Recently, I took a night off from knitting anything.  I have several projects on the needles and I'm always anxious to see them finished, but they're only fun if you enjoy doing it, right?  And most of them don't need to be rushed.  The only thing I REALLY need to get done right now is help Mom pick out her yarn for the shawl she's getting for her birthday.  Once I get that done and actually have the yarn in my possession, I'd like to get the shawl started fairly quickly. 

Anyway - back to my original statement - I took the night off from knitting.  Instead, I spent some much needed time with my sewing machine. :)  I've been wanting to finish a few sewing projects, but never take the initiative to do anything about it.  And I had already decided that I couldn't start any sewing projects until I had actually mended the 4-5 blankets with tears in them.  (We use large quilts as lap blankets in our house, and most all of them had little corner tears in various places.  Which makes stuffing or batting fall out and only encourages those tears to get larger.)  I'm happy to say that I completed that dreaded task fairly quickly, while watching Bolt.  (Cute movie - X liked watching the animals!)

So now what I'd really like to do is make myself a knitting needle case (okay - maybe a couple cases).  I'd like this case to house and protect all sorts of needles.  I'm leaning towards making one to accommodate my KnitPicks Interchangeables (cables, keys, and ends as well!) in one place.  Right now I'm using the case they came in, but it's plasticy and I have a hard time getting the tips out because they stick to the sides.  It would need to hold more than 1 set, though, because I've already got the Harmony Wood set and I'm slowly building up my Nickel Plated set.

I'd probably also like to have a case that holds just my dpns.  I don't have many dpns right now, but I'd like to change that as time goes on.  This case would hold shorter and longer dpns, with the potential for a small pocket or 2 for things like needle caps and such. 

And while I'm dreaming....I'd probably also make a few smaller needle cases so that I can stash a small set of needles in various project bags.  I hate when I'm working on a project that calls for a circular needle and dpns, or even potentially different needle sizes, leaving me with needles, cables, dpns, etc. milling around in the bottom of my project bag.  I'm always afraid my needles will get broken (X likes to steal my project bags and deposit them around the house.  He also likes to swing them around or pester the dog with them like a toy!).  Although a small needle case will not completely solve this problem, it would provide them with a little extra support.  The small needle case would only need 2-3 slots for needles, a pocket for notions (stitch markers, needle caps, interchangeable bits, cable needles, etc.), a pocket for 1-2 cables/circs, and potentially a pocket for a ruler, scissors and small pen/pencil.  If anything, this is what I'd like most.  Maybe I'll start with this needle case and work my way up to a larger one.  But I think that would accommodate my needs fairly well! :)

I keep drawing out different things that I like - now I need to set the plan in motion.  I've seen it suggested when trying to design the size of a project, it's helpful to make a "paper" version.  Using paper grocery sacks (or something similar), cut the pieces, stitch them together, see if I like the finished product.  I may try that this weekend. 

Well now that those creative juices are flowing...I'll let them simmer for a bit whilst I hammer out the details.  In the meantime - I've made half of what will be a neat drawstring pouch.  It's not very big - only big enough to hold sewing or knitting notions.  If it were a little smaller it'd be a girly dice bag! :) I still need to line it (which means finding coordinating fabric) and make the drawstring.  Then tah-dah!  Finished! :)

Hooray!

I just talked with one of my best friends tonight.  With life being so busy, and living in separate towns, we don't talk as much as we like.  The newest addition to her family was the recipient of the Upside-Down Daisy Hat and Flower Pacifier Clip.  I was glad to hear that the gifts had arrived safely (I was going to hand deliver them, but I was having a hard time getting ahold of my friend!).  Since the weather has been so warm lately, little A hasn't worn the hat much.  But I think it's big enough it will fit come fall.  She has gotten a lot of use out of the paci clip thus far, though. :)

From what my friend tells me, she gets a lot of compliments/comments on the binky clip and people always ask where she gets it.  She told me tonight that she likes being able to tell people that her friend made it for her daughter. 

