I am almost finished photographing my yarn stash. Whew! What a way to face up to my (many) yarn purchases over the last few years and the number of knitting projects that await. Lets just say that I have enough to keep me busy for quite a while.
Organizing the yarn will help a lot. I can see what I have and the database feature on Ravelry lets me see what other people have made with the same yarn. Brilliant!
Click the picture to see it larger, in Flickr. Oh, and in some cases I have more than one skein of the yarn shown in the photograph. I only photographed all of the skeins or hanks if they were small or it was easy to do.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
No time to blog...
I have stuff to blog about but no time right now. However I did want to make a note for myself and spread the word on a cool tutorial I saw today at Another Creation on how to make your own sew-in labels.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Use your feet!
Sewing feet, that is. I've got an assortment of feet for my serger and two sewing machines but I must confess that I hardly use them. I do use the edge joining foot on my sewing machine, quite often in fact, and of course the zipper foot and buttonhole foot on occasion, but how about the rolled hem, bias binder, pin tuck, multi-cord, and the menacing looking ruffler foot? Why don't I use them? I think it's because I fear I will spend more time trying to get the foot to work than it's worth.
Today I ran across this fabulous tutorial on how to use the hemming foot. Next time I need to make a skinny hem, I'm going to dig out that hemming foot and give it a try.
Today I ran across this fabulous tutorial on how to use the hemming foot. Next time I need to make a skinny hem, I'm going to dig out that hemming foot and give it a try.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Closed on Sunday
I went to San Francisco on Sunday and did some shopping. Since I got there early, I strolled through Chinatown and went into a few stores. Many of the stores carry the same touristy kitch, but I actually did find a store that sold some yarn. It wasn't a bad deal at about $25 for 500 grams or so, but it was a mix of wool and acrylic in typical colors and frankly nothing really grabbed me. Plus, my stash is quite full as a result of Stitches. I did buy a nice linen cutwork table runner at a different store. It was also enjoyable to walk around and see and smell the sights. A lot of local people were out shopping for their groceries and spices and things.
After a nice brunch at Café de la Presse, I made my way over to Geary Street in anticipation of getting a fabric fix at Britex, but they are CLOSED on Sundays! I was so disappointed, even though I don't really need fabric, it's not a day in SF without stopping by. Britex used to always be closed on Sunday and then for the last year or so they were open, which was great for a weekend visitor like myself. But I guess they didn't have enough sales on Sundays. I consoled myself with the thought that I'd buy some yarn at Art Fibers (yes, yes, Stitches...I know), but they were closed too! As it is Art Fibers is only open from 2 - 4 on Sundays but their owners are busy with new babies and new patterns and decided to cut back their hours in March and April. Now doubly disappointed, I decided that after I finished shopping in Union Square I'd drive over to Clement Street and get my fabric fix at Fabrix. I don't know how they named their store but it seems to me to be a perfect name for a Fabric Fix, don't you think? I bought two knits, one is a 2-way stretch in black with non-regular ribbing that gives it an interesting texture and the other is a 4-way stretch in shades of green and white with a print that looks like it's hand painted (but isn't of course, not for $3.69/yard!).
Somewhere in the Union Square area I spied this fun window display of miniature jeans. Sorry the picture isn't that great - it's tough to photograph through a store window. And sorry that I don't even know the name of the store! I think it was on Geary, a block or two from the CLOSED Britex.
I just loved the tiny detail on each of the pairs. Little rivets, zippers, and labels! Just fabulous!
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Stitches 2008, Part 2
So, Stitches is over and my stash is bigger and I know everything there is to know about short rows. Well, maybe not everything, but after three classes dealing with short rows, I was glad when Sunday rolled around and my last class was not about short rows.
The first class on Saturday was about using short rows to make pinwheel shapes. Candace Eisner Strick taught the class and she brought some really nice examples of how you can use color and the pinwheel shape to make fun hats, bags, round-bottom totes, etc. We used both the "yarn-over" and the "wrap" method of short rows. It wasn't quite the class I thought it was going to be, but I enjoyed learning about short rows in a new way. It was also fun to see how you can use short rows in a decorative way too. Here's my little sample:
Next I had a class called "Short Row Savvy" with Maureen Mason-Jamieson. In this class we knit a little sample using three methods: yarn-over, wrap, and Japanese.
