Dress Again

In the Midst

2009-05-05T08:12:00.001-07:00

I've about had it with feeling like the Bubonic Plague has descended. But this morning I feel a little better, so I'm going to call that a win. My own eye is a bit suspicious, though. Wouldn't it be great if I have pink eye, too? Yep, everybody loves pink eye.

Despite the germfest, I've had a bit of creative inspiration. It's been all needles and thread and words!! over here, I tell you. What a wonderful thing to be working again. The irony of this blog is that I never mention that in real life, I'm a writer. I never mention it, partially because I feel like in many ways, I do my worst writing here and partially because my relationship to creative writing has been tenuous at best since the baby came (and probably since way before that if we're going to get all honest). The past few weeks have witnessed a turn-around. It's probably the weather, the intoxicating levels of sunlight, rereading some Margaret Atwood, something like that. Whatever it is, whatever grace I've stumbled upon, I'll take it. I've been doing "real" writing again (and what, all of my other work is just imaginary??) AND I've also been quite crafty. All of this while playing nursemaid and patient in quick succession. It's gotta be the sunlight!

Inspiration comes in many forms, but lately I'm loving these blogs:

The lovely Kelly Rae. I've been familiar with her work in a general way for awhile, but recently have been reading her blog and really studying her paintings. I love the layers, the texture, the richness of each piece. I like that her pieces look like they arise organically from the process, which is how I work best, which is what inspires me the most.

Calamity Kim. Again, someone I've known about but whose work is speaking to me loud and clear lately. Vintagey, textural, full of colors, and utterly yummy.

While baby naps, I'm going to try to get some stitching done. If I get to the battery store, I may have pictures for you by later tonight.

Healing

2009-05-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

So once E's pink eye cleared up, Sarah was all scummed up with a sinus infection and ear infection. Add that to my own fears of swine flu and I'm about to call the CDC. It's tough because the winter has been so very long and we're all really just freaking out to get outside and play and have fun with our friends and now I feel like we're quarantined. And once we're healthy, there's the possible global pandemic to worry about. I know it's likely not as big of a deal as, say, the 1918 flu, but for a toddler, any flu is too much flu.

In other news, I did sneak over to a garage sale across the alley this morning and picked up a plastic singing tea pot for the E. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.

Pictures? Not today. Something is different in my photo menu and I can't see the pictures before selecting them. Which is obviously not a good thing.

Pink Eye and Dishcloths

2009-04-25T08:09:00.000-07:00

So the baby has pink eye in both eyes. Believe me when I say Yuck. I'm hoping I don't get it, but it's really contagious and E totally doesn't understand about not spreading germs. I don't think I can wash my hands enough times to make up for him smearing his face all over me all day long.

In the meantime, I'm going to share some of my dishcloth pictures as I work towards a most perfect dishcloth image!

Spring At Last

2009-04-18T13:16:00.000-07:00

We officially took the plastic off the windows, so it must be spring. Meanwhile, I haven't blogged all month. We did have a brief internet service interruption, but mostly it's been busy town around here.

There's been crafty goodness.

And Easter fun.

And today, there was a long walk in the warm weather, with a quick stop at a toy store to see what they had in the way of tea sets for the little E. They had some really cool sets. Like this and this. But what he really wanted was this. That's right folks. Went in for a girly, flowery tea set and got a Chicago Bears-style football. Ah, the heart wants what it wants.

Too Old?

2009-03-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

Am I too old to have just discovered the library? Probably. Truth be told, it's a rediscovery. But these days, the library is like Amazon, except you have to pick the books up. No. I'm serious. I order them online and just go get them when they're ready. Currently reading:

Bend the Rules Sewing
Mamma Zen
Doodle Stitching
200 Crochet Blocks

Plus, when you're done, you don't have to store those pesky books yourself. Nope, the trusty library takes care of that for you. Also, and this is the best part, it's free.

The library. Who knew?

