Happy Halloween!!!

I hope everyone has a great Halloween. Dress up, go trick or treating, carve a pumpkin...or at very least, eat candy! Happy Hauntings!

Happy Anniversary...

...to me and Shane!

It's been four wonderful years since the man and I got hitched. We had an Oct. 30 wedding, with mixes of beautiful fall colors and a few fun Halloween goodies, such as pumpkins topped with dried flower arrangements, a skeleton holding a papier mache coffin card box, and little plastic pumpkin favors filled with trick or treat candy. But the cake topper, well, took the cake.

WOW...Another RAK Arrival

I must be having a lucky streak! I just received another RAK package in the mail on Monday. Thanks bunches to sheliah in Minnesota!!! Hmm...now what should I make with my new goodies?

Pillows in Progress

I received the fabric for my living room redecorating project....YAY! It's just as wonderful as I'd hoped. Here's a quick look at the pillows in progress, inlcuding the glass of wine that is an integral part of the creative process. The pillows are actually all done, but I wanted to wait for the big reveal until the LR is complete...or close to it anyway (is decorating ever really complete?).

RAKs for Me

From the Ravelry RAK group, I've already received quite a few people who have come and visited my blog (thanks again to the new visitors!). But I've also received a few fun items that I wanted to share with you.

First, from jules1960...CANDY!!! Yum. I received a bag of Jelly Belly's Sassy Sour Jelly Beans and a bag of Sour Gummy Worms. Both were delicious! (I shared with Shane.)


The second thing I received was a new knitting pattern I had wanted from SweaterBabe.com. It was given to me courtesy of HelloKitten82. I have a ton of projects to get through before I can start, but once I get some free time, I can't wait to do this one!

The point of RAK is to give, not receive. And I have to say giving has brought me great joy. But, I can't lie, sometimes receiving a little something has really brightened up my days. Keep that in mind for those around you!

The Actual Hat

If you didn't already guess, I write a lot of my blog posts in advance. So when I wrote yesterday's post about my Obama hat, the hat wasn't done, but was close. I now have pics to show the finished piece. Seems like I finished it overnight, but really it was a few days in the making....or knitting.

GObama!

On Thursday, I had planned to see Barack Obama speak in Madison; however, he had to cancel his rally. While I was sad, it was for a good reason...his maternal grandmother who raised him fell ill. He is taking a few days off to be with her. Good for him!

I was planning on wearing this hat at the rally. Guess I'll have to save it for canvassing instead.

A Family Skull Affair

So yesterday I showed you the baby hat I made that my co-worker bought for another co-worker. Well, once he received the hat for his baby, he decided every member of his family needed one. So, I knit one for the baby's older brother, mom and dad. Such a fun project. And I just found, another member of his family wants three hats for their family!

Baby Skull Cap

I knit up a cute little baby hat with a felt skull and bow on the front. I was all set to add it to my Etsy shop, when a co-worker saw it and snatched it up for another co-worker's baby. Being a baby boy, the bow had to be removed, but the end product was just as adorable!

Nesting

Despite being in an apartment for a temporary amount of time, I've decided that I can't not decorate (yes, I'm going for the double negative). As I mentioned in my last post about this, I was questioning whether or not it was worth the money. But the more I stare at blank walls and huge windows with dull white horizontal blinds, I decided it was worth my sanity to put a little bit of money toward it. Especially when winter hits and I see the inside of the walls all the time. Plus, I can always bring use these things in our next home.

With all of that said, no actual decorating has taken place. However, I have bought things so that I can start. First, curtains. On second thought, actually, first I should start by saying I didn't go in the direction I had originally planned. I wanted blue and brown with hints of red/orange. I still am going with those colors, but the emphasis on which colors are dominant has changed a bit.

OK, back to curtains. I found some from Better Homes and Garden at my not so favorite store, Walmart. The pic kind of sucks, but they are embroidered with red, blue, green and orange flowers. Very pretty up close.

I then moved onto pillows. On Etsy, I found some beautiful Amy Butler fabrics from material girl shoppe. Once it arrives, I'm going to start making pillows for the couch.

Going in this route means I can use many of the other decorations that are already own, such as lamps and lampshades. Once I get the room decorated, I'll take pics and post.

More Halloween Knitted Fun

Let me first clarify that I can't take credit for making these, but they made me laugh so much that I had to share. In keeping with Halloween knitting, I thought these Dawn of the Knitted Dead and Michael Myers were perfect to feature. They're just so creative! For more funny knit characters, check out the adventures of cakey voice.

Bloomers!

The world is a mess right now, but that doesn't mean there aren't things out there to smile about. You have to remember to stop and smell the flowers. =)

Itty Bitty Boo Hat

Inspired by the Halloween tea cozy I knit, I decided to make up an teeny tiny baby hat for Etsy. It was super quick to make, and turned out pretty cute. I like the ghost the best. If you're interested, it's in my shop.

Ravelry and RAK Pattern Testing

I can't believe in all these months of posting that I've never talked about Ravelry. According to the site, Ravelry is a community for knitters, crocheters, designers, spinners, and dyers to keep track of their yarn, tools, and pattern information, and look to others for ideas and inspiration.

I love this site because I can have one central place for all my knitting stuff--patterns, pictures of things I've knitted, and a place to get inspiration for new projects. I also love the groups you can join, which are like smaller communities within a big community. I have a number of groups that I belong to, but my faves are Knitters for Obama and RAK. The first group is obvious what it's about. The second stands for Random Acts of Kindness. This group is all about doing nice things for one another. If you read the comments on my site, you may see lots of RAKers stopping by. That's because we get to create wish lists, and on mine was for people to visit my blog and make comments. (Thanks to all the RAKs who've visited!)

nother RAKer was looking for pattern testers. She's going to be selling patterns to help cover the medical costs for her husband. I was more than happy to help out, so I contacted her to volunteer. She's going to be selling tea cozy patterns that are holiday themed. I volunteered to do the Halloween pattern, since it's one of my favorite holidays. The pattern turned out great, and was very well written. But even better was the joy that came from doing something nice for someone else. Try it and you'll see!

Birthday Scarflette

Not sure why, but I know a lot of people with birthdays between October and February. So, in a sense, this month kickoffs the time when I need to start making or buying lots and lots of gifts. First up, is my step-mom's birthday. (I'm pretty sure she doesn't read this blog...if so, sorry Suzi for the spolier!). Last year, I was a total jerk and missed her birthday (like sent an e-card a week after...ugh!). I hate it when I do that, so this year, I'm hoping to make up for a little lost ground with a handknit scarflette. The yarn is Claudia & Co. in John B. color. Obviously, the season inspired the color. The stitch is a fan and feather. Now I just need to find a pretty brooch to finish the gift package.

My Prize Package Arrived

Thanks again to Lolly over at Lolly Chops for my awesome prize package! Not only did she send me the wonderful earrings that she made, but she also included a bunch of little wonderful goodies. Nothing is more fun than surprises! I loved opening the envelope and finding a beautiful bag filled with a sweet note from Lolly, fun fabric-covered magnets, and a measurement card (which I desperately needed...I rely too much on computer for that stuff, which ruins the whole cooking vibe). All of this and gorgeous earrings, too? I'm the luckiest girl in the world!

Itty Bitty Shoes

Look at these really cute little shoes from this Japanese site. I want one of each pair, which means it doesn't matter if the shoes are wearable or not...I want them all!

My First Etsy Set

I've added my first set to my Etsy shop. It's a scraflette and fingerless gloves combo. I really like the color yarn. Then again, I'm partial to orange. The cool thing is that the yarn is more a twist of yellow and pink that give off the appearance of orange.