Posted by: Mare F | March 8, 2012

Spring in the air

This afternoon I flat out played hookey! I had chores to do when I got home, I had projects to start, items to list, and still when I came into the house from work I grabbed my knapsack. Once it was filled with a water bottle, the first square of my second All Buttoned Up shawl from Austentatious Crochet, a pad, a pen, my camera, and my cell phone, I picked up my walking stick, donned one of my Bonsai shawls and headed out the front door. The temp was 65 degrees F and it was very windy, but it was too nice a day to stay inside so I told myself that I was off to get inspiration and clear out some of the winter cobwebs.

Uh huh. It worked, although my allergies are thinking about visiting, it was a great day for a walk and I felt so much better when I got home albeit a bit stiff. I walk quite a bit at work, but it’s all on the flat so walking up and down small hills is a much needed change of pace.

I’m not sure if these pictures will do me any good, not sure what inspiration they will bring, but it was certainly worth my while to sit on the breakwater and do a bit of crocheting before the clouds arrived in earnest. This weekend the temps will drop back to normal winter weather, but I did have my little taste of spring and only we are the wiser. Has spring visited you yet?

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Posted in Crocheting, General

Posted by: Mare F | March 4, 2012

Adaptations in yarn

For the first time in 35 years I’ve decided to make myself a sweater. In my mind’s eye I know exactly how it will look at the end, but sadly the reality is not quite the vision. I’m making a sweater in Lion’s Brand Homespun Quartz in a pattern named Banff. It’s a lovely bulky oversized turtleneck sweater perfect for walks, gardening, or work. I’m longing to knit while wearing it. I chose the Homespun because if I do snag it at work then I will have a better chance at a tidy repair and it’s machine wash and dry. Plus I loved the colors in the Quartz yarn.

The front and back worked up like a charm – a simple straightforward pattern that allowed for TV time and sweater time to overlap. I was thrilled. Then came the sleeves. I’m making this sweater in a 1X because I am a substantial woman. I like my sweaters, especially the sleeves, long and comfy. I began knitting the first sleeve and was a bit concerned over the cast on of 66 stitches. That is a large sleeve. I worked about 30 rows of the pattern and decided that I wanted to make the sleeves narrower because I just know that I will spend all of my time dragging them through my coffee or soup and catching them on anything available. I frogged them and restarted with 44 stitches. This felt right. Loose, but not bat wings. They worked up fairly quickly, especially when I heard our weather forecast for the beginning of this week…low 30’s as a high. Cool! If I finish it I can wear it comfortably this year!

This morning I began crocheting the front and back pieces together. The seams worked up nicely and neatly. Again I was thrilled…right up until the little dim bulb in my brain made the connection between the number of stitches in the sleeves with the armholes. Ack!!!. I put it all in the bag and pondered it for a bit. I worked on a scarf for a friend. I did dishes. I know myself well enough to know that if I put the bag with the sweater pieces upstairs it would languish there for a year or two until I decided to make it into a shawl or wrap. This was not going to happen with the first sweater I was making for myself.

I got my crochet hook and a smaller circular needle out. I crocheted a couple of rows around the armhole for shaping and began knitting a sleeve down from the top. I’m not sure how this will work out, but I have faith. Even if I have to tear this sleeve out and start it again, I will finish this sweater and be able to wear it sometime in the next month. There will be more chilly days in this New England season! Have you ever “modified” a pattern out of necessity?

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Posted by: Mare F | February 23, 2012

Outdoor yarning…

Do you hobby outside? The weather we are having in northwest Connecticut has me looking at my deck with longing in my eyes, but all of the outdoor furniture is stored in the basement for the winter so sitting outside is something of a challenge. We are only in the month of February and I know full well how surprising the New England weather can be so while I want to be set up outdoors, I will go forth in baby steps for another couple of months.

I have taken my knitting or crochet project with me when I set out to walk to the boat launch about a 1/2 mile from our house. Once there I settle on a rock or fence and take in the lovely view of the water, clouds, and/or sun, but I find that I do this more often during the off-season than not. I guess I just like the quiet while I work and relax. This makes having a portable project going at all times rather important to me. Maybe I am rationalizing the multitude of items I’m making at any given point in time, but I want something that will pop into my backpack and I don’t want to take my car project. We all know how that goes. You take the car project “just this once” and suddenly it’s a home when you need it most.

I have taken my knitting or crochet project with me when I set out to walk to the boat launch about a 1/2 mile from our house. Once there I settle on a rock or fence and take in the lovely view of the water, clouds, and/or sun, but I find that I do this more often during the off-season than not. I guess I just like the quiet while I work and relax. This makes having a portable project going at all times rather important to me. Maybe I am rationalizing the multitude of items I’m making at any given point in time, but I want something that will pop into my backpack and I don’t want to take my car project. We all know how that goes. You take the car project “just this once” and suddenly it’s a home when you need it most.

