It's not something I'm making personally, but Mythic Yarns has very cute recycled-textile meditation stuffage -- zabutons and zafus and such. Good inspiration stuff.
Also, the craft room creation process finally begins! We defeated the Leather Chair of Doom with the help of a borrowed circular saw; we hauled furniture too large to force into our cars with the help of a borrowed van; and we've packed our cars full of boxes and assorted loose odds and ends for the past eight days with the help of my benevolent mother. At last, yesterday we hauled the final bits of furniture with the help of a borrowed truck and an old friend -- and the last piece of relocated craft room furniture is here. The boxes engulfing our house now begin their journey into the Room of Craftiness...
Big thanks to everyone who helped, emotionally, physically, mentally, etc. ;) I still have one more trip to make, to pick up the last non-crafty randomnesses that were hiding in corners and closets and neglected cabinets and drawers, before I'm done moving out, and I'll be glad when all my stuff is out of that place and I don't have to worry about it being accidentally taken by the evile roommate, but the craft-related parts are all here. Cheers.
Oh, and my KnitPicks yarn for the Mystery Stole 3 KAL looks like it will arrive tomorrow, only a day after the first clue went up. Woo. I may start semi on-time. ;D
Jun 25, 2007
Jun 22, 2007
Dyeing wool in the oven
I think I ought to try oven dyeing next time I do a batch of wool roving; less agitation = happier craftygirl. Now, back to making vegetable barley soup. Silver is hungry. ;D
Jun 20, 2007
BBS swatched!
I finally finished the swatch for my Socks for Soldiers Big Black Socks. Whew! Now I just have to wash it and see whether it shrinks. The gauge right now is -- as is typical for me -- large (nine stitches per inch instead of seven to eight). But if it shrinks just a little in the wash, the gauge will be perfect. Here's hoping. ;) I'm using Lang Jawoll, a superwash wool blend, which I got out of the donation basket and have evilly been sitting on for a while ... but once I get started, things should go faster! ;) I don't actually know what size needle I'm using; le sigh! I can't find either of my needle gauges at the moment, although I swear I was using one last time I was working on something. It's probably hiding in the bottom of the knitting bag. Anyway, I think I'm using size 1 needles, because that's the largest size listed on the package of sock needles this came out of. Now, to find something to wash the swatch with...
Jun 19, 2007
Ceramic yarn?
Needful Yarn has come out with a yarn that's a blend of rayon and ceramic. It's apparently guaranteed to drop your surface skin temperature five degrees. Super!Weird! Also teribly useful for Super!Hot! Florida days, so I'd like to try it, of course. ;) Maybe once I have $13 to drop on just over 90 yards of heavy worsted-weight yarn...
I wonder if it would work as a hat. Knit a cap out of it and see if it keeps your head cool. ;)
I wonder if it would work as a hat. Knit a cap out of it and see if it keeps your head cool. ;)
Jun 18, 2007
Deal Day
Sometimes, there are days that demand to be money-out days. ;) Sales are flighty things; I have an inconsistent history of attendance at the really great ones, mostly due to scheduling conflicts. Today I walked right into Jo-Ann's Firefly Frenzy, just looking for a couple of skeins of embroidery floss, a touch of ribbon, and a memo pad; and I walked out with several pounds of fabric remnants. Oops. ;) But they were 75% off and were thus flagging down my eye kept out for potential summer clothes fabrics...
I'm apparently also about to buy a rigid heddle loom. Eep! That was next on the list of crafty things to buy when funds cooperate, and I think $30, including shipping, for a vintage but unused 20" rigid heddle is quite cooperative, really. ::crosses fingers that it cooperates when it gets here, too::
I'm apparently also about to buy a rigid heddle loom. Eep! That was next on the list of crafty things to buy when funds cooperate, and I think $30, including shipping, for a vintage but unused 20" rigid heddle is quite cooperative, really. ::crosses fingers that it cooperates when it gets here, too::
Jun 15, 2007
I made a belt!
