It was down to the wire, but I got my Shalom sweater finished while watching the closing ceremonies tonight. Woo!
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Second Ravelympics Project Complete!
It was down to the wire, but I got my Shalom sweater finished while watching the closing ceremonies tonight. Woo!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Olympic Project #1 Complete!
The socks are done!
I have 3 days left to work on the sweater. I don't know if finishing is possible, but I will try.
I have 3 days left to work on the sweater. I don't know if finishing is possible, but I will try.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
The Aeolian Blocking Experience
I finally finished it this weekend! My goal was to get it done by Feb 12 since I will be starting the Evenstar Knit-A-Long then, and didn't want to have 2 shawls on the needles at once. I had all the knitting done on Saturday and had the shawl bound off. On Sunday I had my first large-scale lace blocking experience. I was nervous that I was going to do something to mess it up.
I laid out my Knit Picks blocking mats on the floor and put the shawl on it to take a pre-blocking measurement and photo.
The shawl measured 54" across the top, 36" on the diagonal sides, and 22" long from top to bottom center.
I knew I would not have enough blocking mats to make a large enough surface, so I used a cork board in the center and arranged the blocking mats around it. I then laid a large towel on top. I soaked the shawl in a dishtub with tepid water and a little bit of Kookaburra Wool Wash for about 10 minutes or so. Then I rolled it up in a towel to get some of the water out of it. While it was still damp I laid it out on the blocking surface.
I had ordered some blocking wires from Knit Picks some time ago, but this was my first attempt at using them. I ran the wires through the top first, and then the main points on the sides and stretched it out. Then I used T pins to hold them in place. I used regular dressmaker pins to set the rest of the points in the shawl. The pattern instructions said to pin out the main points first and then 4 additional points for each section. I pinned mine out a little differently I think. I did one set of points on each side of the main point and then one point between each section. I like the way it looks and it seemed a logical way to do it.
When I was finished pinning, this is what it looked like:
I sprayed some water on it with a squirt bottle when I was finished pinning because it had already started to dry a good bit. Then I left it pinned out all day and at night I took all the pins and wires out. The finished measurements were 59” wide at top, 56” diagonal on sides, and 32” long in center.
Here are some photos my husband took of me with it the next day.
I started working on this shawl in April of 2009, so 10 months ago. Granted there were many months where I didn't work on it at all. I am very excited to finally have finished my first lace shawl.
My crafting has been really productive lately. I've got a ton of finished objects to talk about, but I am going to wait and make a video update for that soon so look for that to be added here in the near future.
I'm looking forward to starting the Ravelympics this weekend. For anyone reading this who doesn't know what that is, it's a "knitting olympics" to coincide with the Winter Games. You start an object during opening ceremonies and finish it before the closing ceremonies. There is no real prize other than the satisfaction of knowing you did a good job. =) I joined Team Knitmore and Team Sasquatch on Ravelry since I always listen to the podcasts of the team leaders. I am planning to make the Spring Forward socks out of my Knit Picks Imagination sock yarn in "Unicorn" (a project that I already started once but ripped out because I felt I needed to use larger needles) and another Fuzzy Ballet Sweater out of some Bernat Alpaca in "Stone".
I also plan to start my Evenstar Shawl this weekend... if my order of Valley Yarns 2/14 Alpaca Silk from WEBS is delivered in time. We've not been getting mail here lately due to the monster snowstorm last weekend here in the D.C. metro area. We had something near 30" of snow and are expecting another 10-14" between today and tomorrow. I wish it were spring already....
I laid out my Knit Picks blocking mats on the floor and put the shawl on it to take a pre-blocking measurement and photo.
The shawl measured 54" across the top, 36" on the diagonal sides, and 22" long from top to bottom center.
