JDP: Toe in the Water

I will confess, I don't know how to quilt. No idea really. Yes, theoretically, you cut out some pieces, you sew them together, you put some \ fluff in between the top bottom fabrics, then sew it all together (quilt it), and lastly bind off the edges. But....I don't feel like I know.

Well, I've started my first quilting project, ready or not. I've got a sketch, some rough dimensions, and I cut out the border. There is nothing like laying scissors to fabric to commit yourself to a project; cutting out the pieces sort of freaks me out, not going to lie. I'm pretty sure I've got all the fabric I need to complete this project, but I need to pick up some more thread. I have a feeling this could get interesting.

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Looms: A Review

Technically, I've been loom knitting since I was about 7. With a little googling around, I found the original Lisa Frank set that included a weaving loom and two knitting looms: a French-styled knitter and what LF dubbed a sock loom. I could never figure out how to make anything other than really long tubes using the basic instructions, but little did I know then that this formative experience would set me off on a long journey, leading me to finally open a side business and to teach others how to loom knit.
As such, I wanted to introduce you to my looms, and give my two cents worth of opinion on your options, in case you'd like to start looming! All opinions are my own, and I purchased all of the looms below.
Basic Looms for the Beginner
#1 choice for beginners: On the left, my first set of Knifty Knitter brand looms, bought at Wal-Mart many years ago. In the middle, the modern equivalent, Loops and Threads brand, bought at Michael's in 2015. On the right, the Hobby Lobb…

Life Organization: Arc vs. Erin Condren Planners

I have yet to find the perfect planner organization system. I want my planner systems to be paper-based, flexible, and very mobile. In the last year, I've tried an Arc system (from Staples.com) and an Erin Condren life planner.

I fell in love with the Arc system because it is highly customizable. The hole punch is an expensive one-time purchase, but the notebook cover was very reasonable. It uses a series of discs to bind the pages together, so I can move pages and sections around and replace covers. I decided on the full-sized poly-plastic cover. This was great because I simply printed the pages I needed weekly or monthly. Crazy week? Different planning guide. While using this notebook, I had a monthly plan, daily plan, and a reference section.
One negative I found with the Arc system is that regular printer paper tended to curl, as above. Most of the pages, such as the weekly pages, could be tossed at the end of the week. However, I like to keep at least the monthly pages as a …

A Few Words About Acrylic Yarn

Since January, I've done my best to avoid buying yarn, no matter how crappy my day has been or how much I've wanted to forget about my troubles for a minute in the local big box craft stores. I knew that I wanted to buy some high quality yarn when I went to the Dallas Fiber Festival, and I knew the only way I could psyche myself up to make the purchases was if I knew I had not indulged in several months. And besides, I needed to finish up an assortment of half-started projects anyway.

In the last 2 years or so, I have had the luxury of living in a city, and not only that, I have lived one street over from a Michael's, JoAnn's Fabrics, and a Hobby Lobby. When I have been particularly sad or anxious, I have gotten into the habit of visiting these stores. It's not like I've bought something every time I've been in- heck, I walked around two of them today and made no purchases. However when I have made purchases, all of those purchases have been acrylic or acry…

Inkling Spot

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