Crazy bag lady

On Pins and Needles
I had a quilting class this weekend where I was able to sew up three more of those project bags... I love them! They just need some ribbon for the drawstrings and then they will be packed up and mailed on to their new homes... When I was cutting them out, I kept thinking of all the fun fabrics I have stashed that would make wonderful bags. And how I wanted a cow bag, and a cupcake bag, and a penguin bag, and.... then I remembered that I already have plenty of bags and I don't need anymore. So, I didn't cut one out for myself. We will see how long I can hold out!

Sticks and String

I was able to find the two other contrasting colors I was looking for. I found the exact colors I had in my mind and I think the project (which is still a super-secret, as I'm not sure if the recipient reads my blog or not) will be just how I am picturing it! 

The other thing that came this weekend was the yarn for Baby's coming home outfit! I had my friend Carrie (craftypuppylover.etsy.com) dye the yarn for me and it is JUST what I wanted! I love it! The pattern I'm knitting is the Wildwood Romper (Rav link).  I can't wait to see it all finished....

Right Around, Baby

I finished my Pam yarn, inspired by Pam from The Office (it was part of a SAL from Carrie... her stuff is amazing!). I love this yarn. I still have an Angela batt to spin up... it is gorgeous, but I think it will have to wait as I know I can't finish it before TdF and I don't think it will be in my TdF queue. 

Ok, off to take a nap and then wind yarn! I hope everyone has a great day...

Fun in the Sun

Random Chatter
We have been having a lot of fun outside lately! I take big issue with people who claim there is "nothing to do" in Anchorage.  I think if you are bored, it is your own fault... there is A TON of stuff to do! For example, last night we went to town square to hear the "Live after 5" band which was a Journey cover band! It was SO fun and it was a wonderful night to be outside. Then, we went and had dinner at Humpy's since it was so nice out. Today, we headed out to the Spenard Farmer's Market and bought some local honey and cheese (we wanted to buy some chicken as well, but ran out of cash... so we will make the trek again next weekend to buy more).  Now we are home for nap time and then it is back downtown for the Solstice Celebration! And this is just a small sampling of things there are to do. Often, I have a hard time deciding which events I want to take part in, as the ones I want to do overlap or conflict. Also, all the events I mentioned were free (unless you wanted to buy something, like food), so that is great! So if you are bored, grab a paper, check Facebook, call a friend, do something! There is a lot to explore in our little town.... now I have to take a nap to rest up for our next adventure!

Planning

Sticks and String
Last week I knitted one stranded mitten (pics soon-ish) and it reminded me how much I love color work. It is just SO fun to knit! I think I knit the whole mitten in three days... it is just so fun to see the pattern emerge and it keeps me knitting. Plus, mittens are a smaller project, so it seems like the rounds just fly by. I love it.

I immediately started thinking about my next color work project. I did some Ravelry searching and wrote down the yarn requirements for a few different things. My plan was to get the yarn at the summer solstice sale at a LYS. Here is what I found....

I'm in love with this color palette. I am going to take them into the shop tomorrow and try and find two more colors (the pattern calls for 6, but I can easily use only 4 contrast colors). The pattern and the recipient are a surprise, but it is something for a good friend. I am quite excited. I even had Weston stop by the shop in Eagle River to pick up a new pair of needles for the project. The store out there has the best selection of needles... I need to try and make it out there more often. I will probably cast this on tomorrow...

Right Around, Baby

Tour de Fleece starts soon! (For those who don't know, Tour de Fleece is a spinning challenge in which people try to spin every day the Tour de France rides... they spin on their bikes, we spin on our wheels) I have been trying to finish up one more yarn before the challenge (which I plan on finishing right after posting) and I am really excited to focus on some spinning goals I have.  I ordered 8oz of a special TDF color way for the group that I am co-captain of and it is AMAZING. Such bright, fun, vibrant colors. I am trying to decide how to spin it.... I also ordered another special TDF fiber pack that is based on the different types of jerseys the bikers wear. That should arrive next week.... my plan for that is to spin each color separately and do a small color work project. I have always wanted to do color work with handspun, but I normally spin things that are too variegated to work for that. So hopefully I can get all that spinning done!

