Tutorial: message in a bottle necklaces

It's been a while since a good ole' tutorial, hasn't it?
Blogging is semi productive and therefore gives me an excuse to have a break from studying for midterms. After this, it's back to the salt mines. So my brain's broken right now. Hi.
Anyway, I'll shut up. You're hear for the bottle necklaces, aren't you?
Over Thanksgiving Break when we visited the Meteor Crater, I picked up some weird little souvenirs. They are these mini glass bottles filled with semiprecious stones that I don't actually think are found at the Meteor Crater. But they were cute, if strange, and I knew that I could easily make them necklaces. Necklaces are always more appreciated by your friends. "I brought you back a necklace" sounds a lot better than "I brought you back a souvenir bottle filled with rose quartz." Here we go! Also, if you randomly found little glass bottles you could make them real message in a bottle necklaces, but again...."rocks in a bottle" doesn't sound as catchy.

Look at my pretty necklace....

stuff you need: 
-one (or ten, I think the cashier thought I was insane) little glass bottles filled with pretty rocks
-scissors
-thread (three colors)
-needle

huzzah! easy-peasy.
Let's get started.

Step 1: Cut your 3 colors of thread as long as you want--allow extra room for tying the ends together so you don't end up with a choker. Since necks come in all different sizes, it's best to try the length on the recipient.

Step 2: Thread the needle with your three colors. This part sucks. I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do about it except mumble sympathetically as you poke yourself with a needle for the umpteenth time.

Step 3: Release your pent-up frustration and stab viciously at the bottle's cork so that the needle goes through it from one side to the other. Make sure not to break your cork in the process. Also make sure the line is reasonably straight and not too close to the surface, otherwise be prepared for the bottle to break free at the most inconvenient time.

 Step 4: Remove the needle. Tie the ends together. Double-knot them. Triple knot them to be sure. Try it on to make sure the thing will still fit over your head.

Step 5: Cut off excess thread, wear or gift, feel fashionable. Or, if you're me, rinse and repeat. Feel satisfied that you are doing a productive thing while simultaneously procrastinating.

My pretties....

 Happy holidays!
<3 Maggie


P.S. iPod cameras suck. Back to the real camera.

Save the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus!

....I have no idea where that came from and am a little disturbed that it's appearing on my title suggestions. Listen up, guys. We have to save the endangered tree octopus. IT'S ALL UP TO US.
In other news, midterms are coming so instead of a post you get pictures from my vacation. Enjoy. (I have a crafty thang all lined up but the pics are on my iPod. By the way, IPODS HAVE CAMERAS. I mean, I knew that, but I didn't connect it with blogging. Way easier than photobooth for the crappy-quality pictures you so desire. The things I do to avoid finding the connecter cord for my real camera).

This is Terrible's Gas. I made jokes about it until my mom told me that if she heard one more word about my terrible gas she'd leave me by the side of the road.

This is the London Bridge (for real). Some rich dude brought it over from England and....I kid you not....created a lake around it and made it a tourist attraction.

I told you I wasn't lying. That there's a bona fide lake.

This is the kitschy town they built around the London Bridge, because of course this is what London looks like.

I love it anyway. Is that wrong?

This is my stalker. I swear he followed me the whole trip.

This here is one Meteor Crater. For real. It's legit, guys.

This is the Grand Canyon. Isn't it pretty?

This is us at the Grand Canyon. Aren't we having fun?

There was Snow. And yes, I took a picture. I have no shame.

The weird things you can find in the desert.
How was your vacation? 
<3 Maggie

dear Jane,

If you are Jane you are not allowed to read this until tomorrow. I'm watching you.  You know what? Go ahead and read it. Get excited!


Do you remember that post way back in August? Well, guess what?

HAPPY THANKSGIVABIRTHDACHRISTMAS!!!!!


I finished your gloves. I knit them as we were driving through Arizona. Those gloves picked up a little Grand Canyon juju for you, some kitschy Meteor Crater magic, and they also saw a place called Terrible's Gas (I knew you would appreciate that). To model them I tried to replicate your famous poses, but you know nobody can model like you so I'll have to get a picture when I see you tomorrow.

 When I met you in seventh grade, I was afraid. When we were friends in eighth grade, can I admit something? I was actually still afraid because you are the total opposite of Miss Knee Length Skirt over here. Thanks for that. I can't imagine life without my hip, emo friend who can punk out a polo shirt, listen to music way too loud (don't you know that hurts your eardrums? I am ashamed of you, young lady), talk about the weirdest things until 3 a.m. and still get straight A's the next day. You are the Queen of Awesome.
Thanks for encouraging me to be just a little bit sassy.

Sassy yet?

Yarn: Lion Brand something-or-other I pilfered from knitting club. Pattern: Alice Wrist Warmers that I modified because my yarn was the wrong gauge and I wanted them shorter. That's right, your gloves are inspired by Twilight. 


