Reuse, recycle and WIP up some lemonade

We all have them. Creative dreams tucked into boxes and stuck in the back of the closet. Big ideas gone wrong. The "perfect" project that made you cry in frustration, but you couldn't quite rip or toss ... there was still love there. I won't belabor the relationship metaphors springing to mind since the impending saint's day has driven every advertiser to desperately find some way to tie their product to love and red - no need for me to add to the drivel. Don't think I'm down on love, I just happily celebrated my 11 year anniversary, but if you're not selling chocolate, flowers or Valentine's entertainment options, there's no product tie-in. Let it go.

I know the new year makes a lot of us want to clean up old WIPs. I've been seeing other people's boxes opened on their blogs. Funny how much our unfinished projects tell about our knitting tastes. Something tells me the Maria over at Passing Down Crazy likes colorwork! Go take a look at her unfinished (and finished) projects that she's been cleaning out and get very inspired.

So, what specific dream of mine went wrong? Back in 2002 I was a new knitter with more gumption than sense. Not much has changed really, but experience does count for something right? Anyway, in one of my first Interweave Knits there was a bolero pattern made in Mission Falls 1824 cotton designed by Mags Kandis. The block pattern was modern and craftsman at the same time and I loved it on sight. Problem was that I couldn't see me in the tiny, tight bolero jacket. Decided to expand the pattern out to a boxy cardigan. I copied the chart. I planned. I drew. I bought yarn. I knitted. I learned Fair Isle. I learned intarsia. This was pre-digital camera, but here's a photo from my project notebook:

The Fair Isle sucked - the center blocks pulled too tightly - but the intarsia worked and I loved the fabric it created. I started knitting like a fiend, dreaming of my wonderful coat of many colors. Got past the underarms and realized I'd made a 30" wide monster. Still determined, I machine sewed a stay-line and cut (YES, CUT) the sides off to get a 22"+ measurement. Saved what yarn I could from the cut off blocks and put it all in a box. Some part of me knew that even at a more normal width, this just wasn't going to look good or wear well. Kandis' bolero design worked because of its tiny size and tight fit, but my loose cardi was going to fail miserably. Still, I couldn't bring myself to throw it away, so I tucked it in the very top of my closet.

Over the last few weeks I've been cleaning my crafting area and mind. More on that another time. Two sweaters ended up on my desk with a make something or dump it sentence. Today this intarsia disaster became a success. Here are my notes from Ravelry:

Decided the seed stitched hemline of the sweater could serve as the opening, so all I had to do was figure out the construction for the other three sides. Found a suitable pillow, but needed to add another row of blocks for height, which I did in an afternoon using the leftover bits from the side cuts (would have taken a week five years ago).

Process:
1) Machine sewed a seam around three sides to stabilize the knitting. Trimmed any extra bits.
2)  Rather than knit a back, I cut a piece out of a linen/cotton dress that had never suited me. Used the already finished hemline of the dress as the pillow opening. The width of the dress was a little less than the knitting, but I don't mind the knitting wrapping around the sides.
3) With right sides of the linen and knitting together, machine sewed each side just inside the hold seam.
4) Worked the extra width of the knitted fabric into gathers along the top (pin photo) and sewed.
5) Used velcro to close knitted hem to dress hem.

Deeply imperfect, but FINISHED!!! Ta Da:

You can see how the Fair Isle didn't work in those bottom two rows. The entrelac holds up well with this nubby yarn - I've already run this through the wash to shrink and tighten it.

Here's an outside view of that gathered top seam that was pinned in the in-progress photo above.

Sewing on knitting really isn't that hard. I was expecting headaches, but it sailed right through machine without a catch.

This is the bottom hem of the dress. Major cheat, but it fit the overall seat of my pants approach.

The pillow is about 22" wide. This where I want to use it, but I need a wider, more comfy chair. Anyway, my IKEA chair's pattern clashes with the pillow, so I threw this blanket over for the photo. The IKEA chair will move to my daughter's room and I'll find something plain for this spot. Hope to find something good at the consignment store since I only need a one-off.

