Knitting Tip of the Day: Sachet

I've been knitting a 'Weasley Sweater' for Little Tomato for the better part of 2017. This is my first sweater, and I have decided that I am NOT a fan of knitting sweaters. It is counter to my attention span. I like smaller knitting projects: hats, scarves, cowls, knit toys... A full size adult sweater is just 'too much of the same' kind of project for me. But I'm powering through my lack of motivation as I want it to be finished.

Weasley Sweater - I know it isn't the plain stockinette of the movies,
but I had always imagined that Mrs. Weasley would have added some girly details
onto her only daughter's sweater anyway...
* I'll be duplicate stitching the letter onto the sweater when finished.
**I'm using the 'Caora Sweater Pattern' available on Ravelry: HERE.

For this project, I have my knitting in a small mobile bag that I will throw in the car when I think I may find an opportunity to knit. 

I received a lovely lavender sachet from my aunt this past Christmas. Since I already have sachets in my dresser drawers, and this was such a pretty heart sachet, I decided to put it into my knitting bag. Now every time I pull out my knitting, it has the lovely fragrance of lavender. And when you are tediously stitching the umpteenth knit of the umpteenth row of a stockinette sweater... lavender is a calming aroma. 😋

I'm definitely keeping a sachet in my knitting bag from now on.

And I may just add one or two to my yarn stash while I'm at it... 

Ostrich

I'm coming down with a cold and it is in the negative digits outside, so I decided to do a little mini painting while cloistered inside today.

I found an adorable series of "Zoo Portraits" on Pinterest by Yago Partal... and then fell down the rabbit hole onto the website, which is fabulous: https://www.zooportraits.com

I adored the Ostrich and decided to practice my painting skills on painting an ostrich in the hat & sweater.

I'll probably fiddle with the sweater & shirt at some point, but it was a fun exercise for a frigid day inside.

Happy New Year!

Painting in Progress

I'm diving into painting, and starting with acrylics.

I have no idea what I'm doing.

I've watched a YouTube video on the basics, and read a couple of articles that provide tips.

It is definitely a self-guided crash course in painting. But at least I'm having some fun doing it. 😋

'Girl with  a Glue Gun' in progress...

Taking a Stab at Something New...

I get antsy when I haven't been creative. It is an itch that just festers when I haven't gotten my creative outlet filled. This last month has been busy with holiday festivities, making treats, decorating for the holidays, and a cleaning/ organizing binge.. but I haven't MADE anything for a while.

And I'm getting itchy.

I've never been shy to try new media. I've delved into books, blogs, Pinterest, and YouTube videos and taught myself to sew, knit and crochet. While I obtained a foundation of basic art classes in school, I somehow completely missed painting classes. And now I'm itching to paint.

My mother is a painter. She paints every Saturday and has made several paintings which we have framed in our home. When she asked what I wanted for Christmas this year, I asked for painting supplies. I'm going to dive in. 😁

I have this picture in my head of a painting that I want for my craft room, which is really just the extra bedroom in our house. It's walls are lined with mismatched dressers and wire shelving, buckling and brimming with books and craft supplies piled high in cardboard boxes. Glue guns, dowels, paint... yarn, fabric, and spools of thread. It isn't pretty, by any stretch of the word. It certainly isn't a Pinterest-worthy space. Nonetheless, it is where I get crafty and it needs some wall art, dammit! 😋

SO. Today I bought a cheap canvas from Hobby Lobby and sketched an outline. After the holiday weekend, I'll throw on some YouTube tutorials and take a whack at painting! Wish me luck... 😳

'Girl with a Glue Gun' in progress...

Framing a Rabbit

I bought this brass bunny hook ages ago. Easily two years or more. I adore bunnies and originally planned to put it in Little Tomato's room. When that idea went by the wayside, I couldn't bear to return it.

So it sat on a counter.

Then in a drawer.

Then on the counter again.

It migrated rooms for years, and was never hung. I knew that if I gave it enough time, the right place would present itself.

A month ago, I shifted a couple of things on my mudroom chalkboard wall to make room for Ewegenia (my sheep bust, get it EWEgenia?... but I digress...) and I finally found the perfect place for the bunny to be framed, front and center.

Bunny hanging with her buddy, EWEgenia.
Ewegenia is accessorizing a hand-knit wool crimson cowl this season. 

I have officially screwed holes into the gypsum and given the bunny a permanent home.

See... as I have gotten older, I have realized that to make a house feel like a home, we need to invest in things that we love. 

We are constantly inundated with advertisements and TV series that show us the latest trends. Our society is about collecting things, and disposing of them with the seasons. Disposable cups, clothing that wears thin and unravels in a season, and furniture that 'bottoms out' and falls apart in the lifespan of a goldfish. Buying 'on trend' is an expensive, vicious cycle of buying new.

In the past few years I have thinned out these things. I still sometimes forget my reusable bags and cups when I leave the house. I still catch myself walking out of Target with something ridiculous more often than I would like to admit. It is a process and takes time to break bad habits, but it helps to remind myself that if I don't love it, I don't need it.

My favorite things in my home are the ones that hold meaning. The apple bushel painting and vintage schoolhouse desk that were in my grandparent's home, the wood carvings that my grandfather carved, the paintings that my mother painted, the obnoxiously large dining room table that the whole family can fit around - these are the things that make my house a home.

And so... when I do come across something that I love, even if I don't know quite where it belongs yet, it may just find itself sitting on my counter... or in my drawer, or my Pinterest boards.

For sometimes two years or more.