Very mini haul

I was out doing errands for my mother today and I've reached the habit of checking out Dollar stores.  I've been on hunt for a specific type of pens sold at Dollarama and I finally found them (after visiting 4 other locations in the past 2 weeks).  I went elsewhere to continue mom's errands and went to another "Dollar Store".  I was about to walk back out when I finally found the quarter aisle of stationary.  I found a plain-ish set of star stickers for a dollar.  And then I saw the stamps - and not the cheap, crappy ones expected at a dollar store.  These ones are the same brand as the ones I've found at Michaels so I left with 2 of them and will be using them in my planner...obviously.

I also learned this week that not all Michaels stores are the same.  I went to a location that was by my old workplace, to see if I could find stickers and such for the Happy Planner.  I couldn't find the planner section at all, not even for their house brand, self building set. I asked the cashier and she said their location wasn't slotted to get the planners and therefore didn't get anything to do with planners.  That's just not right.

Happy I didn't wait

The "planners" I was waiting for, arrived today. I learned that I need to read descriptions more carefully.

It's still a nice enough but it's definitely not a planner.

It has potential if I make my own pages for it. One is definitely going to be used as is as a notebook. The other one will be set aside until I am better at making custom pages for it.

The brown one has an old leather feel to it, which I really like.  The green one is nice in colour but it doesn't feel anything like the brown one.

First new addition for the planner

After the first week with my planner, I realized I needed a quick way to get to the current week. So I made myself a tab to mark the week.

For my first try, it turned out okay. The construction and functionality is great. I just would like to have done a better lamination job.  On the design side, there's a lot to be desired. I can do much better, given enough time and I'll take the time to make a better one for a later date.

This gives me good encouragement to make things like dashboards and also lets me know that I do not need to get an Arc Punch.  A hole puncher and a pair of scizors can work just fine.  However, a laminating machine is much more cost effective that laminating sheets so I should save up and get one of those instead.

Happy Planner

I was finally able to get one of my planners on Sunday.  I went to Michaels' with my friend Jaci and made a bee line for the planners.  First thing I did was pick up the green one and hugged it to me like it was my favourite blankie.  I adore this thing.

It's a Happy Planner by Me and My Big Ideas.  I love the fact that's a disc bound system

I picked up many other things that day as well.  I got a mini stapler that has green staples (can't go wrong with that), washi tape, a couple of folders, sticker paper, larger disc rings from Arc, stamps, stamp pads...I felt like I went mad and loved every minute of it.

I was hesitant about how I would use my Happy Planner but now that I have it, I am seeing the potential left, right, YouTube, Etsy and Pinterest.  I am going to try and hold myself back and keep the decorating to one week at a time, preferably on a Sunday evening, before the new week begins.  Any appointments and reminders etc, will be added by either pencil or post-it note so that everything can be finally put in on the Sunday evening before.

I don't use the Morning/Afternoon/ Evening part.  I just don't sort my days like that.  I am still working out exactly how I will sort it but I'm leaning towards a daily To Do list, Reminders, Appointments and Due type of list.

I'm still waiting for the other one (it's really 2 identical ones) in the mail.  I got the stitch markers that I ordered the same day which is came from the same country so I assume that it will be very soon.

As I get used to this planner, I will post more about my journey of being more organized.

Planner Shopping

I am so anxious to get a planner. I do have one I purchased from my school bookstore however it doesn't have a monthly calendar and as I've been looking around, I just don't think it's enough. I've turned it into my Gratitude Journal since each day has a dedicated page.

I went into Indigo-Chapters to check out a Kate Spade planner. It only had the large size and it was the same thing at the Kate Spade store in the mall. While I like the general layout of it, I wasn't completely impressed. It's coiled and I can't move anything around.

I have 2 identical planners that are on their way to my house. They seem to be a good size based on the measurement provided on the website and they have binder rings. If the pages don't work, I can switch them out or make my own, no problem (other than wanting to use a heavier grade paper than regular computer paper).

