Fall Manic Craftiness Re-cap

I am well aware that this is only my fourth post of the entire year, I have total admiration for any blogger that manages working full time, having a baby and two other children in the house and still finds time to blog!  I know this does happen because I read their blogs, but apparently I am not as great at multi-tasking.  Not blogging doesn't mean I haven't been up to fun stuff though, the Fall season has actually inspired lots of craftiness around here!  Halloween ranks well near the top of the list of favorite holidays at our house, and since I spent last Halloween mostly sitting around on my butt rubbing my enormous belly it was time to kick it into gear this year.

I, like many, have fallen victim to the endless inspiration that is Pinterest.  Also, like many, I often find myself pinning tons of stuff but not actually doing any of it.  I decided Halloween was the perfect time to challenge myself to do at least 5 things that I had pinned to Pinterest.

#1
I always like to make the front steps look festive, so I went on a hunt for some fall wreath ideas for the front door to go along with my usual sprinkling of chrysanthemum pots and waiting-to-be-carved pumpkins.  This wreath caught my eye, and I knew I had PLENTY of fabric to make one.

Source: lilluna.com via Kate on Pinterest

I completed the fabric cutting and tying part in an evening, then the next day decided to add some glittery bats to give it that little something extra.  The Pinterest link for this just takes you to an old Etsy listing, so I used the picture for inspiration and bought a metal wreath base at Michael's and started tying on strips.  I don't know what the original wreath sells for since Etsy doesn't show prices after an item has sold, but the seller's shipping is 12 dollars and I don't think I even spent that much making this (but I did already have all the supplies except the wreath base and black glitter for the bats).  I think it turned out cute and the bats can come off easily so that something Thanksgiving-ish can be added.  Here is my finished version:

#2
I loved this simple looking Halloween garland.

Source: etsy.com via Kate on Pinterest

It looked like theirs was made out of felt, but I knew I already had plenty of fall colored papers, round hole punches, and I found a bat template online.  I went with large bats and then two garlands of different colored orange circles, which I just sewed into a long garland with my sewing machine.  However, I was so excited about the bats that I took pictures of them and forgot about the orange garland.  Oh well, take my word for it, all of them together was perfectly festive.  Here are the bats:

#3 & #4
My neighbor became obsessed with the Halloween trees at Hobby Lobby that they had this year and kidnapped me one day to go buy one with her.  I had to admit it was really cute once she got it up, who knew a black fake tree could be cute?  It needed ornaments though and I told her I would make some.  We always do Halloween together so I had lots of photos from previous years, and this Christmas ornament how-to pin was perfect inspiration for what I wanted to do.

Source: thecraftingchicks.com via Kate on Pinterest

I gathered the lids from some old frozen drink mixes in my freezer and spray painted them black with chalkbaord paint.  Round photos and festive ribbon had these looking adorable!  Here is my Halloween version, I highly recommend this tutorial for Christmas ornaments!

I also was inspired by this pin:

Source: etsy.com via Kate on Pinterest

 to take some old Christmas ball ornaments that I don't use on my tree any more and spray paint them with chalkboard paint as well.  Then I wrote little messages like "Spooky"  and "Boo" with chalk.  These turned out so well that I will definitely be making myself some for next year:

#5
I frequently pin free printables to my holiday boards, there are so many cute ones and I loved these ones to go around candles.  Easiest craft ever and the effect was awesome and enjoyed for several evenings at dinner:

Bonus #6
The middle child wanted to be a dark angel for Halloween and she likes us to make her costumes together.  A dark angel needs a fancy tutu and of course there are plenty of tutorials out there.  This is the one we used, but in black of course, and it was exactly what she wanted.

Source: thecottagehome.blogspot.com via Kate on Pinterest

Here is our version!

Pinterest challenge definitely met!  I still have tons of stuff pinned that I want to do next year.  I really wanted to do this prank to the girls this year, but didn't get around to it, there would be lots of squeals on that one!  Oh well, Halloween comes around every year.  I have pinned a lot of cute Thanksgiving stuff as well but haven't gotten around to doing any of it because I have been too busy planning a certain baby's first birthday party!  Eek, one already!

