H is for Hobbies

Today I want to chat a bit about hobbies.  I have many hobbies and I find that these grow, fade, or change over time.  I have spent many hours working on various hobbies over the years: counted cross stitch, crochet, knitting, painting, genealogy, travel, reading, dying yarn, and many more!  I do find that some hold my interest for far longer, while some fade over time.  Either way, they are all wonderful ways to unwind and relax!!

G is for Greeting Cards

I missed posting this yesterday!

Lately I have had an interest in hand painting greeting cards - it seems such a fun and relatively quick way to express my artistic curiosity!  I have several cards up for sale on Etsy and here are a few samples:

F is for Finish it OR Frog and Free it?

I have a scarf that I started a long time ago ad have done nothing on it for some time now.  I need to decide if I want to finish it (the odds seem low on that!) or if I should frog it (undo it) and free the yarn fore something else.  I think I will have to bite the bullet and reclaim the yarn!  The pattern is an Advent style pattern - one part of the pattern is open each day through the Advent season.  I am on day 6 of 24...  The picture posted below was taken November 26th 2013 and I have not added to it since...  On top of it all it is lace weight yarn and has beads added in along the way.

I will frog this thing and find some other use for the yarn - something that really calls to me and that I really love!!

E is for Etsy Shop

So I have recently taken the plunge and opened an Etsy Shop.  So far I am selling hand dyed yarns and original abstract watercolor greeting cards.  I plan to add some patterns I have designed soon (I just need to find the time to do so!).  Now to wait and see if anything actually sells!!

D is for Dying (Yarn)

Recently I gave dying yarn a try and I must admit I enjoy it very much!!  I have tried several techniques and various experiments and have been pleased with all the results.  It is always so much fun to wait and see just what happens!  And then wait until it dries to see exactly what the final product looks like!  The next plan is to list some for sale on Etsy (Monday's post will talk about that!)

C is for Crochet

I learned to crochet many years ago.  Both of my grandmothers crocheted and I was taught the basics by them when I was young.  When I was in my 20s I picked it up again and did a fair bit over the years.  My favorite things to crochet are quilt-ghans - quilt designs adapted for crochet.  These afghans are made with little mini two round granny squares and then stitched together.  Over the years I have made quite a few of them!  Two of my favorites to make are full size "Around the World" quilt-ghans and baby size "Nine Block" blankets.  Here is a sampling of a few I have made over the years:

B is for Balance

Finding a balance in life is important to me!  I love my hobbies but I also love my work (I am fortunate to have a job I love), so I strive to find a nice balance between both!  Work allows me to earn the income to enjoy the hobbies I have and my hobbies give me the down time to recharge and relax after (and before) work.  It's all about a nice balance between the two!

A is for Ambitious

Here we go!!!  I have joined along with an alphabet blogging challenge where, for the month of April, everyone writes a post corresponding to each letter of the alphabet (we get to take Sundays off).  I think I am being very ambitious to do this!!  I am hoping to make it through the entire month, but time will tell!

My focus will mostly be on crafting of various sorts - mostly knitting, designing, and dying yarn, with a few other random things I love thrown in for good measure!

I need to try to keep this short so that I will be able to keep on track (and so that people reading don't lose interest!).  Now - off to make myself an alphabet list and go visit a bunch of other blogs!

Come check us out over here!!