Tiny Socks and Other Stuff

2009-03-30T08:34:00.000-07:00

A close friend of Sarah's is having a baby soon, so of course we needed some baby socks. Knitting for babies is such an instant gratification experience. This is a modified basic sock pattern knit in Artyarns Supermerino in colorway 105. The socks themselves are turning out really heavy, so hopefully this May baby will be able to wear them. And sock number two is turning out a touch smaller, which is kind of a bummer. Hopefully they'll end up being close enough. I always have a few false starts and ripping back with the first sock, which results in it being looser and generally more stretched out. Then I sail through sock two. Sock two is a lot more fun to knit, but it would be nice if my socks would match ever.

Last night was our first official Pizza Night, wherein we made pizza that were not at one time frozen. It's going to be a weekly thing, though it'll normally be on Friday. We used store-bought dough from Trader Joe's and it was quite yummy. I do plan to make dough from scratch eventually. In the meantime, though, TJ's is perfectly good. It gave us an opportunity to use our baking stone--a gift from Sarah's mom that we rarely use. I did suffer a kitchen injury when I sliced my finger on my Cuisinart blade while looking for something in the knife drawer. Clearly, that was a very bad location for the blade. It has now been relocated. Luckily, the cut wasn't too bad, just kind of gory and upsetting.

We also brought up an old dresser from the basement for E's room. He's getting so many clothes they weren't fitting in the desk we've been using as a dresser. Plus, as he gets bigger, his clothes get bigger, so the same amount of clothes take up more space. It's nice to have everything where we can find it now instead of crammed in here and there and wherever it would fit. E celebrated by skipping his afternoon nap. We were not amused.

Discovery

2009-03-28T09:58:00.000-07:00

I was putting a sleeping E down for his nap today and was struck hard by how much of a person he is. He holds together now all on his own. He doesn't need me to support his head to keep his neck from breaking. Doesn't need me to restrain his arms to keep him from blinding himself (though he does have a huge self-inflicted scratch on his nose--oh, well!) Doesn't need my presence to have his own identity. It's miraculous, truly. This is how people find religion, I think, deep in the well of something they never imagined.

People told me, of course. I mean, it's no big secret: becoming a parent changes everything. And it's true. At the same time, what I didn't understand was how it would change the little things. I knew would change the big things: my body, my sleep, my daily routine, my relationship with my partner, my relationship with myself, my house, my ability to lift a car off of my child. But it also changes the way I look at the sky, traffic, television, food, time.

And what I really didn't get was the fact that I would have created a person. I knew I was going to create a baby, obviously. But that baby is a real person. And someday he'll be a man. Which is crazy. I made a man.

The responsibility of this could crush me. But I can't ever go back to not having it.

Picture Perfect, Or Something

2009-03-27T09:06:00.000-07:00

I've been having trouble taking good pictures of my work, so I started practicing.

Ii don't feel like I've perfected my art.

But I think I'm learning some things.

Like light seems to be one key ingredient.

And taking lots of shots seems to be the other one.

I don't know why I always think I can just do something perfectly without practicing. I mean, nothing in my life so far has led me to believe that. It always takes practice.

2009-03-26T09:25:00.001-07:00

Although it's a well-known fact around here that posting wakes up the baby, I'm going for it.

Spring is trying in vain to arrive here. Ah, March. It's all two steps forward and two steps back. Sunny, cloudy, warm, cold. Blah, blah, blah. Truth be told, I'm a summer girl. Give me hot day after hot day after hot day. The unpredictability of Spring is a first-class pain in the you-know-where. For example, we're supposed to go to the park today, but it's not technically warm enough for me. I need a full on 60 degrees to truly enjoy outside. However, E and I can't just sit around and stare at each other, so we'll go. The plan is to meet some mom friends, but they're showing our apartment, so we'll be running late. Why are they showing our apartment, you ask? Our building is up for sale again. I'm trying not to freak out about it, though. With this economy, who knows what will happen.

Crafting continues. It's dishcloth central around here. I'm trying to get really good pictures for the shop, but these cloths are tricky little puppies. I'm having trouble making them look good. And our camera is mostly not good at being, you know, in focus. So trying to capture detail is a real task. Add that to the light being utterly unreliable and here's what you get.

