Video Update

I started a youtube channel this week specifically for my crafting stuff. This afternoon, I made an introduction video for it which shows some of the items I have been working on. Here it is!

Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

Tonight my house is smelling wonderfully of cinnamon and spices. My kids and I decided to make some great-smelling ornaments to give out as gifts. I got the idea from a good friend of mine who gave me the recipe (thanks, Jen!). I can't take credit for the recipe because I didn't create it. There are a ton of different versions of the same recipe on the net if you google it. But here is the way I did it:

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Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

Ingredients needed:

3/4 cup ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp ground allspice
2 Tbsp ground cloves
1 Tbsp ground nutmeg
1 cup applesauce
ribbon


Mix together the spices in a bowl, then add the applesauce and stir until well blended. Roll out like cookie dough and cut with cookie cutters. Use a straw to make holes in the top of each ornament for hanging. Allow to dry, usually at least 2 days depending on thickness. Thread ribbon through the holes and tie a bow for hanging. Store in plastic bags until ready to use to preserve the scent.

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I found that the mixture rolled out better after sitting for 30-45 minutes. Right after mixing it wanted to stick to the cookie cutters too much. I covered my wooden rolling pin in waxed paper and rolled them out on waxed paper as well. I also decided to use a coffee stirrer to put holes in mine because I felt the straw holes were too big. I will just use thinner ribbon to hang them. This recipe made 2 dozen ornaments using my standard sized 2-3" cookie cutters.

They look and smell awesome :)

New Tunes!

Today I was listening to the KIPing It Real podcast, and Jackie played an awesome bluegrass version of a Maroon 5 song. So, naturally, I had to search the internet and see what else I could find. Lo and behold (whatever that means), I managed to find some bluegrass covers of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, U2, and John Mayer among others. They are compilation albums in the "Pickin' On..." series. I decided that it was too much fun not to share, so I updated the playlist on my blog here to include some of my favorite tunes. I set it to autostart for now, so if you don't like the music or don't want to hear anything, scroll down to the bottom of the page and hit the pause button on my soundtrack player.

In update news, I finished my Heather Hoodie Vest. Well, finished all but the button-sewing. I really don't like sewing buttons on. I tried using small clear buttons as backing buttons, but at this gauge with this yarn, they will just slip right through the yarn. So I am either going to have to line the buttonband or just sew the buttons into the yarn and skip the backing buttons. Hopefully I will get around to doing that soon and take some decent pictures of it to post.

I also finished my "Purple Maize" scarf. It ended up being about 5.25" x 61" with no blocking. It's really pretty and it makes me appreciate the yarn a lot more than when it was just in the skein. I still have to take pictures of it as well.

Now I'm working on some possible holiday gift knitting, so I won't be making any details of it known until after the holidays to preserve surprise and whatnot.

Anyhow, just wanted to make a quick update. I will try to get the pictures of the finished objects done soon, but for now enjoy the tunes!

Ok, so I suck at updating these days.

It's only been like a bazillion days since my last update. I really don't have much of an excuse for that. I mean, there was a portion of time where I was purposefully not posting pics of what I was knitting because they were gifts and meant to be a surprise. Those items have since been given away and I'm free to post about them now. So here are some things I have been working on since I last posted:

The Londonberry Pomatomus socks were finished finally. Gee, it only took me 8 or 9 months to get those done...


Then I started working on another pair of socks which I have since finished. The lovely "Intentionally No-Purl Monkeys of Hope" using the Intentions yarn in the "Hope" colorway and the "Monkey" sock pattern substituting knit stitches for all the purl stitches in the pattern. I think these are my favorite socks so far:


Then I started working on some gift knitting for my sister's new baby who was due in mid October. I managed to get all but one thing completed by the time I got to hold him.

I started with this sweater, using the Bobby pattern in size 3-6 months and some Bernat Softee Baby yarn. It was all knit in pieces and seamed together. I hate seams. And I hate weaving in ends. SO next time I will definitely choose a pattern that is knit all in one piece or something.


Then, using the same yarn from the sweater, I decided to make some bootie shoes using the top-down Seamless Baby Booties pattern.


I still had a ton of yarn left, so I decided to make a matching hat using the Baby/Kids' Earflap Hat pattern in size 3-6 months.


And I still have yarn left in that skein...

