Another week

Monarch Butterfly - October 10

 Here it is the start of another week and a little bit of progress from last week.

The one project that got some attention was the Monarch Butterfly and I am loving how it is starting to look.  I was comparing it to the original picture and it is slowly starting to come to life.  I can't wait to see the piece finished just to be able to put the cross-stitch and the picture side by side and see how they look.

Monarch Butterfly - October 16

On the Monarch  there are now a lot of areas with a few stitches of different colours so that means I am not going to be a lot of progress as quickly as I have over the last little while. At least once I finished the various little bits of colour a lot of the design will be done. 

Besides working on the cross-stitch I continued to work on the mauve granny square baby afghan and it is coming along pretty well.  Most of the work on the baby afghan was this weekend when I felt like I just wanted something simple to work on.  The afghan is coming along quickly as I went from around 9 inches to around 24 inches this weekend. I hope to be able to make a bit more progress on this afghan during this week but will see how things really good.

I was also able to get some knitting done on the shawl that I am working on.  The shawl went from 19 inches to 30 inches this week so I am slowly starting to see some progress on it.  I want to get this shawl done by the beginning of December so it means that I need to focus on it for a little bit to see how much I can get done.  The shawl is suppose to measure around 72 inches when done so will see how quickly I can get there.  Last week I did focus on knitting it a couple of evenings so that is why it advanced as much as it did.

Once the shawl is completed there are a couple other projects that will get my attention but until then I don't want to distract myself from getting both the Monarch Butterfly and the shawl completed.

This week there are a lot of things going on for work so I am not sure how much time I will be finding to craft.  I hope that at least on the weekend that I will be able to find some time to craft but will see how things go.

Another week

This week I was able to find a bit of time to actually sit and craft.  My focus on this past week was to try and get projects moved forward and that is what I did.

Granny square baby afghan

The first project was to work on the granny square baby afghan that I started in July as I wanted to see if I could get it done.  I had around 26 rounds done and wanted to get to 32 rounds so over the last week I was able to do that.  I finished the actual stitching of the afghan on Saturday and now just need to sew the ends in and then the afghan will be complete.  It feels good knowing that this project is finished and I still have some yarn left so will be making some baby hats out of the remaining yarn.

After I finished the granny square afghan I looked around and noticed that I had a mauve ball of yarn that would make a nice afghan so I started another afghan Saturday evening.  I didn't get a lot of it done so there isn't a picture to show off yet.

As this was a long weekend here in Canada as it was our Thanksgiving, I was able to spend some time over the weekend working on some cross-stitch.  Two different projects go some attention and some progress was made on both of them.

Monarch Butterfly - September 30th

The Monarch Butterfly got some time last night and I am seeing that I am slowly making some progress on it.  I hope that through this week I will be able to get some more of this one done as I am really looking forward to seeing it finished.

With the Monarch Butterfly I am still working on getting all the sides completed and then I will just have the inside of the piece to focus on.  I now just have the right side of the piece to finish and then it will be the middle that will get the attention.  Hopefully I will be able to get the side finished this week and then the centre is left and hopefully I will be able to make some progress on it as well.

Monarch Butterfly - October 10th

The other cross-stitch that got some attention was Sugar as I continue to work on getting the background done.  This project is something that I can work on while I am listening to podcasts. 

I still have some of the background to do but I am thinking that I may try and get a bit more of the actual stitching done over the next little while.  I don't know how much time I will have on this project but I am thinking that maybe even spending an evening on this one will help me see a bit of progress on the actual dog.

Sugar - September 5th

These are the projects that got my attention this past week and I will see who I work on this week.

I am pretty sure that the Monarch Butterfly will get a bit more attention as I want to see what this piece looks like very soon.  Of course, a lot of what I can work on will depend on the time that I have available. 

Sugar - October 10th

Stitching is a great way for me to relax in the evenings and I hope to be able to find some time this week to do just that.  It is such a nice way to relax and actually think a lot of the various projects through.  There are evenings when I am stitching but my mind is still on the project that I was working on during the day.

I have a lot of projects that are currently waiting to be worked on in the evenings but I am thinking that I am going to focus on just a couple of projects to see how they go.

Now to see which work project I will focus on and get it finished up as well.  I know that there are a lot of things needing my attention so now to start working through everything.

My week was pretty good

Caron Cakes - shawl

This past week I was able to find some time to sit and craft and am happy with the progress that I made. 

My first project that I wanted to see finished was the shawl that I was working on using the caron cakes yarn that I picked up.  During the week I was able to work on it and actually get it finished.  The shawl is just over 72 inches long so I figured it was time to end it.

Caron Cakes - shawl - finished

I do have some more yarn still to go so I am making a narrow scarf with it.  I hope to be able to get the scarf done in the next couple of weeks so that all the yarn has been used up quickly.

I have loved using the yarn as it is so nice and soft and I have had some fun working with it as when I am not really watching the yarn it is a nice surprise when the colour has changed and I am onto a different colour.

