Weekly recap

I was bad.  So bad but in such a good way.  Ravelry will be the death of me.

I found an X-Wing Starfighter cuddle blanket.  I know I’m going to end up making it for L at some point — he needs a good blanket since I’m making a Spock quilt for me and my chair.  I’m thinking Bernat Blanket yarn will be the winner for that one; something super soft and snuggly.

I also stumbled upon a Role-Playing MKAL and bought it.  There wasn’t even a thought to it, I just thought it was a fantastically awesome idea and knew I’d enjoy the pattern (over and over and over).  L saw it and wants one as well, so I know “scarves” will be the next item I get to add to my Whiteboard of Doom/Torture/Agony.  I even ordered yarn for it in the colors L wanted (green and gray), as well as a good lilac contrast from some blackberry yarn in my stash that I’ll use for mine. 🙂

Knowing the next item I want to add is really a lot of motivation when it comes to finishing things on my board!  I fixed a curtain for our entry room and then finished repairing, making, labeling, and hanging every bit of my insane family tree.  I love it!

I felt like I was going insane last week; I lost some gel medium, a huge tub of modgepodge, a doll needle, and somehow TEN POUNDS of polyfill.  What the hell?!

Good news is I’ve since found it all…but not until after I had to bite the bullet and buy more of that stupidly expensive gel.  It’s 20 bucks for a small little bit of it.  Thankfully Michaels had a 50% off sale on it and I had a 20% off coupon that also stacked…still hurt though…especially finding it where the cats had so generously moved it.  It was behind a 3-drawer storage tote, under my crafting table, behind a curtain.  I would’ve never found it (or been able to get to it) had I not had to pull all of my drawers out last night.  Ugh!

Cats wouldn’t be cats if they didn’t knock things off of tables though, right?

The upside of spending a week feeling like you’re going insane is that we had a beautiful ice storm and a good bit of snow during it.  I love winter weather!

Our winter has been sadly lacking.  Even with a bit of snow still on the ground, my big dog has brought in two ticks in the past three days.  I love living here but the ticks are out of control and terrifying since such a high percentage of them carry Lyme — both of my dogs have had it in the past so will always test positive for it.  None of the flea and tick medications have worked to keep the nasty things off of them.  😦  The little one still shows occasional symptoms of it but the vet said the treatment is so harsh that unless she has prolonged symptoms (more than three days) it’s easier on her to let her just fight it out; poor thing.

Speaking of the little one, she’s not spoiled.  At all.  She refused to get out of our human bed the other day until she had her pajamas.  She will seriously fight you for them if you try to take them off of her.  I personally think it’s hilarious.

….and lastly, our teddy bear cat has been making himself too at home in my crafting room as of late.  I normally keep the room closed, but the calico long ago figured out how to get into just about any room of the house (including the basement, even when the doors are locked and latched), so I’m sure she’s ultimately behind his sudden presence and the new layer of cat fur coating everything.

The quilt I’m finishing is not mine but thankfully Mom is a cat lover and found his antics adorable.  That quilt, by the way, is GORGEOUS!  I can’t wait to finish it so I can share a photo before sending it back to its rightful owner.

Nisse Invasion

One of my friends issued a quilting challenge to make a Christmas themed block every month.  I’m not a huge fan of Christmas, though I do enjoy it, so I decided to use the gnome BOM I collected last year as nisse (and to shove in Christmas, Julenisse) instead.

I have to admit I rather like the little guys….and they’re on my whiteboard!

Otherwise, I’ve been catching up on Sherlock’s lastest season while knitting on my Yggdrasil shawl that I have a tendency to lay aside and forget.

Killer squid

I had a few issues with making my new squid pouch yesterday, but they were entirely my own and stemmed from the fact I stupidly forgot to change over to a ballpoint needle.

I actually snapped the needle sewing the front to the back — that’s a lot of layers with all of the tentacles! — and didn’t have issues with sewing what little remained because I put a ballpoint in.  Go figure it was the end of the project.  XD

He’s a bit derpy but I have a new pouch for my crochet hooks so they’re easier to find in that messy drawer!

I also found a pattern for the memory bear I want to make.  I wanted something small and uncomplicated that I could use my Dad’s old flannel shirt on.  It’s had a long run as a shirt but is getting pretty threadbare, so I figured it was time to let it move onto something else.

Fortunately I have a fair bit of experience slapping together stuffed animals (and usually do a fair job if I remember the right needle – grr) because the design I like is just a template and labeled in Russian.  Fun times ahead!

Back to Ye Ole Workshop

Our friend from Connecticut came up to visit this week and see a touring Broadway show with us at our local theater (also on our town’s Broadway).  It was nice having company in the middle of the week and really helped cheer my husband up — he’d had a bad day at work and always takes that as a personal shot to his ego.  The show, Something Rotten, was hilarious and just what we needed.  Great event to start the year with!

I’ve slowly been knocking things off of my whiteboard.  It’s an unfair sweep of items at the beginning because (of course) I chose the easiest things first.

I did get to add a new item and chose the Swiffer cover!  I used some leftover cotton yarn and it’s already on the wet jet, so I think that’s a good sign.  🙂

I also managed to repair the tote bag (broken handle) and my Ironing Man shirt (very poorly sewn at the factory, so it was wonky and had holes along almost all the seams).  Unfortunately, I’ve reached the point that I need to buy some labels to finish my Family Tree photos task but it has at least made progress to that point.