Get out there and rule the world, you little hipster.
Love, Maggie

The Reward System

Hey guys! Sorry for not posting for a while. I was getting so good at it too. Pride goes before a fall, I suppose.
I have a little reward system. For instance, when I finish some homework I usually give myself a little treat. A cup of tea, some knitting, five minutes on the internet (Warning: this can mutate into "five hours talking to people on the internet and then its midnight and you don't care about finding x anymore"). On bad days I struggle with the temptation to give myself a square of chocolate after every math problem (that's a lot of chocolate). Usually it works because I do more productive things so I can earn more rewards and eat more chocolate. But sometimes it backfires and I feel rebellious and think, I wrote my name and that is productive. Screw it. I do what I want. And that's what happened with blogging. I posted and felt good about myself and since it was a post that had actual things in it I felt even better and now wham, bam, thank you mam. I did eat chocolate though. And go on the internet for five hours. It was fun.
In other news, the other reason I haven't been posting is that I'm writing a novel. For nanowrimo. No, it's not because of this blog. Are you kidding? That only happens to people like Hyperbole and a Half.
In other knitting news? I'm making rainbow socks (I know. More socks). Expect pictures soon.

edit: Actually? Expect pictures now.

This is my living room and not my bathroom. I know that sounds weird but its a preemptive strike. People have thought pictures like this were taken from my bathroom. I don't know why. Do you see a toilet anywhere? (Good. I made sure not to get that in the frame). 

This is probably super random by now, but I like to think of it as "The mind of a hyperactive three-year-old inside a bomb-sexy woman"

<3 Maggie

Things Finished

Thing One: The long-awaited socks! (They were actually finished a while ago but.....well....I'm lazy. You knew that already)

FIRST SOCKS IN THE HOUSE!

Thing Two: A hapless seventh grader I accidentally gave a preview of ninth grade health to, since she was in the room with me when I triumphantly pulled my math homework out of my bag.....and discovered it was a sheet on how to do a self breast exam.


Thing Three: Another green sock. These socks have a story behind them, but I'll tell you later. That's right. You'll just have to come back and see. Now is not the time, young jedi.

Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers color "Dark Spruce", Pattern: basic sock in worsted weight yarn

Thing Four: The Noro beanie! Whew, this thing flew (I finished it a few days ago too). I swear I only knit on it for four days during class and bam! A hat.

Yarn: 1 skein Noro Silk Garden color 84, pattern found here

Thing Five: My delusions of grace and romance. I'm not a klutz.....why do you ask? Those Disney princesses just set the bar way too high.

<3 Maggie

Halloween and Weird Random Stuff

Yesterday was Halloween. I dressed up as a crazy cat lady (easy, I had everything already since I am one in real life) and convinced my non-trick-or-treating friend to go trick-our treating with me.
Carly, Ana and Ana's friend Allie (Taokaka, Inigo Montoya, dinosaur?) were also there. That might have helped, since his other option was to stay home alone watching the Lovely Bones while all the girls went off into the night without him. I think he made the right choice.
Tons o' fun :D
I forgot what I was going to say, but it was clever.
Oh yeah. While we were out trick-or-treating everyone else thought we were hooligans. Mothers would hustle their widdle baby toddlers away from us as we passed, saying in hushed tones "watch out for the teenagers, sweetheart."
I told one of them, "we won't bite." she glared at me suspiciously and started walking quickly in the opposite direction.
So much for that.
Now I am home, struck down with some weird cold thing and lacking the energy to do anything but stare at the wall, knit, and surf the internet.
At least I have candy (and a tube of toothpaste.....funny, there didn't seem to be a lot of people lined up for that house).

Green Overload

Greetings, earthlings. Right now I could just as well be a martian, since apparently the only color I wish to knit is green. I finished green socks (they're out of state right now and can't take a photo), but I've been knitting a green feather and fan scarf in secret.....only during school, so it's still not done. That has been dragging on for weeks. Maybe I'll even take a picture of it soon.  Anyway, my wonderful father and grandfather gave me the best birthday present one can give to a knitter....a pick-yer-own-yarnfest. I go to the yarn sale and what do I get? MORE GREEN YARN. (It's very pretty green yarn, Cascade 220 in "Dark Spruce", but that's beside the point. It's green). I want to make that Patons Cable Cardigan with it but there is a limit to how much green I can stand.....
So friends, you'll surely not judge me for being won over by some Noro and starting a hat.

Yarn is color 84, beanie pattern can be found here, and I take back anything I've ever said about Noro yarns. It's gorgeous and more importantly, its not green. 

 I'm sure I'll be back to green things soon .
oh, and happy Halloween everyone!
<3 Maggie