It's fine, but it's a little underwhelming. I'm going to figure it out, though. I think I need to set up a photo area in our back room, where the light is better. It's more of a storage area than a room right now, but we do have big plans.

I'm thinking of designing a knit dishcloth as well. I've been inspired by some amazing new-to-me knitters. Check this out. So up my alley, right? Simple, classic, red and white. Everything that's awesome about washing dishes. I'm going to try knitting one up tonight and see how it goes.

Fancy This

2009-03-22T10:19:00.000-07:00

Just a little flower-heavy improvisational embroidery in honor of the Chicago sun.

The long, miserable winter is Donesville and I say yay. Crafting is so seasonal sometimes. When cold weather appears on the doorstep, it's knit, knit, knit. Spring is definitely for embroidery, with its light, airy lines and bright colors. I didn't have any patterns I was really into (that weren't missing), so I did this one freehand. I have a bunch of small embroidery pieces. I'm thinking of turning them into a quilt with, you know, all of my spare time.

I've also been working on a name banner for E. I had planned it for his birthday, but I think Easter is a perfectly good time for a banner!

I suppose that banner pretty much spills the beans on E's name. Let's just try to keep it between you and me, though, okay? I'm trying to decide how to finish the edges of this. I'll keep you posted.

In kitchen news, I'm making my first vegetable stock from scratch right now. I used the odds and ends of various veggies from the past few weeks, some seriously lackluster celery, plus an onion, a carrot and a mushroom. I'm hoping it turns out not yucky. I find the idea of making stock so, I don't know, 1950's housewife romantic. There's definitely a 1950's housewife side to me. It's the other side of me from the side that's gay and hates to clean.

Losing It

2009-03-21T10:13:00.000-07:00

I temporarily lost my Wee Wonderfuls embroidery patterns this week. It was awful. Those puppies are not cheap, for one thing. And for another, it just drives me nuts not to be able to find things. This is bad because I can't find things a lot. I know the problem is a combination of having too much stuff and not having enough time to pay attention. Luckily, I found my patterns, tucked inside my Jenny Hart Sublime Stitching book. Unluckily, I am also missing my rotary cutter ruler dealie. Because it's clear, it's very easy to lose. And I'm guessing that I stashed it someplace fast because E was around. Now I can't find it anywhere and I need it. I've been using a wooden ruler, which not only yields really crappy, inaccurate results, it's also kind of dangerous. It'd be super stupid to cut one's fingertips off while trying to craft.

This is all further evidence that I need to get this house in order. The overhaul got a bit stalled with E's birthday extravaganza and subsequent enhanced running ability on the part of the baby-who-is-not-such-a-baby-anymore. So that's the week-end project. That and finishing my shop update. This vintage-esque set of crocheted dishcloths is there already.

It's Always Sunny in Chicago

2009-03-17T08:47:00.000-07:00

Seriously. It's like 70 out. We're going to the park after a nap. In the meantime, I'm an embroidering fool. And I made an impromptu recycled sweater owl. His name is Stripey Owl.

I think I'm going to make a basket full of recycled wool toys for the E for Easter. This little guy was superfast to make. I definitely want to make some with pockets that he can put things in. He's very into putting things in and taking things out these days. He's very developmentally on track. I'm so proud. I try not to stress too much about that kind of thing, but let's face it. Not stressing isn't exactly my thing. I'm more of a stress first, ask questions later kind of gal. Anyway, he loves, for example, taking laundry out of the basket and putting it back in. This is fine with unfolded laundry, of which we generally have quite a bit. It's a bit more frustrating with folding laundry that we haven't put away yet, of which we also have quite a bit. Seems a shame to fold it if E is just going to unfold it. On the other hand, he's generally so happy doing it that I let it go. I mean, a happy baby means a happy mama, and that's good all around.

Cleaning Up

2009-03-14T09:14:00.000-07:00

My computer and Blogger had a bit of a misunderstanding the other day, which lost me a labor-intensive picture-heavy post. Blast! But I think they've worked things out. Let's try again.

