I'm Impressing Myself

More Crafty Updates.  I must say, for as much as I am usually very slow about actually finishing projects, I am very proud of myself today.  I have been quite productive.    :)

1)  Over Memorial Day weekend, I bought fabric to make several skirts.  The shiny silver skirt was one project, but I also bought plain grey jersey knit to make a maxi skirt.  I usually don't cave to the whims of the fashion world (that's right, there are no skinny jeans in this girl's closet), but I keep seeing my coworkers in long dresses and skirts and they just look so comfortable!  I didn't get a pattern and planned on just making it up as I went along... when I eventually got around to it.  Well, I finally pulled the jersey out today, and after a little internet research, started sewing.  I got two yards of 56" wide jersey because I wasn't sure if I needed to insert gores to make the circumference bigger than 56" down at my ankles. It turns out, 56" is plenty big enough to walk comfortably in AND that meant there was enough leftover "tube" to make a shorter skirt.  Yay for options!

   

Yes, I am standing on my chair to take a picture of my skirts in the bathroom mirror.  Don't judge.

I kept the longer version fuller and just gathered it in more at the waist.  I purposefully chose to slim down the shorter version. (Though if I had to do it over again, I would probably slim the maxi as well, but it doesn't bother me too much as it is now.)  I also wrapped elastic twice around the waist in the maxi version and only once in the short one; that's just due to the weight of the fabric in the maxi pulling downwards.  I definitely don't want my clothes falling off my body in the middle of the day!

2)  While I was feeling crafty and productive, I pulled out the 31 Purse Skirts that I have stashed away.  I feel like I did more work than what is showing in the Finished pile, but I did get two more slip covers done.  :)   It took my less than an hour to sew both of them!  Go me!  (Recognize that silver fabric?  Haha.  Waste not, want not!)

     

I also had a brainstorm that may save me space in the long run.  I am quickly amassing numerous covers for my purse, and I believe they may soon get out of control.  But!  If I start making them reversible, then two slip covers will take up the space of just one!  Genius!!

The purple design in this picture is more true to color than the one above.

I say I did more work because I really DID do more work than what ended up in the pictures.  I went ahead and cut out all the fabric I had (enough for about 10 more, if I remember correctly), and then I ironed the fusible interfacing to them.  Now I have all my fabric cut and prepared for when I have a crafty mood but don't feel like running up to the ironing board.  :)  Winks may have helped me cut all the fabric.

More Finished Craftiness

This circle skirt has been sitting on my sewing table for a while.  I had to walk away from it for a bit because it was angering me.  First, why do patterns say "for a 36 inch hip, make size 14" ... only to have a size 14 be SUPER HUGE?! There was literally room for another person in the skirt with me when I first pieced it together. Made me angry to waste time repeatedly taking in the side seams to make it fit.  On top of that, the fabric was too slinky / silky / slippery for my skill level.  Hemming was a pain and I really need to iron it, but it's done now!  And I even remembered how to put in a zipper!  I still think it's a little long, but (again) I need to step away before I get angry and do something I'd regret.   :)   Apparently, anger fuels my craft projects.  Haha.

Oh! I also put a pocket in my pajama pants so I can carry things on lazy days.  :)  I think it's working quite nicely so far today.

Trying to Finish things!

While I had the long weekend, I have tried to knock out some projects that have been lingering.  I FINALLY blocked the Foamy Scarf, officially putting it in the "Finished" category.  :D   I also have to note that this is the first proejct I have ever blocked.  (GASP!)  I know, I know. I have been knitting for HOW long without ever blocking anything?  What have I been doing?!  Well, I knit a lot of hats and smaller things that don't need blocking.  I've only knit a few sweaters.... and I just never did anything to them.  Mom unofficially blocks the sweater I made for her when she washes it; you know, lay it out while wet and make sure it dries in the shape you want.  That counts, right?

