Knitting: blue cowl

I just finished my second knitting project, a wool cowl/scarf thing for a friend of mine.

I used circular needles for the first time, and quite like them. Funny story: I accidentally picked it up flipped around about half way through, and worked an entire row in the wrong direction. If I had more patience, I should have probably figured out how to unravel that part and done it again, but I don't. Instead, I just flipped it back the right way when I hit the beginning marker, and there is a  two row tall hole where the rows don't join up that nobody will ever notice. You can tell in the pictures above that the pattern isn't quite right just less than half way up because of it, but I'm working really hard lately on not stressing about making things be perfect, so we're going to say it's still pretty good for my second ever project. And now I will never ever forget that the yarn hangs off of the RIGHT side, hahaha. Oh learning the hard way...

The beginning band of ribbing.

Anyway, now for lots of in progress pictures! (I'm trying to remember to take those with both knitting and sewing, with varying degrees of success.)

A wobbly weird picture of the first quarter or so of body. I got to try out stitch markers and needle point cover things (do these have a name) for the first time.

Oh right, I used the cocoon pattern, and 2.5 skeins of bulky weight Wool of the Andes yarn from knitpicks. Ravelry notes here! I will probably make some wrist warmers from the left over yarn (weather they'll go to the friend as a matched set, or I'll steal them myself is yet to be decided :P), but right now I feel like working on something in a brighter colour. Do you ever pick project order based on the colour of the materials? I find it's much more fun to work with fabric or yarn that is a happy colour, and I usually work more quickly on bright things because I just want an excuse to look at them!

A few lumpy bits, but at least I seem to have naturally decent tension.

Next on the knitting front: learning yarn overs and knit 2 together so I can start on this hat for my sister-in-law.

Happy Chocolate Bunny Day!

Man I love long weekends! I'm just lazing around today, knitting and watching gory crime shows, haha. Looked out the window to check on my rabbit, and noticed he was doing his Easter bunny impression :).

 

 Hope everyone had a great weekend! And here's a sneak peak at what's on my sewing (well, dinning room) table:

Rwarrrr!

Superdress!

As a dedicated DC girl, I couldn't let Spider-man have ALL the fun...

All of today's pictures make me look stumpy, because I got my man to take them, and he's taller than my tripod, haha.

... so I made a Superman dress! It's the same bodice as the spider-dress, but with the original halter straps, and a super (hahaha) full dirndl skirt. This time instead of just zigzagging 1/4" elastic to the back skirt/bodice seam to tighten it up (which didn't work all that well), I stitched the seam allowance to the bodice back to create a casing, and threaded the elastic through it. Great improvement!

Yes, I glow a little in sunlight. One might say that I avoid tanning like it where a communicable disease. SPF 110 for the win!

I did add a few inches to the strap length, and stitched a smaller SA than drafted in, because I like a lot of strap. Even so, I can't tie a decent looking bow out of this length. The bow would likely stick out the sides of my neck and look funny anyway though, and just encourage people to untie it, so it's ok in a big knot.

Apparently boyfriend photographer = boob shots

I like how this print is both more subtle and even more outrageous than my other superhero dresses. On the one hand, it isn't covered in characters. On the other, it has a big super symbol on the chest. As Superman and Supergirl use the same symbol, it could almost count as a super-heroine dress, if not for the white stripes of "superman". So close!

I love how awkward I look in this picture!

So yeah, another dress made from a sheet and lined with broadcloth. I hope people don't get too bored of these, because I'm having so much fun making them that I don't think the trend is anywhere near over :).

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Dress

pretty sweetheart neckline!

I'm so happy with this dress! Work has been super stressful the last few weeks, so last Wednesday I played hookey (shhhhhh!) and had a happy crafty day at home. I would have had the dress finished that night, but after attaching the skirt I decided it needed significantly more poof, and had to unpick the waist to add another skirt panel.

good spidey on the left side...

