Handmade by Knottygal

FOs - nice and not-so-nice!

2012-03-09T10:15:00.000+05:30

Ever came across a situation where your best of intentions have gone wrong?! When I started making framed embroidery samplers, I got the frames done by a professional framer( Is that even a word?!). A thought struck me and I said.. Why not bind the samplers like you'd bind a quilt?! Then, the entire sampler will be made by me! Have you ever felt that something is not turning out as you expected but, you still keep going in the hope that it will be alright in the end, only to discover otherwise. Yes. That's what happened here. sigh Now, I've learnt that I should leave the framing work to the professionals. See the wonky Soft-kitty sampler.

I'm sure if Sheldon or his Mama sees this, they'll think that I'm sick and sing the same song back to me! ;-) I love how the embroidered text came out. Its only the binding that turned wonky and spoilt the whole thing. sigh I was planning to gift this to someone but, alas! I can't gift something that I don't like. That's not fair,right?! I don't have the heart to undo the binding and take out the sampler. I guess I'll have to make another one.

Moving away from sad samplers, here are the frames I made for Alvin's teachers. I got them done in on-the-table style frames so that they can leave it at their desk at work. Two frames for his two teachers.

I love how these came out. I hope his teachers like it as well.

Thank you all for the lovely comments on heirlooms on my previous post. Thank you to everyone who shared lovely stories of the heirlooms in your family. I got some fresh flowers yesterday.. and, my Grandma's ceramic jar was just perfect for them.

I plan to buy fresh flowers now and then and put them in this jar on my kitchen counter. They look so cheerful at the counter,don't they?! All of us are recovering from one or the other seasonal illnesses.. so, this weekend will be all about recharging our energies. What are your plans for this weekend? Anything interesting?

-Josie

Heirlooms!

2012-03-07T10:45:00.000+05:30

Since I don't have any interesting WIP to show you today, I thought I'll talk about some heirloom brass ware that I got from my family. If talk about old tarnished brass ware is not your cup of tea, you might be bored by the rest of the post. ;-) It all started when I was rummaging through a rundown shed at my paternal grandmother's place.. I came across this ceramic jar that was used for pickling lemons and mangoes... used by her. She is no more and I remember her as a soft-spoken lady who was very dexterous with her hands. She used to do a lot of embroidery for home.. pillow covers, table cloth and such. All my aunts and uncles say that I take after her. :-) Here is the jar I stumbled upon..

It is a bit chipped at the rim and shows a lot of wear and tear. There is even a small crack on it. But, I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. I was glad to find something that my Grandma used in her days. Seeing my joy over old scrap items that belonged in the family, my aunt gave me a brass vase that belonged to my Grandma. It came to me like this..

I was over joyed! My Hubster thought I have lost it. Who in their right minds will do a happy dance for a tarnished brass vase?! But, I saw the potential in the brass vase. One round of cleaning will bring this beauty back from sleep. Don't believe me?! See for yourself..

I have plans to use this as a vase. Then my dad donated some more brass ware that he had in his collection that he got from my maternal grand mother.. She is no more and I remember my maternal grandmother as a shrewd lady with a vile tongue, very unlike my paternal Grandma. She always insisted us on getting good grades as she didn't go to school beyond the primary level and I remember her making bobbin lace and selling them for her pin money. I regret not learning the craft of making bobbin lace from her. These are the items from my maternal Grandma..

Boring brass ware,eh?! I got these cleaned.. actually, I requested my Dad to get these cleaned at a shop that deals with brass wares. and, now, they are shinier than ever. See.. See..

I plan to use these items just like my Grandmothers did. I don't believe in hoarding items without using them. My favorite is the small bowl on the right at the pic above. I remember my Grandma using it to store her hair pins and safety pins. I'm using it at the moment to store some embroidery floss. :-)

I'm glad I got these items from my family. I like the continuity that I find in these materialistic items and I hope someone feels enough to take care of these things after my time. Do you have any heirlooms that you inherited from your family? Are you using them or just storing them? Share your stories with me..

-Josie

P.S: Its my brother's birthday today.. Happy Birthday,Nevin! :-) and, a dear cousin's first wedding anniversary too. Happy Anniversary,guys! May you have many more years of wedded bliss!

Does this happen to you?

2012-03-02T08:46:00.002+05:30

Off late,I've seen this happen to me a lot.. Most of my great ideas happen to me at the most inopportune moment.. I'll be at work when I get struck with an idea or inspiration to create something and there is nothing I can do about it at that moment. Makes me want to scream and run..But, then I'll be labelled as 'that crazy lady at work'. sigh How do you handle such moments? Jot down your thoughts on a notepad for future reference? But..but.. it won't feel as satisfying when you work on it later as it will, if you try it immediately. Ok! Enough of my rant,you say? I do have some lovely embroidery frames to show you today. so, let me show you that instead of ranting.. :-) Here is the doodle heart sampler framed and finished!

I love how it came out. The other heart sampler..done on tea-dyed fabric also is framed now. I love the aged look of the tea-dyed fabric. See for yourself..

Here is the 'Take a nap' sampler framed.. This is one of the first samplers that I got framed..

and, my most favorite of the lot.. the crayon-tinted 'Growing trees' sampler. I love this technique.. like a reader said.. a grown-up version of coloring. ;-)

All the designs are from Urban Threads.I have a few more samplers to show you but, I'll save it for another day! We don't want an image overload,do we?! ;-) As you can see, I'm enjoying these samplers a lot.. Small projects that give instant gratification.. what is your kind of project? Instant gratification or long-term satisfaction?! (That sounds cheesy!) Share your thoughts..

-Josie

This post is linked to Creative Friday and FO Fridays.

Happy Leap Year Day!

2012-02-29T09:14:00.000+05:30

Feb 29th! A day that appears by magic every 4 years! To all those who were born on this day, may you have a whale of a time celebrating this special day! For the others,lets have a happy Wednesday! :-) My hobby life is going great.. I learnt a new craft over the weekend! Macrame! For many, this might be their oldest hobby..but, I heard of this only recently. (as if I need any more hobbies!) I saw many pins on macrame in Pinterest. My trusty RavFriends at the South Asian Crafters group on Ravelry are wonderful enablers.. so, a macrame-along was started and all those who were interested joined in.. Here is my first attempt at macrame.

I used the thread and beads I had in hand and referred to this tutorial.This one has been gifted to my colleague/friend's daughter. I was told that the lil one liked the bracelet a lot. :-) Motivated by the outcome, I had to try other pins I had pinned on macrame. It finally felt like the hours of pinning on Pinterest finally paid off. ;-) This pin inspired me to dress up a few drab bangles I had with macrame. Here are the results.

Then I went bead-shopping and came back with ~~a truck-load~~ lots of beads. So, I naturally had to make a few more bracelets. Here are they..

My favorite is the pink and purple one..

I didn't follow any pattern for these bracelets. For the bangles, I made a bunch of square knots with beads at regular intervals. For the bangle make-over, I made double hitches in two colors. Here is the purple one on my wrist.

I'm still working on some embroidery samplers. The soft kitty sampler is done. I'm itching to start something lacy in knitting. I don't remember the last time I knit lace. So, I'll be casting on for a lace shawl soon. Tell me what are you working on..

-Josie

P.S: Thank you all for the crochet love for my previous post. I wasn't able to reply to your comments as last week was a bit hectic with the lil guy down with a bad throat. He is alright now. :-)

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays and Yarn Along.

I'm all a-hooking!

2012-02-24T08:56:00.000+05:30

My interest is crochet is like a sine curve. For a long time, I forget that I know this craft and then out of the blue, I get this irresistible urge to hook! ;-) So, after one such hooking phase, I ended up with a bunch of crocheted FOs. I've been wanting to make this Granny Boutique Bag for a long time after seeing so many cute versions on it all over the web and I finally took the plunge. I made two of it.. The first one is made from Anchor knitting cotton and I used the yarn held double.

The second one was done using variegated acrylic yarn in fingering weight. I love how the colors pooled in this version.

The bags are perfect for use as any gadget cozy. Here are the bags with my Hubster's cellphone for scale. Did I tell you that I lost my phone 2 weeks back?! I was more saddened by the loss of my contacts stored in the phone than the loss of the phone itself. Serves me nicely for not backing-up the phone contacts. sigh

Then, I finished the set of 6 coasters I showed you here. I love how they turned out. I used Summer Spiral Coasters pattern for these coasters and Anchor knitting cotton held double and 4mm hook.

I interchanged the colors for one half of the set. Can you make it out in the pic above? Look closely! you'll spot the difference. ;-) I backed the coasters with coordinating fabric more for saving my face than to add structure. My joins and finishing technique need more practice. ;-) Here is a shot of the back of the coasters.

I'm glad I had coordinating fabric in my stash. I'm happy with my crocheting session. I'm hoping to make many more crochet FOs in the future. But, something new has caught my fancy.. I'll tell you more about it in the coming days. Hope you all have a nice weekend!

-Josie

This post is linked to Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia and FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Soft kitty,Warm Kitty...

2012-02-22T11:14:00.000+05:30

I love watching comedy sitcoms. My all-time favorite is F.R.I.E.N.D.S. I've watched all the episodes so many times and almost know the lines by-heart but, I can still watch a F.R.I.E.N.D.S. marathon. My hubster doesn't get it.. and, I call it our generation gap! ;-) My favorite sitcom that is running at the moment is The Big Bang Theory although I don't watch it regularly or in chronological order. If you are a fan of the BBT, you'll know the song 'Soft Kitty,Warm Kitty.." Its only natural that I use the lines of this ditty for an embroidery project.. so, here is the progress so far..

I plan to do the text in rainbow colors.. I have no plans for this sampler.. I might get it framed.. or make a wall hanging out of it. Here is another cute version of this song that I found online..

Maybe I should make a sampler with Phoebe's song, Smelly cat from F.R.I.E.N.D.S.. no? Do you watch sitcoms? If so, what are your favorites? I've been hearing about Downtown Abbey a lot in the forums I'm part of.. but, I haven't had a chance to watch it.. Is it that good? Share your favorite sitcoms with me..

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tami's Amis and Yarn Along hosted by Small things.

Earrings storage and display stand!

2012-02-17T08:39:00.000+05:30

This is a FO of a different kind because it doesn't fit into my usual crafts.. Remember ages ago, I told you about my weakness for earrings. This has something to do with it. I love earrings.. earrings that dangle as the post-style earrings don't suit my face. I've been collecting earrings since my college days. So, after years of collecting them, I ended up with a storage problem. I used to store them in tiny ziploc pouches and it became the shabbily organized part of my dresser table. So, after browsing online for storage ideas for jewelry, I made my own..

Here is how it went.. I found an old showpiece that was gathering dust in a corner in my home. I removed the frame around it. So, I got a frame.

Then I got a piece of steel mesh and nailed the mesh behind the frame. You can find this mesh in any hardware store.

Tada! The earring storage and display stand is ready. Don't believe me?! See it for yourself..

This works only for hook-style earrings. So, this is only half of my earring collection. I need to find a way to store and display my hoop and ring-style earrings. I see lotsa empty spaces in this stand. Time to go earring shopping, I guess. ;-) I have some earrings that are about 10yrs old in this collection. The best part of my day when getting ready to work is picking out a pair of earrings to go with my dress. :-)

Yes. That's an obscene amount of earrings(C'mon! Everyone has a dark side to them, don't they?!) but, I simply can't resist the charm of a pair of lovely earrings. They don't cost so much and they are an easy way to cheer up your face without makeup. At least that's my argument and I stand by it. ;-) So, tell me what do you collect? ceramic figurines? whimsical salt and pepper shakers? earrings and bangles? Share your stories and make me feel better, please..

-Josie

Crayon tinting in quilting!

2012-02-15T08:58:00.000+05:30

Have you heard of Pinterest?? If you havent, go there NOW!! Seriously! That site is my current addiction. There is something for everyone there and I go there daily for casual browsing or for some serious inspiration. One such expedition lead me to this lovely blog called MamaCJT run by Carol. She does absolutely AMAZING work. Please visit her blog and spend some time on it. You'll be amazed. Here is a sample of her work..

image copyright Carol Turznik

Can you believe that the entire piece is done with fabrics? lovely work isn't it? After getting inspired by her work, I had to try my hand at it. Since I haven't tried applique quilting till now, I decided to try the crayon tinting in quilting and here is my meek attempt at it.

Its very obvious that I need practice. I have a long way to go before I can perfect my free-motion quilting techniques.But, I plan to get there with practice. Do you have a technique that you are trying to learn in your craft? Share your story with me..

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Happy Valentine's day!

2012-02-14T08:59:00.000+05:30

For all the incurable romantics who are celebrating Valentine's day this year, Happy Valentine's Day! And, to the rest, every day is a Valentine's day. Isn't it?! so, Happy Tuesday! Here is a doodle heart from me to you!

I love the way it turned out. I'll get it framed soon. Since we are in the mood for hearts, here is another one called the Heart of darkness.

I embroidered this on tea-dyed cotton fabric. Its the same white fabric used for the doodle heart above...only dyed with tea. I recently stumbled upon tea-dyeing fabric and I'm glad I did. I love the rusty, antique and aged look it gives to the fabric and I can dye using stuff from my kitchen pantry. Here is a close-up comparison of the original and tea-dyed fabric.

Nice, isn't it?! OK. Forget tea-dyeing.. Tell me what's your plan for the Valentine's day.. Anything special planned? As I told you in my previous post, Alvin is my Valentine and he has gone to school now. ;-) Its your turn to share your story here..

-Josie

Eternal Love!

2012-02-13T09:11:00.000+05:30

As I told you earlier, I'm in the mood for 'lurve' this Valentine season! Since I have 2 men in my life, finding nice gifts for them becomes doubly challenging. Just when I was going bonkers coming up with something for them, I came across a design from Urban Threads that appealed to me a lot, something that could work on men! ;-) I embroidered it on a plain tee I got for Alvin and its a perfect Valentine for him. :-)

If you can't make out what the design says, it says: eternal love. Cheesy,huh?! Alvin was so proud to wear it to school today. Its Rainbow Day at school for him today and he was supposed to go in one of the rainbow colors and this tee was just perfect! Here is he today morning..

I so want to embroider this on one of my hubster's shirts. But, I don't think the grown-up baby will want it on his tee. ;-) Here is a close-up of the design.

So, Alvin is my Valentine this year. I think I'm celebrating Valentine's day after so many years.. I remember going all gung-ho about it in college days. Those days! Are you celebrating Feb 14th this year? If so, who is your Valentine? Are you making anything special for them? Share your stories with me..

-Josie

House on a pillow!

2012-02-10T09:00:00.000+05:30

Are you wondering what happened to the house sampler I talked about here ? Well.. it got itself a pair and they both became cushion covers. ;-) I started the sampler on a whim and it took its own course and ended up as this.

I used the reversed design for the second sampler. The pattern is from September House called ScandiStitches. I had these polka dot fabric in my stash and everything fell into place in the end. Here is a close-up of the sampler while it was on the hoop.