Finding time for fiber activities is proving to be a bit challenging with a 4 month old, 8 year old and 10 year old.  It is soccer season, piano recital season, 5k training season, and chorus performance season... not to mention regular end of year school activities and working full time and the demands of the 4 month old mentioned above.  Phew, it makes me pooped just typing it all!  However, that doesn't mean that I have completely abandoned my loves of fabric and yarn.  The baby's quilt is sewn into blocks and waiting on my sewing table to be sewn into rows (it is going to be so cute!).  I also recently started and abandoned an Imogen Cowl.  Gosh I love that cowl, but my mind is too mushy and constantly distracted by little people to take on a challenging-for-me lace pattern.  I kept forgetting where I was in the pattern and having knitting panic attacks.  Since knitting is supposed to be a fun and relaxing hobby for me I had to talk myself into trying the Imogen Cowl some other time.  I had been knitting it with the beautiful, soft, irresistible Malabrigo Finito that I picked up as soon as it arrived at my favorite yarn store a few weeks ago.  This yarn is so lovely!  It has now been used to start another Summer Wind Cowl, this time for myself.  I loved the one I made for my mom for Christmas and know that it is a pattern I can accomplish in a reasonable amount of time.  Of course, baby-in-the-house time is a whole different sort of time, so we'll see if I still consider it a reasonable amount of time when I finish it.

More Ponytail Hats!

The other present I actually completed and had under the tree was ponytail hats for the big girls.  Last year I made one for the teenager next door and ever since I have been wanting to make one for every person I see wearing a ponytail.  There was a bit of stress around these, mostly because of my inability to alter a knitting pattern.  I'm a very literal knitter, I want a step by step pattern that holds my hand every minute and spells out exactly what it wants me to execute at all times.  I am always in awe of someone who takes a pattern and modifies it to look completely different from the original and if you throw something at me that wants me to interpret a chart I will probably run away and hide under the bed with my wool stash.  The only thing I ever change in a pattern is to almost always go up a needle size or two because I knit hideously tight.  So, my issue was that the Hannah ponytail hat pattern is an adult size, and I wanted to make it for a ten and almost 8 year old.  These children of mine do have above average sized heads, so at first I convinced myself that if I just used the recommended size yarn and much smaller needles then the hat would turn out perfect.  Well, through some evil yarn black magic this not only resulted in a hat too big for a medium sized child, it was too big for me!  Of course I told myself differently the whole time I knit it and waited until I had finished, cast off and plopped it on my head to admit that yes, it was huge.  So, I turned to my stash of Cascade superwash and decided to try a much smaller weight of yarn along with the smaller needle size (notice that there is no mention of ever actually altering the number of stitches in the pattern, my brain touched on this idea for a moment then yelped and hid).  This seemed to work great and when I finished I had two hats that I was quite sure would fit.  I patted myself on the back and added buttons.  I considered sneaking the hats onto their sleeping heads in the middle of the night to make sure, but my husband's look of disapproval made me realize my size obsession was getting a little out of control.  I gave the hats a quick bath to relax the stitches, because blocking is magical, and then the panic set in.  The Cascade superwash seemed to stretch quite a bit after being wet.  I laid the hats out in their correct shape and put them in front of a space heater and waited for them to fluff up and be perfect.  I called my mom and panicked.  I poked at them probably every hour and was never totally convinced that the hats, which were previously deemed perfect, had not stretched beyond wear-ability.  Eventually I let it go, as you have to do with all handmade gifts under the tree, and told myself if they didn't fit I would just try again after Christmas.  I don't think I could have possibly been more excited on Christmas morning when the girls tore into the wrapping and immediately donned perfectly fitting ponytail hats. Craft stress turned into that glow that comes with a well executed and well received handmade gift (and several Christmas morning mimosas).

Maybe next year should be another item where size doesn't matter, and I probably should start working soon since there are now THREE little girls to knit for!

Lifting Fog

The end of 2011 was definitely a hazy blur of pregnancy, birth, newborn-ness, Christmas preparations and holiday events.  However, in all the chaos there was quite a bit of holiday knitting going on!  I can't say it all got done in time to be under the tree, but some of it did and some of it has been being finished up in this first week of the year.  By far my favorite thing made was a Summer Wind cowl for my mom.  I started this back at the beginning of baseball playoffs and knit, knit, knit right on through the World Series (huge Cardinals fans around here).  I didn't even take much notice at the beginning that the cowl I was making was Cardinal Red, (I had randomly chosen the color because I knew that it looks good on my mom) but by the end of the World Series with the Cardinals pulling off a very exciting win it began to feel like it had all been planned.  I'll admit, it was a bit hard to give it up, but mom has been warned that she may have to wear it nonstop at the end of each baseball season for the sake of superstition.  I don't actually have a picture of anyone wearing this cowl, I was 8 months pregnant by the time it was done and not feeling at all photogenic, but I have the couple shown here with it in progress and right after I blocked it.  This was my first lace project and I have to say that going from the scrunchy finished object to the blocked finished object where all those holes are opened up is quite addictive.  This pattern looks great on, worn long or doubled up around the neck, there are plenty of pictures of people wearing them on ravelry here.  I used Spud and Chloe fine in Red Hot for the yarn.  I felt like the yarn should be softer when I was knitting with it, since it is superwash merino and silk, and actually started to doubt I had chosen the best yarn until I blocked it.  Blocking made the fibers soften and drape beautifully.  I'm glad I bought the same yarn in another color to make one for me!

