s n e e z e r v i l l e

it's official

2010-01-22T11:46:00.000-08:00

it's official.

i have a new home.

come join me over at

http://sneezerville.wordpress.com

a new home???

2010-01-07T08:04:00.000-08:00

Since I am having problems here. I have switched over to wordpress. I don't know that I will stay there though. So come here and click on the link below until told otherwise.

sneezerville.wordpress.com

frustrating

2010-01-07T04:13:00.001-08:00

i can't find the problem. really annoying. the suggestion of it being an ad-blocker sounds good. but can't find it or anyway to change anything. frustrating.

glad you all can see the pics though.

ok. another weird thing. i can now see other blogspot.com's pictures but still can't see my own. yesterday i couldn't see pictures on any blogspot.com that i have saved. weird, huh?

can you see...

2010-01-06T05:55:00.000-08:00

can you see the pictures on my blog???

i have been wanting to post but where the pictures are it is just gray. help!

more christmas presents

2009-12-21T05:26:00.000-08:00

These I made because the boys were bugging me for something fast. So these are puffy scrap magnets courtesy of the Pink Penguin.

These are more scrap magnets. not stuffed though. just fabric sewn around the magnets. I used pinking shears around the edges of the red and white ones.

these are made from quilted scraps from the coffee cozies coming up.

sorry for the dark photos. it was late when i finished these.

coffee cozies courtesy of House on Hill Road. (Sorry for some reason I can't get this one to link up.)

super easy. fast. nice. think i will try to make a couple more before the big day. ones on the right are quilted using moda fabric strips. the backing fabric is from an old pair of jeans. the buttons are from last year's big mother-in-law present of a 100 buttons. the middle fabric is felt.

these are some more mama chic wristlets from JC Handmade, because I love them and wanted to make some more.

buttons from the stash. quilted fabric is moda strips. backing material is from an old denim shirt.

my boys made necklaces for their grandmas from the shrinky dinks that they made.

and I realized that my mom needed some more goodies so i made her a rice foot warmer thingy.

the rice bag part if made from muslin. i probably put too much rice in it. oh well. i was just doing this from the seat of my pants.

cut two pieces of coordinating fabric. cut one of the pieces a little bigger and cut it in two pieces. folded down one side of each and top stitched it. then put them faces together and sewed clear around the entire piece.

turned right side out. and voila.

a pocket to put the rice bag in.

put bag in.

heat in microwave.

stash near the feet or any other cold appendage.

coming up... an everyday tote by lotta made by me for mom. more details to come.

Christmas sewing

2009-12-16T06:56:00.000-08:00

First, the Pixie sewing machine stinks. Yeah it came with a lot of cool stuff and it was cheap, but it only works about half of the time. Bummer. So I borrowed my mom's Kenmore sewing machine and made the following...

2 sets of quilted coasters. This set for my dad's wife and...

This set of 8 for my mother-in-law. She has a big family.
Made this up as a went. started with 5" squares. quilted one square using felt as the backing. put right sides facing, sewing all around and living a gap of about 2.5" to turn it right side out. folded in the opening then top stitched around all the sides.

Fabric is from JoAnn's. precut fat quarters sold in a pack of all reds and whites.

I made 3 adult reversible headbands following this tutorial.

and 2 child size reversible headbands following the same tutorial.

Then what I wanted the most... wristlets by JC Handmade. Tutorial here.

The fabric is from JoAnn's. Precut in strips. I think that it is Moda fabric. Used felt for the lining and denim from an old shirt for the back.

I used some of the fun stitches available on mom's machine to top stitch the pieces.

Old headbands for the part to go over the buttons.

still need to sew buttons on these, but I am doing that today. I want to make more of these. I really like how they turned out.

There are 5 all together and one is staying with me.

Also made a whole bunch of little rice bags for the 5 stones game. tutorial found here.

there are enough for 5 gifts. need to sew or find some kind of container for them, yet.

Coin purses and a baby sewing machine

2009-12-11T04:32:00.000-08:00

Leethal had these lovely coin purses in a free pattern the other day and I just had to make some. Besides my mom was needing a new one. So here are two of them made per instructions.

I added a Shrinky Dink "button" that the boys and I made last weekend.

To see the quilted insides, go here. If you read my other post on these you know that the quilting was a mishap due to cutting material toooooo early in the morning.

Then I wanted to make a green one out of the leftover malabrigo from the Fetching mitts. Well it turns out I can't read. I about a 9" kelly green zipper instead of a 7".

So I added 2 more inches to the knitted piece. And voila! A larger coin purse!

I love the "button" for this one. This coin purse is going to a friend of mine here at school next week.

I liked the quilted insides of the other two soooo much that I did it to this one on purpuse. These one has 3 pieces of like material sewn together. I absolutely love it and want to make more of these. It is a great way to join sewing and knitting and to use up some leftover yarn!

Also, I finally bought a sewing machine. Nothing exciting. It's just a baby but it should suit my purposes fine.

It's a Pixie Plus multi purpose craft sewing machine. It does a pretty good job. I was practicing with it this morning. Later today it gets the real test. Sewing a pair of slippers for my mom!

Plus it came with all of these goodies. Hand sewing needles, two thimbles, measuring tape, little scissors, pins, buttons, snaps, extra needle and a two threaders.

But that is not all...tons of prewound bobbins and...

several different colors of thread. Although I did discover that this stuff breaks pretty easy. :(

Another round: Christmas gift ideas/tutorials

2009-12-08T11:00:00.000-08:00

Reusable sandwich bag by Betz White

I want to make some of these. I was thinking of layering the Capri

Sun drink bags inside instead of using the fancy fabric

that I can't find. Any thoughts?

Cereal Box Storage Bins by Urban Nest

Fabric gift wrap by La vida compartida
found this one while signing up for her giveaway, which
sadly... i lost.

Eddie cap by Mushroom Villagers

The weekender by weekend designer
This one is a little complicated for a Christmas present.

But I want to make one of these ...

some day.

christmas present galore!

2009-12-07T08:10:00.000-08:00

First up, Fetching for my sister-in-law to go with the Star Slouchy Beret that I made earlier in the year.

Project: The Quickie Cowl (blogged about here).

Yarn: This is some wool/cotton blend in a beautiful chocolate brown.

Needle: US 9

this really is a quick knit. And it can be worn on the neck or to keep your ears warm.

I just adore the color and want more!!!

The boys and I experimented with Shrinky Dink paper. We have done the same project with #6 recycled plastic from to-go containers. I really like how they turned out much better than these. These have a kind of gritty quality to them.

The boys used permanent markers and made these lovely creations that they are going to be turning into necklaces for the grandmothers.

The nice thing about Shrinky Dinks is that you can put computer images on them, which you can't do with the plastic.

I love the samurai guy. these are all destined to be embellishments on knit and sewing projects for Christmas/ the future.

We also made glycerin soaps yesterday.

We scented them with vanilla, honey, peppermint, or lemon verbena.

We also used honey, dry milk, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon.

And we dyed part of them some fun colors!!

The boys got a little carried away with the dye in these. I hope that they don't stain anyone's hands.

They are all going as Christmas presents as well.

And last but not least, a coin purse. This is a knitting and sewing project. This material came from JoAnn Fabrics (sorry, can't remember the brand name...???).

All you do is knit a 4 x 7 inch rectangle. Get a 7in zipper. Cut some material, slightly smaller than knitting and put them together. Well, leethal tells it better. Check it out over at her website!!
The pattern is in the webzine.

I had to add a little material to mine. Evidently cutting fabric at 5AM isn't smart. Still looks cool though. It now has that quilted effect.

I used some of the leftover yarn from the Quickie cowl. I plan on making two more brown ones and a green one with the leftover yarn from Fetching. I am going to embellish each with one of these lovely Shrinky Dink designs. I'll show you what that looks like, hopefully, later this week.

Even more Christmas ideas/tutorials

2009-12-04T07:46:00.000-08:00

Everything on today's list, I want to make a lot of for Christmas. We will see.

First one up : the game of 5 stones from Zakka Zakka

wristlet by JC Handmade
Kidlet by JC Handmade
(I really love her blog. If you don't read her, you should!)

Pyramid Purse from Living Creatively

Reversible Headbands by thelongthread

Projects! Projects! Projects!

2009-12-02T04:07:00.000-08:00

Project : Napoleon by Berroco (Blackstone Tweed #288 Booklet)
yarn: from a goodwill sweater
needles : US 6

My gauge wasn't quit right so I did a little fudging from the pattern here and there. Love it!!

The best part is...

the braid and the edging. I used a smaller crochet hook than what it called for because it was the only one that I had and I didn't want to buy another one. It worked out fine.

The second best part about the sweater is that it only cost $15 total (booklet and yarn)!!

Next.

Project : Rosamund's Cardigan by Andrea Pomerantz, Interweave Knits, Fall 2009

Yarn : rummage sale sweater

Yarn content : half wool / half cotton

Needles : US 6 / US 8

Buttons : JoAnn Fabrics

My youngest boy helped pick out the buttons. They were rather expensive. $5.50 per button. But they look great with the sweater and I love how they fade from black to gray.

Total for this sweater : $0.50 (sweater) + $11 (buttons) + $.00 (magazine = free trial) = $11.50 for this lovely sweater that I will be wearing a lot of.

Oh yeah, there are hooks and eyes holding it together down the front. I used 5 sets that I stole off of something else. So again, free!! Loving it!!!

I have started working on some more Christmas gifts for people. These are door organizers that I blogged about here.

These are handsewn together. I didn't have double sided fusible webbing so I used single sided and just stitched all the way around instead of just around the pockets. I also stitched around the holes at the top for more stability when they are hung.

I made 6 but my boys stole two of the camo ones already. They have no pacience!!

And you probably can't see it but the two in front have a paisley design stamped into them. I had no idea felt could come that way. This felt all came from Hobby Lobby.

Another Christmas present. This one is for my sister-in-law. It's a pair of Fetching made from some Malabrigo that I received in a trade. They are almost done and ready to wrap!

And the last one to talk about today.

A pair of socks that I started knitting for the mother in law. They are knit from the tow up. There are 68 stitches here. After the ball of the foot I started a 1 x 1 twisted rib. Then every fourth row, I k1, YO, k2tog, k1, p1*. I am going to continue in this pattern till the ankle and then switch it up.

