Fuzzy Wuzzy

Fuzzy Wuzzy wuz a bear; Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair....what's the rest?

I actually had to look at my photo albums to see if there was anything I made recently that I hadn't posted about! I got caught up last week because I had no vehicle to go anywhere in the afternoons, LOL. I did make a giant sized cloth diaper and a ring sling last week, but I'm sure you don't need to see them. I made two dresses early in the summer and you really don't need to see them. I did some baby booties over the last week or so, but they're not quite finished and I want to re-write the pattern so I can post it too. That leaves the one ginormous project that I did finally finish.

Falling Leaves Fichu (...leaves...LOL).

According to Ravelry, I started this July 10th. I had been inspired a couple summers ago by 3 fichu patterns in an issue of Knitters. They had been based on fichu's from "Victorian Knitting Today". I didn't really care for any of the lace patterns they showed, but felt pretty confident that I could figure something out on my own. I studied lace shawls that I liked, and realized that I didn't like it when stitches in each partial pattern repeat at the start and ends of rows were knit in stockinette stitch. I liked designs which seemed to emerge right from the increase lines, such as Flower Basket Shawl or Heartland Lace Shawl (look at that...they're both by Evelyn Clark!). So I knew I needed a pattern that had a diagonal element. There was this one in a stitch pattern book that I had always liked, "Falling Leaves". It was bold, graphic, and not too fussy. It took some careful consideration to figure out where to start the shawl in the pattern, and I did have some complications along the sides at times, where there were double decreases. It didn't remain symmetrical along the increase lines, but as I'm not about to publish this, I just wanted to get it knitted up. The yarn is, I think, Handmaiden Fine Yarns, "Angel Hair"; 70% mohair (not curly), 30% nylon, 875yds for 100grams. I can't find the label right now, but I do remember how long it took me to wind it up! I bought it at the Kitchener-Waterloo Knitter's Fair, Sept. 2005. I was very pregnant with Meg, Handmaiden and Fleece Artist were all the rage and selling out, and I really wanted something to make a nursing shawl for the new fall baby. This skein literally fell on me in a booth...it had fallen off the table and someone from the booth on the other side of the curtain just dropped it over the curtain, landing in front of me. I took that as a sign, esp. when the lady next to me said it would look great on me. I quickly got started on a nursing shawl. A rectangular stole in a fairly easy lace pattern....yards and yards of an easy pattern....Meg soon came along and I was not half-way done. I quickly realized that a mohair shawl would not play well with a nursing pillow that had velcro on it. I had never used a shawl to nurse before, why now. It sat for a long time....I got it out to take a picture at the last "new" house, just as I decided to give up on it. What I thought would be a mindless knit ended up driving me crazy for it's mindlessness!

The patterns in Victorian Knitting took a variety of yardages, and I was uncertain about how big this would turn out, as I didn't seem to have a huge amount. I thought about doing the last shawl (Sweet Lily) with it, but that one called for 900yd+ (I think) and I thought the mohair would obscure the pattern in the lace section. For the fichu I used uhh...5 or 5.5mm needles and it was fairly open before blocking. As it got huge, I started a second needle. I'd knit from one needle, onto the second one, instead of using both to hold 1/2 of each row. At some point, I stopped the increases as I figured it was full enough. I could have stopped a lot sooner! This thing is huge. It's definitely a "wrap up in it" sort of thing. I had once considered using it to make a sweater but didn't think I'd have enough. Oh, I would have for sure!

I had wanted some sort of edging, but it's hard to know when to start that, and I wanted to finish up the last pattern repeat I had started. Ideally, I should have ripped that out, and done the edging from then. Hindsight...

As it was, I was unsure if I would have enough to cast off. On the last row, I took my remaining yarn and tied a little knot in the middle. I did get to the end of the row before the knot...but barely. I knew I needed to cast off loosely and really had no clue if that would take more or less than knitting a row of lace. I went down to my stash, and found a ball of elann.com yarn, Highland Aran, I think. It was 3 ply, and a single ply was just about perfect. I'd cast off loosely, untwisting the plies, until it got unmanageable. Then I'd cut it, and start with one of the two plies left. Repeat again with the 3rd ply when I got to the point where the other two had been cut. Repeat the whole process again. Once I had it all cast off, I wove the mohair yarn over the cast off edge, loosely, going from one edge to the other, and then I pressed my luck and came back again. I BARELY made it to the first edge. Then, I thought, what I should have done was cut off the last of the mohair, find the middle of the piece and start weaving it from the middle of the shawl outwards to each edge. That way if I ran out, each side would still match. Anyway, doing this did make the cast off edge blend in better, and provided a nice finish with a bit of oomph. I should have beaded that bit of mohair....LOL.

It was impossible to block. I initially wanted to block it into points, but I didn't have enough room. And the sides...it is a BIG shawl. I washed it gently, stretched it out as best I could, then folded the sides over to keep everything lined up nicely, and pulled it as best as I could into a good shape. The next day I picked it up. It felt almost dry, so I shook it to It's warm and fuzzy and almost like wearing a mini-afghan. I think I got a perfect combination of colour, pattern, and design!

Diversions

I've written before about knitting diversions. Sometimes they are intentional (need to start a new 'brainless' project for knitting during rehearsal break), sometimes unnecessary (my project is having a time out), and sometimes unexpected knitting adventures (repairing a baby blanket). But I think it is these projects that can really tell us alot about us as knitters.


I've written before also about my favourite aunt, who raised sheep, spun and dyed her own fleece, and made great thrummed mitts and slippers. I'm not sure if I wrote about her unexpected passing this summer. I know when someone goes too early we often wish we could have had more time. Well, knitting is, in a way, giving me more time with her. My cousin was cleaning out her mom's laundry/crafting area and brought an almost finished project over for me. First off, I loved the canvas bag it was in. It was from the community college where she taught sheep/fiber/farm courses, and it stood up by itself! But the yarn inside was a surprise. It was a bright peachy colour, of Canadiana Chunky (that's been discontinued for quite awhile). This is a 100% acrylic fiber, in a colour my aunt never wore. There were also a pattern book (a Patons one that I've temporarily misplaced), and lots of 'extras'...stitch holders and safety pins pinned to the bag, needle and stitch gauge, 3 tape measures, extra needles.
I looked through the pattern book and saw there was one pattern for a single colour sweater using chunky yarn, and counting the sts indicated a size that would have fit my mom or my aunt, but the body length of the sweater was on the short side, and my aunt was tall (oh, I HATE writing 'was'). All four pieces were knit, up to where they would be joined to make the yoke with a textured design. I figured, great, that hide any tension issues.


