Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Old World Scarf


Knitting, crafting and baking are great hobbies. Although I sell some of my items I have not done anything so creative that I can make a living off these really fun activities. In other words...I am not giving up my day job. The great thing about my day job (besides the fact it is very rewarding and I love the people I work with) is that I get to travel to interesting places in and out of the Country.

Last September I had the opportunity to travel to Portugal. It was an incredible learning experience and I met people who have made a lasting impression on me. During one of our tours of Villa Real we started by a yarn store. Actually the group wandered by it and I of course wandered inside.

There were all sorts of yarn, on SALE! I could have stayed in there for hours looking touching smelling. Mind you I am sure that the store clerk thought I was a crazy American and the group I was with was trying to explain what a knitting freak I am to our tour guide. The big difference about the yarn was not what it was made of (or the incredibly cheap price) but that it was sold by weight, not by the skein but by the weight of what was picked out. I grabbed a navy blue bouclee yarn and one of the people I was travelling with picked out a white yarn with shreds of green ribbon weaved through it. This second skein had a purpose, to knit it into a scarf and put up for auction for the 4-H leaders association auction. It was actually chosen by our state specialist in charge of our volunteers, Harriett Edwards.

I must admit I stared at the yarn for a few months before trying to figure out what to do with it. After a few unsuccessful attempts at a scarf I finally got size 15 needles out and knitted from side to side (not end to end) a very long scarf. The purpose was to allow the person who wears it to wrap it and tie the scarf like they do in Portugal. Scarf wearing is very sheik there.

When the item came up for auction, I must admit I was tickled. I explained the story of the scarf and the bidding started. Usually I sell a scarf for $15. This one sold for $35 with a great story and pictures to go with it. The most important part is that the money raised went back to the North Carolina 4-H Volunteer Leaders Association to help support the incredible work they do in this state.

To learn more about our incredible trip to Portugal check out our blog we kept at http://www.4-hinportugal.blogspot.com/.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Burning it Up


Part of what I love about crafting is being able to put your heart into something and give it to someone else. My favorite is when it is something that they have looked at and commented how neat it is or when you just make something and surprise them.
On a recent trip to Lowes (where I should probably not be allowed to go because I see too many items I "need") I found an item on sale. Oval shaped pieces of red oak and poplar that I knew I could use (even if I wasn't sure how). After thinking on it, the inspiration and designs hit me. I took the center part of the North Carolina 4-H Centennial logo and designed an NC with the 4-H Clover in it and transferred the designs to the wood. I found my wood burning tool and quickly plugged it in slowly and carefully working my way around the designs. After sanding and touch up I decided the Centennial logo needed color so I started painting. When everything dried I went ahead and used some golden pecan stain to give it a little color. A little polyurethane on top and voila, two 4-H exclusive decorative pieces.
I took them to the North Carolina State 4-H Volunteer Leaders Conference and donated them to the county store. The store is one of three big fundraisers that the members of the North Carolina 4-H Volunteers Leaders' Association put together during this weekend event. They sold for $5.00 each, with the money going to a wonderful organization.