My secret to saving money on knitting
When I started knitting five years ago, I tentatively started projects and slowly learned new techniques while gradually buying nicer and nicer yarns. I kept all my yarn in one bag.
Filed under: Organizing Knitting || Tagged with: knitting, ravelry, social networking, yarn
A day to myself
I had a glorious day yesterday in which I placed no demands on myself. After working with clients the last couple of weekends, it was great to have a Sunday to do whatever I wanted to do. (I got my home-related chores taken care of on Saturday.)
Filed under: Living Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, needle felting, relaxation, rewards, self-care, television
Finishing is tough (in knitting and organizing)
It’s the rare knitter who enjoys the finishing aspects of their knitting projects. That’s the weaving in of ends, the seaming, the blocking (soaking or steaming the knit fabric to size).
Filed under: Knitting Organizing || Tagged with: goals, knitting, knitting olympics, learn to knit afghan
Away again
I was home for a day and am now heading to Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania for my husband’s family reunion. Because of all the coming and going I haven’t had time to blog.
Filed under: Living Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, relaxation, rewards, self-care
R&R - practicing what I preach
I encourage my clients (and Declutter Happy Hour participants) to be sure and take breaks and build in rewards when they’re working hard (on clutter or anything else).
Filed under: Living Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: holidays, knitting, napo st. louis, relaxation, rewards
Handmade goodness
Time for a little knitting update. Because my mind and fingers were having problems with a lace project I decided to fall back on some simple knitting. A felted bag. (My husband wonders what I do with all the felted bags I make…I use them to house knitting works in progress.)
Filed under: Knitting Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: bobbi nesladek, felting, knitting, knitting blogs
New poncho!
Occasionally, I like sharing my knitting projects here. It’s just so fun to complete something I like that I have to post a photo.
Filed under: Knitting Living || Tagged with: bobbi nesladek, knitting
A couple of knitting projects to show off
I’m been knitting up a storm and not always remembering to take pictures of projects before I give them away. Right now I’m halfway through a striped cotton poncho (the Rap on Stripes poncho from Pam Allen’s Wrap Style) that I’m excited about, for spring.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: geralin thomas, knitting, lace, yarn
My Valiant effort at knitting a great sweater
As I’ve posted here before, I’m been working on knitting a sweater designed by fabulous UK knits designer Kim Hargreaves. It’s called Valiant. What I may not have mentioned is that my record of success in knitting sweaters is pretty absymal. I’ve been successful with vests and shells, but the addition of sleeves seems to throw a wrench in the works. So I’m absolutely delighted to report that I’ve finished Valiant. And it’s a viable sweater!
Filed under: Knitting Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: felting, knitting, sweater
Knitting update: Felted Knitting Basket completed
Back in October, I posted a knitting update in which I mentioned that I was working on a Felted Knitting Basket. It’s an adaptation of the Ballband Bag Recipe by Monica Jines. Monica’s bag is more like a purse. This adaptation, by Lynn, who’s ravelry avatar is Ravellyn, is a larger knitting basket.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: felting, knitting, sweater, wips
Ravelry: The greatest organizational tool for knitters
I heart Ravelry. I absolutely love it. If you’re a knitter and you don’t know about Ravelry, or you don’t belong to it, click on the link the previous sentence and sign up. Just do it. Come back and read why I love it. But right now, go join.
Filed under: Knitting Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: knitting, ravelry, social networking, yarn
Taking a day for myself
Yesterday I had what we call around our a home a Lazy Day. We had that extra hour, due to the end of Daylight Saving Time and, as I said I would on Friday, I used that time to knit and watch TV. It sure didn’t stop at an hour, though. I knit so much yesterday that my shoulders started hurting by the evening (so I stopped)
Filed under: Living Knitting || Tagged with: knitting, productivity, relaxation, self-care
I love baby gifts
I’m 46 and I don’t have that many friends who are having babies. Before long, my friends will probably be having grandchildren, though. Whenever I hear that a friend is pregnant, I get very excited, because I love knitting baby stuff. It’s little, it’s soft, it doesn’t take much time.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: gifts, knitting
Mixed feelings about this season
I’m an unabashed warm-weather person. I get cold easily and, according to my husband, I complain a lot in the winter about being cold. So why don’t I move somewhere that’s warm year-round? My husband is a cold-weather person. He hates summer. So we’re equally miserable in four-season St. Louis. Equality is a good thing in a marriage.
