For the best holiday ever... Thanksgiving!

Hey ladies!

I LOVE this holiday. Yes, yes I do. It focuses on food so of COURSE it’s my favorite holiday.

It includes all of my favorite foods… this, really, is my favorite meal. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and broccoli casserole!! Mix em’ all together and they go IN MY BELLY! (if Mac & Cheese was added… my life would be complete)

Then come the desserts… oh the yummy desserts. Punkin Pie… Apple Pie… a la mode… brownies… cookies…

Then… come seconds! Of everything! Serve it up!!

Oh and the leftovers… sweet… wonderful…. LEFTOVERS!!!!!

*catching my breath*

Sorry… needed to take a moment there. I got a little too excited. (tee hee)

The most important thing to remember is… end the meal with the perfect last bite. It should include a little bit of everything… some turkey, mashed, stuffed, brocc, and gravy all on your fork (or a spoon for a really big bite)…

Then shovel it into your gullet. Chew. Rinse with red wine. Enjoy. Repeat if desired.

And of course, this holiday shall be combined with my other favorite thing… (get your minds out of the gutter! though food and... nevermind... *giggling*) … KNITTING! I plan on kicking back, I'll play some cards with the group, and knit to my hearts content. (I have to catch up on that Christmas backlog because I’m way behind!)

Here is the Christmas handtowel I’m working on for my aunt. Of course… it’s English Ribbing. Just can’t get away from that pattern! I’m a good 1/3 to ½ way done with it now. Must… keep… going!



HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Love,
Jenn
xoxoxo

At the end of the week...finally!!

Dear Lee & Jenn

I think that we all can agree that this has been a rougher week than most... I know that I spent a great deal of time feeling like Bugs up there, half afraid to look up till the end of the week was close... But it IS finally Friday so I think that we should all take a great big (sigh) of relief and be thankful that this awful week is over!

Thought that I'd share a little humor and philosophy from my lil friend Calvin to make you both SMILE :)



Don't be afraid to use your own logic...



Play outside!



Never take life too seriously...



Give (and get!) hugs often...



And dance like no one's watching!



Have a Great Weekend!!!!!

Love, Colleen

For the love of...dishcloth cotton (Part 2)

Hey Ladies!

It's true! I confess. I am totally addicted to cotton yarn! Not that I'm not addicted to ALL yarn... but now cotton in particular. Thanks Coll! I stick my tongue out at you in thankful defiance. ;)

Sugars & Cream and Peaches & Cream... I love you.



And now... I'm on a roll with dishcloths and bathroom handtowels. It seems I always have one going on the needle. Whether it be for the house or a gift... right now mostly gifts now since the holiday season is swiftly creeping up on me.

Here are some pics of those that I have finished and of those that I have going on the needle now...

I love the English Ribbing pattern too! It makes for a nice, thick, cooshie towel! Here's one I made for the bathroom...

And another in green & white stripes...

Here is a kitchen handtowel I have going on the needle. This is a close second favorite to English Ribbing. It's a "clover" pattern. Ridiculously easy to knit... even I don't have to keep track of what row I'm on! I'm almost done with it now. It only took 1 skein each of green and cream. I changed up the pattern a little and CO 59 sts with size 8 needles. To finish, I'll probably use the cream though I'm undecided at the moment... (she has different colors on each end) Opinions?

This one... needs tweaking. I'm going with a "Ladybug" theme. I have to pull this out past the white stripe and past the red beneath it. I should have done white first, then red. Having red/white/red is too much garter stitch, not enough dots! I've been lazy though... I don't like ripping out rows demmit! Though after finally figuring out how to fix the English Ribbing dishcloth, I'm a little more confident. ;)



I have some Christmas color yarn to work with (went with Bernat cotton here)... and I'll bet more English Ribbing handtowels will look perfect with it!

Though I should really branch out and try more patterns. So many patterns... so little time!

Love,
Jenn

P.S. I am still determined to learn how to knit socks... and stuffed animals... and more and more...

