The Crochet Dude

The Food Dude

It's no big secret that I love to cook. LOVE.  To. Cook.  And I'm often asked a few questions that I'd like to answer today.

1. Where did you learn to cook?

My mom was an amazing cook.  A grand majority of my memories of Mom are centered around the kitchen, after all she raised 8 children and that's a whole lotta mouths to feed!  And even before I started kindergarten I remember mom letting me help her with certain things in the kitchen like making the hash marks on the peanut butter cookies with a fork.  When I was in elementary school Mom was the cook in the school cafeteria (back when they actually cooked all the food right there in the school) and when I was in high school she cooked at a diner and also cooked banquets at a country club.  Needless to say, she exposed me to a lot of different facets of cooking as I grew up. I'm grateful on a daily basis for the little tricks she taught me that help me to cook amazing meals time after time.

2. Do you follow recipes?

Yes, I go to recipes for inspiration sometimes following them to the letter if it's a concoction that I'm unfamiliar with; sometimes I use the recipe as a "guideline" and make it more to my taste; and sometimes I go for it and make it all up on my own. 

3. From your blog, Twitter, and Facebook posts you sound like you are extremely busy.  Why/how do you find time to cook?

There are a couple of reasons that I cook.  Since it is something that I love to do it is a great distraction from running my design business. I can get wrapped up in preparing the meal and it helps to alleviate a lot of the stress that may have built up during the day.  It's another outlet for my creativity because I can make any changes I want to any recipe to see what happens.  I have also been trying to eat as few chemicals as possible, and many store-bought, prepared, or restaurant foods have been laden with chemical fillers and preservatives.  Don't get me wrong, I do eat out from time to time, but I have found that via cooking I can feel in control of the grand majority of foods that I'm ingesting and I like that feeling.  I also love to have leftovers to eat for lunch the next day.  It's kind of like being nostalgic about the meal I cooked the night before!

4. When are you going to put out a cookbook?

Soon I hope.  I would love to!!

5. What are your favorite cookbooks?

I have three cookbooks that I find myself gravitating toward on a regular basis and here they are:


Wow, I just love this cookbook.  It's not only filled with amazing recipes but also lots of information on every aspect of food. Sure, the Google Machine provides nearly everything you need to know, but there is something about having a go to cookbook that you know you can trust and learn from.  Naming it The Joy of Cooking is perfect.





I loves me some hot food and this book really delivers 'hot' in a fun way.  It is divided into five chapters, each chapter devoted to a different avenue to spicy!  The chapters are Ginger, Mustard, Peppercorns, Horseradish, and Chilies.  It has been so much fun to explore each of the chapters and learn how different spicy spices change the flavor of foods while providing variations of "heat".  Fun!





I have the 10th anniversary edition, they are now up the 20th annivesary edition.  This book by Frances Moore Lappe is just amazing.  If you've ever thought about reducing the amount of meat that you are eating (I'm trying to think of meat as more of side dish) the tricks, hints, tips and recipes in Small Planet will make it more than easy, they make it delicious.  I have been eating a lot less meat since the beginning of the year and I love how much fun the recipes in this book are. 

6. Why don't you weigh eleventy-hundred pounds?  Your meals sound so decadent!

I am all about small portions of rich delicious food.  I am constantly amazed at how full I get on less food now that I am cooking and not buying prepared or pre-packaged foods. And, not that these results are typical, but as of last Friday I have lost 16 pounds since the beginning of the year.  And the key I believe is that I have eliminated as many chemicals from my food as possible which means cooking with ingredients that I can pronounce and most likely my grandma would have been able to obtain.   I also walk every day, sometimes twice (morning and night), and drink lots of purified water.

7. Will you marry me - move in with me - become my personal chef?

No.

8. What's on the menu tonight?

Potato, zucchini, and mushroom stew made with homemade vegetable broth, accompanied with saffron scented wild rice and a glass of pinot noir.



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Does Spinning Burn Calories?

Spinning, as in I just turned in the final pattern for The Book and now I find myself in the middle of my studio just spinning.  That is one big old honkin' thing to mark off my to-do list and now... what?

I signed the contract to do The Book last spring and have been working on it diligently since then.  That's about eight months of work along with everything else I have to do here out of my studio to keep everything up and running.  What I didn't realize until now is that even when I would take an afternoon off to you know, take a shower and get dressed, I still had The Book and all the moving components of that giant project in the back of my head.  No matter how close or how far away from the project I was, it was always running in the background.

