Links, Likes, and Love- 11/15

It's been quite awhile since I've done a Links, Likes, and Love.  A lot has been going on, but I wanted to share with you some things I'm a part of.

Links

• Make it Better: Craftalong for Sandy Relief- In response to Hurricane Sandy some folks got together and enlisted crafters to create warm things for those who are without electricity, heat, or homes.  I sent a package out this week containing some mittens I had made last winter, a few hats I whipped up, and a scarf I had been working on forever but didn't have a reason to finish.  The deadline for submissions is tomorrow, but I'll keep my eyes out for other projects incase you want to contribute.
• The Kick Start Your Handmade Holiday Shopping Giveaway- My friend Carrie is doing an awesome giveaway!  I'm thankful for her and her effort to encourage people to buy handmade this holiday season.  Hop on over and enter and you could soon be an owner of something awesome from The Pink Woobie!

Likes

• You!- I am so grateful for each one of you who keep coming back to read what I have to say.  Things are slow sometimes, but I still feel like I have a lot of important things to say, so don't give up on me.  It's only because I know some of you out there are interested that I keep writing.  
• The Weather- yes, it's getting cold but I own a lot of warm accessories from all the years of crocheting.  But it's been mostly sunny, and my body doesn't get overwhelmed like it does in the heat.  Many days this summer I hid in my bedroom with the AC cranked.  It's so nice to be able to go outside, take a walk, drink a coffee, without sweat pouring out of everywhere.
• My electric blanket- this goes along with the weather.  Although my body doesn't get overwhelmed as much in the cold, my joints and muscles do hurt a little more.  I'm combatting that with an amazing electric blanket that Ryan got me.  I highly suggest investing in one for anyone who might struggle with the cold.  I can't believe the difference it makes compared to a normal blanket.

Love

I'm not really sure this even needs words.  This is Popeye helping me with my spinning.  What a good cat!

Links, Likes, and Love- SUPERSIZED

Hey friends!  I missed Links, Likes, and Love last week because of the tendinitis in my shoulder.  I thought for today's I would share some EXTRA with you.  These are still all things that I find super awesome and I totally think you should check them all out.

Links- all the links I'm sharing this week are sites that I visit if not daily at least several times a week.  They provide a huge amount of inspiration for me, especially that last few weeks when I haven't been able to craft as much as I'd like to, they've given me things to think about and plan.

• Be Up & Doing- This is my friend Allie's blog.  She covers a huge variety of topics, which is why I love it so much.  My interests are wide and varied as well, and they often overlap with Allie's blog.  She recently has gone full-time freelance and I know she is going to rock it because she is so awesome.
• The Zen of Making- Haley Pierson-Cox is a crafty, granny-glasses wearing, Brooklyn gal with a crush on all things DIY.  And to be honest, I have a huge crafting crush on Haley (she's aware).  She tries her hand at a little bit of everything, and her geek crafts are the best (TARDIS EVERYTHING).  She's awesome on Twitter too.
• Craft- My interest in Craft is highly influenced by Haley, but there is a serious amount of great projects of all shapes and sizes culled from all over the internet.
• Ravelry- Ravelry is an amazing community of knitters, spinners, crocheters, etc.  There is an endless amount of patterns, forums, groups, and users on Ravelry.  I don't use it as often as some people, but is definitely a great source of information that I consult on a very regular basis. 

Likes- 

• I have probably read more in the last 5 weeks, than I did in the last five years.  For a long time I had chronic headaches.  They had a lot of different causes, and one thing that has helped is cutting my dreadlocks and having short hair.  Nothing is squeezing my head anymore at least.  This past week I read Diving Into the Wreck by Kristine Kathryn Rusch. I have become well versed in science fiction television since becoming ill five years ago, but this has been one of my first forays into reading the genre.  Diving Into the Wreck is the first in a series and so far I am loving.  I knew about halfway through the book I was enjoying it, and now I can't wait to read the next in the series.  Bonus points: I'm getting it them from the LIBRARY.  Libraries are so cool.
• Greuyere cheese-  This is my favorite cheese ever.  I think it's important to have a favorite cheese and I love it's rich gooeyness.  I've been eating more than I probably should when I go to Stauf's for lunch I get a turkey, bacon, Greuyere sandwich on gluten free bread.  SO TASTY.