The yarn (Patons Kroy Sock / color : 205779 / Glencheck ) is something that I picked up from Hobby Lobby too. Bought 4 balls of it. She has BIG feet.

Not the greatest yarn in the world but it is very warm.

Stay tuned, more tutorials to come as well!!

Christmas idea tutorials

2009-11-24T10:46:00.000-08:00

As we all know, Christmas is coming. And we, being the crafty people that we are, want to make things for the people that we love.

I was looking over my bookmarks and I have a ton of tutorials saved. So I figured that over the next month I would share with you some of my favorites and maybe you will find something cool to make someone that you love. I know that I will be.

Here is the first installation:

messenger bag from //between the lines//

door organizer from Design*Sponge

moleskine cover from Keyka Lou

scrap savvy bookmark from 7 LAYER STUDIO

shrinky dink trinkets from How about orange...

Ok. I just looked up shrinky dinks. Expensive!!!

So I found a cool how to on how to make them! Go here.

a last minute addition

2009-11-23T04:31:00.000-08:00

Marie-Jolie over at Permission to Unwind sent me this link for a baby gown. I know that I have seen the entry before but had completely forgotten about it. So once she directed me there again, I just had to make one. So I rummaged through the Goodwill T stash and found the perfect t. Unfortunately the day I made it it was cloudy and the T is black (never good for photography!).

I love this. I wish my boys were babies again. I would make a ton of these. Super easy and fairly quick considering I sew by hand (still no sewing machine here in sneezerville). The sleeves are from a second T because the T that I used was just a small; not enough left over for the sleeves. But I really like the two toned look!!

I put some recycled elastic in the bottom to cinch it in.

I didn't bother to hem the sleeves. Let's face it, with t-shirt material you don't have to. It is not going anywhere.

Now this is what you can't see and it is my favorite part. Check out the pattern. The shoulder area kind of overlaps and curves which make for this great way for the baby's head to fit through. LOVE IT. I want to make myself a neckline like that on a T. one day maybe.

My second favorite part. All of the cool pictures on the front of this T!!

What is your favorite recycled project??

baby shower gifts

2009-11-16T09:34:00.000-08:00

I have to go to a baby shower this coming weekend for the wife of a cousin of my husband. I know confusing... Anyway, I made some gifts this weekend.
These came from the book, Generation T: Beyond Fashion: 120 New Ways to Transform a T-shirt by Megan Nicolay. She has two of these books. I love them both. You should really check them out.

These are the 0 - 6 month baby booties. These are made from an old rummage sale onezie that I liked the design of.

And then I made burb clothes. Or as the boys like to say barf clothes. Three different rummage sale t's with cool desings.

You shape them with indents in the middle so that they lay better on your shoulder. Stitch a running stitch around the outer edge. Then stitch two vertical rows about 4 inches apart down the middle.

I love the designs on these ts.

And the colors are more for boys. so maybe the hubby will use these clothes more than wifey poo.

then i cut up another onesie to make a little bag for them. Simple cut off the bottom of the onesie and the sleeves. sew along bottom edge. voila. bag. then i don't have to wrap anything.

all material from rummage sale goodies. all extra cool. all super cheap. thank god for thriftying!!

Everybody is Doing It why not me?

2009-11-09T09:27:00.000-08:00

This is the EDI (Everybody is Doing It) cowl from presents knits. She has some really cute designs. If you haven't checked out her site yet, you should.

This is made with 2 skeins of LionBrand Thick and Chunky in charcoal.

On size US 13 needles. The pattern called for size 15 needles but I didn't have those. 13's worked fine.

It could stand to be a little wider. So 2.5 skeins would have been better. But I was trying to work with what I had.

It is soft and extremely warm. It can be pulled over the shoulders, scrunched up around the neck or...

pulled up over your noggin.

And this is my latest WIP, Rosamund's Cardigan by Andrea Pomerantz from the fall 2009 Interweave Knits. I am doing this with some recycled sweater yarn.

addiction / obsession

2009-11-02T09:19:00.000-08:00

I am an addict.

I can't get enough. I just want to recycle every cheapo sweater out there I can find. It is fun and soothing to unravel some machines hard work. My boys even love it.

So here is another sweater that bit the dust.

A $0.50 rummage sale sweater of 100% cotton. very soft stuff.

These balls are small sections of reds, greys, greens, golds, and dark blue that made up the striped section of the original sweater.

These following balls are the dark blue main sections of the sweater. love this dark color.

the next yarns are from a trade on ravelry. the other thing that i love doing. trading something i am not using for something else super cool.

like these, hand dyed beauties.

and some malabrigo. love malabrigo. destined for another foliage so that maybe i can keep the other one!!

lastly, my mother-in-law is addicted to buying me buttons. so here are some that she picked up from JoAnn Fabrics.

last day for the giveaway

2009-10-29T07:25:00.001-07:00

I go this in the mail the other day and it had some great knits in it.

there was this, which i just saw on craftzine how to make out of an upside down sweater!!

and this one...

and my favorite!! i want to try and make this sometime. i don't have the yarn for it right now though so it will have to wait.

and some new yarn. hopefully enough there for a pair of big socks for my mother-in-law for christmas.

this is a cotton blend sock yarn from yarntopia.

the color is starbucks.

winner of giveaway to be announced tomorrow. You guys have a pretty good chance, since not too many signed up!

more for the giveaway

2009-10-26T09:32:00.000-07:00

an added item for my giveaway. merino. spun by me. one 3ply (@60 yds). one 2ply (@60 yds).

see post below for more details on the giveway for my 100th posting!!

i spent this weekend recycling a couple of sweaters from goodwill.
can't remember the company for this one.
but it was a large striped sweater.
this is 100% cotton in lots of strips because of the stripes.
but should make a really cool sweater for a baby or little person.

more 100% cotton yarn. for US 7 or 8 needles.

from a sweater from target. Merino brand name.

lovely chocolate brown.

hoping to make a vest or sleeveless sweater from this.

ideas are circling in my brain.

must finish napoleon first though.

son's 6th birthday was saturday.

he wanted a ghostie cake that he saw in the martha stewart

halloween magazines.

ghosties made from large and small marshmallows and chocolate icing.

it was a big hit with everyone.

he also wanted a red velvet (blood red) cake.

here he is looking oh so excited before blowing out the candles!

GIVEAWAY: 100th post!!!!

2009-10-23T07:06:00.000-07:00

Here it is ... what you could win...

4 skeins dk weight plymouth encore yarn in a rather vibrant green and Knit 2 Together by tracy ullman.
to win post a comment here about why you like blogs or blogging and i will choose a winner at random. you have until thursday oct 29 to comment. friday i will choose a winner and let you know. please make sure that i have an e-mail or another way to get ahold of you !! thanks.

here's a close up of the yarn. sorry, it is rainy here so the lighting is bad.

this huge (well you can't tell but it is a big box) of alpaca fiber is going out today!! glad to get rid of it and make someone else happy. traded someone for a yarn i have never tried through a group on ravelry. man you have got to love that site!!!

napoleon is comin along well. i am pretty much finished with the lower back portion. i did the puckers a little differently to help make up for the fact that my gauge is different.

i made the puckers 5 rows of knitting by using short rows so that i wasn't adding too much to the width of the bottom portion. i also made the first 2 puckers 10 stitches long, the 3rd and 5th puckers 12 stitches long, the center one 14 stitches long and the last 2 back to 10 stitches. in the pattern they are all 10 stitches long. i didn't like that. but i liked the way they now form a V. we will see how well that works out for the final look.

giveaway coming and an FO

2009-10-21T04:24:00.000-07:00

First, I am nearing my 100th post. actually it is the next one!! that is kind of a milestone so there will be a giveaway. sorry sewers, it will be yarn related. so look for the details in the next and 100th post!

Foliage by Emilee

yarn: lamb's pride worsted

color: prairie fire

needles: US 7 and US5

I love this hat!! it is a little scratchy according to my boys and is a "girl's hat". it is destined to be someone's christmas present. i guess a girl's christmas present.

i love the color of this yarn. i have some of it left. i need to find a creative way to use it. headband?? bracelet?? not sure that there is enough there for anything else. :(

I have started Napoleon with the rummage sale sweater orange tweed yarn. i decided on size 6 needles instead of the size 7. I was getting 19st = 3.5 inches. so i cast on 76 and made the end stitches selvedge.

this sweater is knit in different directions. the botton is knit in 2 parts. the knitting is not done from top to bottom but rather it is knit so that the knit stitches will run horizontal. it should be interesting. i hope that the finished product is as beautiful as theirs. i have been in love with this pattern ever since i first saw it!!

Remember, giveaway details the next time i post!!

goodies from recycling

2009-10-19T11:57:00.000-07:00

First up, t-shirt backpack from one the the cool t-shirt recycling books that I have picked up. one i posted about last week. this was cool skeleton t-shirt.

the pack is double layered for sturdiness.

it's ties are also from t-shirt material knotted through holes in the bottom.

the boys love it.

second, goodwill sweater recycling. sweaters from goodwill not as cheap as from a rummage sale but way better selection. this sweater had 7 cool buttons too.

it is a orange tweed. made of 55% ramie, 30% nylon, and 15% wool and it is made by baxter and wells. perfect for size 7 needles and Napoleon by Berroco.

third, another recycled goodwill sweater. this is more size 3 needles or 4. it is a gorgeous green tweed. 50% acrylic, 25% wool and 25% nylon. very soft if you can believe it.

fourth goodie, my niece. in a snow cat hat!! free prize pattern from cosymakes.

sorry, she wasn't a happy camper for the photo shoot.

but thanks over there at cosymakes!

what i am up to and what i want to be up to

2009-10-14T11:29:00.000-07:00

working on foliage from knitty.com's fall 2007 issue. love it. love this color. want more. it is lamb's pride worsted in prairie fire. this is destined to me a christmas present if i can give it up.

disclaimer: i don't know why these next pictures are sideways??

anyway this is blackstone tweed #288 from berroco.

i want this...

and this... need yarn though.

i got this from the library.

i love this, but would never wear it.

i want to make this...

and this...

all made from t-shirts. i am so going to goodwill friday to get some more t-shirts on the cheap since rummage sale season is over.

the boys and i went to a civil war reenactment this weekend too. and this is what we saw...

abe lincoln...

calvary...

confederates... losing...

and cannon fire!! totally fun! and good food and oldtime favorites.

