How to Make a Simple Knitting Journal

Another organizing project I've been wanting to accomplish 

for far too long is a knitting journal.....a book to keep/record:

*skein labels & garment care instructions

*pattern notes and changes

*yarn swatches

*needle sizes used

*photos of completed projects

*stitch directions

*lists of projects I have stash in hand for

I know you can purchase pre-made knitting journals,

but I'm a free spirit and wanted to make my own and 

not be limited by someone else's pre-printed parameters...

Neither did I want to spend much.....

nor wait long.....

Fortunately, I ran across a post at 

Homespun Living by Deb, and one of her photos

(fourth photo down on this post)

made my creative juices flow.....

(Thanks, Deb!)

And here is my result: quick, simple, inexpensive

free knitting journal instructions.

Take a 94 cent composition book, in your favorite color,

 from your favorite discount store, 

and while you're there, pick up some cardstock to match your book.

Do a Google Search for graphics of your choice...

I think I typed in "free sheep clip art."

(Or just go here to find the graphic I used.)

Grab you favorite image and copy and paste it into a document,

play with the size, add a font you like,

then print it out onto cardstock.

Cut and trim to your heart's content,

(I layered mine because I liked the look)

then glue it on the cover.

I considered decopauge-ing the cover, 

but went with clear contact plastic instead.

(Applied after I took these photos...)

And there you have it.....

200 or so pages to doodle away in till the ewe's come home.....

all for a couple of bucks.

No pun intended.

:D

Organizing Knittin' Sticks

I've wanted and needed make a knitting needle organizer

for years, and this is the year!

I was totally inspired by this post from Deb at Homespun Living---

and as soon as I saw it, I knew it was the one for me!

(Thank You Deb!)

Above you will see the one we created for the Treasure,

and below is mine.

I made a few changes to the online directions for making this that I found HERE.

1) I decided to make mine wider, it measures 36" wide by 10" long, 

as I use some larger needles.

To do so, I purchased a yard of 60" wide canvas.

(Hancock Fabrics, $9.99/yd)

I cut it in half so I had two pieces, each 30" x 36"

and followed the pocket instructions at the link above.

From L to R, here are the pocket sizes I chose to make:

(1) 2" pocket for scissors 

(1) 1-1/2" pocket for crochet hook 

(6) 1-1/2" pockets for sizes 1-6 

(2) 1-3/4" pockets for sizes 7 and 8

(3) 2" pockets for sizes 9 and 10 and 10-1/2

(4) 2-1/2" pockets for sizes 11-14

(1) 3" pocket for size 15

2) I didn't care for the raw edges on the ends of the original, so chose to finish mine with seam binding.

3) I wasn't able to find 1" wide twill tape, so used 1" cotton seam binding instead.

4) I used a doubled tie on the end instead of single--makes it easier to tie.

(see photo directly below)

I also made a couple of mistakes.

Live and learn.

:D

I got distracted and forgot to mark one pocket for my 10-1/2" needles,

and ended up with a '16' pocket. 

(I don't own size 16 needles.)

Eventually, I will find some iron-on tape, cover these numbers with it,

and reprint them.

And when I do, I will NOT use pigmented scrapbooking ink--

I noticed it rubs off on the back when rolled up.

One more thing--

when you go to print the numbers on,

make sure you clean the ink off that gets on the stamp around the numbers,

otherwise you'll end up with the "look" above.

Thankfully, the Treasure isn't a perfectionist 

and so she doesn't really mind.

Imperfect though it is.....the price was right

(about $6 each)

and this little organizer makes my heart sing!

With that task accomplished, 

my sticks are now hot---working on projects!!!

Taking a Break

I love blogging--really, I do.

But the time has come for me to take a break

and wholly focus my attention on my 6 top priorities:

• Growing in my Spiritual walk
• Nurturing my Marriage with the Man
• Nurturing the Treasure
• Redeeming my Health
• Organizing my Home
• Succor-ing my Elderly Parents

It's a plate-full--and it's all good!

I'll be back as soon as I can with more photos and fun...

Till then.....be Blessed!

Organizing Thoughts~Part 1

Image courtesy of karenswhimsy.com



Where do you keep your thoughts?

Odd question?

Ok, I admit it, I'm odd.

But I'm also curious.

Were you born organized?

Does your brain have drawers with neat rows of filing cabinets

filled with perfectly labeled, color coded & alphabetized files

and an smooth, efficient information retrieval system

so's you can locate important thoughts in just a split second?

I was NOT born organized.

Nor was I trained to it.

My thoughts are more like grass clippings coming out of a lawn mower deck--

scattered at great speed to the four winds

to be further dispersed at random.

Before I realized that there might be a better way,

my usual habit was to write my thoughts & notes to myself

on whatever scrap of paper might be lying closest.

Then, once the thought was out of my brain

and not clogging the system  any more,

I could and would churn out more.

All those thoughts and  that multitude of scraps

turned into a mountain of moving paper,

sort of like a pile of leaves blowing in the wind...