Monarch - September 21st

After finishing up the shawl I decided it was time to try and get a bit of cross stitch done. I picked up the Monarch Butterfly design and started to work on it as I figured it would be nice to see some more progress on this design before the end of the month.

Monarch - September 30th

The Monarch Butterfly got one evening worth of work done on it this week so that did make me happy as I was able to see some progress on the outside of the design. This is one of the designs that I am hoping to have finished soon as I am really enjoying how it is turning out. I am going to try and finish at least connecting all the sides of the design so that I will just have the flower and butterfly to finish up.

This weekend we decided that we were going to have a day where we just did some of the things that we have wanted to do and something we haven't done in quite a while. So each of us decided that we were doing to spend one day doing something that wasn't work related to start to recharge our personal batteries.  It felt wonderful having a day like that and yesterday was it.

Salmon Rose - September 7th

My project was to see if I can make some progress on the Salmon Rose that I have been working on. This design was started last year and didn't get any attention for over a year until I pulled it back out at the beginning of September.  Yesterday I enjoyed watching the Blue Jay game and then the preseason hockey game so it gave me some time where I could just sit and stitch. 

Salmon Rose - October 2nd

I am very happy with the progress that I was able to make and am looking forward to seeing how much more of this piece I can get worked on over the next little while. I am how just over half finished the rose and once all the stitching is done I am going to figure out where some of the back stitch needs to go.  That will be after all the other stitching is done and I can sit back and look at the completed piece versus the picture and see where I think some outlining is needed.

Until then I have some work that needs to get done so I am off to do that and will see which evenings I will be able to find some time to craft. Next weekend is a long weekend so that means hopefully I will be able to find some additional time to craft and enjoy the time.

Crazy week

Monarch Butterfly - September 18th

 I really have no idea where this last week has gone but I do know that I have another crazy week ahead of me so will see how things go.

Last night I was able to find one evening where I was able to pull out the cross-stitch and work on it for a while.  The Monarch Butterfly is slowing starting to take shape and I am happy with how it has been coming along.  I am hoping that this week I will find some time to put a few more stitches in the piece as I am looking forward to seeing it done.

Monarch Butterfly - September 21st

Besides working on the butterfly I was able to find a bit of time to work on the Caron Cakes shawl that I restarted last weekend.  The picture of the Pineapple Shawl is the shawl that I started at the end of Shawl as soon as I got the yarn.  After getting so far on the shawl I realized that the colouring wasn't going to work too well so it was time to make some major decisions on the project.  The decision was do I continue working on the shawl and hope it works out so that I will wear it or take it out and make something that I know I would wear?

Pineapple Shawl - Caron Cakes

The decision wasn't really that hard because when I thought about each pineapple being maybe two to three colours I decided I wouldn't be happy with that so it was time to take the shawl out and figure out something else to make with the yarn.

Caron Cakes - Cake Pop

The yarn has wonderful colours it in and I wanted each of the colours to show up so I started a very simple wrap for myself.  The wrap/shawl is a basic double crochet and chain pattern.  I made it wide enough that it will cover my arms and shoulders and then started to crochet.  I have finished one ball of the yarn and am loving how soft it is.  The yarn does have 20% wool in it and that may be part of the reason why it is so soft.

Caron Cakes - Simple Shawl - September 25th

The shawl with being simple means that I can pick it up when I have a few minutes to add a few more stitches.  The pineapple shawl meant that I always had to have a pattern with me so it wasn't something that I could work on for even 10 or so minutes and see some results.  The shawl is giving me a project that I can work on when I have those few minutes.

This week looks like it is going to be another crazy day so will see how much crafting time that I can find.  I hope to even find those few minutes each day when I can add a couple more rows onto the shawl.

The weather has cooled down so that is also nice because it makes crocheting so much easier as the yarn isn't hot to hold.   Now to see what projects get the attention this week when I have the time to work on something.

Moving things forward

Monarch Butterfly - August 27th

This past week I was able to find a bit of time to sit and work on one of the cross-stitch designs that I have on the go.

Monarch Butterfly was able to get some attention and I am happy with the progress that I have been able to make on it.  I now have all the corners at least touched and that makes me happy.  I am now going to try and work on getting this design finished up quickly. 

Monarch Butterfly - September 18th

Besides working on the butterfly I was also working on knitting the green mindless shawl.  I got a few more rows of that done as well as that also made me feel a little happier.

Last week was a week where I really bounced between a lot of the projects so didn't get a lot of any one of the projects moved forward much but at least they got a little bit of attention. 

The projects that did see a bit of attention were:

• Diagonal baby afghan
• Mindless green shawl
• Monarch Butterfly
• Baby hats

So yes I was able to make a bit of progress on a bunch of things but other than the Monarch Butterfly there really isn't much to show.  I am looking forward to seeing how much crafting I can do this week as the weather is finally cooling down a little.

I am now going to see what work I can get done and hopefully this evening I will be able send a bit of time crafting.  The World Cup of Hockey is on television each night so that at least gives me something to work while I sit and craft.  Normally I would be watching the Blue Jays play baseball but I think considering they are on the west coast and games don't start until 10 pm, I am going to enjoy some hockey.

