Restyled Pillow

My daughter loves the soft fuzzy feel of fleece, and was reluctant to give up her fleece footy pj's when they got too small and the temperature got too high.  When she wanted to wear the too small pj's on an 80 degree F night, I was only able to talk her out of it by promising to make her a pillow from the pj's. Here is what I did.

This is what the original PJ's looked like.

Step 1:  Cut off the Sleeves.

Step 2:  Sew a line of stitches perpendicular to the zipper just under where you cut the sleeves off.  Make sure the zipper pull is BELOW this stitch line.

Step 3:  Stitch another line perpendicular to the zipper just above the crotch.

Step 4:  Cut off the sleeve area above the stitch line, and the leg area below the stitch line.  Leave a seam allowance.  I left about 0.5 inch.

Now you have a pillow case.  You can stuff it, find an insert that fits, or use all of the leftovers that you cut off, sew them together into same dimensions as the case and stuff that.  I did the later, and ended up with a Frankenstein's monster esque pillow, that worked really well.

There was only a little bit of fabric leftover.  I cut these pieces into circles roughly 2 inches wide.  I pinched these circles at the middle, then sewed that pinch together.

I sewed these together at the base, then sewed them to the pillow.

Ta Da!

WIP - Blued Steel Socks

Lately it has seemed that our family has been on the express train to crazy town.  We have been working or planning to work, from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. nearly every day.  Today however, I have a little time to relax and knit.  I have no projects that need to be finished by a deadline, and other than a little house cleaning (not a small feat with two toddlers, I will admit), I have nothing that needs to be done immediately.  Can you hear my sigh of relief? So today I will try to finish the heels of my husband's sock's, which I have failed to mention on this blog so far.  I did not mention thes socks, because I decided to try a new technique while knitting them, and was afraid they would be a disaster.

I am not much of a sock knitter.  It is not that I dislike knitting socks, rather, I prefer knitting other things, like sweaters.  I also have a SERIOUSLY BAD case of 2nd sock syndrome.  Even after the first sock has been completely knit, the 2nd has a good chance of never being made.

I made the previous mistake of knitting my huge footed husband a pair of socks, and those of you who have ever worn a pair of handknit socks know, that once you have gone handknit you never go back.  He has since been asking for a 2nd pair of socks, and eventually I reluctantlyagreed.  Knowing my reluctance to start a 2nd sock, and not wanting my husband walking around in just one sock, I decided to try to knit both socks at once.

I used the magic loop technique (also new to me) to knit both socks on only one extremly long needle.  I was suprised to find that after finishing the figure 8 cast on, the technique was straight forward and easy.  On top of that, knitting both socks at the same timedoesn't seem to take much longer than knitting one sock on dpn's.  I throughly enjoy knitting in this fashion, and may knit ALL future socks in this manner.

Here is how it is going so far;

Pattern: Universal Toe-up Sock Pattern

Yarn:  1 Skein Cascade Heritage Hand Painted

Needles:  Size 2, 45" circulars

Yes, I am knitting both socks at the same time from one skein.  I will show you my method later.

Embroider my Liver

I have been dying to post about this embroidery project for the longest time.  This project was a Christmas present, that was finished before Christmas, but was not given until this past weekend.  One of my good friends who is currently living in Maine came this past weekend to attend my Son's birthday party (details to follow), and he finally received all of his gifts.

He was the previous recipent of the embroidered heart, and upon his enthusiastic receipt of the heart I enquired what his favorite organ was.  He responded the liver.  The above pictured liver and surrounding organs was the result.  

Here are some detailed shots;

The Pancreas is the light peach organ pictured above.  I used french knots to create the oddly bumpy texture seen in a real pancreas.

The spleen was made with bullion knots, to imitate the the lumpy texture of a real spleen.

You may see more anatomy embroidery in he future, as it was  indicated that a series would be appreciated.

The Knit Kit

The Knit Kit. A multi-tool for knitters.  

I've got to have it.

Extreme Knitting

Is it strange that I want to do this too?

1,000 Strand Extreme Knitting

FO - Grandma's Knit Slippers

My Grandmother lost her husband this last year.  I know that I can't give her anything to make up for that loss, but I wanted to give her something that would comfort her in her greiving.  I hope she feels that these slippers are like a little hug from me every time she puts them on.

They were made from the Plain of Flowerly Slippery Pattern, which is available as a download from Ravelry as well.  I made them in Lion Brand, Jiffy Solid, an Acrylic yarn, that I knew my grandmother wouldn't have any problem careing for, and was already familiar with (unlike the newer superwash wools, which she is sure to treat like regular wool).  

