Good Day =-)

I don't know why it feels like it's been forever since i blogged. it's only been a couple days i think.

Just stopping by to post because my fingers were itching to do so.
I'm hoping to get this bookmark listed in my artfire studio today-
I'm going to put it in my Artfire Stimulus Package section. (That is, a section in my shop, as well as many other Artfire artisans, that is sure to have something that those of us affected by today's economy could still afford) It'll make a great plastic egg stuffer for Easter, or gift for a chick who's just starting to get into reading novels.

Also on my agenda is getting out a set of coasters that sold over the weekend. I had two sets of these, so they've been re-listed and are available still.
This was my first sale in a month. My laziness is to blame for that, for sure, but I swear i'm trying to kick it up a notch, so hopefully I'll be seeing them come in more frequently.

I've also got to look over 3Zart Artland's Daily Coffee & Promote Checklist - it's got some great suggestions on getting your name out there in internetland.

What have you got going on today? please share =)

That Book Sucked!

ok ok ok-
so, i may not have given it too much of a try by refusing to read "Blonde Roots" at least to the third chapter. but when a book talks about white slaves from "europa" in 'aphrika' with no back ground on how the upper hand was gotten by these "bone in the nose, plates in the lips" people, in today's world, the story is just absurd.
i can't even tell what time the book is set in. the first chapter talks about indentured cabbage farming, shackles, and slop jars, while there are mentions of DNA, chronic liver disease, and emphysema a little later on!

i may be a bit sheltered and blind to the goings on that happen out side of my little 2 mile radius, but, man, come on!
i'm annoyed that i wasted my precious alone time minutes on this one.

i guess a book as the right to be what it'll be, it is fiction after all.

Why are you bringin up old stuff man!

♥

I've really been wanting to start a new project, but i can't bring myself to do it when i have 5 bags laying in wait to be lined and finished.

a few of them were buried deep in the closet, and for some reason, i thought that pulling them out and putting them in view would get them finished up in time for spring, but so far, all they've been doing is nagging the hell out of me. and saying stuff like 'umm, PSSST' and 'hey, don'tcha think you should maybe finish us before you pick that other ball of yarn up?' - i swear they do! lol

The bottom 2 are cotton- i started them some time last year- i think the issue i was having was figuring out what kind of handles i wanted to put on them. i think i'm going to go with light wooden ones for the light multi colored one, but i'm still unsure about the orange.

The one on top is made of acrylic and i sat down and figured what i'd do for straps last night- i think it's going to be finished first, and perhaps just in time for the southern hemisphere's fall.

Then i went on another cotton kick and started this one

and ran out of yarn. it's the size i want it to be, i've just got to work on the strap. i'm going to see if i can find some yarn in this color, or one that matches it enough to work- but i don't know when that will be, so it's officially put off until.
-
That might be sooner than later because i just got a sale's paper from Micahels that has a special on cotton yarn- 4 balls forr 5 bucks! i'm thinking i'll just get 8 and wait for that sale to come back around another day.

strolls to the library have me wanting to make more book/grocery bags so i just might do it!
-
speaking of strolls- i took one yesterday and it made me feel so great!
I think i'm going to be needing more doses of vitamin D and fresh air to help even out the moods.


It seems that spring is bringing inspiration to finish things left undone- i know i can't be the only one it's gotten-
What projects will you be attempting to finish up?

♥

Valerie's Gallery is full of cute!

♥

Great for pistachios (that's what i'd use them for), paperclips, thumb tacks and pretty much anything small- this set of nestling bowls is CUTE, and perfect for welcoming in spring while keeping you organized and in good spirits.

Valerie's Gallery also offers other cute, fuzzy, bright, and useful items such as scarves, jewelery, cozies for all kinds of little things, and children's items, like this hair pony:
Couldn't you just see it resting at the base of springy ponytail or on the end of french braid?

The list of wonderful could go on and on, but i'll stop here and just give you the link to her studio on Artfire: http://valeriesgallery.artfire.com so you can check it out for yourself =-)

I'd be diggin in dirt

If it weren't so windy =-(

A month or so ago, i mentioned to a friend that i felt bored and kind of stagnant. she suggested that i take on a project or two and so, the idea of starting a garden was born.

