Gifts

So we won't talk about how long it took for my mom to get her birthday present this year.  In my defense, I did actually have everything done in time.  But I got lazy about mailing it.  Then I found the perfect present for my Step-dad to throw in the package too.  And then the Etsy seller disappeared off the face of the earth so I was waiting on my stuff to ship.  I gave up waiting on it last week.  So she finally got sent stuff.

The funny thing about both of her bigger things, she bought the yarn for them.  They still count as presents though.  Totally.  Some Grandmother's slippers.  She loves these things. 

 Socks.  Out of Panda Silk.  Nice yarn.  She has good taste. Done toe-up and a very short leg cuff to make them ankle socks.  I'm sorry they are a touch too small.  I was worried I was running out of yarn.  I like the way the yarn pooled to make it look like stripes.

 This isn't for my mom. She got a bunch of other smaller things.  This embroidery is actually for my BIL and SIL.  I saw the idea online.  I had everyone trace their hands and then I transfered them to some fabric.  Then I embroidered each hand in a different color to match the fabric.  I told them they could get a new one whenever they wanted.  Julia is growing up fast.  And this project was a snap.

 And this is for my swap partner.  I am going to be all sneaky and not even say what it is in case she is reading.  But it could come in handy when running away from zombies.  Maybe making a repair or two.  She should be getting her box soon ::fingers crossed:: 

And the yarn I dyed for the swap too.  I call it Zombie Pallor.  Beth may have also gotten some of this for her birthday.  One good thing I learned is that I can fit about 3 skeins of yarn comfortably in the pot I dye in.  Otherwise I will end up with two skeins that don't really resemble the others since they get stuck at the bottom.

Too much

I have entirely too many projects going at once and I don't feel like I am getting anything done. Blech. Add to that, new pretty shiny birthday yarns that I want to play with now and me deciding to get a jump on Christmas knitting and I am just overwhelmed. I have made a list of stuff that I need to do and tried to prioritize it. I think that has helped lessen the crazy feelings. I have also tried to take a step back from the Christmas stuff to work on things that need done soon. Unfortunately Christmas will be upon me before I know it. So I can't put it off for too long. I've also had a few good business ventures come along. Those will definitely be the first projects in the works. I'm super excited about the prospects of the extra crafting money. I have big plans that I hope I can follow through on.

But I did manage to get some stuff marked off of my list recently. So it isn't all bad.

Mom's scrubbies- an order from a co-worker of hers. She really likes the tulle dish scrubbers I make for my mom and wanted some to give out as Christmas presents. As these things, even in the larger version her friend wanted, take about half an hour to make, I said sure. (and as a side note, I've written a pattern for these and have apparently not made it available. I need to work on that)

Mom's bath poof- My mom is dangerous in a yarn store. Possibly even more so than I am. She was walking around the store picking up yarns and adding them to the pile. I asked what they were for since she doesn't knit. Oh they are for her. After I have turned them into something. :) And someone wasn't very helpful in the store who showed her a bath poof made out of cotton and who so helpfully offered to give me the pattern. So she knows she is getting the bath poof, but I also had enough left over for a washcloth for her face. Yay!

crochet scarf- When all my making stuff craziness has died down, I am making another one of these. I also got the pattern for this scarf from the yarn store in Charleston. Everytime I wandered by the scarf on display I stopped and fondled and admired it. So the owner gave me a copy of the pattern. For my first attempt, I grabbed a box of handspun yarns that my mom had found at a yardsale for $2 (go mom!). It was full of smaller balls of worsted to bulky weight. So I went up a hook size and worked the pattern, changing yarns when I ran out of a color, and ending the pattern when I ran out of yarn. I love it and want it to be cold so I can wear it. But I did underestimate how going up a hook size would effect the size. If I drape it around my neck, the ends just touch the floor. I made giant scarf. But I totally want to make more of these with some pretty varigated yarns.

sandals- These were a tutorial on Etsy's blog a while ago. You take an old pair of flip flops and an old t-shirt, an exacto knife and some good glue and you make new sandals. I think if I were to do this again, I would change the back from a tie on to a sling back shoe. Awesome. How often do you get to say "I made my shoes!"