Dishcloths are still in the air around here.

And these will be coming soon to an Etsy Shop near you.

I've been enjoying using the ones I made for myself in my own kitchen, and I have to say, it makes me happy everytime I wipe up a spill or wash down a high-chair tray. Which is good news for me since these things happen nearly 60 times each week. I do think my kitchen is cleaner. I suspect those housewives of yore were on to something when they decked out their kitchens with pretty things.

I also had time to do some party photo editing.

The calm before the storm

More of the decorations

And more of the snake party favors

The snakes are made from recycled children's clothes. And I have to admit, I did utterly enjoy picking out girls' clothes for once. The boys' clothes offerings at the thrift store tend toward the dull or previously destroyed. If you need ugly colors and sports motifs, the thrift store is just the ticket. But if you're looking for cute patterns or a color besides tomato red or navy blue, you are doomed, doomed, doomed. The girls' aisle, by comparison, is brimming with cute prints and various colors and most of the clothes are not wrecked. You do have to sift through the "diva" and "princess" boloney, but the payoff is real and substantial. And frankly, I often find the cuter boys' items are mixed in here.

We don't have many picture from the actual party, but we did catch the key moment: E takes the cake.

If there's anything more fun than a one year old eating a whole cake, I don't know what it is.

The Humble Dishcloth

2009-03-09T18:29:00.000-07:00

I mentioned a few weeks back that I was getting into homemade dishcloths. Well, I was not kidding.

I tried knitting them, but the crocheted ones have a certain appeal that's really working for me.

The hook feels good in my hand and in the round is a snap with crochet, whereas knitting round things is more complicated. It requires techniques and thinking. And boy oh boy am I not into thinking right now. So I found some patterns, tried them, couldn't follow them, and made my own. I'm feeling very industrious, really.

And behind the scenes.

And in raw.

Cotton yarn is so basic and honest, and isn't that what we all need right now?

Just Like A Real Boy

2009-03-05T13:05:00.000-08:00

So, since the schitzophrenia that is Chicago weather blessed us with the high 50's today, we headed for the park. It was E's first visit to the park as a walker. He totally rocked it. He ran all over, up ramps, down stairs, up slides, through tunnels. Pretty spectacular when you consider that at this time last year, he was still all crunched up from, you know, the womb. It was bittersweet, though, since instead of chatting up my mom friends, I just ran around after my child and tried to keep him from dying. Just like every other day.

And he's awake. D'oh!

1

2009-03-01T12:42:00.001-08:00

E turned one last week, and so did everybody else's baby. It's been party, party, party around here! We just got back from a party with Harper at the Garfield Park Conservatory where E ate lettuce off the ground. Why is it that even when you have a whole plate of food for a baby, he'd way rather eat garbage? Mary was smart and planned her baby's party for someplace not her house. This was a smart idea.

We went another way with it.

Yeah. For E's party we threw a whole big to-do in our whole little apartment. I drew inspiration from here for the polka dot theme.

I have to say, the dots were the cheapest party decorations in the history of birthdays. I spent 95 cents on them. Scrapbooking paper was 5 for 95 cents at Joann's Presidents Day Sale, because it's very important to presidents that Americans get good deals on scrapbooking supplies. For the record, you should never pay full price for anything at Joann's. You should receive a minimum 30% discount. If it's not on sale, wait. It'll go on sale sooner or later, or you'll get a coupon in the mail or, while you wait, you'll find you didn't even need the whatever it was (probably you didn't). Anyway, I traced bowls on the paper and cut them out, then hung them with ribbon I already owned.

We made polka dot sandwiches, which were such a hit that they were gone in an instant. No picture. No nothin'. They were just regular sandwiches cut into circles. The inspiration website used a cookie cutter to make circles, but we just used a glass. I do have two containers full of crusts-only sandwiches in my freezer if anyone is interested. You can choose cheese and turkey or cheese and hummus. We also served Cream of Vegetable Soup (thanks to my friend Anne for the recipe!!). By the way, when I'm saying "we" here, I mostly mean my brother and sister-in-law. Colleen made the sandwiches and here's my brother Paul putting the finishing touches on the soup, wearing one of my seldom-worn vintage aprons.