For the love of...dishcloth cotton (Part 1)

Lee,

So as I'm sure you know by now and I am completely infatuated with knitting kitchen dishcloths and bathroom handtowels... since you've seen just a few in my house...lol

Well, I'm proud to announce that I've officially converted Jenn to a full-blown cotton yarn addict...(bwah hah ha ha!)

This is a particularly dangerous habit since
#1 cotton yarn is SO reasonable to buy ($2-4.00 a skein)
#2 there are millions of colors to choose from
#3 the projects knit up relatively fast (instant gratification!)
#4 it is very "clean" to work with - lets you see every stich clearly so elaborate patterns look awesome (unfortunately that also means that every lil mistake is VERY obvious)

All of these factors cause a scary amount of cotton yarn to accumulate (very) quickly...

Luckily all that cotton knits up real pretty :) You saw the halloween handtowels here but I thought I'd share a few more...

I made this pastel & cream set to be guest handtowels in my downstairs bath



Here's a close up:



This crazy color combo matches my workshop :)



Close up of the detail stiching:



These are both the same pattern, but could hardly look more different!



Closer view of the neutral one:



One of my favorite patterns EVER - "English Ribbing"



Close- up of the loopy cooshiness of this towel :)



Two of a kind



Still on the needles



Some from my Brown & Cream period...



What a nice set!



Finally, a cute lil lamb to add to your collection :)



Love,
Colleen

About time!!!

I am happy to report that I FINALLY have my web page up and running!!! It is still a work in progress (and looks eerily like this site right now - at least my taste is consistent lol) but it is WORKING!! So excited :)

Check it out and let me know what you think... feedback is extemely appreciated.

http://www.Candlesbycolleen.com


~Colleen

On my mind...

The Golden Chain of Friendship

There's a Golden Chain of Memories
That binds two hearts together,
A chain so strong it holds you fast
Through fair or stormy weather.
Its links are forged of love and trust
Of happy memories shared,
Of times it meant so much to know
That someone special cared.
The years can never break that chain
But only add new length,
As joys, sorrow, hopes, and plans
Combine to give it strength.

~Bea Morgan

for my favorite holiday...

Some funnies for Jenn...





...and some fey for Lee




Love,
Colleen

On this day...

Happy Birthday Lee!!!

Through the Fall...

Ah yes ladies… I am a happy woman. New England in the Fall is HELLO gorgeous. We went out this past weekend to leaf-peep and this area is incredible. I love living right by the water… sometimes we can smell the ocean from the front porch. I see myself bundling up under a blanket this weekend sitting out there with my knitting and a cup of hot cocoa or tea. YUMMY!

I posted some pics… not a good view of leaves changing, but still so pretty. (weird, the next day it was like every tree changed) These are from a town right next door. From home, we can walk around the corner and WHAM!... You’re hit with a view of the water that can take your breath away (I’ll get pics of that soon). We climbed a big rock to look out over the harbor... I was a champ and even though I don't like heights, enjoyed the view. Getting down I shook like a leaf (ha ha, get it?), but it was worth it.





Let me describe my peaceful happy place. The one I’ll go to from now on whenever life gets me to stressing… This morning, while walking the dogs, I brought them into a little woodsy nook. While they sniffed around… I stood and looked up. All I could hear was the breeze rustling through the trees. Just then the breeze picked up and all these leaves started falling around me… almost like it was in slow motion. It was a picture perfect peaceful moment (say that three times fast).

Though living in that same nook, we discovered we have an owl in the neighborhood. Holy creepy sounds at night… so close to Halloween!

