Look at the Baby Blanket I made!

Haloooooo!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful week.  I've been doing all right.  I decided to treat my unemployment and search for a new job as the vacation I was rarely able to take before.  I've got a certain amount of work I do every morning: searching job sites, filling out applications, blah, blah, blah.  However, once this is done, I have the rest of the day to do what ever I want.  That means that I usually spend a lot of time watching movies and crocheting.  I guess I could do some house work, but why?  Vacations are for doing what you want to do, not what you should do! (I know my logic is faulty, but I'll stay out of your reasoning if you stay out of mine.)

Anyway, one of the things I had time for was this baby blanket.  I just love the colors.  It reminds me of taffy in a wrapper; so, I've decided to call it Taffy Stripes.  What do you think?

If you want to make this, here are the instructions. 


Caron Simply Soft Yarn - 2 colors -aproximately 2 to 3 skeins of each

size H hook

stitches: Chain (ch), single crochet (sc), half double crochet (hdc)

With color 1:

Chain stitch 99

Row 1: Hdc in third chain from hook(counts as first hdc here and throughout), ch 1, skip next ch--repeat across, hdc in last chain--turn

Row 2: Ch 3 (counts as first hdc and 1 ch), skip next ch, hdc in next hdc--repeat across, hdc in ch 2--turn

Rows 3-10: repeat row 2

Row 11: Ch 1, sc in first hdc in each hdc and ch space all the way across, join color 2 in last sc--turn

Row 12: Ch 1, sc in first sc and in each sc across--turn

Rows 13-23: repeat row 3

Row 24: repeat row 11

Repeat rows 2-24 two more times, then repeat rows 11-24 for last color stripe--do not finish off. Turn Afgan.

At this point you should have four stripes of color 1 and 3 stripes of color 2.

Ruffle edgeing: From now on out, when the directions say to turn, it means to turn the blanket to work on the next edge, rather than working on the back side or front side. For example, if you are working on one of the short edges, turn will mean to start work on the long edge.

Row 1: 2 sc in first sc, 1 sc in next sc and in every sc across to last sc, 2 sc in last sc--turn--1 sc in first row and each row the end--turn--2 sc in first sc, 1 sc in each sc across to last sc, 2 sc in last sc--turn--1 sc in first row and in each row until the end--join in first sc with slip stitch

Row 2: Ch 1, 3 sc in first sc, 1 sc in each sc to last sc, *3 sc in last sc (this is your corner), repeat from * 3 times, slip stitch to join with first sc

Row 3: Repeat row 2

Row 4: Ch 1, 3 sc in first sc, 2 sc in each sc across to last sc, *3 sc in last sc, 2 sc in each sc to last sc, repeat from * 2 times, slipn stitch to join with first sc

Row 4: Ch 1, 3 sc in first sc, *2 sc in next sc, 1 sc in next sc, repeat from * across to last sc, **3 sc in next sc, *2 sc in next sc, 1 sc in next sc, repeat from * across to last sc, repeat from ** 2 times, slip stitch to join with first sc

Rows 5-6: Repeat row 4, fasten off

Weave in all ends

Well, there you go.  This is the first time I've ever written down instructions for something I've made, so I'm sorry if they're hard to understand. If you have any problems, just write me a message, and I'll try to help you out and then fix the directions.

With love,
The Crocheting Cat Lady

 

Hey Crocheting Cat Lady! Where've you been?

Oh holy cow! I didn't realise how long it's been since I last posted.  Two months!  What's up with that?  I wish I could say that I neglected my posting because life was just so exciting I couldn't find the time.  But I can't.  While life over the last two months has definitely been eventful, I can't say it's been exciting. 

The most important event over the last two months is that I finally quit my job.  Yay!  I know I haven't mentioned my job very much previously, but I didn't want to use my blog as a bitch fest.  Suffice it to say that my job made me very unhappy for five and a half years, and I finally had enough about two months ago and started looking for other work.  (That was about the time I started investigating how to open my own craft supply store.)  I really didn't want to leave my job without another one to take it's place, but circumstances forced me to. 

