Tag Archive | crafts

Craft Show Success & 3-Hat Sunday

Wow! What a productive weekend I had! I’m tired but boy do I feel good. I had a craft show with my SIL on Saturday at a local church. We had a smaller space than usual, just enough room for one 6′ table, so we had to smoosh it all together. My daughter decided to join us, and it was lovely to have the extra help and the extra company.

SIL and daughter setting up the table

Behind the scenes

They were predicting 2-4 inches of snow so it was slow most of the morning. Like, really slow. Like, the only people there were the vendors and their families. My poor girl, who’s still recovering from a fall full of activities, fell asleep three times. I have a really cute picture of her sleeping but she’d probably kill me if I shared it. My sister visited with her two kids, so they entertained me for a while. And a good friend and former co-worker showed up, which was a delightful surprise. I’m always touched when people take the time to support me with their presence, and it’s even better when they buy something! Susan bought two of my favorite pieces, and I was happy to see them go to someone who appreciates them. Finally, after lunch, when it was clear the weathermen were crazy and no snow was coming, people finally started shopping. By the end of the show, I’d sold around a dozen pieces and made table and then some. I was thrilled to be going home with less than I came with! Although I went home with something new too.

Isn’t this cool? I love how it looks like a carpetbag! I can’t tell what the stitch is; it’s not linen or seed or stockinette. Sure, I could probably make something very similar myself, but hey, this is already done and ready to use. I like that.

So. Good craft fair. I worked on a hat order a little bit while I was there, then yesterday I buckled down and worked hard, and I finished THREE hat orders!! What a relief to cross these off my To-Do list! Yes, another Olaf. (I know, he needs eyeballs. I have to go buy buttons today.) I know I said I never wanted to make another one. Either the price was right, I’m crazy, or I really like the person who ordered it. Or all three. In any case, I made another one, and now I know I *really* don’t want to to do it again.Red crochet cloche made with Cascade Pacific. It’s a pretty simple pattern and I even learned something new making it. It’s not the best picture because I need to get some buttons today. It has a flap on the side so you can button it as snug as you need it, and I’ll take another picture once I get that part completed.Last is a simple garter stitch baby hat with pompom. I was making it for a big-headed baby and had different yarn and needles than the pattern called for, so you can read my Ravelry notes for the modifications.

Is that all? That might be all. Surely that’s enough for one weekend! Oh, one more thing I did: after the show, I updated my Items for Sale album on my Facebook page and marked a few things down in hopes of clearing out a bit more inventory. Fingers crossed!

Now I have no idea what to take with me today for my waiting room knitting! I’ve finished all my simple projects, I think. Do I cast on for something else or be brave and take something more complicated?

Wonder Woman makes an appearance: Knitted Earwarmers

Nov13

I have a craft show this weekend! It’s the last one of the year for me, and I’m trying to get some quick little projects done. I’d love to have some extra gift money (who wouldn’t, right?). Headbands/earwarmers seem to be popular at every show, and they’re so fast to make, plus they’re great for using up leftover yarn. So that’s what I’ve been doing the last couple of days, and here’s what I’ve gotten done. They’re all made with Lion Brand Hometown USA, and they’re stretchy enough to fit a wide range of head sizes. The burgundy isn’t cinched just because I ran out of yarn, and I figured maybe someone would like the simpler look. I saved the best for last, though: today I made a Wonder Woman tiara! It’s just a seed stitch rectangle with a series of increases and decreases for the point, and a crocheted star sewn on. Love this one! If it sells, I’ll make myself one, and if it doesn’t, I might keep it!

I have enough yarn left to make maybe two more headbands, and then I really need to focus on orders and Christmas gifts. Are you feeling the panic like I’m starting to?

Two Finished Hats, One Stupid Cowl

Nov11

Seriously? This purple Cascade Magnum is driving me bonkers! Last week I blogged about my challenges finding the right pattern for it, and I really thought I’d figured it out. I even bought the right size needles. Last night I cast on for the Red Rasta Cowl and it was going swimmingly: simple pattern, super bulky yarn, quick progress. The problem is I don’t like it.It’s not the yarn’s fault; I love the yarn and think it’s knitting up beautifully. But it’s so snug and stiff, and it’s already as tall as my neck with another 10 rows to go. It’s not going to drape around my neck the way it looks in the pattern picture. So I have two choices: frog and start over with more stitches and bigger needles, or frog and do the Marian pattern that I know works so well with the Magnum. What would you do?

