Knitpicks Options - now in wood!

I'm probably the last person in the world to know this but Knitpicks has come out with an interchangeable needle tips for the Options set in birch wood! I love the nickle plated tips but there are times when I'm using a slippery yarn that I would prefer to use wood needles. The tips are multi colored and crazy looking. If anyone has tried them, I'd love to hear your opinion. Here is a link to the item in their catalog.

A skirt design contest

I just received an email from Fabric.com that they are holding a skirt designing contest. Here are the basic guidelines:

1. Pick from the following Favorite Things patterns:

• Cute Skirts

• Hip Skirts

• Little Hip Skirts

2. Then let your imagination run wild! You can alter it, trim it, cut it, paste it, sew it, tape it, glue it or decorate it any way you want to – your imagination is the limit!

3. You can submit a photo of your project in the “Flirty Skirt Contest” album in the Fabric.com Sew & Tell Gallery by October 15th (click here for instructions).

Compete details/rules here.

Voting is by the general public and the prizes are generous: $300, $150, $75 gift certificate to Fabric.com for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd place winners, respectively.

The skirt patterns are cute with enough variation in the pattern to make it a versatile pattern to own. There are five reviews of the Cute Skirt Pattern at Pattern Review and all indicate it's a good pattern. Fabric.com is offering 15% off the pattern right now.

I'm not creative enough to enter but I can't wait to see the entries and hope to see some sewing bloggers I recognize in the contest!

Fun Contest!

Check out the contest at Tea Time Ramblings! The details:

• This give-a-way will consist of 5 knitted dishcloths in various colours and patterns.
• The contest will be open until September 7, 2007 at 12:00 PM Central Standard Time. A random draw will be made from all entries.

Click on the picture below to read more about it and enter!

A Knit Alternative

CathyCate left me a comment that she wishes she could knit something similar to the V2980 top. Funny you say that Cathy as I remembered a top from Knitty that I've had on my to do list for ages. Doesn't "Tubey" look similar to the knit top (picture is from the Knitty.com website - I hope that's ok)?

Vogue 2980

I have been wanting to make a black knit top to go with my kiwi skirt I finished a few weeks ago. I was planning on the S4076 Twist Top but then I saw Sharon's ADORABLE TOP and changed my game plan. I thought the bolero style top (Vogue 2980) was a little retro looking and would look nice with the 60's-ish flower power print on the skirt.

I purchased a thin poly knit from JoAnn's (total cost $3.00 - no lie!) You really do need a thin knit for this as the sleeves are doubled and the front is self lined. The seam around the armhole has 4 layers of fabric for most of it. A thicker interlock might be too bulky.

The pattern is very clever. It's only 4 pieces and fits together like a puzzle. The pattern is designed by Sandra Betzina and I believe she actually wrote the directions, which are very clear and take you slowly, step by step. I still goofed up connecting the front to the sleeve and the bolero but since I basted everything, it was easy enough to fix. I will be making this again in the long sleeve version and maybe even another short sleeve version. Now that I understand the directions, this will go together in a flash.

I will make it a little larger next time. I don't usually have a problem with tops being too small (that's an understatement!) but even though the smallest size in the pattern was dead on my measurements, it's a little snugger than I like.

(Forgive my tired eyes and the burnt Hostas behind me. It's been a long, hot summer. LOL!)

Cotton Commandoes update

I arrived home late last night from a trip to find the Dish Rag Tag box on my kitchen island. Cathy was the sender and she made me the coolest dishrag!! I love the design and the colors are awesome. The pattern is similar to one I made recently but a bit smaller - much better suited for a dish cloth. Cathy also included some nice treats - a wonderful smelling chamomile soap, some chocolates, and a cute knitting-themed bookmark and magnet. I already used the dishcloth to wipe down my counters this morning!

But enough about MY goodies; this IS a race after all! At 11:50 p.m. last night, I picked the speckled yarn from Cathy and cast on for the dishrag I'll be sending to Michele (who alas, is blogless). I'm not a night person but I was wound up after a six hour flight, so I thought I would make some good progress. Nope! Got sleepy within 10 minutes so I didn't get very far. Not to worry.... I was up at 6 this morning, grabbed a cup of coffee and headed out to the patio. An hour and a half later, VOILA! The dishcloth was done.

I packed up the dishrag, two balls of cotton and some goodies and will head to the post office in a bit to send the package on to Michele.

COTTON COMMANDOES RULE!

Did Cookie Monster's mom have to deal with this?