Even though the flowers will make them slightly harder to care for, I thought they were important to add.  They are my version of my Grandmother's favorite flower, a yellow rose.

~Merry Christmas

Gift Idea #6 - Embroidered Brooch

Another one bites the dust.  Yet one more Christmas present in my queue has been completed. My latest project was this little embroidered brooch, approximately 2" in diameter.  It depicts the Ebola virus, and will hopefully soon adorn the lapel of a young doctor.  I thought it would be a laugh for her colleagues, and a great conversation starter with everyone else.

Welcome to SAFF

The event floor.

Last Thursday Gadabout Knitter, myself, and our husbands set off in pursuit of fiber, and were awarded with SAFF. This was my first fiber festival, and while the event was a bit smaller than I expected, I was not dissapointed. There was fiber galore, of various types, and price points, and quantities, as well as in every state from unwashed, to hand dyed pencil roving, to finished yarn. Even in this relatively small venue the sheer amount and variety of fiber was a bit overwhelming.

I quickly became glad that I came armed with a plan of attack and a set amount of spending money (I gave my husband the plastic, just in case). I had planned to find small amounts of a variety of fibers. I did not want blends (although I did buy a few), because I want to spin each fiber by itself to see how it feels and behaves, and take notes on my preferences - like a wine journal. I purchased a very wide variety of fiber types (details and pictures to follow), and was able to stay well within my budget ... to my surprise.

Since we have been back life has been in chaos getting the kids back on schedule, unpacking, and finding space for all of my loot. In addition, Halloween is tomorrow night, and costumes must be made.

More of SAFF, my "new" office space, and Halloween to come.

Leaving for SAFF

Tomorrow Gadabout Knitter, myself, and our husbands leave for SAFF. I am very excited, but already feeling a bit overwhelmed by the sheer volume of fiber I will be exposed to. It should be fun.

Unfortunately the Holly Jacket is STILL not finished, but I still have a 8 hour car trip to North Carolina during which I can work on it. If Dramamine does it's job, I may have two finished sleeves when I get there.

Wish us luck in fiber foraging.

Holly's Front is Finished

I don't know how it is possible, but it happened. About an hour ago I bound off the front panels of the Holly Jacket. I still have sleeves and the finishing to go, but it seems possible that I could actually finish this sweater in time for SAFF. Thank God for half sleeves!

In other news....
One of my best friends came to visit us this past weekend, just in time for Violet's party. He had to leave today, but it was wonderful having him visit. He seems to be able to come home, sit down, and magically integrate as if no time had passed at all. His birthday was a few days before the party, and even with the craziness of the party planning, I was able to make him a special little something for his birthday (probably because I started several weeks in advance of his visit).

He is a doctor currently in his residency in Maine. Hand knits seem the obvious gift, but after a conversation in which he told me that "everyone" in Maine was knitting, I decided to make him something a bit less ordinary. The following was the result;I did an embroidery of a human heart, mounted it, and framed it. The original mat was white, which did nothing to highlight the needlework. So I painted the mat blue, to bring to mind blue blood, in contrast to the red blood implied in the work.

Off for now to cast on the sleeves.

Turning 3

The first event of my holiday season, my daughter's birthday, is officially over, and I couldn't be more happy. Yesterday we had a Super Secret Super Spy birthday party. The theme was taken directly from the Backyardigans special, "Super Spy." My daughter wanted to dress as the Lady in Pink, the bad guy in the story (I hope that doesn't imply any more than a love for pink). Jack-Jack was dressed as Agent Secret, Mr. Incredible as Henchman Tyrone, and I as Ms. T, head of the spy agency, per Violet's request.

Everyone was asked to dress in full spy garb for the party. This request was taken very seriously by some.

Those who didn't come prepared were outfitted with spy costumes at the party.

Then all of the "secret agents" went on super secret missions to find four secret containers, which contained a super secret recipe for........chocolate milk. It was great fun, and even the adults got involved; however, they didn't dance when the mission required it.

Now that the party is over I can focus on finishing my Holly Jacket. I still think I have a chance at finishing it before SAFF, if I neglect the housework and let the kids watch far more TV than normal. I finally got enough time after the party today to finish the arm hole decreases, and the front panels seem as if they are on the home stretch, which always motivates me to finish. Only about 5 more inches.