P.S. : i won! a giveaway over at cosymakess. check out what i won.

more goodies

2009-10-09T04:31:00.000-07:00

Another FO. This is the Quickie Cowl (again can't link it from here. stupid computer).

Yarn: Misti International chunky
color : this fun pumpkin orange
needles : US10.5
It took next to no time to make and is absolutely gorgeous. and soo soft and scrunchy!!!

It can also me a headband/earwarmer.

Got this yarn in a trade.

Plymouth Royal Cashmere (100% fine Italian cashmere)

yardage: 154

color : 0747

lot : 247

and this yarn... hate it. does anyone want it??? check my stash page for details but it is Trekking Pro Natural. It is in shades of brown (that is kind of hard to tell in the picture). my mother-in-law wanted me to make her some socks out of this but i can't stand knitting with it. that just happens sometimes with me. i will have to find her some other brown sock yarn to use.

e-mail me or PM me on ravelry if you are interested. i love trading.

And this is the new addition to our family. her name is still up for grabs even after a week. the hubby says Cheeky. The boys say Naughty and then Mini Pod cause she is a mini version of our other dog. Then the boys said that her first name is Naughty and her last name is Mini Pod and they haven't come up with a middle name yet. Hopefully something sticks soon her she will be confused later in life.

loads of alpaca

2009-10-06T10:16:00.001-07:00

quick question : what do i do with loads of alpaca that hasn't been carded or washed and i don't have a carder and don't want to buy a carder? any suggestions????

i got loads of the stuff in a trade. would love to do something with it but don't know how. help!

Bliss is Blissful

2009-10-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

So using my rummage sale sweater of 100% cotton. I unraveled and created Bliss. This is what I have leftover and ...

here is the sweater...

I absolutely love it. It feels like I took forever to finish it because school has been sooooo busy but it was well worth it. I may live in this thing. It fits perfectly and looks fabulous (if i may say so myself). look for the details on my rav page. hope to have these photos downloaded to there sometime this week.

Started Rosette Stitch Cowl from One More Skein. Doing this on size 13 needles (pattern calls for 35s. Don't have that size. making this work) and using the new Misti alpaca because i couldn't resist it any longer. this is destined to join other small knits as a christmas present.
And Flint playing flag football. Isn't he cute? I need to get some Monte pictures for you all too.

***edited: I think that you can look me up on ravelry by typing in brittsneezer. i can't link to it here at school. they have it blocked. they say it is a chatroom. oh bull!

last weekend

2009-09-23T03:53:00.000-07:00

I went to the Johnny Appleseed Festival in Ft. Wayne, Indiana this past weekend. It was great. Kids had a lot of fun and I bought a little yarn. Pictured here. Gorgeous stuff. I wish that you could feel it. We also went to the book store where I finally picked up Heather Ross's book Weekend Sewing. I bought some Japanese books too to share with the class that I am teaching. Big hit.

Yarn : Misti Alpaca
yds : 108 yds
Color : 707
Lot # : 79229

These are what I want to make from the book (if I ever have any free time this year!)

And of course a kid shot. My son the flag football player. Next year, Monte will play. He is just too whiny for it right now.

On a sad note: the brother of a close friend of ours was drowned on a hunting trip this past weekend. at that time the body was lost down stream. we got word that his friend's were leaving alaska to come home without finding the body. this was very upsetting to our friend and my husband. so they flew out to alask on sunday morning to help in recovery efforts. his body was found yesterday by volunteers. my husband and his buddy are making arrangements today for the body to be brought home. please send you best wishes and prayers out to the Taylor family and hope for a speedy and safe return home for my husband and his friend.

Mobius

2009-09-14T08:48:00.001-07:00

Project : Mobius t-shirt cowl
Needle : US 11
yarn : t-shirt yarn

Cast on 60 stitches using Cat Bordhi's mobius cast on. knit one round, purled one round til ran almost out of "yarn."

amazingly warm. very stretchy. easy way to use up an otherwise usely couple of t's. bought the t's at a rummage sale for a quater a piece. cut into strips about 1/2" wide. connect "yarn" using rag tutorial. i think that i need to make more of these. super easy and mobius is addictive. give it a try folks!

upclose and personal.

thrifting...

2009-09-10T04:40:00.000-07:00

Progress on Bliss...

can't see the awesome cables in this dark pic, but the cables are great!

Thrifting.
Here is some more yarn from a rummage sale sweater. Orange. 100% shetland wool!

and a zipper!

more thrifting.
cut two t-shirts into 1/2" strips. and wound into a ball.

one orange tee and one black. not for sure about yardage.

this is going to be a mobius cowl in garter stitch out of the t-shirt "yarn". cast on 60 stitches on size 11 needles with a 47" cable. Used Cat Bordhi's mobius cast-on found on youtube.com to get it rolling.

and finally, flint practicing his archery.

Finally...pics!

2009-09-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

I have been going to rummage sales and buying up old sweaters for yarn! trying to be thrifty and cheap. anyway the yarn above is from an Old Navy sweater. it is really soft and is for about a size 8 needle. i have a project in mind that i will share at a later date. the yarn is a wool, angora, cotton blend.

very smooth and soft. splitty though. nice color of grayish navy. using to make the Bliss sweater from French kit. it is going to look awesome. progress pics on it later.

some of my summer FOs destined to be Christmas gifts if i can part with them.

Grown up slippers from Ysolda.

Slouchy Beret by ... (can't remember and can't access rav. from here to look!!!!) sorry.

sour cherries cowl for handspun yarn. yes that is my yarn!! this really is almost too lovely to give up.

and finally. flint. mr. kindergarten himself.

He LOVES school. says they just play all day and that it is great.

forgetting

2009-09-02T04:25:00.000-07:00

well as soon as i remember to bring my camara, i will share images of what has been going on at sneezerville this summer. well some of it anyway.

school has started, which means teaching has started and with 7 different classes this year and a demand to change teaching styles coming from the school... man i have been busy.

hope to have some pics tomorrow. so please bare with me. thanks.

musings

2009-08-18T07:07:00.000-07:00

well thanks marie jolie for the input on the move to alaska. although i would love to go to alaska, at this point in our lives and with the crazy economy, we have voted no. for now. i foresee one day moving there, but yeah, the time just ain't right. especially not with my baby in kindergarten!

my Flint went to kindergarten yesterday. his brother cried a lot. he is four. they are super close. flint loved it! thank god! went again today and monte cried again. heartbreaking. i hope that this doesn't happen everyday for monte.

i am seeing him off to school and waiting for him to arrive at grandma's. at least for two more days. then my school starts and grandma will be getting him on and off of the school bus, which he thinks is a blast. no seatbelts. bouncy. and takes curves like a race car. every mothers nightmare. well hopefully the crazy bus driver calms down.

pictures soon. lots of projects to share. and a picture of the new school boy forthcoming! stay tuned.

yarn and things

2009-07-24T08:42:00.000-07:00

my niece! doesn't she have beautiful eyes. snapped this photo of her fascinated with my son's ear!

spun up all the FatCats merino. in three bunches.

3-ply (navajo plied)

sport weight??

@66yds

don't like this so much. didn't like how the color combinations were turning out. so if anyone is interested, let me know. i love trading.

2-ply

light fingering

@136 yds in two skeins

love it! so soft. beautiful color combinations.

progress on my made up version of Olive.

i am finally past the armholes and working my way down the body.

what to do?

2009-07-22T07:32:00.000-07:00

my husband and i love Alaska. it is gorgeous. he has talked about moving but now he is getting serious. i just don't know what to do about it.

i love my job. he hates his. if we move there, will i be able to get a job? what about the kids? they won't have any family near by. can we survive? i hear that everything there is really expensive; living costs, food, what nots.

if i quit my job this close to the beginning of the school year and then he doesn't like the job in alaska, will i be able to find another job near here that i like as much as the one that i have now? ok. now i am getting an ulcer. any thoughts?

2009-07-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

Finished my yellow (project spectrum: may/june) razor cami just a tad shy of the deadline. oh well. i love it!

Project: razor cami
Yarn: knit picks sport shine (4.5 skeins)
color : butter
needle : US4
lots of mods. see ravelry page.

been working on my alabama chanin skirt. i have two panels complete with two to go!

spun up the australian wool that i hand dyed. hate it! loved the experience but the yarn is just too scratchy for me. anyone want to trade?

specs:

australian wool

charcoal

2-ply

2 balls : larger ball (276 yds) smaller ball (121 yds)

currently spinning fatcats merino in fingerpaint colorway

love it! it is so soft and colorful. going to navajo ply this. hopefully this week!

working on my own version of the Olive shirt. details so far on ravelry.

and what have my boys been up to...

go-carting! don't worry completely safe. the thing only goes about 3 mph. it can't even make it up a small hill. they have to push it. but they love it anyway! that is my 4-year old monte above and flint the 5yr old below.

info

2009-07-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

kate asked me about my flyer hooks. whether they were fixed or not?? well no, sadly they are not. but i am forging ahead anyway. i am kind of afraid to mess with them. but one of these days i will get up the nerve to try.

Thanks for the comments ladies, especially about my tank. i just love it too!!

another update

2009-07-01T08:32:00.000-07:00

Roving...

Bought some FatCatKnits merino roving in a color called Fingerpaints for project spectrum RED. can't wait to spin this up!

Knitting...

started knitting the razor cami with my knit picks shine in butter.

finished tuxedo sleeveless tank. LOVE IT! fits great and i love the buttons. see ravelry for details.

Sewing...

finally started stitching my skirt. this design comes from the alabama stitch book. loving it. but it is going to take forever to finish.

Dyeing...

this is come Australian wool in a boring white.

put it in the remaining dye from dyeing the anne elliot spencer shrug.

came out in shades of grey like kettle dyed.

going to spin this into a 2-ply.

ready to spin up.

spinning progress so far. this is really going quickly. probably since it is pencil roving and pretty much ready to go.

Grosgrain: 20 Minute Simple Skirt Tutorial AND GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-06-17T05:47:00.000-07:00

Grosgrain: 20 Minute Simple Skirt Tutorial AND GIVEAWAY!!!!

new things

2009-06-17T05:11:00.000-07:00

Warning! Picture heavy post.

First up...

Sewing.

I took this old dress from college and made it into a skirt.

