Crafting On

Well, sometimes my work and my leisure get to intersect, and this was one of those times. 

I am teaching a class on Grettir, a sweater by Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed.

While I was planning out how to teach knitting fair isle in the round without a color jog I realized that if I cast on a few repeats of the yoke chart, in this case six repeats, I'd end up with a little tree.

Now I am all fired up to make lots of these with different yoke patterns and then I can have a fair isle forest decorating my Christmas village this year.

So, I ended up with an item that was very helpful as a class tool, but can also be completely frivolous at Christmas time.
What are you creating today?
Joining up with Nicole at Frontier Dreams

Crafting On

I've been so busy the past few weeks with work that I haven't had much of a chance to do any crafting.
I decided that's not o.k. with me, so in a few stolen moments since Saturday I cast on and started knitting a little dress for The Youngest.
The multi-colored yarn was a gift from a friend. She messaged me on Ravelry a couple of weeks ago asking if I could use some Kauni Effektgarn. I am never one to turn down yarn, so I said yes!
When the package came it was bursting with all sorts of yarny goodness.

I decided that I needed to make The Youngest a fair isle sweater with the Kauni with another yarn as a foil.
The yarn I settled on (with help from my boss and co-worker) is Alpaca 2 from Isager.
It's so soft, it'll balance the hard texture of the Kauni.
As I was perusing patterns I came across a little dress with a stranded yoke.
So, of course, I switched it up and now it's going to be a dress.
I found a pattern on Ravelry for a fair isle yoke pattern,

and using that as a template I am going to add in some patterns of my own.
I don't plan on knitting the hearts or the squirrels, but I am going to add the paper doll ladies from the sweater on the cover of Rowan Summer Baby and maybe the squiggles and vines. I haven't decided yet.

What's on your needles today?
Joining Nicole with KCCO.

While She Was Sleeping

My life has calmed down a bit since last year and I am able to pick up a few shifts at the fabric store each month. This has lead me to be tempted by the pretty fabrics and while I don't think I am spending everything I am making there on said fabrics, I'm probably not taking too much home from the old paycheck.
So, I spent a little time this weekend getting a start on some sewing projects for my ladies.
First, I planned a dress for The Youngest with a knitted bodice and a fabric skirt.
The bodice is a mash-up of the Tummy Warmer pattern from Petite Purls and a lovely leafy border I found via Google. I cast on on Saturday and finished up the knitting yesterday evening while watching the Grammys.
This morning The Youngest obliged me with a lovely nap, so while she was sleeping I got a couple more things done.
The skirt is a quarter yard of Liberty of London fabric that we're carrying right now at Treadle Yard Goods. It's really pricey for a cotton lawn, but spending $12 for fabric for a baby dress didn't sound too exorbitant. Also, the yarn was from my stash, so that was free ;)
I made a tube with a french seam and doubled over the top and bottom so no raw edges are showing.
Next I have to gather and sew in the skirt and then I'm thinking of trimming the sleeves and collar in the lawn and maybe covering a couple of buttons too.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed that one of our Kokka double gauze fabrics was almost gone, so I rescued the last yard and a half and brought it home to make a peasant top for The Elder.

I got a pattern but I didn't want to cut it, since it goes up to size 14. 

I was feeling a little too lazy to trace it, however, so I came up with a solution -

I made dots with a sharpie along the cutting lines and since it bleeds through it left dots on the fabric which I could sketch together and cut along the lines.

It worked like a charm!

Here is a close-up of the pattern on the fabric-

I think I had better get this sewn up quick, since she's 9 and who knows how long she'll want to wear little kitties and flowers.

Oh for a million dollar job so I could sew everything out of double gauze, this stuff is dreamy!
The purple is for a skirt.
These should be finished up by the time the snow melts, and I may be able to whip up a cardigan to go along with the outfit.

Joining in with Nicole at Keep Calm Craft On
What's on your worktables today?

Yarn Along

Yarn Along day! I have missed joining in with the great folks out here.

I have been knitting a sweater from Coastal Knits - The Rocky Coast Cardigan. (you can see it there on the cover) the yarn is Peruvia from Berocco, and I am enjoying the knit. Coastal Knits is really fun to read as well. The authors, Hannah Fettig and Alana Dakos write lovely essays about their neighborhoods and favorite places along their coasts.

My daughter and I are reading The Black Stallion for our Mother/Daughter book club. I was a big fan of the movie when I was young, but I haven't seen it for many years. The book is really exciting! Lots of action, the characters are well-formed, the story is interesting. I would totally recommend it.
Happy Yarn Along, and Happy New Year!

