Two on Tuesday

How do Tuesdays continue to sneak up on me so quickly?  I mean, Mondays always sneak up too quickly, so I suppose it makes sense with Tuesday to follow ;-) 

Things making me happy this week:

1.  Fun adventures on the weekend with Jonathan.  On Sunday night we both found ourselves reflecting on how enjoyable these "quick" trips can be, and we treasure these memories just as much as the bigger vacations.  I owe you all a post with pictures from our weekend trip to Buffalo, which extended into a day trip to the US side of Niagara Falls for my first time in, at least, 2 decades.  I'll try to post pictures before this weekend's "adventures" begin!

2. New crochet projects.  I know right?  Like I need to start something new...

Anyway, I came across this Crochet Mood Blanket 2014 while catching up on some blogs earlier, and as I dug a little deeper, it seems there are thousands who have joined in!!  I've read about and looked at photos for inspirations here, and here, and here, and here, and here.  I'm still toying around with what design I want to use.  Right now I like this and this, but my "research" hasn't been too extensive just yet.  I'm always looking at so many gorgeous square patterns and never know just what to do with them; finally a fun opportunity to use one!!  I, of course, need to pick one that's going to be easy to pick up every night and make a square with.  I don't foresee myself being able to get a good start on this until this weekend as I'll need to brainstorm a bit on colors and dig through the old stash.  I also need to do some math on the final blanket size to see how much "catch up" I have to do (how is it already the middle of January!!?!)

As always, so little time for so many crafty ideas!

WYSW - Warm Your Space Wednesday

Today's post is more of a preview of what's to come here at Crafty Holly Louise in 2014...it also gives me the chance to share with you a friend's blog.  Taurie, over at Eye Love You, and I grew up together in the same theatre group, the Jr. Guilders.  While I know just about the entire family, I'm actually best friends with 2 of her cousins; sisters, who were the Maid of Honor and a Bridesmaid in my wedding.

Anyway, Taurie is about 6 months into a big adventure with her boyfriend, Roger, while he attends Optometry School.  Taurie is blogging about her "country-girl living in the big city" adventures, making sure their apartment feel like home, and as always, crafting!

I've really enjoyed her "WYSW" posts and after some inspiration struck earlier this week, I decided to join in!  Between new new-to-me patterns and the opportunity to start decorating rooms (slowly) in the house, the ideas have been flowing like crazy this week.  I even started a list of things I want to blog about in the future.  Of course, this last minute decision on my part, plus work & custom orders means I didn't have time to actually create something to share today...

So for now, enjoy Taurie's blog, and her previous WYSW posts from 2013, and fingers crossed, I'll have something to share next week!

Two on Tuesday

Things that are making me happy today:

1.  Finding a new blog that I've never read before while browsing crochet patterns online.  While searching for a football applique yesterday, I clicked on a link for an owl applique (I LOVE owls!!), and I came across Laura's blog at Love the Blue Bird.  I'm in love!  Laura's crochet work is beautiful, and after spending quite a bit of time reading her previous posts, I didn't come across a single photograph that wasn't an outstanding representation of her work.  I may need lessons!!  Thanks for the patterns and ideas you've shared as well Laura, I've definitely added a few more projects to my ever growing to-do list!

***Just had to add in two more new blogs that I came across today***

I haven't had the chance to do much more than read their "about me" and scan the most recent posts, but I've started following both on Bloglovin' and wanted to share with you all as well!

Sarah of Sarahndipities

Chi Wei of One Dog Woof

2.  I think 2014 is really gonna be my year for the blog, ETSY shop and Facebook page!  I've been having so much fun linking them together and coming up with more creative things/ways to blog.  Here's hoping the excitment lasts past January ;-)

Speaking of, I'm asking my Facebook friends to vote on which caption they like best for the photo I posted yesterday.  Hop on over now and be sure to LIKE the photo (not the post) for your favorite caption!  Please spread the news too - little Elsie is toooooo adorable to not share!

Option One:

 Option Two:

The polar vortex has made it's way to WNY.  My jeep said -18 on my way to work this morning and the wind chills were said to be around -34.  I've yet to warm up from my venture from the car to the office, and I'm convinced that it should be illegal to have to leave your house (or jammies!!) on a day like today.  I hope that all of you are safe and warm, and if you're really lucky, crocheting in front of a warm fire!

Owl you need is LOVE

Over the summer I received a request from a good friend, and former colleague to make an owl hat for her very adorable baby girl!  She had seen pictures of the hat I'd previously made in purple (posted here), and thought it would be adorable on Elsie.  