My son wanted a bathrobe. I found some "furry fleece" on clearance at JoAnn's in a nice blue color (exactly the shade of Cookie Monster, in fact.) I purchased Simplicity 5329 which had a basic wrap-style robe, just what I was looking for. What I didn't notice was the pattern is sized for Men or Little Boys. I guess it's a 'Dad and me' sort of thing. Anyhoo, my son doesn't fit in either of those size ranges so I had to wing it. I figured it was just a robe, no real fitting issues. I started with the largest boy's size and added to it. It worked out just fine. The pattern was quite simple and went together quickly. Here it is being modeled by my annoyed son.

Cookie Monster look-alike: "I do NOT want to end up on your blog, Mom."

Me: "Yeah, whatever. I'm the mom." (Quoting from the Mom Manual.)

There was just one drawback:

What a MESS! You can just imagine the sewing room floor right now. I did pre-wash the fleece but the raw edges continued to shed. I serged every raw edge and I'm washing the finished robe now - hopefully, those two things will get rid of the fly-away fur.

Saturday Goodies

No craftiness to post today. It was a busy week and I've spent most of today cleaning and doing yard work. I was out of town for most of the week but when I got home, look what I was greeted with! The kids all have plans tonight (Go Bengals!!) so my dinner is going to be a Caprese Salad and a baguette dipped in oil flavored with basil, oregano, thyme and parsley from my garden.


My family's favorite cookie is the snickerdoodle. My SIL makes the best ones but mine will do in a pinch. I baked a double batch today. Some will go to welcome a new neighbor that moved in this week, some will go to two of my daughter's friends who have provided car-pooling in my absence this week and the rest will be devoured by my kids and me!









And speaking of goodies, I receive two nice surprises from cyber-friends. Allison took a fabulous vacation to Alaska recently and she sent me these goodies that she purchased along her many stops. Then, Gaylen sent me the most thoughtful card. I'm so glad to have you as friends!!

Another "Freebie" - M3341

I had a little fabric leftover from the Groovy Kiwi Dress so I decided to make a simple skirt this morning to wear to a dinner meeting in Florida tonight. Took less than an hour including cutting. I used McCalls 3341, V D. Just a simple A-line skirt with darts and back zipper. Facing but no waistband.

Sorry for the blurry picture. I'm still learning how my new camera works.

As I was driving to the airport, Delta called to tell me there was a mechanical on my 1:30 and I was re-booked on a 4:30. My dinner plans with the client went out the door but I took advantage of the additional time to stop at JoAnn's and then headed home to embellish my skirt! More GROOVINESS! LOL.

Pay It Forward - Can you handle it????

Remember that movie a few years ago with Helen Hunt and Kevin Spacey in it called ‘Pay It Forward’? I guess essentially the point is don't just aim for trying to pay people BACK for favors they've given you. Instead, just do a good thing for someone and ask that the person for whom you do the good thing, do something for someone else. I've thought about that theme many times and like the infinite goodness that could come from it.

Well, I found a variation of this on Gaylen's blog today (she got it from someone who got it from someone, etc. ) Here's how it works:

Pay It Forward meme

I will send a handmade gift* to the first three people who leave a comment requesting to join this Pay It Forward exchange. I don't know what that gift will be yet, but you will receive it within 365 days. The only thing you have to do in return is "pay it forward" by making a similar agreement on your journal.

My gift might be something I've sewn or knit or maybe even baked! I also love to read so maybe it will be one of my fave books.

Per the rules on the email I found: The "gift" you send doesn't have to be handmade--choose your specs when you post it on your blog.If you want to join, leave a comment with your email addy (so I can reply -- spell out the email if you don't want it harvested). I'll contact you with more details.

Wee bit of fabric

I had a little bit of fabric left from the tunic so I squeaked out a tank top from S4076. A 30-minute project - from cutting to wearing!

The Kiwi Dress

I finally got around to sewing the hook and eye on and trimming the threads so here's a shot of me modeling the Kiwi dress.


And a teaser for the next project. Can you guess what it will be?

I needed some instant gratification!

After the PITA sundress, I needed something quick. I made the following tunic in less than two hours. Ignore the silly little grey skirt I am wearing. Ultimately, I will wear this with some skinny black jeans or maybe close fitting black capris.



The details:

Butterick 4986 view D, omitted the collar band
Fabric from Gorgeous Things: Poly/cotton Jersey available here
Inspiration from Lori's (Girls in the Garden) version (Yes, I completely ripped off her idea but she looked so adorable in her version that I couldn't help myself! I had to have one.)
Complete review at PatternReview

Remember the "Big Girl" dress?

And by "big girl", I DO mean size. Here's a reminder of what I looked like wearing B5029:



Now that picture was taken 6-8 weeks ago and I have actually lost 5 lbs (and had my hair cut) since then but I assure you, that picture made me look WAY bigger than I think I am. I wore it once and felt so self-conscious that it got stuck back in the closet. I kept thinking about it and decide I would re-do it with a flat lower bodice to see if it looked better.

