i didn’t even know i needed this

Check these out. Aren't they so useful? And fun? I didn't even know I needed this in my life. In fact, I can remember the first time I watched the tutorial I used on YouTube (Pin Cut Sew... she's a favorite) I thought it was kind of odd. I stand corrected. It's cool. 

In my quest for more small gifts this year, I reconsidered my opinion. I got a new phone case this year and it came with a rather sturdy plastic stand for holding the phone - it has been so useful for evening video conversations when I want to be doing something else with my hands. This is one step cuter, and I love that it's personalizable with different fabrics. I made both of these with some red mushroom flannel I had in my stash from when Joann's closed (so much of this fabric, more projects to come) because both the recipient and I enjoy some mushroom whimsy and I loved the first one so much I had to make myself one. I'm going to keep it by my sewing machine for watching tutorials as I sew. 

They are partially filled with the same little plastic pellets I use at the bottom of my gnomes and then topped off with fiberfil making them satisfyingly like beanbags. The pattern I followed called these "kindle plops" which is an apt name for their behavior when lofted onto a surface. I like the way my phone behaves in it - haven't tried a kindle yet - so I highly recommend this as a fun gee whiz kind of gift. Perfect for a stocking. 

blue improv

I've been feeling a draw towards making small things rather than quilts which is quite unusual for me. It took me a while to get back to the sewing machine though because I knew that the "next thing" I wanted to make was the Firefly Tote and I was intimidated by the pattern! But now that I've gotten over that mental block and made an amazing first one, more holiday gifting presented the perfect opportunity for more small, quick makes. Enter coasters. While I often have trouble deciding what my sister in law will like, we've had success gifting each other things that we would like to receive. I think fabric coasters are so cute and she is a tea drinker so they are likely to be appreciated. 

This improv and scrap play was really fun. Quite a while ago I organized my scraps and trimmed many down into pre-cut square sizes. That stash was SO satisfying to pull from. Even the batting was from scraps trimmed off of quilts! My sister in law is a fan of blue, and I had some favorite prints still floating around. I used an ikat print for the "back" (these could indeed be reversible) and sort of intuited my way through the front making mistakes into design features. I was originally trying to do just one large half square triangle with two quarter square triangles but ask me about my cutting math.... In the end they turned out looking even better than intended. 

I could have just tied these up with a ribbon, but why not take the opportunity to make another cute small thing. I found a tiny basket tutorial (Fabric Mutt's Pixie Basket) and thought I'd use some wintery prints to give the whole thing some holiday flair. The outer fabric is a heavy canvas and the inner fabric is a flannel, so it's a bit more substantial than as written, and a bit of a pain to sew if I'm honest. That was totally down to the fabric choices though, not the pattern. If I were to make one again I wouldn't use such a heavy outer - it also made it weird to get the lining fabric to fold down inside over the bulky seam, so I just left it as is. It's cute to see it peek over the edge anyway - another happy accident!

To round out the theme of "enjoy a cup of cozy tea" I added a few bags of some of my favorite teas from Trader Joe's - Winter Warmup, Orange Rooibos, and Well Rested. This all got boxed up and wrapped, and shipped off just in time! Phew, I'm really cutting things close this year. 

rift sweater, finished

It is done! I am cutting it oh so close to the shipping deadline for pre-Christmas arrival, but I made it. And I think it turned out really great. I found these funny leather tags in my stash and put one in the neckline - I am sure my dad will get a chuckle out of it. (it's a little bulky, but I told mom that if it's distracting she can just snip it out) 

Pretty much everything about this project looks quite polished. The neckline is simple, the ribbing up the side and under the arms looks complex (but wasn't), and the sea of stockinette on the body blocked out so well. The color is difficult to photograph, but it's a really lovely green. I'd say the shades in the first and last photos are most accurate while the second and third photos are emphasizing the interesting mix of yellow and blues that are also in the yarn. So pretty. Would use again. 

This detail at the shoulder is what drew me to suggest this pattern in the first place (Rift by Jared Flood). It's a neat looking texture that gives the piece some interest while also, I suspect, helping with the fit/drape of the shoulders. I was quite intimidated by the seaming here and around the arms, but I decided to let go of the expectation of exactness and it all turned out ok in the end. 

