Are you Yarn Crawlin'?

Hey hey!

Are any of you lovely stitchers attending the Metro Yarn Crawl this weekend?

I may join in on the festivities on Saturday... just curious who else will be out and about!

Ohhh...

Yummy yarny goodness!

xo,

Liz

Guest Post: MIchelle from Scissor Quirk attacks her yarn stash!

Good morning! I am so, so happy to end our celebration of National Craft & Crochet Month here at Donna's with one of the sweetest and most creative bloggers of all the land, Michelle! I've sponsored Scissor Quirk a few times within the last few months, and it has been so enjoyable getting to know Michelle and her crafty talents! Not only is she an incredible scrap book designer:

But, she's not too shabby with crochet and embroidery as well! Check out this ADORABLE mp3 player coozie DIY she posted! So cute and such a sweet way to package a new iPod for a special person :)

Without further adieu...

Hi there! It's Michelle, from Scissor Quirk, here. :)

I've recently begun a love affair with all things yarn! I learned to crochet last Spring and have been hooked, since! My mind seems to work faster than my hands, too, so - coupled with the newfound love of yarn and an ever-growing stash of it, this means I have tons of projects on the go at any given time! Usually, that's not such a bad thing - it's nice to hop & skip from project to project when one gets mundane or a new idea strikes! :)

However, the problem is that I live in a very small 600 square foot apartment with my husband, and my 'craft room' is actually a corner of our living room - much like some of you, I'm sure! This means storage is always kind of an issue - especially when you're making room for *another* craft in your home, and these temporary, bulky piles of yarn need someplace to go! lol.

I've had to come up with some sneaky ideas to get them all hidden away - or to 'store' them in a pretty, visible-in-the-living-room kind of way. Here are some ideas that I've used lately for project storage from around my couch/desk - if your work-in-progress projects are scattered all over the place, look for little nooks or open spaces to utilize these ideas, yourself:

I have an Ikea coffee table (about 3 feet from my workspace) in my apartment, and it has this handy-dandy ledge underneath it, so it can double as a storage space, as well. I snuck a little bin under there the other day to hold a crochet baby sweater I'm working on - not only is it hidden, but when I slump down on the couch, it's within my reach to work on! My plan is to keep it filling it with new things when I finish what it's currently holding.

The thing about work-in-progresses is that they're only around temporarily - so you have to make space for them while you're working on them, and then it'll be empty (at least for a little bit) once you're done! It's a good idea to save any pretty empty bins or containers you come across (especially when purging your craft space, next time!), and use them to store these temporary projects around your workspace in a pleasant way.

I have an old yellow bin (or a 'trash can' for a few bucks at Ikea - never used as a trash bin, of course) that I used to use to store large rolls of paper. It almost went to the thrift shop as a donation, but then I realized it would be the perfect crochet blanket-in-progress holder!

An empty rolling bin with a lid is handy for bigger projects - like this work in progress granny square blanket of mine. It keeps all the little bits in one place, and when the lid is on you can roll it right under your desk or coffee table or even stack things on top of it easily until you have a chance to get back to it!

And my favorite little work-in-progress holder to use, mostly because it's the prettiest - is a large flat round plastic serving tray that I picked up at Ikea a few years ago. I pile whatever I'm working on at the moment on it, and then it easily moves with me to where I'm working, or to store away when we need the coffee tabletop for drinks or food - I've used it to hold quicker projects like crochet garlands, granny squares, and other smaller projects - and I can hide it on my desk or on top of my shelves when I'm not working on these things really quickly!

I hope I've inspired you to keep your projects tidy & open (or closed & hidden!) - but, either way, organized and useful while you're chugging away on them!

Thanks so much for having me guest-post, Liz! :)

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I hope this helps you get your craft room organized and allows you to do a bit of spring cleaning!

Don't forget to stop by and visit Michelle!

Pick one!

As National Craft and Crochet Month commense, I want to challenge you.

Do something new this month. Think of all those pretty items you see on Etsy, in thrift shops, in your best friend's home. I bet, if you spent a little bit of time doing some research and practicing, you could make one, too! It just takes the first step, and picking something.

So think about all those crafts out there that you were always a little envious that someone else knew how to do. Write it down. Go to Youtube. See what "How To..." videos are available. No luck? Post a comment here mentioning the crafr you're interested in learning more about and your email address and I will personally send you as much information as I can! We can also help out one another! What useful information do you have to share?

Come on... it's a great time to start something new, go back to a skill we use to know and really dig our heels into it!

All you have to do is choose!

xo,

Liz

April in pictures... (image heavy)

I know, I know... I have been slacking. (I mean, seriously slacking!)

In one of my previous posts--I mentioned how excited I was for April to arrive because it would be jam-packed of fun fun fun. Well--it has been and boy do I have the pictures to prove it!

Spring break was a blast--Cory and I spent a day, as mentioned before, in D.C. for the Cherry Blossom Festival.

We celebrated two of our closest friends' (who are a couple) birthday (they share the same bday, too) by joining with family for an adorable early-Easter dinner in Shepherdstown, WV.

I spent a wonderful Easter Sunday morning with these adorable kids...

Who got flipflops from the Easter Bunny!

And they spent all morning doing this:

And this (tickling Cory)...

I enjoyed a solid day of crafting with high school friends, Pang and Ashley. I've mentioned Pang before, as she is the photographer for our wedding and huge crafting inspiration. Here are a few (awesome) photos she shot during the day--be sure to check out her blog and shop too!

 

Then I headed north for a long weekend in New York City! Lisa moved into a new apartment on the upper east side...

We spent most of our time shopping, gabbing, and drooling over incredible vintage pieces at

Hell's Kitchen Flea Market:

Including this adorable man..

And Lisa bought a new piece for her apartment (because we all know storage is crucial in NYC)

Other fun things from NYC:

cupcakes!

Lion Brand Yarn Studio: the mecca of my FAVORITE yarn.

(I still smile and get so giddy while I look at these pictures!)

I arrived home safely on Sunday evening to Happy Mail from Jeane (my April Happy Mailer) but haven't shot pictures of her ADORABLE puzzle card! How creative!

I am so lucky to have experienced so many awesome days so far this month! I can only hope that the fun continues (but also allows me more time to post)!

Here's to warm weather and floral patterns! xoxo