the knottygnome knits

An oldie but goodie

2012-02-16T07:55:00.000-05:00

i finished both of these ages ago but must have forgotten to blog them.

another givmo cashmere sweater refashion. i shortened the sleeves a couple of inches and took in the sides. it took me less than an hour and i have another nice warm cashmere sweater to wear.

the pants are another version of Simplicity 2700. i made these as a final fit tweak before i sewed the lined black pants. this version is black denim from joann fabrics. i was lazy and left off any sort of back pocket and now i am reminded of how much that is a no-no for me whenever i wear the pants. otherwise they are fine.

No Big Dill Cardi

2012-02-15T08:02:00.000-05:00

I have a ton of black poly sweater knit in the stash. for some reason i thought it was a good idea to buy 5 yards of it. while in my knits phase i made the billy cardi from no big dill. i stitched the whole thing on my serger and ignored the exposed shoulder seam thing.

i used the set-in sleeve t-shirt pattern from sew u home stretch as a guide. the diagrams on the website are useful but the only tricky part i found was it did not tell you how much to extend the collar up the shoulder. i made mine 4" tall. i also used clear elastic to stabilize the shoulder seams. i left all of the hems raw.

i'm really happy with this sweater. it is very comfy and has already seen a lot of use. i hope to make a more colorful version soon.

Jalie Jeans muslin

2012-02-14T08:56:00.000-05:00

so you probably didn't notice from yesterday's post that i am also wearing new pants. i bought the revered Jalie Jeans pattern probably about a year ago and i finally tried it out. i love that the pattern includes sizes for children through adults. it was fairly difficult to trace the pattern though. all of those intersecting lines get confusing.

i made a size R in the low-rise version and used some leftover stretch twill as my wearable muslin. i shortened the legs below the knee, narrowed the pant leg to be straight rather than bootcut, and i followed the directions in Power Sewing to do the fly front and shield. i also added a coin pocket. i left off the belt loops because i was exhausted and this was only my trial pair anyway.

sorry for the close-up of my ass, but i wanted to show my pocket stitching. i got experimental with some of my machine's fancy stitches. i wanted to topstitch everything in gray but wouldn't you know that i started to run out of thread so i had to keep switching back and forth between gray and navy thread. that wasn't fun.

i knew deep down that the rectangular bias waistband was not going to be a good idea but i did it anyway. the fit isn't great and it twists unattractively. many people have commented on the gaposis in the back, but mine wasn't too terrible. for my next pair, i've already narrowed the legs more, traced and modified the curved waistband of Simplicity 2700, taken just 1/2" total out of the back yokes and made a permanent coin pocket pattern piece. i think i also shortened it just a bit more as well. i bought stretch denim from joanns in 2 different colors.

now i am ready to make my jeans. if i can ever find the time, that is.

it's t-shirt time

2012-02-13T09:21:00.003-05:00

i'm still fighting this cold so i'm aiming for brevity.

i bought the Renfrew top after seeing many cute versions hit the blogosphere.

my first was View A with the scoop neck and long sleeves. this version uses some rayon jersey i bought from fabric mart awhile back. i shortened the sleeves by 2 inches but next time i need to shorten them more. i left the body length as is, but it's a little too long even for me.

the next version was View C with the cowl neck and 3/4 sleeves. i bought a bunch of knit fabric from joann's recently. this is a cotton/poly interlock. it's very soft and a nice heavy weight for winter. i was impressed by the quality of the fabric. i got more in other colors. on this one i shortened the sleeves too much and i shortened the body 2 inches, which was also too much.

this one is View B with the v-neck and 3/4 sleeves. i got the sleeves right on this one and the body was shortened just 1 inch. i used a rayon jersey from joann fabrics. it feels identical to the green jersey.

for all 3 versions, i cut a straight size 4 only changing body and sleeve length. i used clear elastic to stabilize the shoulder seams instead of twill tape. i used my serger on everything except for stitching around the neckband. i don't like the look of the zigzag--in the future i might switch to a different stitch. for the first time i used my rotary cutter to cut out the pieces and i have no idea why i resisted it so much before. it's a lot easier to be accurate with the cutter than using shears. with careful layout i was able to use much less yardage than the pattern called for. the pattern is a wonderful basic top pattern and i'm sure i will use it again and again. i probably won't try the short sleeves until it is warmer out.

A Month of Craft Photos: Week 2

2012-02-10T08:48:00.000-05:00

Day 4: Inspiration Outdoors

I had a hard time narrowing it down to one. I figured on my own blog i can cheat. my favorite might be number 2, a picture i like to call, "Yarn in Jail."

Day 5: Notions

i bought a huge amount of zippers from zipperstop several years ago. i'm probably never going to run out. this is but a small sample of the whole.

Day 6: Color

i took a joann trip last weekend and picked up some aunt edna. as usual, i liked the prints more in person than online. i got half yards of everything except a yard of each of the orange and gray polka dots. the quality has improved again. i wasn't planning to buy this much of the line but i am trying to enlarge my stash in some thin areas and i hardly have any pink or orange in the stash. and one can never have enough gray.

Day 7: Materials

This week has been very focused on clothing. I'll probably start blogging my FOs next week. a little preview: i made a lot of t-shirts.

Day 8: Challenging

i got my Furlough socks (rav) back in the mail, so it's time to get some pictures and put the pattern up for sale on Ravelry. I thought that the Knitcircus pictures were pretty but i really wanted some nice shots to show off the stitch pattern. i took many more, but those will have to wait until the pattern is released.

Day 9: ~~Your Hands~~ Helping Hands

ok, i admit it. i'm cheating a bit. i already got a picture of my hands on Day 1 so instead i tried to capture the paws of my most persistent helper.

Day 10: Your Craft Bag
Yeah, i'm skipping this one. i have many craft bags but i don't use them much. they mostly become long-term storage bags. for actual projects i usually end up with wegmans plastic grocery bags or no bags. i don't really travel with my crafts so things just end up lying around the house helter skelter. one of my quirks that Spicy adores, i'm sure.

SQW: Day 3 4

2012-02-09T08:43:00.003-05:00

i caught a bad cold and was out of commission yesterday. so today's post will be a big catch-up of semi-incoherent infodump.

Another Summer Sampler block: The Evening Star. more paper piecing. unlike the Minnesota block, i love my fabric choices here.

sad news. i've been wanting to try this block forever. unfortunately i did an entire section and then realized when squaring it up that the paper printing was off and the block was going to be too large. i had already cut the pieces i needed so i went ahead and finished it. but i can't use it in the quilt. if i tried to make it 12.5" as is, i'd slice off some of the points. so i decided to keep it and make an accent pillow.

i got out Modern Blocks. i can't remember the name of this one at the moment but it's a Weeks and Ringle block. i made this while i was tired (always a mistake) so the points don't match up perfectly. it bugs me but not enough to do it over again. for this one i used only 3 fabrics. kona bone, a blue shot cotton, and yellow DS quilts picnic (or fairgrounds, one of the two)

this one is Megan's Star. it didn't photograph well for some reason. it's a lot prettier in person than it is here. i think the solid brown is camera-shy. at any rate, i liked this block a lot, maybe even enough to do a whole quilt someday. i finally cut into some of my precious Echo fabric.

so that's what i have for the Sampler Quilt so far. i'm trying to do an even number of blocks with dark and light backgrounds and i'm planning to alternate them in the quilt. i can't remember right now how many i have but i know i need 56. so that means i still have a long ways to go.

SQW: Day 2

2012-02-07T08:09:00.000-05:00

After making the star block, I decided to go back and sew some blocks from the Summer Sampler Series. I made the Arkansas Traveler and the Minnesota blocks. I did not much care for piecing diamonds. it took me a couple of tries to get them lined up perfectly. I did really start to enjoy paper piecing though.

this block was less successful. i really regret my fabric choices on this one and the hope is that it will hide amongst the quilt as a whole.

Sampler Quilt Week: Monday

2012-02-06T09:00:00.000-05:00

a few weeks ago, i made several blocks for my sampler quilt. I'll be showing them throughout the week.

Today, I'm starting out with Pat's Star. i originally saw an example of this block on flickr and i had always wanted to try it. this was my first time with quarter square triangles and it really wasn't that difficult. if i had it to do over, i'd use only 4 fabrics as recommended. i'm not sure that the blue star pops enough with the different fabrics. i really liked this block and it might be on my radar again sometime soon.

A Month of Craft Photos: Week 1

2012-02-03T08:26:00.000-05:00

I'm a bit tardy, but i've decided to participate in A Month of Craft Photos. Instead of links or favorites, I'll post my week's worth of photos on Fridays in February.

Day 1: You in Action

Day 2: Craft Tools

Day 3: An Old FO

i was wandering around the house looking for an old FO to photograph, when i glanced down at my feet and realized that I had never taken pictures of the socks i was wearing. i made them in July of 2010. they are toe-up noro knee socks. the cuffs, heels, and toes are my own romney handspun.

have a great Super Bowl weekend. Go Pats!

what's your approach to dressing yourself?

2012-02-02T07:48:00.002-05:00

i am definitely in the throes of a clothing sewing kick. it doesn't happen that often but i think that right now it's taking hold because i pretty much never shop anymore and a lot of my clothes are ancient and falling apart. i'm trying to slowly replace old favorites (a lot of the shoe shopping stems from this as well) and it's got me thinking a lot about how i dress and where i want to go in the future.

if i may be permitted a small confession: i admire those people who do the wardrobe sewing thing where every piece mixes and matches but personally i hate that approach. i'm sure it would be convenient but i feel like i'd always be doing laundry and i'd get really bored. basically this would be the epitome of my own personal hell--having to wear the same fucking dress every single day.

i think that instead the way i look at clothes is that i like to have a stock of basics that get worn weekly in several categories: black pants, jeans, white button-down shirt, lots of basic t-shirts, cardigans. then i like to curate more fun and distinctive items that are worn less but don't make me feel like i'm wearing a uniform. these are dresses, printed tops, brightly colored skirts and pants. then i can mix and match the boring with the fun and get a nice mix. i don't want to feel like i'm wearing my "signature dress" or the like every week and have people at work be like, "she's wearing that dress AGAIN?"

an aside: there is a lady at work who bought a lavish pair of tall slouchy boots in a distinctive color with some added embellishy frou-frou. they were extremely stylish and expensive in an in-your-face kind of way. she wore those boots literally every day last winter. i was that person who was thinking in my head, "is she wearing those boots AGAIN?" so i know for a fact that it is possible. this is why i wanted basic plain boots that don't stick out.

when i get on a clothing sewing kick i try to be mindful of my approach and make both basics and the fun stuff. i can sometimes get caught up in the fun stuff and leave the basics behind but of course i end up wearing the latter much more. i am trying to keep the ratio more reasonable to what my wardrobe needs actually are. i am also working on increasing my sewing skills so that my clothes are both well-made and well-fitted. it's ok to do something fun and fast every once in awhile but the basics should most definitely be worked carefully because i really want quality items that will last.

writing it down is pretty much the kiss of death for me, but in 2012 i would really like to make at least some of the following:

Basics: skinny jeans, black slim pants, brown trousers, button-down chambray shirt, button-down white shirt, lightweight blazer, long-sleeve t-shirts, cashmere cardigan refashion in black and white

Fun stuff: Victory Patterns Ava, chambray shirt dress, something in silk (i have a lot in the stash but i'm scared to use it), a dress to wear to a summer wedding, knit dresses, fun skirts.

one final confession. when i am at home, most of the time i wear pajama pants with a long sleeve t-shirt and a hoodie or fleece. if i ever become a work-at-home person i may never get dressed.

so what are your thoughts on clothes?

The Salvage Project

2012-02-01T08:19:00.004-05:00

Over the weekend, i got the urge to bust out my serger and sew up some knits. i've been wanting some comfy knit dresses. i used a modification from the Sew U Home Stretch book for the t-shirt pattern but lengthened it for a dress. i really love the t-shirt pattern because the drafting on the armhole is superb. there's no excess fabric in the sleeve cap and the cap and armhole fit together perfectly. additionally the waist marking hits me at my actual waist. it's a small miracle.

I traced the small t-shirt and modified it for the dress by lowering the neckline, adding length to the sleeves, and adding length and width to the hem. I used clear elastic to stabilize the shoulder seams. I also used clear elastic for the neckline and sleeves and used some leftover lingerie elastic to gather the waist. i don't think i stretched the neckline elastic enough because it gapes a bit. i'm not really in love with the zigzag over elastic look either, so it's possible that i would do a neckline binding next time. i also think the drafting instructions produce a neckline that is too wide, so next time i would add some width back to the shoulder. i also followed the directions from another mod in the book to make the t-shirt a minidress. i can't imagine that a normal person with a more regular leg length would not find it to be obscenely short--more tunic than dress. so be warned that adding 6 inches to the length (or whatever it was) is probably not enough.

i might make this dress again because it's very comfy (after fixing the neckline and adding a little more length). i'm also not in love with the gathered 3/4 sleeves. i'd rather have regular long sleeves, i think. i do like the waist gathering and the dress would look nice with a belt, if i owned one that would look good. this cotton interlock from Michael Miller is fairly thick and warm. i bought the fabric almost exactly 2 years ago at a Super Bowl sale. over the summer i decided i wanted a maxi dress and cut out a pattern only to realize that the flowers were upside down. whoops. so i set it aside and i was able to salvage enough fabric to make this dress. it was probably for the best--the fabric would be too warm and heavy for a maxi dress.

you can sort of see that i am wearing the brown boots in the second picture. I asked Spicy to get pics of the full outfit but this is what he took. he did manage to get a nice view of the wood grain on the trim that he is currently stripping, however.

zappos was out of stock on one of the boots, and the other black ones zipped up easily but were comically wide at the top of the leg. they were also too long and hit the back of my knee when i tried to walk, so back they go. the brown ones are a bit of a struggle to get them zipped all the way up and they smelled oddly like furniture polish, but they are the perfect height. i wore them around the house a bit and was able to squeeze them over my brown corduroy skinny pants so i'm keeping them. i will very likely buy the same ones in black. i'm wearing them today to make sure they are comfortable and don't give me heinous blisters or something. fingers crossed.

