...Because 7 ate 9!

Round and around

2010-10-25T16:45:00.000-05:00

I am happy to report that my knitting skills have improved exponentially over the past year. While DPN's still give me nightmares, cables still seem impossible, and I'm no where near being able to knit a sock or sweater, I have moved beyond basic, garter stitch scarves.

I've recently learned to knit in-the-round using circular needles...sort of. My first attempt turned into a mobius loop - kinda cool, but not a very effective hat design. I have a few other hats in progress and they are turning out well, I think; however, I have no idea how to bind off in-the-round. I think DPN's are inevitable...

Despite my irrational fear of eventually having to switch to DPN's, I really like using circular needles. My work stays in a nice little coil with no needles sticking out and poking me, there's no purl rows for stockinette stitch, it goes quite fast, and seamless things really do look better!

So, when I came across a pattern in the latest Webs catalog (www.yarn.com) that seems like a perfect compromise, I was very excited! The Valley Yarns 341 Geothermal Tubular Scarf (here) looks pretty easy, doesn't mention DPN's at all, it's striped, and I imagine it will knit up quickly. According to the pattern, this is a fun and "addictive spiral knitting technique" with "no jogs between the stripes and no strands to carry up the inside of the work." I don't know what "jogs" are, but apparently, I don't want them!

I guess it's a pretty new pattern - no projects or notes on Ravelry yet, at least - so we'll see...

Wish me luck - it's quickly becoming winter in Minnesota and I have a cold neck!

My New New Normal and 101 Things

2010-09-09T01:23:00.089-05:00

My life's in a somewhat transitional sort of place at the moment. I'm doing my best to embrace my New New Normal.

To clarify, the beginning of my New Normal was marked by what I like to refer to as Hurricane Amy. No need to focus on that now, though - it's all about my New New Normal.

I think the timing is very appropriate. For much of my life, the year "began" the day after Labor Day - i.e. the first day of school. This year, the day marked the first day of my new job - a rather serendipitous turn of events. With that came new responsibilities, routines, plans, goals, clothes...a bit of everything.

So, welcome to my
New New Normal!!!

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Somewhat coincidentally, I recently discovered the Day Zero project. Check out the web site for details, but basically, you list 101 goals that you want to achieve within 1001 days. Your list can be public or totally private, there are several ideas and links to inspire you, you can also list "someday" goals, and it's freeeeeee! I think it will be a fun way to help me focus and get my life back on something resembling a track.

I finished my list about 5 minutes ago - I have until June 9, 2013 to complete my 101 goals (I actually have 106 goals - figured a little wiggle room would be good.) I decided to make my list private for now, but my includes things like...

Learn to knit socks.
Write a letter to myself to open in 10 years
Scan my favorite old pictures.
Blog everyday for a month.
Document a week in my life with ephemera, photos, and journaling.
Swim in the ocean.
Take a road trip
Take inventory of all my knitting tools, yarn, and UFO's.
Fill a sketchbook

Another one of my goals is to inspire at least 5 people to make a list so let me know if you do!

Cheers!

Amy Jane

Electric Sheep = my new favorite podcast

2010-09-03T14:21:00.000-05:00

I listen to lots of podcasts via iTunes on my iPod and MacBook. I subscribe to far too many to list - public radio shows, artsy-crafty stuff, random trivia, productivity, techie, etc, etc, etc.

A few months ago I discovered Electric Sheep - a podcast out of London about knitting and all sorts of other stuff. It's become my new favorite podcast for several reasons, including:

The sound quality is almost perfect
There's no annoying pod-safe music (I don't mind a little intro or transition music, but I always skip through entire songs from the "Pod-Safe Music Network")
The hostess is very intelligent, witty, creative, funny - and you gotta love her accent!
It's about so much more than knitting - art, politics, current events, social commentary, complete randomness...
Hilarious reviews of knitting patterns
She's led me to some very funny stuff online - Jedi discrimination, knitted facial hair, Unhappy Hipsters, crimes against knitting - and lots more
No annoying giggling, burping, discussion of bodily excretions, etc...
Episodes are released regularly
The length is good - generally about 30-60 minutes

The only complaint I have is that she gives an overview of each episode in the first 3 minutes that I always skip through because there's music playing at about the same volume as her voice, making it annoyingly difficult to hear. It's easy to skip right through that part, though, so it's not a very big deal.