Appreciation like that is why I like crafting, and giving gifts to other people.  Especially when they truly appreciate the time it takes to make something. :) Needless to say, that made my night. 

And to top it off we even set a date to get together.  We're both too flighty to not write it down. :)  I'm looking forward to time with her and meeting her little girl! :)

Good Music

This weekend I attended a John McCutcheon concert.  It was a birthday present to my dad, who raised us listening to Mr. McCutcheon's music.  I'm not really sure how well-known John McCutcheon is anymore.  At least, I'm not sure among my generation how many people know who he is.  Most people my age seem to enjoy rock, pop or country music, which John is not.  John is a folk singer, but his music is so beautiful and inspiring.  I really enjoyed sitting and listening to him play his variety of instruments while singing along.  Some of his most well-known songs include "Christmas in the Trenches" and "Cut the Cake." 

John wrote "Cut the Cake" in the hopes that it would catch on and people wouuld stop singing the tired old song of "Happy Birthday to You."  John's birthday song is so much better.  He took requests last night at the concert, which was nice because my sister and I had thought ahead to send a request backstage before the concert even started, asking him to sing "Cut the Cake" to Dad.  It was so much fun listening to him sing that song to my dad - Dad's played it for our birthday every year since we were little. (And during one segment of the show, John threw a baseball to the audience and Dad caught it. :)  Great birthday present!  And of course, John was kind of enough to sign it after the show.)

And listening to him was just like sitting in the car listening to his cd play.  But better. :)  My husband really enjoyed the music, as well, which was nice.  Everyone really seemed to enjoy the night.

I would most definately encourage others to check out his music. John McCutcheon sings such a variety of music - kid songs, love songs, political songs, funny songs, sad songs, the list goes on.  There's bound to be something for everyone. 

I think one of the neatest songs, though, is the song he wrote at the request of friend, "Happy Adoption Day." Coming from a social work background and working in the juvenile court system, I have seen how happy kids are when they are adopted, as well as how little there is in the world which celebrates the occassion.  It's hard to find cards or gifts or momentos of such a wonderful thing.  John's even put the song into a book.  For those of you who work with adoptions, or have had an adoption touch your life in one form or another, I'm sure you can appreciate this piece. 

Here's a picture from after the show.  Dad's on the left, John McCutcheon's on the right. :)

The hazards of a 1-year-old....

and the joys of super-glue!

This barrett is one of my favorites.  It compliments most outfits because it's neutral, but it's pretty and feminine without shouting LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT ME. 

I purchased this barrett while my DH and I were on our honeymoon in Hawaii at a local flee market.  They had a lot of this kind of thing there.  Since I like to pull my hair back in some way almost every day, I knew this would be used. Frequently.

Last week my son was playing with it while I did my hair in the morning.  He tripped and fell (like most wobblers do quite frequently) and my poor barrett broke into several pieces.  Obviously it wasn't intentional but as soon as I knew he was okay, I searched the floor for all the bits I could find to see if I could repair it. 

I could, and I did this afternoon.  No, it's not a fantastic fix, but now the barrett will stay out of little hands.  And it should hold up pretty well since it shouldn't get abused much while in my hair.   It seems silly, but I am quite attached to it and was glad to know the crisis had been averted. :)

Tie-dying adventure

A while back I posted about wanting to dye my own yarn.  At the time, I wasn't sure what method I'd use, or what yarn I had on hand that would work.  After reading lots of threads from the What a Kool Way to Dye group, I learned that only wool can be dyed using Easter egg dye, Jell-O, Koolaid or Wilton's.  And wouldn't you know that all I had in my stash was cotton??  The solution?  Tie-dye.

Much like tie-dying a cotton t-shirt, the process was fairly simple.  I got to work unwinding my skeins of KnitPicks Simply Organic Cotton (is it weird that I tie-dyed organic cotton? lol) and rewound them into hanks, tying them off with acrylic yarn at various places to keep the hank from getting tangled.  I bought my tie-dye kit from Hobby Lobby and got to work. 

I had 2 hanks of yarn to dye, so I opted to use 2 different color schemes.  One using cool colors, and the other, warm colors.  The whole process took longer than I expected, but the rewards were worth it. 

I wound the yarn on my quilt rack since I didn't have any chair backs that would work.  This actually ended up working quite well.  I just had to remember to wind the yarn loose enough I could pull it off the rack. 

After it was wound and tied (only to prevent tangling, not to get any funky designs in the yarn!), I soaked the yarn in a bath of warm water and a couple drops of Dawn dishsoap (helps remove the oils and such from the yarn).

I let that sit for 30 minutes or so and then gently squeezed as much water out as possible before wrapping the yarn in a towel and smashing it to remove as much moisture as possible.

Next, I laid out some cardboard on my counter to lay the yarn on top of (this helped me transport the dyed yarn off my counter and to a safe location to soak when I was finished), topped with a plastic trash bag to contain the dyes and not color my kitchen countertops.  I laid out the yarn in an oval shape, and got to work.

The dyes in the kit came in powder form - just add water.  Be sure to wear gloves!!  Because that powder easily gets everywhere.  It's probably not a bad idea to wear glasses or goggles to prevent dust getting in your eyes.  I didn't have any particular plan as to how I wanted to color the yarn so I just starting squirting the dye on a section of the yarn. I ended up with somewhat intentional coloring. 

Once I felt the yarn was sufficiently covered in dye, I wrapped it up in the plastic bag, taped it shut, and moved it out of the way to soak for a day or so.  I read on the blog, Yarngear, that the longer the dye sits, the better color saturation you achieve.

A couple days later I opened up the plastic bags, and while using rubber gloves, I rinsed my yarn in the sink.  Let me tell you....I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed.  Then I squeezed out the water and rinsed some more.  I finally ended up putting my yarn in the shower and rinsing out the extra dye with the shower head.  This worked REALLY well, and it was much easier to tell when the water started to run clear.  Then I squeezed out the remaining water by hand, and again wrapped it in a towel and stepped on it to remove whatever water possible. 

After drying, my yarn was a bit tangled in the hank, but nothing horrible. I rewound the yarn into hanks and sat back to observe my handiwork. 

Overall, it was a lot of fun dying my own yarn. I can't wait to try it with wool and Koolaid, or Wilton's, or Jell-O.  So many more options than cotton.

**Items to note for future reference:

• Save the bottles the dye came in.  The next time I dye, I may want to mix colors, having these extra squirt bottles on hand will be extra helpful!
• Have plenty of yarn on hand to dye.  Although you may know how to preserve the dye, I have no idea and the box says the intensity starts to wear off after 48 hours.  I could have dyed 2 more skeins of cotton!
• Adding water to the dye solution will change the color intensity.  It helps to dye the dark portions first, followed by the light portions.  For example, I started with deep red, but had a light red/pink by the time I was finished.  It gives the yarn a nice blended appearance.
• The towel you use for squeezing out remaining water post-dye should be one you don't mind getting colored.  Even though I had rinsed out the extra dye, if the yarn sat on the towel while wet, some of the dye bled. Another option for removing excess water would be to put the yarn in the washer on spin cycle.  The tie-dye directions said to wash the dyed object, but I just rinsed. 
• You can hang dry your yarn, or put it in the dryer.  Since it's cotton, it doesn't felt.  And my yarn came out nice and fluffly. :)
• The finished colors were lighter when all was said in done, but the colors are still saturated and beautiful. 

Who doesn't love a pile of fun, colorful buttons? 

I was putting the finishing details on a project yesterday.  The pattern called for buttons, ribbons, little butterflies, that sort of thing.  I didn't have butterflies, but I did have buttons.  (I chose to omit the ribbon.)

After I opened and dumped out all the buttons I recently purchased, I couldn't help myself from scooping them all up and letting them fall out of my hands again, taking pleasure in the sound of the little buttons falling on top one another.  I felt like a little kid again, playing with all the pennies in my piggy bank. 

