My dear SIL asked me to make her mother a Christmas Stocking this year. As the story goes, her Grandmother made stockings for all the kids. Her Grandmother  has passed now, so there was no one to make her Mom a stocking. My SIL (Bean’s Mom) asked me if I would and provided a couple of photos for me to look at.

After a few moments study and only a couple of false starts, I came up with this pattern, which I was pleased to hear reported was a perfect replica. =)

I had totally forgotten about Craig Carpenter coming around before the Winterfest event started and taking my picture… LOL, though now that I’ve seen it, I do say that he made me look presentable (perhaps even professional??). =) LOL In fact all the photos he displays here (http://www.lusterstudios.com/winterfest-downtown-raleigh-alliance-nc/) are, IMO really good. I wish my photos came out that nice.

Anyway, if you get a chance, visit his website and have a look around!!

Two years ago, I blogged about how many Mo’s does it take… Back then there were only a couple. Fast forward two years and now there are more month long challenges than you can shake a stick at. =) Here are some highlights…

NaNoFiMo.org – National Novel Finishing Month (December). Goal: 30,000 words.

FAWM – February Album Writing Month (February). Goal: Write 14 original songs in a month.

NaNoEdMo – National Novel Editing Month (March). Goal: Commit to 50 hours of novel editing.

Script Frenzy – NaNoWriMo’s sister challenge (April). Goal: Write a 100-page screenplay or stage play in April.

RePoWriMo – Refrigerator Poetry Writing Month (April). Goal: Write poetry using only refrigerator poetry magnets.

NEPMo – National Epic Poetry Month (May). Goal: Write 5,000 lines epic poem in May.

SoCNoC – Southern Cross Novel Challenge (June). Goal: Write 50,000 words of fiction.

WriDaNoJu – Write a Damn Novel in June (June). Goal: Write 50K in the 30 days of June. It’s perfectly situated six months from November so you have optimum time to prepare for WriDaNoJu and NaNoWriMo.

SoFoBoMo – Solo Photo Book Month (Between May first and June 31). Goal: Create a solo photo book within 31 days.

JulNoWriMo – July Novel Writing Month (July). Goal: 50,000 words for a new or unfinished manuscript.

24 Hour Comics Day – (Changes annually, lasts 24 hours). Goal: Draw a 24-page comic in one 24-hour period.

48 Hour Film Project – (Varies; operates via tours around the USA, lasts 48 hours). Goal: Create a short film in 48 hours.

Book in a Week – (Begins on the Monday of the first full week of each month, lasts one week). Goal: Write a novel.

April Fool’s – (April). Goal: Set a word-count goal for yourself and fulfill it by the end of the month.

AugNoWriMo – August Novel Writing Month (August). Goal: Write a novel in one month.

3-Day Novel Contest – (September). Goal: Write a novel in three days. They’ve been doing this since 1977. So cool!

SeptNoWriMo – September Novel Writing Month (September). Goal: Set a word-count goal and edit, write, or edit and write throughout the month of September!

NaPlWriMo – National Playwriting Month (November). Goal: Write a play in one month.

NaBloPoMo – National Blog Posting Month (Year-Round). Goal: Post every day for a month.

WriYe – (Year-Round). Goal: Set a word-count goal for the year and work towards it between January 1 and December 31.

The last couple of weeks have been a complete and total whirlwind. I successfully completely NaNoWriMo – FIVE DAYS EARLY I might add, in spite of being deathly ill, during the second week. I ordered myself a Nook from Barnes and Noble as a reward. =) Now all I have to do is wait for it to get here….

My booth at the Raleigh WinterFest Friday night was a smashing success. I took 40 scarves and hats, and I only came home with 30. Whoo Hoo! Furthermore, I have several custom orders lined up that I’ll need to get started on ASAP. I am super pleased with the whole thing.

I have to admit though that I’m ready for things to quiet down a bit. I want to slow down and enjoy the holiday season. I’m searching high and low for the holiday spirit but as of yet, have yet to find it. I’m trying to find and do things that should create the spirit, but LOL all that’s doing now is giving me more stuff to do and less time to do it in. I want to make a pine cone wreath this year, fruitcake, decorate the house, go see other people’s Christmas lights…. I still haven’t filled out Christmas cards.

Ok, enough for now, I better get back to it.

You wouldn’t believe the last couple of weeks I’ve had. No really. You wouldn’t believe it.  A week long bout with chemical colitis (aka lots of blood, vomiting, and diarrhea – sorry for the TMI) multiple trips to the doctor. There for a few days I thought I was going to die. There for a few more I was praying for death. The good news is that I’m mostly recovered, and for the most part, still kickin’.

Even with the illness it’s been a wild couple of weeks. I passed the 46k word mark on my NaNo project. I freely admit that this is the biggest POS story I’ve written so far, and that in the end there will only be a few usable sections I fear. Which is a bit sad because I felt that the story was sound. =( I am developing a plan of attack though for after November to get a better handle on the whole thing. I really want to be successful.