Did you know that there are people out there that are actual "project managers"?  I would like to get me one of those!  But for now I'm starting with a lawn service this year.  I love being outdoors but sometimes the lawn needs mowing twice in a week here in Houston. I'm not going to miss that.  I'll put hiring a project manager on hold for now.  

Anywho, back to spinning.  I've cleaned my desk off and made neat little piles of things "to file" and "to do" and "to sort" and now Cleocatra can sleep next to me all day again (she was not thrilled with my "working" and "paying the bills" all this time).  I have bagged up the extra yarn to donate to charity.  I think i'm caught up on emails (but don't quote me on that).  Oh, and I launched a line of crochet tools didn't I?

It's all a blur.

 
Cleocatra

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Stitch Nation Yarns


At the time that Debbie Stoller was preparing her famous Stitch 'n Bitch Nation book and the fantastic follow up books Stitch 'n Bitch Crochet  and Son of Stitch 'n Bitch I was just finding my way around the industry, knocking on doors, acting like a rat terrier attached to the pizza dude's pant leg.  Unfortunately I never ran into HER pant leg and so didn't even know about submitting a design idea to her to be included (let alone HOW to submit a design idea to anyone).  So you won't find The Dude in her books, but you will find me now reviewing her new line of yarns!

These yarns are brought to you by Red Heart and are made in Turkey.  According to their website you can currently buy the yarn online at Joann Fabrics but i'm sure that you will see this popping up in stores near you.  Just keep an eye out.

Bamboo Ewe

 

I knitted up a swatch with the Bamboo Ewe and the first thing I noticed was that it has a really pretty sheen to it. If you've been following my blog for any length of time now you know that I love yarn that has shine to it.  This yarn is 45% wool and 55% bamboo so you get the durability and stitch definition of wool, but the great sheen and drape of bamboo.    It comes in 10 basic colors that are well thought through, since it seems you could match any color with any color and they would look good together.



Full O' Sheep



This 100% wool comes in 12 great colors and was very nice to crochet with.  I've crocheted with 100% wool that just drives me crazy with the itchiness.  Full O' Sheep is nice and soft and the colors are vibrant.  My only disappointment is that I haven't had time to felt this yarn, because I like to see if the colors stay truly vibrant through the process.  I will get to that one of these days.  Hopefully sooner than later!  I am very impressed with the consistency of the quality of the yarn.  No factory knots in this skein, no sudden thin areas, or blobs of undyed fiber.  The stitch definition is great too.


Alpaca Love



I've had quite a love/hate relationship with alpaca over the years.  LOVE that it is so. darned. soft!!! HATE that it pulls apart so easily, pills quickly (sometimes even before finishing the project) and care is quite a bit more than a dude is willing to commit to.  I'm just saying.  This Alpaca Love seems to bridge the gap a bit and make it more of a love/like relationship.  I love that it is 80% wool so is much stronger, is a bit easier to care for, and my swatch didn't pill as I was creating it.  I like that it is soft (but I kind of miss the ooey gooey softness of 100% alpaca).  That's just what you have to give up I guess when you blend it with wool.  I would describe the swatch as a "fuzzy wool" so you are getting the look of an alpaca blend without the pilling and fragility.



Overall?

Definitely two thumbs up!  I think that Debbie and Red Heart have done a great job in bringing quality to this line of yarns.  Is it affordable?  That dear crafter I will leave up to you.  It's such a personal subject and I can't presume to know what is affordable for each person.  The suggested retail price is $4.99 and you get 132 yd in the alpaca, 177 yd in the bamboo, and 155 yd in the wool.

Boogie over to the yarn's website for some free patterns.  Here are two of my favorites:


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I Missed The Ground Hog

Yesterday was apparently the big day when a ground hog comes out of his den and tells us if there will be more winter or if winter is over. I missed the memo.  I kept hearing Tweets about ground hogs and spring this and six more weeks of that before it dawned on me what the heck was going on!  I guess giving up watching the news on TV has really started to pay off - I haven't a clue what is going on most of the time.

However I was celebrating subconsciously when I was fooling around with my mail program settings (in preparation for taking a day off soon!) and with just one slip of the finger I accidentally sent out an "out of studio" reply to over 10k of my closest friends. 

