Summer Stars Garland

Granny squares, er, stars!

(Click to go to the project page on Ravelry, which has a link to the pattern)

It’s nice to have a bit of seasonal handmade fun hanging up! I’m such a fan of seasonal decor. =) I’ll have to find a leaf pattern to make a fall garland. And who knows, maybe several kinds for Winter fun! (Don’t worry, I won’t leave Spring out.) This was so fast and easy that I could do garlands all year, and still have time for wearables and blankets and maybe Yuletide gifts!

I want to sew up plenty of bunting, too. I’m a fan of cute baby bunting. For instance, I want to make a picnic blanket that looks like this:

(Click to go to tutorial for bunting quilt)

Plans, plans, plans… >;) What are your crafty plans for the Summer?

Filed under: Finished Projects ]]> http://cascadingpurls.wordpress.com/2011/07/06/seasonal_projects/feed/ 0 sylvanfae Summer Stars Summer Stars Garland Bunting Quilt http://cascadingpurls.wordpress.com/2011/07/06/gift-for-mom/ http://cascadingpurls.wordpress.com/2011/07/06/gift-for-mom/#comments Wed, 06 Jul 2011 19:24:45 +0000 Lia http://cascadingpurls.wordpress.com/?p=114 ]]> (Click the picture to see the project page on Ravelry.)

I combined a couple of different patterns (and improvised straps) to make this bag as a birthday present for my mom’s 70th birthday. I made it in her favorite colors, and she absolutely loves it! She was showing it off to strangers, last I saw her.

This was my first time doing granny squares. Fun was had by all (including the cat, as you’ll see on the Ravelry page.)

Also, this was my first bag that wasn’t a little dice bag or soap sock.

Happy birthday to my Mama!!! ♥

Leaf Lace Dishcloth

I am so happy about this dishcloth I made for a birthday gift! It’s one of the prettiest things I’ve ever knitted! Now I know how to do lacy leaves! So now you know that I want a scarf and a shawl using it… I get to knit for myself and my kids next year, after all the birthday gifts get done for this year. Almost there!

What a Yarn

There’s one love that we all share: yarn. Blog about a particular yarn you have used in the past or own in your stash, or perhaps one that you covet from afar. If it is a yarn you have used you could show the project that you used it for, perhaps writing a mini ‘review’. Perhaps, instead, you pine for the feel of the almost mythical qiviut? You could explore and research the raw material and manufacturing process if you were feeling investigative.

Since I’m a beginner (still, lol) and have been mostly working with the Red Heart acrylics I inherited from my mother-in-law and the inexpensive stuff from the craft stores… I haven’t gotten to touch anything famous or much-coveted, yet. So I’m not yet very drooly over yarn-porn. But I’ll share a couple of my favorites from my stash.

Caron Bliss, in "Jade"

Caron’s “Bliss” was the first really soft and gorgeous thing I bought for myself. It is truly a pleasure to touch. And that light green is one of my favorite colors ever, so my eyes love it too!

My kids love the yarn, as well. I haven’t done anything with it yet, but the girls have taken a little bit of it to play with, and my oldest kind of roughly shaped it into a miniature cat (almost like needle felting, only just shaping it with wrapping and pinching. I wish I had a picture. I think it fell apart since she made it.)

Festival Mix Fiber

And this yarn is also fluffy soft, along with snowy white… so lovely to hold and work with! It’s made of polyester and acrylic, but it could have fooled me! It’s silky soft!

I’m crocheting this moebius cowl with it (about half-way done, at this posting), and looking forward to wearing such a pretty winter-themed piece with my white coat. =)

And with the weather here, lately, I might still get to wear it on one last snowy day before Spring finally wins out! LOL

Revisit a Past F/O

Bring the fortune and life of a past finished project up to the present. Document the current state and use of an object you have knitted or crocheted, whether it is the hat your sister wears to school almost every day, or a pair of socks you wore until they were full of hole. Or maybe that jumper that your did just didn’t like that much…

The “Finished Object” I’m going to post about isn’t actually made of yarn, heh. I’m going to talk about the stitch markers I made.

My Stitch Markers

I love them so much! I had no idea how often they’d come in handy. I didn’t know really how to use them, when I made them. I had just been seeing a lot of them on Etsy, and my knitting friends mentioned theirs sometimes.

So when I saw some pretty beads that made me think of stitch markers, I bought them and whipped some up with supplies I had on hand. I thought they were pretty and fancy, but I had no idea how useful they’d be!

It turns out I use them a lot, and if I hadn’t made them, I’d have had to use safety pins or something, until I could afford to buy a set.

Marking the thumb gusset on my mitten!

It was pretty easy, so make yourself some, if you haven’t yet!

I should make another set that is numbered or color-coded. I haven’t needed that yet, but I think those exist, and for good reason. It might also be good to have some made for larger needles. I shaped them around my size 8 needles, so they won’t fit on anything bigger. Not that I’ve used bigger needles yet, but I probably will at some point!

