In progress.

I've been feeling really inspired lately. I make list after list of things I want to sew, embroider, knit, etc. and constantly jot down new ideas. But for some reason it's been so hard for me to follow through...to actually get the motivation to take the ideas and create something. :) I don't know why. For example, I've had this idea for a new series of embroidery pieces (and possibly, someday, patterns?) for my Etsy shop for months now. I have fabric for wallets cut out, waiting on my ironing board. But it feels like my shop has been on the back burner for a couple of months now. I need to make it more of a priority.

Having said that, I have started on a few new projects lately.

Like a sweet little cross stitch from this book.

And I've been bitten by the knitting bug again. All of a sudden, I am wanting to improve my knitting skills. Someday (in the not-so-distant future) I'd love to be able to knit {wearable} socks and hats and sweaters! I don't want to be stuck making scarves and dishrags forever. :) So I'm trying to be more active on Ravelry, because I find it to be a really inspiring place. And I started on this shawl. I came across it a couple of months ago, and I was so excited! I had seen the village women in Lark Rise to Candleford wearing them and thought they looked so awesome and cozy.

By the way, I don't understand knitting. It confuses me. I mean, I look at the stitches and patterns and try to understand how things work, but I never do. I can't wrap my mind around it. But then when I follow instructions and what is supposed to happen happens, and things come together, it's incredible.

I'm only a little ways in, but so far, so good. I got a little panicky at the very beginning, like I do with all of my knitting projects because things always look awful for a couple of rows. This is my first time using circular needles and it's...interesting? Tell me, does the plastic cord ever stop springing back into its folded position? Because sometimes I feel like I'm going to take an eye out when I let go of one of the needles and it bounces around.

{Yarn is expensive. So I'm using this wool blend I bought on clearance months ago for another project that didn't work out.}

Speaking of Lark Rise, I totally splurged and spontaneously bought the entire series last week. It was still a bit expensive, but I've been doing pretty good with my DVD purchases this year (only four so far) and I got it on Ebay for less than half of what is is on Amazon right now.

{My period drama DVD collection is a bit out of control.}

I'm also going to attempt a painting project pretty soon. Painting, as in on a canvas, not on a wall. I won't say what it's going to be yet, because it might not turn out. :) I am not an artist. All I know is that thanks to this amazing, inspiring book, lately I've been buying cheap art supplies...

And experimenting with watercolors and things like this.

Above: Using a cotton ball, ink pads, and masking tape.
Below: Attempting to make grids with acrylic paint and plastic needlepoint canvas.

Both of these ideas came from that book. It has ideas inside that I never would have come up with.

The blog got a bit of a facelift, as well. Just some yellow chevron in the background, a bit of updating with the header, and a pretty new navigation bar on the side I made with GIMP (and am unreasonably proud of :). I also cleaned up some stuff in the sidebar, deleted some old pages, and made some new ones. I was also seriously considering changing the URL of my blog, but decided it wasn't worth the hassle. So for now it stays. But I do have a new series coming up that I am excited about, even if no one else is. :) More on that soon.

Until next time,