Pretty Yarn Day: Meh Edition

2012-01-31T10:31:00.000-05:00

i bought this superwash merino/tencel from Susan's Spinning Bunny at last year's Finger Lakes Fiber Festival. it looks disheveled because this is one of the fibers that my cat Ellie decided to gnaw.

3ply worsted weight
spun longdraw from the fold, soaked and thwacked to finish
178yds/113g

i've come to the conclusion that i do not like tencel, even in a blend. it's weird--it doesn't seem like it should be much different from bamboo, but it's much more plastic-y and unpleasant to spin. it almost squeaks. it is nice and soft though.

i was hoping to eke out a baby sweater but i have very little yardage. maybe i can do another Baby Sophisticate for Spicy's nephew. it's a cute one and it doesn't take a whole lot of yarn.

The "stripper boot" saga

2012-01-30T13:36:00.005-05:00

I have giant calves. This is not a new issue--I'm fairly certain i've complained about it before. i really wish i had tall boots without a super high heel. they are so practical for winter and versatile. i often get boot envy when i see women in the halls in their cute tall boots while i am stuck in the world of bootlessness. i am on a mission to find boots.

Pic from last year--frighteningly large calves not exaggerated for effect

i have a pair of black boots purchased from DSW for about $50 that have worked serviceably for years. they aren't perfect--i would prefer them to be taller but beggars can't be choosers. they were literally the only boots i could find that i could zip up past my calves. so i bought them.

and now i can't even zip those. (that was a sad sad day) thanks to regular bouts of exercise somehow my ginormous calves have reached even larger proportions. so it was time to buy new boots. i buy most of my shoes from Zappos. one consequence of not owning a car is that i depend upon Spicy to take me places i need to go and shoe shopping is not one of those things that will make either of us happy. especially since i would probably need to try on every pair of boots in multiple stores.

first, i bought these: ROS HOMMERSON SONEL - REGULAR SHAFT. thanks to zappos free overnight shipping i got them on Friday. and i couldn't zip them even halfway up my calf. the zipper reached the part where my muscle started to curve and then went, "you've got to be kidding me, right?" it was depressing. i whined to Spicy and he told me that they don't fit because I am a freak (i wasn't insulted--it's the truth). then he advised me to get custom-made "stripper boots." that was less than helpful--look at the lack of heel on those boots! boys. you want stripper boots? i will show you stripper boots.

anyway, this is how i realized that zappos reviews can be less than reliable. there seems to be as much variety in leg size as there is in women's sizing generally. many of the reviews claimed that the boots fit even over "athletic calves." i don't know who you are, Athletic Calf Ladies, but let me introduce you to some real leg guns. there were also complaints of ankle pooling with wide calf boots unless you have cankles. i have no idea if i have cankles--i'm guessing that i do not, so i am worried about the fit of wide calf boots. i do have small feet, which makes the problem worse since i imagine that larger shoe sizes probably have larger boot shafts. btw, the boots seemed comfortable and nice quality other than the leg issue.

so the first pair got sent back. undeterred, i decided that ordering one pair at a time and returning them was less efficient than just buying a shit-ton all at once and hoping at least one of them will stick. so i went for ROS HOMMERSON WORLD - WIDE SHAFT, ROS HOMMERSON SONG - WIDE SHAFT, and FITZWELL MENTION WIDE CALF BOOT. i should have them by tomorrow. additional condolences needed: TBD.

it's a bit painful to realize that i've spent about $600 on boots so far but i have to remind myself that i will only be keeping one or possibly 2 pairs if the brown ones fit. the really painful part will be if none of them fit. i might have to throw in the towel at that point. or seriously look into "custom-made stripper boots."

btw, in crafty news i did a lot of sewing over the weekend and i have some clothes to show off. my new outfits would sure look good with a nifty pair of boots. maybe the shoe gods will be smiling on me and i can get some decent photos this week.

Friday Favorites: Hexie Love

2012-01-27T08:16:00.002-05:00

I finally started stitching my hexagon mini-quilt. i've only finished 2 rows, so we will see how i feel about it once i finish all 300-ish hexies, but right now it's kind of fun. i think that maybe possibly i could bring myself to do a big-ish charm quilt eventually. i have the lovely pictures below to keep me inspired.

1. a pillow in hexagons, 2. day three zero three: it's monday., 3. { quilted hexies }, 4. YIP 365.286:: Modern Baby Quilt, 5. hexie front, 6. Rainbow Hexagon Pillow, 7. DQS7 Flower Ring, 8. Hexagon Quilt , 9. Quilt #11 - Front

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

have a good weekend!

A Tale of 2 Skirts, Part the Second

2012-01-26T08:22:00.001-05:00

Continuing from yesterday's post--so I finished the yellow skirt, was decidedly "meh" and swore off straight skirts in the future. Then I watched the last Xmas episode of Community (sob) and Annie was wearing this short wool skirt that looked really cute and comfortable. i thought that it looked eerily similar to a pattern i own and I had just purchased a bunch of wool gabardine from fabric mart. so i gave it a try.

Pattern: Simplicity 2451, View D
Fabric: 1yd gray wool gabardine and polyester taffeta lining from fabric mart
Size: Modified 10

I really like this pattern. It went together very easily (though i didn't use the instructions). i made a "full-waist adjustment" by following the directions in the Colette Sewing Handbook. I was pleased to discover that once I modified the pattern pieces they pretty much looked identical to what they would have looked like had i simply cut out the 12 at the waist and graded to a 10 at the hips. I shortened the skirt by 1.5 inches but i kind of wish i'd left the length alone. it is definitely a mini-skirt--not obscene but a little shorter than i'd prefer for work. I installed a centered zipper using the directions from Power Sewing and i really like how the fabric mostly covers the zipper.

i added a lining and this time there was no pesky vent so it was quite easy. the lining fabric is a much better quality than the yellow skirt. the only problem is that it is a taffeta so it makes noise. here's what it sounds like when i walk.

rustlerustlerustlerustlerustlerustlerustle

i find this mildly annoying. i cut the lining out of the pocket and front pieces lined up together and converted the darts to pleats. i stitched the lining to the facing. one thing i did that i wish i hadn't was i serged the skirt hem because the fabric was fraying like mad. i blindstitched the hem but you can really see the serged stitching on the right side and it looks kind of crappy.

otherwise i really like this skirt and i've already worn it several times. i like the A-line version too and i'll probably make that one someday. i've also discovered that despite my insistence on adding pockets to things i really only ever use them as a social crutch. (i don't know what to do with my hands, so i shove them in my pockets). i don't actually use pockets to carry things so it might be wise to start leaving them out in the future.

Wool Crepe is creepy

2012-01-25T09:05:00.001-05:00

I finally took pictures of my sewing binge that occurred at the end of last year. it's fun to have new winter clothes. i'll be showing off some new outfits during the next few days.

Pattern: Vogue 8672 View E
Fabric: Wool crepe and poly lining from fabricmart
Size: modified 10 (probably--can't recall exactly)

it's hard for me to remember now but i'm sure i shortened the skirt--maybe 3 inches? i widened the waist and it's actually just a little too loose now. i had to let out the hip area. the skirt is meant to be very close fitting and it was too close for comfort. i added a lining using the pieces from View A. i wanted to attach the lining to the vent but i couldn't for the life of me make it work using this tutorial. this is around the time that i bought all those books on linings and sewing techniques. i decided to follow the directions in the lining book to partially line a skirt. unfortunately the fabric is a poly that was on sale for about $1/yd and it kind of sucks. it frays like mad, it's static-y, and it wrinkles like there's no tomorrow. this is one of those projects that taught me not to skimp on lining fabric.

this skirt did not go together well. every step was a giant PITA. so it's not as nicely finished as i would like because the more time it took the less i cared about doing a good job. it also doesn't look good on me. i feel weird wearing pleated or dirndl skirts to work because it seems too twee and informal but those are the skirts that actually flatter me, not the high-waisted pencil variety. this one is actually better than most because the gathers give the illusion of hips but still.

i also did not care for the fabric. the texture of wool crepe gives me the creeps. thank goodness i lined it or i'd probably never wear it. this may not be my favorite skirt and it's unlikely that i'll ever make it again, but i'm glad i got to try out some new techniques.

Millefiori

2012-01-24T08:33:00.000-05:00

When Kristin posted this merino/silk as the next Allspunup spinalong, i jumped at the chance to grab one. my instincts were to take all of the fibers and run but i settled upon one because i knew that i wouldn't know what to do with the finished yarn.

The fiber wanted to be singles. i divided the braid lengthwise into 4 skinnier strips for short color repeats. i spun it short-forward draw and soaked and thwacked to finish.

i ended up with 480yds/120g of fingering-ish weight singles.

the yarn was so gorgeously soft that i had to use it right away. over the weekend i started a critron shawl (rav). of course, i'm not going to have enough yarn. i knew i should've bought more than one. soon it'll be time to get creative in figuring out how to finish it.

Stashing

2012-01-23T10:44:00.002-05:00

quick post today: i got some boy-themed fabrics to make a few things for Spicy's nephew to be. i think that Spicy wants to keep some of the pacman and space invaders fabric for himself.

Friday Favorites: FtLoS Swap 2 Edition

2012-01-20T08:49:00.001-05:00

It has been discussed in the For the Love of Solids group that our inspiration mosaics can sometimes be too vague. What is it you like about the pictures? is it the blocks or the colors? or maybe the objects? i thought it might help my partner if I explain what I like about each of the photos in my mosaic in more detail.

Starting from the top, from left to right
1) I love shades of gray. i like this one because it combines different shades of gray with white and has little pops of color. The color and the graphic bold design is what i love about this quilt.

2) I like the layout of this block and how it combines piecing and applique. I also really like bird motifs.

3) more gray with color. i like how small the pinwheels are in comparison to the background. i think one of the reasons i am not enamoured with my latest quilt top is that it's too much bold color with nowhere for the eye to rest. i like it when bright color is contained by neutrals.

4) i want to marry this quilt. i love the pattern and i adore how she used light and dark of the same hues. this is one of my favorite quilts ever.

5) on this one, i love the large scale of the pattern and its deceptive simplicity. i also like how subtle the colors are. i love the quilting.

6) i love simple patchwork. i like how on this one there is a lot of color with pops of gray instead of the reverse.

7) i like the use of negative space and how it makes the bright stars really pop. i also like that the stars are all different sizes.

8) i really love this one. i love how it looks like a big paint chip.

9) on this one i most like the design. i like how the person used a limited color palette but utilized different shades to give it more depth.

one more thing: i know a lot of people really hate his work, but i really like these spot paintings. i think that it would make a wonderful inspiration for a quilt.

i hope that helps you out on making your decisions, partner! i'm sure i will love anything that you choose.

perseverating

2012-01-18T08:15:00.000-05:00

i finished my color wheel charm swap quilt top quite awhile ago. it's been waiting for a backing because i'm rather uninspired by the result. i don't hate it exactly but it's very different from what i normally like. i have some wool batting and am in need of a cozy lap quilt. but i'm stuck on what to do for the backing.

any ideas?

Half-assed App Review: Yarn U

2012-01-17T08:56:00.002-05:00

Mary Beth Klatt asked me to review her app, Yarn U by Sutro Media. I received the app for free--the opinions are all mine. Edit: Regular readers will be familiar with the idea that the reviewer is the half-assed one, not the reviewee.

Let me begin by saying that I am not the target audience for this app. Or really any app. I am basically a 90-year old curmudgeon in a 31-year old's body. I am still trying to figure out my new ipod. I use it primarily at home to listen to music and check my email when Spicy is on the computer. My first assertion is that this app would be much more useful if I had an iphone or some other device that works independently of wifi.

Basically when you fire up the app you can search for yarns by category. There are categories listed by weight (the pic shows fingering weight yarns) but there are a few others as well, like hand-dyed and crochet. A limited amount of yarns are listed in the database. I'm sure that the app will become more useful as more yarns are added, but at this point it's not close to ravelry-like levels.

You can browse photos of the different yarns in skein form and also as projects. Clicking on an individual yarn brings up a description page with pictures and often a link or two to a free pattern.

There is a map feature but it appears that very few yarn stores are listed at this point, and absolutely none in my area.

Provided that they add more yarns to the database and more yarn stores, I could see this app being useful for those with iphones (or with ipod when at a wifi-enabled LYS) when you are shopping at a yarn store and want to look up features or potential pattern matches for a particular yarn. Because I do not have a car I shop primarily via the internet. If i need to look up features of any particular yarn, I am likely to use Ravelry. In fact, I am certain that Ravelry has rather spoiled me because its pattern and yarn search are so comprehensive that everything else pales in comparison. However, as far as I know there is no mobile Ravelry app yet.

Verdict: Has potential for users of 3G but needs more participation in yarn database and yarn stores to really sing.

having my cupcake and skeining it too

2012-01-16T08:37:00.001-05:00

i thought my arm was going to fall off. i will be a joyously happy camper when my new skeiner finally comes.

