OK, so I have updated the blog, the lists in the side bar.

Progress isn't what I thought it would be, but still I am chipping away at that list. Just need to get my butt in gear for some of the destashing/declutterting.

On the plus side I have taken a photo of my first tatted project, here is a little butterfly, tiny, but complete. I'm going to try another before I move onto the next stage, which is all to do with closing rings and spit rings and stuff.

Wish me luck!

No Pictures Still....

I still haven't got up off my butt and taken picutres.

But I have been making progress with other items though.

Saturday I hunted throught the book shelf and found my book on tatting. The history portion of it was usefull, so are all the little patterns, but the instructions leave a little to be desired. the internet has been far more helpfull. I still have no tatted pieces to show, but I have mastered the double stitch. My only problem is trying to slide the stitches along so that I can close a circle. I can't get them to slide very well. Looking at this site and it seems that I may be doing something back to front and that could be the cause.

If anyone has any hints thoug, I would be gratefull.......

Catch Up

So I am not better but I am functioning. I have stopped talking in cave man grunts and now know what a hairbrush is for. I am almost as normal as I was before.

I have done a small amount towards the 101 things list. I have finished a UFO, read a book and started another, wrote a cleaning plan, planned a budget to get rid of some of my debts, I have organised my Itunes folder, posted a load of stuff on KnitWars, tried needle felting, started the scanning of knitting patterns, and decided that I will not be completing one of my goals in it's current format. Whew!

It sounds a lot like that!

So first up is the completed UFO. Before Christmas (October-ish) (OK, maybe November) I decided that now was the time to start doing any Xmas crafting that I was going to do. I decided to make socks for my youngest sister. Found a pattern, decided that it would fit, got foot measurements off sister and started. This was a challenge for me too as it was my first pair of toe up socks. I knit the foot marveling at how quick they seemed to coming along, mastered the heel and started working up the cuff. I thought I would try them on to see how far the cuff came up my leg. And they fit me perfectly. This may not be a problem I hear you cry, but you see it is. My sister is a whole T.W.O sized bigger than me. So if the socks fit me, they are not going to fit her. I was relativley upset, to put it politely. Outside of blogland the air was blue and I taught DH some swearwords he didn't know. I finished sock one, cast on for sock two and left them there. And promptly gave up any hope of Hand Crafted Christmas Presents. I picked them up a week ago and started in on them again, and last night I became the proud owner of a new pair of socks. Here they are in all their glory.

I have logged all the time on Knitwars and I am now a level 7 Shaman. Sqquuueee. It is amazing how a tiny little incentive like numbers on a screen can get you going. And to prove it here are my stats:

I have really tried to update every little thing on here. I am delighted watching all my points grow.

OK, so to recommend some books if you like fantasy that is. The Dresden Files are the most brilliant books ever and I love them. I read the first two books while we were in Albir last year (wow, that sounds weird). My MIL gave me another 3 to add to the collection, as well as Fabulous Knitted Socks by Interweave Press.

So far I have read book 3 called Grave Peril. The books are by Jim Burton and tell the story of Harry Dresden who is a modern day wizard with modern, supernatural problems when he is working on cases. Grave Peril centred around disturbance in the Nevernever (supernatural realm). Harry races against time to save the ones he loves from the force that is causing all the trouble. It was an excellent read, well worth the time away from knitting.

The book I have now started on is number 4 in the series Summer Knight. This time Harry is enlisted by the Sidhe (Fairies) to help uncover who murdered the Summer Knight. Mab the Sidhe of Winter is being blamed and this could mean a supernatural world war. I am about half way through this one, but I am enjoying it just as much as the others. I would recommend them to everyone. Another good thing about the series is that you don't have to start at the beginning of the series to know what is going on. Each book is a story by itself. If you have read the others then you can make small links, but they are not essential to the story. Anything major that relates to the other books is skimmed upon anyway.

With a couple of the items on the list I needed a bit of help to get organised. I trailed the web until I eventually found two sites that helped me a lot. The first gave me the help that I needed to plan out a monthly budget - hence helping me to clear my debts within the 1001 days. The site is called Budget 5000. The site is Free and easy to use. It gives you a clear outline of you incomings and outgoings. It even tells you how much you have left over. You are able to export your budget too. And set time frames to debts that are paid off in incraments. I found it really helpfull.

The other site is called My Cleaning Plan.

Another free site that helps you to make a cleaning plan (I bet you couldn't of guessed that from the title). I gives you examples of chores that could be relevant to the rooms that you are able to use, but you are able to add your own too if you wish. You are then able to print out a daily/weekly/monthly list of what you need to do. Very impressive.

I also started Needle Felting, but have no pictures as yet. I will try to post some over the weekend. I also want to find my sewing maching and try and work a couple of other items off the list too.