 

Thankfully she's a patient and understanding friend, cause it took me about 4 months to get Elsie's hat in the mail!!  

 

 I just LOVE this pattern from Sarah over at Repeat Crafter Me!!  It's easy to follow, provides sizing for newborn through adults and looks totally different (at least to me) with each new color it's made in

I can't wait to find some "free" time to make a few in adult sizes.

 

I am happy to say that the finished product made it's way to Virgina before Christmas and the DC metro region is getting all this cold weather (along with basically everyone in North America!) so there are still loads of opportunities for Elsie to get lots of use out of her new hat.

Her mom sent me this picture yesterday and I just can't get over how CUTE she looks!!

Hop on over to my Facebook page today, and help me caption this photo!!

And a big thanks to her mom for letting me share these pictures with you.

January 2014 - Goals

Starting off 2014 with a prompt BANG!  Per my last post, I bring you by goals for January:

1.  Over a month ago I posted for the first time in a very long time, and I promised a catch up post to happen over my Thanksgiving break.  When it didn't happen over the 4-day weekend, I returned to work and made a list one day over lunch breaking down how I wanted to update everyone without putting you all in a coma with a 15 page paper on my life!  I broke everything down into categories like "Prop Hats", "Baby", "Holiday", "Move & Update", "Anything Goes", and "Misc".  Now that you're intrigued what what these categories may or may not mean, I'm going to try my best to write and post these 6 update posts in January!

2.  I opened by ETSY shop about a year ago.  I've posted items that were already made twice and have yet to have success in selling these items.  What I have sold has been to local friends and family, where my Facebook page and ETSY shop have served as a giant advertising campaign.  I have kept my fingers extremely busy over the past 2 1/2 months crocheting custom orders, both for friends & family, and those who have found me on Facebook through my Crafty Holly Louise page.  As I continue to make a serious dent in my current custom order list, I'd like to post three Custom Order options in my ETSY shop by the end of January with the intentions of having the time to make and ship these orders within a 2-4 week window.

3.  I have done basically zero cooking since we moved in June.  Right before the move I was really into making special dinners, and had a strong desire to share these recipes with you.  While I likely won't be doing any more cooking that I have been (Jonathan works from home the majority of the time, while I'm in an office from 8-5 Monday-Friday), I do hope to at least get myself organized enough to share 3 of my favorite recipes here for you to enjoy with your family.

4.  More coming in my update posts on our newest family members, but long story short we now have 2 very active puppies in our home.  They do a great job of wearing each other out daily, but they also LOVE going for walks outside.  So, the goal is to take one long walk each weekend with the pups - let them run and play and spend some quality time in the woods with Jonathan.

5.  Lots to share on our house remodel since these pictures (coming in the "Misc" post).  We moved into our bedroom officially on December 12th but with the holidays, I haven't had the time to do much more to transition us into our new additional space.  I hope that by the end of this month, we will have made a big "shuffle" of everything that we have in storage in order to gain a temporary living room on our side of the house.

You can also see that I'm in the process of a major blog overhaul.  A big goal of mine in 2014 is to continue to grow my business and brand (more on that in the coming posts/months).  I'm starting with a bit of a "clean slate" with my blog in hopes that the focus will now be on the content I'm providing, not the fun backgrounds I find online.  Stay tuned....much more to come!

2014 is gonna be a GREAT year!

I couldn't RESIST sharing a photo of our adorable little babies!!!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year's Eve that is!

I’ve never been big in making and/or keeping New Year’s Resolutions.  I mean, when wrapped up in the moment of NYE (which someone usually has to wake me up at 11:58 p.m. for…..not one minute earlier either, cause I will fall back asleep if left unattended!) I tell myself things like “be healthy”, “do this crafty thing that I’m not that good at”, etc. but they’re never very specific and I rarely follow up on them throughout the year, let alone remember what it was I was thinking was a fantastic resolution back on Dec. 31^st/Jan 1^st.  I will say that I probably don’t remember them cause I’ve been asleep for 2-3 hours and was just woken up 2 minutes earlier for the ball drop, and will promptly go right back to sleep at 12:02 a.m.

Over the past year Rachel over at Maybe Matilda has done a monthly Goal list which included crafts, health, her family and home.  You will also see that at month end she would follow up on her successes along with what she would continue to work on in the following month.  I really like this idea!!!  Make a list on the first of the month of what you want to accomplish in the next 28-31 days.  When you only have 30ish days to accomplish the task at hand, you’re much less likely to make a totally unobtainable goal (think “I’m going to train for and run my marathon in 20__” on NYE vs. “I’m going to run 3 miles 4 times a week in the month of January June”).