Cupcake Fibers gradient mixed BFL/silk
1044yds/173g
2ply laceweight
spun longdraw, soaked and thwacked to finish

i divided the batts into 2 groups and arranged from light to dark. i then spun them in sequence on 2 bobbins and plied them together. any sort of mismatch from one color to the next i just went with to provide a gradual color transition. the leftovers on the last bobbin i andean plied to finish the skein. so i ended up with one skein of the full shebang--no leftovers.

despite the silk content it is not very shiny most likely due to the method of spinning. it's a little fuzzy and very soft. one day this will probably be a cardigan. i doubt i'll have the motivation to wind it into a ball anytime soon.

what's with this white stuff?

2012-01-13T08:27:00.003-05:00

i was enjoying all the 40 degree days. alas, it was fleeting.

i broke down and bought a couple pairs of wool tights. they are wonderful. i rarely ever wear skirts or dresses in the winter because my legs are always cold. these are fairly thick and have a heel like regular socks. and they're much cheaper than smartwool. i'm thinking about getting some leggings to wear under pants on extra cold days.

this week, i've been listening to Arcade Fire and The Black Keys.

i just bought a bunch of wool batting. does anyone have an experiences to share about working with wool?

i know that even after i finish Babette i will STILL have gobs of sock yarn. so i'm planning another crochet leftovers blanket. i can't decide if i want to do the square or the rectangle.

i love this texture. i have crochet on the brain right now.

check out these sweet embroidered mittens (rav). i adore the palm side.

i really love the use of black and white with the bright colors in the first quilt. i'm nothing if not predictable, i guess.

a riot of color.

i just bought this pattern. i have fabrics in the stash in mind but i should probably make a muslin first. i'm more likely to wear the blouse version but if i like it, i may make the dress also.

this weekend i will be crocheting up a storm, finishing a secret project, spinning, and hopefully watching the Patriots beat the Broncos. in the battle of Evil vs. Jeebus, Pt II, i'm a fan of evil all the way.

Wyatt doesn't know what football is, but he hopes the Pats win so that his Mommy and Uncle Spicy won't throw things

Resurrection

2012-01-12T09:06:00.001-05:00

somehow i managed to find the motivation, so Granny Babette is back. I'm working on Section 9 now.

i'm already getting bored again though. might need to take another break before moving on to the last section. it's all those ends. so painful.

it's a baby! bib

2012-01-11T08:14:00.000-05:00

More Xmas gifts: Nicole is just starting to eat solids now so i thought it was time to send more bibs. i bought the best bib pattern from jcasa. there are a lot of free tutorials out there for bibs but this one came highly recommended across the interwebs and i am lazy. i will call it "supporting independent designers."

for my first batch i put that lot of laminated cotton i bought awhile back to use. i skipped batting and used terry cloth on the back. one thing about the pattern that is a teensy bit quirky is that the ties are not cut on the bias. i debated whether or not i should change it but in the end i went with saving fabric instead and it really wasn't too awful trying to get the straight grain ties to fit the curved bib. if you are the perfectionist type, you might want to cut them on the bias instead.

for the second batch lazy me grabbed the scraps leftover from making all those jane market bags and stitched them together. i again used terry cloth for the back but i did "quilt" around the patchwork seams to hold it all together.

it is a nice little easy-to-use pattern and i'm sure i'll revisit it to make bibs for Spicy's new nephew. he has completely forgotten that he already told me his brother was having a girl. luckily i haven't made anything yet besides the quilt.

here's a handspun hat that i forgot about

2012-01-10T12:39:00.000-05:00

i'm still trying to play catch-up. i spun some yarn and made a hat.

this is worsted weight 2ply handspun polwarth from Susan's Spinning Bunny. i got the fiber at the 2011 Finger Lakes Fiber Festival. i do not have a picture of the original fiber because my cat nearly destroyed it. as a result, the fiber was very difficult to spin. it was felted in parts and generally sticky. i'm guessing it still had a bit of lanolin (which probably attracted the cat in the first place) and her excessive kneading and drooling did not help matters. i tore off staple lengths and spun longdraw from the fold. i'm pretty sure i felted the yarn to finish.

i rarely use this shot because i'm not a huge fan of "handspun poo" pics but i thought i'd try something new. the yarn was very soft and lofty. i wrote down the yardage and weight on a piece of paper somewhere and now i have no idea what happened to it. i got about 200 yards.

i used it to make another Hill Country Hat (pdf). i did at least one more round of increases (maybe 2?). this is one of my favorite patterns for men and it looks great in handspun. i used maybe just a little over half the skein. i also went whole hog and did a tubular bind-off. whenever i break down and do a tubular bind-off or cast-on, i usually conclude after i've finished that it is definitely not pretty enough to warrant the painassery it caused. that trend continues here. this hat was mailed home to my brother for Xmas.

Retro Daisy

2012-01-09T09:51:00.002-05:00

I wanted to try sewing curves. I loved the Retro Flowers quilt pattern and have been wanting to buy it for awhile. I think I'm going to pair this pattern with my Echo stash. I decided to do a test block using some of my Daisy Mae fabrics. The solid is kona chocolate.

I found the pattern to be very clear and easy to follow. I glued the templates to 2 layers of cereal box cardboard, but I could see how having plastic templates might be more useful for a full quilt. The only thing i didn't love is that the piecing is painfully slow. The blocks are 12" so I added borders to make a 16" pillow. I used one layer of warm and white and a vintage sheet and quilted in orange essential thread in a 2" grid pattern.

For the back I did my favorite zipper closure but this time i made a lapped zip. this pillow is now on our bed and is happily loved. Pillows are one of my favorite weekend projects.

Show and Tell

2012-01-06T08:23:00.003-05:00

This needed to be immortalized. i can't believe i fit all 6oz on one bobbin. it's a new year's miracle. it's still on the bobbin right now because i'm not excited about the prospect of skeining that much yarn at once. so i have no clue on yardage at the moment.

Ellie wants you to pay attention to her and don't mind the messiness that is ~~our dining room~~ my sewing table.

after almost 2.5 years, we've decided to start making it seem like we actually live in the house that we own. so we Spicy painted the living room walls gray and i finally got around to hanging up some of my mini-quilts. i just love looking at this wall. i would be remiss if i did not point out that the little sliver of wood on the right is the original trim, completely stripped of paint and sanded down to its natural glory. one day i'll get some proper pictures of the living room and we can all ooh and ahh at the workmanship that Spicy has put into it. btw, notice how the kona medium gray binding on the warm/cool HST quilt perfectly blends with the color of the walls. this was not an accident.

finally, it is time to bid a fond farewell to Spicy's very first pair of handknit socks. Since they were the first pair, he wore them the most often so they were constantly getting holes. They've been through countless repairs and i just can't bear to keep fixing them anymore. Spicy was ultra-sad about it, but i think they had a great run. i'm working on a pair of replacement socks now.

someone in my office is wearing stinky strong perfume. it's going to be a long day.

Putting fabrics with other fabrics

2012-01-05T08:16:00.000-05:00

Quokka Quilts is having a FQS Blogger's Choice bundle contest. Since one of my favorite things is putting together fabrics for a quilt, I thought i'd join in. i stuck to only 3 colors and went for more muted, calmer hues rather than my usual clown barf. i think this combo would make a lovely bed quilt.

Palladium Gray Teardrop
Stitch Organic Dark Teal Tonal Patchwork
Curio Butternut Camellia
Heirloom Jade Marbled Stripe
Little Apples Pencil Leaves
Get Together Gray Flock of Birds
Oval Elements Blue Lagoon
Circa 52 Sun Tree Stripes
Whimsy Teal Box Lattice
Modernology Aqua Mod Vines
Flower Sugar Gray Floral circles
Flora Sunflower Feathers
Bella Solids Soft Yellow
Free Spirit Designer Solids Jade
Kona Ash

Sorry We're Closed

2012-01-04T07:55:00.000-05:00

it's always difficult to know what to make for my dad. he's a "fixer" and is constantly tinkering with things around the house. i thought that a box bag might come in handy for the odd job here and there.

I used Drago[knit]fly's tutorial. instead of doing the cut off the triangles thing, which never seems to work well for me, i cut rectangles out of the sides instead, making it easy to line up the boxy seam corners. i used some alexander henry heath for the exterior. as always, i have trouble coming up with manly fabric combinations. hopefully this is ok.

for the interior, i used one of the fat quarters i got from spoonflower. this fabric reminds me of my dad. he used to own and operate a gas station in a tiny little town, so i bet he utilized a sign very much like this once upon a time.

getting reacquainted

2012-01-03T14:48:00.000-05:00

i've been out of the loop for awhile now. what did i miss?

i got some more quilting fabric from fabric.com. i've slowly been collecting fabrics for a grellow quilt. hopefully it'll happen sometime this year.

Wyatt the ham immediately jumped in my new light box the minute i tried to set it up to take pictures. he's digging his way out right now.

Goooaaaaalllls!

2012-01-01T07:30:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year! It can't be 2012 already can it? i wasn't quite ready for the world to come to an end. Just in case the apocalypse doesn't strike i thought i'd make some crafty plans for the new year. naturally i'll have to squeeze it in when i'm not training for the zombie apocalpyse.

Crochet: hmm, it'd probably be a good idea to try to finish my granny babette. hopefully i can squeeze in the time.

Embroidery: I'd really like to do a quilt that focuses on embroidery, maybe for my stepmom.

Knitting: i have a couple of designs in the works that i should really try to publish soon. i still need winter mittens. and i really want a cabled shawl-collar cardigan. i'd also like to knit my dad a sweater.

Quilting: i have quilts to make for my mom, stepmom, and sister-in-law. plus i've already got a few quilts in progress that i should really finish. Spicy is already starting to complain that we have too many blankets. how can one have too many blankets? impossible, i say.

Sewing: ahh, here's the bulk of the plans because this is where my mind is right now. i'd like to make a winter skirt, 2 more pairs of wool pants, at least one button-down shirt, some work appropriate blouses, and let's throw in a winter dress just for the hell of it. then there's another wedding i have to attend in the summer (dammit) so i'll need a nice dress to wear to that. i'd also like to refashion a few things. i probably won't get to half of these things before it's too warm to wear them.

Photography: i've thought a lot about it. a weekly assignment is way too much commitment for me, but i would like to challenge myself a bit. i thought i'd try a monthly mini-series--maybe 2 or 3 pictures a month on some theme.

Spinning: i have some beautiful cormo that would make an awesome dad sweater. that might be a bit too ambitious though. i might limit myself to trying to spin down more of the stash. because i really might actually go to rhinebeck this year. or maybe i should try the sewing summit instead. we'll see.

Friday Favorites: Year End Edition

2011-12-30T07:30:00.002-05:00

The thought of doing a year-end summation post was exhausting. the problem is, I just do too much crap. there is no way i would even remember half of the stuff i'd worked on if i didn't catalog it on the blog. if i made a mosaic with all of my projects in 2011 it would be completely unwieldy. i wracked my brain to come up with a solution and landed upon a year-end favorites edition. so without further adieu, here are my most favoritest things i've made in 2011:

Favorite Crocheted Thing: Granny Ripple Blanket

Pretty! Stripey! Fast! Sock Yarn Leftovers!

Favorite Dyed Thing: Honey Handspun

I love how the fibers took the dye at different rates. this is one of those things that would be next to impossible to find in a store. making stuff yourself can be so rewarding. and i got a pretty cool hat out of it too.

Favorite Embroidered Thing: Arrested Development Pillow

There's always money in the banana stand. ooh, i should make a sequel with the banana-grabber character! but i will totally retain the animation rights. maybe next year.

Favorite Knitted Thing: Adele

i love both the red one and the blue one. i couldn't decide which one i liked more. the red one is better for winter because it's thicker and warmer but the blue one is so delicate and pretty. i love leaf motifs. also, i'm really glad i bought a better camera.

Favorite Quilted Thing: Dad's Quilt

i've actually made quite a few quilts this year. it was hard for me to pick a favorite but i chose this one for sentimental reasons. not only do i love the finished quilt but i got to give it to my dad in person. he really seemed to love it and said he was proud of my accomplishments. it meant a lot to me. i'm hoping to make a quilt for each of my other family members in 2012. i still have my mom, my stepmother, and my sister-in-law to go.

Favorite Sewn Thing: Peggy Olsen Dress

this was another really tough one. my black pants are definitely the most practical but this one was more fun.

Favorite Photo: Blackkitty

i don't get a lot of pictures of blackkitty because she's camera shy. she has a nice habit of walking away right as i'm ready to take the picture. but i got a good one here. i love her focus and expression. i'm hoping to take more pictures in 2012. maybe i should try to make it a weekly thing.

Favorite Handspun: Gale's Art Silk Lace

lordy bejebus it took forever to spin. but 1232yds feels like a nice achievement. maybe i will even knit it someday.

and that's all, folks! what were your favorite projects of the year?

Linky Loo Friday

2011-12-23T08:51:00.001-05:00

Today's my last day of work for the year. I'll be off all next week so I won't be around this space for awhile. i have a couple of planned year end posts, but otherwise i will see everyone in the new year!

I know that everyone has probably seen it already but Handmade Ryan Gosling makes me chuckle. and i thought nothing could top Typographer RG.

Spicy and I have gotten addicted to Misfits. i heart hulu.

i really love this little mitten ornament. i might make one for a friend. these are really nice too.

sneak previews of the January DS line are up. i don't really care for this one. but we'll see how i feel about it when i see it in person.

i finally bought a new ipod. i can't wait to get it in the mail. does anyone have any useful crafty app suggestions? i'm new to the whole thing. assume i know nothing.

my brother took another picture of Nicole wearing one of the sweaters i made for her. she's getting so big already!

on my week off i still have one xmas gift to finish (shame face) and i will be working on sewing some winter clothes, spinning some lovely bfl/silk, and trimming. oh there will be trimming. what will you do?

