Blankets

This is a quilt that I'm working on for my son. His sister just got a quilt from me for her last birthday. I wanted to make something for his bed now that he has his own room. My little guy likes the color orange. I didn't want to go completely crazy with that color and found a really cute set of fabrics at Fabricworm. Most quilting fabric website sell bundles of fabrics from one collection. At Fabricworm, they bundle up coordinating fabrics from many different collections. I combined two of their collections (one mainly blues and grays and one blues and oranges) to make this quilt. I'm almost finished. I just need to add a bit more quilting in some bare spots and then the binding.

While I was organizing my yarns, I noticed that I have A LOT of sock yarn leftovers. I separated out the self-striping ones and figured out that I have enough of those alone to make a good sized throw. Each of these blocks takes a little over 10 gms of yarn. I usually have at least 20 gms leftover when I make a pair of socks. So each of my leftover balls of yarn over there on the left will get me two squares. There will be no sewing in this blanket. Yay!

There's another reason that I started this insanity. There's a bad cold running around our house. First, it took down my husband, then my son, and now my daughter and I. :-( The cough that I have is driving me crazy. I haven't wanted to work on any of my more complicated projects and this blanket has been getting most of my attention.

These are two of my neglected projects. The stole is Long Shadows by Anne Hanson. It is the August pattern from the Knit Spot Fall in Full Color club. The yarn is so pretty and the pattern is very straight forward. My mind just isn't into lace right now. The socks were supposed to be a new design, but I haven't gotten very far.

I'll just stick with the quilt and blanket for now. I hope this cold goes away soon so I can have all of my thinking capacity back for these patterns.

Threaded, 12 Legs, and Scales

I have three new patterns! Two completed test knitting last week and the other one is a completed mystery knit. Threaded and 12 Legs are both cuff down socks. I had a lot of fun with the cables on these socks. Threaded has a cable that threads in and out of other cables. 12 Legs has something that looks like a mutant spider. I think that I'm in a green phase since I managed to pick green for both of these socks. 12 Legs was originally knit as a toe-up sock in red several years ago. I was never happy with the way that pattern that way and switched it around to a cuff down pattern.

Scales is the name of my August 2011 mystery sock for the Solid Socks group on ravelry. This pattern was released as four separate clues during August. Most of the knitters seem to see the hearts instead of scales, but I kept my name. The August theme was water and I tried to go along with that.

Scales is also a cuff down pattern with cables. All of my patterns have detailed descriptions for how to cable without a cable needle. It's not set in stone and I really don't mind if someone uses a cable needle. I just want to have that there just in case anyone would like to try it. I don't have descriptions for how to do the cables with a cable needle because I've never knit them that way. I don't feel confident in putting it in there if I don't actually use that method.

I still have a lot of other projects too. This is a stack of wash clothes for our Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes. I had a lot of fun making them and I got to use up some of my neglected cotton yarn stash.

I'm also sewing again! I miss sewing. I like how a project can be completed in less than a day. I've been sewing hats for our shoe boxes too. I made four and then decided to make one for myself. My hat is the green one with flowers. I've wanted a hat for a while now, but haven't been able to find one that I really like. This green hat was my test run for interfacing and fit.

I have new sewing and knitting projects in the works. I also have a stack of projects that needs to be photographed. Busy, busy!

School!

Our first day of school was yesterday. My kids got a jump start on me and started before I was finished with my coffee. The picture below shows my new "office" and the kids hard at work. They like that little table. This used to be a dining room, but you can see that I've taken over. hahaha! I have my desk where I knit and write patterns. You can see my sewing corner with my swift hanging on the wall. Just last night, I added my weaving loom right next to my desk.


The ironing board is only out when I'm sewing. Right now, I'm sewing tote bags to include in our shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. I wanted to sew bags last year, but time got away from me and I ended up buying cheap ones. I wasn't too thrilled with the quality of those and was determined to sew my own this year. The picture shows what I've accomplished in about 1.5 days of sewing. I've made 10 tote bags!

These are just basic tote bags. I didn't interface them or add any pockets because I didn't want the extra bulk taking up shoe box space. I did line all of them. They seem pretty sturdy. I put four of my knitting stitch dictionaries into one bag and it held up just fine. I'll probably make a few more bags and pick out the best ones for the shoe boxes.

I'm still knitting on my Gnarled Oakwoods shawl for Camp Loopy. What didn't help is that I got my first shipment of Knitspot's fall in full color club! I won't post a picture on the blog yet. The pattern is a scarf or stole. I really want to cast-on, but I should probably finish this stole first.