What I Made in 2012

Well, here it is December 31st, time for the retrospective of the year.

This post will be dedicated to things that I made in 2012. 

I was feeling a little unproductive, so it's nice to see that I did actually finish something this year. Unfortunately, as I look at this mosaic I also see some things that I did not finish (the granny square afghan), or finished and took out (the blue vest with the lace yoke), or finished and then it broke (the Hello Kitty backpack), or finished and then never learned to use properly (the spinning wheel).
Even with all of those less-than-successful items on the list, the most successful was the sweet Youngest up there in row 2 in the right-most photo. I can safely blame any unproductive time on the hours upon hours of baby-worship that went on this year.
What great things happened to and for you in 2012?

Yarn Along

Today's Yarn Along is more of a Thread Along since sewing has been foremost on my plate lately.
We're celebrating Halloween today, as many of you are as well, and I had a little last minute sewing to buzz through this morning.
The Younger has a costume that he saw at Menards a month or so ago, a faceless ghoul, which I would be happy to let him wear to school today but, unfortunately, there are no scary or violent costumes at school.
So, instead, he'll go as a dragon this afternoon and change for trick-or-treating tonight.
We didn't have a dragon costume, per se, but we did have a stegosaurus costume that my Mom made for my brother many years ago.
The Younger has worn it a few times, and it's adorable.

 So, rather than re-invent the wheel, or dragon, I made some wings this morning.

 I found possibly the last wire hanger in the house and stuck it through the wings to give them a little structure,

 In an update from last week's Keep Calm and Craft On, I finished my shoes.
They fit o.k., they're fine for inside stuff, I wore them for ECFE where I spent the whole time on the floor and they worked great for that.

 As far as knitting goes, I finished up one leg on the doll that I started two weeks ago, and the red is the beginning of her dress.

 Gratuitous cuteness of the Youngest and the Elder all dressed up for Halloween.

Be safe and eat lots of candy, All!

Yarn Along

Yarn Along day!
I re-knit the first slipper for the Elder and ran out of yarn a third of the way into the second, since I had used up so much yarn in my first try.
Since I was in a knitterly place I started on a shop model for the yarn store - a doll from Knitted Dolls by Arne & Carlos.
The dolls in this book are really cool; the construction, the design aesthetic, their names, the whole book is fun from start to finish.

I'm reading The Mysterious Island right now. I had always wanted to try a novel by Jules Verne, though I had heard that his writing was pretty dense, and when I saw this was one of the free books on the Kindle I thought this might be the time to read one.
It's been a fun read so far. The story is about a group of civil war-era prisoners of war who escape the Confederates in Richmond in a balloon and are caught up in a hurricane and land on a mysterious island, though I haven't seen what makes the island so mysterious yet I think it may be dinosaurs...
This here happened right after I took the first photo -

The Youngest is working on her mobility lately, and the knitting was too tempting for her to hang out with her appropriate toys.

What's on your needles today?

Craft On and Yarn Along

Keeping Calm and Crafting On today with Nicole.

As well as Yarn-ing Along with Ginny.

Thank you all for your supportive comments last week.

I love the way it feels like hanging out, chatting with neighbors, here. 

Even if you're all around the country and the world.

I haven't finished up with the dolly's hair, I had one idea, and then I had a completely different idea, which would involve some extra work but might be more effective in the long run. Still percolating on that one...

This week I am doing a little weaving. 

We had a weaving meeting at the Yarnery the other day, and it was suggested that we need more woven models up in the store.

I jumped at the chance to bring out the loom. 

Even though I did weave a blanket for The Youngest before she was born, it's been quite some time since I used the rigid heddle loom.

 It's nice and compact, and even with a sniffly baby needing most of my time and attention, I have been making some good progress.
It looks a little wonky right now, but I'm sure it'll shake out in the blocking.
I'm still not reading anything, unless you count night-time with the kids where we're cookin' along with The Goblet of Fire.
To help out with our efforts to scale back the spending, we're no longer eating out, and so I have also been spending a lot of quality time with my favorite new-ish cookbook Time for Dinner.

What's on the scene in your crafty world today?

Baby in Progress

If I have ever needed a time to Keep Calm and Craft On it's now.
It's been a little stressful here at the fifthlampdown house the last few weeks, mainly money woes which, as I have stated often, are for the birds.
Nothing that we can't weather, but unpleasant nonetheless.
Craft Therapy is here for me through it all, which is pretty good.
I made some good progress on the felted dolly for The Youngest, and I was able to felt and stuff it yesterday and today.
I have some interesting hair plans, which I hope come to fruition, and I will share as they develop.

