FaveCrafts has a blog round-up each month, and this month's question is "Where do you buy your yarn?" You'd think the answer would be simple, but I really had to think about how I go about getting yarn. I think, initially, like most people, I go to a local yarn store or chain craft store to see what's new and FEEL it. There's just no substitute for feeling the yarn strand between your fingers to figure out how soft or firm it is, how thick or thin it is, and how hard or easy it is going to be to work with it (someday, maybe our computer monitors will simulate sensations!). But, I have to admit, if I want to buy more of a yarn I am already familiar with, then I do get online and start searching for the cheapest price I can find (and, of course, shipping has to get factored in, but, often, you can order online and not have to pay sales tax, so it probably averages out).
Lately, I've been wanting to experiment with "yarn substitutes", and I enjoyed working with the nylon twine from the hardware store! I read an article recently in Inside Crochet magazine about using cassette tape for crochet, so I'm looking forward to giving that a try soon, and, of course, I will report about it here :-)
Right now, I am just looking forward to having the next 2 days off from work so I can get a grip (you know, just knock out all those things still hanging over my head!) Of course, the weather is supposed to be gorgeous in DC the next few days, so visiting the cherry blossoms will probably move to the top of the list before other things....
Today's Thought: Rule # 11 -- Avoid foods you see advertised on TV. Only the biggest food companies can afford to advertise on television, so whether or not the latest formulations of their products really are more healthful or not, you should try to avoid getting sucked in to the hype. We started to count how many commercials were for processed food or chain restaurants, and the numbers were amazing. By just paying attention, we've become more sensitive to realizing that we want something just because the jingle was catchy, not because we really think it's going to be good for us or actually tasty.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
The Treadmill is Speeding Up!
Ever feel like you are running in place, not getting anywhere?! Ha, everyday, right! I think my angst is coming from having really hunkered down to do the taxes this weekend. Still not done, but I've got it all organized and anticipate putting the final touches and final checks on our returns and my mom's this week and getting them out, whew!
But, on a happier note, I also took a little break this morning from tax land and created a fun flower. I'll post pix on the next post. I'm still trying to think of a fun spring project to make use of the April yarn club offering, but I should have that whipped up by the April 15th shipment date. And, yes, another side of the Mom Vest is done, now to tackle the back. She gave me some fun big gold buttons that she liked from another jacket that's long gone now to use for the vest, so that's spurring me on to make the final push to finish that project.
For a techie update, as you will recall, I've been trying to figure out how to upload files to my web hosting service (check, I think...) and then make downloads available to you all (not checked off just yet). But, I think I found a website that might help with this -- "The Blog Doctor" seems to have a lot of stuff on his site, but ironically, it takes a long time to load and all the information is pretty overwhelming. More to come on this topic!
Today's Thought: 101 Crochet Tips in 101 Days -- the challenge is on, visit Phyllis the Crochet Guru as she works to meet it head on! http://www.crochet.lifetips.com/
But, on a happier note, I also took a little break this morning from tax land and created a fun flower. I'll post pix on the next post. I'm still trying to think of a fun spring project to make use of the April yarn club offering, but I should have that whipped up by the April 15th shipment date. And, yes, another side of the Mom Vest is done, now to tackle the back. She gave me some fun big gold buttons that she liked from another jacket that's long gone now to use for the vest, so that's spurring me on to make the final push to finish that project.
For a techie update, as you will recall, I've been trying to figure out how to upload files to my web hosting service (check, I think...) and then make downloads available to you all (not checked off just yet). But, I think I found a website that might help with this -- "The Blog Doctor" seems to have a lot of stuff on his site, but ironically, it takes a long time to load and all the information is pretty overwhelming. More to come on this topic!
Today's Thought: 101 Crochet Tips in 101 Days -- the challenge is on, visit Phyllis the Crochet Guru as she works to meet it head on! http://www.crochet.lifetips.com/
Thursday, March 25, 2010
So Tired...
This has been such a slow moving week in many ways, but at least it is finally Thursday. I just need to make it to Saturday :-)
I did get the Easter project done! I was in the hardware store last weekend and saw this really cool nylon twine in all sorts of bright colors. I'd say it's probably DK weight (about 11-12 wpi), and I bought a spool of hot pink. Here are the results!
I did get the Easter project done! I was in the hardware store last weekend and saw this really cool nylon twine in all sorts of bright colors. I'd say it's probably DK weight (about 11-12 wpi), and I bought a spool of hot pink. Here are the results!
