Swoon!

A few weeks ago I was introduced to Sandra Juto’s amazing crochet work by sfgirlbybay. The moment I saw this afghan my heart swelled and I knew I was in love. I keep staring at it, studying it, and coveting it. I have to make one.

I’ve been harboring the desire to pick up crochet seriously for some time now, even putting it on my list of things to accomplish this year. At first I thought this was way out of my league but as I’ve studied Sandra’s blog and flickr stream I’ve realized it’s made out of granny squares. Each granny square is a fun little project of its own, making the whole afghan doable for a complete novice like myself.

Sandra’s afghan uses a pattern she created herself. After a few googling sessions though I believe it’s based on a sunburst granny square. Lots of tutorials exist online so I hope I can figure it out. Now I need yarn and lots of it. Typically granny squares use up all your scraps of yarn from other projects but I’m starting with nothing. No yarn and no yarn buying experience. What I do have though is a gift certificate to a yarn shop the dudely gave me a Christmas or two or three ago.

Before I dive right in, any crocheters out there? What advice can you share with me? I need every piece you can throw my way!

Photos by Sandra Juto, smosch.com

Gone Hunting

I am so in love with this project. I HAVE to make one.

photo from Chronicle Books

Knitting is my new superpower

I was inspired by this week's superhero photo challenge to take some fun shots of myself modelling my new hand warmers. Hand warmers that I knit from the pattern in Last-Minute Knitted Gifts using some ancient Briggs & Little wool that I found in my knitting basket (I rarely knit, yet it seems that I am hoarding yarn). After my last marathon knitting project I needed something quick and easy to get my confidence back. These were definitely the ticket: I completed the pair in three evenings. They were a hit with my husband too and I had to make a run to my local knitting shop to get some Sublime cashmere silk to make him a pair in his requested color of sage green. One is done and it is sooo soft and yummy that I might need a pair too.

Last week I also received Knitting for Baby and have already completed a pair of the stay-on baby booties that I saw on Soulemama. This is my first "practice" pair and I have to say that this pattern gets an A+ for clear instructions and ease. Looking through the book I think it's actually got a lot of cute patterns that look quick and easy and I'm definitely going to try others. Their how-to-knit instructions and diagrams are also very helpful, I can see a novice knitter picking up this book and learning to knit without much frustration. Definitely a winner.

Squam update coming. I'm still processing the experience of the day and photos.

Inspiration Pack Giveaway

Inspired by a giveaway done by Emily Martin of The Black Apple, Holly Becker of decor8 decided to host her very own Inspiration Pack giveaways. Last month a call was made to artists and crafters to donate their scraps to decor8. The scraps could take the form of fabric, buttons, paper, cards, ribbon, stamps, stickers, journals or really anything you were looking to recycle. The goal was simple: to inspire someone else.

The staff of Funky & Delightful answered the call and sent off a package of our fabric scraps and buttons last month. There was no way we couldn’t contribute. We’ve gained so much inspiration over the last few years from blogland. This was the perfect opportunity to pay it back.

Inspiration was also sent from nearly 100 other people including Hable Construction, Designer’s Guild London, Sarah Parrot, Sofia Barao, and Jen Renninger. Holly has spent the last few weeks organizing the goods into 10 inspiration packs for giveaway. Entering the giveaway is easy, just comment on the post answering the questions posed. You’ll definitely want to get in on the opportunity to win one of these packs.

The winners will be announced July 28. Good luck!

(all images courtesy of Holly Becker for decor8)

Blog Love

The Philosophy of Lists has bestowed us with the best little blog award. She has named us "Just plain fun to read". We were more than a little excited to get this. Giddy may, in fact, be the best word to describe it. Thank you, fellow blogger, for such kindness. We think you're awfully fun to read too!

Inspired

Last night the Funky & Delightful staff (ahem, Tory and Elise) attended the Bloggers' Ball, the latest networking/educational event held by the Boston Design Salon Group. It was a great event and we were delighted to meet the amazing women behind some of our favorite blogs. We were a little star-struck, truth be told, but somehow we managed to make our way around the room and chat with as many people as we could. The panelists (Grace, Traci & Shannon) gave a great overview of how a blog can help a creative person share their work, emphasizing the importance of maintaining authenticity and allowing one's audience to grow organically. There was also helpful information on advertising and how to make it work from the perspective of both the blog author and the artist. Afterwards we chatted with Grace from Design*Sponge who was very gracious about indulging our craving for insider gossip regarding certain Blogosphere celebrities. And while we were talking with Shannon from Make It we met her former colleague Lisa from Mod Green Pod and were thrilled to learn about their organic fabrics and wallpapers. Overall, it was really inspiring to be in the company of so many talented women who were clearly equally passionate about creating, running their businesses and sharing their experiences with other women. Thank you to Jennifer for organizing such a fun event - we'll be back for more.

Making the evening even better, the location of the event was conveniently located steps away from Gaslight, so we stopped by for an early dinner before the Ball. It was delicious and we loved the ambiance and are already planning our next trip. Take a look: