Sunday, September 26, 2010

New Blog

Hello again!  I just wanted to let any of this blog's followers know that, while Cozy Crochet Corner is pretty much dead, I do have a new blog going.  It will not just be crochet, but that is still a big part of my life and so will still be a big part of the blog.  For anyone interested, you can find my new blog here

Thanks for reading.  I hope to see you on the new page!

TTFN,
Cori

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Hanging it up for a bit...

Well, folks, I hate to say it, but I think I am closing down this blog. At least temporarily.

Here's the deal--in my heart of hearts I am a writer. Unfortunately, in practice, I really haven't been able to find a good avenue to regularly express that side of myself. I started my blogs as a way to get in some frequent practice at writing. I have recently realized that I have not been doing with this blog what I want to--and that I am not sure exactly what it is I want to do with it. So, for now, I am hanging up my Crochet Blogger hat.

I want to thank all of you who have been reading for doing so. I genuinely appreciate your attention to my work. I will, of course, continue to crochet--that's not going anywhere. So for anyone who wants to continue to follow my projects, please feel free to check me out on Ravelry. My Ravelry name is AtlantisDragonGrl.

So again, thank you for stopping by. I very much hope to pick up blogging again in the future, I just need to figure out what I actually want to do with my blog. I will be sure to post an update here when/if I get a new blog going.

Heck, it is entirely possible I may wake up sometime next week and realize I've made a huge mistake and jump back on this horse. I don't think that will happen, but it's possible.

May your lives be wonderful, dear readers, and happy crafting to you all!

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Hop along little Easter Bunny!

Happy Easter everyone! I'm posting a little early this week, since I'll be getting up ridiculously early tomorrow and running around for the first half of the day, and probably collapsing like a flan in a cupboard after that.

Anyhoo, I did manage to get a few things done this week. I finished my step-sister's wedding blanket (mailed it today, in fact). The pattern was the Circles to Squares Afghan from Lionbrand.com. It was made up of squares in three different sizes. Here are what the three different squares look like:


And here's the final project:


(Note the Tony cat coming to investigate. Approximately 1.5 seconds after I snapped this photo there was a cat on the blanket.)

I am really happy with the finished product. I did make it a bit larger than the original pattern calls for--I added 10 squares (1 large, 3 medium, and 6 small). I also did four more rows of border--the pattern calls for just one in the main color--I did two after that in the contrasting color and then another two in the main.

So now that that's out of the way, I can get started on the baby blanket I need to make. I am actually not going to be able to make the baby shower, so I am planning a get together with my friend later on this month. This gives me a little bit of an extension on the project. I may knock my April squares out of the way first and then start in on it.

And finally, I have one other thing for you. I did a quick little mini-project this weekend for a cousin of mine who expressed an interest in my crochet.

In honor of spring, I give you my crocheted daffodil:


I am really happy with how that came out. I've been holding on to that pattern for quite a while (for the flower bit--I improvised the stem and leaves).

So that's all I've got. I hope you are doing well and that you all have a fantastic holiday!

Until next time,
C

Sunday, March 28, 2010

It is amazing the difference a week makes.

Seriously folks, I am in such a better place today than I was a week ago. In all aspects of my life I feel like I am much more back on track now.

On the crochet front, things are going swimmingly. I got my sister's swap squares done and sent off. I picked out the yarn for the baby blanket I will start on next week (I am going to actually buy it later this week). I also have made marvelous progress on my step-sister's wedding blanket. I also just realized she's getting married two weeks from yesterday--whoa. I need to go put a wedding card on my shopping list. I should also probably figure out how I am going to mail this thing, eh?

