Uh oh, hands and arm hurting

So I've been doing a lot of knitting lately...the other week I knit up three projects, and this past week I knit up three more.  Now my hands and arms are hurting.  I don't think it's just the knitting though.  My laptop touchpad hurts my arms, driving has been hurting, and climbing and snowboarding have been quite a strain...what to do other than rest them?

I knit up a new infinity scarf, which I LOVE called the Marian.  I really like the designer.

First snow of the year

Finally there is rain and snow!

I took the week off of climbing, and I made this cute seed stitch infinity scarf:

Glass flame working!

More to post about today!  It started off with treats from La Farine. Then headed to The Crucible in Oakland for a glass flame working class! I loved it; we came away with new skills, pretty ornaments, and cool marbles.

Fun making new ornaments!  :)

homemade chalk bags

for climbing!

Maker Faire

OK, finally got the new contacts, so no more nerdy Charlene with glasses. Oh wait, . . .still nerdy. Here's why:

This past weekend, I went to the Maker Faire/Bazaar Bizarre with Barbara (Freecia was also there, but had to leave early). Pictures up on my flickr site, but my three fav:
Yeah, I like the "town car."

A new take on carnival rides, let the kids do the work!

Yes, I'm a pointer.

That laser die-cut stencil would soon become a t-shirt. Sweet. Now I can broadcast to the world, "Look at me! I'm a geek!" Should have gone with the capital "C" but that would have been too easy. Yeah, there were many an engineer there too with their robot battle arenas, snazzy computer programs, and machinery. I did not put the shirt on. It would have just been too much.

I really enjoyed the Bazaar Bizarre section of the Faire. I bought a few crafted items. A cinnamon roll from My Paper Crane; fun tags of a snowboarder and ninja by nanamation; and buttons of test tubes, microscopes, and beakers by The Crafty Scientist. Right, did I tell you this was a pretty geeky faire? Ah, I fit right in with the nerds, the geeks, the crafters, and the inventors. I wish I were more "engineering" savy though. The civil and environmental engineering class I took this past semester proved that my engineering skills, of putting theory into practice, are lacking.

Look at this swap from Sara!

Everything was perfect. I love the bags (that bear fabric is the most adorable fabric ever), the softie, fabrics, buttons, stationery, clips. . .everything was wonderful! I don't do a lot of embroidery, but the book Sara sent is inspiring. Thank you so much Sara!

Swap from Kellie. I loved that each of the components were wrapped into lots of little presents! I love the bear, cram cream, and the cute stationary! I have only listened to a little bit of the cds. Planning on adding a couple songs to my playlist already though. Definitely a little bit of everything on my list. Thanks so much Kellie!

Here's what I sent her!

Just one of those days

You know how you have a lot of work, and then you decide, "no, no I'm in denial, I have no work!" It was one of those days yesterday. Saturday I went to Stitches and bought a lot of yarn, but mostly I was excited about the patterns I got. And so, instead of doing work yesterday, I made this:

Felted Bell Hat by Pick Up Sticks!

So Malin and I have swapped before. We were both new to swapping with Gimme Your Stuff! That was back in July. It was such a success that we promised to swap again. The result? This!

There's some beads (marine themed), Cram Creme (cute dish and bag!), Nici (stationary and a keychain), kinder eggs (Yum and fun!), and other Swedish candy. I'm loving everything! As you can see, awesome package again! Thanks so much Malin!

Want to see what I sent Malin? Check it out here!

I wanted to do a swap with Kwoozy for her owl project, and look what she sent! I opened the package, and a cute little penguin first popped out. Then I pulled out a cute handmade bag. (Such nice work, why can't I do that with MY sewing machine!) Then the gifts came pouring out! A note explained the package, and in the bag were postcards, an awesome t-shirt, a fun tea cloth, kinder eggs, and a koala bath soap! Finally, tucked in the small inner pocket of the bag, my very own owl #6! I'm still thinking up a name and story though. So more on my owl later.
Thanks so much for such a great swap Kwoozy!

My new bag!

Using instructions Melissa gave me, I made a new bag. It is based on an Amy Butler bag. I used cord to braid handles for my bag, and here it is!

A second go around with Carolyne in Australia.

Second swaps are great. It's a chance to put in things that you forgot in the first swap! Here's my second swap with Carolyne. We decided to keep it small, just a little something before Christmas, but I think Carolyne went over and beyond. I asked for some new music, and she sent three discs of some great stuff. Also, we both wanted to give each other something hand-made. What's in the packaged tied with a ribbon? A cute koala; Carolyne's own design!

Thanks so much Carolyne. You've definitely inspired me to try my hand at my own softies! I hope you like what I sent!

Got one from Australia, now one from Austria!

I know, I know, I'm behind! But, below are the last four swaps! Who knew 2nd year would be so hectic?

After I got back from my trip to NZ (which, btw, was AMAZING!), a package from Barbara in Austria, was waiting for me!