Upon closer examination, I found that one of the sleeves (I think it was) had an error at the top which meant it needed some ripping back...a few inches. The type of error that makes you slap your head and put the project in time out. I got that settled out, joined all the pieces, and knit the yoke. I opted to knit a single ribbed collar instead of the folded over ribbed collar as I find those too bulky. I wove in a bunch of yarn ends, got sidetracked by the baby blanket repair, then realized we were going to visit my parents, so I stayed up late to finish it and give it a much needed soak. As you can see, it looks like it was made just for Mom! This is the second time I've worked on a project for my mom that has a connection with her sister (the February Lady Sweater being the other one). I feel very blessed to be able to do this!

There is still a LOT of the yarn left. The pattern called for 50gr balls, and the Canadiana Chunky is 100gr balls, and there's no yardage info available, so I think my aunt erred on the side of caution. It's too bad we'll never know the origins or intentions of this sweater, but it just feels right to give it to Mom. I have an idea for the remaining yarn but I'd like to know first if anyone has a fondness for peach, esp. in home decor. Does anyone have any particular requests for an item in this yarn?

Dress Up Girls!

When I was at the fabric store recently, I saw in the remnant bin a piece of fabric that Lucy had liked when choosing the fabric for her last dress. Even though she said she didn't "do" polka dots, or pink, or flowers, she liked the fabric (but wished it was another colour). I had never worked with a 'border print" and thought it would be great for her. I decided to make the other design of the pattern I used for their dresses as summer was pretty much over (doesn't stop them from wearing their sundresses!). It was a straight forward job, although I still have issues with reversing the second sleeve!! Luckily I had just enough fabric to re-cut another sleeve.And yes, that's not Lucy. She was in a bit of a cranky mood when she tried it on and declared it too hard to get on and too small. Meg (at the time I made the sundresses) is a bit bigger in the chest than Lucy. But more patient. So now she has a new dress. Meg looks super tall in this photo. The other day she was standing behind a JK student and he barely came to her shoulders (and she's the youngest SK student!). Last night she was at Kindernastics and Rob was on my left, and he says "Look how big she is, it's hard to believe she's only four". The lady on my right nearly fell off her seat. Her daughter had just turned four and is a good size, but still looks small next to Meg. It's hard to believe this is the same girl that wasn't even 19lb on her first birthday!

I mentioned before how I was excited by the "365 Days, 365 New Dresses" blog. About two years ago, I had plans to make some cloth diapers that used hidden polyethylene film and were covered with a polyester fabric (cotton would soak up the moisture around the edges and wick). I bought some outfits at a thrift shop to use as the polyester material. One was this muumuu. I loved the purpley flower print but it was really long. After reading that blog, I knew I just had to alter it for myself--she had done several with this exact neckline!
As I was taking off the sleeves, I found some small holes on the front...the edges were melted. Ick. Probably a smoker, or maybe from around a campfire. One of the holes was noticeable as it laid against my leg. I tried stitching it closed, but it showed badly. I thought about putting a patch behind it, but the stitching would show (even with that print). I thought about gluing a patch, but worried the glue would darken the fabric or be stiff.
My first attempt at taking in the sides made it too tight. I let it back out in the chest and took in the waist, but the chest is still snug. It was snug under the arm, up to the neckband. I cut it back more, but now my bra straps show (under my wet hair). I'm not keen on going braless with an unstructured dress, but it is doable. LOL. I really shortened it. Then I took 4 narrow pieces of the cut off section and sewed two of them together, twice (so I had two pieces). I stitched a gathering stitch along the top edges of the narrow piece and gathered each one to fit (one for front, one for back...easier than one really long piece). I LOVE the little ruffle. I kept it narrow as I thought that looked more modern and grown up than a deep ruffle. I also made a belt, but I don't like the position of it in this picture. It looks much better higher up as an empire waist. Without a belt, the back is droopy. You should have seen the google results I got when I tried searching "Fix a droopy back". LOL!
Of course, it's been very cold since then, except for two days. Oh well, we can't all live in California!

Skirt!

I wrote a while ago about not liking patterned skirts with matching tops. But there is something to be said about having a 'guaranteed' matching top. I've had this sueded rayon fabric in my stash for awhile (bought it from Wal-Mart which stopped selling fabric long before we moved....so I probably bought it in 2008 after my initial "success" with sewing dresses...I guess that's not as long ago as I though!). It was a remnant...or maybe not....one end was very poorly cut and was quite a bit shorter than the opposite selvage. I did find another piece in the remnant bin and bought it too. I've been wanting to try skirts now, and picked up McCalls M5856 when McCall's patterns were on sale (side note---the regular price for this pattern is $15.95...the two views are different only by length, there are 3 pattern pieces plus facings....I couldn't believe it when I saw the regular price compared to some Simplicity patterns that give you six DIFFERENT garments...). I thought this skirt had a wide waist yoke similar to a skirt I bought from Wal-Mart and loved. I don't want pleats all the way up to my waist! However, this skirt does not have a yoke; the pleats are stitched down over the tummy. This is great for two reasons--no pleats to pop open, and the stitching helps to prevent the fabric from stretching out and acts sort of like a 'control top' garment, LOL!


