I'm finally back!

Sunday, December 03, 2006 Posted In , , , , , Edit This 0 Comments »
I have been so busy making and finishing up projects before Xmas that I haven't had the time to update in a while! I have finished one Christmast present that I have been working on forever...secrets secrets secrets. I can't post it just yet, because someone may be getting something fun soon!

However, I will post the last painting I finished about a month ago for our friends, Scott and Jess, for their wedding. Cala Lilies were the theme:) Man , it is nice to finally finish something! Chris and I ventured up to Hibbing, MN for our friends' (Scott & Jess's) wedding. I worked and worked and worked on this painting for them. I finished it with about 2 weeks to spare, and there were still a couple of wet spots of paint.
I should have learned from a previous experience. Oh well! I guess I have to plan to finish things at least 1 month ahead of time if I'm giving paintings as gifts!













Chris also, thankfully, found our long lost camera, so I have a better shot at one of the baby sweaters/caps I knit. I love the little duckie buttons!



And, here is the jewelry I finished for mom for her bday back in the beginning of November. I enjoyed doing the necklace, but it takes a lot of patience to do the earrings...I don't think I'll get into doing too many of those.















The other finished project...well, sort of finished, is one out of 2 skiing socks I am making for Chris for Christmas. It is my first attempt at cabling, and turned out pretty well. It's a very large sock.



Now I have to make an entire other sock! I don't think I could get into doing 2 of everything very easily! I get too bored and need to try something new! I just hope that I can make another one at least similar enough to match. It took me about 1 month, and I have just enough time to finish another one. But, probably not before the snow flies!









Knitting Addict

Sunday, November 05, 2006 Edit This 1 Comment »
I am trying to get all of the font stuff figured out, and spellcheck...trying to go back and switch something once I have posted it is seeming to be a challenge....I guess I'll get the hang of it shortly!Please bear with me as I know there are some errors in what I have posted!

Anyway.....to the true fun part! Knitting,perhaps,is my new first love (in craftiness of course;) ). My first attempt at it was kind of disastrous, as I made a simple scarf which ended up being 2 times as wide as the beginning at the end! I gave it up, tried crocheting, (I made about a dozen hats the summer I spent at Holden) and thought I wouldn't like the knitting. However, my friend Angie invited me to a knitting night with some of her friends and I have become completely addicted! We get another knitting night this week, and I can't wait to see what everyone is up to.
I grew obsessed with knitting baby clothes, because they always turn out cute, are quick, and simple! This is the first little sweater shirt that I knit. It was an easy pattern all done in one piece. I have tried to do one new type of stitch with each new project I do. Then I don't feel so overwhelmed! I love anything from Debbie Bliss, Erika Knight, or many things from magknits.com and knitty.com. I have to check those websites out often. I hope to get the photos of all of the babyclothes, etc., I have knit up until now. Although I have given some away, and don't know if I'll get a pic. of them. When Chris was gone, he just thought it was hysterical that I knit all of these baby clothes when we don't have any kids yet. Yes, they are for "someday" not just yet, but it's never too early to start knitting that stuff, especially when they grow out of it so fast!

This blue sweater was done on tiny needles...I think I may have to "Redo" the neck, becaue it puckers a little bit...but I love the details on the sleeves!
This pink sweater is very wide, with very long sleeves...I think I'll have to do some tweaking to get it to not look like a little "belly" shirt! At this point, I've gotta knit pink, blue, multi--colored....and I'll have plenty of gifts to choose from for friends, or a stash of baby knits for us someday! These two sweaters below are perhaps my favorites that I have completed so far. I love the bunny buttons I found for the celery colored sweater. The grey sweater was so quick and easy! I made another in pink for a different baby shower.



My great grandma knit hudreds of Norwegian sweaters...that will be my ultimate goal one day, to knit at least one! I feel not quite at that point yet. I am just learning how to use 2 colors. Here is my first attempt at that. The stars were a little tricky. I had to do SOMETHING patriotic! I have also just began knitting cables. If anyone is scared of the cable thing...DON'T BE! It's way easier than it looks!I have two current projects with this: socks and something for myself!

My friend, Angie, and her daugher Lily and I hit up the Yarn Cafe this past weekend, and I found some yarn for a project to make clothingfor myself. It will be interesting to see if I can get the gauge right, since I have never had to fit clothing to a person other than a baby who will potentially grow into something. I'm going to be making a sweater vest/tunic type of thing, with cabling on the bottom.

