I’m Back!

HEY GUYS!!!!

I’m back! My test is done! It was on Friday. It’s a pretty intense experience – 8 hours of testing, 100 questions. It was open-book and you can bring in whatever references you want. It was pretty wild to see everyone wheeling around their carry-on bags full of books (myself included). I actually had someone at work tell me I was lucky it was open book, like somehow this made everything easier. FOR REAL? That only means that they can test you on pretty much anything. Doesn’t anyone remember how much harder the open book exams were in school? The failure rate for the environmental exam hovers around 40%. Good times!

So how did it go? It suuuuucked. I’m pretty sure that I failed and will be retaking the test in October. There were just too many questions where I was like, “Cool, just gonna bubble in ‘A'” for me to feel good about passing. But honestly, I’m so elated that it’s over with that I don’t even care that I probably failed it. There are worse things in life than potentially failing a test. I am just really happy that I tried. Now time to wait 8-10 weeks for the results.

And I just have to give a shout out to my family and my fiancé for all their support! They were amazing!

But for real, I don’t know what to do with all this free time and these songs encapsulate my feelings. And if you clicked on those links, YOU’RE WELCOME.*

Anyway, my Willow Tank is done!! Lookit!

This was my very first time making a shirt. It was pretty intimidating but my teacher did a good job of stepping us through the process. It was also my first time sewing darts. My darts are really wonky and apparently sewing in a straight line is still a difficulty for me. But I’m so happy it’s done! I finished sewing the bias tape to one of the armholes and collar this evening since we ran out of time in class.

I must admit I tried really hard to do the “thoughtfully contemplating my shopping list” pose that everyone on Instagram seems to do when modeling their makes. You can tell I’m trying really hard not to laugh in the photo above! Fiancé took the photos of me and I had to explain to him why I was staring at the ground like this:

I hope you all had a great weekend! Please catch me up on all the crafty things you’ve been doing. I’m glad to be back. Talk to you all soon!

* I don’t even like this song all that much, but I just can’t help belting out the chorus from time to time. THIS IS MY TRUTH.

Two More Weeks Until the Test, or: MORE PICTURES!

Hi guys! I hope you all had a good weekend. It’s less than 2 weeks until my test, and I’ve been really stressing out about it. But only two more weeks of studying and I will be freeeeeeeee.

Today I was feeling very grumpy, and like a small child, I was mollified with a treat (Starbucks) and toys (pretty fabric).

PICTURE TIME!

I stopped by The Cloth Pocket today to pick up some fabric for my upcoming Grainline Studio Willow Tank class. I’m so happy The Cloth Pocket is around, especially now that Stitch Lab has closed. They are offering so many cool classes and honestly, the location is a lot easier for me to get to than Stitch Lab’s. I was so excited that I signed up for the Fancy Tiger Sailor Top class next month. Yay!!

In project news, I’ve been going back and forth between the Scheepjes Hygge CAL and my Little Box of Crochet mug cozy project. I really have been loving the CAL, but I’ve hit a bit of a snag.

These bobbles are supposed to “pop”…but as you can see, my bobbles are not popping. I’ve watched the video tutorials and followed the pattern but I can’t get my bobbles to pop! So frustrating! I was feeling pretty bummed about it until I went on Instagram and discovered that apparently there’s an entire hashtag dedicated to #bobblegate for the poor souls experiencing the same bobble issues that I am. The CAL Facebook group has a pattern hack to make the bobbles pop, so I’ll have to frog this and try that hack instead. I’m way too tired to do that tonight, so instead I worked on this:

This is the second mug cozy from Little Box of Crochet’s February box…I think this color palette is my favorite of the two! Hopefully this will be a quick project.

Alrighty! I’m going to watch John Oliver and wind down with some projects. I hope you all have a great week!

Rapid Fire Picture Post Time

Hey guys! I hope all is well. Things are good here, studying has taken over my life, etc etc.

PICTURE TIME.

So I’ve been able to work on my Little Box of Crochet March project…I have one mug cozy completed. I just have to block it, which I’ve been too lazy to do. Blocking and gauge swatches – who has time for that? (I know, I know, these are important elements, just let me ask my rhetorical questions.)

I’m now working on the second cozy, which has pretty flowers:

I’ve also been working on my embroidery project from Studio MME:

But most importantly, I can confirm that, yes, I did order the Scheepjes Hygge CAL kit in Jewel because it arrived today! Look, look, look:

Squeeeeee!

Ok, I’m going to unwind by working on my projects! I hope you had a great Monday. Let me know what you’ve been working on!

Pretty Things

Good morning friends!

I can hardly believe it is already Wednesday, which means my test is a little over three weeks away.

::hyperventilates into paper bag::

Apollo has been a dependable study buddy, but as you can see, he’s getting a little tired of it.

Pup pup

As promised, here are some beautiful things I’ve been working on lately or that have been inspiring me.

I received my package from Hawthorn Handmade this week! This packaging is so lovely!

Hawthorn Handmade.png

I bought this cute set of cacti and succulent journals this weekend at Book People:

I’ve been working on this pretty floral theme from Studio MME’s Super Stitchers’ Club:

And also on last month’s Little Box of Crochet…it was designed by Attic24, which means lots of beautiful colors!

Those colors are so scrumptious!

Speaking of scrumptious, I may or may not have used pay day as an opportunity to purchase the Scheepjes CAL Hygge kit.