So what are short rows? Well, I'd best point you to a better source for that answer since I don't have the knitting experience or artistic talent to draw your a diagram. And besides, I'm a lefty and my perception of it is backwards. So here's a link to a Vogue Knitting article about short rows. The article describes the "wrap method."
On Sunday I had one class, in the morning, on knitting a hounds tooth pattern. Jean Frost taught this one and it was a treat. She makes the most beautiful Chanel-inspired jackets. The class itself was rather easy. We spent the time knitting two color samples of various hounds tooth patterns using either fair isle or slip stitches. But the real treat was seeing her gorgeous jackets. I've put her book on my Amazon wishlist but I may not be able to wait for my birthday or Christmas and may just buy it instead.
Even though my weekend was chock full of classes, this did not deter me from the market floor. Oh no. I did the bulk of my shopping on Thursday night during the market preview, which was open only to registered students and vendors. But I had time during lunch on Friday and before the fashion show Friday night. Then again on Saturday during lunch and again Sunday afternoon. Just when I thought I'd seen everything, I'd run into a friend who had a lovely purchase of something I hadn't seen and had to go check out. So, without further ado, here's my Stitches 2008 haul:
Back row from left to right:
The first class on Saturday was about using short rows to make pinwheel shapes. Candace Eisner Strick taught the class and she brought some really nice examples of how you can use color and the pinwheel shape to make fun hats, bags, round-bottom totes, etc. We used both the "yarn-over" and the "wrap" method of short rows. It wasn't quite the class I thought it was going to be, but I enjoyed learning about short rows in a new way. It was also fun to see how you can use short rows in a decorative way too. Here's my little sample:
Next I had a class called "Short Row Savvy" with Maureen Mason-Jamieson. In this class we knit a little sample using three methods: yarn-over, wrap, and Japanese.
So what are short rows? Well, I'd best point you to a better source for that answer since I don't have the knitting experience or artistic talent to draw your a diagram. And besides, I'm a lefty and my perception of it is backwards. So here's a link to a Vogue Knitting article about short rows. The article describes the "wrap method."
On Sunday I had one class, in the morning, on knitting a hounds tooth pattern. Jean Frost taught this one and it was a treat. She makes the most beautiful Chanel-inspired jackets. The class itself was rather easy. We spent the time knitting two color samples of various hounds tooth patterns using either fair isle or slip stitches. But the real treat was seeing her gorgeous jackets. I've put her book on my Amazon wishlist but I may not be able to wait for my birthday or Christmas and may just buy it instead.
Even though my weekend was chock full of classes, this did not deter me from the market floor. Oh no. I did the bulk of my shopping on Thursday night during the market preview, which was open only to registered students and vendors. But I had time during lunch on Friday and before the fashion show Friday night. Then again on Saturday during lunch and again Sunday afternoon. Just when I thought I'd seen everything, I'd run into a friend who had a lovely purchase of something I hadn't seen and had to go check out. So, without further ado, here's my Stitches 2008 haul:
Back row from left to right:
- Newtons Yarn Country: 8 skeins of 60/40 cashmere/merino wool, 320 yds per skein (could not pass up at $6/skein - yes, you read that right, for cashmere!)
- KnitWhits Sienna Hat kit: Fair Isle knit in some really pretty jewel tone colors
- Chameleon Colorworks: sampler pack of 1/2 ounce roving (camel, yak, merino/silk/angora, tussah silk, angora, optim, alpaca, cotton silver) - I'm going to need a spinning lesson to learn how to spin this!
- Chameleon Colorworks: 4 oz merino roving
- Verb for Keeping Warm: 10 oz Black Blue Faced Leicester, indigo dyed
- Creatively Dyed Yarns: 1 skein of merino sock yarn
- Just Your Yarns: 2 skeins of wool/camel - I bought this to weave with
Front row, left to right:
- Amazing Yarns: "Dancing Kit" - I saw this in the fashion show and really wanted it. It's a vest with the main body out of Mountain Colors mohair/wool and the shoulders out of the funkier looking hand dyed/spun wool
- Blue Moon Fibers: 3 skeins of "mill end" lightweight Socks That Rock and 1 skein of lightweight Socks that Rock in "Monsoon" colorway.