Obviously the party planning has been keeping me away from both my knitting and my blog, but it is not the only thing I have been doing. With luck I will get the opportunity to give you a glimpse of those other things that have been in the works.

The weekend is finally here, and I have found some time to knit. My husband has had to work late nearly every night for the last two weeks leaving me at home for long periods with two toddlers. While I have very good kids, and I love them very much, they can be trying at times, especially when they don't understand why Papa is not home yet. I also rely heavily on my husband to give me time for myself during the week, and his not being home reduces the amount of time I can spend pursuing my own interests (such as knitting and blogging). My wonderful mother-in-law understands this, and took the kids to the park this morning, leaving to luxuriate in yarn, and uninterrupted time. This morning has seemed like quite the luxury!

My Holly Jackets is slowly creeping toward completion. The back, and half of the front is now complete. As the sleeves are about half length rather than full length, I still have hopes that the jacket will be finished in time for me to wear it to SAFF. I would like to have a few more hand knits to wear to SAFF, but despite the insane amount of knitting I do, I have found that I actually spend very little time knitting for myself. I knit mostly for others, and gift nearly all of my projects. I don't feel that this is necessarily bad, knitters in general seem to knit for others very often in very unselfish ways. However, my situation reminds me of the plumber who fixes leaks for a living, yet has leaky pipes in his/her own home. I shouldn't knit for others at the expense of myself. Like the loved ones I take care of by wrapping in hand knits, I need to take care of my self as well. I think that caring for others at the expense of oneself is a trap that many care givers fall into, and we have to be reminded at times to spend time on ourselves.

In the spirit of doing for myself I cast on the bag pictured above. The basic pattern is The French Market Bag from Knitty. I made the same bag for my sister in a more subdued color scheme, and have wanted one for myself ever since. The color work shown in this bag is my own doing, and has been designed on the fly, by pulling scraps out of my bag and guessing by the amount available the design I can make. I am really loving this project, and am finding it calling my name when I should be finishing the Holly Jacket.

The weekend is finally here, and I have found some time to knit. My husband has had to work late nearly every night for the last two weeks leaving me at home for long periods with two toddlers. While I have very good kids, and I love them very much, they can be trying at times, especially when they don't understand why Papa is not home yet. I also rely heavily on my husband to give me time for myself during the week, and his not being home reduces the amount of time I can spend pursuing my own interests (such as knitting and blogging). My wonderful mother-in-law understands this, and took the kids to the park this morning, leaving to luxuriate in yarn, and uninterrupted time. This morning has seemed like quite the luxury!

My Holly Jackets is slowly creeping toward completion. The back, and half of the front is now complete. As the sleeves are about half length rather than full length, I still have hopes that the jacket will be finished in time for me to wear it to SAFF. I would like to have a few more hand knits to wear to SAFF, but despite the insane amount of knitting I do, I have found that I actually spend very little time knitting for myself. I knit mostly for others, and gift nearly all of my projects. I don't feel that this is necessarily bad, knitters in general seem to knit for others very often in very unselfish ways. However, my situation reminds me of the plumber who fixes leaks for a living, yet has leaky pipes in his/her own home. I shouldn't knit for others at the expense of myself. Like the loved ones I take care of by wrapping in hand knits, I need to take care of my self as well. I think that caring for others at the expense of oneself is a trap that many care givers fall into, and we have to be reminded at times to spend time on ourselves.

In the spirit of doing for myself I cast on the bag pictured above. The basic pattern is The French Market Bag from Knitty. I made the same bag for my sister in a more subdued color scheme, and have wanted one for myself ever since. The color work shown in this bag is my own doing, and has been designed on the fly, by pulling scraps out of my bag and guessing by the amount available the design I can make. I am really loving this project, and am finding it calling my name when I should be finishing the Holly Jacket.

Travel Knitting

I actually accomplished a lot of knitting while traveling to and from Austin; however, I didn't even take the Holly Jacket despite the fact that I am trying to finish it before SAFF. When I left for Austin I was working on the two front panels of the jacket, each with their own balls of yarn. I would have had to take the jacket, both balls of yarn that were being worked, and at least one extra ball in case I finished either of the first two. It being a short trip we were packing carry on bags only, leaving only the room in my purse/knitting bag for all of my knitting supplies. The Holly jacket was just too big to take on the trip.

Instead I decided to start the Tuscany shawl from No Sheep for You, by Amy Singer. I already had the beautiful Handmaiden Sea Silk called for in the pattern, purchased and waiting for me cast on. As I would just be starting the shawl, and one skein for the Sea Silk would be more than enough for the trip, I decided it would make much better travel knitting, and cast on. Granted I really didn't need much convincing.

