so, what are you working on? /  by jen geigley

I don't know what it is about the new year that does this to me every time, but now that it's January I feel like I want to do everything. All of the things. I want to start a million projects. I want to clean out my closet. I want to knit 9 different sweaters. (Have you seen my Ravelry queue? 252 projects. Not exaggerating.) At least my enthusiasm has been a little bit productive. I'm excited to share some new finished projects in the next couple of days. I've been knitting with some crazy good Wool and the Gang yarn. I'm obsessed with it lately. And I've been working on two patterns from Island, the fantastic new book by Jane Richmond. Oh my. That book is delicious. She so kindly invited me to be a part of her blog tour for this new book, so she sent me a copy and I could not wait to dive in and make something right away. I have already made Arbutus and Refrew. Be sure to check back for a chance to win your own gorgeous copy of Island and to see how my projects turned out this Thursday, January 24th, for my little stop on the blog tour. So excited! (So what are you working on right now?)

knits from friends /  by jen geigley

Sometimes if you're lucky, you accumulate a number of dear friends as you make your way through life. They might live next door to you, or in the same city as you, or across the ocean from you. If you're really lucky, your sweet friends will knit things for your baby and you'll get to dress him up and marvel at how cute he is in his handmade wardrobe. It is fun.
I blogged about some of our hand-knits from friends awhile ago during the newborn days, but here's a new group of things that fit right now. My good friend Amy knit these awesome stripey pants (and I think she made the onesie, too!) Amy is a mom friend, but more. She has three boys close to Lo's age and we have been friends since they were babies. Amy also taught me how to knit! She's a good one.
These pants are perfection, especially now that it's been pretty cold around here.
  And they have a drawstring, so they fit perfectly around the waist.
I know! Adorable. I love them. I want some for myself.
This little blue hoodie is from my fantastically knitty next-door neighbor, Jan. It's one thing to have a good neighbor, but it's even better when that neighbor knits! She is not only really talented, but she sometimes invites me over to see if I want anything out of her yarn stash. And there may have been times when we have compared finished knitting projects outside on our driveway. Ha.
 This sweater is so soft and warm and comfortable and I love that little red button.
I love it – so perfect for everyday. I have to hunt down the photo, but neighbor knitter Jan also made a tiny angora sweater for Lotus that she wore during her first Christmas. Jan is the person who made me want to learn to knit.
Well, hey now ... socks! This awesome fair isle pair came from my lovely and creative friend Kim, all the way from London. Kim and I used to do all kinds of crazy long-distance crafting. (If you want to see the fun things we did, check out Work Your Soul.) I found her through scooter/Vespa forums and we became modern-day pen-pals.
She surprised me with these fantastically cool socks in the mail when Bowie was a tiny newborn. (Now check out those chunky thighs!)
 His feet are small but he's finally growing into these, just in time for our coldest winter days yet.
I think he loves all of his special hand-knits. From our fellow mom-friend, our next-door neighbor friend, and our craft friend overseas. Thank you for taking the time to make something special for this kid.

EOTS /  by jen geigley

 
If you're not totally elfed out this season, here's what our friend has been doing at our house the past couple of weeks. (He's obviously a skater.)
 
He brought us a gingerbread house kit to work on. (He got it at JoAnn's with his 40% off coupon.)
Then, he was nice enough to build the gingerbread house and let it dry overnight so we could skip ahead to the decorating. He also made a tiny flat roof house out of graham crackers. And collected all of the leftover candy that we had hoarded from Easter and 4th of July parades.
 
He loves Vespas.
 He drinks syrup.
He has marshmallow snowball fights with his elfin friends.
He dug out a pile of Christmas books to read under the tree.
And he brought the kids elf pajamas. From Old Navy. I mean ... the North Pole. That I made them wear to the mall when we visited Santa.
 He brought Lo some craft supplies and made a banner.
 And he brought us a Santa spatula and snowflake cookie cutter so we could make cookies.
 And some candy canes!
 He got Lo's skates ready to go on the morning of her Girl Scout ice skating party.
 And he was cold one night, so he wrapped himself in toilet paper.