In good news, I did manage to get a couple more projects completed. Remember that blue stripe hat that was too big? I got a new one knit up over the weekend. I even managed to knit in the dark for the first time! It was really fun, actually. As long as I was just doing simple stockinette in the round, it was easy. Anyway, hooray, that order is complete and I’m sending it off to my SIL for the embroidery.

I also finished my most recent travel-knitting project. I had a simple seed stitch slouchy beanie going for when I have to sit and wait somewhere, and I thought it would never be done. Yesterday I got close enough that I decided to finish it off at home. I used the Pompon and Seeds Hat pattern, which has been in my library for ages, and some black and gold Red Heart Fiesta yarn. I think an MU hat will be a hit at my next craft show! If I’d had some solid gold yarn, it would have a pompom. Finally, I thought I’d share my little penguin friend. A week or so ago my daughter was a little stressed out from all her activities, so I pulled out a crocheted penguin I’d made last year. I made him a hat and scarf and left him on her bed. She was delighted when she found him and named him Franklin. I’d make more…except I didn’t really like making him! Maybe I’ll look for a knit penguin pattern.Thankfully, she has survived the marching band season and the fall musical. She’s sad to see them end, but we’re all breathing easier to see our schedule open up a little bit. She was a wonderful nun in The Sound of Music, AND this weekend she auditioned for the All-District Band and earned the 9th chair in flute! That means she gets to move on and audition for All-State! Plus, she found out yesterday that she received the highest score on their school chair placement tests. As a freshman, she is the first chair flute at her school! Can you tell I’m a little proud?

Today my schedule is empty so I have a date with my couch and my yarn. I have an interesting endeavor that I’m working on, and I can’t wait to tell you about it, but I can’t yet. Maybe if I get a lot of knitting done today, I can share tomorrow!

Finished Object Friday … almost

Nov7

I got SO close to a five-day stretch of daily finished objects. This morning I had about fifteen minutes of crochet to finish off the second scarf and last piece in a 2-hat, 2-scarf order. I wove in ends and got out all the pieces to photograph…and the first hat slid down the styrofoam head. Bad sign. I tried it on, and it was loose. Since it’s for a young boy, that’s not going to work. Sighhhhh. I *thought* it looked big but I was afraid to try it on for this exact reason. Still, I’m glad I found out before I had the name embroidered on it! And I’m also glad that it’s a hat I have to re-knit and not a scarf.These are for two brothers who both like blue, so I used the same shades but alternated the starting color for the stripes. The hat is a simple beanie and the scarf is garter stitch (for the squish factor) with a single crochet border (for visual interest). I used Caron One Pound in Sky Blue and Midnight Blue, and each piece will have the boy’s name embroidered on it. But first I need to knit a smaller hat!

Iron Man Crochet Hat

Nov6

I am rockin’ and rollin’ this week! Day four of blogging about finished objects! BAM! Don’t worry, it won’t last. I’m just enjoying this brief burst of productivity. So yesterday I made an Iron Man hat, start to finish in one afternoon. That *never* happens for me. But this was a quick project, and it was pretty fun too.

First I made the faceplate, which was a pattern all its own. Then I needed a pattern for an earflap hat that called for bulky yarn, and this Kid’s Earflap Hat fit the bill perfectly. I’ve made this style so many times with the owl hats that I can speed through it, and then it was just a matter of sewing on the faceplate. Sure, it’s not perfectly lined up everywhere, but I’m still tickled with it. Here’s hoping my Iron Man-loving nephew is tickled with it too! I won’t be getting much done tonight: my daughter is in her first high school play and tonight is opening night! They’re doing The Sound of Music, and she’s a nun/ party guest. I was in several plays in high school and loved being involved in theater, so I’m delighted that she’s enjoying it too. I can’t wait to see her on stage! Here she is in her dress from the party scene (she’s the tall blond).But for now, I’m home alone all day with nothing on the agenda. Let’s see how much knitting and crocheting I can get done!