While off ill, with plenty of bed time for thinking I also came to a decision about the Youth Work course that I was taking. I decided to sign off the course. All the other chores, the other degree and all the work placements were beginning to take their toll. So I decided to concentrate on what I have got for now without adding any extra pressure to it. There is also going to be a big medical dilema soon, it will be important that everything else is stress free so that we can go through it as smoothly as possible. So I think I have made the right decision. Now I just have to decide what to put in it's place. I also noticed that Clean the Attic is on the list twice, so I will have to modify that too.

Anyway enough talking, I'm tired - TTFN!

I'm still here....

I've not bombed ... yet.

I'm ill - I have worked towards some of the list but no photos. Don't want to work the camera. As soon as I am better there will be lots of photo's, I promise!

This is a scrapbook of my sister Laura's 21st Birthday - it was made extra special as Shaun her Boyfriend proposed. Click on the picture below to see how it was done.

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

News Just In

In the five hours that I last posted I have been so busy!

I have made a scrumtious tea, which I thoroughly enjoyed, washed up straightaway, put a load of washing in and dried another and sorted another bag of clothes to be donated!

I have even had time to knit for an hour on the toe up socks (a UFO). I have just logged my KnitWars points and it has taked me up to a level 4 Shaman. WoooHooo, I am loving all the productiveness that is happening!

ME? Posting? Again.....

So for those of you who are worrying about me, I am fine really. I am just feeling inspired at the moment.

Today has been one of those days that went from a duckling into a swan. First I had to get up for work and at 7am, then I got straight to working on the list and prepared a healthy meal for tonight (item 20 - cook from scratch). Then I got dressed and went to work. There wasn't much going on there so my oh so kind boss sent me home half day. Yay!

I have worked on several of my 101 list today and even completed one of the items. I think I am going to place a list link thingee in the side bar so that I am able to see easily what I have completed.

So first the completed item, number 91) take a vase into work. Ieuan brought me these lovely wooden roses when we had some bad news in 2007 (I can't believe I am saying that). I have kept them in work to cheer me up, but they were just lying on the desk. Now they are nicely displayed in the vase on my desk. Very Pretty!


So for the ones that I have worked towards, I am working towards number 1 by making the post. Through starting one project I have worked on several items all at once. I have started the Celtic Cable Tote from Interweave Knits. I had a couple of the magazines given to me in a swap by Dawn aka CrochetCompulsive. I then had some money gifted to me over Christmas so I decided to use the extra money to buy the yarn for the pattern. I arranged for a trip over to Stash Fine Yarns in Chester and brought these


and this is the progress I have made



So in doing this and starting I have worked towards numbers 8) complete a knitting project, 11) buy yarn for the project, 24) Knit a cable pattern, 38) Work from a chart, 71) Knit from Ravelry queue, and item 66) Gain KnitWars points.
Talk about a ton of stones for 1 bird.

As I got home early today I also took pictures of my sock yarn stash, logged them on ravelry and stashed them safely away. I don't think there are any more skeins hiding away anywhere. This took care of item 49.

Last night to finish my day off nicely after my post I spent 30mins listening to a podcast and read a book for 30 mins which took care of items 11 and 12 and worked towards the 20 books I am reading. Currently I am reading book 3 of the Dresden Files, Grave Peril. I am enjoying it immensley. I love this series of books.

I also searched for my credit file and found it. It wasn't as bad as what I was expecting, but now I know what my score is (no I am not revealing it!) I can work on improving it. So that takes care of item 86.

I have also been working on item 27) Sort out itunes, but it is driving me crazy. It seems to be a never ending task.

I don't expect the next few days to be that productive but at least I know the things that I am planning to work on. This weekend I am planning on working on the de-cluttering and re-organising in a major way. I have taken before photo's and will share them when I have some nice after photo's to show you all.

So that's all for now, I am sure I will have more to report for tomorrow though ;)

Jobs for tonite

So in line with my 101 things I have worked on some of the things off my list. This thing must be inspiring me as I have made 3 posts in one day on a blog that I have not been near in months. I have also done more in an hour tonight that what I have even thought about doing. So all in all I am thinking that it is a positive thing.

Tonight I have put in 1 load of washing, photographed 5 items to put on Ravelry, updating my projects, sorting my stash and allowing me to collect some knitwars points. I have also sorted out a bin bag of clothes to donate. But in true fashion the batteries have died before I have had chance to load them up. SO I will do that tomorrow, and tick some items off my list then.

I am looking at this in a really positive light, and can't wait to see what I can knock off the list tomorrow.

101 things, in 1001 days

That list took forever to make it. At first it was really simple and I hit the challenge head on, but after around 20 I was really having to think about what I was writing. I didn't want the list to be silly or unobtainable, so it took a lot of thought. In the end it took me a whole F.I.V.E freakin' days to write it out.

I have been working towards the items already and have already some items that I can cross off the list, but I will post about them later because I really want to try to add pictures to all of the posts that involve this project. That way I have proof that I have done what I have said.

In other news, this is the first day back at work. I am bored out of my mind and soooo want to go home. At least this week I have got it easy, next week I start teaching two nights a week. I really want to have my cleaning schedule in place by then so at least DH could perhaps tick a couple of things off the list while I am away. We will see how it goes though.....