greenolive

organising one's stash

any suggestions?

Shades of grey, a very small selection from the very large yarn stash.

Now I have my own studio I have the space to organise my stash properly. And I can't wait!

No more stuffing balls of wool into vacuum-packed space bags. No more shoving fabric into plastic storage cubes. No more hiding buttons and notions in non-descript brown cardboard boxes. No, I plan to store my stash in plain view so I can locate the perfect yarn, fabric, thread, button or trim for the project at hand!

At least that's the plan. But all this space and unlimited possibilities presents some challenges. What is the best way to organise my stash for maximum efficiency and visual impact?

Do I store yarn in clear storage boxes, grouped by colour?

Do I fold fabrics to sit on open shelves (so they can flop all over the place) or store them in drawers (someone wrote about their fabric storage drawers awhile back and I thought it was a great solution to floppy piles)?

Do I store my buttons in old glass jars arranged in a rainbow of colours on a shelf?

Do I store my rolls of ribbons in a drawer so they don't roll all over the place?

Now for the categorisation...

Do you group your yarn by colour, type or some other criteria?

What about your fabrics? By fibre type: silk, linen, cotton, wool, knit?

As you can see, I am in danger of losing sleep over such questions, and I only have six more sleeps before we move!

And what about furniture and room layout? I need to store greenolive goodies ready for sale. I need a desk to do admin-y sort of stuff. And somewhere for the sewing machine. Somewhere where I can cut out stuff, sort stuff into piles and wrap stuff. I also want the largest pinboard wall for all my inspirational tear sheets, graphics, photos...

I need suggestions. I need your advice. Let me know how you organise your stash. And how you organise your activities and furniture.

I promise to share the best suggestions, including photos of my perfectly organised stash with you in a later post.

HELP!

Is everything in your house knitted?

well, not everything, but most things!

That was the innocent yet loaded question my favourite nephew asked me on Saturday morning as he sat at the dining table, set with the newly-finished table runner, about to eat his breakfast of gluten-free pancakes.

You could be forgiven for thinking everything was, for he was wearing a jumper I had knitted him, and had taken to wearing the yellow easter egg basket as a beanie. Earlier he had to try on his sister's new poncho so I could check it for size. He'd also noted the volume of wool I had stashed about the house. Oh, I forgot about the knitted wash cloths I sent them for Christmas...

As he was sitting down with the crochet table runner, I smugly informed him, that No, not everything is knitted, some of it is crocheted! (I don't think he understood the difference!)

This was one of many funny family moments during the weekend while my sister and her two boys were down from Brisbane. I was reminded how funny children can be without even trying to be funny. And we had lots of cuddles and kisses which will have to tide me over til I see then again later in the year.

And if I ever feel the need for a 'fix' I can read her blog*, worstdayever, which makes me feel like I am right there with them.

*Note: she has only just started her blog, writing posts in bursts, fitted in around work, children, husband, and life. I'm her blog consultant, helping with uploading photos, story ideas, and general encouragement.

link love

don't you just love links?

I've been the recipient of some link love recently, and my hits have gone through the roof. It's a lovely surprise when you log on and see that new people have visited and left a comment.

My experience reiterates the social networking aspect of blogs and the power of links. Why don't you share some link love around?

Big thanks to:

Cuteable who started the ball rolling in early March with a post about the Pink Bubblegum baby blanket.

Nichola who posted a photo of Heidi snuggled in Pink Bubblegum.

A reply by sweetcaroline to a plea for help on Crochetville featured a link to my crochet catherine wheel scarf.

A wrap up of the Living Creatively stand at the recent Stitches and Craft Show in Melbourne has sent some visitors my way too.

Sold!

to that very stylish person who visited Mt D last weekend

My new supplier, Coach House Furniture, phoned yesterday to say that they had sold a Smoke Stripy Thing and a matching Ribbon flower brooch.

How excitement!

It seems that now the weather is turning colder, (a bit of mist and fog doesn't hurt either!), people are starting to think about scarves. Thank goodness.

