Making It up as I went

knitted with Baah La Jolla in Summer Romance

This is a lesson I've learned not in how to make a vest but in how to buy yarn.  Don't succumb to the lure of beautiful yarn you don't have a plan for!  I just loved this yarn but it was pricey - or pricey for me at $29 per hank.  I bought two and the store owner and I thought I could get a vest out of that.  Well, I did but not without a lot of challenges.

First I could not find a pattern that would work with that little yarn.  Finally I found this one where I liked the look and figured I could just make it with the yarn I had.  The catch was that you had to order and pay shipping on a paper pattern.  It looked simple enough so I figured I could just do it myself.  I decided to put the long point in a different place anyway and then I figured I'd be bored silly doing stockinette or garter stitch for the whole thing so I used a triple chevron from an old knitting pattern book.  The eyelets were added again just to have something to break up the simple stitching.  I never really wrote anything down, just laying my work over an old fabric vest increasing and decreasing as needed to get everything to fit.  I'm kind of amazed that it did actually fit.

Half way through it did look like I'd have enough yarn though it would be close.  It was so close that I had this small ball of yarn left when it was time to do the arm holes.  I measured it out and rolled it into two balls so I could tell how much I'd have for each one.  When I had a few yards of that left, I unpicked my last edge on the inside left which was a bit skimpy and added another 4 rows piecing things together as needed.  I probably had 2 yards total yarn left at the end.

I was planning on one button like the pattern I'd eyed at the beginning but I put the buttonhole in completely the wrong place and I needed a bit more structure thus 3 buttons with loops for closure.  This creates many options for how to wear the vest so I've shown it in various configurations.

So while I got something unique and it worked out, I'll never buy yarn again that I don't have a pattern for it or at least a very good idea that I have plenty of yarn for a specific project.

Just don't ask me for the pattern for this because I don't have it.  Knitting is fun for me and relaxing and I'm also determined not to try to turn another hobby into a business.  This one is just a hobby.

Christmas Card Share and Stamps to Sell

On my Etsy Shop - Lovely Layers Art - there are several stamp sets available for purchase as I'm moving out some older stamp sets.  Some like Merry Mice aren't that old.  All still have plenty of life left in them for pretty cards this holiday season.  There are also sets that are not holiday oriented including Trendy Trees which I discovered the wheel for after I did the video.

Here's a video sharing the cards I've made so far and the stamp sets for sale.


Thanks for watching and shopping!

Gelli printed notebook cover

Usually I cover my notebooks with paper and have done several videos on this method.  I had to change notebook brands as the one I loved was discontinued.

This Office Depot business notebook has a hard cover. I knew what I wanted to do with it before leaving the store.  The boring look was nothing a little gesso, gelli printing and Mod Podge couldn't fix.  Here's the process video:



Thanks for watching!

Card with Stamping Platform

When I received my new Tim Holtz stamping platform, I stamped a few images to get familiar and then made these cards. It is super easy to use.  I didn't go through all of the features as there are so many other videos online that do so.  I've just focused on this card and creating a very easy and neat border.

Here's the video:



There are also videos online that compare this product to the Misti.  Honestly, I never considered another product because of price. I just don't stamp enough to spend anymore than the Tim Holtz platform which I purchased through Amazon.  So I can't tell you if it is the best but so far I'm very pleased.

Thanks for watching!

Art Journal page using paint, stencils and typewriting

This year in particular, my day-to-day has changed quite a bit.  There have been plenty of medical challenges the last few years and I suspect more to come.  Getting some of those thoughts down on this art journal page, I used paint, stenciling, and typewritten phrases.  I realized...

(At this point 6 hours ago, the phone rang.  After many minor emergencies and scheduled activities, I'm resuming my post about life today...)

I realized that I have plenty I can art journal about such the expression I most hate - "Take it one day at a time" but I'll leave that for another day.  In the meantime, this page captures some of the challenges and the process is on this video:




Thanks for hanging in there with me today.  Hope you have a good weekend!

A Traditional Walk

We have a tradition.  We go for a walk/hike early on during all our vacations.  The tradition isn't the walk it is how long it is in the wrong direction.  Here's the journaling that goes with this page:

With a noon reservation at Fallingwater, we had some time to sight see that morning.  Cucumber Falls was supposed to be close to the road and looked like a good place to stretch our legs and take in one of our favorite things, a beautiful waterfall.  We took one of the last parking spaces and crossed the bridge onto a well maintained trail.  Soon I began to wonder why no one was coming back along the path after visiting the falls.  Where were all the people who were parked in the lot?  A couple of people did come along but it was 20 minutes further down to another bridge and a view and we just didn’t have the time. 

When we returned to the bridge, I suggested we try a small trail by the creek.  It was steep and we held onto branches in places and stepped over mud but still no waterfall though we could definitely hear it. Nearly out of time, we took a selfie.

After crossing the bridge back to the parking lot, Lenny said, “Wait, let’s look over here.”  Sure enough there was a sign!  And what is that?  Steps even!  The waterfall was just steps from the car.

We had already been talking about how this was part of our tradition.  On the first day of a trip we always walk much further than planned.  We walked miles and miles to get to and from the beach the first time we went to Hilton Head.  We walked more blocks than I could possibly count on the hilly streets of San Francisco until we wound our way back to the hotel.  In Grand Tetons National Park, I gave up on our trek around Jenny Lake and we took a boat back to the car.  In Sydney we wanted to walk the Harbor Bridge just after arriving and take the bus back.  Unfortunately it was a Saturday and we didn’t have the bus schedule so we just had to walk back on only 2 or 3 hours sleep.  Our long walks have given us beautiful views, slightly achy feet and fun stories from our travels.

For the video, I tell this story so you can skip that part if you wish and get onto the layout which uses up some Maya Road chipboard and uses Distress Oxide inks:



I enjoyed doing this two pager.  Thanks for visiting today!

Scrapping Someone Else's Photos

Something I find particularly challenging in scrapbooking is to scrap photos for events where you weren't there.  DH visits his family each summer and often I'm not along.  He spent quite a bit of time with his grandchildren but alas few photos and even fewer action shots.  So I've got a couple of good pictures and no real story.  Turns out they just mostly hung out doing everyday stuff so I kept the page casual and let the bright blue color lead.

Here's the video:


Thanks for watching today.  Videos have been a bit sparse lately and my get even more so.  Family medical needs are greater than normal right now.  I'm also doing some sewing and knitting, just whatever helps me unwind.

My sketchbooks and classes remain available and I check email every day if you have any questions.

Recipe Notebook

A few years ago, I noticed that a friend has organized his recipes in page protectors in a notebook all in one place.  What a great idea!  So I did mine and I must have had more time or motivation than I have now because I retyped them in this great format.  Now I need to add more recipes and they are not getting retyped.  The best I'm going to do is give them an easy to read font and size but I do to clean out my notebook.  And I really needed a new notebook altogether.

This one is a standard office supply store notebook.  I've decorated the front with very flat items and made custom tabs so you can see them between the page protectors.  I used an entire paper collection from Stampin' Up!  I was happy to use it up as I've had it for years.

Here's the video


Thanks for watching!