I know the first rule in Blogging 101 is never ever ever mention the fact that you’ve been away for a while if, in fact, you’ve been away for a while. But, I’m pretty much a rule breaker anyway and I’m missing you guys! So, sorry I’ve been away for a while. Freelancing, networking and otherwise promoting my small business marketing services has kept me much more busy than I ever expected. That’s good, but I do miss writing and plan to get back in the groove stat.

After my latest crafting fail, I’m back in the game with this Pinwheel Sweater. I decided to go with the most gorgeous teal in 100% wool (Cascade 220 to be exact), and I’m terribly excited to be knitting again. I’ll be working up the first swatch tonight and this project will be on like Donkey Kong in about 24 hours.

If you’re a knitter, feel free to join me! You don’t have to knit this particular sweater, of course, but grab and project, leave a comment and tell us all what you’re working on! We can call it a quasi-knitalong. And if you wanna, we can connect on Ravelry here.

Last April, my lovely sister-in-law Sharon was pregnant with baby Parker. Since I’m an overambitious crafter, I decided to cross-stitch her ultrasound photo for framing. Sounds pretty awesome, right? The only thing is, I haven’t cross-stitched since I was 8 years old and well, quite frankly, I had no idea what I was about to take on.

First, I told Sharon it would be done by her baby shower in August. That didn’t happen. Then it was September when Parker was due. Nope, still not done. Then it was Christmas. You can see where this is going…

Ten months later, this is where I’m at.

This weekend, I finally came to terms with the fact that it will just never be completed. I have to put it down, count my losses, apologize and move on. I feel terrible, because I really wanted to finish it. But I’m just no good at it. Cross-stitching can be fun, but mostly it’s tedious and frustrating for me.

Lesson learned. Next time, I won’t be so ambitious. Little Parker will get something hand knit with love in every stitch. Because that’s what I’m good at.

How about you? Ever have to give up on something you really wanted to finish but just couldn’t?

Because the hubby and I have been in debt for years, we have spent lifetimes focusing on making a buck just to make ends meet. In fact, doing anything else was completely foreign to us until just recently. There comes a time when you just can’t do it anymore. You’re mentally and emotionally exhausted, you’re certainly not a pleasure to be around, and your life revolves around work, work, work. When I got to that point, it hit me: I was a slave to everything I owned and everyone I owed money to. It was not a good life.

When our family started budgeting, we were freed, in part, from this hum-drum existence. When you’re working Dave Ramsey’s plan, you have to put in the hours of work it takes to get out of debt, but once you start making progress, the things you dream of someday doing become a closer reality.

I’ve always wondered which came first: your passions or the money? Some people seem to have it made, doing something they are passionate about from Day One and making a modest income doing so. But for some of us, this isn’t the case. In a consumerist society, I would argue that things come first, and we all put our blinders on so we can focus on generating income to pay for those things. If we’re lucky, we will end up doing something we enjoy. But mostly, our true passions soon become one-day or when-I-retire dreams.

Last year, I decided that I wouldn’t hold off on passions on hold any longer. I’m getting out of debt as fast as I possibly can so that I can start doing the things I love doing. I am passionate about marketing, the internet and small business, so I started freelancing to explore this further and how it will fit into my overall long-term goals. I also love crafting, farming and the simple life, and I want to own a small-scale farm someday soon. That’s my one when-I-retire dream that I will make happen in the next couple of years.

Everything I do today is a step towards living a spirited life. And you know what? I’m having a lot of fun doing it.

What about you? Are you doing today what you are most passionate about? If not, what’s holding you back?

Image Credit: Joaaso

I’ve wanted to learn how to nuno felt for almost 2 years. In fact, I’ve had the materials to do so for almost as long, but I freeze up every time I try to get started. I’ve attempted to nuno felt twice with no luck and was just about to give up when I came across this video series by sockmonkeyhead.

Ever have an aha! moment? Watching these videos was kinda like that. “Aha! I get it now!”

Two hours later, this is what I came up with:

Okay, I admit, it doesn’t look bad on the mannequin but it’s not wearable. It’s short, there are holes, and I got a little frustrated and didn’t quite finish the felting. Here’s what I learned during the process:

1. Nuno felting is hard. If you don’t have good triceps, you will soon.
2. Felt shrinks. A lot. I didn’t measure the scarf well. It ended up a little short.
3. Nuno felting requires lots of wool. Everyone will say that it doesn’t, and it probably doesn’t relative to regular felting. But it does require a fair amount of wool, and that’s probably more than you thought you would need.
4. You must prepare to get wet. There’s just no way around it. Have a towel on hand, wear short sleeves, and make sure you choose a workspace that can withstand a flood.
5. Nuno felting is fun. I think I might be addicted.

Have you tried nuno felting before? What was your experience the first time around?

The hubby and I were invited to an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party this weekend, and since we found out last-minute that we would actually be able to make it, I had one evening to come up with a party-worthy creation.

I grabbed a sweater from the back of the closet, some black acrylic paint, leftover felt,  sequins, thread and super glue, then got to work. Whaddya think?

(I know, the photo’s a little fuzzy. You try getting your 10-year-old to take a steady shot in low lighting next to a lit Christmas tree. Next to impossible. )

Here’s how I did it:

• I made a Christmas tree stencil with contact paper ala Pee Wee Herman.
• I painted trees all over the sweater using a sponge brush and black acrylic paint with the contact paper stencil
• I cut stars freehand out of felt while the paint on the sweater dried
• I sewed the stars to the tops of the trees and attached a sequin to the middle
• I then super glued sequins to the trees all random like

I was really happy with the result, and it only took me a couple of hours from start to finish.

The party was excellent. We scored a huge pirate flag for the boys playing dirty Santa, and since the flag also included a Lady Nelson and the Lords LP, I’m dying to find some good vinyl craft ideas.

Know of any?