Scarf Season

Praise the Lamb it is scarf season again!

 

Hales expressed her deep love for crocheting with her post on making a Mason Jar Cozy...personally I usually gravitate towards making scarves.

 

 (Occasionally I will attempt a hat however I think that the general consensus should be that I stick to scarves for now!!)

 

Recently I went home for the weekend and found some gorgeous yarn when I was out shopping with my mom. I had one of those moments where I saw the yarn and with no hesitations I grabbed two skeins and accepted that they would very soon become a scarf.  

 

 

(Yarn is from Michaels/Loops & Threads/Stone)

 

Last year I made this scarf, but I have a few bones to pick with it.

  

 First I way overestimated the length so I have to wrap it three times if I want it to be functional in actually keeping me warm. Functionality is a must on my list when buying and making scarves. When I walk across campus is freezing temperatures I want thick wool and warmth!

 

Second is that the stitch (I call it the heart stich I am not one for actually knowing real names) I used makes the scarf really thick, which is nice but heavy!! I believe I used three skeins of yarn when I made this one...  

 

Lastly, I have decided that I have made enough infinity or round scarfs.

Yes they have a time and place where they are wonderful, but they are not as versatile as the classic tassel ended scarf. I am calling it now the tassel scarf is making a comeback.

(Not that it ever could have gone out of style, just briefly overshadowed.) 

 

I took my previous mistakes in to consideration when dreaming up this scarf.

 I liked the stitch I used previously but I only did half the width in that stich and double crotched the other half. 

 

[I watched some videos by SimplyHookedCrochet to learn the first stich. I would highly recommend watching some of her videos to learn the basics of crocheting and step by steps for projects!]

 

I also only used one and a half skeins of yarn and a really big hook.

My last solution was to not attach the ends but rather to make tassels instead!

And I have to say tassels are difficult to get perfect but I am get perfect but I am embracing my not so perfect tassels on this scarf! 

 

 

New Again

How did I come to this place?

A little over a week ago my family and some close friends joined me at lake Johanna and I got baptized!

And even now, the week after my baptism I am trying to figure out just the right way to tell my story and the right words to share my faith and what I believe.  But as I seem to do time and time again I am missing the point.  

The first time I accepted Jesus into my heart I was three.  I wanted to get baptized when I was in fourth grade and my dad told me that I needed to wait until I understood what it meant.  Then about two years ago I wanted to be baptized, but felt as though I had to clean myself before giving myself to Christ.  That I could not be with Christ until I was clean.  I don’t think that I had fully understood or remembered that it is only through Christ that I can be made clean.

I believe in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  I believe that Jesus came to this earth as a little baby and after spending some time on this earth died for our sins upon the cross.  I believe that being a follower of Christ is not the easy choice and will not be an easy road.  I believe that I will fall again and again and that each time Jesus will take me as I am. I believe.

And through Him I am new again, new every morning.

HALES

6 Reasons we LOVE Fall

Fall is here! 

And while it is fun to dwell on the wonderful summer that was had it is time to move forward to a new season that brings joys of its own. 

We wanted to share some of our favorite things about fall, because fall is awesome!

HALES

1. Fall Colors

The trees come to life in the fall, as if having one last party before winter.   It brings me such joy to see the leaves change colors.  From the soft greens of summer to bright yellows, deep oranges, scarlet reds, then down to the ground to rest in an autumn mosaic.

2. Hot Tea

I drink tea year round but there is nothing quite like drinking tea in the chill of fall.  Give me Chai tea, Black tea, Green tea, add some honey, milk or lemon.  Give me tea and I will be happy.  

3. Harvest Season

After a summer of weeding, watering, and waiting harvest season is finally here! It is amazing to see how a little seed can turn into something so beautiful.  Gardening fills me with such hope! 

BECKS

1. Fall Clothes

AHhhhhhh! I love layers so much! If I could wear boots, cardigans, flannels, and jeans all year round I would. There are so many different fabrics and patterns to play with in the fall and the rich colors warm my heart!

2. Leaves/ leaf art

 I love really leaves, especially when they change colors and start to fall. Walking to class in the morning is always prettiest in the fall because of the changing leaves!

Have y'all seen the leaf art on Instagram and Pinterest lately? Well I couldn't resist breaking out my hole punch when the first leaves hit the ground! You could also use the little dots that get punched out for some natural confetti!

