plant parents of the world unite

Wow, I finished the stitching on this just after Valentine's Day and I finally got it in a hoop! Goodness that's a lot of procrastination. This lovely thing is a design out of a library book called "Self Care Cross Stitch" and it made me giggle. I did not completely adhere to the called-for colors since I have a pretty decent stash of colors that were rather close. 

The time between last stitch and today was spent fretting about the "right" way to soak and block it (answer: just like my knitting, no big deal) and then having it be a bit wrinkly on the ironing board for literally weeks before I finally got some water in the iron for steam to smooth things out. It looks great now. The purple hoop is pretty awesome for it - a yard sale find - and I am looking forward to finding a fun spot on my wall for it to sass people as they pass. 

agave on the needles

I'm feeling pretty motivated to work through my sweater quantities of yarn that I got myself this year at the yarn crawl. The thrill of finishing a piece that actually looks like clothes is pretty great. I've been making a bit of progress on my Clint shawl I started a few months ago, but it's going to be my slow and steady project. This one, on the other hand, I hope will be a good one to focus on! I finally cast on my Agave.

    

I started it a few days ago and got myself into the wee hours of the morning by finishing the first lace chart. I've been trying to have some quiet time in the mornings to knit a few rows, and this is the progress I have made so far. It's looking really pretty in this soft yellow yarn, and despite the fact that it's knitted flat, I am enjoying the rhythm of the making. Surprisingly, it's growing at a pretty quick pace, I feel it won't be a challenge to finish by the end of July without forcing it. 
 

scarlet sophie scarf, finished

That took no time at all! I can totally see why so many folks have made multiples of these. The extremely simple design is a lovely canvas for a special skein of yarn. I could see featuring texture (like cashmere) or a pretty speckle or other interesting color feature. That is, if you're the kind of person that can rock a tiny scarf. I am one of those people. I have definitely been through phases of wearing small silk scarves, so this fits right into that aesthetic. Plus, my mom crocheted me one very similar to this, which is what inspired me to try it out in the first place. I love that one with a button down shirt. 

This one turned out great! It is a little wider than I imagined, so perhaps a reprise might not include as many increases. I did not use a dk weight yarn, instead I opted for a fingering weight, so I guess the "correct" version is even wider? Dunno. Would not want that. I do like the yarn I used both for its feel and its color. That red is going to be fun for the summer. It's a little orangier than it's turning out in the pictures, which is what drew me to the color in the first place, but it will still be a nice accessory for a patriotic vibe in July. 

I used up every last inch of the ball of Catona yesterday evening, which was very satisfying, though I ended up needing to fudge the second end because I was running out of yarn. It's a bit less pointy than the first end. I ripped back several times to get it looking right, and no one will know but me unless they look really closely. Which would be kind of awkward if I was wearing it, to be honest. I thought about, but did not rip all the way back to the midpoint. That just seemed like an overreaction. 

I enjoy the croissant form factor photos I've been seeing around the internet, so here is mine for good measure. I'm still chuckling that I was influenced by YouTubers and my mother to make this little guy, but it was an incredibly fun knit and I am going to really enjoy it. 

jumping on the bandwagon

I'm not really much of a joiner or a trend follower. However. This little scarf making the rounds of the knitting world has captured my attention despite initial resistance. What happened that finally convinced me is my mom made me a crochet version that I absolutely love, then I've been hearing about what a palette cleanser relaxing knit this version is. I just finished several large projects and am craving simple and fast before I hop into starting my next sweater. Enter the Sophie scarf. 

The yarn my mom used is Scheepjes Catona, a mercerized cotton yarn that is quite soft, cool to the touch, and has a lovely sheen to it. It's also easy to care for and kind to sensitive skin like mine that would resent wool close around my neck. I find the color options of this yarn at my LYS quite appealing in general, and I was quite drawn to this pretty poppy red. I have some lipstick in this color (which might be a bit much paired with it but fun to note) and it feels kind of retro and fun. I'm going to see if I can use up the whole skein. How fun would it be to have a project in mind where I could just pick up a little ball of yarn and use it all up whenever I wanted?! This could be a new habit. I imagine that is also some of the appeal for others, too.

