Asian Purse

I love this purse. It's a pattern from the book Bag Boutique by Amy Barickman. I believe the name of the pattern is Rachel. I made it to send to someone in Tote Exchange I who appears to have been stiffed. It's not exactly a felted bag like she was probaby expecting but I hope she likes it. I hope to make another one for myself because I like the design so much. The flap is a fake opening. The bag actually has a zipper in the back. Neato, huh?

I found this fabric about a year ago as well as the bead trim to match. I just love it and hope I have enough left to make a little evening bag or something for myself.

I am truly a dog person!!!

OMG!!! I can't believe I said yes. Look what we got today!!! You may remember that a few months ago I broke down and let my daughter get a puppy. She has been the love of our life. Well, a week or two ago, a friend received a puppy but it isn't working out in their household. So today, we agreed to take him!!! He is a 7 week old chihuahua - dachshund mix and is adorable. He came with the name Hershel (I need to find out the background of the name) and I think the name will stick. Our other puppy, Martini, loves him!

Little Hershel reminds me a bit of Autum's adorable dog who has had one heck of a week! Read about it here.

Dishcloth fun

Why oh why, when I have so many sweaters and other projects in the works am I distracting myself with dishcloths? BECAUSE THEY'RE QUICK AND FUN!! The yellow one I have pictured here is my oldest unfinished item. I started it in December 2004! right after I learned how to knit. You can see how the bottom white sections are wrong. I wasn't slipping stitches correctly. I decided to pick it back up recently to finish it. I'm not going to bother to fix it cuz... well.... cuz I'm going to wash dishes with it! I found this in a Leisure Arts Booklet that my mom bought me when I was learning to knit. It is called something like "I can't believe I'm knitting." The second cloth in neon green with accents in yellow, turquoise is the famous Mason Dison warshrag which I've also read was a pattern originally on the Sugar 'n Cream (or maybe Peaches 'n Cream) label. It is really a clever design and I can see why people like it so much.

If you like dishcloths too, perhaps you'll join this blog or this group. Meet other people who find making dishcloths addictive.

You're it - Fabulous Fives

Tag, you're it!! I saw this at Lisa's blog Yes, I should be working....

Five items in my freezer:
1. Bananas for smoothies

2. Huge box of Smucker's Uncrustables that the kids no longer like

3. 3 boxes of puff pastry (why???)

4. large box of veggie burgers

5. chicken breasts

Five items in the coat closet:

1. box of boots

2. vacuum cleaner

3. kids' backpacks for school

4. lots of coats (duh)

5. hats, gloves & scarves

Five items in the car:
1. knitting project - dishcloth

2. paperback book - in case I get stuck in traffic

3. my golf clubs (taking lessons, need to hit the driving range frequently)

4. clips to pull back my hair (it's a convertible after all!)

5. my daughter's temporary license pack.

Five items in my purse:
1. 3 lipsticks

2. tissues

3. hand lotion that I need to remove before I try to board a plane tomorrow

4. credit cards

5. business cards

Weekend Crafting

As we wrap up the Tote Exchange, I am disappointed that several participants have still not received their bags. Some appear to be delayed due to international shipping but nonetheless, it's disappointing for those people to be left with nothing. For those that are still waiting, I decided to send them a hand crafted bag. I am a slow knitter and don't have time to knit bags, however, I can sew pretty darn quick. So I dove into my fabric stash yesterday and planned out a few bags. The bag in the picture is one that I made from a wool sweater purchased from a thrift store. I sewed it first then felted it. I still need to line it and add a flower embellishment and then I'll ship it off. I'll post a picture of the bags I am sewing when I get further along.

I leave you with a picture of a pineapple upside down cake that I baked for my new neighbors. I made one for us, too, and have already devoured a piece. (I'm a firm believer in eating dessert first!!) Yum yum. One of my favorite cakes.

International Tote Exchange II

It's time to kickoff International Tote Exchange II. This exchange
will include the exchange of a hand-knit or crocheted bag which may be
felted or not. If you're interested in joining, read the rules at
International Tote Exchange II ( http://toteexchange2.blogspot.com/ )
and if still interested, send an email to toteexchangehostesses @
gmail . com (no spaces, of course!) that includes:

your name
online nickname (if applicable, i.e. Kim in NJ)
e-mail address
street address
phone number
blog address (if applicable)

This information will only be available to the Hostesses and your
Secret Pal. We will then send you an invitation to join the blog. Once
you have joined, you need to complete the questionnaire and post it on
the blog. Signups will close on August 25, 2006 and all totes must be
delivered by October 31, 2006.

Let me know if you have any questions and I hope you will join in the
fun. TOTE ON!

Weekend Knitting / Crafting

Last night, we celebrated my friends Linda and Paula's birthdays with a grill-out at our house. For my friend Linda who is a fellow knitter (she actually taught me to knit), I made her two dishclothes and a knitting tote. The reason I chose a bee motif may be found here (in the picture on the lower left, Linda is the one on the far right) and the reason for the martini one... well, we both love martinis!

Linda and I painted martini glasses and a martini pitcher with bees on it for our friend Paula. I forgot to take a picture of the glasses and pitcher, darn it! I also gave her the book Marley and Me which you MUST read if you love dogs!

Dinner was fresh tomato bruschetta, Tonga burgers (burgers marinated in a zesty marinade), german potato salad, caesar salad with homemade caesar dressing and anchovies, and carrot cake. And martinis, of course!

In other weekend craftiness, I finished the front of the baby dress for my co-worker. Actually, i stil have to finish embroidering the flowers on the pocket and sew the pockets on. I am knitting this from my Cotton-Ease stash. The pattern is Anouk from Knitty.