Friday, March 26, 2010

Snip.Sew.Send. March for Tina

Watch out! I may be catching up on items from the to do list!

Tina's block for March's Snip.Sew.Send. is finished and *should* be in the mail tomorrow.

Tina is using the blocks to make a quilt for her daughter's bed. I am sure it will be sweet and well loved.
Cross posted at Snip.Sew.Send.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Got a yard?

Rebecca Yaker and Patricia Hoskins, the authors of One Yard Wonders are looking for submission for their next one yard wonder book. All the information is found here.

The concept of the next book is what projects can be made with a yard of a specific kind of fabric. Submit your idea online by April 1.

{Crafty Carry-Along Bag holding my sock yarn while I soak up the last bit of sun}

I put my submission in today. I made three Crafty Carry-Along bags out of lavender voile. They are all different sizes and have a loop and clip for easy transport. I hang the clip from my belt loop and the yarn slides right out the top. These were made because I got tired of sporting a nice, handmade tote bag but carried my knitting in old resealable bags. Now I have cute bags for my knitting projects, too. =]

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Keeping warm(er)

I have also been knitting a lot lately. The proof.
As I mentioned I also cast on for an Odessa Hat with a Bamboo Wool bend from Moda Dea in Chili Pepper Red. It is the first time I have knit with beads and I really like it. The hat fits well and keeps my head warm with out being itchy.

On it's first trip out of the house on my head it got a compliment from the lady behind me in the checkout line. She asked where I bought it. When I told her I made it her eyes popped out of her head and she said it was beautiful. I don't know about beautiful, of course there are mistakes, but I sure do like it.
{My Ravelry project}

I was also able to finish my French Press Slippers for the Ravelympics. For the first thing I made to be felted it's not too bad. I made the seams too bulky which made the toes a bit bumpy, but they work just the same. They are cute, pretty easy to knit and warm.
{Gigantic pre-felted slippers}
The felting was a trip. Your supposed to use your washing machine with the hottest water possible. Our hottest water is quite chilly since we don't have the washer connected to the water heater. I boiled pots of water on the stove, dumped them into a 5 gallon bucket and hauled it to the washer. I also learned that if you turn off the water line to the washer it won't start agitating no matter where you set the dial. I had to add a small load of cold water to get it going but it didn't seem to hurt the felting process.
{Slippers in action}


I used a pair of fabric covered buttons I received last year in a swap package from Erika. I was waiting for just the right project for the buttons and these slippers are it. I wear them all day everyday when I am home. This pattern will definitely be knit again. =]

Quilter Bees ~ February Drunk Love

I've had my eye on the Drunk Love quilts and blocks since I saw them a couple years ago but never truly tried to make them until Sharon of Quilter Bee's asked for them. Why do I do that? I know I can do it. I know I will love doing it. But I still put it off. Silly me.
She sent darker and lighter gray fabrics to everyone and each of us got a different bright color for the pop. I loved how bright the yellow is against the cool grays. Again, only one got to be the full 12.5" but I made two other starters for you, Sharon. I hope you don't mind finishing them. I had a lot of enjoyment in making them. =]

Quilter Bees ~ January Jewel Squares


Again, catching up on bee blocks that are due. The second set I stitched together on Tuesday were for Theresa of the Quilter Bees group. My camera couldn't quite capture the colors of the fabrics. It's pretty unfortunate because they were lovely-vivid but mellow and comforting.
I managed to make one 12.5", three 6.5" and three 3.5" after the learning curve I got from Gretchen's in the November round of Snip.Sew.Send. This time I was able to maximize the use of fabric a little better. =]

Snip.Sew.Send. February Houses

I'm still playing catch up with all my to do quilting bee blocks. First up was Kris's February Houses. She provided the sand colored solid and we used our scraps/stash for the rest. Making wonky little houses and trees makes me happy so I was looking forward to making these blocks.

I first made this purple house. I saw Kris likes purple and so do I. Every girl should live in a house painted her favorite color. A fat, little gray kitty is poking his head through the striped curtains. The curtain fabric is from a pair of capri pants I loved, but Dirty said looked like curtains. Now they are. This is the only one I could get to 12.5".

Next was this little wonky building. I imagine it as the local fabric shop. I hope it is bright and mellow enough. I am a little iffy on the mellow part of it.

It needs a little greenscape so there are two trees, too. The one on the left reminds me of a little kid's drawing. The right one is good for having a picnic under on a warm summer day.

They are late (again) but on the way to you, Kris! =]