You can find it at www.hoxtonhandmade.com or subscribe on iTunes.

Too many works-in-progress....

2010-06-21T21:19:00.001-05:00

...And too many scruffy little mutts getting in the way!

I'm Famous!!!

2010-05-18T14:57:00.002-05:00

wI love podcasts and one of my favorites is the Paperclipping Roundtable. It's a weekly show all about the scrapbooking world. Each episode has some regular segments - listener mail, product picks, news - and the three regular hosts and two guest hosts discuss a specific topic.

Last week's episode (May 11, 2010) was about vintage style. The guests were Ali Edwards and Tim Holtz.

Guess whose email AND comment were included last week?

Yep - yours truly!!!

I feel like a total rockstar. Ali Edwards AND Tim Holtz got to hear MY clever comments! The two of them are definitely my main sources of inspiration.

Awesome.

I definitely recommend checking it out - it's an awesome podcast even when it doesn't include anything from me. :)

If it gets you feeling vintagey and on the look out for some ephemera action, the Collage Images and Old & Vintage groups on Flickr have some really cool stuff. Or, you can borrow my relatives (from my mom's Flickr page.)

Archivers, Tuesday Morning, & Dick Blick Haul Video!

2010-05-06T16:57:00.000-05:00

I have a new You Tube video! It's from a recent retail therapy adventure at Archivers, Tuesday Morning, and Dick Blick. I got some awesome deals - and felt much better.

I'm going to be cleaning out my arts and craft supplies soon - I have a ton of stuff to get rid of and will be selling it very cheaply. I figure that it's not making me ANY money just sitting around, not being used, and if it can make someone else happy, I'm happy to give it away...but seeing as how I'm unemployed and not very financially sound lately, I feel ok charging some nominal fee for the time it takes to post the stuff and shipping costs and whatever.

Anyway, check back here in a week or so if you're interested and I'll have more details!

What do you think of The Blog's new look?

2010-05-05T03:09:00.000-05:00

I think I mostly like The Blog's new look...

The banner isn't *quite* what I want it to be yet, but I like the basic idea.

I guess I really like blue. I did not expect to have a BLUE color scheme - it just turned out that way.

The heart wants what the heart wants, right?

Anyway, I'm interested to know what people think. Post a comment or email me at bc7ate9@gmail.com!

FYI - This is the t-shirt I'm wearing in my hat-modeling photo

2010-05-05T02:53:00.000-05:00

You can read about it here, but I'm afraid you can't get one of your own anymore...

I think 90% of my wardrobe comes from Woot!. I'm pretty rad. :)

I knit a HAT!!!

2010-05-05T02:41:00.000-05:00

I finished my very first knitted hat a few weeks ago!!!

It was relatively simple - knitted flat (none of that fancy-schmancy "in the round" or "circular" business for me...) on size 6 needles.

I used a free pattern from Lion Brand and their Cotton-Ease yarn in Taupe for the main color (MC) and Lake for the contrasting color (CC). I think it turned out pretty rad! I'm still shocked I didn't end up with a big, tangled mess of yarn on my head (A Big Ol' Monkey Mess, as I like to call my big, tangled messes.)

The Boyfriend was equally shocked and we spent a few days exclaiming randomly, "It's a HAT!"

Then he put it on.

I have not worn my hat since.

Ah well. I'm working on #2. I think I will add cat ears to it. Or maybe cute, little round ears in bear/monkey style. The Boyfriend is not likely to steal that...

YouTube videos....inspiration overload....

2010-04-02T03:08:00.000-05:00

I should be in bed right now...