Next, I decided to try and make some baby socks with some affordable sock yarn I picked up at JoAnn fabrics. They came out completely awesomely cute. I based the construction on the Better Than Booties Baby Socks patterns, but changed the leg and cuff design and did a kitchener toe seam on the first pair.


On the second pair, I changed the leg pattern and did a decrease toe with a kitchener stitch seam.


I still have plenty of yarn left in those 2 skeins. I think I could probably get a total of 3 pair of socks out of each skein.

Between working on these things, I managed to finish spinning up the corriedale roving that I dyed earlier this summer. I ended up with 270 yards of a light sport-ish weight yarn. I decided to call it "Vyanae" because the colors in it reminded me of one of my dark elf characters in Everquest. (I never claimed to not be a nerd...)


Currently on my wheel is the beautiful green, black and silver "Techno Zebra" superwash merino/tencel blend roving that I bought from Copperpot Woolies. Man is that stuff soft! I am trying to spin it thin and get a lot of yardage out of it.


This past week I decided to randomly knit up a headband to keep my ears warm. I used some leftover grey acrylic yarn and improvised a pattern which I lovingly named "Random Half-assed Cabled Headband". This was my first attempt at doing cables, and I inadvertently left out half of the cable so it ended up like more of a licorice twist look. I decided I liked it well enough so I stuck with it instead of ripping it out. The headband tapers to a point at each end of the rectangle, and at those ends I knit and i-cord for ties so that it ties at the back of the neck.


So what is on my needles now?

Well I am still working on my Aeolian shawl. I took a new pic of it to show my progress. I am now at the beginning of the final edging chart.


After finishing the last pair of socks I naturally had to start on another. I am using my Knit Pick's Imagination sock yarn in "Unicorn" and the Spring Forward pattern for my aptly named "Unicorns in Spring" socks.


Then I decided that I wanted to make a scarf out of my handspun yarn. I decided to use the "Purple Maize" yarn that I made along with this Falling Leaves scarf pattern. But after getting about 8 inches into the scarf, I decided that it was way too wide and that I would rather go with a simpler pattern with this yarn. I did end up taking a picture of it, but it has since been ripped out.



I started over with the same yarn and the Diagonal Rib scarf pattern. So it now looks like this instead:


I will be able to get a much longer scarf this way, since this one is less than 6 inches wide.

Earlier this week I went to Michael's craft store and got some yarn that was on sale. Now let me tell you, I've become quite a yarn snob anymore and I dislike 95% of the yarn in that store and JoAnn and any other big box type store. But I found the Bernat Alpaca and after feeling how soft it was I decided to get it. I had been looking for a chunky weight yarn to make a sweater with anyway, and this stuff was on sale for $3 a skein. I went with a dark heathered grey color called "Ebony". SO I came home and looked through patterns on Ravelry for what seems like forever before finally deciding to work on the Heather Hoodie Vest pattern from the Fall 2009 issue of KnitScene magazine. This is my first real project with cables, and it is going pretty well. Since it is chunky weight, it goes by pretty fast. My only worry is that the fuzziness of this yarn will not show the cable definition as well. But it is very soft and cuddly. I will end up making it longer than the pattern suggests, since I normally do that for every pattern due to my height. I am also considering adding long sleeves instead of the short ones in the pattern and maybe trying to make the hood a bit smaller since a lot of people on Ravelry who have made this project have said how huge the hood is. I have finished the first cable chart repeat. Here is what it looks like so far: (gives me a chance to use a bunch of my own handmade stitch markers =)




So I think that is pretty much everything that I have been working on lately. Whew! There has been no progress on the Tie Dye Dishcloth, Spruce Lelah or the Experimental Sweater that I had started a long time ago, so no new pics of those.

I'm off to enjoy this rainy day with some hot tea and lots of knitting! Til next time...

Zufflers!

What is a zuffler you ask? It's a zill muffler! Still don't know what that is? "Zills" is a word for "finger cymbals". Sometimes you may also see the word "zagat" or "sagat" used for them. They are a set of 4 small metal cymbals that you attach to your middle fingers and thumbs with elastic. I think they are one of the most exciting additions to a bellydance performance.

I've been practicing playing different musical patterns with them lately and my ears and my dogs' ears are starting to suffer. Last night I looked up cymbal cozy patterns on ravelry and found the Zuffler pattern and decided to try it. I knew of a few other really cute crochet patterns but this was the first knit pattern that I thought I would try. I used a tiny ball of leftover sock yarn and a set of 5 double points in 2.5mm size. They came out really well. The pattern calls for using thin elastic to secure them to the zills but since I didn't have any available I used a drawstring of matching yarn instead.