Back to crafting… I’ve been knitting like crazy! Now that I discovered the yarn store in town and an A.C. Moore 2 miles from work I’m in yarn heaven at home. I have one helluva backlog going for Christmas but at least I started early! And speaking of making a mistake... Son of a *&^%$ !!! (Are we supposed to curse while knitting?) I have been working on a dishcloth with a pattern that is IMPOSSIBLE to fix if you make a mistake (called English Ribbing). You have to rip the whole thing out and start over... Well... methinks I have just defeated the impossible task. Somehow I managed to pull out a bunch of rows (infuratied tugging was more like it) and wound up with a perfect row of stitches to pick up... I knitted (whilst holding my breath) and VOILA. I'm not out of the woods yet (tee hee...) but we'll see what happens...

I’ve been reading too… but I’ve only been able to squeeze in a few minutes before falling asleep at night. (Lee I still have the graphic novel you lent me staring at me longingly from my nightstand!) My mom and I love the author Karen Marie Moning. We’re both cheesy romance fans, but her books are different. Less cheese, good steam, and humor! She incorporates magic and The Fae too, again without the cheese. Her new Fae Series is AWESOME. It’s set in Dublin about a girlie-girl gone tough who can see the Fae and is basically out to destroy the bad Fae and avenge her sister. It’s got some naughty steamy parts, good humor, and it has Fairies. Nuff said ladies! I highly recommend it… Then if you like it, try the Highlander Series. They are absolutely delicious!

(The third book in the series... )

xoxoxoxo
Love,
Jenn

Let's break it down...

Hi there again ladies -

All three of us have been in the same water sogged boat....er, or should I say dingy???.......when it comes to reaching the end of a new project when *WHAM*...we notice it.....a mistake. Not just any mistake mind you. Uh-uh, I'm speaking of the mistakes that require us to break down the entire project back to itty-bitty square one. "HUMPH!" *sob*

When you first notice it you try to hold it at different angles and say out loud in your empty workshop, "No one will notice. If I hold it at this angle, you can't even tell."

BUT...you know it is there. Watching you. Making fun of you. Daring you to let it go...let it exist. Noooooooo! *ran screaming from the room*

Nah, just take it apart as that mistake will drive you to the edge of sanity if you care about your creations. Doesn't matter what you're doing either; knitting, jewelry, cross stitch, candles, etc. If you plan to give it away or sell it...you can't let a mistake out the door. Not only does it signal that you take pride in your creations, but it also speaks volumes for quality. Something each and every customer remembers and continues to look for.

What spurred this letter? *cringing with one eye closed* A silly little anklet. Yep. I missed one little rassin-frassin bead in the pattern (near the start of the strand by the way) and I gotta tell ya...it wasn't noticeable. But I couldn't let it go. Plus, if I noticed it then there's a 99.9999% chance that someone else will too. Know what I mean?

Bye for now!

~LeeAnn

Under Pressure...

Good afternoon!

So, as I mentioned the other day, I'm in the process of getting ready for a candle open house on Sunday... Which means that I am working diligently on pouring enough candles to accommodate a (hopefully) decent turnout of customers... (I'm being purposely vague here because as of the moment I have no CLUE how many people are actually going to show up) This is causing me just a little bit of stress!

Luckily, as I'm sure you both noticed, I'm one of those odd individuals who not only performs well under pressure...but who actually becomes 100x more creative and productive when working against a deadline :) Of course there is a catch. A BIG one. The paradox is that while the creative juices are flowing to the max and my energy (read insomnia) levels are very high...my ability to focus on just one task (i.e. candles) goes completely out the window.

As a result, I've accomplished quite a bit during the past week and a half:

Read 3 books



All were good, but The Host was the most interesting read.

Visited a historic landmark in NJ...



Where Mike bought me this lil guy...



His name is "Tootoot"!


Went shopping and got these for my office:





(a bit eclectic taste, I know)

Knitted this dishcloth...



And started another...



Don't they look great together?!?



Finished a runner for the living room



(Close up)



Worked on 3 "top secret" projects to be revealed at a later date ;)

FINALLY started working on my website - (preview soon!)

And of course, I've poured a whole bunch of candles... maybe I'll give you guys a sneak peek tomorrow...

Love,
Colleen