Ear Candy

More earrings for the Purely Divine Brunch and Boutique!  I'm so excited about this I just can't stop creating!  Most of my creations are one of a kind but some of my favorites I've doubled up or varied just slightly.  If you are interested in owning a pair, please let me know! :)

These are hammered metal half hoops.  I was so excited to try hammering the wire but it was trickier than I thought.  As I hammered the already made earring, the wire started bending way out of shape and totally twisting on me.  I'll have to figure out a way to hammer it before I bend it next time.  Although I was able to bend it pretty much back to its original form.

Aren't these so cool?!  I'm in love with them.  I'm actually surprised that I didn't make more than one.  

Molly thought these were SO beautiful!  They were a little large for her or I would have given them to her. :)

These are small with a big bead.  They are the same size as the flower above.

These are little yarn balls. Hehe.  I wish I had time to make a necklace to match. 

I thought these pendants were so pretty, I bought a bunch.  Seriously.  This picture doesn't show it well but there are all different ones with varying amounts of the orange flower in it.  My favorites are the bright blue flower as the center piece but the orange flower is lighter and not such a statement piece.  I tried these on with a grass green shirt and they looked amazing!  Weird cause there is just the tiny amount of green in the stem.

Follow Me...

Let's take a little journey to the past shall we?  Follow me...

Ok, now hold on tight as I take you on another journey...

I WON, I WON, I WON, I WON!  Thank you soooo much for all of your votes!  I mean, it's so cool to have a real pattern published (even if it is a freebie! :) but the other awesome part about winning the contest is the giant box of yarn that I received as my prize!!!  It isn't just any yarn either, it's really really nice yarn.  40 skeins of Tahki Stacy Charles Cotton Classic and Cotton Classic lite to be exact. 



If you would like the entire pattern, it is available for as a free pattern download on the Knitting Daily website.



Purely Divine Boutique: Sneek Peek

I've been invited to have a booth at the Fresno Christian Reform Church's annual brunch and boutique!  I was a bit hesitant at first when Candace asked me if I would be interested in selling some of my crocheted items.  I tend to procrastinate on things especially when I feel like I have plenty of time to get it done.  This opportunity was just too fun to pass up so I jumped in.  Amazingly I haven't procrastinated or gotten bored with making items to sell. 

My friend Jessica and I will be sharing a booth.  She has crocheted some darling baby items including bibs, booties, and beanies.  Since she is making things for Baby, I thought I would make some things for Mommy!

I started out making this delicious wrap made out of super chunky, sproingy yarn that doubles as a tunic with a couple big buttons.  You can also wrap it around your neck to wear as a giant scarf or drape it over one shoulder and button it in the back as an elegant looking shawl.  I call it the Any Way Wrap (here's where a picture would be nice, huh).  After spending days figuring out a pattern and crocheting it, I wanted to make something small that would give me some instant gratification.  That's when I found my new love: crochet/wire/bead jewelry!  So far each piece of jewelry that I've made is different and I want to keep them all! I hope that is a good sign!

Happy Birthday, Will!

Although this post is almost a month behind schedule, the following pictures were just too cute to not post. We had a little family dinner at Will's parent's house for his birthday.  His sister, Samantha was in town and just so happens to be an amazing photographer with a really cool, super fancy camera.  Here are some of the great pictures she was kind enough to share with me:

I just love the retro look of this photo.  It should be in a magazine or something.

 Just before Will's  homemade cupcakes (a la Lauren) came out, Molly came running into the dining room with Daddy's birthday hat.  Everyone "Awwwwwed" and "Oh, that's perfect!" making Molly feel so proud that she had found just the right hat for the occasion.  After dessert we stuck around for a while longer and Molly was inspired to open a hat shop in the other room.  She laid out all the play hats on the coffee table, got her little pad of paper and officially opened the doors.  Her hats ranged in price from "two dollars" to "twenty bucks".

New Bikes!

For Christmas we got the kids pedal-less bikes.  These bikes are supposed to teach the kids how to balance on a bike without having to worry about the coordination of pedaling.  Then, in theory, when they get the hang of the balance, they should be able to simply hop on a pedal bike and only have to learn how to pedal.

After flying down a hill in our backyard bouncing over dirt-clods and pot-holes with squeals of joy, Will and I decided it was time for them to learn how to pedal.  So, to the store we went in search of their first big kid bikes!

Will and Molly insisted that picking out a bike was such an important task that we check out all the stores that have bikes before we actually make a purchase.  We went to Wal-Mart first where Molly found the most glamorous Barbie bike I've ever seen.  She was in love but didn't push for us to buy it for her before checking out the other stores first.

We then went to Sport Chalet.  Their bikes are all name brand but two and a half times the price.  Seriously.  Will said that they would last longer and if a part broke you could actually replace it, but we both ended up agreeing that we will wait to spend the big bucks on a bike that they will not grow out of in a few years.

From there we jogged over to Target.  Unfortunately Target doesn't have kids bikes assembled.  It makes sense though as we remembered that the messiest part of Wal-Mart was the bike section where kids bikes and accessories were strewn all over the place.  By this point in our evening we were all pretty worn out.  Molly didn't see anything that compared to the Barbie bike extraordinaire so she and I split off to look at girly things while Will and Willy further inspected the boy bikes.  We left Target with the "Gravel Grinder!" for Willy.  The fact that it was in a box didn't stop Willy from hopping on it and "riding" it with "Weeeeee"s and all while we were in the checkout line.  Being with Willy in a store is kind of like being with a celebrity.  Everyone that sees him looks a little longer and smiles a little bigger.  He will start a conversation with anyone who is in his vicinity for more than 30 seconds and I have yet to witness someone disregard him or do anything but encourage him to keep talking.  He's just...darling.

Ahhh, where was I?  Oh, yes-leaving Target.  Obviously we had to go back to Wal-Mart to get Molly's bike.  We traveled all the way across Visalia for the second time using images of pink tassels and Barbie doll love to get us there.  By the time we arrived Willy and I were just about passed out from exhaustion.  Will, being the wonderful daddy that he is, took Molly in to buy the bike.  About 15 minutes later I watched Molly ride out of Wal-Mart with Daddy right behind her.  It seemed as though everyone was watching with complete adoration and you would almost have expected them to break out in applause.

After our shopping spree we went home to dream about the great bike adventures to come.