enJOY it

November MAKE29 : behind the scenes.

November 19, 2014

TWENTY NINE KNIT BLANKETS. Sure thing, I’m in.

I came up with MAKE29 in September 2013. By December I was knitting my first blanket, with the plan to have 29 done by the following fall. I don’t remember if I thought it would be hard. Probably not. And let’s be clear: this wasn’t hard it was just time consuming (and more than a little monotonous). I remember at one point last spring, doing the math and realizing if I knitted just two full stripes (8 rows) every day I’d be done in time to make this a September edition. Obviously, that didn’t happen.

knitting with Ellerie on Christmas Eve.

In many ways, these blankets represent MAKE29 for me. They took almost the full year (though I did start before I was 29). They are entirely hand-made. They celebrate a project I had done previously. They were a labor of love and for the most part created while I did things I loved…

knitting a cowl in March because I was so tired of knitting blankets (you can see my current work in progress on the left).

I knitted while I chatted with Paul or my parents. I knitted while I watched Ellerie play. I knitted while I watched the Sons of Anarchy dig themselves into a hole (literally). I knitted while watching Ted meet their mother. I knitted while I watched Olivia Pope create more scandal. I knitted while I watched Leslie Knope get recalled. (There was a lot of TV watched, obviously.)

my mobile knitting station in November.

I knitted while I listened to podcasts and books on tape. I knitted through football games and so many movies. I knitted while walking back and forth, trying to rack up fitbit steps. Knitting is the ultimate in “keeps your hands busy” projects and this edition kept my hands busy.

knitting styles from elise blaha on Vimeo.

So busy that I had to learn a new method of knitting. My wrists and hands ached from the English “throwing the yarn” method and so I taught myself the Continental style out of necessity. Above is a short video where I demonstrate the difference.

Throughout the year, I kept a journal of the colors and the date that I finished each blanket. I finished four in December. I finished one on New Year’s Day then four more in January. Four in February, then four in March. Then just six between April and September. You can tell when I was like GO! again in mid-October because I finished the final seven in just three weeks.

Having this journal record is special to me. It makes me wish I kept more “notes” for my projects because it’s so interesting to look back at my work flow. You can see from my numerous cross outs and eraser marks that the color plans switched constantly. I decided in July to start repeating some of my favorite color combinations, making 21 different versions total. It was fun to change colors, I was always re-excited about the project just having new yarn in my hands.

It was important to me that each blanket was “branded” and I added a small label to each that states the edition number and MAKE29. If I take away anything from MAKE29 it’s that the details matter.

After over 11 months, 116 skeins of yarn and an estimated 160,080 stitches, the result is 29 hand-knit blankets. My original was made as a baby blanket when I first found out I was pregnant with Ellerie so clearly, these would make perfect baby blankets (and are machine washable which is a major pro with kiddos) but they are nice as lap blankets for adults too. They’re small (about 3×3 feet) but thick and stretchy and just the right size to throw over your knees.

Thank you for letting me share a bit more about the process. I’m so excited to get these in the shop. You can read more here and they’ll be on sale at 8am PST on Saturday 11/22 right here.

Today on ELISE GETS CRAFTY I am chatting with Steven of Future Former Millionaire about gaining momentum for a project. Click here to subscribe or stream the episode from your computer here.
creative books I always return to.

November 18, 2014
We're getting there, you know? The giving season where you always "need" a good gift idea that's in the $20 range. Or you need a suggestion for someone who "needs" to get you a gift. (I use "need" liberally here, obviously.) But I'm a BIG FAN of giving (and receiving!) books – especially creative books because those are the only ones I find myself paging through again and again (Harry Potter, The Time Traveler's Wife and Les Miserables excluded).

Funnily enough, most of this stack I'm sharing today were gifts from my parents. (I know this because my mom inscribes "Merry Christmas" on the inside.) In no particular order, here are five books I find myself pulling off the shelf often (and always finding something new).

Thinking with Type (2nd edition) by Ellen Lupton. I've had this since I graduated college I think. It's a book you can actually read through to learn about elements of typography but then (if you're me) you can also refer back to it to learn things about kerning that you don't quite get. This is like a textbook, but better. And easy to understand. And obviously, so well laid out.

A Year of Mornings by Maria Alexandra Vettese & Stephanie Congdon Barnes. This is my favorite photography book (though it would be awesome if it was larger). I page through it every season or so and always find another pairing or another angle or another way to play with light that I haven't seen before.

The Creative Family by Amanda Blake Soule. I read this when I was pregnant and am finding myself paging through it again. Ellerie is getting to the real PLAYING age and if I do one thing right as a mama, I want to encourage her creative side (in everything). Tons of fun projects and insight in this book. Specifically, I love the birthday crown and nature table idea.

