WIP Your Yarn Back and Forth
23 May 2012 2 Comments
in Crafty Tags: crafty, crochet, diy, knitting, ravelry, yarn
So I have a lot of stuff on the needles and the hooks these days. Some are true works in progress and some other stuff has been hibernating for a while. Here are the WIPs that I’m actively working on:
198 yards of Heaven (Project Name: Heaven)
I love this shawl and it’s been a pleasure to work on. At first I realllllly had to pay super close attention to the pattern and I had some issues understanding instructions in a couple of places. But now it’s just really interesting knitting. I can’t talk and work on it or anything like that – it’s still a lace pattern – but I’m really enjoying it. Goal Finish Date: June 1, 2012
Reverse Bloom Flower Sunburst (Project Name: Sunflower (August 2011 Mystery 220 KAL))
Gosssh…I love a good washcloth, but this one just feels labor intensive! Five little pieces that have to be joined together and then weaving in all those ends in? For a dishcloth? BLAH!
It is, however, good mindless tv knitting. And it really is a cute little washcloth. However, I’m very aware that my yarn colorway choice was/is questionable. Don’t judge me! Everyone likes at least one tacky colorway!!! Goal Finish Date: May 27, 2012
Then there’s the stuff that’s been hibernating for a while…
Basic Ribbed Socks (Project Name: Sokkies)
Basic Granny Square (Project Name: Granny McArnwine)
Sunny Spread (Project Name: Avocadoness)
Op Top (Project Name: Chapeau Bleu) no photo yet
Modern Garden Cardigan (Project Name: Garden Party) no photo yet
Lots of stuff – trust me, I know.
BUT! I’m steadily working thru all of my projects, both old and new. My plan is to always be actively working on a new WIP and an old WIP until all of the old hibernating stuff is either completed or frogged. Once I get caught up, I’m thinking that I will like to have no more than 3 projects on the needles/hooks at a time. Like that will ever happen!
And yes, the title of this post is referring to Willow Smith’s Whip My Hair…damn catchy teen pop tune!
Clean to Chaos to Clean
20 May 2012 6 Comments
in Crafty, House Tags: before and after, cleaning, crafty, house, yarn
Remember this room?
Yeah, well, this happened…
Over the course of moving in and unpacking, this room became the “Just put it in the front room for right now” room. Needless to say, we put a lot of stuff in this room “for right now”.
Well, it couldn’t stay like this forever simply because it was downright embarrassing and I couldn’t find shit. It was also scheduled to be swap headquarters for the 2012 Potholder Swap Day and this kinda crazy just wouldn’t do.
After a few nights of cleaning and organizing and my dad coming over to help with the chaos in the closet – ta daaaa! – organized awesomeness!
Even the closet got semi-organized!
Yeah! Soon enough there will be drapes, chairs, extra storage, (a spinning wheel eventually), etc., but for now I’m just happy that it’s organized and I can find stuff! Craft room happiness achieved!
…
What? Why yes, I do have a lot of yarn and multiple sewing machines. Why do you ask?
Oh the Pretty Colors!
16 May 2012 2 Comments
in Crafty Tags: before and after, crafty, diy, dyeing yarn, ravelry, yarn
So apparently knitting and crocheting isn’t enough for me when it comes to dealing with yarn. I gotta dye my yarn now too!
I was initially intrigued by some overdyed projects on Ravelry. Then after some yarn shopping with Eve and finding out that Knit Picks carries undyed yarn I decided to take the plunge and dye some yarn.
First, I decided to overdye some beautiful Cascade 220 yarn.
Seriously, I love this color but it looks horrible on me! This is the last skein I had of it so I figured it would be my dye test monkey.
Here’s what I did:
- I soaked my yarn for about 45 minutes in a 3 to 1 water/vinegar mixture (6 cups of water and 2 cups of vinegar in this case).
- Toweled squeezed all of the water out – you want damp yarn, not soaking wet yarn
- I mixed about a 1/4 of a bottle of RIT dye in a large empty Starbucks frappa-whatever bottle with water to the top – I used a color called Wine
- Then I poured the dye over the yarn – heavier in some places than others. Some spots I skipped entirely.