My livingroom has baskets with my various projects in it. This worked well during the storm we had in October when we lost power for almost a week. I had projects in various stages of progress so I could choose an item to go with the light I had throughout the day. It was too snowy to sit on the deck then.

A bit breezy outside for this.

So back to my original question, I do craft outside. I’m looking forward to weaving outdoors again and I am planning to hold a friends knitting/crocheting/whatever-you-make afternoon on my deck and yard just to enjoy the company and ideas of the people who humor me in my flights of lunacy. I think cookies should be involved.

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Posted by: Mare F | February 19, 2012

Travelin’ Yarn

Where do you do your hobby? If it’s portable do you take it with you? Do you have a back-up plan? I learned years ago during doctor’s visits, baseball & soccer games, and car trouble to be prepared and I’ve tried to do so since. I have a tote that lives in my car. It has comfortable handles, lots of room, and it’s squishy – meaning I can stuff it in between luggage, groceries, the spare tire or where ever I need to make it fit so that I can rest assured that if I end up waiting somewhere for whatever reason I can start, continue, or finish a project. It can be very calming depending on where you are when you utilize it. It’s also very handy if you go on  a yarn buying trip with someone else driving and you just can’t wait to get home to dig into your new stash although it doesn’t always make you popular with the driver.

Yarn survival kit

I was thrifty, and green, when I scoured my local thrift stores for a makeup bag to put my needles, hooks, and good stuff into my tote. I just made sure that the zipper worked well and the bag had no extra holes. You certainly don’t want your stitch markers roaming around your trunk or back seat with the other car detris…it can serious affect your fiber when the time comes for the two to meet. Once I had my bag I rummaged through my knitting cabinet to fill it with what I thought would be the appropriate items for any situation.  Needles, both a circular pair and a short straight pair, 3 crochet hooks, stitch markers, scissors, a tape measure, stitch holder, and a safety-pin for good measure.
I realised that paper and pen would be helpful after writing down a fledgling pattern on a paper towel with a crayon at a soccer game. The book is for patterns and ideas, the sticky notes to keep track of rows. I’m not sure that I ever recreated that first pattern the same way again, but I did learn my lesson and it’s served me well over the years. This bag goes to fairs with me and it’s been to Lake George, NY on several occasions.  I’ve also added a spare pair of cheaters and a lip balm since you never know when you will need either one. Now, the biggest decision I have is which yarn do I place in the bag to surprise myself with on some future busy day.  So, do you travel with your hobby?

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Posted by: Mare F | February 12, 2012

New ideas

Yesterday was a banner day for me on fresh ways to treat current projects. While washing dishes I realized that I think I would like to work a hood onto the Updated Drape Shawl I made in the Dazzleaire yarn about a month ago. It’s been sitting on the stand since I made it waiting for that something special to finish it up and I think this just may be it. A hood and a frog, or maybe a hood and an I-cord tie. I’m still not sure about the closure, but the hood is a definite. Now to decide just how I’m going to put it on the shawl. Do I lose the collar or do I put the hood farther back? An interesting project for a cold blustery Sunday in February.

Soon to be hooded.

I also finished the cotton scarf on my RH loom yesterday only because I have all of the fun stuff I got last week to weave and while I’m not bragging about it, I think once I’ve washed it and worked it a bit I will have a passable scarf. Then again maybe not. I clearly have some selvage issues, but in my defense I was hurrying and not even sure if I wanted to keep it. It was an experiment and I’m not sure that I have the talent or patience to work with it now so I’ll shelf those totes for a later date.

Experiment with crocheting cotton on the loom.

I did warp the loom with Modea Dea Tutu in Geranium and I can’t wait to see what this looks like woven. This bright, cheery scarf should be just the thing to make the dreary February days pass a little quicker. This is such a fun and forgiving yarn to weave with that I wish I’d gotten more. It’s a wonderful distraction to sit a the loom and work with a colorful fiber after a long day. I find it the perfect way to lose myself and it doesn’t require the concentration that following a knitting or crocheting pattern does. Pure relaxation! Do you have a favorite way to relax with your hobby?

Next project up on the RH loom.