Anyhoo, I am using the pattern Circles to Squares Afghan (available for free at Lionbrand.com). The pattern calls for 24 squares of varying sizes and makes a throw size blanket. I do want this to be a little bit larger than a throw though. So, I bought extra yarn and my first step was to use a larger hook than the pattern calls for (pattern uses a J, I went for a K). After getting all of the squares done, however, and piecing them together, it is still not quite big enough and I still have plenty of yarn leftover, so I am going to add a few more squares: 1 large, 3 medium, and 6 small. I got the large one done yesterday and am going to try to get the medium squares done today and the small tomorrow. If all goes well I should get this blanket finished by Wednesday or Thursday and be able to mail it on Friday. Yay!

Here's a photo of all of the different squares that make up the blanket:


I am really happy with how the colors are coming out.

Well, that's about it for me. This week my goals are to finish this blanket and start on the baby blanket. I may do a quick small project for my cousin as well.

I hope you all have a wonderful week. I can't believe Easter is only a week away! Have a super one!

TTFN,
C

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Back at home, but not so much in the game.

Wow, I have been a complete and total bum all week. I did the laundry on Monday and finished up my last trip project, but that is it. Meant to clean the house up a bit, did I do it? Nope. Meant to get my sister's March squares done, did I? Nope. Sigh. I will blame at least part of it on the cold I managed to come down with on our last day in Tennessee. I finally started feeling better (at least to the point where I didn't need to take any medicine) by Thursday, but by then I had just pretty much run out of steam. And now of course, my husband has what I had, so I am trying to take care of him and not catch it again. Whee. Also, yesterday was the first day of spring and it snowed here. What's up with that???? Sigh. Anyhoo. I decided to go ahead and keep up the lazy momentum through today--but tomorrow I am hitting "reset" and will hopefully get back in the normal swing of things.

The trip, however, was a total blast, despite being a bit tiring. We had fun with my husband's grandparents and with my dad and stepmother. The kiddo got ridiculously spoiled, and was, in return, ridiculously well behaved for all of the driving portions of the trip. I was, flatly, amazed. Also, I did manage to get a decent bit of crochet done.

Here was the inspiration for the Gir beanie I wanted to make:


Someone on Etsy is selling this. As you can see, the ears, tongue, and nose are felt, and the "stitching" details and pupils are painted on. I thought that I could probably make the whole thing using crochet, and here's what I came up with:


I am actually pretty proud of it--except for the fact that I feel that the green I ended up using, while a lime green, was way too light a shade. Though it does look much lighter in the picture than in person. I also got some craft wire to stick in the ears so they will stand up straight--though I haven't added them to the hat yet. I used Lion Brand's microspun yarn for this project (in lime and black) and was really pleased with that selection. (The eyes and tongue are just some spare Red Heart sport I had in my stash.)

The other project I took with me was a Bearghan (the pattern is available on Chris Simon's blog). I got all of the pieces made on the trip and when I got home they just needed to be assembled and a border added.

The pattern is pretty well set up so you can use whatever squares you want for the legs/paws and the tummy. So for my blanket I used the Pinwheel square by Chris Simon:


I actually really liked how this square turned out. I think I will definitely be saving this one to use in a full blanket in the future. It's got a really fun texture (achieved using front post double crochets on the left half of each side), and I am finding more and more that I really love patterns with a texture to them.

For the stomach I used Chris Simon's Eternal Braid pattern:


I couldn't get a good photograph of this one, but it has a little texture as well, and is the perfect pattern for a tummy. I do think I will probably only use it again if I make another Bearghan though. I found it a little bit annoying to make.

And here's the finished blanket:


The pieces between the arms and legs are half granny squares and the head is a special asymmetrical square, both are given in the pattern. For the border I did two rows of single crochet around and then did a row of shell stitch. His muzzle came out crooked and his head's a little big, but I think it gives him character and overall I am really happy with how this project came out. I hope my friend's baby enjoys it as well. I used Lion Brand's Vanna's Choice Baby yarn for this in Chocolate Cake and Lamb.