- Habu: 300 yards of silk/mohair and 300 yards of tassar silk boucle, intended to be knit together into a scarf. They're both a pale green color.
- Habu: 574 yards of lace-weight red bamboo
- Habu: 450 yards of orange silk (it's like a raw silk, plan to make a scarf or small shawl)
- Malabrigo: free mini-skein of lace weight in orange
- Belisa Cashmere: 500 yards of purple cashmere for scarf. As soon as I finish my orange Lara sweater I plan to cast on for a scarf using the ivory cashmere I bought from them last year!
- Bijou Basin Ranch: 125 yards of yak/silk - this was my splurge fiber this year
- Wild Fibers magazine: free mini skein of alpaca for subscribing for 1 year
- Fiber Fiend: 1 skein of merino tencel sock yarn
- Fiber Fiend: 1 skein of merino/bamboo/nylon sock yarn
- Fiber Fiend: 2 sock patterns
- Caroline Homespun: Denise Needles companion set and size 1 double point rosewood Colonial Needles
Whew!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Return of the tutorial
About a year ago I wrote a tutorial for making these pincushion sewing kits and published it on this blog:
A few crafting blogs and bulletin boards linked to it and as a result lots of people came to check it out. I hope some pretty pincusions were made as a result. I still get traffic on my blog because of that tutorial. Anyway, I just received an email from someone who was unable to print the instructions from the blog and asked for a copy. So I made a pdf of the file and you can download it here: Sewing Kit Pincushion.pdf
While the design isn't my own, the words and pictures on the instructions are, so I just ask that you acknowledge that if you use it or publish it somewhere else. Thanks!
Monday, February 25, 2008
Stitches 2008, part 1
I wrote this post Friday night but when I went to post it blogger appeared to be down. I've been so busy with Stitches since then, I haven't had the energy to repost it until now. So you're getting it a bit late!
I'm in the middle of a Stitches 2008 weekend (knitting convention extravaganza for those who don't knit) and I've loaded myself up with lots of classes and shopping. I even took a day off work this year so that I could take more classes. I must be nuts. But really, the classes are great, the shopping is great, the getting together with friends is great and I've been looking forward to this since I registered for it last September. Here's a quick recap and summary of what's to come:
I skipped out on work a little early on Thursday (shh, don't tell the boss!) so I could get to the Ravelry meetup. It was a great excuse to have a glass of wine and meet up with friends. After Ravelry I picked up my vendor badge - I'm helping out at the Fiber Fiend booth on Saturday after class - and this let me bypass the very long line of eager shoppers waiting for the doors to open. Woohoo! One of my first stops was Blue Moon Fiber for some "Socks That Rock" sock yarn and OH MY did that booth fill up with knitters in a hurry. It was packed! I spent the next three hours (!!!) wandering from booth to booth trying not to buy everything I saw and occasionally running into friends who always seemed to be headed where I just came from. So I did most of my shopping solo, which may have been a good thing. I love my friends but they can be terrible enablers, as I am to them of course. They don't even have to try. I see what they have purchased and ooh and aah over it and suddenly I want some too. I tried to stick to a plan to only buy yarn and fiber that are unique and not available at my LYS (that's local yarn store for you non-knitters), but Stitches is just overwhelming. There is so much yarn and fiber I'd love to own, but I know that I just don't have the time or space for all the projects. I still bought a lot. I was better behaved today and only made one purchase. I'll post a picture of my Stitches stash next week because even though I am mostly in class the rest of the weekend, there's still lunchtime and the last-minute Sunday afternoon, end of Stitches shopping. Yes, I still have lots of stuff from last year's Stitches, but it's not totally all stash - I'm almost done with the Debbie Bliss alpaca/silk cardigan and I've used the needles and spindle I bought. I'm almost done spinning all the fiber I bought from Stitches 2006, which is good because I bought more this year. Is it still stash if I spin the fiber but haven't knit it? Don't answer that.