I didn't really look at the envelope in the shop and when I got home, I realized that it would not be big enough! I carefully measured myself and added exactly what I needed to the pattern pieces. Then I went to lay them out and saw that the pieces got laid out sideways to what I had expected...instead of the waist up at the cut edge of the fabric, the waist/hem go parallel to the selvage. I was able to fit the pieces onto the largest of the fabric pieces, by skimping a little on the length and bottom width. The different layout actually worked for me as this fabric is a print, not woven, and there ended up being a faint vertical white pin stripe effect. If I had laid it out the way I would have thought it should go, those lines would have been horizontal. While laying out the pieces, I discovered that the second piece of fabric was rather blotchy looking...the blue wasn't even and dark. I wouldn't have been able to use both together for a dress, and I doubt I'll use that piece even for a matching shirt...as it won't be matching.


Of course, I didn't think about zippers in the store. Once sewing, I looked through my zipper collection. I had just re-organized all my sewing stuff so it's actually in my sewing desk instead ON my sewing desk. I had some bags of odd notions that I'd picked up at yardsales, etc. Inside one was a perfect blue zipper, the exact style and length needed!!The sewing went fine, I just followed the directions for sewing the pleats and the zipper (bit ripply the first time). Had no problems with the facing but handstitching the hook and eye drove me crazy as it was a tiny one and I can never get them lined up right. Did a nice job hemming. But all the while of doing the zipper and facing, I was thinking I should try it on. But how could anything be wrong? I measured myself, the pattern, added what I needed...
Well, I tried it on when finished. And it fell off. I tried it on again and pinned out the extra. EXACTLY the amount I had added!!!!!!!!!! I was ticked, to say the least. I wanted to wear it on the first day of school though, so I had to get back to work on it. It was no fun taking out all the stitching for the facings! Taking out the extra at the waist restored the original angle of the side seams and the second time around improved the zipper. It's still a little loose! The weather was cool on the first day, so I wore this very light knit top. Inside, the whites matched, but outside...not so much. I tried on the white gauzy top I had made long ago, and it was too full around the waist. I have two other white tops to try with it when I'm feeling a bit skinnier. Shoes are another issue. I wore some nice summery beige shoes, but they are not comfy! My other beige sandals are too clumpy, the next pair too flat/casual, the fourth (?! really?) pair are closed toe loafer heels with open backs that I'm just aren't sure are skirt shoes (I think they're pant shoes).

I'll probably make this skirt again. The width at the bottom balances out my bust and makes it feel very feminine. It moves nicely in the breeze, but doesn't fly up indecently. This fabric is surprisingly heavy, given the summery pattern, but it's not heavy as in thick. You wouldn't want to go too thick with sewing the pleats; I wonder if you can trim the bulk? I'm not too adventurous in my skirt styles and this design is very workable with different styles.



On another note....someone was having a bad day....I think this was after her first day at all-day day camp. She had a tantrum for an hour and twenty minutes. But, surprisingly, the return to school has actually been really good, with only one 'going home' tantrum!

Sleepy TIme

When I left off on Friday (more than a week ago?!), I was heading out to search for the yarn. I went to my closest Michaels, and they had white Cottontots but not blue. I got the white and decided since I was out anyway, I'd drive over to the other Michaels that I had seen, but not been too. I couldn't find the freakin place. Stopped at a Zeller's and they didn't have blue either. I couldn't do any knitting on it on the weekend (I did some prep work) and on Monday afternoon I looked up the lost Michaels and headed over (it doesn't look the same as the other one!) and they had the blue. I really liked the blue better---when I put the white next to the blankie, it made the blankie look grey (the mom said it had been light blue when new).I cut the top and bottom borders off and unpicked it so I had one even row of live stitches. Then, along the sides, I had done two rows of machine stitching, like for steeking, but I picked up sts just to the ....oh, I've forgotten....I think to the inside of the stitching. I hadn't decided how I wanted to finish the sides so I didn't cut the side borders off, but I needed to prevent any unravelling in case I did cut the sides off. I worked a new border, all in one piece, outwards, using the same stitch pattern as the original border. By working outwards, it will be much easier to fix in the future as the sts will run only to the start of the border. I meant to machine stitch the top and bottoms too to stop any possible running into the blanket, but I doubt it'll happen anyway (the boy is already 8, the new yarn is fluffy and thick and not likely to run easily). I did increases on the corners every other row. It's not a very wide border but it did take quite a bit of knitting! And a long time to cast off! Every time I trimmed a bit of the old blanket off, I felt sad! His grandma had made it for HIM and here I was, a stranger, chopping off her love! I wanted to preserve as much of it as I could. Right up till the end I was still undecided on the side edges. I really didn't want to cut them off and deal with the yarn ends. I thought maybe I could get some cotton ribbon and sew it over the trimmed ends. But that felt too foreign to the rest of the blanket. Once I cast off, I was left with a raggedy flap of old blanket on one edge and an intact flap on the other edge. I thought of sewing it down to the back of the blue border, but there was a lot of contrast between the good edge and the worn out edge. I decided to trim the strings, and sew them down over the blanket. I used a wide zig zag on the machine, and an off-white thread, and stitched the old edgings down.

Although it shows up in the photo (this shows the 'right' side of the blankie) I think that's the flash reflecting off the nylon sewing thread, cause it's not so obvious in real life.

The first ball of Cottontots seemed thicker and very textured compared to what I remembered. There were some very thick and thin spots and the blanket didn't have that. The second ball (of which I used very little), was much smoother and even, even though they were the same dye lot. I wish I had noticed this sooner. I also ended up picking up too many sts on the sides (I used 3 sts per 4 rows, but you can't tell until it gets underway, and that's the one draw back of doing the border as one unit). If it had been for my kids, or not an urgent project, I would have ripped and maybe tried the other ball. The thicker border though gives a nice heft to the blanket now.

The mom was thrilled and I hope her boy was too. It still has the same cottony feel, and almost all the old blanket is still there, along with grandma's love :)

An Adventure

I have 3 or so more sewing projects to show, but here's a brief interlude. I thought the other day that I hadn't been on kijiji.ca for quite awhile. This is sort of like Craig's List. I went to the hobby section and was browsing for knitting machines and yarn. I found an ad for someone looking for someone to repair her son's favourite blankie. How could I not respond to that?!