I started on it a few weeks ago, but ran into a huge road block.
the dirt was full of glass and nails, (from the fire) the window broke out, and the people who fixed the house just let nails fall, i guess.

so, i could either abandon the idea, or try to get as much of the sharp, bad stuff out as i could.
i thought that simply picking it out would suffice at first, but the area that i'm working with is about 20 feet by 3, and with rain and what not, the glass is all up and down that little space as well as down deeper than i thought.
picking it out was not going to work.so i brought out a colander and got busy.

after getting a tiny splinter sized piece of glass in my hand through the garden gloves i bought, i was like, man, eff this.

a few days of reconsideration were in order, so, i just left it alone.

There must have been some contraption that i could get from the hardware store that i could feed the dirt into and have it sifted.

NOT

here is what i came up with..
some boards from the pile left over from when we redid our fence and some of the stuff that gave our porch a bit of privacy before it was ruined.

while i was savaging, my aunt(the same one who taught me to crochet) wondered what i was doing. After i told her that i was getting ready to garden some shit up! she dug out a couple fist fulls of hand held garden tools that we had stashed someplace
This got me more in the mood to work toward a garden, so we grabbed our hammers and boards, sawed them to length and got busy putting this frame together
which turned into this finished sand sifter. (we cut too much of the metal stuff, so we made a smaller one too) I'm excited about using it.
The only problem i can foresee is that the holes in the metal fabric may be too small, but that will be fixed easily enough by taking something and poking holes in it so it'll be more like a salt shaker.
=-)

Bright and Simple

I'm feeling kind of drab right now, so i searched Artfire for something bright and simple to wish for.
These "Yellow Itty Bitties" came up and i love the simplicity of them. i could totally see myself wearing them this summer with a pair of dark jeans and flip flops and a cute flowing top.
At just $8, the price is right (but i'm broke) lol =(

DaisyChains offers this style of earring in several fun colors.
I've Kaboodled these bad boys!

byhand.me

"There's Red in It!"

Soapdeli hipped me to a site called byhand.me. You can create spotlights, (which are like treasuries, only you don't have to wait to get lucky), which are then tweeted about on twitter. Each square links back to the item shown, and you can input the items directly, and re-arrange them by using the item number from a variety of handmade sites.

it's looking like a great way to get your items seen.
=-)

I've been Found Handmade!

Have you ever been featured on Found-handmade?

It's wonderful!

I got a feature today, please SEE IT HERE...


Timothy Adams twits about when to apply to be featured- you can follow him here:
http://twitter.com/timothyadam

and i can be found on twitter here:
http://twitter.com/laneescrochet

Thanks for looking!

What is all this frustration?

beware, this is a rant!:

last night, i decided to go to timothy adam's blog to learn to social bookmark. i signed up for a lot of bookmarking websites and then went through the tutorial.
went ot go do it all for myself and i have to keep signing in - a lot of my passwords were coming up as not valid even though i had just created and validated them.

after a couple of hours and some rum, i decided- screw it!
but i'm not that great at giving up stuff that's already beaten my ass so i decided to try again today.
same thing.

ate some tacos, forgot about it all, la la la, stuff is great.

came back, decided to submit my shop on timothy's blog here
what is with this whole choosing who you want to comment as stuff. really, i mean come on!
choosing who i am isn't working for me either- the 4 comments i thought i was leaving didn't go through, so now i probably look like an asshole who hasn't fully read the rules or something.
what is with complicating things- why can't it just be simple!!

it's a blogger blog, i mean, use my effin blogger login what ever thing!

I want to be zine

people tell me i should write a book.
i don't think i talk a lot, and i don't think i have much to say, so i don't know why they're suggesting that i wriht rather than talk to them, lol.

but, after hearing it so many times, i'm thinking i may be able to do it.

a zine!

i'm now researching zines, how to go about publishing, and printing, or if i want to just do it at home or kinkos or some place like that.
whether i want to sell them in my artfire shop...
and so on.

i have to say that too much thinking can overwhelm a person, so i'm going to see who else i can get to think for me.

do you create zines? have a blog about it or simply have input on it?

please share =-)

to pom pom?

so, i did get the hat done- almost. after looking at the picture and asking one other person, i've decided to add a pom pom to the top. it's already made, i just wasn't sure if it would look right on there.
i'm wondering about the washability of things with pom-poms. i love that a lot of my stuff is easy to care for, but what will the care instructions for this one say?

of my to do list, i got around to 3. and i didn't go to bed until about 3am.
i'd say i need a productivity boost =-(

My days have been dragging on by

i'm not seeming to get much done now adays so, here's my to do list-
perhaps putting it out there will help me move along.

