Busy, busy, busy!

Well, I finally managed to fight the new kitten off long enough to make a few quick projects. Cat toys, of course! I even managed to make a few extras that she hasn't claimed yet to list in my store.

I also finally got around to photographing and listing another baby afghan. Been a busy day or two. Now I just have to finish listing cat toys and go make some more.

And I still have to put the findings on another tatted choker and try to come up with earrings to go with it or something. No rest sometimes.

At Last! I'm Popular!

Take that everyone who was snotty to me in high school!

Okay, I'm not Prom Queen popular or anything, but I did sell two copies of this pattern in one day! And I've sold two sets of Juggling Geese within a week. Makes me feel pretty good. Now, if only some bigger ticket items would become popular ;)

After working on tatting projects for about a week, my tatting calluses are finally starting to build up again and the thread isn't cutting into my fingers as much. I really need to stop letting the calluses soften and heal. It's a pain to build them back up, in more ways than one!

Old Wounds Heal Slowly

As I've been knitting since I was very young and crocheting and tatting since I was fairly young, I expect a certain amount of carpal tunnel issues to ensue after a long stretch of doing any of these things. Usually, I slap a brace on whichever wrist is hurting at the moment, avoid doing any of the previously mentioned activities for a few days and then ease back in. It's not working this time.

After knitting four frog hats in two days to fill an order, I tried to take a vacation from fiber related pursuits for a few days. That was over a week ago. I didn't knit, crochet, or type for three days. I almost went crazy. My wrist still hurts. It starts to get better and then it gets worse again. I have things to work on, orders and obligations to fulfill. I don't have time for this! I know typing isn't helping much, but I avoided that for a while as well. I have to figure out what I'm doing wrong this time so that this won't happen again. I'm going to go insane from boredom if I can't work on anything productive!

I'm hoping that as long as I wear my support glove while I work on things the pain will at least stay the same. As long as it doesn't increase, I can continue to work. I'm just starting to get worried that my over-enthusiastic knitting may have lead to damage of a more permanent nature.

Doesn't matter. Doesn't change the fact that I have a choker to tat and an afghan to crochet. Guess I won't be pursuing a career in data entry, though.

Gifts, Ghouls, and Giveaways!

Did a bunch of listing the other day! I finally found where I had hidden my blue and purple threads from myself. Now I just have to figure out where the pinks and yellow are hiding.

Purple being my favorite color, once I found the threads, I just had to set to work on some purple pieces! I particularly love the way this one turned out:

I've had a bunch of those dragonfly charms hanging out with my beads for a while. I made stitch markers out of them a year or so ago and didn't know what to do with the rest. I got this pattern to work around a bead and thought it was worth a try with the charm. I think it turned out well. I'm hoping someone will want some pendants for stocking stuffers this year. I've been putting them up in all the promotions forums I can on etsy trying to get a little attention. I have to make some for myself, too.

As Halloween is quick approaching, I figured it was time I gave a nod to my favorite holiday. So, I dug out the Halloween socks I bought at the thrift store a few months ago. They had never even been worn! I was really tempted to wear them this year, but they just had to be turned into creatures:

Their names are Boo (the big one) and Eek (the smaller one). The socks had little spots that had flashing lights in them and I transfered those so that each has an arm that lights up! They're so cute. Oh, and they've got some of my hand tatted spiders sewn to each of them!

I've teamed up with another etsian to do a giveaway on her blog! Actually, it's a team, but I've just been talking with one of the two through emails/convos. Anyway, here's a link to the giveaway of a batch of my hand tatted flowers:

http://raechele.blogspot.com/2008/09/keenaskreations-giveaway.html

Okay, off to put some more tatting blisters on my fingers. Working on a choker that should be gorgeous when it's finished. Assuming all goes well. . . .

When your hobby becomes your job do you give yourself a day off?

The tatting blisters are back. The calluses had apparently gone soft from lack of constant taughtly-pulled thread being run across them so now there are blisters. The scratchy wool yarn from the decrepit old sweater in the back of my closet has irritated the palm of my hand. I'm going cross-eyed from retaking and editing photos all the time. Do I get a day off now?

Of course, if I took a "day off" what would I do? I'd knit shawls from prayer shawl ministry, I'd organize my yarn bins, I'd search online for patterns. I'd do the same thing I do every day! I need new hobbies! Any suggestions?

As usual . . .

I'm drowning in projects!

I just finished a special order afghan. Pictures will be posted when I get a chance to take them. I'm unravelling a thrift store sweater to recycle the yarn and I have another waiting in the wings, I've got at least a dozen "I Spy" bags to sew, working on a wedding afghan for a friend, helping sew puppets when the pieces are brought to me, etc, etc, etc!

Too little time, too many projects!

Oh, and let's not forget the two multi-week classes I'm teaching.

At least I'm making some money!

Be Kind to Your Pizza Delivery Man

Ok, for the sake of the remaining sanity of my husband and myself, I wish to dispel a few apparent mistruths about pizza delivery service:

1. Pizza deliverers are compensated by their respective restaurants for gas money.

2. There is a delivery charge, therefore, tip is included.

3. If my pizza is late it is the delivery personnel's fault and therefore I will not tip.

These are just a few of the reasons people give. Let me assure you that:

1. Gas money comes out of pocket.

2. Delivery personnel only receive part of the delivery charge and in most instances it does not even cover the cost of gas to get to your home. Particularly if you live off the beaten track.

3. Deliver drivers have no control over when pizzas are cooked and orders are filled. If the restaurant is backed up, your pizza might not come when the adorable teenager on the phone promised you it would arrive. People who take the orders many times do not know what they're talking about when giving delivery times.

Overall, please cut your friendly neighborhood pizza man a little slack. They are overworked and underpaid, just like everyone else. Not to mention the fact that, GAS IS FRIGGING EXPENSIVE!

If it's raining and you order pizza because you don't want to go out in the rain, remember that the dripping person at your door is a person getting paid something slightly (ever so slightly) better than minimum wage to drive around in the rain for you. This human being on your doorstep had to dodge the idiots who cause accidents because they don't know how to drive in the rain. They had to find your house in your maze of a subdivision. Trust me, I hear about it all the next day.

So please, consider this a public service announcement on behalf of all the people who have to console the delivery drivers after a shift. Please, for the love of humanity, tip your driver! Thank you.