Alison brought the blankie over yesterday. It is indeed, a very well loved blankie (and we know well loved blankies here!). Her mother had made it when he was born, eight years ago. She had done some repairs, but it was falling apart again and she couldn't knit anymore. It was knit all in one piece, from end to end. There is an embossed/texture design of diamond lattice work, and the edges are in double moss stitch. The stitches that had run down from the cast off row I was able to ladder back up, hopefully getting them correctly into the pattern. The sides and bottom are a different story.

Alison said it was okay if it ended up a bit smaller or a different, not quite rectangular, shape. My plan is to cut off the bottom up to where the repairs are (a white blotch), unravel the top edge back to the start of the edging, and pick up stitches on the sides, in the first complete column that runs the whole length, and then knit a new edging outwards in one piece. By doing the edging this way, any future repairs will be easy. The yarn appears to be Bernat CottonTots. I say this because it is a cottony feeling yarn, with a single binder. Bernat Cot'nSoft has two binder threads that crisscross. Bernat is a popular yarn here, and Alison says it was infact light blue when new, and CottonTots comes in a light blue. It has lost some of the texture of the CottonTots, but I don't think it was a smooth yarn either when the blanket was new. There isn't any Patons yarn that matches. I'm pretty sure it's not Mission Falls 1824, that would have been much heavier, they don't seem to have a light blue (although their colours do change), and it would have been expensive for a baby blanket (although I know people who would use it). Sirdar is another popular choice, but nothing matches in the Ravelry database. Same with LionBrand. It's funny, when I first touched the blanket, I immediately thought of CottonTots and Cot'nSoft. Both of which I've used. It's fun playing yarn detective, although this was a relatively easy case, considering I was knitting 8 years ago in the land of Spinrite (home to Patons/Bernat). The use of a single binder thread simplified it even more.

I'm undecided though how to treat the edges where I'll be cutting off the ratty unravelled parts. Should I sew down the center of the column of sts I want to pick up next to, like doing a steek? What about all the ends then? Weave them all in, individually? Oh boy. I don't like to weave in ends when I knit because A) I often unravel, and B) I prefer to 'duplicate stitch' them to make them really hidden. Any ideas? I'm off to see if I can get CottonTots at Michaels or Zellers!

Sew-Sew

I love being able to make "sew" puns, LOL.

It might seem that I did way more sewing in the summer than knitting. Well, probably. During the school year, I take a self-imposed 'break' every afternoon once Meg goes to SK. Sit'n'Knit (and watch a soap opera). While the kids were home during the summer, this was impossible. I'd DVR the show, but the kids prefer to watch TV upstairs where the DVR machine is, so I couldn't watch TV till they went to bed, and I just can NOT sit through a "live" show in the basement and wait for commercials. So, I'd spend time sewing, going from my work table (the kitchen table) to the 'studio' downstairs and I'd get a few minutes quiet, but then be back upstairs before chaos.

Back when I made the first pair of t-shirt yoga pants, I started cutting the second t-shirt but didn't get to sewing it. I wanted to test out the first pair and work out kinks. Those were from a size L t-shirt, and the new ones are from an XL. They don't seem a whole lot bigger in the hips, but definitely seem bigger at the hem. The sleeves were a little bit longer, but the armholes were about the same depth. This time, the pants are not reversible as I did turn down the top of the sleeve (which became a wide waist), and to make it comfortable, they are actually higher in the back than the front. I thought with my large tummy, the front panel would be longer.

I see in the picture though, that there is some pulling under my bum. Maybe they should be pulled down just a bit.They feel very long, and very wide at the calf. I do have nice calves, so I'm not excited by this length (mid-calf). I could shorten them--I really do need shorts. However, I don't know if it's the colour or the fabric, but I think if I took them above the knee, I'd have to find a field-hockey stick to carry around as a prop. Total high school gym shorts look.Again, Rob said I can't go out in public in these, LOL. But I must say, this slightly thicker t-shirt sewed up really nice, using the elastic over-cast stitch. No seam rippling, none have broken either. There is a bit of a lump where the crotch seam meets the waist panel at the front, and I thought about topstitching down the seam allowances, but I had overcast them together. Maybe next time I'll try a stretch straight stitch, then top stitch down the seam allowance, just like my 'real' yoga pants. Although I guess, working from the wrong side, it's not really top-stitching, LOL.

(The t-shirt says "Everyoneneedsmusic.com" and "Music makes you smarter"...my other love besides knitting is music!)

Sweet Lily Shawl

I liked the idea of this shawl as soon as I saw it (there's actually several things I loved in that issue, IK, Spring 2009). I first tried it with the very-multi-coloured yarn I ended up making Moonlight Sonota in, and it was clear right away it wouldn't work. It needs a fairly monochromatic type yarn. I decided one day that this yarn would work; it's Tanis Fiber Arts Pink Label Laceweight--a Canadian yarn! I bought it at the fall Creative Festival in Toronto,

October 2009. I chose it because it was the most monochromatic yarn in my laceweight bin (other than cream and black solids), and also had 1000yds and the pattern needed 825yds.The first wedge was challenging...keeping track of the chart row and how many stitches at the other end to not knit. I think it took me a little more than two days to do the first wedge. Oh, wait, even before that there were issues, LOL. I had grabbed the yarn, needle, and pattern to take to an outdoor concert. Got it open and realized it started with a provisional cast on. I had no other yarn suited for a crochet cast on, nor a crochet hook. I fiddled for about 1/2 the concert trying to do the provisional cast on in the magazine, and gave up and tried to remember how I had done a crochet cast on in the past....using the needles instead of a hook. I got it sorted out. I figured the crochet cast on looks very close to the regular cast off. The pattern has you do something a little extra over the cast on and off rows, but I figured I could just do it over top.

After I had gotten a few wedges done, I took a good look at my progress. Something seemed off in the lace 'ladder' between the lily panel and the pointed edging. You can see it between points 1 and 2 (from the top), and between 3 and 4. I paid close attention to the chart, and I was doing exactly what it said, but it looked like a mistake. I started altering it so the lace ladder would continue unbroken.As I got near the end of the shawl, I noticed a big mistake. Okay, it was probably not much more noticeable than those other ones (that weren't "mistakes" LOL), but I couldn't live with it and had to rip out almost one repeat of the lily chart. Then, after I got that going again, I spread it out, and found the SAME error in the wedge prior. Oy. I was not ripping it out again.