1. Eat
2. Wake the kid up
3. Finish the more girly earflap hat
4. Make myself a head band
5. Finish my pixie hat
6. Clean a little
7. Kaboodle some stuff from my shop
   
8. Start reading Too Beautiful for Words

I swear it seems that the day drags along, but when i look back, it whizzed by. why is that?

Lively Up!

I wanted to blurt this one out on twitter, but it seems to be having an issue or two at the moment, so..
here's my latest addition to Artfire:
Thanks for looking =-)

gettin knitty

Michelle aka glassidentities, mentioned that she was going to learn to knit, so i thought i'd jump in too. i had tried to knit before, but got way frustrated with it, and never got down to learning the stitch that makes the cute stuff (you know, the one that looks kinda braided)
the first stitch lesson in the 'i taught myself to knit' book was this one. i think i did ok, there's only one hole on one side and a few of what looks like snags on the other. i used a random ball of yarn that i had laying around, but it wasn't enough to finish a square.

i still have some of that aweful white yarn that i used for the special olympics scarves, so i think i'll practice with that until i get the hang of it.

My new favorite little thing

last month or so, i went to michaels and they were having an awesome sale on yarn. While i was grabbing as much as my little pocket book could hold, i also picked up a set of pom-pom makers. before, i was just doing the whole wrap around the fingers thing and having to trip a lot of the pom-pom away. but those little things- i LOVE. i think they've got me looking for more reasons to make pom-poms now.

my first one didn't turn out too pretty, but i've learned that it was because i didn't wrap it around tight enough. i used the medium sized maker for the pom-poms that are attatched to an earflap hat that i made last night and will be listing very soon.




I love the way this hat turned out!
so much so that i'm thinking of doing a more girly version (even tho this one could be worn by both sexes)

The latest- a purple beanie

It's been a while since i listed anything new in my shop. i'm hoping that this one will break my lazy streak. Click the picture to check it out or see my whole shop HERE.

On a side note-
i've added a piece to the left column of this blog that shows what i'm currently reading and what i've read in the past.
i'm finding myself reading a lot and loving it, so please feel free to check out what i'm up to as far as that goes too =-)

These are the Breaks!

The other day, i decided that i was going to draft the wool that i received and was excited. i've figured out how thin i have to draft in order to get a worsted weight. but before i did, i was getting way too many breaks in the wool.
very frustrating.

after watching this tutorial once, about a week ago in the wee hours, i figured, hey! i got it!


this video is SO helpful.

but, when you're a bit too cocky about what you're trying to do, stuff tends to umm. get jacked up. So, i was finding myself with lots of broken off pieces that were about 8 inches long.
growl.

i'm over it now tho =-)

for some reason, i was expecting to get a really - sort of- ugly yarn out of the roving which kind of looked like a camouflage with white in it. orange, brown, green, black, and white.

This is what i got. - i still have lots left to draft and spin. i got about 30 yards out of this practice round
This is what it looked like while it was wrapped around a chair. of course, it got fuzzier and a little less sheeny when i put it in the hot water, but i'm hoping that the dullness was because of the water.

Here Are a few pics of it dried. i love it!

=-)

It's not too terrible

It's not too bad, i guess. the little blue violet thing that's there is the second one i tried, and the green is the 3rd. the first is just too terrible.

i didn't find it hard at all working with the silk caps. they seemed pretty easy to get fairly even draftings from, but when it came time to spin, there were a few really thin spots and more than plenty thick ones. but it's all good.
i'm not sure if i'll use the yarn i've made because i'm pretty much used to using acrylic and cotton. silk seems so exotic and with it being only one ply i'm like, umm, i dunno...

i'm already looking forward to being able to make plied yarns (probably because of the whole acrylic/cotton thing) and i have a lot of wool to practice with. Thanks to my buddy Monet of Shady Fibers.

so far, spinning has been wonderful, and i'm so excited to be learning a new craft =-)

Another Reason Why I Love Artfire

Another Reason Why I Love Artfire

i've been bit in the spinner!

I don't remember if i bragged about the silk caps i bought on etsy a while back, but they are super lovely, and i can't wait to use them.
i got a lot of freebies with my order of this silk cap, so i'm going to use them to perfect my spinning with silk before i move on to this beauty, out of which i may make a light scarf or hat to give to some one special.