I'm sleepy and The Boyfriend is waiting for me...

But I HAD to wait for my external hard drive to do its compressing business...and in the meantime, why not watch some YouTube videos...?

....because I can't stop - I love seeing so many projects and ideas! (and it TOTALLY beats 16 and Pregnant and DOG: The Bounty Hunter.)

Also, everybody is SO encouraging and supportive of MY videos...THANK YOU!!!

It gives me a welcoming sense of community that is kinda foreign to me...It also makes me feel like the stuff I make is worth "advertising," even if it isn't anything terribly interesting.

Life is so freaking hard...every day is a new battle (I used to say "challenge," but it's much harder than that.) All your nice comments and messages mean so much to me!

I'm being very cheesy - sorry. It's 2:32 AM - I don't think you can blame me.

My original point was going to be that I *look* at so many inspiring things....It paralyzes me.

I want to do it ALL.

I want to do it all PERFECTLY.

And, if I can't dot it PERFECTLY, I don't want to do it at all.

My mom likes to tell me how annoying my perfectionism has always been so I think I'm stuck with it...

I also don't know what exactly I WANT to do.

If you don't know what you want....it's pretty much impossible to get *it* - you don't just stumble upon your meaning in life.

In other news, I am working on knitting a blanket - the "Blue Lagoon" color pattern. Thanks to my mom, I was able to order the rest of the yarn I need from Joann.com today.

I'm also making a warsh-rag for The Boyfriend in Lily's 100% cotton yarn - in red and black cause he's a * rock star * and that's his band's colors...I guess.

By the way, I'm not the greatest girlfriend on Earth - and although I'm SURE he's the greatest drummer EVER...his music doesn't do much for me...but he seems to like me anyway.

I'm working on birthday/going away presents for my BFF and her family as well...before they ABANDON ME!!!!!

(I'm still in my "anger" phase of grieving. Harrumph.)

Besides that stuff - and a gazillion other in progress projects - I'm reading Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life and liking it a lot!

Recent Knitting Projects

2010-03-31T17:52:00.001-05:00

*** SPOILER ALERT FOR OTHER AMY - don't watch this video unless you hate surprises! ***

I just posted a new video on YouTube! It's just me showing off some recent knitting projects. It's a little pointless, but hopefully not too lame. :)

I show off some of my Fun Fur scarves once again - tutorial video coming soon!!!

I also posted a picture on Flickr of a Fun Fur scarf I made for my cousin Jessica.

Then, you can see my super awesome 6-Hour Afghan (I say 6 1/2 hours in the video - oops.) It's made with Lion Brand's Homespun Yarn in Montana Sky and Waterfall (I think) - 4 skeins each. I used size 50 needles - "Speed Stix". The pattern is here.

I also made a headband using this pattern and Lily's Sugar and Cream Twist yarn.

I made a few "warsh-rags" in the "Ballband" style also using the Lily's cotton yarn in various colors. I used the pattern in the Mason-Dixon Knitting book, but you can also find it here. I show a few more kitcheny-cottony projects.

I'm making a hat! It's the most complicated project I've attempted so I'm excited that it's actually turning out! The pattern is here and gives you an idea of what it'll look like finished. I'm using Lion Brand's Cotton-Ease in Lake and Taupe.

Finally, I show you the cute little cupcake my BFF crocheted for me. You can find her at www.CraftAwesome.com.

I think that's all...hope you enjoy it!

Under Construction!!!

2010-03-30T15:06:00.001-05:00

Please excuse my sloppy looking blog for right now! I'm working on it....

New pictures - lots of cute and/or knit - ness!

2010-03-28T02:53:00.001-05:00

Still working on my new blog layout (obviously.)

Any opinion on the current banner?

I still haven't finished my in-progress YouTube videos on the fun of knitting with Fun Fur!

In the meantime, I added some new pictures to Flickr - they start here. I upload lots of pictures at once, but edit them with Picnik slowly - starting with the most recently uploaded which means you have to go to page 3 or 4 or whatever...