It's the little things in life that keep me happy. :)

Springtime in Paris

Some days I feel like there are so many ideas and projects all lined up in my mind, my head will explode!  I keep finding things I want to craft.  Be it knitting, sewing, working with clay, dying.  There's never enough time in the day.  Especially if there are other, more pressing items on the list - like laundry, or dishes, or cleaning up.  It also means there's usually only time for the crafty stuff when X is either asleep for the night,  napping, or in the mood to be content playing on his own. 

Be that as it may, I'd rather have TOO many ideas to keep me busy than not enough. :)  I currently have 4 WIPs (work in progress) on the needles.  And I'm about to add a 5th.  The 5th includes about 4 items all using the same pattern/idea.  I never thought I'd have so many things going at one time.  But what can I say, instead of just dipping my toes, I sorta fell in to the knitting pool. :)

Anywho, I'm participating in another swap.  I love these swaps.*  The Itty Bittys on Raverly are such great people, so caring and friendly.  You can't help but want to talk and swap with everyone. :) This time around, we have a little more time to plan, scheme, organize, and knit.  The last swap went quick to get everyone their parcels in time for Easter.  There is no pressing deadline other than the one we set for ourselves.   This can be good, or bad (but in a good way).  I have more time to do my knitting, but I also have more time to find all the wonderful things I could include in the swap!

*As a side note, I'd like to mention that I also love giving things.  It's as much fun for me (if not more) to give someone a gift and see their reaction or appreciation, than getting a gift.  Don't get me wrong, I love and appreciate what people give me as well, but it's so satisfying to do things and create for other people.  I think it's one reason I love knitting so much. 

This swap's theme is Springtime in Paris.  So deemed because we are knitting the hat Frenchie, as well as a pair of coordinating booties or socks.  Since the theme was announced, my mind started whirling with possibilities, and then shifted into high gear when I was given the swap partner information.  Now, I can't divulge most of what I'm doing and adding to this swap because I don't want to give anything away, but I may be able to share some tidbits along the way.  So between now and May 24th, watch out cause I'll be busy busy! :)

I will mention that I get to make the Jelly Bean Socks from the Spud & Chloe blog.  Another great, free pattern by Susan B. Anderson.   I have considered making a pair for X, but just haven't sat down to do so.  I'm excited for a concrete reason to knit them now...and maybe I'll even sneak in an extra pair! 

I also found the last color I needed for the hat last night.  I was hoping to find all the yarn in my stash this time as it seems to be quickly growing.  I was lucky and I found 3 of the 4 colors needed.  Yesterday I cast on for the hat, and so far it's knitting up quickly! 

I may have to put it aside momentarily though, while I work on a secret project for May.  Stay tuned for more on that in a couple weeks!

Check!

First item I was able to check off my newly created list! :)

My dad has a vest that he wore A LOT when we were younger.  I've always liked the vest, and apparently, so does my brother.  Recently, he asked Dad if he could use it. 

The problem was, there were a few spots that weren't quite ready to see any more action.  A asked if I could mend these spots so he could wear the vest w/out the fear of anything else ripping and what not.  Just a couple before/after pictures.  Nothing too spectacular to see, but I thought I did a pretty decent job of mending seams. 

Before:

Look at the edge of the snow on the mountains - that's where the vest needed mending.

The problem is more obvious on the back (left side of picture)

After

Pretty snowy mountains now!

What's cool about this down vest is that the different colors and fabric used, combined w/ the puffiness of the vest creates a mountain scene.  It's neat. :)

And something else while I'm thinking of it...I was finally able to take pictures from another swap I participated in.  This one was for the Read & Knit or Crochet Swap group.  The purpose of this group is for all the participants of each month's swap to read the same book.  In March, we read While My Pretty One Knits by Anne Canadeo.  Then, when gatherings items for the swap, you include things which relate back to the book, as well as any other goodies your swap partner may enjoy.  The requirements include sending a pattern and the yarn for a project.  The project can relate to the book, or not. 