Its a pretty house. Isn't it? I used simple back stitches and French knots for this sampler. I winged the design for the cushion cover and it fits a 16 inch pillow form nicely. I made the covers as envelope style cushion covers, the simplest kind.

These were made as a gift for a friend and I had a tough time packing these as a gift. I so wanted to keep them for myself. ;-) Oh! Don't worry. I did send it to her and she has received it too. See! I'm not a bad girl after all! I like projects like this that turn out nicer than how I visualize when I start them.

Do you have projects like this..that turned out beyond your expectations? Do you have a link to it? I'd like to see projects that pleasantly surprised you..

-Josie

This post is linked to Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia and FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Hearts for the season!

2012-02-08T09:00:00.000+05:30

I'm not a big fan of the Valentine's day tradition. Hubster and I don't exchange gifts for Valentine's day. But, this year I've caught the Valentine bug and want to make things with hearts in it. :D So, I started another sampler from Urban Threads called doodle heart. Here is the progress so far..

Since I can't stay monogamous to one project, I have another in progress as well. I've been wanting to try crayon tinting in embroidery and finally took the plunge. There are a bunch of tutorials on it.. Here are a few I referred : Little Dear Tracks and Urban Threads I got myself a 48-color crayon set from Faber-Castell and I felt like a kid when I worked on it. Here is my attempt at crayon tinting.

I'm glad with the results. Its a fun technique and adds a zing to the stitchery. I see myself using this technique a lot in the future. What is a new technique that you tried in your craft and liked a lot? Any fun techniques that you want to share..

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tamis Amis and Yarn Along hosted by Small Things.

Shapely Stripes Cardigan!

2012-02-03T09:04:00.001+05:30

By popular demand (lol!) , I'm sharing the Shapely Stripes Cardigan that I finished last week. The house sampler has to wait for another day. I've worn this cardigan to work this week and it feels oh-so-comfortable and snug. When I started this cardigan, I was going to call it the Shapeless stripes, given my shapeless shape. (Shapeless shape! sounds funny.) But, this cardigan is pretty flattering to my figure and I'm thankful for that.

I love the length of the body and the sleeves and the best feature I like in the sweater is the hood I added to it. It didn't come in the pattern but, I wanted to add one. So, I winged it. It turned out nicely and goes with the sweater. Here is a view of the hood.

Here is how I added the hood. I hope it helps anyone who wants to add a hood to a sweater.

Pick up as many stitches you cast on, along the cast on edge. If you had foresight unlike me, you’ll do a provisional cast on and use those stitches later.
Knit 2 rows and increase 4 stitches evenly in every right side row till you've increased 12 sts. That is, 3 increase rows. You can go on increasing if you prefer a fuller hood.
Stop increasing and knit as set for about 11 to 12 inches and begin the crown decreases.
Pick 2 center stitches (or 1 center stitch if you picked up odd number of stitches at the cast on edge) and decrease on either side of the center stitches in every alternating row till you comeback to the original number of picked up stitches.
Fold the hood and Kitchener stitch the top of the hood or do a 3-needle bind-off.

Hood is done! Here is me with the hood on. :-)

I got perfect buttons from Itsy Bitsy. I got carried away with the button holes and put in about 10 of them. The sweater looked cartoon-ish with all the big buttons down the front. So, I took out about half of them and it looks alright now.

A Rav Friend mentioned to me that the colors in the sweater reminded her of Calvin and Hobbes. Its true, isn't it? Its one of the brightest garments I own currently. ;-) The bright orange yarn was from my Clapotis that was sitting in my closet without getting any use. I'm glad I frogged it to use for this sweater.

Here are the stats:

Pattern : Shapely Boyfriend
Yarn : J.Sagar Wash n wear Blended wool
Needles: 4.5mm and 4 mm(for ribbing)
Started: Dec 3rd,2011
Finished : Jan 29,2012
Ravelry Project: Shapely Stripes

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis.

This and that!

2012-02-01T09:35:00.000+05:30

Yes. I have my hands full with this and that. I'm realizing that I prefer smaller projects that finish faster. So, embroidery samplers are my go-to projects these days. I have a new sampler in progress. I can't show you the full thing now. Here is a sneak-peek at it..

Its my first time embroidering letters and I'm using split stitch for this. Its my first time using this stitch and I love the volume it gives to the lines. This is another design from Urban Threads! Can you tell that I'm smitten with this site?? I have another crochet project in progress. Again a small project.. Here is a peak at it..

I'm happy to tell you that I have finished both my Shapely stripes cardigan and the embroidered house sampler. I'll reveal one of the either on FO Friday. But, you have to choose.. Leave a comment and let me know which one you want to see on Friday. Shapely stripes cardigan or house sampler?

ETA: The question might not apply to those who know me on FB or Ravelry. ;-)

-Josie

January Birthday Swap!

2012-01-31T08:45:00.001+05:30

Did I tell you that I'm participating in a Birthday Gift Swap in the SAARC group on Ravelry? Its positively a fun swap.. Almost 20 of us are participating in it and it runs through the year, although the sign-ups are closed now. Everyone gets a gift package on their birthday from the other swappers consisting of 3 items.. one handmade item, one store-bought item and one item that represents where you live or where you are from. Interesting, isn't it?! I can't wait for my birthday in June. ;-)

The Jan-Babies(Babes!) are Sanhita and Viraja. Both of them are experts in so many crafts and I was stumped by what to make for them. After much deliberation, I decided to make a notions pouch for Viraja. Instead of making a simple rectangular zippered pouch, I decided to make a curved zippered one using Keyka Lou's tutorial. The place-specific gift is a shell with her name written on it. I'm from the southern most part of India and there are beaches all around us. The shell represents my town known for the beaches. Here are the goodies I sent to Viraja.

For Sanhita, I made an embroidered wall hanging. I just started with the 'Love in the middle' motif without much thought..but, everything fell into place in the end for this project. I got the right paint for the hoop and I love the final product so much so that I want to make another one for my home. Here are the goodies I sent to Sanhita.

I'm having fun making stuff for my crafty friends..and, I'm sure its going to be a fun year of swaps! Have you participated in swaps? If so, what is the most fun package you received? I'd like to hear about your swap experiences..

-Josie

Autumn Treatise!

2012-01-27T08:47:00.001+05:30

The Autumn Treatise sampler is done and I'm in love with it. I love embroidery designs that are simple and quirky and this one fit the bill to a T. Since I like Fall colors on a tree, I chose them for the leaves. Here is the completed sampler.

I painted the embroidery hoop in red color to go with the theme and finished it with a few coats of Modge Podge. The design is Autumn Treatise from Urban Threads. I used back stitch and satin stitch for this sampler. I love the simple stitches in embroidery. Some day, I'll branch out to the textured stitches. But today, I'm enjoying the simplicity of the back stitch. Here is a close-up of the design..

The tree looks so happy and cheerful in Fall colors,doesn't it?! This is going to be a gift for a friend. :-) I have another sampler in progress.. I'll only give you a sneak peak at it at the moment, as I have bigger plans for the sampler. Here we go..

I'm loving this chaotic phase that I'm going through where I'm trying my hand at this and that and not sticking to a single hobby. I think its highly impossible for needle-crafters to stay loyal to one single hobby. So, tell me what are all your hobbies, both active and passive ones.. Is there a craft you've been wanting to try but, haven't had a chance to? I have one and that is weaving. I so want to learn it but, I don't have any means to try it anytime soon. What about you?

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

Plodding along...

2012-01-25T09:00:00.000+05:30

Yes. I'm plodding along on my Shapely Stripes sweater.. not that I'm not enjoying the knitting. Its so mindless that I am easily blending knitting and reading. :-) The sleeves are done and as planned, I'm knitting a hood for this sweater.. Here is the progress so far..

My upper arm looks so thin and toned,huh?! However, its far from the truth.. This being a fitted sweater, I feel like the sleeves are screaming... "LOOK HERE!! BIG FAT ARMS!!" Don't believe me?! See for yourself..

I blocked the sweater after the sleeves were done to make sure I like the length of the sleeves and the body. No point risking the length of the sweater after the button bands are done... Here is it blocking..

I hope to finish this sweater so that I can get some use out of it before the Summer sets in. What is on your needles or hooks? Share with me unless its a top-secret for-your-eyes-only project. :P

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tami's Amis and Yarn Along hosted by Ginny.

The Stripes and Spots Quilt!

2012-01-20T09:12:00.000+05:30

Finito. Done. A Queen-sized quilt in a week! Its a major milestone in my crafty career. ;-) What started as a simple indulgence in a fabric shopping spree turned out to be a lovely quilt.. I'm so thrilled to finish this quilt. So, sit tight and join me along the journey of the Stripes and Spots quilt from fabric to quilt. This is going to be an image-heavy post. Please bear with me :-) Let's start with the fabric.. I decided to buy these 3 fabrics at the last moment of a fabric shopping expedition during my Christmas vacation. I'm glad I did.

I always buy fabrics in coordinating prints, if I can. That way I don't have to worry about trying to pair them up in projects. I didn't have any projects in mind when I bought these fabrics. Who does,huh?! After I came back from the vacation, I thought.. why not make a quilt top with these fabrics? I wanted quilt patterns that use 3 prints for the top and I chanced upon the Stripes and Spots Quilt in the book Quick Colorful quilts I had, which used 3 prints for the top.

The quilt doesn't involve any cutting of difficult pieces. Only straight forward strips of fabric needed for this quilt. Have I told you how much I hate the cutting part in any sewing project?! So, about 2 hours of cutting yielded the fabric strips needed for the quilt top. All credit goes to my trusty rotary cutter. :-)

Since the fabric pieces are perfect strips, I chain-pieced the blocks and in a few hours I had the blocks ready. The blocks weren't squared and I'm suspecting it to be an error in the pattern measurements. But, anyways, a few hours spent squaring the blocks yielded perfect blocks for the top. Here are the blocks!

Sewing the blocks went quickly and soon I had the quilt top ready. I added a border of white fabric to increase the dimensions of the quilt. I wanted a bit of overhang on all sides of the bed and the quilt top was a tad smaller that I'd like it to be. So, here is the top laid on the bed before I quilted it.

At this point I was a bit worried if I have chewed on more than I can bite. The size of this quilt kinda stumped me. Its only my second quilt and my first one was in year 2009. That is 2 years back! But, I can't back out after completing about half the job,right? So, I persevered. I made the binding using the floral fabric in the top. I had to buy fabric for the backing and I found a perfect gingham fabric for it. Since we don't get cotton batting in India, I used a pair of polyester fleece blanket found in abundance here.

I went ahead and basted the quilt on my living room floor. It was huge AND heavy! I almost broke my back pinning the quilt sandwich.

Then came the quilting part.. sigh I had to setup my dining table in my living room to get it done. My sewing corner wouldn't fit this bear of a quilt. So, here is the setup in my living room.

I debated between echo-quilting and free motion quilting and finally decided to do free motion quilting. I didn't know what I was getting into when I took the decision because my shoulders were cursing me when I was quilting the sandwich. It was a pain to manoeuvre the quilt sandwich to do free motion quilting. But, it was either me or the quilt and I wasn't gonna let the quilt get the better of me. ;-) I managed to get the quilting done in 3 days of quilting in the evenings after work. Phew! Squared the quilt and bound it with the machine.. Ta da! Here is the finished quilt!

Warning: The following text is NOT for the squeamish. It literally took my sweat and blood to quilt this as I ran the machine's needle through my left index finger while doing free motion quilting. The needle broke and I had to pull it out of my finger myself. Gross, eh?! Don't worry. Its alright now. Got a tetanus shot and the wound is healed now. So, after all this hard work, it was so warming to see my lil guy tumbling on the quilt the moment I spread it on my bed..

My Hubster is so smitten with the quilt and in fact, we were fighting over who gets to sleep under it. Oh! we shared the quilt like any good kid would. ;-) There are a lot of puckers and pockets in this quilt as my quilting skills aren't that perfect. But, its going to be one well-loved quilt in my home. Here is a look at the binding.

and, a close-up of the quilting..

Here is the quilt all folded up. Its a warm quilt, perfect for Bangalore weather. I don't think I'll be making another quilt anytime soon. Maybe another 2 years before I can work up my courage to tackle a project as big as this.. Till then, this quilt will be well-fought for in my home!

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Autumn Treatise - In progress!

2012-01-18T09:31:00.000+05:30

Thank you for all the kind comments on the dumpling pouch in my last post! I'm glad to tell you that my Stripes and spots quilt is finished.. I'll share about it on FO Friday! After I finished the quilt, I needed a break from my sewing machine. So, I took up some embroidery.. I chanced upon Urban Threads online and am smitten by them. The designs are so modern and quirky and the best part is most patterns cost you 1USD. Awesome, isn't it?! So, I promptly started a design from Urban Threads called Autumn Treatise. Here is the progress..

I love trees. In fact, I searched high and low over the internet for a design based on the 'Tree of life'. This one came pretty close to it. This is going to be another wall hanging. I love how its coming up..

I'm totally smitten by these embroidered wall hangings.. I have a plan to get a few designs framed for my home.. Let's see..how that goes.. Whats your current WIP?

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Dumpling pouch!

2012-01-13T09:00:00.000+05:30

I've been wanting to make a zippered pouch with a curved opening for quite sometime. So, when I chanced upon this tutorial, I jumped at the chance to make one. There are 2 versions of this pouch and I made the easier one to start with, as its my first time sewing a zipper along a curve. Here is the cute pouch..

The exterior is re-purposed fabric from an old corduroy pants I had. I used some of this fabric to make my project bag sometime back. The lining is a cotton print I had in my stash. I love how the lining goes with the corduroy fabric.

The pouch is perfect for storing notions in a project bag..or as a coin purse. :-) The tutorial is very simple and straight-forward. I recommend it to anyone willing to try sewing zippers. Here is the pouch turned inside-out.

This is going to be a gift for a dear friend. I hope she likes it. I'll give the 2nd version a try some day.

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia

Stripes and spots quilt - progress!

2012-01-11T11:00:00.000+05:30

I've made good progress on the Stripes and spots quilt this week. So much so that I'm done with the quilt top. Yaayyy! Its a humongous quilt and I'm starting to get worried if I've bitten more than I can chew. My first and only quilt till date was made in 2009. So, my quilting skills are more than rusty. I really really hope I don't mess this one up. Here is the top spread on my bed it is being made for.

I made the binding from the flowery fabric and I had just enough of the fabric to make the binding. There goes my plan to make matching pillows for the quilt. sigh Here is the roll of binding..

I'm planning to use one of those cheap polyester fleece blanket that are abound everywhere here. We do not get 100% cotton batting in India. So, we have to improvise. For my first quilt, I used cotton flannel in natural color. I do not have enough of that in my stash to use for this quilt. So, I decided to use a fleece blanket instead. Here is the one I chose for the batting.. Couldn't find a piece in white or off-white color. oh well! Doesn't matter, I guess.

and, here is the fabric I chose for the backing. I didn't have a coordinating fabric in enough quantities for the backing. So, I had to go fabric shopping and I found this pretty gingham fabric in similar colors. I'm hoping that its works well in the quilt.

