Handmade Knitting Needles

Today's adventure was to create my own knitting needles. I purchased a wooden dowel at a local craft store for less than 1 dollar. I divided it into 4 equal pieces, cut them with a pair of garden shears and then sharpened the ends in a pencil sharpener.

Finished acorn capped needles

Then I played with some polymer clay and a few acorn tops I had left over from my felted acorn project. A rolled a few balls of clay and stuffed them into the acorn cap. Then I pushed the needle into the cap/clay and reworked the clay shape (ever so slightly!).

blurry close up of pink & green acorns!

After pre-heating the oven, I baked them for a little over 15 minutes - caps, clay and dowel.

a little more natural then the pink/green!

After they cooled I took a little wax paper and bees wax to smooth the dowel/needles. I also popped off the acorn top and added a little glue...just in case.

Now...what should I knit?!

Grounds For Sculpture

Last night I braved the cold and headed to Grounds For Sculpture near Princeton, NJ. I have wanted to visit this sculpture garden and the Winter Wonder Light Exhibition seemed like the perfect way to begin the holiday season.

cold???

My daughter Kelly, her friend Julia and I bundled up in warm clothing and headed north. It was freezing and we even had a few flurries but my heart was warmed when I had the opportunity to meet up with a dear friend, Val and her lovely daughter Caelyn.

Scream???

The 5 of us braved the elements (and foot traffic) and walked the gardens, visited the museums warmed up in The Warming Hut and posed with a Seward Johnson couple!

The evening was fun...until Val realized she had to drive 4 hours home!!

"Oh no...I have to drive home!"

Bring on the holidays!!