More things

I've been busy. Actually cast on and finished a few things, and did some sewing. Made a few new drawstring project bags to go in the Etsy store.
Made a very cute baby outfit. The Felted Baby Yoda hat with Jedi Robe. Made a few mods to the sweater pattern to make it more of the wrap style that the Jedi's seem to prefer. This is for a coworker whose husband is a very big Star Wars fan. I was told the force was strong with me after he received it.

And I made a stash hedgehog. I saw this pattern on an Etsy treasury and had to have it. Of course since most items in a treasury are snatched up quick and patterns have to be listed one at a time on Etsy, I was sad. But I looked on Ravelry. And it was there. Hooray! And Ravelry lets you instantly get your patterns instead of waiting for the Etsy seller to email it to you. I think I am spoiled. I may have also bought a cabled vest pattern, which I already have the yarn for. But I need to think about Christmas presents before I can move on.

Finishing things?

Now that the Tour De Fleece is done, I have been crafting up a storm.

Lots of sewing. Even though I need to do more sewing to get some new product up in the store. This bag was for Haley's birthday. It was my first time sewing something like that without a pattern. I actually took a purse she already had and muslined a pattern to make this one a bit bigger. I think she liked it.
Skirt! Long piece of fabric sewn to a 2 inch wide piece of elastic. I need to fix the hem. The fabric is very silky and swishy and the simple turned over hem isn't working. I also need to do some zig zagging at the top to keep the fabric from unraveling itself.

This skirt I lurves. A lot! Another skirt I made using this tutorial. It has two layers. A longer red with the overlying patterned fabric. With pockets. I feel very 50's housewife in this dress. I think it will be part of my outfit for the Dames For Dogs event.

How about some knitting content? I started and finished the Annis Shawl in about a month and a half. I made it from handspun from fiber that I got for my birthday last year. I finished spinning it to make room on the wheel for the Tour De Fleece. Apparently I got extra motivated.

I have even been motivated to work on lingering projects that just needed finished. This is the Felted Trifold Knitters Bowl from one of Cat Bordhi's amazing books. Crazy but brilliant woman. It makes a very good holder for balls of yarn that I am working from. They can sit on the floor and roll freely without rolling all over the place and getting filled with dog hair.

This I am super proud to be done with. I started it in October 2008. This has been lingering for nearly 2 years. Craziness! But I made it my at home project and stuck with it and now it is done. It just needs buttons and for the weather to stop being 400 degrees with humidity.

Of course now that I have been good, I want to cast on about eleventy billion other projects. I finally got my WIPS down and stable at like 8 things and I am trying hard not to mess with that. The issue is I keep finding these amazing patterns and then it turns out I have the yarn for them already. It is very hard to talk myself out of casting on when I have the yarn. And I need to start thinking about Christmas presents. Please put in your requests now.

New Item in the Store

http://www.knittingnadine.etsy.com/

I found a pack of key chain fobs at AC Moore the other day and they were on sale. So I picked up a pack and decided to make several of my cell phone sock charms. And then I decided to sell them on Etsy. I just think they are so cute. Of course you could also use my itty bitty sock pattern to make your own.

And I am in the process of putting up more stitch markers. But I honestly won't be heart-broken if these don't sell.

Happy Birthday Mom!

I hope you look awesome in this:

Now that you are 29. :)

Sew-Sew-Sew

I have been doing a lot of sewing lately. I finally got around to sewing some new bags for the store. And even made one for myself. I don't think I would sell them made from this fabric. It unravels very easy. But it looks awesome.

And a little sneak peak at my sock in progress. Yes, that is colorwork. It actually isn't too bad and goes pretty fast when I actually work on it.

