Last Minute Rant, or: Busy, Busy Bee

I have been a very busy bee lately. I’ve been filling up a parcel for a friend, constantly finding new Stuff to put in it, but today I actually sealed it and tomorrow I’m sending it off, hooray! As soon as she has received it and can no longer be spoiled, I will blog at length about one of the things I have made her.

Also, I have in one gigantic batch finished all my custom orders but one (and that one is just two little pantyliners). Which means that from here on out you have to actually email me and ask if you want a custom order. The reasons for this can be found here or here (first one in English, second one in Swedish). I am hoping that it will give me some more time to a) fill up my shop with ready-to-ship-items, b) sew things that aren’t pads, c) knit, d) return to the much coveted, much elusive sanity that I hear some people possess.

On Monday morning I went to the mailbox with these two envelopes. I also managed to email the people receiving them saying that I had shipped their order. I space on that even though I really appreciate it when other sellers email me to let me know that my purchases have shipped. It’s on my list of Things To Improve. I love these envelopes, and am sad to say that I only have one left.

Today (Tuesday) I have this pile to mail. Yes. The very next day. What can I say? I have been sewing like mad! The bottom one is not an order, though, it’s the Parcel of Doom and Hand Knits that I’m sending to a friend of mine.

What is in these padded envelopes, you ask? Well, I wish I could say that I had a picture, but my phone mangled that particular image so you will have to live without seeing it. I am currently down to a camera phone with 2.0 megapixels. Yes. Seriously. The only place where I can get decent pics is absurdly on the stove. So, yes, I cannot say how much I am awaiting the arrival of the camera I bought a few weeks ago. It was shipped to my dear friend Jenn(cakes), and when I see her on Friday (for the first time, OMG), she will give it to me!

(This means I will no longer have to scan my pads in one by one and then spend hour upon hour on Photoshopping them to something halfway decent.)

I am not sure what I look forward to the most. Sorry. I do. Of course look forward to a weekend of Scottish accents, Amanda Palmer singing, hugging one of my best friends, finding yarn shops and having high tea (a request of mine, I want to see what it’s all about) more than the arrival of the shiny camera with which I will document it all.

I did get a pic of these pads. They are the thickness of my day pads, but in the size of pantyliners; 20 x 6.5 cm, and were requested by one of my returning customer, whose daughter had just started menstruating, and wanted cloth pads of her own. Nothing makes me happier than hearing about girls who go cloth right away instead of, like me, being ashamed and hiding their Always super pads (at least six for a school day, I bleed a lot less these days) in their pockets, nearly DYING when a small corner was visible as I pulled my keys out.

I am putting these pads up before I go. If you purchase before Friday afternoon I will ship before I leave on Friday night, if not, I’ll be back by Monday, and ship them out promptly as soon as I catch up on my sleep. Check them out heeeere.

Edited: August 18th, 2009

Procrastinating and… Not.

Okay. Project procrastination is done (for now). Tomorrow I am mailing off … a million things, but most importantly, and craft related-ly, the following stuff.

For little sister:

Pattern: Daisy from Knitty.
Ravelry: link.
Yarn: Paton’s Grace that I somehow acquired for a dollar a skein.
Notes: First I used this yarn for a Tivoli, before promptly gaining twenty kilos. Thus, I only wore it once or twice and spent the next two years gazing longingly at it. Then I got over myself, ripped it out and made this. I like to call it the Sunshine Jacket, even though its more mandarin oranges than sunlight. Check out Ravelry link for close up of OMG adorable buttons.

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…

Pattern: Seamless Baby Booties from Pickin’ and Throwin’ Blog x 2, Converse Booties from Alley Kat and Mary Jane Booties from How Stuff Works.
Ravelry: Seamless #1, Seamless #2, Converses, Mary Janes.
Yarn: Gjestal Bomull Sport in black, red and white. I bought three skeins and knitted until I ran out of yarn.
Notes: Am very dubious about the Mary Janes, they are so tiny that I think big sister will use them for her dolls instead. The red ones are Arsenal Booties and the Converses I converted to work in the round instead, because I believe that even babies (especially babies!) have a right not to have seams running down the sole of their feet!

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For big sister:

Pattern: Kate from Knitty and Pitter Patter Socks from Ravelry.
Ravelry: Kate, Pitter Patter.
Yarn: Qualitas Sock, small amounts of all three, for Kate, Sock It To Me in two shades of purple for the socks.
Notes: Because I had limited room in the parcel and/or am insane I made this one with 2.5 mm needles and sock yarn. She’s just 6.5 inches tall, when the original is a full 12 inches. The socks look… dis-proportional, but will have to wait for the verdict from the five-year-old before I decide if they were successful or not. Books by Astrid Lindgren. Every girl needs some Lotta in her life! (Yes, I like her more than Pippi.)

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Finally, I spent all day in close proximity with these babies. Soakers done, channels sewn on, backs cut out and pinned to the tops. Tomorrow I’m turning and top stitching (yes, really).

And mailing lovely Japanese print and cute little snowbirds out.

I believe that is all from the department of the clinically insane. (Unless you want to know the amount of anti-anxiety meds that I am needing just to THINK ABOUT my trip to Scotland next week.)

Edited: August 13th, 2009