- I then tossed all of the yarn into a ziplock bag and nuked it in the microwave – 2 minutes heat – 2 minutes rest – flip bag – 2 minutes heat (debatable if this is safe with RIT dye but the RIT website has a tutorial on nuking RIT dye so I’m assuming that my 6 minutes in the microwave won’t contaminate my food and kill me off)
- Rinsed twice (first rinse with a dash vinegar)
- Hung to dry for a couple of days (the darker areas took longer to dry) and taaaaa-daaaaaa!!!
Gooooorgeous right!? It’s much more tonal in person but I think you get the point in the picture….dark and warm in some sports and bare orange in others. I love it! I decided to name it “Brooklyn” because I was listening to the Knitting Brooklyn podcast when I was dyeing it up (and yes I named it…all yarn needs a good colorway name!).
With my confidence riding high I decided to dye my Knit Picks Bare Peruvian Highland Wool next.
So exciting!!! I was going to go for a tonal look but decided to do a straight monochromatic full immersion dye job. Here’s what I did with the Bare:
- I soaked my yarn for about 45 minutes in a 3 to 1 water/vinegar mixture (6 cups of water and 2 cups of vinegar in this case).
- Toweled squeezed all of the water out
- I mixed about a 1/4 of a bottle of RIT dye in a large empty Starbucks frappa-whatever bottle with water to the top again – I used a color called ***
- I brought a giant tamale steamer ½ full of water and a cup of vinegar to just under simmering…the water was steaming… not boiling at all but super hot nonetheless.
- I added the yarn and the diluted dye to the steamer and let it simmer for 30 minutes. I stirred on occasion but not much.
- I let the water and yarn cool on the stove for about 30 minutes so I wouldn’t have to handle super hot and wet yarn.
- I then proceeded to rinsed the shit out of it…this took forever and I still only got the water 95% clear. Good enough!
-
After squeezing it out again in a towel, I let it hang dry for two days and…
Well hellllloooo there handsome! I love this color and the love the even richness of it. I decided to name it “Vincent” because I was thinking about Vincent D’Onofrio from Law & Order Criminal Intent while I was dyeing this skein up (I have a thing for his character on L&O). No plans for this yarn quite yet, but I’m sure it will turn into something lovely.
Total success x2!!!
I have to say, although I have lots of crafty goodness on my plate and in line to be tackled as it is, I can’t wait to do this again. And again. And again!!!
Saori
13 May 2012 4 Comments
in Crafty Tags: crafty, diy, knitting, ravelry
Patten: Star Crossed Slouchy Beret by Natalie Larson
Yarn: Lion Brand Superwash Merino Cashmere
Colorway: Ivory
Needles: US 9 straights & US 10 ½ circulars and dpns
Size: Average head size (whatever that means!)
Skills: Knit & purl stitches, long tail cast-on, cables, increasing (M1) & decreasing (ssk & k2tog), ribbing, and using circular needles & dpns
Notes: A gift for my friend Saori. I love this pattern oh so much. I’ve now made this 3 times (I’ve made it in grey for me and rose for my friend Joannie) and I plan to make it again for myself. This is easily my favorite hat to knit (and wear) and I highly recommend it for beginner knitters looking to tackle skills like cables and working with dpns and circular needles.
Selective Hoarding
09 May 2012 2 Comments
in Crafty Tags: before and after, crafty, diy, knitting
I’m kind of a hoarder. I say “kind of” because I’m a selective hoarder. I tend to hold on to anything that may have even the slightest crafty potential. Selective crafty hoarding.
Well, when I packed up my condo kitchen a few months ago, something (or someone) told me not to throw away my empty steel cut oatmeal containers because they could be turned into simple but cute storage containers for small craft items/beauty supply items/pantry storage, etc… It sounded like a reasonable idea, so I packed them up and moved them to the house. Yup, I packed up and relocated empty oatmeal containers. I’m that kind of crafty girl/hoarder.
Nothing special. Just an empty oatmeal container.
But, with a little adhesive cork that was leftover from lining my kitchen shelves, taaa-daaaaa, the perfect container for storing straight knitting needles.
Free, cute and awesome! Yeahhhhh hoarding!!!