I cut it just below that lovely decorative top. Folded it down to make a casing. Threaded some elastic through there and now I have a beautiful skirt. I need to think of something to do with the top portion. It is just too gorgeous to let go to waste. But the dress was just too boxy for me to wear. So a skirt is more practical. Any suggestions for the top portion?

Here is some of the detail around the bottom of the skirt.

Don't mind my son eating his cereal in his undies in the background!

Next, I took this rummage sale men's size Medium shirt ($0.25) and made it into a more girly looking blouse. NOTE about shirt: When I went to remove the front pocket, I found $12.00 in it. So I made money on this!! HA HA!

What my husband called a maternity top and forbid me to wear.

Ok. Looking at this photo, I think that he has a point. I am thinking of making it into some kind of cropped top. What do you think? The top and sleeve portions are just too cute to let it go to waste.

Cut a rounded neckline. Added pleats. Sewed neckline done about a cm all around. Added a pleat to the back to bring the shoulders in.

Cut a slit in the bottom trim of the sleeves and threaded in some elastic for slightly poofy sleeves.

And now for some spinning.

This is some left over of the big patch of 2-ply that I made (pictures of that follow). This is some roving that I traded for on ravelry. It is wool but that is about all I can remember. Here's the info:

3-ply

Navajo plied

color : ambrosia

weight : dk (guessing)

yardage : about 66yds

fiber content : wool

spun: on my Louet S10

This was my second attempt at navajo plying on my wheel. I think that it came out great. I think that yarn looked much better as a single though. Now the colors seem to washed out. But the pictures of it came out great.

Close-up of the twist.

Big batch of yarn.

2-ply

color : ambrosia

weight : fingering (again guessing)

yardage : 577 yards

fiber content : wool

spun : on my wheel Louet S10

All this fiber came from about 8 oz of roving. I am amazed at how much it made! But again I don't really care for it too much. I have put it up for trade on ravelry, if anyone would like it let me know.

Close-up on its twist.

A view of the big batch.

On the knitting front, I am almost finished with the Sleeveless Tuxedo Tank. I have one more placket to do and then I have to see how well I can crochet. It has a crocheted trim all around and crocheted loops for the buttons.

I am using Southwest Trading Company Bamboo. It feels great and the color almost matches the one from the magazine perfectly.

Also working on my own design. I cross between the Olive shirt and the Coral tank from Helga Isager. I love both of those tops. I like the neckline on the Olive so what I am going to try and do is make the neckline rounded like Olive but make the body of the tank like Coral. I am doing this by just looking at the pictures so we will see how it goes.

big update coming...

2009-06-16T12:36:00.001-07:00

not today. tomorrow. check back here tomorrow to see what i have been sewing, spinning and knitting. lots of photos just waiting to be downloaded and shared!

also i am up to 8 followers! i feel like a celebrity.

oh yeah... thanks for the comments about my boys. i love them to death and just think that they are the most adorable frustrating little munchkins in the world!

having fun

2009-06-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

summer...

my boys have been catching frogs!

Monte (4yrs) and Flint (5yrs) with Hoppy the Frog.

spinning yarn.

2 - ply bamboo/merino spun on the spindle and plied on the wheel.

knitting.

bracelet from Leethal's patterns. linen stitch. 10yds of wool yarn. two buttons from Leethal.

Back again as soon as i can!

sadness

2009-06-03T04:37:00.000-07:00

first, Kate asked where the roving from my last post came from. sadly, i don't remember. i got it through a bartering group on ravelry. but i can't for the life of me remember who it was. i am horrible about that sort of thing.

second, another look at my new (used) wheel. it is a Louet S10. i am thinking an older model because the footman looks nothing like all the ones that i have been looking at on the net lately. the only thing that bugs me about it is the fact that the hooks are rusted. this thing was covered in some kind of film when i got it. i cleaned it up and now it looks pretty good and works great, but i am kind of afraid to spin any really light colored yarn on this.

i have asked a few spinners about replacing the hooks. it sounds possible, but if i don't do it right i am going to have to buy another flyer. not looking forward to that. a new flyer costs half of what i paid for the whole wheel! crazy. i will have to wait and see and think it over some more i guess.

third, sadly i won't be posting as frequently anymore. this is the last day of school and therefore my last day near the internet everyday. i will be online at least once a week at the in-laws to work on my graduate homework, so i hope to steal some time to blog than. please stick with me ya'll. i like getting comments!

lastly, i wanted to get some pics of the leethal bracelet's that i have been making but alas, i forgot last night! ah!

oh yeah. i have scratched the idea of the bella blouse with my bamboo yarn. now i think that i will make the tuxedo tank from an old interweave knits.

well that is all for today. have a great summer and i hope to be back here next week with some exciting projects. i have a couple sewing projects lined up for this weekend. fingers crossed.

goings on since the giveaway

2009-06-02T08:59:00.000-07:00

i sent bought leethal's bracelet kit. it is wonderful. recycled paper, recycled yarn and buttons. beautiful photos. plenty of information on how to make them. wonderful use of some left over yarn.

i have already made two. one with the give yarn and one with some of my handspun. photos soon i hope.

i also received this over the weekend. it is called ambroisia. looks like a mottled mess but...

spins up beautifully. you can see the shifting colors much better spun up. this is my first yarn on my new (used) wheel. hoping for a fingering weight 2-ply. we will see. one set of singles is done. will be starting the next batch soon.

also received my package from julia.

a wonderful card, a cute little owl, a handy notebook for jotting things down and an awesome wrap for knitting projects.

here is the wrap up close from the inside. small and functional. my next project will be going in there very soon. getting ready to start the bella blouse out of some bamboo that i had original bought to make a skirt and have since talked myself out of.

question

2009-06-01T11:49:00.001-07:00

how do i add badges to my sidebar on blogger? anyone could at step-by step to the semi-technologically ignorant?

And the winners are....

2009-06-01T05:06:00.000-07:00

WOW! what can i say?? i had such an overwelming amount of commenters for my giveaway...325! i hope that some of you come back and visit again.

ok. well, i wanted my boys to draw the winners but we didn't get to a computer on saturday like i thought that we would. so some of you got in the drawing eventhough you commented past the deadline. bonus for you!!

so without further ado.

this is the knitter's lot.

i drew...

drumroll, please...

marie*jolie from permission to unwind!

and now for the sewer's lot! (i felt kind of bad about this one. your odds weren't as good for this one.)

look at all of you...

i drew...

drumroll again, please...

craftykat!

P.S. : Julia, got the package! thanks for the extras! pics of what she got me tomorrow. hopefully.

P.P.S : damn, blocker on this computer just stopped me from going to ravelry.com when it has allowed it all year long!!! pissed. i have a spinning question that now i have to wait several days to ask!!! #$%$@##%$$^#%%$

more about the giveaway

2009-05-29T04:21:00.000-07:00

i just have to say that i am blown away by the response to my giveaway. definitely are record number of visitors here, since i usually get about 2 comments as an average.

thanks so much for stopping by to participate. please come back and visit again. just scroll down a little more to commente to win. you have until tomorrow!! good luck to all!

GIVEAWAY DAY!

2009-05-27T03:58:00.001-07:00

so, i am giving away two prizes: one for sewers and one for knitters.

here are the lots. first for sewers...

details:

Lotta Jansdotter bag full of scraps of linen and

four fat quarters from JoAnn Fabrics (these are cotton) and

the May issue of Threads and two more fat quarters (also cotton) of unknown origin.

and for the knitters out there...

details: Dominitrix's book and...

Lamb's Pride Bulky color M-41 Turkish Olive dyelot: 064, 125 yds and...

Jo Sharp Aran Tweed color 141 Bark dyelot 73, 104 yds and...

a greater yarn from nepal single ply 160 yds (don't be fooled by the foto, it is purple).

ok. now how to win.

leave a comment here stating whether you want the knitter's lot or the sewer's. also tell me what your favorite knitting or sewing project is.

make sure i have a way of getting ahold of you or check back monday, june 1 to see who won.

you have until saturday may 30 (9:00am centreal) to post a comment. if you link my contest on your blog, i will put your name in the pot 3 extra times (be sure to let me know that you did this).

winners will be drawn at random by my boys saturday afternoon (if all goes well).

i don't mind international shipping, so everyone feel free to comment.

have fun today. good luck. and i hope that a bunch of you manage to win a prize from someone's blog today!

spinning

2009-05-26T10:26:00.000-07:00

here is julia's yarn. (hey, julia. i think i forgot to tell you how much is there. the smaller skein is 70.9 yds and the larger one is 129yds.)

Project: 3-ply BFL in a
color called DEEP SPACE
by Frabjous Fibers.
I navajo plied it on my spindle.
at my guess it is around a sport weight.

not super even all over. it took me part way through each one to get the hang of it and get an even balanced yarn. but i love the color combinations.

this foto is a more accurate representation of the colors. i hope you enjoy julia. if nothing else it is fun to look at!

some project spectrum spinning. this month's color is yellow. this is some gorgeous bamboo/merino that i started spinning this weekend.

it is a dream to spin. it is so soft and silky feeling. it is destined to be a 2-ply. the color is called milk and honey and it is from KnitItUp.

P.S. don't forget to come back tomorrow and check out my giveaway items. i will have something for the knitters out there and the sewers.

artwork

2009-05-20T04:18:00.000-07:00

i have said in the side bar that i am an artist. but the other day i realized that i had never shown any of my artwork. the following are two pictures that a drew many years ago. i haven't drawn since i had my boys about 5 years ago. i find that i don't have enough time without distractions to sit down and do it. the boys just keep me too busy.

first, this picture came from a photo that i took when my husband and i were on our honeymoon driving around out west. these horses were in a big open field on the pine ridge indian reservation.

(sorry. i tried to get shots without a glare. it was impossible.)

here are some close ups of each section.

second, this is a picture that i drew for my husband shortly after we started dating about 9 years ago. i can't remember were i got the picture. (I have to draw from a photo. i am not good with moving objects.)

maybe this one is easier to see?

hope that you liked them.

i have a few more sitting around home. maybe i will get them on here at a later date.

OMG i hope that my husband doesn't kill me...

