Not So Fancy Nancy

Funky Apron, Japanese Handbag, Backpack & Diminishing Rib Cardi

After an extended search for my crafty mojo, I think I've found my way back to my art room. To any of you whose previous comments have gone unanswered, I'm sorry. I checked out for a while so I could focus on my family and myself. I'm feeling much more in balance lately and the ideas have been flowing again. It was a beautiful afternoon today and I was sashaying around the kitchen in my new apron when I realized this was a good day to blog. Big thanks to my sixth-grader who took the photos. We had fun.

Make cupcakes, not war!

 

My new handabg makes me happy every single day. I got 1/2 yd of this floral fabric from Japan last year and had been waiting for the perfect idea. 

This was a figure-it-out-as-you-go project. After studying Vogue and Anthropology's's website I came up with this design a few weeks ago and made it over a weekend. I love the dupioni silk with the floral pattern. I've been carrying it almost every day since.

I finished this next bag just days before that one, but it sadly became a poor step-child almost immediately. It does make a great knitting bag and I have used it when going to nurseries, Home Depot, etc. when it's nice to be able to go hands-free and I didn't want to chance catching the silk bag on plants or hardware. The strap has a 22" zipper that opens to make it a backpack. The pattern is by Lazy Girl Designs, but I made it a little smaller.

 

This is the project in that bag:

My photographer didn't appreciate that the Rib in the Diminishing Rib Cardi should be in the photo. She worked very hard, so I didn't have the heart to take another when I saw it later. At the time I was too busy squinting into the sun, which choose that moment to drop below the tree and straight into my eyes. The bottom ribbing is still on the needles (that's why I'm holding yarn), but I'll be casting off tonight and picking up the sleeves. Hope to finish while the weather's still cool.

After reading Ravelry about this pattern I decided to extend the fronts to join with a single button. There's a hole there now, but no button yet. I also lowered the neckline to be more open over tanks and sundresses, but I may have to tighten it a little if the yarn doesn't firm up with blocking. The yarn is Lavold's Silky Tweed.

Back to my new apron, which - it has been pointed out - has not left my body since taking these photos. I'll admit it, I'm easily amused. It flounces wonderfully, but again, photo proof was elusive.

Over this weekend I forced myself to overcome my irrational fear of sewing from a pattern. I know it's silly, but there, I've said it:  I was scared of tissue paper. I was scared of the symbols. I was scared of cutting. It's very different from quilting and I'm back to feeling like a total newbie. I want to make a bunch of summer skirts, but I thought I'd better start with a very forgiving project. Saw these Kaufman Metro Market prints at my LQS on Friday, bought 1 yd each and Just Made It! Yeah!

Appliqued Charm Squares Quilt - Fast, Easy & No Piecing

This is the perfect scream-free family room sofa quilt! Scream free? Yes, as in you won't be screaming at the kids like you might (just maybe) do when you find your perfectly pieced and quilted masterpiece wadded on the floor with dirty shoes kicked off on top of it. You won't be screaming when you find the dog's sneaked onto the sofa during the night and made a nest on it. You won't even scream when you find the cat testing her skills on a loose thread. Nope, no screaming because you will happily toss it in the wash so it ... gets better. You'll even thank the cat for teasing out that new unraveled bit for you.

The construction couldn't be simpler:  Join yardage to make a whole-cloth top and bottom the size you desire, then create a quilt sandwich with batting. Lay out the charm squares and run seams from side to side about 1/4 inch inside the edges of the squares. Wash and dry and the raw edges will start to unravel, which gives it a nice casual look. I really love the juxtaposition of the grid with the raw edges. My husband calls it the i-phone quilt. I would too, but I don't want emails from the legal team at apple.

I've created a separate page with more detailed instructions and tips for placing the squares evenly:  Appliqued Charm Squares Quilt Tutorial

Since I know mine will be washed almost weekly, I'm letting time do the work, but if you're giving it as a gift you can tatter it up a bit yourself. Just pull loosened threads gently in the direction of the warp/weft so you don't break your quilting thread. Another run through the washer/dry will give it the perfect patina without throwing it to the mercy of your kids/dogs/cats. 