I do have a pair of socks in progress. They're self striping socks for my son. I'm avoiding designing anything new until I get some of my backlogged patterns written and test knitted.

Trick or treat

We went trick or treating last night with friends. Here are my two scary pirates. Okay, maybe not so scary.

Trick or treating was great. We went with friends and all of the kids had fun. No one was cranky or tired this year. All of them got a lot of candy.

D has been a pirate for three years now. I changed his costume with a few added pieces. E was a pirate king (queen according to D). D thought it was great that he got a mustache and some eye make-up. E was thrilled with wearing make-up for the first time. They were both not so happy when it was time to scrub it off.

D did get a new pirate hat. He wanted the front to have the pirate symbol from the Pirates That Don't Do Anything movie. He also got to carry the wooden sword this year. I made that last year, but felt it might be too dangerous for him to carry it. This year, he knew not to swing it around anyone. hahaha! I made him a bag for his candy that looks like a treasure map. There's a boat on one side with a trail that goes to an "X" on the other side with jewels.

E got a pirate crown that sort of matches the one from the movie. A lot of hot glue was used to hold that together. I also made her a bag to match her outfit. I haven't sewn in a long time and it was fun! I do need to make a new bag for my new camera.

It was cool and the kids had to wear a few layers underneath their costume. No one complained of the cold. It helped that they ran from house to house.

I keep meaning to blog more, but get distracted. I bought a new camera. My old Canon Pro1 started acting up on our train trip. I looked around and it wasn't worth it to get it fixed. I tried out a Canon sx10 IS and didn't like it. It didn't feel sturdy and it was much bigger than the Pro1. If I wanted a big camera, I might as well get a dslr. And that's what I got. I ended up with the Canon rebel XSI/450D. So far, I'm pretty happy with it. I've been learning a lot more about what settings are appropriate for certain light conditions. I've also had to mess with a lot of other settings to get the pictures how I like them. I'm still using the basic lens that comes in the kit, but time will tell what other lenses I'll want. ;-)

In knitting, I just finished my Fiore de Melanzana stole. I need to photograph it, but was too busy with Halloween costumes. I'm trying to finish up other projects that have been sitting around. I started a pair of modified Monkey socks for E a long time ago. I realized that I need to finish them soon before she out grows them. I also have a shawl and a scarf already on the needles. I'm not sure if I'll work on those or start thinking about gift knitting. I probably should start the gift knitting, but I need to make a list first.

To end this, here are a few more Halloween pictures...

Lace and Beads

Look, more snow! Woohoo! Right. For a few days, I thought spring might be right around the corner. Now we have 2 inches of snow on the ground and today's high is only in the 20's. One positive is that it is nice to wake up to a beautiful sight like this. Another positive is the snow does make it easier for me to take pictures of my projects. I really need to work on my indoor photography. Hopefully this is the last of the snow and I'll need to figure out something else for my photos.

I said that I wanted to knit something beaded and geometric. I didn't have to look any further than the winter 07/08 issue of Vogue Knitting. This shawl (#2 in the mag.) caught my eye, but I wanted to use supplies that I had on hand. The yarn is Zephyr in Chanel and it's a dark pink/fuchsia type of color. If I were to knit this shawl again, I would use a smaller needle and knit another repeat of the squares. This shawl is more airy than I usually like. I did think about adding another repeat on this one, but I thought that a large, bright pink shawl with beads might be a bit much. :-P

Details:
Beaded Shawl(#2) from Vogue Knitting Winter 2007/08
Yarn: Jaggerspun Zephr in Chanel (approx. 5 oz used)
Needle: size 3 Knit Picks Harmony
Beads: 8/0 Iris blue
Hook: size 11 (1.05mm)
Start: February 21, 2008
Finished: February 25, 2008

And now I'll introduce Mingus. Isn't it lovely! I do have a lot of socks, but this one is just too pretty to pass. I love the yarn and the pattern and together it's a perfect combination. The yarn is Somoko by Fleece Artist. It is hairy, but that doesn't take away from the bold patterning on this sock.

I did have a cranky moment with this sock. I wont' go into too much detail, but it involved frogging, larger needles, and me muttering about fat ankles. The good news is that this yarn is easy to frog, despite the hairiness. It also didn't suffer much in the frogging and still looks great.

I'm starting another project. It's the Moroccan Days/Arabian Nights stole. I first saw a picture of this stole a few weeks ago and the designer was still working on it. It's so pretty and it has beads! The pattern just became available and I have it. I'm in the process of stringing a million beads onto the yarn. Okay, it's more like 2500, but it feels like a million beads. I prefer the crochet method for adding beads to lace, but the ends of this stole has a beaded looped fringe that can't be added by hook. I'm using some purple yarn that Dwight brought back from China and beads that I had already too. In fact, they're the same beads as those in the Beaded Shawl at the top. I initially bought those for my Seaweed Stole, but ended up using a larger bead.

I'll close with some monsters that I made with the kids on Monday. We were inspired by Craft magazine. From left to right are E's monster, D's monster, and mine. E did everything herself except the sewing. D needed help cutting out his felt for the main part, but he did cut the decorations himself. My monster is made from leftover fleece and I like it much better than felt. If we make more monsters, I'd rather do them in fleece or regular fabric. I'm not a big fan of felt because it looks worn so quickly. These monsters were so quick and easy to make. I can see making a lot of these with E and D. They already want to make more.

Year end round up of projects

This year has been a big knitting year for me. I started knitting in September of 2005. 2006 was a year of trying new things in knitting. It seems that 2007 was a year spent perfecting them. I took on the challenge of Summer of Socks. That was crazy and insane, but also a lot of fun. I really found what types of yarn that I prefer for socks, what types of colors, and what types of patterns that I like to knit. And after making over 40 socks in a three month period, I really worked on getting socks to fit well. I've also grown more confident in knitting socks that will fit other people.

During 2007, I also took on the challenge of knitting my first sweater. While it didn't come out perfect, it did fit and I know what I can do to make it better the next time I try sweater knitting.

In numbers, I completed the following in 2007:
Adult sweaters: 1
Kid sweaters: 5
Hats: 3
Scarves: 4
Mittens: 6
Shawls: 6
Socks: 74

No, that last number is not a typo. And I do want everyone to know that not all of those 74 socks were for me. Around 13 were kid sized socks for E and D. There were socks for Dwight, his mom, my sister, and my mom. Since I have plenty of socks, I'm now working on making more for the kids, my mom, and my sister. I can guarantee that there will not be that many socks knit next year. ;-)

But I have been thinking of what I will knit or sew. I do want to knit some of the projects that I have the yarn and patterns for already. That would be the Inky Dinky Spider stole, the Paisley shawl, the Irtfa'a Faroese shawl, and a sweater. For the sweater, I have the yarn and a few different patterns that will work with it. I just need to sit down and make a decision on the pattern.

In the maybe section, I would like to make some argyle socks. I know that I have a lot of hand knit socks, but argyles are completely different than anything I've done. I've never tried intarsia and that would be a challenge.

In the wishful thinking area, I would like to try out more color work. I want to try mittens or gloves. I would also like to design a lace shawl myself. I'm not sure if that will happen though. There are so many patterns that I want to knit and there is only so much time. We've already established that decision making is difficult for me. ;-)

There are also so many things that I want to sew. My yarn stash is nothing compared to my fabric stash. I need to sew more and work down the stash a bit. I want to make some quick and easy quilts for the kids' room and make some matching curtains. Now that my brother-in-law took back his huge painting, I have a big blank wall in the living room. I want to try to make a crazy quilt for that wall.

In list form, I want to attempt to do the following in 2008:

Inky Dinky Spider Stole
Paisley shawl
Irtfa'a shawl
argyle socks
twin sized quilt for E's bed
full sized quilt for D's bed
curtains to match both quilts
crazy quilt
a few dresses for E
try new handbag designs (by me)

I like making lists, but I usually don't do everything on the list. Things get changed or completely marked off. I reserve the right to change my mind and I probably will. :-D

Secret shawl progress and FO pictures

On the left is what the Secret of Chrysopolis looks like after 5 clues. It's now around 51 inches long with 3 more clues to go. It looks like this stole will be symmetrical. I like how the center medallion turned out. Dwight thought it looked like a monkey's face after clue 4.

On the right is what the Secret of the Stole looks like after 4 clues. Clue 4 is where we got to make some decisions about length. I decided to just do mine as the pattern/chart is written and not make any changes. After this clue, it measures around 40 inches long.

I can't wait until Friday. Maybe I should knit each clue slower and make them last the whole week. No, I don't think I can do that. Whenever I start a new clue, I get really focused on it. I usually don't like having two lace projects on the needles at the same time, so that might be a reason for wanting to finish each clue as fast as possible.

I have finished a few things on the side. I've made two more pair of socks for E. These were made out of Vesper in Strange Little Mama and Yarn Pirate in Primrose. The primrose socks were knit in the Baby Fern pattern from More Sensational Knitted Socks.