More FO?!

On Pins and Needles
I'm on a finishing streak lately.  I had the day to myself on Sunday and finally got to work on Sawyer's color book that I meant to have done for Easter...

I can't find the rings I bought to put them together... so once those turn up I can give this to Sawyer and he can start playing with it.  I really enjoyed putting it together. It was a lot of fun finding all the goodies to put on each page. 

I also got very motivated to make a project bag, as there was some fabric in the shop that I wanted to use to make one. I dug through my stash to find some fabrics that would work to make sure I would like the finished bag and it was something I could get done... here was what I came up with.

The top part has a drawstring in it now.  I love this bag! It is the perfect travel project bag. It stands on its own, has a closing top (that isn't velcro or a zipper, both of which catch my yarn when I stuff things into a bag), and it is fun! And, because I met my goal of finishing the bag before I head to work tomorrow, I am going to pick out fabric for a couple of more of them. :)

Wandering Eyes

Sticks and String
Why do I look at knitting patterns? I have a list of about 5 things that I want to finish before Baby arrives, I don't need anymore... but then I saw the new Knitty was up today.... and there is an amazingly gorgeous blanket.... it is knit in the round and cabled and it makes me want to cuddle up and snuggle my babies... Never mind that I don't have 1,000 yards of worsted weight yarn in my stash (and because it would be an heirloom blanket, I would probably splurge and buy nice yarn for it, probably spending around $100) nor do I really have the time to knit such a blanket. But, still.... I just love it. Maybe I will get a paycheck in the mail and find just the perfect yarn on sale or something....

I can finish things...

On Pins and Needles
I've had the supplies to make a few diapers for a little while. But, it seemed I always needed one more thing. Like elastic. Or a different needle. So, after about a week, I finally gathered all my supplies, and got to sewing. I finished this CUTE little newborn diaper in just about no time!

I have some different fabric to make Sawyer a diaper so I can make sure they work before I make any more small ones. It's not perfect, but I think it is adorable, and I'm hoping it will do its job. :)

Right Around, Baby

The other thing I finished this week was a skein of yarn I had been working on since before I took that spinning class! ACK! That is a long time. I had originally planned to ply this with white, but I decided to n-ply it instead. The yarn didn't turn out like what I had in my mind (not really sure how it is different, it just it) but I love it. 

Random Chatter

So, as you can see, I can finish things... I often just get too distracted by ALL THE THINGS to do that. But, I have my list of things I would like to get done before Baby arrives, so I'm trying to check things off of that. 

You will also notice in the pictures that there is a Moose's Tooth pizza box under my FO. Funny story. Weston and I were supposed to go out last nigh, but our plans fell through... I didn't realize he was so excited about going out until I told him we weren't going to. So, I decided to surprise him with pizza and beer from Moose's Tooth.  When I was on the way home, he called to say he was cooking a special dinner for us (halibut)! HA! Too funny. We are so often thinking alike, it cracks me up.  Luckily, he hadn't started cooking yet, so we will have that tonight. I hope everyone has a great weekend. 

Seriously?!

On My Soapbox
A quick rant. I read this article about soldiers breast-feeding their babies in public, in uniform... then stupidly read the comments and got enraged. People are out of control. All I have to say about breast-feeding in public can be summed up pretty quickly... Would you criticize someone for bottle-feeding their baby in this situation? No? Then shut the hell up.

The end.

Train to Seward

Random Chatter
Weston, Josh, and I took the train to Seward on Saturday. It was SO fun. We couldn't have asked for better weather. We saw bears (TONS of bears, I think like 10 total), sheep, moose, and gorgeous scenery. Sawyer stayed with Weston's mom, so it was nice to have a day where we didn't have to chase a toddler around.  When in Seward, we wandered around, ate lunch, had smoothies, sat in the grass, and just relaxed. Here are a few pictures (of the almost 300 that were taken) of our trip.