Now, all I need is a day for myself with less or even better, no interruptions to quilt this one. I think I should move my sewing m/c to my dining table as my sewing area at the moment can't handle such a big quilt. I'm debating between free motion quilting(FMQ) and stitch in the ditch quilting. I'm not much experienced in FMQ but, I like the look of it. What do you suggest? FMQ or stitch in the ditch quilting? Help me decide, pls.

-Josie

Crafting from stash!

2012-01-09T11:48:00.000+05:30

Yes. That's my New Year's wish! Just like any self-righteous crafter who renews the same resolution to craft from stash every New Year, I wished just the same for this year too. Which just meant a frantic shopping spree on Dec 31st! ;-) I bought lots of fabric this time to add to my stash.. My most favorite purchase is these 3 coordinating fabrics..

I didn't have any plans when I bought these fabrics..but, now I want to make a quilt for my Queen-size bed. :-) I even have a pattern in mind. I plan to make the Stripes and spots quilt from the book Quick Colorful quilts.

I think the quilt will look lovely in these fabrics..

So, I cut the fabric over the weekend and pieced the blocks. The cutting went pretty quickly with my trusty rotary cutter. Chain-piecing the blocks made it go even faster. Here are the blocks ready for more piecing.

I hope to make good progress on this and see this to completion before I lose the wind in my sails. Maybe I should add 'Seeing projects to completion' to my New Year resolution as well! If you are wondering what happened to the shapely stripes sweater I was knitting when 2011 ended, I'm glad to report that I'm done with one sleeve and have another sleeve half-done! I will post some pics of it here soon. :-)

So, whats your New Year resolution crafty or otherwise? Mine is to craft from stash and to finish projects that I start. Easier said than done,huh?!

-Josie

Love in the middle!

2012-01-06T09:00:00.000+05:30

I'm done with the embroidered wall hanging and it came out lovely, much beyond my expectations! I think its the simplicity of the pattern that makes it so charming. Here is the finished wall hanging.

I painted the plain wooden embroidery hoop with pink acrylic paint from Fevicryl and finished it with Modge Podge. Its my first time painting and finishing anything and I'm thrilled with the results. I'm glad I got a coordinating color for the hoop. I've only basted the fabric at the back so that its easy to remove and clean it if it gets dusty and dirty. Here is a close-up of the painted frame.

My design tracing skills need more practice. Can you see the wonkiness in the motif? I can.. ;-)

I love learning the names of the stitches I use. The stitches I used for this motif are back stitch, satin stitch , lazy daisy stitch , French knots and running stitch. I see many more embroidered wall hangings in my future. They are so much fun to make and gives you instant gratification. :-) Whats your favorite instant gratification project?

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

Happy New Year 2012!

2012-01-04T10:07:00.000+05:30

I wish all my readers a very happy and craft-filled New Year 2012! I had to start something fresh in the New Year to kick start it..and embroidery seemed to have caught my fancy. Its been a long time since I did any embroidery. So, it feels nice to revive an old hobby.. just like catching up with an old friend.. ;-) So, here is my WIP. Its a simple design called Love in the middle available for free.

This is going to be a gift for someone special and I'm thrilled with how its turning out. My tracing skills needs more practice as the design came out a bit wonky on the fabric. But, its alright.. It kinda adds to the charm of the motif, I feel.

The motif is almost done now and I can't wait to give the finishing touches. Hopefully, this will be ready in time for FO Friday. :-) How did you start your New Year? Did you start something new? Any interesting resolutions anyone? :-)

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

Year 2011 - In retrospect!

2011-12-31T10:00:00.000+05:30

Year 2011! Where did it go?! I feel as if I blinked and missed it. 2011 has been a good year for me on the blog-front. I wrote about 80 posts this year which is almost half the number of the total posts on this blog. Damn good,right?! This is the year I really enjoyed blogging, loving the virtual world I've created here. I've met wonderful bloggers here and know a few regulars by their name too. So, a very big thank you to all my readers, silent and otherwise.

To recap year 2011, it was a happening year for me hobby-wise.too I picked up a new hobby in spinning and I took to it a bit fiercely. I went on a spindle and fiber buying spree. But, I think I've got it under control now. ;-)

I published my 3rd scarf knitting pattern this year - the High tides scarf. :-) I knitted my first Noro striped scarf.. my long-time wish was completed with this scarf. I knitted a Whippoorwill and an Aase's shawl.

There wasn't much crochet this year. The only thing I crocheted was my most fave bag yet.. my Lobster hobo bag.. I knitted my first hat this year and my first adult garment - a Minimalist cardigan.

I enjoyed a bit of sewing too, this year. I made a project bag big enough to carry sweater projects and a chic hand bag to use a pair of wooden handles I had. I made a table runner for my dining table and some fabric flower fridgies to dress up my fridge. ;-)

I participated in the Knitting and Crochet blog week for the first time and I had a fun week of blogging then. I wrote a bunch of tutorials hoping that it will help someone. I crossed my 100th post on this blog this year and I had a giveaway for that. All being said, I'm happy with how year 2011 went by and I'm hoping that year 2012 holds equally promising things. :-) How was your year 2011?

Here is to a promising year 2012!

-Josie

Just checking...

2011-12-29T10:23:00.000+05:30

..on you guys.. sneaking a few mins out of my hectic year-end vacation to say hi to you guys... Hope you all are doing good and enjoying a lovely holiday season. Are you busy making resolutions for the New Year? ;-) Here are a few pics from our vacation..

The Christmas tree at my parents' place..

Alvin roughhousing with his Uncle..

...playing with his cousin..

and, yours truly trying out my dad's shiny new bike! ;-)

We are enjoying this much-needed break.. Hope you are having fun holidays too.

-Josie

Shapely stripes progress!

2011-12-21T09:39:00.000+05:30

This might be the last WIP update in this year as I'll be busy between Christmas and New Year. Lotsa yummy food to eat, meeting friends and family, our wedding anniversary falls between Christmas and New Year and its our 6th one this year. So, Christmas season is a special time for our family and I always look forward to the busy holiday season every year. Anyways, I digress.. I'm making good progress on my Shapely Stripes sweater.. I'm done knitting the body of the sweater and have started the sleeves. Here is a shot of the sweater before I started the sleeves.

I have a feeling that the sweater is a tad too long for my taste as I'm sure it will grow a few inches during blocking. I'm planning to block the sweater before starting the ribbing neck and button band to see if I like the length. If I don't, I'll take out two stripes to reduce the length.

I also have an ambitious plan to add a hood to this sweater. The only problem is I'm not sure I have enough yarn for that. I'll let you in on another secret too. ;-) The orange yarn came from this project. I frogged(unraveled) the Clapotis stole I knit in the orange yarn as the stole wasn't getting used and was sitting idle in my closet. So, I salvaged the yarn from the stole and am using it for this sweater. Makes me doubly glad while knitting this sweater. :-) Here is the Clapotis stole that is no more existent. ;-)

The sleeves are going a bit slow as I'm using magic-loop technique (video link) and the yarn-wrangling and needle maneuvers make it go very slow. Its my first time with magic-loop and I realized that I like this technique better than using DPNs (video link). I'm kicking myself for not trying this technique before. I used to love working on DPNs but now, I'm a convert to magic-looping.

Isn't it a nice feeling to learn a new technique that makes your life a bit easier? What technique did you learn that liberated you from a difficult one? magic-looping? reverse knitting for entrelac? Learning Continental or English style to make color-knitting easier? Let me in on your secret technique. I promise I'll keep it a secret! ;-)

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

Its beginning to look a lot like...

2011-12-14T09:33:00.000+05:30

...Christmas!! Yes. Christmas season is in full swing and this year we have a tree at our home. This is our 6th year as a family and we have never had a tree. But, this year.. my Dad who was visiting us last week insisted that we put one up.. so, we got a tree.. of course, its a fake tree. :D

Since there was no plan for a tree, I didn't make any ornaments for the tree either. So, all the ornaments on it are store-bought ones. There is a cute snowman ornament on the tree which is my favorite. The snowman looks so cozy in his knitted hat and scarf. :-)

I love the lights on the tree.. I had these lights with me for a long time and they finally found their use.

On other news, I have another sweater in progress. Looks like I'm on a sweater kick. Here is the progress so far..

I lurve stockinette stitch. I love the smooth simplicity of it. So, this pattern appealed to me the moment I saw it. Decided to work in stripes to keep it interesting. I love the colors.. its bright and cheerful. I'm working on this in every spare moment I get..so, its going real fast. :-) and, given my love for stockinette stitch, this is unputdownable. ;-)

What is your unputdownable project? Is it a shawl? a sweater? a scarf? What pattern is it? Give me all the gossip you got.. ;-) I'm all ears.

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's amis.

Sunday Soul Sante!

2011-12-11T21:33:00.000+05:30

Its a flea market filled with handicraft items made by independent designers and hobbyists , yummy food and good music! Its my first time visiting the Sante and I loved it.. more so because a few of my RavFriends had their stalls this time. :-) Its always fun to meet your friends and the setting was just right to meet them. Here are a few pics from the Fete. This is going to be an image-heavy post! You've been warned.

Some quirky planters for the garden..

Scented candles..

Some lovely painting for sale..

Quirky bottles flattened as vases.. I wonder how they flattened those glass bottles.

A pencil sketch..

Some tie-dyed tees!

Funky vases..

Here are my friends at their booth.. Saritha, Tanu and Sanhita. :-) Hope you had a fun day too, ladies!

And, here is Alvin munching on popcorn..

There were puppies for adoption too..

Here is my loot from the day.. A lovely pair of Christmas ornaments from Rainbow Bunting by Saritha. The other pair is hanging elsewhere in my home.

A canvas grocery tote from KaraaShilp by Tanu. I love the print on it and the flower on the tote is crocheted from plarn. :-)

Lovely work, ladies! Keep it going!

-Josie

My first ever adult sweater!

2011-12-09T09:51:00.000+05:30

Yes. I did it! I knit my first ever adult sweater for myself and it fits me nicely too. Someone please pinch me for a reality check. Those who have been around my blog for a while will know my fear of knitting anything that has to fit.. Shawls,scarves and bags are piece o'cake for me..but, a sweater that has to fit gives me the shivers. So, it really is unbelievable to me that I knit a sweater for myself.

The sleeves gave me some trouble while seaming but, I showed them who the boss is. ;-) Blocking lengthened the cardigan by a few inches but, that's fine with me. There is absolutely no shaping in the body of the sweater. I love the 3/4th length of the sleeves..avoids getting the sleeves wet while washing hands.

Here is a close-up of the sleeve setting. I'm not very happy with it but, I can live with it. ;-) I love the texture of the fabric and after knitting acres of double moss stitch, I think I can knit it in my sleep. ;-)

With this cardigan, I feel that I've come of age as a knitter. When I started knitting about 5 years ago, I didn't dream in my wildest of dreams that I'll knit a sweater for myself. So, I'm glad I persevered and saw this cardigan to completion. Here are the project stats:

Pattern: Minimalist-Cardigan
Yarn: J.Sagar Wash n Wear in Denim color
Started: July 26,2011
Finished: Dec 8th,2011
Ravelry Project page: Minimalist Cardigan

I wore it to work and my work-friends gave it a thumbs-up! This cardigan is going to be lovingly used a lot as this is my one and only cardigan now. I think I can remedy that by starting another sweater.. I'm thinking this one: Shapely boyfriend although I don't like its name. ;-) Do you have any suggestions for a simple stockinette based top-down Raglan-style cardigan? I don't want to attempt cap sleeves or set-in sleeves in the near future. Let me know if you have any..

-Josie

This post is linked to Creative Friday by Natural Suburbia and FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis.

Minimalist - Almost done!

2011-12-07T09:17:00.000+05:30

I'm finally seeing light at the end of the LONG tunnel! I've finished the knitting part of my Minimalist cardigan and the only thing remaining is the seaming of sleeves. The cardigan is blocking as we speak, drying on my guest bed. I like the fit before blocking. I hope it doesn't grow a lot during blocking. Here it is on me now. As I said, I'm yet to seam the sleeves.

I did try seaming the sleeves before blocking but, I didn't like the fit. I'm hoping that blocking will ease the kinks and make seaming and the fit easier. Here is the cardigan body blocking wrong side out..

and, here are the sleeves blocking too..

The sleeve on the right does look a bit wonky. I'm really excited about this cardigan as its my first ever adult sweater. I hope it doesn't turn out to be a disaster.

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

Christmas came early this year!

2011-12-05T10:02:00.000+05:30

Yes. It did! In the form of a swap package all the way from Nupur @ One Hot Stove. I participated in a Holiday supplies swap which was a Secret Santa swap for hobby supplies. Awesome, isn't it?! Nupur was my secret Santa and she totally spoilt me with her generosity and thoughtfulness. Here are the goodies she sent me..

2 skeins of Knitpicks Palette in one of my fave colors and a GORGEOUS 4oz braid of Merino/Bamboo/Tussah fiber from Corgi Hill Farm. From Corgi Hill Farm! I've heard so many good things about CHF and I finally have a chance to try one of their fibers. Here is a close-up of the fiber and yarn..

A Christmas-themed plate for Alvin to snack on!

Cotton fabrics with cute cupcake and sheep prints to sew.

and, a cute pin-cushion ring and some freezer paper to try something new.

Isn't she so generous?! I can't wait to dig into these supplies to create fun things out of them. I am thinking project bags out of the fabrics and a scarf out of the yarn. The fiber obviously will become yarn. ;-) So, tell me what was the last gift you got from a friend or family? Who played the Secret Santa with you the last time?

-Josie

Babies are fun! – part 2

2011-12-01T11:06:00.001+05:30

Thank you all so much for the baby ensemble love. But, which baby ensemble is complete without the booties?! So, I made cloth baby booties to match the ensemble and they are so stinking cute. I’m realizing that it is so much fun making tiny items for tiny babies. Pls excuse the dim lighting in the photos. Its very cloudy and gloomy here in Bangalore.

I used this pattern to make the shoes. Just to put things into perspective, here is one shoe next to my Sony Ericsson 550i phone. ;-)

and in my hand..

Ridiculously cute, isn't it?! Is it sad that I want to keep the booties for myself?! Now, I'm itching to meet the baby so that I can see her modeling the ensemble. :-) Here is the entire set I've made.

I've to wait for another 3 weeks before I can meet the baby.Considering the year 2011 which flew in a blink of an eye, 3 weeks won't be that long. Don't you agree? Now that we are in the last month of year 2011, are you looking back at the year in retrospect and ruing things you did and didn't do?! At least, I am. How do you feel about year 2011? was it a good one for you, crafty and otherwise? Maybe I should write a post about year 2011 in retrospect. :-) Enjoy the last month of this year, my peeps!

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Fridays and Creative Fridays.

Babies are fun!

2011-11-25T09:13:00.000+05:30

Aren't they?! When my son was a wee one, I made very few things for him.. A baby-blanket I started when I was 5 months pregnant was completed when Alvin was 6 months old. ;-) I made a hat for him which he used very rarely. and, after that I never made anything for him. Now that my cousin had a baby girl recently, I decided to sew something for the little one. So, I started with the classic reversible A-line dress. I drafted the pattern myself eyeballing the size for a 3-month old baby. It took me about an hour to make this dress from drafting to finishing. I referred to this tutorial to sew the dress.