I only made 2 of them. I found that I really only need to cover 1 cymbal on each hand to get a nice muted sound. I can still hear it, but it doesn't have the ability to really make the bell sound and vibrate. It's effect is similar to using the "practice pedal" on my piano. So now I can work on my rhythms and cymbal patterns for bellydance and the pets and family don't have to suffer =) I'm getting pretty good at playing them, but playing them while dancing at the same time is a whole other story....

Pomatomus Sock #1 Complete

Good grief! It seems like knitting these socks is taking me forever. I don't know what the deal is. I got my "Monkey" socks done in like 2 weeks. I've been working on Pomatomus sock #1 since I left Ohio for Virginia 2 weeks ago. And I managed to finish 1/2 of one sock in that time. I had already completed up through the heel turn before I left.

Maybe it's just the pattern that is making me go so slow. It's really pretty when finished but its not an easy repeat for me since the repeat chunk is 22 rows. I think the next sock pattern I do should have less rows in the repeat and less stitches wide, something a little more simple. Right now this one seems like it takes ages to get through and I don't think I am enjoying it as much as I could be.

Might also be because the yarn doesn't thrill me right now. Yes, it is pretty yarn and I did pick it out for myself, but it's like the second skein of sock yarn I ever bought. Some of the yarn I have bought since then is really exciting in color and texture, really making me want to work with it. But this one not so much. Maybe its the dark colors that don't have so much contrast in them or something, I don't know.

But I really want to get the second sock completed so that I can start on a new pair of socks with a new pattern and new yarn. I guess I will just have to push through it, because otherwise I will put it down, pick up a different project, and then sock #1 will sit around not being worn. And that really would be a waste. I just wish I was more interested in this project right now. =/

Another random video

Today I decided I wanted to wind the second skein of laceweight yarn for my Aeolian shawl into a ball to take with me when I move. I need to get these kinds of things done so that I can pack away some of my stuff before I move. So I figured while I had the swift and the ball winder out, I might as well make a little video about how they work. Here it is:



It's bumming me out that I have to take my spinning wheel apart and pack it away. But there is not any room for it in the van with all of the family, pets and our stuff so it's going to have to get delivered with the household goods. I will miss it. I hope it travels well and the moving company takes care of it.

Lelah

After writing the last post, I decided to go ahead and rip out the turtleneck and use the yarn on a new project. I cast on for the Lelah top using a smaller gauge than the original pattern. I did some calculations based on the gauge from my purple tube top and my measurements and came up with 170 stitches on size 5 needles (for the top part) and then a slightly bigger gauge with size 7 needles for the bottom part.

The lace pattern is really easy to memorize and looks really pretty. For whatever reason, it seems like it is taking me a really long time to knit this project. I don't know if it's because of all the lace and me going slow with it or if it is simply because I haven't had a lot of time to sit and work on it. I've been trying to get my house cleaned and organized for moving, and every so often I sit down with the knitting to relax.

I've started my 5th lace repeat and the top measures about 4" long right now. I'm going to be at this lace pattern for quite a while considering how tall I am and how long I will want this top to be. But at least it will give me something to work on during the eventual travel and hotel stays etc. that go along with the move (whenever that may be...)

Punkette

I finally got around to finishing the spinning of my 4 ounces of "Punkette" superwash merino roving the other night. I ended up with 236 yards of a light dk-type weight 2-ply. I don't think it is quite thin enough to be considered fingering weight. I measured about 16 wraps per inch with the yard or so of scrap I had left over. Not sure how accurate a representation it is of the whole skein. But that would put it right on the fine/medium border. Here are the pics of the finished yarn:

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In knitting news, I started knitting a spruce green sleveless turtleneck top using the "Perfect Periwinkle Turtleneck Tube Vest" pattern by Stefanie Japel from the Fitted Knits book. I am not enjoying knitting this one as much as I did the purple tube top. I have ripped this one back I think 3 times so far.