My job was supposed to be temporary employment while I went to graduate school, but when the economy tanked, I ended up staying there.  It was just so hard to find a new job, especially since most of my work experience was in the medical career field.  Do you know how hard it is to get a job outside of the career field that your experience is in?  Throw degrees in English on top of it, and no one wants you.  Not only do you not have the experience they want, but they think your education will make you dissatisfied with anything but a job concerning your degree.  ARGH!

For the last two years, I had been having minor anxiety attacks while at work.  Shortness of breath, tight chest, dizziness, that sort of thing.  (However, one time I had an attack while on the phone with a patient and actually lost consciousness for a few seconds.  I should have quit then.)  Anyway, on my last day of work, I had a major attack that landed me in the ER.  The Urgent Care doctor didn't want to take the chance that it wasn't actually a heart attack, so he loaded me into an ambulance and shipped me to the hospital.  Understandable, but expensive.  Well, it wasn't a heart attack, but it was a wake up call.  I decided then, while in my little hospital johnny with tubes and wires sticking out all over, that if I didn't quit my job, my anxiety attacks would end up actually giving me a heart attack.  The next day, I quit.  And again, Yay!  Or maybe, Yay?

Soooo.  Now I just sit around the house and fill out job applications and hope my prospective employers will look beyond the masters degree and lack of experience and just give me a chance.  (Are you listening Hastings?  I think I would make a great book or video department manager.  Heck, I'll work in the coffee shop.  Anything to work at my favorite store.  And have an income, of course.)  Shameless plug over. 

So, I haven't been wasting all my time.  I did finish three baby blankets and make a hair tie and arm bracelet for my niece's junior prom.  (I've got a lot of time on my hands, now.)  Here are pictures of the jewelry:

I crocheted silver wire and weaved beads in for a cute arm bracelet to match my niece's Greek goddess style dress.

 

This is the matching hair piece.

 

 

And the complete look.  I had a little fun having her pose with that vase.  Isn't she just a lovely, young lady?  (I know I'm biased.  Cut me some slack!)

 





Well, I think that's going to be it for now.  I have to go clean my office and open every box to look for my transcripts.  It seems that the Colorado department of Education requires that information when you apply for a high school English teacher position. 

 

With love,

The Crocheting Cat Lady (unemployed, but anxiety attack free!)





How Do I . . .

Business loans, distributor searches, rental space searches, oh my!  For the last two years, I've been dreaming of starting my own craft supply business.  Until last week, that's all it's been: dreaming.  But last week, I finally decided that I was tired of working for other people.  I was tired of working at jobs that were unfulfilling and completely inept at taking advantage of my strengths and talents.  I was tired of watching the people I work with get rewarded for being lazy, unethical, and stupid. 

This Saturday, I decided to start really researching how I would go about achieving my dream.  The first thing I did was search the Internet for distributors of what I wanted to stock in my store: yarns, crocheting/knitting tools, cross stitch threads/patterns/tools, beading supplies, general crafting supplies, and whatever else I decide I have space for in the future.  I was wildly successful.  I have several folders filled with bookmarked websites that seem like they'll be useful to me.  Yay, me!  Of course, all that searching has left me confused and worried that ordering stock from so many different places will cause me headaches.  Hopefully, though, once I get going and become more experienced, I'll be able make contacts that will make ordering easier.  I'm optimistic.

The second thing I did was go to the SBA website and browse through all the advice and tools they have for starting a new business.  Holy cow!  Talk about scaring the bejeebies out of me.  The SBA site is full of information: good, interesting information. There's a whole section about businesses owned by women. It's also got information about help for veterans. The problem is that it's so full of of information, that I'm left overwhelmed and confused as to what to do first.   The site tells you what to do, but not how to do it. When I was creating a resume and cover letter for post-college employment, I had examples to follow that made it easier to create my own.  I'm not saying that I want some kind of formulaic template that you plug information into and, presto, you have a business plan.   I'm just looking for some kind of map to help me find my way. I can find anything with a good map.

