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Thanksgiving is almost here! And

Thanksgiving is almost here!

And here are some helpful, crafty and fun links for you to check out!

• Butterball Turkey Info - Includes a turkey calculator and FAQ. And don't forget the turkey hotline - 1-800-BUTTERBALL - open from 6AM to 6PM on Thanksgiving!


• Crayola - This site has tons of free ideas and fun crafts for the kids. Make sure you check out the Educators section too! You can even sign up for the online newsletter when you register. They send activities for every season such as free coloring pages to print. One "junk" mail I like to get!


• Scholastic -- Here is a great website if you are interested in the historical perspective. Quite educational.


• Martha Stewart - Just click on "Learn" to avoid some of the merchandising going on here! There is a whole section on Thanksgiving -- lots of good info.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Okay! Here is the soap

Okay! Here is the soap before cutting:

And after:




First I took some clear glycerine soap base and melted it in the microwave. Then I added about 2 drops of red soap dye and 4 drops of yellow. I also added some grapefruit essential oil. I poured this in the mold (just one of those disposable gladware containers) and put it in the freezer. After about 20 minutes I removed it and cut it up into little cubes. I threw these cubes back in the "mold" and put it back in the freezer. You need these pieces to be really cold because in the next step you melt white soap base and add your fragrance -- I used mostly grapefruit with a little peppermint and some bergamot -- then you pour it over the pieces. Still with me??? Then I froze it again and sliced it up after it was hard.




And here is an experiment. This is lavender/peppermint soap. I first made the leaf shaped soap in a leaf mold I have using the white soap base and green dye. I froze this and then tried to suspend it in clear soap. The bottom soap was re-melted because the leaf started to disintegrate when I added the hot clear soap. Even if you freeze the suspended pieces, it doesn't always work!


And just to prove that I am still knitting too:



Here is the little washcloth that I made for Maddie with super cheap Sugar 'n' Cream that I got fot less than $1 at the local Michael's. No pattern necessary. I just cast on 40 stitches and knit a few rows (on size 8's, I think), then switched to stockinette (keeping a border to prevent curling) and knit 6 rows, seed stitch for six rows, etc. Quick, easy, cheap and Maddie liked it!

Today I decided to

Today I decided to make some soap. It's hardening right now -- pictures later. I bought Melt & Pour Soapmaking a while ago and I refer to it whenever I make soap. If you are looking for a fun, inexpensive and easy Christmas gift then you should try it too!

And for more origami

And for more origami fun -- check out Origami Museum. This incredible site is perfect for beginners because it has little step my step "movies" for the models. Just click on a model, scroll down, click on play and grab a piece of paper so you can fold along.

Like origami? Check out Oriland.

Like origami? Check out Oriland. You will NOT believe this website!

Yesterday's search for knitted

Yesterday's search for knitted cat toys resulted in this Swirl Ball. I had some kool-aid dyed wool laying around in the stash that wasn't as beautiful as I had hoped it would be, but it is just perfect for a colorful cat toy! It knitted up really fast and the instructions were very clear. Before I sewed up the seam (It's knit in one piece -- so clever -- so there is only one seam) I stuffed it with a hunk of fiber-fill stuff and put a wrapped up piece of batting in the middle that was filled with cat nip. So, am I giving this to the cute kitties for Christmas??? Nooooooo. . . I, of course, couldn't wait and gave it to them today. Here is Fancy taking a look at it:


Then Maddie grabbed it and started walking around, clutching it to her chest saying -- "I love the ball!" When she was momentarily distracted Spike got a hold of it and was having a good time though, so I think it is a winner!

Christmas is coming and

Christmas is coming and I am starting to think about gifts for my furry friends! (That's Mud, Spike and Fancy from left to right.) I think knitted toys filled with a bit of the 'nip will be just the ticket. This led me to Knits for Pets (and Those Who Love Them) and Knitlist gifts -1995-2002 Pet Accessories and Toys.

Okay -- two goals for

Okay -- two goals for today.


1. Document all UFO's - I have decided that I can't start any new projects until I finish at least half of what I have started.

2. Start working on Christmas cards - I own an online rubber stamp store so I have a lot of rubber stamps. This means that I feel like I should personally make all my Christmas cards. Last year it went pretty quickly once I came up with the design -- which always seems to be the most difficult part for me.


These goals are in addition to my other regular tasks -- I need to go to the bank, place a Longaberger order for my friend and do lots of laundry. (Oh yeah, I also sell Longaberger.) I think that should keep me busy, don't you??

Over the weekend I

Over the weekend I took an all day class at Paper Source and made this cute little box of books. And here are the books:


It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot too. My crafting buddy took the class with me (she also took the photo album class with me). It's great to have someone to do these things with!

And here is the little one on Halloween:

Note the lovely shade of blue that her lips turned from eating the lollipop.

While surfing around this morning

While surfing around this morning I came across this Medieval Egyptian Knitting page. They even have a pattern so you can make it too! And since I was on the subject of socks, I decided to search for a toe-up pattern for my next pair of socks and I found one here at WiseNeedle.com. Although I still have four pairs in progress right now, so I'm not sure when this will happen.