happy holidays!

Why look at that! This year we hid our tree's shame with a stripey tree skirt I whipped up for a class at gather here. I'm rather fond of it, though I will say I should have made the center hole much narrower. That would have provided us with a tidier skirt with a smaller circumference. It would have also involved a lot less panels of fabric and made for an even quicker, easier project. Now I know for next year. I'll just tweak it to reflect these bits of trial and error and come up with a better, more badass skirt (to hide the tree's shame, of course!).

I know it makes me such a mega-nerd, but really, nice corners please me to no end.

Once again, I machine-bound something, and I did not want to stab said project after I was done. Hooray! I'm getting better at this thing. I like that the print I chose for the binding is kinda subtle and doesn't overpower or compete with the pretty saturated prints I used to the skirt itself. Funny thing about this binding, too. Originally, while sewing at Stacie's, she made 5 yards of binding for me while I worked on something else so that we would have time to play Settlers of Catan because Stacie is awesome like that. The thing is that I needed bias tape but did not communicate that. I just said binding. Derf! It's gorgeous, though, and I know I will definitely use it (for my current project, actually). Thanks again, Stacie! During class I made bias tape for my students hoping I could make mine work for the demo, but of course it didn't really work with the curves because, well... it wouldn't. Way to go, me! So Virginia made the bias tape for me seeing as I had just made yards and yards of it and must have looked like some defeated schlump when I realized I had to make more. Thank you, Virginia! Seriously, I am so grateful for these ladies. Also, talk about a close call - I had this much tape left:

I *just* made it.

The basic stripes in this design work well with our tree's decorations which consist mostly of little old painted wooden ornaments, a couple of my softie ornaments, wee fabric stockings, and these glass ornaments I took with me when my sister decided to throw them out. She thought they were old and tacky. Maybe they are, but they're shiny and remind me of some of the happiest time in my childhood. Therefore I love 'em.

Happy holidays, folks. Hope you have a wonderful time filled with laughter, surrounded by the people you love.

gathering for a good cause

(This post is going to be quick & to the point. I am painfully sunburned and last week's stomach bug is back kicking my ass sideways. For once, I'll try make to friends with brevity.)

So there's this great crafty shop that opened up in Cambridge that is my dream come true of a place that carries fabric AND yarn and all sorts of supplies that is airy and colorful and friendly and a million sorts of awesome. Perhaps you've already heard of it. Well, the good folks at gather here are really cultivating a crafty community, and it is reinvigorating my interest in making stuff and being a part of that community. But more importantly though, as with most people who understand and value the importance of community, they are interested in helping out and making a difference on a grander scale. When they heard about the tornado that devastated Joplin, Missouri, they decided to start a fundraiser. I thought the least I could do was donate something. So I donated this wee lion quilt:

The quilt measures 36 x 44 inches and was inspired by this needlepoint pillow by Jonathan Adler. That pillow reminded me of some lion in an old board book I had as as wee way back in the 70's. It was an image that I needed to explore. When I made the blocks for the pseudo-Single Girl baby quilt, it all came together for me. I figured out how I would construct this quilt and was dying to do it. Essentially, the whole quilt is one big block comprised of 4 pieces. And it has floppy ears and appliquéd felt eyes, mouth, and cheeks for wee ones to play with, making it interactive as well as visually stimulating for them. Since I wanted to get it done and present it to the folks at gather here this weekend, I decided to try a machine-stitched binding for the first time. It was easy as pie and only took a matter of minutes to complete. It's just not as lovely as a hand-stitched binding, though. I am not 100% in love with how the back of the binding looks with the machine-stitching. Eh. My corners came out well, though. (So there's that.) And I am happy with the quilting. Echo lines are fun, yo! Overall, I am pretty pleased with how it came out and am thrilled to be able to donate this piece to such a worthwhile cause. If you're interested, please do check out the raffle.

blue budgie

pattern: Budgie

designer: grumperina

yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Merino and some handspun by Krista of pigeonroof studios

needles: Addi Turbo 24 inch circs in US size 6 and Addi Turbo 40 inch circs in US size 5

modifications: Not so much a mod as a mistake that I'm, uh, calling a mod, yeah, that's it! I omitted the contrasting edge for the hem, the cuffs, and the neck. I am also flying in the face of conformity and eschewing the zipper (more on that below)