So that's what he's been doing. I have to admit, I'm a little bit elfed out. But it is fun. Only a few days left! Are you running out of ideas? ;)

Santa 2012 /  by jen geigley

Bowie was like 'Get me outta here.' Lo said that this was the first and last time she would be wearing pajamas to the mall. I'm already fairly certain that these will be my favorite Santa photos of all time.

The Dollyrots /  by jen geigley

I had the pleasure of hanging out with The Dollyrots a couple of months ago at Bombay Bicycle Club, and they're kind of my new favorite. Kelly is super cool and friendly; we talked about music and her dog and our hair. (!)
You might have heard their song 'Because I'm Awesome' on the trailer for the Disney/Pixar movie 'Brave.' And they just recorded a holiday version of that song; listen to it here or download it for free right here. Free Christmas music. And that's awesome.

for the dudes: holiday gift guide /  by jen geigley



I grew up in a small Iowa town where there was a men's store. Not a department store, but a locally-owned shop called Wilson's. (Actually, a lot of people just called it 'The Men's Store.') It was where I would happily tag along with my mom to find my dad's next suit. I remember how it smelled and how I'd feel the sleeves of each of the sport coats ... gray, navy, black and brown. They knew what size my dad wore and if ten-year-old me walked in with a $20 bill in hand, looking for my dad's next birthday gift, they would happily show me wallets, ties, belts and dress shirts that they knew my dad would like. It was a pretty neat place.

The cool thing is ... a place just like that still exists. And that place is Badowers, right here in Des Moines. The fine fellows at Badowers have put together a fantastic holiday gift guide for your favorite fellow. Perfect for your boyfriend, husband, brother ... or your dad. And check out that great video by my talented pal Garrett Cornelison. Great stuff, guys!
Badowers 2012 Holiday Gift Guide

Clockwise from top left:

december daily /  by jen geigley

Last month, my lovely Jamaica sent me this fantastic kelly green acrylic album kit for my December Daily/Journal Your Christmas book. (See past years' books here, here, here, here, here, here or here.)
The book covers are square and perfect, so I decided to back it with a bright acid green piece of cardstock with a tab. And then I cut up a calendar to make 12 pages. I'm already super behind on putting this together this year, but I do have a ton of pics ... and a plan.  ;)

mini /  by jen geigley

Oh wow, I know I talk about them all of the time but ... Moop! This is their new Paperback Mini. I mean, seriously. This bag looks like it would be the perfect size to carry every day (and night) of the week. The leather strap is adjustable and removable so you can carry it cross body like a small messenger bag or as a clutch. Perfect. Find them here. And! Enter happyday at checkout for free domestic US shipping. Sweet.

our EOTS /  by jen geigley

This is our first year doing the Elf on the Shelf thing. I love Christmas. I really really love it. So any little dorky thing I can do to make my kids laugh or smile is super fun for me. This is our elf, Buddy.
On December 1st, we read the Elf on the Shelf book and suddenly there was a knock on the door. We ran outside to see who it could be.
And there he was, sitting by our giant gnome, patiently waiting to be found. I brought him inside, which is probably against the rules. But someone had to pick him up.
On the morning of December 2nd, he made himself some breakfast. And a huge mess on our counter top. Lo didn't want him to feel too bad about it so she wrote him a note that said 'that mess you made is okay.'
On December 3rd, he brought his own blanket from home and Crumb Sugar Cookie let him sleep on her couch under the Christmas tree. Which was super nice of her.
On December 4th, Buddy helped us decorate the house.
Lo was worried that he might get a headache from hanging upside down, so she was relieved that later in the day he was back on the shelf above the fireplace.
On December 6th, Buddy knit himself a scarf! He's a really good knitter.
And today, December 6th, marks Lo's debut in The Nutcracker. So Buddy made himself a tutu and surprised her with flowers. He also wrote her a note that said 'break a leg!' 

That sums up the fun we've had with EOTS so far ... what is your elf up to?