Reverse Lent: Week 2

I am sitting here, on this beautiful day, reflecting on this past week of Lent. I can't help, but be reminded that this time last week I was sad and felt like a failure because my first blanket wasn't done. I was feeling sorry for myself, I was too busy, and I didn't have time, but I was missing the point: this wasn't about me. This Reverse Lent was about loving and caring about children because God loves these children and called them to my heart. Then there was also the fact that I was blessed to be busy with work, not everyone has a job or is able to work, and to be busy with school, not everyone can afford an education. I was selfish to complain. Now, I will admit they there are times when you need to complain, to vent, and to release that frustration, but it isn't healthy or beneficial to stay in that place. I left off last week feeling convicted and decided that I would finish the week smiling instead of complaining. The change in attitude proved effective because this week I am feeling blessed and accomplished.

The blanket for the first week of Lent is finished and simple, but beautiful. The blanket was made using Red Heart yarn in Grey Heather using single crochet stitches made with a crochet hook size G (4.25 mm). I originally intended this blanket for one of the All Kids Need Love comfort kits for foster children, but have since decided that the blankets I make during Reverse Lent will be donated to Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep Remembrance (Nilmdts Remembrance). This organization provides comfort kits to families who have lost a newborn or given birth to a stillborn. I was aware of this organization before, but only vaguely. This last week this organization was referred to me by my sister. She knows more about the organization and recognized their need for crochet or knit blankets to include in the comfort kits they send out to families. I knew that I had the ability to help this organization and felt convicted. As I sat thinking about this I realized that this might have been the reason why I had trouble finishing the first blanket on time. 

Yes, I still could have donated the blanket later upon discovery of the immediate need, but then the blanket would have been too large to be donated. Since I was behind, I was able to make the blanket in the size specified in the description: 16" x 16" to 20" x 20". This is significantly smaller than the blankets I intended on making for the foster care children. This much smaller size is much easier to manage. I am now back on track to finish a blanket a week during Lent while still maintaining my busy lifestyle. Even when everything seemed turned upside down this weekend, I was still able to work on the blanket for week 2, and handle the painfulness life sometimes brings. 

This week I have learned that there are times when we need to be weak, when we need to rely on our friends, and when we need to have faith that there is more than we can see or experience in our current state. I do not usually spend my posts reflecting on life or the shared experiences we have, but I feel that Reverse Lent is an opportunity to share more than just my projects, it is time for reflection. Although, the purpose of this blog is not to discuss life or the lessons we learn, I recognize the need to sometimes discuss life, after all it is a journey we all are experiencing. It would take too long to explain why this weekend was painful or why there was a need to be weak, but I can  assure you that the worst of storms will pass leaving you with a rainbow. 

I would like to leave you with a final thought, a passage from The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch:

"Proper apologies have three parts:

1) What I did was wrong

2) I feel badly that I hurt you

3) How do I make this better?

Yes, some people may take advantage of you when answering question 3. But most people will be genuinely appreciative of your make-good efforts. They may tell you how to make it better in some small, easy way. And often, they'll work harder to help make things better themselves.

Students would say to me: "What if I apologize and the other person doesn't apologize back?" I'd tell them: "That's not something you can control, so don't let it eat at you."

If other people owe you an apology, and your words of apology to them are proper and heartfelt, you still may not hear from them for awhile. After all, what are the odds that they get to the right emotional place to apologize at the exact moment you do? So just be patient. Many times in my career, I saw students apologize, and then several days later, their teammates came around. Your patience will be both appreciated and rewarded." (The Last Lecture, Pausch, pp. 162-163)

The only thing you can control in life is yourself so apologize when you need to and be patient with those who owe you an apology. You might never receive the apology you deserve, but that isn't within your control so you can't let the mistakes of others eat at you. Live your life in a way that you can be proud of when you are out of time. 

Reverse Lent: Week 1

The first week of Reverse Lent is coming to an end and I am already behind. I knew when I set this goal that it would be challenging, but I believed I was up for the challenge. Unfortunately, I didn't anticipate how busy I would be or the sudden onset of my seasonal allergies. Apparently it wasn't just the weather that missed the memo it is still winter. Anyways, I am not giving up on my Reverse Lent, but I just don't have a blanket to share with my readers today. I was feeling down today that the blanket wasn't finished, but I ended up reading my friend's blog that followed her own lent journey and felt inspired. Her blog features a new entry for each day of lent and reflects on her day, including the new lessons she has learned about God. As I read her posts today I thought about the things I have learned as I worked on my own lent journey.