 

Speaking of habit, this is quite a habit forming knit. I have already made quite a bit of progress in a short amount of time and I find myself picking it up to knit a repeat between chunks of tasks at work. It is a palette cleanser and mental floss all in one! 

behemoth ring blanket, finished

I am so proud of how this turned out! The cotton took a while to dry, and we had an unusual cool spell for the season which was AMAZING but meant wet things stayed wet longer. Taking the blocking wires out I could see that the block was just right - the piece kept it's shape nicely, did not bounce back to a smaller size, and did not have any weird pointy bits around the edges (hooray for the wires). It's just shy of 5 feet in diameter, so a really good size for a lap blanket.

I quite like the color combination, which is pretty good for a collection of random skeins on the sale table! I kind of knew when I matched them up in the shop that they'd look good together, but it's nice to see that play out in an actual project. I especially like that putty grey color and would love to get some more to use it in another version I am dreaming up. I also really like this yarn which is Blue Sky Fiber Cotton Skinny. It has weight to it and is buttery soft and nice to work with. 

It looks great in my loft, which is where it will live for a bit while I decide if I am keeping it or not (ha!). It will probably go to my brother. These are kind of his colors and his vibe, especially the orange and I was imagining this for him as I was working on it. I enjoyed the process and would happily knit one again to keep for myself. I have some yarn in mind already that might make a really fun girly version paired with the gray leftovers, and honestly that seems like the answer. I'll wait on that though. It feels really good to have all of my big projects off the needles and just two projects in progress. It would be nice to have another one of these on the needles to keep me company in my YouTube and staff meeting hours, but I've got quite a few other projects planned already so let's keep at least the illusion of focus, shall we? What I really want to do is start my Agave sweater but it's just too much brain power at the moment! 

this is what guest bedrooms are for...

... when there isn't a guest at the moment. I bound off this bad boy on the 10th but it's been hanging out since then while my tank top dried and let's be honest because I was intimidated by blocking something this big. Turned out to be the perfect size for the queen sized bed, and I pulled out my bendy blocking wires so the curves were actually a piece of cake to do.

It's not quite the 5 ft diameter it's supposed to be based on the pattern, but I will chalk that up to ending the outer most ring a few rows early (to avoid winding another ball of yarn) and not going that aggressive with the stretching for the block. I am quite pleased that the puckery inner dot settled down, that my needle switch mistake was not an issue for rings 4 and 5, and that the bind off was loose enough to allow for a nice big stretch without being floppy. Looking forward to seeing how this drapes after drying. Then I will consider whether it's staying here or making it's way elsewhere as a holiday gift. 

Now that I have finished both the tank top AND this blanket, I feel I can start something new. I may vamp for a bit on my Clint shawl (which I have also been making progress on this month), but I do want to get my Agave sweater on the needles to hopefully have done for wearing some time this hot season. Not to worry though, our hot season is LONG. 

mushroom forager tank, finished

It's been quiet from the writing perspective, but busy with the needles this month. I have been motivated to finish projects I have going so that I feel spacious enough to start some new ones. Not a rule, but certainly a good way to push myself to follow through on things I've started. This tank top I started in January is finished and I am quite pleased with the way it fits and how the color looks against my barn tanned skin. 

This yarn was a clearance find at Fillory at LAST year's Bay Area Yarn Crawl. I at least started it before this year's ;). It's a discontinued Berocco cotton rayon blend and was kind of an unforgiving yarn to work with. I had it on large needles for a loose gauge, but it's got NO stretch so was a bit fatiguing to work with which is kind of why it sat for a few months before I picked it back up again in May. 

It shrunk a surprising amount when I blocked it. This turned out to be a good thing because it was looking a bit big around the arm holes and the v neck was bordering on scandalous, but it didn't actually turn out as long or as baggy as I was hoping from making the largest size. The internet tells me it's possible to add length to a stockinette bottom up sweater with just a small amount of fiddling and I have one extra skein of the yarn, so it is an option. It does look very cute with the right pants, though so I will be living with it for a while before considering a modification. As I said to my coworker who wears shorter tops on the regular and looks fabulous, I am trying to embrace the short top as A Thing for myself. 