Doesn't he just have that 50's housewife vibe? They had all this time on their hands because their sweet baby slept through the whole party. Seriously. He slept through a party of like 30 people, many of them racing through the house with balloons and screaming. I need to get a baby like that.

Of course, when you sleep through a party, you do miss some fun times. You miss the recycled snake party favors, for example.

These were really fun to make, once I learned a little bit about stitching stretchy fabric. Before I learned a little bit, I confess I did some swearing.

Of course, there had to be cake:

Thanks to my mother-in-law for the cakes! In my original vision of the party, I made amazing cupcakes for everyone from scratch and decorated them with icing and dots and stuff. They looked amazing. Lucky for me, though, in reality, I didn't have to lift a finger or we'd still be waiting! E enjoyed totally destroying his very own cake in the traditional rite of passage.

I hope to get some more pictures in the next few days as I get them edited. In the meantime, I can't believe my tiny baby is already a year old. He's absolutely the most amazing, important thing in my life. Happy Birthday, little boy!

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T08:46:00.000-08:00

I love Valentine's Day. I love red and hearts and pink and flowers and all that jazz. I also love that Sarah got up early and went out and got me bagels (and put gas in the car, 'cause she's that kind of girl). Too bad she has to work today. Sigh. Guess I'll just have to hang out and embroider things and cut hearts out of paper. I designed a bunch of Valentine embroidery images (see above) but never really got them all finished. I guess that's what life with a toddler is like. E did enjoy the felt hearts I made him and the heart bag inspired by The Crafty Crow.

And I'm enjoying the paper hearts. I love cutting paper. It feels so art class, but in a good way.

So, enjoy the love today and keep it going into tomorrow!

Summer in the City

2009-02-11T07:02:00.000-08:00

Seriously, folks, it was 65 yesterday in Chicago in mid-February. That's bananas if you ask me. We went on two walks with our sweatshirts and sweaters and NO COATS! It's almost enough to help you get through the fact that Chicago was voted one of the five most miserable cities in the country. I totally get that, though. Traffic, taxes, and the generally crappy weather get me down. Chicago is a tricky lady, though, switching it up with random bits of gloriousness like today. Yes, sales tax is over 10% but you can also find a miniature piano for free in your alley. Oh, Chicago, you test me.

I really think that sunshine is one of the great creative catalysts, and this recent summer spell has been no exception. My mind has been spinning with ideas ever since the weather broke. I haven't gotten as much done as I'd like (primarily because of a certain two-foot-tall sweetie pie) but the juices have been flowing. I also heard a great interview yesterday on Fresh Air with a filmmaker who talked about her process a lot. I'm blanking on her name right this minute but she discussed how location scouting is a big part of her process. She searches and searches by driving around (and seriously around, like around the country) and looking at possible places to shoot. And it struck me that I really think my own process has this same quality of, I don't know, browsing, I guess. I spend a lot of time browsing through the possibilities, having internal conversations with myself about the choices before me, making a lot of tiny judgements, almost unconsciously. In writing, I do a lot of reading but also a lot of initial writing and revising (which for blog purposes means I sometimes don't even make it to the writing part!) With textiles I go through my materials and collect things together. I also go through many patterns and options. You can see why Ravelry is a dangerous place for me. All of this makes for a slow process but it allows the things to evolve organically. In fact, I started this post yesterday.

The Need For Speed

2009-02-08T17:29:00.000-08:00

So, what could be so fabulous that it would make me spend forever downloading the camera, you ask? Clapotis? No, although it is getting kind of fabulous.

Alas, it isn't Clapotis. What made me download the photos is the kind of fabulous that's only possible when you spend $10 to buy something that was going to cost you so much money that you could barely dream of having it. So much money that in your dreams, there were flying cars and, you know, some flying pigs, too. So here it is. What $10 can buy you on Craigslist.