This year I'm taking more classes than I've ever taken before, mostly because I actually took time off to go to them. Today I had a class with Sarah Peasley on making better sleeves by picking up the stitches along the armhole (the armscye to those of you who sew) and using short rows for shaping. It makes a really nice sleeve with no separate pieces and seaming. The second class was on cables, but beyond knitting basic cables and at first I thought I was in over my head. Eventually I got my bearings and was able to really benefit from the class, which was really just info and tips on how to make cables go where you want them too. I know the instructor (Fiona Ellis) had more to tell us than that but at the time I was still paralyzed with my inability to remember how to cable.
Tomorrow I have two classes on short rows. More short rows! Good grief! When I signed up for the classes last September, I had just finished a pretty intensive (for me) month or so of sewing and I guess fitting, which is one thing short rows do for you, was more on my mind. I'm taking one class on Sunday, which is on knitting a houndstooth pattern - again, I think I was influenced a bit by sewing and fabric for this one. But I do think all these classes will add a lot to my knitting skills.
In the meantime my Burda jacket sits and waits for me to make time to finish it.
I'm in the middle of a Stitches 2008 weekend (knitting convention extravaganza for those who don't knit) and I've loaded myself up with lots of classes and shopping. I even took a day off work this year so that I could take more classes. I must be nuts. But really, the classes are great, the shopping is great, the getting together with friends is great and I've been looking forward to this since I registered for it last September. Here's a quick recap and summary of what's to come:
I skipped out on work a little early on Thursday (shh, don't tell the boss!) so I could get to the Ravelry meetup. It was a great excuse to have a glass of wine and meet up with friends. After Ravelry I picked up my vendor badge - I'm helping out at the Fiber Fiend booth on Saturday after class - and this let me bypass the very long line of eager shoppers waiting for the doors to open. Woohoo! One of my first stops was Blue Moon Fiber for some "Socks That Rock" sock yarn and OH MY did that booth fill up with knitters in a hurry. It was packed! I spent the next three hours (!!!) wandering from booth to booth trying not to buy everything I saw and occasionally running into friends who always seemed to be headed where I just came from. So I did most of my shopping solo, which may have been a good thing. I love my friends but they can be terrible enablers, as I am to them of course. They don't even have to try. I see what they have purchased and ooh and aah over it and suddenly I want some too. I tried to stick to a plan to only buy yarn and fiber that are unique and not available at my LYS (that's local yarn store for you non-knitters), but Stitches is just overwhelming. There is so much yarn and fiber I'd love to own, but I know that I just don't have the time or space for all the projects. I still bought a lot. I was better behaved today and only made one purchase. I'll post a picture of my Stitches stash next week because even though I am mostly in class the rest of the weekend, there's still lunchtime and the last-minute Sunday afternoon, end of Stitches shopping. Yes, I still have lots of stuff from last year's Stitches, but it's not totally all stash - I'm almost done with the Debbie Bliss alpaca/silk cardigan and I've used the needles and spindle I bought. I'm almost done spinning all the fiber I bought from Stitches 2006, which is good because I bought more this year. Is it still stash if I spin the fiber but haven't knit it? Don't answer that.
This year I'm taking more classes than I've ever taken before, mostly because I actually took time off to go to them. Today I had a class with Sarah Peasley on making better sleeves by picking up the stitches along the armhole (the armscye to those of you who sew) and using short rows for shaping. It makes a really nice sleeve with no separate pieces and seaming. The second class was on cables, but beyond knitting basic cables and at first I thought I was in over my head. Eventually I got my bearings and was able to really benefit from the class, which was really just info and tips on how to make cables go where you want them too. I know the instructor (Fiona Ellis) had more to tell us than that but at the time I was still paralyzed with my inability to remember how to cable.
Tomorrow I have two classes on short rows. More short rows! Good grief! When I signed up for the classes last September, I had just finished a pretty intensive (for me) month or so of sewing and I guess fitting, which is one thing short rows do for you, was more on my mind. I'm taking one class on Sunday, which is on knitting a houndstooth pattern - again, I think I was influenced a bit by sewing and fabric for this one. But I do think all these classes will add a lot to my knitting skills.
In the meantime my Burda jacket sits and waits for me to make time to finish it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)