How do you say "It's Gon Rain!" in Russian?

This past week i had to say good bye to my assisant. She found another position and i hope her the best, but i will miss her. Fun fact, she's afraid of butterflies. Weird, right?

So this one goes out to her...

I love fun facts. It always great to throw one out when a conversation starts to dwindle. Here are a few:

• The oldest known animal in the world was 'Ming' the 405 year old clam, discovered in 2007.
• If you eat lots of carrots, you'll start to turn orange.
• SCUBA divers cannot pass gas at depths of 33 feet or below.
• Tipping at a restaurant in Iceland is considered an insult.
• Moscow weathermen can be fined for inaccurate weather forecasting!

That last one hits home hard. I had to cancel an outdoor event for work a few weekends back because the forecast was rain, but it ended up being a beautiful day! KHAAAAAN!
Fun facts courtesy of FunFactz.com
PS. "It's gon rain" in Russian is его движение идти дождь

Knitting me up some Foghorn Leghorn

Technology, I say, technology is amazing. It really is. We have cell phones that are mini computers. Laptops that can unlock your computer by finger print, and the XBOX Kinect that will obey your every command except "KILL!"
Technology has even found its way into knitting. Did you know that you can take a photograph, process it through an image-to-pattern generator and voila, you have a pattern to create that same picture into a knitting or crochet project. For example... through KnitPro 2.0 i took a picture of Foghorn Leghorn and put it through the generator.

The generator takes the pictures and basically pixelizes the picture while putting it into a chart. So now you can buy the colors of yarn necessary to replicate the picture. Its not a  perfect copy of the photo but it gives you an idea of how to make the pattern work. This program would probably work best with solid color project with a photo that doesn't have a lot of detail. Like a heart, daisy... bird... unicorn! Charlie, lets go to Candy Mountain!

Sorry, back to reality. I have not used these generators yet but i do plan to try them out. Starting with simpler photos and then working my way up to Foghorn Leghorn!

Here are a few other sites i found after doing a quick search for free or downloadable image-to-pattern generators.

KPG

KnitPro 2.0

Knit Pattern Generator 0.3

Rainy day projects

So Cute!

On rainy days like today, i like to catch up on my DVR shows and Netflix movies. oh yeah, and needle projects! Need a project? Keep yourself busy with one skein. They usually don't take more than a few hours to a day to finish them. Perfect for a rainy day! You can find free patterns on Raverly.com. Register at the website and have access unlimited patterns. Some are free (awesome!) and some you have to purchase.
Here are a few other websites that have free one skein patterns...
OneSkeinWonders.com
TheCraftiblog
Tangle
Reliquary Arts- really cool one skein shoe rug

Finally, here is my nerd reference... rainy days make me think of an episode from Sailor Moon where Sailor Jupiter was dumped by her boyfriend on a rainy day. Click here to listen to the song from that episode.

My Mom can kick your Mom's ass!

Mom is the best. Nobody can beat her. So don't even try!
Why is it that moms are so kick ass? Mom can always do it better than anyone else.
I could make the same sandwich. Same ingredients, same method. But when Mom makes it, its just better. She's got that special touch that can take your ordinary plain sandwich and make it into the best thing you've ever eaten. Heating canned soup is ten times better when Mom does it.
When you get sick, Mom makes you feel better.
What is it? Is it a super power that develops after giving birth? A genetic mutation that makes everything better after she touches it?
I wonder if i can acquire this same super power after i have my first child.
If my mom was a super hero, her name would be "The Lunch Lady Liberator"!
If you are looking for some great gifts for mom or if you want to sweet talk your mom into making something for you... here is a link for Crochet Patter Central Afghans. There are a ton of patterns. This reminds me of my mom because she's wicked into blankets! And pantoufles!
A few more Super Hero names for my mom: "Madame Maple", "The Beauce Bionic Woman", "Because I Said So Crusader"!
Come back for the Father's Day edition, when I talk about how dad can fix anything except the VCR player. (Yes, i know i'm dating myself)

Someday my prince will come!

So a lot happened this past weekend...
The Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, Donald Trump got put in his place at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, and Well Golly Gee Willikers... Osama Bin Laden is dead!
Where do we go from here?
I know, back to the first event, The Royal Wedding, because that was my original topic for this blog before Bin Laden made his exit.
Kate, now the Duchess of Cambridge, looked beautiful in her designer gown, fashioned with lace sleeves.

Shrug

Which got me thinking about wedding accessories. There are many options for knit/crochet items to add to your wedding. Traditional shawls, purses, hair accessories, garter belts, etc.
There are even great items for the guys. Try knit bow-ties for the groom and grooms men.

Tying the Knot
By Linda Permann

You can find any of these items for purchase on Etsy.com. Its a great site to find handmade and vintage items or supplies.
Do you have any fun and new ideas for handmade wedding accessories? Please share by posting your comments.