The one thing I know for sure, is that there is a definite need for my business.  You see, I live in a relatively small, rural town in southern Colorado, and the only option for purchasing craft supplies we have is Walmart.  (Anyone who has browsed the craft section in Walmart knows that it's horrible.  Not only is the selection incredibly limited, the product is mostly cheap, and not in the good way.)  My community is loaded with retirees and artists/crafters.  I'm not going to have any problems finding customers.  Furthermore, the nearest real craft supply store is Hobby Lobby, 40 miles away in Pueblo.  With gas prices today, it's just not economical to drive to Pueblo every time you run out of yarn or Mod Podge.  Speaking from a crafter's point of view, a small craft supply store in town would be lovely.  My obstacle is, how do I translate that need into funding to meet it?

According to the SBA, I need a business plan to get funding.  Well, I have two English degrees.  It shouldn't be hard to write, right?  Uh, yeah.  I can write short stories, poetry,and an analysis of Hemingway's treatment of PTSD in The Sun Also Rises.  I can also write detailed instructions on how to bathe your cat.  Hey, I can even write a blog! But how the heck do I write a business plan?  The site says I need to include demographic information, details on how my business will benefit the community, and a hundred other things that I know trying to organize into coherent written communication will offend my delicate writing sensibilities.  (This is where that map would come in pretty handy.  I'll keep searching the net for it, and I'll let you know where I find it.) 

And, oh yeah, the site doesn't really address how to get financing if you have a questionable personal credit history.  As Pooh would say, "Oh, bother."

In all honesty, though, as overwhelmed, frustrated, and terrified as I am trying to figure out how to get this business going, I'm happy.  I've taken my first step towards making my dream a reality.  Granted, it's just a teeny, weenie step, but it's a step.  Knowing that I'm working towards leaving my current job makes doing that job a bit bearable. 

Now, if I could just win the lottery, all my financing worries would be history. 

With love,
The Crocheting Cat Lady

Hey Cat Lady! What's For Dinner?

When I was a kid, we had a restaurant in town that served a fantastic manicotti.  I left town to join the Air Force and spent the next 8 years living in Omaha, NE dreaming about that manicotti.  Unfortunately, once I moved back home, I found that the restaurant had changed, and not for the better.  The manicotti that had made my mouth water in my dreams on a nightly basis didn't exist anymore.  In its place was a horrible parody of manicotti.  Crushed, I thought I would never enjoy my favorite Italian dish again.  That was 15 years ago. 

Since then, I've become more comfortable experimenting with recipes.  One of the first I experimented with was the Betty Crocker manicotti recipe.  The first time I made it, I copied it straight out of the book.  While it was good, it had no zip.  It wasn't something that would make me crave it for 8 years.  It took me two years of playing with it and two very special people (thank you my dear brother and niece) tasting each version to come up with a recipe that I love, but I did it.

I thought I would share the recipe with you, but I must warn you, I don't measure,  I just pour, mix, and taste.  So, if you are one of those people who have to know exactly how much of a spice has to go into it, you may be out of luck.  I'll try to give you estimated measurements, but let me tell you that the best way to know how much of a spice to use is to put a little in and taste it.  If it doesn't taste like enough, add a little more.  That said, here we go.

 

 

Ingredient List:

 

Manicotti Shells

 

Filling:

 

Sweet Italian Sausage     1 lb

Cottage cheese                1 large tub 

Parmesan cheese            1/2 cup (I use fresh because it's much less oily than pre-grated)

Mozzarella cheese           2 lbs

Fresh spinach                  1 to 2 cups (I used 2, but I love spinach)

Mushrooms                     4 or 5 large ones (I used button mushrooms, feel free to use something else)

Fresh garlic                     4 or 5 cloves

Nutmeg                           1 tsp

 

Sauce:

 

4 cans tomato sauce                

6 Roma tomatoes               

1 large onion                             

1 red bell pepper

5 or 6 large mushrooms (Again, I used buttons, but you don't have to.)

