Hobbies For Sanity

EVERYONE needs at least one hobby for the sake of sanity. Or, in my case, several time consuming hobbies...like completing puzzles, reading, crocheting, and most recently, pottery painting and knitting.

....OK So, I also sing along with the radio/my iTunes at the top of my lungs when I'm home alone, but I don't know if that counts as a hobby....:-)

The Point Being That:

As I nervously await word on my application for Teach For America, nurture ulcers concerning our future in general, wade knee deep through Italian tenses, conjugations and idioms, and continue to function at my usual high velocity speed, these hobbies bring me little snippets of much needed peace. My brain temporarily becomes a quieter more well ordered place when all I have to worry about in that second is the next stitch, puzzle piece placement, color choice or plot twist.

With that in mind I have been spending increasing amounts of time and money at UW's "Paint The Town" (A habit I am going to have to regulate better from now on :-D).

AND, as already mentioned, I have begun to learn how to knit. 

Don't get me wrong, Crocheting Is Awesome! It's fast and it's really pretty easy once you get the hang of it, but I have, and I wanted more! I had know from the start that I wanted to both Crochet and Knit since most everyone I talked to in the respective circles did one or the other and claimed their craft was better and hardly anyone seemed to do both.

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

So, after months of crocheting like crazy, I armed myself with some new weapons. 

FIRST, I needed one those Crocheting for Dummies/Young Children kits with pictured instructions, beginning materials, and easy starter patterns. That started me off really well when I started crocheting. 

CHECK!

SECOND, I needed some alternate yarn cuz the yarn that comes with these projects is never soft enough for say, a scarf which is always the more fun beginner project (since it's something you actually have a use for). 

Caron Simply Soft in Pistachio and Pagoda.

CHECK and CHECK!

I started out small with a little pocket purse and then skipped the other projects that I was less interested in and started on a very basic scarf in the pagoda yarn. :)

AND....

TA DA! 

Not too bad if I do say so myself. ;)

And you know what? I feel a little bit better, so mission officially accomplished. <3

HAVE A BEAUTIFUL DAY!

Oldies But Goodies

So Many Projects I Am Sooooo Proud Of That Won't Ever Make It Into This Blog.....UNLESS I just go ahead and put em all up at once! I can't help it! haha I just need to share! :-D

So, Here Goes! Newest Projects to Oldest Projects....sort of :)

Cowel Scarf

Cowl Scarf: Can also be pulled over head to keep ears warm.

Coffee Cup To Go Cozy: SOCK MONKEY! :-D

Started out as a slouchy beanie hat, but ended up a little closer to a kingston. :-P

Hats I made this year as Christmas Gifts!

Granny Square Scarf and first scarf  I ever made. :-)

Little Pocket purse for cards or other odds and ends. 

Soap Bag

Jelly Roll :-)

Jelly Roll Open

Rose Pattern

And Then Projects That Are Not Crochet........

Cross Stitched This In The Months Leading Up To Our Wedding in 2009. Have Yet To Frame It....Lol!

My Mother In Law Taught Me How To Make These Christmas Ornaments. They are genius and sooo easy!

First Shot At The Christmas Ornament Project

Now, that is out of my system and I feel much better! :-D

Have A Beautiful Day!