Saturday, September 22, 2012

Squidley Cowl - New Pattern!

Squidley Cowl

My latest pattern and I'm lovin' it. 
Made with 2 strands of sock yarn held together, this cowl knits up super fast.  It's only 29 rows!   I can make one in an evening of tv watching.   Pattern is available for purchase here for those who are intersted:
PATTERN HERE 
or
Here on Ravelry

(Check out the Ravelry Page and you'll see more pix.)

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Saturday, September 8, 2012

Zagatha Hat - New Pattern!

 My Newest Pattern

"Zagatha Hat"


Now available on Craftsy:

http://www.craftsy.com/pattern/knitting/accessory/zagatha-hat/28551

This is a ziggity-zaggity hat. I love making ripples and was inspired to make a hat using them. This is what I came up with. I think it is reminiscent of a 1930's look for some reason. This is a simple zig-zag/ripple all in garter stitch except for a few rows of stockinette to finish it up at the crown. The use of a varigated yarn as the main yarn will really add to it's interest. A very small amount of 2 contrast color yarns are needed for striping. This is a one-size pattern that should fit an average woman's size head. Gauge is 5 sts & 7 rows = 1". Suggested yarns would include Malabrigo Rios, Knit Picks Chroma, to name a few.

You will knit the main part of the hat, simple sewing for the seam, then pick up and knit the crown in the round with the double points.

A simple pattern repeat, easy to memorize. A fast knit that will make a great gift or craft show item. As with all my patterns please feel free to make and sell as many as you want

To view all of my patterns on Craftsy, please visit my store:

http://www.craftsy.com/user/360172/pattern-store



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Monday, August 6, 2012

Zig 'n Zag Fingerless Mitts - FREE PATTERN


I love fingerless mitts - you can still do some basic tasks without having to take them off in cold weather. Here is a pair that I've come up with that I call Zig 'n Zag. Modeled by some (un)willing teenagers....




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Pattern can be downloaded here:
 https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_oZ8-XeMq3pNEstVi1oWGxSLUE/edit?usp=sharing

If you love the ripple/zigzag look - take a look at my newest pattern "Zagatha Hat"
HERE ON CRAFTSY


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Sunday, May 6, 2012

Re-sole my felted clogs

When you go to the trouble of knitting a pair of felted clogs it is so sad when they wear out. I have, over the years thrown out a couple pairs of felted clogs because I have worn through the soles. Not knowing how to fix them I just trashed them. When my last pair wore through I just didn't have the heart to throw them out so I stuck them on a shelf in the closet to contemplate another day. Today was that day!
Here is how they looked:







First I grabbed an old wool sweater that had previously been felted. I placed my foot on it and traced around leaving about 1/2" of space. I then cut it out and proceeded to cut another one. Now I have my new soles.





Next I cut the bottom part of my slipper off (the old sole)- mine was a little difficult to know where to cut because I had made them in one color. If you have a pair of slippers with a different color sole then you'd be able to see perfectly where to cut.


Now I have my tops ready and my soles ready.

Next I pinched the center front part of my slipper and held it with a pin. If you don't do this it will seem way too big to fit onto the sole - it takes the slack out.





Now pin the top to the sole. I started at the toe end and worked my way to the heel end. When I reached the heel end I had more length in the sole than I did the top, I simply trimmed it back to fit the top length. Now they are pinned together and ready to sew. I used my regular sewing machine, and thread that matched my slippers. I made about a 1/4" seam. Make sure to back-stitch at the beginning and at the end to lock your stitches. Double check once you have sewn the seam that you have caught both the top and the sole in the seam - you'd hate to get done and have a hole where you didn't catch the fabric. Once you have sewn the soles on both slippers, try them on at the same time. Do they feel the same? Is on a bit looser than the other? One of mine was a tad looser so I re-sewed it and then trimmed the seam to look right. You want these to be a little big as you are going to re-felt them - that's right, re-felt.

Even though your slipper was already felted, and even though your sweater was already felted you are now going to felt it again! I find with felted slippers that at first they fit nice and snug to my foot, but over time they seem to stretch out a bit from wear and natural moisture of your foot (yuck). Throw your slippers into the agitation part of your wash cycle and let them felt a little bit more. I stood guard over the washing machine and took the slippers out every few minutes, wrung them out and tried them on. -yes, it's a bit wet and yucky but you want them to fit correctly right? Once you have achieved the fit that you like. gently squeeze the water out of the slippers, roll in a towel to remove even more excess water. Put your slippers on, shape them to your feet, set out somewhere undisturbed to air dry.

VIOLA! re-soled slippers!






There aren't any exact measurements I can give you, nor can I tell you how much to cut off but I think once you get into it you will get a feel for it. I started out cutting the bottom of the slipper off rather small - then I compared it to the sole that I had cut from the old sweater, looked like the I needed to cut a little more off of the slipper, which I did. It was then a good fit. When I went to do the second slipper it was a lot easier because I knew how much of the bottom to cut off.
Hope this works for others. Mine turned out beautifully! I am going to my Mother's tomorrow so we can re-sole her slippersI'm a Craftsy Designer

Friday, January 27, 2012

Eyeglass Necklace










About 3 years ago I noticed that my reading vision was starting to blur - I kept doing the age-old trick where you hold out your book further and further, then my arms weren't long enough so I went in and got my eyes checked. Yep, Presbyopia, the old-age reading vision issue. I was 46 at the time so I guess I can't complain too much as I've had perfect vision my whole life. Anyway, being a crafter I find that I am in and out of my reading glasses all day long and I can't ever remember where I set the darn things!!

I decided to whip out a necklace that I could wear around my neck during the day that would hold my glasses. I saw some in the eye doctor's office but figured I could make one myself that I like a lot better without having to spend $20.

Here is how I made mine:

Used a standard gauge (4.5mm) knitting machine
Did an e-wrap cast-on on 3 needles.
Tension was at 3
Used lightest weight sock yarn that I had - it was a small little wad of leftover.
Knit 300 rows
This of course created "I-cord". The 300 rows netted approx. 36" in length.
Bound of my 3 stitches, then I centered a silver ring (purchased a pack of these at Micheals) and looped it through, then knotted the end at a length I liked.
The sock yarn I used was self-striping and because I was only knitting on 3 stitches it had a very different look. I really like my new eyeglass necklace because it is thin I-cord, lightweight, and does the trick nicely. I know it is a simple thing but just thought I'd share the idea. I am going to make several to give away to friends. Only took a few minutes to make.
If you don't own a knitting machine, the same thing could be accomplished with one of the little I-cord knitters that Bond America makes (called Embellish-Knit). Here is their link:
http://www.bond-america.com/products/embellish-knit.html

You could also hand-knit a long I-cord, but whew, that would take some time.
Now I have my glasses with me at all times. :)

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