Dear person I may have emailed with over the last five years, I'm sorry that you just received eleventy-seven emails from me in the last ten minutes.  Please stop calling my house, texting me, tweeting me and frantically answering every one of them with "this is from THREE years ago - what is WRONG with you?" and rest assured that it was not a virus.  Unless by virus you mean one dude that totally just needs a day off.  Happy Ground Hog Day.

Prototypes Arriving!

I received my first batch of prototypes for the The Crochet Dude line of products.  Hooks that are powder coated in lovely shades of blue green that match my blog.  I have this odd habit of matching everything to my blog.  I have 2,000 yards of lace-weight alpaca that matches my blog.  I have no clue what I'll ever do with that.  Curtains perhaps? Knee socks to wear with my imaginary kilt?

Anywho...

The hooks look great and I sent my first official "approved for production" email to Boye this morning.  Let the magic begin.

Speaking of Magic

Last week I went to the Craft and Hobby Association trade show where we launched the line of products.  I can honestly say that that was the most fun I've had in public with people I had never met in a long time.  There are photos.  Dear Universe, please make those one photos disappear, you know the ones I'm talking about.

The show itself was a great success and i promise you dear crochetier, I did my very best to try and get the products in a store near you.  As soon as I know where/when they will be available I will post it here.  Stay tuned. 

You can see some great blog posts from other participants here, here, here, and here where there is a pic of me on my throne. Seriously.

Swag All About It

I'm really supposed to writing the last few patterns for The Book right now.  I have gathered all the necessary stuff to hunker down and git-r-dun.  But then because the Murphey-Fu is strong today, line workers showed up to chainsaw the trees outside my studio window down the easement.   

Hi guys, nice work, you're two years and a hurricane too late.

So instead of being able to concentrate on writing the patterns I turned my attention to something completely different.  Coffee.  And I finally started up my Swag Shop once more and added a few NWMC items:

*click the photo*
NWMC,
*click the photo*

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Announcement At Long Last

Available June 2010

Introducing...


At long last I can reveal what The Big Secret has been for the last several months, all the traveling and secret meetings, etc!  That's right I have teamed up with Boye, a division of Simplicity Creative Group to bring you an entire line of crochet hooks, tools, kits, bags, pretty much everything you need for any crochet project!!

As many of you know, my history with Boye brand hooks goes back generations.  I learned to crochet with Boye hooks that were not only my mom's, but also her mom's!  It's been my go to hook for years now and I can't imagine a better partnership for The Crochet Dude.  

I guess that makes me a Boye toy?

Let's see if I can answer some of the questions you may have.  The items will be available nationwide at your favorite craft stores, local yarn shops, and also on the web, starting June 2010. The three kits that you see in the photo will include original patterns that I designed exclusively for the kits and will be available only there.  The hooks themselves will have the patented tapered head that Boye is famous for.

I will be heading to the Craft and Hobby Association trade show this weekend to launch the line of products to the industry and I promise to do my very best to get them in a store near you!  Stay tuned for more information over the next few months!

PS: also, I want to express my sincere gratitude for all my peeps that have been coming to my blog, watching the t.v. show,  and buying my books over the last 5 years.  Y'all are the best.  And thanks for your patience over the last few months as I've had to sort of back away from the blog to focus on getting the product line put together.  I can't wait to get back to blogging more often!

So now we just have to wait until June for the products to hit the market!!!

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Dizzy and Crochet Can Go Hand In Hand



I was minding my own business when the new (March 2010) issue of Crochet! magazine arrived.  Then I opened it and the first thing I saw was a full page ad for my books!  I literally felt dizzy.  What an incredible surprise!!



Then I turned a few more pages, still minding my own business - I had even stopped feeling dizzy at that point - and what do I find? Another full page ad from Premier Yarns, and in case you didn't notice, that is Deborah Norville snuggling with an afghan that I designed last year!  She is obviously not allergic to Chandler or Cleocatra, not there there is ever a cat hair in any of my projects.  


Deborah Norville ad

And if that weren't enough, flipping quickly to page 48 I found the afghan pattern that I designed called "Chaco Canyon".  




This intricate looking pattern is actually quite quick and easy.  This issue of Crochet! just hit the newstands so check out when you get a chance.

Crafty Links - may or may not cause dizzyness


Here are some wonderful crafty links from around the web to kick off your weekend right!!

The Artful Crafter Are you sometimes frazzled by all the demands for your time? Here’s Eileen’s plan to make more time for her art.