2009-05-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

as the title reads, i hope that i am alive later.

i just bought this...

louet s10 spinning wheel (not the winder though).

i couldn't pass up the price : $169.oo!!

these babies go for upwards of $400!

why did i get it so cheap you ask??

i am assured that it works fine. it just doesn't look pretty anymore. the seller couldn't sell it because of the looks. no one wants to spend a ton of money on something that doesn't look pristine!

but i am willing to spend some money on something less than beautiful if it works well.

keep your fingers crossed that i am not a sucker.

Project Spectrum : East to work

2009-05-18T05:30:00.000-07:00

These are some of the eastern views on my way to school in the morning.

in front of my house.

on the road in indiana.

ohio with its lack of trees and fence rows.

the view from my room. parking lot and farms.

love the farm part. love the sun shining in my windows in the morning.

Project Spectrum : yellow

2009-05-14T04:28:00.000-07:00

some etsy finds that fit project spectrum and make me wish i could spend some money right now.

optic blossom wristlet/cosmetic bag by atouchofstardust

i love the gray and yellow combination in this. and i so want to make some of these little bags this summer!

day at the beach - tencel top - 8 oz by NaturalObsessions

i love the bright yellow in this. i am sure that it would look great spun up. too bad i can't buy anything right now.

the cottage keeper BLOUSE by elfland

simple. cool. stylish.

plaid and yellow dress by themachinestops

love the yellow trim on this dress.

dk weight yarn for socks by kayclairgoodies

i love the combination of yellow and purple in this yarn.

mark your calendars!

2009-05-13T04:54:00.001-07:00

Sew!Mama!Sew! is having another giveaway day and i am going to participate. check back in here between may 27 to may 31 for your chance to win one of two prizes chosen at random.

i plan on giving away some yarn and fabric, at least. more goodies my be added as the day nears!

sanity

2009-05-12T04:33:00.000-07:00

my anne elliot spencer shrug is going to drive me crazy. and i was so near the finish for the main body piece.

first, i noticed one side of the front had way more stitches than the other.

so i started ripping back.

second, i noticed an error in the lace pattern two rows before the neckline decreases.

so i ripped back further.

third, i was picking up the stitches and noticed another error in the lace pattern another row down.

ahhhh.

i am going to accept this as a blessing. at least this gives me the opportunity to try the other skein of yarn that i have and see if the colors match up better. because the skein i was using was more gray than soot!

wish me luck that i can keep my sanity before this thing is done. because i am not allowing myself to start another project until i finish this one!

my redneck weekend

2009-05-11T04:51:00.000-07:00

my brother-in-law bought a new house. well actually a horrendous old house that the previous owners trashed. but behind the house is an old abandoned sand pit.

so being rednecks what did we do....

jeepin'

the boys found a solitary sand pit and proceeded to throw sand...

dig up rocks ...

throw said rocks at a sand wall...

dump sand out of their boots while avoiding very large dog...

talking and beer (not for the little boys!)...

hill climbing with their aunt...

hill climbing with the jeeps...

sliding down said hills...

running through mud puddles...

flipping trucks (oops!)...

trying to turn truck rightside up...

still trying...

watching a dune buggy get stuck on top off a big hill...

helping it down...

this dune buggy flipped over twice!

no one was hurt.

it was just a lot of redneck fun!

fluffy goodness

2009-05-08T04:52:00.000-07:00

singles and more singles....
plus fluff.

beautiful.

cookies and HELP!

2009-05-06T04:33:00.000-07:00

we made cookies last night!

this is a new recipe. we keep trying different kinds of cookies because my son has low blood sugar issues and is not supposed to have white flour or sugar! we love cookies! so we keep experimenting with different recipes and combinations.

these are oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from the Clean Food Cookbook by Terry Walters. the recipe called for white flour or brown rice flour. we used whole wheat pastry flour and they were great. you are supposed to use carob chips or dark chocolate chips as well. we used the dark chocolate. they were great. crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle.

WARNING! they were difficult to roll into balls as the directions instructed so i just kind of mushed them onto the cookie sheet and we baked them 14 minutes instead of 16. at 16 they were burnt around the edges. kids don't like burnt!

VERDICT: the boys loved them. i loved them. and the hubby liked them eventhough they contained coconut. we will be making these puppies again.

NOW i need HELP. i am making the Anne Elliot Spencer shrug. my sister-in-law doesn't want the girlie picot edging around the neckline. but without it the neckline is going to curl up.

so here is what i need...

what kind of edging can i add on later or do now to solve this dilemma?

please help blog world!

cheap clothes

2009-05-04T05:28:00.000-07:00

i went to some rummage sales this weekend and this is what i found.

corduroy blazer : $4.00
swingy garter stitch sweater : $25 (ok, not rummage sale but still cheap [sort of])

trousers : $2

new outfit : priceless

Project : Garter Stitch Swingy Sweater by Jenn Pellerin

started / completed : 27 feb - 2 may 2009

yarn : Knit Picks Comfy (6 balls)

Needles : US7

Mods : none

see notes on my rav projects page.

love the details on my new blazer.

french seams.

pocket detailing.

american eagle.

spinning progress.

bfl singles.

one more set of singles to go and then i am going to ply the two batches together. and then they are yours julia!

more spinning and a new friend

2009-05-01T06:34:00.000-07:00

well i got tired of plying my yarn as i went and wanted to try making some singles to ply together later. this seems to go so much faster. when i have two batches of singles i want to make a 2ply of this fiber to see what it will look like and how thick it will be.

this spinning thing is still new to me and i have a feeling that i will be experimenting for quite awhile.

the next picture is of my finished 3ply BFL. the twist was set and then a small skein was made.

this is about 61 yards. it came out great (i think) for my first attempt at spinning and plying.

i also made a new friend today! i love the blogging world and like everyone else i love a good giveaway. i enter the ones that show up on the blogs that i read. i don't go crazy searching for them just to be entering for a chance to win some goodies. well i happened upon a link to some giveaways on a blog that i read regularly and in the excitement of possibly winning a nice needle case entered the giveaway without paying close attention to the end date.

but the lovely julia over at in search of contentment e-mailed me for a little exchange and she became my first "follower" ( a great blogspot option that i don't use enought). well i am thrilled to be making an exchange with her and am so excited at having a new amiga in the blog world. thanks julia!

what i've been up to

2009-04-28T04:37:00.000-07:00

spinning...
this is so addictive! this is turning out to be about a sport weight. that is my guess anyway. not too bad for my first time spinning. i still have a ton of fiber to go. i am debating on using some of what is left to spin two batches of singles and making some two ply later. i am curious about what it will look like. so more on that to come.

knitting...

slowly plugging away at Anne Elliot Spencer for my sister-in-law. if it wasn't on such small needles (US1) i would be done by now. all things aside, it really is a nice knit and will make a really cute top for her.

finishing...

awesome buttons for my swingy sweater. it is hard to tell but these are a deep pink with gold marbled through them.

they are going to look great on this...

after it is blocked and the ends are woven in.

roving

2009-04-24T08:46:00.000-07:00

superwash merino

color : venice

from : natural obsessions

can't wait to use this.

but i am going to have to.

i want to spin it into fingering weight.

back to practice.

While I was sick...

2009-04-23T09:04:00.000-07:00

I read this...

There are some truly wonderful projects in here. You need to get ahold of a copy.

I got this in the mail...

my merino/bamboo roving from knititup.

here it is upclose. it is glorious. i can't wait to try and spin it.

i also read this...

so that i could spin this...

merino superwash in Hydrangea. fiber addict enabler sent along with the merino/bamboo by knititup! how wicked!

so i spun it into this...

merino singles! my first spinning attempt!

so i bought some of this...

BFL from Fearless Fibers in a color called deep space.

and i plied-on-the-fly this...

3 ply BFL. kind of thick, but wow this was super easy.

so i tried for thinner...

and then plied-on-the-fly again...

comparison.

verdict: spinning with a drop spindle...

fun.

spinning super thin 3 ply...

hard...

but fun.

ply-on-the-fly is so nice. i can spin and ply all at the same time which means knitting it up sooner, but how do i get it nice and thin?

i am hoping to get more of a fingering weight.

more practice i guess.

wondering

2009-04-17T11:53:00.000-07:00

do you ever just sit and look at your stash in the sunlight?

do you ever just sit and look at another's stash on ravelry?

right now i am drooling over sourcherries and abacus' stashes?

their handspun and regular stashed yarns are so gorgeous!

Project Spectrum : Green

2009-04-17T04:52:00.000-07:00

green books

Institches by Amy Butler

Weekend Knitting by Melanie Falick

Greetings from the Knit Café by Suzan Mischer

Amy Butler's Midwest Modern by Amy Butler

back on the needles

almost finished with the body of the swingy sweater.

roving

2009-04-16T10:11:00.000-07:00

ok. so i have been looking at youtube for how to use my drop spindle, that i don't have enough roving to do much with, and i have concluded that i NEED more roving. So on to etsy.

i bought 8 oz. of superwash merino in a color called venice and...

3 oz of bamboo/merino in milk and honey.

can't wait for it to get here so that i can try this stuff out! and wish me luck because i really have no idea what to do yet.

Goodies

2009-04-16T04:06:00.000-07:00

Warning photo heavy post!

Project : Pomatomus by Cookie A.

started / completed : April 2009

yarn : Gyspy Girl

color : blue Hawaii

needles : US2

i love this sock! the pattern is great especially with this sock yarn and color. i originally made this with my sister in mind, but I do believe that these are going to mom this sunday for her birthday.

i even love the heel!

i went to JoAnn Fabrics over easter break and picked up some goodies for upcoming projects.

fat quarters for some kind of bag.

egyptian cotton and batik for a skirt like assemblage's.

she is my style guru! i love everything she makes and want one for myself. i hope she doesn't mind. if you don't read her blog, you need to go check it out.

this is some indigo denim for some fisherman pants. pattern from burda style.

but again inspired by assemblage.

i also spotted this magazine and couldn't resist. i love that scarf on the front.

and t does wool has a wonderful version of the scarf to check out.

i also got my blog contest winning gift from stardustshoes!

i cool bag and some seduce by berroco. the yarn is great so soft and smooth and very thin. amazingly enough this yarn uses US 7 needles. it is like fingering weight though and there is about 100 yds of the stuff! and the bag is wonderful. it can hold sooo many goodies!

yarn from nepal!

yarn : a greater gift

content : 100% hand dyed sheep's wool

single ply (azo free dye)

Yardage: 160yd

colors : orange, purple and pink

i have been assisting a long term substitute here at the school because she was having difficulty controlling one of her classes. (the kids seem to think that if they don't like a teacher they don't have to do anything they say! i think that it is atrocious! i they know that i won't stand for that behavior so while i am in the room with them she gets a little peace. it is kind of sad that they act that way) well, she leaves on friday so she got me this gift as a thank you for giving up my prep period to help her out. i told her it was completely unnecessary but i do love the yarn.

birthday gift from the mother-in-law... a drop spindle and some sample wool (from oak meadow alpaca farm in walkerton, indiana) to practice.

i had mentioned that i would like to learn to do that sometime, so she bought one! love her!

know i need to google how to do it. and buy some roving!

the sample wool. sorry i have no idea what it is!

more tomorrow!

