I Cleaned My Desk

Alert the press..  I know, it doesn't look clean? But trust me, it's cleaned. I just have too much CRAP! I already had too much stationery. Then when my aunt passed away, I got all of her stationery too; when my cousin had an estate sale. She invited all the family over beforehand to go through and see what they would like. 

This is all the stationery my aunt had. TONS of envelopes, cards, two boxes of adorable cards. 🩷

I didn't take a picture of how messy my desk was (picture the first picture, but piled up in a MESS). This was the top of my desk, though. 

I put some of it on my table (which is messy, too). I know it looks hoarderish, and horrible. But, I have to say in my own defense.. Even though we have been here two years (sigh), the place we lived before (not the house right before this one) had a bigger  basement that wasn't freezing cold, stone, and scary to even go down into, that I had a lot of my card making supplies and I had a huge cabinet to put things in. Which (of course) got thrown away, so we could move back here before my Dad passed away. And, the room where all this is at, is freezing cold. And has the computer desk and other stuff in here. 😡 So it's not exactly "my" room... And, I can't even get to my desk to even sit down, because everything is packed in here. So I was just throwing all my stuff on it even after unpacking (which I didn't organize while I was doing it in here, because I was focusing on the rest of the house). Then two years ago, I got diagnosed with cancer and was going through chemo and everything else...   So, I am not a total slob. 

~Anyway~

I don't think I posted this snowman card I made. ?  I sent this one out already. I thought it came out cute. Even though it is simple. I was going to put more on it, but I thought "I always do that then it costs more to send.." 

Like this one- I put the flower and gems on it. I think it came out so cute, though. I'll just have to go to the post office to send it. (Sigh.. I hate going there lol.)

And, a cute picture of my kitties. My husband (FINALLY) brought the cat condo in from the garage. Our cat's eyes got HUGE, and he jumped right in it. (The brown tabby in the middle cubby). 😻 The tortie doesn't come downstairs during the day, while our one dog is out. (Sigh...) She hasn't liked that dog since we got her. So when our son lets her out of the kennel (he has her in his room, long story) our cat runs upstairs and stays there. 😞 Until she goes back up for the night. It's crazy. She isn't afraid of (or, dislikes more like) our other dog. Obviously this was one of the times when the dreaded dog was upstairs. 😝

 

Bear Sweater, Now With a Hat

You guys! I have posted in the past about all the baby things I crocheted (some knitted), for a group I was in. Well the OB Unit stopped taking donations for some reason. And I was bummed. Even though at times I got burned out and overwhelmed, I loved making things (and buying-when I had any extra money) for the babies. Well!... Another group I am in is have a baby drive for 2025. It made me happy. 😍 I have at least four things/projects crocheted for babies, that I was just going to save for if I ever have a grandbaby. Well it doesn't look like that's going to happen any time soon....    Not to get off track here. The sweater pattern is from Yarnspirations. And the bear hat pattern is from ktandthequid, there's a bunch of different sizes which I love. I made the sweater size 6 months. But, it measures 10.5 inches across the chest. So it's a 24 month size according to size charts. So I made the hat the same size.  

Other projects I have to send are the four color baby sweater, a baby bunting, and a Patti Cake Cardigan. This sweater measures 13 inches across the chest which according to size charts is a size 8. That does not seem possible. It looks so small to me. Maybe because my babies were so big. LoL I don't know...  

 

Happy Valentine's Day

 

Well Happy Valentine's Day. I'm not really excited about it. I used to do stuff (mostly for the kids-make heart shaped pancakes, buy them little Valentine candies and other stuff- they didn't really care half the time-except when it was candy or toys). But, they're all grown. And my husband hasn't gotten me flowers or candy in years. So. 😞

I finished a dishcloth today. It's the Ribbed Dishcloths pattern. It was the first week of February's dishcloth (knitted) pattern in a dishcloth group I'm in. This week the knitted cloth is the Manuela Dishcloth.

