Knitting for Charity - Preemie Hats and Baby Booties

I was touched by a posting on the Eat.Sleep.Knit discussion board on Ravelry of a tale of loss and recovery. One of the moderators of the group asked for assistance in making hats and baby booties for preemies after she recently lost her baby prematurely. I jumped on the chance right away and made my first baby hat! First thing this morning I also made a drawing and framed it for the person requesting assistance. I'm not sure if I should share her story or not, but if you are a member of Ravelry please check out the group discussion.

If you’d like to join us - and we hope you will - you can send your knitted items to:

Eat Sleep Knit
ATTN: Knits for Preemies
6400 Highlands Pkwy, Ste I (the letter not the number)
Smyrna, GA 30082

They’d like to make the donation on July 26th, which was her daughter’s due date. If this is something they get a lot of interest in, they’ll keep doing it on an ongoing basis.

Ravelry has lots of patterns for preemies, like this Preemie Hats for Charity pattern or these darling Olivia Preemie Booties. Or if you’d like to make a blanket for swaddling, the size should be roughly 18’ x 18”. All of the items are of course small and most knitters will find they knit up in less than an hour. The hospital doesn’t have any yarn requirements except that ideally items should be knit in more traditional baby colors like pink or blue, pastels, as this can be more of a comfort to grieving or scared NICU parents. Oh, and it definitely does not have to be knit in yarn from ESK - we’ll just be thrilled that anyone wants to do this with us.

Here is my donation that I am mailing off today. I was so excited to wrap the picture I made that I forgot to take a photo of it prior to wrapping and sending. Ooops!

Thank you,

Knitted Fingerless Gloves in Alcidina Stargazer

Cruising through Etsy, I found Alcidina's wonderful shop selling the most beautiful yarn. The person who taught me to knit warned me of the day I would spend $20 on a single skein of yarn and I laughed at her and the idea. Alcidina's Stargazer was the yarn that brought me to the dark side and was my first "expensive" yarn. I simply could not be more in love with the colors! I was completely mesmerized at watching the colors as they slid through my fingers as I knitted, getting excited even when it would get to my favorite part (the deep periwinkle). 

I loved the yarn so much that I wanted to use it in a pattern that would allow me to love and pet it all the time. What better way than to have it made into gloves for my hands to pet. The only downside is I live in a scorching desert and will have to wait to wear them. I have yarn left over and not quite sure what to do with it. I'm also new to this "wrap your own ball" thing and not quite sure how much I have left. I'm guessing about half, but not really sure. This was the first project done in the round in multiple sections. I couldn't be more proud of myself for the thumb section! I definitely learned a lot through trial and error. I had a difficult time reading the pattern so I used one pattern for the instructions and another for the measurements.

My initial pattern I had picked out for this was more complicated, but sadly got lost in the variegated color way of the yarn. I still plan on knitting the other pattern, but with a simpler color scheme. I can't wait to share that one with you when I make it!

Please check out the pictures below of the yarn and WIP shots! 

Thank you,

Fire Aftermath - Recovery

There was a fire two buildings up from me last week and I've been dealing with the after effects since. Seeing the building with the blackened remnants of the roof's frame is a constant reminder of your own mortality. I was down wind from the blaze and have been doing a lot of cleaning to feet rid of the stench of smoke. I have also been suffering with sinus issues that have been causing me to lose my balance and come close to passing out multiple times. I have so much pressure in my ears and eyes that it has made it difficult to knit, paint or read: all the things I love to do on summer vacation. Hard to go for a walk when I can't stop falling over and its hard to  do any work when the pressure behind my eyes makes my nauseous. So, I've been sleeping a lot and taking lots of sinus medication. I hope it clears up soon.

Thanks,

Free Printable - Owl

 I was going through my prints and found this little owl. He seems lonely and I was wondering if you could help me by giving him a good home. Please leave a comment below telling me about his new home!