The pattern is available on my designer page on Ravelry and hopefully soon on FaveCrafts.
This weekend, the plan is to regroup, get mom's vest finally done, and design the pattern for the upcoming Yarn Club shipment!
Today's Thought: Food Rule # 33 -- Eat some foods that have been predigested by bacteria or fungi. Ok, that just sounds too funky, but the point really is to add some fermented foods to your diet, like yogurt, soy sauce, and sour dough bread (for those of you with more exotic tastes, sauerkraut and kimchi count too). These foods are good sources of B12 vitamins, which you can't get from plants, and probiotics that improve digestion and the immune system. We've been adding a scoop of plain nonfat yogurt to our plates at dinner time and have been using it instead of sour cream.
Monday, March 22, 2010
A Big Shout Out!
I just had to put up a post today with a big shout out to my friends at FaveCrafts! Being a part of the radio show last night was so much fun, and if you missed it, it's available for free either from the website http://www.favecraftsradio.com/ or from iTunes!
I also want to encourage you to take a look at all the wonderful crafting projects at http://www.favecrafts.com/. They also have free crafting and recipe newsletters (I love the crochet one!) to which you can subscribe and many free eBooks ready for instant download! Just check those out at http://www.primenewsletters.com/. It's really impressive, all of the quality resources they make available.
And, stay tuned, I will be posting a special Easter crochet project with FaveCrafts later this week!
I also want to encourage you to take a look at all the wonderful crafting projects at http://www.favecrafts.com/. They also have free crafting and recipe newsletters (I love the crochet one!) to which you can subscribe and many free eBooks ready for instant download! Just check those out at http://www.primenewsletters.com/. It's really impressive, all of the quality resources they make available.
And, stay tuned, I will be posting a special Easter crochet project with FaveCrafts later this week!
Sunday, March 21, 2010
The Countdown Begins
Well, actually two of them -- tonight's radio show and taxes! I really need to worry about both of them today. In the mean time, I guess as an avoidance mechanism, I keep trying to recreate the gluten-free bread I made for mom. I'm hoping the problem has been bad yeast because it keeps falling and getting dense in the cooling phase :-( I am going to stop experimenting (I've been trying different flours to see if I can correct some of the taste issues from last time) and just try to recreate the original bread that came out fluffy.
Other than that, I've been enjoying the amazing weather we've been having the last few days here in DC -- sunshine and 70 degree temperatures! Though last night, instead of working on either priority project (see above) or mom's vest (I know, I know...), I came up with crocheted chair leg socks! I had seen a feature in Daily Candy about an Etsy seller selling knitted socks for chairs. "How clever" I thought, then saw that she was charging $20 for a set of 4. That seemed a little steep to me, especially since they are knitted and not crocheted (because I always think that knitters have it easier than we do ;-) I also figured many people would just want instructions on how to do it themselves, and sure enough, I saw a posting on Ravelry seeking a crocheted version. So, I whipped out both round and square leg versions and posted the pattern on Ravelry! http://www.ravelry.com/designers/phyllis-serbes check it out!
Other than that, I've been enjoying the amazing weather we've been having the last few days here in DC -- sunshine and 70 degree temperatures! Though last night, instead of working on either priority project (see above) or mom's vest (I know, I know...), I came up with crocheted chair leg socks! I had seen a feature in Daily Candy about an Etsy seller selling knitted socks for chairs. "How clever" I thought, then saw that she was charging $20 for a set of 4. That seemed a little steep to me, especially since they are knitted and not crocheted (because I always think that knitters have it easier than we do ;-) I also figured many people would just want instructions on how to do it themselves, and sure enough, I saw a posting on Ravelry seeking a crocheted version. So, I whipped out both round and square leg versions and posted the pattern on Ravelry! http://www.ravelry.com/designers/phyllis-serbes check it out!
Today's Thought: Please tune in tonight at 7 PM EDT or listen to the archived episode of http://www.favecraftsradio.com/. I will be talking about "mind, body, spirit, ... and crochet!"
Friday, March 19, 2010
Theme Music
I am soooooo excited -- DeAnn's gentleman friend, a professional musician, has worked up intro theme music for my podcasts! I haven't heard a note yet, but I know it is going to be fabulous. It was funny, there I was verbally describing what I want (not really having any idea how to properly describe it!), and DeAnn just knew! She really gets me, which is just sooooo nice.