Half-assed book review: Power Sewing

2011-12-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

i've been looking for a decent sewing reference book for awhile. I have an older edition of The Singer Complete Photo Guide to Sewing. The photos are nice and clear but the book itself isn't very comprehensive. (I'm referring to my older edition--it appears that they may have added more stuff to the new one). I picked up Power Sewing and I think this may be what I was looking for.

First the ~~bad~~ not my preference: The information is organized into chapters by garment--vests, pants, skirts, dresses, jackets, etc. that means that the technique info is scattered throughout the book. for example, i have to remember that the info on lapped zippers is in the pants chapter while the centered and invisible zipper info is in the skirt chapter. this isn't altogether a bad thing, per se, since i'd imagine if i were sewing a pair of pants or a skirt it'd be nice to have much of the relevant info in one chapter and i can just follow the steps. it only becomes a nuisance if i want to do something that isn't contained in that one chapter.

the other negative is the dated-ness of the styles pictured but obviously you can sew whatever style suits you. another weird thing especially in the pants chapter is that the models are sometimes posing in oddly sexy 90s ways. i'll update this post with a photo if i get a chance. it's really fairly ridiculous. Betzina also pimps her line of patterns for Vogue quite a bit, but that is also no big deal to me. YMMV.

one additional thing to keep in mind is that this is a sewing technique book, not a fitting book. i'm pretty sure Betzina has her own fit tome which i have not yet consulted. i own Pants for Real People and have browsed Fit for Real People. I just wanted to point out that Power Sewing is not a bible of everything you ever wanted to know about sewing and that other references are probably still necessary.

otherwise, the book is pretty great. comparing Betzina's method of lining pants with the other book i bought recently, her methods seem less complicated and technical, though i have yet to try either one, of course. i also like that she starts each chapter with a one page synopsis of her method of sewing each particular garment. it's handy if you just want a quick glance on construction order if you've misplaced the pattern instructions. which of course has NEVER happened to me. ahem.

if you are serious about garment sewing, i would highly recommend this book as a reference. it's definitely much more in-depth than a book like The Colette Sewing Handbook, which I believe is aimed more toward beginners. Power Sewing is the kind of book that will be on my sewing table at all times for easy browsing whenever i want to brush up on a technique.

and just so i can avoid a pictureless-post, here's some FQs i got from Spoonflower.

trimming

2011-12-21T08:24:00.000-05:00

it took me no time at all to stitch up my color wheel charms. the holdup is trimming. i hate trimming. i bought a new ruler that i don't much care for. it's supposed to sharpen your rotary cutter as you use it but i'm pretty sure it dulls blades faster instead. this is the only small square ruler i have so for now i'm sticking with it. i bought the same type of ruler to replace the 12.5" square that helped to nearly lop my finger off. and i already ripped off the packaging so it's too late to return it. i hate that.

i still have a scar, btw. just in case you were wondering.

A parade of Jane

2011-12-20T08:47:00.001-05:00

I got a lot of gift sewing done over the weekend. I set up a Jane Market Bag factory for my family.

on this one, i wasn't paying attention when i was cutting and accidentally cut the squares out of the corners as 4x4.5" so i had to expand it to 4.5" squares. this makes the bag a little shorter and deeper. this one is for my brother and sister in law. i wanted something attractive but not too girly. i don't think i was very successful. i evidently have a plethora of girly fabrics in the stash.

this one is for my father and stepmother. i used a lot of my joann's denyse schmidt stash for these bags. i'm impressed by how well they play together.

this one's for my mom. construction-wise, i used craft-fuse interfacing on the linings, added extra stitching to the handles, and turned through the top of the bag and topstitched the opening. it's definitely my favorite shopping bag pattern and i wouldn't rule out making more in the future. it's also great to get out stash and actually use it rather than just hoarding it. i love coming up with fabric combos for the bags.

Friday Favorites

2011-12-16T08:40:00.001-05:00

1. Scrappy Stars, 2. Neighbours, 3. "Stargazer" Kaufman Kona Charm Challenge, 4. my gift to a sister yam! :), 5. tree of love up close, 6. Echo Quilt, 7. Prism, 8. www.flickr.com/photos/54969566@N08/6371318687/in/faves-br..., 9. Solid Values patchwork quilt

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

Ellie wants to be your friend

Success at last

2011-12-15T08:33:00.002-05:00

Over the weekend, I emerged from my pants-related funk determined to come out a winner. I carefully turned the lining inside out, unpicked the seams as close as i could get to the waistband, and restitched them near the zigzagged seam finish. i'd guestimate that this gave me another inch in the legs and 1.5" in the hips/seat area. then i hemmed the lining and the shell by hand and stitched on the hook closure at the waist.

i hope you'll forgive the pictures. black pants are the worst to try to photograph and i'm still trying to figure out my new flash and tripod.

so as i've mentioned before, it's a dangerous thing for me to go down the rabbit hole of anal retentive pickiness, but after my 4th try with Simplicity 2700 it's still not quite right. the side seams on the front of the pants pull just a little bit on the lined pair. they didn't on my previous run, so i must need just a little more thigh ease when i add a lining.

Most importantly, can i sit down? Answer: YES! well, pretty much. sitting and walking are fine. the only time the lining strains uncomfortably is when i crouch down. i pretty much have to hike up the pants and slowly move, otherwise i get that horrible "I think the thighs are about to rip" feeling in the lining. i definitely need to alter the pattern for the lining next time, and maybe invest in a stretch and/or just not super cheapo lining fabric. i also bought this book so that next time i won't just be flying by the seat of my pants. ha ha.

i remembered to take some pictures of the inside. in a perfect world i'd have black zippers and interfacing in my stash but since it doesn't show on the outside i can't bring myself to care all that much.

i loved the tip to use bias binding on the waistband facing. it makes such a nice-looking finish.

i'm most happy with the faux welt pockets. i never use back pockets but i feel like pants look so awkward without any sort of embellishment on the rear. i will definitely keep adding them to future pairs.

i might actually try a different pattern next time, just because i'm getting kind of sick of this one but it's nice to have a reliable pants block that works for me. i wore these pants all day yesterday and i'm happy to report that i didn't get the dreaded sag and bag in the rear which has happened too often with several other pairs i've made (and with store-bought pants as well). i should've known to trust ol' reliable wool. i recently bought a bunch of wool gabardine from fabric mart so hopefully i can make a few more work pants for winter.

Daisy Mae

2011-12-14T08:16:00.001-05:00

although it wasn't love at first sight, Daisy Mae grew on me. i ordered a bunch of prints from joann.com when they were on sale. they were out of stock on one of the prints i ordered and it took forever to arrive, but here they are. i had to deal with the individually wrapped and excessively taped packages which were a giant PITA to rip open. on the other hand, i didn't have to leave my house to get them. most of the fabrics were just a few inches too long, but a couple were a half-yard or even a yard more than i'd ordered and they are also cut in a very haphazard fashion. i'm not trying to complain about getting more yardage than i'd ordered and i'm glad i wasn't shorted but perhaps if they cut more accurately they wouldn't have been out of stock on one of the prints i really wanted. i tried to stay away from too much blue because my blue stash is out of control, but it's one of my favorite colors. i wasn't as keen on the oranges and i don't have much green in the stash. i like that the line has a lot of basics that seem to blend well with other fabrics.

i'm going to sound like a hypocrite after laughing at the Sugar Creek controversy but i really am disappointed with the quality of this line. it's very inconsistent. i'm convinced they used different substrates for different prints. some of the fabrics feel fine, while others feel quite cheap. a Fabric Traditions rep stated in the DS quilts group that they're switching to a different producer for future lines. apparently there's another one coming out in January. between that one and the reprint of Flea Market Fancy, heaven help me.

trying my patience

2011-12-13T08:50:00.001-05:00

i got to use my new favorite swear nonsense word many times while spinning this yarn. normally when i am spinning, i am not that anal about little imperfections, but it's a slippery slope. first i find myself picking out major pills, VM, or felted bits of fluff. but then i'm already starting and stopping a lot so i should take the time to remove slightly smaller yucky bits. and then i find myself obsessively removing every tiny little imperfection, which destroys any sort of soothing rhythm that threatens to develop. that's what spinning this skein was like. it's more inconsistent than usual because it's hard to keep a constant thickness when you stop every five seconds.

here's what i can say about it: it's pretty and soft. The fiber is Two if by Hand MCN in Radical Librarian. I spun the singles short-forward draw and soaked/thwacked to finish. it's chain-plied, worsted weight, 207yds/120g.

i don't think i will buy any more merino/cashmere/nylon without the ability to inspect it in person. i suspect that it's too fragile to withstand a normal handpainting process, which is why i waited to dye my last MCN yarn until after it was spun. i would purchase fiber from TIBH again, just not MCN.

now that the drama is over, i do kind of like the yarn. i want a new pair of winter mittens but i need to put some distance between me and this skein for awhile.

i always knew my versatility would get me in trouble someday

2011-12-12T10:31:00.002-05:00

Jacey awarded me with the Versatile Blogger Award. Thanks, Jacey! I had not heard of this award before but hey. i'm always up for narcissistic displays of self-revelation. I believe I am supposed to reveal seven things about myself and then ~~infect~~ nominate a few more people.

1) i have no athletic ability but i enjoy watching sports. my favorites are basketball and tennis and i also watch football. i like to think of sport as kinesthetic art. mostly i enjoy watching individuals do amazing things. because i have issues with being of small stature, the athletes i like to watch tend to be short, like Maurice Jones-Drew or Darren Sproles. naturally in my mind the greatest athlete of all time was Muggsy Bogues. seriously though my favorite athlete is probably Roger Federer.

2) my recent most favorite curse is Shit-Balls. it doesn't make any sense but it sounds funny. actually the word Balls by itself is pretty funny to say. just say it in your head with me. Balls. tee-hee.

3) i overresearch everything. i am basically the opposite of an impulse shopper. we need a new universal remote for our bedroom and i gave myself a headache spending 2 hours on amazon trying to find the perfect one, finally giving up in despair. it took me a full week to pinpoint the holy grail of yarn swifts. i am nothing if not thorough.

4) i have a weakness for trashy tv. i can usually avoid it but occasionally i will get sucked into things like top model and the bachelor. when i was in college, 2 of my friends and i used to joke about starting a business called Mindfuck, Inc., in which we would get people to participate in all kinds of unethical experiments. then reality tv came along and pretty much fulfilled all of our mindfuckery needs.

5) i say, "I tole you I ain't a bear!" all the time. people usually give me blank stares. in fact, i get blank stares a lot. this is why i try my best not to talk to people. i like to see myself as the Zooey Deschanel character in New Girl, except that I am not cute and winning in vintage-y clothes. i'm more awkward and alienating in clothes that i make myself and hope that no one notices or says anything. someone at work recently asked me if i'm a Scrooge and I just said, "Yep," and went on about my business.

6) i have multiple pictures of Matthew Mcconaughey and one picture of Ryan Reynolds hanging on my office door. I did not place any of the pictures there--my office mate did. She finds both quite attractive and cut said pictures out of People magazine so that I might derive enjoyment from them. I did not bother to tell her that i'm more of a Joseph Gordon-Levitt or Adam Scott kinda gal. i pray that none of my superiors ever calls me on the beefcake on my door. mostly i'm just worried that they will think i have terrible taste.

7) this probably isn't the smartest thing to admit, but i sometimes don't like to work samples for my own patterns. the fun part for me is the idea. once i've thought through the concept, charted it out, and swatched, the excitement is generally over. the actual execution of the item can be boring, especially if i'm on a deadline and can't work on anything else. if i have to make more than one of a particular pattern, it can be torture.

ok, it's Sharing Time! i'd like to give the award to:
Bezzie because her stories are always entertaining
and
Melissa because i admire her taste.

The Pants Trial

2011-12-09T09:09:00.000-05:00

Gahhhhhhhhhhhhh! ok, i feel slightly better.

so i need new work pants. i seem to say this every season but for some reason it just keeps on being true. this year, i've stuck to a pretty regular exercise routine and though i haven't lost much weight i have toned up a bit and my pants are just loose enough to be unflattering and annoying. i grabbed my go-to pattern, Simplicity 2700. i made another pair of denim trousers. i took in the thighs significantly and the waist and the hem slightly and they turned out fine. i had one further small alteration to make because i had wrinkles in the front crotch (doesn't that sound delightful) but finally i think i've sliced and diced the pattern to just the right size. BTW, thank goodness i traced the pattern instead of just cutting it. i should really get out the original just to see how different it looks now.

i made the denim pants first because i wanted to go through all of the steps to ensure that i wouldn't screw up my second pair. what i desperately need is some winter-weight black dressy slacks. i'm using some wool/tencel that i got from fabric.com. i'm not sure exactly what it is but it has a twill weave. it's doesn't have stretch but the fabric does have a bit of give. because the wool is slightly scratchy i wanted to line them. even though i've never lined pants before i stared at a store-bought pair and assumed i could figure it out. i've taken the whole week to sew just a few steps at a time in the hopes that i won't get too fatigued and screw things up because i'm too tired. i sewed french seams on the pockets, finished all the seams, and added faux welt pockets to the back. last night i finally stitched on the waistband and facing. if nothing else i will someday show the inside of the pants because i have never made such a lovely and professional looking waistband before. it is a thing of beauty. i tried on the pants at 10:30 last night to marvel at my awesomeness. they look fantastic and fit like a glove.

except that i can't sit down. the outer pants fit perfectly. the lining strains when i crouch and feels like i'm going to rip out the seams. evidently the lining should have more ease? it has absolutely no give. should i have used stretch lining even though the wool/tencel is technically not a stretch blend? i dunno. and i can't see a way to fix it without completely dismantling my perfect waistband and quite possibly the majority of the seams. which i may actually end up doing because dammit the pants are perfect except for the stupid-ass lining.

if you've made it this far i appreciate your commiseration. here's a pretty camping picture to distract you from my pain.