I know I had previously stated that when I got back from my trip I was going to finish up Yoshi and then settle in on my knitting, but then I looked at the calendar. I am still planning to do those, but first I have two more blankets to make. My stepsister is getting married on April 10, and I bought the yarn for her wedding blanket this week, so once I get my sister's March squares done, that is the project I will dig in to. I am going to use the Circles to Squares Afghan pattern for that blanket (available for free on Lion Brand's website).

I also got an invitation to a baby shower for a friend who is due in May--her shower is April 11. So as soon as I finish my sister's blanket, I will begin work on that one. I will be attempting the Tulip Throw, a pattern I have had for a long time but haven't yet tried, for this one.

So that's where I am at. I hope you are all well and having much warmer spring weather than I am! Have a wonderful week!

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Okay, maybe just a quick post.

I didn't think I'd get to post this week, but I ended up having some time tonight, so I thought I'd throw y'all a few quick updates.

Here's what Yoshi's looking like this week:


He's getting close to done. Only 11 more rows and the border!

Also, I got my February swap square from my sis this week:


I absolutely love this color combination! I can't wait to see how the other squares she has to send me all end up fitting together!

We hit the road for Tennessee tomorrow. I am taking my Gir hat and Bearghan to work on during the trip.

When we get back I will do my March swap squares first thing, then dive back into Yoshi. I am hoping to get him done by the end of the month, middle of April at the latest! I do have a wedding blanket to make for April (for my step-sister), so I also will be getting started on that soon.

To close up, I know I haven't mentioned anything about my knitting progress lately, but believe me that is still going on. I have just been knuckling down on Yoshi, so my plan is to dive into knitting and concentrate on that once I finish Yoshi and the wedding blanket.

So, that's it for me. I hope you all have a fantastic week!

C

Sunday, February 28, 2010

It's almost March!

Wow, can you believe it? Crazy times! On Friday I will be celebrating my fifth anniversary with my husband. Then on Sunday, we'll be piling into the car with the baby and my MIL and heading out to Tennessee to see her parents and then my dad and stepmom. First road trip with the baby. It's going to be a very, ahem, interesting, experience. Especially for a road warrior like me. But we are planning to break the trip up and expecting to have to stop at least every two hours or so, and also expecting that we will have minimal, if any, control over how long this thing ends up taking. I think that's as prepared as we can be, so hopefully it will go well.

Anyhoo, as promised, here are the photos of the February swap squares I sent my sister. Only one new square for this month. It is the Tricolor Square from, where else, 200 Crochet Blocks for Blankets by Jan Eaton.


I think it's fair to say this block is actually the centerpiece of the blanket, but I won't say more because I still want the final picture to be a surprise.

Here's the complete block:



This week I just focused on Yoshi. I got his head done and started on his body. Here's a gander:


I think overall what I love about this project the most is that he really actually looks like Yoshi. I wasn't too sure how it would turn out. I think it's safe to say there may be a few more Nintendo-themed blankets in my future.

I'll focus on Yoshi again this week, but I am not going to be taking him on my trip. There are just too many skeins of yarn involved with this one, and it's gotten to the point where it's big enough that I just don't think it will travel well.

So instead I'll have two small projects to take with me. The first is going to be my attempt at a Gir beanie for a friend of mine. A while back she posted a link to someone selling one on Etsy (here) and I thought to myself, well that doesn't look so difficult. So I am going to give it a try.

Here is a photo of the hat that I will use as my inspiration:


I do plan to make my version without using paint or felt though--crochet and stitching is the way I want to go.

I also want to make a blanket for that same friend's baby, who is a few weeks younger than my kiddo. I'm going to try my hand at the Bearghan posted on Chris Simon's page. Though I plan on using much more traditional bear colors--shades of brown with some black thrown in.

I'm not going to push myself to get these projects done while I am out of town, but I think that I can, so that is my starting goal at least.

I probably won't have a post for at least next week, and maybe not the week after, so I hope everyone's March get's off to a wonderful start.

