Tag Archive | project bags

Sock It To Me Monday

Aug17

Three days. Everyone (who doesn’t knit) asks me how long it takes to knit a sock, and now I know: three days. Oh sure, you knitters know there are too many variables to give an honest answer to that, but three days sounds as good as anything else I’ve used before. I’ve been working on my latest socks exclusively for the last couple of weeks, and I’m happy to report that the first pair is done! These are for the boy, who is very slender but has long feet, and his homework is to wear them for a day and then wash them just as he washes all his other clothes. We’ll see how that turns out!

img_8431As for the purple pair, I’m midway through the foot of the second shortie sock and aim to be done by the end of the week. The yarn is Saucon Sock by Kraemer Yarns and I’ll be writing a review once the boy and I have both had a chance to wear and wash our socks. No photo of the purple sock today; instead I’ll show you what arrived in my mail yesterday. Behold, it is gorgeous!

img_8447Yes, again my Instagram hobby meant a new project bag entered my life. This is a hobo bag from Joji and Co. and I adore it all, from the soft suede to the hot pink color to the tiny holes for enamel pins on the front pocket. If you’re familiar with her bags, you know that they do periodic updates that sell out super fast — like within 10-15 minutes at times. That strategy totally feeds into my competitive nature and removes all common sense and willpower. Honestly, I’m okay with it at the moment. I mean, look at it! But now that I have one, I can totally resist more. At least for now. Until next time, anyway.

New Knitting Case

Jul20

For ages, I’ve been coveting the Namaste Maker’s Train Case from Jimmy Beans, but could never justify buying one. But they recently decided to phase out their Namaste line and put all the Namaste products on sale. I acted quickly so I could get one before the purple was gone, and it arrived Friday.

57927CD4-F699-4A5A-95B6-8571F6CDE11EIt’s gorgeous purple faux leather, with a magnetic lid, and it holds my Sea Swell Shawl quite nicely. I love the little hole on the side for the yarn!

Apparently it was designed to fit nicely underneath airplane seats, but I won’t be testing that any time soon. I’m happy enough to have it sitting on my coffee table. I can’t lie: there’s part of me that wants to order one in dark teal too!

Happy Mail

Jun26

Here’s the thing: when you only knit on one project, and it’s a bigger project, that means you don’t have interesting progress to report on your blog all the time. So it is with me and my Olive Pink shawl. I am on the last section, with just the border after that, and I know I will finish this weekend. But rather than share another photo of that, instead I’ll share my happy mail from yesterday.

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This beautiful set, called Stained Glass Menagerie, is from Show Me Yarn, a Missouri dyer whose yarn I love. They’ve done these collaborations with Willow Island before, with matching yarn and bag, and I just couldn’t resist this one. I needed those bright colors in my life.

Rainbow KAL?

May29

Apparently Sarah Jane at Mildly Granola is hosting a Pride Sock KAL for June, and I’m ready for some bright rainbow-ish socks. Which should I use??

img_7830Neither are true rainbows, but they’re the closest I have. The top is a self-striping called Make Me Smile, and the bottom is named Born This Way, which seems appropriate for Pride Month. Which would you knit?

Also today was a very good mail day and I got my new project bag that I ordered from Orange Jellyfish Dream. They’re hand-dyed and extremely well-made. I think I’ll put my new sock project in it! They had other colors too. You can see them here.

EDF80659-D0D1-48BB-BB8A-4F84939E097C_1_201_aOh yeah, I got the matching pouch too. Oops.

A new craft!

May25

When I was about 12, my mom thought I needed to learn to sew. With her help, I made a pair of white cotton shorts. They fit fine, but I didn’t love the process and didn’t sew anything else after that. For the next 20 years or so, the only sewing I did was sewing on buttons. Even when the girl wanted to learn to sew, and got a machine and all the tools, I was happy to sit back and let her learn from her aunt and grandmas.

But then I started crocheting and knitting, and I made some bags that needed liners. The knitting SIL, an accomplished sewist herself, walked me through the basics and I used the girl’s sewing machine to make a couple of simple linings, which I then hand-stitched into the bags. Then I got tired of that, and a few months ago, got rid of my fabric scraps because I didn’t have the inclination to sew more.