1 bulb of fresh garlic (Not a clove, 1 whole bulb.  You can use less if you don't like garlic as much as I do.)

2 tsp basil

2 tsp oregano

1 tsp chili powder

1/ 4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp brown sugar

Salt to taste

 

Let's get started!

 

First of all, to make this recipe you will need a good blender, chopper, whatever.  I'm a big fan of the Ninga.  See how pretty it looks? Best kitchen appliance I ever bought myself!

 

 

 

(You may ask why a blender is so important.  Well, everything in this recipe is pureed, accept the noodles, of course.)

 

1.  The first thing you need to do is brown the sausage in a stock pot or other similar type pot.  Once it's browned, remove the sausage from the pot and place in a large mixing bowl for later.  This is my favorite brand of sausage to use, because the pie ends up being less greasy than with other brands I have tried.  I don't know if you can get it outside of Colorado, though.

 

 

2.  Next puree the tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, and garlic and pour into the pot you cooked the sausage in.  (The little bit of sausage grease left in the pot will give it a little flavor.)  Mix in the tomato sauce, basil, oregano, chili powder, cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt.  Bring to a boil, then let simmer, stirring occasionally, until you're ready to pour over the stuffed noodles. 

 

(Don't forget to taste the sauce every once in a while so you can add more spices if it isn't to your liking.)

 

 

3.  Puree the sausage and mushrooms and pour back into the mixing bowl.  Next, puree the garlic, spinach, and half of the cottage cheese.  Pour that into the mixing bowl.  Then puree the rest of the cottage cheese, about 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan and put it in the mixing bowl.  (Don't forget to grate the Parmesan.)

 

 

(If you don't have one of these, get one.  I love, love, love mine!)

 

 

4.  Mix all the ingredients in your mixing bowl until the mixture is a uniform greenish color.  (Sounds gross, tastes great!)  It should look like this:  

 







 

5.  Now comes the pain in the rear part.  You've got to stuff the uncooked noodles with the green mixture.  (I don't precook the noodles because I can't stuff them without splitting them wide open.  but if you're good at stuffing cooked noodles, go right ahead.  Just cut the baking time to about 1/2 hour if you do.)

 

6.  Place stuffed noodles in a large baking pan like so:

 

(I prefer glass baking pans for anything with pasta.)

 

 

7.  Cover noodles with sauce.

 

8.  Top off with mozzarella cheese and bake at 375 for 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Let sit for about 10 minutes before you dig in.



 

 



 (Ta Da!  Here's the finished product.  Enjoy.)

 

 

This recipe will yield 2 large pies with enough sauce left over for spaghetti the next night.  I also had some filling left over.  My niece and I are going to experiment with putting it on the roasted garlic flavored Triskets.  I'll let you know how that turns out.

 

Before I go, I want to talk a little bit about garlic, since there's so much in this recipe.  Until I was about 35 years old, I had no clue how to peal garlic.  I tried to peal it like an onion and got sticky and stinky.  I finally learned the proper way to peal garlic from a show on the cooking channel.  Life savor!  Now I want to pass that knowledge on to the next generation.  If you already know how to peel garlic, just ignore this tutorial.

 

 

You'll need a cutting board and a broad knife.

Place the clove on the cutting board, round side down.



Place flat of knife on the clove and apply pressure.  Don't press too hard or you'll pulverise the clove.

Now you can just peal the hard skin off of the garlic.

 

 

(I want to thank my lovely niece, Alica, for being such a wonderful hand model for my garlic tutorial.)