Until next time,
C

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Ah, that pesky thing called life...

It just keeps getting in the way of things, doesn't it? My daughter hit six months this week. She's at this awesome point where she's starting to get playful and really wants to interact. Just last night she figured out how to "kiss" back--her Daddy and I always blow kisses at each other and at her, and now she has figured out to smack her lips and make a little "pop" sound whenever we do that at her. It is spectacular.

The downside of this, of course, is that she is only so patient with me putting her on the floor to play so that I can crochet, which is one of the few things I haven't yet figured out how to do while still holding the baby. I'm really not complaining, because I wouldn't miss any of this for the world, but it does mean that I am not getting nearly as much crochet done as I would like.

That isn't to say I haven't gotten any done, however. I got my sister's swap squares done and mailed off this week. Once I have confirmation that she has received them I'll post photos for you.

I also did get three rows of Yoshi done. I actually only have one row left of his head/neck and then it's on to the body.

Here's a shot of what he's looking like these days:


And, just for a size perspective, here he is with a six month old baby (future owner of this blanket):


Right after I took this she started trying to pick up his spikes (the orange squares). Seriously, so awesome.

Anyhoo, I have a few other projects lined up, but I think I will save them for our road trip in a couple of weeks and I am going to focus on Yoshi until then. I am past the halfway point and am really feeling motivated to power through on this for the moment.

So that's where I am at. I hope you are all doing wonderfully.

TTFN,
C

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Oh it's been a crazy week.

After I finished my hubby's Valentine's Day socks, I kind of hit a crochet roadblock. I did get my mother in law's thank you socks done:





The pattern is the In Your Shoes Ankle Socks by Pam. I used up another skein of my Sock Ease (Lion Brand) yarn in Taffy for these. I haven't gotten to gift them to the MIL yet though, for reasons I'll get to below.

I had to put the Yoshi blanket on hiatus while I was getting these socks done--I was having issues finding the time to work on them. So after I got these done, I managed to make one row of Yoshi.

I finished the socks on Wednesday and got half a row of the blanket done that evening. I had planned to finish that row and get at least another half a row done on Thursday. The Powers That Be had other plans though, as at noon on Thursday our power went out due to the snow--yeah, Wednesday night through Thursday night we had record snowfalls down here in the DFW area. Oh joy. I would like to add at this point that one of the reasons I moved to Texas was actually to get away from this kind of weather. I told my husband if this kind of thing keeps up, we're gonna have to head further south.

Since, with the power out and a baby to entertain, I didn't have a whole lot I could do, I did actually manage to finish the first row of the blanket while the kiddo was having tummy time. Yay! Then, the power came back on right around two in the afternoon. Double yay! By that point I was just a bit stressed out and had resolved to take the rest of the evening off crochet-wise. This was probably a good idea. At about 9:45 p.m. on Thursday, our power went off again--and this time it didn't come back on until about 1 a.m. Saturday morning. Sigh.

We stayed at home Thursday night because it was almost bedtime anyway--but we were so stressed about the baby the whole evening, and also, it was freaking cold, that we ended up staying at a friend's place for most of the day and during the evening Friday. As I was already carting a baby around, as well as all of the stuff I thought we would need for her (and packing it all in the dark), I didn't even think to pack any of my crochet stuff up.

We got home yesterday morning to find the power on and I really almost cried I was so relieved. I am such a creature of habit, and this thing just threw me completely out of my element. Less than pleased Cori, to say the least. I just haven't felt like tackling any more crochet since then, though.

This is not to say it was a totally horrible weekend--even though the MIL couldn't come out Friday night because a) we didn't have power and it would have been weird for her to watch our kid at someone else's house, and b) she lives 45 minutes away and we weren't going to let her drive out here in that mess anyway, we did still end up going out for our Valentine's Day dinner at P.F. Chang's on Friday night, we just took the kiddo. She was very well behaved and we had a really nice time. My hubby loved his Valentine socks, too--he wore them last night and gave them his stamp of approval.

