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

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

new things

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...

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

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

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

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

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....

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!!! #$%$@##%$$^#%%$