Hush Baby, Sleep Baby

Last weekend my neighbor and dear friend held a baby shower in honor of this third little girl that will be entering into our lives soon.  I was very excited for present opening because I knew my mom had been working on a blanket for quite some time, she had even let me squish it under the table at knit group as long as I promised not to look.  I knew it was soft, and I knew she had used a yarn with cashmere in it like a lunatic, but wow I had no idea how beautiful it was.  The pattern is the Lullaby Blanket by Jennifer Lori on Ravelry and it has the words Hush Baby, Sleep Baby knit into it.  I can't think of any better sentiment for a new baby.  Well, ok, a few sentiments were come up with at the shower that really represented what you want to say to a baby that absolutely refuses to sleep, but of course we will stick with this sweet version.  Mom used Cascade Cash Vero DK yarn, which is one of those you can't stop rubbing on your face.  She told me I can send it back to her when it needs washing and blocking so I don't screw it up in my sleep deprived haze.  She's the best!!!

It looks great in her room... just waiting for a baby to wrap in it! (6 more weeks to go, give or take).

Here is one more picture, of me opening it at the shower so you can get a size reference.  This blanket is big!  Perfect for snuggling up a December baby...

Bitty Bump

The Bitty Bump is done!  Wow, this is a quick little knit, I think just as quick as the booties in my last post.  I did get stuck on how to do the tiny cap sleeves and had to enlist some guidance and support from Grammy (as in, she just knit the darn things since they are only two rows each) but the rest went crazy fast with the malabrigo super chunky rasta.  I can't wait to actually put this on a chilly winter baby!

Can we talk about this yarn for a moment?  It is luscious.  It begs to be squeezed, and rubbed against your cheek, and then squeezed some more.  People pick up this vest to look at it and end up hugging it to their bodies.  I have had to tell my children to step away from the malabrigo several times.  This morning Sam found a scrap on the floor and came and asked permission to have it.  Like, a three inch scrap.  Then she giggled maniacally when I said yes.  The sad part, I had to think about it for a second before saying yes.  There is definitely a dark side to this yarn, it makes a knitter want to hoard it, build a nest out of it, and live in it like a hamster.  I think if this baby vest had only required one skein I would already be at the yarn shop this morning buying more, but luckily it needed a tiny bit from a second skein, so I have almost a full one to make myself this.  Yes, I may need an intervention.

Pattern:  Bitty Bump on Ravelry
Size 15 needles, 11s for cap sleeves
Yarn:  Malabrigo Rasta Super Chunky in the color Piedras

Baby Projects!

The endless baby projects have begun!  First up are these cute and teeny tiny booties made with a bit of leftover yarn from my Clapotis.  These are the "Chaussons mignons", a free pattern on Ravelry, and couldn't be easier.  You basically knit a T shape, fold the tops of the T down and sew around the edges.  So cute!  A project that even I can finish quickly!

I have now started on the "Bitty Bump", an itty bitty little vest being knit with the most luscious Malabrigo chunky yarn imaginable.  This one should also be quick if I could just figure out how to do the cute little armholes.

Annnnd... to make sure I have plenty of things going on at one time I ordered this stack of Joel Dewberry Heirloom fabrics from Fabricworm to make an airy little baby blanket (I got the voiles, they are so soft!):

These are washed and ironed, ready for me to start whacking them into squares.  I am finally going to make a zig zag quilt, which I have been wanting to make for quite some time, a lot like this one, or this one, or this one, so many to browse on flickr!

I have to get to work, there are a lot more projects in line after these ones!!!

Wow, Two Years Later...

No, I wasn't referring to how long it's been since I have posted, even though the months have certainly flown by.  I finally finished the Clapotis I started two years ago!  This has been my "between projects" project for quite some time.  It has accompanied me just about everywhere I have gone the last couple years, has been worked on in cars, planes and even on a train from Atlanta to New York.  I have to say my most favorite place that I knitted on it was in France, overlooking the Dordogne Valley on a beautiful French day.