   

Well, this scarf had some lace, dropped stitches, and "bubble" accents.  I could no longer avoid blocking it.  I just got a set of blocking wires the last time I was home to visit my preferred Yarn Shop, so I bit the bullet and blocked my scarf.  I think it looks pretty good, yeah?   :)

    

The other project I am READY to put into the "Finished" pile is a sun hat I have been wrestling with for a very long time!  I really wanted a "movie star" hat that will keep my nose from burning this summer, but my head is too darn big for commercially bought hats so I decided to whip something up myself.  I couldn't find a pattern that I liked, but I found a "recipe" for a sun hat that sounded good enough.  They called it a recipe because they told you how to turn a doily pattern into a sun hat, but didn't give specifics for sizing or lace patterns or anything.  Well, next time I will use a pattern! I think I have pulled this hat out 400 times trying to get the right amount of brim while still staying true to the lace... THEN came trying to find the right gauge wire to attached to the edge.  18 gauge was too flimsy, the wire from a pop-up hamper was way too rigid.  (John calls it my Goldilocks hat, as I look for a wire that is juuuuust right.) We finally settled on the wire from some car sun shades, you know the kind that can twist back on itself?  I'm not sure it's 100% what I was looking for, but I am sick of trying different things! I want to wear this hat before the summer is over!  I am so tired of fiddling with this hat!!

Yes, observant reader, the hat is not totally complete yet.  I still have to put elastic in the headband and I have to weave in ends.  But I want this hat to be done!  I call it done!  So there!  (I also noticed after the fact that my "no dye lot written on the label" yarn was lying to me, as you can tell by the stripe through the brim.  Grrrr... hat from hell... mutter mutter)

Craftiness!

I finally got Mother to stand still long enough in her sweater so I could take a picture of it.  I made this about 2 years ago, as one of my first "garments that isn't a hat or scarf."  I was determined that it would fit her and be gorgeous... so needless to say, I was not happy at her losing weight while I was knitting!  I ripped this sweater apart so many times it was ridiculous.  So! I am happy to finally post a picture.

Blue Heron Yarns, Egyptian Mercerized Cotton (2,000yds / skein) Color: Canyon

Knitting Pure & Simple #257, Split Neck T-Shirt for Women
Raveled here.

And because they are so easy to make, I've churned out a few more 31 Skirt Purses!  I feel so good about myself that this is working as I envisioned it!  Normally, my craft projects don't go NEARLY so well.

Finished #2!

SQUEEEEEE!  I've finally finished a project!  I've got three others sitting on the coffee table, ranging from 60% to 90% done, but my "Finishing ADHD" is kicking in and I just can't seem to get anything completed!I even pulled out a skein of "gift yarn" the other day and have been staring at it, trying to convince myself to finish old projects before I begin new ones.  I'm such a mess... Though today I put on a determined face and started with the one that needed the least effort to complete it.  Even though I underestimated how much effort was needed to attach the brim and buttons (namely, re-knitting the brim to fit my new PVC insert), it only took me a little while to get everything attached as it needed to be.

This is only my second project finished this year, so I am admittedly behind on my "12 Projects in 12 Months" goal.  But!  Like I said, I have others that are very close to finished, so I am still optimistic about being able to catch up and get 12 projects done this year.

I'm particularly fond of the buttons.

Cabled Chapeau
Stitch Nation By Debbie Stoller

Bernat Satin (arcylic) 200yds per skein 

color #1101, Plum Mist Heather 

Copyright Infringement?

I finally sat down and reverse engineered my Thirty-One Skirt Purse this weekend!  It definitely wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be!!  I made a permanent pattern (heavy-duty, made from PVC), finished two new skirts, cursed minimally, destroyed nothing, and gave up not once in several hours!!  ... I know I am using a lot of exclamation points, but I am really excited.  :D   A sewing project where I don't curse the paint off the walls, destroy my project, or give up (usually with a strong desire to light the project on fire) is a rare occurrence.  I have the basic sewing skills needed to get me through life; it is neither easy nor relaxing for me to tackle a tricky project.  BUT!! This one worked!

Here are all the skirts I have now.  I think I've decided to become the crazy lady with the seasonal bags.  It's so easy to change them out!

I measured the fabric needed to make one skirt, and it takes less than 1/2 yard of 44inch wide fabric.  That means even expensive fabric is not expensive to buy for this project.  First, though, I used some of the left-overs from making the comforter cover a few weeks ago as a "test run."  I didn't want to ruin anything as I worked out the kinks of the pattern.  Though, I think it looks awesome and I'm keeping it as a real skirt, not just as a mock-up.

After the test run, I drew my pattern onto the PVC and cut out a permanent pattern.... that will last forever!  (John brought me the PVC scrap from his work for another project of mine, but there was enough extra to make a pattern for the purse.)  Then came the real question: could I make a functional skirt from the pattern I had just made?  I had found in my stash this cute bat fabric and wanted to show it off for all my caver friends next month.  This was the main focus of the afternoon...  and I think I succeeded!