Happy Teddy Day

Teddy Day was actually yesterday, February 10th. I didn't even know there was such a day. But I was driving home from my doctors appointment, and on the radio the woman said "Today is Teddy Day", in preparation for Valentine's Day. I told my  husband, but he didn't buy me a teddy bear. 😒  (Even if I tell him flat out, he still can't take a hint sometimes. LoL)

So I came home and got all my teddy bear stamps out (all two 😝), and made some cards.. I have had this bear stamp forever. I think it was one of the very first stamps I got, when I started making cards. One of my friends (when I was a kid), her mom made cards. And when I was an adult, she had me over to make cards one day. And I was hooked!! 

And my other bear stamp..  I don't know, I might add more to this one? A sentiment? "Hello". It looks like the bear is waving hello.  I also need new ink pads. 😭 I have one more bear I stamped before my ink pad was done. I might finish another card today. I have a black ink pad, and other colors. But none that I could stamp a bear with. Unless I did a turqoise, red, or purple bear. Hmmm... A purple bear. 💜😀🐻 I'm going to have to make an envelope for this card, too.  Well... Maybe I will have another crafting day today.    Totally not related to anything but since we're doing special days... We've been in this house for two years today. That's a record for us, lately. If I start hanging pictures, though; we'll probably move for sure. 😉

P.S. Today is also Hug Day

 

What Happened to Crochetville???

I don't know if any of you were ever on Crochetville before. It was before Ravelry. I hadn't been on there in a while. But I was looking through my blog trying to find a pattern for a turtle. 🐢Somehow I came across this picture, from 2008... It was for the "Drum Afghan CAL" on Crochetville. When I clicked on the link "404 page not found" came up. WHAT?...  In this post. Click on the link to see what I mean. I tried to google it, and this came up. But that is not Crochetville, okay? I know it *is*, because it's still the same mods; without naming any names. But, EW. Just give up instead of whatever that is. Anyway. I did finally find a similar pattern to do this afghan (this was technically a lapghan size I did): Stained Glass Afghan #2

Some more boring useless information: I've been winding yarn. This somewhat ties into the boring post about a bed. Only because it's in the same room, and I have been trying to organize in there. I have a closet (?)- it's not really a closet, though... I'll have to take a picture of it someday. I guess it is a closet. But it's really small, there's no door, and there's three shelves. So anyway, it's a mess after shoving a bunch of things in there when our son came here last summer. Bags of yarn. And the yarn was a tangled mess. So I started going through the bags and untangling and winding yarn. This was what started the whole thing. 😛

Then I got a whole bag and took it downstairs and just sat at the table and wound balls...  I have since wound that red yarn connected to a mitered square I am knitting (I need to find the other knitting needle, too.)

I know, I'm living on the edge here. Winding yarn and getting upset about Crochetville being gone. 😝 Well I told you this blog is boring.. 

~Until Next Time~

 

Boring Post About a Bed...

In my last post, I wrote about my pillow not matching my bedspread and thinking "I could crochet one" (Duh.. 😜) Well this is the yarn I bought to crochet the pillow. I have started it. I'm using the Pillow Cardigan pattern. I was not coming out to what the measurements said, so I stopped at row 49? I don't have my notes right here. I only have three buttonholes. And it's measuring 22 inches.😕 So, I guess I will have to either sew a pillow that big or buy one... (Sigh). I don't feel like ripping out what I did. LoL

This is the pillow I currently have on my bed. (With a photobomber.) It goes with our other bedspread- which is burgundy and tan. (Last picture.)

Which is why we have burgundy curtains.. (The other bedroom has curtains in it already, this bedroom did not.) 

And a picture of my kitties. You can see how I was saying my afghan doesn't match, either.  Oh well. This bedroom is my "sewing/crochet/knitting room". We got the extra bed when our son and his fiance came here to visit last summer, so they could sleep in our room (with their two big doggies 😝). Now I have even less room in here for anything. And with everything going on since they visited, I have not been able to organize it very well. But I am slowly trying to. It's been three months since my surgery. I just am trying to not overdo it. 

