Several years ago, when cleaning out her Florida condo and consolidating her sewing machine armada, my Nanny Jo gave me a serger. Sergers, for those of you not intimately familiar with the sewing world and its many strange and terrible nuances, are used for overlocking. Overlocking is a very useful type of stitch for finishing raw edges of fabric so they don’t ravel; and, because it has a lot of.. Read More
Finished Object: Hedera
Yeah yeah. I still knit. So many things in life got fed to the time-hungry monsters that were Awful Job and its accompanying depression, and one of those was my Self-Imposed Sock Club. I finished a measly 4 pairs of that club, and one just this year! So for 2015, I’m aiming to get back on the horse. I’m not aiming too well, judging by the fact that I just.. Read More
Finished Object: Mississippi Avenue
For those of you following along at home, I landed myself a part-time job. Both the up-and downside of this job? It’s a yarn and fabric store staffed by the loveliest and sweetest bunch of enablers you ever met. 🙂 To wit, I present the Mississippi Avenue blouse (view A of the pattern): I had this pretty gray and floral print fabric earmarked for Colette’s Hawthorn (again, the blouse view),.. Read More
Finished Object: Joy
I’ve got a bit of a backlog of finished items to share, so I might actually make something of this whole Me-made May trend. Item the first? A sweater! I started this one way back last April for my dissertation in the final round of Nerd Wars. Due to time constraints of Awful Job, I didn’t even come close to finishing. I’ve been on something of a tear to complete.. Read More
Postcards from Peru
Last February, Neimah took a trip to Peru. As he is wont to do, because he is the best friend I ever had and knows me so very well, he brought me back souvenirs in the form of textiles. This particular trip yielded two large woven wool panels, a bag of clay beads, and some alpaca yarn. I have since discovered that I’m too sensitive to the alpaca to wear.. Read More
Containers of Love, pt. 2
This has so far been a very popular year for comfort items. The friends for whom I made the dragon-scale baby blanket of previous fame have (thankfully) kept me quite busy lately, first with making a repeat of the dragon blankie for another friend of theirs, and then with a ripple afghan for their sister-in-law who’s currently undergoing treatment for leukemia. They picked a lovely, calming blue in one of.. Read More
Finished Object: The Violet Blouse
Yup. I still make stuff. I finished this adorable little blouse yesterday evening. The pattern is Violet, from the inimitable Colette Patterns, with floral cotton voile from Elliott Berman Textiles (I love this shop so, so very much) and some plain black shirting from Gorgeous Fabrics (another favorite, recommended by Gertie). I completed version 2 with elbow-length sleeves gathered with elastic in a bias-tape channel. I decided to go with.. Read More
I Found Out Where the Red Fern Grows
No, really. I did. Two weeks ago, we took off for an adventure in Costa Rica. After ten days spent visiting a different national park every day, driving on roads paved (if they were at all) in gravel and sand, and meeting people who personified the concept of pura vida, here is what I learned: 1) Rough roads make you appreciate what lies at the end of them. As I mentioned.. Read More
Finished Object: Tulip Blouse
Fair warning: I am insanely proud of this project. It may not look like much, but this little blouse is the product of my very. first. drafted. pattern. It all started with a Stitchfix box. I signed up for Stitchfix after a friend recommended it on Facebook. It’s a pretty neat service, actually, especially for people like me who loathe shopping with the fire of a thousand suns. You sign.. Read More
Containers of Love
So many finished projects I need to tell you about. And the first one is this: A dragon-scale inspired blankie for a friend’s new baby boy. Since said friend is our DM and a great lover of all things fantasy, I though a draconic blanket would be a fitting gift. While Webs sent me a different yarn than the one I ordered, the color was perfect and it only turned out.. Read More