Beach Knitting Part 2

Im back from the beach and I got a good bit of knitting done. I didnt actually knit on the beach (too much sand and sunscreen) but I spent some quality time knitting on the deck looking out over the ocean which is almost the same, right?

Lisa Souza striped socks finished! More info on yarn etc. from my last post.


And a Noro scarf from birthday yarn! Its my first Noro and Im doing an entrelac scarf using the instructions from Knitty. Im on the third of 3 balls of Noro Kureyon (color 182).

Beach Knitting Part 1

Ive been doing a bit of knitting while sitting around at the beach.  

Im knitting striped socks with Lisa Souza Sock Yarn (from the heels and toes bin at Stitches West) using a general toe up approach.  I used the Knitty generic toe-up sock instructions and directions for "hole-free" shortrows from Nothin' but Knit.  They are going much quicker than my previous pair, but I owe part of that to the fact that I have knitted them only once...

One sock is finished and the other one is past the heel.  Hopefully I can post a proper picture of them finished when I get home! 

The beach (outer banks, NC) is pretty nice--its been hot and sunny most of the week--but the ocean here is just not as dynamic as it is on the West Coast.  Ive managed not to get too sunburned yet, but ive still got two days to survive!

On buses and excessive proportions

This post isnt particularly craft-related (or, in fact, related to crafts whatsoever) but I will spend the next week sitting on the beach knitting. Maybe after that Ill have some craftytastic news to report.


This is the match-up I have been waiting for, a meeting of two halves. 42 oz. of soda for only $0.69? Only one friend could be the spokesman for such Savagery (and for MacDonalds no less).

Bye Hugo, have fun living in the foot of England. Berkeley certainly wont be the same without you.

Simple Flannel Baby Blankets

I made some baby blankets about a year ago for a friend's shower and I debated with myself over what parameters make a good baby blanket. Having no personal experience with this I was somewhat out of luck so I did what I usually do in these situations, I called my Mom. With some basic guidelines I made up this simple blanket approach. These blankets are quick to make and seem to get a lot of use by the recipients. One little girl in particular poses with them in many photos! Her dad suggested that the key characteristic of the blankets is their size and stiffness. I guess there is an important role in baby accessories for structural wrapping items useful for containing limbs. If you have even minimal sewing skills you can tackle this project and wow your expecting friends (or yourself) with handmade gifts.

This is my entry to the June Whiplash "competition" - Introduce Yourself. Its my first post to Whiplash!


This will describe the steps to make one blanket even though two are pictured.
You will need:
One yard each of two flannel fabrics
Fabric cutting devices (scissors, rotary cutter)
ruler
round object like a bowl
sewing machine
thread etc.


Step 1: Purchase and Wash
Acquire 2 yards of flannel fabric, one yard in each print. I purchased mine from a fabric store (amazing!). I was particularly enamored with the Sock Monkey print. Im also a fan of non-pastel baby items so I go for dark, rich colors. I usually choose a patterned fabric for one side and a solid for the other. For the Sock Monkeys I chose a matching "Sock" print for the solid. Its all personal preference though! The solid colors are often double sided (i.e. fuzzy on both sides) while the printed flannels are usually single sided. The double sided stuff will make a stiffer and slightly heavier blanket.

Now wash the fabric (just in the washer with your clothes) and iron it flat.

Step 2: Square the Edges
You need to make your fabric into matching sized rectangles. Inevitably the edges will be un-square when they cut the fabric at the store so you will have to fix it. I use my gridded ruler and rotary cutter but you can do it with scissors too. I square one of the pieces first and then with *right sides together* I make the second piece match the first. I use scissors for trimming the second piece.


Step 3: Round the Edges
One of my favorite touches on this blanket is the rounded corners. I did this by taking a round object (the pictured bowl) and simply cutting away some fabric in a round shape. I just traced around the bowl, then cut away the excess.


Step 4: Sew, right sides together.
Now, with your rectangles right sides together sew around the perimeter with a 5/8ths inch seam allowance. Stop sewing when you get about 6 inches from where you started, i.e. leave a gap (you can see the gap in the spotted blanket in the background).
Trim the corners like this:


Step 5: Turn right side out and press
This one is fairly self explanatory. Turn the blanket right side out through the gap you left in the stitching. Using an iron on cotton setting press around the edge. Use your fingers to help the fabric expand all the way out. The notches you cut at the corner should help in the curves.

Step 6: Top Stitch
Pick a thread color that goes with each of your fabrics. It can be matching or contrasting, the same on top and bottom or different--you choose. Now using a 1/4th inch seam allowance sew around the entire edge of the blanket. You may wish to pin the section where the gap is but I find I dont need to since the flannel is adheres pretty well to itself.


Press the blanket one more time if you like and you are done!

Here they are in the sunlight:



And some I made a year ago:

Behold

Introducing the Tweed Chicken


A stuffed chicken made of tweed from a 4" weave-it loom. This was my original motivation behind getting one of these looms. It is truly the physical manifestation of the whole TWEED CHICKEN concept and I am quite pleased.




Apollo and the Tweed Chicken are also friends

More tweed

Ive been having fun making tweed squares with my weave-it loom. I figured out that the zig-zag pattern I originally made didnt look quite right and after some careful inspection of my herringbone tweed jacket I realized that herringbone tweed has an offset at the center of the "V". Go figure!

Quick Baby Bibs

I was in need of a quick baby gift I could make from things I had around the house. Since they came out so cute I thought I would share a little about how I made them.

I happen to have a stash of blank baby bibs (from Ikea) in my sewing box that had been waiting for just this occasion. My favorite baby gifts so far are the flannel blankets I made for Tillie but I didnt have time to shop for fabric and run it through the washer for this project. Perfect time to bust out the bibs.

First I gathered the necessary materials:

Blank Baby bibs, cute fabric for applique, stiff card (from my recycling bin), ruler, pencil and cutting devices for card and fabric.

I did a few different designs but these photos will show how I made the star.

I drew a star and added a seam allowance using my ruler for guidance:

Then I cut out the stencil using an exacto knife and a ruler.

I transfered the shape to the applique fabric using a pencil and then the shape of the fabric:


To tuck the seam allowance under I had to cut slits to the inner corners:


At this point you could use the iron to press the seam allowance under but I was too lazy, so i just pinned it to the bib. I did press the seam allowance for the circle because it was too difficult otherwise.


I sewed the star to the bib by hand using an invisible stitch (maybe called an applique stitch? im not sure). Since I was going to zig-zag around the edges I probably could have gotten away with basting but it didnt take very long to sew it properly and then I didnt have to remove any stitches.


I used the zig-zag attachment for my Singer 301 to make a reinforced (and decorative) edging around the applique.



I also made a circle and a patch of a VW pop-top camper bus.



Hopefully the little guy will like them!