So this is what the dress looked like yesterday morning:


And voila! Today, it looks like this:


Still not my favorite dress (probably because I'm sick of looking at it!!) but at least I will wear it now. It took me at least twice as long to disassemble and re-assemble than it took to make it the first time.

Teenagers - The Good & The Bad , never The Dull

Teenagers can be a challenge. But they can also be fun.

It's mid-August and as the parents of kids everywhere know, nerves are starting to fray, boredom is setting in, otherwise pleasant children start to become .... well... unpleasant. That would be true for my three children. Well, and me too, if I must admit.

So it was nice to see them just hanging out the other night and enjoying each other without bitc...... I mean annoying each other. One of them found a funny dance on youtube and they spent 20 minutes "learning" it. They look awfully serious in this picture but believe me, they were laughing hysterically.



That's the Good. Here's the Bad.

Phone call from 13-year old son while I'm at work:

T: Ummm, Mom. There seems to be a problem with your camera. There's a message that says "lens error."

Me: You know you're not supposed to use my work camera!!!!!

T: I know. I'm REALLY sorry.

Me: I'll look at it when I get home. Sometimes the little button gets shifted . I'm sure it's nothing.

See below.



Moral of the story: Do not tape Mom's work camera to a remote control car to see what it films as it careens down the sloped driveway.

Advice?

I've never been on the cutting edge of fashion. I'm usually at least one season, if not two seasons behind. Took me three years to actually buy anything in Chocolate - the "new black". I have been wanting a mid-length wool trench coat in pink for two winters now but have only ever see them ON PEOPLE, not in the stores.

Well, that temptress Ann at Gorgeous Fabrics got in some beautiful coat fabric and was nice enough to point out Vogue 8346 , which is the exact coat style I've been coveting - fitted bodice, flared skirt. I like View B (the red one in the picture) which is just about knee length although View A is adorable, too. But then, Gorgeous Ann had to complicate things by having TOO many cool shades of pink. I think I've just about decided on this one but I haven't ordered yet.

Before I invest in the lovely flannel coating, it occurs to me that this would be a great project on which to make a muslin first. So I don't muck up sixty-something dollars worth of wool. I want something inexpensive as I don't expect to end up with a wearable muslin out of this one, but heavy enough that I will get a good idea of how the fabric will drape and a true representation of the style. Any suggestions on fabric choices?

Words to live by

I bought these napkins while on vacation a few weeks ago. They were definitely made for me!

A Groovy Pick-Me-Up

Well, it's been a long week and I should have spent my day cleaning but I blew it off and decided to sew instead. It's been a few weeks since I've done any sewing at all. I picked a dress that I've had in mind for a while now.

I purchased some fun fabric from Fabricmart.com and when it arrived, it screamed 60's at me. I was inspired by Eve's version (click on her picture for a close-up) of S3744, a pattern I already had my eye on.

I still have to do a few minor finishing touches but it's virtually finished. And it turned out how I had hoped. Very Brady Bunch! Or as my 20 yr old said, "Uhhhh, that's looks sort of old fashioned." EXACTLY!!

Now, I need somewhere to go!!!!

How I spent my summer vacation

I didn't really disappear. Traveling and vacation took me away from home for two weeks. And when I returned, there was some family turmoil. Sometimes life is hard.

To lighten my mood, I decided to post some scenes from our vacation. It was a low-key vacation. We visited my family in Delaware. My parents have a house on the Indian River and my brother has a house on the beach, south of Dewey Beach. Lots of sitting, chatting, knitting, reading. The view from my parents deck and some goodies from the river (I spent every morning on the deck drinking coffee, knitting, reading, chatting with my mom.)


Beach photos of the kids and dogs - I don't have many because I kept forgetting to bring my camera to the beach.



Gotta love the no sales-tax outlet shopping in Delaware!



Knitting Progress - I finished the second Fiber Trends clog. I am not happy with how they turned out. Part of it I blame on allowing so much time in between the two and part of it on poor felting due to my inattentiveness. I also finished the front of a top (Latoya pattern by Berrocco, Pineapple CottonEase yarn; photo taken before I finished.) And another dishcloth.



And when I arrived home, I had ripe tomatoes in my garden and a few peppers. This became Insalata Caprese for my dinner last night:

New Look 6468

Hooray! I finished the dress. I'm very pleased with it. Outside photo is a little blurry so I took one in my sewing room.

Pattern: New Look 6468, View B. (Yeah, i know, the pattern shows a hot pink fabric, too. I didn't do that intentionally; I just loved the fabric I found - it happened to be pink!)

