Thursday, December 10, 2009

Fruits of My Labor

Thank you all for your sweet comments yesterday! I really am feeling much better - it was therapeutic to blog about it and admit that sometimes I feel overwhelmed. I try so hard to give off the impression that balancing everything is effortless - but it's so not!

I have a weekend of fun things planned, which always helps! I'm babysitting for 2 of my nephews on Saturday which I am SO looking forward to. There is nothing better than spending time with these two little munchkins! They are usually pretty generous with the hugs and "I Love Yous" So I am sure that will really help me re-charge my battery.

Another thing I've been doing to re-charge my battery on the weekends is knit The repetitive nature of this hobby is just so calming and soothing for me. I usually knit the same type of scarves over and over but lately I gotten 'adventurous' and knit some new patterns. Yes I did just used adventurous and knitting in the same sentence.

Here's the scarf and hat that I recently made!



My apologies for the crappy self-photo - where's a personal photographer when I need one?

It was my first hat and I love how it turned out! I am always knitting things and giving them away as gifts but I have decided to keep these 2 projects for myself! I've already bought 2 other colors of yarn and plan to make 2 more sets of this scarf/hat combo to give as gifts in 2010.

This Christmas I will be giving 6 scarves as gifts! I hope the recipients like the scarves. They are all wrapped up under my tree. I took pictures before wrapping them so I will be posting them after Christmas. I can't post them now since all of the recipients read my blog!!

I am hoping to learn how to crochet in 2010. I really wish I lived closer to my Grandma - she is a master crocheter. I would love nothing more than to sit in her living room with her and crochet or knit, side-by-side, while catching up on life!

Do you have any hobbies that help you de-stress?

25 comments:

J said...

OMG you should totally learn to crochet! I learned to knit first when I was about 10. I then learned how to crochet last year (some 10 years later!) and i love it! I honestly like it better than knitting but I think thats cause I havent knit in a while! I have made 3 scarves this year for people and one baby blanket. one more baby blanket to go and then I am thinking of making an afghan for myself! I love crochet/knit because I can do that and something else like watch tv or ride in the car!

Cherry Blossoms said...

hmm thank goodness I have a bday coming up as I love that set!!!!Esp that scarf!!!

Nicole said...

I am very impressed with the hat and the scarf. Very cute! I recently took up knitting myself. So far, I'm just doing really basic scarves. And so far everything turns out much wider than I expected! And I also have a hat knitter set that is super easy to make up hats really quickly. Enjoy your time with your nephews!

Abby said...

That scarf and hat are sooo cute! Wow! I am way impressed! With all the hard work, although enjoyable destressing--you deserve to keep some of your masterpieces!! :)

I am so jealous that you guy to babysit the Andrew and Matthew this weekend!!! I miss all the nephews so much!

I guess my biggest destressing hobby is running, cleaning, and cooking. I always know when I'm getting stressed out, because I start becoming like Magda on Crack (something about mary?). I will pull out the vacuum cleaner and just go crazy on the house.

Emily Jane said...

AMAZING hat!! I love it, and the scarf is fabulous too!

I never managed to knit - my nan tried to teach me once, but my fingers didn't seem to work that way. Crocheting on the other hand, even I could manage - it's lots of fun, and a lovely way to spend the afternoon with your grandma!

Mandy said...

Can I just tell you how much you ROCK!! That hat and scarf are awesome, I am super impressed. I once learned to knit but never made it past beer cozies. My great grandma crocheted. We have a few of the afghans that she made before she passed away. They are among my favorite things to curl up with.

To de-stress, I ususally either read or bake.

Amber said...

Hehehehe. I LOVE that you used adventurous and knitting in the same sentence.

My grandma has tried to teach me how to knit and crochet MANY times over my life, I just can't get the hang of it. BUT my Grandma is super crafty and has made me some amazing things - sweaters, jackets, a bag that I use when I go to the gym, blankets etc. I love how crafty she is, she also used to make my Halloween costumes when I was growing up!

I think my biggest destresser that is repetitive is chopping. I can really get "in the zone" when I'm chopping vegetables! Haha

Amber said...

PS: I think that hat (or toque as I would call it ;) ) is SOOOOO cute! Love it!

crystal said...

Love the hat!! If you made one in purple, Id buy it...:)

Anonymous said...

Urgh; I wish I looked good in hats-- that one is VERY cute! If I looked cute in a hat, I'd wear it in a heartbeat.

I think I have a couple de-stressors... cleaning like a mad woman, baking, reading, sleeping, pilates (they are SO relaxing), and painting...

Little Fish said...

Does drinking wine count as a hobby? ;-)

I love your scarf and hat- too cute. One of these days you should do a blog giveaway where the winner gets something you've knit.

Unknown said...

You finished that hat just in time! It's definitely winter!!! Brrrr!!! Very good work.

Leigh said...

Your scarf is so cute! I wish I could knit...I just can't get the hang of it!

Lauren @ Sassy Molassy said...

Dang girl, those are ADORABLE. I love the style of both. You should be selling these hotcakes on etsy or something...if you had the time/wanted to. The gift recipients will be forever grateful and love their presents.

Anonymous said...

LOVE the hat. I think I should meet you and then we could just knit... though you'd have to teach me how first =)

Great scarf pattern too! You're definitely talented; I'm sure everyone will love the scarves!

Carolina John said...

the scarf and hat are very cute!

Amber @ A Little Pink in the Cornfields said...

This is going to sound so dorky, but cleaning really relaxes me! When I'm really stressed I just get out the rubber gloves and the bleach and go to town! LOL :)
I really wish I knew I how to knit, maybe someday!

Kelly said...

Knitting is so calming I totally agree. Except I am terrible haha. But just doing a boring scarf is nice sometimes.

I wish you lived close so you could teach me how to make a hat haha

The Many Thoughts of a Reader said...

I wish I knew how to knit.. I am always jealous of the nice hats /mittens /scarves people make!

Anonymous said...

I love your scarf and hat set! :) I just recently got into knitting and am limited to scarfts and dish rags. I'm working on a mittens pattern. Your stuff is too dang cute though!

I saw your comment on Kyla's blog and since I'm newer to this blogging thing am scoping others out. :) Have a nice weekend!

Anonymous said...

That should say scarfs... not scarfts.

I get excited. ;)

Anais said...

I wish I had an ounce of your knitting talents!!! I dream of being able to make myself a cardigan one day :P Yeah, I can dream on lol!!

Unknown said...

I've been riding horses for about 15 years and that is such a great time of peace and quiet in my busy life. Can't wait to see your pics of the scarves. That's really neat that you can make presents for everyone!

Becky said...

Have a great weekend! I think knitting is really relaxing as well! I haven't done it in awhile - I'm hoping that'll be a project this holiday season for me, but I've never ventured beyond scarves. I'm impressed with your hat abilities! :)

Sarah said...

I LOVE that scarf - it's so cool!
As much as I find knitting relaxing, I also find it energizing, weird as that sounds. I find that if I spend half an hour knitting it's enough time for me to organise my thoughts and get everything in my head sorted so that I can tackle whatever I have to do. And the great thing is that I have some knitting to show at the end of it!