I used press buttons for the snaps. The fabric you see above is a simple cotton print and I used printed flannel for the other side. I am meeting the wee one during Christmas. so, I made the dress in a 3-month baby's size and I am hoping that she has lots of room to grow in this dress. Here is the other side of the dress.

Since I had lots of these fabrics left over, I made matching bib too. So, reversible bibs to go with the reversible dress. :D

and, the other side..

The next plan is to make matching booties. Auntie Josie is having so much fun making cute baby stuff that this girl is going to be one well-dressed babe in the block! ;-) So, what are you having fun creating at the moment?

-Josie

This post is linked to Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia and FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis..

Meet Gino!

2011-11-21T11:59:00.000+05:30

Our recent trip to Mysore/Ranganathittu resulted in a shopping trip in Channapatna known for colorful wooden toys. So, when I saw this cute lil guy on the store shelf, I couldn't resist bringing him home with me. So, all of you meet Gino, the Giraffe. He is very colorful and looks very goofy.

You'll see more of Gino on my blog in the days to come. He is just the adorable guy to give company to my Mafia dog on my craft table. Ain't he the cutest Giraffe in the block?!

Tell me what is the childish thing you coveted recently? What was the last thing you bought to satisfy the inner child in you? Do you have a Gino or a Mafia dog like me in your home

-Josie

WIP roundup!

2011-11-16T10:43:00.000+05:30

Thank you all so much for the stitch marker love. I am glad you like it and hope the tutorial is useful to you.

It's been quite some time since I did a WIP roundup. I haven't been regular with my WIPs these days but, recently revived my Minimalist cardigan that I started ages ago. The weather is getting colder in the evenings and I feel cold when I go out in the evenings. The chill in the air reminded me of my hibernating cardigan. I hope to finish it and use it this winter. Let's see how that goes.. I am done with the two fronts and half-done with the back. I knitted the body in one piece till I separated for the armholes. Once I finish the back, I'll get started on the sleeves.

and, here is the meager progress on my linen stitch scarf done with my own hand-spun. I haven't been working much on this, I must say. I am almost finishing one skein of the yarn and will be starting on the second skein soon. :-)

and, I started something for a baby that entered our family recently. My cousin gave birth to a baby girl this month and it presented a good opportunity for me to make some baby items. I wanted to crochet a top for the wee one and here is my progress on it so far.

The pattern is the Angel Pinafore by Bev's country cottage. Its a lovely pattern and very easy to crochet too. I'll meet the baby only during Christmas so, I plan to make a few more things for her before I get to meet her. I am thinking a few bibs, and some sewn dresses. what do you say? What do you prefer to make for babies? hats? tops? bibs? I would love to hear your thoughts..

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

-Josie

Easy to make knitting stitch markers - a tutorial!

2011-11-09T10:00:00.000+05:30

Every knitter will need need a bunch of knitting stitch markers at some point of time in their knitting career. And, there are a variety of stitch markers.. starting from a piece of yarn or a rubber band to the gorgeous beaded ones. My first attempt at beaded stitch markers went just fine but, I wasn't thrilled with working with jewelry findings. They weren't perfect in my eyes. So, I never gave them another try after that episode. But, these lovely beads in my stash made me want to try my hand at making stitch markers once again.

I thought I'll make a different kind of stitch markers than my previous attempt. I had about 4 mts of tiger tail wire in my jewelry-making stash and lots of crimp beads. So, after about 30 minutes, I had these in my hands!

These are so easy to make that I had to share the how-to with you guys. So, without much ado, lets move onto the tutorial. This is what you'll need to make these easy to make knitting stitch markers.

A length of Tiger tail wire or Jewelry wire or any flexible wire.
Beads
Crimp beads
Flat nose plier
Wire cutter

For Bangaloreans, you can get all these materials in Itsy Bitsy.

Step 1:

Cut about 4 inches or 10 cm of the Tiger tail wire. Fold it into half and thread both the ends of the wire onto one crimp bead like this. If you don't want the stitch markers this long, reduce the length of the wire used to your preference.

Step 2:

Now thread both the ends of the wire through the bead like this.

Step 3:

Add another crimp bead to this. Thread both the ends of the wire through the crimp bead. Now, this is what you have..

Step 4:

Now, adjust the position of the beads on the wire so that a little bit of wire is peeking out of the second crimp bead like this.

Flatten the crimp bead near the ends of the wire with a flat nose plier like this.

Step 5:

Flatten the other crimp bead maintaining it close to the stitch marker bead. Like this...

Step 6:

We are almost done. I promise. Get your wire cutter and cut the ends of the wire peeking outside the crimp bead flush against the crimp bead. Like this...

Ta da! your shiny new knitting stitch marker is done.

Now, go make gazillion stitch markers like this and admire them! I hope you like the tutorial and if you do make some stitch markers using this tutorial, do share the pics with me. :-) I'll be glad to see what you make.

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's amis.

-Josie

Onto the Mysore Zoo now!

2011-11-07T10:00:00.000+05:30

From Ranganathittu, we went to Mysore which was just 30kms from there. We've been to Mysore quite a few times now but, never visited the zoo till date. The zoo has a perimeter of 3 kms and we entered it right about lunch time before having lunch. Big mistake! You can't walk around a zoo with a hungry stomach.. Feed your tummy and then enter the zoo! Otherwise, you'll be dealing with a rumbling tummy and impatient kids! We saw this lovely installation at the entrance to the zoo...

The giraffe enclosure was at the entrance and we got to see the giraffes even without entering the zoo. A few giraffes were sitting on the ground so still that I mistook them for giraffe statues. ;-) They were so still and stationary that it took me a while to spot any movement in them and realize that they were real live giraffes. Here is the giraffe statue that I am talking about.

We did get close to them. There were 5 giraffes in total in the enclosure and they indulged us by coming close to the edge of the enclosure and giving us a closer look. I guess they are used to the visiting Homo Sapiens! See the lazy 'statue' Giraffe in the background?

We saw quite a few birds in their enclosures.. parakeets, lorikeets, flamingos, peafowl. I couldn't get good photos of them. But, here is a back shot of a gorgeous peacock that I snapped..

There were many tigers in enclosures. There was a cage with a lovely white tiger and 2 Bengal tiger cubs. The cubs were very playful roughing each other up and running around the enclosure. It was a lovely thing to watch. Here is another white tiger we saw in a different enclosure.

Too bad, I couldn't get any of them to pose for me! ;-) We saw a few Emus and here is a romantic emu couple coochie-cooing. ;-)

All in all, it was a fun and relaxing day spent with the family and we hope to do it regularly in the coming days. One does need a fun break once in a way, don't we?! When was the last time you went on a fun trip and where to?

-Josie

An impromptu picnic to Ranganathittu!

2011-11-03T07:31:00.000+05:30

Tuesday was a holiday for all of us on account of Karnataka Rajyotsava and we decided to go on a day-long trip to Ranganathittu - a bird sanctuary 125kms off Bangalore. We went with my SIL's family and it was a FUN day and a much needed break for all of us. The weather was AWESOME and stayed the same till we returned. The sky was a gorgeous blue and was dotted with fluffy clouds.

We only spotted pelicans as this isn't the right season for the migratory birds. Apparently, January - March is the right time to visit this place. But, the highlight of the day was the crocodiles we encountered during our boat ride. Of course, we were all a bit scared at first. But, seeing them docile and minding their own business, we relaxed. Then, it became fun to spot a croc that was camouflaged with the surroundings.

We were told that the crocs don't disturb us unless provoked. Our boat never ventured very close to the crocs. For the first time after getting my camera in June, I appreciated the 21X zoom capability available in it. :D Thank God they invented the zoom! ;-) We saw a total of 6 (I think!) crocodiles. Some were swimming in the lake and some were lounging in the islands on the lake. Like this guy..

I wondered who feeds these crocs or what they feed on! Not a good thought while still on the boat, I must say. I can now proudly put this day on my resume as the most adventurous I've ever been. Never thought I'll venture into a place with free-roaming crocs. Eeek!

This little guy had a lot of fun as he had his cousin to goof around with.

For those who guessed it was a necklace on my last post, you were all right! On the way to Ranganathittu, we crossed a place called Channapatna known for wooden toys and items. Its a heaven for the inner child in you. So many colorful toys in cheerful colors. That is where I got the necklace. Its made up of colorful wooden beads and its so LONG that I can double it up and wear around my neck. Here it is on me. I'm wearing my High tides scarf too. :-)

From Ranganathittu, we headed onto Mysore to visit the zoo. I'll share photos from the zoo in another post. :-) What is the most adventurous you have been with nature? met a lion in its den? petted a crocodile? swam with the sharks? Share with me your most adventurous encounter in the wild..

-Josie

Guess what is this!

2011-11-02T15:10:00.001+05:30

Guess what is this?? Leave a comment with your guess.. here is another pic just to tease you. Its very colorful, isn't it?

-Josie

Spindle storage!

2011-10-26T14:46:00.000+05:30

Any crafter will go through this at some point or the other.. Yes. That's right. Storage issues! I think almost every crafter is a hoarder in disguise. Not true?? Then, I guess at least, I am a hoarder moonlighting as a crafter. ;-) Living in a 3-bedroom apartment with floor-to-ceiling shelves has its own advantages. I can, for the most part contain my crafty paraphernalia to one room and its shelves. But, I'm always looking for storage solutions that look nice. I collect cute looking boxes and tins in a hope that they'll come in handy some day... So, I had this whiskey tin that I filched form my Dad to hold all my straight knitting needles. When I came across it in my craft room, I had different ideas for it.

I'd been looking for a way to store my drop spindles without getting the shaft warped. That means, hanging the spindles by their hook from somewhere. but, where?! When I saw this tin, I had a light bulb moment.. What if I let the spindle hang inside the tin from its lid?! how about if I put a loop in the lid for the spindle to hang from?! good idea? Absolutely! so, that's what I did. Ta da!!

I punched a hole on the tin's lid and put in a loop with a jewelry finding so that the spindle can hang from the loop. There is foam lining the insides of the tin and it can store great amounts of fluff to give the spindle a safe padding. Here is a closer look at the loop..

Smart, isn't it?! Now, all I need is a few more whiskey tins to store all my spindles. Anyone willing to donate a few whiskey tins for a valid cause?! I guess, I need to find friends who drink and make them drink whiskey that comes in tins! Too bad that we don’t drink. ;-)

If you are drooling over the spindle in the photos, its a Spinzone spindle which spins like a dream. It feels so right in my hands.. great finish and perfect balance. I didn't like the triangular hook that came with the spindle. So, I tweaked it a bit and now, its perfect for me. I'm spinning my Polwarth fiber on it now.

I have another Spinzone spindle on which I did some spindle surgery. ;-) I removed the hook on the top-whorl entirely and I am using it as a bottom whorl and it spins just as lovely as this one. I'm spinning some Merino fiber on it and I can't seem to put it down. The fiber is from WC Mercantile and it drafts like buttah!

As you can see, I've removed the hook from the spindle. I'm also seeing that I like spinning with the bottom whorl as much as I like a top-whorl spindle.. Here is a picture of the spindle in its entirety. The finish is lovely and the spindle feels heavenly in my hands.

Here is a close-up of the whorl.. I love the wood grain on it... see, the hook is missing.

I think I opened a can of worms when I bought the spindle starter kit 2 months back. I have a total of 8 drop spindles and one Russian support spindle on its way to me, as we speak. :D Remember, I'm a ~~crafter~~ hoarder! I guess I'll join a 12-step program for spindlers now. ;-) So, what's your latest crafty addiction? yarn? fiber? fabric? We can never have enough, can we?!

P.S: Thank you so much for all the bag love for my previous post. My new bag feels very loved and the owner is very proud of it. :-)

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

I'm ready to paint the town red!

2011-10-21T09:29:00.002+05:30

...with my shiny new bag! The bag that I showed in progress in my last post is done and I am thrilled with how it turned out. I bought the wooden bag handles on a whim and never gave them a second thought after that. So, when I finally wanted to use them, I was stumped by the shape of the handles. I've seen many bags in stores with such handles..but, never paid much attention to them.. so, I couldn't recollect them to reverse engineer their shapes. Finally, my google-fu brought this cute bag up from Flickr and I liked the look of it.

So, here is my interpretation of a simple rectangular bag with oval wooden bag handles. I didn't stick to any strict measurements. I made the bag roughly about 12 inches tall and 13 inches wide. The outer fabric is printed linen quilted onto plain flannel with diagonal lines. Pssshh! Don't look so closely. The lines aren't straight! ;-) I love how the handles go with the outer fabric.

I love the cheerful print and I was lucky I had all the items in my stash. The lining fabric is a simple cotton print and I had matching zippers too. As usual, I put in 2 zippered inner pockets using this tutorial from U-Handblog. I added magnetic clasps on a tag for the bag closure. Here is the close-up of the inner pocket and the magnetic snaps.

I am glad the body of the bag came out proportional to the handles. Its very handy and holds all my usual stuff without being bulky. The inner pockets are an added bonus. This is now my most favorite bag in my collection. Here I am , ready to paint the town red, with my shiny new bag!

I didn't think the bag will turn out so nicely..so, I am tickled pink with it and, it only took me about 3 hrs to make it.. of course, with a zillion interruptions from my son. So, what did you make recently that you were very thrilled about? Care to share the excitement with me?

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

WIP roundup!

2011-10-19T11:31:00.000+05:30

Its Wednesday and time for the weekly WIP roundup. I have a few active WIPs that I am excited about. After a brief hiatus from sewing, I am back at my sewing machine to make bags. I got these wooden bag handles from a supplier a few months back but, never bothered with them till date. I got my spindle spinning kit around the same time I got these handles and the handles were easily forgotten. After 2 months of exclusively spinning, I was itching to make bags. I raided my fabric stash yesterday and re-discovered some printed linen that I got while I was in Hyderabad. So, the fabric and the handles are on their way to make a new bag.

I have put in 2 inner pockets with zipper closures and plan to put in a magnetic snap for the bag closure.I like my bags to have secure closures. I was lucky I had zippers that match the lining fabric. The lining is a simple cotton print I had that complimented the outer fabric.

I designed the bag on the go. I got the idea for the shape from this cute bag I saw on Flickr. I drew the pattern on a newspaper and used the newspaper template to cut the fabric. I love the outer fabric. It is so cheerful. The only thing pending now are the handles. Here is the body of the bag waiting for the handles.

Moving on to the spinning front.. I got some Polwarth fiber from Woolgatherings recently and I am spinning it on my Spinzone spindle. The spindle is a beauty and spins nicely with perfect balance. It came with a triangular hook and I wasn't comfortable spinning with it. So, I tweaked the hook and now, its perfect for me. Here is the spindle with the fiber on it.