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Posted in Knitting, Weaving, winter

Posted by: Mare F | February 9, 2012

Yarn frenzy

For a woman who swore she was going to work out of her stash for the foreseeable future I rather fell down this past week. On Saturday a friend and I went on an outing to a new to me yarn shop. It was lovely. Marji’s Yarncrafts in Granby, CT is a beautiful shop and the woman who was working there during our visit was charming and helpful. As always when I get into a yarn shop I was lost for a while just petting the yarn and ogling the magnificent colors. My mind went to mush. I think I was there for about 20 minutes before it occurred to me that I came unprepared. I didn’t have a single pattern in mind and there was far too many beautiful fibers to choose from to not leave with a project in hand. I landed on the Bonsai Shawl in the Interweave Crochet Accessories Special Issue 2011. I bought a beautiful Berocco Vintage in a sweet potato color (although on the website I think it’s called Grapefruit) to make this shawl. Of course I couldn’t stop there. I got a Rowan mohair for another shawl in the same magazine and some Lopi Light that was on clearance. Breathtaking stop.

Finished Bonsai Shawl

After we revived ourselves with a stop at Starbucks we headed to the Ocean State Job Lots in Southwick, MA to see what they had to offer. I am so easy when it comes to yarn. Sigh. I got some Lion Brand Incredible and Fun Fur as well as some Lion Brand Chenille to play with on my RH loom. I’d hoped to be there by now, but life has been constantly stepping on my toes this week. I have a cotton scarf on the loom right now that is my first attempt with this weight so I don’t want to rush it, but I really want to see how this all works up. I’m really very impatient.

His nibs checking out my spoils.

On Tuesday I went to Michaels in Avon to cash in a gift card I got for Christmas from a dear friend. Lion Brand Homespun was on sale and I’ve been promising myself a sweater for the past couple of years. I want a working sweater, one that I can throw in the washer and dryer so Homespun was looking good to me. I got the amount I needed in Quartz, a pretty beige/rose/purple combo that will be lovely in the roomy turtleneck sweater I’ve planned. Now, I couldn’t just buy the yarn I went there to get so I got 2 Fisherman’s Wool in Oatmeal and 2 in Birch Tweed. I see a couple of nice warm shawls coming from these. There was a Tuesday Special on Loops & Threads Impeccable which I got in Earth to make another Crossed Shawl and finally I got the last skein of Caron Simply Soft that I needed in Bone to finish the All Buttoned Up shawl from Austentatious Crochet. Oh, and I got the matching cotton for the last set of dish towels I bought so that I can get them into my studio. I really am shameless. How are you with your craft purchases???

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Posted in Crocheting, Fiber trips., Knitting

Posted by: Mare F | February 5, 2012

Fiber Road Trip

Yesterday, for the first time in over a year, I went on a girlie road trip to go shopping for yarn and other goodies. Looking back at the day, I’m not sure why I stopped going out on jaunts like these because I really, really enjoyed myself. It was inspiring, relaxing, profitable, and just plain fun. Isn’t it funny how, for one reason or another, we change our routines and don’t even realize it. I’ve vowed that I won’t let this happen again. I’m so full of wonderful ideas and creative energy today that I wish I had 4 more hands so that I could work with everything that I got yesterday.

The boss checking out my purchases.

Now even though I have the All Buttoned Up shawl from Austentatious Crochet going in Caron Simply Soft Bone yarn, which is now on hold until I pick the last skein to complete it, and the fingerless mitts in Kraemer Tatamy Tweed brown for my son, which is on hold until I pick up the second skein to complete, I had to jump in and start the Bonsai Shawl from Interweave Crochet Accessories in a beautiful sweet potato shade of Berocco Vintage yarn. This shawl pattern is a breeze to work and I suspect will be charming when it’s finished and blocked. I see it becoming one of my go-to patterns for gifts and the studio. Can’t be made in too many colors is my thinking. What do you think?
My one finish, kind of, for Finish Friday, is the second square for the All Buttoned Up shawl. This is another easy and warm pattern of which I anticipate making several in an array of colors. I was hoping to make the last paragraph of my Sunday blog about the project that I actually finished, but sadly I don’t have one this week. If I can settle down and focus, perhaps I’ll have several for next week. To anyone who will be crafting and watching the Super Bowl tonight…Enjoy!

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Posted in Crocheting, Fiber trips., General, Knitting

Posted by: Mare F | February 2, 2012

Yarn bouncing

This is a seriously scattered time for me. I think it might be because the shows are over for a few months and this is traditionally when I’ve had the time to start new projects and experiment. Now that I’ve added so many new things to my “I want to do right now” hobbies it has gotten even worse than usual. I am trying to work on items for my studio as well a few gifts so I’m not scrambling when the season rolls around again. I’m hoping to not find myself making 18 felted hats in a row so that I have them when I need them. Variety really is the spice of life and the saviour of my sanity. The ideas are flying into my head so quickly that even though I am writing them down I have trouble making myself finish one project before jumping into another.

