I failed. Or did I?

You may not believe this, but I lost my blog!! Seriously, I couldn't remember the URL for the longest time and for some reason, the search engine didn't bring it forward when I tried searching for it! That's sad, and pathetic. Obviously I google too many things that involve "hooking" in the description.

So, failure. Yes. I have failed at my planned project of #18in2018. Why? Well, I could make excuses. But first let me say that I finished another three projects for Christmas, cowls and a sewing piece, but neglected to take pics because I didn't want to post pics to social media and ruin the Christmas surprise. So I think I rounded out at a solid #12in2018. Excuses, well the biggest being that I didn't have a job when I set the goal but I did two weeks in (albeit, part-time). 

Sometimes in life, or most times actually, it's good to set a goal and fail. Sounds odd? We learn so much from it, and frankly if I hadn't set that goal at all I probably wouldn't have completed any of those projects. So I can't look at 12 finished pieces as a failure. Would you agree? 

I feel lighter having these materials and half-made projects out of the way. Yes, there are a couple of glaringly unfinished, aging projects staring me in the face, which may or may not happen in 2019. 

I have an exciting rug project in mind as well. I've just completed my pre-dyeing for it yesterday. So I intend to jump into it today or tomorrow. I will share some pics as I go along. For now, there's nothing to see here. 

Wishing you all the best in 2019. Try something new. Set a goal. Fail. It's all good for us. 

#18in2018: A Twist

I may hate myself for this...or at the very least, kick myself. 

#18in2018 is a thing. Officially. And I'm adding a twist. Not only will there be 18 fibre projects completed in 2018. That's do-able, that's only one more than this year, and frankly I did far more than 17 this year. So I figured I needed a challenge. Here's where the kick comes in, literally and figuratively. I will find, with no problem, 18 UFOs (unfinished objects/projects) to dig out, figure out, and finish. Yup, I'm making 2018 the year of extreme punishment. 

What led to this insanity? I finished my Christmas projects early. I blame that. So I decided to clean my studio (fancy word for the extra bedroom where I make stuff). In doing so, I discovered quite a number of projects that I had forgotten about, ahem. 

So this pile of old tshirts on the floor? A crocheted rug waiting to happen. I best get to that one soon, since it's literally a pile on the floor! 

A basket full of yarn with patterns that haven't been knitted. What you can't see is the applique quilt in the bottom (what was I thinking?). That will be a doozy. 

Two rugs to be whipped, including a Christmas rug which was finished, um, 4 or 5 years ago (?) and hasn't ever been out for Christmas because it's not whipped. One queen size quilt to hand quilt. Pillows to be made. Oh ya, it's going to be a busy year. 

And that's just what I left out in plain sight. 

So, who thinks I can do it? Anyone up to the challenge? If not, you can follow along with my angst right here. Before and after pics will hopefully be shared throughout this joyous journey. 

Is it a leap year? Dang, it's not. 

For that hard-to-buy-for kid!

I usually try to make a fair number of gifts each year, if I can think of something appropriate for each recipient. In the past, I used to knit for kids, and to this day every newborn gets an I Spy quilt for their first Christmas. It's a tradition, that I hope people enjoy. Sometimes though you just don't know what to get someone.... but this year I had what I like to think of as a brilliant idea, for two toddlers in our family. 

This isn't my usual "making" of a gift, because it was more assembly than construction, but nevertheless it was oodles of fun and easy. I hope that these gifts will be well received. I thought I'd share this here in case you're looking for ideas for kids - this one will work for any young child. 

Introducing the Build A Snowman Kit! 

I wanted to make as much as I could, so I found a fleece fabric with a penguin print and made scarves and hats. I looked for what I could use for noses, and bought styrofoam cones, which I turned orange using a crayon, and also got alternative noses, otherwise known as orange plastic gourds. 

For buttons, I found small clear plastic containers and hot glued the black buttons on them. This way the buttons won't be as likely to be lost, and you can push them into the front of the snowman to make them stay. I did a set of six for each kit.

 I also bought each child a fun hat (cowboy hat, fedora) to give them an option on what hat they wanted to use. Or who knows, maybe they'll have enough stuff to make two snowmen. Then with two snowflake covered containers, I assembled the kits!

Next, a fun label design, and the project was complete!

Feeling Festive?

No, I can't say that I'm feeling festive. I'm feeling cold. Damp and cold...because it's November and that's what November is. Simply damp and cold. But I have had to jump into some festive work, because I decided to vend at two craft shows this year. Yikes! I had no idea how much to make, so I just hooked a tad bit crazily for two months. Yup, that's all. 

Oh that's not all of it, nope. What will I do with all this if it doesn't sell? Hhhhmmmm, are you on my gift list? Some poor suckers are! 

p.s. I'll be vending at Handmade Hamilton at the Staircase Cafe Theatre on December 2nd and 3rd, if you happen to be in Hamilton. Looks like a really neat venue with an exclusive group of 32 vendors!