Oh, La!

Well, my dear friends, I have just done something brave (and quite probably stupid), but one way or the other I think officially casts me (ha! that’s a knitting pun) as a true knitter: I scrapped the project.

After much debate, I decided that the double-sided stockinette stitch was just too heavy for what I was trying to do. Lovely for a two-colour project (which I’m not doing) and heavy enough for a sweater for my family members who brave Iowa winters, but really not suited to a light, Florida-winter scarf (which is my intent).

I unraveled my work thus far and reset my frame for a single-sided stockinette. I am still getting a feel for it and will post a picture once I have more to show for it. So far, however, *much* easier than the double-sided (I might have started out just a bit ambitiously) and much more the weight I was looking for.

One unintended consequence however, is that I now have yarn for twice as many projects as I originally calculated. You see, there was a yarn sale and I stocked up… *cough*

Suffice to say, I do not need to buy yarn again for probably the rest of the year (and will NOT mention to hubby how much I spent, despite sales and coupons!)

 

Progress

Just thought I’d share an update:

A few thoughts thus far:

• I’m still a bit clumsy with the frame, hence using my cutting pad to protect the desk. The wing nuts that hold the two sides of the frame together occasionally scratch the desk otherwise.
• I’m not sure if I’m wrapping too right or it’s just what happens when using frame but it is warping in a bit in the middle.
• The actual knitting is coming out lovely- it’s a double-sided stockinette stitch. However, it’s coming out a bit heavier than I intended for a scarf. We’ll see how it looks after another inch or two.
• I don’t have callouses yet and my hands do get tired after a while. The acrylic yarn is a loose wrap and sometimes I split a strand or drop a stitch and have to rewrap it. I think that’s probably inevitable, however.
• I really like being able to work on this anywhere, and have already figured out how to do a hat without needing a pattern, but can see that I’m going to want a longer frame, eventually.
• And it doesn’t look like much, but that inch of knitting is more than I’ve knit in my whole life to this date (crochet is another story).

 

Sewing Bench

I finally got around to recovering the seat of the sewing machine bench this weekend. The original cover was fraying along the edges and rather faded:

To see the contrast- here is some of the original fabric for comparison:

Speaking of which, if you’re interested in about 1/2? yard of this fabric please let me know. I don’t have any plans for it- great for vintage projects- this pattern is from 1988!

The seat was much easier to recover than my last attempt since it lifts away for fabric storage:

I had a lovely piece of fabric that had been used to wrap a package that was just the right size:

I just layered it right on top of the old fabric of extra padding. And here’s the finished product!

I did a great job on the corners, even if I do say so myself. The staple gun was a challenge though- next time I’ll suck up my pride and ask hubby for a hand. I may take a better pic- I didn’t notice the shadow when I took it.

Oh, and for those who were asking about it, here is the full sewing machine desk:

I spent some time this weekend looking up diagrams and directions on how to thread it. I think I want to replace the  worn, unmarked needle plate with one marked for hems- more goodies to get at the craft store!

 

Well, That Didn’t Take Long

Say hello to my new project!

This is the Noble Knitter knitting frame. I bought the smallest size and it arrived on Saturday. I can tell right now that this was such a smart purchase for me. The numbering guide help enormously in keeping track of stitches, and being able to put it down whenever my hands need a rest without dropping stitches is wonderful. I cast on and stitched my first row (you can see the second prepped for later today). The one thing I need to adjust is my yarn tension- my cast was a little snug and made the first row tricky- it should be easier from here on.

Unfortunately, I discovered that I really don’t have enough matching yarn, so I need to go buy at least two more skeins. DARN. I’m just using acrylic for this project since I’m still getting used to the frame, but I think that I love it already! The only part I’m not sure about is the knitting hook- it’s almost more like a pick to dig the meat out of walnuts. Once I get past my tight stitches I may try using my crochet hook instead and see how that works. I also had other craft-room shenangians this week that I’ll [post tomorrow- expect lots of pictures!

 

New Year Musings

Well, I have packed up the holiday decorations and cleared off my crafting desk. I’m now casting about looking for craft ideas. I’d like to try something new and/or different. I still have scads of felt designs and ideas for more complex ribbon decorations, but I think it’s a bit soon for that. Give it another month or three and then they will be fresh again.  I have plenty of paper strips for origami stars, but I can make those at any time and so feel no strong compulsion there.

As I sometimes do when trolling for ideas I recently wandered through one of the big book chains and poked through their sale crafting kits. I find it’s a great way to try something out to decide if I want to pursue it further or not. Sometimes all I need to do is sate my curiosity; other times I run head on into a full obsession (see: malas).

One dangerous thought I’ve been musing on is digging out my soap molds and playing with that again. I never broke the habit of saving interesting-shaped plastic liners and now have a veritable drawer full. I still have most of my supplies and glycerine is fairly easy to get. It’s just such a messy process, and I’m not sure hubby would be happy with me commandeering the kitchen for however long it takes to get this bug out of my system. Considering that the counters are already stacked in crock-pot shenanigans, it would be best not to push my luck too much.

Really, I do best when I have a reason to craft- gifts or items to donate. I might break down and buy myself the knitting loom I’ve been curious about and finally use some of the truly luxurious yarns that have been piling up on my desk. Now that we have a cold snap in the weather, making scarves in Florida doesn’t seem quite as ridiculous as it normally does. I’m also interested in trying my hand at creating a terrarium. I’m still in the research stages for that, however. I also still have a tablecloth that needs to be taken in and a sewing machine to do it, I’ve just been dragging my feet on it for no particular reason. Hrm. Decisions, decisions.

 

2011 Felt Ornaments

With my week holiday I finally finished my ornaments- just in time to pack them away! I’m very pleased with how they turned out, and have ideas and patterns for many more, but I think that I will take a break for a while.

First, my flock of Christmas birds:

I liked them so much and I really wanted to pair the oatmeal felt with a lovely blue I had on hand so I made one more pair. It looks almost teal in the picture, but it’s more of a cornflower blue:

And finally, I tried my hand at a little tree. I did give in on some ribbon for this one, and I wish I had picked up more of the snowflakes. It was a little tricky and I’ll probably alter the pattern before I try another one. All the same, I’m pleased with how it came out:

 

Felt Ideas

Ever since my second elephant I’ve been thinking about simpler designs. Don’t get me wrong, I love my elephants dearly, but they are truly a labour of love and I don’t see making them for sale. I played about with some block and ball designs (really fun!) but wanted to do something not just aimed at small children, and that I could make in one sitting without my hands cramping up too badly. A few years back I picked up a pair of little black felt cat ornaments for the tree (one for each cat!) and decided to try my hand at something similar.

For, oh gosh, six months now I’ve been making notes and jotting down design ideas. Now that gifts and holiday treats are out of the way I can finally turn a few of these ideas into stuff!

Looking over all my ideas (and I probably had a hundred of them!) I chose a simple bird design that I liked and some appropriate holiday colours to make tree ornaments. I already had all the materials and sketched the design onto index cards and cut them out to make patterns. Hubby peeked over my shoulder and commented that they looked like the Patridge Family birds, and if there was going to be a partridge on our tree then clearly we needed and pear, and so…

It took me a couple tries to work out which stitches I liked best for the wing and edges, and to remember enough embroidery to knot the eyes the way I wanted, but I’m very, very happy with how they came out! In all, there will be six little birds with different combination body/wing colours as represented here (sorry for the glare! I really need a lightbox of some sort). I will also probably do a pair in oatmeal and wedgewood blue, just since it’s such a nice combo. I contemplated using a pattern ribbon instead of the sisal, but that crept a little too close to Kountry Kute for me. I wanted something simple that blends well with what I already have- while I don’t mind the country crafts style, it is easy to overdo.

I will post more pictures when I finish the other birds and one of them on the tree, I think.  :}

 

Too Fun To Not Share!

This is one of those cases where a random idea turns into something really, really wonderful!

As you know, I make simple origami. I especially like the little paper stars, like the ones in my Wishing Jar. These start with a very simple knot folded into the paper. I tend to tie these knots ALL the time, especially in candy wrappers if I’m bored. A week or two ago I tied two knots next to each other on the same strip and an idea was formed: how many would I need to make a circle? What would it look like?

Never one to pass up on experimenting, I tried it out on one of my paper strips and liked the results. Two problems however: the paper wasn’t long enough, and the plain side of the paper showed. I cast around for another idea and hit on the organza ribbon I used in the holiday gift tags. Perfect! As long as I need, and no “plain” side to worry about.A test or two and I found that 13-14″ of ribbon was just the right length.