That's right, people. A totally sweet serger. Something I totally have been wanting forever but could in no way justify buying, because buying one would have meant going without something else. Something important, like heat. Nonetheless, I've been browsing Craigslist for one because you just never know. And then this week-end, there it was, being sold by the lovely Angela who is moving to Japan and who clearly has the same craft issues that I do (the ones where you have tons of stuff and no time and so when you move to Japan you have to sell you serger for $10, and also you sell a bunch of canvases for $2 each. I promise promise promise to use them. But back to the serger.) It's pretty sweet.

So in my fantasy of buying the serger, I'd take it home, learn to thread it, and be whipping up awesome creations for my etsy shop by nightfall. By morning, I'd be rich. Instead, I went home, spent forever maybe learning to thread it. I have no clue if I'm really doing it right. I watched a bunch of u-tube videos of how to use it and after lots of work and trying, I made this.

So, if you'd like to buy that, send me an email. I'll totally sell it to you.

I'm hoping there's a learning curve to this and that I'm on it. I mean, it took awhile to get the hang of my sewing machine, and this puppy is much more complex. It sews at the speed of light, like 60,000 stitches per second or something. Also, and for ten bucks I'm really not complaining, but I think maybe it isn't the awesomest serger in the history of serging. But that's cool. I still feel like this over it.

2009-02-07T08:09:00.000-08:00

So, today it's supposed to be 55 degrees in Chicago. Three days ago it was, like, zero. I'm completely happy for the warm front but I just don't know how to feel about it. I mean, these erratic swings toy with my emotions and my habits. I feel like a heat addict, by turns on the wagon and bingeing. This can't be good for people.

On the other hand, it's pretty sweet to have fifties in February!

Clapotis marches on. I'm deep into the decreases now. It's quite energizing the way this pattern speeds up the at the end after such a long, steady build up. I'm sprinting for the finish. But it's easier than that. It's more like the luge, just speeding along on my tiny sled. Except, you know, it's knitting and, well, this metaphor is totally disintegrating now.

On Wednesday, the E and I went to storytime at the library with Mary and some other friends. Afterwards, we went to Wishbone for post-story refreshments. E was like a demolition expert at the table, wrecking whatever he could reach. But he was calmed by the sweet potatoes, so it was all good. I'm having a little blog envy of Mary. She blogs like 5 times a week. I'm pretty sure she has a secret live-in nanny that she's not telling anyone about because where else could she find the time? Of course, maybe she doesn't squander her precious free time searching Ravelry. I mean, I don't know anyone who does that, but just as a theoretical example of how someone might waste time and not get anything done. Someone I don't know. Clearly.

Show Me the Pictures

2009-01-31T09:20:00.000-08:00

I do of course realize there haven't been any recent pics here. There are two reasons for this:

1. The camera is filled with 3 videos of E being cute, cute, cute. But the videos are long, long, long, so iPhoto can't quite figure them out. So they have to be downloaded a special way. I don't know this special way and I'm currently having a moratorium on learning new things. It's just going to have to wait for Sarah to do it. But she's a busy gal.

2. The light in Chicago has been crapsville for taking pictures of anything crafty anyway, all gloom and doom and snow. So it hardly matters that the camera is full. Oh, how I yearn for Spring. In all fairness to Chicago, it's actually kind of sunny today. Maybe today's the day!

So I guess you'll just have to settle for words, which sucks for you. Frankly, am way more wooed by pictures in blogs than text, which makes me a horrible person and a horrible writer.

I am 12 rows from the end of the middle section of my Clapotis. That leaves just the decrease rows and the end part. I'm cruisin'. This will totally be done by the time my parents visit in February for E's first birthday. (What?!? First birthday? How is it that I am nearly the mother of a one year old? Impossible. It seems like only yesterday he was a teeny, tiny peanut and now here he is walking and babbling and eating food. I can't believe it.)

