New blog name.

Due to unforeseen circumstances I had to change my blog name. When I learned that I had to change the name, I tried to come up with something new but it seemed like everything was taken. I finally threw up my hands in frustration, prayed for guidance and decided to just keep working. I like to work on many projects at once, and to keep things small and varied. After I had worked on a few little projects, it hit me that this was the perfect name for me. Little Projects.

I also decided to separate the food blogging, that will have its own blog, Little Projects Food. And that's going through some changes as well.

Fun Little Projects - Sandals

The last few weeks I felt kinda slouchy and didn't feel like tackling any large projects, so I kept myself busy with small projects. I have to say that these were very fun and satisfying ... they keep my hands and mind occupied and I get something nice and functional in a relatively short time. I'm working all the little details with a flurry of activity and will post as they are finished, starting with these sandals.


I love those Seaside Espadrilles in the Interweave Crochet Spring 2006 issue and made my own version with some leftover green raw silk. I used their pattern for the base and although my jute was thinner I just added an extra row and it worked out fine. I loved this project so much I have a couple more ideas that I'm planning to make.

Technorati tags: crochet crochet sandals

Yarn High

I like to buy wool yarn from Yarn Barn on Ebay. Well, a few weeks ago I went a little crazy after I had some more felting ideas, and I think I overdid it a bit. This was before I decided to go to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, so I really had to restrain myself there. Anyways, the UPS guy just dropped off this big box and its full of yarn! I'm so happy. I didn't know there was such a thing as a yarn high. I think I have enough wool to last forever!

Ball of Fluff

At the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, I got a free cd spindle from the folks at the Interweave Press booth and learned how to spin with it. I bought a small bag of wool/mohair from a vendor and have started to play around with it at home. Well, a few evenings and many hours later, I'm still at it. It's amazing how a little bag of batting can be so absorbing. I wasn't sure how much yarn the bag would make, so after it seemed like about half the batting was used, I broke off the yarn so that I could start a new ball of thinner yarn to twist it with. There's a lot to think about, number of plys, thickness, what colors I want to dye, do I dye before or after. I guess if I really knew what I was doing I would use pre-dyed stuff. It's kinda hard to imagine that I could get so much satisfaction from this little ball of fluff.

Secret Pal Questionnaire

Here are my answers to the One Skein Secret Pal questionnaire. Hi secret pal!

1. Which yarn is most like your personality (you can be specific or general with your answer- brand, type, color, fiber, whatever)? Probably a multi-colored handspun handpainted variegated yarn made from many different fibers. I love a lot of variety and love to make things from scratch.

2. What is your favorite color yarn to knit/crochet with? I love teal, blues and greens in a variegated blend and I also love pink blends. I work with many other colors but I'm always drawn to these first.

3. Have you ever used variegated, or magic, yarns? Yes, love them, especially the handpainted variegated yarns.

4. Do you tend to favor certain fibers when choosing yarns? I favor natural fibers, love wool, cotton, silk. Have recently discovered alpaca and think it's lovely. Would like to try cashmere someday.

5. Do you prefer to work with center-pull or traditionally wound balls of yarn? Probably center-pull but it's all good.

6. Have you ever worked with organic yarns or are you interested in trying them? Would love to try some.

7. How many and what projects have you made in the last year? Haven't counted, maybe thirty-ish?

8. Will you be knitting any gifts this year? I'm not really a knitter, more of a crocheter. Will definitely crochet some gifts.

9. What is your favorite one skein project? I like making the scarves, purses and pouches that use a skein. They're fast and you get something really functional and nice.

10. How much yarn do you have in your stash and how do you store it? I have quite a bit of a stash that I keep in plastic storage boxes. Maybe 3-4 boxes.

11. Do you have a yarn in your stash that you love so much you can never use it or part with it? Not really. At times I have loved some handpainted skeins I made and didn't want to use it but then I get over it and am really glad because it's even nicer when worked, and even better when it's gifted and someone else loves it.

12. Do you knit less or differently in the summer? I tend to crochet with more wool in the winter and cotton in the warmer months.

13. Do you belong to any knitting groups (online or offline)? I belong to Crochetville and sometimes check-out Knitty.