Polwarth is lovely to spin and I am trying fractal spinning with this braid. Fractal spinning is one where the entire braid is separated lengthwise into thinner locks and spun from. When plied, this results in preserving color changes to a certain extent and the color changes blend in otherwise. Lets see how this goes. Here is the braid of fiber before I started spinning from it.

Moving on to some knitting.. here is the progress on the scarf I started with my handspun Shrek-in-the-swamp yarn. I started the lengthwise linen stitch scarf that is available in many versions online. I love seeing the color changes in the scarf and its my travel knitting projects as its mindless and easy. I'm about 30% done with the scarf.

The pink yarn around the edges is the provisional cast on. I'll unravel it and bind off the edge using the same bind-off used for the other edge. I haven't decided on the bind-off yet. Here is a close-up of the scarf.

Phew! That was a LONG post, wasn't it?! That is what happens when you have too many things going on at the same time. So, tell me what are you busy with now? knitting? crochet? spinning? sewing? Share with me and make me feel better about the zillion WIPs lounging in my home.

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

Shrek in the swamp - Done!

2011-10-14T10:25:00.000+05:30

If you've been following my blog o'er the past few weeks, you would've seen umpteen updates about Shrek in the swamp.. The yarn is finally done and I am happy with it. I got about 360 yards of fingering to dk-weight yarn. So, the fluff went from this..

to this..

I switched spindles in between the spinning..which turned out to be a rookie mistake. The consistency of the singles changed resulting in the variation from dk-weight to fingering weight. I Navajo-plied the singles to preserve the color changes in them..

I love this technique of plying so much..as it uses up all the singles without any remnants and the color changes are preserved. I did write a photo tutorial on how to Navajo-plying on a drop spindle. Do check it out if you plan to try this technique of plying on a spindle. Here is 2 ounces of the yarn N-plied on my 3G Woodworks spindle before the twist was set.

Here is the yarn on my 1-yard niddy-noddy. I love winding yarn on the niddy-noddy.. Its almost zen-like..like a form of meditation..

I've started a scarf with this yarn..but, I'll tell more about it in another post. Hope you all had a lovely week and hope your weekend is a fun one.

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

Navajo plying on a spindle - Tutorial

2011-10-08T19:48:00.000+05:30

Here is the promised photo tutorial of Navajo-plying or chain-plying on a drop spindle. Its very easy to learn this technique and you can make a 3-ply yarn without the hassle of making a 3-ply plying ball or wrangling yarn from 3 separate plying balls. All you need is one single stranded plying ball , a spindle and a few inches of leader yarn. This is a photo tutorial and I have tried to capture the steps involved. If any step is unclear, please feel free to let me know.. I'll try to get better pics of it.

Disclaimer: There is no spinning police and there is no single way to skin a cat. This is how I do it and I do not take credit for the method. I learnt it from various youtube videos and from the stellar book, Respect the spindle by Abby Franquemont.

Navajo-plying or Chain-plying on a drop spindle - A Photo tutorial

A plying ball is easier to manage and keeps your singles under tension, avoiding tangles and unnecessary swearing! For this tutorial, I used a 2-ply lace weight yarn as I didn't have spun singles lying idle. I keep the plying ball in my left hand for easier control. This method is easier to visualize/understand if you already know how to make a foundation chain in crochet.

Attach the leader yarn to your spindle and thread your single from the plying ball through the loop in the leader yarn.

Make a simple loop of the single by tying a knot in it. Make this loop big enough for your fingers to enter.

Now, put your fingers through the loop in the single and pull some more single to make a new loop.. just like making loops in a foundation chain in crochet.

Now, reach through this new loop and pull some more single to make another loop. Keep doing this till you have about an arm's length or a length that you can manage to spin on the spindle.

Once you have the length you can manage, move the live loop on to the index finger of your left hand (the hand that holds the plying ball). You have made a length of 3-ply yarn but without any twist in it, out of a single-ply plying ball.

Pinch the junction where the 3 strands end and only the live loop is left. I have circled the junction in the pic below.

I pinch this place together with the plying ball like this.

Now, give the spindle a spin in the plying direction which will be the one opposite to the direction in which the singles were spun. Once the entire length is plied, wind the plied yarn onto the shaft leaving a few inches free. Make a half-hitch or use the spindle's hook and free the pinched live loop. Move this loop onto your right hand and make some more chained loops and continue the process as described above.

Ta da! you are making Navajo-plied yarn! And, you thought this was rocket science?! ;-) I find it easier to sit or stand and park the spindle between my knees and then make the chained loops. It gives a bit of tension when you make the loops which avoid tangles and kinks in the singles.

One other way to make this even more easier is to make a plying ball entirely of chained singles. So, just grab one end of the single cop that comes off the spindle, make a loop by tying a simple knot and chain big loops with your fingers. Wind this chained singled into another plying ball and then ply this plying ball in the plying direction just like any other plying ball. Did I make any sense at all?! I prefer to ply as I chain the singles as it becomes one single process rather than make another plying ball and then ply it.

I hope my text and pictures made sense and helped you in some way to master this plying technique. Let me know if it helped or not. I'll be glad to hear from you.

-Josie

First attempt at Navajo plying on a spindle

2011-10-07T14:29:00.000+05:30

I'd heard so much about this technique that I was intimidated by it and almost didn't want to try it. Navajo plying on a drop spindle! Well, I tried it and its very easy. Its so easy that I can do it on auto-pilot mode now. I referred to a few videos and read about it on Abby Franquemont's book, Respect the spindle. I recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn to spin on the spindle. Its very comprehensive and lucid which makes it a wonderful reference book for beginner and experience spindlers alike. And, it has photos of gorgeous spindles to fuel your spindle addiction.

Remember the half ounce BFL samples in pink and blue that I got with my spindle purchase from Babknits @ Etsy. I decided to try my hand at Navajo plying or chain plying on a drop spindle with those samples. I love the small amounts of fiber samples that come with spindle purchases. They let you try new techniques on a small scale just like the quilted mug rugs.

So, I spun the singles on the blue wooden spindle and plied it on the same.. The best thing about Navajo plying is the less amount of yarn wrangling needed for plying. Make a simple plying ball or wind off the spindle directly to Navajo-ply the yarn. This technique is easier if you know how to make a foundation chain in crochet. I am planning on a photo tutorial for this technique.. I hope to get it done over the weekend. :-) So, do you want to see what this fiber became after the spinning and plying? Here it is..

I got about 65 yards of fingering weight yarn in each skein. I love the way the colors have shown up in the plied yarn. Navajo-plying preserves the color progression in the dyed fiber, which I love so much. I am planning to make a double knitting sample out of the two skeins.

But, these days.. I am more interested in making yarn than knitting anything out of it. ;-) I am thrilled with how my first attempt at Navajo plying on the spindle turned out. I've started N-plying my Shrek in the Swamp singles too and I'm liking the way its turning out. But, that's a post for another day.

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

Spindle acquisition!

2011-10-05T10:13:00.001+05:30

I am almost done with 4 ounces of my Shrek in the swamp BFL fiber... I can't wait to finish spinning it so that I can start plying it. I've conquered the Navajo-plying technique and will use it to ply this one as well.. Here is what is remaining to be spun..

Do you recognize the WIP's living quarters? Its my up-cycled shoe-box that I use as a WIP box and it matches this spinning project. :D The spindle is my most recent acquisition from 3GWOODWORKS. Its a 0.77oz Lacewood whorl-Walnut shaft spindle and it spins like a dream..

I bought 2 spindles from them and I've only used this one. The other one was bought on a whim and I'm not sure if I'll ever use it.. I must have been out of my mind when I ordered it as its so tiny.. Here is a pic of the tiny spindle with my cellphone for comparison.

and. the gorgeous lace wood/walnut spindle..

I dropped this one hard on the floor while spinning and kinda loosened the hook. I had to do a minor surgery on it to repair it.. Its alright now..but, the incident has made me scared of dropping the spindles frequently. Also, I think I need to stop buying spindles and buy more fiber instead. After all, what use are these spindles if there is no fiber to use them on?! Any one else go on irrational buying sprees for your hobbies, like me?!!

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

Alvin turns 4 today!

2011-10-03T09:35:00.000+05:30

The li'l imp in my home turns 4 today! And, I'm still in denial that its been 4 years since I went screaming into the labor room. ;-) My brother and in-laws are visiting us and my SIL is joining us for a lunch-do. There's gonna be yummy food and of course, cake! I still can't believe that 4yrs have gone by.. It feels just like yesterday that I was given the li'l bundle into my hands! Happy birthday, Alvin! We love you!

The sleepy pic was taken on his 8th day in this planet and the other one was taken today. :-)

Thank you so much for the comments on my first lace weight skein of yarn. I am a bit behind on responding to the comments on my previous post..I'm sorry about that.. I've been busy with planning this day for Alvin...I got to go now.. so, you have a nice day, my dear friends!

-Josie

The beauty and the beast!

2011-09-30T09:06:00.002+05:30

Let me start by warning you that this is an image-heavy post! When I started spinning, my aim was to spin fine yarns as I like working with them. Thick and chunky yarns give my wrists and fingers aches! And, as with any other craft, spinning too has a learning curve and the first 2 skeins of yarn I made were on the bulkier side. You can see them here and here. But, constant practice and patience really perked up my spinning skills and I've made my first lace-weight skein. happy dance!!

I got about 90 yards of lace-weight yarn from a half ounce batt of fiber. Not bad,eh?! The fiber came as a sample along with my spindle purchase and this is only my third skein of yarn. So, understandably..I am thrilled with it. So, let me share the process with you with a few pictures.. First, I halved the batt into two as I was going to make a 2-ply lace weight yarn. I spun the fiber on my spindle into cob-web weight singles...

I made 2 batches of the singles and wound them into a ball separately.

From these balls, I made a 2-strand plying ball. This needed some serious yarn wrangling from my side. I had these soup bowls that I was given as gifts from a close friend of ours. They've been unused as we rarely have soup at home. But, the bowls came in handy when I had to make the plying ball. I strung the ends of the two balls through the handles of these soup bowls and wound the two strands into a single plying ball. The bowls saved my sanity big time.

and, the two balls became a single 2-stranded plying ball. Here is the plying ball.

Then I plied the strand from the plying ball onto the same spindle I spun the singles with. Spinners usually use a heavier spindle than the one used for spinning the fiber for plying. But, I didn't have spindles free. :D Here is the spindle with the plied yarn.

Then the yarn was wound onto my 1-yard niddy-noddy for skeining. I was thrilled with the outcome. I counted about 90 yards of lace weight yarn.

I tied the skein in 4 places to keep the strands from tangling..I had to set the twist in the yarn..so, I soaked the yarn in hot water for about an hour and hung it up for drying. Here is the yarn after the twist was set.

Lovely isn't it?! Now, if you are wondering why I titled this post as 'Beauty and the beast!', this is why.. Remember my first ever skein of hand-spun?! I had to compare this skein of lace weight(my third ever skein) with my first skein, I had a pleasant shock..and the shot reminded me of 'The beauty and the beast' , the beauty being my lace weight skein and the beast being the rustic and fugly first hand-spun skein.. See for yourself.. ;-)

That is some difference,huh?! I am very glad that I am able to make yarns that I like to knit with.. considering that I am only a month old into the world of spinning. I haven't decided what I want to make with this yarn.. maybe lacy bookmarks.. what can you make with 90 yards of lace weight yarn?! Do you have any ideas or pattern suggestions? Leave a comment and let me know.. I'll be glad to hear from you.

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Friday by Tami's Amis and Creative Friday by Natural Suburbia.

Riot of colors!

2011-09-28T09:29:00.000+05:30

Here is a sneak-peak at my WIPs this week.. of course, all of them are spinning WIPs. I've been procrastinating on a test-knit scarf. Its a lace scarf that needs more concentration than I can muster after a tiring day at work, with a pre-schooler interrupting me every 5 mins. I hope to get cracking on it soon.. Meanwhile, I am finding how easy and stress-free spinning is.. now, look at the pretties on my spindles..

The green and gray ones are my BFL from woolgatherings. The white fiber is a merino sample and the pink one is again BFL, both came with my spindles from Babknits @ Etsy. I am going to learn how to navajo-ply with the pink singles. I am done with spinning the pink BFL and will attempt navajo-plying tonight. Can't wait to get off work today.

What are you working on these days? I have 2 more spindles coming my way. This is becoming a serious addiction, but who is complaining?! So, tell me what are you obsessed with these days? I promise I'll keep it a secret! :P

-Josie

This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays by Tami's Amis.

I haz a sad! :-(

2011-09-21T09:21:00.000+05:30

Remember I told you about a few light weight spindles that I ordered a while back.. They still haven't arrived here. I am starting to panic.. I've had my share of lost packages..but, of late, I've had better luck with the postal department. Maybe I've jinxed my luck by mentioning to others that I've had a good run with India Post. The spindles were posted to me on Aug 22nd and its been a month now. They are coming all the way from the US to Bangalore, India and I have no way to track the package. I am so sad that I can cry! Please send some good thoughts for the spindles.. it needs all the good luck in the world!

A happy update:
I got the package delivered. All I needed to do was to consider it lost and I got it! Phew! All is well in Josie's world. Here are the beauties that came in mail today..

I can't wait to get off work today to take these out for a spin. The spindles came along with some fiber.. here is the entire bunch.. I am one happy lady today!

-Josie

Mug rug mania!

2011-09-16T13:23:00.000+05:30

I just realized that I totally forgot to share with you guys about a quilted mug rug swap that I took part in Ravelry recently. Quilted mug rugs are an easy way to try various quilting techniques on a small scale.. The swap came with a challenge where your swap partner has to make a mug rug by interpreting the challenge you have thrown and its a secret swap. so, till you receive your swap package.. you won't know who has made the mug rug for you.. I rarely sign up for swaps but, this one was tempting me..so, I jumped in. The swap came to an end in August...no packages were lost and everything went well. Now that the swap is over, I can show you what I sent and what I received. First let me show you what I received from Ann all the way from Ontario,Canada. The challenge/theme I gave was Ocean and here is her interpretation..

The blue fabric has sea weeds in it and the green fabric had sea turtles in printed on it,.. the white lace trimmings stand for the waves and foam..and, the yellow fabric stands for sandy beaches.. I got my own piece of the beach side in my mug rug. The best part is, I have matching china to go with the mug rug and it was put to use right away. :-)

hmm.. I love me some choco-chip cookies! Who doesn't?! Thank you so much, Ann for this gorgeous mug rug. I'll treasure it and use it for my coffee-and-cookie breaks. :-) My swap partner in the other half of the transaction was Alexis from Materials and Method. She is an experienced quilter and I was a bit stumped by what to make for her. My challenge was 'rule-breaking' piecing. After a lot of head-scratching.. I settled on a mug rug that involves curved piecing. I've never attempted curved piecing and decided to challenge myself to try this technique.. here is the mug rug I sent her..