If you want a more ruffled effect like a rag quilt, you could leave a 1/2 inch raw edge and then clip down every 1/2 to 1 inch along each edge to just shy of the quilting line. 

I used two different Moda charm packs that I've had in stash for at least a year or two:  Flutter-By uses the lighter, brighter tones and another one (the label band was long gone) with darker tones. The top is marbled cotton and the back is hounds-tooth flannel. I didn't have any yardage to match the charm packs, so the bias tape binding is Kaffe Fasset, which I think does a pretty good job since it pulled out all the colors except the red/pink/purple range. The movement created by the twisting, turning stripes keeps it fun.

The speed of binding with bias tape on a project like this really pleases me. The variegated thread is 100% cotton from Coats & Clark from JoAnns.

 

Sending out a big thank you to the very creative folks at Starry Night Hollow for this brilliant idea. Back before the holidays I saw their crib-sized shop samples using this technique with 2.5" squares. They had one with earth tones on dark fabric and another with 30's-style bright prints on a white background and both looked great. I made it sofa-sized with 5" charm squares, but the idea is the same. I figured it out by looking at it, but that can be harder to do by looking at photos on line, so I'm going to give a quick tutorial. I checked with the shop owner before writing this and she graciously agreed this is perfect for sharing. If you're in Southern California, be sure to stop by her truly charming shop, which is only a few blocks from the I-5 in Encinitas.

My helper: 

  

  

What was so interesting? I swung around to catch this:

  

As I took the photo the cat appeared in my view finder. I started to call out a warning, but they were both faster than I could ever be. 

Thankfully, the hummingbird proved fastest this time. No birds were harmed in the making of this blog entry. 

Wendy Benard's Lion Neck Cardigan FINISHED!

WIP it, WIP it good baby! It is a new year and I'm FINISHING my projects!

 

Lion Neck Cardigan from Wendy Benard's Custom Knits

*  Rowan Alpaca Soft (alpaca and cotton boucle)

*  Size 40" on US 10's.

*  Knit to pattern. Top down construction with picked up stitches for ruffle. Omitted front tie.

After a record warm spell through most of January we finally got some rain today! Finished this sweater on Monday, but couldn't find a rational excuse for a public debut until knitting group on Weds night. Wearing a big baggy gray cardigan when it's 80F id's you as a bag lady to anyone other than fellow knitters. Today's stormy skies make this look and feel perfect.

I hereby declare this is the last sweater I will knit sized by bust measurement. The design purposely doesn't meet in the front center (she uses ties to bridge the gap, but I like my pin), so that part is made to pattern, but the shoulders are too big and the underarm holes too deep for me. Given the slouchy style of this sweater I'm OK with it, but customizing is the new order. 

The yarn is super cozy and the color makes me very happy. Nice that something does, because my new bottom braces (not visible here, but very much felt) are lacerating my mouth this week. I'm knitting to occupy my mind because talking and eating hold no appeal. The whole mess is due off in October and trust me, the days are being crossed off my calendar like a kid counting down 'til Christmas!

Winter Oranges mini-quilt for swap

I finished my mini-quilt for Jean, my partner from the Flickr group Swap 'til you Drop. The theme was Sweet, Sour or Savory. 

 

Winter Oranges

14" square

Fabrics:
Kaffe Fasset
Loni Rossi
Michael Miller Fairy Frost Solids

King Tut variegated thread for quilting (90/14 quilting needle)

Overall I really like it. Love the colors and the swirliness of it all and I enjoyed combining photography, paint and quilting. Still very much in learning mode on the free-motion, but it's becoming more fun and less terrifying.

Particularly thrilled with how the stenciled blue/green swirls worked. After all the piecing was finished it just didn't sing for me. It needed that something extra, and the idea of painting came in that proverbial flash. Before I could talk myself out of it I grabbed a stencil, foam brush and acrylics and took the plunge. Nothing like paining on your finished top to make you feel like a tightrope walker without a net!