See how I use some fun Sweater Surgery and button flowers to dress up a clutch and check out my Craft Super Show and CHA Schedule so you can join me in Customizing a Greeting Card Album and making all sorts of goodies with recycled wool felted sweaters.

Cyndi's shibori fabric is finished...and it was easy to make!

It's Chipboard Week at The Impatient Crafter and Madge throws down an 80s inspired mixed media necklace for iLoveToCreate!

Learn to make Linda's favorite baby-quilt standby--Baby Blocks.

Cutesy Cross Stitch not your style? Seeking stitches for your sarcastic friends and family members? Check out Connie's snarky stitchery patterns for a refreshing change of pace that avoids an X rating.

Is it really possible to quit your day job and become a full-time crafter?

This week Craftside's got tutorials on how to make a paw print place mat, a tasty "bite" from the new book The Designer's Graphic Stew, how to sew a neckband into a neckline, a bit of Steampunk CHA news and how to make a scratching box for your cat.

Check out Cathie's CHA plans! Her new book 101 Snappy Fashions and her new product line will be unveiled.

Get into the early Valentine spirit with these colorful and cute Valentine brooches!

Sherri shares a collection of craft projects, all made from fleece fleece fabric. You can make everything from Sleeved Blankets for yourself and your pet to simple hats and scarves.

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Arctic Lace

Arctic-Lace-Cover-Small


Donna Druchunas, a fellow teacher of mine who does workshops with the same cruise company as I do (and of SheepToShawl fame) published a gorgeous book called Arctic Lace: Stories and Projects Inspired by Alaska's Native Knitters which is an amazing collection of stories and knit projects.  Now she is releasing the AUDIO version of the same book!  I think that is just about the coolest thing evah! And what an honor that she asked me to participate in her blog tour to promote it.   To get more info on the audio book and learn all about Donna click here:


But wait, there's more!!


Donna also has some exciting stuff coming up this spring!  Successful Lace Knitting will be released in May on the Musk Ox & Glaciers Knitting Cruise, where Donna will be teaching along with Lucy Neatby!  I don't know about you, but I am totally intrigued by any cruise that is called "Musk Ox & Glaciers"! Here is a summary of the book from the author:


Successful Lace Knitting is, in a way, a sequel to Arctic Lace. It takes the lace knitting techniques of the Oomingmak Musk-Ox Producers' Co-operative knitters to the next level by including gorgeous projects by over 20 contemporary designers including Annie Modesitt, Evelyn Clark, and Cheryl Potter. In addition, the book delves deeper into the techniques used by the co-op and takes you on a whirlwind tour of the world with knitting archaeologist, Dorothy Reade.

That's Not All!

Donna is also having a qiviut giveaway! I fondled some qiviut yarn (the Musk Ox didn't mind) while I was in Alaska a couple of years ago and it is so SO soft. To enter to score 2 balls of laceweight qiviut yarn, sign up for the cruise mailing list here:


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The Resolution Revisited

It’s been about two weeks since the magically fresh start that is The New-Years-Eve. Seemed like a good time to go over my resolutions and see how I’m doing so far.

Schedule my life with structure and intent: wow, this has been a toughy because what I didn’t anticipate was just how much momentum life has! I think I’m going to be done with a project on January blah blah but then it turns out that there was this part of a project that wasn’t anticipated and also we have to wait for so-and-so (one of my favorite people, btw) and before you know it January blah-blah has passed by. That forward momentum of just the one project puts pressure on the other projects that are also needing some attention.

All of that has been working together to make it a bit difficult to schedule my life still. It sometimes can feel like I’m going 150 mph - which is simultaneously exciting and scary!

That being said, I have started to schedule time off around the holidays - that way as I am committing to projects this year I will automatically consider more reasonable deadlines. Trust me y’all, it is not fun to be at Thanksgiving dinner and working. Takes all the fun out of the pumpkin pie (which I would have sworn was impossible).

Write more: I have been writing a lot recently, albeit technical stuff. But I love to write technical stuff so it’s been rewarding. When I was publishing textbooks in Mexico back in the 90’s (five total on learning English as a foreign language) I found my tech writing mojo and really have fun writing “to teach”. Right now the tech stuff is all crochet and knit related, but the concept is the same!

Socialize: the other day I was coming back from Fedex (not only do all the employees know me there, a lot of the regular customers do too!) and I stopped by a friend’s house for coffee – and by “coffee” I may or may not mean an adult refreshment, and took some time to get caught up with everything in her life. Granted it was only 45 minutes, but 45 minutes with a 3-D person can go a long way to re-energize me!