As I said before, I think I'm going to start accumulating half-yards of fabric to make as many skirts as I can.  Change my purse every few weeks!  It's only copyright infringement if I sell the pattern, right?  Maybe I should look into that.   :)  To counterbalance, let me say that you should look up your local Thirty-One consultant (like Tupperware, Mary Kay, or Pampered Chef) and see the great bags they have!  It's delightful!

Finished Project!

I also finished another project while in Florida!  Yay me!  Nothing big, but a Finished Project nonetheless.  I made a cozy for my mega-huge water bottle.  :)

During Summer Camp, I found that my regular water bottles were simply not enough to keep me hydrated, so I bought a huge (54oz) water bottle.  The only downside to it was a lack of insulation, so it tended to sweat everywhere.  For the summer, I used an unmatched sock of John's as a cozy, but I knew I would need something a little classier to use on a permanent basis.  So, I scrounged up some old wool blend that I had laying about and made a super-quick rib-knit cozy!  Yay!

It was really easy, when all was said and done.  Sizing didn't need to be exact since I wanted it to be a snug fit, and I used the water bottle itself as a guide for length.  Then I just used a drawstring to cinch up the top, and Voila!  I am still deciding if I want to loosely seam the gap around the handle or not.  I don't want the hole to be that big, ya know?  Right now, though, it's working just fine.

2 skeins Berroco "Soft Twist" (41% wool / 59% rayon) -- one in purple and one in magenta, held together.
US 8 needles
Less than 100yds used!



And, yes, this is Finished Project Number Six for the year.  (Remember, 12 projects in 12 months was my goal.)  I know I am a little behind, but I seem to be progressing at a rather nice pace, I think.  I just need to re-adjust to the school schedule and wrap up a few of the half-finished things I have laying about.  Summer Camp really did me in!  I was waaaay too tired to knit anything once I got home, and now I have to catch up! But I think I can do it!  (Determined face)

Finished #2! On a Freaking Roll!

Presenting the Koolhaas Headband!  Originally a hat in Interweave Knits a few years ago, I made the hat and love the design.  The other day, I was walking to the gym and nearly lost my ears to frostbite!  It wasn't that cold (my torso was comfortable in just a fleece over my t-shirt), but the wind was whipping so much that my ears almost fell off my head before I made it the 3minute to the gym!!  Brrrr  That got me thinking that I need a warm ear band to stuff in my pocket on chilly days heading to work out.  I didn't want to crack open a new skein of yarn for just a head band, so I went stash-diving (a lot like dumpster-diving, but much more pleasant!)

The finished band.  A little thin (it barely covers my ears), but you have to accept that when you are using remnant yarn.  :)

In the midst of my stash, I stumbled across the Sublime cashmere that I made into the original Koolhaas hat (if you don't remember that episode, look here, here, and here) back a while ago.  I was thinking both 1) how gorgeous the cashmere looked in the hat, and 2) what was I going to do with this snubbin' of yarn leftover?  So, I decided to make a shortened hat, a.k.a. an earband!  I knew that I would be TOTALLY making things up as I went along (how much ribbing for edging? how many pattern repeats? will I still have enough to bind off?  should I hold in some sock yarn for flair/ added thickness?  again, how much yarn do I really have?), but I was okay with that because it really is a quick little project.

This is the test-run.  I knew I would have to knit this thing twice... unless I was going to be touched with Divine Intervention, making my guesswork freakishly accurate.  :)

John is super-cute when I have to pull something apart.  I think it started as a joke:  he would exaggerate my (usual) frustration over having to rip out stitches in order to make me laugh and not be so angry at the knitting.  But I am not sure if he knows that a lot of times it is ok to rip out stitches.  He gets very distressed when I have to start over, even something simple like a long-tailed cast on that is natural to try several times before getting right!  When I ripped out the trial head band, he looked at me like I was crazy.   :)

In case you care, I ended up only doing 2 rows of 2x2 rib on the edges, I used a US6 instead of an 8, and I did 1.5 patterns repeats from the original hat pattern.  Told you I was short on yarn!   :) 

Football FO

It's official: my first Finished Object of 2010, completed in the Super Bowl.  John's NeverEnding Sock-Yarn Scarf is finished!!  Woot Woot!  I only started the thing a year ago (at least)... though, to be fair, I put it down for several... several months.  Picked it back up a month or so ago as a "knitting thoughtlessly" project, the kind where my hands can keep going with no need to consult a pattern.  I am happy that I have finally finished something; it's always a nice boost to actually complete something!  Especially me, who has severe "new project ADHD" and has difficulty focusing on a single project long enough to finish before starting on something new. 