On Sunday I'm going to Michaels with glee 😀 Me and My Big Ideas planners are now being sold in Canada through Michaels. I'm pretty sure this will meet my needs. I can move things around. I can customize it. I can change its size. The only thing I can't change is the vertical week layout. I don't know if I'll have enough space to write what I need. I won't know until I try it.

Research

Kinda apprehensive.  Kinda excited.  Kinda nervous  Kinda determined.  Why?  I want to do a lot better than I did last year for school and keep an upward momentum.  I believe a good plan can help with thatas well as a good planner.

In my previous post, I mentioned planner pages.  As much as I'd like to have a custom planner,  I don't have the equipment necesary at this time and I honestly don't believe I have the money to do it before the school year starts.  Therefore I have been looking online for the best planner that's affordable for me.

So far, I'm really liking the Kate Spade 2015 planner that I found on Indigo.  I read the reviews below and many people complained that the gold dots wore off very quickly.  If that's the only complaint, then it's not too much of a problem for me.  The one I preferred was the one with the black stripes across it.  The planner has the horizontal week to week section.  It seemed to me to be a hard find since most of the nicer planners I've seen online have the vertical day to day planner.  My writing takes up too much space for me to be able to use that properly.

While researching planners, a few things have popped out at me.  The Xyron and their sticker maker.  I want one so badly.  I found the sticker maker on Amazon (.com and .ca).  I also discovered the Sharpie Pens which can write washi tape.  On top of that, I saw saw tutorials on making stickers witha  regular printer and making post-it notes.  Put it this way, I have to find my way to Michael's or Walmart to get what is needed.

YouTube Videos that are inspiring me today:
- Alexis aka: MissTreenchcoat

Ideas can hit at the oddest times

I have been wanting to dye a self stripping skein of sock yarn for awhile.  I played around with variegated and tonal and they are easy enough to do but of course it's much harder if you're actually aiming for a specific colour.  Self-striping takes a lot more planning, or at least they do with me.

I finally determined how much yarn I knit with for 1 row. (33.5") and then I sat on the information for like 3 weeks before starting to do calculations to find out the yardage for 1 colour repeat that I want to do....I don't have anything big enough the yarn on.

With some late night ingenuity while trying to go to sleep, I pulled my blocking mat (aka: the puzzle piece foam mats people put down for kids to play on), pulled out some pushpins from my cork board and my measuring tape and went to work.  I didn't get to far before I realized that I didn't have enough space. I took out piece of paper and drew a diagram of what I had on my blocking mat, added some dots for the missing push pins, through in some numbered lines to make things even more confusing and came up with a good solution.  I still have a couple of things still left to purchase (like more pushpins) and something else to find (like the permanent marker I know for sure I own that I cannot find at the moment). I hope to have my first skein wound and sectioned off by the end of the week.

The first colour I really want to try is a self-striping I have called The Evil Queen, based on Regina from Once Upon A Time.  I also discussed it with one of my friends Cathy who is a major fan of the show aswell and she said it sounds perfect in colour (she also thought my idea for Archie was perfect as well).  The colours for The Evil Queen are going to be Black -> Purple -> Black -> White.  Only problem is that I don't believe I have any purple dye which means I have to mix and I have never tried mixing colours.  Do you mix the powdered dye or do you mix the liquid dye?  Or maybe I should try both on link 5 grams of yarn to see if I can create the perfect purple to use...time to pull out another test ball of yarn and chopping it up so I can test out colours that I have mix together to get the colour that I need.

Also, it is pretty fun to come up with different colourways names and what colours are a part of it.