Do I want to build a snowman? Nope!

Nov5

I did it! I finished two gift hats yesterday! With the exception of a trip to Costco, my day was spent crocheting and sewing. And I’m not sure I want to do it again anytime soon. First, I’ll let you see Olaf, which is for my nephew’s birthday. I used a few different patterns and some experimentation to cobble him together. He’s cute, no? I think so. Thank goodness, because I kind of hated making him. The fiddly finishing bits are my least favorite part of making things, and there was just so much darn finishing with this one. It was tricky to get the face spaced out correctly, and the carrot wanted to flop over, and those twig/hair things…well, they just won’t stand up. But he is cute, and I am proud of him, and I really hope my funny little nephew likes him!

His older sister is getting an owl hat, and that was the second gift I finished yesterday. The owls are so much easier compared to Olaf! This was done with Caron Simply Soft in Pagoda, and I’m hoping to have enough time to make some matching mittens. It felt SO GOOD to cross two things off my Must-Make list that I’m going to aim for another one today. But I also added one to the list yesterday. I found out last night that a friend of mine is going to be a grandma, so I need to make a baby hat. Guess I better get back to my yarn!

Tuesday’s Hat is Full of Twist

Nov4

Whee, I knew I could do it! I finished the gray Pacific Chunky hat yesterday! I actually finished it during my waiting room knitting time with ten minutes to spare, which meant I had nothing to distract me from The Young and the Restless on the TV. But still, I was happy to get it done. And I like it. This is the Picholine Hat and it might be my new favorite one-skein hat. The pattern was extremely simple to memorize, but comes out looking more complex. I used size 10 1/2 needles for the brim, which makes it just a bit snugger than I’d like, and size 13 for the body. The result is a nice, loose, floppy hat. The pattern calls for a pom-pom but I didn’t have quite enough yarn left over for that. I’d like to make this again with size 11s for the brims and enough yarn for the pom. This hat used all of the 120 yards in the skein.

Sadly, the rest of my knitting time did not go so smoothly. I didn’t have time to pick up needles again until after dinner, and I thought I would work up something quick and snazzy with my purple Cascade Magnum. First, I tried the Swirling Cowl but my yarn overs were so much looser than in the pictures, and it was making a more open fabric than I wanted. I tried doing the yarn overs going the other direction and that might have helped, except I really needed 16″ circular needles and I didn’t have them. The 24″ were just too long to make it an easy knit. I frogged and started over.

The second pattern I chose was the Marian cowl. I’ve made it before with the Magnum and it works well. I’d wanted to do something different, but nothing else was jumping out at me. So I cast on and started knitting and it was…okay. After a while I stopped and took a Pinterest break, like you do. There, I found the Red Rasta Cowl and it was lovely! THAT’S what I wanted to do with the Magnum! Okay, pattern downloaded, Marian frogged, let’s cast on…with the 16″ size 15 circs…that I don’t have.

There might have been a curse word at that point. In any case, the Magnum is now in timeout. I cast on for a simple beanie in Mizzou colors to be my next easy travel project and then moved on to a simple garter stitch scarf that I need to finish before Christmas. I also turned on the TV and watched some New Girl, Mindy Project and Selfie so I could get a few laughs. It helped end the evening on a high note, instead of being frustrated with the yarn.

Today’s goal is finishing. I really need to stop casting on new things and finish some Christmas presents! I have three Christmas character hats that just need faces, and if I can get those done I think I’ll feel much better about my to-knit list, which is too long for comfort. How long is your Must-Knit list? Have you started focusing on gift knitting yet?

Manic Monday: Finished Objects and More Yarn

Nov3

I feel as though I have been remiss, not blogging as regularly as I would like. I’d like to say I’ll get on the ball and start blogging at least twice a week, but…well, the holidays are coming so I make no promises. At least my schedule will soon ease up in a couple of ways: the teenager is done with marching band now, and will be done with the school musical after this week. Much less driving for me!

