My Creations for the Swaps :)

Some of you have inquired about the items I sent people in these swaps. The thrill of receiving gifts is amazing, but I love the adventure of picking out just the perfect gift for someone else. Ravelry is an amazing social media platform.

Here's the people I got to make things for: a woman in upstate New York who knits sweaters for herself and baby clothes for other people; she likes neutral colors, local items, herbal and green tea, and dark chocolate.

Second assignment: a woman from Massachusetts who is gluten-free and knits and participates in swaps frequently. This swaps was Valentine's Day themed.

The New Yorker was a puzzle. I had just purchased an amazing book of early modern English designs with a beautiful scarf that I thought might keep my partner warm. Problem: it's advertised as a man's scarf!! Solution: make it a woman's scarf. True to nature, I like creative solutions to complex problems. I picked a very soft off-white yarn and matched it with a plum yarn. I was a bit worried that the plum yarn might not be considered neutral enough, but I decided that it was dark and the three stores that I went back to all had different selections of other colors that were either ugly or decidedly not neutral. It seems that one of the characteristics that make this scarf masculine were the original color -- chocolate -- and the width of the scarf. The change in colors plus a narrower scarf made it sufficiently feminine.

I love the texture on the this design. I'm always looking for ways to learn new skills and this was definitely a fun project!!

As far as local items, I wanted to get things that were related to the school that I'm at, but it was hard to find anything sophisticated. I ended up buying Jasmine Green Tea and Dark Chocolate Crisps at Trader Joe's (which they don't have in upstate New York.) Then, I also purchased a postcard & a pin from my school.



The Valentine's Day project had lower budget, so I wanted to share some gluten-free goodness along with a textured scarf that looked festive. Here's what I came up with:

Shortbread cookie mix and hard shaped cookie cutters: delicious!!

Valentine's Day Crochet/Knit Swap

I also participated in a crochet & knit swap themed around Valentine's Day. I've never actually celebrated Valentine's Day, but I've started celebrating some holidays in my own and discovered that I can have a lot of fun.

This Valentine's Day was extra special because I had a huge box with lots of hearts on it that said, "Happy Valentine's Day! Do NOT open until February 14, 2012!" all over it. Of course, I was dying to open it, so since I happened to stay up past midnight on Monday, I opened it before I went to bed!!

This is what I found inside: a whole collection of Valentine's goodies -- chocolate, a mug, and cookie cutters, some cute stationary, tissues, bath salts, some new yarn, and hand-knit handwarmers & a cowl. The handwarmers are very, very soft (even if a bit big) so I'm very excited to have them.

Knitting/Crochet Swap!!

I've had a long time fascination with crafts, and in sixth grade, I started to teach myself how to crochet. I spent lots of downtime in college crocheting. And, I'm very, very, very excited to live in a place where it's actually cold enough to make crocheted accessories a must-have!! In fact, I've met a number of knitters at work, so we can talk about cool yarn stuff when the topic of work gets old.

Over winter break, I concluded that I'm very good at making certain items, but there are definitely entire types of crochet/knitted items that I've never tried. While I did resolve to try some new things, I also realized that there are things that are much, much, much easier if you know how to knit (and vice versa). While learning to knit is always a possibility, I decided that participating in swaps with people who knit was a faster way to get home-knit stuff!!

I've participated in a few craft swaps before. But this is the first time that I've participated in a group and done a blind swap. Ravelry is truly a wonderful thing!!!! My first swap was themed "secret winter wonderland." And, I just received my package in the mail.

I'm thrilled because my partner happened to solve a problem I didn't even know I had!! I didn't realize I had cold feet until I started wearing these. Plus, I love felted wool, but I haven't been bold enough to try it yet.

Book Review: The Accidental Bride

Would you read a book titled The Accidental Bride: A Big Sky Romance? This new book by Denise Hunter profiles a young woman who has been shunned in love and who has yet to forgive the man who left her at the altar. Many years later as the widowed mother of a young girl, she crosses paths again with her former lover. If that isn't bad enough, some well-meaning neighbors interfere with some town plans and accidentally serve as witnesses in an actual wedding ceremony!!

In the annals of Christian fiction, this book isn't particularly Christian. It doesn't deal with deep religious issues or long spiritual quests. The pastor is not a key figure and neither is some moral or biblical passage. Yet, it is a clean, well-written book about a hilarious subject matter. It's true that this would never happen in real life, but The Accidental Bride is sure to keep you captivating by its turning and twisting plot and the end cannot be but satisfying.

Disclaimer: I received a free review copy of this book from the publisher and was not required to give a positive review.

Because sometimes words can by truly moving...

http://deeperstory.com/with-all-due-reverence-for-the-speed-bumps-of-the-portofino-parking-lot/

Book Review: Love on the Line

I'm a big fan of Deanne Gist's Christian historical fiction, and I jumped at the opportunity to review her latest book, Love on the Line. I definitely enjoyed this book as much as her previous books.

Love on the Line tells the story of a switchboard operator named Gail who's proud of her independent ways. She's a strong woman with her own ideas of how the world runs, and she doesn't need men in her life. Unfortunately, a secret agent named Luke has been assigned to be her supervisor, and he simply will not go away. As the two battle for territory, curious subplots arise. What if Gail would benefit from a counterpart? Is Luke running from his own past? And is it possible that they both may be bearing burdens that are not their own?

Between the two characters, the plot moves the book along. But the reader is forced to consider the true meaning of friendship and the extent to which one can bear responsibility for the past. For me, it was a moving way to consider how much, in attempting to be independent, we can assume that our actions determine the course of events, forgetting that there are other people and that there is a God who is in control of everything. In fact, we really aren't as big as we think we are.

Note: I received a review copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers and was not required to write a positive review.

Book Review: House of Secrets

I'm a bit behind in my book reviews, so this blog may be inundated with a bunch of reviews in the next few days.... (Just a warning.)


House of Secrets by Tracie Peterson is quite an intense book. Tracie follows a family torn apart by the death of the mother so many years before. Each family member has a different interpretation of the past. When the father demands that his three daughters meet him at their old summer cottage (the last place they saw their mother), the girls don't know what to expect. What good can come out of returning to this place they've all worked so hard to forget??

I would say that this is a extremely intense book, dealing with serious mental health issues, suicide, murder, atheism, courtship, and conversion all at the same time. The circumstances are so extreme and the conclusions so bland that I was initially tempted to write this book off as a superficial Christian novel that was far too scary to read before bed.

However, the more I consider it, I think this book does raise questions about family relationships and how family members can care for each other even in hard, confusing, or even wrong circumstances. The father is counseled not to tell his daughters anything; it will be better for them, they say. He takes that word too far though and refuses to have a relationship with them, leaving them alone often & only providing for them with material goods but neglecting to realize that they also may be grieving the loss of their mother as well & need him as emotional support.

For me, this book caused me to stop and think about how families can walk through difficult circumstances. The striking thing in all the characters is that they're doing what's best for the others; yet, in so doing, they neither address their own needs nor truly meet the needs of those they mean to help. Because of the lack of conversation and the fear of discussing the real issue at hand, everyone works hard and blindly to help. In this sense, Traci Peterson has captured the moment and the feeling of Christian families trying to cope with tragedy or difficult situations, particularly situations that "don't happen to real Christians." I would highly recommend this book to readers who want to go beyond simple Christian faith and consider the place of faith and family in trying circumstances. (Just, maybe, don't read it before bed!)

Note: I received a review copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers and was not required to write a positive review.