 First, a little about the blanket I am working on as this week ends. I used a single crochet stitch to crochet the blanket in Red Heart Super Saver yarn in Grey Heather. The blanket is a little over half way done and when finished will be accented with Red Heart Super Saver yarn in Turqua. The blanket will be embellished with Turqua roses. The finished blanket will be simple, but will make a sweet gift for any foster child. 

 I mentioned earlier that I have been busy this week and it has been difficult to maintain steady work on the baby blanket, this hasn't been made any easier with the increased fatigue associated with allergies. The point of this is not to complain, but to point out how easy it would be to quit. It doesn't matter the extent of our problems, whether they are little or big, but how we choose to respond to our problems. The friend, whose blog I was reading, has faced so many challenges these last few years, and yet has never given up. She has faced tragedy and loss, but never once quit. She even had the strength to inspire others who were hurting along the way. I have watched how her family has handled their challenges and been inspired to follow her lead. 

This week I choose to face my challenges with my head held high, to persevere, and to not allow my challenges to weigh me down. As I finish the first blanket and move onto the next, while still maintaining my other responsibilities, I am going to do so with a smile on my face. Not because there won't be challenges, but because I know that I am blessed. 

Quick Gifts: Tag Blankets

This year's April showers seem to be more baby than rain with several babies being born this year. I want to make each baby in my life a special gift, but sometimes I find out about the shower last minute or run out of time before the shower. When this happens my go to handmade gift is a tag blanket. I always pair these blankets with something else, whether another handmade gift or something off of their registry. These blankets are easily customized to match the nursery theme or colors, while also being a great gift for baby. I have taken pictures of the most common mistakes people make to illustrate what not to do so your tag blanket will be the best blanket ever.

Mistake #1: Use pins!

Materials needed are fabric in color of choice (fat quarters work great for this project, you'll need 2), matching ribbon, and a sewing machine or needle and thread. An optional material is crinkle paper/fabric (the material in baby toys that make the crinkle sound).

Cut out two pieces of fabric to desired size; 12 x 12 is a good size for baby. 

If using a crinkle paper/fabric cut the material 1/2 inch smaller than your fabric so 11.5 x 11.5. 

Decide how many pieces of ribbon you want on all sides. 

Cut ribbon 3-4 inches in length. 

Create a loop in the ribbon, right side out, and pin the ends together. For easiest assembly, this step is totally optional, adhere the ends of the ribbon together with fabric glue. 

Mistake #2: Ribbon should
Be right side out

Fabric should be right sides together, pin a square in the middle, but away from the edges.

Insert the ribbon in between fabric pieces and pin all pieces together. Remove pin in ribbon before inserting in fabric.

Continue in this method until all ribbon has been pinned into place. 

Using larger or different colored pins, pin a start and stop sew point on the top layer of fabric. Start at the first pin and sew around the squares of fabric until you reach the end pin. Be sure to back stitch at the beginning and end. 

Mistake #3: Sew through all layers!

Periodically make sure you're sewing through all layers of fabric and ribbon. At end point, remove any pins left in fabric, cut thread, and turn inside out. Finish sewing the square, folding ends of fabric into gap between fabrics, and cut thread. 

These tag blankets are so easy to make and take almost no time to create. From start to finish I was able to make 2 of these blankets in 5 minutes. The second blanket I decided to add a corner ring for attaching baby toys. Adding this ring in the corner was tricky, but turned out really cute and will be a great gift for baby. Since these blankets are so easy to make advanced and intermediate sewers can experiment with additional designs. The shape of the blanket can be changed or embellishments can be sewn on to the front of the blanket. A quilted front would take longer, but would have a strong impact on the baby's parents.

If you decide to make these tag blankets, be sure to leave pictures in the comments below. And if you want me to make these blankets in another shape or with a quilted front, comment below.

Etsy Update and Viewer Poll

I have been fairly busy lately with many projects and more hours at work that I have been neglecting my Etsy shop. It has been almost two months since I added anything to my shop, patterns or products, and I have been contemplating updating my shop. I have a few ideas in mind for spring, but would love my readers' input for what to includei in my Etsy shop.

Which hat or hats, pictured below, would you like to see in my Etsy shop? Leave your comment below.

