Hat for Mara

With the holiday socks finished for my husband, I had some time on my hands and dipped my toe back into stranded color work. This gorgeous pattern and kit came from Ysolda. It knit up in no time. 

Once it was blocked I put it in the mail to my friend in Seattle. I love the holidays!

Co-worker socks

One of my colleagues is leaving our office to attend graduate school full time. I knit up these Eternal Spring socks for her in our school color: UW Badger red. They turned out great!

Mittens

This sweet pair of mittens is off to a fourth grade friend. I have made a couple pairs for her mom over the years and she always takes them during our cold winter months to warm her hands. So her mom asked if I would make a pair just for her.

These are slightly different - they don't have the rolled cuff - but they are buttery soft with purple lambswool on the palms and polar fleece linings. I used the ribbed edges of the sweaters for all the pieces so they were already nicely finished at the lower edges.

I used upcycled silver buttons from the original thrifted vest to keep the two layers together. They add a nice surprise and fancy touch I think.

Upcycled Mittens

Early this summer a bag full of lovely sweaters showed up on my doorstep.  They were amazing sweaters - but, they had some challenges and couldn't be worn any longer.  Two had gone through the wash/dry and the third had stains and a couple holes.  But I knew that my friend had left them with me to give them a second chance.




















To get me in the groove for making Halloween costumes (ahem...dusting off that sewing machine) I put together this pair to gift back to her.  I found a brown cashmere sweater at the thrift store for a cozy lining and the exterior of the mittens is from her three sweaters.  The cables were too delicious to not make the centerpiece of the mittens.

As always, I relied on the fabulous pattern by Five Green Acres, but improvised the cuff using the intact sleeves from a thrifted sweater.

I dropped them off to her last week and by all accounts she loves them.  I usually finish off these mittens with a button on the cuff, but I left he exterior and lining separate to make sure the fit was good for her first.

I have just enough left over to make another pair for someone else - the gift-giving holidays are coming up!

A Family of Socks

In mid-June I traveled to Portland, OR to serve as the officiant in the wedding of my childhood best friend and her new husband.  I wasn't sure what exactly to give them as a wedding present, but once I learned they were also expecting a baby the idea of a 'family of socks' came to me pretty quickly.

Each pair is green - the baby socks are knit with the leftover from this other baby project.  Jut a basic rib sock - and a hope that they might just stay on the baby's feet for at least 5 minutes (full well knowing that through four kids I never found socks that actually stayed on).

The next pair are the right-twist cable socks for the new husband.  My husband really likes this pattern and I am very happy with how this pair turned out.

The last pair I had around for a little while - the shamrock socks.  But I finished them up and think that the multicolored stripes will suit my friend very well.

I love how the socks all coordinate without being too matchy.  And I think they are also sandal worthy - from Madison to Portland: we love to wear socks with our sandals!

I wrapped the six socks inside one of the open-wide pouches I made in the early spring - might come in handy as a diaper bag of the like.  Now the question is what cute baby item to knit next for the little one to-be.

Taggie Blanket v2.0

This holiday season I got to work on a really feel-good project -and fun taggie blanket for the sweet daughter of a friend in NYC.  I met my friend many years ago when I was living in NYC and when her daughter was born I her a taggie blanket that had been made by my sister-in-law.

From having my own kids I knew that most kids l-o-v-e taggie blankets.  This little girl was no exception and possibly loved her first one more than most.  Her Mom contacted me and shared that it was on its last legs - I jumped at the opportunity to make another for her daughter.

I was able to pull it together very quickly thanks to my Mom who had a ready supply of pre-cut ribbon.  (Unknown to me she has been making a few of these with her friends for grandbabies!)  I picked up the minky from a local fabric shop and the yellow front fabric as well.  The design on the front is a small repeat of yellow rubber duckies.  Too cute.

My friend emailed to share that her daughter immediately took to the new blanket and has lovingly paired it with her old blanket and is happily using both.  What a great thing.  The photos are of the new taggie blanket in it's new home with it's new owner (I was so excited to ship it off I forgot to take any, smile).

Handmade Holidays

I took a break from knitting again - I had started on a pair of socks that I thought might be a gift for the holidays but my wrist really started to act up and I was having trouble doing yoga and pilates so I thought I would pull back from knitting for awhile.

Instead I turned to some mittens from up cycled sweaters, a new quilt block pattern and some lingering cross stitch patterns to help craft up the holidays.