 

 

Well, my loves, that's this week's post.  I know it's not about crafting, but as I said in my opening post, I'm gonna write about any damn thing I want to here.  I hope you enjoy the recipe, and feel free to tweak it as much as you want.  After all, a recipe should be more of a jumping off point for great flavor, rather than the end all and be all of a dish.

 

 

With love,

 

The Crocheting Cat Lady

 

Saturday In Florence, CO

I am fortunate to live near Florence, CO.  Its major claim to fame is that it houses the infamous Super Max.  Scary, I know.  However, what most people don't know is that it is also home to many, many antique stores. 

When I was a kid, the town was falling apart.  They had more bars along main street than they had stores. In effect, it was a dying town.  Once the prison was built just outside of town, it started to get a little better.  However, the main street still suffered. 

Several years ago, the business owners decided to change the face of their town and antique stores started blossoming all along the main thoroughfare.  Eventually, the townsfolk decided that they would turn Florence into the place to go in Colorado for antique shopping.  They haven't quite succeeded, yet, but they're working on it.  Meanwhile, it's a little gem that we locals get to hog all to ourselves.

Every few months, I like to head over and check out what's happening.  I have a couple stores that I visit every time I make the trip, but I also try to visit at least 1 new shop, as well.  Yesterday, my niece and I drove on over and spent the day browsing and taking pictures. 

My first stop is always at The Mezzanine.  It's huge; and there's always lots of interesting items. 

I've found a lot of my vintage crochet books at The Mezzanine, but yesterday I was out of luck.  Their craft books had been pretty well picked over.  At least I got a picture of the fabulous lamp display they had on the second floor.  Aren't they just gorgeous?

Every time I go to Florence, I find that I tend to focus on a particular type of item.  It's not that I go searching for it, but it will catch my eye in a store, and thenceforth I look for the same things in all the other stores that I visit.  Yesterday I fixated on cash registers and typewriters.  Here are a few pictures of what I found.

As a writer, I've always been fascinated by old typewriters.  But the cashier fixation was a bit of a surprise to me.  I think the top one looks so cool.  It's what we all imagine old registers looked like back in the day.  But I think the two Brandt registers are so much cooler.  When I saw the first one, I thought it might have been an old version of a calculator, but, though you can't really see it in the picture, it says automatic cashier, just like the second one.  So nifty.

My favorite store in town, though, is Legends and Lace Antiques.  The front room is chock full of Victorian clothing, hats, furniture and knick-knacks.  The back room is more western.  But the best part of this store is that Sarah, the owner, made every lampshade in the store.  You can see some of her country themed shades in her display window below.

The shades I love the most, though, are her Victorian themed shades.  They are so gorgeous, and they make me want to learn to make lampshades.

(My favorite is the crescent moon-shaped one with the fringe.) 

 

The last time I was in, Sarah was taking a hiatus from lampshade-making.  But yesterday, the clerk told me that not only was she making them again, but she will take consignment orders if you email her at Sarah@HatsandShadesBySarah.com.  I know, I know, I sound like a commercial.  No, Sarah has not paid me to advertise for her.  I just love her work and want to share it with as many people as possible.  If you ever get to Florence, you have to stop and check out her store.  (And, oh yeah, she makes and refurbishes Victorian hats, as well.)

Well, this post has been a bit rambling, but that's how my trip was yesterday.  It just seems fitting that I should let you experience my rambles as I did.  One final word, though.  When you come visit Florence, make sure you stop at The Pour House.  This was the "new" store I visited on this trip.  The coffee was pretty good, and it looked like the lunch menu was tasty, but what was most impressive was the atmosphere.  Lots of art on the walls, hardwood floors, comfy seating.  It was nothing like what I expected to find in Florence, even taking into account the changing face of the town, itself.

With love,
The Crocheting Cat Lady

Ta Da!