Coach House only has two Stripy Things left, Rhubarb and Moss, so I'd better start knitting!

a little bit of focus

works wonders

These ribbons have nothing to do with focus and everything to do with stash enhancing. There was a huge haberdashery sale at a house up here today and I was unable to restrain myself. But I only bought the good stuff, more photos to follow soon.

When you focus you can achieve quite a lot. I was reminded of this during the past week, when I started to focus on completing things, resolving stuff.

A lease signed.

The first month's rent paid.

Planning started.

A crochet table runner completed, and used this morning.

Several fabric scarves finished AND worn.

A special present started, finished and wrapped.

Fresh spring water collected.

A replacement poncho started.

Four entangled scarves sewn up.

A pile of paperwork sorted and filed.

It's now two weeks til we move and I have so much to do, sort, pack, chuck...

I wish I could just fast forward to the bit where we are moved in, the studio set up and the vegie patch planted.

I'm such an impatient Taurean!

me anal?

surely not!

We are moving house. Again. The third time in as many years. Our seventh house move together.

Last night, when I started planning for the move, Mr greenolive informed me I was being "completely anal" and it was "doing his head in". (My English regulars will appreciate the seriousness of this I expect!).

Now, he knows I'm anal. (Even some of you guys know that. Aunty Shabby sure knows that.) We've been together for 11 years and married for 7.5 years, so he's had plenty of time to get used to it. But, its seems that when a house move is on the cards I become even more anal than usual, I become "completely anal". (I love saying that, I wonder how many times I can say it in this post? Imagine one of those voice-over guys with the deep American voices saying it...)

In case you wonder what "completely anal" looks like, because you fear that you too are "completely anal", let me show you:

A floor plan of the new lounge room so we can decide what furniture will go in there and where in particular it will go. I do this so that my poor husband only needs to lift and carry the furniture once.

A master furniture list so we can decide where stuff will go and if we have enough stuff for all our stuff.

Now, I'm sure some husbands would value completely-moving-house-anal-ness in their wives. Some of you might have such husbands. But seems mine doesn't. So I stopped mid-floor plan. Didn't want to stress him out.

It's at this point that I should probably tell you that we are moving back into a place we lived in before, for 3.5 years in fact and that we only moved out of on 30 April 2006. (You are probably starting to side with Mr greenolive, yes, she is "completely anal"!)

But after we move and everything fits perfectly and he only needs to move things once he will thank me. I'm sure of it!

a spot of sewing

for a change!

I haven't done any sewing since before Christmas when I busted my guts to get Hannah's sundress made, wrapped and in the post in time for Christmas.

I'm not sure why I lost my sewing mojo, but for some reason it came back with avengence this past weekend. After several months I finally tackled the pile of 16 fabric scarves that were in varying states of completion. They had been sitting on my desk in the spare bedroom/craft room/overflow room and I finally decided to stop procrastinating!

One of them is a steel grey and blue silk version of my Pieced Fabric Scarf design.

I've finished eight of them and the rest are well over the 50% complete point.

I even wore the green one (on the top of the pile in the photo of the pile of them) to work today.

for the love of crochet

I love crochet

WIP shot a crochet table runner, soon to be gracing our dining table.

I really, really do. Sometimes I prefer it to knitting.

Why do I love crochet?
• it creates a more textural fabric
• you can stop mid-row without any problem
• you can unravel without any issues
• its faster than knitting (well, it is for me)

The only downside I can see is that it take approx three times as much yarn as knitting. (Or at least thats what they told me in a wool shop once.) But that's not much of a downside with a yarn stash as big as mine! Means I might get through it quicker.

You already know about my crochet love: the Catherine wheel scarf, those baskets, baby blankets...

My latest crochet obsession project is a table runner for our table. Its an oval table so normal table cloths look a bit daggy on the curved ends. And they cover up the wooden top too.

I got some discounted cotton-blend yarn from Spotlight, ever so practical for when we spill something and need to wash it.