The mittens went to some special people that have been helping me out with a volunteer project over the past year.  I even used some felted handknit sock legs for the cuffs - they were dropped off by a sad neighbor that had felted her own socks and didn't want to look at them anymore.  I told her I had been there myself and gladly took them from her.  I am really happy that I was able to put them to good use in two new pair of mittens!  Each pair of mittens is lined with cashmere - a lovely addition that I discovered really makes the mittens enjoyable to wear.  I mean fleece liners are nice, but cashmere?  Wow.  I also got around to making cashmere liners for my tree mittens and have been wearing them most days this winter.  They are perfect.

I made these three coordinating tree wall quilts for myself, my Mom and my Mother-in-law for Christmas.  I was inspired by the patchwork forest tree tutorial by Diary of a Quilter and once I started making the blocks I couldn't stop!  I wound up with over 100 blocks after one weekend of sewing and from there it was just a matter of organizing the blocks into sets that were well coordinated.  I kept the one of the far right (next photo).

Each has a nice hanging pocket on the back and all were quilted with straight lines.















I also have never framed any of my small cross stitch patterns from over the years.  This Santa had been sitting in a box for a couple years and it was time to take it out and get it up on the wall.  I went to a big box store to get some custom mats cut that would fit off-the-shelf frames.  I then mounted the linen fabric on all natural cotton quilt batting (a recommendation from a local framing shop) and placed it in the frame for the wall.  Success!

I did the same with the Winterwoods ABC's from Alicia Paulson which finally got it's proper place in our hallway.

Next up for framing are the Peace on Earth cross stitch, our family pixel portrait and a recent color pencil drawing by my 7yo which she made during a recent trip to our local art museum.

And next up?  After gazing at my Winterwoods ABC's I logged back onto Alicia's blog/website to see what else she might have available...and the ornament kits are amazing.  Can I say that again?  They are a-maz-ing.  I just ordered Snow Day and can't wait to dive into making them after the craziness of the holidays subsides.

Pattern Test: The Messenger Bag

I am one lucky girl.  This past month I was able to test sew a pattern for my friend Melissa Q. from a happy stitch.   I am not an accomplished sewer - very much still a beginner - but I am keen on adding new skills and giving this messenger bag a test run was a great experience. 

Overall it took under 4.5 hours to cut, prepare, assemble and sew the bag - not bad for something so incredibly functional, unique and awesome.  My favorite feature - aside from the slender, compact size and customized strap length - are the inside pockets.  Perfect for a phone, lip gloss, pens and your headphones.

As a beginning sewer I was a bit nervous about how it all might come together, but following Melissa's photos and clear directions made it very easy to pull off.  She provides lots of helpful hints along the way.

It is quite a professional looking bag and I have gotten lots of compliments on it already.  The lining looks wonderful and fits well.  The bag is also reinforced with interfacing, giving it the right amount of body and structure without any additional bulk.

The biggest compliment of all is that one of my older daughters (9yo) desperately wants to have this. "Mom, messenger bags are WAY cooler than backpacks," she says.  I have to agree with her on that.  Especially when it is this messenger bag we're talking about!

The pattern for this bag should be available in Melissa's Etsy store starting today.  Go pick up the pattern, find some fantastic fabric and sew yourself one.  You won't be sorry you did.

Gift giving

This gift started over 5 years ago.  In September of 2008 I finished the quilt top (you can follow the posts backwards here).  I am not sure why I ultimately folded it up and put in on the shelf.  Maybe it felt too big to quilt myself?  I had the batting, the backing and top done, but never got around to finishing it.

This past fall I have had to prioritize my time in a way that is different from the years and months past.  No longer am I crafting to take a break from writing my dissertation.  Likewise I am not crafting to fill my days with something other than baby food and diapers.

Life has shifted in our household: we have four growing daughters now - no babies anymore - and no plans for more children.  I have gone back to work teaching and am spending the remainder of my time this year volunteering at their school.  I know that life balance is ever shifting and precarious.  This past fall tilted more towards the computer/classroom/meeting end-of-things and less towards the sewing machine/knitting needles/making end-of-things. 















This fall, however, I re-discovered this work from many years ago and called upon a neighborhood friend for help.  She is an incredibly accomplished quilter and after seeing my work agreed to complete the project for me.  I left her with the top, batting and backing.  Two weeks later I went back to her house and picked up this beauty.