I’m anticipating finishing another 3 items this week, so I went ahead and set aside fabric for the quilt I designed for my Facebook group.  My co-conspirator told me I had to add it since I’m hosting it…but I’m not allowing myself to cut into it until I have knocked off the requisite 5 items — that’s a lot of motivation to get things done so I can start making the tutorials!

The wallet on my board, well, let’s just say I totally and completely lucked out with that one.  The person it is for wanted a very specific fabric and I happened to have JUST enough in my stash to make a wallet.  My little sidekick is trying to help, per usual, but look how little margin of fabric there is around that template!  I was definitely nervous when I dug through my scraps and only found that bit of fabric!

Today I think I’ll focus on making a squid pencil pouch for CholyKnight’s final MCC.  I can’t resist a cute little dragon plushie!  Then on to repairing L’s shirt (busted elbows on one of his favorite dress shirts, so just altering the sleeves to make it short sleeved).

I can do this!

 

 

White Board (of Torture)

I’m already regretting imposing a White Board of Torture on myself for this year.

The idea was to write down all of the projects I need to finish or do on my white board.  I’m not allowed to add another, new, crafting-related project to the list until I finish at least 5 things on the board (it started with 39).  When I add a new item, it counts towards the next total of 5 that I must finish but only if I actually finish it.

So far, I have four things (of course they were the easiest) off the list and already have two time-sensitive things I want to add.  D’oh.

I “repaired” L’s (Surprise! His name is Logan!  L is still easier.) busted pants by trashing them and buying him a new pair.  I don’t know anybody that can fix a blowout of those frayed proportions.  L’s belt was an easy fix since he’d broken the buckle and all I had to do was replace it with one I’d salvaged from a belt with destroyed leather.  My chain necklace, I broke last year in NYC when it snagged on a bicycle (better to snap than strangle me) so it was just a matter of finagling tiny parts and untangling the right chains out of the mess.

The Fluffy Meringue shawl is something I crocheted for my Mom (she graciously provided the photo and she made that awesome Card Trick quilt a few years back)

One of the things I want to add is a crocheted Swiffer mop pad since I prefer the Swiffer to a regular, stinky mop.  It would take all of an hour and be immediately useful, but I need to knock off more items first.

The other item is a quilt along that I put together in EQ7 for my quilting group, so technically I have to sew that one.  It’s meant to improve skills by starting with a super simple block — a basic 9 patch — and then building through HST, using templates, and strip piecing to some of the more intimidating (or at least they were to me when I started!) sewing techniques like curves, Y seams, and paper piecing.  I really hope I’ve managed to cram most of the more common piecing techniques into one quilt…I left out applique, but that’s a special kind of bear that should be left hibernating for a little longer.  I’m a bit excited to see how it all goes!  😀

Lastly, this weekend was bittersweet.

My doctor appointment on Friday went well and my ANA came back clear!  The doctor wants me to have one annually for the next few years to make sure an underlying condition isn’t lurking, but for now I’m golden…other than having to pay the INSANE $1,543 for a blood test every year.  Eek!

The sad came from our friends in the area moving away tomorrow.  Since moving here almost 6 years ago, they’ve really been the only couple we’ve hung out with any regularity — I’m *incredibly* antisocial and just being around most people is exhausting, but not them.  We took them and their tiny human out to lunch at Red Robin on Saturday and enjoyed the last of their company for a while.  Hopefully we’ll see them again some day and I wish them the best in their new endeavors! ❤

 

 

 

 

 

2016 Summary (with photos!)

Many months ago, this blog was “accessed” without my permission and I never bothered to reset the password and unfreeze it.  I’ve had a lot going on (excuses, excuses) but thought I should resurrect it now to keep myself on task. 🙂

So what happened during the missing portion of 2016?

L and I attended a whopping 48 concerts, a Renaissance and a Maker Faire, and multiple talks, museums, and “Broadway” shows.  My little Prius is a trooper and has handled the insane number of miles placed on it this year like a champ.

The photo is grainy and rough, but I do believe Gentle Storm (let’s face it, I love pretty much anything Arjen Lucassen is involved with) took the honor of my favorite show for the year.  Blind Guardian and Sabaton were definitely close runners up, though!

I finally received a diagnosis for my eyes!  I have optic nerve drusen, as confirmed by an ultrasound (see below).  The good news is the ophthalmologist thinks I was born with them and, while I may lose some peripheral vision, they shouldn’t cause too many issues in the long run.  I have appointments every six months to monitor the drusen and my vision.

The ophthalmologist referred me to a migraine specialist at a headache center to try to get those under control — fingers crossed that his approach is making a difference!  Also, in December, I found out I have a “rare” condition called morphea.  I’ll save everybody from photos of it, but I am on a treatment that seems to be helping.  I actually have an appointment with my dermatologist tomorrow to find out the results of the ANA.  Autoimmune disorders run in my family, so I’m not looking forward to this appointment at all.  😦

…and the best for last, crafting updates!

I ended up gifting the table runner set – included place mats and napkins – to my Grandmother.  Mom ended up with a lunchbox, a crocheted sweater, and the curved log cabin quilt (that she has to share with her husband!).  I also made a shawl for both Mom and Grandmother at different points, finished a quilt for L’s parents, and crocheted a Star Trek “engineer” hat for one of his manager type people who did him a favor.

Crocheted shawl for Grandmother

Table runner for Grandmother

Crocheted sweater for Mom

5-minute block quilt for in-laws

Curved Log Cabin quilt for Mom and her dh

Crocheted Star Trek engineering hat for husband’s lab director

Lunchbox for Mom

I have a few more projects and toppers that are in various stages of never being finished, but I figure the finished stuff is enough for anyone.