Referring to a V-stitch pattern from Erika Knight's book, I've been crocheting up a storm during episodes of So you think you can Dance, the Biggest Loser, Grand Designs and my favourite Gordon Ramsey. If I'm crocheting while I'm watching crap TV then I think I'm not really wasting my time...

Not far to go now, about another 10 cms and then some edgings on the long edges and then we can start spilling stuff on it. I've told Mr greenolive I want want of his yummy roasts to celebrate the crochet table runner and its first use.

I can't take credit for these fabulous photos. A certain bossy wife rang her husband yesterday, instructing him to take some "interesting" shots of the work in progress, cause they'd be no light when she got home. He obliged. I'm thinking he could become my personal photographer from now on. Leave me more time for crocheting...

If you love his work, see more photos here.

36 hours

is never enough!

Evidence of my productivity over the weekend.

Why do we create to-do lists that are so long we could never get through them, even if we didn't sleep for a week?

(rhetorical question - you don't need to answer it!)

It seems 36 hours in a weekend (not including Sunday night sleeping) is not enough for me. And that I over-plan my weekends meaning I have no option but to reach Sunday afternoon feeling tired, cranky and like I didn't get anything done.

Working full-time means my weekends are for relaxing and recovering from the week that was, and regrouping for the week ahead, but it seems that I don't get this. Plus, you need to leave time for stuff to just happen.

This was what I had on my plate for the weekend past.

I did this stuff:

> trip to Spotlight (oops, Mr greenolive got to the bag before I did and saw the receipt, I hate how they stick it to the outside of the bag!)

> some groceries

> a bunch of 14 new ribbon flowers, some destined for Mikes (they sold out of the first batch, I wonder who bought them?)

> progress on the crochet table runner (about 30 cms or two balls' worth)

I didn't do:

> sew up the dusty pink singlet

> start Hannah's poncho (her brother Myles has appropriated the first one)

> spot of stash sorting

But I made time for:

> visit to weekend market to check it out

> discovering a roll of cotton lace (below) and a wooden folding ruler

> making a new batch of dried fruit compote

> gaining agreement on the wool and pattern for a new jumper for Mr greenolive - he wants the steel grey colour, not the right, royal purple!

Not bad for 36 hours work, is it?

a little ray of sunshine

I can't take credit for the photo or the daisies. Photo by Mr greenolive and daisies by mum as a thank you for having her stay over easter.

Apparently that's what I need.

I got the results back, very low in Vit D and low in iron. Both well below the low level in the normal range. So that might explain why I've been feeling the way I have.

I've been low in Vit D for awhile now, but my levels seem to be getting lower each time we do the test. Clearly the "get some sun each day" message has not got through to me. Maybe I need to be like those daisies and turn my face to the sun during the day.

We have an absolutely perfect balcony that faces west and has a view of the city, but I could count the number of times I've sat out there in the last six months on one hand. I'm just not a sun worshipper. My pale, fair skin might have something to do with it I expect.

So, supplements it is then. 3000mg of Vit D each day for two months and we'll see what that does. PLus some iron too.

On another note, this week Victoria had some pretty wild winds. Three dead. Thousands of tree downs. Power out. Mt D had lots of trees down and power out, but we only had to made do with candles for one night. Some poor people still had power out of Friday night, well over 48hrs without power. It seems the weather here is getting wilder. The last episode was late December when parts of Melbourne were flooded by torrential rain.

This week was the first full week at work, due to Easter break, and I must say I'm glad its over. My list of projects is growing and I've now well and truly passed the "new girl" phase. I'm now in the thick of it. I was actually considered going in to work over the weekend to catch up, but a full day of head down and powering through my to-do list soon rectified that!

As for the weekend, I promised Mr greenolive I'd have a sleep in this morning, but that didn't happen. I plan a trip to Spotlight, some groceries, perhaps a few DVDs, a bunch of ribbon flowers for Mikes, progress on the crochet table runner, sew up the dusty pink bamboo singlet, start Hannah's poncho, do a spot of yarn stash sorting and maybe cut out one of the many pieces of clothing I have to make.

Oh, start weight loss too. I almost forgot. Almost.