The mushroom brown is not a typical color for me, but I quite like it with my dark features and olive skin, especially with that bit of a suntan. I wasn't sure how I would feel about the random lines of color but I have to say, love it. They're perfect to give this simple piece a bit of interest but not so busy that it's a mess of color. I would make this tank again for sure, trying a non-rayon yarn so the whole thing stays a bit roomier post block. I would probably want to figure out how to combine the XL body with a smaller size for the top bit so the arm hole/v-neck situation works out like this one, though. I have to say I was a bit skeptical about the pattern because it was so simple but sometimes simple really works!  

spreading the mushroom love

My coworker had a birthday today. It's also my half birthday, a coincidence that I take to be the universe's humor since she and I are so different yet get along so well. She is a fellow knitter and we often trade stories, pattern ideas, and show and tell along with a lot of motivation and moral support. Since I've been on a kick lately with sewing project bags, I decided to make her one for her birthday. 

It's kind of an unusual combination using the bright teal linen with the more earthy mushroom print, but I think it worked out really well. I went back to the tutorial I used to make my somewhat improvised mushroomy bag and used the actual measurements this time instead of letting the fabric tell me what it wanted to be. This turned out to be a much nicer form factor. Lesson learned.

I used this cool yellow molecule looking batik on the inside, and a deep purple zipper. Quirky, but classy. She lives in SF which matches the vibes this bag is giving (does anyone else remember designing TimBuk2 bags at their store in Hayes Valley??). I used quilt batting again, didn't interface the interior fabric, and it stands up just fine. The thicker linen blends on the outside make it so that's ok I think. If I were to use regular quilting cotton I might consider interfacing on the outside or two layers of quilt batting. 

I put a metal keyring in the little tab, and also a little bag of stitch markers I had made prior to last year's Bay Area Yarn Crawl. I included some lobster claw progress keepers just for variety. I love that those crystals look like labeled balls of yarn. 

defying gravity, finished

It is FINISHED! I am so very pleased with how this turned out, and I would absolutely make this pattern again. It was a very fun knit and the finished piece is really unique. It did grow quite a bit in blocking! I suppose that is due to the silk in the yarn, more slippy maybe? I think it's ok and the oversized look is very much what I was going for but I'll keep that in mind for the next time in case I want to try out a different size.

There was just a little bit of pooling with my second skein of yarn - the consequence of not alternating skeins - but I don't really mind it at all. This green color is just *chef's kiss* perfect, and I am tickled at the combination with the pinks I had in my stash. The cutest part, that is not obvious to anyone but me, is the little yellow brick road piles in the middle of the granny squares. That small pop of gold sparkles up there and makes the piece more interesting than if I had just chosen to use the light pink again in the center and is a fun nod to the story that inspired this color combination. 

 

I've worn it to work already, and it was happily comfy and not at all itchy all day. Because it grew, I will say the neckline is a bit more open than I felt comfortable wearing with out a tank top underneath. I am considering taking out the bind off and expanding the ribbing to give myself a little more coverage in that department. It's fine for now, but definitely something I may pick up and adjust on an evening when I want to be frustrated. ;) 

ambitious quilt start

I did this color chart of fabric a while ago. Sunday night I finally started the quilt! It feels a little bit like a great journey has started. There were a few activation barriers I had to get over to get going. First, was wrapping my head around all the fabrics and how they mapped onto what was in the pattern. That I accomplished in February by making myself a little chart using snips of each fabric and some glue. 

Second was the fact that I am kind of intimidated by the very large cut of background fabric I have. The thought of cutting it into tiny pieces is not the best because that seems like an awful lot of work! Thankfully the instructions pretty clearly help you stage this process by the type of block and corresponding size of quilt you are making. When I realized I could do that by block design and not have to do it all at once, that was a much smaller problem. So I went ahead and got started on one of the simpler blocks. There are two stages of cuts - one for larger pieces and the second to subcut the individual pieces for each block. These are my piles of first stage cuts for the nine aloe blocks.  

I chose the aloe first because it seems like the simplest. It also has just two colors in it, so I felt like I could keep track without needing to label anything. The cutting is indeed detailed - some of the strips were different by just a quarter of an inch! And this will take precise piecing. This first aloe turned out a little bit less wide than it was supposed to even though I thought I was using a scant seam. Thankfully the width was easily remedied with some elbow grease and the iron. Still, go scanter. 

