I've sewn several small bags since I've last posted. They are so much fun to make. They're very quick. I just finished drafting one pattern and tested it out on some grid fabric. It looks okay so far, but I'll have to wait until I test it out on real fabric with interfacing. I need to figure out what to do to make it keep it's shape--plastic canvas, top stitching, piping, or more interfacing. I have a background in architecture. Making this pattern reminded me how much I missed the drafting part of architecture. I almost don't want to fully test this first pattern and go start drafting a different one. But I know that I must test them. I'll probably do that sometime later today.
I've been slacking with my picture taking. I haven't even taken pictures of E or D in a few days. I'm sure the grandparents will start emailing me soon and asking about pictures. Well, I'll definitely get pictures taken of them in their Christmas outfits.
I've been knitting on the sampler shawl during the day and working on the patterns in the evening. The shawl is coming along great. I'm almost towards the center. I've been yarn shopping lately. I recently bought more sock yarn and I bought some of elann's super kydd yarn. I have wanted to try a mohair, but didn't want to splurge for the pricey ones just yet. I've read a few places that this one is pretty soft, so I'm going to try it out on one of the patterns in the Victorian Lace Today book. That will be after I finish my current projects. My sewing and knitting project list just keeps growing.
December 23, 2006
December 20, 2006
Handbags and pattern drafting
The entrelac stole is finished. I finished it a few days ago. I was hoping to get a good picture of it outside, but our weather has been gloomy. The stole is quite warm and it's so nice to bundle myself up in it in the evenings. I'm working on the sampler shawl occasionally. I have other things to work on now.
I'm getting back into sewing. I have an itch to make handbags again. In all of the bags that I've made from patterns, there's always something I didn't like. It's usually some piece that is too thin, or too wide, the straps aren't long enough, the zipper is too long, etc. Because of that, I don't want to use a pattern. I'm attempting to draft my own. I'm picky about the bags that I carry. It must be able to hold my camera. I have a Canon Pro1 and that requires the bag to be a on the medium to large side. The bag must close with a zipper. I like interior pockets that zip, but I also like patch pockets inside too. I like geometric shapes and structure. I like to use more durable fabrics such as vinyl or upholstery fabric for my bags.
The bags that I make for my daughter are very different. They're smaller, use less interfacing, and use a lot more fun fabrics. I tend to use fat quarters for her bags. Right now, I'm trying to figure out a way to maximize my cuts on the fat quarter to minimize waste. So far, I have it down to about a 1 inch strips of waste fabric in a few places. I like making these because they don't require a paper pattern. I just put the fabric down on the cutting mat and cut away. These are a very quick sewing project. I can usually sew up several in one evening. The longest part is picking out the fabrics.
I'm getting back into sewing. I have an itch to make handbags again. In all of the bags that I've made from patterns, there's always something I didn't like. It's usually some piece that is too thin, or too wide, the straps aren't long enough, the zipper is too long, etc. Because of that, I don't want to use a pattern. I'm attempting to draft my own. I'm picky about the bags that I carry. It must be able to hold my camera. I have a Canon Pro1 and that requires the bag to be a on the medium to large side. The bag must close with a zipper. I like interior pockets that zip, but I also like patch pockets inside too. I like geometric shapes and structure. I like to use more durable fabrics such as vinyl or upholstery fabric for my bags.
The bags that I make for my daughter are very different. They're smaller, use less interfacing, and use a lot more fun fabrics. I tend to use fat quarters for her bags. Right now, I'm trying to figure out a way to maximize my cuts on the fat quarter to minimize waste. So far, I have it down to about a 1 inch strips of waste fabric in a few places. I like making these because they don't require a paper pattern. I just put the fabric down on the cutting mat and cut away. These are a very quick sewing project. I can usually sew up several in one evening. The longest part is picking out the fabrics.
December 15, 2006
Turning into a blanket
I'm afraid that my entrelac shawl is turning into a small blanket. I'm now on the 9th ball of yarn out of 10 and it looks huge. That's what I want though. I wanted something larger and warmer than my lace stoles. I think this will be exactly what I want it to be. I'm almost done!! It takes me a little more than a day to knit one ball of yarn, so I might be done sometime this weekend. I can't wait for this one to be finished. I've told myself that I won't start any more socks until this shawl or the lace shawl is finished.
I'm in the planning stages of two quilts. They will not be identical, but will coordinate. This will take a while with sketches and test blocks. I don't know when I'll be able to actually do the sewing, but that's what I'm planning for now. I really enjoyed making my other quilts. I do have one unfinished quilt in the closet. That one is so big that it requires hand quilting and that is going to take a long time. The quilts for my kids will be smaller and hopefully, they will be small enough to machine quilt.
I'm in the planning stages of two quilts. They will not be identical, but will coordinate. This will take a while with sketches and test blocks. I don't know when I'll be able to actually do the sewing, but that's what I'm planning for now. I really enjoyed making my other quilts. I do have one unfinished quilt in the closet. That one is so big that it requires hand quilting and that is going to take a long time. The quilts for my kids will be smaller and hopefully, they will be small enough to machine quilt.