Today we met up with my step-sister that I haven't seen in about 11 years (and her boyfriend) for lunch, and that was a lot of fun. She's doing officer training down in San Antonio and her bf lives up here in the metroplex, so we decided to get together while she was in town visiting him. It was good times, and we plan to do it again the next time she is in the area.

Also, the MIL is coming out tomorrow afternoon to play with the baby, and we'll take her to dinner since her birthday is Thursday, so I'll get to give her the socks I made then, along with her actual birthday present. So, yeah.

I am taking tomorrow "off"--no chores or crochet--to hang out with my husband and baby, but I will resume my regular routine as of Tuesday. My first project on deck is the February sister swap squares. Then back to Yoshi.

Anyhoo, that's all I've got. I hope you all have a super week!

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Warm Feet = Love

At least, they do in my house. So part of my hubby's Valentine's Day present will be a new pair of house socks.

After many starts and frogs and starts and frogs I finally came up with a pair that I was pretty happy with. Here is the result:


Hopefully he will be happy with them as well! I used a fairly simple pattern, Ribbed Socks by Linda. This is actually a very quick project, I just had issues with yarn and with which pattern I wanted to do, and with finding time to work on them without my hubby seeing, which is why I had so many issues getting them made. Since they are more about being comfy than being pretty, I used just basic Red Heart yarn. I did modify the pattern a bit (of course). I only did the ribbing effect (achieved by sc in back loop only) for the cuff of the sock, rather than the whole thing. I had a pair of house socks made from this pattern for a while (wore them out), and I remember the ribbing feeling a little weird on the bottom of my feet.

The Yoshi blanket is rolling along nicely still. No picture this week though. I also started a second pair of socks last night. They are a thank you gift for my mother-in-law because she is going to watch the baby Friday night so the hubby and I can go out to dinner for our V-Day celebration. Mmm, P.F. Chang's here we come. We were trying to figure out if we could go see Miranda Lambert at Billy Bob's also, but she doesn't go on until 10:30 and I don't know if I am up for being up that late or gone from the baby that long. I may have some clinginess issues still...

And finally, in other news, I discovered a while back that Red Heart makes a sock yarn, Heart and Sole. I have made it a personal mission to find all washer/dryer friendly sock yarn that I can, so I thought I would give this a try. I got my first skeins of it yesterday, in Toasted Almond, which is a nice mixture of browns. So I am looking forward to getting to try that out.

That's all I've got for you guys for now. It dawns on me I need to get started on my February swap squares soon, but they will have to wait until after the MIL's socks are finished.

Hope you all have a wonderful week! Enjoy your Super Bowl Sunday!

Monday, February 1, 2010

2010 Swap

Hello! As promised, here are the details of the 2010 Square Swap my sis and I are doing. Yay!

As previously mentioned, we are each doing our own thing and suprising each other this year.

For the squares I am sending my sister, what I did was to actually design a blanket, made up of 48 small squares, that will be sent to her in 12 blocks of four. Then she can have fun assembling them!

Funnily enough, she is doing something similar, she designed a blanket as well and I will get to figure out how they go together.

The blocks I chose, all but one, come from the book 200 Crochet Blocks For Blankets, Throws, and Afghans by Jan Eaton.

The first block I made used three different kinds of blocks (out of five total in the blanket).

Here they are:

First up, Square #15, the Corner Square.


Second, this one I improvised, I will just call it Chunky Stripe Square.


And the third square is # 6, Textured Bluebells.


Here is the assembled first block of squares:


So there's the first chunk. I may not get to the next round this week, but I will aim to have it in finished and in the mail by the end of next week.

Also, I got the first square by my sister in the mail today, and it is gorgeous!



And that's all I've really got for you today, folks. I have a busy crocheting week ahead of me, so I am off to work on that. Have a great one!