The two projects that filled most of last week can’t be written about as of yet, but I have other yarny adventures to share. My LYS recently moved from the little downtown area to a nearby warehouse space, sharing 5000+ square feet with another yarn store to become the Yarn Mercantile. They’re two separate entities under one roof, divided by a blue tape “Mason Dixon Line”, and I thoroughly explored both.

Angelika’s Yarn Store is new to this area, having moved here recently from Portland. She has aisles of yarn from lace weight to bulky, with easy-to-read signs hanging above. There’s lots of yarn I hadn’t seen before (mostly the Lorna’s Laces, which was fabulous but a higher price than I can usually afford) and lots of yarn I have (lots of Cascade, in all weights and colors. The huge wall with all the colors of 220 was impressive.). They have a wide range of needles and notions too, but I was there for yarn. I managed to restrain myself to just two skeins of Cascade Yarns Pacific Chunky. It’s a bulky yarn of 60% acrylic and 40% merino, so it’s warm and soft, and works up quickly. The two colors that ended up in my arms were a vivid turquoise and a soft gray. Of course I had to check out my old LYS, Knitcraft, while I was there. They were still in the moving process, so not everything was set up and full yet. I didn’t see anything new, but they’ve always had a great selection of yarns in all weights and price ranges, so I never walk out empty-handed. This time was no different. Despite trying to be thrifty, I still came home with a skein of Manos del Uruguay Maxima. I love their yarns; the colors are just gorgeous.When I got home, I discovered I already have a skein of this. Same colorway and everything. Oops! Well, that means I can make something even cooler. My goal is two make a couple of hats from the Cascade for my next craft fair and pay for them and the Manos. Good plan, eh?

Saturday was the husband’s birthday and we spent the afternoon exploring downtown Leavenworth. They have a three-floor antique mall that we love, as well as several other smaller antique stores. I found the coolest project bag at the antique mall, with tons of little pockets and pouches and elastic straps and zippered compartments. I think it’s going to be the best travel project bag ever. I kind of want to get duplicate notions just so I can keep it stocked at all times!

We didn’t have time for all the stores, but we hit our favorites. We love The Pot Rack with all the cool kitchen gadgets and the Queen’s Pantry with the British grocery and full range of teas and accessories. They have a yarn store now, too: Momo’s Knitting Nook. It’s a cute store with a lot of things I’d love in my own store someday! Right inside the store, facing the big front windows, are two small armchairs. That’s where my son decided to hang out, but I could definitely see myself spending some time there too.

The yarn is shelved in oversized wooden cabinetry with lovely detailing. I’m not sure how to describe it, except that they’re actual furniture pieces and not your basic, plain yarn-store shelves. There’s dark wood everywhere, including a massive rectangular table in the middle of the room that I’m sure is great for classes and groups. There are two more armchairs at the other end of the room as well as a nook with a long couch flanked by two more armchairs. Lots of seating, in other words! It was really inviting; you can tell they want you to feel comfortable hanging out and crafting with them.

Now, the yarn: lots of neat stuff, but somehow I wasn’t tempted by too much. There were brands I hadn’t seen before, as well as new yarns from familiar (to me) brands. The stuff I coveted was too expensive and the stuff in my price range didn’t call my name. It was strange. Don’t worry, I persevered and found two skeins I “needed”. One was a Cascade Yarns Magnum Paints in purples. I’ve seen, and worked with, the Magnum and love it, but I’d never seen the purple Paints before, and the price seemed comparable. The second was a Crystal Palace Yarns Gold Rush, a really lovely bulky rainbow yarn with a gold halo. If only I knew what to make with either of these!! What would be the perfect projects?

Finally, the added bonus our adventure was the knitting time during the hour-long drive to and from. I managed to get the turquoise Cascade mostly done. I used the Starving Artist pattern and am quite tickled by the twisted rib that gives it such a neat texture. That’s it for the last week! Well, except for the two secret projects. Today is a busy day but I’ve got the gray hat halfway done, so fingers crossed I can show it off tomorrow. Maybe then I’ll start on the Magnum. What projects do you love for that one skein of super bulky yarn?

