My Shawl

I am SO excited. I finally completed a project for myself. It has been so long... Lately everything that I start out making for myself I either end up selling or giving away. Not this time buddy!! It turned out very nice. I did make one mistake that I was too lazy to go back and correct. I left it in on purpose so that I could make certain that I would never try to let someone else take it. Here are a few pics...

Hobby Rotation

I started knitting again for real. I finally visited my new favorite yarn store http://www.unwindyarn.com/ I fell in love with the store and bought yarn for a new project before I arrived home and realized that I still have a hat and blanket that I have not touched in a month and a half. I got right to work and immediately began to relax. I always forget how knitting takes the stress away...

I realized a few weeks ago that my problem is that I do not rotate my hobbies frequently enough. I have always been the one who will put one hobby down in order to pick up another one. I have promised myself to be a bit better regarding that and it has worked out fairly well. So much so that I have picked up my knitting again and have made major progress on the blanket that I have been neglecting AND I will have that slouch hat completed by this evening.

The Slouch Hat...

That hat has to be the poster child for every mistake in the book. I lost count so many times while both increasing and decreasing that there is absolutely NO pattern to be found in the stitching. Not only that but, at one point, I also lost my stitch marker and did not realize it until I was halfway through that row. A Complete MESS!!!! The funny thing about it is that the hat is for my mother and she totally LOVES it. Every time I complain about a mistake and say that I am going to snatch it out she adamantly refuses, saying that she can not tell and that it looks great. "Umm...No Ma'am it does not but I will make sure that it is presentable before I give it to you." I will post pics soon...

Back in stride...

I am happy to say that I have picked up my projects again and even started a quilting project. With the hat that I was stuck on, I still could not bring myself to count the stitches so I had my mom do it for me. I will post a picture of it soon.

On another note, I was very sad to learn that my new favorite yarn store went out of business. So now I have to either drive to Burbank or all the way to the SouthEast Long Beach Marina to find some great yarn. Or I can just order it off of the internet I suppose...

Good News!!

I was able to find a copy of the hat pattern on Ravelry. I was oh so happy about that. Now I just have to make myself sit down and begin working on it again.

Big News! California is on fire. AGAIN!! It has been REALLY bad this time. There were like 3 fires going at the same time so, of course, the L.A. basin has been covered by a thick layer of smoke for the last few weeks. The major problem with that is (for me) that most of my immediate family is in danger of having their homes burn down because the all live directly in the path of the largest of the fires. I spoke with two of my aunts and they were out feeding the fire fighters and deputy sherrifs.

It is Labor Day weekend and mi madre y yo decided to drive to Santa Barbara for a quick visit to other family members. It is so lovely here!! Wind blowing like crazy, cool not 90 degree weather like down in L.A.

There was something else that I wanted to type but I forgot....see ya.

I LOST it!!!!

Ok, so I FINALLY sat down to work on the slouch hat that I had been working on and guess what?!?!? I could NOT find the pattern for the hat!! I have been looking EVERYWHERE for it and it is simply GONE. So now I am torn betwee snatching it out or driving to JoAnn's to purchase another one. URGHHHH!!! Hey wait! Maybe I can find it and print it out on Ravelry
that would be a major help if I could.

I am starting a new book today. Debbie Macomber's Back on Blossom Street. Yes, I know that I am a few books behind on the series but, what can I say, I was in school and did nothing but study. Well...sort of. Anyway, that is the book that I am starting today so we will see how it goes.

So Little Time...

Ok, I AM going to knit something today! I just have to find the time. Between looking for a job, laundry, cleaning and going through things in the house (preparing for another yardsale), Job Hunting, running errands por mi madre and, oh yeah, trying to FIND A JOB my day has flown by before I know it. I have not read or scrapped anything either. I had a LOL moment yesterday when I ran across an old picture and thought "Hey this would be great for my scrapbook!" Then I remembered that I had left ALL of my scrapping stuff in North Carolina at a friends house and I STILL have not been able to go and retrieve it. Oh well, I will get to it at some point...

Pacific Ocean

I simply love the picture posted above. I took it in Santa Barbara on my way home from my relative's house up there. The ocean was so beautiful and calming. You can tell that God was there. It makes me want to dive in everytime I look at the picture.

Knitter's Block

Is there a such thing as Knitter's Block? Well if not then there is now. For some reason I am stuck on two projects. I am working on another hat and for some reason I could NOT bring myself to count the round to make sure that I know have 180 stitches. I completely stopped working on the hat. What's up with that? Too make matters worse I STILL have not completed that multi-colored blanket that I have been working on since, what, December. I don't know...HELP!!

Latest Projects

Good Morning! I hope all is well. Since I have been back in California, I have completed a few projects. I discovered the I love making slouch hats and berets. My main goal is to complete a cable blanket that I just saw on www.LionBrand.com I stopped posting pictures of my projects here because I joined www.Ravelry.com which is like the BEST SITE EVER because it is for crafters. :-) I may post a few of my latest projects on the blog later.

Back in Cali

Well, I have officially graduated with my MLS. I kept my job for two months past graduation and decided to move home to L.A. I really have missed my family here. The most interesting thing is that I have started reading again. I have read like 12 books since I have been home. While I was in graduate school, I did not read for pleasure very often. I actually felt guilty if I picked up anything other than my text book. While I have been home looking for a job, I have not only been able to read more but I have been able to pick up and concentrate on my craft projects again. It has been great!!! Of course, the first thing that I did upon my return to California (once I got settled in) was go out and find a place to buy my yarn and take a few classes (even though I do not have a job or any money), because these are major things that a girl needs to know. I found a boutique called A Mano Yarn Center out in Mar Vista. It is a really cool store where I felt most welcome. I can not wait to complete the project that I am working on now, so that I can get started on the next one. Oh, and find a great library in which to start my career, of course!!