From This to That: Cowls, Owls, Journals & Enthusiasm

I have been on a creating spree, turning materials from one thing into another this weekend. It has been fun, it hasn't taken away from my family time AND I still got some laundry on the clothesline. I call that a score, touchdown, nothing but net WIN.

My yarn went From This:

To That:

It is a big, florescent, super chunky cowl. It will definitely keep my neck warm in the colder months and I do believe I will be safer as no car is going to miss those colours on a gray Vancouver day.

I used my arms as knitting needles, super-fun. If you are looking for a quick project, you can check out Simply Maggie's tutorial complete with video. I made 2 of these for girlfriends before I made mine and used regular worsted weight yarn. They turned out very nice and I used the recommended stitch count of 12. They were very loose and airy.

 For mine, I used 12 stitches and suffocated myself when I was checking the length.  I ripped out the stitches to start again just casting on 6 stitches. I only wish I had made it a bit longer but I would have needed a second skein of each colour.

And then my clay went From This:

To That:

Playing with clay makes me feel good. It helps that my kids encourage me by saying I am awesome and can make anything (thanks boys!). I used Sculpey III clay, it stays soft even when I forget to cover it until you bake it. Be warned, the baking instructions are not on the package. You can find it on the website or use this rule: bake 15 minutes for every 1/4" of thickness at 175 degrees. F. For these little critters, I baked them for 30 minutes.

The clay is very hot and stays very hot for a good hour after you take it out of the oven. It may not feel like it is hard enough for you when you first take it out but trust me, it gets harder as it cools down.

My wallpaper scraps went From This:

To That:

A pretty little journal. I had my sewing machine out to fix my oldest son's backpack for back-to-school tomorrow and tackled this mini-project I have been thinking about for awhile.

It really took less than 10 minutes. I folded 10 sheets of letter paper in half, cut out the wallpaper a smidge bigger all around than the paper and sewed them all together along the fold.

I think I have a new book to brainstorm blog post ideas!

And finally, some blank paper and an exercise went From This:

To That:

One page full of the things I love to do that make me hum with happiness; inspire me; recharge my battery.

Michelle Ward is generously offering this sample chapter of her book, The Declaration of You, when you sign up for her newsletter. She is the When I Grow Up Coach and I want to have as much fun as she does, doing what I love when I grow up!

Please visit her and become inspired.

What did you make this weekend?