My First Projects

In the last month or so, I've been getting into my crafty side. This was partly due to wanting to fill the evening with a hobby, and the fact that there are two nephews are on the way that I wanted to create something for.

I learned how to knit when I was younger, but never really got into it, and would typically start a (really simple) scarf and never finish it. For Baby Boy Addink, I decided to create a hat and booties set. My sister had a few showers scheduled this month, so I thought I'd make something in time to send it. And...I did it! I can definitely say that these were simple and took longer for me to create than someone more experienced, but I was happy with the results.

Here's some photos:

Here's the hat

And the first booties I made. I struggled with these (there's a smaller one that didn't make it on here - it was too small and tight)

The second set of booties. A friend suggested these (she had made them recently for a friend). There were a few new techniques I had to learn, but the overall design was fairly simple. I made these after I finished the first set and really didn't like the result much. I was happier with these (my sister also noted she thought the set with buttons would stay on better, which was good to hear).

I was quite uncertain about creating these, and while I had fun, there was some uncertainty during the process. I didn't have much of an idea about how big any of the pieces should be, so I erred on the large side to be cautious (and this baby's older brother had large feet as an infant, so that was in the back of my mind as well).

I learned a few things during the process. Making the pompom was a new experience, but a fun one - snipping the end and 'fuzzing' it up. Creating the straps for the second set of booties, as well as adding the buttons and holes (they're weaved in, which is easier than actually creating holes). I also experimented with using more than one color in a piece for the first time.

It was fun to shop for the yarn - baby yarn comes in such soft textures, even if most of the colors are pastel.

One last picture - I included this in the package - it's small enough that it probably won't be worn often before being outgrown, but it's warm and cozy (the overalls are a soft courderoy), with long sleeves, which I think will be nice for a January baby.

Chipotle...mmm

I had a pretty great Halloween. I met up with some old roommates downtown for breakfast and it was really nice to catch up. I hadn't seen a few of them in upwards of a year. I don't have a picture of that, though...

Later, Jeff and I met up with a few different friends at Chipotle. I'm not really the right age for Halloween right now - too old to trick-or-treat, and too young to have my own - but a good solution the last couple years has been to take Chipotle up on their offer of a free burrito for anyone who dresses like a burrito. We donned some tinfoil in the parking lot and were set.

Afterwards, we hung out at our apartment. It was a good time and a nice chance to see some friends.

(Jeff's hat looks like a yarmulka to me)

A Start on the Photos

I finally began loading photos from our new camera onto the Mac. I don't really use the main computer the rest of the pictures are on, so I think this could be a good solution in the future, especially as I'm the one who typically enjoys taking photos.

So, here are a few photos:

These are the (now outdated) pumpkin sugar cookies I made.

With a close-up of the ones Jeff took to work (he did the piping for most of the 7s, for his presentation on Windows 7)

I used the last bit of dough to make this (we're just that cool...)

There's my summary of recent baking. I like sugar cookies because I get to make different shapes, and color the frosting however I choose. I did miss my nephew (he likes to cut out and frost the cookies), which led me to miss family a bit. I'm hoping Christmas plane tickets go down a tad so I can go home for a few days.