It just seems so... final.

It is official: I will no longer be in my current job as of May 16. I'll be training the new person starting May 5, and then I'll be free two weeks later! I have mixed feelings about leaving that early before we move, but I think it'll be good. We are supposed to leave to go house hunting the next day, so the timing is nice... I guess.

What makes me uncomfortable is that I still haven't found a new job in FL. Not like I could keep this one, but still. It's nice to know you'll have a soft landing.

I guess if all else fails, I can stay home and craft all day... You know, that's not such a horrible thought. I'd probably finish a few projects for a change!

Wait.

If I finish my projects, then I'll need to start new ones, which means I'll have to buy more supplies for my new projects, which means I'll be spending money, which means I'll need to have a job so that I can earn money to buy more supplies to do the projects I'll start because I finished my old projects when I stayed home and crafted all day because I have no job.

*blinkblink*

I think I need a job.

After a short and bloodless battle, I admit defeat

I like to think of myself as an optimistic person, someone who believes in the power of an individual with a mission. My mission was to spread handmade goodness to the masses, starting with my niece and nephew. Alas, after crocheting my little hands off yesterday, I ended up with only 3 finished play food cookies. 3. Now, that's pretty admirable, considering that they are completely finished, ends woven in and everything; but there's still only 3. Had I thought about making play food last week, I probably could have finished in time. Yet, I have a plan.

That's right! I have lost this battle, but I have not lost the war!! I'm going to work on a complete play food set for Christmas! *cue inspirational music, preferably something with a snare drum and a fife and/or trumpet* It will be the single most gloriously adorable present in my family's history, possibly in all of human history. Do you hear me, crochet gods? *shakes fist* IN HISTORY! As long as I can hold yarn in my hand, there will be joy in this world. Small, fake pieces of play joy shaped like food.

With this, faithful readers, I leave you to dream optimistic dreams involving an overestimation of your abilities and no concept of time. Godspeed, dear friends. Godspeed.

Unreasonably cute

My sister's twins will be turning 3 in 8 days, which means it's crunch time for crafty presents. I have been desperate for an excuse to make play food, so I decided to take the amigurumi bull by the horns and crochet some! I found insanely cute patterns on Etsy.com from several sellers, and ended up buying:

Classic Cookies and Classic Muffins patterns from CandyPopCreations
Veggie tray and Breakfast patterns from NeedleNoodles
Beaut Fruit and Cute Fruit patterns from Crochet Roo

I made a test cookie (chocolate chip, of course) last night, and it's ADORABLE!!! It's just the right size for little hands, and I know they'll love them. Today's task is to make some sugar cookies. I figure if I can make a dozen cookies fairly quickly, I'll move on to the breakfast pattern. There's no way I can finish all these in time to ship them, but I asked my sister to prioritize them for me, so I'm aiming to finish cookies & breakfast. After that, I think I'll go for the veggie platter (It even has a bowl of dip!!!)

I can't stand the cuteness. I have to go.

Etsy goodies!

jellybeans group,
originally uploaded by Darth Martha.

I forgot to post this in the joy of setting up the blog, but I just got a shipment of handmade goodness from Etsy seller jellybeans! I needed something to brighten up my windowless dungeon of an office, and I thought these would do the trick.

I've framed them in simple, black frames with plain white mats, but I want to switch them out for mats with a black core for some pop. They remind me of a children's book I used to have called Put Me in the Zoo; the main character was some kind of huge puma/lion/cat thing covered in spots that he could change the colors of, juggle, and use to perform other sundry tricks. It's so cheerful! Yay!

A moment of silence, please

It's official: they killed the knitting class I was signed up for. Now I will have to throw myself on the mercy of my teacher/buddy/coworker/friendly neighborhood librarian and beg her to teach me to knit in the round anyway. It probably wouldn't hurt to be holding a skein of something yummy when I ask her. ("This is just begging me to turn it into a cowl! If only someone would show me how!")

I guess this means no more Professor Judy for me, as I'll be leaving this summer. I really had a blast in the last course, so I'm genuinely bummed out about this. Meh! :(

Get more fiber!

Essentially a Super Facebook for knitters, crocheters, spinners, and dyers, Ravelry.com is quickly becoming a tour de force in the online craft world. This site has everything, including places to keep track of your yarn stash, your pattern library, and your needle/hook collection! The search features on the site are incredible, too; you can search for a yarn and see what projects other ravelers have made with it, or you can search for a pattern and see pictures, reviews, and yarn substitutions from other users.

If you are into fibercraft, you need to go sign up. The site is not totally public yet, but they are inviting several hundred people a day to join, so go get on that waitinglist!

Double, double, toil, and trouble...

Double, double, toil, and trouble...,
originally uploaded by Darth Martha.

One last post for the night/morning...

I have a strawberry buttercream cake order due for delivery on Wednesday, and since I've never been happy with the results from store-bought preserves, I thought I'd try another recipe from my Cake Bible Lady. This was also my first venture into the world of home canning, and I think it was a good choice. Seriously, all I did was:

-Boil up a sugar syrup
-Boil berries
-Boil the whole shebang together until reduced
-Pour it into hot jars
-Seal
-Boil jars for 10 minutes

That's a brief summary, but it's really just repetitions of those simple things. The end result was this. I'm not sure what took me so long to start canning. I'm already daydreaming about shelves lined with gleaming, jewel-like jars of fruit curds and jams and pie fillings and...

Stitch Slump

I'm in the middle of a scarf for a friend (a very late Christmas present), and I can feel the jealousy creeping in. I have yet to make anything for myself, so I've promised myself that I will make something pretty for myself right after I finish this scarf, but I've got another gift in the queue that is also late. *sigh* I'm just glad I didn't take the handmade pledge this Christmas, because I very well may have burnt out after only learning to knit in October!

There are 3 projects I want to do desperately: the Muriwai Bath Mat, the Doctor's Bag, and the Witches Britches from Knit 2 Together. They all may be far too big for me to make in a reasonable amount of time, though, so I'm also toying with the idea of a really nice neckwarmer or a pair of legwarmers. I'll probably just end up making a couple mug cozies to learn how to knit in the round.

Does anyone have any ideas for a quick, gratifying project for an ambitious beginner?
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On a nailbiting note: my next knitting course might be cancelled! Oh, the humanity! I purposely held off on learning how to knit in the round so I could take this class, and now they might not do it at all because there aren't enough students! I think fliers for the class should be plastered all over campus, down the hill, and all the way down Route 20! I'll stand outside the school in a big ball-o'-yarn costume and hand out little FOs to people if that's what it takes to get this class the green light! (Nerdy Knitter, if you provide the FOs, I'll provide the costume.)