August Giveaway

Finally...this month's giveaway. Please forgive me. Things here are stressful right now. We've been house hunting and have just bought a house (scroll down for photos). Trying to round up all of the documentation required is so time consuming. Anyway, here's what's up for grabs this month...

I made these from a pattern that can be found on Etsy. It can be found here. I made a couple of pairs and these turned out too small for my feet. 

I changed the design by not adding the back part which would go around the back of the foot.
This pair would fit a size 5.5 - 7.5 US.
So if you are interested in winning this pair of slippers just leave me a comment. I'll randomly choose a winner in a week or so...probably next Sunday (in about 10 days)

Sorry about the blogging inactivity here lately. The house hunt and negotiating has put everything else on hold.

Here's a little preview of the house and land

9.2 acres

Sunroom...I've always wanted one. (These photos show the side of the house. The front is to the left side of the photo below.)

I love weird and different

Not so much for Ireland...this is how she feels about it all:D

She may not be happy about it, but I am. I sure do hope that all goes well (inspection and all) and we can close with no problems.

I'll keep you posted.

Come back in a few days for the Pink Panda hat pattern. I'll have it soon, I promise:)

Don't forget to leave a comment if you would like to win the slippers.

Have a great rest of the week and weekend:)

A Crochet Resolution...and a Preview of This Month's Giveaway

I've made a crochet resolution...As of now, I am not crocheting for payment any more. I'm sooo over Etsy. I joined in 2009 and have never really enjoyed selling. Don't get me wrong, I love Etsy. I buy most of my bags and jewelry from the talented sellers there.   I love to purchase crochet patterns as well. I appreciate all of the great finds that can be found there.

These are some of my latest purchases

Using Etsy as a buyer is much more satisfying (for me)

I actually sell more outside of Etsy. People email and message me with requests. Some are friends and people I know...that's the toughest. Saying no to all of them. 

Personally, I find no pleasure in selling my crocheted projects any more. I love being able to provide something for someone, but find more joy in giving crocheted gifts, offering patterns for free, and blogging. I haven't really spent much time on my Etsy shop. After getting an order for the Colorful Stripey Mitts, I realized that I would rather spend my time doing other things...

I love my day job much more (it pays more of course) I love blogging much more. I love bartering a heck of a lot more. I found that I love crocheting much more without attaching dollars to it all. It's no fun anymore. So now I hope to regain the love of crochet again. No stress, deadlines, or obligation to get it all done.

I have a new friend, a knitter, who I love to swap with. I really enjoy swapping on Ravelry as well.
If anyone would like to swap, let me know...but for selling, I'm done, mostly. I may make a project here or there for sale. But for the most part, I'm gonna give, swap, and enjoy myself again:D

With all of that being said, I'll announce this month's giveaway soon:D

Here's a hint...it's a finished item or two;)

The Pink Panda pattern will be ready in a couple of days as well. I'm slowly trying to get back to what I love to do.

I will offer more details about the giveaway tomorrow when I have better photos.

Have a great week:D

New Projects and a Pattern Preview

I'm finally starting to finish some of my projects;) Considering it's summer, I'm not too worried about it. Here's one of the bunnies. I'm still working on the second. This boy was really easy to make...just time consuming

I've also been putting Pinterest to good use. I've been wanting to make an earring organizer for so long now. I love the frames with the screens, and I've seen them on Etsy and in person at a couple of shops and boutiques. I decided to try one myself. Michael actually made it. He painted the frame and tried to staple the screen inside the edge of the frame.

This was definitely a learning experience. I'm going to ditch this one and start on another. The frame was not sturdy enough. The staples warped the edges of the frame.

So I've decided to go back to Pinterest and follow the tutorial that uses good old Duct tape:)

I've also been working on a new pattern;) 

Can you guess what it is?

Stayed tuned...I'll have it ready in a few days.

Have a great week:D

Four Days at the Beach

Last week we decided to go to the beach. We had a few days off so we headed to Myrtle Beach. With no reservations, Myrtle was our best chance to find a room. It's not our favorite beach (we love any area on the Outer Banks) but we still had fun.

Ireland's favorite spot was the pool.

We also enjoyed...

Yummy drinks :)

Getting our nails and hair done...

Ireland's first haircut

Putt putt, or mini golf

Krispy Kreme...a beach tradition :D

Instagram... Hehe ;)

and of course, the beach

This is how the beach looks everywhere else in Myrtle...too crowded for my taste

Here is the beach near our resort...that's more like it. We stayed at the resort at the very end of the strand, so it felt so much more secluded

I crocheted a little at night in front of the tv. I'm still working on those bunnies that I mentioned a few posts ago. I'm also working on a couple of gifts for babies.

This weekend I'm just catching up on housework and finishing those bunnies.

I hope you all are having a great weekend:)

A Weekend of Relaxation

Last weekend Ireland spent two nights with her aunt and uncle, meaning Michael and I had a whole weekend to ourselves. This was a first...Ireland has never stayed away from home for more than one night. So Michael and I decided to take off to the mountains to escape the heat. We ended up in Blowing Rock. We found a nice little resort...the Crestwood Resort and Spa

The cottage we stayed in

I even had time to play around with my new phone and downloaded Instagram. These photos are more from Crestwood using Instagram...a new obsession. like I need another:D 

Crestwood is a unique and quaint place to stay...with a restaurant, art gallery, and spa.

Checking out the art at the resort

There were so many beautiful flowers at the resort and in the town. Blowing Rock is so beautiful in the summer.

Before leaving for home, we enjoyed a couples massage:)  By then I was sooo ready to come home. I missed Ireland like crazy:D

The Tornado Twister

I was so excited on Friday to check the mail and receive my copy of the pattern that I designed for Spud and Chloe. It is a multicolored, crocheted cowl.

This is the project that I blogged about a few months ago. I'm so happy that you now get to see what I was creating. Spud and Chloe have named it Tornado Twister. I love the name and how it turned out in print. 

I received a copy of the pattern and the catalogue it's featured in.Obviously, I'm really excited. I love seeing my cowl being worn by a beautiful model:)

The new Fall 2012 Blue Sky Alpaca catalogue can be found here. There are so many great projects to see, mostly knitted, but a couple of crocheted items...the Tornado Twister being one of them.

Designing this cowl has been a fun experience and I hope Spud and Chloe/ Blue Sky Alpaca will allow me to design for them in the future. The yarn is pretty divine to work with. Here is the link to the post where I blogged about my experience with the yarn.

To see more projects check out these links:

http://www.spudandchloe.com/

http://blueskyalpacas.com/

I hope you all had a great weekend...mine was relaxing...I'll blog about it in a few days. For now I'm going to enjoy my newly published pattern. Can you tell that I'm excited?:D