I wish I had remembered to take pictures before I sent my package off in the mail.  I included a pattern for fingerless gloves, some soft KnitPicks yarn (light and dark blues), some natural colored wool, and Jell-O to dye the wool.  I also included a few stitch markers.  I chose the fingerless gloves pattern because my swap partner likes knitting accessories for herself.  And since she said she liked blues, well - that choice is obvious.  The wool and Jell-O corresponds to the book because one of the characters, Phoebe, shows her knitting group how to dye wool using the microwave method and Berry-Blue Jell-O.  The stitch markers are dogs and knitting needles/yarn.  One of the important characters in the book is an adopted dog, Tink (yes, named after the knitting term).  She ends up playing a semi-important role. 

I received my package from Anna92.  She included some photo holders (which will be great for work), bath salts, fun-shaped milk chocolate, a pattern for fingerless mitts (great minds think alike?! lol), a pumpkin scented candle, and 2 skeins of KnitPicks Elegance yarn in jade.  Hooray for swaps!

Notice Anything?

Not a huge change to the blog, but I decided to start keeping lists.  I have what my husband would probably call an obsession with lists.  I love writing them, and checking things off them. So here, the I've created lists that reflect what I'm working on, projects I'd like to complete and I officially feel are on my "to-do" list, that sort of thing.  Yesterday I added two such lists. 

The first is my to-do list.  These are the things that are always in the back of my mind, nagging or prodding me to get completed.  I'm so good at forgetting, though, that the less interesting things (like mending) take a backseat to the more creative outlets (like knitting, obviously!).  As I get things completed, I'll remove them from the list and every now and again, I'll post an update on how I'm doing.  There's no deadline or time restriction, it just helps me keep track.

To-Do List

Sew Up Dad's Vest for A
Mend Blankets
Unwind 2 Skeins of Cotton for Dying
Tie-Dye Cotton (1/2 done)
Haruni Shawl for Mom
Squishies
Vertical Stripes Hat
Traveling Woman Shawl
Sinful Ribbed Scarf
Secret May project 1/4
Springtime In Paris Swap Complete
Make project bag for myself
Create Knitting Needle Case
Finish sanding eggs
Curtain for kitchen shelves
The other list right now is for a swap I'm working on: Springtime in Paris.  Since I'm not just including the knit items for the Springtime in Paris swap, it's good to have a record of what is left to complete.  And besides...I like checking items off a list.  I feel more accomplished that way. :)

Springtime in Paris Swap

Find yarn for Frenchie - stash dive or buy?
Stash dive - yarn for socks
Knit Jelly Bean Socks
Knit Frenchie
Collect Goodies - 1/2 done
Write (& include!) note
Box Up
Mail to Swap Partner
Update Ravelry w/ pictures & comments
*The items on this list may not be crossed off quite so quickly.  Just in case my swap partner reads this, I don't want to give away anything in her pacakge.  So instead, I will have to maintain somewhat of a list on a piece of paper....that I'll lose and rewrite several times...lol*

In other news, I started a new project recently called Vertical Stripes Hat (yes, yes, I know, another hat.  I promise soon there will be other knit items because, let's face it, the weather WILL be warming up and Xander would probably really enjoy a new toy or something.  Or maybe a sweater for the fall.)  But for now it's a hat! :) This one is intriguing because the hat is created by knitting 10 separate panels, joined together in the round as you work.  This is going to be trial and error for me - never done this before. 

From the notes I've read thus far, the most important thing is to measure, measure, measure those panels!  If not, they won't line up correctly and the hat will go wonky.  The pattern uses about 6 different stitch patterns (I'm going to modify this a bit so that each stitch pattern is used twice).  I'm using 2 different blues - should be pretty.  And I think I'll probably post progress pictures on this one, just because the process is so visually interesting and helpful.  Wish me luck!

Daisy, Daisy, Give Me Your Answer Do...

I finished up the Upside-Down Daisy hat.  I like the pattern, but next time I'll choose different yarn.  This hat is mostly acrylic, and although I don't mind some acrylic or acrylic blends, this one just felt weird while knitting.  (It amazes me how different a yarn can feel when knitting as opposed to just in the hank/skein/ball.)

