Take a Creativity Break

One of my favorite computer applications as a kid was the old staple, Microsoft Paint. It's still around, but I imagine it doesn't get used much these days. When Kid Pix came out, I was instantly hooked. Like Paint, the point was to make pictures, this time with all kinds of fun effects like stamps and sounds and animation thrown in. What fun it was to get lost in colors, creating patterns, drawing worlds, and expressing our natural creativity, all without the mess! Fast forward many years, and all of this fun came back to me when I stumbled upon a really fun site called bomomo.com. It's all random, colorful, interesting effects that you have only partial control over. Need a really quick creativity break? This is your site.

I just whipped this one up in a minute or so, using one of the 20 effects. If you try it out, I used the bouncing circle button, third button from the left, bottom row. You can easily make a picture that's at least as good as your computer's screen savers or abstract wallpapers ;-) Heck, make your own, save them, and use them as your screen savers and wallpapers! Have fun!

Update: Did this one after spending the afternoon cooking. I'm making South Indian food tonight: dosas with masala potato filling, sambar (spicy lentil soup) and coconut chutney. Actually, the colors of this painting are the colors of dinner, hahaha!

Crochet is Fun, Charlie Brown!

Wanting a big of a change from knitting, I found the cutest Snoopy toy pattern to crochet! I'll post links to the free pattern at the bottom. I'm getting a bit more comfortable with crochet, and I love how quickly toys like this work up. Plus, the cuteness is just irresistible! The pattern didn't include a tail for Snoopy, so I improvised one myself.

Pattern: Part 1   Part 2    Part 3

January

January just seems to drag on and on, doesn't it? This January especially has been particularly brutal for many of us who are experiencing more snow and colder temperatures than we normally get. The heater is really working overtime to keep the apartment warm! I wish I could say that during these long, cold weeks I've been busy at work on some magnificent project that I'm about to reveal, but that's not the case, unfortunately. I've been picking away at a few projects, doing a little here, a little there, but I haven't really felt my usual sense of urgency to finish anything. However, still wanting a finished project to share, I give you Hammy, a little amigurumi hamster I made recently.

I guess I've just been absorbed in other things lately. I've been teaching a friend how to knit, which is fun. I always bring my own knitting along but usually don't make much progress on my own things during those knitting sessions. That's OK though! Anyway, I just thought I'd share something, anything, because it's been a while, hasn't it? Take care, and let's all survive this awful winter with our sanity and frosty fingers intact!

Food for the Soul

I think that making things with your own two hands is good for the soul. We are all consumers, but to be able to also become a producer for yourself, and for others, gives more satisfaction than buying something off the shelf. Now, I'm *definitely* not saying we should all just go live off the land, go back to nature, make everything ourselves from scratch... I'm just saying that when you do that in small ways, when time permits, it's a good thing. Tonight we're having a pre-made dinner of brown lentils flavored with garlic, cumin and cardamom, and a veggie- tofu mix in spiced coconut milk. Yum! Instead of just opening the packets and heating them up with say, some rice, for dinner, I decided to make some homemade Indian flatbreads to have with it, called parathas. My friend Rupali showed me how to make them a few weeks ago, and I've been wanting to make them for myself. They're easy to make.

All you do it mix flour, a little salt, and enough water to make it into dough. Knead it well. Divide into about golf ball sized pieces. Roll out into a thin, flat round. Brush on a little bit of vegetable oil. Fold it in half, then fold in half again. Now, roll it out again into a thin, flat round. Brush on a little more oil. Place in a hot (over medium heat) frying pan, oil side down. Brush on a little oil on the dry side. Once it starts to puff up nicely, flip it. Let it puff up and cook for maybe another minute. It's done. Yummy! The oil will keep it from drying out before you eat it.

Leftovers

I haven't really felt like tackling any big knitting projects, so I thought this was a good opportunity to use up my leftover sock yarn and make some fingerless gloves.

I'd give it two thumbs up, but since I've only completed the one glove, that's all it gets.