Why wouldn't I be working on my knitting, you might ask. Because of Haley. It is all her fault. See we have established I'm a bit of a craft hoar. And I'm not very monogamous to my projects. But she has gotten me infatuated with embroidery. I'm not super at it. I think I need to work on my patience and making my stitches more even.

But this will become a dishtowel for a swap partner. I want to make myself one of these. And another one with a burger and shake on it. Yay!

And this one was actually the first embroidery I did. It got turned into a bag. I already have another bag with a pattern transfered on. I am just trying to be better about finishing some things before I start on it. Oh and I have become a little obsessed with making skirts.

This skirt came from a tutorial on Freshly Picked for the Elastic Waistband Skirt. And even better, it has pockets! I love it. Since it is so full, it turned out a bit short. And it is very poofy on top. I need to wear it with something very fitted on top so I don't look ginormous.

This skirt is a rectangle with an elastic waistband. But I love the material. Even if I forgot how much of a pain jersey knits can be to work with. But it wasn't too bad. I love this skirt.

And this skirt turned out super fun. I had some fabric in my stash that wasn't very wide. Maybe 2 feet. And on one edge it has embroidery and eyelet lace. I want to say it might be for curtain valences. That is the only thing I could think of. Or maybe the edge of a dust ruffle. Anyway. I cut it in lengths about 6 inches longer than my hip measurement. I think I got 5 pieces out of it, but I only used 4. I then layered them and sewed them together. Sewed up the back with about 1/2 an each selvage (adjusting for uneven edges). And I put it on at that point to figure out where I wanted it to hit and sewed in an elastic waistband. I love it. It turned out just like I wanted it to. That doesn't happen too often when you are winging it.

Christmas round up

So I finished all of my knitting that needed to be done before Christmas, before Christmas. Shocker! Sorry this took so long to post, but it had to wait for some people to receive their stuff and I've gotten distracted. So now for a review of what has been made.

Mary Jane Slippers for my SIL. She also got my Bella Mittens. I realized I don't like mittens and I know how much she likes Twilight.

Diagonal Lace Socks for my mom.

A customized Rubix Cube for Mike.

A D20 for my Secret Santa. :)

A Wookie for Amber and the Java Joint

A lab rat for Becca.

Some Felted slippers that were a bit too big for my MIL. But she did get to steal my FIL's hat because it was too small for him. So it worked out. :)

A scarf for Brian.

How to spot a knitter

I'm pretty sure the Yarn Harlot has talked about this before. And I know I still haven't done a post with all of my Christmas knitting. But I was amused at myself the other night.

Most people purchase their hats, gloves/mittens, and scarves from a store. Most people tend to buy these things as a set or at least make them coordinate.

Now a knitter only has so many things they can knit. Not like patterns, cause there are bazillions of those. But things like slippers, scarves, etc. So you tend to start repeating items. I have more scarves than I will ever need in my lifetime. So unless a knitter has unlimited people to gift these items to, they begin to stockpile. Now logic would dictate that once you have a scarf, you wouldn't make anymore. But logic would also dictate that spending 20 dollars on yarn that will be turned into socks and worn on your feet is a little excessive. We see where logic has failed me.
So your average knitter has several hats, scarves and gloves sitting around to wear. Naturally they are going to have their favorites. I for example like my slouchy beret hat made with the purple alpaca. But I am currently enamored with my colorwork tam, because well it is just that awesome. And still slouchy. I have been wearing my Clapotis to the exclusion of all else since I've finished it. And at our fiber guild meeting, I got a pair of fingerless mitts. They sparkle. I have realized how much I like the ones without the individual fingers. The stuff in between the fingers is just too bulky. So this is how I look when I go out.
Yeah, I don't match at all. It is a pretty good bet that if you see someone with knitwear that matches as well as mine does, they are a knitter.

Home Alone

I'm sitting at home alone watching the Grammy's now that the Celtic Women special is over. I have progressed from arguing with the dog about me changing the channel to the Celtic Women special. But really Beyonce should not channel Alanis. No matter what Heidi thinks. Just a moment ago I was yelling at the kitchen because Norah Jones didn't get nominated for any Grammy's. Facebook is offering a moderate amount of human contact. And then I remembered that "Hey, I have a blog. It is set up just for me to ramble nonsensically to no one in particular."