3. Apples

 It seems that in recent years apples have been overshadowed by their lovely friend the pumpkin. Don't get me wrong I love a good PSL (pumpkin spice latte) and some pumpkin pie! I just love apple cider and apple pie a little more. There is something so magical about going to apple orchards and picking your own apples too! I have been dreaming a trip to a local orchard a lot lately!

(Also we know it's not quite October yet, but we just can't resist this quote!)

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables    

HALES and BECKS

Mason Jar Cozy

Take a moment, if you will and imagine a world without rough edges.

I have had the sudden urge to make a cozy for everything.  Imagine a world filled with toaster cozies, car cozies, house cozies, even a cozy for your cat.  Just when you think that your cat can not get any cozier suddenly their twice as fluffy and snuggle-able as before.  

I would first like to acknowledge that I do not like patterns nor do I believe in them.  I don't live by a pattern so why should my projects have to?  Once I start sewing more this may change but for know I stay as far away from them as humanly possible.

I started by crocheting in a circle and adding stitches, almost doubling the amount of stitches every time to keep the bottom of the cozy flat.  If you don't know how to croche in a circle there are some awesome videos on YouTube.

Once I reached the size that I wanted to bottom of the cozy to be I stopped adding stitches.  

When I stopped adding stitches the cylinder started to form on its own.  And I just stopped once it felt right in my heart. 

 

After carrying it around for a couple days I got the idea to add a strap to my next one so that I could sling it across my shoulder and take it on my adventures! 

Making the world a little softer, one cozy at a time: HALES

Adventures in Dorm Food: Puff Pies

Once in a while I try to make homemade food in my dorm room. I get tired of dining center food pretty fast, which I have concluded is because a lot of the joy in food comes from making it! (at least for me) I titled this post "Adventures in Dorm Food" because not all of what I make is successful...

I have made anything from cookies to toasted pumpkin seeds to tortilla pizzas in my dorm room! Last year I discovered the beauty of a small appliance called "the brave little toaster oven". You may be wondering, isn't it just called a toaster oven?? No, its not it is a very brave appliance because it is basically a mini oven that can do anything a regular oven can.

 For some time I have been wanting to experiment with puff pastry, and what better time to bake than when I could be doing homework? I have heard it called procrastibaking and I am definitely guilty! 

To start I gathered my ingredients:

puff pastry (let thaw at room temp for 40min)

Savory pie: mozzarella

                       dried rosemary 

                        cherry tomatoes

Sweet pie: brown sugar

                apple slices

              cinnamon

I pretty much made these recipes as I was grocery shopping at Target, so they can be easily adapted to whatever fruit/veggie/seasoning combination you want! (next I may try a pb&j banana pie...the possibilities are endless!)

Top your pastry to your hearts desire! Try not to overload them because it really does puff and heavy toppings will not allow for the fluffiness you really want! I put too many apples slices and too much brown sugar...with that said it still tasted good! 

I baked them at 400 degrees for about 10-12 min. I used the browning of the cheese and the texture of the apples to guide my baking time.

These little pies turned out pretty good and I can't wait to try making some others!

 Also shout out to the dining center for the apple! (I could probably win some sort of award for my talent in using dining center fruit in creative ways...)

Please take a moment to appreciate these quotes as well!

24 best quotes ever about food

From the *kitchen of the #1 Dining Center Fruit User- BECKS

*the term kitchen is used loosely (see also dorm)

A Spot of Tea

Would you care for a spot of tea? 

There is nothing quite like an early morning tea party in the middle of Wartburg campus. 

Sky view

Pinkies Out!

Morning wouldn't be right without scones, cookies, mini cakes, fruit and goldfish

two leaves and a bud

Tea Party Polaroid Picture

A fantastic end to a wonderful summer

Hales and Becks; pinkies in the air like we just don't care!

Last Slice of Summer

It's  that time if year again! I am back at Iowa State University, classes have started, and I can feel the homework slowly weighing down my backpack... but it is still August!! The memories of summer are still fresh and comforting on rainy days like today.

My favorite things about Iowa summers (even though I was only home for two weeks):

Iowa sweet corn (preferably fresh from the neighbors)

Spending time with my family (shucking corn of course!)

Long walks  through our trails

Tea parties late at night with friends

Endless excuses for getting ice cream

Mornings full of coffee + my cat Rosie + my Bible (on our porch)

 

This was probably the best corn I had ever eaten!! Which says a lot because I have 19 years of corn eating experience! 