It will be interesting to see how this goes. I'm certain it will be slow. I'm also certain to learn a lot in the process about myself, my sewing tendencies, and my preferences. Avanti!
 

project planning

I cleaned up my craft space today.  It felt like an appropriate activity to refresh my headspace and take stock of what I was up to since I just got a big project off of my needles. I can tell I have the itch to start something new! I still have a couple of things going that I'd like done, though, so I am making the choice to wait until at least one of those (the blanket or the summer tank) is done before casting on a new project. I think I have been watching too many YouTube influencers start all. the. things. 

I had a couple items of yarn that entered the chat from LYS day yesterday so that got me playing with my stash and considering what I wanted to cast on next. Since I was planning and have been having an excellent time making project bags, I decided to tuck the yarn (and in one case, wind it) into bags so they are ready to go when I am. 

There is of course the yellow for my Agave sweater that I have been thinking about forever - a yarn crawl purchase and my next garment start. The other yarn crawl item is the dark blue cake which will become a textured scarf. I think that should be a fun project that's easy but interesting. The bright poppy red skein in the appropriately neon bag is going to be a micro scarf. I have been loving the little crocheted Sophie scarf my mom made me, and I've been thinking about a knitted one. I actually went to the LYS with the intention of getting JUST yarn for that little scarf and for checking out the DK stock for potential materials for a crochet row blanket project. There wasn't much I liked for the row blanket, but I did look at patterns and find one for a cute shrug. And lo, she also had the right type of yarn. That will be a fun no thinking project, so probably great for when I finish my blanket up and is hanging out in my big Firefly tote until I'm ready to start. 

It felt good to line up the next projects. Of course, I still have a few other long-term projects that will remain on the go (Clint shawl and tiny succulents, I'm looking at you) but I like the idea of waiting until at least one of the blanket or tank top is done before picking up a new shiny object. This process was fun and I kind of feel like I've already started ;) 

a good soak

I finished knitting my Geddy Tee last night! I had put it down for a few days this week (after finishing the body last Friday) because I had the impression that picking up stitches for the arms and neck was going to be annoying. It absolutely was not. The arms were super fast, and even the neck was a breeze. I picked up the neck in the morning yesterday and was binding off at the end of the day with a short amount of knitting time. I was feeling kind of like a knitting super hero. 

My next hurdle was weaving in ends! I sent a photo the knit night ladies after binding off and then intended on putting it aside to work on my throw blanket. Better sense prevailed and I got a needle to take care of the ends right away. If I had not, I'm sure it would have been another couple of weeks before that was done. There were a lot from the granny squares, though they were mostly woven in as I crocheted so I just snipped those off, and the rest in the body and ribbing weren't actually that difficult to do, I just don't love it. I chatted on the phone while doing them, so it went by fast. 

This morning I felt motivated to get it blocked right away; I'm hoping to wear it to work one day this coming week! Given how vibrant this yarn is I was not altogether surprised to see some dye coming out in the water, but it did mean I soaked this for very little time and mostly with the granny squares parked up on the side out of the water. I did not want the green to catch onto those bright pinks and muddy them up. 

I haven't pinned anything except the bottom ribbing, which I want to tame to be as wide as the body, or at least as close as possible. It is currently puckering the bottom in way more than I really want (and more than the pattern photos suggest is correct).  When I first laid it out it was 26" across, so nearly 52". This is supposed to be a 48", so I slid the fabric around a little bit vertically to make it longer. It is now measuring closer to 24.5", so 49" which is close enough. I tried it on before blocking and mostly liked how it fit so I'm a bit nervous about how it will be after blocking. Way too big? Way too long? I knit it longer than recommended by 2" to avoid it being too short so this would be ironic. It feels like some of the "spring" has come out of the fabric but that could come back as it dries. This is always the price I pay for not doing a gauge swatch - suspense while blocking! 

nesting baskets

This set of very satisfying baskets was what occupied me in the evenings most of this past weekend. I have been doing so much knitting lately, I wanted to play with some crochet for a change. The yarn for this project has been hanging around in plain sight in my craft closet for a very long time. I purposely put them where I'd see them, and kind of in the way of getting my ball winder out, because when I bought them I intended to start these right away. Ha! Best laid plans... 