So I got some of that new sweetener, Truvia. With the current congestion going on, I have been sucking down tea like there is no tomorrow. Well I have to have my regular tea with milk and sugar and I sweeten my peppermint tea too. I need an option besides sugar. But I really hate sweeteners. It is the same reason I can't drink diet sodas. That fake sweet taste is just awful. And I had a coupon. And I really like it. It sweetens well, but doesn't have an aftertaste. It is kind of pricy, but if I use it just for tea I think it will last and be quite worth the cost. Yay!

I made a pair of socks. They are my first toe up socks and I love them. I used WendyKnits Toe-Up Socks with a Difference. I love them. They are toe up so I can use up all of my yarn, but it has a heel flap and not a short row heel. They are super warm and comfy.

This is just to make Becca jealous. I made Chicken Halushki (is that the right name, I googled it and a bunch of cabbage dishes came up). It was so good. I even made the homemade noodles you scrape off of the bottom of a pan. It was even fairly easy. I'm thinking I need to make this more often. And I'm trying to figure out if I can turn it into a crock pot meal.Oh and I went to Borders today. I needed to go to the mall to get my ring inspected and since I still have a Borders gift card to spend I spent some time looking around. I finally found the Interweave Crochet magazine (really I just need to subscribe to it and Interweave Knits and Spin Off. I would probably save money). They also had a bunch of office supplies and stuff on sale 75% off. I found this adorable lunch box with a matching thermos. I got both for 5 dollars. Wooo! I don't normally make a lunch to take to work. I tend to forget to make it or forget to take it even if I prepare it the night before. I stick with frozen meals that I take to work in a bunch. But I might use it to carry around knitting. Of course. Pretty much every bag I own is designated to hold knitting. Except for my purse. And sometimes it even holds knitting.
BTW, one should not google new food products you've just tried. I do not like when side effects are one of the first listings.

And hey, writing this apparently made Zach come home. So thanks for listening. And also kudos to Zach and the Coraline DVD. The Coraline DVD for having 3-D glasses and Zach for remembering this so that we could watch the Michael Jackson 3-D tribute thingy. Not that it was that thrilling. :)

Fears

So it took a stranger on Ravelry trading me some yarn to get me over one of my biggest knitting fears. I've always been a might terrified of colorwork. Except duplicate stitch. I can do that. But real, honest to goodness colorwork was scary. Notice I say "was".

I received some Brown Sheep Handpainted originals yarn in stormy skies. It is a beautiful yarn. Aran weight with a nice halo to it thanks to the mohair. I knew pretty much right away that it would have to be a hat because of how PSA I am about stuff that can be irritating to my skin. But I didn't know what sort of hat would be worthy of such a yarn. I was worried that the 160-ish yards I had wouldn't be enough for a whole hat and that the dark and varigated color would overwhelm any pattern I tried. And then on Ravelry I was stalking some of my friends' projects and favorites and saw a faux fair isle hat. It used a solid yarn for the main color and a bright varigated yarn for the contrast color. You get all the colors of a very complicated fair isle pattern with much less work. Then AC Moore had some cream Soy Wool Solids on sale. It is the same weight and has a similar halo

So I was inspired. I found the pattern for Three Tams. I decided that Tam C was what I wanted. So...I cast on. After a little help on how to easily do corrugated ribbing from Wendy Knits, I found myself chugging along on this beautiful pattern. I cast on Thursday and I finished it tonight. It was slow going at the beginning, but I was getting so confident with it, I started using both hands. That really sped the process up. (there is even video of me using both hands) I'm so proud of myself I could explode. So without further ado...my pride and joy...

