New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone!  Hope you all had a good new year's eve and are starting 2013 on a positive note.  I did not make it to midnight-I think I gave up around ten.  My four-year-old made it to eleven, and my hubby came to bed a couple of minutes before midnight, only because he got sucked into a football game.  Such an exciting night life we have!  :)

How are the resolutions going so far?  I did not make any official ones, besides reading my Bible every day.  I tried last year and think I did it for a few months before I fell out of it.  So, maybe this year I will last longer.

I hope to blog more consistently.  I have been struggling with what I want the main focus of this blog to be, and have decided that it should just be about my life.  And, since my life is all over the place, then it is okay for this blog to be all over the place subject-wise.  So, I think  it will be a mix of my crafts, my kids, and how we are working towards our goals in life-mainly simplifying our home life and working towards owning a small farm/homestead. 

In my crafting, I am going to try to use what I have more than buying new material.  I made most of my gifts this year based on what I had and am for the most part, very happy with how things turned out.  I made some holiday pillows. a purse, Bible cover, candle mats, and a wall hanging.  Hopefully, everyone really enjoyed their gifts. 

My first project of the year is a tea towel/kitchen towel.  I wanted to do a patchwork heart and then added as I went.  I hand-sewed the patchwork (partly because I enjoy sewing by hand and partly because my machine and I were not getting along working on the previous project), machine stitched the bottom strip, and am currently hand sewing a blanket stitch around the hearts. 

Since I am not turning down the edges as I sew, I applied a fray blocker around the raw edges to make the towel more machine wash friendly.  The fusible backing I have is a heavier type and tends to make the applique stiffer so I used it sparingly.  I am not sure if I am going to list it on my etsy shop, list it here and on facebook, or just give it to a family member.  If you would like this towel, or one like it, just send me a message at mastarkey81@yahoo.com.

So, I feel like I have more that I would like to ramble on about but think I will save it for another day!

I will be linking up at Freshly Pieced so be sure and check out what other fellow bloggers are up to and have a great day! 

Work In Progess Wednesday

So, I have a lot of projects that are in progress, big suprise right?! I don't have pictures-I'm still learning about blogging and trying to set up a consistent posting schedule. I'll get there eventually, so please be patient ;)

I am partway through a custom order for crochet snakes and am very impatiently waiting for the yarn I need to find it's way to my door. I couldn't find the colors I wanted anywhere in the stores around here so had to order some. Which, I completely don't mind doing but I just hate waiting-I'm an instant gratification kind of person. lol The good thing is that I need those same colors for a friend's order so that works perfectly. I think I have a total of 10 snakes to make for various people. I've got 3 down, 7 to go...If you're curious about all of this crochet snake talk, I posted a picture of some in a previous post.

I haven't made any progress on the red, black, and white table runner (also shown in a previous post). Am really hoping to make progress on it, if not finish it, this weekend. I think a part of me is stalling on it because I'm worried about messing it up. The fabrics are so pretty and the rows that I did sew together look so nice. Now, I'm worried the rows aren't going to line up perfectly and then after those are sewn...I am facing my first quilting experience. I'm terrified but excited. A cross hatching pattern was recommended to me but a very talented and experienced quilter. So, cross hatching it is! Now, if I could just decide on whether to hand quilt or machine quilt and what color thread would be best. Baby steps.

Finally, I started a crochet ladybug last night. I thought about taking a picture of it to share for today, but it's really a garnet colored crochet oval right now. Not too exciting.

So, those are my WIPs. I won't even start on all of the ideas floating around in my head! My goal/plan is to finish the lady bug for Friday, then work on the table runner until the yarn comes in. Then, I will be crochet snake crazy! After that...who knows!

I would love to see your WIPs! Just post the link in your comment. Thanks and have a great day!