Another Entry On This Now Sporadic Blog

I've honestly been meaning to post more regularly, but I just haven't had much to post about. Rick and I went up to London earlier this week to bring my computer in for repairs, so that's been another obstacle. Yes, I have the iPad (where I am updating from now) but its just not the same.
Since my last post, I've acquired five skeins of yarn. All but one were prizes in giveaways.
I still haven't been knitting much. No real reason, I just haven't been.
I'm still planning on doing a whole rebrand, so that's another reason for my blogging apathy, I'm sure.
I have been making earrings though! I got my findings a little while ago, and I've been cranking stuff out. As soon as I'm done this mediocre post, I'll be getting back to those.
I hope you're all doing well.

Wednesdays are for Gratitude: June 5, 2013

Still trying to get back into the swing of things. I'm hoping that forcing routine back on myself will help all the other stuff fall into place. This is a short list of what I'm grateful for this week.
My parents  /  My brother  /  My job  /  Having my own space at my parents  /  Visiting with family friends  /  Volunteering at the food bank  /  My friends  /  My iPad  /  eBooks  /  Richard and Winston
What are you grateful for this week?

Sorry For the Radio Silence

It's been a while since my last post. Life has gotten in the way, and some things just needed to take a break, this blog being one of them.
My boyfriend of nearly four years and I have decided to take some time apart from each other, and I've moved back into my parents. It's been very difficult, but I have a pretty good support system. I'm in the process of sorting my belongings and deciding what to put into storage, and what to keep in my parents already full house. I'm also attempting to get a transfer to a Beer Store closer to home. I'm about 45 minutes away from my current store, which is a bit of a trek. In addition to this, I'm trying to find a second job to help get me out of debt faster. Crossing my fingers for that.
Thank you for your kind words on Facebook, twitter and the comments on here. They mean a lot. I hope to be back with some actual knitting content very soon.

Wednesdays Are For Gratitude: May 22, 2013

Sorry for the lack of post on Monday. I haven't been knitting much lately, so I didn't really have anything to post about. I'm so distracted with all sorts of other things going on, that I just haven't been getting crafty.

This is what I am grateful for this week

Richard being awesome  /  Parking lot beer  /  My customers at work who helped me collect about $100 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society  /  My twitter friends being helpful  /  Going on drives with Richard and Winston  /  Having a light enough car that I can push it out of the sand when we get stuck  /  The Bates Motel season finale  /  Masterchef starting tonight  /  Biking to work  /  Going out for drinks with my buddy Nick  /  New earring supplies  /  Comfortable shoes

What are you grateful for this week?

I'm going to use my new supplies and start making some new styles of earrings that I haven't done before. I'm so excited!

I Love My iPad Case: A Review of The Snugg

Normally, when I am approached for reviews/guest posts to be done on my blog, I am very hesitant. I blog about a very specific topic (knitting, in case the name didn't give it away) and I don't want to flood my blog with what I see as crap. I don't like it when the blogs I follow start doing all kinds of reviews about stuff that has nothing to do with the subject of their blog, and I don't want to do that to all of you.
I made an exception recently.
I was contacted by The Snugg to see if I wanted to review some of their products on my blog. I looked around the site, and thought about it for a while, before I finally said yes. I got a pink iPad Mini cover, which I am absolutely in love with. There was some confusion at the post office before I received them. We have a PO box which is too small to receive most packages, so we have to go to the desk and pick them up. My name wasn't on the package, so there was a bit of hassle to actually get it from them. The ladies that work at our post office, while great when it comes to shipping stuff out, are ridiculous when it's time to pick stuff up. Photo ID this, and sign that, and "a health card doesn't count as ID" blah blah blah, it's annoying to say the least.
Anyway, as soon as I got it, I ripped the packaging open in the car, to check it out. It looked even better than the pictures! You can see to the right here that the back of the case has black bits on it. That's elastic for the carrying handle thing. On mine, it's the same colour pink as the case! It's minor, but I like when everything matches.
I've been using this case for a couple weeks now, and it's awesome. It's a lot more substantial than the case I had before, which I like. The screen is 100% accessible, the buttons are easy to press, and I can plug it in without any screwing around.
Overall, I am loving this case! It comes in a whole bunch of colours, and is available for most (maybe all?) the iPad generations. The Snugg also does cases for a bunch of smart phones, other tablets, Kindles and some iPods. The prices are really reasonable so you could get a matching set for your phone and tablet!
If you are interested in purchasing one of the cases, or are looking for more information, you can check out their website, or find the cases on Amazon.