Owl Printable

I recommend printing on sturdy cardstock or matte art paper. It fits on a 8.5" x 11" printing paper.

And of course, this is for personal and not commercial use.

Thanks!

PS. If you like this owl, I also have a Winter White Owl giclee fine art print in my Etsy store.

Weekend Update - Art Explosion and The Smith Center

I had the most amazing weekend! I have been painting and drawing from sun up to sun down and loving every minute of it!

I also spent the weekend with my family celebrating Father's Day and just hanging out. I had the opportunity to go see Million Dollar Quartet at the new Smith Center here in Las Vegas. I loved the art deco style architecture and design elements they used to create The Smith Center. As luck would have it we got box seats dead center to the stage! My favorite part was when Scott Moreau sang as Johnny Cash. He sounded spot on and to my surprise was the understudy.

Box Seats Section M

The train was parked right outside The Smith Center!

Thank you,

Thank You Emily Winfield Martin

I have been a huge fan of Emily Winfield Martin for sometime. As I mentioned in the last post, I won two of her books on Wednesday. This started me thinking, "How does one go from being an artist to having a book published?". So I began to research and read up on all of Emily's sites. The website based on her new book Oddfellow's Orphanage is quite exquisit! It's here where I found the character page with an eccentric list of likes and dislikes for each character. Each one a small delicacy to get you thinking about who the character is. At that moment, lightening struck!

Inspiration had been lost on me for the past few months until that exact moment. I, Constance Stotzer, needed to write a likes and dislikes ledger! I grabbed my nearest composition book and went to work drawing and labeling columns to begin my list. Surprisingly, I have a page and a half of likes and not quite half a page of dislikes (I'm sure they will come to me when I am grumpier). My composition book also has pages now for a list of where I draw inspiration from, such as books and movies along with a list of odd words I collect, but that is another story.  In addition to my composition book, I am now working in two sketchbooks and on multiple paintings and illustrations simultaneously!

I love this feeling! When you can't scribble your thoughts and ideas down fast enough, scared they will fly out of your head and be lost forever. Well enough gushing, I have to get back to work!

Thank you Emily Winfield Martin for giving me the gift of inspiration!

Thank you,

Oddfellow's Orphanage by Emily Martin

Yesterday I saw a tweet from Emily Martin advertising that Crafter News was doing a give away of her new book Oddfellow's Orphanage. I immediately clicked the link to follow the directions for the contest. Well. . . .

I just got an email moments ago announcing I had won the contest! I never win, so this email came as a complete surprise! I'm not only getting Oddfellow's Orphanage, but I am also getting a copy of Emily's first book The Black Apple's Paper Doll Primer. Oh, I can't wait to find these lovelies in my mailbox! Happy Dance! I hope I don't drool much over them to be able to share them with my niece!

Thank you Random House, Crown Publishing and Crafter News for this wondrous gift!

Thank you,

Cute as a Button! - Handmade Brooches

Since I have been on Summer vacation, I have been a creating machine! I stay up working into the night and wake up before the sun is up because my brain has kicked on with all the glorious things I need to make!My brain says, "There are things to make! You can't sleep your summer away!".

I have been wrestling with a few knitting projects the last few days and undecided about a few more.

More importantly though, I have begun to paint and draw again! I've just been cruising through some smaller projects to get me sea legs. Not to mention, they are just too much fun to make! Here is a sampling of the hand drawn buttons I made yesterday. They are cute individually or as a set!

I recently added a new fox to my collection as well. I have been experimenting with gouaches rather than my usual acrylics. The colors are more subdued than with acrylics even when they are watered down, which is the way I prefer to work with them. I like to layer and build up my colors for richer pictures. I've also been experimenting with coloring my drawings in rather than trying to paint my pictures. So far I am liking the results, more trails and errors to come.

Thanks for letting me share!

