Showing posts with label 2016 resolutions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2016 resolutions. Show all posts

Thursday, 1 February 2018

Lace Pattern Socks

You can put some things on a pedestal and put things off but as we tell or children when trying a new food, 'you won't know until you try it.' Patterned socks were like this for me. I thought they would be so hard that I put them on my New Years resolution list in order to have 12 months to build myself up to them but the truth is, they were a pleasure to knit.

The yarn is Stylecraft Head over heels which I bought from a new wool shop in Church Stretton. I am a sucker for a chat in a yarn shop with a nice owner and so left with a ball of sock yarn.




I used the October sock pattern which is free on Christina's blog A colourful life. It is so well written and I found it a breeze.I did a little change on round 1 of the pattern section - I made a full wrap around of the yarn as the last stitch before the purl 1, knit 6 rather than just bringing the yarn forward. It depends on what style of knitting you do but look out for it anyway if you use this pattern and find out what works for your knitting style.


The heel is the most comfortable one I have knitted on all of the socks I have made so far.

So the moral of this post is: don't put things off, have a go, 'You won't know until you try it!' Good Luck with trying to get your children to eat Sprouts though:)

One of my crafting resolutions for 2018 already gone. Yay!


Jo xxx

Wednesday, 3 January 2018

2018 Resolutions

Happy New Year!
OK folks, I have had a little think about my crafting resolutions for 2018 and they are:

1. To learn to use all the sewing machine feet in my little pot. What are they all for? Do you have some of these? Are they a help or hindrance? Are they even all for my machine, I am wondering!

2. To knit a pair of socks with a pattern on. I am hoping to knit a pair of these from Christina's pattern on A colourful life. I have got the hang of plain socks now so I want to 'dip my toe' into some other patterns.
A photo from her blog - these are Christina's feet!

3. To make a Dresden star quilt for Andy and I - a whopping big double bed one!


I have made a little start over the holidays in the moments when I didn't feel like talking to anyone. I have been making the templates and collecting some starter fabrics from my cupboard. I need 252 of them... I have 37!


At present, they are all stored in my new HUGE cake tin.


I treated myself to some primary colours which had varying dark/light values for the contrasting star shape. They have lifted my scraps to a new level and I'd say there is no harm in polishing a turd.


Finally, as a side dish, I have made most of my Vintage pattern collection now so I want to try out a few more indie pattern houses. I am not sure I am going to like all of them but I would like to do a few reviews - are they worth the extra money, what is the sizing like, what are the instructions like, that kind of thing. Any recommendations?



Wish me Luck. 
What are you endeavouring to do this year? Do tell.

Wednesday, 27 December 2017

Resolution Success

If you are follower of this blog, for which I thank you, you will know I make crafting New Year resolutions because they are more fun than promising to eat less cake or run 5K. 2017 has been the year of the stash diet. 


I made three resolutions. The first one was to find a knicker pattern. This has been a bit of a mission with lots of experimenting and learning. I can report success all round and can now whip out MY own knicker pattern and make batches of new knickers without even leaving the house.




The second one was to make another quilt. Again, lots of learning and new skills. I made Megan a sampler quilt trying out new techniques and blocks which I shared with my sewing group. It tied in well with the stash diet because I used up lots of scraps.



And finally the mammoth number three. Limit buying new craft materials. I must say that it was very liberating. I have used up many pieces of donated fabric and wool along with sewing notions without actually making any less items this year. My favourite free yarn project being my hat, cowl and glove set.





And my most worn free dressmaking project is my Cleo dungaree skirt from donated cord.


Of course I did buy new materials and I listed them throughout the year to keep myself in check:

4 balls of patons smoothie in red for a school jumper (need)
2 balls of alpaca wool for a baby knit (caved in)
1 10m roll of bias binding to finish the quilt (need)
1 skein of rainbow Merino (too darn pretty)
1 sockwunder circular needle (to try)
1 stitch ripper (lost mine)
1 roll of dressmakers tracing paper (ran out)
3 balls of stylecraft white DK (to finish a baby blanket)
1 bale of quilt wadding (need)

*Adrifil yarn for my big girl to crochet so not for me!



There was a double edged reason to do this task. Financially, we used the money I would have spent on frivolous craft stash to fix or replace things which we have been living with that are broken or no longer working. Our ten-year-child-rearing dip without doing any house maintenance finally caught up with us. I listed these each month too:

JAN - replaced broken yarn winder, paid for our holiday to France

FEB - new frying pan, jug, microwave and stick blender

MAR - New shower head and serviced my overlocker blades. Paint for three rooms in the house.

