On Designing

Today I spent about 6 hours taking a pattern, then reversing it, turning it into my own pattern, then testing it.  After swatching, reswatching, then reswatching again... I have a pattern that I think is satisfactory.  The only downside?  It turns out the pattern was not actually reversible.  So, I did spend a good portion of the day testing and drawing out a pattern that will not work.  Ah well, so goes life.

Brighter side of things, I'm loving the pattern now, and though I'm testing now, it will not be revealed until November.  Can't wait to show it to you guys!!  :oD

Burger Joint Found!

Wow, that was quick.  Decided to try local chain (about 6 different locations in Austin) called P.Terry's.  Got to test drive the ketchup holder... yes, it did work, be sure to only pull on 1/2 of the folds, otherwise it will be completely flat.  Triple the amount of ketchup tho!!  :oD

Anyways, going back to P.Terry's.  Their basic burger is $2.00!  Cheeseburger is $2.25!  They also have a chicken burger, veggie burger, and a double burger.  All under $4.00.  A meal is $5-7.  The fries that come with the meal are made from potatoes they cut there on site and fried in pure canola oil (not trans fats which are typical for fries).  And you think, $2.00, how good can that be?  It was real angus beef made from beef they ground themselves, organic tomatoes grown locally, buns crafted locally... their orange juice and lemonade is fresh squeezed!  And, to complete the story, they pay above minimum wage for their employees.  I am thoroughly impressed by this place, and there is one about 10 blocks away from our apartment.  I will go back and try it again to ensure that it is consistent, but for now, I am convinced that I found a decent inexpensive place.  Yay!

Did you know?

I do believe I've been doing this all wrong all my life... And considering how much I do enjoy my ketchup, I think this calls for a trip to a burger joint.

If I were still in Portland, I'd head to a Burgerville (seasonal, local specialties, local meats used, tons of vegetarian options... who doesn't love that?).  In Cali, I'd probably run to a Nations and grab the BEST grilled cheese and some fries just to try this out.  But out here in Austin, I'm really not sure where the best place to get good quality, but stay on budget (i.e. - not spend over $12 on a burger and fries) is... Any recommendations?  :o)

Sparkles! Sparkle-y Everythings!

I can't help myself.  I love sparkles!  I've seen a number of DIY sparkle projects, and it makes me want to do some myself!  I've got ModPodge... I've got sparkles.  I just have to go find something to sparkle!  :oD  Here are some inspirations for you.

Vegan Housewives

Lil Blue Boo

Bridal Musings

Thrown off Track!!

Woow!  Who knew going back to Cali (visiting family for a wedding and staying for a week for fun) and then driving back (Wow!  That drive is sooo much longer from SF than from Athens, GA!!) and then having a good friend of 16 years stay for a few days would wipe me out so much!  I guess I truly understand the meaning of "I need a vacation from my vacation" now!

Anyways, I went to Austin's Craft Riot show this past weekend, and while I was mildly disappointed by the size of the show, it still had a good amount of fun stuff!  I loved a lot of stuff there, but ended up with a cutesy acrylic ring and a wooden pendant from nom nom.  Couldn't find the pendant on her etsy shop, but here's a pic of the ring I got.

I got the sweet raccoon one!

And the other awesome news is that in December, there is a 13 day craft and fine arts show called the Armadillo Bazaar!  I can't wait!  Looks like I can put off my Christmas shopping till the last minute.  ;o)  I've done the vast majority for the past few years of my Christmas gifts from etsy or small businesses (with a few handmade gifts thrown in too), and I don't plan on changing that anytime soon.  It'll be even more fun to get to support local indie businesses this year.  :o)  Can't wait!

Sheep Wearing Sweaters?!!

Have you guys ever seen Wallace and Gromit - A Close Shave?  In it, Shaun the Sheep gets put through a contraption that Wallace creates that shears a sheep and machine knits a sweater, and somehow Shaun gets put into it!  My favorite part was how Shaun sounds an awful lot like "shorn"!  Why, yes, I do love puns, how'd you guess?

Shaun the Sheep

Well, some great people in Germany (or at least this website seems to be in German...) have decided to actually dress some sheep in knitwear!!  Cute-overload is inevitable!!  Enjoy.

"Mom... are you wearing my wool?"

"Ah, I see they got you too..."

"I look so dashing in my aran sweater!"

Ravellenic Games Shawl

So, this shawl (test knit, so no pattern link yet!) is my official Ravellenic Games knit.  I think it is obtainable, even without me knitting non-stop the entire time.  Which is good, because I have been busy with doing the finer details of unpacking (now rearranging things to be more aesthetic vs placing things so they can just fit inside), applying for jobs and introducing myself around town, and soon I will be heading to my home town to visit with family and old friends... yay!

I started with completely different colors, and I really wasn't very fond of them.  So, I stash dived again, and I found the lavender seen in the pic.  I did have to go purchase the darker purple, but I think that it's turning out so much nicer.  I love the way the pattern is turning out!  I love it when things work out perfectly!  :oD

Wendy's Lookbook - Ravelry Style

Well, I know my last Ravelry related fashion posts were last week, but it turns out I have no clothes that are really the right color to do a posed post.  I was going to try to remedy that, but then I found this post!  Wendy is one of my favorite fashionistas, hailing from one of my old stomping grounds... California!  She's originally a Bay Area native (hey, me too!!) and now resides in the So-Cal area.  She is so well put together with her outfits, and I love how she isn't afraid to use patterns with patterns!  Her eye for detail is amazing, also.

I was idly browsing her blog when I stumbled upon this post.  While this was not meant to be a "Ravelry" outfit, I couldn't believe how appropriate her outfit was for the Ravelry theme anyways!  I hope you enjoy!

All pictures from Wendy's Lookbook