The first time, I didn't like the way the ribbing was. I had purls along the armholes and it tended to curve upward. I followed the pattern, but somehow I was supposed to have knits there instead of purls. Now this pattern has errata and I looked that up online to find the corrections. The way mine came out was like the written instructions in the book and not the corrected pattern notes. So I ripped back to where the neck ends and shifted over 3 stitches so that I had knits at the armholes which looked better. In order to correct this problem if I were to decide to start this project over sometime, I would need to start the ribbing with purls like p3, k3, p3, k3 instead of with knits as I had done (k3, p3, k3, p3).

Then I got another maybe 12 or so rows into it and decided that I didn't like the way my increases looked. The left leaning increases (LLI) look great, but my right leaning ones (RLI) do not look the same as the left ones. I am really obsessive and nitpicky when it comes to symmetry and stuff, so this is bugging me. I ripped it out because I thought I must be doing the RLI's wrong. Then I went searching around on Ravelry looking at other people's projects and read that some other people were having issues with the increases and that they didn't look right but when the sweater was worn/stretched they looked ok. So I started knitting it again and got another 10 or so increase rows done and I am still not having a good feeling about how the RLI's look.

So I am still undecided about this pattern. I am considering ripping the whole thing out and using the yarn to make something else. Maybe another tube top like the purple one I made. This is the same yarn in the same amount as I used for that one, just a different color. And I actually enjoyed knitting that pattern. This one has annoyed me enough already that I don't know if it can redeem itself right now. But here is a pic of what it looked like when I finished the 5 inches of the neck ribbing.



The yarn would make a very pretty tube top....

Purple Tube Top Finished

I got the knitting done last night. I ended up doing 8 lace repeats and then 3 inches of ribbing at the bottom and omitted the bottom eyelet row. Today I went to the fabric store and got some ribbon to go with it. My husband photographed me in it, and I think it looks pretty nice.


It's pretty stretchy and needs the ribbon to stabilize it from slipping. I would definitely knit this pattern again but I think on the next one I would do a little waist shaping to make it a little tighter in the middle. Overall I am really happy with the result and the yarn is really nice.

Progress

I just put another lace repeat into my purple tube top. So far that makes 7 repeats (70 lace rows total). I think I am going to do one more repeat and then start the bottom ribbing and all that. But who knows, I will need to see what it looks like after that next repeat is done. Here's an updated pic:


I really hope that it ends up fitting me well. I read a lot of other people's info on this project on ravelry and hear a lot about the item stretching out a lot when worn. I will probably end up threading a coordinating ribbon through the top eyelets so that I can tie it and keep it tight at the top.

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I still have that aeolian shawl to work on. It has been hibernating since I started this tube top. I can't really adequately photograph it when it is still on the needles because I can't really stretch it out to show how big it is. But here's how far I have gotten on it:

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I haven't taken a recent photo of the Pomatomus socks I am working on. I have the leg portion of the first sock finished. Here is what that is looking like so far:

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Then there is the next in a long line of cotton dishcloths. I try to always have one of these on the needles as my "to go" project. I have the easy pattern memorized and it is small and portable. So anytime I go somewhere that I may have to sit around and wait for something I can grab this out of my purse and occupy myself.

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And finally there is my experimental sweater. This is really just a random project to work on when I need a break from everything else. I really have no idea what this is going to be when it is finished. I'm really just winging it.

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Lastly I have some spinning in progress. I got half of my "punkette" roving spun up weeks ago and the other half has just been sitting here. I need to get the other half done and the 2 plied together before I have to pack up my wheel for the move in a couple weeks. The wheel will probably be in storage with all the rest of our stuff for a little while, so my spinning will have to go on hiatus.

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Well, that's about it for this update. The next few weeks will be insanely busy, so I will need my knitting to keep me sane.

Necklace and Earrings

Things have been really busy for me lately. In the past 2 weeks I took 2 different road trips, started cleaning and organizing the house to get ready to move, and all sorts of other stuff.

I started knitting a purple tube top using the "Coquette Lace Tube Top" pattern from the book "Fitted Knits" by Stefanie Japel. I am trying out a new yarn called "Country" by naturallycaron.com and its really soft and pretty. I have finished 3 repeats of the lace pattern so far. It's really easy and nice to knit, I just haven't had a lot of time to work on it lately. Here's a pic I took of it in the van on the way to Virginia 2 weeks ago.



Last night I finished making a necklace and earrings for myself. While I was on a trip to Ann Arbor, MI to visit my friend last week I found a really cool necklace in one of the shops. I loved the way it looked on me so I decided I wanted to make something similar to it in style but with different colors and shapes. I used some beads and supplies I had left over from making stitch markers. I bought some beading wire and the chandelier earring bases this weekend.