December 12, 2006
Sewing urges
My knitting is progressing. There are no pictures because it's not a significant change from the last update. The lace is around 10 rows longer. The entrelac is maybe one row of squares longer.
I'm starting to think about birthday presents. My daughter turns 6 in a few months. She's always talking about dress-up clothes. Her present for her 5th birthday was a big hit. She got circle skirts, purses, beaded necklaces, boa scarves, and capes. She has used at least one thing from that set every day since her last birthday. I think that I'm going to make her some dresses for this next dress-up set. I'm also thinking about making a hooded cape. She has one that she wears when we go out, but would probably love one for dress-up. I might go fancier with whatever I sew this time. That means more sheer overlays, more lace, more trims. Some of last years skirts were plain and some had a lace edging. She likes the ones with lace better.
I did think about knitting the doll from the And So To Bed book, but I don't think I'm going to do that. That's a lot of work and I'm afraid it would get lost with all of the other dolls in E's room. She would appreciate the dress-up clothes more. So now, it's time for planning. I need to dig out the patterns and all of the fabric. I shouldn't need to buy much. There's plenty of fabric in that closet.
I'm starting to think about birthday presents. My daughter turns 6 in a few months. She's always talking about dress-up clothes. Her present for her 5th birthday was a big hit. She got circle skirts, purses, beaded necklaces, boa scarves, and capes. She has used at least one thing from that set every day since her last birthday. I think that I'm going to make her some dresses for this next dress-up set. I'm also thinking about making a hooded cape. She has one that she wears when we go out, but would probably love one for dress-up. I might go fancier with whatever I sew this time. That means more sheer overlays, more lace, more trims. Some of last years skirts were plain and some had a lace edging. She likes the ones with lace better.
I did think about knitting the doll from the And So To Bed book, but I don't think I'm going to do that. That's a lot of work and I'm afraid it would get lost with all of the other dolls in E's room. She would appreciate the dress-up clothes more. So now, it's time for planning. I need to dig out the patterns and all of the fabric. I shouldn't need to buy much. There's plenty of fabric in that closet.
December 10, 2006
I'm back
It's been a long time since I've posted. We've been busy. We went on a trip. Before the trip, there was a lot of things to get done. After the trip, I came down with a nasty cold. It was so bad, I didn't even feel like working on anything. I still have a lingering cough from that cold. D had a birthday. That meant a lot of things needed to be done for that. We just decorated our outdoor tree with lights and bows. We don't do an indoor tree, but we have a blue spruce tree outside that serves as our Christmas tree. I think things will settle down a little now. There are no more family trips planned. The next kiddie birthday isn't until next year.
I've worked on and off on the entrelac stole. It didn't come on the trip with us because I didn't feel like lugging it around. It's grown since I've last posted about it. I plan on using 10 skeins of yarn and I've just finished the 6th one. I still have a long way to go. It's turning out nicely and it does keep my lap warm when I'm working on it. I can't wait to get it finished so that I can use it. I really hope that I finish it during this winter.
This is the project that I took along on the trip. This is the sampler shawl from the book Victorian Lace Today. I'm using Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud in Iris and size 3 bamboo circular needles. There are two versions of this shawl in the book. I'm doing the beginner sampler because it's smaller and I had enough yarn for this one. I'm enjoying working on this shawl. The stitch patterns are easy to memorize after a glance at the beginning of the row. The patterns change often enough to prevent boredom. This shawl will have a knitted on border. I pinned it out quickly on a piece of felt to see how it looks so far. It looks like it will be wider than the stated width of 25 inches. I'll have to be sure to stretch it more length-wise than width-wise when I block it. I had a hard time taking a picture of this. Whenever I tried to resize it, it looked terrible. So, you get this cropped version. At least this one looks decent when you click on it to see the 100% version.
I've worked on and off on the entrelac stole. It didn't come on the trip with us because I didn't feel like lugging it around. It's grown since I've last posted about it. I plan on using 10 skeins of yarn and I've just finished the 6th one. I still have a long way to go. It's turning out nicely and it does keep my lap warm when I'm working on it. I can't wait to get it finished so that I can use it. I really hope that I finish it during this winter.This is the project that I took along on the trip. This is the sampler shawl from the book Victorian Lace Today. I'm using Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud in Iris and size 3 bamboo circular needles. There are two versions of this shawl in the book. I'm doing the beginner sampler because it's smaller and I had enough yarn for this one. I'm enjoying working on this shawl. The stitch patterns are easy to memorize after a glance at the beginning of the row. The patterns change often enough to prevent boredom. This shawl will have a knitted on border. I pinned it out quickly on a piece of felt to see how it looks so far. It looks like it will be wider than the stated width of 25 inches. I'll have to be sure to stretch it more length-wise than width-wise when I block it. I had a hard time taking a picture of this. Whenever I tried to resize it, it looked terrible. So, you get this cropped version. At least this one looks decent when you click on it to see the 100% version.
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