Happy 33rd Birthday to me!

2009-04-15T04:31:00.000-07:00

Today is my birthday! Yeah!

Things that occurred on my birthday:

Abe Lincoln died.

Tax Day.

The Titantic sunk.

The first McDonald's opened in Illinois.

I really think that my birthdate seems to be a magnet for bad things! I mean come on not one of those things are good. Well tax day sort of, we got money back.

Lots of things have been going on around here. The weather has just been to crappy for photos. So stayed tuned to see all the goodies that I have to show you all.

more yarn

2009-04-06T11:18:00.000-07:00

So my sister-in-law saw me knitting the other day and requested another item. So I had her search Rav for her favorite thing and this ...

Knit Picks Essential Kettle Dyed in soot

is going to become this...

Anne Elliot Spencer by CanarySanctuary.

Of course, this is after I finish Pomatomus and possibly another pair of socks as well. All of which will take forever because they are on impossibly small needles!!

a new knit ring

2009-04-03T05:01:00.000-07:00

So in this post I talked about how I made a fabric ring to help keep my finger from being abused by my knitting style. Well, it has already worn out! So I decided that I needed something that would hold up a little better.

Project : Knit ring

started / completed : 3 April 2009 (took about 10 minutes)

materials : buckskin, heavy duty brown thread

I had bought a buckskin a couple of years back at Ft. Wayne, Indiana's Johnny Appleseed Festival. It is a big outdoor craft show. They also have an 1840s camp, that is where I got the buckskin.

Ok, for you city slickers, buckskin is a deer hide that has been soften; nowadays by using chemicals. I bought it hoping to make a cool skirt out of it but unfortunately there wasn't enough there in good shape. You see when the deer is skinned, if the skinner isn't careful, they can trim too much away which makes holes in the long run. This one had too many. So I used a very small amount to make this ring.

Basically, I cut my ruined fabric ring in half, placed it on the buckskin, cut around the ring, trimmed the edges to a slight curve, stretched the buckskin a little and marked where it stretched to, stitched in place, and voilá.

Perfect!

Burb clothes

2009-04-01T04:20:00.000-07:00

I needed another present for the baby shower to go along with the shoes, so I made a couple of burp clothes. I love this fabric pattern. I think that it just looks good for a kid. I got it in the mail in the fat quarter trade that went on over at Sew! Mama! Sew!

Ok, so how I made them. I went out to Wal-mart and bought a package of cloth diapers, washed them and then was completely disappointed by how thin they were. How did Gerbers expect these to catch anything! Anyhoo, I was just going to put a strip of material down the middle of the cloth where it is the thickest but that wasn't going to work considering how thin they were. So I took the sides and folded them in to the edge of the heavy part in the middle. Then I cut the fabric 2 inches wider than the diaper, folded the 2 inches in so that the material was slightly smaller than the edges.

Next, I folded a bit of fabric over the short ends of the diaper where I had folded them in. I just didn't like the fact that you could see that I had folded the sides in. So I just tucked the fabric up over the sides that were folded in. Then I sewed them really close to the edge so that the two side were held tight together. You can't even tell that I folded the sides in! So it worked well. I basically used a running stitch all the way around, close to the edge to attach the fabric.

The best part: the shoes look good with the burp clothes!

Project : Baby burp cloth

Pattern: basically mine

Fabric : from fat quarter trade (one fat quarter made 2 burp clothes)

Materials : Gerbers cloth diapers, thick thread, one fat quarter

Handstitched.

Baby shoes and other goodies

2009-03-31T07:06:00.000-07:00

I got these beauties in a trade for some leftover yarn that I had. I asked for 2 and I got 6! I love the people on ravelry. They are so giving! I hope that she really enjoyed the yarn.
I realized last night that I have a baby shower to go to this Friday. So I got my butt in gear and whipped up these last night. I am still a slow handstitcher so it took me a couple hours. I am sure on a sewing machine, it would have taken less than half an hour!

This a view of the inside of the shoes with the setting sun.

I put fleece between the two sole pieces to give it some sturdiness.

Project : Kimono Baby Shoes by Aimee Larsen (found the tutorial here.)

Size : 0 - 6 months

Fabric : Some fat quarter leftovers from bags I made at Christmas
Mods: none yet, debating on putting a button on each partway

up with some thin elastic to hook over them to help them stay on.

The top opening just seems too big to stay on wiggliing baby feet.

I love the inside of these!

This fabric pattern seems very Japanese to me. Works great with this pattern.

Pomatomus is coming along swimmingly. I love how this yarn is knitting up with the pattern and the yarn itself is wonderful to use.

2009-03-28T12:13:00.000-07:00

I got this lovely skein of yarn in the mail from dreary ole England. But this yarn is far from dreary! My mum is going to love this knit up into another pair of socks. What socks do you think would do this yarn justice? Any suggestions? I am leaning towards Spring Forward, but would gladly consider other ideas because I am not completely sold on that one quite yet.

Yarn : Claudia Hand Painted

yardage : over 400yds

And these gorgeous skeins are going to be knit into a pair of Pomatomus.

My sister has been begging for another pair of socks lately too. So hopefully I am appeasing both of them. These need to be completed by the end of April. No problem.

mom's socks

2009-03-27T09:06:00.001-07:00

Project : Mom's striped socks (used You're putting me on sock pattern by Judy Gibson)

started / completed : 22-27 March 2009

Yarn : Magic stripes by LionBrand (1 ball)

color : denim stripes

Needle : US 3

I love how easy this heel comes together working from the toe up.

Project : Spiral sock for mom (based on Swirl Sock pattern by Sulafaye)
started / completed : 18 February - 20 March 2009
Yarn : koigu KPPPM (2 balls)
color : pinky orange

Made both of these socks for mom's birthday coming up in April. I hope she really likes them. She wears the other pair that I made so much that I had to mend them. I think that means that she deserves many more socks in the future.

Next up, finishing the swingy sweater (which I haven't touched in awhile) and socks for my sister for her birthday at the end of April.

I WON!

2009-03-27T06:02:00.000-07:00

I am so excited! I won a blog contest! The one over at stardustshoes! How cool!

Project Spectrum : North

2009-03-20T10:40:00.000-07:00

Looking north from my front drive.

That is my husband's off roadin' vehicle. Fun for mudding, driving through woods and over boulders and trees, also used to drive through rivers.

Why you may ask?

The answer: It's fun! Trust me.

It's also a lovely view of a stand of trees.

A GIVEAWAY

2009-03-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

Not mine! Sorry.

But head on over to stardustshoes. She has some cool yarn and goody bags that she is giving away!

More goodies rolling in or I love the mailwoman

2009-03-19T08:57:00.000-07:00

Yarn : Brown Sheep Wildfoote Luxury Sock Yarn (handpainted)

color : sy - 200 rhapsody

yardage : 2 skeins : 430 yds

Yarn : Knit Picks Essential Solids and Twists

color : dusk

yardage : 2 skeins : 462 yds

Pictured with my current reading material and my husband's coyote skull (in case you didn't know what that was).

Project Spectrum: yarn porn

2009-03-17T09:06:00.000-07:00

Yarn: Claudia Hand Painted Yarns

color : jungle

yardage : 2 skeins : 350 yds

Socks for me?? Probably socks for my boys! They love the greens. They think they make great camo!

Yarn : The Weaver's Loft Yarns of Distinction Alpaca Lace weight

color : Meadows

yardage : 1 skein : 2480 yds

This stuff was irresistible. I mean I couldn't pass it up. I don't know what it will become but it will be gorgeous.

Any suggestions? What's your favorite lace project?

Just found the macro mode on my camera!

Look at that!

More yarn porn

2009-03-17T08:52:00.000-07:00

Yarn : South West Trading Company Bamboo

color : black

yardage : 1 ball : 250 yds

Yarn : South West Trading Company Bamboo

color : white

yardage : 1 ball : 240 yds

Yarn : Brown Sheep Cotton Top

color : Midnight Blue

Yardage : 2 skeins : 640 yds

Yarn : Zitron Trekking Pro Natura

color : 1603

yardage : 1 ball : 459 yds

Yarn : Gypsy Girl Creations fingering weight

color : Blue Hawaii

yardage : 400 yds

Yarn : South West Trading Company Bamboo

color : chocolate (really a taupe)

yardage : 2 balls : 1,000 yds

This yarn has come in over the last few days through trades mostly. The Blue Hawaii was bought at Portland, Indiana's best attempt at a fiber festival. The sock yarns are all going to be knit and gifted. The bamboo's are going to make a skirt, my first. And the cotton top is for a sweater or vest for my son. He requested the color. I requested to wait til the fall to make the sweater since sweater season is almost over here. He agreed. Bless him.

More yarn to come too. I am still waiting on a few trades to arrive. Yeah!

Project Spectrum : Rocks

2009-03-13T08:55:00.001-07:00

yarn porn and frustration

2009-03-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

Pre yarn porn goodness: my last fat quarter from Sew, Mama, Sew!'s swap. This is great. I got a fat quarter, some extra fabric and it was wrapped in a bow. Thanks Canada!

Now for the yarn porn. Children avert the eyes. Ladies get ready to drool. I came home to 3 packages containing:

Cascade Yarns Key Largo (discontinued)

35% superfine alpaca / 65% cotton

110 yds x 9 balls = 990 yds of burgundy goodness

Knit One Crochet Too Wick

Soy / other

2 balls (blue), 1 ball butter, + 1 ball mixed = 480 yds

would make a wonderful summer tank

Lion Brand Magic Stripes
wool / nylon
2 balls Denim stripes = 660 yds

Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock
80% superwash / 20% nylon
2 skeins Shadow = 430 yds

I absolutely love this the most. Like the rest of the yarn I received yesterday, they were all from trading my old knitting books for yarn. This yarn is one I have been wanting to try for years. I was so exciting to be getting it.