The petals frustrated me a bit, I couldn't figure out which way to place them.  The book directs you to place the cast-on edge at the base fo the stem on the top of the hat.  That's all good, but I felt as though my cast-on edge was more nicely rounded, like a petal would be.  So I flipped it around, with my bound off edge near the stem base and the tiny bit of a point I had was folded under and sewn down.  The resulting flower looks good.  I think it looks like it should.

My stem didn't curl as much as I was hoping it would.  I prefer the look w/ the stem curled instead of straight up - that may have been a result of the yarn choice.  I couldn't knit it as tightly as I wanted (although I try not to knit TOO tight, I wanted this stem to be moosh-able). 

Overall, the colors suit the hat nicely, very light and airy for the little girl who is the recipient.  And they match the flower paci clip nicely too. I think this set is sweet.  I love gifting a hat and binky clip.  They're both SO EASY to make. 

Previously, I posted that I had to move this above mentioned project to a different cable to use my 16" circ.  I'm happy to announce I now have a 2nd 16" circ (size 7) to use.  Although the other is interchangeable, I almost always have used a size 7 needle thus far - so I should be safe. 

I moved the daisy hat because I needed to cast-on and complete Bunny Tail quickly.  I wanted it finished in time for Easter.  Success!! 

This hat is knit with Rowan Cashsoft DK - beautifully soft yarn!  I LOVED knitting with this yarn.  I would certainly look for this in the future.  The gray was a perfect color for X, and it complimented his Easter outfit well!  The pattern calls for a larger bunny tail on the back, but I didn't want it to interfere w/ X when he laid his head back in the car or something.  So just a small one this time. 

And the blue ribbon to tie around the ears worked just right as well.  It didn't fight the gray, and the colors combined looked good on X. 

I tried to get decent pictures while X was wearing that hat, but he preferred to pull it off and carry it around instead.  Such a strong-willed little boy. :)  (I am happy to note, though, that since that weekend, he has successfully worn the hat on several occassions! lol)

(I know it wasn't necessary to include so many pictures of Little Man - but it was so cute, I did anyway.)

Picture by Tristabelle

Picture by Tristabelle

After seeing colors like these, I really want to get my hands on some Easter Egg Dye.  I'm probably too late at this point.  But I'll check around.  Otherwise, I think I have a handle on some of the normal modes of dying yarn. 

Tristabelle, from Raverly, has a great post on her blog about how to dye wool using Easter Egg Dye tablets.  There seems to be a lot of potential in these.  Although since I haven't tried this yet, I'm going to reserve my excitement until I have a chance to do some myself.  Tristabelle was gracious enough to let me use her photographs, the colors she obtained are so vibrant and beautiful.  I bet whatever she knits with these will look really neat. :)

Be Creative

I have lists and sticky-notes EVERYWHERE telling me what I want or should do next. There is ONE thing I REALLY want to do.  Dye my own yarn!  So in an attempt to remember this and try it sooner rather than later....I am reminding myself on my blog. :)

If anyone has good information to share on different ways to do this, please share them!  My first attempt will be with tie-dye and cotton.  Wish me luck!

Can he wear them next year?

Last night while riding in the car to supper with my family I worked on X's Bunny Tail hat from the Easter swap.  I must say again, this yarn is FANTASTIC!  I am a RY Cashsoft DK convert!  So, so soft.  I've made hubby squish the hat in it's various stages on numerous occassions.  He kindly obliges me, even if he thinks it's crazy. :) And I love the color that Melissa (melissabear) chose for the hat.  The gray is so soft, and I think it will really bring out his blue eyes when he's wearing it.  My goal: to finish this hat tonight!!  I want him to be able to wear it tomorrow when we see my dad's side of the family.  And then, of course, for Easter on Sunday morning.  Since we'll be going to sunrise service, it will be a bit chilly and a hat will certainly be appropriate.  But I digress.

While talking with my sister, I mentioned the hat was for X on Easter.  And the question came up, "can he wear his other hats next year?"  Honestly, probably not.  Although the older hats still fit him now, they will soon become very tight on his pretty little head.  I told her the next babe will have the chance to wear them.  She then asked what I would knit for our future kids if they already had hats.  "More hats," I replied! 