Well that was my boring post about a bed... ~Until next time~

Happy Groundhog Day

Today is Groundhog Day... I don't personally know the purpose of it, other than just for fun. The first day of Spring is the first day of Spring. 🤷  

Anyway, I finished the Tunisian Dishcloth. 😀 I had crocheted three spiral scrubbies, so I did three dishcloths..

I know I already posted about this dishcloth, but I took another picture of it with it's scrubby.

Same for this one.  I still have not found any Valentines Day kitchen towels other than at Meijer's.

I was laying in bed one night and couldn't sleep (story of my life) and thought, "The curtains in here do not match my bedspread at all. Neither does the pillow (I use a little throw pillow to lean on while I sleep). So I thought, "I could crochet a new pillow.." And I dug through all my yarn but I couldn't find a matching color purple... (Of course.) Well I wasted money on two skeins yesterday. (It WAS on sale, though- for $3.88 a skein.) 😜 So this pillow is going to cost about $8 to make..  (If I don't have to buy a pillow form.) I would sew a pillow, but my sewing machine is broke. Again. 😭 Well I'm off to look at all my saved pillow patterns... 🧶

 

Tunisian Tuesday

What???... Three posts in one day?  After I posted my last two posts, I went and got what pink variegated I have left. I think I will have enough to do a dishcloth. I could NOT remember how to get started on tunisian short rows, though. So I went on YouTube and I found this video. 
 

Once you get the hang of it, you don't even really need the pattern. I just couldn't remember how to get started. Chemo brain.. I love this pink variegated, and I want to get some more. Although I don't know who would have a pink kitchen. But I was making dishcloths for Valentine's Day gifts. So... They would go with a Valentine's Day kitchen towel. If I can find one cheap enough. (They want $9.99 for one at Meijer.) 😠  

I can't eat or drink anything until my appointment today at 3:30. So I'm going to go crochet my dishcloth some more..

I also forgot to post the finished Stitch doll I crocheted! This was a Christmas present for my (future) daughter-in-law and our middle son. I finished this the week before I went in for my surgery. So, the middle of October. I really did not enjoy this project. But, it does look cute when it's finished. And (I think) they liked it. My son said "That Stitch is really good, you made it?" 😌 Well, I think I'm actually caught up for now. ~Until the next time our internet is actually working~  Lol

 

Catching Up Again. Oh deer...

I finished the Heart Pocket Note Holder. It used to be a free pattern, but I can't find it anymore. I had a mini clipboard notepad from the dollar store, I took the notepad and stuck it in there. And a pen I had from the dollar store. I'm sending this to someone.

I got in the mood to do a dishcloth. I wanted to do a round one. I could have swore I had a pattern for a knitted one that was round, and short rows. But the only one I had like that used two different colors. So I looked for a crocheted one. I will have to see if I can find the link for it. I just looked on my phone, since the internet wasn't working that day. Don't get Hughes Net, FYI....  Here is the dishcloth pattern: "Simple Granny Round Crocheted Dishcloth"  I think I might have been thinking of the Tunisian Short Row Discloth. Which is crocheted, not knitted. But I wanted to use that variegated yarn for it. The link for the pattern does not work any more, FYI so don't click on it. I'll have to see if I printed that out.. Or if it's on Ravelry somehow. Ha, it was on Ravelry: Tunisian Short Row Dishcloth. Now I don't have enough of that variegated to do one with... Sigh. LoL. I will have to see what other variegated I have in my stash. 

I was still in the mood to make dishcloths and I wanted to do an Idiot's Dishcloth. I have also been making Spiral scrubbies again. I don't know why. They are useless to wash dishes with IMO. And, they smell so bad even after washing. Unless you use bleach, maybe. But they are cute; and fun to make.

I also made a little heart to put things in. I don't know if I ever posted about these before. It was in the "Tightwad Gazette" book.  ETA: I did post about this before.

They don't actually hold much, though. The only thing I could think you could put in there is tiny little stickers you cut out. Confetti. I don't know. Unless you made the hearts bigger. 