And then a tragedy occurred. My son opened the bag.... with scissors...

Oh the horror! Can you see it?

He managed to cut both skeins several times. Frustrating!

Still plan on using it. So I rolled the one with the most cuts into a ball last night to see the damage. He really did a number on it. I am just going to have a TON of loose ends to weave in when I use it!

destash, sigh, and greenery

2009-03-09T09:48:00.000-07:00

I have been destashing some of my knitting books over on ravelry for yarn. In this day of save, save, save, it is oh so important to be careful how our money is spent. What better way to save money than to trade!

I am going to be getting all kinds of yarn yumminess for these knitting books that (let's face it) are awesome, have beautiful pictures and are designed by some pretty outstanding women but are just collecting dust in my house. I would rather see them put to good use by someone else. So out with the old and in with some new yarn here in sneezerville.

These packages are off to as far away as England and as near as Tennessee.

Plus this means I get some more packages in the mail. I just love getting packages in the mail! It drives my husband crazy for some odd reason. He ought to be happy that I am saving money by trading things that I already have and have gotten good use out of for something new and useful. Instead of doing what a lot of his friends' wives do and just spend money left and right shopping for frivolties!!

In other news, mom's first sock is almost finished. I only have the picot edge to do and then I am off to the races on the other sock, which should just fly along considering that I now know what I am doing.

Project spectrum: some greenery
My students' desk chairs are green, so are the cabinets, shelves, lockers and desks at my school. Can you guess our school colors?

That's right, red and black!

Gone green and wanting

2009-03-04T06:34:00.000-08:00

We have gone green here at sneezerville in celebration of Project Spectrum!

Go to Assemblage's blog and check out her pants. I want a pair just like them! Sorry copyright and all, I can't show the pics. Just go look at them!

Project Spectrum: Earth

2009-03-04T04:52:00.000-08:00

Project Spectrum is kicking off now that it's March. This year's theme, The Cardinal directions. Green is the color du jour and I still have no green knits planned. But it's element is Earth.

Earth. Mother Earth.

What could be more motherly than homemade cinnamon layer biscuits courtesy of an old Martha Stewart recipe.

¡Deliciosos!

FO: Heartening

2009-03-02T05:05:00.000-08:00

Heartening photos finally.
Project: Heartening by Amblinglia
Started / Completed : 21 - 26 February 2009
Yarn : Alpaca with a Twist Highlander (color : Black Thorn)
Needles : US 8
Mods : one more repeat of cable pattern than required.
about 6 less stitches in the neck, short rowed the ribbing around the armholes

ERROR: again watch out for last row of cables in the chart there is an error

This was a super quick knit and I love the results. The length came out perfectly and I really dig the neckline. I short rowed the armholes to cut down on bulk under the arms. It worked out wonderfully. The armhole ribbing is about 2 inches at the shoulders and closer to a half inch under the arms. Thanks Amblinglia for a great pattern!

A February sweater and some mail

2009-02-26T06:19:00.000-08:00

Finally photos of my February Lady Sweater!

Buttons from Christmas button stash 2008.

It came out a little longer and thinner than I thought that it would be but really it is fine by me. I did have difficulty photographing myself in this. Every picture I took made me look pregnant. Weird, cause this one makes me look tall and skinny.

Here's the details:

Project : February Lady Sweater by Pamela Wynne

Started / completed : 1 -22 February 2009

Yarn : Dream in Color Classy (color : Nightwatch)

Needles : size 8

Buttons : metal from some store in Michigan

Overall very happy with this knit. The lace pattern seemed to take forever but the sleeves just flew along which helped. And I managed to finish the February sweater in February. Go me!

When I showed my husband this sweater he commented on me picking out sweaters that hang open. Well I hate to tell you hubby but I have one more sweater in the works that hangs open. Next up, the garter stitch swingy sweater.

Yesterday I got goodies in the mail! My order from Knit Picks. A new size 1 fixed circular needle with a 47" cable, a package of 47" cables and one of 60" cables, 7 balls of Comfy in Pomegranate for the garter stitch sweater and 8 balls of Shine Sport in Butter for a Runway Bolero.

The yarns are gorgeous and so springy especially the butter colored yarn. I can't wait to cast on with these. However the pomegranate Comfy has me a little worried. I was expecting a yarn that was a bit thicker. This stuff is pretty thin, just slightly thicker than the sport weight butter yarn. Hope that it works out with the size 9 needles the pattern calls for because I really liked this color for the sweater.

yummy yummies!

A note about the cables: If you have read a certain past entry you would have caught me ranting about the cables from knit picks. These cables feel completely different than the ones that I have. They are soft and more flexible. I really like them, I just hope they stick together a little better than the others.

I also got my first fat quarter from Sew, Mama, Sew!'s swap! How cool is that! This is a little bigger than the quarters that I sent out. I hope they don't mind. It has me a little worried now.

And my Heartening is almost finished. I just need to do the ribbing around the sleeve openings. So maybe some FO pictures of that tomorrow.

Swappin' fabric

2009-02-25T08:56:00.001-08:00

I signed up a my first swap EVER! Sew, Mama, Sew! is having a fat quarter fabric swap. So these lovely ladies below are heading out to parts unknown in Canada,Virginia and Arizona today.

purchased at JoAnn's Fabric

(the closest fabric store to me besides Wal-mart. CRINGE.)

I just hope that the ladies don't mind that I didn't keep their tags. I am anal about washing my fabric as soon as I get it and I am new to the whole "record what you have got" process that seems to go along with blogging. They are really nice soft cotton fabric and I really hate to part with that blue one on the right. But I will be getting some cool stuff in return, so it is all worth it.

hearts and swirls abound

2009-02-24T12:16:00.001-08:00

Sorry folks I fibbed, no FO shots of the Lady Sweater yet. I am waiting on some better light. But Heartening is coming along swimmingly. The pattern is written in such a way as to allow you to alter it easily and the yarn is one of my favorites, Alpaca with a Twist Highlander (tweedy and extremely soft).

Mods so far: I only decreased two times to get my waist shaping instead of the 4 that the pattern called for. Also I increased from the waist 3 times instead of 4.

My row gauge is off as well. I am going to get about 3 repeats of the cabling done instead of just two. Which is fine by me, it is looking great.

PROBLEM: There is an error in the cabling chart on the 18th row. The last two sets of cables are backward. So if anyone else is planning on making this keep that in mind.

It is turning out to be a rather quick knit. I can hopefully have this done and be wearing it next week. I was worried that it might take a bit to complete and that I would have to wait until next fall to wear this gorgeous thing.

the mum sock.

My mom's sock is coming along as well. I am nearing the gussett. We will see how that goes. If you are looking closely, the toe is different than the last shot of this. I didn't like the squareness of the other toe and the more I knit on it the more it bothered me. So rip it went. I am so glad that I did. This toe flows with the spirals so much better. It is the toe from the embossed leaves socks done in reverse with no purl bumps, just the increases. The end of the increases matches up perfectly with the start of the left slants of the spirals.

Mom is going to wear these to death as well. Hoorah!

A surprise from across the pond

2009-02-23T09:27:00.000-08:00

I have the best penpal in the world!
Her name is Anne and she is from England. We have been writing since we were kids, so about 20 years. Our letters are more infrequent now but we try. The whole snail mail thing is going my the wayside. But we keep puttering along. The other day I came home to find a package from her. And what a surprise... look what was inside.

It contained chocolates (not pictured because they were consumed in mass quantities over the weekend) and a magazine with free stitches markers.

The sweaters in this magazine are cute but I think that they made odd yarn choices; metallics and assorted pastels. Oh well, the articles were really interesting and it was cool to see what is "in" on the other side of the pond.

Free stitch markers!

Gratuitous wildlife shots taken by my hubby while sitting at the kitchen table.

Woody Woodpecker.

Rocky the leaping squirrel.

Tomorrow, finished shots of February Lady Sweater and progress photos of spiral socks and Heartening.

etsy favs

2009-02-20T05:46:00.000-08:00

The Love me 2 times Short Skirt/Dress by gaiaconceptions

Stretchy, versatile clothing.

ti leaf skirt in blue and grey by machinemachine

Love this! The top is a separate tubey thing from the skirt.

Random quilt.

(Sorry didn't catch the info before I clicked around.)

Layered skirt with scalloped hem by LoveToLoveYou

I love layered skirts. Note to self, start making some dumb dumb.

Little black coat by larimeloom

Unique, cozy, want it.

Asymetrical top by Treehouse28

Love what she does with t-shirt like material. I want one of everything she makes!!

All great designers of unique, versatile, comfy clothing! Check them out.

mom's socks

2009-02-19T04:30:00.000-08:00

My mother wears out handmade socks!!! Yeah! I think that my mom needs more socks for her birthday since she appreciates them so much. So I got on ravelry and bought what I thought was some Koigu. But it came in this bag.

Makes no never mind to me. The yarn is scrumpcious! I mean look at this stuff and it feels wonderful in the hands!

So of course I had to start the socks right away. I am basically using the Swirl sock pattern by Sulafaye. They were designed for DK weight yarn and size 4 needles. I am adopting the pattern for a size 1 needle and fingering weight yarn. So far I am going with 64 stitches for the sock. It may change once I try them on my mom. But I am going to get the swirl going before I let her try them on. So I may be ripping these if they don't work out and trying again. But I don't care I just had to get started!!

future knits

2009-02-18T09:18:00.000-08:00

Spring is getting nearer and nearer and what I am going to knit? Well I am going to finish my February Lady Sweater (I only have the sleeves left) and then try to squeeze in one more winter knit.

While searching for those perfect spring projects, I happened upon this in my queue. Upon further evaluation, I have yarn for this!!! So if all goes well it will be my last winter knit for this season. Or the first I finish next fall...??

Heartening by Amblinglia

My Alpaca with a Twist yarn that I have already used for Bella's Mittens and Hat should work perfectly!

For spring, some cotton goodies.

Runway Bolero by Robin Dodge

Plan on making this out of some Knit Picks Shine sport weight yarn in a yummy Butter color. No stripes. They just aren't me. I have been wanting to make this as a cover up for the one and only outfit that I wear to every wedding (and I have 2 so far this spring/summer).