I was sent this case for review free of charge. The opinions expressed in this post are mine, and I am not being compensated in any way for writing a positive review. Seriously, this case is awesome.

The Giveaway Winner, and My Week In Instagrams

I've been away from the computer quite a bit this past week, what with our drives, and movie watching and what not. I nearly forgot about the giveaway with Pymatuning Crafts! But, I just picked a winner!
Congratulations Sierra J!

I contacted the winner, and I will be sending her information to Pymatuning Crafts. Thank you everyone who entered. I wish I could give you all a pack of these buttons! They're awesome!
In other news, this week has been a fun one. Here is a little bit of what I've been up to.
Next weekend, The Beer Store is having Returns for Leukemia. What this is, is a fundraiser for blood cancer research, where the money raised is collected from the money a customer would normally receive from bottle returns. I have never participated in this event, I didn't get hired until June last year, and this event is held at the end of May, but from what I've heard, it can be a lot of fun. I have my red teeshirt at the ready, and sunblock, too, as we spend the majority of the day in the parking lot. I'm really looking forward to it.
Rick, Winston and I went for a nice drive a couple days ago. Normally, we stay to the south of the 401, but decided to head north of it this time around. We saw quite a few new places. And some old ones too: we stumbled across a bake shop we had been to in 2010, and picked up some goodies. We made a couple other stops, which I wrote about in my last post, and had a fantastic time. Winston is getting better about being in the back of the Smart Car. There isn't much room for him in the back, but he manages to make the most of it. Since it's been warm out, we put a dish with water back there for him. He's never been one to eat or drink in the car, but on this trip he did drink some water. We were really happy with this. When we took him out to do his business, he wasn't as scared as he usually is, which made us even happier.

There is one downside to having a convertible. That is being out in the sun all day. I was really good and put sun screen on my face, neck and arms. I was wearing shorts and patterned tights. I didn't even think about putting anything on my legs. That was a big mistake. I felt my legs burning after about 2 or 3 hours in the sun. I knew they'd be red. I didn't expect the pattern of the tights to show up so clearly on my legs. This is my leg thigh. Rick says it looks like a piece of salmon. Don't feel bad for laughing at my misfortune, I laugh every time I look at my legs. Just take my advice and put sun screen on everywhere. Even if you think you won't need it.
Overall, this week was a fun one. I wasn't at the computer as much as I normally am, which was a nice change.
How was your week?

Wednesdays are for Gratitude: May 15, 2013

It's a little later than usual for my daily post, but I think I have a good reason. Rick and I went for a nice drive, and enjoyed each others company. And also got gnarly sunburns. That bit wasn't so great. Anyway, this is a short list of what I am grateful for this week.
Spending time with Rick  /  Winston (even when he finds a way to gross us out. Ask me how, if you really want to know what he did)  /  Sun block, even though I still got a sun burn  /  Visiting Heaven is Handmade in Sarnia  /  My pretty skein of Malabrigo  /  New yarn acquisitions as a whole  /  Upcoming craft shows  /  Astronaut Chris Hadfield  /  All the lovely people who've entered the giveaway  /  My new iPad case (a review coming soon!)  /  and so much more!
What are you thankful for this week?
On our mini trip today, we went to Sarnia. I did a quick internet search on my phone for local yarn stores, and found Heaven is Handmade. I walked in, and immediately felt super happy. It's bright, nicely organized, and the owner is very passionate about what she does. I ended up with a skein of Malabrigo Worsted in the Whales Road colourway. My very first Malabrigo. I can't wait to knit with it! Though I might just end up staring at it and petting it for a while.
I love having the SmartCar. It's allowing us to go exploring places we wouldn't be able to see. Plus, spending time with Rick and Winston is always a bonus.

Monday Knitting Update: May 13, 2013

This past week has been a doozy when it comes to the stash down. It was definitely a stash up, any way you look at it.

First of all, I got rid of 75 balls of yarn! They were the ones I was attempting to sell on Kijiji. I donated them to LeeLee hats. Some will be used for tying the tags onto the hats, which is pretty much the only thing they're good for. They're not soft in any way, and definitely won't provide much warmth.
In exchange for this, I got 150 balls of yarn. Now before you go crazy, thinking I'm taking yarn from a charity group, everything I took is wool or mohair blends, which LeeLee Hats can't use. They use all synthetics for the donated hats, for ease of care, and to avoid potential allergy issues. I will be donating money to LeeLee Hats for every item I make and sell from the yarn I got from them.
I used up two balls of yarn on various baby knits this week. This brings my total to +80. I have a LOT of work ahead of me.

