Felted argyle hoodie

I have been saving the green argyle sweater for just the right project. It was just a little felted when I bought it at the thrift store, a little too small for me to wear as it was but just right for a sweater-collage. I think it's been sitting on my shelf for about a month, waiting for the right supporting sweaters to come along and inspire me. Yesterday, finally, I had the time, the inclination, and just the right materials to forge onward.

It's made entirely of felted lambswool sweaters (except the hood, which is cashmere), hand sewn with Persian wool yarn. The body of the sweater took me one day to complete; the hood took me another half-day. In all, I used four sweaters and have a fair number of scraps to be used, probably, in a wool blanket.

The hood was the hardest part to do because I had to draft a pattern, and my initial pattern was entirely too large; I had to un-sew my first hood, cut it down and re-sew it to fit my head. Then sewing it into the V-necked sweater was challenging, and when the hood is up it doesn't look particularly graceful. It doesn't look bad, but it could look better. It is unbelievably cozy and soft, though, so I'm leaving it in place and I will definitely use it.

I love this project because it is such an easy way to obtain a sweater that is just the right size and shape for my body, in a color and pattern that I love. I will be interested to see what other people's reactions are when I wear the sweater in public -- will they like it, or think it's curious, or shake their heads and smile at crafty Jennifer? I'll wear it anyway, because I like it, but we shall see.

Flower power

So I needed some new pajama pants. I liked the ones I had made but it was hard to keep them ironed for everyday wear, and then they didn't fit quite the way I wanted them to. Their official name is "Pajamas for Everyone" in Heather Ross's Weekend Sewing, but they really don't seem to be for people with hips or much of a waist, so I decided to try out a simple alteration.

All I did was extend the waist length by a couple of inches and adjust the legs accordingly, but it did the trick. I now have two very loud pairs of Pajamas for Me, and I expect to make many more as the days get cooler and I start pulling out the pretty flannels I have stashed away in the closet. Hooray for successful experiments!

Blast from the past

Last Saturday we were thrifting at the Re-Uzit Shop in New Holland, PA and I happened upon a wonderful basic sewing tome from the late sixties:

It was in perfect condition; I got it for $2, which I consider a steal when you note the original $7.95 price tag on the jacket. Love the back cover!

The thing looked strangely familiar to me, and I wasn't sure why till I got it to the car and had a chance to browse a bit. I realized when I saw the page below -- my favorite as a child -- that it is the exact same sewing book my mother kept next to her machine all the years I was growing up!

So -- a little bit of alchemy going on in the hills of Pennsylvania. Not bad.

The Saturday sweater

Here is the "cobbled together" sweater I talked about in my last post. The blueprint for it comes from Crispina ffrench's The Sweater Chop Shop: Sewing One-of-a-Kind Creations from Recycled Sweaters. It comes from the best parts of three huge felted sweaters and is melty-soft and big enough for me to swim in and warm enough to sleep in on a frigid winter night. I love it.

True, the colors don't move me that much, but they'll look good with jeans and with my gray sweats, and what else do I wear on Saturday? I saved the pretty-pretty sweaters for later projects, when I have more experience "cobbling." Soon I hope you'll see zip-cardigans and hoodies and kangaroo pockets and more. And it's all hand-sewn! Amazing!

In the works

I have way, way, way too many projects in the works these days, and I have been admonished several times by my daughter to stop buying new craft supplies until I have used up some of my existing ones. I have only been bringing home thrifted/foraged/secondhand materials with the exception of some wool sewing yarn, but it does add up.

So this weekend I finished two felted wool baby blankets, which I plan to send to a therapist friend who treats women with postpartum depression and likes to give handmade gifts to her patients who deliver. I hope she likes them, because I could happily supply her with many more! I'll tuck a few cashmere bunnies in the package for good measure.

Projects I'm working on include:

• A hand-sewn felted wool blanket done in 5" squares, truly beautiful!
• A "cobbled" felted wool pullover sweater -- more on this later
• A huge tied quilt made entirely of thrifted pillowcases and backed with a thrifted bedsheet
• Finishing up the second edition of the beach blanket
• A new pattern for pajama pants that I hope will fit me better but that I'm a little afraid of
• My alpaca sweater
• Various things I won't mention because they're perpetual works in progress

Not to mention trying to keep the mess in order and finish decorating!

Beach Blanket Botch

Well. It seems I have made another cat bed. This one competes in popularity with the ridiculous pink wool messenger bed I made earlier in the summer.

What you see here is the back of my Beach-Blanket-To-Go, my first attempt at a project from Amanda Blake Soule's Handmade Home, a book whose release I've been eagerly awaiting for nearly a year now. It's full of intriguing possibilities, and the beach blanket looked like a no-brainer to this moderately experienced crafter/sewer. Frankly, I'm perplexed as to what went wrong, but the layers went lumpy and the binding got twisted somehow and the whole thing just looks wrong.

