Fuzzy Feet Finished

And I got to alliterate. A bonus.


Before and After


The artsy shot.

A few details about the slippers...

Yarn: Patons Classic Wool Merino
Needles: US 10 (which is what the Redux instructions calls for), 30" circular needles since I used the Magic Loop Method. Click the link to watch the KnitWitch's video on how to work with the Magic Loop.
Cast On: Knitted On, which gave it a more elastic edge. Good thing, too. I might not have gotten my feet inside them, post-felted.
Felting time: 14 minutes. I checked them after 5, 5, 4 minutes and didn't put them back in when they were the right length.

Also, I got a super gift from a sly Santa. A sewing keeper. Thank you to a thoughtful KansasQuilter, whomever you are!

Timewaster Tuesday

We are getting rained in/iced in today, and I am knitting. AFTER I watch the installation guys lay the laminate wood floor in Dad's bathroom. One step closer to done.

Speaking of steps, I finished the first Fuzzy Feet sock of the pair I'm making for myself. It's awfully loooong, so I hope it felts down to the proper size. If anyone has any felting tips (especially for Fuzzy Feet), please share them in my comments section.



And that's all I've been up to around here. I'd love to be in one of those Christmassy moods that inspire me to bake cookies and quick breads, humming Christmas hymns to myself all the while. Alas, I am not. I've passed up two perfectly good opportunities/excuses to pull out the cookie sheets so I can share my goodies with others. Alas, I have not. I've had just enough energy to wash laundry, clean the bathroom, and knit. Baking leaves dirty dishes. Quilting takes up too much space right now. Knitting is juuust right. It's grief therapy.

That, and taking stupid blog quizzes. In my rag bag of blog fillers, I have a stockpile of those timewaster getting-to-know-thyself thingies. Here are a couple:

You Should Rule Saturn

Saturn is a mysterious planet that can rarely be seen with the naked eye. You are perfect to rule Saturn because like its rings, you don't always follow the rules of nature. And like Saturn, to really be able to understand you, someone delve beyond your appearance. You are not an easy person to befriend. However, once you enter a friendship, you'll be a friend for life. You think slowly but deeply. You only gain great understanding after a situation has past.

What Planet Should You Rule?

If I rule Saturn, this will be my royal robe. And I'll wear my hair just like that.

You Are a Gingerbread House

A little spicy and a little sweet, anyone would like to be lost in the woods with you.

What Holiday Food Are You?

And if I wore berets, I'd get lost in the woods wearing this one.

Fuzzier Feet

These are for me, even though Gee-tar Man (as in guitar, in case you are unfamiliar with the local accent of the friend who christened my man with this name) picked out the yarn, thinking these would be for him. Turns out, the red and gray pair fit him perfectly. So, the first Fuzzies are his, and these are mine. There. Wasn't that interesting?

After felting:


Before felting:


I kept reading how Paton's SWS felts so much more quickly than other wools. Some reporting only 5 minutes felting time in the washer. Maybe because my pair were fairly long, 16" or so, that they took a minute over my last pair: 15 in all. I checked them every five minutes, all the while wearing plastic shopping bags on my feet in anticipation of shaping them. Kate Spade, eat your heart out.

I'm telling ya, these are super thick. It'll take awhile to wear a hole in them.

Warm Feet Friday

Feeling under the icier weather this week, I knit footwear. Not that footwear in particular makes me feel better (I've never been one to go googly-eyed over shoes). But I've never knitted objet des pieds before and wanted to try. I'm working my way up to REAL socks.

My first pair of baby booties look like a pair of mini Birkenstocks but they are simple to make. The pattern is from the book First Knits.



And a pair of Fuzzy Feet, my first-ever pair of sock-like socks. I messed up the heel flap, knitting only half the rows called for. I discovered my mistake before I got to the second sock but had to repeat the goof on it so it'd appear similar. This unfelted pair is going to the Soaring Eagles Project where she will felt them to third-grader size. She's woefully low on socks/slippers. But since these took me two solid days to make, I think this will be my only contribution this year.

2008 DIY Retrospective

I had no idea sitting on one's tush could get so much done.




1. NM needle case--closed, 2. New Moon Swap stitch markers, 3. Cherries Pendant, 4. Scissor Fobs, 5. Walls of Volterra bag, 6. Almost Amish Puzzle, 7. THOMY'S hat, 8. Fall 2008 Chatelaines, 9. October notecards, 10. PIF stitch markers for Denise, 11. Water drop stitch markers, 12. Fire on the Waves Throw, 13. Tunisian Simple Stitch Scarf, 14. Ravelympics Clapotis closeup, 15. Wavy Scarf, 16. Tunisian Trivets, 17. Bottoms Up Bottle Cozy, 18. Dad's House, 19. Helmet Liner , 20. Lizard Ridge Blocks DONE, 21. Lightning Lace Jacet, 22. Cattycorner Tunisian Washcloth back, 23. Too Much Work for Dishes, 24. Primordial Fish 2, 25. Leftovers Felted Pincushion, 26. Washcloths, 27. French Market Bag, 28. RPM socks, closeup, 29. Inside the Box Bag, 30. Christine & Albert 2, 31. CD Coasters 1, 32. Tray Slippers Felted, 33. Cobblestone sans Man in it, 34. Medallion Mitts, 35. Fuzzy Feet Soy Wool Stripes, 36. Hot/Cold Therapy Bags

The Pink Ribbon Socks, among some foodstuffs, didn't make the cut in the mosaic above because the mosaic maker doesn't create a 4 X 10 photo grid. So here's their picture, below. It's the first time a pair of my knitted, unfelted socks fit me. I was just the working model, though; they're not for my feet.