Oh, but then the evil pandemic began. First I knitted masks and hand-stitched linings in them, but that was a long process. I saw the simple pleated masks and figured I could manage those. It took me a while to remember how to use the machine, but I made a few with fabric ties. Then I made a few with elastic from hair ties. It was fast, and kind of fun. I ordered brightly-colored cotton and made a few more with elastic. But I hadn’t realized how much fabric two yards was, and I wondered what else I could make with all this fabric.

I remembered the little knot bag that Sarah Jane gave me a few months ago — it seemed pretty simple. She sent me the link for the pattern on Etsy, which is awesome and has three sizes. Since Sarah Jane made me a small one, I decided I’d try the medium size. A few hours later, I had a new bag, and it’s even reversible!

This is a perfect pattern for beginners, nice and simple, and I can’t wait to make another one. I might make another small one before I tackle the large size, which also has a pocket. And pretty soon I might need to start getting some fabric, because I only have three solids and I’m gonna need more than that!

I am not at my best

Jan24

I’m tired, guys. Like my brain and my body are just…tired. And it means I’m not functioning at my best in any aspect of my life. Nothing’s falling apart, but I’m just getting by at the moment. And that’ll have to be okay for now.

Duncan is three weeks out from surgery and recovering pretty well, but there’s still one spot on his incision that hasn’t closed up, which is why I’m so tired. He either needs to be supervised or coned to be sure he’s not licking it, and since he’s in the cone all day while we’re gone, I can’t in good conscience make him try to sleep with it. I mean, it’s kind of ridiculous for me to be sacrificing my good sleep for his good sleep but that’s how moms roll a lot of the time, right?

The knitting is going fine, when I have the energy to do any of it. I’ll show you some tomorrow but today I wanted to share my newest purchases. I’ve coveted the Cube bags from Thimble & Thread Make for ages. They’re handmade, they come in fun colors with contrasting linings, they’re sturdy canvas, and best of all, they have a lining with snaps so you can put your pins on the bag without your knitting catching on the backs! But they’re from the UK, so I’ve resisted for a long time. Then, they made a PURPLE one. And I’m not buying yarn, which means I’m more susceptible to knitting accessories. So I caved and ordered the large Cube bag, and it arrived two weeks later.

Look at that beauty! I love it. I can’t wait to get it all decorated with some pins; I just have to decide which ones to put on there. And it means I have room for more, should my collection grow.

I did get further distracted while on their site, and since I was paying for international shipping anyway, these little goodies slipped into my cart as well.

The notions pouch has an actual wax seal on the back! And hopefully you can see the detail on the clay Sorting Hat charm, the wee face carved into it. There’s also an R carved on the bottom, since I’m a Ravenclaw.

I’m not sure how this all works into my current yarn diet philosophy, but at least my stash isn’t growing. Do you get tempted by other things when you’re not buying yarn?

Progress on the WIPs

Oct21

Yes, it is Friday, and here I am blogging! Thanks to a dentist appointment today and a book event this evening (I get to see JODI PICOULT!!! SQUEE!) I decided to just take the day off. I’ve got errands to run too, of course, but thought I’d take advantage of my rare quiet morning at home to slip in a quick new post. So: lots of knitting time this week! My beautiful new Color Block Wrap is coming along nicely. I’d forgotten what a fast knit it is. I decided to just go with the size 10 needles because I liked the resulting gauge. I figure I’ll do the first three sections, see how long it is, and decide then whether I need to add another skein or two. I don’t have more dark pink but I’ve got a light pink and more grays, so I could easily add more yardage.

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And I was a winner this week! We went to a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra and there was a silent auction, and I won a new knitting tote! Yes, I totally DID need another bag, thank you for asking. Isn’t it cute?

img_2157I also won a gift certificate so I’m ordering another bag and I think I’m even going to splurge and get it personalized!

Look at this: I also managed to work on Silverleaf this week:

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Yep, that’s the leaf section! I made it through half of the leaf lace pattern, so just the other half and the final boarder left to do. I’m still loving this project. It’s just perfect. But I’ll love wearing it too!