I have some ideas for things to try differently in attempt #2, including making my own binding instead of using purchased bias binding, and trimming the edges after machine basting the layers together so the binding goes on evenly. We'll see how it goes. I'm not completely discouraged, but I am sad that I won't have a blanket made with my pretty gold chenille bedspread that I found while antiquing with D last weekend.

Well. Chalk it up to experience and give it another go.

In the morning kitchen

I love cake for breakfast, almost as much as I love pizza for breakfast. Leftover birthday cake is the best, but any cake will do, even if I have to bake it myself. This morning we had Lemon Glazed Poppy-Seed Cake, a variation on the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book Busy Day Cake recipe that I conjured up. It was so quick and easy and D rated it thumbs-up so I'll put it here in case anyone's interested and so I'll remember what I did.

I've rarely been in a kitchen that didn't have some edition of the BHG cook book in it, so I won't post the whole recipe. All I did was add about a teaspoon and a half of poppy seeds (I think I would go for the whole tablespoon next time) and make a glaze out of 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tbsp. vanilla and 3 tbsp. lemon juice -- which was actually thicker than glaze consistency, It was more like paste; I thought it would melt more when I put it on the hot cake but it tore the cake instead, so 4 tbsp. lemon juice next time. We let it cool down for half an hour and dug in.

Quite tasty. Not gourmet, mind you, but it took all of 10 minutes to mix up and 30 minutes to cook and used 1 bowl (well, 2 if you count the glaze.) And we had cake for breakfast.

My sewing stool

So I was walking past Philips Furniture in town this afternoon and instinct told me to cross the street before I came to his outdoor display -- invariably when I take the time to scan his offerings I find at least one that comes home with me -- but I thought no, there's nothing I need, I won't find anything. Then of course I saw something I needed. Desperately. For real. On Sale.

Here's my new sewing stool. It is just the right height for me and has a nice low back so I can take stretch-breaks without leaving my chair. I love the green vinyl seat and the fact that it opens up for extra storage. And since I had been sitting on my (albeit sturdy) side table I can now reclaim that piece of furniture and have a cup of tea by my side when I am reading or hand-sewing in my comfy chair.

Note how the avocado green coordinates with my Aunt Anne's vintage knitting basket in the corner. Does it get any better than this? I never thought I'd find the perfect sewing seat, but it's like this was made for my body. I love it!

Where do you sit when you craft or sew? What would you like to fall over when you're walking down the street that would make your crafting more pleasurable or productive?

Happy Birthday, G.G.!

I made my grandmother a silk shantung Bias Blossom pin from Cynthia Treen's Last Minute Fabric Gifts to celebrate her 90th birthday. "This is different," she told me when she opened the box. But she wore it all day just the same. And everywhere we went, I got to tell everyone that she was my grandmother and that today she was Ninety.

I made her a memory board instead of giving her a card. I was a little worried that she wouldn't like it, that she would think it was weird or different, but she was immensely pleased with it and became very concerned about finding a proper way to display it in her home. Taking a photograph of the whole thing did not seem right somehow, but I did snap a few snippets of it. Here are two:

This photograph has been a favorite of mine for nearly twenty years, possibly because I compiled the album G.G. is browsing through while she sits in the rocker in my parents' dining room. It's full of faded snapshots from the Seventies, and the colors of orange, brown and green seem to dominate. The person you can't see in the photo is my great-aunt, another extremely special person in my life, for whom my brand new niece was named.

This one was taken on a sunny but frigid winter day not long after my daughter was born, and it will always be a treasure to me. There are other photographs from that day of me playing joyfully with my child, and of my mother and my great-aunt holding her, but the series of G.G. talking with her namesake and becoming her great-grandmother is most meaningful to me.

So happy Nintieth, G.G.! You are strong and funny and sharp and capable, and you have always done well in this world. I am proud to be your granddaughter.

Working glimpse

Here are a few more peeks into my studio. I'm hard at work in here, really!

My computer workstation needs a bit of work to become functional -- I have to face the fact that my studio will also be a small home office for dealing with financial matters and general paperwork, and I'll have to allocate some space for that. Hopefully the cabinet in my secretary desk will hold most of that, with maybe a file cabinet to replace the plastic crates we've been using to file papers in since we were in college. Not my favorite part of sprucing up the place, but a definite necessity.


Over by the window, my comfy chair, which I very rarely sit in as it's usually covered in whatever projects I'm working on at the moment. Now that I'm right next door to the washer and dryer, I can be felting sweaters and pre-washing fabric while I'm ironing, cutting out quilting squares and sewing patchwork pieces together. It's a dream come true! And I do love to se eall of my favorite books on the shelves behind the chair -- they are so decorative as well as functional.