As I said in my Yarn Along post last week, this pattern is really fun and if you've made socks or a hat in your life you can (and should) make this doll.

Yarning Along as well, and I have to say that I haven't read a word all week, if you don't count blogs.
I have, instead, been fascinated by this whirlwind of developing baby goodness.

What's on your needles today?

Yarn Along

Yarning along today, it's been a little while.
Today I have been finalizing my lesson plans for my classes at Choir School which starts tomorrow.
There's not much that's more fun than going through my library of music books to choose songs to sing with my little friends.
I also started reading In the Lake of the Woods for my book club. I am not very far into it, but the writing is engaging so far.

I have been knitting away at the dolly for The Youngest.
If you've ever made a hat and socks this doll is for you. The rear end is exactly like turning a heel on a sock, and the foot actually is a sock.
At this point the doll is the same size as The Youngest, so it should be a nice size for hugging after it has been felted.
What's on your needles today?

Yarn Along

Yarn Along time!
I started reading A Little Princess this week with the Elder.
She had a terrible Monday. She caught some kind of stomach virus and was quite green and weak all evening.
While she nestled in on the couch with her bowl we watched The Secret Garden together (what a movie) and when I asked if she would like to hear the book she asked if we could start with A Little Princess instead (also a beautiful movie).
We got through 3 chapters while she was in the bath, and we did another today.
The knitting is a doll for the Youngest.
It will probably be a Christmas present.
It's a Waldorf-style felted doll that I saw on Ravelry and fell in love with.
Head over to Ginny's and see what's on everyone's needles.

Keep Calm and Craft On/ Yarn Along

Joining Nicole and Ginny today.
Last weekend a friend of mine got married.
It was a second marriage for both of them, and since they would be combining their two established households choosing a present to get them was a little challenging. Who needs one more crystal vase?
So instead, I made them a milk jug cover.

It began as a circle of linen (hence the wrinkles), I used an 8" round cake pan for a template.
Then I did a single crochet around the edge with crochet cotton, folding the edge of the linen under as I went.
Next, I went around with a couple more rounds of crochet, and then beaded each point so that the cover would have some weight and won't be blown away if they decide to use this outside.

I finished up with a monogram of the happy couple's initials.
I wasn't actually able to finish this up by the wedding (she sheepishly admits) but it'll be on its way to the newlyweds tomorrow.
I am reading a new book, The End of Illness by David Agus.
It's full of great information, but the writing is pretty dry, and occasionally feels like a corporate seminar.
Dr. Agus is an oncologist, and though he keeps saying that the book is not about cancer, it's been mostly about cancer so far.
I read this amazing article today about a possible new treatment for cancer without chemotherapy.
Awe-inspiring times we live in.

What are you crafting today?

Yarn Along

Joining Ginny, though I think I may be cheating a little...
I haven't been doing that much knitting, but I did do a little hand-sewing tonight.
The Youngest is growing like a little smiley, chubby weed, and she has grown out of a bunch of her clothes.
I was a little sad when she grew out of her latest sleeper, so I decided to convert it into a little dolly so we could hang on to it.
This little star baby is inspired by a pattern in Nature Babies.
I like to use baby socks for doll heads.
They come in great colors, and I always seem to have a big pile of single socks when I finish folding the laundry.

I started reading a new book this week too.
My parents gave me Animal, Vegetable, Miracle for my birthday.
It's a great read so far.
What's on your needles tonight?

Building and Yarn Along

Hello Yarn-Along-ers and Craft-On-ers,
I haven't done too much knitting this week, I have been too excited about the prospect of building my own Spinning Wheel!
This spinning wheel has been on my radar for a long time, years maybe, and I spent last summer picking up pieces that I thought would work to assemble my own. I may someday still go ahead with that plan, I love the look of a Charka and it would be pretty portable.
However, since I saw the $7.00 Spinning Wheel last week I decided to have a go at that one.
On Sunday we went to the hardware store and bought wood and a bunch of little metal pieces, and a fun new tool. Once we got home, I did a bunch of cuts with my miter saw to get the pieces that I will need.
This afternoon I spent some time on the front lawn with the Elder and the Younger, the Youngest was taking a lovely nap, and we sanded the rough edges on the many little pieces needed for the spinning wheel.

 (we used the cradle as a tote to bring the pieces up from the work bench to the lawn)

After a little bit of sanding, the kids decided that it would be more fun to just build castles with the pieces, and we added a few other things, like some empty cigar boxes.