I had my doubts mid-stream, but it makes me happy. Here's what I like about the stenciling:

- Adds visual interest.
- Breaks the boundaries between the discrete areas - adds motion and improves eye tracking.
- Carries the green/aqua color around the composition.
- Frames and complements, but doesn't overwhelm the photo (a little maybe, but not disastrously).
- Offers compositionally meaningful and natural free-motion quilting lines.
- Grows organically out of the swirls in the two patterns on each side - not "tacked on".
- Strengthens the circle theme and adds curves.
- Texture of the pounced paint balances the smooth surfaces and loosens the vibe.

Took photos in afternoon sun that emphasize the quilting. The colors really are this vibrant in person. I just love orange!

I went a little too far with the stitching in places, but I'm pushing myself to be brave and get an intuitive feel for free motion. Quit while you're ahead is a logical attitude for a lot of things, but this isn't real life - it's play. For me, it's more exciting to take chances rather than stick with safe choices dictated by a fear of messing up. Yeah, I might regret the result, but I've decided not to dampen the impulse. That's one of my New Year's Resolutions. Think I should print a bumper sticker? Quilt like no one's watching. That would mess with people's heads in traffic!

 

Sweaters and Handmade Gifts for Me

Finally! My miserable creative funk is lifting. I really appriciate the emails and comments you've continued to send while I've been AWOL. Lots of positive changes in my life and I'll be sharing some of them here. For today, I'll fill you in on the very limited crafting since my last post.

Finally added buttons to Loppem! The fit in the shoulders and back is great with the pattern size 34, but I definitely recommend adding some kind of bust shaping if your bra measurement is 34-36 and over a C cup. It's perfect after being arranged just so, but this is what happens when I move around, and it gets even worse when carrying a purse. Just add a few stitches between the armhole and the cable band.

Sorry for the bad focus. The auto timer is handy, but then the auto focusing takes over. Loading this photo did make me really look at the side board and wonder why it was so cluttered ... oh yeah, the last vestiges of holiday rearranging. Most things got dumped in my art room. Considered renting a back hoe to excavate. Freed my sewing machine and found my desktop this past weekend. So happy to get my art room back!

This open front cardigan was flying along in mid-December. The pattern is the top-down Lion Neck Cardigan by Wendy Bernard from her book. Rowan RYC Alpaca Soft is not the spec'd yarn, but it is working to gauge. The alpaca/cotton boucle is indeed soft with a pretty good drape. No stretch though, so it's brutal on the hands.

Finished the body and did the endless ruffle before the sleeves, which I thought would inoculate it against the dreaded WIP flu. Yet, this is about where it was a month ago. Not fair really as it fits and I like it. Doesn't help my motivation that we've had the hottest Jan in over 20 years. Is that a collective moan I hear? Well, we do have nice winter weather here in San Diego, but I'm not a fan of 80-90 degree temps in Jan. I want rain and chilly temps for at least Dec-Feb so I can justify sweaters and quilts.

My creative energy may have been depleted, but my mail carrier certainly delivered cheer and inspiration. I am so lucky! Brenda sent me both this pillow and mini-quilt. The pillow uses the same fabric line of a quilt I've already got pieced, so I guess I'll HAVE to finish it next year so we'll have a set for the family room.

Her mini-quilt has such beautiful, elegant colors and will look great in our dining room next year. Thanks so much for sharing with me Brenda!

 Jean, my flickr Swap 'til You Drop partner, sent me this wonderful package:

The swap theme was Sweet, Sour or Savory and her coffee quilt is perfect for me. That cute little box had individual espresso packs and the cat is covering recipes and some lovely fat quarters.

It's such a fun and witty quilt. Thanks Jean! 

I LOVE LOVE LOVE her crazy quilt stitch and bead work!

I watched that swap deadline fly toward me, then swoosh right past. Jean has been very understanding about what's been going on in my life, but I've left her hanging far too long and it's just not fair. Over the weekend I set myself to making her quilt before doing anything else. I'm almost finished, so I'll save that for another post and get back to quilting.

Happy New Year everyone.