The pattern is called playful pinwheels and is available here. And, I tried my hand at free-motion quilting with my newly acquired darning/quilting foot. I must say that between the curved piecing and free-motion quilting, my seam ripper and I became BFFs. ;-) I added some Chumbak goodies to go with the package and here is what I sent to Alexis. Thank you Alexis for sharing this pic with me. (The doofus that I am, I forgot to click a pic of the package before mailing it)

© Alexis

I am glad that all the packages were received safely and on time. All in all, it was a fun swap to participate in. Have you participated in swaps? if so, what was your memorable swap and why? Share with me as I would love to hear from you.

This post is linked to FO Friday hosted by Tami's Amis, Creative Friday hosted by Natural Suburbia.

-Josie

Shrek in the swamp!

2011-09-14T14:05:00.000+05:30

Wondering what the title of the post means?? That's the name I've named the colorway of the fiber I'm spinning currently. After finishing up with the fiber in the spindle kit, I had to buy some more to feed my fiber addiction. I turn to Etsy for all my online craft shopping. So, naturally I ~~browsed~~ ogled at all the lovely fiber available for sale there and ended up buying some from Woolgatherings. Its 100% BFL fiber which was suggested as a good fiber for a beginner to work with. BFL stands for Blue Faced Leicester, a kind of sheep. Here is the fiber I bought..

It has various shades of green with bits of gray interspersed. So, the name "Shrek in the swamp!" I have ordered some light weight spindles for spinning finer yarns. I couldn't wait for the spindles to arrive. So, I started spinning this fiber on my beginner spindle that came in the kit.. Patience is not my best trait ;-) Here is the fiber on the spindle..

Doesn't it look 'Oh so purrty' sitting there in the bowl?? These days, I am spinning in every possible moment I get.. Its so easy to stop and resume..so much better than knitting/crochet.. no need to scratch your head to find your place in the pattern and I can walk around while I spin. Alvin loves to give the spindle a spin while I'm drafting and is always saying "me..me..me.." while I am spinning.

I have spun about 2 ounces of this yarn and I have about 6 more to go. Did I tell you that I bought 8 ounces of this fiber? I wanted to have enough yarn for a BIG project out of it.. And, I have started plain finger-less mitts out of my first skein of yarn..but, I do not have any pics of the progress yet. I am working on a lace scarf that I am test knitting for Uma from Ravelry. Its a lovely pattern but, needs some serious concentration from my side. Its been so long since I made knitted a lace project.. I hope to made some good progress on this scarf this week.

This post has been linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis.

-Josie

Dizzy from spinning!

2011-09-09T12:08:00.000+05:30

I've taken a sudden and fierce obsession with spinning.. No! not the kind that has you pedaling a stationary cycle so that you lose the inches you've been fighting forever! The kind where you spin animal fiber on a spindle to make yarn.. I had posted about my progress on the the dyed fiber that came in the beginner spinning kit here. I finally finished spinning and plying the fiber and this is the yarn I made out of it.. My first official skein of yarn!

I got approx 150 yards out of 4 ounces of fiber. The yarn is very inconsistent and the thickness of the yarn varies from lace-weight to bulky-weight. :D it has a rustic feel to it and its far from what I aimed to spin.. Ah well! Its my first attempt and I have to begin somewhere,right?!

I am planning on making finger-less mitts out of this yarn.. plain stockinette mitts..to show off the yarn.. because, this yarn really can't show off any pattern! ;-) My spinning skills improved considerably as I came to the end of the 4 ounce fiber supply. The difference is clearly seen in the pic below..

The strand in the left look so much even and consistent that the strands in the right.. and, I ran out of fiber right when I was getting the hang of the techniques. sigh But, the mailman came with a package from Woolgatherings with the fiber I had ordered.. so, it was all good in the end.. I had ordered 100% BFL fiber to move on from the beginner fiber I got with the beginner spindle kit.. I've started spinning it too. More on that in another post.. :-)

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted my Tami's Amis and Natural Suburbia and Fiber arts Friday.

-Josie

A few quilled cards!

2011-09-07T17:27:00.000+05:30

First of all, a warm welcome to all my new followers. Thank you so much for following me and for the encouraging comments you leave on my work. I've been on a quilling spree lately. Quilled cards are pretty easy to make and a fun way to personalize your gifts.. A friendly couple had their house-warming ceremony last week and I made this card for them at the last minute. I had gotten them a store-bought gift and I felt something was missing.. so, I made this card for them.

I designed it on the go.. I knew I wanted to make a quilled house and ended up with the scene.. I had to move the house a bit far from the coconut trees as otherwise, the house looked so tiny against the gigantic coconut trees.. ;-)

I made a few more simple cards to go with a few packages.. I hope the recipients like them.. The packages for the 100th post giveaway winners have been mailed.. I hope it reaches the winners safe and soon.. :-)

I'll talk more about my spinning adventures in the next post. I've made my first official skein of yarn and I am on the hunt for patterns. More on that in my next post.. Till then, take care!

-Josie

My first handspun!

2011-08-26T10:52:00.002+05:30

I've got so many things to learn.. so many things to try.. but, so little time to accomplish all of them! Spinning has been on my radar for a long time and I purchased a drop spindle spinning kit on Etsy on a whim. It arrived promptly and I gave the spindle a try.. Oh! why-oh-why did I do that?! I've been enjoying it immensely..so much so that spinning should be made illegal! ;-) Remember the spinning in progress I showed you here? What happened to it, you might ask. It became this positively fugly yarn..

I don't think I'll use this yarn.. I'll keep it as a reminder of how far I've come in spinning as time goes.. I spin for minimum of half an hour every evening to get more practice and I can see the improvement in the consistency of my drafting skills. I've got a long way to go before I can spin the yarn I want.. but, I'm getting there in baby-steps.. I have started spinning the hand-dyed roving that came with the kit and here is a sad night-time photo of the progress..

Then, I made some quilled cards to send with a few packages.. I love how simple and easy this craft is.. definitely an easy way to personalize your gifts and mails..

I have a few more cards to make before I can mail those packages out.. :-) I've got a busy day tomorrow! Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

-Josie

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis. Go here or click on the image below for more FOs on a Friday.

100th post giveaway winners!

2011-08-24T19:56:00.000+05:30

Guys, we have the winners of my 100th post giveaway. A big thank-you to all those who participated in the giveaway.. Here are the winners..

Anuradha C P

Stitched together

Vikki

Lyndee

Karin C

Congratulations, all of you! All of you will be contacted via email for snail-mail addresses and your prizes will be on your merry way! I am not revealing here which of the 5 prizes each one is getting, just to keep the surprise element intact. ;-) I hope you guys like your prizes.

-Josie

Last day of the 100th post giveaway!

2011-08-23T09:37:00.001+05:30

Today is the last day of my 100th post giveaway.. Do enter if you haven't done so yet.. Here is the 100th post with the details or click on the image below to go to my 100th post!

We went on a trip to Yercaud again..this time with my entire clan of in-laws.. It was almost as fun as the previous trip.. but, the season has changed so much in a month's span.. July was spring season and the place was filled with flowers of all colors.. and, August brought in the monsoon and there were hardly any flowers to be seen in this trip. sad face

Alvin had fun playing with his cousins..

We played cricket..

Spotted a monkey family...

It was a fun trip and we came back refreshed! So, how did you spend the last weekend? Hope you had a lovely weekend too!

-Josie

Is there hope for me?!

2011-08-18T10:19:00.002+05:30

In an impulsive moment of online retail-therapy, I ordered a spindle spinning kit.. which included both a top-whorl and a bottom-whorl spindles and 5 ounces of fiber to spin.. I got the package yesterday and I had to try it immediately.. Here is my first attempt at spindle spinning..

The kit comes with 1 ounce of undyed fiber for practice and 4 ounces of hand-dyed fiber. I am using the undyed fiber to get a hang of the technique.. My favorite yarn weight is lace-weight and fingering weight(sock weight). So, my aim is to spin yarn in these weights.. I think I am getting there in small baby steps..

My Hubster was very gracious about it when I told him that I have a new hobby. He is a keeper! :-) now, I'm doubting my intelligence in picking up a hobby for which I'll most definitely not get supplies here in India. Is there hope for me?! I hope I get the hang of this craft soon as I am enjoying it immensely. This post is linked to Our Creative spaces. Go here to see more creative spaces.

My 100th post giveaway is still going on.. Do enter the giveaway if you haven't.. Go here or click on the image below for a chance to win some goodies.

-Josie

100th post and a giveaway!

2011-08-16T11:47:00.000+05:30

This giveaway occurred in the past and is closed for comment!

This is my 100th post on this blog and I am excited about it. I've been a blogger since December 2005 but, I started this craft blog only in Dec 2008. I started this blog as a place to share my crafty escapades and it still remains the same. It started as a knit blog and evolved along with me as I dabbled in many other crafts. Its my happy place in the interwebs! :-) So, to celebrate the milestone of my 100th post, I'm hosting a giveaway.. here are the stuff that can be won.. 5 people have a chance to win the giveaway.. let me show you the goodies..

A project bag if you are a knitter/crocheter.. perfect for a sock project... or a travel kit if you are not a crafter..

A box bag for a sock knitter or a travel kit for the non-knitter!

2 fabric trays.. you can use it to organize your craft table or your office table.. excellent clutter-keepers to have by the door to throw your keys into..

and, last but not the least.. a zippered prism pouch perfect for notions/cosmetics..

You can be anywhere in the world reachable by India Post. You have to do 2 things to be eligible for the goodies..

Follow this blog via any of the options available on the sidebar.
Leave a comment and let me know which of the goodies you'd like to win and why.. do leave a way for me to contact you in case you win.. an email address/Ravelry profile/a blog link

not so difficult,huh? If you are already a follower, just leave a comment. This giveaway will run for a week till 23rd August. The winners will be picked via a random number generator and the names will be announced on 24th August. And, you need not be a crafter to enter the giveaway.. The winners will be contacted for snail-mail address, so its imperative that you leave me a way to contact you. One person can win only one item. Its only fair, isn't it? Do share with your friends and spread the word about this giveaway..

I hope you like the goodies and like my blog too.

-Josie

Minimalist progress!

2011-08-10T09:44:00.001+05:30

I am still plodding along on my minimalist cardigan and I am happy with the progress. I have completed more than 8 inches from the bottom ribbing.. another 7 inches more to go before I separate for sleeves.. The mindless moss stitch makes for an easy TV knitting project..

This is my 99th post on this blog.. which means the next one will be my 100th post! duh! So, I am going to host a small giveaway in honor of my 100th post.. I'll give more details in my next post! So, keep watching this space to know more on this..

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis. Click here or on the image above to see more WIPs of a Wednesday.

-Josie

My blog has been featured..

2011-08-04T17:29:00.001+05:30

I'm thrilled to let you all know that my blog and I have been featured by Charlotte of The accidental knitter . Go here or click the image below to go the the interview.

Its my first time giving an interview. So, I hope you like reading the interview. Can I call myself a celebrity now?! :P

-Josie

Rotary cutter info

2011-08-04T13:39:00.000+05:30

This post is for a reader who left a comment inquiring about the availability of rotary cutters and cutting mat. While moderating the comments, I accidentally rejected your comment instead of publishing it and, you didn't leave an email ID for me reply to either. So, I am posting the info here in a hope that you would see it.. We get rotary cutters and self-healing cutting mats here in Bangalore. Here is the shop details.

Reliance Stationery Mart.
#55 Commercial Street,
Bangalore 560001

Ph No: 080- 25587783/ 25587766.

Do call up the shop and find out if they have it in stock and if they'll ship it to your location.

-Josie

Marigolds and fuschias - Wordless Wednesday!

2011-08-03T08:31:00.000+05:30

Easy-peasy lunch bag!

2011-07-29T12:56:00.000+05:30

I've been thinking of making a lunch-bag for me to take to work every day since I pack lunch from home. I've been using plastic bags to carry my lunch boxes and I hate it. I hate the rustling sound a plastic bag makes every time its handled. Does anyone else hate this too? Then, an idea struck me to recycle old jeans to make a lunch bag! Remember the Wranglers I sneaked from my Hubster for his cellphone cover from here? I had the entire jeans minus the pockets waiting for recycling. In the end, half of the Wrangler legs became this:

I loosely followed the pattern for Poochie bag from the Happy Zombie. I made my own version of the handles and I am thrilled with the end results. I was lucky I had coordinating lining fabric to go with the jeans. And, I wanted pockets on the outside to put in some change and my cellphone when I go for lunch. The size is perfect for a few Tupperware lunch boxes and a napkin, a perfect lunch set!

Then I started having fuzzy feelings for the bag, thinking that its too cute to be used as a lunch-bag! It looked so pretty carrying my latest loot of Knitpicks lace yarns! But, nah! I WILL use it as my lunch-bag..and, it will be the most loved lunch-bag in the entire household! ;-)

and here is what is remaining of the Wranglers.. I think I can still get some use out of them.. I have some ideas in mind.. Lets see what the remnants become..

So, tell me what was that you recycled or re-purposed most recently? do you love recycling as much as I do? I get a thrill out of giving a new life to discarded items and jeans are my fave things to recycle. What is your favorite thing to recycle? Leave a comment and let me know.. :-)

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis. Go here or click on the image below to see more FOs on a Friday.

-Josie

Minimalist WIP!

2011-07-27T11:32:00.001+05:30

First off, confession time!! I haven't knit a single stitch for the past 3 weeks and that is a first for me.. The reason being an unusually hectic phase at work leaving me with no crafty mojo. So, what does one do to bring back the mojo? Browse though the inspiring patterns and projects on Ravelry, of course! and, then WHAMMM! I got my mojo back and guess what I wanted to make immediately! A cardigan for myself!! Yes. That's right. An adult garment..

If you have been around my blog for a while, you'll know about my fear of knitting garments.. my first and only adult sweater has been hibernating since forever.. but, that didn't stop me from wanting to knit a cardigan.. So, I frogged the one I had on needles and decided to make a fresh new start.. The pattern I've chosen is the classy Minimalist Cardigan from Interweave Press. Its a bottom up knitted cardigan and I am done with the ribbing already after a few hours of knitting last night. I hope this one crosses the finish line soon! Here is the progress till now..

I am knitting the body in one piece as opposed to knitting the front and back pieces separately and then seaming them. I am following the modifications done by a few Ravelers. Also, I conquered the Russian Join for joining ends of yarns in this project.. I followed this tutorial and, it was an easy-peasy affair.

and, here is my Russian-joined yarn.. Its not perfect but, it'll get better over time, I'm sure.

I hope to keep the momentum going and finish this cardigan soon. This post is linked to WIP Wednesdays hosted by Tami's Amis. Go here or click on the image below to see more WIPs on a Wednesday.

-Josie

On the bookshelf! - part 2

2011-07-25T10:39:00.000+05:30

I talked about my knitting and crochet books on my bookshelf in the previous post in this series. So, this post is about the quilting,sewing and other miscellaneous craft books vying for space in my bookshelf. I've been sewing only since the past year and a half. I was inspired by the various quilting blogs on the interweb and wanted to try sewing and quilting. Then came the sewing machine into my life and the rest, as they say is history! My favorite quilting reference book is the one below. It is a quilting encyclopedia with almost all quilting techniques explained with pictures. This is my go-to book for looking up any technique involved in quilting.

