Maybe you've heard of BabyLegs... not real cheap ($12 a pair) knit "legwarmers" or footless leggings for kids... well, we have a few pair of them, but they are SUPER easy to make.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Halloween... Who's favorite holiday?
Monday, October 18, 2010
Challenge Block
I believe that the more you create, the more creative you become. Like math... or, ha... excuse me... I have a super fuzzy brain today and cannot think... what I'm trying to say is that the more you use certain brain cells, the more the brain cells "enjoy" being used... the dust is shaken off and their intended purpose is once again realized.
Case in point... this block. Our quilt guild has had a number of challenges over the last few years, but either I'm not feeling creative or I have something else going on and I find myself not getting around to doing the challenge... and mostly it goes back to me not feeling creative. Let's face it, before this last week, I haven't been ON creatively for some time... and even though I am using other people's patterns, the physical act of sewing and knitting causes those neurons to start firing away.
So when I received these three paint chips at quilt guild about two weeks ago, I gladly accepted them but gloomily wondered if I would actually DO anything with them. (My friend Nancy picked out two pairs of three because I was speaking while the basket of chips was going around and I had a choice between these and a green-blue-purple trio... I picked these because I knew I had orange and yellow hand-dyeds at home...) The challenge is to make a block that contains three of the colors (one from each paint chip) plus you could add another color.
I didn't know WHAT I would do...
... but, then I was working on the baby quilt and happened upon the green lattice fabric with white daisies...
... and, I recalled an episodes of Sewing with Nancy that I watched part of at my mother-in-law's house in late September on the Dresden Plate...
... and, like that, those little neurons starting going insane and an idea was born.
I had always wanted to do a Dresden Plate but they LOOK so hard so I never have, but I figured, I could do ONE, right?
So, off to the quilt store I shot to see if they had a Dresden Plate template... and they did...
... and then back home again, and honest to Pete, in less than one hour, I had a Dresden Plate block completed. SO easy. SO fun! Now I want to do a whole bunch of them! And, I think I fulfilled the challenge rather well, dontcha think? :)
erin
Case in point... this block. Our quilt guild has had a number of challenges over the last few years, but either I'm not feeling creative or I have something else going on and I find myself not getting around to doing the challenge... and mostly it goes back to me not feeling creative. Let's face it, before this last week, I haven't been ON creatively for some time... and even though I am using other people's patterns, the physical act of sewing and knitting causes those neurons to start firing away.
So when I received these three paint chips at quilt guild about two weeks ago, I gladly accepted them but gloomily wondered if I would actually DO anything with them. (My friend Nancy picked out two pairs of three because I was speaking while the basket of chips was going around and I had a choice between these and a green-blue-purple trio... I picked these because I knew I had orange and yellow hand-dyeds at home...) The challenge is to make a block that contains three of the colors (one from each paint chip) plus you could add another color.
I didn't know WHAT I would do...
... but, then I was working on the baby quilt and happened upon the green lattice fabric with white daisies...
... and, I recalled an episodes of Sewing with Nancy that I watched part of at my mother-in-law's house in late September on the Dresden Plate...
... and, like that, those little neurons starting going insane and an idea was born.
I had always wanted to do a Dresden Plate but they LOOK so hard so I never have, but I figured, I could do ONE, right?
So, off to the quilt store I shot to see if they had a Dresden Plate template... and they did...
... and then back home again, and honest to Pete, in less than one hour, I had a Dresden Plate block completed. SO easy. SO fun! Now I want to do a whole bunch of them! And, I think I fulfilled the challenge rather well, dontcha think? :)
erin
Thursday, October 14, 2010
ROOOOOOAR!
My hat model is asleep so you'll have to make due with a picture of the finished product sans cute girl. :) No matter; this hat is for a boy anyway. Heh.
If you haven't guessed, it's been a busy week for me craft-wise, but the more time I spend crafting (mostly after the kids are in bed or during naps!), the more whole I feel. So, it's been an AWESOME week for me this week. :)
This hat came out of a Google Chat session combined with a Facebook link... technology, I tell you what. Originally I saw this hat on a blog (Tot Toppers) after following a Facebook link posted by a friend. Discussion with another friend who thought that her son and the son of a mutual friend of ours would be cute with Dino hats led to us searching on etsy.com and eventually led to me remembering this hat through Tot Toppers and finding the pattern on etsy.com. Too fun!