Other knitters on Ravelry had made comments about the odd shape of the neckline. Indeed, it does scoop in. I think the biggest reason is that you do only 2 ridges of garter stitch at the cast on/off edges, but every time you knit all the stitches across the row, right to the neck edge, you do 4 knit sts at that edge. It would look better with only 2 stitches but there would still be a curve.After wearing for a day, I noticed a larger than expected eyelet:It all seems secure, so it was probably just an effort to correct a mistake in a previous row, LOL.

I was worried initially about it being too big...the model in the picture looks like a typical model, and the shawl really envelops her....and I'm short.

However, my version turned out QUITE a bit smaller than the original!Although I didn't get the whole shawl in the picture, you can easily tell it's not a big, wrap it around the neck, type shawl on me. Although it's nice and delicate, I've ended up with 56grams of the 123 grams leftover (it used 67 grams; the skein was labelled 115gr). Not enough for another identical shawl, but there are lots of patterns for 400yd shawls. However, I don't need another smallish shawl.

But it DOES look nice on my 'new' rocking chair in the kitchen! (This was a curbside find, re-painted and a new cushion. I'd been wanting a chair for this spot since we moved in but couldn't find any new that I liked/could afford!)

Inspiration

I just wanted to start off with saying that this is my 400th post!! I started....4 years ago last month!

I recently came across this fab. blog: newdressaday.wordpress.com
The basic premise is that this young lady got laid off from her boring job and decided to not clothes shop for a year. She gave herself a budget of $365 and the mission of wearing re-fashioned thrifted items for the year.
I really like what she creates from the thrifted items. I have been glued to the computer trying to read the old posts as it's almost near the end of her year (she's on day 284). However, I don't think I'll be following in her footsteps anytime soon, for a few reasons:

1) She lives in California. Most of what she creates is suited to a warm climate, not Ontario. Sure, I love dresses too, but come October, they're not too practical. It's much harder to alter pants into something current and the right size.
2) She's young (30). She can wear clothes from the 80s and not look like she pulled them straight out of her closet. It's really hard to take something so popular in the 80s and wear it at my age, even with significant alteration.
3) She's slender. She can find clothes in more size ranges and take them in. When you're already at the larger end of regular sizes, that doesn't leave much room for alterations.
4) Lifestyle--I don't need beaded, sparkly, party shirts or dresses most of the year. I need casual clothes that don't look out of place in the school yard at 3:10. As well, I don't have the time needed to make an item every day.
4) Lack of resources. Back in Orangeville, there were two thrift shops two doors apart in the downtown (which had free parking). Here, there is Value Village which although large, is priced more like a consignment shop than a thrift store. There's one other thrift shop I know about but haven't been too. The Goodwill closed last year. There are some shops in Oshawa, but I don't get over there much. Last year I bought some items with the idea of making a type of cloth diaper. I needed large pieces of polyester. I bought a couple "muumuus" and was surprised at the price....definitely not $1 here! I had been thinking of altering them for myself since I'm not going to make the diapers now. Seeing her blog has given me the push to do it. Even if I pay $10 for a muumuu, that's still cheaper than the cost to buy the fabric new.

Way Back When It Was Summer...

I bought a pair of black and red yoga capri pants waaaaayyy back in late spring. I thought, gee, I have this huge cone of fine red yarn, I'll whip up a red tank top on the Singer 327. With the knit contour/leader, AND tuck stitch!

Well, I did some swatches, single and double strand. I liked the double strand but the definition wasn't there in the tuck pattern and it did seem heavy. So I went with the single strand, 2/24 I think the yarn is.

Some of the knitting went great! Some, not so great. I forgot that the tuck side is the right side and finally learned for myself why patterns for garments like this say to take one side off on waste yarn when doing the other side of the neck. The neck band took so long to pick up sts, and cast off.

I still haven't sewn it up. I toyed with doing it on my sewing machine. I don't' know. It might need armbands, I guess. Plus it needs hems. That aspect of tuck st as right side sort of sucks. Is there any other option? Knit the band, take off on waste yarn, turn....you still have to get those sts back on the latches, and the gauge difference means different number of sts...

It's freezing here today and I just don't know what to do about this top. Finish it and wear it like mad during Indian Summer? Go back to sewing for tops like this?

Sew I've Been Thinking

Do you have any ideas, theories, ideology that you believe, but know it's silly, unfounded, or just plain dumb? In particular, ideas about clothing, sewing, knitting, etc?
I like dresses, especially with patterns. Not really wild patterns usually, though. And I don't wear them as often as I'd like. I like skirts with patterns, but I have a hard time finding skirts that fit and look good on me. Strangely though, I won't wear a skirt (or pants/shorts) in a pattern with a matching patterned shirt. Even if it does look like a patterned dress. Why is this? I think maybe I think it looks too "contrived", like I tried too hard, while a dress is just one piece to throw on. Silly? And, I'd really like to wear patterned pants, or shorts, but never do. Crazy.

I have another bedsheet that I want to use up for sewing. It's an old Sears one, a pale green with floral pattern (Rob says it looks "Amish"). The top of the sheet has a wide greeny-white band with dark green piping separating it from the sheet. Being doubled, I thought it make a good top piece for the dress---I'm thinking of doing the pattern you can see in the picture on this post; it goes straight across the chest. However, when I hold it up to me, it looks funny not having my whole bosom in the white part; the proportions are just not right. I could use this edge for the bottom hem, although that will limit how full the skirt can be, and it might feel too "sheetish". But let's face it...it IS a sheet, and it DOES look like a sheet. Perhaps I should make the dress for one of my girls--could probably make matching dresses although Lucy would never allow them to go out in public as matching. Make one with the band at the top and one at the bottom? Still too matching (when I made their dresses this month, I suggested same fabric, different dress and she refused). Maybe I should make a pair of "sheet pants" and work on creating a pants pattern? I KNOW I'd never leave the house in them though, and as school is starting on Tuesday, there's only two days a week I could possibly not leave the house.