Here is one of the cards I was going to post about last time. But the internet wasn't working good, taking forever and not even uploading.  I got the inspiration for this one off Pinterest. I think it was penguins, not snowmen. I used some stickers for the snowmen. I wanted to make a slimline card to "match" some snowflake envelopes I got at Goodwill. I ended up having to pay like $1.15 I think, to send the card though, because it was too puffy/thick. Sigh.

These are the envelopes. I ended up ordering some snowflake stationery that matches the bottom envelopes perfectly. 

And, I think I posted about a card like this before? This one, I added a Christmas tree too. I had never (successfully) made a shaker card before. I hope the people I sent them to didn't just throw them away. 

I thought I would show a picture of some deer we have come in our yard all the time. There is a back story about the deer... I filled up my bird feeder one day, to try and do things I used to love doing. Well the next morning, I was standing at the sink waiting for coffee to get done brewing and I looked out the window. The bird feeder was completely empty and open! UGH! "Stinking squirrels!", I thought. But  later that day, the dogs were barking like crazy. I said "What now?" and looked outside. Three deer were in the side yard, and the mama was at the bird feeder! (Mama, and two babies.) It wasn't squirrels, it was deer. Kind of funny/not funny. I'm not putting any more seed in the bird feeders now, though. I can't afford that. And a couple weeks after that, my son said he pulled in the driveway (he goes to the gym early) and there was about 15 deer in our front yard. I said "What, did they go tell all their friends?" 🙄 Originally, there was the mama and the two babies (mama and one of the babies are pictured above). This is why I misspelled "dear" for my blog post title, lol. Oh deer... 😝

 

Happy New Year

Happy Belated New Year. Yes, I just skipped Christmas. Well, we didn't skip it. But I skipped blogging about it. It was miserable for me. When your kids are grown and have lives of their own, far away; it's just not the same. 

I had more pictures that I saved to my computer to post. But I cannot find them. And our internet is being stupid slow today. So. This is the only "New Year" card I made. Pinterest inspired. Not too happy with it. But. I sent it anyway.

And a Christmas thank you card I made, either FB or Pinterest inspired. For our middle son and his fiance. I actually haven't even sent this one yet because (long story) I have some more late presents to send them. LoL that wasn't long was it.

I hope to God this year is better than last year. I know I won't have to do chemo or radiation again (I hope!!). My port is still in. I'm supposed to get another CT scan at the end of this month. And more blood work. 🙄 Vampires... How much blood do they need? Every time.. Maybe after that I will get my port out? (That will be another surgery ugh-- But not like the cancer removal surgery!) 

Anyway Happy New Year. I am actually crocheting again and liking it. I don't know how long it had been. I'm crocheting a Heart Pocket Note Holder. 💜😄 Here's a few I did. And a pink one.
 

I Finished the Hat

 I wish I had taken notes on my last Cobblestone Cap.. I couldn't figure out the brim. But this is what I came up with, since I didn't have the same amount of stitches when I was done with my hat: First off,  I counted how many stitches I did have. Then I subtracted 24, and divided the remaining stitches in half. That was the number of the stitch I began my work in, counting from the last stitch worked. And, I started with my work facing away from me. So that all the remaining rows would make sense. I'm writing all my notes down this time, in case I ever make another one.

And I finally finished it today. Trust me, it looks better on the lamp than it does on me. 

The other day was "Buttermilk Cinnamon Pie" Day. One of my friends from my old quilt group posts what day it is, every day. "Left Handers Day". "National Multivitamin Day". "National Ceiling Fan Day". You get the picture. Well I googled a recipe for Buttermilk Cinnamon Pie. I wasn't going to make one. I just wanted to see how you make it... Well guess what? I made one...😏

In my honest opinion, it wasn't worth all the work to make vs. the taste. My husband and son said, "It's good." "Yeah, that's cuz you didn't have to make it." Lol. 