Filed under: Living Knitting || Tagged with: balance, knitting, optimism, winter
Knitting update
I live in a fantasy world in which the readers of my blog actually care about my knitting, so today I’m going to share with you a knitting triumph and let you know what I’m working on.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, sally brown
Knitting Olympics: Half-way there!
I promise I won’t write about knitting every day during the Olympics. I’m just so pleased with my progress that I have to report it. Tomorrow I’ll try to write something relevant to organizing.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, knitting olympics, lace, learn to knit afghan
Lace knitting: Not unlike organizing
Last night, as I worked on the Estonian Garden Wrap, a seemingly complicated and sort of overwhelming (for this novice lace knitter) knitting pattern, I realized that broken down to its simplest elements, it’s really pretty easy. And that’s not unlike any overwhelming project, like getting organized. Let me explain.
Filed under: Organizing Knitting || Tagged with: decluttering, empowerment, knitting, lace, motivation, perfectionism, productivity
Crazy Aunt Purl: Blog of the Week
One of my favorite knitting blogs, Crazy Aunt Purl, justified its permanent status on the Links section of this organizing blog (where it’s been since Day One), with yesterday’s post.
Filed under: Organizing Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: blog of the week, blogs, crazy aunt purl, decluttering, knitting, laurie perry
Knitting Olympics update
I’ve chosen my project for the Ravelympics 2008 (on Ravelry, which I posted about last Thursday. According to the rules, you can actually work on completing a project you started in the past, one that’s been hibernating awhile. That Event is called WIP Wrestling. I’ll be playing on Team St. Louis.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, knitting olympics, lace, learn to knit afghan, ravelry
Olympic knitting
Two years ago, during the 2006 Winter Olympics in , the Yarn Harlot organized the Knitting Olympics, in which participants cast on for a new knitting project during the Opening Ceremonies. Medal winners finished their project by the Closing Ceremonies.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, knitting olympics, knitty couture, ravelry
Better living through Elfa
As I’ve blogged about before, I’m a knitter and I love organizing all my knitting stuff. There’s yarn, needles, notions, patterns. They fall into nice categories and they’re pretty. So they’re fun to organize.
Filed under: Organizing Knitting || Tagged with: knitting, knitting needles, wips, yarn
Are you a knitter? You don't have to knit alone!
As I’ve chronicled here, I’m a knitter. I knit pretty much every day, usually in the evenings, usually while watching TV. It’s a solitary pursuit, though my animals and my husband often keep me company.
Once a week, however (when I’m in town), I actually leave the house to knit.
Filed under: Knitting Sharing || Tagged with: knitting, ravelry, westin knitting group
Packing for the plane
I’m flying home from Hawaii late this afternoon. It’s an overnight flight and I arrive in St. Louis at 8 in the morning. That’s an eleven hour journey, not counting the time I spend waiting for my flight at the Honolulu airport.
Filed under: Organizing Living || Tagged with: knitting, mark forster, packing, travel
Oldies but goodies
I like sharing new websites and shortcuts for making life a little easier. But there are some older sites that you may not know about that I’d like to share. These are sites I use regularly to make my life easier and more enjoyable. I hope you will too.
Filed under: Resources Living || Tagged with: knitting, productivity, ravelry, time management, websites
Recharging the batteries
I took the day off yesterday. Completely.
I hadn’t had a day off since March 6 and I was feeling the need to recharge my batteries. Yesterday was the first day I didn’t have a client appointment scheduled in a couple of weeks and I just wanted to hang out. So that’s what I did.
Filed under: Organizing Living || Tagged with: balance, knitting, time management
Ode to a swift
There are certain essential pieces of equipment you need when you’re a knitter. You need yarn, obviously. And you need knitting needles. (The longer you’re a knitter, the more amazing your array of needles). You’ll also need a few notions like stitch markers, tapestry needles, perhaps a stitch holder or a cable needle. All these things, though they add up, don’t cost much individually.
For me, there was a bigger-ticket item I wanted, one that felt decadent because it was so much a matter of convenience, not necessity.
Filed under: Knitting Ranting-and-Raving || Tagged with: ball winder, knitting, skein, swift