A week and different projects

Salmon Rose - July 2, 2015

 This week I decided that it was time to try and do something different for a while.

The first thing I did was to look at the projects that I have on the go and haven't worked on for quite a while.  The project that got picked up was Salmon Rose which hasn't been worked on since July 2015.  Yes, this project has been sitting for a year without any attention so I figured it was time to try and make a bit of progress on it.

Salmon Rose - Sept 7, 2016

I was able to spend one evening working on it and now to see when I will be picking it up again.  I do hope that I can continue to make some progress on it as I would like to see this one finished as there are a lot of meaning behind the rose. This is based on a picture of a rose that was in a basket for my husband's grandmother's memorial.  I am looking forward to seeing what this one looks like.

After spending a couple of evenings of not getting anything done I decided that I was going to pick up my knitting needles and see what I could get accomplished quickly.  I actually ended up casting on two projects the same day so now to see how both of them proceed.

Green Mindless Shawl

The first project that was started was a shawl and it is called "Mindless" and that is what it should be once I get a few more rows done.  The pattern is very simple as there are only two rows for the pattern so it does work up quickly.  The picture doesn't show the pattern too well but there are columns of either knit or purl stitches.  The columns vary in width so that is what makes it interesting to work.

I hope to be able to make some good progress on the shawl over the next while and will see how that goes as it is using a thinner yarn so it does take some time before you can really see some progress on it.

Diagonal baby afghan

After working on the shawl for a while I decided that I wanted to knit a baby blanket but wanted something easy to do.  The pattern I decided to make is a basic diagonal baby afghan.  You cast on and then increase to the two corners and then you decrease.  It is something that shouldn't take me too long to do but I will see how this one goes.  I started this on Friday evening and was able to spend a bit of time both Saturday and yesterday working on it.  I didn't spend lots of time as there were other projects that I needed to work on as well.

I am happy with the progress that I have been able to make on all three of these projects.  This week I am not sure what I am going to be working on.  I have a busy week ahead of me so will see what time I can find to work on the various projects.

I am happy having the different knit projects on the go as it gives me something different to work on than the baby hats.  The baby hats are still being made and the pile of them continues to grow.  Last month I was able to make 20 baby hats and will see how many I can get done this month.

It is now time to get some writing done for work and then I will see what time I have left today to try and craft.

A good week

This week I was able to get some crafting done and I am happy with that.

Before I write about the crafting I am going to talk about something that I did on Saturday.

Which hat would you like?

Smiles from the children

Over the last while I have been working on making some children's hats and had a pile of them looking for a few home.  I had been giving them to a local  community service office but then gave that up.  I gave it up when they were calling and asking for lots of hats without giving me any notice.  I was getting a call like this "Hi, we were wondering if you have 45 hats ready, we need them by next Friday for the back to school program."  What the office didn't realize was I wasn't going to just make hats if they didn't need them and have them all sitting around.  I also couldn't make 45 hats in a couple of weeks. When they had the back to school program I tried to help for a while but also normally tried to have hats made that were colour appropriate for the children.  I would ask how many girls and how many boys were going to attend the program.

After I gave up helping the office I still worked on the occasional hat so that meant that I had some sitting waiting for me to find a place where I could give them. A couple of weeks ago we heard about a back to school event that was going to be held in our community.  I was able to contact the organizer and he said he would appreciate the hats and I could give them out myself during the event.

A hug from one little girl.  Great feeling.

Saturday meant that we took the 29 hats that I had and during the event gave them to younger children who were going to be going to school this week. The hats were for the children starting kindergarten and junior kindergarten so that was the group I aimed for. 

A lot of the children really liked their hats and even with the temperature of around 24C put their hats on which was really nice. One little girl gave me a hug for the hat which made me feel so good.

I heard a lot of thanks from the children that received the hats so now I am looking forward to seeing these hats in the neighbourhood when the weather gets colder.

Sugar - August 28th

This last week I was able to get some cross-stitch done and that was also good.  I focused on one project for most of the time that I could spend stitching. I decided that I was going to try and work on the background of this project for a while as I could do this while sitting outside or listening to some podcasts.  The other nice thing about the background of this design is it is only a half cross so it doesn't take as long to do.

Of course as the week was wrapping up I discovered a design that I loved and had to get it charted and ready to stitch.  I was able to get the design charted and have started to stitch it but I am going to leave that project until after I talk to the artist to show anything about it.

Sugar - September 5th

This week I am not sure which project will get my attention.  I also think it will depend on how warm it really gets out because if it is like they say it is going to be I may just work on some baby hats because they are easy to work on while sitting outside.

It is back to school for the children in our neighbourhood so that will mean a new schedule for everyone.  I am happy that I can still sit here and work on my stuff and am not impacted as much with the new routine that others have.  For now, it is time to get a bit of work done and then I will see what project I pick up this evening.