I've also done a bit of sewing too. My poor sewing machine has been very neglected this summer. I did give it a good dusting and oiling before sewing. It still gave me fits while trying to sew through three layers of vinyl. This bag is from the Vogue 8098 pattern. I picked it because it looks roomy enough for my regular stuff, my camera, and my knitting. I picked vinyl because I wanted a sturdy bag. I've tried using upholstery fabric with heavy interfacing, but those were still too flimsy for my tastes. This bag turned out to be very close to what I want. It's final dimensions are 12 inches wide x 9 inches tall (on the side sections) x 6 inches wide.

I did make some changes to the pattern. I added the rectangular metal rings to the handles. This is so the handles will fold over to the sides when I want them out of the way for knitting. I added an interior zippered pocket to the main section of the bag. I also added magnetic snaps to the two large side sections.

If I decide to make this bag again, I would make even more changes. I would also add some plain patch type pockets to the main center section of the bag. That part is so cavernous that my keys and wallet get lost in there. I would also only use the lining fabric for the lining of the side sections. See how there is vinyl on the inside too? Well that was a pain and I don't think it's necessary. The pocket seems too thick and bulky.

Up next, I'm working on another pair of leg warmers for E. She's been constantly wearing the other ones and they need to be washed. ;-)

When a fairy chases a pirate...

The pirate may look happy, but he isn't very happy when caught. Maybe it's because pirates shouldn't be caught by fairies? Maybe it's because he wasn't happy getting hit by the magic wand? Maybe it was because he's barefoot and stepped on many acorns while running? What did this pirate do? He dropped his leather belt and sword (maybe they were slowing him down) and kept running.

This year D wanted to be a pirate again. I was very cool with that idea because I loved his costume last year. He makes for a very cute pirate and loves to go around saying "arrrrrrr matey." I did add the foam sword and the leather belt across his chest. Everything else is the same as last year. There are "boots" that go over his shoes, but he didn't want to wear those for the pictures.

The hat is actually from a pattern for toddler hats. I used the basic hat pattern, but made the brim a lot larger. Then I tacked it up in three spots. The shirt, vest, and pants are from various sewing patterns. I bought them on sale for .99 and picked the pieces that I thought went together. The "hair" is just a piece of fabric with yarn sewed to the inside. Two strands of the hair have beads on them, very similar to the movie pirate.

E wanted to be a princess. Then she wanted to be a good witch. Whatever it was, she wanted to it to be pretty and in a girly color. I suggested a fairy since she's been into the Barbie movies lately. She has been a fairy before, but I was unhappy with the way the wings turned out that year. This year, I wanted to see if I could make better wings. So, we started with the wings and went from there.

For the wings, I used various tutorials over on craftster. I decided not to sew a dress. Instead, I went with a skirt that you can see with the Monica pattern at Knitty. The instructions for the very easy skirt are at the Barefoot Knits. The top was store bought and then I added some stones to it to match the wings. The crown was recycled from another old costume. It's actually a plain comb-like headband that you can find in the crafts section. On the headband section, I tied on some tulle that was cut from the ends of the skirt. To the comb section, I weaved in some beaded wire and formed the crown.

The lighting in these pictures changes so much. These were all taken on the same day and all around the same time.

In knitting news, I'm working away at clue 5 on the Secret of Chrysopolis shawl. I have 12 rows left of that clue. I'll work on the Secret of the Stole next. I have been sewing too! My poor sewing machine has been neglected this year. I made myself a new bag. I like it, but it's a bit bulky. I'm thinking of making it again, but using different fabrics.

Lazy blogger checking in...

I haven't felt like blogging or commenting lately. It must be the cloudy weather. I'm so thankful for all of the much needed rain that we've gotten the last few days, but it seems to affect my mood. I also wanted to wait until I had more sock pictures, but I haven't taken them yet because of the clouds. I finished two more pairs of socks for E. I need to work on a few for D now, but boy colors just aren't as fun to knit.

This is Secret of the Stole after 3 clues. I still like it and it's still fun. I do wish that there were more beads in it, but maybe I can just do another beaded project. The stole measures around 20 inches wide and 31 inches long to the points.

Secret lace knits seems to be the in thing right now. I'm working on the Secret of Chrysopolis and the Secret of the Stole. I also joined the Mystic Waters Lace Shawl and the Spring Surprice stole. The last one doesn't start until January 1st. That one looks very promising from the swatches posted on Lul's blog and the description says that it will be a "challenging" knit. I'm definitely up for the challenge. There will be another one by the designer of the Secret of Chrysopolis. There's a group for it on Ravelry already. That one won't start for a long time, but I'm in the group to keep an eye on it. (Or I would forget.)

