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Saturday, September 26, 2009

Whew!

Well, it's been a busy few weeks.  I've been really pushing hard to get my ravelry account in order, to get some new patterns into the template and up on my Lulu account, and even teaching some beginners' crochet classes.  It really is so fun, watching people as they get the hang of it and figure out their own personal way of doing it.  I always keep encouraging the beginners to keep practicing and to RELAX, this is supposed to be fun and stress-free, but it's hard not to tense up when you're learning something for the first time, especially something physical.

Also, I just got the Fall issue of Interweave Crochet magazine -- what a lot of beautiful projects and great tips.  Which reminds me, time to go put up some more helpful tips on the Lifetips website!  I tried getting myself to put up 2 tips a day, but I just don't work that way -- I need to get inspired and then put up a whole bunch all at once, then let it sit.  Dah!  It's not good, but what can I say?  Well, I guess as long as I get inspired often enough, it'll be ok.

Ok, perhaps I can go generate some inspiration :-)

Today's Thought:  It's late summer/early fall, so it must be ragweed season!  Here's a great website with information about ragweed allergies, how to tell if you've got them, and what to do about it! 

Friday, September 18, 2009

Getting Serious!

Ok, I have finally started to try to figure out my Ravelry account! It's certainly much more user-friendly than it was when I first joined, but I'm still not getting some of the functions. Oh well, thankfully, there's a lovely volunteer team of editors who come to your rescue and make everything work out :-)

Haven't really had a chance to work on any original designs for the past week or two, I have been too caught up in beefing up the Crochet Guru site as well as sprucing up the patterns that I do have and getting them up on Lulu and Ravelry. I think I have an idea for another little girl's sweater that I'm itching to get started on, so maybe that will be next; or, I probably should start on the scarf to go with a hat that I made out of the latest issue of Crochet! Magazine for a friend's little girl. She sent me a huge bag of yarns in exchange, and there's a lot of good stuff in there! So much yarn, so little time...

Ok, back to what I don't know, but I'll try to post again soon.

Today's Thought: Mmmm, it's getting to be apple and pear season, and there's nothing like spiced baked fruit! Check out our easy and healthy recipe on http://stores.lulu.com/manycreativegifts

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Dah, it's already September!

Seriously, how did it already turn into September?! This summer was such a bust in many ways -- the weather was not conducive to a lot of pool time, and it was just plum busy at work too.

Oh, well, that's the way it is. Fall can be such a great time of year, so I comfort myself in holding on to that thought. It does put one into the crocheting frame of mind also, so that's a good thing :-)

So, I saw "Julie and Julia" recently, and it really got me thinking on how I could jazz up this blog and become more dedicated to it. But, there are only so many hours in each day, and with trying to create and write up some new patterns (they look great thanks to my graphic artist Elise Anderson, who came up with a great template for me!), coming up with more tips for the Lifetips website, and just general living, keeping up with the blog has been rough. But, as I said, the Fall has a way of getting one into a serious state of mind, and it often is my most productive time of year.

Oh, so back to the movie and how to implement a Julie-like challenge (for those of you who have not yet seen the movie, and it's worth seeing, Julie Powell decides that she is going to make all of the 500+ recipes from one of Julia Child's cookbooks over the course of 1 year and blog about it). I thought about picking out a crochet book and trying to make each of the patterns over the course of a month, but it's so hard sometimes to predict how long a pattern will take to make. I really don't want to set myself up for failure, so if anyone's got ideas about realistic challenges I can undertake, please leave me a comment!

In the mean time, I have been challenging myself to add at least 2 tips a day as Crochet Guru to the Lifetips website, so keep checking back there -- I hope to have some really out-of-the box helpful info there over the next few weeks!

And, keep checking back here as well -- I might just have a blogging challenge to undertake too!

Today's Thought: Mmmmm, if you want a yummy and healthy treat, then check out Treet. It's a wonderful online bakery of delicious cookies, cupcakes, and more! Find them at www.treetshop.com