Craftsy, Here I Come!

For months, I've been seeing links to Craftsy, ads for Craftsy, people talking about how much they love Craftsy.  So I decided to check it out, and whaddaya know?  It's cool!  I think they had me hooked when I spotted the "Dipped, Dusted, and Rolled Handmade Chocolates" course.  A lot of the courses are too pricey for my budget -- and honestly, with my 3 little ones around, I don't have enough time for them -- but the workshops are definitely something I could get into.  And best of all, they have a pattern store that they are now allowing independent designers to add patterns to!

And guess what?  I'm an independent designer.  So my project for this long weekend is to get my patterns listed there.  Craftsy doesn't charge any fees for selling patterns through them, unlike Etsy and Ravelry (though I've yet to sell enough in a month on Ravelry to need to pay them).  And their interface is pretty easy for uploading and listing new things.

So if you haven't been to Craftsy yet, I recommend checking it out and seeing what you could learn.  And if you're already there, look me up :-)  Like everywhere else, you'll find me under the name Huggermugger.

Pumpkin Butter Twists

I made these for breakfast a couple weeks ago. They were delightful with my morning cup of coffee, and the kids liked them too. I got the recipe from the October 2011 issue of Taste of Home, but I've changed them up a bit, so I'm calling them "twists" instead of "pinwheels."

Pumpkin Butter Twists

Ingredients:

1 8-oz tube of crescent roll dough

3/4 cup pumpkin butter

1/2 cup pecans -- chopped (optional)

vanilla frosting (optional)

Directions:

Unroll the dough and form 4 rectangles by pinching the seams shut between two triangles, the long sides together. Spread liberally with pumpkin butter and sprinkle with chopped pecans, if desired. Roll up, starting with the short ends. Cut each roll in half. Slice halfway through each little roll. Twist each side one way or the other to form a sort of figure-eight. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Spread with vanilla frosting while still warm, if desired. Sprinkle with additional pecans if desired.

Makes 4 servings, two twists each.

Happy Valentine's Day!

An appropriate song from my favorite singer ever, Bobby Darin. Enjoy!

As Time Goes By

It's been almost a year since I blogged here last. I'm amazed anyone is still following here! Well, surprise, surprise -- I'm back!

The past year has been crazy busy. We bought a house and moved into it in August, about 6 months after our previous move. I'm still not unpacked. Why? Because I had a baby in December! The last time I blogged here, I didn't even know I was pregnant. Wow.

Due to the arrival of baby Abby, I considered closing my Etsy shop. Taking packages to the store with three kids in tow is daunting, for one thing. For another, I've been wanting to narrow the focus of my store for a while now. Or give it a focus for the first time, lol. A couple years ago, I mused in this post about whether or not having lots of different kinds of items in my shop was good or not. I've decided to try selling only my original crochet patterns. No journals, no canteens, no ready-made crocheted items. Just patterns. So far, it's been working well! I've added several new patterns recently, and am working on lots more. Stay tuned here for details, because I plan to keep this blog going once again :-)

To close, here's one of my new patterns, modeled by my new baby:

Curried Turkey Burritos

This is a yummy variation on an old standby. There's just enough curry in it to give it a distinctive taste, but not so much that it overwhelms the other flavors. If you don't like "hot" dishes, you can use a mild salsa and it won't have much heat at all. It's a quick, easy recipe too, perfect for those days when you don't have much time or energy.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked turkey pieces
1/3 cup onion -- chopped
1 can black beans
1 cup salsa
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese
Tortillas

Directions:

In a large skillet, mix everything but cheese and tortillas. Heat to boiling; reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add cheese and stir until melted. Wrap in tortillas.

Featured on the CAST blog

This weekend, a set of my wooden word ornaments was featured here on the CAST blog!


CAST stands for Christian Artists Street Team, a group of Etsians who publicly profess their faith in Christ as our savior.

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you: not as the world gives, give I to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27.

Back. Again.

Since the last time I blogged, we've moved, we're mostly unpacked, and I'm starting to get back into crafting. At last! Which means I'm also getting back to my blog :-)

I just listed this sweet hat in my shop:


It's a 6-12 month hat I made from 100% merino wool. Divinely soft! And I love the happy, springy colors, don't you?

Here's my current project:


Yes, I'm knitting! Crazy, I know. I realized I'd pretty much forgotten the little I'd learned about knitting, so I decided to jog my memory and use up a bit of left-over yarn and make something small for Mercy -- I was thinking a Barbie blanket for her to play with when she's older, but I think I'm going to run out of yarn before I make a whole blanket, so it'll be more like a Barbie throw or rug or something. But again, don't you love these colors? Bright and cheery, and I love them!

And finally, my friend Julie from This Cosy Life gave me this gorgeous yarn as an early birthday gift:


It's hand-dyed cotton chenille from Etsy shop Crochet 4 U 2 Dye 4. I'm going to make Mercy a sun hat from it as soon as I finish my little knitting project. Fun, fun, fun!