I knew I would not have enough blocking mats to make a large enough surface, so I used a cork board in the center and arranged the blocking mats around it. I then laid a large towel on top. I soaked the shawl in a dishtub with tepid water and a little bit of Kookaburra Wool Wash for about 10 minutes or so. Then I rolled it up in a towel to get some of the water out of it. While it was still damp I laid it out on the blocking surface.
I had ordered some blocking wires from Knit Picks some time ago, but this was my first attempt at using them. I ran the wires through the top first, and then the main points on the sides and stretched it out. Then I used T pins to hold them in place. I used regular dressmaker pins to set the rest of the points in the shawl. The pattern instructions said to pin out the main points first and then 4 additional points for each section. I pinned mine out a little differently I think. I did one set of points on each side of the main point and then one point between each section. I like the way it looks and it seemed a logical way to do it.
When I was finished pinning, this is what it looked like:
I sprayed some water on it with a squirt bottle when I was finished pinning because it had already started to dry a good bit. Then I left it pinned out all day and at night I took all the pins and wires out. The finished measurements were 59” wide at top, 56” diagonal on sides, and 32” long in center.
Here are some photos my husband took of me with it the next day.
I started working on this shawl in April of 2009, so 10 months ago. Granted there were many months where I didn't work on it at all. I am very excited to finally have finished my first lace shawl.
My crafting has been really productive lately. I've got a ton of finished objects to talk about, but I am going to wait and make a video update for that soon so look for that to be added here in the near future.
I'm looking forward to starting the Ravelympics this weekend. For anyone reading this who doesn't know what that is, it's a "knitting olympics" to coincide with the Winter Games. You start an object during opening ceremonies and finish it before the closing ceremonies. There is no real prize other than the satisfaction of knowing you did a good job. =) I joined Team Knitmore and Team Sasquatch on Ravelry since I always listen to the podcasts of the team leaders. I am planning to make the Spring Forward socks out of my Knit Picks Imagination sock yarn in "Unicorn" (a project that I already started once but ripped out because I felt I needed to use larger needles) and another Fuzzy Ballet Sweater out of some Bernat Alpaca in "Stone".
I also plan to start my Evenstar Shawl this weekend... if my order of Valley Yarns 2/14 Alpaca Silk from WEBS is delivered in time. We've not been getting mail here lately due to the monster snowstorm last weekend here in the D.C. metro area. We had something near 30" of snow and are expecting another 10-14" between today and tomorrow. I wish it were spring already....
Christmas Gift Photos
I just realized that I never posted any photos of the things that I made and gave out this year that were not in my last video update. So here we go!
Princess Snowball Cat Bed for my cousin Laura, made of Fun Fur and Caron Simply Soft.
Star Crossed Slouchy Beret for my cousin Faith, made of Bernat Alpaca in "Ebony".
Nativity Angels for 3 of my grandmas made out of various Red Heart yarns.
Magic Loop Minis ornaments for 2 of my aunts made of Premier Yarns Serenity Sock.
Harry Bear for my nephew made of Caron Cozi and a little Patons Brilliant for his scarf and some crochet cotton in black for his embroidered nose. He has black plastic safety eyes in 9mm.
And lastly, the Be My Dishcloth that I made for my mom from Lily Sugar'n Cream Cotton for my mom for Valentine's Day.
Princess Snowball Cat Bed for my cousin Laura, made of Fun Fur and Caron Simply Soft.
Star Crossed Slouchy Beret for my cousin Faith, made of Bernat Alpaca in "Ebony".
Nativity Angels for 3 of my grandmas made out of various Red Heart yarns.
Magic Loop Minis ornaments for 2 of my aunts made of Premier Yarns Serenity Sock.
Harry Bear for my nephew made of Caron Cozi and a little Patons Brilliant for his scarf and some crochet cotton in black for his embroidered nose. He has black plastic safety eyes in 9mm.
And lastly, the Be My Dishcloth that I made for my mom from Lily Sugar'n Cream Cotton for my mom for Valentine's Day.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
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!
Friday, December 18, 2009
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 :)
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