So, in the mean time, the radio show is this Sunday. I've got a 10-minute segment, and I really need to think through what I want to talk about and also "tease" for the upcoming podcast, I don't want to wing it. I've got so much I could talk about, so this is probably the perfect time to sketch out Sunday's segment and then the next few segments of the podcast. I had really hoped to get the podcast ready so that listeners to the show would have follow-up material to go to right away, but alas, it is not to be. I was so proud of how I managed to create a .wav file, convert it into an MP3, and then load it to my web host. But how to create a link from here to there is where I got stuck. But, that too shall come I'm sure :-) If anyone's got directions or tips on how to do it, pleeeeeeeze let me know!
Ok, tonight I think I am just going to try to clear my mind, do some laundry, and maybe just make a list of the million things that need to get done!
Today's Thought: Aw, heck, I'm too tired to think tonight. I promise, I will do double thinking on the next post ;-)
So, in the mean time, the radio show is this Sunday. I've got a 10-minute segment, and I really need to think through what I want to talk about and also "tease" for the upcoming podcast, I don't want to wing it. I've got so much I could talk about, so this is probably the perfect time to sketch out Sunday's segment and then the next few segments of the podcast. I had really hoped to get the podcast ready so that listeners to the show would have follow-up material to go to right away, but alas, it is not to be. I was so proud of how I managed to create a .wav file, convert it into an MP3, and then load it to my web host. But how to create a link from here to there is where I got stuck. But, that too shall come I'm sure :-) If anyone's got directions or tips on how to do it, pleeeeeeeze let me know!
Ok, tonight I think I am just going to try to clear my mind, do some laundry, and maybe just make a list of the million things that need to get done!
Today's Thought: Aw, heck, I'm too tired to think tonight. I promise, I will do double thinking on the next post ;-)
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Radio Show Coming Up!!
Oooo, the countdown has begun! I'm putting the finishing touches on my segment this Sunday on FaveCrafts Radio. In some ways, 10 minutes can be a loooooong time; in some ways, how am I going to say everything I want to?! FaveCrafts has set up another designer page for me: http://www.favecrafts.com/Craft-Designers/Phyllis-Serbes and Caley Walsh has been blogging about the upcoming show too: http://www.favecraftsblog.com/favecrafts-radio-march-21-2010/
FaveCrafts Radio is a weekly radio show hosted by Tiffany Windsor with creative ideas and your favorite craft experts and celebrities. FaveCrafts Radio airs live on BlogTalkRadio on Sunday nights from 7 – 8:00 pm (ET) (6 pm Central, 5 pm Mountain, 4 pm Pacific). Archived podcasts can be streamed directly from the website or downloaded for free through iTunes.Visit http://www.favecraftsradio.com/.
I'm really looking forward to hearing what Mark Montano is going to talk about. He's got a book called Big Ass Book on Home Decor, and he's going to give away 2 autographed copies during the show!
Ok, time to face the real world!
Today's Thought: Food Rule # 17 -- Eat only foods that have been cooked by humans. I think this is Mr. Pollan's way to remind you not to eat processed foods that have way too much salt, fat, and sugar in them. Now, he also points out the human chefs in restaurants often cook with too much salt, fat, and sugar too, so he advises treating eating out as a special occasion. I have to admit, we eat out probably at least 1 or 2 times a week, but we try to pick restaurants that we know have healthy choices and use local fresh ingredients.
FaveCrafts Radio is a weekly radio show hosted by Tiffany Windsor with creative ideas and your favorite craft experts and celebrities. FaveCrafts Radio airs live on BlogTalkRadio on Sunday nights from 7 – 8:00 pm (ET) (6 pm Central, 5 pm Mountain, 4 pm Pacific). Archived podcasts can be streamed directly from the website or downloaded for free through iTunes.Visit http://www.favecraftsradio.com/.
I'm really looking forward to hearing what Mark Montano is going to talk about. He's got a book called Big Ass Book on Home Decor, and he's going to give away 2 autographed copies during the show!
Ok, time to face the real world!
Today's Thought: Food Rule # 17 -- Eat only foods that have been cooked by humans. I think this is Mr. Pollan's way to remind you not to eat processed foods that have way too much salt, fat, and sugar in them. Now, he also points out the human chefs in restaurants often cook with too much salt, fat, and sugar too, so he advises treating eating out as a special occasion. I have to admit, we eat out probably at least 1 or 2 times a week, but we try to pick restaurants that we know have healthy choices and use local fresh ingredients.
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