The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp. This is another book that I think should be a text book. Business classes should have to read this. Phsychology majors should have to read this. Artists should have to read this. Everyone should have to read this. It's a word book much more than it's a picture book but it's filled with so many gems and practical advice for strengthening your creative muscles. My copy is well highlighted and I'm due for a complete re-read through.

Made by Hand by Lena Corwin. Full disclosure: I have not made any of the projects in this book. But I have read almost every word and marveled at every photograph. The photography was done by MAV and SCB (the women who shot A Year of Mornings) and it's gorgeous. The projects are involved (more than a normal craft book) but they are well explained and were developed by various creatives (which is fun because it brings in different voices and so many mediums). I referred to the index a lot while knitting my sweater and I really want my first project to be a crocheted rug(!)

On my wishlist right now: Sunday Morning Quilts (I checked this out from the library last fall – which I totally suggest before you invest in a craft book and I find myself wishing I could refer back to it all the time) & The Printmaking Bible.

this post is NOT sponsored, but links are affiliate.

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’tis the season for wreath making.

November 17, 2014

It took me until mid-November to finally do any decorating around here. Which this year meant getting out my felt wreath, a few twig stars I bought last season, my quilted table runner and some candles. We will wait until the weekend after Thanksgiving to get our tree and pull out the rest of the Christmas decorations.

But on Saturday afternoon I was itching for something new and handmade and remembered the gorgeous wreaths from the Moon Canyon workshop that I had seen on Instagram. I decided to see if I could make something similar. At first I considered scavenging my neighborhood for live plants and then I decided to just scavenge my local craft store for dried and fake ones instead. (I’m glad I went this route, but it was more expensive that I thought it would be.)

I started with a grapevine wreath and then just tucked in various plant pieces. The “secret” I learned from lots of wreath studying is to keep everything going the same direction (in my case, counter-clockwise). It also seemed important to layer things. I went with my main color first (the orange stuff I had the most of) and then added in bits of green and red in clusters, not evenly spread around.

For the most part, just tucking in the floral pieces into the wreath form was secure enough, but I did wrap a few with wire twine to keep them from splaying out too crazily. (That’s a technical term.)

I think this will work well for Thanksgiving and carry on through Christmas too. I removed the art we usually have over the mantle and hung it right there. Perfectly festive and imperfectly made (which is my kind of holiday DIY, for sure).

’tis the season!

and ps… I cannot believe how much has changed since last Thanksgiving.
weekend links / 44.

November 15, 2014

As part of my word WHOLE this year, I want celebrate the work of others by sharing links to my friends, possible friends and complete strangers who are doing great things on the Internet. This is some of the rad stuff I recently saw online…

some fun ideas for how to support our service men & women.

a cream sweatshirt is going to go in my winter capsule wardrobe.

loved this post on the magic of photo editing.

11 more mobile photography tips.

Mailkimp… the brand behind the Serial success.

TOMS plus Target.

oh wow… touchable memories.

if you're not into making your own cowl (and I get that), my absolute fave is the vinyasa scarf.

making friends in your 30s vs. your 20s. (the real estate one made me laugh out loud.)

the latest DIY I've seen that made me want to run out and buy supplies right now.

from me, an article on Coffee & Crumbs about our new normal.

and here's my water marbling tutorial (shown in the photo above).
around here.

November 14, 2014

around here it's finally getting a bit chilly (which, as I understand, is not the same as "chilly") in other parts of the world. But hey! Seasons! (Sort of!) We'll take it.

around here Paul and I were just chatting that Thanksgiving is in less than two weeks…how can that be? What on earth are we going to serve for dinner?

around here Ellerie and I picked up a baby animal calendar from the Target dollar spot. She legit squeals everytime she enters her room and sees it. She has kissed that baby panda 15 times and only ripped it off the wall twice, so that's a win.

around here Ellerie's REAL favorite thing (more than baby pandas) is pizza dough. She's obsessed. I made dough on Wednesday at 1pm and from then until bedtime all we talked about was "go!!!!" (dough) and the object of the day was to open up that (not heated) oven and play with her dough. If you haven't seen it, this video from a few weeks ago perfectly captures my life on Wednesday. No complaints though - these are the exact moments that I dreamed about when I was deep in the newborn haze. I can't even really think about it without feeling like sobbing (in a good way).

around here I figured out what I'm going to do for my 30th birthday project. It's something different enough to be interesting, but also just normal enough to make sense and I think it will be good for both me and the blog. We've got a long way to go until February, but it's fun to have a plan.

around here the knitting addiction is serious and intense. After my cowl I decided to finally (finally) dive into a real sweater and I started with Jane Richmond's Oatmeal Pullover. I have learned so much about knitting (and life, obviously) from the three days I have spent working on this sweater. I'm also already gearing up for sweater number two (how gorgeous is this?!). I feel like my winter capsule wardrobe will be 36 sweaters and no pants. And then I'll remember that I live in San Diego.

around here we are lucky enough to have a second weekend in a row together. I'm thrilled. There might be donuts. For sure there will be Bloody Mary's.
striped knit cowl tutorial.