Tomorrow is my late mom’s birthday, and usually I go to a cheesy local Chinese restaurant to honor her (sounds odd I’m sure – full explanation here), but this year I thought it would be fun to cook oriental food from scratch, right down to the homemade miso soup. And instead of keeping all the goodness to myself I have invited a few people over too. 3-D people – inside my house! Hooray!

Not hoard: I was very happy to recycle a bunch of cardboard boxes (I counted 17 that were stacking up in my studio). One reader commented that it was more likely that cardboard boxes would become our national currency instead of vacuum cleaners. Not sure I agree so I recycled the boxes and if I die just be sure to dig up the back yard, there may or may not be a vacuum cleaner buried back there. I’m just saying is all.

I also chose the bar area in the family room to start my new year off with clean surfaces and organization. Baby steps y’all. I feel the need to reiterate here that my house is perfectly presentable as is, and would never be considered to be on Oprah as a “before” place. That being said, the bar area seems to be a great place to throw the car keys, the wallet, the cellie, the stereo owner’s manual, etc, and before you know it, it is a minefield of uncategorized “stuff”. So I took an hour the other day put everything away, dusted, cleaned the mirror, etc, and wow, it made the room look so. Much. Bigger!

Welcome to Chez Drew


My plan of action is to just keep tackling the flat surfaces of the house as I go and eventually (I have all year, right?) the place will be nice and organized and this will MAKE me get rid of any extra stuff and face my hoarding tendencies.

So my question to you is, it’s January 13th; do you know where your resolutions are?

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2010 - We've Been Expecting You!

I know that most bloggers have already posted their end of the year-beginning of the next year posts with accomplishments, goals, and resolutions.  I was going to take time out from getting The Book finished and write one of my own the other day, but I really wanted to think about it first.  There is something in the air this New Years, something different from anything I remember feeling before.  No, I really don’t know what it is, but it feels like very-cautious hope.

Perhaps we’ve collectively become tired of the downwardness of everything we see.  The news doesn’t help much either, what with their doom and gloom and more doom broadcasts.  Add that to the fact that we are either unemployed or know someone personally that is unemployed and it doesn’t help that my nephew is in the final stages of training so that he can go over and fight in the war.  It could be that perhaps we all want so much for everything to get better that it’s palpable. 

That’s why I keep hearing people on Facebook, Twitter, or their blogs saying “this is the year, this is it! This is the year that things go my way” and you can tell that by their convictions that they have been so totally ready for 2009 to end and 2010 to begin.  

2010 – the year that things go well.

I feel it too.  I feel the gears turning and the pieces clicking into place like some universal combination lock that we have finally found the solution to.  I hope that’s what I feel.  2010 needs to be the year that we SEE something to be happy about.  We need it as a people.

Resolutions, get your resolutions


In the past I’ve set goals for myself, and I’ve chosen a theme for the year (be pro-active!), but this year I think I will go old-school and actually make some resolutions.  Like most people’s resolutions some get forgotten immediately, some make progress in January, but every once in a while one sticks and just one little change can make a profound difference, right?

So….

In 2010 I resolve:

…to schedule my life with structure and intent.  

The past two years I found myself passing by significant events that I had to say “no” to because I was too busy in the studio.  As I worked through the Christmas holiday weekend (again) this year I was saying “this can’t happen again, I can’t miss another holiday, there has to be a way to avoid this” and that’s when I got that elusive “a-ha moment” and it became very clear to me that I need to schedule and structure my life in a calculated and mindful way and thus PROTECT the events of the year that are important to me.  If you’ve been following me for very long you know that I protect my flow of creativity through a process of surrounding myself with an atmosphere of comfort, joy, fun, happiness, etc (see, Chandler & Cleocatra do have jobs).  But it’s hard to experience those feelings when you are Mr. Grumpypants because you see so many people saying “I’m out of the office to spend the holidays with my family until January blah blah” and you know your next two weeks are going to be physically and mentally the most demanding of the year.  

Hello 2010, you will be structured, black out dates will apply.

…to write more.

 When I was in 8th grade my social studies teacher Mr. Peterson had us write a series of stories throughout the year.  At the end he took me aside and said “you should consider a career in writing”.  That meant a lot to me because he was also the teacher that said to the entire class “now Emborsky, for example, could never be president because he is a pollock”.  Jr. High is tough.  