Once Removed
06 May 2012 2 Comments
in Crafty Tags: crafty, diy, knitting, ravelry
Pattern: The Cotton Dishcloth (Once Removed or Dressed Up)
Yarn: Peaches & Crème Scents – ½ skein
Colorway: Soothing Aloe (smells yummy!)
Needles: US 8 Lion Brand straights
Size: 8 ½ inches diameter
Skills: Knit stitch, long tail cast-on, short rows, yarn overs and binding off
Notes: I haven’t knitted in a few months and I wanted to knock out a simple project to trigger my muscle memory. It took a few rows to get going but it all came back to me fairly quickly. A super cute and super fast little project.
May Goals
02 May 2012 7 Comments
in Crafty, House Tags: crafty, crochet, diy, house, knitting, landscape, ravelry, reading
Currently I have oodles of crafty things I want to make (yarnie and otherwise), books I want to read, and house and yard improvements I want to make. I figure that if I set reasonable, manageable, bite-sized monthly goals I can work thru all the stuff I want to do without being totally frazzled and overwhelmed by all of it – which is usually what happens! Also, I find that if I share what I plan to do I tend to be much more motivated to get stuff done. Trust me, there’s nothing more motivating than publically voicing your goals!
So, without any further ado, here are my May Goals!
Crafty Goals
- Pick and test a dishcloth pattern for the Annual Dishcloth Swap
- Crochet a pin cushion
- Knit Star Crossed Slouchy Beret for Saori
- Start 198 Yards of Heaven shawl
- Hand dye hank of Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Bare yarn
- Stash all full skeins of cotton yarn on my Ravelry stash page
Reading Goals
- Read Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James
House and Yard Goals
- Plant ground cover in tiny flowerbed in front of house (under bathroom windows)
- Feed backyard
- Buy an additional water hose for front yard
Good luck to me!!!
National Craft Month Challenge – Week 5
03 Apr 2012 10 Comments
in Crafty Tags: art, before and after, crafty, diy, mod podge, national craft month, scrapbook paper, spray paint, stencil
National Craft Month Challenge Week 5 – Take something you already have at home (or from someone else’s home –who am I to judge?) and turn it into something different (and awesome). Easy-peasy.
Awwwwwwyeahhhhhhh…Check this awesomeness out!
Yeahhhh, my neighbor had just thrown this in the trash when I spotted it. She saw me eyeballing it and offered it to me. Oddly enough she said, “Here gurl. You can have it. It’s a beautiful painting.” Really? Then why were you throwing it out?
Anyway, I have to admit that I totally hate this painting. It’s not really my type of art AT ALL and I really think it’s just kinda of bad, but I know potential when I see it.
Not only was the frame nice and sturdy, the canvas was nice and smooth despite the tacky painting. Oh, and super easy to take apart. Four little prong type things…click click click click! Hello frame, hello canvas!
I was going to do something with the frame, but something pushed me to work with the canvas first. So you know me…a little lotta bit of spray paint primer…
A little bit of white spray paint…
Booyah! A new (and free) canvas!
After much thought and being inspired by paint chip art, allover wall stencils and the art work of Jill Ricci, I decided to break out my Casablanca wall stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils and do my own Moroccan inspired “collage”. So after a quick run to the scrapbooking store, an evening of cutting the same shape out over and over again, some fancy-schmancy puffy paint, and lots and lots of Mod Podge – craftroomarttopia!!!
CLOSE UPS!
Can you believe this started out as an ugly painting in my neighbor’s trash container? I’m just absolutely thrilled at how this came out! Of all of the projects that I did in March for this challenge, this is absolutely my favorite.
Awesomely, this project only cost $18. I only purchased the scrapbooking paper (some came from my stash though) and the fancy puffy paint. I already had a huge freakin’ vat of Mod Podge and the stencil from other projects (or projects that I’d planned to do but scrapped).
Upcycling rocks.
2012 Potholder Swap
31 Mar 2012 4 Comments
in Crafty Tags: crafty, crochet, diy, knitting, ravelry, swap, yarn
The Parable of the Potholders
In 2012, swappers bringeth forth not ugly potholders; neither doth a loose gauge bring forth study potholders. For every crocheter is known by her potholders. For of acrylic they do not make potholders, nor of wool crochet their potholders, but of cotton. A good swapper, out of the goodness of her hook bringeth forth that which is beautiful, and she who does not follow the directions crocheteth that which will be not swapped. For of the abundance of their hearts they crocheteth five potholders and send them to Los Angeles. – Lizardman
The potholders I made for the 2011 Potholder Swap – so cute!