APR - Bought drawers for our recycling, windows 10 software, bobble buster for saving knits, replaced 3 cracked drawers in the freezer

MAY - a new cooker and a new cutlery basket for the dishwasher, a new hose that reaches the part of the garden we need to water.

JUN - A new grill pan handle, drawer knobs for all the ones that have fell off on our bedroom furniture.

JULY - Had the carpets cleaned - all of them!

AUG - An adult mattress for our 10 year old girl instead of a toddler one, a sisal rug to cover the worn bit of carpet in the front room that the cleaning couldn't save.

SEPT - A new hoover that actually works

OCT - Garden shrubs to replace the ones the dog has eaten. New garden fence from a neighbourly driving accident!

NOV - New shower taps which were dripping, painted the kitchen.

DEC - Repair the spin on the washing machine and Christmas!


I know it doesn't make for riveting reading but I wonder how many of us put up with broken things and finally decide we have had enough, we made it our 2017 mission. 

So I have to make some new ones don't I? Well I will have to have a little think about that. 


Thank you for following along this year. I have loved having you here to cheer me on in my crafty shenanigans. Jo xxxx

Wednesday, 22 November 2017

Knickers, Quick, Tick!

Tick! I have been able to tick off one of my new years resolutions for 2017 this week. Quickly and successfully, I have made three pairs of knickers. The personalised pattern I had been working on during 2017 is all confirmed. Cut. Sew. Ta dah! Three pairs in 90 minutes.

I have found some firm favourites during this sewing marathon. I like a high leg, fold over elastic for the leg arcs and jersey fabric. I have used up nearly all of the odd bits of elastic, lace and suitable fabric I had for experimenting with. This fabric was a small piece of jersey donated along with the wool haul I had last week.



I can start 2018 buying just the right supplies to keep me in underwear indefinitely. 


I enjoyed having a bit of variety to play with: the ric rac and two different widths of stretch lace elastic to explore knicker depth and fold over or picot elastic for the legs. They are super comfy and pretty to wear.

The phrase I usually use sounds a little creepy with this content: but thanks for looking!

Jo xxx

Sunday, 29 January 2017

#bettyblouse FREE download link

It is good to try new skills. I have been having a go at pin tucks using a free download for the Betty Blouse pattern. My slippy viscose fabric choice did not make it easy for my first attempt at pin tucks. One is a bit bigger but I was pleased with the rest.



The reason I chose this fabric for this pattern was because the cotton version on the pattern picture stuck out too much at the shoulders for my liking therefore I was looking for a softer drape. 



It feels lovely when I wear it. I did have to make some intermediate modifications for using this fabric rather than a light cotton.


I added a neckband rather than using bias binding facings. The fabric was not strong enough against the bias binding - it hung down to reveal the binding. I did not bind the arms either, I just made a really small turned hem so that they would 'waterfall' I took a smidgen off the front neck edge too for a slicker shape.



To finish the hem I used a narrow rolled hem to make it really fine. I did not use a special foot I just passed it through the machine twice. I used french seams for the sides because it was fraying quite quickly. I cut a 12 so that I would have plenty to play with for the french seams.



Oh yeah! the other mod I made is for my bum. I had to make vents at the side for my hips, that old chestnut! That is a saying not a simile for my bum...




This fabric was given to me in an enormous stash haul at the beginning of the year. I did not buy it - promise. In fact I have been given more stuff in January than I could possibly believe from three different people who did not know my 2017 'no buy' pledge - fabric, wool and patterns. I really should stop saying yes. But when you can make a free top like this, why not?

Pattern : Betty Blouse download
Fabric: Polyester Viscose 
Thread: Stash


Thanks for dropping by. I am still without photo editing software so sorry about the grey photos however it really is that dusky duck egg blue colour. Jo xxx

Monday, 23 January 2017

Making Lunch Bags

My big girl is quite scatty. She often leaves her tiffin lunch box at school so then I give her my lunch bag and then she leaves that too until the lunch receptacle of shame for us all by the end of the week is a plastic bread bag! So I figured more is more and I improvised a couple of lunch bags. 



 If you spill anything inside, simply throw them in the washing machine with your tea towels.