 This is him with his hat, gloves, and new matching scarf!  (I apologize for quality, it was taken on my phone because I was too lazy to find my camera and take a real picture)

Pumpkins part 2

Soooo... John and I learned something this holiday season: pumpkins do not last as long as you think they will.  Haha.  Needless to say, currently, our first pumpkins are quite moldy (and have been removed to the dumpster recently).   And I am quite proud to say that John was the one who first said that we could / should carve new ones when the first set got gross; I was prepared to just toss them and have no jack-o-lanterns for Halloween night.  We waited as long as possible before carving this second set so that they would definitely last through the weekend.

 

I am easing into Halloween decorations slowly, trying not to go crazy (and poor) all at once, but I did decide to get a pumpkin-carving kit the other day and I think it was worth the whole 4.99 that it cost me!  We did use the patterns provided this time, but more importantly, we used to fine little saws included in the kit.  MUCH easier for details than even our smallest kitchen knife. 

I picked the haunted house design, 2 pumpkins out of 4 on difficulty.  John... picked the only 4 /4 most difficult-est design in the kit: the evil scarecrow.  I got some tiny tea lights for illumination.  Awesome, huh?

PAINT

The townhouse! We even get a porch!



The kitchen, once completed. Doesn't it look great??! I love our kitchen.



Our first housewarming gift from John's sister... because even she knows I am crazy about "food processors" and "standing mixers."


The living room has a fake electric fireplace (essentially, a heater with a light show) with a TV nook above it.


Why are they painting the ceiling brown, you ask? No, we were painting the "white" ceiling an actual white..... ewwwwww

Shamrock Gloves in da Mail!

Well, I mailed off Mom's Shamrock Glove set today. There was yarn enough for the gloves and headband, as well as an extra headband and at least one tiny sock. I think there's another tiny sock as well, but I haven't weighed out the scrap leftover to see for sure.

John's modeling one of the headbands as his head is big enough to fit it. It was a little too loose for my noggin. I love how he has accepted this kind of craziness. :)

Gloves Step 11-12: Thumb & Finishing

11 - THUMB

Place held thumb gusset stitches on needles. Join yarn and pick up one stitch at palm (22 st).

Knit ~20 rows until half-way up your fingernail. Finish with 3-row taper.

As you try the glove on, if it seems like the thumb is too short, the problem often is in the pointer finger. Add a few more rows to the pointer, and suddenly the thumb fits perfectly.


12 - FINISHING

(Do I need to say, "knit another glove" ?)

YAY! Gloves have been made! John calls the result, "Freddie Kreuger Gloves" because of all the strings. So, to finish, just weave in yarns at end of fingers. Use yarns between fingers to mend any gaps or holes.

Now you have a pair of finished, wearable gloves!

Tiny Sweater!

Ok, so I found at my favorite LYS these tiny sweater key chains, one of which was in Tribe Pride colors. Well, sadly for Lara, there was only one. So this Christmas in my surge of tiny knitting, I made her a tiny sweater keychain too... really that's all the story behind it. It's a tiny sweater for crying out loud, it doesn't need much of an explanation! When was the last time you made a tiny sweater, huh? Though I probably can safely say that this will be my last time making a tiny sweater as it was a royal pain joining the sleeves to the body. :(

Then, as I got into the tiny-sock phase of Christmas (bet you didn't know that on the 13th day of Christmas you give out tiny socks, did you?), I wanted to play with color changes in the sock. My test-dummy was again Tibe Pride colors, and I think it turned out rather nicely, if I do say so myself. And I do say so. :)

Koolhaas Hat... Finally!

As sad as it makes John (and he gets really upset too!), I pulled out the Koolhaas hat that I had made way back during the Council meetings. It was too short, a fact made worse by it being a little too small and pulling itself off your head. So I just bumped the pattern up a needle size to make it just a little bit bigger... Little did I notice the first time I made the hat, only the ribbing at the bottom was on the size 6 needles. Not the whole hat as I made it. SO! My second attempt was to actually follow the pattern as written. Silly me.

Yay for taking pictures of yourself in the bathroom mirror. You never see all the shmutz on the mirror until you take a picture in it.


I really like the cable pattern that he used for this hat. It was pretty simple, too, once you got a few lines done and could see where you were in the pattern.


My favorite part, though, is the finishing top bit. I was worried as I was making it of how the top would end... Hey, I am living with a 6'4" person; the top of my head gets seen a lot more than most people's do. (don't mind the cat hair)