Mitten Lotto Winnings

Awhile back I wrote about the yarn I purchased from Eat.Sleep.Knit and the sweater I plan to make from the yarn. Inside my package was a scratch off lotto ticket. Very exciting, right? With this ticket I won a mitten kit that I got to pick the color scheme for. I of course picked the blue option and mailed off my winning card. I am so excited to share that I received my prize yesterday! It included two yummy Madelinetosh yarn skeins and the mitten pattern. And yes, I hugged the yarn over and over when I opened my box! I don't feel the two colors go that great together and I plan on using the Yarn Love Marianne Dashwood in Sparkling Pool with the charcoal instead to create the mittens. I have always wanted to try this yarn out due to hearing so many good things. (happy dance!!!!)

Thank you,

Knitting for a Good Cause

A few days ago I found out about a fantastic opportunity to knit for a good cause through Cephalopod Yarns. What is this cause? Well it is "Americans are making afghans for Afghans". It is a wonderful cause and so nice to be able to put my knitting addiction to good use. They ask that you donate a knitted hat, socks, or mittens/gloves and in return you get a $32 credit to their store. Free yarn! You don't have to ask me twice! So I knitted up a brilliantly colored hat and am in the process of mailing it out today. I've got my eye on a beautiful yarn called Bugga in Ghost Moth, but to confess I love Golden Tortoise Beetle and Splendour Beetle too! Variegated rainbow colors seem to be calling to me recently.

The deadline is the end of this month to mail in your projects, so you better get a move on if you want to participate in this amazing opportunity.

Capucine pattern: Yarn is Loops and Threads Kaleidoscope in Carnival

Bugga in sport weight: Ghost Moth

Thank you,

Treasury Tuesday

Today's treasury was curated by Sarah Gully of Bent Art on Etsy. I was excited finding so many of my favorite artists in one treasury. More surprised to see that someone else shares a similar aesthetic as me. I have been a big fan Devon Smith, Amy Earles, Emily Winfield Martin, Mab Graves, and of course Julianna Swaney! They are all amazing artists that I look up to and draw inspiration from. I hope to be as successful one day as well. Speaking of . . . back to work!

Thank you Sarah for curating such a wonderful collection!

Thank you,

Finding My Voice

Here I am trying to find 'me' in the midst of the daily grind. I find myself going back to the idea of Constance and her adventures with Copilot Pepper, Pepper being my cat. The photo on the page was my first attempt at telling the story of our journey through magical lands and of the imagination seen through the eyes of childhood innocence. I hope to demonstrate my love of plants and animals as well as fairy tales and folklore. If there are any great stories or tales that you think I should read up on to draw inspiration from, I am all ears! 

Thank you,

Wrap it in a Bow and Seal it with a Kiss

Over the last few months I have been collecting little goodies, such as washi tape, twine, corner and hole punches. Why? Well, I have been wanting to package my art better for Etsy and holiday sales. It's very hard to merchandise and market when my art work is so eclectic. I am hoping to hone in on a voice and theme this summer while I begin my Christmas in July workshop extravaganza. (fingers crossed)  Here is a taste of what I have been procrastinating with today. I'd love to know what you think!

I'd love it if someone would purchase something from my Etsy shop so I could send one of these beauties to them. (sigh)

Add caption

Thank you,

Box Bag Addiction - aka "Bag Lady"

My Assistant Principal who is to blame for getting hooked on knitting has now gotten me completely addicted to box bags and deliciously expensive yarn. (sigh) So now I have a collection of 3 beautiful box bags, all of which I have purchased from Absolute Wonder on Etsy all crafted to perfection by Ginger! I truly can not say enough good things about the product or Ginger's customer service. I just received my custom order for cupcakes and sprinkles. To my surprise she added the cutest star on the zipper pull which totally made my day! Beuaty is in the small details and just when I thought the bag couldn't get any sweeter with the colors, sprinkles and cupcakes, I see the star! I am seriously crushing on these bags!

I think they are amazing individually or all together!

Let me know what you think and don't forget to check out her shop!

Thank you,