Organizational Tips: Gifts

The last few months I have talked a lot about gift giving planning as well as gift ideas that are quick and easy to make ahead of time for last minute emergency gifts, but I haven't talked about how to store/organize these gifts. This week's tips are are devoted to organizing and storing gifts. I have gifts for specific people in my life, birthdays or other celebrations, as well as emergency gifts for unexpected events. These gifts are stored together while gifts for Christmas are stored separately. I store Christmas gifts separately because the gifts only really need to be accessed once a year while other gifts are constantly being used throughout the year. If you have a large family consider storing each person's gifts separately.

Tip #1: Store gifts in storage bins, boxes, and baskets. Choose your storage so that it matches other storage in your craft area. If you have snoopers then blending it with your storage is great, but also consider not labeling the boxes or bins. I chose photo boxes that matched my craft storage. Currently I have 4 photo boxes devoted to gift storage: family gifts that are small, emergency gifts for unexpected celebrations or events, charity donations, and Etsy sales. Granted charity donations and Etsy sales are not traditionally gifts, but I have stored them with my gifts because I access these boxes the same amount and they are typically the same type of things stored. 

Optional Tip: Large gifts can be stored in larger bins or baskets, but don't go overboard. The majority of my gift storage is meant for smaller gifts because that is the majority of the gifts I ended up storing for long periods of time. However, frequently some aspect of the gift is usually larger than what will fit in my photo box. I don't really have storage set aside for large gifts and store the gifts as I accumulate them, mainly because I usually purchase large gifts closer to the birthday or celebration. That said, if you have the space and the need, then store larger gifts in bins or baskets, but don't purchase too many boxes.

Tip #2: Create an inventory of your gifts or items. Depending on your needs or preferences, type or write a simple inventory of items in each boxes. Include who the gift is for if you think you might forget. Finally include an envelope for gift receipts. This may not be necessary for you, but it is helpful if you have lots of store bought gifts. If you tend to purchase gifts in advance then be aware that gift receipts are only good for a set amount of days before items can only be returned for store credit. 

Optional, but helpful tip: Have many different gifts saved as emergency gifts. This isn't really an organization tip, but will help save you stress throughout the year. Personally, I never had the budget to just go out and shop for emergency gifts, but I have also never had a shortage of gifts. I keep my emergency gift box stocked through reward programs and choice shopping during annual sales events. If you have extra time on your hands, or even 5 minutes once a week, online surveys are great for accumulating gift cards or small cash rewards that can be stored away or used to purchase gifts. My favorite online survey, shopping rewards, and participation points website is MyPoints. I have been using MyPoints for the last few years and have been rewarded with many many gift cards, including Starbucks, Macy's, Red Lobster, and the Rainforest Cafe. The total amount claimed, between all of the gift cards, is something close to $100.

With MyPoints I am rewarded through online shopping, survey taking, and general participation in clubs. 

The other online shopping reward company I love is eBates. eBates gives you cash back for shopping online through their website. Unlike MyPoints, eBates gives rewards in the form of a check or PayPal. 

I am really bad about just cashing the check and spending the money, but if you can resist the temptation then eBates checks are great for spending on emergency gifts. 

I know there are people reading this and wondering what gifts I have in my emergency gift box and what gifts make great last minute gifts so hopefully I can help answer those questions. The gifts in my box are headphones with bag (I have about 6 pairs), iTunes gift card ($10), Victoria's Secret Fantasy lotion and perfume set, bath salts, and an assortment of beanies. The headphones were actually free gifts that I received when I ordered off of  the Greater Good Network's websites: Animal Rescue Site, Breast Cancer Site, The Hunger Site, The Literacy Site, Autism Site, and The Veteran's Site. These websites frequently offer promotions with purchase that would make great gifts. I have received the headphones, socks, coin purses, bracelets, necklaces, ornaments, and a purse as free promotional items. The Victoria's Secret Fantasy lotion and perfume set were left over from a larger set of perfumes and lotions, which I used as gifts at Christmas. Emergency gifts are any small gifts that you would like to be gifted as well as small gifts associated with specific interests. The iTunes gift card and headphones will make a great gift for someone who loves music while the bath salts, lotion, and perfume are a great gift for someone who likes to be pampered (pair with a gift certificate for a spa service, massage, or manicure for a more luxurious gift). 