May they give you cheer, Tana.



And may all of you have a safe, productive, and blessed year ahead.

Handcrafters' Holidays Meme, part 1

SewMamaSew is hosting a Holidays Meme with questions on two topics: gifts and traditions. I like this meme, probably because it's Christmastime and all the warm fuzziness of the season has subdued me. So today I'm answering a few of their questions about gifts.

* Do you have a favorite gift that you love to give?
For the last two or three years I have made bonbons to bundle up in tins and give to family and friends. Not long before that, my husband picked up his grandmother's tradition of baking a huge batch of peppernuts for everyone. Sometimes he's made two batches. It's a three-evening process, like how my bonbons take up two evenings, but it's worth it. These gifts do not collect dust in recipients' homes!

* If you’re making gifts this year, what are you making? (Post photos if you have some!)

• Wellness bags (1 of 2 is done)
  
  
• stitch markers (still to do), like ones demonstrated here.
  
• Fuzzy Feet slippers (two of three pair are done)
  
• coffee cozies (still to do, but I may not get to them)
  

* Do you have any good stories about handcrafted gifts you’ve given or received?
Last year, I loom-knit a Power Scarf as a hostess gift for the mother of a friend who has invited us to a Christmas Eve party for years. I used Moonlight Mohair, Northern Lights colorway by Lion Brand. Later in the year, my friend passed along her mother's continued delight at the gift; turns out that she saw a scarf, in some high-fashion magazine or on television, very nearly like the one I made for her. I've never felt so haute coteur.

* Name one thing on your personal wish list.
Knit Picks Options Harmony wood interchangeable circular needle set. Whew! What a mouthful.

* Do you make and sell things that would make fantastic gifts?
Out of the frustration of constantly misplacing or forgetting my scissors and spool of quilting thread when I hand quilt from place to place, I made a specialized, beaded châtelaine that holds both items around my neck whenever and wherever I'm working. This way I have to move only one notion when I pack up my project. I've made several for others and have a few for sale at my etsy shop. I take special orders, too.

Project 365, Week 2

January 11



Ubiquitous Bubble Shot


January 12



Hoarfrost on a spider's thread


January 13



Seams Like Tin


January 14



Wear Pattern*

*This is one of the Fuzzy Feet slippers I made at the end of 2007.


January 15



Counter Seating


January 16



It's Alive!

A Lame Pincushion Tutorial

Because I was raised by a couple who were kids through the Great Depression, and because an inch of wool yarn is as precious to me right now as a gallon of basic unleaded, I have been hording snippits of yarn leftover from my French Market Bag and from my Fuzzy Feet bender at the beginning of the year.

Hey, that was all one sentence. So sorry.

With that tangle of yarn, I made a pincushion. A small, nondescript, fairly lame pincushion.

And here's how I did it, so you can do it, too.

First, I tied all the pieces together, end after end, using a basic overhand knot with the two pieces of yarn held parallel to begin with. (Sorry, I don't have a picture of this, but below is the result.)



I don't know how long the chain became--again, sorry. But then I wadded up the mess like so:



And stuffed it into the toe of a mateless airline sock I've kept since 1991, using a rubber band the mailman discarded on my front porch because he can't be troubled with reusing these slender guts from rubber trees:



Do airlines even distribute onboard socks anymore? I got my pair while on a flight to England.

Anyway, I swished the sock around in a container full of hot water for, oh, a couple minutes. Then I took out the shrinking ball and rolled it between my hands for a little while longer (less than a minute, probably). Which produced this:



Although it appears to be a mighty marble, it's an inch in diameter. Maybe a skosh more. (I guess, for a marble, that's pretty big.) It could be considered more of a cat toy, though. I know my cat has considered it as such.

When it's dry, I'll stash it in my sewing box. If the cat doesn't steal it first.

Zipper phobia and a mystery flower

On Face Your Fear Friday, I did. I am knitting my first pair of non-Fuzzy Feet socks and wanted a bag in which to tote my progress. I'm just a little tired of shapeless, drawstring bags and had seen a box bag like this one that I thought would be ideal. I would buy one, but...um, no can do with the House-of-DIY-to-sell still hanging over my head.

Then I saw Drago[knit]fly's tutorial on Box Bags. Oh joy!

Oh. Crap. A zipper.

I've never sewn a zipper before. They're so mysterious to me, gliding open or closed like the parting of the Red Sea, and nestled into their garment like they'd evolved there. I've only seen the likes of Nancy Zieman or Sandra Betzina (sewing goddesses) accomplish marvels with a zipper foot. No one in Real Life. Ignorance is not bliss, my friends. Barely capable of creating button holes, I have been stuck in an Antebellum lack of continuous closures for hand made clothing and sundry accessories.