But my first knitting priority right now is finishing some socks that I'm making Chris for Xmas...although he knows about them. He wanted knit socks last year for skiing, and I started them, but quit when he broke his collar bone. Now that the ski slopes are open, he may get an early present, if I can finish them!

This is a duck sweater I made for a friend's baby shower gift. It's the same pattern I used on my first sweater. I'm a sucker for cute buttons and embellishments.

Knitting projects in the works: red ski socks for Chris
Baby jumper "Anouk" from knitty.com
blue vest/tunic
lilac baby sweater:

Ok, cuz I can't seem to just start one thing and finish it before starting a new one. I have to have multiple projects! I'll post them as they finish, or when I get a little farther along with them.

Sweet Pea Shower

Thursday, November 02, 2006 Posted In , , , , Edit This 1 Comment »



Back in June I co-hosted a baby shower for my friend Angie. These are some of the fun things I made for her. I couldn't resist the sweet "pea" pod filled with diapers. I did this in place of the typical diaper cake.
Below is one of the softest blakets ever! I want a giant blanket like that for myself!


My second quilt was a little smaller...my mom and I took it on with a little more time to spare. It was for my wonderful friend, Angie's little girl as a shower gift.


And here is the funniest thing I think I have ever knit in my life. In the book, it was such a cute idea...a little bunting. I know, who puts their baby in a bunting for real, right? Anyway, it turned out pretty huge...and the pompom took up about an entire skein of yarn! Maybe it's just the pom pom that threw it off a little bit. The hole is where the baby is supposed to have it's arms and head free. It just looks funny to me. Maybe a second attempt will be better. I guess it still is functional...maybe? I don't know how realistic it will be for a little one. I guess I'll have to see.

Wedding Quilt

Wednesday, November 01, 2006 Posted In , Edit This 0 Comments »
So, this is my first attempt at getting photos on the blog....it's a process with multiple pics! But hey, it's time to share the fun stuff, right?

My first attempt at quilting is yet to be finished. I started my first quilt when Chris went to boot camp...a Starry Night quilt. Before I start another, I HAVE to finish that one! Once I get working on that, I'll post it in here as well!

My sister-in-law, Amy, and I got sewing machines from my parents as combined Xmas/Birthday presents. We definitely got good use out of them. Since then, my mom, Amy, and I began and completed a quilt in a crazied frenzy, finishing in about 5 weeks...start to end! Triangles were definitely a challenge, but we got it done. This was the organizing and layout phase.

We each sewed the squares together on our own machines, laid it all out, stitched it all together while taking turns, taped the fabric down on my parents' kitchen floor, pinned it all together, and sewed up a storm. Doing curved lines without an open-toe or darning presser foot...not so much fun! I felt like I was wrestling the machine and fabric. Luckily I just got a new presser foot! I haven't tried it out yet, but I'm looking forward to a hopefully much smoother time!

Back to the quilt...we finally put the final touches on it, and we were done! Yep, it was really that easy. Ok, never in my life again will I make a quilt in 5 weeks or less...I think it turned out pretty nicely for a first finished quilt by all of us!

What's it all about?!

Wednesday, November 01, 2006 Edit This 0 Comments »
As an art teacher, I'm always in the midst of a ton of projects in my classroom. That definitely carries on into my life at home. I have always had to keep my hands busy with something, whether it be knitting, crocheting, quilting, painting, making slide shows, beading, scrapbooking, cardmaking....really anything creative. I can't seem to pick just one thing to create or make...it's kind of a random assortment of things. My parents seem to think I take after my grandmothers and great grandmothers who used to knit and sew, among other things. I have to give the title of the blog credit to my cousin Krista...the blending of my last name and the mix of things I like to do. Thanks Krista! ;)

When Chris was gone, I kept my hands and mind busy with other stuff just for the sanity of myself. Now that he's home, I still can't stop making stuff! I just think it's fun. My thing is...whenever I get an idea of something I want to make, I can't tell my self no. I have to do it, or at least attempt it. I'm constantly getting ideas and jotting them down. I like to give alot of things that I make as gifts. Then my problem is, I don't have a record of what I've made. So, I thought this would be a good place to do that. Hopefully I'll have lots of pictures of my creations as I go, and can keep a record of what I want to do and what I've accomplished. Chris will also say, and I tend to agree, that I need to make some stuff for us. I'll probably get on that after Xmas.

How can anyone ever get bored in life...there are just to many things to create?! This is my obsession with craftiness!
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