Fabric: Woven stretch embossed from JoAnn's. Black lace with ribbon trim. Now that I'm looking at the photo, a black tulle under skirt barely peeking out the bottom would be cute!


Close up of the bodice below. Obviously, I omitted the rick rack from the pattern and trimmed it a little differently.

Invisible Zippers - Take 2 (and 3 and 4)

My second attempt to insert an invisible zipper wasn't as successful as the first one. See how lumpy and wavy it is? And not exactly invisible!!

So I ripped it out and re-read some of the tips I've found recently. The fabric is a woven but it has a bit of stretch to it. I fused some interfacing to the seam allowances and WOW! Complete difference. However, the second time, I realized the left side and right side were not properly aligned. So I ripped it again. (BTW, one of the best tips I read was to NOT anchor down your stitching by backstitching until completely done. Good for ripping!)

Third time was a charm. I zipped up the zipper before sewing down the second side and pin basted it in place. Then I opened the zipper and re-sewed the second side.

It's not completely invisible. Obviously, it's more noticeable because I used a black zipper on a fuschia fabric but I did that intentionally as the dress has some black trim (not shown in the photo). It's a side zipper so it won't be all that noticeable. But for you experienced sewers, should it be MORE invisible than it appears in the above right photo?

BTW, click on the photos for a close up of the cool embossing on the fabric! I love this fabric.

How I spent my weekend

It was a busy one but quite fun. Attended a graduation party Friday night and played Euchre with our bi-monthly group last night. The food was awesome! Everyone brings heavy appetizers and last night there was quite a spread. The hosts grilled tenderloin, flank steak and chicken for mini sandwiches. Other people brought bacon wrapped mushrooms, artichoke-sun dried tomato feta pizza, beautiful arrangement (yes arrangement!) of vegetables, mini reubens (great idea to make them on party rye bread for apps) and I can't remember what else. I made a smoked turkey cheese spread on baguettes based on a recipe I found at epicurious.com.

SMOKED TURKEY AND CHEESE SPREAD
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 cup coarsely chopped fully cooked smoked turkey (about 6 ounces)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped pecans
6 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Combine cream cheese and mayonnaise in processor; blend until smooth. Add turkey and process, using on/off turns, until coarse paste forms. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Mix in 1/2 cup pecans and 4 tablespoons parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon into small serving bowl. Sprinkle top with remaining 2 tablespoons pecans and 2 tablespoons parsley. (Can be prepared 3 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving.)

[My changes: I didn't turn the mixture into a paste. I chopped the turkey fairly finely and then folded in the cream cheese mixture, pecans and parsley. After I spread it on the baguette slice, I topped it with a tablespoon of jalapeño pepper jelly and sprinkled with pecans. ]

Bon Appétit

September 1997

I finished up the washcloth. I know Beth pointed me to the pattern but I can't remember where it was. I used Bernat's Cotton Tots intending for this to be a washcloth, rather than a dishcloth. The pattern is very clever but I definitely needed to pay better attention to the pattern. I screwed up in a couple places because I lost track. If I make this as a dishcloth, I will cast on less stitches. This cloth is approximately 12" in diameter - too big for a dishcloth in my opinion.

I have been thinking all week about homemade ice cream and purchased the ingredients to make some yesterday. Other people have been having the same idea - check out this recipe and picture for Rocky Road Ice Cream. This is the recipe I received from a friend years ago and let me tell ya, it is DELISH!! It looks a little melty but I couldn't find my camera!

Cheesecake Ice Cream

1 pint half and half
1 pint heavy cream
1 cup sugar
12 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 T vanilla
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 t grated lemon rind
1/2 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs.

In a blender, mix half and half, cream and sugar. Blend in cream cheese and vanilla. Refrigerate for a few hours. Then stir in lemon juice and rind and process in your ice cream freezer. Add the graham cracker crumbs during the last five minutes. Serve with fresh fruit or other toppings.

And finally.... a conversation with my good friend Saturday morning as I was headed out to run errands.

Friend: "Bon, did you hear about the great shoe bargain I got yesterday at DSW?"
Me: "Shoe.... bargain.... You've got my attention."
Friend: "DSW is having a summer clearance shoes and I got a pair of shoes that had been marked down to $80 for only $16."
Me: "I'm stopping there on the way to Costco."

Phone call on the way home to my now BAD friend.
Me: "I hate you."
Here is why:

BUT!!! I purchased all those shoes and the little purse for $125!!! Most of them were 80% off their original prices. They don't look nearly as cute in this picture as they do in person. The ones on the bottom row, far right are ADORABLE!!! And the little strappy sandals next to them in front of the purse are very hot on. The purse goes so well with them and I intend to wear them with the dress that I am just about finished making. I wish I was a better photographer 'cuz these shoes are CUUUUTTTE!!