As you may have already guessed, the fabric was originally a bed-sheet, just like my batman dress (and it's been in my fabric closet for at least six months, which surely make it Stashbusting!). However, while the batman sheet was starting to get rather worn, this one was in perfect condition, so I'm not so worried about this dress ripping unexpectedly. (while I love my batman dress, it has been relegated to special occasions so I don't totally destroy it.) I've ordered some more sheets, and this time made sure to get the flat sheets instead of the fitted ones, on the theory that if it isn't being lain on, it won't wear out as much.

and evil spidey on the right!

Now for the nitty gritty! The bodice is from this pattern on burdastyle, with 2" length added above the waist, and 1" added to the neckline edge. I also added 1" to the center front, 1" on each side panel, and didn't bother stitching the darts.  Instead of the elastic-threaded-through-channels that the pattern called for, I used elastic thread and the instructions for shirring from Gertie's book. The bodice front and side pieces are lined in white broadcloth, and the bodice back and the skirt are left unlined because I'm lazy to cut down on bulk. I'm pretty sure halter straps aren't allowed at work, so I used the straps from the parfait dress. I love the shoulder seam on this strap, it forms to the shoulder and keeps the damn things from sliding off all the time.

The original skirt was a full circle, and I just couldn't wiggle it out of my one twin sheet. Instead, I used one quarter circle for a smooth line in the centre front, and a simple gathered rectangle for the sides and back. I would like to make another version with the proper circle skirt, and also one with a completely dirndl skirt. This pattern is great, because now that the bodice fits, I can change up the straps and the skirt styles and have a bunch of comfortable, easy to make dresses that don't look like I just have a closet of the same dress.

squinty spring sun-in-my-eyes face

Now if only they made sheets with female superheroes on them...

Knitting!

And here comes more "etc": I'm teaching myself to knit! I have tried to do this once before, but after one scratchy garter stitch scarf, and realizing I didn't wear the sorts of things that one knits, I gave up. 7 years later, I'm not overheated all the time any more from stress induced high blood-pressure (thanks to my terrific guy, a friendlier workplace, and just plain growing up), and suddenly I can think of all sorts of things I would wear if I could make them! Also, I realized that one can knit things besides scarves and sweaters, hahaha. My main goal is socks, but I have a selection of not-so-terrifying projects lined up first to learn the basics. And as most of these are things that I personally don't need, I get to be generous and make stuff for the people that make my life great (also get a head start on christmas gifts. If it's handmade, they have to love it :P).

in progress, and already covered in cat hair

Almost a month ago, I walked into the local yarn shop, said "I don't know anything about knitting, but I want to learn!", and walked out with two balls of fluorescent red acrylic yarn and some straight needles to make a scarf. I'll be damned if I was going to make another bloody garter stitch one though (so boring!), so I made myself a ravelry account and found an interesting but dead easy looking pattern. Then I found a website with lots of instructional videos, and got cracking! Most of a month later, I finished my very first scarf (that used more than one stitch) just in time to give it to a work friend for her birthday.

There was a pretty hilarious moment binding off, when I got to the very last stitch and realized I had no idea what to do with it. More instructional videos to the rescue!

After 95 inches of a 4 stitch repeating pattern, I needed something a little more challenging for project number two. But not too challenging, because half the reason I decided to start knitting was to bust out of a "I can't do anything right and I may as well just not bother" funk, which was brought on by several failed crafty endeavours in a row. I'm fucking delicate, ok?! Anyway, my plan is to learn one or two new techniques per project, so there is lots of time to get the hang of it and let the process become body memory.

So for project number two, I'm making a cowl thing for (another) work friend, in a pretty navy wool. It's just knit and purl stitches, but I get to learn circular needles and reading a pattern chart, and probably blocking. I can't wait to see the pattern start to emerge!

my yarn bowl is a casserole dish. I have to keep the whole thing in my desk drawer when I'm not working on it so the cat doesn't eat it.

On the advise of a (different again) co-worker, I placed a Knitpicks.com yarn order* (and corresponding needles from ebay, cause it's cheaper), and now have my next five projects lined up. In an effort to not end up with a yarn stash as well as a fabric stash, I'm attempting to only buy yarn if I have a project in mind, and then use it before buying any more. For the sake of having something always ready to be started, and in the name of making shipping worthwhile, I'm ok with doing this in batches. It's all so pretty though, this valliant effort might not last long ;).

*Remember that local yarn shop I went to way back at the beginning of this post? They where super rude and disinterested. Any other craft store I've ever been in, the staff are excited about whatever you're making (or at least do a good job of faking it), but I could barely get the yarn lady to give me the time of day. After talking with a bunch of other people, it seems that the staff at this place are like that with just about everyone, and if you aren't going to spend hundreds of dollars, you aren't worth their time. Which is a pretty lousy business model, because encouraging beginners is giving yourself a new market. So I'm taking my business elsewhere. Take that, short-sighted yarn jerks!

new skirt!

So here's the thing: I have oodles of hand made skirts, yet I wear the same store bought one at least three days a week. It's knee length and black and fluttery, and it has an elastic waist so it doesn't matter if I've gained or lost weight. Basically, perfect. And I finally started to feel weird about wearing the same damn skirt all the time, so I needed to make a new one!

new skirts make me pose like a superhero, haha

The main thing I wanted to replicate was the fluttery uneven hem, so the original got laid out flat and stared at until it all came clear. It was two squares with a circular hole in the centre, and a slit through one side, and then sewn together along the cut edges to make an eight pointed hem. Clever! So I drafted a quick four panel skirt as a base, did some fast and dirty math the the square flounce thing, and voila, new pattern. I did the patterning and cutting last night, and the sewing this morning, and now I have a new skirt!

It's made from the same stretch material as my Zo pattern lace tank and my red lined lace shirt, and I still have a bunch left! The top portion is lined with black tricot from my stash for decency, and the flounce is left unlined (and un-hemmed). The origianal is made of mesh stuff, and lies a little more flat and drape-ily, but this stuff will do. The waistband could have turned out better, but I have an idea for version number two, so we'll call this one a trial run :).

I stitched wide elastic to the right edge of the waistline, turned it to the inside, and then turned it again so the elastic was completely encased, and stitched again near the lower edge of the elastic (I meant to get more in progress shots, but then it went together so quickly it completely slipped my mind). I have another store bought skirt that uses this method, but my fabric was a bit more... springy? squishy? thick? so the finished product wasn't as nice as it could have been. But I'm not much for midriff baring shirts, so it won't be noticeable.

did you notice my awesome boots? I wear them every day, hahaha. A 4" platform does wonders for reaching the top shelf.

Maybe not the go-to everyday skirt I meant it to be, but still quite serviceable I think. Time will tell how much wear it gets. And made entirely from my stash!

more nerdy stuff

Hay! I haven't sewn much of note since last post, but I made a bunch more comic jewelry in the last few days, woo! Also, I finally got off my lazy butt and went outside to photograph things, so the lighting isn't crap for once! (must remember: natural light photos are worth the effort of putting on shoes and a coat for 10 minutes).

She has a crossbow gun, and she's not afraid to use it

I'm starting to get the hang of how much glue to use on the big cabochons, both of the ones I made this time turned out well, without the rippling my last batch had. I still popped them in a low oven for a few hours to dry completely, but they may very well have been fine without that if I'd been patient with them, haha.

almost as cool as the crossbow: her purple motorcycle

I'm having so much fun with these that I couldn't resist ordering more supplies, including a few more comics to sacrifice to the cause. Hopefully they'll be here soon, because the ones I'm working with now are pretty much out of good images in the right sizes.

The Birds of Prey, now in bracelet form

I even busted out some of my chain mail skills to make connecting bobbly bits.

I like mismatched earrings

And the really exciting news: making far more jewelry than I'll ever need finally gave me the incentive to open an etsy shop! That way I can craft as a hobby, without feeling bad that the finished products are just going to languish forgotten in the bottom of my jewelry box. Of course, things may just sit in a "to hopefully sell" box for all eternity instead, but we'll see how things go, haha.

I swear I like marvel too!

I might make some sewn odds and ends for the shop too, as a way of using up gifted fabric that isn't my style. (and I can always call them completely heartfelt christmas presents if nobody else ends up wanting them :P). Now I just need to find somewhere to store this stuff!