Love

This probably isn't a secret but I LOVE YARN!!  I love the feel, the color, and even the smell of yarn.  Much of my life for the past five years has been surrounded and comforted by yarn.  I wrote on Monday that I am the proud owner of a spinning wheel.  Even before acquiring said wheel I was spinning with a drop spindle.  I'm still setting the twist on yarn from my wheel, but here are some pics of handspun yarn from my drop spindle. 

This is a mixture of Alpaca and Merino wool, I crocheted a pretty great fuzzy beanie with this.

This is Mohair and Romney Wool.  The left skein is two ply and the other two are single ply.

This is Mohair and Romney Wool single ply, one of the favorites I've done so far.

Links, Likes, and Love- Ithaca Edition

This week I am spending time at my sister's house in Ithaca, NY.  I had made plans to be here during the summer but didn't make it until now.  My nephew went back to school on Wednesday, so I've had the days mostly to myself.  Here are Links, Likes, and Love for September 7, 2012.

Links

• Ithaca Bakery- Yesterday and today I headed to the Triphammer Marketplace location.  They also have a location in downtown Ithaca.  My iced lattes have been amazing.  Not only do they have a tasty menu, they carry gluten free bread and bagels!!  The website is pretty interesting too.
• Visit Ithaca- If you've never been to Ithaca, you can check out their official tourism site.  I had hoped to have a much more in depth blog post written about what Ithaca has to offer, but this body just wasn't up for being a tourist this week.  So check it out and find out why Ithaca is Gorges! 

Likes

• J.R.R. Tolkien- Over the years I have started The Hobbit several times but never really got very far.  I read it this week and can't wait to read The Lord of the Rings.  We had picked up a new paperback copy of The Hobbit recently because Ryan wanted to read it again before the upcoming movie.  I haven't seen The Lord of the Rings movies and I'm missing out on sharing that experience with him, so I wanted to make sure to share this one.  Looking forward to the movie and being a fan of Wifred, I can't wait to see Elijah Wood.
• Cayuga Lake- Although I haven't actually spent time at the lake this summer it's visible while driving and it takes my breath away.  The sights are beautiful and the activities around the lake are amazing.  I'm sure you've heard of The Finger Lakes wine tours.  This is a picture I took last summer from Stewart Park, as you can see it's a big lake. 

Love

My Nephew!!  I love my sister and the rest of my family too, but my nephew is growing into such a great kid.  He's intelligent, and funny, and he loves hugs.  How could it get any better.  He has the best one line quotes as well.  This week alone my favorites are: "Especially considering my extensive library" and "I ran out of onomatopeoeias!"  I made him sit down with me for a few minutes and take some pictures with my webcam.  He's a lot of fun!

Links, Likes, and Love 8/31/2012

Another semi-busy and productive week.  Not a whole lot to show for it, but hopefully soon my hard work will be paying off.   Here's a run down of Links, Likes, and Love for the last week in August 2012.

Links

• Elevatory Brewery- Starting on Tuesday The Elevatory Brewery and Draught House will have a gluten free Saison on tap.  Not only is having a gluten free beer on tap absolutely awesome, it just so happens that it's a homebrew creation of my very own husband Ryan.  If you live in Columbus you should try to check it out in the month of September. 
• Ravelry- A great online community for crocheters, knitters, and yarn enthusiasts.  I've been spending more time around there lately and I encourage you to check it out if the above includes you!



The newly painted bike lane on King Avenue.

• Frugal Foodie Mama- This is a friend of mine who just so happens to be having a birthday this weekend!!  To celebrate she's doing an awesome two part give away.  The first one starts on Saturday, and then an item from yours truly will be in the give away starting on Monday.  I'll post about it more when the time comes!  Be sure to check it out for some homemade/handmade goodness.

Likes

Bike Lanes- King Avenue got bike lanes this week!!  Pretty awesome if I do say so myself.  Although my bike riding has been limited this summer, Ryan rides his bike to campus and other places quite a bit.  Usually it's right down King Ave.  Not only did they resurface the road for a smoother ride, but now there are designated lanes!  Great job Columbus!