There is history behind this quilt.  Briefly, the backing fabric was a cover for a blanket that was kept at our family cabin for many years.  It used to be bright fuschia, but faded in the sunlight.  I salvaged the fabric for later use when the cover developed a big rip down the middle.  More than this, however, is the additional story layer added by my friend that helped finish it.  She added a heart patch to the back - covering a small hole - that gives it the extra touches that will be discovered, and re-discovered in years to come.

I intended the quilt go back to the cabin, but my Mom wants to keep it around the house instead.  I don't blame her - it did turn out quite nicely.  This, along with a pair of upcycled wool mittens, were the only hand-made presents I gifted this season.

History in my hands

In mid-November I was contacted by a neighbor about making repairs to a few sweaters that she had.  She mentioned that they were a mix of ones she acquired and ones that her Grandmother had knit for her Grandfather before leaving Ireland for the United States.  An old sweater knit in Ireland?!  Could it really be a real fisherman's sweater?  I jumped at the chance.

 

She dropped them off and I spent the next few weeks getting to know them.  The construction was amazing, and so different on each one.  Two raglan sweaters, one saddle-shoulder, and one yoke cardigan from Iceland to round out the set. 

 

But that one on the top of the pile?  It stole my heart the moment I set my eyes on it.

 

 

I must sound a bit strange, going on and on about a sweater (and one that I just met no less!).  But this sweater!  It was made with patience, focus, talent, love and care.  I didn't find a single mistake in the patterning.  The cables and stitch definition are gorgeous.  It is unbelievable.  And it is old.  You can feel the years gone by when you hold this sweater.  It is substantial, measuring a mens XL/T, and probably weights 4 lbs.  That is a lot of wool folks.



 

And like all really good love affairs, I came away from my time with this sweater knowing more about myself (this time myself as a knitter).  I realized that I know my way around sweater construction and repair.  I know my way around bind-offs, cast-ons and sizing.  I know a thing or two about wool and I know that I have the confidence to dive into a project - even one that is not my own - and work with it.

Sadly the wool on the older sweaters is starting to deteriorate.  As with all organic materials they begin to break down over time, and I'm not too sure what can be done to slow or halt that process.  I suppose that you could seal the sweater in a display case and not expose it anymore to the elements.  But I don't think that is the life this sweater was made for.  It was made to be worn.  And worn, and worn, and worn.  This sweater was made to go out into the world and soak it up.

I've fixed up the sweaters, given them all a good (gentle, hand) washing and let them dry.  I wound up a few yards of the repair yarns for the owner to take with her.  I am sad to see them go, but it's time that they head home. 

I've grown as a knitter in the past few weeks and I think I have two old souls to thank: one of an Irish gentleman and the other his wife.

Handspun

First Harvest: Backyard, Colorway: Sugar Maple

 

Lovely fabric.  And that color!  Check out the story behind this yarn here.

 

I'm working it into the honey cowl, medium size.  Should be just long enough to wrap twice around my neck, and cozy enough to keep me warm this winter.

WIP's and Local Yarns

 

Three of my current WIP's: a vest, mittens and shawl. 

 

The vest is the 18 mos. sized Milo - one of my truly favorite baby/toddler knits.  There are so many ways to customize it - I went back and forth on whether to include a stranded color pattern (elephants! flowers! polka dots!) but in the end decided on a simple cable.  I hope to have this one off the needles, on on daughter #4, by tonight.

 

The mittens are a work of art - Wintergreen by Kate Gilbert.  I am making a few modifications to the pattern, however.  Adding a thumb gusset on the side and I'm not twisting the leaf stitches.  I don't think it matters much with such contrasting colors (and makes the knitting go just a hair faster).  They are a labor of love and probably won't be complete for some time.  They are a concentration project - one that I need space and quiet to work on.  It is the second mitten pattern of Kate's that I've knit and I am pleased, yet again, with the intricate design details (first project here).

 

Last is another Simple Yet Effective Shawl, knit up with my own hand dyed yarn.  I have to confess that I had this shawl in mind when I dyed the yarn so I am excited to see it knit up.  I am happy with the colors/striping and hope that it will find just the right recipient this holiday season.

 

Note: the colors in the photo are not very true - it has been gray and rainy these past few days.  Perfect for knitting, but sucky for indoor photography.  That vest, while pink, is more a peachy-pink.  And the base color for those mittens is actually a deep purple.  The shawl colors you can see better in this post about yarn dying.

 

And speaking of WIP's, I just cast-on for a hat last night and owing to the bulky weight of the yarn, am already half-way done.  I am in love with it and will find it hard to part with.  But I know a lucky girl that will get this for a holiday gift (pictured next to it is the yarn to make a matching one for her sister!).  This is a superwash wool, hand-dyed by Liz Avery at The Sow's Ear. 

 

 

Lastly, I am REALLY, REALLY excited because this morning I placed an order for truly local yarn: Finewool Yarn by Five Green Acres.  Mary Jo stewarded this wool from pasture to skein, and has lived the entire process from shearing to cleaning to dying to spinning.  Her First Harvest: Backyard skeins have amazing colorways such as Sugar Maple, Blue Jay and the like.   Check out the yarn for yourself - it has an amazing story.  And Mary Jo?  She's an amazing woman. 

Studio Tour

Today I'm guest blogging over at a happy stitch.  Come on over and check out my studio space!

Make Do and Mend Collective: to market, to market...



Make Do and Mend Collective
Photo by Ellencreates.com

Three local friends and I recently formed an art/craft collective.  We are the Make Do and Mend Collective (more to come about this adventure in the months ahead!) and we had our first sale this past weekend at a local elementary school.  Ten percent of our profits went to support the Parent-Teacher Organization and we were among local craftspeople of all ages.  There were even quite a few students selling their art and craft projects.

I am particularly excited about this new adventure for me.  I've never sold any of my knitting or sewing before and being part of this collective has removed one of the biggest hurdles for me: inventory. 

Knitting takes a lot of time.  A. lot. of. time.  Some of us can move more quickly than others - I'm not a particularly fast knitter - but its all relative (It may take one person 40 hours to knit a sweater, but another person 45 hours).  So I have always been bogged down by the notion that I needed inventory to start selling items.  And the fact that I now belong to a group, whose work is along side mine in a display, means that I am able to offer single items.  I don't have to worry about having two or more of each item in a variety of sizes. 



For the first market I hand knit eleven raglan sleeve ornaments.  I also designed and sewed 39 re-usable, reversible coffee sleeves and seven sets of reverse applique felt coasters.  And I set out some choice knit items that I had in my collection that had never made it on to my kids, nor were given as gifts.  And I can add to this inventory over time, at my own pace, with items that I enjoy knitting and that might even sell.  I am a knitter - more than a sewist - and will focus mostly on creating knit pieces for the collective.  But you may also find the occasional color pencil roll, coffee sleeve, super-hero cape, or tote bag from me.  That's the beauty of the collective.



market wares



In reference to my earlier post about knitting items to sell, I still know that I am not a retail knitter.  I won't ever be able to crank out multiple hats, or sweaters.  But I can make unique, one-of-a-kind items and accept custom commissions.  I also know that I won't make back what the items are "worth" in terms of hours spent knitting.  But I will be able to make enough to cover the cost of my yarns, and entrance fees for shows, and maybe a bit extra to support other local artists.  And I will be putting beautiful, hand knit items out into the world, and some pieces that will be passed from one household, one family, one generation, to another.  I love that thought.

I haven't received notice of which items sold at our first market - but I did sell a hat and an ornament while I was briefly at the show.  What a rush that was! 

So, I head into new waters, buoyed by the strength of  friends that enjoy a good swim now and again.  And I hope that in return they feel my enthusiasm and happiness coming back at them, one wave (or slowly made stitch) at a time.

hand knit sweater ornaments

Marketplace barter received!

Look at what arrived in the mail for me last week!! It was a package full of goodies from my barter buddy over at This is Marzipan. In exchange for an earflap hat, she made me a lovely pair of felt baby booties. She also generously included a few other goodies: tea, thrifted yarn, a sachet. And just look at her embroidery! It's perfect in every way. Thank you so much!



Speaking of hand embroidery, I also scored an amazing strawberry tablecloth at a trash-and-treasure sale at our local church. It looks perfect on the backyard table - where we eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every chance we get in the summer months.



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If you are interested in participating in a barter check here. I'll be posting my next round of items tomorrow.

Barter for bibs

Just before my trip I received a fantastic package in the mail. It was my first barter from Tigerlily Tinkering Barter Marketplace. Inside was a true treasure: seven bibs made from the most fantastic, modern, hip and sweet fabrics.

The bibs are expertly sewn,



with amazing button details,



and kid-friendly, super soft, flannel backing.



Thanks Melissa!

I really like the barter marketplace idea. Create something small (or big) for someone else and in exchange you can pick out something that you admire from another craftsperson. So simple and fulfilling.

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Lastly, thank you all so much for your words or kindness, support and joy on my last post. It means a lot to me.