I like keeping beanies, booties, and receiving blankets as emergency gifts as well because you never know when you will need a baby gift. For instance my coworker, who I met when she was already 7 months pregnant, had her baby early, which meant that I wouldn't have had enough time to make a nice baby gift had it not been for the baby gifts in my emergency gift box. These gifts also work great for the baby shower you forgot about or the unexpected invitation to a baby shower you weren't planning on attending. If you don't have a lot of babies in your life, but do have many young children or soon-to-be recent graduates, then something similar will work for you too. For young children, accumulate a lot of party favor type gifts, such as crayons, coloring books, and games, as well as dolls, Legos, and cars. Obviously for a child you knew well you would find more personalized gifts, but small toys work great for that child you weren't planning on gifting to. For graduates I suggest gift cards and small items that are either functional for college or sentimental. Young adults are very adamant about picking out their own items, especially for college, so I wouldn't suggest too many functional items, but you could always purchase laundry bags with silly sayings and a roll of quarters. Great sentimental gifts include Dr. Seuss' "Oh the Places You'll Go" with an encouraging note written to them inside or a collection of your own favorite recipes you made in college. 

When I graduated high school, and actually college too, most of my gifts were impersonal in the form of cash or gift cards with more personal sentiments expressed in the form of cards, but I did receive one sentimental gift, which was a College Humor book of college experiences, and would have enjoyed receiving similar gifts. Everyone has their own preferences though so don't feel bad if you just want to stock up on various cards and gift cards as emergency gifts for graduation, or any other event you may have to attend. 

Charity of the Month: March of Dimes

This month's charity is March of Dimes, a wonderful organization that raises awareness about premature babies through annual walks. While I have always been fond of March of Dimes I never had any personal ties to premature infants until this last month when my friend's baby was born early.  Her baby is doing much better, but I know the outcome may have been different if it hadn't been for the research funded by March of Dimes. I have identified two ways in which people can help premature babies: 1) Crochet, knit, or sew hats for premature babies or 2) Donate or walk for March of Dimes. 

Knit Preemie Hat

My favorite way to help premature babies and their families, or anyone for that matter, is through crafting. While I have many hat patterns for newborns and infants I currently do not have any of my own patterns for premature babies. However, I have found my favorite knit and sewn hat patterns on other blogs and posted the links here. The knit hat shown on the left is from Knitting Up A Storm's blog. I love how easily the hat could be customized with a person's favorite sporting teams.

Sewn Preemie Hat

The sewn hat shown on the right is from Extraordinary Ordinary Life. The tutorial has a lot of pictures and is really easy to follow.

The finished hats can be donated to your local hospital, but read your hospital's donation policy for making hats to donate. Some hospitals require you make a specific pattern. More knit and crochet preemie hat patterns can be found at LionBrand and RedHeart's websites. If you have never checked out these yarn companies' websites I recommend checking them out now because both companies offer tons of free patterns.

If you can't crochet, knit, or sew well enough to make these hats then you can always join a team and walk for March of Dimes. Every year this is my sister's preferred choice of donation. Her and her friends fund raise and walk to raise awareness and money for March of Dimes. This is a great way to give back and a really fun experience with your teammates. There are many ways to use your crafting skills at the walk, including team t-shirts or costumes if you like. This year I am contemplating making team shirts for my sister's team. Comment below if you would like to see a tutorial for a team shirt.

This month you can crochet, knit, sew, or walk for premature babies. Your time and dedication can greatly benefit the lives of these babies and their families. If you don't have the time to make your own hats or to participate in a walk you can always donate to March of Dimes directly.

Is there a charity you want to see featured? Comment below and let me know. 

Quick Gifts: Baby Blanket Play Mat

Today is March 3rd, which means it is time for another quick gift idea. This month's gift idea and tutorial is for  Pastel Baby Blanket Play Mat. In a previous post I showed pictures of my sketch for this blanket, the yarn used, and the progress made on this blanket. The blanket is now finished and I am happy to be able to share this pattern with my readers. I love how quickly this blanket worked up and it is definitely a quick project for a lazy weekend at home. I designed the pattern as a baby play mat, but when the play mat was finished it ended up doubling as a blanket too. I used chunky yarn so the blanket play mat would be thick to provide maxim comfort for a little one playing on the floor. 

Pastel Baby Blanket Play Mat

The materials needed are: 

5 skeins of Bernat Softee Chunky Yarn in Baby Pink,

2 skeins of Bernat Softee Chunky Yarn in Sleepytime

1 skeins of Bernat Softee Chunky Yarn in Baby Blue

Crochet Hook Size N

Project instructions:

With crochet hook Size N and Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Pink, cast on 60 stitches. Cast on 1, single crochet in each stitch across. Continue for 14 rows or until skein of yarn is used up.