I finally dug out the straw weaver I picked up out of curiosity, and made myself a belt! Woo! Now I can give Brian's back to him and still have something handwoven to keep my slippery silk robe shut. :D The belt is worsted weight cotton for the wrapping yarn, and doubled strands of the same cotton (in a different color) for the filler cord. I ought to have made the thing a teense longer -- I knew I was going to do that ;) -- but it functions, or at least ties around my waist. I have yet to test it on the actual robe it was meant for.
The entire thing took me about two hours. Whew. The next one will be quicker (assuming I manage to convince myself to make a next one; my track record of repeating fairly easy tasks isn't good ;)), probably; and I can think of a lot of neat things I could do to make future belts fancier...
The entire thing took me about two hours. Whew. The next one will be quicker (assuming I manage to convince myself to make a next one; my track record of repeating fairly easy tasks isn't good ;)), probably; and I can think of a lot of neat things I could do to make future belts fancier...
Easy sewing projects and crafty babblage
Totally Stitchin' has some neat free projects -- I think I may try the off-the-shoulder top, the sarong wrap pants, and the tiered peasant skirt once I get my sewing stuff organized over here. They're easy enough that even if I don't feel like testing out the older sewing machine, I could make them by hand. Exciting. ;D
Currently estranged from the art stash, the jewelry stash, and part of the yarn and fiber stash; I made a forced move last week to make room for my replacement*, but didn't manage to rescue all my crafty things, so I'm suffering their absence rather ungracefully at the moment.
Brian's refinance is also pushing me around, but in a more productive way: The appraiser, after making up some nonsense about the answering machine not working (well, I suppose it's possible for the answering machine to successfully accept several messages a day except from the appraiser, against whom it has some kind of personal vendetta), deigns to inform us that he (she?) will honor us with his (her?) company on Saturday, unless we want to wait for the next available free space. Despite the World's claims on the middle bit of this Saturday (my father's company picnic, and a Cutthroat Entertainment's special-needs kids boat ride that I found out about yesterday), it seems like a good idea to just go ahead and let the appraiser take it over. The faster the refinance goes through, the better. ;D So Brian and I did some preparatory reorganization last night, and the closet in the craft room exists in a slightly less dubious state containing less empty space, less flotsam, and two more boxes of Christmas decorations. That means the thing-meant-to-be-a-linen-closet-but-nowhere-near-the-place-we-use-the-linens no longer contains said Christmas items and is ripe to be stuffed with something craftier; and since a portion (a sadly small portion, considering) of my fabric/clothing to alter stash is eating the condo at the moment, and fabric stacks better than fleeces or yarn, into the closet the fabric must go ... preferably today. Whee.
If I remember, I ought to stop by the scrapbooking store, too, and see if I can do something silly like picking up a single sheet (maybe two...) of card stock. ;) I only need to make a postcard, and possibly some ATCs, and I can do that much without the bulk of my arty things...
*Annoying reference to personal-life nonsense that no one needs to hear about. ;)
Currently estranged from the art stash, the jewelry stash, and part of the yarn and fiber stash; I made a forced move last week to make room for my replacement*, but didn't manage to rescue all my crafty things, so I'm suffering their absence rather ungracefully at the moment.
Brian's refinance is also pushing me around, but in a more productive way: The appraiser, after making up some nonsense about the answering machine not working (well, I suppose it's possible for the answering machine to successfully accept several messages a day except from the appraiser, against whom it has some kind of personal vendetta), deigns to inform us that he (she?) will honor us with his (her?) company on Saturday, unless we want to wait for the next available free space. Despite the World's claims on the middle bit of this Saturday (my father's company picnic, and a Cutthroat Entertainment's special-needs kids boat ride that I found out about yesterday), it seems like a good idea to just go ahead and let the appraiser take it over. The faster the refinance goes through, the better. ;D So Brian and I did some preparatory reorganization last night, and the closet in the craft room exists in a slightly less dubious state containing less empty space, less flotsam, and two more boxes of Christmas decorations. That means the thing-meant-to-be-a-linen-closet-but-nowhere-near-the-place-we-use-the-linens no longer contains said Christmas items and is ripe to be stuffed with something craftier; and since a portion (a sadly small portion, considering) of my fabric/clothing to alter stash is eating the condo at the moment, and fabric stacks better than fleeces or yarn, into the closet the fabric must go ... preferably today. Whee.