Originally, when I finished knitting this sweater three months ago, I had intended for it to be the wee one's Rhinebeck sweater. I had woven in the ends and blocked it just a couple of days ahead of schedule. I was so psyched! All I had to do was sew in the zipper. The problem was that I wasn't able to make it to the fabric shop before the weekend to pick one up. (The kid wore another sweater that I whipped up for him to the festival.) So it languished another week, and another week turned into another month when the zipper I finally managed to get was the wrong kind of zipper, i.e. not a separating zipper. When I finally got my act together and went to the fabric shop with the sole purpose of getting the right zipper (there were a few visits in between in which I frigging forgot to look for the damn zipper - derf), I couldn't find the right color. In the interest of having the kiddo wear this sweater before he outgrows it, I'm calling it done and saying, "Zipper? What zipper? We don't need no stinking zipper!"

Allow me to gush for a moment, because there's a lot to gush about. First of all, the pattern. Love it! I love everything about it. I love how well it was written. Let's hear it for clearly written, easy-to-follow instructions! I love its shape. I love its fit. I love its construction. I love the striping. I love how quickly it knit up. Love it, love it, LOVE IT! The only thing I plan to do differently when I knit this again (because I will knit this again - kids grow and stuff) is to knit the sleeves in the round only because I do not love seaming and don't mind a jog that wouldn't be all that visible anyway due to its position.

Now, onto the yarn.... Dude. Dude, really. Madelinetosh Tosh Merino is the squishiest most delightful stuff to knit with and so perfect for baby knits. When I saw this yarn in this colorway, I had to have it because it just begged to made into a baby sweater. Like the original Budgie, which we were fortunate enough to have received as a present from grumperina, who by the way has some super-awesome news, I opted to match it with a handspun, and lo! I had the perfect handspun for it. Granted, at the time, it was "in use" as a fugtastc hat that I never wore because it was ZOMGginormous. I performed a mercy frogging and put that yarn to much better use. I think it works well as a part of this combo. And can I say? I am shocked by the dearth of purple clothes for boys. There is so much dookie brown and boring navy and vomit olive, yet no purple. I could go on at length about how it bugs me that camo is so popular in boys' clothes yet there is not a drop of purple, but eh.... For now, I'll just say that this color combo pleases me immensely. And the kid? So cozy and happy in his sweater.

baby's first sheep & wool festival (a.k.a. - woo! RHINEBECK!!!!! yeah!)

Where to start with the post-Rhinebeck post? It's like asking where to start with Rhinebeck itself? You want to be everywhere and see everyone and everything all at once. Let's find a thread and go with it, though, for the sake of some sort of flow. Let's start with the fact that I didn't take any photos. No sheep shots here, folks. Not for lack of wanting to, since I do so love gorgeous photos of our fuzzy wool-bearing friends. I did, however, meet a ton of people who I have been wanting to meet for so long and to reconnect with friends who I haven't seen in ages. It was delightful finally getting to meet so many people who I only know through this amazing internet thingamajig. Sadly, there were a few people who I didn't get a chance to meet or who I didn't even know were there. And I didn't get to spend as much time as I would have liked to with some folks. I was all buzzing and distracted, happily so though. Much fun was had, and I finally made it to the ravelry party, which was wonderful. Jess, Casey, Mary-Heather, Sarah, Kyle, Erica, Nancy, and Ysolda really busted their butts to put together a fabulous event for everyone.