It's been a rough week.  Power outages, mean callers at work, sneezing, coughing, phlegm monsters residing in my throat.  I would elaborate (okay, bitch,) but I'm not really in the mood.  Besides, the ending of my week made up for all the rest. 

First of all, I spent a lot of time on Pinterest, again, and got some great decoupage ideas.  The difference between this weekend and my usual Pinterest browse is that today I actually went to the store to pick up what I need to work on some of those ideas.  Yay me!  Hopefully I'll have some pictures of new projects to post soon. 

The second thing that made my week brighter is that, after 2 weeks, I have finally finished my bicycle basket.  It shouldn't have take so long, but I'm not a very good seamstress.  This project not only forced me to use those nearly non-existent skills, but it also required me to come up with my own pattern for the liner.  It looks a little rough, but for my very first made-from-scratch basket liner, I think it came out all right. 

I think my favorite thing on this basket, though, is the flower.  The petals are from a pattern I got from Pinterest (I knew all those hours browsing, um...researching, would pay off,) but the yellow center is of my own design.  Like the liner, this is my first attempt at creating a crochet design.  It's got some bumps to work out, but by the time I'm ready to create my own petal design, I'm sure I'll have the yellow center perfected.

 All in all, I think my basket project was a success.  It looks so cute on my bicycle.  Don't cha think?

I can't wait for the weather to warm up enough to go for a ride.  The first place I'll go to is Hastings for some new books.  Ah, could life be any sweeter?  (Okay.  If it were a tandem bike with Gerard Butler on the back seat, it would be a lot sweeter.  But I'm a simple woman.  I can accept a single bike and new books...for now.) 


With Love,
The Crocheting Cat Lady

What I'm Working On

I don't know about other crafters, but I tend to be working on several projects at once.  I find that if I'm working on a long project, like an afghan, I have to break up the work with smaller projects.  This way I don't get bored with the long project. 

Right now I'm crocheting my first ripple pattern afghan for a family friend.  I work full time, so I don't actually have a lot of time to crochet.  (I'm also a very slow crocheter.) I usually crochet while I'm watching TV and movies, because I can't stand doing nothing.  Watching TV feels like doing nothing, so I crochet to be productive in my down time.  You know how it is. 

I've been working on this afghan for about 3 months.  (To be fair, I was much further along a month ago, but I found a HUGE mistake, so I had to rip it out to the first variegated row.  What a pain.)  I've never done a ripple pattern before because it seemed like such a blah pattern.  Ever since I finished my first afghan, done in a straight double crochet stitch, I've wanted to challenge myself.  I've wanted to learn new stitches.  (Below is one of my favorite afghans, made for my best friend, who still doesn't have it in his possession because we live so far away from each other.)

Anyway, I was teaching a friend how to crochet, and she wanted to learn the ripple pattern, so I decided to just crochet a ripple afghan.  I like how it's turning out.

But I digress.  I was talking about the small projects I work on while crocheting afghans.  This Christmas, my most fabulous family bought me a bicycle that I love, love, love.

It's just perfect for tooling around the small town I live in.  However, it wasn't quite kooky enough for me.  It needed a basket on the front.  I started looking around town and online for the perfect basket.  Needless to say, I never found it.  I did, however, find a wire mesh bicycle basket at Walmart.  It was ugly, but inexpensive, so I decided to buy it and pretty it up.  I got some black and white yarn and started working a faux weave pattern through the mesh. 

My beautiful 9-month-old kitty, Castiel, put his stamp of approval on the basket when I took a break last Sunday.  (If I could only train him to stay in it while riding on the bicycle, I think it would add that extra kookiness that would make my rides around town unforgettable to bystanders.  Don'tcha think?)

I've finished the weave, and I've found and sewed the perfect crocheted flower to it, but I haven't yet finished the liner, so I don't have a "completed" photo to post.  Once I've figured out how to sew the liner, I'll post a picture of how it came out.  In the mean time, anyone have any ideas how to sew the liner?