My other silly notion. When I'm at the thrift shop looking for sheets (or other clothing to cut up or modify), I don't want to take the 'nice' stuff because I feel that someone would really like to have that item as it is. There were some great sheet sets that I passed up because hey---some people actually use both sheets and they still looked like great sheets. A passed up a duvet cover for the same reason. Silly? Like when looking for wool sweaters to cut up and felt....someone might really like to have the 'nice' sweaters.

What are your silly ideas? I just found the "Stats" tab on the dashboard here, and can tell that there really are people reading my blog, LOL. So, let me hear from you!

Marbles

I started this 'little' project as both a stash buster and a mindless knit for movie watching. I had been at Michaels and they had Red Heart Strata on sale, and it seems identical to James Brett Marble. I'd used the marble before and really liked it, but really felt it was NOT a DK yarn like the label suggests. The RH Strata had a more realistic gauge on it. I had one ball of the Marble in the blues so I bought one ball of the RH. I planned to alternate balls for the different sections; that didn't quite happen.
It starts off with an obscene length of garter stitch, 6 sts wide. I did the first tie, got going on the triangle shape, and decided after a fair ways along that it was at the wrong gauge for the yarn. I think I ripped back to the end of the tie. While finishing at the other end, I think I remembered that there had been gauge issues and instead of knitting the same number of garter ridges I had to measure instead (I don't think the difference in gauge is noticeable). It's called Judy's Grandmother's Baby Sweater

and is from the book "Greetings From Knit Cafe". A quick stroll through my blog revealed that I posted about getting this book from the library, Jan 2008. So, it took me a little over 2 1/2 years to get it made. And into the gift stash box it goes!

Not Perfect...

If anyone follows "The FlyLady" you know the expression "Housework not done perfectly still blesses the family". It's a way of getting rid of the perfectionism that paralyzes many people from even trying.
Today, I was scanning my Yahoo groups, and one is devoted to a lace designer. Someone posted they had finished a shawl of their own design, for a new granddaughter. I clicked to see the pictures on Flickr. Something just didn't look right in a couple pictures, then I came to a close up. I could see immediately that there was major errors in the middle row of three rows of a large pinecone design. Not just a forgotten yarn over, but each pinecone in the row was wrong. It's very obvious as it's a large scale pattern, and the first and last row are correct (I don't mean row 1 and 3 of the pattern, I mean rows 1 and 3 of whole motifs, each motif is probably 24 rows). This might not have shown up during knitting, due to the large number of sts on the needles and the nature of lace, but wow, it shows up in the blocked product.
I would be so heartbroken to see this during blocking. I don't think I could post the pictures to a group with over 3000 members. I see errors in my knitting all the time, and it is a challenge deciding what I can live with and what I can't; I often use Rob as my judge.

However, the grandbaby won't be able to spot these errors. Knitting done imperfectly still blesses the receiver. Knit on.

The Empire Strikes Back (Part 3)

I measured myself, measured the triangle, stared at the first two dresses...and drew a new curve on my pattern piece. The printed piece here is actually for another bodice in the pattern set, but they all have the same bottom curve. Wow, when they say patterns are made for B cup chests.....now, I could have gone smaller, and done the 'squish them in' look, but I wanted some definition and support.

And here it is! I'm really happy with it! I do see that the skirt pulls up in the middle of the bodice seam and the ribbon (not sewn down) emphasizes this as it's straight across. I really wanted to use the ribbon. A little history now. This fabric is the same fabric as the very first dress, but in a different colour. I had bought about 1.5m and sliced it down the length, then stitched the ends together, and made a really long ring sling. I liked the length, but it was a little slippery. Later on, I took one of the pieces and using this ribbon, made a bathing suit wrap for the cruise. However, once wet, it was cold and icky (it's a 'washable rayon'). And it looked odd. So, the two pieces sat around just waiting. I bought some FOE (fold over elastic) in turquoise, thinking I might make a shirt like I've done before, or a dress. But Meg got it and cut it into a couple pieces. I probably could have used it across the back instead of making an 'invisible casing'. I thought I might use the ribbon for the straps, but after reading the sundress tutorial, and seeing how it improved the fit and look of the test dresses, I assumed it would work for this one too. I won't wear the ribbon again, unless I sew it into the seams and tie it behind me (maybe if I lose some weight).

I did lower the top of the bodice, as per Lucy's instructions, and I think it could go lower, although then it'd have to be lower in the middle too, and I don't know how low I could go and still be modest. I think, with the well fitting cups, that I could probably go quite a bit lower. I guess not every dress has to be suitable for a family reunion, LOL. I just didn't want to give any old men a heart attack. However, the bodice does make me look rather large. But, then again, I guess I actually am!

I do need to do some finishing to the seam allowances, and hem the beige roses dress. I spent yesterday tidying up my sewing room though, and I'm sort of 'sewn out' for the time being. It really bothers my neck. And while I would LOVE to make a few more summer dresses (I love wearing a dress as it's more forgiving of my weight increase and I have been really desperate for clothes this summer), really, how much more summer is there?

The Rise of the Empire (Part 2)

I didn't have any other fabric I wanted to possibly 'waste' making muslins, so Meg and I went to Value Village to search for sheets and fabric to use. I got this 2 yard piece, with original Wal-Mart tag on it...from 1997. It totally reminded me of the wallpaper at my parents home in 1997.

I found the sketch for the top from the teen book, so I decided to try it, just to see how the mechanics of it worked. You use a triangle based on your cup size, and then hack off the bottom corners based also on your cup size. I decided to err on the side of caution (and my larger boob) and go with a DD cup!! Oy.


The flat area at the bottom gets gathered. This pulls the short angled parts downwards into line with the flat area. Wow, that really got my brain rolling. Along with finding a forum where another lady had a similar issue and was told she needed more curvature along the bottom.I did much googling and found out that the type of skirt I wanted had 'godets' not gores. This would mean 4-6 panels, with triangles at the bottom. I thought this was going to be a great way to make the narrow fabric be wider and 'swishier'. However, there are a lot of seams...each eating away at some fabric....I was happy with the construction, however, the cups didn't offer enough coverage on the sides, but they did lay flat on the chest! And lets not talk about how the skirt portion fits. I could pull it up quite a bit and find it's "sweet spot" but that made the skirt too short!

