Tiff Crochets

I know it’s probably directly related to the holiday shopping frenzy, but trying to create and order our Christmas photo greeting cards is taking me hours and hours.  Okay, it’s only been about 6 songs, 1 load of dishes, and at least one bang of the head on my desk.   I only have to mail about half of them.  The rest get to be hand delivered when we’re in Montana because I’m so hopelessly late this time.

Last weekend, we went ice skating for the family’s very first time.  Here’s Laura doing her best in the crowd.

Maddie was able to use one of the training walkers, which was a blessing.  She was able to enjoy herself a lot more than she would have attempting ice skating on her own.

I only fell once, but when it comes to ice once is enough to produce a very sore bum.

Only three washcloths to make and I’m finished with my crocheted items for this Christmas!  My top New Year’s resolution is to make a list of every female family member, start in January, and make them something crocheted or knitted (as in socks) for next year.   The sooner I get them finished, the sooner I can make things for myself.

I made this little basket for Andy’s aunt.  I used recycled silk sari yarn and a simple square pattern, excluding the increases once I reached a width I was comfortable with.  I have enough to make another basket or two for next year, I think.

It is cold here in north Texas. Yes, I may be wimpy when the temperature is currently 36 and will remain above freezing tonight, but I’m still chilled to the bone. I was raised on the Gulf Coast and my fingernails only turn purple a few times a year. Brrrrrr! I know this is His way of preparing me for our trip to Montana next week, but still - I.am.not.warm.and.cozy and I want to be.

I took a few photos of the girls for our annual Christmas card layout, but I’m not happy with the lighting. We’re heading south to my dad’s for the weekend and hope to get a few outside around his awesome pool while we’re there. Until then, here are my gorgeous girlie pies decked out for the holiday season.

I’m off to attempt an update of my Wordpress files, so hopefully I’ll return to a board that looks the way it’s supposed to. If not, I might just cry.

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Mindless projects are my favorite to work on while in the midst of a TV show marathon. I started to work on a Samantha Scarf while watching Season 2 of Rome and quickly finished 8 of the 17 (or less - details on that to come) flower motifs, which means that I could finish the crocheting tonight. I think this will be a Christmas present, I just can’t decide which female family member will receive it. I guess I just gave away the fact that I have done about 3% of my Christmas shopping for the year. Much to my mother’s chagrin, I am perfectly able to complete my shopping in one day, including ordering online and in-person shopping, while still managing to pick up gifts that fit the recipient. What can I say? I’m talented. Pshaw!

Back to the scarf. The pattern is from Get Hooked, edited by Kim Werker, and the pattern is by me. The colors I used in the book are much more teen-friendly than fits my personality (Tiffany - it is not for you! Take it off your neck right now!), so I opted for a different combination in this scarf.

Details:

Pattern: Samantha Scarf by Tiffany Roots (me!), from Get Hooked, edited by Kim Werker

Yarn: 1 skein Lion Brand Wool Ease Chunky in Black, 1 skein Bernat Softee Chunky in Natural

Hook: “M/13″, 9.00 mm crochet hook

The pattern initially calls for two skeins of Lion Brand Wool Ease, or a comparable worsted weight yarn along with a “J” hook. I like the texture combination of the Wool Ease Chunky, an acrylic/wool blend with the Softee Chunky, an interestingly twisted acrylic. Would I have chosen these two yarns if they had not been sitting on my yarn stash shelf? Most likely not. I wanted to use the color combination and if I had a little extra cash plus were making this for myself, I would have headed straight for my LYS. Instead, I raided my stash and I am so glad that I did. I can see the benefits of a stash moratorium, but I think I would be more attracted to a “stash pantry”. What is a stash pantry?

I do my best keep my kitchen pantry stocked with essentials, just in case one week we need to shave the grocery budget, or I am just not in the mood to go to the store. I keep plenty of spice combinations, tomatoes, stocks/broths, pastas, beans, baking essentials, and a wide variety of frozen vegetables and dairy products. I may use some of these in my food menu for the week, but if I choose to go a different route with dinner, I don’t feel bad about keeping some items in my pantry. A stash pantry would serve a similar purpose.

An ideal stash pantry would keep essentials on hand, including cottons, acrylics, wools, and sock yarns (new obsession), in a variety of sizes and colors without being overwhelming both to space and money constraints. When your yarn budget is low and you cannot fight the craving to start a new project, look in your stash pantry. Before you head out to buy more yarn, check your stash pantry to see if you have something useful available to use instead. Maybe your cotton stash is running low and you know that your local craft store is having a sale on Sugar N’Cream. Take advantage and stock up on a few colors. Utilizing your stash pantry the same way you would your kitchen pantry might lead to a better understanding of just what is lurking inside your stash. It might save you from running out to buy yarn for a last minute baby blanket only to discover when you return home that the same colors and yarn were stuffed at the bottom of a bin, long since forgotten.

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Never, ever cut one of those hard plastic zip ties holding together your strand of Christmas lights with an exacto knife. Even if you try to be careful, you’ll slice a deep cut into your thumb. Right after the pain medication kicks in and you try to do something as simple as zip up your jacket because the temperatures dropped 30 degrees in an hour, you’ll realize that just because your thumb is no longer throbbing, doesn’t mean you can use it yet. Nor will it feel better when you try to get back to work on your socks because the idea of wearing wool socks in a houseful of tile floors sounds really tempting. ugh.

Speaking of the lights, here is what the almost-finished outside of our house looks like. This is before the ladder fell out from under Andy, many more fuses needed to be replaced in the strands from busted light bulbs, and Andy’s pants suffered many holes from climbing around on the roof.

While uploading these photos, I found a few surprises thanks to one of my daughters.

The culprit outed herself by attempting a few self-portraits. I love the photo surprises that I get when I download my photo card. I think some of the greatest photographs in my collection where taken by the girls during random moments.

The culprit:

Ack. My thumb’s killing me. I’m trying not to use the cut side to type, but it’s hard to break a habit. I’m going to go in search of my notes for the hats I made for the girls. I want to make more, but I’m not currently feeling patient enough to try to recreate the pattern by looking at their hats.

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Now playing: Marly - Episode 19 Whatcha’ Gonna Do With A Gall Darn Ball Of Yarn
via FoxyTunes