Goals for 2015

Happy New Years Eve everyone!  Is it just me or did 2014 fly by?  Well it's that time again to think of your resolutions and goals for the new year.  I took my time when coming up with my goals for 2015.  I wanted to create goals that reflected who I am and who I want to be.  I also wanted to pick goals I knew were attainable and measurable.  So here are the eight goals I've set up for myself for 2015.

1. Use up some yarn before buying more:
My yarn stash is starting to get a little out of hand.  I have yarn stored in just about every room of my apartment!  And while I really love my yarn and would love to continue to buy gobs and gobs of it, I really need to cut down.  I have plans to move to New York in June and I know my space there will be limited.  Time to cut down!  I thought about making this goal "go a whole year without buying yarn" but I know that just isn't reasonable.  Maybe I'd last a month.  But I certainly wouldn't last much longer than that.  Then I thought about making the goal "use one skein of yarn each month."  While that would be more reasonable I don't want to be using yarn just to keep the goal.  I want to be able to find the perfect project for my stash.  So I finally settled on "use up some yarn before buying more."  This way if I plan to purchase yarn I have to make room for it one way or another.  At the very least my stash will remain the same size!  But I'm pretty confident that my stash will shrink.

2. Have a date with myself once a week:
This year I want to take more time for myself.  I think it's important to take some time to yourself and recharge.  Ideally this should happen everyday.  But I was going for realistic goals and taking time to myself every single day is not as realistic as we'd all like it to be.  Once a week is much more feasible.  So once a week I will set aside a little time to spend with just me doing something to relax and recharge.  It doesn't have to be extravagant.  Simple things like taking a bubble bath or painting my nails count!  As long as I'm taking time for myself.

3. Stretch daily:
I just recently finished a production of White Christmas at a local theatre where I played Rhoda and was also the Dance Captain.  It was a pretty dance heavy show and I loved every second of it.  Being active and stretching daily felt wonderful!  I don't want that to stop just because the show has closed.  So to keep myself limber and feeling great I want to stretch everyday.

4. Read at least three books:
This past year I tried to read 52 books in 52 weeks.  Well that failed...I think I read about 9 total.  It was a nice idea and I did try - it just wasn't realistic for me.  And once I fell a week behind I was so discouraged that it was hard to keep up the momentum and eventually I just gave it up all together.  So this year I'm setting a much more realistic goal.  This year I will read at least three books.  Ideally I will end up reading more than that but I'm starting small.  This also gives me the opportunity to pick larger books without the pressure of needing to finish them by any certain date.

5. Stick to a cleaning schedule:
This year I would like to stay more organized.  There were multiple times this past year where I created a cleaning schedule or reevaluated the schedule I already had set up and I would be really good about it for about a week and then I'd slack off.  So this year I am determined to reevaluate once again to make the cleaning schedule something I can stick with.

6. Spend less:
The past few months I started to notice I was spending money without thinking about it.  I want to be much more conscious of my spending habits.  And I want to spend less in general.  I think as a society we put too much of our focus on "stuff."  What we have and how much we have.  This year I'd like to take my focus off "things" and focus more on relationships with friends, family, and myself.

7. One scrapbook page a month:
A while back I heard about something called Project Life.  If you haven't heard of it I highly suggest you check it out!  It something I really wanted to try but kept telling myself I'd do it another time.  Then I was in a production of The Miracle Worker where I played Annie Sullivan and when the production closed I wanted to hold on to experience and memories.  So I decided that was the perfect time to give it a shot and I am so glad that I did.  It's so easy and still looks beautiful!  So for 2015 I want to create one Project Life page each month to document my year.

8. Send more cards/letters:
One of my grandma's and I have been writing letters back and forth since I went off to college in 2009.  It's something I really enjoy but it's a dying art!  But there's something about good, old-fashioned snail mail that can brighten someone's day and I really want to start writing more.  I plan to send out holiday and thank you cards as well as writing more letters.