Lots of memories are knitted in to this project, and most recently that I completed it when I was five months pregnant!  Yep, we are expecting our third little girl and this project was the one I wanted to get done before starting on all kinds of cute little baby projects.  I think my first pair of little baby booties will be cast on this evening...

Yep, I will be wearing this one pretty much every day this winter and fall.

Yarn:  Mountain Colors Hand Painted Yarns in Twizzle (Marino Wool and Silk)
Size 8 needles

Alpaca Birthday Love

Ever since we met these handsome fellows on a trip out to Idaho...

... there have been many attempts to convince my mom she needs alpacas of her own.  She really wants alpacas of her own, which makes it all the more fun to try to get her to commit to the adventure, especially when everyone has had a few rounds of vodka tonics.  Seeing that there could still be years of cocktail induced cajoling left on our part, I decided to knit her an alpaca, and maybe he could help convince her she needs the real thing. 

(I mean, when you see this face, don't you want a real alpaca?)

This is my third Rebecca Danger pattern, Zeke the Aloof Alpaca, and every time I knit one of her patterns I am delighted with the outcome. 

Zeke actually became Stewart after being presented to my mom at a recent birthday dinner.  I can't say I was sad to see him go, he has QUITE the sweet tooth and he and I almost came to blows over the samoas on more than one occasion.

Chalkboard Paint Valentines

I'm sure that the obsession with chalkboard paint will subside eventually, but my desire to put it on EVERYTHING definitely influenced our Valentine's day craft this year.  I think this simple idea turned out great even though I'm a little scared of what phrases will show up on the one residing on our fridge (there's a lot of twisted humor that goes on around here).

I set out for Michael's looking for the same wooden hearts that we used last year, but they didn't have enough of that size this time (we have to make 50 to cover both classes) so I went a little larger, which probably was for the best because it is really hard to write legibly in chalk really small.  My main advice for painting the wooden hearts with chalkboard paint is use primer, I didn't and it took several coats to get them black enough because the paint soaks into the wood.  We added button magnets to the back, then the girls signed them all in chalk for their classmates.  The signed hearts went into little cellophane baggies with candy and a piece of chalk.  I was worried about the baggies rubbing the chalk off, but the cellophane was actually stiff enough that it didn't rub against the hearts at all.

The first post I ever did on this blog was on our first handmade class valentines, so happy blogiversary to me!

2008 Valentines

2009 Valentines

2010 Valentines

Rotini Scarf - Video

As promised, here is a quick video to show exactly how to start and knit the rotini scarf.  Hopefully this will clear up the confusion surrounding short rows and get everyone who has had questions knitting away on this fun scarf! 

Snow Knitting - Gap-tastic Cowl

I can only think of one activity that can keep me continually entertained for 6 days of being snowed in.  I don't know what I used to do in such situations before I learned to knit!  Last week I started the Gap-tastic Cowl as the first flakes began to fall and bound off as most of the snow finally melted away. This great big scrunchy cowl is listed on my 2011 Crafty Resolution list and there are quite a few reasons I became instantly enamored with it:

1) It was posted on Ravelry and quickly had hundreds of knitters knitting it. I'm a sucker for knitting crowd mentality.
2) It is a pattern written up after someone went into the Gap, said "I can make that", counted the stitches and went home and knit it up.  I have the desire to do this very same thing all the time, but rarely follow through, so it felt good to mooch off of the same sentiment from someone else.
3) It can be worn several ways.  I can never resist versatility.
4) It promised to be quick and simple. Even for a slow as molasses type knitter like myself.
5) There was a buy one get one free sale on Lion Brand Thick and Quick yarn at Michael's. Free Yarn!
6) Did I mention there was a forecast for a huge snow storm?

I simply didn't stand a chance against all of these factors and had to start on it immediately, even though I have several projects STILL waiting for my attention.  Like a rotini scarf perhaps.  Or a Clapotis for goodness sakes.  Or, shame of easily distracted knitter shames, Melissa's socks, which were for her birthday last July!!!  I have to admit that there was a very large sense of satisfaction after finishing this up after 6 days, which means a knitter that knits at more than a snails pace could make this in a day or two.  It's warm, it's smooshy, and it is marked off the list!

Rotini Scarf Update



(How we spent New Year's day. We had so much fun it may need to become a tradition.)