Here's the picture I promised of the finished Felted Wool Baby Blanket on the back of the comfy chair. I like it better as I look at it more, and I think I can learn to live with imperfection. When I get frustrated I need to remind myself that I haven't taken lessons, I've only been sewing for a short while, and I will get the hang of it in time. I feel like it's important for me to continue to be fearless and keep trying new things, because that's how I will learn -- and I am learning, and how exciting it is!

Felted wool baby blanket

Where does the time go? I've been sewing up a storm and have many projects to show you, some of which are in the washing machine right now so can't be photographed, but here's the latest sort-of triumph: A felted wool baby blanket with a soft fluffy flannel backing, another project from Betz White's Warm Fuzzies. Here's a picture of the work in progress, where I'm trying to decide which color thread to use for embellishment. (In case you were wondering, I went with the blue. It's a little hard to see in the picture of the finished product, which I will feature on the next entry.

I really like the color combination, but I was unhappy with the finishing touches, not shown here. The edge-stitching looks relatively even on the front, but messy on the back, which happens to me a lot in projects like this, and I just can't seem to figure out how to fix this problem. I think possibly I rush too much at the end because I'm so excited to see the project finished, and that taking my time would result in a neater completion.

Anyway, the cat likes it, and it's soft enough and fluffy enough that perhaps some baby will too.

Inaugural project: a felted poncho

This design comes from Betz White's Warm Fuzzies, a book devoted to projects made from felted recycled sweaters. K has been begging for a poncho ever since she opened the volume, and this one seemed to suit her need for bright color, warmth and softness -- the solid bits are made from sweaters with a hefty portion of angora to them, which I hadn't been aware would felt but which in fact worked themselves into a heavenly, fuzzy material that was a delight to work with. I made a size 7/8, which is a little big for K right now, but the way she's growing it will be perfect for the spring.

Welcome to my studio

Here's a shot of my newly-realigned shelves, with my quilting fabric arranged on them just so.  I'm amazed that the cats have not attempted to nest in there, but they seem content to laze on the woolen carpet or loll on the shelves I haven't quite finished filling.  More photos to come as the moving-in and decorating progress.

Short entry

Alas, I am having to start my sweater over because of some careless unraveling.

In better news, I am almost entirely moved into my studio and it is a dream come true.  Pictures as soon as I relocate my camera.

Mishmash: Topsy Turvy House Edition

The house has been turned upside-down for a week and a half now, as we did the painting, put up the shelves (which have a definite list to them and need to be re-leveled) and shampooed the rug in the studio.  I learned how to use a roller and a socket wrench and the carpet steamer.  I discovered how incredibly grimy the rest of the house is.  I bought a carpet and thought about lighting and tried not to make any new messes.

In the process I have been working on my sweater.  I bought the Addi Turbo knitting needles and fell in love.  They are just as good as Aunt Mary's teflon needles, if not better.  I finished the body and started work on the armholes.  Found that knitting back and forth on circular needles is not an intuitively obvious process.  Ripped out stitches, started again, figured it out.  This will very clearly be a "learning" sweater (to say nothing of the stretchiness of the alpaca, which is going to render the thing virtually shapeless) but that's okay.  It's designed to be a "Saturday" sweater anyway, and it will be well loved.  I can't wait to wear it.  (But I'll have to, because it's going to be a mighty cold day before it'll be chilly enough to be comfortable in all that wooly warmth.)

I love knitting!  I love painting!  I love socket wrenches!

My Hero

The amazing K-Cat takes time out from her busy schedule saving the world to pose for some photos:

Her cape is made from pink taffeta and yellow cotton (her choices) and her super power is the ability to claw through the heart of any villain. Her sidekick (not shown here) is Wonder Dog Deebo, who can howl so loudly that no villain can stand to be within earshot of him.

Things I learned from this project:

• How to sew with shiny, slippery fabric
• That I can really, truly do applique
• How to sew on velcro
• How NOT to sew on velcro
• That it is REALLY important to read ALL THE WORDS in the instructions BEFORE starting to sew

Seriously, it was Dress Like a Superhero Day at camp today and K wanted to make up her own superhero, so we had some fun with it. She's been feeling sort of apprehensive about going to camp, but she had no trouble letting me leave her there today after the ooh's and ahh's over her fancy-schmancy outfit. I hope she's having a fantastic day!

We painted the studio!

This week my mother-in-law very generously donated her time to help me move everything out of my studio and paint it a beautiful bright clean white. I'm so pleased with it! Now I have my work cut out for me. I need to:

• Consider putting in a carpet remnant to protect the beige carpeting that's already in there
• Wash the windows
• Purchase and put together shelving for the closet
• Determine which furniture I want to put back in the room and where I want to put it
• Do a final clearing out of craft supplies I don't want to use.