The sea silk is a joy to work with. Like the cotton I am making the Holly Jacket from, it has very little elasticity. Unlike the cotton, the sea silk slides gracefully from one needle to the next forming elegant and well defined stitches. As an added bonus, the unblocked lace pattern formed in the sea silk, actually looks like the finished lace pattern, making it very easy to catch mistakes early on. Despite it's high price (about $40 US per skein), Sea Silk will be high on my list of yarn choices for future lace patterns.

The Width of Ribbing

A quick and easy way to add curve hugging shape to a boxy sweater is to add ribbing. The question is, how much ribbing? Equal ribbing (ex. 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, etc.) is about half as wide as StSt in the same stitch count.

For example, if 20 sts in StSt is 4 inches wide, the same 20 sts would be 2 inches wide in equal ribbing.
x inches in StSt = x/2 inches in equal rib

Holly Jacket

I finally finished the back of the Holly Jacket from Interweave Knits' Spring 2008 issue. I had to modify it a bit, because I have a VERY long torso, but my waist is the same distance from my hips as a "normally" proportioned person. I ended up adding a few inches (yes, I said inches) to the length between the arm shaping and the shoulder, making it 9.5" long - the same length as a 50.5" jacket, even though I am knitting the 37.5" jacket. Based on my measurements I should actually make it longer, but I am counting on the cotton to stretch under it's own weight.

The was a few instructions in the pattern that I found rather vague. When you begin the neck shaping for the back, you cast of a middle section of sts, and then are instructed to work on both sides at once. The pattern then states, "At each neck edge, BO 2 sts once, then 1 st once - 10 sts rem each side. Shape Shoulders: BO 5 sts at each shoulder 2 times - no sts rem."

Which side of the shoulder are you supposed to BO? Your guess is as good as mine. After carefully reading the instructions for the front portions of the sweater, this is what I came up with;

on the set of sts 1st presenting (the set that has the original ball attached)
Row 1: Knit
Row 2: BO 2, P to end
Row 3: Knit
Row 4: BO 1, P to end
Shape Shoulder
Row 5: BO 5, K to end
Row 6: Purl
Row 7: BO 5 (no sts remain)

on 2nd set of sts
Row 1: BO 2, k to end
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: BO 1, k to end
Row 4: BO 5, P to end
Row 5: Knit
Row 6: BO 5 (no sts remain)

Okay. Off to Cast on the fronts.

Increasing Evenly Across a Row

I promised more knitting math formulas, so here goes;

Increasing Evenly Across a Row

If you have any trouble with this formula, or find a situation in which this formula does not work, please let me know so that I can improve it.

Thanks
~Gerwerken

Husband Interview

I saw this little interview on Gadabout knitter's blog, and I had to interview my own husband. So here goes...

Me: What is your favorite thing about my knitting?
Him: It’s a hobby that you really enjoy that also produces really practical things.

Me: What is your least favorite thing about my knitting?
Him: Sometimes you tend to get “tunnel vision” regarding your projects.
Me: What do you mean by “tunnel vision”?
Him: A hyper focused state where every spare moment is spent seeing that to completion.

Me: What is something I have knitted that you recall as being good?
Him: All of the sweaters you have done have been beautiful. I really get a lot of use out of my socks, and I tried to eat the sushi. I coughed it back up, it was too dry.

Me: Do you think knitters have an expensive hobby?
Him: Compared to cyclists, no.

Me: Do you have any hobbies?
Him: (Evil smile) Oh, yes.

Me: What are your hobbies?
Him: Cycling, rock climbing, automotive repair, civil disobedience.

Me: If we compared money spent on hobbies, who would win?
Him: Are you seriously asking me that?
Me: Yes.
Him: I think this is the first time I have won something that I had completely and totally no desire to win.

Me: Has my knitting in public ever embarrassed you?
Him: Of all the things you could do in public that is probably the least likely thing you could do to embarrass me.

Me: Do you know my favorite kind of yarn?
Him: Malabridgo. Is it?
Me: That is one of my favorites.
Him: Ah…... wait, ohh. The kind you are going to make with the bag of wool in the garage.

Me: Can you name another blog?
Him: (cracks knuckles), Gadabout Knitter, um, that chic that runs wooly bully has one, there is a thread on Ravelry about willy warmers, Debbie Stoller (hopeful look), the Australian guy that gets looked at funny on the railway (Sticks and String).