FYI - I do NOT think this is the BEST method, by ANY means, but I haven't installed Aperture yet, editing in iPhoto is kinda limited and annoys me, and going from iPhoto to PhotoShop and back is a pain...

Anyway, you can see my little cousin Lydia - she's 7 - learning to knit and a scarf I made for my buddy Nic J

New Videos, New Layout, New Amy!.....soon....

2010-03-27T01:23:00.001-05:00

So I'm working on some new YouTube videos - Fun Fur tutorials!!!

Soon....I promise.

And....yes..."soon" is a very relative word.

It's not that I don't WANT to - I just get so overwhelmed than paralyzed than depressed by all the incoming stimuli and inspiration and desire and ideas and plans and creativity and and and and...

Lots of excuses, I know.

I don't get why my brain can take in so much...only to get completely weighed down by it all...

Does anybody else GET this?

Besides my videos, I'm also working on...

A new layout for my blog
The banner and color scheme (things might be looking odd for a while...)
Selling stuff online via Etsy or something...
Responding to emails and messages and comments
Lots of projects!

So...yeah. I'm doing my best...!

AND - I LOVE you all!!! Everybody who reads this, watches me, sends me messages or comments...anything! THANK YOU!

Check it out, yo...it's AWESOME

2010-03-20T03:27:00.000-05:00

http://www.etsy.com/shop/CraftAwesome

Working on my return to the Living.

2010-03-16T20:53:00.003-05:00

I'm working on some projects and stewing on some ideas and doing my best to come back to life!

In the meantime...check out some recent additions to my Flickr page.

Cheers!

Fun Fur!

2010-02-16T12:14:00.002-06:00

My newest YouTube video is all about Fun Fur!

I love knitting scarves with Lion Brand's Fun Fur! It may have a questionable reputation and a novelty-esque quality, but it is:

Fun to use,
Comes in all sorts of fun colors and patterns,
Knits up relatively quickly,
Inexpensive ($3-$5 per skein),
Readily available (Jo-Ann, Michael's, and even Wal-Mart all carry it in the Twin Cities - and it's all over online, of course),
Easy to care for (machine wash and dry, no ironing),
Little girls tend to think it's awesome - Fun Fur scarves are great for playing dress up!
It can be used for lots of fun projects,
And completely hides mistakes like dropped or extra stitches!

I only use the purl stitch when I knit with Fun Fur. Because it's a looser stitch than the garter stitch, I feel like it goes faster. Using two strands of yarn speeds up the process as well.

Two (or more) strands of yarn can also add visual interest and makes your garment thicker/denser.

I never worry about gauge and I don't bother with swatches. I experiment with the number of stitches per row and needle size till I get what I want and simply purl till its at my desired length (approximately the height of the recipient). I've found that, for me,

20 stitches per row on size 10 needles makes a scarf about 5-6 inches wide;
13 stitches per row on size 11 needles makes a scarf about 3-4 inches wide;
and 15 stitches per row on size 11 needles makes a scarf about 4-5 inches wide.

You can also crochet with Fun Fur, but I don't have any experience with that (I've tried to learn to crochet...but my brain seems to refuse to cooperate with my hands and I end up in a ball of knots.)

I learned to knit at a local yarn store in the Twin Cities called All About Yarn and have also gotten a lot of help from my very patient best friend. Some books I've found useful in learning to knit include:

Check out my video to see some recent examples! Leave a message, comment, or email if you have any questions or if you'd like more information or demonstrations!

Yarrrrrrrrrrn!

2010-02-16T02:48:00.000-06:00

Birthday and X-Mas Gifts for Mother

2010-02-16T01:58:00.002-06:00

I am very poor these days...in every way you might interpret that....

SO...

I made Christmas and birthday presents for my mom (she turned 55 on February 1st!!!)

Here are some pictures she took (I NEVER remember to take pictures of the things I make....mostly because I'm making them up to the VERY last second...)

