Since I’ve been gone……

September! I haven’t posted since September! This has been a very busy couple of months, and the time just flew by. I figured I would catch up by posting a bunch of things this week, before I forget everything.

First order of old business:

I went to two Fiber Festivals, Shenandoah Valley and Rhinebeck. The first, Shenandoah, was a small festival held in Virginia, just a short drive out of D.C. It was my first time going to one of these things, and it was kind of like your first time visiting a good yarn shop- totally overwhelmingly awesome. I took the kids and they did great. I took my camera and it did terribly- the battery was D.O.A. Oh well, life happens.

My first order of business was to find Kate and her Gourmet Stash Punis. So I got some, in the “Van Gogh’s Paintbox” Colorway.  Next we wandered a bit, and found all kinds of fibery awesomeness. First there were the ladies spinning angora, directly from the bunnies. I didn’t know you could do that, and I found myself wanting one of these bunnies- so soft. There was also a sheepdog demonstration, and a barn full of animals to visit. Before leaving, I scooped up a cool trindle, and a skein of sock yarn from Dragonfly Fibers, a small art batt and sparkle sock yarn from Puff the Magic Rabbit, and some wool from a small farm in VA which I do not know the name (no tags!).

  

Up next was Rhinebeck, a huge fiber festival in Rhinebeck, NY. This time I did not take the kids, and I am glad I did not. They would not have fared well. The drive was long, parking was horrendous, and the grounds were overflowing with people. That all being said, I had a lot of fun. I met up with my girl Vanessa from Vintage Rose Knittique and I made some great new friends. There was a lot of yarn to look at, and I scooped up a fun mostly purple sparkle Loop Batt, along with some Jill Draper Makes Stuff worsted yarn for my awesome babysitter. But overall, I did not find the same small shops/farm sellers. Most everything was stuff you can get online, but it was still nice to be able to squish all the things. I think if I do bother to go back to Rhinebeck, it will be to meet up with friends and podcasters again, and I need to have some sort of shopping plan. The beautiful fall colors and the food was incredible though, I could have sat on the Ravelry hill all day and just people watched and knit and ate!

http://suburbanstitcher.com/ http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheKnottedBag http://www.etsy.com/shop/KirbywirbyYarns

http://knitspinfarm.blogspot.com/

http://www.etsy.com/shop/VintageRoseKnittique

http://www.knittinggo.com/

http://www.kreyoli.com/craftstash/

Art Yarn at Loop!

My Socks have a photo op on the hill! Totally appropriate here.

Please if you don’t already know these awesome podcasters and shops, go check them out! I can’t wait for the Maryland Sheep and Wool festival coming up- it is going to be awesome! This time I’m taking my husband and the kids- wish me luck- haha.

Finished Objects: Baby Cardigans

This week I finished not one, but two baby cardigans! I am actually still working on a third and am formulating yarn/pattern combinations for a fourth, but I couldn’t wait to show these two off.

First up, on the left, is the Province Baby Cardigan, a free pattern you can find on Ravelry, designed by Cecily MacDonald. This cardigan was constructed in pieces, and I learned quite a bit about seaming and patience on this one. So many ends to weave in! But I absolutely love how it turned out, especially with the little cabled detail on the front.

The sweater to the right is the Puerperium Cardigan, also on Ravelry, by Kelly Booker. This pattern was much simpler, as it is seamless, and made for a quick knit. It did take me a while to finally sew on all 7 little buttons. This one has no home yet, as it was intended for a little guy who I thought wasn’t due until fall but was actually a summer baby. Being a newborn sweater, he has certainly outgrown it already so I will be casting on a larger size.

Both of these garments were knit with Caron Spa bamboo/acrylic blend yarn. I wanted to use something the new moms could wash easily. It was a splitty yarn, but I got over it because the fabric really is quite soft, and just a bit shiny. They discontinued this yarn so it is on mega sale at the craft store right now….might have to go pick up some more before its gone.

The best part about knitting all these different baby sized sweaters is that each one has been constructed differently. I got to practice a set-in sleeve and raglan sleeves, top done and bottom up, button bands and seaming, all without the huge commitment of a adult size sweater. I currently have two possible Rhinebeck sweaters on the needles, and I feel so much better going forward with those after all this practice.

Drop Spindling: Why not?

