many projects

This past month (2 months) has been CRAZY!!! I have completed and started so many projects that I lost count a long time ago. One that I completed was my knitting needle organizer. I made it so that it would hang on the wall and possibly fold and roll up if I needed it to, but I think that it will always be too full to fold. Besides I don't know why I would need to have my entire collection of knitting and crochet needles anywhere but at home. I used a bunch of Amy Butler scraps that I had left over from other projects and although the organizer is HUGE, I really like how it turned out. The main thing I was trying to accomplish was to just be able to look over and see if I had a specific size needle and to just grab it, instead of having to fish through a bin of assorted needles for 10 minutes every time I started a new project.
I also completed the knitted bear for my cousin's baby, but I neglected to take a picture of it. So you will have to take my word for it.... it turned out cute.

I decided to make my Christmas cards this year. Usually I buy my Christmas cards the day after Christmas for the following Christmas season and store them for a year. And I usually buy the really simple ones that you insert the standard size picture into the pre-made frame. This year when I was making the invitations to my son's birthday I stared to wonder, "why don't I make my Christmas Cards when I make cards for every other occasion?" So I decided to make them and I knew that I was going to have to make them early because I am not going to have much time for anything soon. It took me a week to do, but they are all done.... all 110 of them. I can't take the credit for the design, I got the idea directly from the Spring 2008 issue of Paper Crafts Magazine.

The idea came from p.36 and the thing I liked the most about this design is that it had a picture that you could hang in the Christmas tree. I didn't intend on using the same paper, but I found it on sale at Archiver's and couldn't pass it up. They didn't quite have enough so I found another paper that I liked for the rest of the cards. Both came double sided in 12"x12" and the bottom of the pocket shows the reverse side of the paper. I couldn't find a shipping tag that was the size I wanted so I made the tag and the backgrounds for the text from Manila folders that I use for filing. I also played around with using each side of both papers as the background, so I have 4 different versions of the Christmas card. Inside:

The inspiration card had a ribbon embellishment, but it has been my experience that when you put any embellishments that adds any sort of dimension and then you try to send it through the mail, they end up torn apart when they are delivered on the other end... if they ever make it there. So I think I am going to put a piece of string through the whole for hanging, similar to what you would normally find on the commercial Manila shipping tags. That way they can be hung and the string is thin enough that it won't cause any problems in shipping.

I also added some embellishments on the envelopes that I bought at an office supply and for the most part these are done. I don't have the photo for the cards yet, so that will have to wait until last minute and even though I have put the return address on them already, I am waiting to address them just in case there are addresses that change.

This week I have been working on my son's Halloween costume. I have committed myself to making all of my kids' Halloween costumes, probably because that is what my mom did..... so I started early to make sure that it would get done. This year, my son is old enough to pick out his own costume... so I took him to the fabric store, we looked through pattern books and he picked a pirate. I decided to wait until the pattern was on sale to buy it and while I was waiting I saw a really cute pirate costume on Old Navy's website for an infant (which is no longer available so I can't include a link). I instantly like the look of the Old Navy costume much better than the one that was in the pattern books! So I decided to wing it and make one that looks like the Old Navy version for my toddler. I got a simple pattern for pants and a simple pattern for a buttoned down/collared shirt. I adjusted the pattern so that I could make it out of micro fleece, add french cuffs, a sailor collar, ruffles on each of the cuffs and add embellishments. I decided to buy the pirate hat, an eye patch and a hook. I am trying to find a stuffed parrot for his shoulder, but I am not having any luck with that, so he might have to go without. To be really honest I think my son is only interested in wearing the hat, but the costume turned out great and I can't wait for Halloween!What else??? I have a friend that just got married this past weekend in Georgia and since I am about ready to pop, I couldn't go. But I found this really cute "wall hanging" in the book, Closely Knit by Hannah Fettig, that I checked out from the library. I think it is just a cute something to commemorate their marriage and something to hang on the wall so that they don't ever forget their anniversary :-) So that is what I am currently working on. It is an intarsia pattern and although I have knitted intarsia before, this is the most in depth intarsia pattern that I have attempted. It is looking good and I am learning a lot!

I think that I have started to "nest". Up until recently I thought that was just a myth... but lately I am doing some crazy organizational things like uploading my entire CD collection onto iTunes.... which has become quite the task. But I have also started to do things like make my Christmas ornaments that I make every year for people. This year I have decided to make paper mache "snowmen" but it has turned out to be more work then I wanted... so I might have to rethink my options for that.

I think my next project(s) is going to come out of this book:
There are 2 hats and the sweater pictured on the front that I am dieing to make for the new baby. I think it would also be cute to make matching hats for my toddler too! I must like being busy...