Quote- I came across this quote and it absolutely hit home for me.  It's about being tender and sensitive.  I'm very tender and sensitive, my feelings get hurt easily, but I also care deeply about a lot of things.  Even if you know me in real life you may not know this, I do a pretty good job about hiding, which I guess I really don't need to do.  Zooey Deschanel tells us why:

Being tender and open is beautiful. As a woman, I feel continually shhh’ed. Too sensitive. Too mushy. Too wishy washy. Blah blah. Don’t let someone steal your tenderness. Don’t allow the coldness and fear of others to tarnish your perfectly vulnerable beating heart. Nothing is more powerful than allowing yourself to truly be affected by things. Whether it’s a song, a stranger, a mountain, a rain drop, a tea kettle, an article, a sentence, a footstep, feel it all – look around you. All of this is for you. Take it and have gratitude. Give it and feel love.

Love 

Bamboo Splash- I've always been a doodler, I love drawing and have sketchbooks full of incomplete artwork.  Which is why I'm loving my new Bamboo tablet.  I've spent hours figuring it out and creating fun pictures.  No great masterpieces yet, but I like how when I dislike something instead of flipping to a new page in my sketchbook I can just delete it.

The last few weeks I've been dealing with some shoulder soreness that is really aggravated by knitting and crocheting (and most likely sewing if I attempted) so this has given me something else to do with my time.  Also it's required me to clean off my craft table, which has been a nice change.  The picture above is at my table in Stauf's where I have been spending a lot of my days recently.  

For my next trick I shall draw you a monster!

This is the Woobie Monster, he is drinking an Iced Latte.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Links, Likes, and Love

So it's Friday and it's been a busy week.  The first half showed a large improvement in my health and I finished projects I'd been working on and started others that had only taken form in my head.  I wanted to share with you some of the important things from this week in a series I hope to do weekly.  Here are some links to items you should pay attention to, two things I liked, and one love for the week of August 20, 2012.

Links:

• Skreened- Check out this custom apparel company.  It's part of a new project I'm working on and if you look hard enough you just might get a look into what I've been doing this week.  Eventually this will be some shameless self promotion that I will write more extensively on later.
• Geek and Sundry-  This is a seriously awesome YouTube channel featuring the best in "indie geek culture."  The hubs and I have seriously enjoyed watching Table Top together which is Wil Wheaton and guests playing board games, and Ryan always checks up on Felicia Day's weekly Flog.

Likes:

Yarn- Last week I had the occasion to buy new and exciting yarn after meeting and agreeing to test knit a pattern for The Intinerant Knitter.  I spent the week working with Malabrigo Silky Merino and it is absolutely wonderful.  The color is amazing and it is an absolute dream to knit.  Silky Merino a DK weight blend of, as the name states, silk and merino merino wool.

• The Weather- The weather this week was absolutely blissful.  After months of scorching heat, making me and everyone else miserable, I've enjoyed several days of sunny comfortable weather, and nights cool enough for two blankets. 

Love:

Baseball

When I was a little girl I would listen to the Phillies games on the radio with my Grammy Bea, and my best friend in elementary school was a bit Mets fan.  I never really gave baseball much thought in high school and college, but upon moving to Ohio Ryan and I became Cincinnati Reds fans.

Baseball has become a pretty big part of our summer activities, but for the last several years I haven't really felt well enough to attend games.  We've spent a lot of time listening to the Reds on the radio this summer and they are kicking butt.  But we also have a AAA team right here in Columbus.  Last night I attended my first Columbus Clippers game in their new Huntington Park.  We use to go to games before I got sick at the old park, and I was excited to see what the new one has to offer.  My favorite thing, very few stairs.  We happen to enter through an entrance that had stairs from street level, and I thought things weren't going to go well as the pain in my hip immediately started acting up.  But that was all I had to conquer and the rest of the night was relatively pain free.

Also I got to eat yummy ballpark food like peanuts and popcorn.   It was a really good night and I hope to be able to do it again next season.