The above images are a little drawer - storage - organization thing I made (altered) for my mom and her scrapbooking needs.

She's very into the tropical - Jimmy Buffet - Caribbean - anti-MN-winter kind of style and doesn't have a lot of storage space so it seemed like a good idea.

She seemed to like it - and she's a terrible liar - so I'm happy. :)

1) The main "structure" is from either Michael's or Jo-Ann's (I don't remember...) and I painted it with some acrylic paint in something called "Pool Blue" or "Caribbean Blue" or something....

The drawers are painted in various colors of equally inexpensive acrylic paints that seemed to fit the motif.

2) The shells are from Florida, New Zealand, Greece, and the $1 store (not EVERYTHING can be authentic....)

3) I decoupaged the inside of the drawers with Mod Podge and paper that is definitely from the $1 store.

4) The bottom drawer is also "lined" with some can slices I made from polymer clay - I wanted it to have extra weight.

The other "big" project I made her was this picture frame -

That's my mom and dad in Hawaii in 1982 - I was about 18 months old and left at home when this picture was taken....

I just so happened to get pneumonia while they were there - my poor mom ended up having to come home early. She ended up being pregnant with my little brother, Jonathan, anyway, so it's probably for the best.

Anyway, I got the frame at Michael's - it was sold as-is for about $1 because the glass was missing. I used glossy varnish to protect the picture (no worries - it was not an *original* - it was a scanned version).

1) I painted it with some random acrylic paint

2) Used a kids' set of crafty sand in orange, black, and white to make a normal-looking-sandy color sand...

3) ...and glued the sand to the frame with Matte Accents.

4) I added a cocktail umbrella from a package of them that I got from the Salvation Army...

5) ....and some "vintage ephemera" from Making Memories...

6) ....and some EK Success *Cloud Stickers*

You can see more of my mom's pictures here. There are lots of me being terribly dressed....

...and way back when...

2010-02-14T05:34:00.002-06:00

Waiting for flowers from Daddy!

Wasn't I the most adorable of little girls???

(Can you tell it's Mini-Me?)

Happy Valentine's Day! {now}

2010-02-14T05:12:00.003-06:00

Crafty Gifts and Books I Recommend

2010-02-08T21:55:00.004-06:00

I'm not feeling very well today, but I felt like I should DO something so I worked up the motivation to make a new video! It took almost 6 hours because I started experimenting with transitions and stuff in iMovie...It's not as intuitive as I'd like so trying to make my video "perfect" just became time-consuming and annoying...

I finally decided it was finished so I tried to upload it to YouTube, only to get an error message. I went to YouTube to try and figure it out and discovered..."YouTube will be undergoing scheduled maintenance, starting around 7:00 pm PDT."

Grrr!

Anyway, I'll add the link once it exists (it'll be here.)

Update - 1 day later:

Ok...I don't know what's up with iMovie or YouTube or me, but I gave up on my original, oh-so-carefully edited video and uploaded a much simpler version (no fancy transitions...sorry.) You can find it right here!

I feel so behind in EVERYTHING lately...I can't seem to get control of my life...Hopefully making this video will get me on track again....

Relevant Links -

Jealous???

2010-01-29T22:30:00.001-06:00

Look what I
get soon -

Pretty awesome, eh???

Read all about her here!

* - * - * - * - *

Anyway, life should be getting back to it's semblance of normalcy soon...

X O X O X!

Is it weird...

2010-01-22T04:33:00.003-06:00

Is it weird that I'm in my YouTube videos? I've realized most people are NOT in their videos - besides their hands...

Does that make my videos weird and less pleasurable (or whatever) to watch?

Quick video update!

2010-01-22T04:18:00.008-06:00

New video on YouTube - nothing very interesting, but I've been a hermit long enough!

Some relevant links -

Sock Dreams - check out the arm warmers in particular!

Awesome prices
Fantastic prices
Reasonable shipping fees
Quick delivery!