With Love,

The Crocheting Cat Lady

Why Pinterest is the Devil or How I Spent My Saturday

Very recently, I decided to check out Pinterest.  All of my friends were doing it, so I said, "What the heck.  I'll jump off that cliff."  This site is the best and worst thing that could happen to a crafter. 

For those of you who haven't heard of this online social phenomenon, let me explain how it works.  You browse through pictures on other members' "boards."  When you see something you like or agree with, or just gets your motor humming, you "pin" it to one of your own boards.  Other people may then browse your board and "repin" from you.  It's a cycle.  I'm still new to the site, so I haven't figured out the nuances, yet.  (For example, I haven't found any messaging techniques, or other ways of communication besides the afor mentioned "pinning," that would make this a "social" site, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.  It just means that I've been too busy pinning to notice.) 

Saturday I spent the day watching the first season of "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer" on DVD and browsing Pinterest.  (Just so you know, I love all things Joss Whedon.  Yes, even "Dollhouse.")  I've never had a day pass so quickly.  If you have ever seen anything DIY that you've said, "How the heck did they do that.  I want to learn how to do that," you can find the instructions on this site.  It's a virtual paradise for us crafty types.  I've pinned so many crochet and craft projects to my boards that I'm sure my busy little hands will be occupied until the next projected Apocalypse.  (When is the next one supposed to happen?  Anyone know?) 

I had spent approximately 12 hours on this site, stopping only for food and bathroom breaks, when it dawned on me.  I was spending so much time browsing through fascinating tutorials, that I hadn't actually started any of the projects that captured my imagination.  Aha!  So there it is.  This site was created not to provide knowledge and assistance, but to keep you so occupied looking for said knowledge, you never actually implement it.  It's diabolical, I tell you.

With this information in hand, I was finally able to put my two English degrees to good use.  I used the analytical skills taught to me by my beloved professors to deduce that this site must have been created by Satan, himself.  Who else could have invented something as insidious and capable of turning normally industrious people into mindless drones, pointing and clicking themselves into obesity and lethargy.  Ingenious! 

I can tell you, I was a bit shocked at this revelation and had to stop what I was doing to take it all in.  What was I doing?  How could I let evil, no Evil, manipulate me so easily?  Then I saw a pattern for the most adorable sock monkey I've ever seen.  I pinned that bad boy and moved on to the next page.

So, this is why Pinterest is the Devil.  Now, if you will excuse me, season two of Buffy is on, and I have to go back to that board with the sock monkey.  I think I saw a pattern for curtains that would look fabulous in my brother's kitchen.

With Love,
The Crocheting Cat Lady

Introduction

Well, here I am.  I've tried writing blogs before, but it always seemed like I didn't really have anything to say.  Well, I've finally found something to say.  Whether anyone wants to hear it remains to be seen.  I'm going to start off by answering a few questions you may, or may not, have.

1.  What is this blog about? 

Well, as the name implies, it will be about crocheting...and any other thing I decide I want to write about at the time.  Be prepared for tangents, rants, and full blown rambling along with all the yarn talk.  (Don't say I didn't warn you.) 

2.  Why am I writing this blog? 

Because I'm a writer, and I haven't been writing for a long time.  I miss it.  I decided that it was time to get back to it, and this seemed like the best way to start. 

3.  Why did I choose to write about crocheting? 

I love to crochet.  I love to craft.  I just love creating things out of nothing.  Since I work at home, I also don't get to talk about it much.  (Accept to my family, and they're getting pretty tired of hearing about it.)  I also started a group on Yahoo called Crochet in Colorado to feed this need to talk to like-minded creators, but it hasn't had much traffic yet.  With that in mind, please feel free to comment, ask questions, tell me I've lost my mind...what ever.  It all feeds that chat addiction.

I guess this is a good start.  My future posts may be just as self-centered as this one, but I hope they'll be more enjoyable to read. 

With love in the new year,
The Crocheting Cat Lady