Switch to Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Blue and crochet in each stitch across for 3 rows.

Switch to Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Pink and continue to crochet in each stitch across for 42 rows or until you have finished 3 skeins of Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Pink Yarn.

Switch to Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Blue and crochet in each stitch across for 3 rows.

Switch to Bernat Softee Chunky Baby Pink and continue to crochet in each stitch across for 14 rows or until skein of yarn is used up.

Switch to Bernat Softee Chunky Sleepytime and crochet a border around the edge of the blanket. The amount of rows depends on border preference.

Happy President's Day!

Busy...Busy...Busy. This is my life Monday through Sunday, which is why I love 4 day weekends. Even on 4 day weekends I am busy, but I have much more time to get things done. This weekend, besides the usual errand running, I finished projects and made significant progress on organizing my craft space. I spent most of last week finishing up projects, including an A's baseball cap, an A's beanie, and a Liverpool soccer diaper cover. I also spent the week working on an A's cowl that just needs to be lined, a pink blanket, a blue scarf, and another diaper cover. Below are the pictures of my latest finished projects. 

A's Baseball Cap

Liverpool Diaper Cover

A's Baseball Beanie

Then this weekend I spent most of my time organizing my craft supplies and projects. I used a technique I learned from a post on Craftgawker to rewind my scrapped balls of yarn with an end coming out of the middle. I will post a review of the post and a tutorial of my own on this method in a future post. The rest of the time I emptied out boxes left over from Christmas and organized my craft supplies using the 27 compartment boxes I purchased at Home Depot. I also spent some time organizing all of my Christmas decorations, baked good containers, and other assorted Christmas items into a single red plastic bin. While the bin isn't that attractive it is highly functional and will serve my needs perfectly this year as I work on a post each month for Christmas. 

My favorite part of organizing, besides being able to find my things, is discovering the supplies I had forgot about or thought I had used. Saturday I found photos I had planned on using as business cards, but had put away and truthfully forgotten about. Since ordering these photos I have made different business cards, but now I have more cards to choose from. After organizing all of my current projects I realize I have a lot of projects in various stages of completion, more than I realized, and a lot of yarn. I spent half of the day creating an inventory for my projects and the other half spinning the yarn into neat balls. I had hoped to get through more this weekend, but apparently organizing old projects is slower than I had anticipated. 

I am going to continue organizing my craft space and hopefully I will be finished by the end of this month. I am already starting to take pictures of my craft organization and am excited to show my readers the transformation. 

Comment below with your favorite activities for long weekends and how many projects you currently have in progress. I would love to know I am not the only one with a box of unfinished projects. :)

Resolutions for Creative People

 

10 Resolutions for Creative People

I stumbled across this video after I broke resolution #2, "Finish old projects before starting new projects." :-/ Oh well, there is always next year!

Bernat Softee Chunky Yarn

I don't know about you, but if you're like me you can't pass up a sale on materials, whether it is yarn, paper, or fabric. I went into Michael's today, intending only to buy white onesies for my current Valentine's projects, but ended up walking out with 8 balls of yarn too! I didn't need this yarn or necessarily have any plans for it at the moment I bought it, but each ball was on clearance for $1.99. That was a deal I couldn't pass up.

 

Of course, I immediately started working on a project (a baby blanket) as soon as I got home, forsaking all other projects. The yarn is chunky so the blanket is crocheting up quickly, but I recognize my need for resolution #2. For me, two things frequently prevent me from finishing old projects before starting new projects. When I become inspired I immediately start thinking about the inspiration and what I would do differently, and then I want to get the materials, assuming I don't already have the things I need, and get to work. Second, I often forget what projects I was working on after I have been working on a new project(s) for awhile. These are my setbacks as a designer, but I know there are many other reasons people don't maintain projects until they are completed.

 

Sketch of blanket included in project's binder

However, hopefully whatever these reasons are these solutions will work for everyone. The first solution I have for preventing forgetting current projects is to keep a current project inventory binder or notebook. I personally am organizing my project inventory into a binder because page protectors make excellent pockets for storing patterns, project description, sketches, pictures of inspiration, and a list of materials needed to complete the project. A contents list at the beginning of the binder serves as a quick list for me to see what I have and where to find it within the binder. Hopefully, your binder won't be as thick as mine and you won't have to rely on a contents list. As my binder begins to be completed, I will be sure to post pictures so you can clearly see how I organized my ongoing projects.