The most visited post on this blog is my "A Scarf by Many Names" post from last November.  Apparently rotini scarves or potato chip scarves or ruffle scarves or whatever you want to call them are quite popular.  There is even a forum on craftster concerning my post for people that don't understand what I mean by the "knit 8, turn and knit back" directions.  Isn't it funny how the simplest things can somehow be so hard to understand?  I truly feel for these knitters since I read patterns all the time and think "what the HELL are they talking about?", but once I am shown whatever it is I can't believe I couldn't figure it out.  I think I will try to film a little video this weekend on short rows, it is the only way I can take the befuddled masses, sit them down, and show them what I mean.  It will be easy to film this video since my scarf is still a little over halfway done, unlike my mom who has knit, I think at last count, five?  Maybe six?  Two of them were Christmas presents for the shrimp, modeled above.  Here are some more pics for your viewing pleasure, I still love how the noro yarn makes them so colorful! 

You'll notice that on these she sewed the tips together at each end and added a big, lovely flower button.  I'm pretty sure I will do something similar on mine, when I get around to actually finishing it.  The one below she knitted for herself... it is from a slightly thicker noro yarn and she reduced the number of stitches in a row to compensate.  It is just as ruffle-y, but has a little extra squish to it, which is nice.  Wouldn't these make a wonderful Valentine's day present for someone you know?

Spud and Chloe Scrunch Scarf

Atlanta saw more snow last week than it had in well over a decade, 1993 is the last time anyone remembers the city being shut down by snow for a week.  This posed the perfect opportunity to snuggle into the new scarf my mom knit me for Christmas and I can report that it is a very warm, squishy scarf.  She knit The Scrunch Scarf (free pattern from Spud and Chloe) with yarn she picked up at Purl Soho when we were in New York a few weeks ago.  She says it is a super fast knit, which must be true since she has already whipped up another one for herself.

2011 Crafty Resolution List

I have been miserably sick with strep, that my dear daughter shared with me, for the last few days and pretty much all I could muster the strength to do was catch up on blogs.  This time of year everyone is busy posting their New Year's resolutions and as I laid there sick, feverish and delusional I had time to think about the type of resolution I wanted to make this year.  Not something boring like exercising or eating right (those especially don't sound appealing when the room is spinning and your throat is on fire), but something fun instead.  Something I want to do instead of something I feel like I need to fix.  Maybe this misses the point of resolutions, but it sure was a nice diversion to think about things I would like to do when I felt better.  I am resolving to take the time to accomplish some of the online tutorials/patterns/recipes that I have had starred and on my list for quite some time (some of them since I started reading blogs in 2008).  I guess it is sort of like resolving to do more of the things I like to do, or resolving to get off the computer and make stuff, or resolving to narrow my focus since I chose from hundreds of starred items in google reader to come up with the following list of fifteen things I would like to sew, knit or cook in the coming year.  These ones stood out in particular because they are all things that I have thought about doing several times, have most likely already subjected my husband to descriptions of their cleverness, and quite likely have already bought the supplies for, but just haven't quite made the time in the past to complete them.  So, this resolution will also clear out some mental clutter upon completion.

2011  Crafty Resolution List

Drafty Door Thingy from Not Martha

Doorstop from Wipster (via the long thread)

Buttercup Bag from Made by Rae (I even bought fabric to make this well over a year ago)

Gathered Clutch by Skip To My Lou

Zippered Pouches by Flossie Teacakes (via How About Orange) or These by Sew 4 Home

Reusable Snack Bags by I Have to Say

Granola - Soule Mama's adaptation

Butter via Angry Chicken comments on the subject - Have been thinking about this since she first posted it, we love butter!

Elf Hats - ok, this one is from a book, More Last Minute Knitted Gifts, which I own, but after seeing SouleMama knit a bunch of these for Christmas presents I can't stop thinking about them.

Gap-tastic Cowl - This one is on Ravelry.  I love it when something so incredibly simple becomes rampantly popular as soon as someone takes the time to write a free pattern.  It is taking all my willpower to not start one of these immediately, and it doesn't help that Lion Brand yarn is buy one get one free at Michael's today, or that it is supposed to snow starting tonight.  At least now I have the excuse that it is part of my New Year's resolution!

French Press Felted Slippers - top left pattern.  I own this pattern, I have watched almost every knitter in the blogosphere knit up a pair, it is time to get over my fear of all those seams and trust in the magic of felting!

5 Minute Skirt by Angry Chicken

Felted Knitting Basket from Martha Stewart

Bunny Nuggets by Rebecca Danger

Figure 8 Scarf by Anna Maria Horner - already have the fabric, should be a quickie!


Do you have any long-thought-about craftiness that you want to accomplish this year?