Kitten Purse Pic

It was wonderful to get together with family for the Thanksgiving holiday. I like catching up with everyone.

It's also nice to be on my own again. There is a lot to be said for solitude.

Here is the kitten purse. I have knitted three so far, and that was in one evening, they go really quickly. Sorry, the photo is a little blurry.

Comments on the Simple Life

No, not that Simple Life - mine. Not nearly as interesting or as trendy, but I'm not a cow-huggin' hottie, darn it.

I did spend several minutes (seems like hours) tossing trash, organizing yarns and putting away items that really don't belong in that room. Then I drew up a few designs for little projects like a fancy set of shelves to go under the window and hold pattern books. I bought 4 more stackable drawers to complete the yarn storage area and got a pretty big bag of Goodwill items gathered.

Of course I was distracted by a little bit of variegated brown yarn I found and had to make something out of it. Here is the little pattern I wrote. I'll get pictures of the finished purse soon. It's adorable!!



Sunday I participated in an open house, sold 3 purses and have an order for at least one more. That's pretty nice. Of course I forgot my pretty cards!! A fellow artist at the open house wants to trade some of her jewelry for a skull scarf and a skull purse. I'm going to be busy - better get that den done pretty quick!!

KISS

Keeping it simple, sweetie! Knitting and painting projects are on "semi-hold" (yeah, sounds good) until I have simplified my house. My life is good - it's pretty much what it is, what you see is what you get. My house on the other hand is full of "possibilities" and "I may need thats." I'm not complaining so much as drawing the sketch. I like having plenty of "raw" materials on hand. I just want all this stuff to be organized so I can see what's here and get rid of the true dreck. My second goal is to streamline the rooms so I can clean them easily. I've let too much stuff drift into piles and kind of stopped cleaning because there was too much stuff in the way! Thanksgiving will soon be here and I have family coming to stay. The bedrooms need the least work - thank goodness!! Mostly it's my "rooms of shame" formerly known as the den, the back porch and the garage.

The den is where I'm starting TODAY! The den has bags of yarn and nearly finished projects knee deep across the floor. My computer counter is stacked with papers and whatever else I clear off the dining room table and dump there. I've made my visit to flylady.com and I am armed with a strategy. When I get home from work I promise to spend at least 45 minutes clearing the counter. I also promise to do a fast round with the trash bag! Over the weekend I intend to finish this task and have an organized and clean space. I may even be able to bring in this fabulous retro recliner I found for free!!! It is going to be the perfect reading chair once it's recovered. The recliner makeover will be next week's project, I already have the fabric. Pics to follow next blog.

OTN (I know, this is the semi-hold part...) Some skull scarves inspired by Yorick from Knitty.com. Here are the prefelted pictures. I have an earflap Jane Cobb hat to felt as well, so I'll do them all together. Once the den is finished!!

Apples and Kitty

I finished a little apple hat and am now working on a little cardigan to go with it. Here is the hat. The cardi is finished up to the shoulders. Just need the sleeves and little apple pockets. Pics to follow.


This weekend I noticed my old dog, Kitty, was having more trouble walking than usual. She's about 14, a husky / shepherd mix, and a sweetheart. I realized it is no longer a matter of years for our time together, but months, possible weeks. She still enjoys her food, a good brushing, and treats. The hearing is gone and some of the sight but there doesn't seem to be any pain. She is such a sweetie.

Painted Dollies

Here are two of the latest painted dolls. I am sending the cat girl to my niece for her birthday. She is the Princess of Kitties - having 6 herself! I used a What's Her Face doll for both catgirl, Bloody Mary, (based on my cat, a great hunter) and Raggedy Annie.





Raggedy Annie has painted stocking and shoes (which you can't see because I was having a senior moment with the camera)! I have plans for a monkey girl, a cheetah girl and a lizard boy, all to be Christmas gifts.




This is CoCoNut, my monkey. I used a pattern from a great book called The World of Knitted Toys by Kath Dalmeny. I have a snake knitted just waiting to be stuffed. I really like this book, the patterns are straight forward, easy to understand and very clever.










Have a great day!

Well, this is pretty darned exciting - I finally got a camera and took a few pictures. Here is a chic little felted purse I love and 3 little party purses made with fun fur and worsted acrylic.



I think the furry purses are great fun to use every day, especially the one here with the cuffed top. I will post a pic of my felted skellyton bag tomorrow. It's been a real conversation starter!!





All of them are listed at Zen Knitting on Etsy by the way.