But, my most favorite quilting book that I have is this one. Quick Colorful Quilts! The book is so inspiring that I get an urge to quilt every time I browse through it. Here is the book and a few quilts pictured in the book.

Someday, I'll make a quilt following these patterns. Some.day! I have just one sewing pattern book and its for sewing skirts. Just as with knitting, I have a fear of sewing garments. I always worry that I the finished garment might be too small or too big or just be badly fitting. But, skirts are something I am courageous enough to try and they are easy to make too. Here is the book Sew What! Skirts.

I made 2 skirts using patterns from this book and I am glad with the results. The patterns are more like recipes letting you measure yourself and tailor the skirts according to your size and fit. Here is the pattern and the skirt I made.

This skirt is almost worn out now after regular wear. I think its almost time for me to make a few more skirts. :-) I have a few more books to share with you. But, I am going to save it for another post. I didn't think this series will stretch into 3 parts when I started it. I only thought of writing one post on the craft books I have. I guess, I really have too many craft books! But, is there such a thing as too many books?! ;-)

So, tell me about your favorite craft books.. do you have books that inspire you every time you browse them? I'd love to hear from you..

P.S: Thank you for empathizing with my rant in the previous post. We did get a blue-colored bed sheet for Alvin but, didn't tell him why we were getting it. He doesn't have to know,right?

-Josie

I have a rant!

2011-07-20T12:32:00.001+05:30

...a rant about stereotypes! Of course, there are stereotypes everywhere in this world..and, we can't escape them. I try my best not to fall into this trap..but, when it is shoved down my throat and I can't escape it, I rant..and, that's what I am doing here.. Feel free to ignore this post if its a touchy subject for you..

Here is what happened.. My son goes to a day-care after school and he enjoys it a lot. He has made a lot of friends there and he has become more social after joining the day-care. We are happy with the facility and most of all, we are happy that Alvin is enjoying his time there. A few weeks back, I got a call from the day-care in-charge saying that I need to provide a 'blue' colored bed-sheet and a 'blue' colored pillow-case for Alvin's nap time. Its pink for girls and blue for boys. The one Alvin uses currently is a pink-colored floral one. I gave it because it was the only one I had to spare.

I was ticked off,mainly because I have to go hunt for blue-colored stuff just because someone else feels the stereotype. C'mon! how traumatized is my kid going to be if he sleeps on a pink-colored bed for an hour a day!?! I wouldn't have minded if the day-care charged me for providing uniform bed-sheets for the kids, whatever color they want it to be. I do not have control over that. But, this just grated on my nerves!

Tell me, how do you deal with stereotypes? Do you tell your kids blue is for boys and pink is for girls or that boys should play with cars and truck and girls should play with plushies and Barbies? Do you consciously avoid stereotypes or you don't care? I am not on a mission to break stereotypes..or create a stereotype-free world for my son. It is just that I have to go buy new stuff just because someone else feels that I have to. Sorry for the rant. I usually don't do this on my blog! I promise I'll be a good girl next time! :P

-Josie

Sockhead!

2011-07-15T11:13:00.001+05:30

Even though the tip to Yercaud was an unplanned one , I had a knitwear completed in time for use there.. I've been knitting a hat for myself since February in between other projects and finally finished it 3 days before the trip.. right on time! Its a straightforward plain-Jane hat recipe called sockhead with 2 X 2 ribbing for 4 inches, stockinette stitches for the next 9 inches and decreases for the crown..

The yarn is a mystery yarn bought from a Raveler. The only thing I know about this yarn is its fingering(sock) weight and it has bamboo content in it. So, I went hunting for adult hat patterns in sock weight yarn. I zeroed in on this sockhead pattern mainly because of the stockinette stitch. I knitted this hat on DPNs and it made for a perfect TV knitting project. I watched many episodes of Castle while knitting this. ;-)

My nephew who came with us liked the hat and has asked me to knit one for him. I was very touched. I will start hunting for patterns for hats that will fit a child.. so, I see more hat-knitting in the future. :-) As I told you in my previous post, here are a few more pics of the flowers I clicked.. Here is a lily bud that I saw outside out hotel on the first day of our stay..

And, lo! the next day, it was in full bloom!

I was thrilled to see the flower in bloom. Simple pleasures,huh?! And, then I spotted this Crown of thorns also known as the Christ's thorn, in the wild.

So now, I am officially addicted to photographing flowers..preferably in the wild. I have to let you all know that I am ~~very bad~~ not so good at identifying flowers. I think I can spot a rose, lotus, hibiscus, a dahlia , fuschia and lillies if I see them. Maybe, a few more flowers.. But, otherwise, I depend on Google Image search! ;-) So, if I am naming the flowers wrong or if you know another name for them, please feel free to let me know.. :-)

I am linking this post to FO Friday by Tami's Amis. Click on the image below to see more FOs on a Friday.

-Josie

Wordless Wednesdays!

2011-07-13T11:57:00.001+05:30

Although this post is meant to be wordless, I just have to say that this series will feature photos taken by yours truly, in an attempt to better my photography skills. ;-)

My craft table guardian!

2011-07-07T19:18:00.000+05:30

I would like to introduce you to a cute fella who hangs out in my sewing room. He was a gift from my cousin, B to my son Alvin. But, I fell in love with this guy and I've cheekily sneaked him from Alvin and made him my sewing room mascot. He brings up a smile on my face every time I see him. He kinda reminds me of a Mafia boss like the kind you see on TV. (No! I haven't seen a Mafia boss in real life nor do I want to meet one!)

He does look menacing, doesn't he?! As if he is gonna hurt you if you touch anything on my sewing table.. Alvin and I are always fighting over whose doggie he is.. ;-) I am having a tough time finding a good name for him. I want a good Mafia name for him.. but, nothing strikes me! Here he is, sitting along with my diagonal stripes quilt blocks.

So, all you dear readers have the fun task of finding a name for him.. The only criteria is it should sound like a Mafia name. Suggest some name for this cute guy! Of course, you can use fun Mafia Name generator like this : Generate your Mafia Name!

This post is linked to Creative Spaces by Kootoyoo. Go here to see more creative spaces!

-Josie

Yercaud trip!

2011-07-04T12:41:00.001+05:30

I had the craziest week which ended on a wonderfully high note! The seasons are changing in Bangalore and the monsoon season is setting in. Rains, as usual throws my family's health out for a whack! All of us took turns falling sick with sore throat , bad cold and fever! It was crazily chaotic for a few days the past week. My Hubster and I badly wanted a break from the chaos. So, we decided on a trip to Yercaud on the last minute and took off in our car! My SIL's family accompanied us too and the trip was a great success. Here is the proof. Alvin is chasing bubbles in a park here..

Yercaud is about 4 hrs away from Bangalore and its a perfect weekend getaway for Bangaloreans! Right now, its off-season. So, it wasn't as crowded as it is during the summer vacation. There are not many places to see there.. so, it makes for a perfect hill station to relax. The weather was awesome and we went boating in the lake there. Most of all, I had a fun time clicking photos with my new camera. The place is filled with flowers of all kinds. So, I went a bit trigger-happy with my new Nikon Coolpix. Here are a few pics that I took.

Did I tell you that I am in love with the Macro mode in my camera?! I am yet to explore all the features in the camera..but, I did ~~abuse~~ use the macro mode heavily during the trip.. I even caught a butterfly and another insect in close-up..

Cool,huh?! I came back with loads of photos..but, I think you'll be bored to death if I were to show it all in one go. So, expect to see random pictures of flowers in close quarters for the next few weeks, alright? All I can say is, You've been warned!!

So, how was your weekend? I know the guys from the U.S are having a long Fourth of July weekend.Enjoy the fireworks, y'all and be safe. Hope everyone's weekend was and is as much fun as mine was!

-Josie

This post is linked to Today's Flowers.

High Tides!

2011-06-28T15:32:00.000+05:30

High Tides! It is my third scarf design and I am thrilled to introduce the design to you guys. This scarf design has been in the process since April and I am excited to finally release the pattern after a round of test-knitting. High tides is a reversible garter scarf based on the sea-foam stitch pattern. The scarf is knit on the bias and then blocked into a rectangular shape. The pattern can be easily customized to get a scarf of your desired length and width.

Since the scarf is garter based, it doesn't curl and the best part is , its reversible.. so, you can toss it around your neck and forget about it.. :-) I used a skein of Opal Speckles by Zwerger Garn and I got a 90 inch long scarf(which is too long IMO). The yarn was a gift from Rima from YarnyDays.

The pattern is available in written format only. I do have a chart that I charted by hand. But, creating the chart in MS Excel or Inkscape turned out to be very tedious and I couldn't create a decent image that I could insert into the pattern PDF. So, I gave up charting this pattern. sigh

Its an easy pattern for experienced knitters and a fun pattern for beginners and advanced beginners too. The stitch pattern is very easy to memorize and once you get the hang of the pattern, it goes smoothly like a meditation.. This scarf makes for an excellent project for travel-knitting or TV-knitting. :-)

This pattern is available as a free Ravelry download. So, click on the images in this post or go to the Free Patterns tab at the top of this page to download the pattern . Make a scarf or a shawl with this versatile pattern. I hope you enjoy knitting this pattern as much as I had fun creating it. If you do so, please don't forget to share the pics.. :-)

Here are my project stats:
Pattern: High Tides by Jocelyn P Prasad
Yarn: Opal Speckles by Zwerger Garn
Needle: US 6 or 4mm
Ravelry project page: High tides!

I would like to thank my test-knitters Annika, Dianne , Lynda , Abby, Rachel, Miriel, Akshata, Denise, Tiffany , Christina for combing out the errors and typos in the pattern and giving me great feedback on the pattern. You guys are the best! :-)

-Josie

Skirting around!

2011-06-22T11:54:00.001+05:30

I had two sarong-style wraps sitting in my closet for more than 3 years. I bought them because I loved the fabric and they were 'wrapping' me perfectly fine. I wore them very few times and then, they went to hibernate in the innards of my closet. A recent rummaging of my closet brought them out of their hibernation and I tried them on to check if they still fit me! Alas! They wouldn't 'wrap' around my horizontally challenged physique. ;-) Then came the idea to convert them into skirts.. I have this almost-prepared rectangular piece of fabric with ready-made ties.. All I had to do was to sew the edges together to make a skirt.. Ain't I smart?!

I left an 8-inch slit on the side before seaming the two edges. I had to sew in darts at the back to make leeway for my derriere. ;-) But, it all worked out fine in the end and I am in love with the skirts. Here is a peak at the side-slit..

Here is the second skirt.. This fabric had a lovely border in the wrap and, sadly I had to chop it off to reduce it to skirt-length. Nevertheless, I am in love with this too.. The best part of making these skirts was that I made these two in under 30 mins as the fabric was already 'prepared'!

And, just because I couldn't get enough of the skirts.. here is one more pic...

I have to mention my Hubster here. It was my birthday on Monday and I had a lovely day, many thanks to my Hubster. We both took an off from work.. went for a movie and dinner. The highlight of the day was this gift from my guy..

A Nikon Coolpix L120! My older Sony Cybershot was becoming ancient and I wanted a replacement for that. So, Arun gave me an option to pick a camera or a smartphone for my birthday gift. After much debate, I decided to go for the camera.. A smartphone can wait for the moment, I guess. Thank you, Arun for the gift. You are the best!

I am having a fun week and I hope you are too..

Love,
Josie

Sewing up a storm!

2011-06-15T14:02:00.001+05:30

Yes. That's what I've been doing these days. I started a scrappy quilt for my bed. I wanted to learn foundation paper-piecing for making quilt tops and zeroed-in on diagonal stripes quilt block pattern to learn foundation paper- piecing. This is a perfect pattern for a scrappy quilt and I decided to use up almost all the fabrics from my stash. I've been having the same fabric stash for more than a year and I am tired of looking at the same fabric all.the.time. So, my aim is to use up all the fabrics I have at the moment and then go fabric-shopping with a fresh mind. ;-) I am selecting fabrics at random to make the block. I only hope they look good in the finished quilt. Here are the blocks I have made so far..

I have made about 18 blocks and I have about another 100 more to go. Did I tell you that I have a queen-size bed and a quilt for that will measure approx 90 X 90 inches? So, it will be ~~another decade~~ a few months before this quilt will be complete. But, I will conquer this quilt, I swear! There are many videos on foundation paper piecing on youtube and I referred to this one to learn the technique.

I got a quilting foot for my sewing machine and it was fun to try free motion quilting or stippling as they call it. My practice pieces came a bit wonky but, I enjoyed making squiggly lines using the quilting foot. And, there is a very useful tutorial on free-motion quilting or stippling on the Oh! Fransson blog. Here is a close-up of my initial attempts at stippling..

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday hosted my Tami's Amis. Click on the image below to see more WIPs on a Wednesday.

-Josie

RIP Buffy.

2011-06-09T23:20:00.000+05:30

Its a sad day in my family today. My in-laws lost their dog,Buffy today. She was almost 6 months old. It was all so sudden. She developed high fever last night and today, she is gone. sigh She was a good dog.. very playful. She loved to play fetch and lived for belly-rubs. She will be missed a lot by all of us.

RIP Buffy. You were a good dog and you will be missed.

-Josie

Kreativ Blogger Award!

2011-06-06T16:44:00.000+05:30

My blog has been awarded the "Kreativ Blogger Award" by Saritha from Hooks,Needles and Me blog. This is the first time any one has awarded my blog. So, this one is special. Thank you,Saritha for thinking of my blog and me.

I have to say a few facts about myself and pass this award to a few creative blogs I love. Its easy-peasy ,right?! Only, I have a ton of blogs that I read and I am racking my brains for a few facts about me to share with y'all. so, here we go.. a few things about me..

I love the tender-coconut flavored ice cream from Natural Icecream. Thank you Lavanya for introducing me to this brand. My entire household is addicted to this now.
I love cloud watching. I look for shapes and figures in the clouds I see. I feel very light and happy when I am cloud watching.
I love reading blogs especially quilting and sewing blogs.
I dream of having a dog for a pet. But, right now, I have too much on my plate to include a dog in our lives.
Although I have a Driver's License, I am not very good at driving a car. I am more comfortable on my Honda Activa. But, I dream of driving on my own.. some day, I'll do that.
My current obsession is bangles. I am on a bangle-buying spree. Some day, I will give you a sneak peak at my bangle collection.

I think, I have rambled enough about myself. So now, its time to pass on this award to a few blogs I love. I pass this award on to

Preeti from Rambling Roses

Pearlin from Knottyville

Rupi from Reasons to be cheerful

Pradeepa from The Lazy Hobbyhopper

Suma from Favourite things

Helena from Ignorant Bliss

Uncia from Lime Scented

Do visit these blogs. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

-Josie

Toodle,the turtle!

2011-06-03T15:35:00.001+05:30

If you've been around my blog for a while, you might have realized that I've not made a single knitted/crocheted toy till now. These toys are called Amigurumi toys and they are plushies that are knitted or crocheted. I don't know what I have against these Amigurumi creatures but, I never had the inclination to make one for Alvin. But, all this changed when I saw the Amigurumi-Along in the South Asian Crafters group in Ravelry. They are a bunch of evil enablers, y'know! I just couldn't resist the temptation to create an Amigurumi. So, all of you, meet Toodle, the turtle.