Easy-peasy pattern too – Scalloped Potholder.
The lovely potholders I received from the 2011 Potholder Swap – fabo!
Yup, it’s that time again!! Potholder Swap Time!!! Things are a little bit different this time because Eve and I are guest hosting this year’s swap! WOOT WOOT WOOT!!!
How did this happen, you may ask. Well, here’s the Reader’s Digest version of how it all went down: 1) Eve let me know that the girls that usually host the swap were looking for guest host this year so that they could get a much needed break; 2) We thought about it individually; 3) We talked about it via email; 4) Eve recruited a couple of folks to help with the online stuff; 5) We then decided that this is something we definitely have to do!!! Eve and I are very swap oriented people (if you can’t tell from previous post) and we are both Little Miss Bossy Pants types of girls so hosting is way up our alley.
So, since the deadline is coming up soon I wanted to give you the DL on how this all goes down!
< SIGNING UP >
There’s no need to sign up or notify anyone in any way that you intend to swap. Have your potholders at the destination below by April 21st and you’ll be swapping. If you don’t have them there on time, they’ll be returned to you.
< YOUR POTHOLDERS >
Each participant is required to crochet 5 potholders in the same pattern. Please do vary the colors as you see fit. Please be sure your hot pads and potholders measure between 6 and 8 inches across and are double thick. THEY MUST BE WITHIN THESE SIZE PARAMETERS OR THEY WILL BE RETURNED TO YOU. Please make your potholders at a reasonably tight gauge.
We’ll be using 100% cotton yarns exclusively. No blends.
Label each pad/holder with maker and care instructions. Feel free to include yarn and pattern info. Affix the label with a safety pin or tie it on. No straight pins, please.
These are absolute requirements and if you don’t follow them, we will send your items back to you.
< ACTUAL SWAPPING >
After the potholders are received, your hosts are going to get together and have a grand time looking at all of your gorgeous work and selecting 5 different beauties to send back to you.
The goal of this swap is to produce and receive little pieces of crocheted/knitted art. Use beautiful yarns, color combinations and patterns. Don’t feel pressured to use teensy little crochet cotton either. Thicker cottons like Tahki Cotton Classic , Rowan Cotton Glace, and Elann Sonata make great potholders. Have a ton of fun.
< POSTAGE + ENVELOPES >
US participants need to include a self-addressed, postage-paid, large First Class Envelope. You also need to provide your own Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope (SASE). Please do NOT use those super-bulky 1/4″ thick full-of-shredded-insulation type envelopes for the SASE, as they will cause over-weight and require extra postage (the envelopes themselves weigh 3 ounces or something ridiculous). Best are plastic envelopes or Tyvek®-style (though NOT the free priority ones the PO provides). Please put the P.O. as the “sent from” address on the SASE. Do not leave it blank – the USPS will not accept a package without a return address. AND, if the return address and the mailing address are the same and the postage is short your package will get stuck in the DEAD MAIL box – which does not sound like a fun place at all.
The current first class rate for a large envelope weighing up to 13 oz. is $3.75. We will make sure all packages stay under 13 oz. so that we’re sure your postage is covered. You will have to purchase the stamp(s) to cover this.
Also, as much as we love people sending us cash, do not send cash for postage instead of buying your own stamps. Your return envelope should be complete: mailing address, return address and adequate postage.
We’ll need to receive your potholders by April 21st. Please mail them to:
Swap Headquarters
PO BOX 1492
La Canada Flintridge, CA 91012
Also please include your Ravelry-name on the outside of the envelope that you are mailing all your stuff in (if you have a Ravelry account – if not, you should tooooootally get one). That way we can keep an easy list of whose package arrived and you can see when we got your package.
***************************************************
There you have it! Pretty much everything you need to know to play along with us!
If you have any questions or if you just want to talk to all of use over on Ravelry, here’s our potholder/washcloth group (you don’t have to be on Ravelry to participate in the swap).