Old Project In My Memories

 This picture was in my Facebook memories today. With a hashtag cobblestonecap. I looked on my blog, it wasn't there. I couldn't find it anywhere. So I went on Ravelry and typed it in the search engine and found the pattern. So I must have made this (or, finished it on Septmeber 12th, 2017.)  I don't know what I had going on then, why I didn't post about it. But if it was when we lived in Oregon, that in itself would explain why. Also I was about 20 lbs thinner there (Oregon)...  Most depressing place I've lived in.  ~Anyway!!~ Someone had asked on FB if I still had this hat, and I went and looked in my closet and I do!! I was so happy. With all the times we've moved..  

After I found the hat, it made me want to crochet another one, in a different color. 😀 Of course, purple!! I had a hard time with round 3. But I read through the pattern and watched the video about that stitch, and I figured it out. I almost forgot, this is the link for the pattern.

I was craving salt today. We don't have any junk food in the house. But I have some crackers, and have some flavored cream cheese leftover, from when we got bagels a while ago. It was pretty good!  if you don't have any ready-made junk food/snacks, and you have crackers and flavored cream cheese, you could try it. Another idea is if you don't have any chocolate milk or syrup, you could try maple syrup in milk. An old friend of our family used to make this for her youngest in a bottle. Have to get creative to make snacks, with the price of groceries now.

A Birthday Crochet Project And A Christmas One

 I don't know if I mentioned the sunflower towel topper I was thinking about crocheting? I have a pen pal I was going to send her a little gift for her birthday. I made this card (Pinterest inspired), and I was trying to think what to crochet that's "sunflower". And I remembered my old (one of my first pattern books ever that I bought) Annie's Attic sunflower kitchen booklet I have. And I wanted to tweak it to make it hold a towel. (Not have to sew it onto the towel).

This is what I came up with... Sigh... She says she loves it. I don't. I have another idea though. LoL....

And I got a new pattern to make a Christmas present... Can you guess what it is? 😝

How about now? Just kidding... It's a Stitch doll! (<-- Pattern link) My DIL (well, technically my future DIL) loves Stitch. And now they have a house and more room, I am going to crochet her one. And, I technically have my Christmas crocheting started. (I got my Christmas shopping started a couple weekends ago, too. I don't know if I blogged about that.) A Stitch ornament, for my DIL and our son. I don't know if they will get a big tree now. I know they have a little one. I should take a picture of the ornament.

Well, that's all for now. My son keeps asking me to go to a park with him. And (I soooooo don't want to) we're going to go today. I don't want to go for a walk. It's officially past the six week mark after my surgery, so I don't have any excuses now. Except that I don't want to!! 😭

Color Of The Day Is Purple

To be honest, that could be the color every day for me. 💜 This is a little phone bag I crocheted a while ago. I think it was a You Tube video tutorial. I have since this bought a phone wallet (?) for extra protection because I have a bad habit of dropping my phone. 😳 

And, I finished the purple tote bag I had posted about a while ago. I wanted to sew a liner in it. I need to find some purple fabric. 

And, I crocheted a purple turtle. Yes, a purple turtle. 😝 I didn't crochet these all one after the other. I'm crocheting a sunflower towel topper now (not purple 😜), for my kitchen. I'm 99.9% positive this is the pattern I used. It will need to be translated to English.. I saw some really cute sunflower kitchen towels at the store. I want to get one. 

Well that's all for now.

 

A Little More Catching Up

Well, I can't seem to catch up here. I will still attempt to, though. I've been doing more "crafting". I tried some hidden paper clips. I can't remember what video I used, but if you type hidden paper clips in the search engine you should be able to find a good tutorial. These are the two I made first.

                                           Then I tried some with sunflower paper I have.

 I started a purple tote bag. I'm using the Beach Please pattern. It is a paid pattern, but there is a free version on her blog. I am doing it a little different; I'm doing four rows of sc in between the cross stitch rows, and only doing purple not switching to another color. I just wanted to do a "summer" project. I also got more yarn to do a different color one of these. Well that's all for now. 😊