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My First Knit Top

Apr 9, 2018
5 min

My First Knit Top

Earlier this month I was SO excited to get to meet and learn from Marie Greene of Olive Knits in person at the Inaugural Flying Needles Knitting Retreat right here in Williamsburg, Virginia! I've "known" Marie online for a while now via some mutual interests, but it wasn't until I found out that she'd be teaching a class here that I had even the remotest interest in knitting a sweater. I actually messaged her to see if I would still benefit from her class as a crocheter, ha h

A Little Christmas Knitting

Dec 22, 2017
2 min

A Little Christmas Knitting

So I broke out the pointy sticks again for the first time in ... five years? Four years, Ravelry tells me, since my last knitted project. Oy. Too long to remember much, I was afraid, but lo and behold, I REMEMBERED how to cast on! It took a couple tries, but by golly I got it! What came next, on the other hand, required a lot of time on YouTube. O.o It took me far longer to make these measly six rows of K1, P1 ribbing than I care to admit. But once I finally got going, well,

Distressed Geometric Nails

Nov 25, 2017
1 min

Distressed Geometric Nails

I could tell you I began this manicure with the intent to make them look "distressed" but that would be a fib. The truth is, I was having a heck of a time picking up a clean image and well, naptime is only so long, so I decided to roll with it! And so I give you distressed geometric nail art. Yay or nay? This is actually the final prompt in the November nail art challenge from @clairestelle8 and @myblisskiss on Instagram but I skipped ahead because, quite frankly, I wanted t

Neon Floral Lace Nails

Nov 15, 2017
2 min

Neon Floral Lace Nails

Prompt number two for the November nail art challenge from @clairestelle8 and @myblisskiss on Instagram is lace and apparently I don't have a proper lace stamp! I did find a somewhat lacy floral one, though, so I decided to use that. And since I always think of red with lace, I figured I ought to try something different. Turns out, though, my super bright pink still looks kind of red in my picture! Oh well. Paired up with my favorite neon green and a little glitter, though,

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 9

Nov 8, 2017
2 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 9

This, my dear friends, is THE END of this amazing yarn club. What a fun little adventure it has been! But it's not actually over for me, as I will continue working on designs for the yarns I still haven't used yet from the club, including the piece you'll get to see me wearing in this video! The final shipment for this club is a little bit different from what we've seen before, as it's a variegated yarn. Why the switch from solid and tonal colors? Because the story wouldn't h

Peacock Feather Nails

Nov 7, 2017
2 min

Peacock Feather Nails

Just when I thought I was going to start doing my nails again, oh, almost TWO MONTHS AGO, they decided to break and tear and get burned (I grabbed the metal handle of a pan that I had just taken out of a 400 degree oven - NOT my finest moment and yes, I cried like a baby) and get chopped off. It was ridiculous. But they seem to be healing and holding together well enough now and when I saw the new @clairestelle8 nail art challenge that just happens to be a challenge with PRIZ

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 8

Oct 20, 2017
1 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 8

Only one shipment left! *cries* I know, I'm super behind with the designing I had planned to go along with this yarn club, but I'm still so sad to see the end coming! She may have saved the best for last, though, because this month's yarn is just dreamy. D R E A M Y, y'all! It's definitely a luxurious feeling yarn and I adore the color it came in, too! I have a couple ideas for this one, but they're going to need some dedicated creative time to get properly fleshed out. In th

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 7

Sep 22, 2017
1 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 7

Well, I must say that the final third of the Tristan and Isolde Yarn Club has begun with a bang! The yarn that Karen sent for this installment of the story is a new colorway dyed on a favorite base and I'm excited to crochet with it! I have the seed of a slightly rebellious design plan creeping it's way in and if it works I think it might just be my favorite new scarf. But before I give too much away, I'll let you take a look for yourself! SPOILER ALERT! Picture of YARN below

Golden Flower Nails

Sep 21, 2017
1 min

Golden Flower Nails

My poor, poor naked nails! I've been so busy with my crocheting (and other mundanities like sleeping and housekeeping) that they've been utterly neglected of late. The itch finally overtook me again, though, and I did this simple but pretty mani. Of course, I had to offer you photographic evidence! It's nothing fancy, but it sure did feel nice. So nice, in fact, that I painted them again later in the week! I had plans for some more flowers, but I ran out of naptime, so they r

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 6

Aug 5, 2017
2 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 6

Two. Thirds. Through. *cries* I just can't believe it! The Tristan and Isolde Yarn Club has been so fun and so inspiring - I have been spending SO much more time designing and I love it! It's been a challenge and no, I haven't totally kept up, ha ha (there's that one pesky skein of Isolde that I STILL haven't figured out what to do with yet) but overall I've kept the ball rolling pretty well. In fact, I have a FO to show off with last month's yarn! Pattern is in the works and

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 5

Jul 7, 2017
1 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 5

We are officially on the downhill side of the Tristan and Isolde Yarn Club and I am SO. SAD! It's been so much fun!

