blogosphere excitement + new ventures

There's all sorts of excitement brewing in the blogosphere.

- Alicia has posted a free pattern for a very cute crocheted baby blanket. I just love Alicia's blog; she comes across as one of the nicest, most charming, and most interesting people in the world. Plus she has some darling pets, including a Welsh cardigan corgi! No, I'm not a stalker, just a loyal reader.

- Alison is organizing Sockapalooza 4, and sign-ups are open. Yes, I have signed up for this one.

- I can't wait for Alison's Harry Potter knitting book, Charmed Knits, to hit bookstore shelves. There's already a KAL organized, complete with a charity hat knitting project underway. I just downloaded the free pdf, and I need to look through the stash for some suitable yarns.

- The Knitter's Coffee Swap is taking place again. It was great fun last time, but I'm going to pass, what with the whole "saving my pennies" resolution.

There's not too much excitement going on chez Caffeinated Yarn aside from an excessive amount of academic reading and writing. I'm embarking on a couple major ventures, though.

1. Crocheting an afghan
Once again, I'm inspired by Alicia. I picked up a whole bunch of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky at a great discount. I just love the colors. I'm thinking either a ripple afghan or the Vintage Vertical Stripes afghan. Check out the fabulous No-End-In-Sight Ripple-Along and the tutorial over at Bella Dia for inspiration.

This is my last big yarn purchase for a long time, though, my friends.

2. Knitting (and crocheting) from the stash.

Lots of lovely yarns are sitting in my stash, forlorn and just dying to be turned into something beautiful. Like I said, I'm making a concerted effort to save money (car fund / house fund / student loan payments), and cutting out the yarn buying is a great place to start. Here are my guidelines.

- I shall knit and crochet from my stash from now until the end of August. I shall re-evaluate my stash at that point.

- I can buy yarn to finish up a project if I don't have quite enough.

- I have one "get out of jail free" card.

- I can buy yarn as a souvenir when I'm on vacation. Trips to Minneapolis and Milwaukee do NOT count as vacations.

- I can buy yarn for my current swaps and Sockapalooza.

- I can happily accept gifts of yarny goodness.

3. Reorganizing the study/craft room.
Yes, I'm finally doing it. In the spirit of full disclosure, I'm posting some before pictures that are actually quite embarrassing. Hopefully the embarrassment will be motivating.
Here is the free space created by getting rid of our guest bed. The dresser is for yarn storage. I may paint it blue, and I need to get new hardware. A craft cupboard is also going in this region. Unfortunately the litter box must stay.
The main workspace. Quite the amalgamation of crappy furniture. This is my parents' kitchen table from the 1970s. The office chair arms are broken and bits of foam fall out from time to time. The cats use it as a scratching post. It needs to be replaced. The antique dresser is actually nice and will move to a different area.
That dinosaur of a desktop computer is a genuine year 2000 Compaq masterwork. It still runs with the help of an external hard drive, additional memory cards, and an external hub for USB cables. It is affectionately known as Frankenputer. It needs to go. So does the blue desk.
A pile of boxes, an extra end table, and just a few of our bookcases. These contain fiction and literature, craft books, law books, and library books. No classics book or non-fiction -- those are all in the living room. They need to be moved and reorganized.

The worst part of all this is that I genuinely feel that I am an organized person. Judging from this room, that seems like a big fat lie. Being in this space makes me CRAZY. So instead I work at the dining room table and close the door to the study when people come over. In a 900 square foot apt. that is ridiculous.