Location, Location, Location

Where do you like to indulge in your craft? Is your favourite arm chair your little knitting cubby area, or do you prefer to ‘knit in public’? Do you like to crochet in the great outdoors, perhaps, or knit in the bath, or at the pub?

I think I really had the most fun taking my mittens project out with me, and working on it at the Tin Angel Café. It felt positively perfect to be knitting while chatting and waiting for our coffee and lunch to be served at the linen-draped table, on cute vintage tableware. Sitting under Victorian architecture, with charming plants and art all around was quite the fitting experience for such an endeavor.

I think I was meant to be a little old lady, heh! Until then, I’ll be a knitterly young lady, out and about the urban scene in Salt Lake.

But I really would like to try more outdoor crafting, since nature is truly my scene. I have done some fiber crafts out in the yard during cook-outs with family and friends, but I should absolutely hunker down for some solitary mountain-knitting!

Additionally, I could start a picnic & crafting club! You’d join me, wouldn’t you? Wild vistas (or green park/garden settings)… fab fibers… clacking needles & hooks… friends… food… Yeah, I thought so.

A New Skill

Is there a skill related to your hobby that you hope to learn one day? Maybe you’re a crocheter who’d also like to knit? Maybe you’d like to learn to knit continental, knit backwards, try cables or attempt stranded colourwork.

Oh of course! All of them! LOL

I already knit continental. I made sure when I was learning that I learned the way that looked most efficient and ergonomic.

I don’t know what “knit backwards” means, but if it’s just going back along instead of switching the needle around, I bet I could already do that. I haven’t tried cabling yet, but it looks pretty simple. I’ve done a little bit of colorwork, but I think there are some tricks I need to learn to keep the back of the work looking tidy. One of the first things I knitted was an illusion knitting sample. That’s pretty fun!

So as I’ve mentioned, I’d love to just be able to do everything, including spinning and dying my own yarn. That would be so incredible, and I could teach the skills to others to ensure their continuation. It would be very satisfying.

I’ll just keep learning as I attempt new projects. It’s great that you can learn while you enjoy the challenging puzzle of figuring it out, and/or the relaxing, meditative, building of stitches into a finished object to enjoy. You don’t have to wonder how this hobby has become so popular! It’s also wonderful that the networking of knitters and “hookers” helps you learn from others, and make friends and join knit-alongs, etc.

One Great Knitter

Write about a knitter whose work (whether because of project choice, photography, styling, scale of projects, stash, etc) you enjoy. If they have an enjoyable blog, you might find it a good opportunity to send a smile their way.

I’ve been enthralled with the pretties on the Paint Spin Knit blog. Oh the artful things she makes, and the beautiful colors of her yarn! I’d love to be Lori when I grow up!

I dream of learning to spin and weave, as well. I just want to be an artsy, creative person spending my time making pretties, gardening, taking pictures of it all, going to fairs, teaching, and blogging. That’s the life for me!

An Inspirational Pattern

Blog about a pattern or project which you aspire to. Whether it happens to be because the skills needed are ones which you have not yet acquired, or just because it seems like a huge undertaking of time and dedication, most people feel they still have something to aspire to in their craft. If you don’t feel like you have any left of the mountain of learning yet to climb, say so!

I’m starting to aspire to the beautiful lacework seen in whispy shawls. It does intimidate me right now… I mean, look at this!

But when I can do that, I can make gorgeous things like this:

A pleased little knitter I’d be!

Not to mention that I’d love to get so experienced that I could design my own patterns. That would be fantastic!

I’m hoping that someday I’ll be able to do any and everything related to knitting, crochet, and other crafts that I love (sewing, beading, etc.) so I can do anything I dream.

Starting Out

How and when did you begin knitting/crocheting? was it a skill passed down through generations of your family, or something you learned from Knitting For Dummies? What or who made you pick up the needles/hook for the first time? Was it the celebrity knitting ‘trend’ or your great aunt Hilda?

In 2005 I was homeschooling my 1st & 2nd graders. We were always getting books about fun things at the library and learning cool stuff. We had brought home “Kids Knitting” by Melanie Falick and learned from it how to do the basic knit stitch.

We all learned it, but I was off and running while the kids promptly forgot how to do it as they got absorbed in other things. I was really enjoying it, and made Yule gifts for people that year. I picked up purling from a video, online, and then I was really able to dive in and do anything I wanted.

My girls went to a knitting circle with me at the library the next year, and picked it up again. But they still weren’t ready to focus on it, so they forgot how again, until this past year when there was an after-school knitting club at their school. Now they enjoy it with me, and with some of their friends from the club, and have made gifts for their friends. =)

In 2009 my friend Val taught me how to crochet. I started making amigurumi toys and then the girls got interested, so I’m teaching them crochet, too.

I love that it’s something I’m passing on to them, even though I recently picked it up, myself. It connects us to my mother and our grandmothers. I remember watching Grandma Ivy knit, with her stiff fingers from a car accident when she was a young mother. It didn’t stop her from doing anything, though! I feel like I’m with her, watching her again, when I knit. I hope my children (& future grandchildren?) will remember me the same way… making cozy, pretty things for my loved ones with this art form that we share with ancestors.