 (The Younger thought this one looked like a robot.)

(This is the Elder's attempt at the tallest castle she could build. I love the negative space diamonds.)

Super fun, and now we're one step closer to having a spinning wheel! A little regular work to do first, but hopefully this week we can begin assembly.
Happy Yarn Along and Keep Calm Craft On swept me up today too!
What's on your creative plate today?

Yarn Along (completely inappropriate to the weather edition)

Yarning  Along with Ginny.
I finished the body of my Ariana Shell tonight, and now all that's left is a little ribbing at the armholes and the neckline.
The weather, as I mentioned in the title, is not at all conducive to trying on or modeling a wool sweater, sleeveless though it is, today's high was 98 or so and they predict 105 degrees tomorrow. It felt a little silly to be working on it in this weather, but I was teaching a class this evening and I always like to bring along my knitting so I can demonstrate techniques.

I am still reading How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm, and it's still really interesting.
I don't know if I love the writing, unfortunately.
The author refers to her husband babysitting her daughter, as though it's not just that he's parenting just like her...
She also refers to some practices of folks around the world as amusing, which doesn't seem the most objective adjective to use.
Picky things, I'm enjoying the information so much that I am trying to ignore these little things, but they creep up on me and annoy.
What are you reading today?
I think it'll be time for a new book for me soon.

Yarn Along

I have been clicking along on the Ariana Shell. Only about an inch to go in the body.
These 14 inches of stockinette feel like they've taken forever, but it's a nice project to bring wherever I happen to be (park, backyard, on a walk) and just knit, knit, knit without thinking.
I have been flipping through Anne of Ingleside this week.
It's an episodic story line, so I can just pick it up anytime and jump right in.
What's in your reading list this week?

Head on over to Ginny's to see more great reads and cozy knits.

Progress

I have made some good progress this week on my list of projects from Monday.

This is the hat to match the booties that I finished up on Tuesday, and I cast on for the sweater yesterday. 

That little flower is so sweet, and it was a breeze to whip up. Maybe the Elder needs some matching barrettes? 

I made some good progress on my t-shirt rag-rug too.

The Elder was able to help out with the crocheting, which was super fun. She ran out of yellow, and I haven't cut the orange or red strips yet, so we're in a holding pattern on this one. It's coming out just like I had planned, though, so that's a bonus.

Since I was able to get so much knitting and crocheting done this week, it highlights the fact that I may have the time to finally start sorting the Baby Area, and perhaps clean off my sewing work table. 

We'll see how that comes along...

Anything fun on your to-do list this weekend?

Long Weekend

I had an audition on Thursday, and I felt a little tickle in my throat. I didn't do as well as I would have liked. Friday, the tickle turned into a full-fledged Super-cold and I spent the majority of the weekend nearly passed out on the cozy chair watching movies and knitting.

Did I have to feel this way on the weekend when my husband took off extra days to spend with the family? Of course. Or when we might have finagled a babysitter and gone to the movies together? Guess so.

Oh well. I'm on the mend now, and I should be better by the end of the week if my current progress is any indicator.

On the plus side I didn't have to work, and the pace of the days was perfect. We spent a little time at the playground, I slept, we went as a family to see Kung Fu Panda 2 (much fun), the Elder and I planted veggies in the garden, I took a nap, we sat and watched the world go by, the kids played in the sprinkler, and I knitted. A lot.

As I was browsing through Ravelry the other day I saw this pattern and I just knew it would be perfect for the Thirteen Mile yarn that I had in my stash.

It will be impossible to keep up my knitting pace what with work, and parenting and volunteering at the new church community garden, but I got a monster start on this since Friday, and I have confidence that I will finish it before it's cold enough to use it.

How was your weekend?

Yarn Along

Joining Ginny again in Yarning Along.

The big knitting news for Yarn Along this week is that I finished my sweater! Ravelry link here.
I am very excited.
It's awfully warm, the yarn is kinda thick, so it's more of a jacket than a sweater, but I have worn it and it does fit and I am really very happy with it.
It's still in need of blocking, but I have been wearing it anyway.

I started a new book this week.
That blurry thing up there is Possession by A. S. Byatt.
There was a movie of this book a couple of years ago with Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckert.
I watched it the other week, and then decided to read the book.
The book is full of poetry and the letters that the main characters send one another, and fairy stories.
It's really lovely to read.

Yarn Along

Last week I talked about getting a ball of yarn in the mail and it came!
This is the first cuff.
I finished Freedom last week, so I hope to resume Rebecca today.
Have a happy Wednesday!
See Ginny for more yarny fun.