 

After your current projects are organized, I suggest you resolve not have more than a set number of projects at one time or not to start any more until half of your current projects are finished. I have always wanted to implement this solution, but never set a number for me to keep, which meant I had no accountability to myself. I am now setting my current project number to 7. Until I am caught up on past projects, this number will not include projects I have not worked on for more than a year. I am using another inventory binder for projects I would like to start in the future, but you could always add a section to your project's binder for future projects. Again, I suggest organizing each project with sketches, pictures, patterns, and a list of supplies needed to complete. Organizing all of these things into a single spot makes it easier for you to start your next project and to identify what you need before you start.

Inspired sketch for future project

Taking the time to sketch out your ideas and then planning the completion of a new project satisfies your need to see it completed without actually starting a new project. I implemented this technique when I was working on the baby blanket shown above and was inspired to create another baby blanket using a similar pattern and yarn. Inspired, I immediately stopped working and pulled out my sketch book, and then began to sketch out my design. After I finished sketching I wrote down on a post it note the supplies I thought I would need. This supplies list will become more professional looking when I finish the current blanket and see if my estimate was correct.

 

Taking the time to organize your projects into a binder or notebook, that can then be stored in a prominent location in your workspace, keeps all of your projects at the front of your mind and everything you need easily accessed when you decide to start a project again. But how do you store the actual projects and the supplies necessary for completion?

Ziploc Storage Bags

My projects are temporarily being stored in bins and boxes as I begin to clear out and organize the dresser these projects will be stored in, along with yarn and fabric. In the dresser, I will ultimately store the projects in a Ziploc gallon storage bag, depending upon the size, along with everything I need to complete the project. I suggest labeling each bag, maybe even including the date started as another way of preventing you from keeping a project for too long, and then storing them away. This is a great solution for storing your current projects, but as I mentioned earlier there are some projects that you haven't touched in over a year. There are many reasons you haven't worked on a project for an extended period of time and that reason will determine how you deal with storing those projects.

 

Some projects are left unfinished because you ran out of supplies, but never bothered to get the supplies needed or maybe those supplies were too expensive. For these projects, you need to determine if you want to spend the money to obtain the necessary supplies and complete the project. If you decided to get the supplies then the new supplies and the project itself should be stored with your other current projects. I suggest setting a deadline for yourself to finish the project, otherwise you may end up with it sitting for another year again. If you do not want to buy the necessary supplies, whether the materials are too exensive or you no longer want to complete the project, I suggest taking the project apart, dismantling each material, and then adding the usable materials to your current unused supplies.

 

Other projects are left untouched because you ran out of supplies and then the supplies were discontinued by the manufacturer. This reason is a good example of why you buy all of the supplies you need to complete a project in the first place, but I understand this is not always possible and I have found myself in this same situation before. There are really only two options available to you at this point. You could search for the discontinued materials online and might get lucky or, unfortunately, you have to dismantle the project and find a new use for those discontinued materials.

 

As I said earlier, I have been there, and I currently have left that project unfinished. At the time I bought the yarn, I didn't have any project in mind, and when I did, the yarn was discontinued. I did look online and even in stores for the discontinued yarn, but was unsuccessful in finding the yarn I needed. However, I did have enough yarn to reconstruct the exsisting blanket into a lapghan, but never had the heart to unwind all of my hard work. While I wouldn't encourage anyone to just leave their project in this state, it may actually have worked in my favor because the company ended up introducing a similar yarn. I haven't brought my project, or a small sample of my yarn, into a craft store to confirm the match, but the appearance is similar. If the yarn is a match, then I fortunately have a third option available to me. However, this is very rare.

 

Finally, at least as far as my experience goes, there are projects that you have left unfinished, not because you don't want to finish them, but because you have simply forgotten about them. These projects are the main reason behind the current project binder inventory. If you have these projects, and still want them finished, then I suggest you add them to your inventory binder or notebook, along with a date for when you want this project finished. Again, the date is not a deadline so much as a means of keeping you accountable to yourself, and preventing a pile of unfinished projects.

 

In an upcoming post I will be showing pictures of my binder inventory system, hopefully my project storage, and how I organize my craft bag. For pictures of my completed projects be sure to check out my Facebook page BooBear Designs. In the next few weeks fans of my Facebook page will be eligible to win a free pattern.