I have not made many sweaters before (two?) and never one for someone else, so this is a pretty big knitting milestone for me. It was not without its adventures - ripping out the body more than halfway up was especially frustrating - but I will file them away as lessons learned for next time. I have also learned that I love the tubular bind on for a tidy ribbing edge and will try to use it whenever I can. 

According to my Ravelry notes, I cast on September 2, so about 3.5 months from start to finish. That's not quick, but considering I knit quite a lot of it twice I'll call that pretty good! Speed is not the point, after all. Unless you're trying to meet a deadline. Which means I have to go pack this up and get to the post office. I love that I am sending my parents a box of hand knit gifts for the holiday.  

well this is new

Finally finished the pieces to Dad's sweater! It's blocking right now in hopes that it will be dry enough to assemble and ship in the next day or so. 

I can't say that I have ever made something that has required blocking as a mid-project step before. I can totally see why you'd want to do it. These pieces are squirrelly and oddly shaped where they have to join and I can imagine how wonky an arm would turn out if the pieces weren't tamed into shape beforehand. I used the pattern schematic, which was very clear, to get it laid out just right and inserted a few pins in key places plus blocking wires up the sides of the body.

Now we wait. 

 

fungus among us

Well these are painfully cute. I have been watching a bunch of knitting YouTube while working on my own knitting projects and tis the season for video compilations of cute quick gifts for the holidays. 

These little mushrooms are from a free pattern called Christmas Toadstools (my Ravelry page) that was featured on one of these videos. I'm not much of a "tiny thing" knitter, but given that I have been enjoying the gnomes this year, that may be changing. I made my first one to go with mom's Gnolan, and I wondered how I would like it if I tried a thicker yarn. They turned out so cute! I added some keychain findings to the tops with some embroidery thread (which I hope is sturdy enough) and these will be gifts for my nieces. 

mossy sweater progressing

 Today was a relaxing Saturday full of knitting. I woke up with the intention of finishing up the body of my dad's sweater and ended up spending the whole day knitting (with breaks here and there for domestic life).

It did not take me long to finish up the front of the sweater and bind off the neck and shoulders. I texted this photo to my parents joking that I was going to leave it as a vest ;) It actually looks pretty much like a garment! I'm so pleased. The armhole sections were worrisome as I was working through them since they stretch and hang funny off the needles. 

I popped out to my local yarn store around midday to see if I could get some tiny circumference needles for working up the sleeves because I am kind of tired of dealing with dpns right now. Alas, she did not have my size in stock, but she was very helpful and suggested knitting with two circulars and explained it enough that I could come home and give it a shot. I have never knitted anything this way before and I have to say, it's not too bad! It certainly beats magic loop for me and was a nice break from working on dpns (the gnomes....).

Once the circumference got big enough I switched to just using the short 16-inch circulars that I had in my stash. Not having to switch needles in middle of a round saves a lot of time, but interestingly was a little bit harder on my hands in terms of fatigue. 

It's the end of the day now and I have made it just past the elbow on this first sleeve. It will be interesting to see how my hands feel tomorrow in terms of whether or not another few marathon days are possible to get this sweater potentially finished in time to ship mid December. Hmmmmm.... 

holiday mystery gnome start

This will be my only post about this for the duration of the month (so I don't spoil the surprise), but I wanted to share the beginning of my next gnome... an advent mystery knit along! Sara Schira, the designer of these adorable beings, has had mystery gnomes at various times in the past and this is her latest installment of a holiday/winter gnome. It's my first mystery knit along (and perhaps my first knit along?). We know how much yarn we'll need, how many colors, and what "types" of colors (light, dark, etc) to use but other than that, it's a surprise! There will be daily clues this month to take us through the pattern and reveal, ultimately, a "Gnandad" gnome who has been off on worldly travels. 

I chose colors last night and of course by this morning had changed my mind. I swapped in a more muted navy instead of the brighter blue. We'll see if I stick with that or switch back. Depending how the clues work out, maybe I'll use both! This is a bit out of my comfort zone because I'm such a particular planner, but I am going to enjoy trusting the process and releasing some control here. I am positive that the finished gnome is going to be amazing.