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Snapshot

Got three rows done this week. Just wanted to post a quick pic of the "download" in progress.



Also, I started a new pair of house socks for my hubby last night. A part of his Valentine's present.

Hope all is well, have a super week, ya'll!

I'll have a post later today or tomorrow on the sister swap stuff for this year!

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Rollin', rollin', rollin'....

I am plowing right along with Yoshi. I actually got three rows done this week. It is starting to look like a head, yay!



I also did get the first piece for this year's sister swap done and mailed, so I should have pictures and an explanation for you next week.

I got the yarn and kit for my Jayne hat yesterday, yay! Now I just need to get back on the knitting horse. I think I actually figured out that I wasn't doing it wrong, I was just expecting a stockinette stitch to happen when I was just doing the knit stitch both ways, which I guess isn't how it works? Anyhoo, I want to get back to trying to knit again this week.

I don't really have much else. Took my daughter to the zoo (twice) this week, that was oodles of fun. Though yesterday we ended up getting rained out, but we did still get to see the penguins, yay!

Here's a photo of the family:



Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Download in progress...

I am making some pretty decent progress on Yoshi, I think. Especially when you consider we got the new Super Mario Brothers game for Wii this week, so I've been distracted by actually being able to play with Yoshi...

But here's how it's coming:


I was super excited about this blanket until I started it, and then I kind of stalled out. Then I got to the part where I started mixing it up with other colors besides blue and I got excited about it again. It is much easier to work on and be excited about a project when you can actually see the progress you are making, I think.

I can do a row in one day, I've learned, but I would kill myself trying to do that, so I am splitting them up to two days a row, and taking a day off here and there so I don't get too burnt out. I'll probably aim for three rows most weeks unless I am working on another project. For example, this week I am planning on getting only two rows done because I will also be working on...

Sister Swap 2010!! That's right, it's started. I got the yarn this week, and I want to get the January installment done and mailed off this week. I'll have more info for you once my sis receives her first piece, but until then I'm maintaining a radio silence.

Anyhoo, that's all I've got for you today. I hope you all have a fantabulous week!

Until next time,
C

Sunday, January 10, 2010

A week in which progress occurred.

Man, I actually feel like I got some crafting accomplished this week, huzzah! I hope you all had a wonderful week as well.

First up, I got my sister swap blanket from my sister assembled. Here is a shot of the finished project:


She is aiming to have her set of squares assembled this month, so once I get a picture of her finished project, I'll post it as well. We also talked about doing another swap this year and decided to go for it. We are going to do it a little differently this time though. Instead of doing the same pattern each month, we are each going to pick out our own set of patterns and surprise each other. I have the color scheme picked out for the squares I want to make her this year, but I need to choose the patterns. I plan to get that going this week, I think.

Next up, I got the first two rows of my Yoshi blanket completed, yay! This is seriously going to be a long-term project, because otherwise I think I will drive myself crazy with all of the teeny squares, but my goal is to get at least six rows done each month.

Here's a shot of the first two rows:

It doesn't look like much, I know, but I do think it is going to turn out really well. As an added bonus, I mentioned to my husband, as I take pictures of each chunk of progress, it is going to look like a picture that is downloading. Considering that the whole idea is I am taking a pixelated computer graphic and translating it into crochet, I thought that was pretty nifty.

Here is a closer shot of the squares:


Oodles and oodles (1000+) of teeny tiny squares. Yeah, I am definitely going to take my time on this one.

I'll close up with some news on the knitting front. I got my "starter kit" and my copy of The Knitting Answer Book this week, so I've started trying to work that out. I've got casting on down, but the knit stitch (you know, the building block basic stitch of knitting) is giving me some trouble. It keeps coming out as a purl. I think I know why it is doing this, I just don't know how to fix it. I have discussed with my mother a little and looked in the books some more, and I think my next step up is to hit the internet for some video tutorial help. So keep your fingers crossed for me!