A while back I ordered a drop spindle and spun the little sample of fiber that came with it. Ugh what a mess. But I was hooked, and ordered some wool roving from knitpicks. When it came in the mail, initially I was all “it’s so FLUFFY!” But then, the realization……it took several hours to spin the little sample of wool, how long is this going to take! So I set it aside to work on some baby cardigans. (Another post)
Well it was staring at me all week so I picked it up, petted it, and started pre-drafting some of it. Then it fell onto my spindle, and oh how many times did that spindle hit the floor? I lost count. For some reason I found it easier to spin a fairly consistent thin yarn than a thicker yarn, I’d say for the most part my singles were about fingering weight, although it is not really all that consistent.

And yes, it took for.ev.er, but I can’t tell you how calming it is. It’s mesmerizing really I have no idea how to describe spinning. Even the kids would come in and stare, lulled by the fluid motion or something, idk. In the end, it went quicker than I expected and I was soon plying my thinner yarns together into a thicker yarn. That itself took hours, and I think would be more fun if I had a multicolored yarn….this was just purple, and more purple….no fun color mixing. Next time. Late last night, I soaked the yarn, which scared the crap outta me. I hand wash all my knits, but this was a nail biter, I kept thinking please don’t felt up! I told my yarn, please don’t turn into a big tangled, felted mess! (I told you, it was late)
This morning I ran downstairs like a kid at Christmas. I couldn’t wait to squish it!

I wish I could show you pictures using a real camera. I need a new memory card reader so we are stuck with iPad pictures but hey, I couldn’t wait.
The final skein is just over 104 yards of handspun 2-ply yarn. I don’t know what to classify the weight as, overall it’s like a worsted in most places. I planned to make a cowl or something but really, all I want to do is frame it and put it up on the wall for everyone to see….I made my own yarn with a stick and sheep fur! HELLO GORGEOUS!

My back is sore, my fingers are calloused, and I can barely lift my right arm today, but it is so worth it. I don’t think I’ve quite had this much of a sense of accomplishment with my fiberey art in a while. But I have concluded that in order to produce any useful quantity I will need a wheel.

Pinterest Win! Teacup Candles

This little project was done during a “Pinterest Party” I held a while back. That was a fun party, hoping to do a fall themed one soon. (I will start a Fall pinterest party board…check me out there as Bekhiann) If you have been on Pinterest looking for cute crafty things, you have probably come across some teacups repurposed into candles. This is not a new idea, I know, but I am sharing with you because they are just so darn cute, and simple to make- which is part of my crafting mantra if you haven’t noticed by the title of this blog.

The first thing is to collect your teacups. I find them randomly at thrift stores, sometimes they are lonely single little teacups, sometimes I can score a whole set. This was my first attempt at making candles, and I was glad to have a friend around at the party who is a pro, and had some tips:

1. Use a thermometer- never exceed the temperature recommended by the wax manufacturer, and melt the wax very, very slowly (I used a double boiler) Apparently, wax will actually start on fire if it gets too hot, too quickly. I chose wax that was already dyed and scented, but there is no end to color/scent choices out there.

2. Use a pencil, skewer, anything that you can lay across the top of your teacup and wrap the tip of your wick around the skewer so it stays sticking straight up. (Brilliant, I would have never thought of that)

3. When filling your teacup, leave some room at the top and allow to set/cool just a little bit. You will notice a little ditch in the center, around the wick. When it is cooled enough, pour just one more splotch of melted wax into this ditch for a nice, flat topped candle.
3. Everything that touches the wax must never be used to make food again. So choose your tools wisely, maybe from a thrift store or garage sale.
4. Light your candle and enjoy your handiwork!

Finished Object: Kernel Scarf

Ok, wow this project took me forever. I started it well over a year ago and put it down because I kept screwing up the lace. See this previous post for more backstory. I blocked it this week, and subsequently ordered some blocking wires. It is next to impossible to block lace too much while keeping a straight line using only pins. And I used a lot of pins.

Anyways, more pictures:

The lace just looks fabulous now that it is blocked, no more scrunchie ball of who knows what. This is also my first time beading a project, which looks lovely but the beads I chose were so close in color to the yarn that you really can’t tell they are there until you are up close. This has been one of the most challenging pieces I have done so far (I feel) and I am pretty proud of it!