Garter Stitch Swingy Sweater by Jenn Pellerin

Simple. Charming. Versatile.

Also bought some Knit Picks for this; Comfy in Pomegranate. It is a gorgeous color. I have no idea what I will wear with it but I just couldn't resist the color. Not to crazy about the fact that this yarn is 25% Acrylic, but it was cheap and again the COLOR.

The only problem with all of this planning, I didn't choose any colors that would go well with Project Spectrum, which I am participating in this year! The socks I have planned for my mom's birthday don't come close either. (That yummy goodness will appear tomorrow.)

HUH! I am supposed to be using GREEN for March and April. But none of the greens were jumping out at me, dammit! I will have to get creative with other green things I guess.

Also went back to the Zakka Pouch and moved the ribbon channel down like a wanted to do. You probably can't tell the difference but I can. To me, it looks so much better. Took a little of the length away.

Still think the base may need some blocking; probably this weekend.

One more glamour shot

Another FO : the Slouchy hat

2009-02-17T04:28:00.000-08:00

Wear loose and floppy.

Project : the Slouchy Hat by ME

started / completed : 10 - 13 February 2009

Yarn : 1 ball Caron Simply Soft Eco (in black)

1 ball Caron Simply Soft Eco (in purple)

Needle : US 5

After knitting to a length of 10.25 inches, I started decreases as follows:

knit 4 stitches, k2tog* repeat til 5 stitches remain knit 3, k2tog

knit 1 round

knit 2, k2tog* repeat til end of round

k2tog for remaining rounds til 5 stitches remain

run yarn through remaining stitches.

weave in ends.

OR.

Fold up the brim...

for a more fitted look!

Finally... the Zakka Pouch

2009-02-17T04:19:00.000-08:00

ok, so after hours of hand stitching and debating on whether I was putting it together right and how tall I wanted it to be, it is finally finished. I think that I am going to undo the top portion though. I want more pulled together at the top. So I am going stitch a new path for the ribbon further down.

Also the bottom looks deformed unless I shove the knitting down in there just so. Will blocking help tieh that. I hope so.

I am a little disappointed in this. But hopefully after I make a few little adjustments, I will really like it. It is going to be my new knitting bag, so I better get it just right since I will be looking at it everyday.

Project : Zakka Pouch by Black Dog Designs

started / completed : 8 - 15 February 2009

Fabric : Fat quarters from Joann's Fabrics

Yarn : Pisgah Yarn & Dyeing Co., Inc Peaches & Creme Solids (in Ecru)

Needles : US 8

Ribbon : brown ribbon (from Wal-mart)

The best parts : pockets and lots of space.

10 embarrassing things

2009-02-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

Thankfully not one of my embarrassing things!

Marie over at Permission to Unwind layed out some pretty embarrassing things for all to read, so I thought that I would join her. Here is my unofficially tagged meme:

1. I teach Spanish, but have never been to a Spanish speaking country.

2. I was a substitute teacher for my husband! He is 3 years younger. I was subbing to help pay for college. We did not date during that time; we only casually knew each other. We started dating about 5 years later! Please don't think of me as one of those horrible teachers that you see on the news.

3. I can never remember the year my husband and I were married, so whenever someone asks I have to studder around and try to do the math in my head.

4. One of my front teeth is noticeably longer than the others and still crooked even after 4years of braces as a teenager.

5. I once slipped up and said a curse word while teaching class!!! Very embarrassing. I am still waiting for that group of students to graduate.

6. I can't pronounce words in English that I have never heard someone else say aloud before.

7. I am the world's worst speller in English and a horrible typist.

8. I was once publically called a cheater for using the same book to write two very different papers in college. Super embarrassing! I had no idea at the time that it wasn't ok to do that. I will never forget it though. Gracias, Señora Merida.

9. I sing Christmas carols horribly off key and very loudly.

10. I have acne at age 32! I have to use Proactive every day. It sucks.

Anyone else want to let it all hang out??? Let Marie know when you do. It is only fair. She let it out first!

Print making and knitting, What could be better?

2009-02-11T09:03:00.000-08:00

Printing by Hand: A Modern Guide to Printing with Handmade Stamps, Stencils, and Silk Screens

I have been reading through this book for some time now. It explains the different techniques for painting on fabric. I was wanting to learn about silk screening. This technique seems to require a little more care and money than I care to put into printing at this time. But this book explains the process really well, so when I am ready....

Anyhoo, it does have great tips and explanations on stenciling with different materials, that are a little more up my alley, like freezer paper stenciling. This method is extremely simple and the supplies are readily available at low costs. Plus it comes with free stencil art in the back of the book for all the projects!

vine stenciled chair

stenciled quilt

an example of one of the designs

More about the hat:

Striping as begun and I can't seem to put it down. Watching the stripes appear is hypnotic.

I finished the ribbing. Next i did a knit round where I increased one stitch every 10 stitches. Next, I switched to the purple yarn. I knit 6 rounds of the purple, switched to black for 3 rounds, and then increased one stitch every 10 stitches on the next round. Continued with black for 2 more rounds.

So stripes are basically 6 rounds for each color. Plan on keeping this amount of stitches until I have 10.25 inches of hat. Then the decreases.

Projects and projects and more projects

2009-02-10T09:10:00.000-08:00

This came yesterday causing me to drool and wish and dream of spring knits. Then it made me sad because I probably won't be buying much out of it. But there are some great looking yarns at some great looking prices in here. ¡Qué lastima! (Too bad!)

So I am a sucker. I really want to finish my February Lady Sweater before the end of February, but I took on yet another project. I was asked to make a slouchy hat for someone, which I agreed to do if they provided the yarn. So the very next day, said person arrives with yarn. I was really hoping for some time but since I can't turn down a real request, since they are few and far between, I jumped right in.

Here is the progress so far.

Cast on 104 stitches on supposedly size 7 circs (I think they are really like size 5!) and am knitting 2 x 2 ribbing for 3.5 inches. Then I am going to add about 10 stitches (probably) and knit stockinette black and purple stripes til I get about 10.25 inches. Then I will decide on my decreases. We will have to see how this goes. I plan on knitting on this during movies or zone out times, while still trying to get in plenty of time to finish sweater and possibly, the zakka pouch that is waiting to be put together.

Sweater so far!

anticipation

2009-02-09T07:29:00.000-08:00

Float Stole by Melinda C. Hunt (Spring 2009, Interweave Knits)

I have been pretty disappointed with the designs in the Interweave Knits magazine for the past few copies. I love Eunny Jang and was really hoping that with her in charge, I was going to see all kinds of coool knits that I just can't live without. Not the case, again to my disappointment. But it might be worth getting ahold of the spring issue just to have the pattern to the Float Stole. I think that it is absolutely gorgeous.

This week end I was flipping (literally, flipping, I don't really read this mag) through the lasted edition of Entertainment Weekly and saw this article about the Bella Mittens. I thought that maybe it was going to be about the ravelry pattern floating around out there, but no. This is an article about how to get ahold of your own pair from the original British knitwear designer, Ruth Cross for ONLY $80. Wow! I made mine for about $15.oo! I feel like I have saved an enormous about of money. (Pat on my back.) The only difference, that I saw between the ones that I made and these, was the palm side of the mitten seems to have a different pattern, instead of plan stockinette.

Parts on pieces to what will soon be my new knitting bag, the zakka pouch.

comments

2009-02-07T07:54:00.000-08:00

thanks to the few people who have left comments on my blog so far. once i figure out how to reply, i will give you a personal thank you. it means a lot to get any kind of feedback on what i post here. i have wanted a blog for so long and it is finally a reality and i just want you all to know that your comments REALLY mean a lot to me. again, a big thank you! the crafting community online rocks!

mending

2009-02-06T07:36:00.000-08:00

remember this mess? well it is now this...

basically i made a patch for it.

i looked at a video on how to darn a sock, but i just didn't think that it would work well considering the damage. so i took some yarn and went around the edge of the hole picking up loose stitching and securing those that weren't loose. then i knit an 8 st by 1.5 inch patch, placed it over the patch and mattress stitched it down. it is a little bumpy on the inside from the mattress stitching but my mom says it feels fine and she is joyously happy to have her warm socks back.

ok, mom. love you! and you are definitely getting more socks for your birthday!

crappy cheap yarn from walmart for zakka pouch. it's peaches 'n' cream 4ply cotton in cream. it will go great with the fabric that i plan on using. and i really don't mind that it's cheap. or that it came from walmart. also picked up the winter Vogue knitting because i just had to read the article about Jared Flood. he is such an awesome knitwear designer. and if you have never seen his blog, you definitely need to head there now!

s n e e z e r v i l l e

it's official

a new home???

frustrating

can you see...

more christmas presents

Christmas sewing

Coin purses and a baby sewing machine

Another round: Christmas gift ideas/tutorials

christmas present galore!

Even more Christmas ideas/tutorials

Projects! Projects! Projects!

more christmas gift tutorial ideas

Christmas idea tutorials

a last minute addition

baby shower gifts

Everybody is Doing It why not me?

addiction / obsession

last day for the giveaway

more for the giveaway

GIVEAWAY: 100th post!!!!

giveaway coming and an FO

goodies from recycling

what i am up to and what i want to be up to

more goodies

loads of alpaca

Bliss is Blissful

last weekend

Mobius

thrifting...

Finally...pics!

forgetting

musings

yarn and things

what to do?

more

info

another update

Grosgrain: 20 Minute Simple Skirt Tutorial AND GIVEAWAY!!!!

new things

big update coming...

having fun

sadness

goings on since the giveaway

question

And the winners are....

more about the giveaway

GIVEAWAY DAY!

spinning

artwork

OMG i hope that my husband doesn't kill me...

Project Spectrum : East to work

Project Spectrum : yellow

mark your calendars!

sanity

my redneck weekend

fluffy goodness

cookies and HELP!

cheap clothes

more spinning and a new friend

what i've been up to

roving

While I was sick...

wondering

Project Spectrum : Green

roving

Goodies

Happy 33rd Birthday to me!

more yarn

a new knit ring

Burb clothes

Baby shoes and other goodies

mom's socks

I WON!

Project Spectrum : North

A GIVEAWAY

More goodies rolling in or I love the mailwoman

Project Spectrum: yarn porn

More yarn porn

Project Spectrum : Rocks