I am waiting on a sample of wool that i will use to get the technique down, but i'm already hearing the drop spindle call my name.
i may have spun the ugliest length of yarn you ever will see. and so as not to make myself look too bad, i'm only showing it to you on the spindle.

I haven't had much time online lately- i've been reading a lot more than usual, but when i am, i'm searching for info on how to use a drop spindle- how to draft and how to finish the yarn.

if you've got a good blog that shows how, or a site that may help, please leave me a comment so i can check it out.

pretty soon i'll be a pro and will be able to wish you happy spinning as well as crocheting =-)

The latest

A Cuff!

And for tomorrow-
i'll be listing these 2, to be sold separately.

Lanee’s Crochet’s Give Away is finally ON!

According to the poll I had going here on my blog, the majority of voters said that they would like to see a beanie given.

And what a wonderful Idea that is!

All other options were pretty much chick things, but this wine colored beanie can be worn by either male or female.

It’s sized medium to large and is just right for adding a splash of color to your look, or just being warm and comfy in the winter time.

Here are the rules:

To enter, simply go to My Artfire Studio and browse for a bit or until you come to something that strikes your fancy.

Come back to this blog and let me know which item caught your eye in a comment to enter.

You may only enter once- so one comment will do. (If you like more than one thing, feel free to post it anyway, though).

This Give Away is not limited to the U.S.- I will ship this prize internationally =-)

Give away will run from January 23, 2009, starting at 8pm; thru, January 29, 2009 12am Pacific time.

The winner will be chosen randomly and notified by email shortly after.

If I don’t receive contact info from the winner by Feb. 2, 2009, a new winner will be chosen.

If all goes smoothly with this one, I’m sure I’ll be doing more give aways, so please check back from time to time to see what’s goin on here at my blog and what’s new at Lanee’s Crochet.

A slide show of hearts.

Guess what i Got!

well, i haven't gotten it yet, but i did order it and so, i've got something to look forward to receiving.

a couple months ago, i did swear off buying anything ever again on etsy.
but it's full of such wonderful stuff that i just couldn't resist.

for a little while now, i've been wanting to learn to spin. i need to feel productive in some sort of way and i'm sure that this will help me out.
I've been very hesitant to buy one of these doo-dads from etsy because i've always found that shipping them was too high.

totaling about $10.75, i think it is, this thing is just perfect!

i had some funds in my paypal and so i got it!

it's been a while since i purchased something just for me, so i think i deserve it. and if i don't well, whatcha gonna do about it? lol

an old buddy from CFL, who now has her own shop full of greatness helped me find this wonderful spindle.

You can find her here on Etsy or simply click on the picture- it's one of my favorites in her shop.
Although she's named the colorway of this yarn "all that and a bag of chips", it reminds me of the sky. it's like a whole day full of sky in one roving.

My son and i were at the park yesterday evening and i swear the sky was that shade of blue- my favorite if there ever could be for the sky..
the street lights were on, birds were heading home, and stars began to twinkle. i love it!

anyway- check out her shop, she sells a bit of this and that and she's pretty cool too.

On my Agenda

I spent a few hours last night finishing up the last of my Valentines day stuff. After i get these coaster sets listed, i'll move on to st patty's day and then i don't know what i'm going to do.

perhaps march will be the perfect month for me to take time and make something for myself. i could get working on my own afghan or finally put together that stuff to donate to hospitals...
anyway, here's a preview of what's to come (perhaps i'll get them listed before v-day, eh?)

What to give?

First it was this: Or maybe a couple of these:




Or perhaps a pair of sock slippers- or a beanie.

I absolutely can't figure out what i want to give in my give away, so - if you would so kindly help me out by taking my poll.
Maybe we can get this thing off the ground here soon =-)

Valentines Day Coasters

Along with the many tiny heart pins that I've put in my shop, i've decided to do a few coaster sets as well for Valentines Day.

I love the thought that this 'holiday' is so near, but it's like getting over the hump. soon enough, it'll be spring!

While the weather is awesome and i'll love shedding my winter gear, i'm not quite sure what i'll be coming out with this year for the season, but i'm sure it'll be cute and great and practical.

So..
here is a picture of a coaster in the set, click on it to go to see more =-)

I've finally gotten those heart pins listed.

They're cute!