I cut the wire into pieces slightly longer than 1cm each and looped them on each end with a bead in the middle and then linked them all together to make a chain for the necklace. I think they came out really well. Here's some photos:

Shrug this!

I decided that I needed some sort of little shrug to cover my shoulders sometimes since I have been wearing a lot of tank tops lately. I also decided that I need to make some use of the knitting books in my bookshelf. The pattern "Shrug This" from the book One-Skein Wonders by Judith Durant was perfect. I started it a couple nights ago and I am already wearing it. It was a very easy knit. I used less than half a skein of Caron Simply Soft that I had leftover from knitting my golf club covers a couple years ago. I can wear it either by itself or with a pin at the neck. Right now I am using a little butterfly clip. Here are some pics:






I also never got around to posting pics of the next kitchen towel and dish cloth I finished last month. Here are pics of those :)





I haven't done a whole lot of spinning lately. I got one bobbin of my Punkette superwash merino roving from Mary Jane's Attic spun up. The other half of the roving has yet to be spun. I will get to it eventually :)

Purple Skirt

Well I have not been doing a whole lot of knitting or spinning the past week or so, but I did manage to make a new skirt to wear to a bellydance event. It's a simple 10-yard 4-tiered cotton "gypsy" style skirt made out of some inexpensive 44" quilter fabric from JoAnn.

To make these skirts, I buy 5 yards of the fabric. I cut the fabric lengthwise while it is still folded over in half the way it is wrapped on the bolt. And then cut down the center, with 11 inches on each side of the cut.



Next, I unfold the top half and cut down the fold line with 11 inches on each side. Now I have 4 strips of fabric that are 5 yards long and 11 inches wide.



I always use the 2 fabric strips from the bottom of the first cut to be the bottom tier. Those edges are already somewhat finished when they come off the bolt and won't unravel. That way I do not have to make a 10 yard hem at the bottom of the skirt. The fabric edge is my hem :)

So I take those 2 strips and sew them together to get a 10 yard strip that is 11 inches wide. Then I sew a line of wide stitches with my sewing machine along the unfinished 10 yard edge to be the top of the bottom tier's gathering spot. Then comes tons of gathering. I sit and pull on one string from the machine-stitched line and gather the fabric down until it is half its width (now 5yd).



Next, I line up the 5 yard gathered edge of the bottom tier with the bottom edge of another 5 yard strip of fabric and pin them together. Then I sew those 2 pieces together. After that, I gather the top edge of the second tier the same way as I did the first tier, taking it down to 2.5 yards in size.



Next I cut the remaining 5 yard strip of fabric in half vertically to get 2 x 2.5 yard/11" wide strips. I line up one of these 2.5 yard strips with the gathered edge of the 2nd tier, pin and sew to make the 3rd tier. Then I gather up the top of the 3rd tier to about 1.5 yards. Now, at this point you could make it whatever width you need. I think the last skirt I made I took it down to 1.25 yards, but this one I left a little roomier. You could also make it bigger and gather to 1.75 or 2yd or whatever you like if you want it fuller in the top or need more room for hip size etc.



I cut the remaining 2.5yd strip of fabric down to desired length, pin and sew it to the top of the 3rd tier creating the 4th tier. Then I line up the left and right edges with right sides facing and pin them together and sew up the side.

After that, the only thing left to be done is to fold over the top edge and sew along it to make a casing leaving an opening for a strip of elastic to run through for the waistband. I used 3/4" non-roll elastic for mine.

Since I am tall, the 44 inch fabric is the perfect width for me. By the time I have sewed all my seams and folded over for the waistband it is just the length I need (I measure about 39 inches from my hip to the floor for my bellydance skirts), If you need it shorter, you could fold over more at the top for an easy fix. You could also cut the fabric strips thinner than 11 inches but that seems like a good deal more work, and I wanted a skirt that was as quick and simple as possible ;) If you're really ambitious you could experiment with the math and more yardage to make a 15 yard or 25 yard skirt. That's a little too much gathering for my liking.

I wait until I get 40% or 50% off coupons for JoAnn to buy the fabric. So with thread, elastic and fabric included these skirts generally cost me maybe $12 to make. It takes me a couple hours with all the gathering, but it's worth it.

Here is the finished result!



Other skirts I have made using this method: