Busy Bee

I finally made it to the store this weekend to buy some fabric and things to finish some projects I had started months ago. I also got around to taking some pictures and posting new items in my etsy shop. I've been so busy lately with working and knitting and watching dexter episodes at night that I haven't been spending much time on crocheting. But I made some good progress this weekend.
(some wrist/handwarmers I made a while ago)

I also finished the purse I blogged about before. I bought some fabric for the lining and attached the handle this weekend. I really love how it turned out. I'm thinking about adding a fabric flower or something to the front to accessorize.



Still to do:
Line another purse with fabric
Finish knitting a washcloth by Thursday
Finish the hat I started making last month
Finish crocheting a zillion flowers and sew together to make a really cute (I hope) purse!

Stitchin!

I think I'm actually starting to get the hang of this knitting thing! I've been practicing the different stitch patterns :

I can knit and purl and do ribbing and the seed stitch and garter stitch and all that. Still haven't figured out how to make the edges look neater or how to fix mistakes, but I'm pretty excited that I've gotten this far.
My first project is a dishcloth and then from there hopefully a pretty scarf for myself!

New Project :)

I just bought these 2 fabrics from Etsy:



I'm going to use one of them to make this bag:

(I found the instructions for this bag here : http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/?p=514)

Not sure what I'll do with the other fabric, but I think I'd like to get into sewing again, and I couldn't resist buying both fabrics. I think it will be a good bag to keep my knitting in, and also just a good summer bag in general because of the bright, floral fabric. Plus, one can never have to many bags ;)

I will try to post a picture when I have finished!

Knitty

I am officially a knitter!!
Well, kind of. I had my first knitting class last night and it went really well! I'm really excited about it and have been perusing knitting patterns already, planning all of the pretties I will soon be able to make (I hope!).
I've been trying to teach myself to knit for probably 3 years, and have tried (unsuccessfully) to teach myself at least three different times. I can get the stitches okay, but it just feels strange to me, as an avid crocheter. Also I just felt like I needed someone else to watch and someone to guide me through it. So far, so good.

We are supposed to come up with an idea for a scarf we want to make for class.
I think I want to make one of these:



(Found from Etsy Sellers PhylPhil (top photo) and fglass (bottom photo) )


I can't wait to do all of the things with knitting that I can't really do with crochet. Cables, tight (non-holey) stitches, socks(!), and lots of others. But while I am very excited about the prospect of knitting, I think I will always prefer the simplicity and familiarity of crochet.

I just finished making this pair of wristwarmers. (I know the picture isn't the best, but it's dark and rainy outside today so it was the best I could do for now with little natural light)

I've never owned any before, but I've been seeing some really cute ones online and in stores, so I decided to have a try at making them myself. I'm really pleased with how they turned out, and they look really cute on. They are perfect for these cold spring days we've been having in Chicago lately. I'm excited to make others and mess around with different color combinations and stitches.

I currently have a purring kitty on my lap and my guy by my side so I will go back to being lazy this cold and rainy Sunday. :)

Lazy Sunday

Today I finished a scarf I'd been working on for about a week. Last night I had the apartment to myself so I watched some old tv shows online and worked and ate m&ms. :) I cherish my alone time and usually fill it with such things.

Anyways, here is the finished product:

I had seen this color combination in a blanket and couldn't get it out of my mind I guess. I would probably never have thought to put these colors together on my own, which I think is why I was so interested in making this. Also it has a wave pattern and is really thick, which is something different.
I'm happy with how it turned out :)

To Do List...

As a result of constantly searching the internet for inspiration and ideas for new things to create, I have pictures and patterns saved in various places on my computer. I'll often come up with ideas for the next thing I want to make while I am still working on my current project, and by the time I'm ready for a new project, I have forgotten the ideas that seemed so brilliant and urgent at the time. In an effort to not let this happen anymore, I want to start posting my ideas and to do's here so I can refer back to one place rather than having to search through all of my bookmarked Internet sites and folders filled with pictures every time I'm ready to start something new.

Here are some stitches/motifs that I need to learn and incorporate into future projects:


Catherine Wheel Stitch


These pretty flowers


Hexagons! I've made plenty of squares and circles, but never hexagons.



Flower circles


Bobbles


Waves


Swirls!


There are so many many more but these are the ones that most interest me right now.