November 13, 2014

“Let’s!” “Get!” “Crafty!”

Back in the day I had grand plans for my own craft channel TV show. Today, I present to you, episode one. (Just kidding. Though six points if you remembered without clicking that link what I’m talking about.)

BUT! I did film, edit, voice-over, produce and upload a short video (you can click below to enlarge) that shows how to knit a striped cowl from start to finish. It’s going to take you more than 10 minutes to knit but only 10.5 minutes to watch (plus, probably some start, stop, rewind, wonder what the hell I am trying to demonstrate time).

striped knit cowl tutorial from elise blaha on Vimeo.

I have shared my go-to cowl tutorial before but this one is a bit different because it’s smaller (tighter to the neck) and uses two colors which makes it look much more impressive than it is. The secret to a two-color cowl is keeping both colors attached the whole way through (which I demonstrate in the video). The video also covers how to long tail cast on, how to knit both the English and Continental styles, how to cast off, how to weave in your tails and what I do when I am not sure why something looks odd (spoiler alert – push through!).

I love a small cowl so this finished project is only about 12 inches wide and 15 inches tall when laid flat. (Yours could be bigger if you cast on more stitches and kept going for more rows.) I used US size 7 (4.5mm) circular needles that were 16 inches long and two different skeins of Patons Classic Wool Roving.

If you know what you’re doing and don’t want to watch a video, pattern instructions are below.

Long-tail cast on 64 stitches with starting color. Join the round, taking care to make sure there are no twists in your yarn. Knit all the way around with the second color. Switch back to the first color. Continue this alternating pattern for 54 rows total. Cast off with the same color you started with. Weave in ends.

TA-DA! Pull a gray sweater out of the hamper to match, pretend it’s not 80 degrees in November and wear with pride!
learning to love the middle.

November 12, 2014
This week's podcast episode talks about "finding joy in the process." My guest is Astrid, a quilter who decided to make 20 different quilts this year. I found Astrid while falling down the Instagram rabbit hole. (You know the how it goes. I'm just thankful that at the bottom of this hole were gorgeous quilts instead of 16 year old cheerleaders.) I was instantly inspired by Astrid's photos and after our talk last week I was an even bigger fan.

Today I wanted to share a few concrete things that I do to help me get through the middle of a project. It's no secret that I love starting something new. (And my highlighters know just how much I love to cross something off my list.) But, of course, the real bulk of the work happens in between the start and the finish lines.

Make tweaks to your process. Blogging is my number one daily hobby and it's ultimately just words and photos. I love words and photos. But I HATE writing first drafts and I HATE resizing photos. Both steps I used to dread and I found that I had to really work myself up for them. This past year, I have instituted two things that have really helped. First, I have started to dictate some of my longer posts to my phone. Then I email the text to myself and copy and paste it into my post. It generally takes a decent amount of editing time but I find it so much easier to fine-tune a first draft than to fill a blank space. Second, I found the cheat to re-sizing multiple photos at the same time. It's saving me time and energy and making this whole process that much more enjoyable. Sometimes enjoying the process is about finding ways to work around the process.

Break down the middle into small beginnings and endings. Astrid talked about this and she completely nailed it. I find myself breaking up huge projects into smaller pieces all the time. Cleaning the kitchen, for example, can become 15 smaller and less daunting tasks (take out the trash, clear the sink, empty the dishwasher, wipe down the counters, clear out the fridge, dust the top shelf, mop the floor, etc.) You don't have to actually write down all the tasks but thinking about them as separate things somehow makes them less overwhelming. With MAKE29, I don't focus on the big picture – launch 12 different projects each month – I think of them as a single month at a time, with a million different little projects going into completing each month (those I write down).

Set a deadline. A time frame is a huge motivator. I love what Astrid mentioned – that a year seems like just enough time. You have some flexibility with a year. You can start. You can stop. You can think things through. You can try something new. You can switch gears. You can regroup. A year is a really long time but it's also definitive. It gives you boundaries and I think boundaries are oddly motivating.

Document your progress. This is probably my single greatest tool in staying inspired during the middle. I love to document what I'm doing through photos or check boxes or cross outs or those big thermometers that measure progress towards a goal. Having a visual representation of where I've come from and where I'm headed is incredibly motivating to me.