There you have it!  My goals for 2015.  I'd love to hear some of your goals.  Share in the comment section below.

8 Free Knit and Crochet Container Patterns!

With the 2015 just days away I know I'm not the only one thinking about my goals for the new year!  And a big one that always makes the list is to be more organized.  As I was browsing Ravelry's patterns database I came across some fun, organizational themed patterns.  Combining my love of crafting with my goal to be more organized?  Huge win!  So I've done a roundup of 8 free organizing patterns!  Since I knit and crochet I didn't want to pick just one craft.  I picked 4 container patterns from each that caught my eye.  There are some really adorable patterns out there!

To Knit:
Toy Hammock - As a nanny I'm definitely drawn to organization for children's toys!  And how cute is this?  Having your child's stuffed animals on display without having them take over the room.

Goodie Basket - Imagine having this next to your couch holding your current knitting project. A great way to keep all your supplies together.

Tea Bags Basket - As an avid tea drinker I had to include this one!  These small containers are great for using at the office.  Also great for keeping out on the kitchen counter while the bigger boxes are tucked away.

Bright Pencil Case - How adorable for organizing a child's colored pencils!  Or even a fun way to brighten your day at work holding your pens and pencils.

To Crochet:
Ombre Basket - What a great container for yarn storage!  Stick it next to your couch or by your desk and you can keep yarn or current projects inside.

Crochet Basket - These adorable little baskets would be perfect for holding some candy on your desk or counter :)  They'd also be perfect for storing little notions in a craft room - buttons, safety pins, paper clips, etc.

Filigree Bowl - The bowl alone is stunning!  Now imagine adding some decorative balls or some fruit and using it as a centerpiece for your table or on your kitchen counter.

Baby's Catch-All - All those pockets make this catch-all a great way to organize almost anything!  From diaper-changes to bath time this would be a great way to organize all the supplies!



And there you have it!  Have any favorite organizational/container patterns you'd like to share?

A Month of Crafts - November

Welcome to December everyone!

I've been busy crafting up a storm over here.  Trying to achieve a good balance of knitting for myself and knitting for others.  I have a long list of Christmas presents I'm hoping to knit in time!  With a long "To Knit" list in front of me I decided I should take a step back and reflect on everything I was able to accomplish this past month.  So let's take a look!

Cabled Boot Cuffs

My first completed project in November!  A new design for a pair of cabled boot cuffs.  (This pattern is currently in testing mode are not available for purchase).

Into Darkness Sweater

Next I test knit this beautiful gradient sweater pattern for Boadicea Binnerts aka Boknits.  I love the way it turned out!  I hope to get better, modeled pictures of it soon.

Cable No Cable Cowl

Then I was off on another test knit adventure!  Another test for Boknits.  I really love her designs so I test for her as often as I can.  Very happy with the way my cowl turned out.

Diminishing Bubbles Hat

When Bo announced she had a hat pattern to match the cowl I knew I had to test that as well!  Unfortunately I ran out of the brown yarn and had to finish the top part of the hat in cream.  I'm not thrilled with the end result.  I wish I had just picked a different yarn.  Oh well!

Chevzam!

My last completed project of November!  I am in LOVE with this one.  Everything came together perfectly.  The pattern, the colors, the yarn itself - everything.

I was able to accomplish a lot in November!  Hurray :)  I also have some unfinished projects from this month as well.

Tiptoe Slippers

My first attempt at anything sock-like in construction.  Which to me means something with a heel!  It wasn't as scary as I was thinking it would be.  I'm also working them two at a time with one inside of the other.  An all around adventure :)

Zam Hat

This is the matching hat to the Chevzam cowl.  I loved the cowl so much that I decided to go ahead and make the hat as well.  Now I'll have a beautiful matching set!  Assuming I don't run out of yarn at the top like I did on my last hat :/

And there they are!  All my finished and in progress crafts from November.  Well most of them.  I have a few other works in progress but they are top secret gift knits.  So I will wait to share those after they've been gifted.

What were you all working on in November?