Reading material

2011-12-07T08:24:00.000-05:00

i admire the aesthetic of Colette Patterns and follow the blog regularly, so i was excited when her book was released. i haven't had a lot of time to do more than browse, but i love how clear the technique photos are. there's a lot of information packed into this book. much of what's presented isn't new to me but i appreciate how thorough it is and i managed to learn a couple of new things already anyway, like how to make tailor's tacks. i wouldn't hesitate to recommend the book for a beginner and for intermediate+ users as well, as long as you like the patterns. my favorite pattern in the book is the sleeveless dress with the peplum. i think it would make a lovely holiday party dress. i've actually been sewing some clothing lately but i haven't had enough daylight to take any pictures.

The second book is Modern Blocks. The presentation is also lovely and i'm particularly fond of the blocks contributed by Weeks and Ringle but i kind of wish I had browsed through this one before buying it. i wasn't too interested in much of the selection but there are a few that i really liked. it will be fun to use the book to add some blocks for my sampler quilt that i haven't worked on in ages.

Color Wheel Charm Swap

2011-12-06T08:39:00.000-05:00

Awhile back I signed up for the Color Wheel Charm Swap at from the blue chair. There were 2 rounds, one for medium values and one for light and dark values. I participated in both.

I ended up with 220 squares. There were a few duplicates and I added some of my own to make 224 total. I had a lot of fun last night sorting and scheming. I matched up each square with its complimentary color (or close to it). i've decided to do another Warm/Cool HST quilt. the charms will enable me to make a nice lap throw, 56x64. i'm in the middle of several other things so i'll see how long i can resist starting up a new project.

Thanks are in order

2011-12-02T08:01:00.000-05:00

I received my prize for winning second place in October's Celebrate Color needlework contest. I really enjoyed participating, primarily because it covered so many different crafts. It was fun to thumb through everyone's entries and see so many creative works. Thanks again to Rachel for organizing such a great endeavor!

I've only ever used regular DMC floss, so it'll be interesting to try something new. i'm not quite sure what to do with the fabric. it'll marinate in the stash for awhile until i figure it out.

something new

2011-12-01T08:24:00.000-05:00

I signed up for the October Allspunup spinalong because i'm always looking to try new blends. This is 2oz of handpainted mohair/nylon/merino and 4oz of superwash merino/alpaca. to be perfectly honest, when i received the fiber in the mail i wasn't thrilled with the colors. i was hoping for something that would make nice manly socks and the garish primary colors of the mohair weren't appealing to me. i put it aside for a little while but i realized that i've never been steered wrong with an ASU spinalong before so i decided to give it a try.

I spun the mohair short-forward draw to keep the fuzziness to a minimum. it reminded me a lot of wensleydale. the SW merino/alpaca was spun longdraw from the fold. it was a little tricky at first but after i made sure to add plenty of twist it went ok. i ended up with 512yds/170g of fingering weight 3ply plus a few extra yards of chain-plied mohair.

i'm thrilled with the finished yarn. the heathered brown primary fiber really mutes the mohair and makes it man-appropriate. Spicy will be a very happy guy when he gets his new knee socks. i'm excited to see what the yarn looks like knit up, but it'll probably be awhile--hopefully i can cast-on after the holidays.

Jellyfish Scarf

2011-11-30T08:51:00.000-05:00

Interweave Knits Accessories 2011 will be available in early December. I am tremendously excited about this issue because my Jellyfish scarf is in it. I had originally submitted this design for Knitscene and it was held for the Accessories issue, so this has been in the works for a long time. I finished the sample back in March. The scarf is cabled on one half and transitions into tucks on the other. My photo shows this a bit more clearly. The scarf is very easy to knit even in a mohair/silk blend. I was thinking a lot about texture when I designed this scarf and how to interpret dimensional shapes in knitwear. I'm so proud to be a part of this issue and to be among such great designers. i can't wait to see a copy in print!

aaaaaand, i'm back

2011-11-29T09:15:00.000-05:00

I hope that everyone had a lovely holiday. we were blessed with wonderful weather on our camping trip.

thankfully we were not eaten by bears. we didn't see any animals at all--not even a squirrel or birds. it was pretty unnerving, really.

i'll be back with more crafty content tomorrow.

the gift parade continues

2011-11-23T09:12:00.000-05:00

Spicy and I are celebrating 5 years together by going camping for Thanksgiving. If you never hear from me again, we were probably eaten by bears.

there were quite a few patterns in the new issue of twist collective that called to me, but none more than Yukimi. i loved the clever leaf shaping at the crown. Since it came in such a big size range, I decided to make one for my sister-in-law and one for my niece. Hopefully it's not too weird to have mother-daughter hats. they don't have to wear them at the same time, i suppose.

Pattern: Yukimi (rav)
Yarns: Allspunup alpaca/merino/silk 4ply handspun and Madelinetosh dk in seaglass
Size: M and XS
Needles: #5 and #2 knitpicks circs
Started: November 15, Finished: November 19

i loved the pattern so much that i might make one for myself eventually. i'm not the biggest fan of seed stitch but it doesn't take all that long since it's a hat. i'm really pleased with the allspunup handspun. i don't love spinning yarns with large percentages of alpaca but the finished yarn turned out soft and a little fuzzy.

my final project of the weekend was another Jane Market bag. i used craft fuse interfacing for all exterior pieces except the pocket and a lightweight interfacing for the lining. i like the weight and stiffness of this bag best. i used some japanese fabric that i'd bought from etsy awhile back. this one is for a friend of mine but i am half tempted to make an identical version for myself. these will be my final entries for celebrate color. it's been great fun participating and sharing my work. there are so many beautiful items in the pools.

i hope all of you celebrating thanksgiving have a lovely weekend.

Trying to stay ahead of the game

2011-11-22T08:02:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd attempt to refrain from procrastinating this year on gifts. Over the weekend I set aside some time to make Xmas presents for my co-workers. I did all of the steps assembly line style so I saved quite a bit of time.

I used all stash fabrics to make these drawstring bags which have been showing up everwhere in blogland recently. and for good reason too--they are quick and easy to sew and don't take a lot of fabric.

the only change i made was to cut 1.5" squares out of the bottom corners rather than doing the cutting off the triangle thing. i can never get my seams to line up properly that way. i also handstitched the linings closed. i really like these bags. they are the perfect size for a small knitting project. i will probably make at least one more for myself in the future.

i also made these cute little dumpling bags. they are quite small, basically the size of a change-purse. i've already printed out a version at 150% to make a bigger one later. by the time i got to these i was tired so i ended up having a few issues. all of the hand-basting gets pretty tedious. it's not so bad when you are only making one but four got a bit out of hand. i used straight grain binding in coordinating fabrics to cover the seams. i like that it stabilizes the zipper and helps the bag keep its shape. i'm planning to try the larger version for another gift but i'm going to put some distance between me and this pattern. i'm not quite ready to tackle it again.

i tried to match colors and patterns to the tastes of my coworkers. many of them ended up fall appropriate so i'm linking up to Celebrate Color.

The Collaboration Quilt

2011-11-21T08:38:00.002-05:00

Awhile back as the Wonky Quilt Bee was winding down, it occurred to me that it might be nice to do something for our pregnant members. a few emails were sent back and forth and a secret project was agreed upon by me, Jacey, and Nicke. This quilt went to Melissa.

We each made a few 8 inch wonky log cabin blocks in a nice scrappy mix. I put together the top with my new favorite chocolate brown to set off the bright colors. I saved a lovely neutral block of Nicke's for the back. the binding utilized this faux piping tutorial. it's a bit laborious but totally worth it in the end.

The back uses some fun Ann Kelle prints. I used warm and white for the batting and the quilt is about 42x48.

For the quilting, I did straightish white lines through the wonky blocks. I switched to brown and made loopy pinstripes on the negative space. i wanted to maintain the quilt's softness so this was a good use of free motion quilting that wasn't too dense.

I copied my fellow conspirator's signatures on the label. it was a lot of fun embroidering this one. I almost always forget to make a label but I'm glad i took the time. i had a fair amount of hemming and hawing over whether or not i should make my name legible but i decided to go for authenticity in the end.

there's only a few days left so i'm entering this in Celebrate Color.

The winner of the Winter Knitcircus pattern collection is Danelle in Kansas. The winner of the subscription is Vicki. I've forwarded your info along to Knitcircus. Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments!

Linky-loo Friday

2011-11-18T08:08:00.001-05:00

Are you looking for the Knitcircus giveaway?

On my radar this week:

Dumpling bags. i made a test version last night and these are definitely going on my list for quick xmas gifts. i've also seen these drawstring bags popping up everywhere. I will probably make a few of them as well.

Thanks to everyone for the nice comments you've made about my hat. I am really proud to be a part of Knitcircus. This issue has so many lovely patterns. I really like Sandrilene, the Komeeta mittens, and I might do Rosebud for my niece.

I knew that eventually someone would post a pic of the sweaters from the Halloween episode of Community. I particularly love Annie and Abed's sweaters. Yay for Norwegian and/or Fair Isle colorwork! and long live Community! (sob)

if you check out the table of contents for this upcoming publication, you might see a familiar name. i'm mentally jumping up and down in excitement.

We'll end today with one from the archives. Wyatt wasn't quite ready for his close-up.

A sweet treat

2011-11-17T08:30:00.001-05:00

I'm so pleased to introduce the Confection Hat, published in the Winter issue of Knitcircus. The idea for this hat came about as I was leaving work one day and saw a young woman walking ahead of me. She was wearing a spectacular slouchy hat. I must admit that I followed her for as long as I possibly could to capture every detail. Her hat featured an entirely different texture, but the shaping by gathering was what most intrigued me. I went straight home and found a drapey worsted weight yarn and put together a simple lace pattern with reverse stockinette tucks. I added graduated tiers of lace and tucks, topped with a fun pompom. Wear the gathers to the back or side. The pattern comes in a full size range from Baby to Adult Large. The hat can be finished in no time and makes a gorgeous accessory to give away or keep for yourself.

The hat uses 2 balls of Valley Yarns Northfield and #6 needles. A crochet hook was used to make the gathering cord, although you could replace it with i-cord or a purchased ribbon. The yarn has a nice drape and lovely stitch definition. The hat is meant to be loose-fitting with the gathers taking up some of the extra ease.

I had a lot of fun designing this hat. I went through a few different iterations on this one before arriving at the final product. I wanted to show a couple of pics of the original. The design is fairly different from the final version but this shows how I had envisioned the hat being worn as an alternative to the magazine pics--lower on the head in more of a slouchy cloche way. I'm especially fond of wearing the gathers in the back.

As a celebration, I'm having a 30% off sale in my Ravelry pattern store. All patterns and e-books except for KP IDP patterns are on sale from today through Sunday, 11/20, no coupon code necessary. Now's a great time to stock up on patterns for gift-knitting.

I'm also giving away a copy of the Winter pattern collection and subscription to Knitcircus. Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win. Be sure to leave an email address so that I'll have a way to contact you. I'll use the random number generator to pick the winners on Monday.

Pretty Fabric Day: Echo

2011-11-16T08:18:00.002-05:00

Purchased from Marmalade Fabrics

A few blocks a day...

2011-11-15T08:12:00.000-05:00

I think I've finally figured out what I want to do with my bee quilt. I need 30 blocks total, so I made a bunch over the weekend and I'm trying to do 2 a day for the next several days.

i wanted to try some improv curved piecing, so i used this tutorial and some scraps. It did not take me very long to discover that I don't find curved piecing much fun. so i stopped. hopefully this block won't look too weird in the overall scheme of things.

i threw in some wonky crosses on this one. i like the look of them but i'll probably never make an entire quilt, as i think i'd get bored pretty quickly. i really enjoy the process of just grabbing pieces of fabric and figuring out what i'm doing as i go along. hopefully i can keep enjoying it for 10 more blocks.

In the mood for quilting

2011-11-14T09:12:00.000-05:00

I finished up one secret project and worked on another. These are scrappy improv blocks. They were a lot of fun to make and got me ready to tackle my bee quilt. Their purpose will become clear someday.

In other news, who knew that radish flowers could be so pretty?

Linky-loo Friday and a Sneak Peak

2011-11-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

It's almost time for Winter Knitcircus, which means that I can share a sneak peak of my upcoming design. Let's just say that my pattern is pictured here. I'm tremendously excited about it, and I'll be doing another giveaway and pattern sale next week.

Denyse Schmidt is totally out of control with her fabric releases. i actually like this collection a bit less than her previous ones, but there are a few pieces i'll probably pick up.

i got bit by the echo bug in a big way. there's already so many lovely quilts using the line. i picked up a fq bundle plus a couple other prints from marmalade fabrics.

i'm going to keep gift-giving simple this year. basically everybody's getting a jane market bag and probably a baked good, plus I'll make a couple of little things for Nicole. it's too bad that all i want to do is sew myself a new bag instead, like Noodlehead's go anywhere bag. maybe after the holidays.

my weekend will be concentrated on sweaters and spinning and secret quilting. i hope yours will be as fun-filled.