The hat is very basic but the spikes were new for me; I've done spikes, but these are "double-sided", or done in the round... on double-pointed needles... holy cats. I actually like DPNs and have done full small projects on them, but... it would help if I had lighter-weight and sharper-pointed DPNs in the size I needed for these spikes considering how small they are, but I made do with what I had, knowing that making this hat wouldn't require purchasing new needles. (To do the next one, I will probably purchase a new set of wood DPNs! Ha!)
Very fulfilling to complete this hat tonight and ship it off tomorrow. I hope the eventual recipient (who won't receive it for a few weeks yet) has a roaring good time with his hat. Grin.
erin
ps. I'm learning more and more that I need to find a much better place to take my pictures... outside, most likely... too bad I'm always finishing stuff and taking pictures at night!
If you haven't guessed, it's been a busy week for me craft-wise, but the more time I spend crafting (mostly after the kids are in bed or during naps!), the more whole I feel. So, it's been an AWESOME week for me this week. :)
This hat came out of a Google Chat session combined with a Facebook link... technology, I tell you what. Originally I saw this hat on a blog (Tot Toppers) after following a Facebook link posted by a friend. Discussion with another friend who thought that her son and the son of a mutual friend of ours would be cute with Dino hats led to us searching on etsy.com and eventually led to me remembering this hat through Tot Toppers and finding the pattern on etsy.com. Too fun!
The hat is very basic but the spikes were new for me; I've done spikes, but these are "double-sided", or done in the round... on double-pointed needles... holy cats. I actually like DPNs and have done full small projects on them, but... it would help if I had lighter-weight and sharper-pointed DPNs in the size I needed for these spikes considering how small they are, but I made do with what I had, knowing that making this hat wouldn't require purchasing new needles. (To do the next one, I will probably purchase a new set of wood DPNs! Ha!)
Very fulfilling to complete this hat tonight and ship it off tomorrow. I hope the eventual recipient (who won't receive it for a few weeks yet) has a roaring good time with his hat. Grin.
erin
ps. I'm learning more and more that I need to find a much better place to take my pictures... outside, most likely... too bad I'm always finishing stuff and taking pictures at night!
Ghosties
Today after breakfast, Julia and I made little ghosts, or ghosties. I remember making these out of Kleenex and cotton balls when I was younger, but today I chose to use some cheap white cotton I had lying around. Julia put the cotton balls on the fabric, and I scrunched up the neck. Then she would help me tie the bit of yarn around the neck and I would give it a little pizzazz with a bow. We now have about four "big" ghosties and eight "baby" ghosties, and I plan to string them together and then use them as a decoration. Very cute and just long enough of a craft to hold her attention. :)
erin
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Miss Lena's Sweater FINISHED!
Yay! So excited to post this tonight that I finished the sweater. I hope that the recipient loves it! I'm really happy with the look... with how it turned out!
Though, I have to say that I did something unorthodox and I hope that it turned out okay... I didn't know the button size or how many to put on while I was stitching, so I didn't stitch in button holes, and then I realized that I had to figure out a way to put button holes in a knit piece. I found a few ideas online and tried one of them and it seemingly worked, but I'm afraid of a possible integrity issue and I really hope that's not the case. Also, I didn't have the EXACT same color thread as the yarn. Whoops.
Though, I have to say that I did something unorthodox and I hope that it turned out okay... I didn't know the button size or how many to put on while I was stitching, so I didn't stitch in button holes, and then I realized that I had to figure out a way to put button holes in a knit piece. I found a few ideas online and tried one of them and it seemingly worked, but I'm afraid of a possible integrity issue and I really hope that's not the case. Also, I didn't have the EXACT same color thread as the yarn. Whoops.
Regardless, I'm really proud of the end product and after trying it on Julia, I'm positive it will fit Miss Lena.
erin
Buttons
Umm... aren't these buttons simply... DELICIOUS?
Here's another "If you know me"... so, if you know me, you know that I LOVE buttons. So, it was pretty exciting when Miss Lena's mom suggested I use buttons from Miss Lena's Great-Grandma for Miss Lena's sweater... and the buttons arrived today.
I am in Button Heaven.