15977171_1527097337318927_423776202496030136_n (1)

ALLEGEDLY. ALLEGEDLY I purchased this kit in the Jewel colorway because I’ve been eyeing it for months and I probably won’t finish it until December but. BUT. All this studying has put me in treat myself mode.

Okay, I need to work! Have a great day!

Little Box of Crochet – Peacock Pincushion

Good morning everyone! Hope you’re having a relaxing Saturday so far. It’s a pretty cozy morning; I’ve got a cup of coffee next to me, my planner open, and Fiancé and Apollo are snoozing next to me on the couch. I’m going to watch a little TV and work on a project before diving back into studying.

I’m all finished with the Little Box of Crochet Peacock Pincushion and fob! This is the July 2016 box but when I received it, I was very intimidated by the project. I’m glad I finally decided to do it, as it’s a pretty approachable project for beginners.

July box.png

With this box you get lovely pins, a stitch marker, stickers for labeling your boxes should you decide to reuse them, and 5 balls of Scheepje Catona yarns. I have already squee’d in a previous post over this yarn, and I am continuing to squee here. It is such a treat to be able to work with Scheepje yarn since I can’t find that brand here in the States. This yarn was so yummy and was a breeze to work with. Amanda Bloom notes in her booklet that she couldn’t bear to break down the balls so she blew the month’s budget by keeping all the balls intact -Amanda, I’m so glad you did! You should have extra yarn when you finish this project; I haven’t decided what to do with mine yet!

The pincushion and fob worked up pretty quickly and I actually didn’t lose any stitches while working in the round. I had the most difficulty with the peacock feathers – and even those weren’t “hard,” I just was unsure of what to do with one step in the pattern. This is probably more of my inexperience than any issue with the pattern. Other than those minor issues, the pattern was pretty easy to follow and there are lots of pictures to guide you.

What do you think?

I’m quite pleased with how this project has turned out. Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

First Day of Spring! Inspirations

Spring is finally here! Although it’s been feeling like spring since February? But that’s Texas weather for you. Today I was ~~planting flowers I’d purchased three weeks ago~~ tending to my garden and noticed a lovely Texas bluebonnet blooming.

bluebonnets

I have a brown thumb, so I wanted to capture this moment before it dies next week. ::insert inspirational thoughts about flowers and spring here::

This weekend was pretty great. My friends and I decided to check out SXSW on Saturday. I don’t go to SXSW every year, but when I do, it’s always fantastic. I think my fondest SXSW was in 2011, when Brother and I attended the Foo Fighters documentary premiere Back and Forth, and Dave Grohl was RIGHT ACROSS THE THEATER eating POPCORN and it was CRAZINESS. That was also the year we waited in line for five hours to get into the MTV Woodie Awards just so we could watch the Foo Fighters perform one song.*

This year my friends and I took a more chill approach to SXSW, but we still had a blast. They are all artistic people and I feel more inspired to create just being around them. We also caught some really good shows. I’d been feeling burned out on shows lately but Saturday refreshed my palate, I think. My friend and I caught this one band called Happy Meals, and it was such a fun set. But I’m hesitant to look them up now because I’m afraid they won’t sound as amazing when I’m sober.

Now that it’s spring and I’m wrapping up my pincushion project (the review will be ready this week!), I’m already eyeing more projects to add to my queue. After my test is done, of course.**

PICTURE TIME.

Wool and the Gang Dylan Tank

Wool and the Gang has all these awesome free patterns, and I’m eyeing this one for spring. REAL TALK – I would nix the fringe though.

Two of Wands, Movie Night Cocoon Cardi

I love this cardi by Two of Wands. It would be a perfect transitional piece for the approximately two cooler days I can expect this spring.

Crochet-Pattern-Afternoon-Breeze-Shawl-90311B-a

Lion Brand Afternoon Breeze Shawl

Ditto on this shawl. It’s so cute! I can wear it to work so I won’t freeze to death in my cube.

Finally, I want to make this:

Fancy Tiger Crafts Sailor Top

I wish I had known about Fancy Tiger Crafts when I visited Denver two years ago, because I would have been ALL UP IN THAT. I really have been wanting to go back to Denver because Rocky Mountains, the crepes place, Garden of the Gods, it’s amazing, etc etc etc, so this is just another reason to visit, right? Anyway, I got a little sidetracked…this top is really cute and versatile, and it’s supposed to be beginner friendly. I really want to make it. ~~And also move to Denver.~~

I need to be responsible so I should probably sleep. Good night!

*I’m very done with waiting in line for hours and hating my life, but I’m really glad I did it then and have those memories.

** I splurged on a review course so my attitude has gone from “I’m going to fail” to “I might pass, maybe!”

Maker Crush – Hawthorne Handmade

This post is brought to you by another cup of coffee and a huge lack of motivation. So while my brain remembers what it’s like to function, let me show you the work of a wonderful artist I recently discovered.

Hawthorn Handmade is an adorable Etsy shop out of the UK that makes the most wonderful little craft kits. Seriously, take a look:

Barn Owl Needle Felting Kit

Bear Embroidery Kit

Grey Hare Amigurimi Crochet Kit

Little Owl Amigurimi Crochet Kit

The designs are so adorable. I may or may not have purchased the bear embroidery kit and owl crochet kit with an Etsy gift card I received for my birthday last year. These kits just looked too good to pass up!

The Cozy Bird

Crafting Happiness, One Day at a Time

Author Archives: Jenny