I don't know about any other knitters out there, but the rapid rate at which little kids grow is certainly not a deterrant for knitting them cute hats! :)  Yes, they will outgrow the hats they have, but that just provides the opportunity to knit them new ones.  And there are 4 seasons, of course.  Each lending themselves to different styles and warmth.  And being the mom that I am (and since I can get away with it at the moment) I love having a hat that coordinates with the outfit X is wearing. I can't help it!   And in the future, when we choose to have more kids, I'll reuse the hats X wore, but I'll also make them their own hats to love and cherish.  And if we ever have any girls, well....that's a whole 'nother story! 

All of the hats I've knit to date have been designed by Susan B. Anderson.  I've mentioned her several times in this blog.  I'm a faithful follower of her work!  But there are other designers whose work I have admired from afar.  I just haven't taken the plunge yet to purchase any of the patterns.  One of my favorite blogs to check out is Tot Toppers.  Kate has designed so many fun and beautiful hats!  One of my favorites is the Cabled Tie Topper.  I can just imagine how great this hat would look on X in blue & brown or gray-blue & creme.  And I'd love to make Trail Cap with a little bee buzzing around the hat.  She's got sweet hats for boys and girls, as well as patterns for dresses, vests, and even adult patterns.  I've looked through the more girly patterns and noted a few I would make if I had a girl, but mostly I love looking at the variety of boys hats. Maybe this summer I'll look into Trail Cap.  Too cute! :)

On another note, I have several different projects on the needles right now.  As state above, I've been working on Bunny Tail.  This was a project that just had to be done in time for Easter.  It meant that my other WIPs got put on the backburner.  I've been switching back and forth between 3 other projects, though, when I've had the chance. 

First, I started a scarf way back when (I can't remember when) and it is slowly growing longer and longer.  Sinful Ribbed Scarf is a pattern I found when I was new to Ravelry.  I don't know why this pattern caught my attention, but it did.   The texture of the pattern was very intriguing.  I cast on and knit a little, and then set it aside for a long time.  About a month ago or so, I started working on it again and now it's about 1/3 finished.  It needs to be about 70" long, so I've got a bit of work ahead of me.  I'm using the recommended needle size, but a lighter weight yarn.  Instead of bulky or heavy worsted, I'm using just worsted weight yarn.  Of course, that means the guage is different and the stitches aren't as tight.  In fact, this gives it a bit of a lacy effect.  I thought about changing it but decided I liked it this way anyway.

Second, I cast on Traveling Woman during spring break.  While I used the trip to Colorado to work on my scarf, once in Fraser, I started 2 rows of this shawl/scarf.  On the drive home, I completed almost all of the stockinette stitch rows.  I've been working at this little by little trying to complete the St. st. but this is something I usually don't take out of the bag until X is in bed and I have a good chunk of time to commit to it.  I'd hate to mess this up.  Hopefully I'll be working on the lace charts soon.

And finally, I've started Upside-Down Daisy for my friend's little girl.  This will accompany the Flower Paci Clip I posted about.  I've only completed about 1 1/2 inches of the base of the hat.  I had to swap my cables out to use the 16" cable for Bunny Tail.  But once X's hat is finished, I can swap back and finish this up.  I want to get the hat mailed sooner rather than later.

So as you can see, I've been busy.  I've been successful with my planned selfishness - with 2! projects on the needles for myself.  I have some patching up to do on a few items with the sewing machine and I'd like to add a couple sewing projects to my list to work on.  As the weather warms up, I think this will become more likely.  My sewing machine now has a place at my craft corner in the basement and since the basement is cooler, I'll likely be spending more time down there soon! 

Finally, I hope everyone reading has a wonderful Easter weekend.  It's Good Friday and I wish I was able to be home with X and DH today.  We have a busy weekend ahead of us, but I'm so thankful to be surrounded by such a loving family and I look forward to time with them over the holiday!