On the crafting front, I have been invited to participate in Raleigh Wide Open. It is a pre-Christmas bash, with a tree lighting ceremony, and an outdoor ice skating rink. There will be several (between 10 and 12) local vendors there selling their wares, and I have been invited to participate. I’m so totally stoked!!! I already have some back stock that will serve me well, but I’m also whipping up brand new items for display. I’ll be the only fiberarts artisan there, so I’m hoping for cold weather and some chilly folks who need hats, scarves, other toasty warmies. =) This will also be my first show of any sort, so I’m really excited. If you have any ideas or tips let me know. =D

It is also worth noting that we got most of the exterior work on the house done. The rotted siding replaced, the trimwork repaired or replaced, and they didn’t have to take out the windows after all! Whee! Now the house is a lovely green color, instead of the faded out yellow that had been on it. Overall we’re pleased, though at this point I’m wishing that the price tag hadn’t been quite so high. =(

I need to get some pictures of everything. That means I need to charge my batteries. Wait, I mean the camera’s batteries.

In the meantime, newly added Etsy Items:

Retro Sunsflower Slouch Hat Rasta Tam Beret

Retro colors and styling super warm and thick crochet scarf

You-Can-Go-Your-Own-Way Scarf Cowl Scarflette

You-Can-Go-Your-Own-Way Scarf Cowl Scarflette And Matching Hat

Passed the 15k word mark on my NaNoWriMo project. As it turns out, I also received my participant t-shirt today as well. If only it could imbue my writing with the magical stuff that makes some fiction popular. I don’t know why I keep trying to write suspense… I don’t think I have a real feel for it. And yet, somehow, this is my second (or so) attempt at it.

Added a couple more items to Etsy today, though either Etsy sales are down or my ads (or adds as the case may be) suck.  Here are the two newest adds. Yes, technically they are oldies but goodies, but they are still hanging around in my inventory stash…. =(

Autumn in the Woods Scarflette, Scarf, Cowl, Wool

Beautiful Crochet Lace Scarf, Tencel Miracle, eco-Friendly

Also, while I’m thinking about it… can someone tell me why I am so in love with this sweater? I have every confidence that if I made it, it would be all chunky and blocky on me with no drape, but I almost want to make it anyway.

If you’re following me on Twitter then you already know this…. and if you’re not, why not? I’m not overly chatty on Twitter, so you need not worry about that.

Of course, lately, I’ve not been very chatty on the blog. In fact, you’re probably not reading this right now, because you’ve long since given up on this wayward blogger and moved on to greener and perhaps more productive blogs. LOL

It’s not that I don’t care anymore, it’s more that from time to time I suffer from “Insignificant Syndrome” (TM) and feel that nothing I have to say is of interest, and nothing I do is of consequence. I suppose it’s a sort of depression. Given enough time, I will renew my efforts with much enthusiastic vigor and vim.

That being said, let me introduce you to a couple of new Etsy additions.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33831043

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33830713

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33831223

I’m hoping to get some more new things up with weekend. LOL Wish me luck.

Found sitting on my tomato plant a couple days ago… So pretty.

SO what am I doing? What am I working on? Actually, I’m doing a bit of charity crocheting at the moment. I picked up a copy of Crochet! magazine a week ago. Much to my chagrin, it turned out to be the January 2009 edition. Regardless, I decided to grab a couple of skeins out of the stagnant stash and whip up a few scarves for the Threads of Compassion charity. I’ll post pictures as soon as they are done (since I found my camera battery charger!!! Woo HOo!)

On a similar note, I happened to be at the bookstore last weekend and thought I’d look at the newest Crochet! magazine (or was it Crochet World?) on the stands. Would you believe that at least 3 of the patterns in the issue were also in the Crochet! January 2009 issue I just picked up? I think I may need to be a bit more careful in buying that mag. I may re-buying patterns I already have. =(

Is it just me or does this seem a bit dishonest?

I got a Twitter message today, asking me for pictures of our newest furbaby. The truth of the matter is that we haven’t really taken any pictures of her. For the first half of the week, she was biting us so hard that we weren’t really on friendly terms. She’s still a baby, and we’ve been working with her, so things are a bit better. In lieu of my own pictures, let me direct you to the breeder’s website, GFX. She has a few pictures there of our girl Jillian.

Little female ferrets are called “jills” until they are neutered. After that, they are called “sprites”. When we were talking about her, we got used to calling her “Jill”. Well, we are also, really big Within Temptation fans. Within Temptation happens to have a song called, “I’d Give My Heart (Jillian)” so that is what we named her.

SO worse still, I was going to take pictures of my latest Kumihimo necklace… but without battery – that’s a no go too.

Dang it!!

With all that’s been going on… moving, getting the new furbaby, etc… it’s been really hectic around here. Most days I’ve been wanting to bury my head in the sand and wait for high tide.  =) I sometimes think it’s strange the amount of stress and strain we put ourselves under… oftentimes, pushing ourselves to the very limit of what we can reasonably manage… and most of us – most of the time … pull through. Either we really underestimate what we are capable of, or we really have no idea. In my case, I’m not sure which is true, because – like I said – I’m still waiting to break. =)

But with all my craft items packed, you’d think that I wouldn’t have anything to give myself hand cramps with. Believe it or not, I found something. Not too long ago, you might remember that I was playing around with Kumihimo. It’s a fairly easy craft that doesn’t require much in the way of space or materials. Honestly, I was able to get by with a couple sets of beads and some hemp cord. Of course, keep in mind that the items I’m going to show you now are not Kumihimo, they are in fact, little more than macrame… I did do some Kumihimo, I just haven’t gotten pictures yet. More to come later.

Let me know what you think!!!