I was energized to re-draft the bodice of the original pattern, with more curvature. I didn't have time or fabric to make another test dress, so I was just going to use intuition!

The Evolution of the Empire

First, yes, I do still knit. I just cast off a shawl this morning!

I wanted to go into some detail about the why and how of my recent sewing craze. When I first started sewing, in 2005, I had hoped at some point to be able to sew my own clothes, considering I was a hard to fit size. After my breast reduction in 2007, I was a 'normal' size for awhile, but still wanted to sew clothes. I started with some kid pajama pants and moved on to a dress for me, labelled "easy". I sewed a second version for a Christmas party even though I wasn't totally happy with the first one.

Even though I made the size for me (actually I might have made it a bit smaller cause I couldn't see how this style of dress would need something like 4" of ease). However, it just didn't have the coverage over the chest like the package showed, and it didn't lay flat on my chest.I moved onto a few other sewing projects but I was hesitant to make anything more for me, especially tops. And, I seemed to be ...ummm...growing. Recently, I felt that my skills were improving enough to try again. I decided to make a top using the same pattern. I drafted a slightly larger size, and altered the back so there wouldn't be a zipper.At first, I was happy, but really, it just didn't 'cup' me enough and didn't have the coverage. Plus, I HATE tieing things behind my neck. I gave it to my mom. As I mentioned a few posts ago, while we have the same chest size, we do not have the same bra size. It fit her fine.

I had a teen sewing book from the library and there was a cute empire waist summer top in it, with instructions how to draft your own pattern. They gave numbers for up to a C cup, but I figured I could try following the idea and upsize. I drew a sketch before I returned the book but when I went to actually try it out, I couldn't find the sketch. So I returned to my original pattern, and started a 'muslin' using an old sheet.I used the sewing techniques from the dresses I just made for the girls, but this made it hard to tell exactly how the dress was going to look until quite a bit had actually been done. I dress the pieces larger where I thought I needed it, but I wasn't sure what to do with the bottom curve. Trying it on showed that while I could get the right coverage and fit, the pieces would not be sewn straight along the original seam line. I just didn't have enough hands to hold it, pin it, mark it, etc. I knew that something was still not quite right.

I moved on to a different bodice from the same pattern set; this one is one piece, which I thought might be easier to fit. It is supposed to be much lower cut in the middle, but I wanted some modesty for this dress (family reunion). I knew, after finally finding a tutorial for a cross-over, empire waist sundress (on page 10 of the google results), that I needed more length to cover the bust and tuck underneath. However, I knew I didn't want the extra length at the side seams, so it got added to the top of the bodice. Lucy kept saying it was "too big" which she meant that it came up too high on my chest:I could see that it was pulling at the base of the V neck so I needed more width. I was pretty much happy with it though. So I got a better fabric--some blah beige quilter's cotton I had bought off Cheapcycle. It's rose blooms, actually. I didn't like how it looked in the middle (the skirt seam goes straight across, but the bodice seems to dip in), but I was pretty happy, although it was still not 'cupping' me. I wanted to be able to go braless, and not have elastic under the bust, which would gather the skirt and make it look like a maternity dress (even though I have a permanently maternity shaped body). There were some issues with the skirt. The fabric is only 44" wide!For ease of adding photos, I'm just going to start another entry for the rest of the story!

Sew Quick!

One day, earlier in this excruciatingly hot and humid summer, my brother stopped by to drop some things off. He was wearing a 'thing' around his neck that he ran under some cold water to chill it, and said he got it from "Tilley's Endurables". Rob (my husband), had been complaining about how hot and sweaty the commuter train is in the afternoons and needed something to cool him down. I did some googling, and found that Tilley's sells "Cobber Neck Wrap". I realized quickly that I could probably make one for much less than $20. But what to fill it with? They use tiny beads that when soaked in water (hot or cold), swell up enormously and as long as the fabric is still wet, will feel cold (or hot) for hours. Eventually, they can dry up again, and be re-used. I was stumped as to the filler, until I found the answer from an unusual source.

The machine knitting groups I'm in are hosted through Yahoo! Groups, and you have a choice of getting each message as a separate email, or getting a day's worth of messages in one neat and tidy, organized, "digest". For most groups, I'm now on digest (this really curbed my need to answer questions as soon as someone asked one, as now, often the answer has already been given by the time I read it). One complaint with these groups is that a subject will meander away from the original heading, but the subject line is still the original topic. So, if someone posts about their Brother machine, I don't read any of the messages, but then some day I might be scanning through the digest on the way to another message, and something might catch my eye. That's what happened here. In a subject I had not been following, the talk turned to neck coolers! The writer posted that she bought these crystals at the garden center. They're for mixing with the dirt so it holds water longer. Bingo!
Immediately, I gathered up the children and headed on a crystal hunt. We cruised "Man Row" (Canadian Tire, Sport Check, Staples, Home Depot and Lowes all within a few blocks), but got too hot and hungry to make it all the way to Lowe's. The next day I went to Michaels' and forgot to take my flyer coupon for 40% off. Of course, they had something that seemed the same, but intended for fake flower arranging "Cracked Ice". I bought it, even without the coupon, because for $9.99 it seemed it would last a long time and I was tired.
Of course, I had to Google to see if there were instructions on how to actually sew them, and then I found all kinds of links to the crystals. One woman even took apart disposable diapers to get the crystals! Because mine were not the same product, I decided to soak them in water first, and fill the coolers this way so I'd know just how much to put in.