On top of which, K needs a superhero costume for camp TOMORROW and I haven't even started on it. I'm using this tutorial to make her a cape, which I think is adorable and I hope she will too. I need to go pick her up soon and take her to the fabric store so she can pick out the stuff she wants it made from. Should be a fun, if somewhat rushed, job to do.

Progress

Here's the progress I've made on my sweater so far:

I'm about halfway done the body.  I'm still worried that it won't fit, but I'm soldiering on.

I definitely do not like these bamboo circular needles.  It is very hard to get the stitches to slide around on them evenly to get any kind of speed -- I have to keep stopping to coax the stitches along.  I am going to try out some Addi Turbo knitting needles and see if I like them better.  I've heard good things about them from more than one person.

Of course, I'm poring over knitting patterns galore and I've found an adorable pattern for angora booties that I want to try for my niece-to-be.  I think I could make them this week before I drive up to (hopefully!) greet her next weekend, if I worked hard.  As D and K would say, "Just keep knitting, just keep knitting!"

Giving it a go

I spent most of the week practice-knitting with my wool-cotton on Aunt Mary's size-6 teflon-coated knitting needles, and I am now totally spoiled for them.  Such lovely slipperiness!  But I was not particularly enthralled by the project and wanted badly to get on to my sweater.

I ran out to Minocqua on Tuesday to the Knitting Nook where a lovely woman helped me choose some chunky baby alpaca yarn (believe it or not, the cheapest of all the yarns we looked at) and worked up some gauge swatches that evening.  I had picked up Debbie Stoller's Stitch and Bitch on Sarah's recommendation and spent some time looking at it to figure out what tools I would need to buy and what techniques I would need to use to work the sweater, and I asked Mary some questions too.

D, K and I set out for home on Wednesday morning.  Around lunchtime we drove into Escanaba, MI, and found a little shop called the Yarn Barn where I bought my size 13 circular needles, double-pointed needles, stitch holders and other doodads, along with some quilting material, vintage fabric and eyelet curtains.  The lady there (who runs an antique shop side by side with the yarn store) had a magnificent rocking horse that was big enough for big five-year-old K to ride!  I'm glad she didn't notice it.  I tore myself away from the store and started casting on.  And I knit.

Forty minutes later I realized that little twist in the fabric wasn't going to "work itself out."  I ripped out, cast on, ripped out again.  Got really good at casting on.  I think it took me four or five tries before I got the stitches cast on and knit the first round without twisting them.  Then the alpaca fur started flying thick and fast. I guess I've knitted up about six inches worth of sweater by now, which seems like a lot to me.  The stitches aren't perfectly even, but there aren't any dropped ones, either.  I think it will be a nice first project.  (Okay, second.  The first was an orange garter stitch scarf in Homespun yarn that I like a lot but that sheds all over my black pea coat.)

I only hope the darn thing fits.  I measured myself, I checked the gauge, I checked it again, I bought yarn accordingly, I'm hoping for the best.

I've been looking at the sites you folks have recommended and there's so much to see!  Thank you for all of your helpful suggestions!  Now I have one other question for you:

Other than teflon needles (oh my heavens, they're wonderful!), what are your favorite tricks/techniques that help you knit a little faster?

Knitting!

So I'm learning how to knit.  I was looking for something to do on the plane trip out here to Rhinelander (we're visiting D's relatives) and the obvious answer was to finish one of the umpty-million crochet projects I have started but never finished.  But I have changed so much since I started those projects.

For one thing, they are all afghans.  I do not care if I never see another afghan as long as I live.  I have made enough of them.  I need to move on to more interesting and challenging projects.  I suppose I could take on more complicated afghan patterns, but none of them cry out, "Commit to me for the next three months of your life!"  I really just need something different to do.

For another thing, they are all made with acrylic yarn.  All of them.  And I am so not into man-made fibers these days.  Give me cotton, wool, alpaca, angora.  Something that feels soft, has a nice hand, a good drape.  If I'm going to be working with a material for a long time, if I'm going to wear it or sleep under it or give it away, I need to love to touch it.

So it's time to give away the old projects to someone who will enjoy finishing them, or who will unravel the yarn and put it to good use.  I'm taking up knitting!

I have in mind a particular project, the Berkshire Pullover from Weekend Knitting by Melanie Falick.  It's a big sweater made simply from chunky wool in stockinette stitch, and I've read the directions through and think that if I take my time I can do it.  I'm working on a practice piece right now, a scarf made from two strands of Rowan's wool cotton, and it's slow going but I think it will turn out nicely.

If you knit, I'd love to know what your favorite knitting sites are.

Wish me luck!