Looking for my pot o' gold

2011-11-10T08:01:00.001-05:00

I started this quilt in June after being inspired by the quiltalong. Things started really well and I rapidly finished about half of the blocks. then i hit a bump in the road because i lack scraps in certain colors, but Jacey came to my rescue. i finally finished up all the blocks and stitched together the top but I got stuck on ideas for the back. This quilt was supposed to be a summer project, and now it's nearly winter. but hey, done is done.

My quilt is 79x63. i used all scrap fabrics for the ticker tape and attached them with blanket stitch. i was very pleased by how well the stitches held up through the wash. i subbed a few colors and arranged the blocks how i wanted them. i also used all leftover batting scraps.

i had purchased the navy dotty fabric and the rainbow stripe for the binding while i was on vacation over the summer. for some reason i had the hardest time finding a companion fabric for the backing. white was the only thing that seemed to work. in retrospect it wasn't the wisest choice because the colors in the seams show through, but i couldn't find a more appealing option.

i originally had all kinds of ideas on quilting, i was going to do free motion around the blocks or i was going to hand-quilt them. but when it came down to it, i just wanted it to be finished. i outlined the white interior of each block. i had forgotten how large the quilt was so this was a more difficult choice than i thought it was going to be. but again, better done than sitting in a lonely pile on a chair, mocking me. if i ever try QAYG again, i will do one of the methods where you attach the backing on each block. making a large backing at the end still requires basting and quilting, so to me it kind of detracts from the point of quilt as you go.

i machine stitched the binding. there was no way that i was going to handstitch it, especially after handsewing the backwards quilt the night before. now it's on my bed giving us a welcome dose of color to combat the coming doldrums.

Setting goals

2011-11-09T07:55:00.000-05:00

I would really like to finish 2 more quilts this year, this being one of them. The lovely ladies in the Wonky Quilt Bee made me these blocks (plus the one nice lady in the Simple Modern Quilt Bee). Shamefully I haven't had time to do any blocks of my own. I really don't have a plan yet and I'm working on the other quilt right now. So I have a small amount of time to think it over.

Thank-yous and some cuteness

2011-11-08T07:59:00.002-05:00

A big thank-you is in order. I won a contest on Nicke's blog and she sent me some lovely fat quarters plus a bonus party fun-time piece. I love them! I also received the 2 awesome fabrics on the right from Jacey. You should check out her free scarf pattern--it's gorgeous. The three of us are collaborating on a project that I'm not quite ready to show yet but hopefully it'll be done soon.

My brother sent me some photos of Nicole wearing one of the kimonos i sent. she's quite the model, eh?

A backlog: Backwards

2011-11-07T10:21:00.002-05:00

I hadn't touched my sewing machine in a couple of weeks. My sewing table was a complete disaster with stacks of half-finished projects waiting to be dealt with. I took an extra day on Friday to get to the bottom of the mess.

This quilt had been quilted and needed only trimming and binding when I went on my hiatus. At some point i felt the desire to make some scrappy postage stamp blocks. I made 8-inch blocks with 2 inch squares using only scraps. each fabric on the front is unique. i added some white borders and used kona chocolate for the top.

When it was time for me to figure out what to do for the back, I remembered the collection of X and Plus blocks i had made. i decided that i was through with that project for now and i might as well use them up. I stitched them together with some kona white. i used warm and white batting for the first time since the white was so prominent. It occurred to me that the top of the quilt looked more like a back and vice versa. hence, the Backwards Quilt was born.

i stitched straightish lines in white cotton thread on the postage stamps. then i switched to brown and did wider lines on the right and narrower lines on the left. i was going to FMQ but my sewing machine decided not to cooperate with me. ripping out my unsuccessful attempt was what prompted the quilting hiatus in the first place.

i tried a scrappy binding for the first time. i like the effect but not the bulk. next time i'll join the strips at a 45 degree angle. i handstitched the binding to the back.

This quilt will go to Spicy's niece-to-be. it's 40x46. i love how simple yet colorful it is, and kona chocolate is bound to become one of my new staples. i may have already started another quilt using it. This quilt took way too long to finish but i love it anyway. and it's scrappy!

24-carat

2011-11-02T09:11:00.000-04:00

Wyatt is BIG

It did not take long for me to whip up a new hat. it's not quite winter coat weather yet but we're getting very close.

Pattern: #10 Cabled Cap, Vogue Knitting Fall 2009 (rav)
Yarn: 4ply handspun bunnysilk cashmerino
Needles: #6 and #8 denise circs
Started: October 28, Finished: October 30

the pattern is fun to work and relatively easy, though i'm not a huge fan of VK's charting symbols. As I was knitting, I wasn't quite sure if it was going well. The cables weren't popping the way that I'd like and the pattern seemed lost in the shaded yarn, and the handspun didn't feel quite as nice on the hands to knit with as it did to spin. but when i finished it up and plopped it on my head, i fell in love. the warmth, the softness, the depth of color--it was everything i'd hoped it would be. it's definitely next-to-skin soft and there's just the tiniest hint of angora halo that gives the hat a nice blurry haze.

because of the fibers involved, the hat has grown a bit and is fairly loose-fitting. i'm not a huge fan of tight-fitting hats anyway, so i'm fine with it. i'm only in want of a new pair of mittens and i'll be ready for the snow. I'm entering this for November's Celebrate Color.

hexes

2011-10-31T08:24:00.001-04:00

about a month ago i started a new project. i was inspired by the packaging that floh.stiche sent with my FTLOS quilt. there was a magazine page with a lovely color palette. it was outside my normal preferences but i was struck by how pretty it was. i cut out 2.5" squares from a variety of solids in my stash with just a few gray prints. most of these 1" hexagons are kona coal. i was thinking about doing a miniquilt similar to this pillow. this is not all of the hexagons i have basted, i just threw out a color sample for the picture. i'm almost done basting but i've been working on it very slowly. i know that this will be a very long-term project because i don't love handsewing that much, but it's nice to work on in between other things.

Friday Favorites

2011-10-28T08:53:00.002-04:00

I can't find any screen shots yet, but did anyone see how great the ski sweaters were in Jeff's story on Community last night? i need more norwegian stranded colorwork in my life.

i'm so happy that my slippers made the finals of October's Celebrate Color! head on over here to vote--there's so many lovely projects.

1. Round crochet cushion complete, 2. 241 Tote, 3. Alice's Hexagon Quilt, 4. www.flickr.com/photos/54871961@N03/6258576808/in/faves-br..., 5. full view, 6. IMG_0968, 7. telemark1, 8. handspun rainbow details, 9. Hither socks

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

have a good weekend! hopefully i'll be back next week with some warm and colorful woolens.

Bunnysilk Cashmerino

2011-10-26T08:28:00.001-04:00

i recently bought a light brownish-grey winter coat. i wanted mustard colored accessories to match. i spent over a week searching for the perfect yarn but i couldn't quite find it. not only was i looking for a specific color but i wanted something very soft and warm that would wear reasonably well since i'll be wearing it constantly throughout the winter. finally i gave up and decided to spin the yarn myself.

this is a 4ply light worsted weight handspun, 242yds/140g. it has one ply of tussah silk, one ply of english angora, and 2 plies of superwash merino/cashmere/nylon. that makes the final blend 25/25/40/5/5% for those counting at home.

i carded the angora into rolags. the other 2 fibers i spun from the fold. the majority was spun longdraw and tightly plied. i spun the silk short-forward draw to tamp down the fuzziness and up the shine. i used acid dyes and i didn't quite get the color i was looking for, but close enough. i love how the dye took to the individual fibers differently. at close inspection, i think the angora barely took any color at all. i love how soft and bouncy the yarn is. hopefully it's warm too.

my only concern is i probably don't have enough for both a hat and mittens but i got impatient. if i can only do one or the other i'll probably spin up the same blend and dye it turquoise.

i'm sick of raglans

2011-10-24T10:39:00.000-04:00

if you are a knitter, you've probably noticed that raglans are super popular. i have knit a whole bunch of them myself. they are often suggested to a newer knitter because the regular yoke increases (or decreases depending on whether you're doing top-down or bottom-up) are easy to work and they are even easier to write for pattern designers.

but lately i've decided i've had my fill. somewhere along the way i realized that seaming is just not that big of a deal (and might even be SHOCKINGLY enjoyable) and i like the fit of set-in sleeves better than yokes or raglans. they also look better on my broad-shouldered body type. so i'm taking a break. i'm not saying i'll never knit another raglan as long as i live or anything but it's nice to work on other things. to be fair i'm conflating this issue with knitting in pieces versus knitting in the round but raglans and knitting in the round often go hand-in-hand.

i promised Spicy a new sweater for his birthday so i have to get cracking. i'm designing a saddle-shouldered pullover in knit picks WOTA tweed. it'll be nice and simple with some texture to keep it from being too boring. it's being worked flat because it's too heavy to work on a big men's sweater in one piece. i can't imagine how unbearable it would be once i got to the sleeves. i'm also working with him to adhere to his many specifications. you would think that someone who likes things to be so plain would not be picky. you (and i) would be wrong. at least i can be confident that this design will have the man stamp of approval.

Foto Friday: Kitties

2011-10-21T07:55:00.000-04:00

the crafty slump continues. i'm kind of enjoying it actually. have a good weekend!

back to black

2011-10-19T08:30:00.000-04:00

Last summer I made a black cardigan but the truth is, I never wear it. it's heavy and too hot for summer wear but not warm enough for winter. i still needed that basic black cardi that i could live in, so i started a pattern from knitscene at the end of summer 2010.

Pattern: Who Me? Cardigan from Knitscene Fall 2010
Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted in black, 6 skeins
Needles: #7 and #8 knitpicks options
Size: 37
Started: August 2010, Finished: October 2011

i knit the back, pockets, and 2 sleeves and then promptly got distracted by other shinier things. i didn't pick it back up until about a week ago. i couldn't even remember which parts i had finished so i had to double check to be sure i hadn't already knit the fronts and just lost them somewhere. it was an easy finish. i bought a separating zipper but of course, i lost it too. maybe someday i'll find it and install it. i have almost a full skein left so i was also debating making a permanent belt. but in reality, i'm probably calling this one done.

i've been wearing it pretty much nonstop so i think i finally found my go-to cardi. i've realized that you have to go into the project with the correct expectations for malabrigo. i picked a very warm comfy everyday sweater without intricate stitch details. therefore i don't care that it's already starting to pill and look shabby after only a week. it's like wearing a hug. i love it.

i'm entering this in October's Celebrate (non?) Color. and kudos to Spicy for getting some decent photos of a black sweater. yay!

Foto Friday: Self

2011-10-14T07:30:00.003-04:00

btw, i joined twitter as bradyphrenia. quitting twitter? probably in a couple of days.

always planning ahead

2011-10-12T08:02:00.000-04:00

right now i'm finishing up a sweater that i started back in August 2010, so it'll be another slow week blog-wise.

I was very fortunate to win 1st prize of September's Celebrate Color finals in handstitching! i received the entire Alphabet collection from Penguin and Fish. thanks to Rachel for hosting such a great contest. hopefully i can get something cute stitched up this month. we just found out that Spicy's brother and his wife are expecting their first, so there is no shortage of baby stuff to work on.

the red prints in Sugar Creek finally came to my joann's. i bought half yards of everything except for 2 yards of the large floral.

i like this collection more than picnic and fairgrounds. it's a little outside my color comfort zone but i think it'll be perfect for my mom. i've been debating over which pattern i should do. right now i'm leaning towards Small Plates from the Practical Guide to Patchwork. i know that my mother would probably prefer something more traditional rather than wonky. if you had this stack of prints, what would you make?

Pardon My French Slippers

2011-10-10T08:36:00.000-04:00

We're starting to get cooler weather and naturally i've lost one of the clogs i made last year. i hate cold feet, so i decided to just craft a new pair.

I've been wanting to make a pair of French Press Slippers for awhile. they were very easy to knit and seam, but the felting took forever. our water isn't very hot so i think that probably slowed down the process.

Pattern: French Press Felted Slippers (rav)
Size: S
Yarn: Cascade 220, 2 skeins
Needles: #15 Knitpicks Zephyrs
Started: October 6, Finished: October 8

Rather than knitting the flaps, I knew I wanted to do some embroidery. in the end, i couldn't figure out a good way to transfer a pattern to felt, so i went with simple french knots in 3 different colors scattered on the outsides of the slippers. i used all 6 strands of embroidery floss and wrapped them 4 times to make them stand out.

I also traced around my feet and made padded insoles. i used my favorite butterfly remix fabric, 2 layers of cotton batting, and white scrap cotton for the bottoms. i stitched around the outsides and turned the soles inside out and top stitched around the entire opening (like you would for coasters). i whipstitched the soles to the felted slippers.

i'm also planning to paint some fiber-lok on the bottoms for traction but i haven't gotten around to it yet. these didn't turn out perfectly but they should do the trick to keep my toes warm this fall. i'm entering these in Celebrate Color for October.

Friday Favorites

2011-10-07T09:06:00.002-04:00

1. cfc swmn lp twirl, 2. Ringo PIe--October--Amy, 3. Fall Spin-Along Fiber from AllSpunUp, 4. baby cross quilt, 5. Constellation, 6. Embroidered Circle Skirt 4, 7. hedgehog zipper pouch, 8. Camera Embroidery, 9. Hedgehogs In Love Pencil Roll

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

hopefully i'll be out of my slump soon and will have more to blog next week. have a great weekend!

