Designs for others

I enjoy very much doing things for other people. Whether it is quilting for Lutheran World Relief, knitting presents for friends, or even knitting for non-profits. Last weekend, the choir that I am in (Cora Voce) had a benefit concert. It was a great evening of entertainment, and I love that we over-sold the event. We had people packed into the church in Tacoma.

To help generate donations, a silent auction was held. It was a great success for all who donated or walked away with the donations. I ended up donating a few items, and yes, they were knitted. While they were nowhere near the top bidders, I feel like I helped make a difference when I donated them.

Here's to donating for good causes!!!

Taking time to update and finish what I started

Lately I have been starting more and more projects. It has gotten to the point that I have more projects on my hands than hands or time. I have been trying to clean up the "list" by doing those things that I have started and need finishing.

Some items have been on the "list" for years, including creating/revamping some student projects to fill out my portfolio. Some are time-sensitive, including knitting projects that will be donated next week. Some are much needed, like updating my website.

I have spent the last few days working on these items (yay!), as well as thinking up new ones (d'oh). It only took 8 hours of coding and photoshop, but I now have updated my website, adding 6 new projects and updating old projects. My hope is that this update will showcase my design skills as being well-rounded. I also added analytics, so it should be fun to see who's viewing my site.

I must continue to push my designer self to keep my designs coming regardless of my job. Here's to that success!

A little inspiration

Between watching Julie and Julia last night and my ever-changing work situation, I feel like I am in need of a bit of inspiration. While I don't find it hard to fill my time with projects (canning, knitting, quilting, reading, carding, applying, swimming, etc), I feel like my focus has dropped by the wayside.

What am I intending to do with my time? What really makes me happy?

Every once in a while it is good to stop and think about your own personal purpose. I think the thing that keeps me questioning my world is that the things I like to do most are not the things that pay the bills. While I love to do so many things, they tend to cost money instead of make it. I do really enjoy Graphic Design, so I need to find an inspiring way to succeed. It's time for me to step up and make things happen!

Anniversary Quilt

Thanks to my renewed obsession with quilting, I decided to make a quilt for my husband and I as a first anniversary present. I had bought the fabric oh so long ago when In the Beginning closed (yep, people still remember that place even though it was about 5-6 years ago). I decided to pull out a pattern I had done for a friend's wedding, and started cutting away!

I finished the top with about a week to spare (our anniversary was May 30th), got it machine quilted by a great couple up on Camano Island. Thank you so much, mom, for having it quilted for us!!! I gave it to Josh unfinished (without the binding) with a promise to have it done soon.

Well, about a week and a half was spent hand-sewing the binding on, but it makes the quilt shine! Our bed is looking great, and even the cat likes it!

New Knitting Pattern - Lace Medallion Slipper Socks

I have added a new pattern once more to my ravelry page. These fun socks include thicker soles and circular cables. I know it's just the start of summer (at least in Seattle it is...), but these socks were inspired by cooler climates.

Here's a blurb about them:

Fall is the time of year that really starts changing my footwear style. It is a time of transition between flip-flops and slippers. Socks play a fun part of fall because they can keep feet toasty even if the weather is still nice enough for shorts.

These socks, with their thicker soles that mimic thermal undergarments, are great for evenings on the porch or out in the yard. The lace upper allows for the cool breezes to tickle the skin. The purl circles remind me of harvests and fall foliage.

Quilt Fridays

In January I joined a quilting group that my mom belongs to at University Lutheran Church in Seattle, WA. I felt like with the large amount of free time that my random work schedule allows, that I should spend some time making things for other people across the globe. Through joint efforts with Lutheran World Relief, the quilts we make get shipped to much-deserving countries all over the world. The quilts get made throughout the year and then we have a "Quilt Sunday" at the church to bless them and send them on their way. Here are a few pictures from the quilts that were sent off this week:

Rainy Day Knits

Aah, the beautiful Seattle weather means curling up on the couch under a blanket on one of March's forever rainy days. Unfortunately, I must curl up on the couch and do work. Oh, what a world ;-)

I would love to go crazy, start tons of new projects, and get my stash down a little. Something about the count on my ravelry page makes me want to start more projects. Only 30 projects... that's just not right (especially counting all of the presents that I never got pictures of or the projects that aren't worth photographing). My only problem is the inability to finish projects if I have too many started. But yet, to try and not spend all December knitting, maybe this year I will start Christmas presents early. Oh well, I can always use a good excuse to start a new project.

Reclaiming Sweaters...

This morning I attempted to start reclaiming the wool of a sweater I have had for years. The arm cuffs are shredded from use, yet something was stopping me from giving it up. The first pull of the shoulder showed a much larger issue than I expected. Not only is it going to be the most difficult sweater to take apart (seams everywhere), but it is also knit as two lace-weight threads per stitch. So far I am through the first sock's toe and onto the foot going toe-up for knee socks. Hopefully this crazy project will work! If so, I might have to look at Goodwill to reclaim and make myself a new sweater!

Knitting with Harry Potter

Aah, what a lovely day for knitting! Here I am on President's day with a full day ahead of me! I am continuing to push myself to finish the unending pair of knee-high socks. Maybe with 6 movies ahead of me, I can put a good dent into my progress! Oh, wouldn't it be nice to have self-knitting needles like Mrs. Weasley!

Fingerless Gloves Frenzy! (part 2)

Whew, what a challenge getting projects written out and posted everywhere they need to go. I am hoping that the first project is the hardest, and will eventually become quite a snap. As promised from previous posts, the pattern for the fingerless gloves is available either through my ravelry page (in process, not there yet), or my website:

www.christychristine.com/extras_02.html

Check it out, and feel free to cast on!

Resolutions

Every year at New Years, I attempt to make a grand jesture resolution. Up until last year, I didn't really think of good ones or picked things that were unreachable (including the year I tried to get rid of that nectar of the bubbly gods - soda). Last year (2009) I decided to expand my brain in a way that seems odd to the digital standards set in this decade - I was going to read books. Yes, books! By setting myself a goal of 20,000 book pages to read in the year, I intended to read more books than buy. I am lucky to have many opportunities to buy books, but my shelves were filled with books I hadn't read yet. There I was on 1/1/09, reading like a madwoman, and there I also was on 12/31/09 reading like a madwoman.

It was a success! I read 20,065 pages last year! I kept it to relatively light books as well as many series. I am still working on finishing Terry Pratchett's discworld novels. It feels good, though, knowing that I read way more books than I had ever read in one year. This year, I plan on keeping a similar goal, but will be a bit more picky in my selection. I have decided that 2010 is the year I will read at least 100 of the top 200 books selected in the BBC Top 200. By making my resolution this way, I can avoid truly bad book choices and can have a bit of a selection. Also, because number 1 is The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (and that's a lot of pages in itself). One stipulation is that I can count any books previously read (currently at 33) towards the total. Regardless, that's a lot of books.

Here's to reading more books!