I don’t have a plan for this yarn yet, but I really do enjoy unraveling sweaters. These colors are so nice together. Any project recommendations? I’m open to suggestions!
crafty new year’s resolutions
After the hustle and bustle of making things for others during the holiday season, my usual resolution is to make more things for myself.
This year that is going to have to wait. I’ve got a custom order for 12 of these cute coasters in red. Four down and eight to go!
Do you have any crafty resolutions for 2011? Share them in the comments!
can’t wait to unravel this sweater
I think my exact quote for the morning was, “You are not allowed to buy any more sewing machines and I am not allowed to buy anymore sweaters for unraveling.” But when my friend and I got separated at a street filled with garage sales, I had no one to help me with my will power. This sweater is so soft. The colors will look great in my house. I’m thinking join-as-you-go granny square lap blanket.
recycle: “…to take an unloved garment, destined for the landfill, salvage the wool, and give it a brand-new start as a beautiful knit gift; it’s sure to be appreciated by any recipient who loves the planet.” Lee Meredith
thrifty thursday
I was all ready to post about something else when this sweater literally came over to my house and never left. My friend Tana is destashing some of her hand knit sweaters. I told her I’d be interested in the cardigans and she stopped by this afternoon with them. There were a couple of pullovers in the bag, but I’m constantly hot/cold/hot/cold/etc. and don’t wear them much anymore.
I couldn’t stop looking at this one, though. It was such a lovely color blue. I loved the gray accent. I didn’t think I’d ever wear it, but Tana said I could do what ever I wanted with it, so you know what happened next, right?
I’ve abandoned that silly vintage wool for now and have started making the Chromium Star blanket out of this yarn instead. It is already turning out much better than I had even imagined. Thanks for the two fabulous cardigans and this wonderful yarn, Tana!
reuse: Hand knit sweaters are such a joy to unravel. They are always seamed together with such care. I wish all sweaters unraveled this nicely. I didn’t lose one bit of yarn!
stitch patterns: crochet washcloths
My latest gift-giving obsession continues: fancy soap and washcloths. I know so many people who deserve a little bit of pampering, but are too busy to take time for themselves. Hopefully these will help them relax and wash their stress away. They are crocheted out of the super soft Aunt Lydia’s cotton.
Want to make some yourself? Here are the patterns.
Note: You’ll notice that I don’t chain at the beginning of each row. I’ve started using faux double crochets instead. They really make your edges much neater.
Basket Weave
gauge: 4 stitches per inch, blocked to 10 inches
first stitch in each row is a faux double crochet instead of chain 3
- Row 1: chain 40
- Row 2: dc across
- Row 3-6: *5 dc through the front post, 5 dc through the back post* repeat until 5 stitches left, 5 dc through the front post
- Row 7-10: *5 dc through the back post, 5 dc through the front post* repeat until 5 stitches left, 5 dc through the back post
- Repeat rows 3-10 four more times.
Columns
gauge: 4 stitches per inch, blocked to 10 inches
first stitch in each row is a faux double crochet instead of chain 3
- Row 1: chain 39
- Row 2: dc across
- Row 3: *4 dc, dc through front post* repeat until 4 stitches left, 4 dc
- Row 4: *4 dc, dc through back post* repeat until 4 stitches left, 4 dc
- Repeat rows 3-4 until you have a square.
shop: handmade cotton coasters
Remember my stash-busting garden scarf? I still have some little bits of those pretty colors left and have been working on some projects to use them all up. Combining them with natural colored yarn again, I designed these cute coasters. You can find more pictures and details in my shop. I’m working on some other stash buster ideas, too. Stay tuned!
p.s. I plan to have the pattern available in my shop soon!
thrifty thursday
I looked and looked for cotton yarn from every thrifty means available to me and finally caved and bought some from a craft store. Now, all I see is cotton! I got a nice sweater that’s in the unravel pile and the above lovelies for a buck each at a garage sale. I may have gotten a little out of control and bought a pink and purple, too. Oh, well. You can never have too much dishcloth yarn, right?
plying sweater yarn
I’m still feeling a bit under the weather, but I managed to play around with my drop spindle for awhile today. This ball of yarn comes straight off the sweater. I’m trying to take it from lightweight to worsted. So far, not so bad. I’m kind of making this up as I go along. We’ll see how it turns out.
my creative space
Good grief! May is almost half over! You wouldn’t know it by the weather. It feels more like Fall than Spring. Yesterday I realized I’ve got some gift making to do this month. I can’t give too much detail right now, but I’m combining this with some handmade goodies from etsy.com. I’ll do a full reveal after they’ve been gifted.
Check out more creative spaces over at Kirsty’s blog.
wardrobe refashion: white cotton skirt
Three skirts down! I really wish I would have taken a before picture of this one. When I cut off the waist and flattened out the fabric, there was so much!
I used an a-line pattern I drafted for myself from Sew What! Skirts. I took about 5/8 inch off of each side after trying it on and will be adjusting my pattern for the next one. Aside from that, this was super easy. I cut it out a few weeks ago and sewed it up today in about an hour.
Usually I shy away from white of any kind on my lower half, but I fell in love with the detail at the bottom. Isn’t it lovely? (Yep, I kept the original bottom hem, which made this project go really fast.)
The skirt is a little sheer, but I’m thinking slip instead of lining. Any suggestions for fabric type? I worry that a traditional polyester slip might be too hot in the summer.
thrifted: I think this might be my last skirt from the Goodwill 99 sale. I can’t remember! Time to dive back into the stash.