What I've been up to

2011-10-05T08:33:00.001-04:00

playing 8-bit video games

making homemade laundry soap and dishwashing detergent

buying a new winter coat and boots

reading up on bunnies

enjoying the latest Ravelry drama

watching Prohibition

crafty endeavors: FAIL. i don't wanna talk about it.

yarn and a gift

2011-10-03T08:54:00.000-04:00

I finished spinning my superwash merino from Two if By Hand. I ended up with 482yds/120g of fingering weight 2ply, spun longdraw, soaked and thwacked to finish. this yarn will eventually be a baby sweater for Nicole.

a few weeks back Spicy and I went to the Finger Lakes Fiber Festival. We had a nice time and i got a good many things but unfortunately my insane cat Ellie chomped down on my unattended bag of goodies so everything looks like a mess. i got some fiber: polwarth, superwash merino/tencel, shetland; some yarn: cormo, alpaca; and a new russian spindle.

i also got this gorgeous handcrafted sapele wood niddy noddy from Millpoint Emporium as a gift from Spicy. I have been searching for a new niddy noddy for a long time. The one i've been using for the duration of my spinning career is a craptacular PVC version that came with my babe spinning wheel. It's 1 and 2/3 yards, which is about the dumbest length i can come up with for a niddy noddy. i specifically wanted one that is 2 yards to make calculating length easier and this vendor was the only one who carried the right size. it doesn't hurt that it's beautiful either. i love it and it's so nice to have a niddy noddy that doesn't warp when i use it. i admit it--i'm a bit spoiled, but it's wonderful to have someone who supports my ~~craziness~~ craftiness.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

2011-09-30T09:02:00.002-04:00

The Wonky Bee is winding down--we're in our final month and it's been a huge success. I have loved getting to know the other members and I got to stretch myself and try lots of new things. Nicke and Jacey sent me this thank-you gift for running the bee.

A bit of exposition is in order: Chawne had been crafting some badass samplers and at some point I commented with the story of how when I became a homeowner, the plan was always to make a mat for the front door that said "Fuck Off" instead of "Welcome" but eventually i lost my nerve for fear of offending my neighbors. Nicke saw my comment and conspired with Jacey to make me this miniquilt as a thank-you. I cannot begin to describe how hard I laughed when I opened the package. Firstly--it is gorgeous! look at that craftsmanship...and in my favorite color scheme. right now the quilt is hanging in my sewing room and every time i walk past it, i give a good chuckle. Thank you so much, you two! i couldn't have asked for a better gift.

i really could've used a Fuck Off mat a few weeks ago. a salesman came to my door and was trying to pitch me a security system. I answered and he asked me 3 times if I was the homeowner, all the while glancing past me and trying to catch Spicy's eye. Finally I was like, "YES, I am the one who owns the house." not my boyfriend or my husband or whoever you think that man is back there. The house belongs to ME. he also blatantly lied and tried to tell me that "there have been several break-ins in the neighborhood lately." i really wish i had asked him exactly where and when this had occurred. as you may have guessed i did not purchase a new security system that day. next time i'll be prepared with my handy Fuck-Off quilt for rude intrusions.

have a great weekend!

Thursday Favorites

2011-09-29T09:07:00.000-04:00

Links are a day early because the weather has been extremely uncooperative and i wasn't able to take any pictures last night. i'm so not ready for it to be dark when i get out of work.

1. Rae's Itty Bitty Dress Pattern , 2. Oregon Star, 3. Drawstring Baby Play Mat, 4. Ticker Tape Easter Bunny, 5. do. Good Stitches Postage Stamp Quilt, 6. Man Quilt, 7. Beauty pic of my newest quilt ~, 8. ..., 9. Sneaky peak of my latest crochet creation :)

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

pretty and practical

2011-09-28T09:05:00.002-04:00

I've been in desperate need of a needle book. my embroidery needles were very untidy and i kept poking myself so i finally broke down and made one. i used the tutorial here. mine is currently missing a closure because i don't have any snaps on hand.

I used urban circus for the exterior and sugar pop for the inside. the bindings are an art gallery fabric and sugar creek. it's a very handy thing to have. the tutorial was pretty clear, and it didn't take too much time.

i also made some fabric boxes for my craft room. I used craft-fuse interfacing and starch when pressing.

the little scraps seem to explode all over the table so i'm hoping these will keep them at bay. it was fun and very easy to make these little boxes. i made myself use some of the more "precious" fabrics in the stash. the cotton/linen blends make a nice sturdy box. i'd like to make at least a couple more. i'm finding that you can never have enough.

btw, i made it as a finalist in TWO categories of Celebrate Color! all of the entries are so lovely--you can vote here. i especially love this quilt. it's gorgeous!

Bottled Rainbows: Approaching the Finish Line

2011-09-27T08:02:00.000-04:00

i've been avoiding bottled rainbows for a long while. i just couldn't bring myself to make the final block. i had plenty of tiny scraps to use for turquoise. i could have used even smaller pieces but that would have taken forever to stitch.

i pulled out all of my blocks and put them together last night so the top is finished. now i just have to figure out what i want to do for the backing and get it done.

Celebrating Color

2011-09-26T08:50:00.001-04:00

I'm sneaking in 2 last-minute submissions to Celebrate Color.

Pattern: Hawkmoth Pullover, Knitscene Fall 2011
Yarn: Allspunup BFL/Silk handspun singles
Size: 31.5
Needles: #4 Knitpicks Harmony circs
Started: August 27, Finished: September 24

I had less than 800 yards of handspun, so I shortened the body by half an inch and made short sleeves. I also lowered the neck a little to be more flattering on my frame. this sweater is a lot warmer than you'd think it would be. i had it on for the photos in 70 degree weather and it was uncomfortably hot. fall weather is supposed to be right around the corner so i'm looking forward to being able to wear it. it's been quite a long time since i finished an adult-sized sweater and it's always fun to work with my own handspun, so i declare this one a success. in case anyone is interested in how i counteracted stockinette curl, i steam-blocked it into submission.

I've slowly been working on a long-term embroidery project. i want to combine pieced blocks with embroidery for a quilt. the end result will be a pretty quilt for our guest room, though as of now we don't actually have a bed in the spare room due to sparseness of guests. i bought several mandala patterns from the floss box after seeing Jacey's lovely block. I used the floss colors that i got from Wild Olive's blog prize and added a few more colors. i traced the design with the transfer pen that she sent but i still have a lot to learn. i tried to remove the pen marks with a washcloth but it left blue splotches everywhere so i had to run water over the piece to remove them. so my embroidery is pretty wrinkly and a bit askew. next time i'll just wait until the piece is completely finished to deal with removing the marks.

This was my first block. i used a free pattern from polka and bloom. i loved making this one as well. these patterns are certainly more involved than other ones i've tried before so they take me a long time for me to finish. i'm not in a hurry though and i've enjoyed working through them. i never thought i'd like embroidery but i find it a relaxing change of pace.

Friday Favorites

2011-09-23T08:42:00.000-04:00

1. "Groovy" Custom Quilt for my Mom, 2. Ringo Pie - Quilts on a Line, 3. Autumn Circle, 4. Hexie Pillow on a rainy autumn day, 5. Postage Stamp Pillow Cover, 6. DSC_2541, 7. 029, 8. Owl Be Your Friend embroidery pattern, 9. Work in Progress - Dresden Plate - 3x6 and 4x5 Bee

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

One of these things is not like the others

2011-09-22T08:20:00.000-04:00

Pink Chalk Fabrics solid scrap packs, with some michael miller dots thrown in

Odds 'n Ends

2011-09-21T08:24:00.000-04:00

i'm working on so many things right now that my head is starting to spin. I'm dusting off some older FOs for blog fodder while i get myself organized.

I made this potholder quite awhile ago. i need to replace the ones in our kitchen and i've only managed to make one so far. i used fabric selvedges and foundation pieced them to a layer of thin cotton. I quilted to one layer of cotton batting and one layer of insulbrite, but next time i think i'd use 2 layers of cotton because it doesn't feel quite thick enough.

the backing is a japanese fabric that i bought on sale. it's not my favorite fabric but it works well for kitchen items.

I made a box bag from Remix fabrics. i used this tutorial (without the vinyl) and it's one of my favorites. the only change i'd make next time is to replace the tab with a handle.

i used lightweight interfacing and my bag was pretty floppy, so i made little pintucks like on the Jane Market Bag to help the box hold it's shape. i also zigzagged the interior seams rather than pinking them. i will definitely make a few more of these--they are so useful. right now this one is holding my latest knitting project.

Happy Packages

2011-09-20T08:17:00.000-04:00

I received all of my blocks from the 3x6 bee. my hive was really fast and I love everything that I received. these ladies have a lot of talent. i'm excited to add these blocks to my bedroom sampler quilt.

Last night I also got my For the Love of Solids Swap package from Floh.Stiche. She sent me the most beautiful mini-quilt that incorporated every single one of my suggestions.

It mixes bright happy colors with navy, it has linen, it has hexagons, it has hand-stitching. it's like she ordered up everything i wanted all on one platter. i love this quilt so much--it's gorgeous. i think my favorite part is the scrappy binding. or maybe it's the back. i love the back.

she also made me this adorable little pouch. i love that it's like i can carry around a tiny version of the quilt with me. She was kind enough to include some yummy German chocolate that Spicy has already latched on to. Thank-you so much, Floh! i'm so happy with this swap and i can't wait to participate again.

Playing with Hexagons, Pt II

2011-09-19T09:05:00.000-04:00

My second hexagon experiment was with hand piecing. I used the 1" templates from Texas Freckles and followed The Sometimes Crafter's tutorial. I cut 2.5" squares for my hexies and whipstitched with light grey gutermann thread. i found that basting the hexies was fun and relaxing while actually stitching them...not so much. my whipstitches were between 30-40 stitches per inch, so that may have had something to do with how tedious it was. next time i'll see if i can get away with less. i actually found hand-piecing ok when compared with machine piecing. i doubt i'd do an entire charm quilt, but a few little things here and there would be fun.

For the pillow, i ironed on a bit of steam a seam to the back of my flower and pressed it to a solid piece of Kona Chocolate. i handquilted around the flower and in lines 1" apart with embroidery floss, because i don't have any perle cotton on hand. i didn't use a hoop but probably should have. about halfway through, one of my lovely cats decided to throw up on my pillow and then scratch a nick in the fabric with her claws. the cat lived, but barely.

The backing is AH Heath with a contrasting zip--my favorite pillow closure. it fits a 14" pillow form. this one will live in my bedroom with the pillowcases i made for our bed that i never got around to showing off.

this is definitely as Fall as i get, so i'm submitting this to Celebrate Color.

Pretty Yarn Day: The Neverending Skein

2011-09-16T09:05:00.001-04:00

This skein of yarn literally took me months to spin. It started as 2oz of Gale's Art tussah silk top that i got at MDSW in 2010. I spun the singles longdraw from the fold on my rose. I was surprised and dismayed by how hairy the singles were.

The plying took days. my poor knees can't take much more abuse. this skein has seriously made me consider buying a minispinner for plying. i tried to andean ply the leftovers but eventually gave up, so there was a small tangle of waste.

I ended up with 1232yds/60g of 2ply. I finished the skein by soaking and snapping (I resisted the urge to thwack). I was happy that the hairiness really tamed down in the finished yarn and it's reasonably smooth and shiny. it's also very soft. when i spun the singles they really needed a lot of twist to hold together so i feared that the end result would be unpleasant but it's quite nice to touch.

it's also very very thin--definitely the thinnest yarn i've ever spun. it might be the thinnest yarn i'll ever spin, because i have no desire whatsoever to do this again any time in the near future. i told Spicy that sometimes you get caught up in spinning as thinly as possible just to see if you can and then you end up with an end product that's too thin for practical use. he suggested that i make a really delicate shawl and i agreed that it would be the ideal use...you know, one of those things that i never wear.

so it's going in the stash for awhile. i'm tempted to call it an end unto itself and let it stay there. and now i'm feeling the urge to go spin something thick and squooshy.

Playing with Hexagons, Pt I

2011-09-15T08:27:00.000-04:00

I've been wanting to try out hexagons. Experiment #1 was machine pieced using these tutorials as a guide. rather than marking each hexagon, i used my 1/4" foot and put pieces of painter's tape on my machine to mark where i should line up the seams. the design was very much influenced by this lovely pillow, though i thought it would be less stressful to start with larger hexagons.

I used the 3" hexagon template from Lady Harvatine with some scraps and kona stone. this mini-quilt is about 18x15. machine piecing hexagons isn't terribly hard but it's fairly tedious. against my better judgment, i FMQ little hills. i debated ripping it out because i really hate the way it looks but i got lazy. i do like the quilting pattern, just not with this particular quilt. if i were to do it all over again i'd probably handquilt to outline the hexagons. but that's what Experiment #2 is for.

the backing is a lecien fabric and the binding is connecting threads. one of these days i will actually get around to hanging up all the miniquilts i've made.

if you are a regular reader of my blog, it probably won't be a surprise to learn that i am not a big fan of traditional fall colors. pairing brights with toned down neutrals and browns is about as Autumn as i get. Still this actually is fairly Fall-tinged for me (I used stone and brown instead of grey! plus...orange!) so I'm contributing this to Celebrate Color.

For the Love of Solids Swap

2011-09-14T09:30:00.001-04:00

My partner Safieh has received her package now, so I can blog what I sent.