I haven't started the Mystic Waters Shawl yet. It's recommended to pick a "watery" type color. I don't have any. I do have enough of black merino yarn or pink zephyr yarn. I'm thinking about going against the grain on this shawl and just picking whatever color I want. Both of my size 3 needles are occupied with the other stoles and that's the size that I usually use with laceweight yarn. The final measurements were posted today and it will be 50 inches long to the point and 98 inches across the top. That sounds huge! I may be able to use the merino wool as it is a pretty fine laceweight yarn and size 2 needles. I'll have to see how it looks.

Time....where can I get more...

It's not as if I don't have enough things to knit around here. I also want to do the Inky Dinky Spider Stole and the Paisley Stole from Fiddlesticks. There are also the countless free patterns from Magknits and Knitty. Then there's the beaded stole in the Holiday issue of Vogue Knitting. And then there are the books and books and books of patterns. Ack!

I have put the knitting away for a while, except for the mystery stoles. I've pulled out the sewing machine and the patterns. Right now, I'm still in the digging phase and trying to sort out what pattern I want to sew and with what fabric. The possibilities so far are a dress for E, pjs for D, a new camera bag/purse for me, more tulle skirts (no sewing for those), and possibly a stuffed animal or doll with it's own little wardrobe.

Ah, decisions....

Yes, I am stubborn

I have some bamboo yarn that I've been wanting to use. I really like the Cabled Down Raglan in the spring 07 issue of Interweave. So, I just had to try it out together. It didn't work. I like how slinky the yarn is and I like the cables, but they don't like working together. Everything that I read about bamboo said that it wasn't a good candidate for cables, but I had try anyways. It's frogged now and I'm going to save the pattern for later. I plan on doing something along the lines of a lacy cardigan with the bamboo.

The dress that I made for E came out okay. I took it in around the chest, but it still gaps in the back. Argh! I need to adjust the pattern for sewing it again. Tightening the elastic in the back wouldn't look right. I'm going to have to take in the front part of the top too. She likes it, despite all of that. That's what matters anyways.

It's amazing what I can get done

when everyone else is out of the house. Dwight took E and D on a really long hike. I think it might be around 6 miles total. E has made this hike a few times before, but this is the first time for D. On previous hikes, he rode in a backpack.

While they were away, I managed to sort through my patterns and figure out plans for a few yarns that I have. I vacuumed the house--thrilling. I made lunch and ate it in peace--hahaha! I sewed a dress for E. The last time I made a dress for her was two years ago. That's because those still fit the year after I made them. Maybe this one will last two years also. The dress is nearly complete. I just need E to try it on, so we can figure out how long the straps should be. I could go off of her measurements that I have, but I'd rather her try it on. I've already made a few adjustments to the pattern. I usually have to cut out the fabric in one size for width and a larger size for length.

Back to knitting...I finished these socks last Thursday. I took these pictures yesterday, but didn't get around to resizing until today. I figured out why flickr wasn't recognizing my exif information. When I saved the resized picture in Photoshop, I used the "save for web" option. That one saves the picture without the exif info.

The new Knitty came out. It makes me want to throw out my sweater plans and make more socks. I love all of the socks. I like a few of the children's patterns too. I really want to work on a sweater, so the socks and other patterns will have to wait.

Veil is progressing

I'm getting towards the end of the main section of the knitted veil. Just picture the same thing, but longer in the airy center portion. It's starting to get a bit boring, but the end is coming up. I like that section with the large diamonds. I could make the shawl longer, but I plan on following the pattern and see how it ends. It's interesting following two different sections of one chart. As long as I keep the magnets in place, I'm fine. We won't talk about the time where I forgot to move the magnets, knit the same row twice, didn't realize it until I was 10 rows away, and had to tink back. Ugh! I survived and the shawl is almost done. I'm guessing that it will take another week to finish at the rate I'm knitting.

Our snow has finally melted and the temperatures have been a little warmer. While this is great, that means I can't take anymore shawl in the snow photos. I'll have to scout out a new location.

My mind is wandering off to the next project. I'm planning on taking the plunge and knit myself a cardigan. I have some odds and ends colourmart cashmere in dark blue. I think it will be enough. The ultimate plan is to knit a plain cardigan very similar to a store bought one that I like. If that fits well, I plan on using the camel hair yarn to make a cabled version. I'll have a lot of swatching to do to see how many stitches I need to add to accommodate the cables. The camel hair yarn is just asking to be made into something classic looking and cabled.

My sewing projects have been cast aside for a while now. I have to do some modifications to the handbag pattern that I was making before I can continue. That left me unenthusiastic about sewing. I do need to start thinking about spring and summer dresses for E. I have plenty of fabrics. I just need to pair them up with a pattern that I want to use.