Yeah, I wasn't born organized.
Nor was I trained to it.

From past experience,

I've learned that before I worry about ordering my thoughts--

first I need a place to keep them!

I think the professionals call that containerizing?

Somewhere a few years back,

I read yet another "Get Organized Quick" book
(hoping, of course, to find the "magic pill" or at least a quick cure)

and came across the concept of using a simple spiral bound notebook

as a log to keep all telephone messages in.

I tried it and liked it!

All those phone notes and information were in one place.

Amazing!



A 15 cent solution  at the August
back-to-school sale at my local W--mart.



As I've experimented over the years with different day-planning

and organizing systems,

I keep coming back to that simple idea--it works for me.
I've had to learn to discipline myself to the habit
of writing my thoughts--notes, lists, information from the day,
addresses, phone numbers, etc, ad nauseum--
into this notebook so I now know where to find my thoughts!

So far, I've used about three different kinds of these notebooks,
including the type above.
A couple of years ago I created my own spiral-bound day-planner.

The pages were drafted on my home computer

and I then went to a copy shop and had the pages

reproduced and spiral bound.

Now, I'm using a day-planner that I bought off the shelf

which looks like this:

Month at a glance dividers

 

One page per day for each day of the month.

 I'm finding that it suits my needs pretty well at present.

I have a place to keep track of appointments as they arise

and plenty of room to scratch my random thoughts and lists down.

And, spiral bound to keep those thoughts all together in one place,

which is important because I carry this black book with me everywhere I go:

from room to room in the house as I move through my tasks for the day,

to town and appointments (my lists are in there!) and when I travel.

It helps so much to have all those jottings are in one place.

This book is the tool I use to contain my thoughts.

(Next I'll think about organizing those thoughts.)

How and where do you keep your thoughts?

What works for you? 



Organizing Buttons

Although this is not the organizing post I had planned for today,

it reflects where I'm at, at the moment, which is

packing up the remnants of 20 years of life in this home of ours.

My personal button collection started when I was a junior in highschool.

A woman I was working for found bargain buttons,

25 cents for a sizeable scoop of all sorts and kinds--

so I spent a couple bucks and had a blast sorting and organizing them--

all of one kind that matched were strung onto thin wire and then put in a box.

My collection has grown since then, just bits and pieces added here and there.

I'm not a "serious" collector, I just enjoy buttons.

For years I simply sorted the colors into plastic zip bags

 and stored them in a drawer.

Then, several months ago,

we discovered these antique jars someone had given us,

and I had fun sorting them by color into jars and displaying them in a window

right above my little sewing area.

Now, it is time to move on.

My next home will be tiny, and I am trying find

as many ways as possible to conserve space

and still have the necessities close at hand.

Yes, buttons are a necessity!

(In my book.)

Here's my current solution.

Inexpensive hot wheels storage boxes from the local Walmart toy section.

My entire button collection--AND my safety pin stash--

all fit in one tidy box.

I still have one jar of buttons that I am moving "as is"--

they belonged to my mother and my grandmother.

I suppose, eventually, I will incorporate them into my own collection,

but I'm just not ready to do that yet.

One step at a time.

Components of a Well Ordered Life

I never tire of admiring the organized handiwork of the Creator...

Here are at least some of the things that we need to organize

in order to have a well ordered life:

*Our Thoughts

*Our Time

*Our Space

*Our Stuff

*Our Paperwork

*Our Families

(--adapted from The organized Home Schooler

by Vicki Caruana)

I'll be pondering each of these general categories in future posts.

Can you think of any general categories not included in the list above?

If you do, leave me a comment, I'm always open to learning more!

Have a blessed day!

A Well Ordered Life

 My new hobby for the New Year
is moving toward a well ordered life.

I have been giving the topic much thought, time and energy,
and I will be posting about my journey a lot in the days to come.

At present, I'm having trouble getting my thoughts into any kind of order
that is cohesive enough to make a post about,
because I'm feeling good again and running around trying to make up for lost time
in the packing and moving saga!

So for today, I want to share the following inspiration with you:

Vision for a Well-Managed Household

~The tone is distinctly Christian,
characterized by an atmosphere of peace and joy
~Time is used wisely, with an attitude of "I can" and "Do it Now"
~Nutritious and healthful meals are served regularly
and in a pleasant atmosphere
~The living areas are usually neat and orderly
~Housework is completed on a regular basis
~All family members work as a team to do the work that needs to be done
~Clothing is kept neat and clean
through regular laundering and menting and ironing
~Lifetime memories are being made
(and highlights kept in scrapbooks)
~The family lives within its means and financial records are kept up-to-date
~Hospitality is shown to others
~Outside activities do not interfere with family togetherness

--adapted from Looking Well to the Ways of Your Household:
Practical Help for the Domestically Challenged
by Mary Carney

I'd like to hear about this topic--and learn--
from other readers and bloggers as well,
so if you are stopping by,
won't you leave a  helpful comment?

What does your vision of a Well Ordered Life look like?