Books and yarns and dyes

I had said previously how I was going to purchase the Tree of Life pattern once I had the money...$6.50 for the pattern, according to Ravelry. I pressed the button to pay for it, only to find out it is not for sale (someone needs to update that pattern page). The good news is, it took me to the designer's website where she had the BOOK with the pattern (yes the book that I have hunted high and low for) for sale. I didn't even hesitate and purchased the book. It is now on its way to my house and I am grinning like a loon. Now I'll have a lot more options for colour work socks :D

I had also said that I was going to dye the skeins for this project but I kind of changed my mind. I had made an earlier order from Springtree Road for a skein of Muscadine sock yarn in Late Dusk (a deep blue, almost navy) and Kohl (an almost black colour that I have been eyeing since the first purchase I made from Springtree last year). The idea of a dark blue background and a red-orange-yellow for the foreground is very appealing. Th only problem is that Springtree doesn't have gradient yarns. I contacted the owner who was willing to send me an undyed skein so I could attempt to dye it myself. I hope I do it justice.

Another sock to add to the list for 2013

I have loved The Tree of Life sock pattern since the first time I saw a picture of them. I went on a mad hunt to find the book the pattern was from since Ravelry didn't have the pattern available for purchase. The book wasn't available at Amazon.com when I was looking. Amazon.ca didn't even hear of the book. Same with Chapters-Indigo. KnitPicks.com had it and I had it in my cart. There was a 40% off book sale and when I was ready to purchase it, the book was nowhere to be found on the site. This was a lot of work for one sock pattern.

Don't ask me what made me start looking for the pattern tonight, but I looked on Ravelry again and lo and behold, the sock pattern is available for individual purchase :)

So the new plan, buy the pattern when there's money in my account. Buy a nice undyed skein or 2 of yarn. Dye the yarn myself, hopefully in a gradient. Enjoy knitting this pair of socks over the course of 2013 (pending the world survives past this week). I am excited.

4 in 2012

As I was perusing the Ravelry forums, I came across a group that I joined but sadly did not keep up with; 12 in 2012. I was supposed to knit 12 pairs of socks for the year of 2012.

I only finished 4 pairs so far for this year; Anklet in a Day, BFF, Wanida and Lissajous. I'm still knitting the Bex and I may be able to finish them before the end of the year.

I do want to continue with this idea if having a goal for next year, but maybe I'll be a bit more realistic with my goal. Instead of 12 pairs of socks, maybe I can revamp it to 12 individual socks. With the Cookie sock club for 2013, I'll have the patterns and sock yarn to do it. I also have a growing list of other socks that I do want to try plus at least one sweater.

One Week's Progress

I only worked on one project this week, the Annisette Cardi.  I finally finished the the left panel and I started on the right (or vice versa, I really can never keep them straight).  I couldn't even wait for all the pieces to be put together before I started seaming the back to the newly finished right/left panel.  I think it shouldn't make a difference as to what order the sweater gets seamed in so I'm hoping for the best.  I already messed up on the neckline, in addition to my other errors.

My wonderful seaming work

All the pieces together so far.

I still have to do the sleeves, collar and button panels.  I am actually really looking forward to it.

I'm already planning my next sweater, the Shapely Boyfriend.  I already already selected the yarn I wanted for the project.  It's sitting in the Webs cart, waiting for me to just hit the checkout (which will be done after the US Thanksgiving passes; seriously hoping that there's some kind of cyber monday sale going on).

This is the main colour that I wanted, Cascades 220 Superwash in Grey.

I wanted to add in a bit more colour, with a colour transition yarn.  I was hoping for something closer to Knitpicks Worsted Chroma but it doesn't come in superwash and it's single ply.  I don't think I'd like it for the sweater.  Instead, I picked Lorna's Laces Shephard Worsted in Black Purl.

I also want to add a skein of black to perhaps frame to second skein.  I'll see how everything will work once I do a swatch.

The other thing I'm planning on doing (I really like to plan, can't you tell?) is joining Cookie A's Sock Club 2013.  I am looking forward to it as well.

Other current projects still on the needles, The Bex socks (which hasn't been touched in a week), the Monkey Socks (which will probably not be touched for quite sometime) and the on-going Sock Blankie (this is like a 2 to 3 year project)

It's only half as wide as I want it to be so I've got a long way to go.  I think this week will be a Bex and Blankie week so hopefully a great amount of progress will be posted for these projects next week :D

1 out of (how many WIPs) almost done

I have turned the heel and finished the gusset of sock 2 of 2 of the Lissajous Stockings. The heel flap did not take nearly as long as it did on the first sock. I am excited to get these done; not because I'm not enjoying working on them but because I want to wear them so badly. When they are done ill move onto the Bex socks and Annisette Cardi as my main projects.

Blankie Progress

The Blankie is coming along slowly. I counted about 40 squares in total and it looks about the width of the top of a single bed. I on the other hand want it wide enough to fit on a Queen sized bed and hang over the edges.

On a somewhat different note, I met this woman on the bus tonight. She had just recently been through the same program I'm about to enter which was quite helpful. We exchanged contact info so I have someone to talk to about changing careers. She is also a crafter. I pulled out Blankie since that was the only project I travelled with. She actually tried to tell me to sell some of my stuff on Etsy. Maybe I could try making baby blankets or something and see what I decide after that.

Well included in this post is a Blankie progress picture...or maybe an "artistic" picture anyways.

Bex Preparation

In prep for my trip and the Bex sock, I started to cake my yarn. First of all, I found out why my skeins of Wollmeise wasn't caking properly. When I got the Wollmeise, I mounted my ball winder on my bookshelf for the first time. Previously, I had held the winder in hand. Didn't swing the arm properly (the part that's sort of like the eye of a needle). Once I did that, I probably could have caked the entire 100g skein, instead of the max 30g I was getting before.

It was going so well. And somehow, I'm about 3/4 of the way through, I have a tangled mess. It's not a knot yet but I had to put it down before it got worse. The caked half looks beautiful. It's enough to do a swatch and start the sock.

Now that I have to go on a plane, I have to concern myself with how safe it would be to carry knitting needles. I have a strong preference for my ChiaoGoo Red Lace Stainless Steel needles. I have no idea how well those travel with airport security and carry on luggage. I think just in case I'll put them in the suitcase, where they can't cause problems.

For the Bettering of myself

It's like I'm high on the concept of education and joining clubs!

A couple of days ago, a little catalogue of programs happening around Toronto was in my mailbox. Most of the time, these get thrown away without even opening the book. Yesterday however I decided to actually look to see what's available. Surprisingly to me, there are 2 courses I want to take: creative writing and the non-beginners French. I don't have much time before I'd have to sign up and that also means finding the money for it too.

Bon chance a moi!

Is this the beginning of an obsession?

On my walk from The Purple Purl, I realized I like the area. I didn't really think much of it since the city I finally want to live in is Hamilton, not Toronto.

While walking around Taste of the Danforth, there was a booth for a local college I had already dismissed cause it was too far from my house and I didn't want to spend 2 hours on public transportation. But I picked up a catalog anyways.

I finally started flipping through the catalog, seeing what programs were available. I was happy to see the Computer Networking program and the potential careers that can come from it. I flipped to the back of the book to see how far I'd have to go for this school when I realized there was a campus down the street, or within a decent walking distance, to The Purple Purl. Unfortunately, it's not for any of he computer programs. It takes has art programs but nothing all that impressive.

This morning, I started looking at he cost of real estate and rentals in the area. Yeah, so I'm no where close to be able to afford a house in the area, or rentals unless I want to get a 1 bedroom. Not 1 bedroom apartment, but 1 bedroom.

So now my dream area for living is now Leslieville in Toronto or Hamilton. Hamilton is much more affordable area but there's no Purple Purl. It would take way too long to get there.

Don't know why I'm rushing since I'm pretty sure I've got at the very least 3 years before I'd be able to afford it on my own, which just reminded me of my priority list that I still have to do.

Well I got to go get ready for an appointment regarding my educational future. Ta-Ta!