My new hat

Cheating

I've been cheating on my Christmas knitting. And I don't fell bad about it at all. I probably should. But I have run out of yarn for one thing (I plan on getting that skein of yarn this evening). And I have until New Year's to finish the other thing. And starting next week, I am on vacation so I'll have plenty of time to sit and knit. And there isn't even much left of it, just 5 more repeats then a toe.

But really if you had a pattern for this snowman, wouldn't you want to make an entire army of them. It is less than 2 inches tall. And it takes me a total of about 2 hours to make one. One hour for the body. Half an hour for the scarf and then maybe another half an hour for all the finishing. So worth it. I put a little loop on the top of its head so it would make an awesome ornament.

And apparently we are preparing to get a large snowstorm coming through here. It is probably a good idea I started these. And yes, I know what they were inspired by. And I don't care, they are cute. I decided it was silly that as a knitter I had a pair of fingerless gloves, but nothing that covered all of my hand. My fingertips have been getting very cold in the morning. As I am not yet brave enough to make these, I went for mittens in a chunky yarn. I have the first one done and plan to have the second done before I have to venture out into the snow tomorrow.

And because you can never have too much adorable dog. Here is mine at her most pathetic. Falling asleep in Zach's arms. Awwww... melty puppy.

Busy times

Sorry it has been a while since I posted. But I have been busy. It has been a little over a week and I have spun up three skeins of yarn.

The first one I finished was the stuff that Mitzi gave me to work on while I was at spinning guild. I'm not sure what the fiber is or where she got it. I don't even remember how many yards I got out of it. But it is my first 3 ply yarn and my first time Navajo plying. I really like it. I think it is wool so I might make a little felted bag out of it. Yay.

The second I finished was a batt from Loop. I am so excited about this. The first half of the batt was spun up on a drop spindle and I finished the rest of it on the wheel then plied the two singles together. It is her Kimono colorway and is a blend of red and hot pink bamboo, eggplant cooridale and purple mohair with lots of glitz in it. I got about 200 yards of a nice fingering/sport weight. I think I have already decided on the Branching Out scarf pattern. This yarn is just screaming to be a drapy neck decoration.

Last, but not least, was some practice roving that Grace threw in with the wheel. She has some single already spun so I put that on the bobbin and spun up the rest. I then Navajo plyed it to keep the colors sort of together. When you ply it to keep the colors together, it is much harder than just pulling up loops willy nilly. But I like the look it gave this yarn. I think I ended up with about 70 yards of a nice worsted weight yarn. How much do I love that you can search for patterns on Ravelry by yardage? It is heaven for handspinners.

But not only that! Over the Thanksgiving weekend, we went to a farmers market. There was a stall there with lamb for sale, but she was also selling yarn. So I started talking to her. She didn't have any of her handspun, just mill spun. But she mentioned she also had roving for sale. $12 for 1 lb. Crazy cheap. So I snatched that right up. It is a Dorset/Cheviot blend. Not merino soft but decently soft and smooshy. So I decided to try dying with the Wilson's cake icing dye. I split the roving into approximate quarters. and set to dyeing.

2 of the quarters I dyed with burgandy and moss green. As you can see, burgandy does not really turn burgandy. More of a hot pink really. It is pretty, just not really the effect I was going for. I laid out the roving and dyed in segments so the roving transitions from pink to green and back. Not sure how I am going to spin this one up yet.

This quarter was dyed with violet and moss green. I laid out the roving willy nilly and then using my eye dropper, I scattered the dye willy nilly. Then smooshed the dye all through the yarn and threw in a bit extra vinegar. In one of the tutorials I read, they said that the dyes with Red #3 will break in a high acid solution. Which in this case is what I wanted. So I ended up with a blend of pinks, purples, blue and green. Love it.

This one turned out nothing like I planned. Burgandy, moss green and orange food coloring. Whoo is this sucker bright. I am currently spinning it up and hope to make it a fluffy two or three ply heavy worsted/bulky weight. This stuff is heaven to spin. I might have to hit up Bill and Lauren to grab me more of this the next time they go to the market.