Don't be afraid to quit. Half of doing anything is NOT doing something else. I often find myself in the middle of a project and realize I don't want (or need) to be doing it. Sometimes, you have to let go to move on. That's okay. (Read more about this here.)

When you think about it, we spend most of our time in the middle. We expend most of our energy not coming up with an idea or taking a bow on stage, but doing the work in between. The middle is where it all happens. Figuring out how to enjoy the process in our own way is incredibly important.

Hear more this week on ELISE GETS CRAFTY. Subscribe on iTunes or stream the episode here.

Since writing this post, I created Get To Work Book! It's a day planner + goal setting workbook that is designed to help you take your big goals turn them into something real. Learn more and shop the brand here.

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modern silhouette coasters.

November 11, 2014
I am excited to be partnering with Canon USA these next few months to share a few DIY photo projects using their range of photo printers. I used the Canon SELPHY CP910 Printer this month to make tile coasters and they turned out to be one of my favorite small projects ever (and bonus! even Paul and Ellerie were impressed).

For these coasters, you will need:
- black paper
- stapler and staples
- pointy scissors
- white tiles (I picked mine up at the Habitat for Humanity Restore, but any hardware store will work)
- mod podge (I used the kind that said “dishwasher safe” because I figured that would deal with condensation best)
- a foam brush
- a bone folder or something to smooth out wrinkles and air bubbles
- an exacto knife and cutting mat
- and photos of course
When choosing photos for this project, I looked for ones with clear “person” shapes that showed relationships. Ellerie on Paul’s shoulders, the three of us holding hands, etc. Of course, you could also do a more “traditional” silhouette of the side of a person’s face too.

All of my photos were taken on my iPhone. I used the ABM app to put two images on a 4×6 canvas and then printed directly from my phone to the SELPHY CP910 Printer. Being able to skip the computer all together and just print directly from my phone felt like magic. (They have the PIXMA Printing Solutions app and I found the whole SELPHY printing process totally seamless.)

I cut my photos in half and stapled them on top of the black paper to hold everything together.

Then I carefully cut around the photo image (and paper at the same time) to get the best cut possible. For the holes (like where Paul’s arms come up) I used a whole punch first and then my scissors. You could totally use an exacto knife here.

Don’t worry about the image looking “cropped.”

You can just bump it right up against the tile side (and trim off any excess when you’re all done).

I cleaned my coasters well and then painted a layer of modpodge before adding my cut-out.

I then covered the whole thing with another layer of mod podge and used a bone folder to clear out any bubbles.

After the modpodge had dried completely, I added one more coat then trimmed off extra paper overhang.

I would give these guys a least a few days to cure before you use them as coasters, but when you finally do, they’re so cute. (Of course if you don’t need coasters, you could use this same process to make wall hangings, ornaments, framed art, etc.)

This post is sponsored by Canon USA. Project idea, opinions, words and photos are all my own.
from the weekend.

November 10, 2014

We don't get many weekends (a full Saturday AND a Sunday?!) with Paul home and just the three of us. So when we do it's the best. I got my big camera out and took photos to celebrate.

Per usual, we didn't do much of anything. We took a few walks up to the grocery store. We read some books and worked on our self-timer skills. We watched a lot of Elmo and football. We made it through a few Netflix DVDs (we started season 2 of The Newsroom and season 1 of Fargo). We drank a lot of black coffee & some good beer.

We spent some time outside time with the rocks (it was 85 degrees here on Saturday). We made chili in the crockpot and ate pancakes for breakfast. We listened to this song on repeat and some of us stirred up dry pasta.

Workwise, I got my 29 blankets photographed and packed up. (Yep, November MAKE29 is knit blankets – more info coming next week.) Ready for the next project, I made a cowl for a football game we're going to soon and at the last minute decided to video the process for a tutorial (coming soon to the blog).

Weekends. You win. Always.
weekend links / 43.

November 8, 2014

As part of my word WHOLE this year, I want celebrate the work of others by sharing links to my friends, possible friends and complete strangers who are doing great things on the Internet. This is some of the rad stuff I recently saw online…

guess what's inside a slap bracelet?

what we might get from the serial podcast ending (no spoilers, just thoughts).

beautiful interview with Shauna Niequist.

loved season one of the city.ballet webseries and will carve out time next week for season two.

circular weaving with a hulu hoop.

I love following Ali's Week in the Life^TM process every year.

emoji stamps!

how to raise girls to be better at negoiating.

"Because getting creative is what we artists do." wise words from Jen Hewett.

"I think of it as my practice." beautiful post on maintaining a blog long-term.

looking for a quick autumn project? here's an old favorite.

so fun to see my poster on Inspired by Charm.