Anywho, again in college I was in a writing course and because I thought I was “all that” (thanks Mr. Peterson) I was devastated when my first writing assignments came back with red marks all over them and very low scores.  But if art school had taught me anything up to that point it was that you have to be critiqued in order to improve.  Period.  THERE IS NO CRYING IN COLOR THEORY!!!!  (Well, there was a lot afterwards.  I think one of my classmates literally went insane.)  So I took what the good professor had written and attempted to improve and by the end of the semester had scored an “A”.

I have boxes and boxes full of notebooks where I had passionately written down every thought, feeling, experience, and angst that my life had shown me.  But over the last, say, eight years I have stopped filling notebooks and have focused on other things.  For a couple of years now I have blogged and that has indeed been a bit of a release for the creative writer inside me.  However I have been so determined to keep this blog “on topic” that I often find myself wanting to write about life in general and stopping myself out of “integrity” and “blog purity”. 

Sometimes I over-think stuff.  Shoot me.

So 2010 is the year that I fire the writing engine back up and get get jiggy wit it.  I don’t even know what that really means but it sounded very street. That’s how I roll.  Yo.

…to socialize.

 It is so amazingly scarily simple to be in my studio, which is in my home, for days and days without leaving.  Sure I talk to my bff Laurie on the phone, a lot, but that really isn’t the same as talking to a 3-D person.  Then when I do get out and go to the store, or wherever, I find that I talk the poor clerks head off because I’m either making up for lost time or socializing in advance.  Kind of like a squirrel packing his cheeks with food so he can go hibernate again.

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook then you know that I love to cook.  I love to experiment and make basic foods into a tasty experience.  And as a Cancer there is nothing more soul-soothing than to cook for people, to welcome them into my home and to make sure they have an amazing time.   So my resolution is to socialize more, get out and see the 3-D people, and to bring more 3-D people in to my home for dinner parties, etc. 

I declare 2010 the year that everything is in 3-D!

…to not hoard.

 Hoarding is a tricky little dragon that starts so innocently.  “This empty box is the perfect size.  I think I’ll keep it forever!” And before you know it you are throwing another empty box on top of a heap in the corner of the studio.  

I have two vacuum cleaners, one of which barely works and one that is a Dyson.  I’m really and truly not a rocket scientist (can you tell) but I think I can figure out which of those two machines to keep.  So why is the barely working one still in my life?  Because I may need it some day when there is a vacuum cleaning crisis, or they become the national currency?  

A little disclaimer, my home/life doesn’t look like the ones that you see on the makeover shows because I have always acknowledged my hoarding tendencies and have kept them pretty well in check.  But this year I am going to confront even the tendencies, and recycle the cardboard boxes.  Somehow I bet I can find a box in Houston if I need it to ship something.  That’s what 3-D neighbors are for, right?

That being said...


Now comes the fun part (and by fun I mean challenging) and that is to a) remember the resolutions, and b) do something about them.  

I think I can do it; after all it is 2010 - the year that things go well.


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Year end craftiness

For many people there is time for crafty fun before the new year arrives! I personally have a pot of split pea soup with a big ole ham bone in it on the stove.  Is it so wrong that leftovers may just be my favorite part of the holiday season?  i like craft projects that are edible.

Anywho, here are some great crafty sites around the Internet machine to help you get to the new year!

she's helpful
Miss Chandler likes to help with the laundry.


Stefanie Girard’s Sweater Surgery
Press On with Trylon and Perisphere Cross Stitch using a cool font from the book A Rainbow of Stitches

Aileen’s Musings
To help bring in the New Year Aileen has a snazzy freebie New Year’s card for you to download and send to your friends and family.

Craftside-A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world
At Craftside there is a Steampunk-style cam chain necklace, how to make an image have a pop art look, recycle a milk jug into snowflakes, and a tutorial on making domed bead caps.

Crafty Princess Diaries
Tammy is going bananas, literally, over amigurumi again. Crochet folks take note!

Farm Girl Roots, City Girl Style
Linda DID get a present or two made before Christmas actually arrived–check it out!

Margot Potter The Impatient Crafter
File this one away for next year…Madge’s final Retrofabulous Christmas Craftabration Project for 2009! This one kicks tinsel!

Mixed Media Artist
Mix fabric and paper for a one-of-a-kind collage!

The Artful Crafter

Don’t toss those leftover holiday candle stubs! Here’s how to organize them for recycling later – after the holiday whirl subsides.


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