For those of you who like my tumbling blocks I want to assure you they're not forgotten. I love those blocks so much that I've decided to leap in and make it a throw. The first strip is only about 24" so I decided to double the width. There will probably be a border too - this is a design-as-I-go kind of thing. Started a new strip and added in the three new colors near the middle so the they'll balance with the placement of the existing colors. For the same reason I ripped back a few rows of the old strip so the new colors can get worked in there too for balance. Once the new strip is equal to the old one I'll graft them and knit as one from there.

The cats help me with almost every knitting photoshoot. The dog could care less, but the felines MUST sit on my knitting or quilting whenever I work on it. First Raven claims her spot.

Then August joins her, both of them studiously ignoring any funny sound I make trying to get them to look at me. Power-play is the game.

Invariably they start wrestling.

Until they hear the dog coming and they're once again a united front against canine invasion.

   

Comments

[alice]

oh i just love how those blocks are coming along, and what a pillow! i've finally decided to conquer fair isle this year... i feel very triumphant! but somehow intarsia still seems like a very foreign elusive thing... perhaps some day!

[Susan]

I love what you've done with the pillow! I've got more than a few unfinished projects that I'm tempted to just toss. I may have to look through them once more before purging just to be sure. And those tumbling blocks? I LOVE them! Can't wait to see a finished throw. It will surely be magnificent!

[Jeanie]

I was just thinking about your blocks! I really think they are awesome. Can you tell me what pattern it is? It looks really fun-are you using Rowan tweed? I can't wait to see the finished throw. I also like your "new"-recycled pillow. You are so crafty:)

[Jessica]

Great save on the Mission Falls sweater.

[ellen]

Nancy - You are the genius of color, but I think Mission Falls' colors give us all the potential for color genius. I bet just looking at that pillow makes you smile, knowing how it started out. Keep on tumbling; the throw will be beautiful!

[kathy]

I was totally into the knitting stories until the cats stole the show. LOVE those photos. Wishing us both lots of finished objects this year! I'm thinking of pillow for some orphaned quilt blocks, very inspiring post.

[Jan]

The baby blocks knitting is just fabulous, Nancy. I love your use of colored tweed!

[moni]

your cats are simply ADORABLE! I want to hug them :)

I really love your pillow! What a great way to salvage a WIP.

[Judy]

That was a wonderful solution and a beautiful finished pillow! Great job. Your Raven looks so much like my Sammy.

[Julia]

Now THAT is some sweet lemonade! What a gorgeous pillow. I may need to look at some of my smoldering heap with a new eye. I guess I am pretty lucky, my cat only cares about my knitting once it is a completely finished and blocked cat bed. She is especially fond of anything felted.

[juliet]

That cushion is just gorgeous! I am loving the blocks too, now I know why you are productive - those cats are your helpers, they loom very engrossed in some sort of discussion over colour and layout (feline ateliers)

[di]

Ahhh.. Brings back memories of my own knitting disaster project- a Kaffe Fassett Fair isle cardigan. In the end my mum frogged the two "sleeves" that I'd knitted (completely different sizes, with varying degrees of pulling and looseness) and is making a large shawl with the proceeds.
I love your reuse- that's one good thing about those huge oversized sweaters- they're big enough for cushion covers!
And I love your tumbling blocks too. Looks beautiful and such a funny photo shoot.

[Dawn]

I must concur: Absolutely gorgeous Pillow & knitting.... and the kitties really stole the show! LOL! ;O)

[Leslie]

Wow! I am officially in love with that pillow! I tried to knit something similar ages ago, but it made me cry and I decided right then and there that no knitting was worth tears. But seeing your finished beautiful pillow is making me rething that pattern...

[Cindra]

Whoa! Love the tumbling blocks! Did you create that on your own or is it a pattern! Either way, it's gorgeous. What's the yarn?

[bernie]

That is completely gorgeous!!! I'm inspired by the colors.