Sunday, November 30, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: Plaid & Velvet

My recent refashions have been fairly simple, so I was itching for a more involved project. I've made a skirt out of a jacket before - twice actually - so perhaps it's time I try making outerwear from a skirt, don't you think? I pulled these beauties out of my craft closet - an XXL black velvet blazer given to me by a friend and a green and black woven skirt from a couple clothes swaps ago. The plaid and the pleat on the skirt just screamed, "I want to be a cape coat!" to me, so a cape coat it shall be.

Green Plaid Cape - BeforeGreen Plaid Cape - Before

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Hirsute Hat

This pattern has been two years in the making. In 2012, I had this brilliant idea to knit my nephews a couple of bearded hats to resemble their father (my brother).

Dad Hats

And now, finally, you can do the same for yourself or your follicly-challenged friends and family. I've experimented with different stitch patterns and yarn colors to yield nine completely different looks. I've even included interchangeability as a feature, so you don't have to settle for just one beard all the time. You can switch them out to suit your daily facial hair fancies.

Hirsute Hat

Buy, fave, or queue on Ravelry!

SIZE
Head circumference = 18[20, 22, 24]in/46[51, 56, 61]cm
To fit = Toddler[Child, Adult Small, Adult Large]

MATERIALS
Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted [100% wool; 245yd/224m per 100g]; color: 144W Limestone; 105[120, 135, 150]yds/96[110, 123, 137]m
Small amounts of worsted yarn in various hair colors and skin tone (see beard instructions for individual yarn requirements)
US6/4mm circular needle
Tapestry needle
Optional:
Buttons (2 per beard)
Sewing needle
Thread to match beards

GAUGE
18sts/24rows = 4in/10cm in stockinette stitch

Monday, November 24, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: Holey Moley!

Learning a new skill can sometimes take longer than one expects. Such is the cause of this post's delay.

This was my favorite sweater last autumn. I probably wore it once a week.

Embroider Sweater - Before

Then a tiny, little puppy came along, with her tiny, little, needle-like puppy teeth, and this sweater paid the price. It was nothing malicious, mind you, just an accidental snag, but still. My favorite sweater gone in an instant.

Embroider Sweater - Before

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Sunday Stitches

I've completed a couple knitting projects lately, and while the two patterns are very different, I really loved working up both of them and feel they each have their merits.

First there was the Petal Cowl by Xandy Peters. This was an impulsive cast on, which is rather rare for me. I'm usually a fairly monogamous knitter, and I like to spend hours planning what my next project should be. But one day last month, I saw Xandy's Fox Paws pattern on the Ravelry home page and went browsing her designs. I was intrigued by the dramatic waves in these two patterns, and I knew I had several color-changing yarns in my stash that would be ideal.

Petal Cowl

So I immediately dug out my Lang Mille Colori Socks & Lace yarn and cast on. The technique employed to create those extreme stripes is a little fiddly, but well worth the effort. For each pattern repeat, you increase from 300 stitches up to 550 in one round and then decrease back to 300 again a few rounds later. The pattern was definitely involved enough to keep me interested, but not so difficult as to be intimidating.

Petal Cowl

Then I had a doctor's appointment this past week and knew from past experience there was likely to be some hardcore waiting in my future. With the epic scarf becoming more and more epic by the day, it's also becoming less and less portable. So I needed a small, mindless project to make me feel productive in the waiting room. After seeing a couple of friends make the Sockhead Hat by Kelly McClure, I knew it would fit the bill nicely. Not to mention, I have sock yarn coming out my ears.

Sockhead

I chose a hank of yarn I got at last month's Yarn Crawl - Two If By Hand's MCN High Twist in the colorway Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock (many of their colorways are Big-Bang-Theory-themed). I opted to use a long-tail tubular cast-on, as demonstrated by Ysolda Teague, rather than the regular long tail method. I just like the way a tubular cast-on looks with ribbing; it's a personal preference. Other than that, I remained faithful to the pattern. This hat was exactly what the doctor ordered - repetitive ribbing followed by simple stockinette stitch. It's the perfect pattern to stick in your bag for an unknown amount of waiting room time.

Sockhead

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Just a Quickie

All I had time for this week was a super quick take-in, but sometimes, that's really all a garment needs to be rejuvenated. Take this argyle cardigan given to me by a friend (who just hit her 100-pounds-lost mark this morning!!). As I've said, I totally heart argyle, so I knew I had to salvage this one somehow.

Argyle Cardi - Before

Sunday, November 09, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: Simple Fixes

Over the last week, I've taken care of those half-dozen clothes swap garments that only needed a little tweaking. Let's start with the simplest and work our way up, shall we?

Thursday, November 06, 2014

Vested Interest

We all know I love to knit and I love to refashion thrift store garments. So why not combine the two passions? I picked up this little pullover a couple years back (it may have been at one of the first clothes swaps I attended - I can't recall). I adore argyle, but sadly, this was only worn once, maybe twice.

Sweater Vest Refashion - Before

It's the short sleeves. They're weird. If I'm going to wear a sweater, I want an actual sweater. Like, one with long sleeves. Plus, the ribbed band at the bottom always turned up, no matter what I did. I do like to layer up in the winter though, so an argyle vest would be perfect!

Sweater Vest Refashion - Before

Sunday, November 02, 2014

Baby, it's cold outside

When the weather turns cooler, I tend to yearn for yarn more and more.

Mini Mania Scarf - In Progress
Mini Mania Scarf in progress, worked in lots of sock yarn leftovers

I can spend entire days camped out on the couch, needles in hand and Netflix on screen.

Mini Mania Scarf - In Progress
600 stitches cast on, 150 rows and 11 inches wide thus far.

It's the perfect way to pass a lazy, chilly Sunday...

Mini Mania Scarf - In Progress