 

 

I found this old nail barrel at a small shop called Gilgan's Consignment Furnishings, I painted (it's green but not my favorite green in the world, hence the b&w) Gilgen's is one of my favorite places to go explore and they have soooo many old books!! Old books are good for the soul.

 

 

We have this gorgeous green glider in our yard, my parents are convinced it needs to be painted...personally I think it is lovely the way it is!

 

 

Rosie is always happiest in the sunshine and loves it when we hang outside with her, lazy days are her favorite days! (and mine, lets be real.)

 

 

This is my yard. I have to pinch my self every time to make sure it's still real! I am 100% convinced that Heaven looks like Iowa.

Unfortunately the view from my dorm room is not quite like this, but that is why today I am reminiscing over my few weeks at home! 

(Recommended song while reading this post-You and I By Ingrid Michaleson) 

The one who loves Iowa, corn, and cats-BECKS 

Letterboxing In The Great North

On one of our many adventures in The Great North; my family and I wandered into a little shop that was surrounded by cabins.  Barb, an earthy woman, greeted us as we looked around.  Upon reading the hand written sign that said Carve A Rubber Stamp and something about Letterboxing I turned to Barb with wild curiosity I asked her how the sign.  Her eyes filled with excitement as started to explain while pulling out a big box of supplies.

She went on to explain that that Letterboxing involves a waterproof box hidden in a scenic location containing a rubber stamp and notebook.  Pulling out a piece of paper she showed us that a person uses a series of clues to find where the boxes are hidden. Once found, the finder will stamp the box's notebook with his or her personal stamp, and use the box's stamp to mark their own personal notebook. Letterboxers collect the stamps from boxes all over the world. Barb compared it in some ways to geocaching.

A quirkier version of geocaching

As I sat there carving away at my little rubber stamp I asked Barb how she got to this particular lodge.  Standing there in her hand knit green sweater she told a tale of after growing up in Duluth and meeting the love of her life in her 20's.  Soon after they got married and she followed him up the very lodge that I sat in.  7 kids and 30 years later here she was. 

My first real experience with Letterboxing left me (and this little rubber stamp) running along an over grown trail beside Loon Lake just outside the Boundry Waters or BWCA.   I tried to read and decode the buzzard and oddly specific clues telling me to go left at the fallen tree and something about a nice picnicking area where I would find the little box all the while wildly swatting at the hundreds of blood thirsty mosquitoes.  It took me 4 times longer than it should have to find it but when I finally did I screamed with joy and quickly stamped my stamp in the book and vise versa.  I walked away with twice as many mosquito bites as before, totally worth it!

Can't wait for my next letterboxing adventure! 

Making my mark on this world one stamp at a time- HALES

A blog, a business, a friendship

Hey Friend!!! Welcome to every which way with Hales and Becks!

 Becks and I have been friends since Jr High and became fast friends.

If I remember right the first thing that Becks ever said to me was something along the lines of, "Was is cold in Alaska?" then I replied, "No it rained a lot..." And that was it, that we our first conversation (rather short, but anyways.)  And here we are now almost 7 years later entering into our sophomore year of college! 

In this search for finding what we are called to do we came up with the grand idea to start writing a blog together! 

So basically between the two of us we come up with some pretty creative (and sometimes crazy) ideas. You can count us in with the dreamers so to say, but we also want to be doers! So prep accordingly because we are going every which way, sharing the things we love with you! 

A blog, a business, a friendship.

Celebrating the start of our new adventure over scratch cupcakes! 

(Mmmm... We love cupcakes!)

HALES

I could eat scones all day (I'm not sure if that is a problem or a blessing)

One day I hope to learn to ride the beautiful red unicycle that is currently sitting in my closet!

Hang on little tomato by pink martini is my favorite song.

I love the rain but don't believe in umbrellas (West Coast raised)

 BECKS

Goats are my favorite animal

Haiku's are the only form of poetry I can write 

I love the color yellow 

and baking cookies!

All we really know is that we want to glorify God in all we do.  Like most women our age we are trying to figure out our calling.  Whatever this is, we are excited for the adventures to be had and the friends we will meet on the way.  Who knows where this road will take us while keeping our hearts and minds open to Gods plan for us.

Join us as we begin another crazy adventure going every which way

HALES and BECKS