The dining room renovation marches on. The Brown Elephant guys came on Thursday to take away the table and buffet. They were supernice. I'm so glad we decided to donate to them. What a lark! What a plunge! I feel good about myself and the world. It's for a good cause and other people without lots of money need dining room tables and buffets, so it's win-win. And I'm also glad that my dining room is open and inviting. E has been having a blast racing around in here--so much space! I am definitely hating my apartment less.

Where to Next?

2009-01-25T12:36:00.000-08:00

We're still working on our dining room. We tried to sell the table and buffet on Craig's List, but it didn't generate much interest. So we are donating it to the Brown Elephant. We feel pretty good about it. It'll go to a good cause, and the set was given to us by friends, so maybe from a karma perspective, it was wrong to sell it. It's getting picked up on Thursday along with our other miscellaneous things we don't need at all. We were able to sell some other items, though, which provided the "budget" for our little remodeling project. I'm going to be putting some maternity/nursing things up on eBay, and hopefully that'll pay for paint. We're keeping the chairs to the dining room set and planning to paint and reupholster them. In my mind's eye, they will look awesome. Our goal for the new space is to make it functional, cheery, and fun to be in, which will be a big change from what it is now: useless, cluttered, and upsetting.

I had a successful thrifting mission today. $9 bought me shoes, a poncho, a sweater vesty thing, a sweater for E, a turtleneck for E, and a button-down shirt for E, as well as some nursery material. Everything I wanted was half off. A total score.

In crafting news, the Clapotis marches on. I'm about out of the my stashed yarn, so I did have to buy more. I didn't want to pay for shipping, so I went searching locally and discovered a new yarn store: Loopy Yarns. It's in the South Loop and stocked to the gills with Lorna's Laces, Cascade everything, and all kinds of wooly goodness. On top of that, their prices were great and their staff was nice. It's not exactly close to my house, but it's really close to Sarah's work. Anywho, Clapotis is over half-way there. It's definitely on schedule for being done when my mom comes to visit for E's first birthday.

Knitted Dishcloths, because I am that girl

2009-01-24T17:11:00.000-08:00

Yep. I'm going to knit some dishcloths. I don't know why. It seems like the thing to do when you're penny pinching and a knitter. I feel like it's part of the category that also includes things like darning socks and hauling water and canning pickles or whatever. I may also just be thinking of things you do on a prairie. Maybe I should also plant some crops.

I blame Ravelry, of course. I mean, only Ravelry could make knitted dishcloths cool. But if I start knitting, say, doorknob covers, then I must be stopped.

In other news, E learned to walk. Guess that's then end of the baby and the beginning of the toddler. I love that he's growing up but I also really, really hate it. Where'd my tiny baby go?

Dining Room Redux

2009-01-18T13:44:00.001-08:00

We've just about had it with the dining room--a room constantly filled with piles of stuff, stuff, and more stuff. From mail to craft supplies to broken printers to the computer and sewing machine that live on the table, we've got it all. And mostly, it's all inaccessible and annoying. It's hard to sew a quick craft when your supplies are all on top of each other.

Part of the problem is that our furniture never really fit in this room and the overflow from all of the other rooms ended up here. The table is too big, the bookshelves are all wrong and the pieces that do work just get lost in the shuffle.

So we're fixing it. We're selling our table and buffet. I've already jettisoned a fair amount of crafty goodies and I'm going to get rid of more. And we're working on finding just the right replacements. It's going to be great.

Raveling In It

2009-01-11T14:25:00.000-08:00

So this week-end I discovered Ravelry. Wow. It is amazing. It is like the mothership is calling me home. And I don't believe I've seen a bigger timesuck since Facebook. If you haven't been there yet, go now. It is a veritable cornucopia of knitty and crochety goodness. You may never leave. Luckily I have a baby to call me back to reality or I'd still be there, reading sock pattern after sock pattern, imagining them with this yarn or that yarn, almost feeling the lovely sockness on my feet. Of course, like all things internet, it's one more thing to keep from actually knitting (or crocheting or crafting) anything.

