Frog or Finish Friday-Cotton Bag

I started knitting this cotton shopping bag back in March of 2008. I love this yarn but it’s thick/thin nature and the fact that it is cotton made it difficult to maneuver on the needles. The start of a round moves on this pattern and at some point I made a mistake and couldn’t figure out exactly where or how to recover the travel on the pattern. So, it sat unfinished for 4 years! I’m so terrible.



Fast forward to now and I don’t need another shopping bag. So I frogged it and started over.



What I do need is another cotton mat to lie under my dish rack. If you are still using those plastic mats that come with the dish racks, I urge you to get rid of it. Those things do nothing but hold on to water attracting bugs, mold and smells. Not to mention the feet of the dish rack start to rust. I threw mine out last year after crocheting a mat to go under it and I have not looked back.



This is very simple. It’s wide enough to cover a good amount of the counter front to back and I’ll go until I run out of yarn. I’m not using particular pattern but I do find it better to alternate between single and double crochet rows. Having the single crochet gives much needed structure and the double crochet allows the piece to grow in size without being too bulky. Because of the thick/thin nature of the yarn, the piece still looks thick and substantial which is needed to soak up the water from dripping dishes. Every home should have 2 to 3 of these at all times.

My Summer Hair

I’ve been experimenting with my hair a bit and I am completely thrilled with the results. The pictures below are from my latest flat twist-out. I conditioner washed my hair with some V05 Clarifying conditioner. I let me hair dry a bit before adding the Pantene Pro-V Classic conditioner as a leave it. My hair was instantly soft. I added a little of the Fructis Style Gel for a little hold. The gel is marked Extra Strong, but it has never done much for my hair. I was only using it to get it out of my hair supplies. I was really surprised at the results.

My hair has fantastic definition and just enough hold that I can get two days without restyling. This is perfect for me. I typically don’t go longer than that and I want products that have little buildup so I can re-apply with setting. I did get some flaking with the combination of these two but I know from past experience that this comes from the gel. A quick fluff and shake took care of the flaking but reapplication during the week did add more flaking till eventually it just stuck to my hair. I will no be purchasing this gel again, but the conditioner is my hair’s new best friend.



As a style option, you just can’t beat the flat twist-out on my hair. They are quick to set, quick to take down and keep definition really well though fluffing and picking. I am anticipating a busy summer but I’m confident my hair will not cause me any problems. I just need to find a gel that doesn’t flake on me.

Paper Crafting Summer

This summer has started off to be the one that will be all about the paper crafts. In particular, card making.



The best thing about unemployment has been having the time and luxury to get back to some of things I love best. My time off has lined up perfectly with a friends desire to start card making. My friend DF has decided that she wants to make custom cards to give as Christmas gifts this year and she is being proactive and starting now. I’ve spent several days with her (and the occasional guest) in getting started on her goal.

This also made me want to do a little card making of my own. Recently, I attended the wedding of a family friend and since I am on a tight budget, I made her a set of handmade thank you cards.



The base of the card is handmade paper that I have had in my stash for years not knowing exactly how to use. I stamped a silver background with a bronze thank you and accented with coordinating paper and brad. These are simple and elegant and a really nice option for sending a quick thank you. I had enough handmade paper to do a set of 20 cards. I bought coordinating sliver envelopes from the craft store. What bride won’t need extra thank you cards?



And with that in mind, I continued on and made a set of 25 cards for my sister who is getting married in June. These were made by layering a piece of vellum over white card stock using eyelets and adhering to a card stock card of varying colors. There are five of each color for a set of 25. I know she will need more as she is still far enough out not to have purchased her thank you cards yet, but I want to send them to her to make sure she likes them before I send more.

And I still have more paper crafts up my sleeve before I pack the card stock and stamps away.