New Kitty

Say hello to Pipsqueak, our new cat! He has been hanging around our apartment building for over a year now, and we finally got permission to bring him inside :) He's already been neutered and declawed, so all we had to do was get his shots and flea/heart worm treatment. It has been quite an adjustment having a new member of the family, but it keeps getting better. Here's a video of him attacking a pom pom:

Christmas Place Mats

I finally get to share the Christmas presents I made! My mother is crazy about place mats, so it seemed like great fun to sew her a patchwork set. These are made using the salvaged fabric from wallpaper sample books and other hand-me-down fabric from family members. The whole idea started with a way to make the most of that beautiful cardinal


I started with the patch above - I was so thrilled to work with festive, Christmasy patterns. It was ridiculously fun. It was also much harder than I anticipated picking out fabrics from such a limited supply, and working around very limited sizes. It made me realize what quilters in the 30's were going through - the origins of patchwork coming out a scarcity of materials. When that is actually the case, it really makes each patch so much more valuable (and mistakes that much worse!!!) The place mat below, you can see some squares of fabric with a log cabin and bears - that was from the extra special wrapping around a bar of soap! Mom gave me that a few years ago and thankfully I hung on to it :)


This squirrel place mat changes up the overall patchwork pattern because I was running out of stuff to make my stars. This way though, I was able to use the scraps from the other mats and have two odd mats in the group of six - helps to keep it exciting :) This bird was the other odd mat:


For the backs, I decided to use a beautiful green woven fabric from Belgium my mother has had for years and years. She recently gave it to me to do something with - and here it is:


With lovely fabric on both sides, these are reversible. Here's a shot of the place mats in their natural habitat - they match her Christmas table theme so well!

I also made some place mats for H's mom - pictures of those plus other gifts coming soon :) It's like Christmas all over again!

two color mittens

Believe it or not, I knitted these mittens about two years ago and never managed to get pictures until now. I'm brilliantly organized you see. This was a Christmas gift for my mother which was finished at the last minute, then quickly wrapped and stuffed under the tree. I knitted these while sitting in a New York laundromat. Ha! Those days are far behind me now, thank goodness.

I used Elizabeth Zimmermann's instructions and pattern from Knitting Around. You can see I staid true to her color choices as well - these pretty well match the ones on the cover of the book.

I used the leftover yarn from my first knitted hat, which H happened to lose. Ahem.

The green i-cord cuff trimming is possibly my favorite detail - this was leftover from my first baby sweater. Incidentally, I'm just realizing I haven't posted any pictures of those projects. brilliantly organized I say.

I am particularly proud of these mittens. I love the scandinavian style, the soft flowing pattern, and the gentle colors. If I ever move back north, I definitely need some of these to stay alive.

Hopefully soon I'll be able to share pictures of the Christmas presents I prepared for this year (and actually took pictures of).

In the meantime...Merry Christmas :)

commissioned purses

H's aunt commissioned me to make two purses for her granddaughters, and so here they are! Amazingly I have not gone completely insane making Christmas presents yet, even with commissions. I have to admit, being paid to make presents is really cool :)

These are made from Angry Chicken's book Bend-the-Rules Sewing (the charming handbag). The one above is made from a thick, velvet fabric and cotton/linen lining. All of the fabric for both purses is reclaimed/recycled. Instead of the bow on the purse above, I tried a yo-yo flower with a cool metal button.

This one is brighter and lighter. I think the outer lining is thin wool, but one can never tell with reclaimed fabric unless there is a tag involved. I love the ribbon on this thing - oh so fun to play with. Also, the lining goes almost too well with the ribbon. I would totally carry this purse.

I wish so badly I could share pictures of the other presents I'm working on, but I have the sneaking suspicion their recipients would be spying on the blog.

More to come!

Lost and Found Yarn

I was thrilled to find this collection of yarn mixed in with my college books in my mom's storage. This dates back to my lap loom days. Most of this is from Hearth Song kits, but a few came from random early crochet projects (most of which did not end well).


Imagine my surprise to find this motley knitting sampler - unless my memory fails me, this is my very first effort at knitting (along with my two older sisters). My mom began the sampler with nice neat garter stitch - you can see it on the right side of the picture below. Then you can see sections where my sisters tried stockinette, ribbing, and moss stitches. Then on the far left you can see what I believe was my first attempt at knitting.


I have always been more ambitious than patient. 'nuff said.


That is really funny though! I laughed out loud when I saw it. I think I would have trouble recreating those mistakes! I'm glad I took some photos of this piece of crafting history - I plan to unravel it and use the yarn for something else. Perhaps something with a moss stitch - isn't that part pretty?


As a Christmas update, I have just completed my parents' present (if they are not completely stoked I will be sorely disappointed). I've also finished a couple of purses for H's cousins. Still work to be done on two sisters' presents, brother and his wife's present, and mom-in-law's. Gettin' there!

Halls are Decked!

Earlier this week, mom-in-law and I finally got the tree decorated. Fun! We have been enjoying it thoroughly every evening. H comments every night how good it looks all lit up. Christmas is in the air and I'm drinking it in :) I could really use some magic this year.

Are you tired of looking at it yet?

Last week I visited my parents and dragged a ton of junk out of Mom's storage (you're welcome Mom), and I've been sorting through it bits at a time. TONS of art supplies, which is really exciting. I found the first thing I ever knitted, paint brushes I used as a toddler, beads, beads, and more beads. Lots of work, but oodles of potential. More to come...

Poised...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here. My mom-in-law is visiting with us until we travel home again for Christmas with my folks. Family time is good :) We have a very naked tree to decorate, hopefully today. I do have lights on it, so we've been enjoying it at night.

Hopefully I'll have some pictures of decked halls to share soon :)

Merry Christmas!