Harry Potter House Sorting Kit: a Brew City Yarns Unboxing

Jun 21, 2017
2 min

Harry Potter House Sorting Kit: a Brew City Yarns Unboxing

Eeeek! Y'all I am SO excited about this! A couple months ago I caught sight of the most intriguing image in my Instagram feed. It simply said, "Who will be Chosen? Signups Now Open at Brew City Yarns" with a caption reading, "Muggles beware..." !!! I wasn't the only one clamoring for more information, either. I soon learned that Brew City Yarns was creating Harry Potter themed House Sorting Kits and I HAD to get in on one! Of course, I already knew which House I belonged in (

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 4

Jun 14, 2017
2 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 4

Wow. I am LATE with this one! Sick kid and busy husband and tired mommy just don't equal enough energy for filming, though, unfortunately. So with only the tiniest of peeks, because come on, who's THAT disciplined!? I waited until I was able to film this past weekend finally to play with the yarn. And y'all it's SO pretty! But I'll tell you more about that later! The upside of the delay in filming was that I was able to wear (and show off, ha ha) the cowl that was my original

Natural Bridge Mini Vacation

Jun 8, 2017
1 min

Natural Bridge Mini Vacation

Recently DH had a few days off so we all decided to go adventuring. We drove westward to see the Natural Bridge, which was a lot bigger than I imagined! I think my favorite part about the trip was getting to tromp around in the woods. There are a couple trails here where we live, but I miss hiking. We also checked out the local zoo while we were there, where baby boy got to meet and feed lots of fun new critters. He was downright giggling about the first couple animals he got

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 3

Apr 21, 2017
1 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 3

Shipment number three has arrived! I can't believe we're already a third of the way through this yarn club. Sad face? But it's been fun so far, so I can't be sad! I've already released one new pattern and I will actually have TWO patterns using yarn from the second shipment, so this little journey has already been quite the inspiration! Thus far, I am nothing but impressed with the yarn I've received from Karen Robinson of Round Table Yarns and this month's yarn is no excepti

Twilight Fairy Nails

Apr 18, 2017
2 min

Twilight Fairy Nails

I've had naked nails for a couple days now and it's made me sad to see them that way - I think that means I have officially rediscovered my obsession with nail art! Well, perhaps on a lesser scale than before the baby was born. It's just so hard to find the time anymore. I have so much crocheting I want to do... And then there's sleep, too, of course. Definitely NOT overrated. Not anymore anyway. But I digress. I plan to film tomorrow, so that meant it was time to sit down an

Holo Party Ombre Nails

Apr 4, 2017
2 min

Holo Party Ombre Nails

I've been on a minimalist kick with my nail art lately, in no small part due to the tiny dictator that rules my world now. But as I considered what simple, two toned sort of mundanity I was going to inflict on myself next, I realized that what I needed was some COLOR. So I dug around in my polish drawer and selected half a dozen or so holographic beauties from Julep, most of which I'd splurged on a few months back and then only used one or two of. Typical. But their time had

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 2

Mar 24, 2017
1 min

Tristan and Isolde: A Yarn Club Unboxing, Part 2

It's here, it's here, it's here! Shipment number two (of nine) in the Tristan and Isolde Yarn Club from Round Table Yarns!

Linear Rosemary Nail Art

Mar 23, 2017
2 min

Linear Rosemary Nail Art

I've been neglecting my nails of late. Since before the baby was born, in truth. I mean, those last few weeks? BREATHING was an issue! He definitely didn't approve of me scrunching over in a chair to paint my nails. :- / Then, of course, once he arrived, my priorities changed. As did my sleep schedule. Or lack thereof. O.O And so it has been. With the lack of sleep. Sleep deprivation. Zombie days. Zombie MONTHS. He STILL has only slept through the night a couple times. I fant

Bringing Pichinku yarn to life!

Feb 21, 2017
8 min

Bringing Pichinku yarn to life!

So I stumbled across this gorgeous photo of a yummy looking teal blue yarn with dried flowers as I was scrolling through my instagram feed one night - it was some ridiculous hour of the night and I couldn't sleep because I'd gone to bed at seven with the baby because I was exhausted and then I woke up a couple hours later, the rest of my night doomed because I'd tried to go to bed early. How does that even make sense!? But I digress. Back to the yarn. THIS yarn! Something abo

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