I did manage to make serious progress on mom's non-birthday Clapotis. I'm at about the halfway mark. I will need some more yarn, but not for a while yet. My new Valentine's Day deadline is definitely within reach. And I'm working to put some unused craft supplies together for a craft swap and playdate with some fellow mom friends tomorrow. If I'm serious about decluttering, I'll just bring a ton of materials and I'll leave with nothing. But we all know I'm bringing something home. As the pile of clutter I'm sitting amongst is my witness, stuff is my weakness.

In other news, we have discontinued our cable tv. I know. It's crazy. It's wild. I sort of hate it and sort of love it. The main reason we did it was it was just plain way too expensive when most of what we watch is on network tv and/or is available online. But also, I was watching way too much tv, and that's just not the example I want to set for my son. We are using Netflix and are currently watching Smallville (Love it!) but it isn't like I'm watching hour after hour of MSNBC or Animal Planet or Law & Order reruns. I've read a lot and listened to a lot of NPR and basically, I do feel good about the choice. Plus, we'll be saving like a bazillion dollars, and that's good, too.

Chicago is mid-blizzard right now, so I have no good light to take good pictures of the Clapotis. Here's hoping for sun this week as we dig out!

Totally Loving Tuesday

2008-12-30T16:16:00.000-08:00

So, today I'm thinking of things I love.

Of course, my family and all of that. But also these things:

Clapotis! This pattern is so great and easy. I'm knitting one for my mom for her birthday (was going to be for Christmas but oops!) I'm using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Red Rover. But let me just say, this yarn is NOT red. It's pinks and purples and fuscias. Red Rover is a total misnomer, but it's very pretty anyway.

My new rice cooker, thanks to brother-in-law and his wife. Perfect rice every time.

Cloth baby wipes. They're so handy for the usual things one would use wipes for, if you know what I mean, but also great for wiping E's nose when he has a cold, like he does now. Poor E!

Felt food. Man, I am in deep with felt food right now. It's cute and clever and seemingly easy-peasy. I feel like, yeah, I can totally just whip up an entire feast in an hour or so. Of course, like all good crafts, there's more than meets the eye.

My new Etsy Shop. Yeah, it's kind of empty right now. But isn't it nice to be somewhere uncrowded this time of year? Today I went to Costco and it was like visiting Crazytown. My Etsy shop is nothing like that.

Moving Right Along

2008-12-29T13:53:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Dress Again on Blogger! Due to major cuts in our discretionary budget fund, I've decided to move my TypePad blog to Blogger for real. I've had an account here for awhile and I can say, it's nice here. Sunny, bright, lots of room to spread out. Plus, free, and you've gotta like free! So welcome to my TypePad readers. Update your links and enjoy!

We've just returned from a Minnesota adventure to visit my family for Christmas and a Baptism. It was, as always, quite the event. Mother Nature pulled out all the stops to supply us with blizzards, ice storms, rain, and a good, old-fashioned train derailment. Seriously, our trip was like something out of Planes, Trains & Automobiles. On the trip from Chicago to St. Paul, our first class sleeper car on Amtrak was converted into a regular ticket because the fancy train was stuck out west. And our 8 hour trip took 16. Then the train actually derailed about 100 yards or so from the depot in St. Paul. I mean, not a really bad derailment. The engine was just a few feet off the tracks. But really, for trains, a few feet pretty much brings everything to a stop. We detrained into a snowbank and walked to a bus that drove us to the depot. On our return trip, our train was not a train at all but a charter bus driven by a lovely man who had never driven into Chicago before. But we made it, and I guess that's what counts. We arrived to a rainstorm and 55 degree temperatures. Crazy, crazy, crazy. Next year I'd like to be teleported directly into my parents' living room.

We enjoyed a crafty Christmas with felted sweater stockings.

Thanks to our local Village Discount Thrift for the materials! Working with recycled sweaters is so luxurious. It's like stitching into butter, but in a good way. It's definitely something I want to continue doing

Welcome!

2007-03-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

You can find my main blog here:

Dress Again

See you there!