Until next week, I hope you all have a groovy time!

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Hey, look at that.

I actually managed to finish those socks last night, yay! I am, in fact, wearing them right now.

Here are some photos for you:



Sorry the picture quality isn't that great--I think my husband made some adjustments to the camera settings when I wasn't looking, so I need to go back and try to fix that.

Here are the details for any of the folks interested.

Pattern: Classic Ribbed Cable from Crocheted Socks! 16 Fun-to-Stitch Patterns by Janet Rehfeldt and Mary Jane Wood.

Yarn: Classic Elite Yarns Wool Bam Boo in Treasure.

I absolutely loved this yarn by the way. I think it may end up being one of my preferred sock yarns going forward. We shall have to see how it wears, but it is an absolute delight to work with and feels lovely.

And that's all I've got for you. Hope you have a fantastic week!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Holy Hannah, it's the future already!

Wow, 2010, can you believe it? Happy New Year, folks! I hope you had a fantastic holiday season and are rearing and ready to get back into normality.

I know I have been a little AWOL lately, but I have been sadly slacking in the crochet department since the last post. I am *still* not finished with that poor pair of cabled socks--though I am almost done with the gusset of the second sock so I should have a new post soon to show off the finished project.

After that I want to assemble my sister swap blanket, and I'll have photos of that--I need to check with my sister to see if, a) we're doing a swap this year (we'd better get on it if we are, huh?), and b) if she's had a chance to assemble her blanket yet. But I'll have finished photos of both up once they're completed.

Next up, I need to really dig into the Yoshi blanket. I haven't made any further progress on it, sadly, beyond the first five squares. But my goal for this month is to get the top three and bottom three rows completed (they are the only rows in the blanket that are all blue).

In other news, I have officially decided to branch out and teach myself to knit. I've been dithering about it for a while, but I have finally decided to give it a go. That is actually one of my New Year's not-resolutions (more of a goal, really). I primarily want to be able to knit socks. As far as blankets go, crochet is the undisputed ruler with me, but I have realized I definitely prefer the look and feel of knitted socks. In addition to socks in general, I want to learn how to make four other things:

1: The house slippers my mom always made for us growing up.

This will, in fact, be my first actual knitting project to tackle. I've got the pattern from my mom and some yarn I think will work. I go to buy my starter kit this week, so maybe I can get a pair done by the end of the month. We shall see.

2: The teddy bears my mom always made for us growing up.

I don't have any photos, but Mom always made these super cute little teddy bears, and I want to make some for my daughter (and the progeny of all of my friends, who seem to be spawning like crazy).

3: The Jayne hat. (see photo)


For those of you not in the know, this is the hat worn in the Firefly episode "The Body" and is a huge symbol of the Browncoats and of geekery in general. In fact, I actually want to make 2--one for myself and one for my husband--so that we can wear them to this year's Can't Stop the Serenity event. So that gives me until about mid-June or so to make them.

4: The Doctor's scarf. (see photo)


Tom Baker immortalized this scarf and it is also a huge symbol of geekery. I know, I know, you're saying, wait a minute, didn't you try this last year? Didn't it crash and burn horribly? Well, yes, but there are a few reasons for that. First, I was trying to convert from knit to crochet, which just wasn't having a look I was digging. Second, and more importantly, I was just kind of winging it with the colors and not trying to make the actual scarf. This time around I am going to go by the actual pattern, colors and all. So I am hoping it will be a much more successful attempt. My secret hope for this scarf is that my daughter will one day steal it for her very own, whether or not she realizes the nerd cred attached to such an item.

So there you go, that's what I've got working thus far into the new year. Even with the baby, I am definitely starting this year off much more refreshed than the last--where I was coming off a seven and a half year stretch of purgatory known as my job at the cable company.

I hope you and yours are all doing well so far this year. Let's make it a magnificent one, folks!

Peace,
C