When I searched my stash for "manly" fabrics, all I could find was a brown cotton gauze with a subtle embroidery. I cut it to the size suggested, sewed, and filled. We tried it for a day, and it felt rather heavy. Then I made one with quilter's cotton, to the same measurements. I quickly realized that the cotton gauze had stretched out it's crinkleness as the crystals grew! So, it had surgery and I removed probably half the crystals. Rob tried it on the train and said he felt better, but he was still sweating like crazy (the cooler lays against the carotid artery and cools the blood heading to your brain, so you stay clear headed, but can't really lower your body temperature overall).I dug down deeper in the bin and found the blue print, and the flowered one was a remnant from the fabric store (I was very disappointed that they had barely any quilter cotton remnants! This was the only one!). The pink and black one is to match Lucy's dress. The black one with beige stitching was to go with a dress I haven't yet posted about. I made all of these (except the pink and black one) plus three more, out of the one package of "Cracked Ice". It wasn't all wine and roses though, I did have an issue with trying to dry out the crystals...in the oven...

Then, we were tree shopping, and went to the Lowe's I hadn't gone to in my initial search. I quick stroll through the houseplant section, and guess what I found? The "real" crystals, for $3. Although I don't predict a need for another 10 neck coolers, I had to stock up with another package!For all but the last one, I made closed tubes so I wouldn't have to finish the raw edges. I decided to do Lucy's differently, so it'd be more like a scarf with her new dress. I placed the tube seam in the middle (instead of the edge), so the tails could open up. My edge finishing sucks. But it's cute. The kids aren't really into them though. Rob also doesn't take his anymore. He also won't even take a water bottle! But I did get him to move to the lower level of the two level train, LOL!

Sisters

I haven't been able to find the dress pattern that I had been using to make the girls' dresses (and they were at the top of the size range anyway), so the three of us went shopping to find a new pattern. Now, normally, I try not to take the two girls anywhere together. And, I would normally choose from just the patterns that were on sale. But this was going to be an exception. Wow, it was hard to find a pattern that met ALL our requirements--in particular--something that I felt I could actually sew! This pattern is Kwik Sew 3674, view B, but without a contrasting panel at the bottom.Meg chose a wild orange flower print, a very light weight woven cotton (I don't know the 'proper' names for all the different cottons). I lined the bust with off-white bastite on the advice of the fabric cutter, and I was glad she pointed it out because it was what I needed for other projects too. For Meg, I cut the top as a size 10! and I think they both got size 7 skirts but Lucy's I eased out to a size 8 for her tush :) Lucy's top was a 7, I think.
Most of the dress went together great! I cut out the pieces for each dress, then put all the stuff I needed to sew them in two Ziploc bags and took them with us when I went to my parents. However, I never got around to even attempting to sew them. But once I got home, I did Meg's a bit at a time and I think it took 3 days, and Lucy's I had done in one evening and the next day. The hardest part was getting the elastic in the casings...I had a crappy safety pin. I might do it the "diaper way" next time--tack the ends down on the one layer, then top stitch the layers to form the casings.Lucy's dress is an unusual quilter's cotton. She "doesn't do" flowers, pink, cute, or "weird polka dots". I was hoping to get them in co-ordinating fabrics, but oh well. LOL. They are both a smidge too big in the bust, causing some gaping when they move around, but they are cute dresses. I hope to make the other view someday, although Lucy thinks it's too pouffy. While Meg loves anything I make for her, Lucy is another story!
I'm glad I made these because it's similiar to the dress/top I've been trying to make for myself but constructed a little differently, and SO much easier! I learned alot making these!

Sew, I've Been Thinking

Haa Haa.
Been doing lots of thinking about my ill-fitting top/dress. My mom and I have about the same chest circumference. But we can't wear the same clothes. I've written before about how my front chest is larger than my back width. I can accommodate that in many pattern, but this one is so different, it's been stumping me. I thought about doing a "draping", basically laying the fabric on me and drawing/cutting how I want it. That would work better if I had a girl friend that could help out instead of a husband, LOL. But I also want a real, reproducible pattern.

When I cut out the new top, I saw that the chest/neck line was the same for all, and only the side seam and a bit under the arm changed for different sizes. The amount that gets gathered at the bottom of the cup, and the space it gets gathered into, stays the same for all sizes. And, since most patterns are sized for a B cup chest (and I am not a B cup!), just extending the side seam is not going to be the solution! Doh!
Some how I have to figure out how much fabric I need to cut, and how much to gather it. I know the bottom of the cups, when overlapped, have to fit to the top of the bodice. I'm just not sure how much to cut for the cups. I could try draping.
I'm also thinking I might use a dart for the lining layer as I felt the two layers gathered and sewn to the bodice made for a bulky seam allowance.

I've been getting kid/teen sewing books from the library. Some of the stuff has been cheezy (finger puppets and simple tote bags), but some of it has actually been really good--helpful info and good patterns which you fit to yourself. One of the books has a top like I'm doing (the green one on the cover), but the cups sit above the bodice, so the back seems a little low. They tell you how to create the pattern up to a C cup, and I wonder if that means they don't think teens come in larger sizes (although the skirts went larger), or if a larger size shouldn't wear this style?
I've also just finished sewing two dresses for the girls that have overlapping cups with a separate back piece. There's three pieces of elastic to rouch the back, and then one piece that goes all the way around, under the cups (LOL. They are not cups at these sizes!). They turned out really good (although I had major issues with inserting the three strips of elastic, due to a faulty safety pin), and I think between all these patterns, I should be able to come up with SOMETHING!
Stay tuned, and I hope to post pictures of the girls' dresses very soon (Lucy wore her's to daycamp today!).

Fitting?

A few years ago, I made New Look 6557 to wear on a cruise. I had some fitting issues then and I've been wanting to re-work it (please look at my links). I cut a larger size based on the differences between the sizes and that I needed one size bigger than the largest size. It's still not fitting like the picture on the package. Instead of the cross over pieces laying flat on my chest wall, they pull out (I've stitched it together) so it's like a V-neck. I'm going to re-shape the pieces so there's a bit more coverage, but I still don't know what to do where it overlaps. Should they be closer together? Further apart? Further apart and then the overlap needs to get tucked under a girl. I thought of cutting it a bit larger and gathering it to fit between the same notches on the body. I don't need to extend the side seams, I need more? in the middle.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!!

Edit to add: I solved the fit issues of this top and the original dress by giving them to my mom. They fit her beautifully. Now I HAVE to sew again for myself! LOL.