Safieh had posted this photo of stripey buttons in her inspiration mosaic. I was really drawn to that picture and wanted to express it in a quilt. I used many solids from the Poseidon bundle with some warm contrasting colors added in. The neutral is kona bone. I did a narrow stripe rail fence--all the strips were cut at 1 inch. The mini quilt is about 16" square. i used faux-piped binding which I absolutely loved. i will definitely be using the technique again.

The strings on the back were my original idea. Unfortunately with all of the seams, the blocks stretched on the bias like crazy and wouldn't hold their shapes, even with heavy starching. i eventually abandoned my attempt and went with the simpler straight grain blocks for the front. I salvaged a few blocks to use on the back. Safieh also likes plus quilts, so I put one plus sign on the back and quilted in concentric circles around the plus.

Safieh also loves embroidery so I knew I wanted to stitch something on her smaller item. I used a free pattern from badbird on kona white. i made the tiny 1 inch plus blocks by using oh fransson's tutorial. it was a lot easier to get my seams lined up, plus you end up interfacing the pieces all in one.

I used the split stitch's pouch pattern with a few mods. i think i made the medium size and stitched the strap directly to the pouch rather than to the zipper. my pouch was too thick to topstitch the zip with the pieced exterior/interfacing, interlining, and lining, so i tacked it down by hand with a running stitch. i totally meant to add an interior pocket to the lining but i forgot. i really wanted to use this urban circus fabric for the lining but i thought that we had to stick strictly with solids for the swap, so i used candy green kona instead.

it was a lot of fun to work outside my comfort zone. Safieh's colors and style are fairly different from my own, and it felt really good to stretch myself. i had a great experience with this swap and i'd love to do a round 2! (but maybe not until next year)

Sampler Quilt Update

2011-09-13T10:01:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile since I've worked on my sampler quilt, but thanks to the 3x6 bee, i've added to it without having to do anything. plus my hive was the first one done, woohoo! the blocks i received are all so awesome. i can't wait to show them off.

i made a couple of blocks on my own. i've slowly been working my way through the summer sampler series. i did the Star and Mosaic blocks. i really love the star. the paper piecing was fun and i picked various solids for my block, which i think looks really striking.

for the mosaic i used my new wondercut ruler. i haven't used it a lot but i actually don't really love it so far. it seems i'd be more beneficial in a large HST quilt where you can cut long strips and make a lot of them, rather than needing only a few. on second glance i don't love the background fabric i picked but hopefully it'll blend well in the quilt.

this was my first try with the flying geese ruler. i kept it simple with my fabric choices, but i like the variations of Dutchman's Puzzle with the different colored geese and contrasting pinwheel in the center too. i'll have to try one of those next time. someday i'll do another geese quilt.

Nicole's Rainbow

2011-09-12T09:33:00.000-04:00

Pattern: February Baby Sweater from knitter's almanac (sort of)
Yarn: alchemy fibre arts superwash merino handspun
Needles: #10 knitpicks harmonies
Started: August 25, Finished: August 26

I'm pretty sure that the February Baby Sweater is a knitting rite of passage. this is my first one, but it probably won't be the last. i used my chunky chain-plied handspun. it was a lot thicker than the pattern dictated so i adjusted the numbers for my gauge and eliminated the lace since the yarn is pretty loud by itself. i also knit the sleeves in the round. to be honest i forgot to work buttonholes so i added embroidery floss loop buttonholes afterwards using this tutorial. i liked the technique a lot and will probably use it again.

unfortunately even after months in storage, the scented yarn still aggravated my allergies pretty bad so i don't think i'll be ordering from alchemy fibre arts again. the yarn itself is lovely though.

the superwash merino i bought recently will be a baby surprise jacket. slowly working my way through the EZ canon, one sweater at a time.

Foto Friday: Sunflowers

2011-09-09T08:29:00.000-04:00

Spicy planted a bunch of sunflowers in our front yard, but only one plant sprouted. one of the plants actually turned out to be cucumbers instead, so that's a little weird for the front yard. oh well.

the plant grew extremely tall very fast but we were worried that it wouldn't ever flower. it took awhile but it finally did.

i like sunflowers because i like yellow, but i can't help but feel creeped out by the new blooms. they look like little alien seeds. but maybe that's just me.

Bee Blocks

2011-09-08T08:30:00.000-04:00

I completed my blocks for the 3x6 bee awhile back. my hive is really on the ball--i've already received 5 of my blocks in the mail. I finally broke down and bought some specialty rulers and one of them was a flying geese ruler. there's no eliminating trimming (dammit) but the ruler does make it easier and faster to make geese. i played around with several layouts and i was going to do something like this, but then i played around with it a little more and came up with the design above. if it has an official name, i don't know what it is but i liked the hourglass-y effect it has in the center.

for the Wonky Bee, Nicke asked for liberated shoo-fly blocks. these were easy and fun, so i made 3. she sent It's a Hoot fabrics, which i adore. i should really make a quilt from my own hoot stash soon.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-07T07:45:00.000-04:00

Monster

2011-09-06T09:04:00.000-04:00

Well, I didn't win the contest. but 2 people in my giveaway did...Ann and Spontaneousthreads. I've sent them each an email. Thanks to everyone who voted for me!

I have a little bit of free time right now, so I've been trying to make things here and there for Nicole.

Pattern: Hugo the Couch Potato Monster from The Big Book of Knitted Monsters
Yarn: Berroco Vintage, almost all of one skein
Needles: #5 circs
Started: August 30, Finished: September 1

I've been saving up the remnants of fabric and batting from trimming, etc. to use for stuffing. it makes a very firm and sturdy stuffing. i kind of like it better than polyfil. i like the look of safety eyes, but i stuck with embroidery since it's for a baby. the pattern was easy to follow and very quick. i'd like to make a few more toys from the book.

i'm guessing that this will be my very last birthday gift of the year. Spicy bought me a new mortar and pestle. it's very heavy. i can't wait to use it.

The Competitor

2011-09-02T08:12:00.002-04:00

I have never really been known for my competitive fire. When I was in grade school, I won a spelling bee*. As the winner, I was supposed to compete in the next level--district-wide or regional, i can't remember. anyway, i had to do a preliminary round in order to make sure i was qualified, and i purposely spelled my first word incorrectly so that I wouldn't have to participate. (the word was "statue" btw. i left out one of the "t"s)

but every once in a blue moon, I get fired up and I just really want to win. this happens extremely rarely and comes from some generally unexplored place inside my psyche. i think the last time it happened, i ran for Vice-President of my student council just because i really did not like the girl who was running and didn't think she should be unopposed on principle (i lost). right now i am pretty far behind in the feeddog contest. so it's time to up the stakes.

If you visit the blog and vote for me (Sara P) in the sidebar, come back here and leave a comment that you voted. Your entry gives you a chance to receive either this lovely selvedge pincushion that I made last night, or a free pattern from my self-published designs. Let me know in the comments whether you would like the pincushion or the pattern and make sure your email address is enabled so that I can contact you if you win. I will close comments Sunday night and choose 2 winners by random draw.

this being my 3rd pincushion, i improved a few things: it's not filled quite as much, making it easier to insert the pins. i quilted the top to a layer of cotton flannel so it's stable but not too thick. the pincushion is 4.5" square and filled with crushed walnut shells, which will help keep your pins sharp.

In the event that I actually win the contest, I will draw one additional winner who can choose between 3 OOP Fat Quarters from Denyse Schmidt's line, Katie Jump Rope, or a skein of Sanguine Gryphon Bugga! in Karner Blue.

If you've already voted for me, thank you so much! You are also eligible to win, just leave a comment below. Thanks for helping me out and good luck to everyone who comments.

*You may well ask why I won that spelling bee in the first place. My best explanation is that it was sort of an accident. I was a strong speller, and I wasn't aware that the consequences of my actions would be taking part in additional spelling bees. had I known, I probably would've lost that one too.

Pretty Pincushions

2011-09-01T08:06:00.000-04:00

So FYI: I made it to the finalist round on feeddog's blog but now there's a new poll in the sidebar. if you could take a minute to vote i'd really appreciate it.

my old pincushion has seen better days. i went to petco and bought a ginormous bag of crushed walnut shells. i used the cotton/linen swatch i got during free sample day at spoonflower and some bright happy scraps and did a warm/cool wonky log cabin. i quilted it with cotton batting and thread and used a bit of leftover fun fabric for the back.

then i made another one because lazy me enjoys having pins on both sides of her sewing table so i can use them while cutting or sewing.

this one i pieced but did not quilt. i found it a little bit difficult to get the pins into the first cushion. this one doesn't seem quite firm enough. so next time i will quilt to a thin layer, either another layer of cotton or maybe flannel.

both cushions are approximately 4.5", though the first isn't square. these are really fun to make. i might have to whip out a few more. i certainly have enough crushed walnut shells to last me for decades.

Snail Shawl

2011-08-31T08:00:00.001-04:00

i'm too lazy to take modeled photos so i had to get creative or i'd never take any pictures of this shawl.

Pattern: Live Oak Shawlette from Knitscene Fall 2011
Needles: Size 5 circs (can't remember which ones)
Yarn: Sanguine Gryphon Bugga in Acrobatic Snail
Started: July 13, Finished: July 30

so at some point i knit another shawl even though i am not a shawl wearer. it was very easy and quick and it's also very small. i had a lot of yarn leftover but i didn't feel like making it larger. i did not enjoy blocking all of those little leaves but the lace was easy to knit and very pretty. the half circle does stay on the shoulders nicely.

i made a pledge to use all of the bugga in my stash before i could buy more so i'm down to 3 skeins now. it's definitely one of my favorite yarns and the purply-blue is lovely, if different from what i normally pick. i might save this one as a gift. there's definitely nothing wrong with the pattern but i find it hard to get excited about some things especially when they were off the needles so long ago. this is one of those things.

Back to Basics

2011-08-30T08:00:00.004-04:00

a few weeks ago, i ordered some Ruby Star Rising. (btw, have you seen the fall preview? i love the typewriters and the clocks) i only ordered a small amount and i had a hard time deciding what i wanted to do with it, as the prints are really awesome and i wanted to make them go a long way. i started with the colors of RSR and pulled fabrics from the stash that would coordinate. i ended up with a lot of it's a hoot and sherbet pips, but there's amy butler, denyse schmidt, 30s reproduction fabrics, sunkissed, heather ross, and others as well.

i've had fun lately experimenting with more intricate blocks, but i felt a craving to go back to something simple. i cut 5.5" squares and did simple patchwork. i forced myself not to get hung up on making the squares face certain directions so everything is willy-nilly, and hey--it actually looks ok.

for the backing, i used kona medium gray and my yard of echino leopard. i did a stacked coin strip with the leftovers from the front. i can't remember which kona blue i used or the name of the red dots for the binding. i made myself get away from solid bindings and went with the ever so exciting world of dots instead. maybe i'll even do stripes next time. i'm so adventurous.

it's been awhile since i've tried FMQ, so i did a stipple in gutermann gray thread. i used my supreme slider for the first time and it did help. my stippling still isn't perfect but it is improving. i switched to the open-toe foot but i ended up breaking 3 needles, which wasn't too fun. fortunately there were no injuries--to me or to the horizon.

i did a double fold binding and hand-stitched it to the back. i've resorted to this because it really does look much better than machine-stitched binding. i even finished it in one evening but my hands were cramping pretty badly by the end. it'd probably be better to spread it out over 2 nights next time.

the quilt is 50x70 and will replace my well-loved if crappily made flying geese quilt. experience has taught me that this quilt is a great size for couch sitting, camping, and long car rides. post-washing the cotton/linen blends did feel softer, but i wouldn't use them for a baby quilt. spicy said that it's been a really long time since i made a quilt for us, which is true. now we have a nice brand new one that's already seen some use (Fall in August is upon us). I'm linking this up to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory.

btw, I entered a design contest to win a Go Baby at feeddog. You can vote for my block design here. Tell your friends! you know, if you feel like it.

Winners!

2011-08-29T09:25:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway. The two winners are Becki and Loris4563. I've sent both of them an email.

i'm approaching the finish line on bottled rainbows. only 1 more block to go.

i finished the moss and chartreuse blocks. i'm generally not against green per se, but i don't really like either of these colors. Jacey helped me out with scraps so i'd have enough to do these 2 blocks. my last block is light blue. i should have more than enough scraps to cover that one.

Linky-loo Friday: The I Must be Hungry Edition

2011-08-26T08:00:00.002-04:00

i haven't tried this yet, but oh my, it sounds delicious. i love their brioche dough.

i blame Jacey and Chawne for becoming completely absorbed by the idea of making my own ice cream. well, i suppose i should blame my dad and stepmother as well for giving me a gift certificate to amazon for my birthday. armed with a brand spankin' new ice cream maker and a copy of the perfect scoop, i made my very first ice cream. i started with peanut butter and it is just heavenly. i made banana waffles and had a scoop of ice cream on top and it was truly divine. i'm also happy to report that the ice cream maker is super easy to use and works really well. i'm really eager to try some frozen yogurt too and the fruit sorbets. i have to remember that i don't have to make 1100 gallons of ice cream right away. must pace myself.

i am so proud to be among the many lovely designs in Knitcircus. my favorites in this issue are ruckle, turning point, and the mica cowl. if only i had time to knit anything right now.

i love this version of the 241 tote. i really need to make one for myself.

this quilt is so cute and fun.

i just bought a supreme slider. it does seem to help with the drag when FMQ, but it's not a miracle cure. i still have to work at it, dammit.

this little coin purse is so adorably cute.

might as well end on more ice cream. i really am hungry. i'd bring some to work if it wouldn't melt by the time i got here.