But if you’re not on Ravelry yet (whaaaaa??? that’s just crazy talk!), now is the time to join. Seriously. Do it. Do it. Do it.
National Craft Month Challenge – Week 4
27 Mar 2012 8 Comments
in Crafty, House Tags: crafty, diy, house, laundry room, national craft month, painting, pinterest, ravelry, spray paint
National Craft Month Challenge Week 4 – Craft something that will live on your drywall, laft & plaster, brick, stone…whatev. The final project must end up on yo’ wall!
Let me be honest – I’m well aware that I’m super late with getting this post up. Not only did these projects take me forever to finish, I suffer from wallplacementcommitmentphobia: “This is cute…I’ll put it here…..or should I put it here…no, no, no…..over here…what about that wall…ohhh, how about in this room instead…” It really is a problem.
But, alas, I did get most of my items complete and up on the walls!!!
Laundry Room Lettering & Clothes Pin Starburst
My laundry room needs a tooooooon of help…new screen door, new dryer, door frame paint touch-ups and mass crazy amounts of organization. Despite the awesome wall color, Aqueduct by Sherwin Williams (SW 6758) in Valspar Signature, it needs some lovin’.
How about a little wall lettering to get us going in the right direction, oui?
And, yes, I have a laundry line that runs across my laundry room…it’s bomb! I use it all the time.
I was inspired by this pin but felt that white letters would be way more awesomer against my already awesome aqua walls and would match my washer and one day match a new white dryer. One day, a bright, shiny and new white dryer…it’s going to be so nice…
Okay, back to my current laundry room décor! These were easy-peasy to spray paint and hang with Command Strips – just like the letters in my kitchen. Although easy to put up on the wall, it was beee-yatch having to wait for a nonwindy/nonrainy day to paint these babies. I actually sprayed on the last coat of paint during a brief sunny break inbetween storms – A BRIEF BREAK.
I almost spray painted these little numbers during that same break but decided that these sweeties will go up unpainted (gasp!) in my laundry room also (thanks to Trista for reinforcing that idea!).
Adorable aren’t they? I love them (and the original inspiration pin). Not only are they tres cute and tres cheap (maybe $5 total), they were stupid easy to make. Here’s a detailed tutorial: 1) Buy 100 clothe pins and two embroidery hoops. 2) Separate embroidery hoops. 3) Clip clothes pins to embroidery hoops. 4) Hang. Booyah.
No waiting for good weather necessary.
It does help, however, to have ribbon and hooks on hand to hang them though…I’m working on that.
Bedroom Wall Art
Clearly I have a thing for text on my walls and, you know, spray paint…
These were super inexpensive wood frames ($5.00 a pop) from Wal-Mart. Of course, I already had primer and white paint in my spray paint stash.
I printed out this pdf and used brown craft paper from another project for the background.
A $10 project. Word.
But see, wallplacementcommitmentphobia…these totally sat on my dresser for a few of days. Then, I had my dad hold them here and there and over there and on that wall and then stacked instead of next to each other…Blah! This went on for a while before I decided on hanging them in my desk nook in my bedroom.
Let Go…And Let God. I’m working on this too. Clearly, I need to work on organizing my desk space as well. Just sayin’…
Pajama Wall Knobs
HA! I totally stole this idea from my friend Trista!
She came over and made hers at my house for hanging necklaces in her bedroom – hers is white with clear pink antique-ish knobs and very cute. After I unsuccessfully tried to steal it from her while she was in the bathroom during a crafty night at my place, Charlotte and I looked at each other and said, “I’m totally going to make one of those!”
Charlotte went home and made two of them in gray with pewter/bronzeish colored knobs (see them here). I went the way of shiny shiny shiny knobs because, you know, shiny!
My set of knobby cuteness has one job and one job only – to hold my super sexy pjs when I’m not in them!
Love it. I put this up where you can’t really see it when you walk into the room. This is all done to create the illusion of neatness and organization in my room/house/life. Cuz let’s be real, I’m not going to fold my pjs up and put them where ever you’re suppose to put pjs for the next night. This is a good solution for me and my organization needs and limitations. Just keepin’ it real, yo.
Week 4 of March crafty madness…late but in the “books”!!!
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