Me: Do you mind that I want to check out yarn stores everywhere we go?
Him: Nope.

Me: Do you understand the importance of a swatch?
Him: (thinking) I think I do; you use it to figure out if the gauge needles you use work for the yarn. Essentially you use it to size up and yarn and needles for the project.

Me: Do you read my blog?
Him: Uh huh (Nods head)

Me: Have you ever left a comment?
Him: (nose scrunch) I think I have.
Me: I don’t think you have.
Him: If I didn’t I’ve meant to.

Me: Do you think the house would be cleaner if I didn't knit?
Him: I think the house has been cleaner since you have been knitting.

Me: Is there anything you would like to add in closing?
Him: A closing statement? I think any hobby is beneficial in that it provides relief from our life’s work. The point at which a hobby becomes an obsession is when it needs reevaluation. I am qualifying obsession as something that would cause you to loose site of your responsibilities and duties.
Me: Are you trying to tell me something?
Him: You specifically, no. This is for everyone.

The Knitting - Free Patterns

It has, yet again, been a while since I have posted on the knitting, but fear not! Knitting has been accomplished.

This ice cream cone was made on the trip to NOLA (no small feat since I get really bad motion sickness). It is from the scooped pattern by I like lemons.My daughter was also a big fan of the corn I made.

Ravioli - Free Pattern #1
I love this quick, little sewing pattern.
Directions: Cut off-white felt into 3"x3" squares. With two pieces of felt together, sew around three sides (leaving 1" seam allowance), stuff the square with a small amount of filling, then finish sewing the last side. Using pinking shears cut a small amount off the edges of the piece. Voila! Quick , easy, adorable.

Spicy Tuna - Free Pattern #2
This one is mixed media, but mostly knitting. Some hand sewing is involved.Using worsted weight yarn in US6 needles.
CO 10 in yellow.
Knit in StSt for two inches.
Switch to white, and knit in seed stitch until the seed stitch portion is long enough to loosely wrap around the yellow part two times - about 5 inches.
BO.
In red CO 3 sts in work in i-cord till the cord is 1 inch taller than width of previous piece. BO.
In red CO 3 sts in work in i-cord till the cord is 2 inch taller than width of previous piece. BO.
Tie in all ends.

Place red pieces on yellow part of roll. With red pieces flush with one side of the roll, and beginning with the yellow end, tightly roll the sushi until the white part has wrapped around twice (adjust rolling tension if necessary). Fasten end of roll to the rest of the roll.

Cut dark green felt the height of the roll, and long enough to wrap around the roll once. Using invisible thread, fasten the ends of the felt together.

Run a few pieces of invisible thread the entire width of the roll, being careful to catch the red middle pieces. With invisible thread fasten anywhere else that needs to be secured.

Hop you like it!

Free Pattern - Summer Squash

In honor of the July No Buying Challenge, I thought I would offer my first free pattern. Summer Squash is a cute little plush squash, perfect for use as a child's toy or as a quirky member of a fake food arrangement. Enjoy.
Yarn: Worsted Weight, I used Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool hand dyed yellow.
Needles: US 6 double pointed needles, or size needed to obtain a fairly tight knitted fabric, so that the filling material does not show through.

CO 6 sts, evenly divided between 3 needles (2 sts per needle)
Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist stitches. PM at beginning of the round.

Row 1: k f/b around
Rows 2, 4, 6, 8-9, 11-15, 17-19, 21-22, 24-25, 27-29: Knit all sts
Row 3: (k1, k f/b) around - 18 sts
Row 5: (k2, k f/b) around - 24 sts
Row 7: (k3, k f/b) around - 30 sts
Row 10: (k4, k f/b) around - 36 sts
Row 16: (k4, k2tog) around - 30 sts
Row 20: (k3, k2tog) around - 24 sts
Row 23: (k2, k2tog) around - 18 sts
Stuff Main Compartment
Row 26: (k1, k2tog) around - 12 sts
Rows 30, 32, 34-39, 41: sl 1, k1, sl 1, k to end
Rows 31, 33, 40, 42: k1, sl 1, to end
Row 43: k all sts
Stuff top portion
Row 44: (k2, k2tog) around
Row 45: k around
Row 46: (k1, k2tog) around

Break Yarn, thread through loose sts and secure
Weave in ends

If you want a stem, i-cord about one inch in brown yarn, then securely attach base of stem to top of squash, and weave in ends.

Errata