Little MissMatched - matching socks are sooooooooooo overrated - and check out the AWESOME sales!

My extra-super-awesome-and-very-talented-BFF Deonna - see more of her creations on Flickr.

Dermoids. Look at your own risk of PUKING!

Typeset Drawers are among my most favorite of things!

My little mutt - and co-star - Bailey!

An awesome book - Journal Spilling by Diana Trout.

I'll be preparing "prizes" for everybody who responded to my little challenge soon! Make sure your email address is included with your comment!

And...most of all...

THANK YOU!!!

I appreciate all your subscriptions, comments, ratings, messages, etc. SO MUCH!!!!! I'm so behind in everything, but I want you all to know how much I appreciate your support. My fellow Minnesotan has been especially kind - thank you times a thousand! I will get caught up on all my responses ASAP!

Procrastination...

2010-01-22T02:11:00.000-06:00

I come up with awesome, brilliant, super cool ideas....

Yet, I never seem to follow through.

Instead, I come up with an even BETTER idea....but feel too guilty about not following through with the first one and, thus, end up mentally and creatively paralyzed.

I hate that....

Maybe I should set some goals....except that'd probably just add to my guilt issues.

Being me is hard.

Why on Earth don't I own this???!!!

2010-01-22T00:22:00.001-06:00

www.bampop.com

Hiding out for a few more days...

2010-01-11T21:07:00.000-06:00

Lots on my mind lately; too little sleep....I think I'm going to stick with being a hermit for a few more days.

Life is sketchy at the moment.

2010-01-10T05:10:00.001-06:00

....and for now...that's ok.

I worked on a x-mas present for my gramma
(a calendar....I think I may just skip January....)
and some belated "thank you" cards today....

I'm a wee bit behind in this whole *life* business,
but it's only January 10th.
I have 355 days to get caught up and start 2011 with a clean slate!!!

Anyway, I'm sticking with my MIA status for now - I plan to eat pancakes and knit my hands to the bone tomorrow.
If that works out, I should be back in action by Monday.

MIA

2010-01-08T09:04:00.000-06:00

Hello World,

I have lots of comments and emails and what-not to respond to - which makes me very happy! - but it will probably be a few days till I get a chance to do that. I love that people seem to be enjoying my videos!

I have a few things in mind for future videos - some mini books and DIY x-mas presents, maybe a few tutorials, a tour of what I like to call my studio....I am happy to take requests! :)

I got a little Flip camcorder for x-mas so I am excited to start playing with that!

If you are interested, you can check out some of my not-so-recent artsy-craftiness on Flickr. I think my New Zealand pictures are pretty rad too.

Crafty-Scrappy Haul - Parts 1 & 2

2010-01-07T02:29:00.002-06:00

I think I'm starting to get the hang of iMovie and this whole YouTube-video-making business (I'm having fun trying, anyway.)

There's not too much to note from my 2-part epic "Crafty-Scrappy Haul" so I'll just make a few quick notes and get them uploaded!

There's new stuff in the $1 area at Michael's, including: stamps, ink pads, chipboard books, dog stuff (for you AND your dog), and glitter glue.
Cosmo Cricket "Double Decks" are on clearance for only $9.99 at Michael's.
Check out Kindred Creations Scrapbooking for some awesome daily deals (also Peachy Cheap, Crop Chocolate, and Scrapbook Steals!)

*** FYI for anybody in the Minneapolis area: the Big Lots in Coon Rapids is closing soon. Yesterday everything was 50% off and the stock is quickly dwindling, but you may still be able to get some good deals! ***

I also announced a little contest of sorts...

If you think you know what BC7ATE9 refers to, leave a comment here. The first person with the correct answer will win a prize of some sort (I haven't thought too far ahead, but I'll come up with something awesome.)

Links:
Part 1
Part 2

My dog (and co-star), Bailey, is 3 today!!! They grow up so fast....

Birthday Presents!