This weekend promises to be quite busy. Another band competition (the last of the season) will give me plenty more knitting time, so look for a FO on the blog soon!

Awesome Project Bag

May17

No knitting photos to share today, sadly. I didn’t make it to the green stripes in the Marcelle Wrap (though I only have 10 rows left before I get there) so there’s not much to show. Instead, I’ll show you what I got in the mail.IMG_6169Isn’t that AWESOME??? I love Lionel Richie, and my husband’s text tone is a snippet from “Hello”. I first saw it in another knitter’s photo on Instagram, and of course I asked about it. I checked out The Yarn Stories, where she’d gotten it, and it was sold out. Thank goodness I’m on Instagram frequently, because the other day they posted they’d gotten restocked and there was ONE left. I was on the stationary bike exercising, but you can bet I went online and ordered that puppy while I was pedaling away. I’m delighted with it. It’s bigger than I was expecting, heavy and durable, and will hold at least a couple of projects. Now, I just checked and their website says they have ONE left, so if you want one, move fast!

I mostly played with yarn and watched TV yesterday, but by nine I was pooped so I retreated to my bed with my new book, a Mother’s Day gift from the girl (paid for with money from her first paycheck!!) and so far I’m loving it. IMG_6170Can’t go wrong with Clara Parkes. My only concert is that it’s too short. I think it will be done too quickly.

Now, today, I must ignore the sniffling/sneezing/coughing and do some errands, for a I can’t take a sick day every day. You can be sure that I will return to my couch and knitting as soon as possible, though. I hope you all have a sunnier, healthier day than I will!

Wonder Woman Bags

May6

Yesterday, my brother sent me a link about some cosmetic bags Walgreens was selling. Not just any bags: these were WONDER WOMAN bags! I’ve loved her since I was a kid, and I’m a nerd at heart so now that I’m a grown up, I love to have all kinds of Wonder Woman stuff. You guys have seen some of it. So I followed the link and then almost immediately drove to my local store. Nope, they didn’t have them. Didn’t know anything about them. Shoot. I came home, searched some more, and thought the closest store that had any was 30 minutes away. But no! My brother discovered a closer store that said it had one of the bags. I figured one was better than none and set off again. And GUESS WHAT?? They had all three bags I wanted! So yes, I bought myself an early Mother’s Day gift because how could I not? IMG_6025The big one will be a project bag, and I’m not sure about the two medium sizes. That littlest one came with a set of makeup brushes, and they’re cute and all, but whatever. This is a notions pouch, am I right? And that clear one in the back? It has a cape!IMG_6026I am more than pleased with my new bags. I think they’re delightful.

Somehow I also ended up with some new yarn yesterday. I don’t know how it happened. But it was all half off, so that’s something. IMG_6027This is Cascade 220 Superwash Aran, so squishy and soft! Love this stuff.

IMG_6028This is Berroco Lustra. You can’t see it very well, but it has a lovely subtle shimmer. I think it will make a gorgeous lacy cowl.

Now I really need to focus and get back to work. This author’s book isn’t going to proofread itself!

The Secret Bag is Unveiled

May26

I have finally finished my sister’s project bag, and now that she’s seen it, I can show it to all of you! Voila…IMG_4240It measures 12″ across, 9″ tall and 4″ deep. IMG_4241Nice big button with tab closure.IMG_4256I love how the fabric I found continues the blue and brown theme.IMG_4253This might be my favorite bag ever. The pattern is called Retro Knitting Bag and the main visual element is the butterfly stitch. It was wonderful to knit, new and a bit challenging, but not so difficult to be frustrating. Once I got the hang of the stitch and the pattern, it was smooth sailing. I made a few modifications: cast on fewer stitches since I was using a heaver-weight yarn, made it 9″ tall instead of 10, and added the button closure. The pattern also said to sew the sides together, but I didn’t like that idea. I wanted my sister to be able to open it up wide and see inside easily. I used Berroco Weekend, an acrylic/cotton blend that should be durable. I already have plans to make one for myself!IMG_4249