So, I guess my Resolution for 2014 is to make a monthly goal list, which I will share here on the first of the month and follow up at month’s end to report back on how I did!

Be sure to click on this to see a larger version - there are lots of teeny-tiny photos included, many that haven't made it on here or Facebook!

I started this picture collage as a “background” for my New Year’s Resolution Overview.  I thought I’d use a few pictures, and then plop a white box with an overview list of the things I want to work on in 2014 on top.  As you can see, there wasn’t enough room for my list so below is my basic overview.  This is all just off the top of my head, a little last minute now cause I’m exhausted from formatting all those pictures!

1. Finish one WIP a month
2.  Christmas gift I-O-U’s from 2013 (hopefully before mid-year!)
3. Start working on Christmas 2014 gifts in January
4.  Try one new pattern a month 
5. Continue to increase my custom order sales, especially through ETSY 
6. Start cooking again - and share my favorite recipes with you
7. Be better at blogging (both frequently/consistency of my posts and what/how I’m blogging) 
8. Continue to work hard on our house re-model in hopes of having closer to 4 or 5 rooms finished by the end of 2014

Additions and details will come each month.  Looking forward to tracking this goal process throughout the next 12 months and see if a year from now, I feel as though I’ve accomplished more than previous years.

I must also say that by the time I was done formatting this chaotic collage, I realized that this display of previous projects (no, there are not all 2013 projects, just the pictures that I was able to easy pull off my computer) is very representative of all the crafty ideas that run through my head on a daily basis:

REALITY - You only have ‘this’ much time to work on and/or finish a project.

HOLLY’S DREAM WORLD - but, I want to crochet ALL THE THINGS in half the time!

SIMILARITY - I must have deleted 25 pictures that I tried to cram in with what made the cut

Maybe I should add “be more realistic about how much crocheting you can get done in a given evening” to the list above….eh, there’s always 2015!

2013 was a challenging year for me.  One that I feel was the best yet and one of the worst hardest.

I wish you all the very best in 2014.  Happy New Year!

Holiday Shopping

First, I'd like to wish everyone a Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!  I hope that everyone had the relaxing, enjoyable, stuffed-to-the-brim kind of day like I had.

I had this whole thing typed up preaching about my dislike of Black Friday shopping, but I stepped down off my soap box and deleted it.  While I no longer feel any desire to be out shopping at all hours on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, I did at one time enjoy chasing down some deals with my mom and having our own little shopping spree for the day (the later is something that I truly missed this year, esp since my momma was hard at work most of Black Friday). I do hope that those of you who were out shopping over the holiday weekend found what you were looking for!

Also, for anyone of you, or your family/friends who are still working to cross names off your Christmas list, and enjoy giving hand-made gifts; I have posted 31 hand-crafted items to my ETSY shop.  Many prices are 10-15% lower than I usually charge in hopes that it will help you find something hand-made for your loved ones this Holiday season.  All items are ready to ship, and could be in the mail as early as Thursday!  You can find my shop by clicking on the link above, or on the ETSY button on the tool bar at the top of your screen.

One last thing - I just realized it's Tuesday!

Things currently making me happy:

1.  finding new crochet patterns and crafty projects online that I save away, and add to my growing "to-do" list!  I wish I had time to work on ALL the ideas running around in my head!!

2.  my upcoming #datenight with Jonathan.  We're going to see Straight No Chaser in Buffalo this evening!  We saw them at Chautauqua Institution this summer, and have loved their music, espically the Christmas songs for years!  I'm jump-out-of-my-skin excited for tonight :-D

If you've never heard of Straight No Chaser before, I will leave you with the following 3 videos.  These are my top three favorite Christmas songs/medleys that they do, and I never get tired of listening to them!

*Please note that what's great about these medleys are the play on words, topics and music that they create so crank up the volume and really focus on what they're singing .  I promise that between their vocals, the harmonies and the crazy direction each songs goes, you will be HOOKED!

"Christmas Can-Can"

"Twelve Days of Christmas"

"Nutcracker"

Also, for those of you hearing them for the first time, or possibly reading their story for the first time, you should know that the videos above look as thought they were possibly filmed on a smart phone from the audience because they not only allow you to photograph and video their shows, but they encourage it!  Straight No Chaser went from being a collegiate A'Capella group at Indiana University to the sensation they are today because of a video that was posted to You Tube.
This also means that you can go on YouTube and watch hundreds of videos of them performing.  After about an hour of this, you'll be on iTunes downloading songs, I guarantee it! ;-)

Disclaimer - No one is paying me to promote the awesomeness of Straight No Chaser.  These options are strictly my own.