If I remember, I ought to stop by the scrapbooking store, too, and see if I can do something silly like picking up a single sheet (maybe two...) of card stock. ;) I only need to make a postcard, and possibly some ATCs, and I can do that much without the bulk of my arty things...
*Annoying reference to personal-life nonsense that no one needs to hear about. ;)
Jun 13, 2007
Mail in: June 13, 2007
"Things You Wish You Said" ATC from Elizabeth Essex ... and mine did go out today rather than yesterday, since I didn't make it to the post office in time for the past pick-up. :D
Jun 12, 2007
Mail, mail, mail
Not that it really deserves that many repetitions, but mail in for today is "Things I Wish I Said" from storylaura, and the same swap will soon go out -- I'll put it in the mail today, but it might not get postmarked till tomorrow since I don't know yet if I'll make it to the post office in time for their last pick-up.
Not much progress on anything actively crafty -- I've been shifting the craft room from one location to another, or rather, shifting my morass of random craft materials into an actual craft room here at Brian's, but it's fairly slow going ... mostly because there's a Vast Squishy Leather Chair taking up like a sixth of the room at the moment. We still haven't quite fabricated a plan for getting the thing out of there so sensible craft thingies can move into its place, but once that happens ... poof! Up goes the fitting mirror we gleaned from Brian's grandparents' house! In go the sewing table, the serger, and the First Sewing Machine! (There will be two in that room ... and I should check whether the Second Sewing Machine works, so that if I like, I can sew here in the meantime -- but it makes such a charming table...) By then I'll probably have all my yarn here, and all my fiber, and who knows when the jewelrymaking stuff will come over ... Possibly today. ;)
In fact, I think I'll go put together the little scavenged end-table and see if the lip on it is large enough to clamp things to, like the drum carder and the ball winder and the swift and the knitting machine ... whew. ;)
Not much progress on anything actively crafty -- I've been shifting the craft room from one location to another, or rather, shifting my morass of random craft materials into an actual craft room here at Brian's, but it's fairly slow going ... mostly because there's a Vast Squishy Leather Chair taking up like a sixth of the room at the moment. We still haven't quite fabricated a plan for getting the thing out of there so sensible craft thingies can move into its place, but once that happens ... poof! Up goes the fitting mirror we gleaned from Brian's grandparents' house! In go the sewing table, the serger, and the First Sewing Machine! (There will be two in that room ... and I should check whether the Second Sewing Machine works, so that if I like, I can sew here in the meantime -- but it makes such a charming table...) By then I'll probably have all my yarn here, and all my fiber, and who knows when the jewelrymaking stuff will come over ... Possibly today. ;)
In fact, I think I'll go put together the little scavenged end-table and see if the lip on it is large enough to clamp things to, like the drum carder and the ball winder and the swift and the knitting machine ... whew. ;)
Jun 8, 2007
Just some random linkage...
There's a cute Charmed Knits KAL blog that has a free "house hats" pattern -- whee! I'm saving that link for later, since there's no way I'm allowed to start another Thing, considering that my current Things are all on hold while I take a mini brain vacation and play a lot of Minish Cap while waiting for the rain. ;) The Charmed Knits KAL is donating to Warm Woolies, too, so it's not just HPish fun, it's charitable HPish fun.
There's also a stashbuster drawing for some yarn over at Pheelya's Ramblings blog ... Go forth and win! ;D (You're supposed to tell her when you leave your entry comment that you found the contest off my blog, although I'm not entirely sure why...)
There's also a stashbuster drawing for some yarn over at Pheelya's Ramblings blog ... Go forth and win! ;D (You're supposed to tell her when you leave your entry comment that you found the contest off my blog, although I'm not entirely sure why...)
Jun 5, 2007
Mail out update, and a gardening link
Sent the "Smile for Under a Dollar" swap yesterday. :D
Also, this link of remedies for plant diseases isn't actually crafty, but it feels like gardening should be a craft ... so I'll keep the link here anyway. ;)
Also, this link of remedies for plant diseases isn't actually crafty, but it feels like gardening should be a craft ... so I'll keep the link here anyway. ;)
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