2010-01-06T22:52:00.004-06:00

I posted my 2nd video on YouTube tonight! It was more for practice than anything else (it's not especially informative or anything...) You can watch it here.

Anyway, I turned 29 on December 9th and had a party to celebrate surviving the worst year of my life (see my personal blog if you care to know more about that...) I got some pretty rad presents so I made a little haul video about them.

Related links:

Paper cranes - how to make them
Paper cranes - meaning
My favorite place for arm warmers - Sock Dreams
Art Making and Studio Spaces by Lynne Perrella
The Scrapbooker's Creativity Kit by Claudine Hellmuth
Bam Pop - home of the BAM BOT!

Kind of a pointless video, but it was good practice. :)

Welcome to BC7ATE9!

2010-01-03T16:44:00.002-06:00

Well, I started this blog in May...wrote an entry in July...and haven't been back since.

Amy = Bad Blogger!!!

But....it's a new year and arbitrary as that is, I'm going to use it as an excuse to start over. (Or to just START is a more accurate, I guess.)

I'm maintaining my personal blog - {Amy_Jane} - so you can read all about my crazy life, if you're interested.

This blog is intended to be crafty, creative, artsy, and full of ideas and imagination. You'll be able to find notes about my YouTube videos, pictures of projects I'm working on/completed, links to cool stuff, reviews, and maybe even some tutorials.

It's definitely a work in progress (still...), but I'm excited about it.

Here's to 2010!

Thursday Review: Picnik

2009-07-02T09:05:00.001-05:00

If you use Flickr, then you've probably heard of Picnik (that little button above your photo that says "EDIT PHOTO" will take you there). I used the free version via Flickr for a wee bit, liked the interface, and noticed that there were several features that sounded really cool, but weren't available without the $24.95 premium subscription (1 year). After getting VERY frustrated with Photoshop so many times, I decided that was a reasonable cost! I haven't used it a TON yet, but I decided it was worth a review!

Who: Piknik

What: Online photo-editing software

Price: Free for standard features, $24.95 for a year of the premium version

Where: Flickr or www.picnik.com

Why: Definitely worth checking out for all the fun features - and it is so much easier to use than Photoshop!

Pros:

Cool artsy effects and touch-up features like teeth whiten and blemish remover (listed on the "Create" page)
Nothing to download
It is very CUTE!
Far less complicated than Photoshop - and I prefer the interface to PhotoshopExpress
Integrated with Flickr
Easy to use with Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Picasa, Webs, Webshots, Photobucket, and more
Fullscreen capability (although this mode disables keyboard shortcuts)
All the changes you make are saved

Cons:

A downloadable version would be nice - lots of uploading your photos for editing, downloading to print, uploading to printing website like Shutterfly
The Flash interface can be a wee bit annoying
It can take a relatively long time for photos to load
$24.95 is a reasonable price, but assuming I want to continue using it, next year at this time, it'll have costed me $50...a one-time fee would be preferable.
As I edited photos, I expected the changes to save within Picnik, but they are only saved to the version you actually save to your computer or whatever
You have to save each photo before editing the next

More things worth mentioning:

Firefox add-on available here
You can send your Picnik-editied images to QOOP for prints - I'm not familiar with QOOP, but it looks pretty cool and the prices and products available are comparable to other sites (although I'd rather be able to pick up my photos from Target than pay for shipping and wait for them to be mailed to me)...I'd be more likely to try QOOP if they had some deal for signing up - like 25 free prints!
You can also easily print from home from the site
The "stickers" and "text" features seem perfect for simple digital scrapbooking

My rating:

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ - I really like how fun and easy picnik is to use, but I have to give it 3 stars because I'd really like to be able to send my images directly to a site for printing that has in-store pick up. I also think that I'd rather be able to download the software and use it off-line. Try the free features and if y0u like it, I definitely recommend the $24.95 subscription.

Brand new blog!

2009-05-20T10:34:00.001-05:00

My head is full of ideas and I can't act on them all at once so check back soon!