I decided that my first project out of this yarn would be something for me. I'm using Nordlys superwash in colour 970 to make a triangle shawl for myself. I thought about adding texture to it, but I think I'm going to let the pretty striping/gradient do all the work. It's looking great so far. I'm using my US 5 Knitpicks Sunstruck interchangeables, and two stitch markers from Evermore Studios. I'm not really in any kind of rush to finish this, but I would like it done before the end of summer. The same with my Hitchhiker. I haven't been working on the latter very much, but I am still loving it.
What are all of you fine folks up to?

My Week In Instagrams: May 10, 2013

This past week has been a busy one, where I feel like I accomplished quite a bit. I have the giveaway going on, which you can enter to win some gorgeous wooden buttons, I entered to win funding for my small business, and bought yarn. Yeah, I bought yarn...
On Tuesday, Rick and I went to see The Place Beyond The Pines. I enjoyed it. It wasn't great, but I hadn't watched the trailer or anything before seeing it. We also went to Starbucks and Indigo, which are right next door to the theatre. I had an iced tea, and Rick had an iced coffee. They were pretty tasty.
Winston has been pretty good lately, so we've been letting him sleep on the bed some nights. The other morning, I woke up, and this is the face I saw. His face looks just like when we first got him, when he was a baby. After I woke up, he and Rick sawed logs for another hour or two. I was surprised at how early I got up. Normally I sleep in till 10 or so.
I took him on a nice walk down the nature trail near our house. When we got to the big rocks, I patted it once and said Up, and he jumped right up. He's got some smarts, despite his hard headedness. I'm hoping to continue bringing him for walks. He is happy as can be, I am too, and it beats the heck out of working out indoors. I'm still working on losing weight, and it's going slowly but surely. Last night, Rick told me he could see the results so far, which made me feel really good. I know I have a ways to go, but it's a start!
I had a bit of a break down yesterday at Value Village. I brought a resume in, and decided to go look at the yarn area. I'm really glad I did. I bought 4 or 5 bags of various yarns, totally 23 whole and partial balls. These are mostly for the one project I have on the go right now, which is a photography prop. I don't want to reveal too much, but I'mr really excited about it. I also got 6 skeins of dish cloth cotton. My stash on that is running a bit low, so I wanted to boost it up a bit. I think I'm going to knit a bunch of cloths in the next little while, so I have stock for some upcoming shows I might participate in. I said I was going to get away from them, because there isn't any money to be made, but I enjoy making them. Soothing garter stitch is always a nice thing. This brings my count to +7. Going backwards again, but I promised Rick the majority of this yarn will be used within a month. Which I am pretty confident I will be able to do.
Lastly, we have today's breakfast, cooked by Rick. Omelette, toast, and sautéed whole tomatoes and baby bell peppers. Delicious. I really appreciate and enjoy the food he makes for us. I'm so lucky to have him, and not just for his cooking abilities.
How has your week been? I go back to work tomorrow after being off for a while. I don't know if I'm looking forward to it, or not.

Wooden Button Giveaway with Pymatuning Crafts

Last week, I posted about the buttons I got from PymatuningCrafts. I got cherry, apple and yew. All super pretty. I had a really hard time deciding on just the three packs to get. They were packaged nicely, and labeled so I would know what they were. Not to mention, SUPER fast shipping! Especially considering there was an international border! I haven't actually used any yet, but I can't stop going through the bags and playing with them constantly. They feel amazing! So soft and smooth. I have lots of plans for them, starting with some of the baby hats I've been working on lately. I can't wait to share those projects with all of you!

I talked with Leigh about the buttons, told her how much I loved them, and asked if she wanted to do a giveaway on my blog. She happily said yes! So here it is! There are lots of entry options, some of which you can repeat daily, so make sure you read all the details. The entry will close May 17, at 12:00am, and is open to residents of USA and Canada. Good luck!
If you can't wait to win them, and you'd rather purchase, you can use the code SPRING10 to save 10% on your entire purchase (excluding shipping)

a Rafflecopter giveaway