Finally Finished: ToshDK Honey Cowl

Oct28

Whee, I’m in a finishing phase! Since finishing the wedding wrap, I’ve been on a roll. I finished a lingering scarf for a holiday order, I finished two sports-related earwarmers for friends, and I finished another Princess Anna hood. It feels so good to get some projects done.

After finishing so many little projects, I needed something simple for my waiting room knitting (I have lots of that kind of time) and came across another languishing project: my Madelinetosh Honey Cowl. The pattern is super simple, and it was so close to being done, that I decided I needed to just power through to the end. An hour later I was binding off, last night I wove in ends, and today was picture day. I’m in love with this cowl and it’s going nowhere but around my own neck. The yarn is actual Madelinetosh that I bought at Looped Yarn Works in Washington, D.C. My LYSs don’t carry Madelinetosh, so it was the first time I’d seen it, and at $22 a skein it was a pretty big splurge for me. But it was worth it. The colors are gorgeous, and the yarn feels luscious: it’s soft but springy, and knit up in this stitch the fabric is dense but still lightweight. It’s just fantastic, and I’ll definitely be making another Honey Cowl even if I can’t do it in Madelinetosh.

The relief I felt at finishing a WIP inspired me to pull out another one, so I’ve started on the second of a pair of seed stitch mitts that might end up being a Christmas present. As for waiting room knitting, well, I ended up starting something new. The life of a knitter or crocheter, right? Your pile of WIPs never really goes down!

Knitting a Wedding Wrap

Oct26

My most recent FO is one of the coolest things I’ve done in a while: I got to knit a lace wrap for a bride. She wanted something to cover her shoulders and upper arms for her November wedding, something more like a capelet than a full shawl. She wanted it open and lacy, and I hadn’t done true knitted lace before. I spent days poring through Ravelry, looking at shawls and ponchos and wraps and capelets. I looked at knitted ones and crochet ones. I looked at fingering weight projects and bulky weight projects, though I was hoping for a thicker yarn so it would work up faster. We went back and forth until finally I found the perfect pattern: the Regalia Cowl Wrap. It called for super bulky yarn and has two size variations so you can wear it as a cowl/capelet, or a longer wrap. I chose the smaller size so it would hug her shoulders.

The color was the most important factor, since it needed to match her dress. She found some Bernat Alpaca in Peony that was the perfect shade, so I held two strands together to mimic the super bulky yarn called for in the Regalia pattern. Knitting lace was a little overwhelming at first: lots of wyif and k1tbl and p1tbl that I hadn’t done before. The first few rows were scary, and I thought I’d vastly underestimated the time I’d need to get it done. Fortunately, once I got going, it got a lot faster, and I managed to finish it in a little over a week. I loved watching the pattern emerge from these rows of seemingly random letters and numbers. I can’t imagine being able to design something like this, so I’m in awe of Brenda Lavell at Phydeaux Designs.

Blocking opened up the lace pattern immensely and it held its shape pretty well once I unpinned it, even though it’s 70% acrylic with only 30% alpaca. It was a little bulkier than I intended, so it came out as 14″ by 46″ instead of 12″ x 32″, but that ended up working fine. The bride has a brooch to pin in closed, instead of buttons, so she can pin it to make it hang just right.

Once the wrap was done and drying on the blocking mat, I made a quick pair of fingerless gloves with some of the leftover Bernat. They’re called the Iris Stitch Fingerless Mittens, and it’s my new favorite pattern for crochet fingerless gloves. It took some finessing to get the size right (I had to do the first glove four times) but I love the delicate lacy look, the simple little thumb hole, and how quickly they work up.

I’m so happy with how this project turned out, and I really hope the bride is too! It was a great excuse to learn some new techniques. Now I’m looking forward to seeing pictures from her big day!

This has been my focus project for a while. Really, the only other thing I’ve finished lately is an eye mask. My son had a mystery party at school where he had to dress up as a literary character. It had to be from a book originally, from a book the other sixth-graders might have read, and something not glaringly obvious (i.e. no Harry Potter). We chose Westley from The Princess Bride. It’s one of our favorite movies but the book is delightful too. If you haven’t read it, give it a shot. Anyway, the boy had black clothes, black headscarf, cardboard “sword” but needed a mask. Crafty mom was happy to oblige!