This is one of the three squares I am working on from the Austentatious Crochet book. The three square button together to make a lovely shawl, but for practical – and lazy – reasons I am not going to sew on the 42 buttons to make this a shawl that can be made into two different styles. While the buttons are lovely, I have waist length hair and unless I wore my hair up every time I wore the shawl I would spend many unhappy moments untangling my locks from the buttons. Plus I’m bone lazy when it comes to sewing and the thought of 42 buttons makes me cringe. This and the first square look to be my Friday Finish project since I haven’t gotten back to my son’s fingerless mitts since I beat up my hands at work.  Maybe those will be next week’s finish. That would be lovely.

I also want to make up some cotton baby bibs for the studio. They look adorable and they are very soft. AND there are no plastic edges or iron-on pictures on them to begin the latex allergy trip. I would like to make something to go with the bibs as a set, but I just can’t decide what to make. Booties don’t necessarily go with bibs, hats are seasonal for the most part, and toys don’t mix nicely with baby food.  If anyone has an idea for me to jump on I will be happy to entertain it and perhaps pass along a bib to the idea maker. Thanks for thinking about it.

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Posted in Crocheting, General, Knitting, Uncategorized

Posted by: Mare F | January 26, 2012

Focus on yarn

I have a few questions for you . How do you focus on one project? When you do focus, do you stay with a project until  you finish it? How many projects do you have going right now?  I’m asking these questions because I found Finish it Friday at http://alifefulloflaughter.com. This delightful lady has a great plan and I sincerely plan to follow her. I know right off of the top of my head I have 2 projects going. On my Rigid Heddle loom I have my first project done with crocheting cotton. It’s very pretty and I love the weight so looking for more ideas for this cotton is high on my list. Maybe this will be the project I try to finish for tomorrow. This may need some adjusting. Interesting how the picture really shows the weave. Hmmmm.

The second project is the brown cotton/acrylic fingerless mitts I’m making for my son. I’ve almost finished the first one and in all honesty I don’t think that I could finish the other by tomorrow unless I’m not working. Sadly, my day job gets in my way.  I really like the Kraemer Tamany Tweed yarn. I also have it in a cream color that works up beautifully. Very comfy. I might just have to make a vest or sweater out of it. There’s another project just waiting to be started. Oh, my.

Last and certainly not least, I have the Romney roving to spin. This is my own personal little Catch-22. I’m not very good at spinning so I don’t spin often and I’m not very good at spinning because I don’t spin often.  I’m still trying to map out my scheduling with all of the new things I’ve decided I just HAVE to do and it’s a slow trip. If I could just set a 1/2 hour a day aside for spinning I’d be doing much better at it. Wish I had more time in my day, baby steps are just taking too long. So, how do you focus on your projects, whatever they may be, to get you to the end result?

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Posted in General, Knitting, Spinning, Weaving | Tags: , , , , , ,

Posted by: Mare F | January 22, 2012

Lazy Sunday and warping

English: An Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) in the Alpa...

Image via Wikipedia

I’m on my first viewing of my DVD Warping Your Loom by Madelyn van der Hoogt and I’m enjoying immensely. She is literally starting from the beginning and explaining everything in language that I, a novice, can understand. I know that this sounds somewhat simple for an instructional DVD, but I’ve run across others on other topics that tend to talk above the viewer. I’m sure it’s not intentional, and I know that I have to rethink my wording every time I start teaching another group because we all tend to forget steps we’ve done a hundred times and has become rote. I think I shall watch it a few times before starting my warping. It’s been this long, I might as well be completely comfortable when I do it. Also I have to get my warping board mounted to the wall. Such a minor thing, but it solves the sore back muscle issue nicely. The first lesson I’ve learned from this is to go to a professional and a visual one if possible.

 

 

Yesterday we had our first substantial snow of the year and it made for a cozy afternoon to be inside with this DVD and some yarn. I don’t seem to be able to just sit and watch TV or listen to a show without doing something, so even while I was watching this wonderful warping DVD I was knitting a fingerless mitt. The yarn is Kraemer’s Tatamy Tweed cotton/acrylic blend. I chose this yarn for durability and I think that I will be able to work more comfortably in these than the alpaca mitts I made last month. I love the alpaca. The color is a deep rich brown and they are incredibly soft and warm, but I would prefer to wear them for reading than working because they are just too luscious to ruin. They have made a much bigger difference for me than I expected. My hands are much happier warm than not and winter will be winter in New England.

I clearly need to get a hand model since my arms are too short for not only reading, but for modeling my own gloves and mitts. This yarn I bought from an alpaca farm near me and I am hoping to visit there soon. I like the idea of using locally grown and/or bred merchandise. Another of my winter projects is to find other sources of yarn and fiber within my state.  I don’t think this will slow down my other yarn purchasing, but I think we should try to support those around us as best we can.

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Posted in General, Knitting, Weaving, winter | Tags: , , , , , ,

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