A Little Yarn On The Side

From September 1 until November 30, it’s time to fall back in love with the things you already have. New yarn cannot compete with a long-term love.  Complete as many of the following as you choose. As always, please feel free to involve other hobbies or crafts as well: Love at First Sight - pick a yarn in your stash that was truly an impulse buy--a yarn you just fell in love with. Find a pattern that will do it justice- DONE.  Actually, I picked out FOUR possible patterns for it--how's that for thorough? Soul Mates - make a pair of socks, slippers, booties, or stockings from stash yarn--the deeper the better Glass Slipper - Match a pattern you already have with a yarn you already have and put them into a project bag to surprise yourself with in 2014 - DONE  This is set aside for Christmas of 2014.  I might even remember it by then........ ‘Til Death Us Do Part - complete FIVE rows on a WIP that is at least one year old, or your oldest if t...

Sunday was (hopefully) our last day of temperatures in the 90s.  On Monday, I caught a cold.  Not even slightly funny. I did manage to finish the third rope bowl from the 3/8-inch bowl, and I think I'm ready to move on to some smaller rope projects. The dressmaker's dummy (still in need of a name) had her first assignment, and made the facing a breeze!  This is the third jacket I've made from this pattern, and on the first two jackets I had to stitch the facing many, many times to get it right.  It has to be basted, then top-stitched.  I hand-basted the yoke area, did massive pinning, and it got it right the very first try!  That was worth the price right there.  I'm down to just a few buttonholes, and can count another finished WIP.  I'm aiming for 15 WIPs in a row, but the knitting ones are taking so long that I am going to incorporate sewing WIPs.  I've been working diligently on the peach stole, which is about to finish o...

Yesterday was my birthday, and aside from being incredibly sore from a NEW spot getting therapeutic massage on Thursday at physical therapy, it was great fun.  We had intended to go to a concert at the botanical gardens on Thursday night, but between rain and not being able to sit down again, we postponed that for and a heating pad.  :) Yesterday Andy started my day off with breakfast in bed,  and I can't really think of a nicer way to start a day.   We originally had other plans, but my hip was so tender that any clothes but pajamas hurt, so I spent most of the day sewing.  I finished up the thread bowl experiment, and will try soaking and shaping it later today. I also finally found a solution to the rope-bowl finishing problem:  Elmer's glue!  It stiffens the fibers enough to not fray, but it's not visible once I rub it in and let it dry, so I finished the first bowl!   Obviously in most circumstances, this ...

Over a week later, we have:  One finished project--a rare thing around here these days, a bit of progress on the thread bowl, which I think might be ready to wash and shape, one not-quite-finished bell ornament, three more lace icicle ornaments, a double batch of fresh vegetable salsa, a double batch of roasted tomatillo-chipotle salsa 4 pints of pickles, roasted garlic pasta sauce, and 4 batches of poblano-cilantro sauce, which are frozen but still count anyway.  Or at least count in the "why I am now only ONE ornament ahead for the year" category.  I'm beginning to see a flaw in the plan...........

Originally, I had planned to can tomato salsa yesterday, but then I thought, "Hey, it's a HOLIDAY weekend.  This is not what normal people do with holidays."  So I'm doing it today instead--still a holiday, but a Monday, which sort of evens things out.  Besides, I think I sat too much yesterday.  And that would be because... I was on a crafting marathon yesterday!  First I stitched another bag, this one for a friend of ours who just purchased a new ukelele and has a birthday this week, then three more white lace ornaments.  Now that I only have 2 months left before I can buy more thread, I'm less concerned about running out of white thread and more concerned about having white lace icicle ornaments.  I just love these!  And 3 ornaments in one day during canning season isn't a bad thing--114 left to go!!! Then I did some stabilizing on the thread bowl by adding a grid: and while I've heard several theories as to why my machines hate Coat...

From September 1 until November 30, it’s time to fall back in love with the things you already have. New yarn cannot compete with a long-term love. Complete as many of the following as you choose. As always, please feel free to involve other hobbies or crafts as well: Love at First Sight - pick a yarn in your stash that was truly an impulse buy--a yarn you just fell in love with. Find a pattern that will do it justice. Soul Mates - make a pair of socks, slippers, booties, or stockings from stash yarn--the deeper the better Glass Slipper - Match a pattern you already have with a yarn you already have and put them into a project bag to surprise yourself with in 2014 ‘Til Death Us Do Part - complete FIVE rows on a WIP that is at least one year old, or your oldest if they’re all more recent “Are You Lonesome Tonight? - Complete TEN rows on a second WIP “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling” - Complete SEVEN rows on a third WIP “Killing Me Softly” - complete SIX rows on ...

Thursday and Friday were taken up with canning and exercise and all that sort of thing, but since I'm really, really, REALLY tired today, it's a sewing day! First I set up Jeeves to start on two denim bags for gifts,  and got this far before I remembered that I should change to a heavier needle for denim. I don't think I've embroidered on denim before, but it is a very heavy fabric for a regular embroidery needle.  Luckily, the last needle in this package was a heavy embroidery one, which never happens.  I'm a bit delighted to have used up another package of machine needles, because I have a stash of those as well, but that's almost mandatory.  Between the ones for different fabrics, different threads, and having 4 machines, I go through them regularly.  I don't always remember to change needles for each new project, but I try, and every time I have a problem, the first thing I do is to check the needle.  These are expensive machines, and I...