I'm pretty sure it was cruising around Pinterest that led me to this lined basket. I was intrigued both by the nesting habit and the two color design. Curious, I went and found the pattern (free on Ravelry) and now here we are many moons later. I have a well behaved lineup of colorful cylinders. I played around with the middle size to see what swapping the variegated and solid would look like. I like it both ways, but the solid ball of yarn has more yardage than the variegated ball does, so I wouldn't have wanted to do all of them solid on the outside. This way I used up every last bit of yarn. (Disclaimer: I did make the second one last and ended up making it one row shorter than the others to do so.)

I love how the variegation behaves differently depending on the circumference of the basket. I especially like the pooling of the largest one. These are nested up and settled in with the other things I'll be sending to my mom at some point soon for an extremely handmade Mother's Day. I have another set of solid/variegated yarn to make another set for myself, but my RSI says I should take a break from crochet and go back to knitting for a bit! 

 

a quick mushroomy bag

I have been watching a lot of knitting YouTube lately which means I have been seeing a lot of lovely project bags. I've enjoyed my Firefly Totes very much (both big and small), and I've made small drawstring bags too. What I've seen that I haven't tried yet has been kind of angular, boxy bottom, zippered top project bags that look like they're kind of a standard type. I don't have a pattern for it myself so I went looking. I ended up using a YouTube tutorial from Voolenvine that was very clear to follow and looked like it was about the type I was seeing. 

I ended up not using the measurements given in the tutorial just because the scrap of this awesome mushroom fabric was a bit bigger. I kind of wish I had cut it down because the depth of the bag would be better suited to something wider, but I learned. No squares! Use rectangles :) Instead of fusible fleece, I used scrap batting I had on hand and just quilted the outer panels with straight lines spaced maybe 3/4" apart (followed an easy to see line on my sewing machine, no other reason for the spacing other than it seemed about right). No regrets there. It is sturdy and I think the vertical quilting helps it stand up as well. A fusible fleece may have been more robust, but I'm using what I've got and I've got a LOT of batting scraps.

I made the tab out of scraps of a cute snail print, a bit wider than called for - I cut a 4x3 piece (instead of 3x3) and made it 1" wide since my D ring was bigger. I ended up skipping the handle mostly because I didn't have a lobster claw finding to hand. I think I can hook a carabiner or something similar to the ring should I want something longer. Maybe a tassel! The inside is a heavy toile that is also in the canvas family. I've had it forever and it's nice to have another place to peek at it. It pairs quite well, if quirkily, with the mushrooms. 

I enjoyed making this, and it's going to be nice to use for something, whether travel or craft projects. If I make it again I'll fix the ratios. In the end, it's pretty darn close to the ones I have been seeing so that's awesome to know. I've seen a few other zipper installation configurations and it will be fun to understand those, too, if I can find a tutorial. I've been having a good time coming up with prints and zipper color combinations, so let the adventures continue.

big day for my geddy tee!

It's not done, but a milestone has been reached - the body and bottom ribbing are complete. I made it 1" longer in the body than recommended as well as 1" longer in the ribbing. I'm not sure if I'm going to end up regretting that in the final fit, but I am not exactly a cropped tee kind of shape. We shall see. I am going to decide now that I'll be brave and rip back and fix it if I don't love it after blocking. 

I'm a bit bummed about that one splash of pooling across the chest from the second skein, but that's what I get for not alternating skeins with a hand dyed, though tonal, yarn. I'm going to live with it and call it a feature. I have loved working with this yarn, and a woman at knit night this week put her finger on it when she said "Hella stitch definition!" I think that's what I love the most about how it looks. How it feels is pretty much the #1 feature - the silk in the blend is very apparent. It's also kind of hefty, so it will be interesting to see how this blocks out and drapes on me once everything is all done. I think it's going to be great. 

I just have to do ribbing around the armholes and the neckline now. "Just" may be understating how annoying it is likely to be, but it still feels like I'm in the home stretch. 

ring blanket progress

I have been making steady progress on my blanket project. This is about a month's worth of progress, and I have just two more stripes left! It has been great knitting for staff meetings and breaks at work when I don't have much brain power to devote to something but I still want to knit. This is where I am after this evening's knit night at the LYS. 