A few more of those pesky fat quarters were used up here. 
I am still stash busting with gusto.



I'm off to supervise the girls making their own sandwiches. I had an end-of-my-tether moment a few months back where I said I would not make sandwiches anymore if people were not going to eat them as it was so wasteful. They begged not to have school dinners and agreed to make their own, which of course requires a bit of observation. But I must say, since they have started to make them, they have eaten far more of their own lunch. 


The phrase 'You should never bite the hand that feeds 
you' springs to mind!

Jo xxx

Background context info:In UK state primary schools children can choose whether to have school dinners, which you pay for after the age of seven. (unless you are in receipt of welfare in which case you can apply for free school dinners for longer) The alternative is to take a packed lunch from home. Little M is actually eligible for a free dinner everyday because she is under seven however, they are not fans of school dinners they prefer to take a healthier lunch from home. So I compromise, she takes a lunch bag three times and has two free dinners a week.

Saturday, 21 January 2017

Sudoku Knitting

I don't do Sudoku or crosswords or brain training puzzles. Knitting patterns are my equivalent. I really enjoyed making this hat recently out of left over stash. It is a thinking knitters project.



The yarn is the last ball of King Cole Merino blend aran left over from my crochet bag and the green Wendy Serenity Chunky is the last bit of yarn left from my oh so wearable green jumper



I had to adapt the pattern to use up the wool I had but that was half the fun too. The rib is single not doubled over, I was unable to complete the individual snowflake stitches towards the top but as the pattern was written for DK and I was using chunkier wool, I didn't have room for that bit of pattern anyway so I motored on with the crown decreases.



I also had a go with the tassel maker I had for Christmas but in truth, it was no better than wrapping yarn round a piece of card but there you are, it was fun all the same.

I will leave you with a few wintery snaps from a walk which have no particular narrative or link other than the theme of 'cold' to go with the woolly hat.




Another stash busting gift for the present box. 
Thanks for dropping by. 
Jo x

21 days without buying craft materials, Whoop!

Friday, 30 December 2016

Crafting Resolutions 2017

I don't usually do a review of the previous year, I like to look forward to the next year but I had quite a lot of success with my pledges so I thought I would round up and swiftly move on. My 2016 pledges were:
  1. To learn how to Sew a bra:

Lots of success here. I have made three: one in stretch cotton, one in jersey and one in tricot which is a specific underwear fabric. They have all been worn week in week out over the year. I have a new pattern for this year which includes lace so I hope to improve my skills more.
  1. To Crochet something beautiful to wear
 


A success for a while and then I washed it by hand however as I held it up out of the bath it just grew and grew! I now wear it as a tunic with leggings in the Spring and Autumn. Every cloud and all that...
  1. To complete another quilt


I actually maxed out and made two this year. The rainbow quilt in squares and the hand sewn eight pointed star quilt. I have loved these as much for the process and using up of stash bits as the final results. They are now stowed away as 18th Birthday presents for the coming years.
  1. To learn to knit stranded Nordic style

Mini success here. I had a go, enjoyed it but was unable to practise more due to a dodgy shoulder this year but I can always come back to it again another time.

My pledges for 2017 are:

1. To find the perfect knicker pattern I have been trying and I have not found one I can just cut, sew and wear without making modifications that still result in imperfect knickers.

2. Make a another quilt. Because I can, it is relaxing and has no fit issues!

3. To use up as much craft stash as I can and limit buying new. I have a sponsor with Minerva and a few other companies so I should get a steady flow but I have some stuff starting to build up behind the sofa and in my nice sewing cupboard. It needs to be used not hoarded. Note the word 'limit' here not a total ban!

 

I already have fat quarters won as prizes, strange notions I have collected over time, plenty of books for patterns and inspiration...


I have a yarn stash to get through, a box of patchwork pieces, underwear notions and fabrics and a box of knitting bits and bobs like:bag handles, my pom pom maker and some weaving sticks.


My current fabric stash is looking quite wintery but needs to be made into useful clothes for us all over the next few months.
  

Not to mention I had some nice crafty Christmas presents to keep me going - a tassel maker, who knew? So all in all some 'thinking out of the cupboard required in 2017' I think.

 Here's hoping you will continue to support, clap, cheer and giggle along with me in 2017. I am always amazed that so many people hop over here and always have such happy things to say. I love that. Thank you for being one of those people.

Happy New Year!

Jo xx