Check-In Post - Sept 15th 2025

[badly_knitted]

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.

Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.


This Week's Question: Share your favourite crafting tip, if you have one.


If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Comments

[badly_knitted]

Another 4 pairs of arm warmers sewn up! That leaves 3 to do, and I've pinned the next pair so it's ready.

[wiseheart]

I've finished the back covers today and finally remembered to take photos of the bedrooms. All related pictures can be viewed here, but I'll show a few of them in this comment.

These are the respective bedrooms:



And these are the respective back covers:



On Pinterest, there are pics of the individual pages. As for the animals on the back cover, they're fixed with Velcro spots and so is the sun. They can be removed, exchanged with each other and so on. The bird house door can be opened, revealing a bird sitting on her eggs within.

I've also made two dozen surprise boxes, out of empty toilet rolls. 24 are not enough by far, these little things are very popular at the fair, but I've run out of small things to put into them. I'll have to reach out to friends to collect small items for me.

[wiseheart]

I bet you'll be happy when they're all sewn up. :)

[badly_knitted]

They look super! I love all the movable elements and the opening birdhouses!

Well done with the surprise boxes too.

[badly_knitted]

Oh, I really will! It's so tedious! I'll have to find something different to knit this year while watching Strictly Come Dancing, because I really don't need MORE arm warmers. I still have a pair to finish though, so that will have too be done.

[yarnandglue]

Oh wow, these are so detailed! Wonderful work!

[merrileemakes]

These are so adorable! I love the back pages with all the moveable elements.

[fadingfootsteps]

three retries turned into five. I could've ignored the last time because instead of a real structural issue I *had* to rework it was just aesthetically not what it was supposed to be, but it pissed me off too bad to leave it which is 100% on me for creating the work at that point.

Anyways. I"m taking a break to spend some time not being mad at it for a bit. Hopefully when I return I can finish and keep rows 48 & 47.

[spiralicious]

The last week was long.

Making cards with Lynne: Last Monday card making was a little tedious. Unfortunately, the only card kit I had prepped was too complicated for what Lynne was up to that day. The weather didn't help. She sort of shuts down if it's not sunny. The next day was her birthday and her family came down to visit and wanted to have a chat with me. They were very appreciative of the help I've been giving, which was a nice change.

Today went better. It was sunny and I'd managed to design simpler cards. Lynne was also very distracted because her family is still in town and the handyman was there, so just kind of action everywhere. I was also able to partially design three more card kits, so a little less stress there.

Knitting:
I finished the last two charts of the lace sampler. I need to block it, but it's otherwise done.

I've started a cable hat from the same workbook. It was technically supposed to be done before the lace projects, but I didn't have the yarn for it at the time. So far, I've done the brim and three cable pattern repeats on the first half.

The tangled yarn continues to mock me.

Other stuff:
I took a mosaic tile workshop at the library Saturday morning. The patterns we were making are from video games. I made a green mushroom from Super Mario. Next week is the other half of the workshop. I'm not sure what those of us who finished gluing our patterns down will be doing next week.

Saturday evening was the open house for the exhibit of the paintings from the art contest. It went well. There was a slow, but steady trickle of people to come see the art. The snacks were excellent.

I also signed up for Spook Me and brainstomed with a friend what to do for the OT3 writing challenge at the froday comm. (I didn't land on plot, but things are percolating.)

There is more, but that's what I can remember.

[spiralicious]

Excellent!

[spiralicious]

The books are adorable! Well done.

Nice work on the surprise boxes as well. Hope you can collect some more small things for them.

[spiralicious]

Sometimes taking a break from a project is the best thing for you and the project.

[malurette]

Plaid lining is going its slow, careful way.
I should start knitting that scarf from my friend's birthday (coming up in two weeks, that's enough time but I need to hurry a bit) but first I have to go buy yarn and it has to wait until tomorrow afternoon. Bah!

[badly_knitted]

That must have been incredibly frustrating! Taking a break sounds like a good idea.

[badly_knitted]

Glad you're still managing the cards with Lynne.

Great progress with the sampler and the hat. Is this your first try at cabling? I love cables, they're so much fun.

The mushroom mosaic sounds fun, and glad the exhibit is getting visitors.

I'm signed for spook_me too - love that fest. I signed for three monsters though, I cannot help myself. I usually only manage to get one written because they wind up being epics, lol!

[badly_knitted]

That's a lot you need to do! Good luck with both the scarf and the plaid!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! It's a struggle, but I'm persevering!

[wiseheart]

At least I'm a step further towards my respective goals.

[wiseheart]

Thank you so much! :)

[wiseheart]

Thanks. Moveable elements are important for an interactive book, but they can be a b*tch to sew. *g*

[wiseheart]

So do I. They're always the biggest hit at the fair among the younger children. I need a lot of them.

[wiseheart]

Wow, you had an eventful week! I'm duly impressed. The mosaic tile workshop sound really interesting. I hope you'll find something to do for the other half.

[spiralicious]

I did! Thanks. I'm sure they'll come up with something for us, as I think all but one or two of us finished gluing things down the first session. The designs were on the smaller side. If not, the library is also having an all day learn how to use the new button maker demo on the same day.

[spiralicious]

My fingers are crossed!

[spiralicious]

*\o/*

[spiralicious]

Thanks x2! I've done a few things with cables now, mostly sample swatches and a couple different scarves. I started a cable blanket back in February, but I've set it aside for awhile because I'd like to finish my way through the knitting workbook I've been working on by the end of the year. I really like cables though and am looking forward to getting back to my blanket.

It was! Even if I was the only adult. (I was not expecting that.) Yeah. There will be another open house for it in October, but I think I will be out of town that weekend.

I signed up for three monsters too! Hehe, I remember how last year's got away from you.

[badly_knitted]

I think cables are one of my favourite things in knitting. There are so many different kinds.

Adults deserve to have fun too!

Last year's ended up so massive! That blasted pumpkin monster!

[spiralicious]

They are so fun :)

Yes!

It did!

[badly_knitted]

One of the most versatile stitches.

I've started my second spook_me fic! Not sure if I can get it finished in time, but I hope to work on it a bit this afternoon. What I've written so far involves a lot of introducing the characters so people who don't know the fandom will understand enough about the situation they're in. Next I need to introduce the monster, and set up monster Vs travellers. o_O

[spiralicious]

Woohoo! Good luck! I have faith in you!

[badly_knitted]

Thanks! Hoping to work on it some more today, but I'm feeling a bit crap, so... I do have the monster introduced though, so I'll read through that part and see if I can work out where I'm going.

[spiralicious]

Sounds like a good plan.

[badly_knitted]

I did get more than 500 words added today...

I need to figure out screen capture so I can make some rudimentary fandom icons...