarily Christmas-specific. Being thrifty and crafty makes me happy, can't you tell?!) The red shatter-proof ball ornaments I picked up last year on the after-Christmas clearance, and I found those heart ornaments in the clearance bins this year. As soon as I saw them (they're glittery, by the way!), I knew they would be perfect for a bit of Valentine's Day decorating, and I couldn't pass up the price. They're tied onto the tension rod with gold curling ribbon, doubled up for extra strength.

(Disclaimer: Yes, I fully admit I'm turning into my mother and hanging things like this in the windows. She loves hanging her snowflakes and beads during winter.....)

Multi-purpose ornaments! Capital!

More to come in the next few weeks!

- Mom's birthday present is currently blocking in the sink, and I just need to wrap up the other goodies I have for her (after taking pictures, of course!), then send them off in the post.

- D's birthday present arrived yesterday in the mail, in "unpolished form" as I told him. He  naïvely thought that it would take only a few minutes to polish it, but... it may be a few days before I can finish it up and gift it to him. 

- A few other projects I'm working on for friends that have no deadline.

- And of course, a few small baby items for my niece due in just a few short weeks... although I'm sure my sister-in-law's opinions differ on just how short these weeks are... :)

Here's to a continued flurry of crafty goodness in 2013!

Monday Moods

I'm in one of those moods today where I want to KNIT ALL THE THINGS!

This could be possible.... I have the day off work. But. Yes, there is always a but. I have chores to finish. Mostly putting away all the Christmas decorations (what? Our tree's still up... no big deal!), and straightening up, and cooking crockpot lasagna. Which means going to the store and buying frozen spinach. And finishing Brother-the-Younger's Christmas present, so I can finally put all the supplies away.... (of course, only to bring them back out in about a month to finish up some other presents!)

I always seem to do this to myself. Plan too much for any sane person to accomplish in one day, then bust my butt trying to get it all done anyway. And why be productive when I can have fun?

Happy Monday!

A few finished objects...

Playing catch up from all the things I've finished the past few months and haven't posted here:

A Vite Cowl for myself.
Yarn: Plymouth Baby Alpaca Grande in White.
Ravelry project page here

Kindling for Trish (part of her Secret Santa presents!)

Yarn: leftover Crystal Palace Mochi Plus in colorway Fern Rainbow

Raveled Here

Calorimetry for Trish (the main part of the handmade portion of her gift)

Yarn: Crystal Palace Mochi Plus in colorway Fern Rainbow

Ravelry Project Page

Isn't she a pretty model? :)

A running hat for Brother-the-Youngest (Christmas gift)

Yarn: Berroco Vintage Chunky in colorway Cast Iron

Ravelry Project Page

Please excuse the awful quality of the photo. Cell phone and bad hotel lighting...

And of course, the biggest FO of my life (to date)! Graduation!!!

Masters in Library and Information Science, summa cum laude

The doldrums of January

Well, here we are. Almost halfway through January (really?! It feels like just last week was Christmas!), and I'm not sure how much I have to show for it. All in all, it's been an eventful year so far. I've survived the nasty noro virus going around, started my new job, adjusted to life with said job (but really, that's a work in progress), and ... yeah, that's about all I have to show for it.

Christmas decorations are still up, because surprise! I'm too tired and have too many other things to do when I get home from work. And honestly, I like them up. There's something comforting and peaceful about coming home and seeing a Christmas tree in my living room, displaying our favorite ornaments from years past. I rather like it. :)

Work is going wonderfully well. I feel very much at home and really think this position will be a good fit for me. The early mornings and commute are worth it, and that's a wonderful feeling! D has been so supportive during this entire process, and I'm so thankful he's there to help pick up the slack as we make all these adjustments as a couple to our new post-school life.

This week should be a somewhat normal, albeit busy, week (when is a normal week NOT busy??). I'm starting shifts on the reference desk, and very much looking forward to it! I've got one meeting this week after work, a few things to research and put together for an upcoming Helping Hands event, and of course, Knit Night! To be honest, though, I don't exactly have much to show off this week........ hoping to get a chunk of D's vest done tonight though. I'm ready to be finished with that project, and of course have more things waiting to cast on!

I'm not someone who typically makes New Year's Resolutions, and I didn't this year either. However, one of my goals this year is to try and be a bit more organized around the place. I've been looking into various methods for organizing bills, important paperwork, appointments, recipes... you name it. A few things look promising. Not that I'm in really bad shape right now, but there's always room for improvement, right? And with my loan payments in the near future, I figure it can't hurt to be proactive about this sort of thing. So add that to my mental list of things to do. (Soon to be physical list of things, thanks to a helpful tip I got from my friend Raelynn's blog. P.S. See that adorable sheep mug she made? It's mine. She got my name in our Secret Santa gift exchange. :) )