What was that you ask? ANOTHER Nici animal? YES! It is one of their 20th anniversary animals, and I asked Barbara for one, and she definitely came through, complete with the gift box it came in! (I have been loving all the small Nici things I have been getting, but have been hoping for a bigger one. The aniversary bird was a great choice for a larger Nici animal to add to my collection!) She also sent a magazine about the political on-goings in Austria. Although I can't read German, I'm going to attempt to read it or get someone who knows German to help me out! It's hard not to want to know what is going on in the world, especially when I live in the very politically-aware city of Berkeley. The postcards and pins were great, and the candy came just in time to share with my roommates for Halloween! Barbara also sent cute stickers and really nice information pamphlets for her city! I want to visit Austria now! The only sad thing is that, when the package finally got to me, it was pretty beat up. It was fine for the paper and stuffed animal, and even for the candy (which was only a little smooshed), but unfortunately, it was not ok for the ocean-item that was sent. It looked like it was ok at first, since it was carefully bubble-wrapped, but when I opened it up, it was almost unrecognizable. I'm really sorry Barbara, it looked like it was really pretty and would have been a beautiful thing to swap! Thanks again for everything else though! I hope you enjoyed the package I sent!

OK, I left my swap with Barbara (my old college roommate, and who I affectionally call Barbie!) at my parent's house! So I can't post a picture right this instant, but I will keep this post as a place holder and at least come up with a description!

Just before Barbara left on vacation, we decided that she and I should set up our own international swap together! Of course, this technically doesn't work since we live less than a hour away from one another! Hardly international! Although, we've come close to swapping cities here in CA! I grew up in the city she now lives in, and she grew up in a town only a stone's-throw away from where I now live! Anyway, that doesn't really count as a real GYS swap. . . This international swap only worked because she was off to vacation in Greece and Turkey, and I was on my way to New Zealand! All countries that don't even have GYS ambassadors!

After her trip, I got great treats galore! (Now from memory.) There was a bunch of yummy treats, including a surprisingly delicious, pre-packed baklava; some interesting dessert (I have to be truthful, I haven't tried it yet); and kit kats. (Barbie, I really don't remember asking for Kit Kat, but THANK YOU! It was great, because it and the baklava kept me from going hungry after we got off the plane in NZ!) There was a magnet of the beautiful Greek ruins, a stunning Turkish scarf, and an evil eye pendant. The best, I have to say though, was the miniature plate. Ah, the beauty of Greek pottery! I really wish I could have made it all the way to Greece during my whirl-wind tour of Europe. Ahh, another place to put on my "want to go there" list.

I hope you like your package Barbara! I wish I could have put more into it, but with the restrictions on the weight of baggage (yes, I was over, how did that happen?!?), and the very little amount of shopping I was able to do between crazy outdoor activities, it was the best I could do! BTW, your postcards are in the mail! If everyone else wants to see what I got her, check out her website here.

Here's the pic!

From Greece and Turkey via CA

And from Germany. . .

When I visited Germany, I fell in love with Nici. I can't get the funny animals here in the US, but luckily my GYS swappers have been great! Look at what Isa, acutally living in Germany, sent me:

Now, that's a lot of Nici! :) Also in there are gummi candy, chocolate, ribbons, and sticker/tatoos. But, I have to say that even better than the Nici stuff was the adorable handmade kitten! Complete with apron and picnic basket!

It was so funny, because Isa and I seem to have so many things in common. (I checked her website before sending her package, and it was a good thing too, because I found that two of the pieces I was about to send her, she already had! . . .it took me a while to find her a book, because I was afraid she would already have it!) Thank you so much Isa! I loved the package you sent! And it got to me just before my trip too!

To see what I sent Isa check out the post on her website! The picture of what I sent is at the bottom of the post.

Koala's come my way!

At the end of September I got my package from Carolyne in Australia. It came in time, before my trip to New Zealand, and before her trip to Europe. Check out all the koala goodness!
In fact, it got me ready for the world down under! I loved the pin, and the fabric was really cute. I'm already using the pens and stationary she sent. I quickly put the music onto my computer, and gave it a listen. Hmmm, I'm finding that people are sending me a lot of techno. I might have to update my requests to let people know that I just want any kind of music that they like to listen to. I actually brought the koala snacks with me for the plane ride across the Pacific! They were perfect, especially since the plane food wasn't very good. . .

Thanks for a great package Carolyne! Hope we can set up another swap soon!

To see some of the items I sent Carolyne, check out her website here.

Yet another very successful swap, this time from Japan!

Yesterday I got a package from Lulu in Japan, and I absolutely loved it!
I'm learning so much about culture doing these swaps! I had asked for a Japanese craft book, since there's so much more selection IN Japan. I learned what Zakka actually was (cute things for your home), and now have some beautiful Japanese fabric to use. There were also some snacks, a mixed CD, CUTE postcards, a beautiful swirly pen, a lucky cat, a lucky cat on a pouch, Japanese socks, a button, and a fan!

Yeah, a lot for one package huh? :) Thanks so much for a great swap Laura! I definitely love it, and I'm so happy you like yours too!

If you want to see what I sent her, she's posted here!
I can't promise everyone else lollipops from Vegas, but I love the magazine Cafe, and yes it's Free!

beginning of August marks the end of summer

I found the cutest fabric store in Oakland called Poppy. Very cute. Went home on Friday and made the best bag ever!

I have fallen in love with the fabric store.

I went shopping with my friend Barbara to help with her swaps, and I have fallen in love with the fabric store (almost everyone she was swapping with wanted fabric!) I also add fabric to my list of things to swap! And I'd love to get some from people as well, mostly cute prints, and at least half yards.