The yarn has been really nice to work with. It's just cotton, but it seems a bit softer and more slippy on the needles than other cottons which makes the knitting really easy on my hands. I'm still not a fan of ribbing, and this is a LOT of ribbing in the bigger rings, but I'm finding it a good opportunity to try out some different ways to knit rather than the lever style I usually use. I'm not a great continental knitter because I feel my tension is way looser and it's all messy but it is ok to do for a bit. I have actually have more luck with Norwegian purling than I do continental purling, so I've been playing with that, too. I don't think I will ever be an ambi-knitter, but it's fun to try.

new books

Look what arrived this week! I have been feeling in a shoppy mood lately, and I found myself wanting some fun non-wearable projects to contemplate. Mom told me about the animal book a while back, and I can't remember where I first saw the blanket one. These will be fun, for sure. 

I am quite enamored with the bright colors and geometric patterns in the blanket book. Also, it's a library of 100 patterns for strips - endless possibilities! It is a bit overwhelming to consider "the" design I want to do, so I may make a few strips here and there in colors that I like and see what happens in terms of turning them into a finished blanket or two. Some of the strips in the blanket below are appealing - that pink and white one especially. And the pom poms!

Pretty much the first thing that caught my eye in the mythical creature menagerie was this unicorn. I mean... c'mon. It looks fiddly but fun, just like the rest of the book. Not sure if I'll start there or if I need to do a dragon first. There are a lot of super cute options - I may need to pace myself. 

Speaking of which, I do still have a few yarn projects going that I want to finish before starting any of these. Granted, this is crochet, but I also have a couple small crochet projects started, too. Maybe if I finish one of those, I can start one of these. Either way, I am very excited that both of these books have now nestled into my library. 

bag lady reprise

Late in the evening of my "bag lady Saturday" I found myself wondering what would happen if I downsized the pattern I was using for the zippered project bags to make smaller ones. Voila! They are super cute.  I used a fun stripe print for the inside, and combined a pretty purple flower print with some sassy alpacas.

I was inspired by the piles of scraps leftover from the baby quilt I made recently, and I sort of improvised my way through the sizes based on whatever the scraps told me. I suppose I could measure and try to replicate this again, but of course I didn't write anything down so this could be like those dinners you sometimes make only once because there's some random combination of leftovers in the fridge. 

I made two, one for me and one for a friend. I think I'll keep the one with the little tab and give her the one with the purple zipper. 

bag lady

Today was quite a day! I spent the lion’s share of the day in my sewing room bookending a big organizing/clean up with sewing these perky springy bags. 

The first finish was the veggie quilted tote bag. I saw a tutorial on YouTube a while ago for a quilted tote and this has been on my mind ever since. Last night it got downright distracting - all I could think about was how much I wanted to make it! So this morning after watering my herbs outside, I sat down to realize the vision. It does not disappoint. I’m looking forward to using it at the farmer’s market next week. Both fabrics were from a box mom sent me, they must have been in her stash. (Bottom row, second over for the adorable tiny vegetable lining fabric). I was too lazy to make the fabric straps as called for, but I did have some navy cotton webbing in my stash which looks great. I ended up ordering some more webbing online because this was such a good solution, and I’d like to make more. 

 

The other three bags are project bags for hand stitching (or whatever, I suppose). Mom introduced me to these the last time she was here for the holidays, and I rewatched the tutorial so I could make some more. This is from an Elizabeth Ann Can Stitch video, and they are kind of addicting once you get into it. I loved pulling together the different fabric combinations and using the zippers as extra pops of color. These are all somewhat “precious” fabrics to me - I have resolved to use the lovelies instead of letting them sit around in piles. That bright blue bird print is a Tula Pink impulse buy from Golden State Quilting and I LOVE it with the royal blue zipper. I’m going to be keeping the gray/green birds with the eye watering neon lining and the other two will be gifted to mom and Samara. 

It has been a while since I have felt this relaxed and spacious. I had other adulting things to do too, which usually gets in my head, but none of it was urgent and I was actually able to put them aside for the day. That is pretty much unheard of. So proud of that and happy to have gotten some color play in today. Just look at them! Spring has sprung!