I've got more of the green and orange scheme to put together. i actually got a pink one out of the ball! just one though=-\

They’re great for giving and could be used as prizes for students, in Valentines Day goodie mugs, paired with greeting cards, or just as a little something extra to include in your packages. - so be sure to pick up a few.

(cause when you pick up a few, you'll receive 20% off your pins purchase =-)

Rather than scrambling to make more hats or scarves for valentines day, i think i'll switch gears and crank out a few coaster sets, so be on the look out for those too!

To pat Myself on the back

I told myself last night that i would get 3 things listed on artfire, but didn't get around to doing it.
i cranked myself up to high and finally got them on there as well as took some pics of other stuffs to put on there.
I didn't get the scarf seen below listed yet, or any of the heart pins but they're definately coming tomorrow. i love the way they turned out, and i think you will too.

I feel like that little white rabbit

is it me, or are the seasons sneaking up this year. it seems like that it wasn't too long ago that i was scrambling to get christmasy things made and listed. now i'm thinking 'oh wow! it's almost valentines day!' and i haven't got too much listed that would fit that holiday.
it's the last 'big' one that people may buy cozy crocheted goodness for, so i'm feeling like 'im late, i'm late- for a very important date!'

i've cranked out lots of little hearts to sew to things and will be coming out with some pins soon.
(i may even get some done tonight to have listed by tomorrow evening.)
i'm still debating on whether or not i want it to be just the heart on the pin, or if i want to put a circle behind it, making it look like a patch type thing.

i've got a scarf and hat on the way as well. my goal was to have them listed by tonight, but i think i'll wait on that. i don't know how many ppl are up looking right now.

Here is a sneak peak of what they are. i think they're super cute, and i hope they'll go fast.

Hopefully i'll have this scarf and a few hats listed in my Artfire Studio here pretty soon.

I'm thinkin mittens

I was so inclined to take a stroll this evening even though it's quite nippy out.

i love strolling and sorting thoughts- as a matter of fact, the other day, someone asked me what my favorite thing in the world to do was and i couldn't come up with an answer. he was sure that i would say yarn or crocheting or something like that. while i do love it, i don't think it's my favorite thing in the WORLD.

strolling just might be.
hearing and smelling home, being able to wander with my eyes closed with out getting lost (not that i would do that, but i'm sure that after 20+ years of living in the same place, i could do it.)
and this all reminds me of this song by Adele. she definately isn't talking about las vegas, but i do feel like she's singing my song.


Back to my point-
some one asked me if i would make them mittens and my answer was no way. not even for 100 bucks!
there's something about mittens and slippers that just don't appeal to me. i hardly want to touch them, but i always wind up making at least one pair of slippers per year.
---
while i was bopping along to the tunes in my head, my brother rang my phone, as he often does while he's on break.
we chatted and i tell ya, my hand nearly grew a complimentary set of cicles.

so, i'm considering making a pair or two of mittens, perhaps valentines day themed.
i picked up some awesome red heart yarn, as well as some lion brand satin and some vanna's choice that is super soft from Michael's.
i just have to find a mitten pattern that will allow me to use this worsted weight stuff and get crankin!

recycled packaging

I had a wonderful New Years Eve night, and i hope you did too!

It's been so long since i've blogged, hasn't it?

some time last year, i purchased something on etsy from a person is costa rica. along with my order, she sent some candy, which was nice.
we chatted every night for a while, and while doing so i think i asked her if she had ever had a werthers hard candy. she said no, and so, i wanted to send her some.

The package i got from her came in a handmade envelope which was made of magazine pages. i thought it was way cool and so cute, foreign words all over the place!
i felt like a small piece of costa rica had been delivered to me with that package.

Here is the package that i made up for her, filled with candies:
unfortunately, it never was sent out. the fire happened before i could get to the post office, and with it having been exposed, sending it would not be a good idea.

i think it's been out side this whole time, and i was surprised that it hadn't been thrown out with all the other stuff.










i am going somewhere with this! lol

I'm thinking of doing this type of recycled packaging for my smaller items that don't NEED to be in a bubble mailer.
right now, i pay about 80 cents for a small mailer in which a hair clip or pin would just jiggle around.
i'm thinking that if i'm selling something for less than 8 bucks, and shipping is almost 2...
well, it might go better if shipping was only 1 dollar.
Artfire is planting trees. Lanee's Crochet could use hand folded envelopes!

Just a thought- what do you think?