But, Lo! A new issue! The soft ribbon didn’t hold knots very well! Often the first knot would untie itself before I finished the third. How to make fabric stiff? Ha! (I thought to myself..) Ha! Starch! Thankfully, I had some cornstarch in the kitchen. I found that one flat teaspoon to a half cup of cold water was just about right. I dipped the ribbon, ran it between two fingers to wring out any excess moisture, and tried again.

This time, the knots held better, and then I lightly ironed both sides. I then tucked the loose ends into the next knot in the chain and sealed it with a drop of glue. Viola! Ribbon stars/snowflakes! I loved how to came out but it was a bit plain, so I added some rhinestones for embellishment:

(If you look carefully, you can see that the ribbon knots each form a star shape as well!)

I experimented with a couple different strings for hanging (I think the bright red looks best), and then realised that dark green ribbon would make a lovely wreath! Some red rhinestones for berries and I was very, very pleased with how it came out:

They’re about 1 1/2″ across each, and once I worked out the method they only take about 5 minutes to make. I think that these will be little “thank you” gifts to folks at work, and I hope to pick up some more rhinestones shortly. I am absolutely keeping a couple for myself for my tree, too!

I hunted all over online and while I found plenty of origami star patterns, but none quite like this. I can’t possibly have been first to think this up! Maybe they’re so simple it’s a given? Well, one way or the other I’m tickled with how they came out and really like making them. I may try a process a video to share here!

 

Holiday Crafts I Can Share

So, remember how I mentioned I had cleared off my desk? Yeah, that didn’t last long…

(That clear spot is from where I hid holiday gifts so I don’t accidentally give any surprises away!)

However, I am having a TONNE of fun! Growing up, we recycled old holiday cards into gift tags. I’ve been saving old cards, intending to do the same, but never getting around to it. Well, I have finally rectified the matter, and made some packages of sweet holiday tags as little gifts for a gathering I’ll host on Sunday:

I’m very happy to find a use for the lovely ribbon that’s been gathering dust since my last batch of necklaces a few holidays ago. I was a bit perplexed by a sore and swollen finger, however, until I realised it was from using the pinking shears! I’m getting my scissor callous back! These are so easy and pretty- it’s nice to be doing a papercraft again.

 

Craft, Craft, Craft!

I have been in an absolutely flurry of crafting lately. A few days home sick and it’s amazing how much you can get done! Due to juggling family holiday schedules this year, I am trying to complete immediate family gifts in time for Thanksgiving so I can present in person. This has caused me to utterly drown my workdesk in supplies. Thankfully, I am now done with the first batch, and the desk is once again clear, whew!

Just to give you an idea how very compressed holidays are in our families, at Thanksgiving we have:

• Well, first off, Thanksgiving of course (duh)
• An anniversary
• A birthday
• Early holiday gifts for four

We then have three brief weeks before the next round:

• TWO birthdays
• Holiday gifts for everyone else (and another birthday in the middle of the two holidays)

You can see how breaking things up crafting-wise can actually be helpdul, as long as it’s all done in time!

Of course, I have once again over-estimated how much time I’ll have to make gifts this year- the big gifts as almost done (hopefully as of tomorrow!). Any smaller craft gifts will happen as I feel so inclined- I still want to give them a try, but, time is running out! And, of course, there are always holidays cards. *runs and hides*

(Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE doing holiday cards, but it’s a project in and of itself, so everything else really needs to be done first.)

In the midst of all this crafting (which, of course, I can’t post photos of since they’re all gifts) I did manage to catch up on some mending (*guilty look* one shirt had been without a button for probably five years. SERIOUSLY.) I now have a beautiful sewing machine that needs to be used for something (most likely hemming an oversized tablecloth, methinks), and the sewing box my dad made in woodshop for his mom many, many years ago. He fixed it for me as a gift and filled it with vintage beading and rhinesone supplies. I’ll post pics and recount both in later posts, since they are post-worthy!

I also made a difficult decision. Remember this crochet necklace? It turned out to be one of those cases where something ends up exactly how you imagined it, but in actual use, well, it just didn’t hang right. The thread was too light and the pendant slid back and forth so it was always off-center. I can certainly correct that next time, but it will require remaking the necklace. For now the pendant is on a simple silver chain- maybe after the holidays are past. *sigh*

So much to do- yay! I love the holidays!