About the time I was ready to launch my last custom theme, Google started penalizing for mobile compatibility, and I wasn’t designing for mobile. That’s probably why I tend more towards creating child themes of core WordPress themes these days. When I saw the new twentyseventeen, I thought, “Finally! A theme I can work with.”
I converted the ole website over last weekend, and am currently updating content. Already added new examples for Red Silk Essentials, Alpine Leadership, and FUSJR.
This was my first crochet project ever, and for some reason it’s been tough to get a good photograph of the finished scarf.
This is a simple design for a beginning crochet project, but I did not completely understand how gauge works or how to change crochet hooks and tension, even though I’d read about it. It took making this scarf to truly understand.
About half way through this project, I realized my dimensions were not going to be anything like the pattern. It was about half the size! No worries, I had plenty of yarn to make a second one just like the first and stitch the two together, which was closer to the pattern’s finished size.
The green/blue colors reminded me of a river, and I was inspired to add some beads that I had on hand to give it that shimmer of light reflecting off the water.
It’s a very stiff fabric! After I’d tried a couple other projects, I came back to this pattern and made another version in neutral colors. This time I got the gauge right, and the results were a lighter, softer version that looks more like the picture in the pattern. Unfortunately, I gifted it away before I thought to snap a photo of it. Someday I’ll get back around to making another one of these in the looser gauge for myself.
Pattern: Mollie Infinity Scarf on Craftsy by KristinaOlsonDesigns
Materials: Lion Brand Yarn Wool-Ease, 2 balls of each color
Forest Green Heather & Blue Mist (pictured)
Mushroom & Wheat
I’m pretty sure I used the J/10 6.0mm hook that the pattern suggested, but I cranked down on the yarn so tightly…
I have a new hobby (obsession) and it’s textiles. I’m not even sure how I got hooked. What motivated me? I think I was looking for a project that I could pick up or put down easily throughout the day or at odd times when you have to wait for something… and I wanted something creative that wasn’t too messy or cumbersome (like painting, or my bottle cap art, or clay…) I dunno, but I revisited it. Remember making potholders? This time it stuck. I love scarves! Why not try making my own?
I started with crochet last winter and am now teaching myself to knit. I’m going to attempt to document here on my blog what projects I’ve done, including links to the original patterns and notes on what I may have changed or learned. Here’s a list of what’s done to date. As I gather photos and info, I’ll come back to this page to update links to those published posts.
I’m not a millennial. I really don’t do much social media or take many selfies. I’ve grown up with the evolution of technology and use it daily for work, but I draw boundaries and seek balance. My escape and renewal comes from going out. Getting out and unplugging for a while. It fascinates and disheartens me that there’s a generation growing up without exposure to the outdoors.
While I appreciate our National Parks as ‘easy access’ for everyone to experience the outdoors, they remind me why I love to explore all of our other Public Land options: State Parks, National Forest, BLM, etc.—the usually less crowded options—the slightly wilder options. Our National Parks hold and protect some truly amazing landscapes, features and ecosystems. But look around you. There are some truly amazing places not too far from you. What’s there today could be gone tomorrow. Whether it’s from our impact, development, forest fires and natural disasters, or just the march of time; everything changes. Get out and go visit them before they change.
Now that it’s been a year since we visited, I’m finally getting around to writing about our Chaco vacation that I mentioned in my last post about my Chimney Rock Workshop. I thought about making this post a series like I did for our Utah trip, but I didn’t have nearly as many photos to share.
Google maps shows Chaco Culture National Historical Park about 3 hours from us. Between the speed of the bus and some of the back roads we took, I think it took us more like 4-5 hrs. We’d reserved our campsite online, so all we had to do was check-in, set-up to watch the sunset, and make dinner. The first big cold snap of the season was moving through, and it felt like we practically had the Park to ourselves.
Camping at Chaco Culture National Historical Park
Saturday, we set out with the intention to hike the Pueblo Alto Trail which overlooks much of the Park. What we didn’t count on was that the ‘entrance’ to the trail was a pretty steep, almost bouldering, stairway to the top that our dog, Pakak did not want to climb once she’d gotten a few feet up it. We climbed back down and altered our destination to one of the furthest outliers within the Park, the Peñasco Blanco Trail. We were rewarded with solitude, and able to wander and wonder through the Petroglyph Trail. Turning around at the Supernova Pictograph site, made for an almost 6 mile hike. After a rest, we walked around Pueblo del Arroyo and called it a day. Back at the campsite, we set to baking garlic knots and cinnamon rolls for dinner, and spent some quality time B.S.ing with the friendly, Park Ranger.
Hiking out to the Supernova Pictograph
Sunday we awoke to 19 degrees and the bus blasted with snow. The winds were something we knew would be a factor, but they sure did blow through our bones during most of the day. Later in the day, once the bus thawed out, we took her for a drive to warm up. Some rodent, maybe a kangaroo rat, had crept into the bus and stowed a bunch of the dog food into the heater pipe. It sounded like one of those childhood push-popper toys that kinda looks like a vacuum. It spit out dog food into the floorboard for miles, and the heater still smells like it. We braved the wind to visit Chetro Ketl and the most important and studied site in the canyon, Pueblo Bonito. I was in awe just by it’s size. The dusting of snow was a real treat, too, as it added a new dimension to the landscape’s shadows and highlights.
Monday, we packed up and headed towards Abiquiu. Needing a break from the cold, we planned to hole up and thaw out at the Abiquiu Inn. This pet-friendly Inn is our favorite stop whenever we find ourselves in this neighborhood. Their restaurant is quite tasty, too. Along the way, we found a road with great views to stretch our legs and romp around in the snow for a little while.
Rested, warm and bathed, we spent the next two nights on the Chama river. I’ve written about this spot before. It seems to stay pretty warm, and we basked like lizards in the sun for a few days.
Camping on the Chama River
Thursday we drove towards Taos, camping near Pilar in the Orilla Verde Area of the Rio Grande Gorge, which is a newly designated National Monument. Again, we were welcomed with solitude. After picking a site, we ran into town for dinner. The next day was spent rambling around Taos and finally meeting up with some friends who live there to crash on their couch. Saturday was the haul home with another great adventure (and our coldest camping yet) concluded.