In addition to the social aspect of it, this year Rhinebeck was all about it being someone's first sheep & wool event. So much so that I actually knit the first Rhinebeck sweater I have ever knit - for him. Thank crunchy it was a small one because I only decided to go for it at the very last possible minute. Or maybe it wasn't quite so last-minute, but knowing how bad I am about the finishing details I knew I would wait until the last possible second to sew the ribbons with snaps on them onto the placket. Speaking of the details....

pattern: February Baby Pullover in stockinette
designer: based on the pattern by Elizabeth Zimmermann (from Knitter's Almanac)
yarn: hello yarn in Thrive, spun by the übertalented and multicraftual Stacie
needles: Addi Turbo 16 inch circs US size 4

 

When Elizabeth Zimmermann calls her patterns "recipes," she is so spot-on. Well, but of course! She's Elizabeth Zimmermann, after all. What I did for this wee sweater was take the basic structure and number of stitches used for the February Baby Sweater and knit it in the round for a pullover with a placket (because babies have ginormous heads and need a little bit of room to pull that sweater on properly). Easy-peasy! I was done in just a couple of sessions. The yarn I used is some squishy and fabulous Thrive by hello yarn, as spun by Stacie, who rocks big time. It's such an autumnal colorway. The wee one was all matchy-matchy with the trees.

Because I was rushing, my stitching was a little sloppy on the ribbons of snaps:

I might rip 'em out and redo them at some point. Right now, they're doing their job brilliantly, and it's also the back of the sweater so I am not so invested in having it be perfect. Funny thing about the ribbon - that ribbon has been sitting around in my stash for years. It was a length of ribbon that was tied to some thing or another I bought at Barney's NY, and I kept it around because I figured that some day I would reuse it for something. Ten years later, it was the perfect match for this sweater. Being a hoarder has finally paid off! Woo! The snaps were so easy to attach to the ribbon, and now that I know how to do it, I am tempted to start making more baby items with snaps on them, like a romper... either striped or with colorwork... possibly with squirrels on it... using Quince & Co. Chickadee.... Hmmm....

To the drawing board with that idea! In the meanwhile, here's a shot of the sweater in action:

crazy shower loot - pt. 2 the sewn goods

In continuation of yesterday's post about how lucky I am to have such awesome crafty friends, I present to you the sewn goods. The phenomenal quilt you see here is by Kelly, whose quilting I have long admired. Her work is just brilliant! Look at that binding - the fabric she chose is perfect! *swoon*

And how lucky is this baby that even his burping will be done in style? Caro whipped up the most awesome burping cloths. Because she is one smart cookie, she used flannel for the backs of the cloths so that they will stick a little and stay in place when you throw 'em over your shoulder. So neat!

Finally, we come to these adorable onesies in a range of baby sizes that our friends Ryan and Rhiannon silk-screened for us. Each one has a snappy little slogan on it based on an inside joke between Ryan and Matt, which I would explain here except its one of those jokes that probably wouldn't be funny or clever to anyone but Ryan and Matt. You know how it goes with those. Regardless, the onesies are ridiculously sweet.

Huge thanks to all of our thoughtful and talented friends who showered us with so much love on Sunday. You guys are all wonderful, and I am so glad to know you.

crazy shower loot - pt. 1 the knits

I am really lucky. I've found some pretty awesome friends since we moved up here almost four years ago. This Sunday, they threw me a fabulous baby shower. Both Matt and I were touched by everyone's thoughtfulness and generosity. As it is, I get all verklempt when people give me presents, but handmade presents always throw me over that edge and reduce me to a blubbering mess. The waterworks were in full effect when I opened up a gift from the one and only Grumperina and found this sweater - the sweater - in my lap. I watched her progress on this beauty both on her blog and in person, totally in love with it, all the while hoping to knit one for the Feisty one as soon as she made the pattern available (which it is now). Seriously, I am so honored and moved by this gorgeous little sweater. Also, every time I put this on the wee one, I will admire Stacie's amazing spinning skills, as she spun the yarn Grumperina used.

Also from Grumperina is this wonderful blanket, that I love love love! The colors are so spot-on.

So speaking of wee sweaters that inspire a huge response, this teeny beauty by Greeley also had me weeping with joy and love. I love the neckline, and that Sundara is so squishy and sumptuous.

And GAH! Will you look at this delightful little number by Diana? It is the most perfect shade of green! And the juicy orange buttons are such a smile-inducing detail. I love this so much!

Last but certainly not least, I received this ridiculously cute itty-bitty hat from Pam the other day. It was actually the first of the handknits to come through our door, and boy, did it break the floodgates. I'd like to blame it on the hormones, but really, I am extremely touched by everyone's thoughtfulness and lovely handiwork.

Next up, the sewn goods....