WIP Wednesday

I almost forgot to post my Wednesday WIP! Anyways, I am deviating quite a bit my normal selection of knitting patterns, I looked at my yarn stash and realized I have so much acrylic that I hardly ever use anymore and thought it was time to bust through some of it. I let my daughter go on Ravelry and select a pattern for her American Girl dolls, and she selected this empire waist dress and some purple acrylic from the dollar store (no brand). I love the bluebells lace stitch, I already have it memorized and plan on using it as an edging for some cotton hand towels or something later. I cast on tonight and have gotten 3 repeats completed while catching up on some of my favorite podcasts. This one is going to go quickly.

In other news, I was “random act of pattern-ed” on Ravelry this week which really made my day. The Delancy Cardigan- which is a super cute chevron cardi. I am hoping to do it in grey and turquoise and I just have to find the yarn…and pay the kindness forward to someone. So hard to choose!

Finished Objects: Tayberry Hat

Ok, when in your knitting career do you finally start to really visualize a knitted item from reading the pattern? Because I should have noticed by the fact there are no decreases in this hat pattern, that it would not be rounded at the top. It is literally a square hat, how strange. Anyways the pattern/yarn deets can be found on my last WIP post This knit up quickly however I did find myself having to tink back many times for missing a stitch here or there.

The bind off at the top was a three-needle bind off, super easy, but I wish I would have tried to figure out a way to bind off the top in an x-shape instead of straight across. I might still take it apart and figure that out but I doubt it.

I tried to take some selfies wearing the hat, but I am missing a piece of my tripod so I rigged up a plant stand, then I couldn’t get myself in the right spot for the focus. I need to work on it, or teach the kids how to do it, or put it back in auto focus. I have this one picture in focus but I think you can sense my displeasure with both the hat and my camera setup. Either way, I am a little happier because I realize how well the colors match my favorite coat. I hadn’t even thought of that when I purchased the yarn.

Now when I have complete control of my camera:

It’s a tiny bit big on my little man, but who cares! He’s cute!

WIP Wednesday

Just a super quick post to share my wednesday work in progress! This week I cast on the Teaberry Hat.

It’s been frogged a handful of times, because I had a hard time paying attention to the pattern, but it is starting to come along nicely. I am using the super soft Kenzie by Hikoo, which is a blend of merino, nylon, angora, and alpaca. It comes in a whole bunch of colors and I chose to work with this navy and green. Hopefully it will be done this week.

Finished Objects: Mairi Shawl

Somehow I finished this shawl while on vacation. I featured it in the beginning stages back on this post, and I actually blocked it when I got home this weekend, and just wove in my ends. It is done! I am really surprised at myself for being so speedy, although to be fair there was a lot of garter stitch and I had a lot of airplane time to work uninterrupted. So here she is:

It turned out beautifully, and I love this yarn! I didn’t have the tag when I posted before -found it- this is from Nerd Girl Yarns Who’s Your Doctor yarn club (sent to me in a swap) and the colorway is “Like a Cloud of Mist” I have to get more Nerd Girl Alpaca. Have to.

While this was blocking I knitted up a quick newborn hat with the remaining scrap yarn for my good friend’s new baby boy. He posted a picture of it on baby’s head literally a few seconds after I left their house. How’s that for knit-worthy!

Dusting off the sewing machine- Project Bag

Today was kind of a lazy day in this house, I slept in, did a little bit of cleaning, Skype’d with my husband, and broke out the sewing machine! I decided I needed a project bag because the two I have are just not enough lately, I seem to be having a hard time staying monogamous with my WIP’s. I loved some of the bags I saw in Seattle, even purchased the one larger bag I mentioned in an earlier post, but I have a really hard time justifying purchasing simple project bags that I could make myself so much cheaper.

I used the same pattern from my first bag, and the same basic steps to finish it. This time, I used fat quarters and failed to pay attention to the instructions, “cut 2 of each color” which were clearly written on my pattern.
So I had to pull out another set of fat quarters and I actually kind of like the chaos of so many different fabrics. I also made an interior pocket to hold notions.

For the outside, I found some cute cheetah print velvet ribbon which I overlaid unto a strip of the bright red fabric and used a zigzag stich for just a little extra somethin’ somethin’.

All in all, I am really happy with how this one turned out! At a dollar per fat quarter, and some change for the ribbon and thread, this bag cost less than $5 to make. I am really digging this pattern- I like the tied top because I can just tie it to my pursehandle for easy transport, or hang it from a chair in public to hold the yarn while I knit. If you have made any project bags what are your favorite patterns? I would love to check them out- I don’t want my sewing machine to get too dusty again.