As you can see on the card (the ORIGINAL CARD with ORIGINAL TISSUE), they are made in Austria. The second I opened the package I thought "edelweiss", which became familiar to me after our trip to Germany in Fall 2006. So I checked online and I certainly do think that the flowers are edelweiss. (Ah, to have that song stuck in my head now.) That makes them extra special to me, considering my heritage.
The best part? The BEST PART? Miss Lena's mom said I could KEEP THE BUTTONS that I don't use on the sweater... umm, what? How SWEET is that? Yes, I am truly in Button Heaven today.
So... I will place the buttons on Miss Lena's Sweater tonight, take another picture for the webs, send the sweater off, and clutch the rest of the buttons in my grubby little fists. (Okay, that is a bit gluttonous. So, I suppose I will dream of a project on which I can use the remainder. YES!)
erin
Here's another "If you know me"... so, if you know me, you know that I LOVE buttons. So, it was pretty exciting when Miss Lena's mom suggested I use buttons from Miss Lena's Great-Grandma for Miss Lena's sweater... and the buttons arrived today.
I am in Button Heaven.
As you can see on the card (the ORIGINAL CARD with ORIGINAL TISSUE), they are made in Austria. The second I opened the package I thought "edelweiss", which became familiar to me after our trip to Germany in Fall 2006. So I checked online and I certainly do think that the flowers are edelweiss. (Ah, to have that song stuck in my head now.) That makes them extra special to me, considering my heritage.
The best part? The BEST PART? Miss Lena's mom said I could KEEP THE BUTTONS that I don't use on the sweater... umm, what? How SWEET is that? Yes, I am truly in Button Heaven today.
So... I will place the buttons on Miss Lena's Sweater tonight, take another picture for the webs, send the sweater off, and clutch the rest of the buttons in my grubby little fists. (Okay, that is a bit gluttonous. So, I suppose I will dream of a project on which I can use the remainder. YES!)
erin
Monday, October 11, 2010
Project: Owl Quilt
Here is a sneak peek at an owl quilt on which I'm currently working... it goes to the quilter's on Monday (NEXT Monday, the 18th), so I need to finish it by then, but it's going swimmingly so far, so with a few more nights of the kids going to bed "on time", I'm sure I will be able to finish it...
erin
erin
Project: Miss Lena's Sweater
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Lately I've been blessed with the desire to work on projects (needle-related), and while my house may be suffering a bit, my creative side is on fire and spitting like a madcat... in a Happy Madcat sort of way. :)
This picture is of an almost-finished sweater (it is waiting for buttons only!) for a friend's daughter, Miss Lena. My first sweater attempt didn't turn out so well... well, the sweater turned out beautifully but it was the wrong size (by a long shot), despite following the gauge, and I was severely disappointed in the finished product after the amount of time I spent on it. But, I was wanting to try another and offered to make a sweater for a friend of mine's daughter, and while again the sweater is a little larger than expected (and again, I followed the gauge), I'm really happy with how it turned out and it will fit well enough that it won't be an issue.
I found the pattern through a sweater search on Ravelry.com and it ended up being a free pattern through Lion Brand.
This picture is of an almost-finished sweater (it is waiting for buttons only!) for a friend's daughter, Miss Lena. My first sweater attempt didn't turn out so well... well, the sweater turned out beautifully but it was the wrong size (by a long shot), despite following the gauge, and I was severely disappointed in the finished product after the amount of time I spent on it. But, I was wanting to try another and offered to make a sweater for a friend of mine's daughter, and while again the sweater is a little larger than expected (and again, I followed the gauge), I'm really happy with how it turned out and it will fit well enough that it won't be an issue.
I found the pattern through a sweater search on Ravelry.com and it ended up being a free pattern through Lion Brand.
My friend picked out the yarn after I suggested another of blends and colors through KnitPicks (this yarn in color Planetarium). I think that I barely have about 50 inches left of the yarn that I purchased... just enough to put the buttons on.
I'm excited to receive the buttons, which are heirloom buttons from the friend, and she graciously is allowing me to keep the rest of them... so wonderful of her! I will post a finished project picture as soon as I have one!
Erin
I'm excited to receive the buttons, which are heirloom buttons from the friend, and she graciously is allowing me to keep the rest of them... so wonderful of her! I will post a finished project picture as soon as I have one!
Erin
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