Poor me.

Oh well. Mine is just a multi-hundred dollar sewing machine, right? So what if I break it on a zipper tooth in my pursuit of learning new skills. Like breaking machines. I gotta have me a new bag.

So Friday I made this:





I had to rip out the zipper only once, and I never broke a needle. I was so happy with myself I was on the verge of smugdom.
_______________

But then we began clearing out my Dad's garage on Saturday. Ugh. It took five hours to plow through the first third of the "neat stuff." We even sorted items into the Mission Organization categories of KEEP, TOSS, and GIVE AWAY. We're keeping considerably less than we're tossing or giving away.

But I'm not sure it made the task easier. I had a minor meltdown going through all the wires, metal bits, and automotive leftovers I didn't understand. I felt guilty about my ignorance and the unshakable certainty that I'm getting rid of something he would have told me is super important and valuable. But, what can I do? The task needs to be done and I can no longer wait for others in-the-know to find time to mill about the garage and finger grimy do-daws they just set down again after they murmur "interesting". This tells me nothing.

(Actually, my conscience is stricken here because no one has really been so callous. There are several who have milled about the garage and given labels to things, filling in my spotty grease monkey education. For that, I am unbelievably grateful. In spite of this help, however, much remains "interesting" but Unknown. And I don't have time anymore to elicit more help.)

So, much of the "interesting" stuff is getting hauled off one way or another. To the dump, DAV (second hand shop), or scrap yard. And if I hear something like, "Oh, I can't believe you got rid of that!" after it's all said and done, I swear I'm a-gonna... I'd say bite his head off, but my dentist tells me I actually have a small mouth. At that I had to laugh. Is that not a hoot?

Anyway, during the long and winding road that was yesterday afternoon, I was made to smile several times in spite of my blue funk when I caught a whiff of the blooming hyacinths.





They're right next to the garage, and they're adorable. They're just a couple clumps of them, but the fragrance is nearly intoxicating.

On the other side of the front walk, next to the driveway, is a meager little sprouting of tiny blue flowers.



Does anyone know what they are? You can click on the photo to go to a larger version of it. Each bloom is probably no bigger around than the end of a pencil eraser.

Here's the deal. If you are the first person to accurately name this itty bitty ground cover, there's something in it for you. (This opportunity is your reward for making it to the end of this vainglorious entry.) I don't know yet what that "something" is. But, leave a comment with your answer and please include whether you are a quilter or knitter. And, if you're a knitter, whether you use predominately needles or a loom. Oh, and I have to be able to contact you in return. So, please be sure I can track you back through your blog or include your email address in the comment form.

Who knows what I'll send. Maybe something with a gratuitous zipper.

Christmas and dead fish

It just wouldn't go away, this Christmas sewing. Even after New Year's, it kept hanging over my head like the smell of rotting carp. I did NOT want to go down in my sewing grotto in which thirty-year old ceiling panels are falling down and the bathroom's walls and ceiling are still torn apart from when we cleared out the sewer line. The room is cold and the lighting sucks (big surprise in this house. Beside, it is in a basement.) The crickets are skittering about openly. And my cat--the only one I have left now, so stay healthy, Miss Thing--thinks it's a crime against felinity to keep a door closed between myself and her at any time. So she whines. And cries. And swears. And runs around up and down the stairs to express her ire. If I give in, she's all over me all the time. Like 24-hour news if I'd dispatched someone and divided the body into sippy cups.

[Deep breath...]

Ahhhh...

In the end, I just turned the TV up and kept my eyes down on my work because the blessing of my stash has a far greater pull. And I made these:



The last of the red hot/cold therapy bags. Heeding a few comments about this SewMamaSew tutorial AND learning from my experience with the first set I made, I strayed from the instructions a skosh. For example,


-->Someone suggested that a pillow sham opening could be made for the back, instead of the Velcroed opening. I tried this for my first bag cover, creating an opening parallel to and dead center between the short ends of the big rice bag cover. But a fully packed muslin rice bag does not bend, not without the encouragement of a shoe horn. Finding myself shoe hornless, I just greased the bag with a few choice words. With the last two bag, however, I shifted the opening closer to one of the short ends.


-->I also sewed a couple lines up the rice bag to create three channels. This reduces shift in the bag. The friend who received the first set of therapy bags tells me her mother loves the stability they give. I'm guessing my friend will never see those bags again, and I'll be making another set in the near future. For all my griping above, I don't mind. They're quicker than quilts and more popular than a paramedic in Pamplona.


-->I didn't make the eye pillow for the last two sets. Didn't have time.


So that's what I've done with the last couple days of the new year. Oh, and I've started another pair of Fuzzy Feet, in Patons Soy Wool Stripes. Natural Navy colorway. Photos pending. It turns out that the red and gray pair I made last month shrank to a size that fits the husband perfectly. (They fit me, too, but are a trifle roomy.) So, I'm going to see if I can get the Soy Wool pair to felt to my size. I'm on the gusset of the first sock right now.