He is my first ever Amigurumi toy. I was enthralled by the pattern in his shell and he looked closer to real life so, I decided to make him. I used the regular worsted weight acrylic available locally for making Toodle. I didn't have safety eyes when I made him. So, I used two brown beads I had for his eyes. I struggled a bit to assemble him as he looked paralyzed and panting in my first attempt at assembling him. But, now he just looks hungry and ready to eat anything that steps in front of him. ;-) Here he is, trying to race on my balcony wall.

He is an easy guy to make and is easily loved by kids too. Alvin claimed Toodle the instant he saw him. In fact, Alvin was so impatient while I was making Toodle that, every 5 minutes I was asked if the turtle is done. Next time I make something for Alvin, I am going to keep it a secret. At least, I can make the item in peace. ;-) I am happy with the way Toodle turned out although, I don't think I am making another Amigurumi any time soon.

The Ravelry project for Toodle is here: Toodle, the turtle!

This post is linked to FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis. Go here for more FOs on a Friday.

-Josie

Love you,Dad!

2011-05-31T10:44:00.001+05:30

My Dad is retiring today after 33 years of Government service. Its a poignant moment for him and I am sad that I couldn't be with him today. I don't know how he feels about his retirement. I hope that he enjoys this new phase in his life and makes the most of the restful days. I was reminded of my days of living at my parents' home and how he took care of me and my brother when my mom was living in a different city 'cos of her job. He has been a pillar of strength for me all through these years and always has a listening ear when I pick up the phone for a whining session. ;-) Here is a picture of him getting to know Alvin, when Alvin was just a few days old.

I hope that my Dad takes good care of himself, and enjoys this well-deserved retirement. And, I hope to see more of him in the coming days, now that he has more time to visit us. Thank you, Dad for being the person you are. Enjoy your retirement. :-) Here is another snap of Alvin wailing his heart out, in my Dad's arms.

I love you , Dad. I miss you today.

-Josie

Easy to make fridge magnets!

2011-05-24T08:41:00.001+05:30

My RavFriends and I went on a shopping trip to the crafty by-lanes of Bangalore last weekend. It was a fun trip and all of us stocked up on craft supplies that we did and did not need. ;-) I got myself a shiny new glue-gun in this trip and I had to take it for a test-drive. I searched for ideas online to make use of the glue-gun and the idea to make fridge magnets struck me. I remembered seeing a tutorial for fabric flowers which I thought will make good fridge magnets. Thus came the fridge-magnets aka fridgies into my home.

I followed this tutorial to make the fabric flowers. There are many more tutorials to make flowers on her blog. But, I chose this one. Thank you, Rupi for leading me to this tutorial. I rummaged through my button jar to find the right buttons for the flowers. Once the flowers were made, I got out my glue-gun and stuck flat magnets (you will get this in craft stores.) behind the flowers. Fridgies are done! Here is a shot of the magnets stuck to the flowers.

Now, make your TO-DO list and stick it on your fridge or your workstation to remind you of what you need to do. Here is my list on my fridge.

I am planning to take these to work to liven up my desk. These are easy to make and I finished them in no time. Now, I want to sit all day at home making these flowers . ;-) These are addictive , I tells ya! I got these magnets too during the shopping trip and I wish I had bought more than the dozen I bought. I got some yarn too. Of course, its acrylic but in beautiful variegated colors. Here is my loot. The yarn is Vardhman acrylic in fingering weight.

Do you have any suggestions for patterns that work well with variegated yarns? I've had tough luck with variegated yarns but, I still buy them. Maybe I will use them for decorative purposes as they look gorgeous in the skein. What do you say?

-Josie

Wrangler for a Samsung!

2011-05-20T11:26:00.001+05:30

What do you do when your guy gets a cool gadget with a boring cozy with it?! You make a cool cozy for the gadget and force your guy to use it! That's what you do!! :D My Hubster got a new cellphone recently and it came with a BORING cozy with Samsung monogrammed on it. Its functional and boring. So, I decided to make a cellphone cozy with a personality. ;-) Here is the boring couple.

I was brain-storming ideas for what material to use for the cellphone cozy and I had a 'light-bulb' moment. What better fabric than denim to use for a guy to lives out of his jeans?! and, me being myself, I decided to recycle his worn-out jeans' pockets to make the cozy. I used his old and worn-out Wranglers that he had discarded and harvested the back pockets from the jeans. (Yes. I hoard old worn-out denims in a hope to recycle them. Why do you ask?!) So, here is the end result.

I love that I was able to keep the 'Wrangler' tag from the back pocket intact. This must be the simplest thing that I have sewn till date. I wanted to put a flap with magnetic snap for closure. But, I read conflicting reports on using magnets near cellphones. So, I decided to for-go the closure.

So, the Samsung now has a Wrangler of its own! I am now looking around the house for gadgets to dress-up and jean pockets to harvest. :-) Its fun giving a new life to these old garments. I remember my first denim recycle project. My favorite denim tote made out of my most favorite pair of jeans that I stopped fitting into.

Go here or click on the image of the bag above to read more about this bag project. So, what have you recycled recently? Do you feel good recycling old item? Are you a hoarder like me who keeps these old and worn-out items in a hope of resurrecting them into new life? Share with me in the comments. I would like to hear from the ~~hoarder~~ recycler in you.

This post is part of FO Fridays hosted by Tami's Amis. Go here to see more FOs on a Friday.

-Josie

Different Lines!

2011-05-18T14:17:00.001+05:30

Yes. That's my latest WIP to be added to the gazillion other things already in progress. Different Lines is a scarf pattern by Veera Valimaki. This pattern caught my eye because of its unusual shape and the endless color possibilities. I'm not a big fan of garter stitch. In fact, I prefer stockinette stitch to garter stitch. But, this pattern had so much 'ooomph' in it that I decided to set aside my feelings for garter stitch. ;-)

The pattern is addictive. Its more a recipe than a pattern and you don't need the pattern paper always with you to remind you where you are in the pattern. Its that easily memorized. I love patterns like that which give me the independence from the pattern itself. That is why I call them recipes. If you know what I mean! I am not sure if the yarn color combination is great but, I am happy with the results so far. The yarn is Shibui Knits Sock. The main color is the gorgeous brown and the contrast is a variegated in pastel colors(not really my favorite combination).

This is an un-put-downable pattern and its very addictive to knit. I hope to see it to completion soon. This post is part of the WIP Wednesday hosted by Tami's Amis. To see more WIPs on a Wednesday, go here or click the image below.

-Josie

Lobster Hobo Bag!

2011-05-14T09:20:00.000+05:30

I have a FO to show off here after a long time. There was a BAG-ALONG in the South Asian Crafters group on Ravelry which started a month ago. Each one participating was to start a bag of their choice and finish it along with the others. Since there were no specified or chosen patterns, every one came out with different and inspirational bags. I made the Summer Sling Tote as a part of this BAG-ALONG. This is an easy pattern to make a chic bag. I could've completed the bag a long time back. But, life happens,right?! Here is the finished bag.

Lining the bag was tricky because of the unusual shape and the features I wanted in the lining. This bag doesn't have secure closures. Because of its wedge shape, its ~~difficult~~ impossible to put in a zipper for closure. I used magnetic snaps for the closures. So, I needed zippered inner pockets to put stash money and keys securely. After some brain-storming, I came out with the plan to line this bag and put 2 zippered pockets in it. I used the tutorial from U-Handblog for zippered inner lining pocket. This tutorial works like a charm. Here is a close-up of the inner pocket I put in.

I made the lining a tad bigger than the bag to accommodate for the stretchiness of the bag. The closure flap was crocheted with single crochet stitches as I wanted a denser fabric for the flap. I plan to put a fancy button on the flap to add some zing to the bag. ;-) I love the shape of the bag and its surprisingly roomy. The only modification of the pattern was I chained 50 chains less in the foundation chain for the strap, although I found this the hard way. The pattern asks you to chain 220 chains and after finishing the strap, I realized it was too long for my taste. So, I had to rip the finished strap and made it with about 180 chains. I am happy with this strap length.

Let me show you a funny picture of the lining taken inside out. It will give you an idea about what I did with the lining.

Doesn't this look like a confused alien face?! Poor alien! ;-) I took this bag to work and my friends-at-work were all impressed with it. They do not know much about my crafty side and they all were pleasantly surprised. In fact, one guy , P thought it was a store-bought bag. :-) So, this Summer Sling Tote is going to be my bag for all seasons for sometime.

Here are the stats:

Pattern: Summer Sling Tote by Priscilla Hewitt
Yarn: 2-ply from Cottage Crafts Yarn
Hook: 5mm
Ravelry project: Lobster Hobo Bag

This post is part of FO Fridays Meme hosted by Tami's Amis. To see more FOs on Friday, go here.

-Josie

Life updates!

2011-05-10T12:12:00.000+05:30

Life has become very hectic for us all of a sudden. Weekdays are busy as usual with our day jobs and school/day-care for Alvin. Weekends are spent entertaining or visiting friends and family. Sometimes, the house feels like a nut-house and sometimes, it feels like heaven. I wish I had a self-cleaning house. How nice would that be?! I am craving for a lazy weekend with someone to cook and clean for me.. sigh OK. This is not a whiny post. I promise. In between this madness, we went to our home-town for the Easter Vacation. It was a short and hectic trip as we had a wedding to attend. Here are a few snaps from our vacation.

This pink gladiolus is from my in-laws' garden. My Father-in-law has become an avid gardener after retiring. So, this spring, we got to see many plants in full bloom. There was a white gladiolus in bloom too. But, sadly, the stem of the flowers broke in half after heavy-rains. Then, we met Buffy after a few months. You remember her from here? She has grown a lot and has become very mischievous. Alvin enjoyed playing with her. Here they are..getting reacquainted.

Here she is playing under a jack-fruit tree. She has grown tall and likes to jump at everyone expecting a belly-rub all the time. ;-)

Just to remind you of the cuteness she was when she was a puppy.. here is Buffy earlier this year. What a change in her,isn't it?! She is still cute,though.

On the crafty side, I am so close to finishing my summer sling tote. I've made the lining for the bag and now, all I need to do is assemble the bag. I hope to do it today, if I find some time after work. I started Different Lines by Veera Välimäki Its an addictive pattern and I am having trouble putting it down. I am yet to click pics of the WIP. I will share it with y'all when I do. So, tell me what you are working on these days?

-Josie

On the bookshelf!

2011-05-06T11:56:00.000+05:30

As a craft fiend with a love for books, its only natural that I collect books on my hobbies. Boy! do I collect books?! My latest acquisition is the first and second volumes of the Barbara Walker Treasuries. I am yet to explore the books fully but, I recognized many lace stitch patterns from it at the first glance. I've heard so much about the Walker Treasuries that I jumped at the chance to buy it from Sue when she was de-stashing it. My only beef about the Treasuries is that the pictures are in black & white. :-( But, this will not stop me from referring to them. So, I got thinking about the craft books on my bookshelf and decided to share a sneak peak at my book collection with you. Here is my entire knitting book collection..

Out of this, my most treasured one is the one in the left. It's the Knitter's Handbook by Montse Stanley. It's a treasure trove of information. I can look up almost all the techniques in knitting in this book. I recommend this to knitters in any level of proficiency and I got this for a steal @ Himalaya Book World in Hyderabad. I love the Harmony Guides Stitchionaries too. Great collection with great pictures for reference.

When I started knitting, I was enthralled by the Lady Eleanor stole that I saw on Ravelry and I had to buy the book Scarf Style which had the pattern in it. And, no. I haven't made the stole yet. Nor do I think I will ever knit one. But, I still cling to this book, thumbing through it now and then. This made me realize that I prefer e-patterns as I can buy them one at a time and that too only on a need-to-knit basis. This book has quite a few lovely patterns but, very few are my style. So, I ended up not knitting anything from this book. I learnt the lesson of not buying an entire book of patterns just to use one of them. :-) Here is a shot of the Lady Eleanor stole that prompted the impulse buy.

I learnt knitting from an instructor but, I learnt crochet on my own. I tried learning crochet via videos but, I can say I really learnt the craft with the help of this book that Swapna(MrsFife) sent me as a RAK. I asked her if she had any resources for learning crochet as I wasn't able to get a hang of it through videos and she happily sent me a few crochet books including a beginner's guide to crochet. Its easy for a novice to learn crochet from it. Thank you Swapna for the RAK once again. I can definitely say that I am crocheting now because of your kindness. Here is the book that helped me learn the craft.

My first crochet project was a granny square and I am still proud of it. :D I followed the instructions given in the book and it came out pretty nice.

Here is the granny square I made. I didn't do anything with the square and it remains a single and lonely granny till date. :D

I would like to talk about the quilting ,sewing and other craft books I have. But, I will save that for another post. So, you tell me what is your favorite knitting or crochet book? Although e-patterns are ruling the roost these days, nothing can beat the charm of a nicely compiled book of patterns or a reference book. Don't you agree? Maybe I am just old-school! ;-)

-Josie

Emergency ironing board cover tutorial

2011-05-02T00:01:00.000+05:30

What do you do when you burn your sister-in-law's ironing board cover?! You make an emergency ironing board cover as its replacement. That's what you do. And, that's what I did! :D I was staying at my SIL's place a while back and while ironing a pair of jeans, I burnt the ironing board cover. I didn't expect it to melt but, poof it went when I put the hot iron box face down on the board! I know. Silly me! I felt very.very bad about what I did and I had to make her the replacement right away to ease my guilty conscience. Here is the burn-victim with the said wound:

I didn't have much time to search for patterns for ironing board cover. So, I decided to make the simplest cover I could make for the ironing board. I measured the length and width at the widest side of the ironing board. Added 4 inches on all sides to the measurements. Cut a rectangular piece of fabric in this dimensions. Then, I put a one inch wide casing all around the four edges and threaded a drawstring into the casing. Put the fabric on the ironing board and tug the drawstring around it under the board and tie it snugly. Voila! There you have.. your spanking new emergency ironing board cover! Here are the 'before' and 'after' pics..

Here is a close-up of the casing on the wrong side of the fabric.

Here is the tutorial in a better language:

Measure the length (A) and width at the widest side (B) of the ironing board.
Add 8 inches to both A and B to get C and D respectively.
Cut a rectangular piece of fabric of measurement C X D i.e, length = C and width = D.
Make an 1inch-wide casing on all 4 sides of the rectangular fabric by folding one inch of the fabric onto its wrong side
Thread a drawstring long enough to go through the four sides of the cover into the casing.
Put the cover on the ironing board and tie the drawstring snugly under the board
You are done. Really! Enjoy your new ironing board cover.

Now, if someone can tell me a sure-fire way to remove the burn stain from the iron box, I can blot this ugly incident from my memory. Do you have a home-remedy for that? Let know if you do. A poor iron box will be eternally grateful to you.

-Josie