Knitting

After several months, I've finally finished my first knitting project!

I started off easy and made a scarf, following a Purl Bee pattern called Easy Mistake Stitch Scarf (can't go wrong with a name like that, right?)

For knowing nothing of knitting before starting this project, I was surprised how easy it was, though it seemed a LOT more time consuming than crocheting. It ended up being big enough to easily wrap around my neck twice and used up two skeins of yarn. Plus, it stretches out a lot in width!

Jenloveskev

I wrote a long time ago about a blog I've been following called Jenloveskev, about an art teacher Jen in New York who posts yummy recipes, daily fashion updates and neat homemade projects.

Every now and then Jen sells her goods on Etsy and I was lucky enough to pick up one of her beautiful homemade headbands!

My pictures don't do it justice, so I apologize for that ahead of time, especially for the close-ups.

The Most Beautiful Die

I stumbled upon an absolutely gorgeous die cut piece today.

This die piece is done by Arjowiggins Creative Papers and is absolutely amazing.

From a blog entry about the piece:

Responsible forestry management can and will make a significant contribution to the preservation of the environment. Ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference taking place next week, Arjowiggins Creative Papers is launching an innovative and thought-provoking campaign to support the global summit.

Click here to see a full-size version of this piece.

DIY Light Fixture Facelift

I live in an apartment and can't do too much for permanent redecorating but I wanted to give a light fixture in my entranceway a facelift. All the light fixtures in my place are pretty outdated - lots of tinted glass and brass and not the most beautiful.

I had to come up with something that was removable and decided to bring nature inside. Luckily, the glass cover of the fixture is easily detachable so I thought it would be a good idea to wrap something around it. I live next to a riverbank so I walked along the bank and gathered fallen branches (not too sure what kind, they have beautiful little knubs and seeds on them though!).

A few hours of twisting twigs and gluegunning later, I had a beautiful new cover that just slips over the glass part of the lamp.

I love the shadows it casts!

The best part is that it didn't cost me a penny and I can take it with me should I decide to leave this apartment.

Bean bags

I have a sweet two year old nephew who I lived with first the first 14 months of his life. My sister recently asked me to make a few bean bags for him for her to keep in her purse. She's really big on homemade and wooden toys for Ben.

After a bit of delay from a jammed sewing machine, I finally got them done recently! I made a lining with a thick fabric and put the rice inside of that, so that even if Ben gets a hole in the beanbags, the rice still won't spill out.

I made three different bean bags - one with patches of Guatemalan handmade fabric, one of a ladybug (Ben's favorite animal) and one with the letter B on one side and Thomas the Train on the other.

The cutest thing was when I gave the beanbags to Benjamin, he thought they were tiny pillows and promptly put them on the floor and laid his head on them and snuggled with his blanket, his Curious George, and the beanbags.