Hoping that this will jazz up my office somewhat:

I’m very proud of this effort, although imperfect. I had wanted to tackle a sewing job and now it’s done and doesn’t look half bad!

Technique:

– felted a sweater that I purchased from Goodwill, then cut into pieces
– stitched together with dark grey yarn, then overstitched with blue.
– edging in blanket stitch

Have finished the initial seaming of this… didn’t actually take too long! It is messy, but can’t really be seen. I am going to go over it with some embroidery stitches suggested by knittyfolk… particularly as I have some yarn in blue that matches the blue in the recycled sweater.

Will also be trimming off the stick out bits at that time.

here are my stashbusters (pursuant to new year’s commitment [as opposed to resolution])…

1. Curve of Pursuit

This is probably a bit more than halfway done – will depend on yarn supply. Right now it’s 30″x30″.

2. Purse of Plenty

Not sure whether to add a few more panels or not before starting the next side. Will mull it over a few days.

Here is a photo of a sweater I knit for DH some time back. I loved the pattern because it is completely seamless. Will have to dig it out… was inspired to post this by a post on knitty re. seaming sleeves (which I detest):

Yarn: brown sheep cotton fleece
Needles: 4mm circular
pattern: can’t recall right now. It was a canadian outfit. Will dig it out.

Still with the Goodwill sweaters… this is one I had picked up some time back but given up on because my (baby) sewing machine doesn’t handle the sewing. Or maybe it would if I ever used it instead of going to the seamster…

(someone on a mailing list told me that the suffix -ster originally denoted the feminine. This in response to my wondering what the gender neutral term for “seamstress” is).

This time I’m trying to make a bulletin board to jazz up my (NGO beige) office. Work in progress…

I will spare you my rant on how much I hate sewing and how bad I am at it. However, I thank the kind people on the Knitty board and on the Woolly Thoughts mail list, some of whom were patient enough to read this rant and then kind enough to post suggestions and response. I have decided to sew this one using a matching thread and use it as a practice piece for the funkier coloured one I plan to do next.

I was very happy to come across several wool sweaters in my (biweekly) pilgrimage to the local Goodwill. Here are my stabs at two bags made out of one sweater. Not completely sold on them, but it was fun to work on them and a break from blankie knitting.

1. Ocean’s 13 (working title )

stats:
– background is deeper teal than it looks in the photos with the cheapo digital camera and the apartment lighting
– edging done with Noro Kureyon (lost label and don’t have colourway) in crochet – hook size 4 mm
– starfish and other details mostly with same Noro in crochet
– I intended the handles to come out wavy but am not 100% on the look
– thanks to DH for his deep sea suggestion…

2. starfish up close

3. Neckless (I know… groan!)

stats:
– same sweater as above
– edging done in crochet with Brown Sheep Burley spun -Strawberry Patch, handdyed
– detail flower in Burly Spun – Orange you glad and can’t remember the red colour, maybe Red Baron

4. detail on trim

This is rather addictive, actually. I hope to refine my technique shortly. Perhaps if I weren’t doing this work in front of CTV Newsnet shouting at politicians it would be easier… at least I’m not inclined to pitch my mug at the screen that way!

c-c-c-c-c-c-COLD!!!

But I digress… here is my latest chill buster, just in time for the (late) January deep freeze. The synthetics create super warmth without itchiness, strangely enough:

Yarn: Bernat Disco and some leftover DK blue wool from my stash (can’t remember the brand)
Needle size: 6.5 mm – DP and circular
Time to knit: 1 1/2 hours approx
Pattern: mine

I am very pleased with this hat, which I whipped up in about an hour and a half after an excursion to Zellers – where I saw some cheap eyelash yarn. It will go very nicely with my new winter coat (reversible with a black plush side) – although I am quite bothered about the fact that half the buttons popped off the coat first time I wore it! My attempts to re-sew were disastrous – so will just have to wear this hat tomorrow with my black leather jacket.

The pattern is from “Hip Knit Hats” by Cathy Carron. It is meant to be designed after Lara’s hat in Dr Zhivago… but I added some colour:

An update (for myself if no one else) on what I’m working on right now:

(a) Curve of Pursuit – log cabin style

This is my third attempt at using this huge lot of yarn I had bought originally for a Kaffe Fassett sweater many years ago and given up in complete disgust (with myself). I DETEST intarsia. I think all of the yarn will get used up this time! 🙂

Yarn = Paton’s decor. Needles = Addi Turbo (5mm – I’m trying to get this big enough to use as a bed cover)

(b) Diamonds geometric wall hanging

I am liking the way this is turning out, but the sewing is tedious.

… and a detail from the next row of diamonds…

(c) Glitzy scarf

Bernat eyelash yarn … the colours do not look as “Hallowe’en” in non-digital land (not that Hallowe’en is a bad thing… !!!)

The knitting seems to be getting just a wee bit out of hand. Housework suffers (doesn’t it always?), food (which I usually enjoy preparing) has become whatever I can excavate from the freezer and throw into the crockpot. Am (barely) managing to get to work in the morning – refrain from taking knitting on the (1/2 hour) commute because would risk staying on the tram and riding the rails all day.

As well, I seem to have swapped my yarn-purchasing habit (oh really? What about those 2 skeins of Cotton Fleece earlier this week?!? hmmm) for a needle fetish. In 2007 alone I have bought Denise needles and 5 (!) sets of Addi Turbo (having learned that I far prefer Addis to Denise needles). I fear I will not stop buying Addis until I end up forced to sell all of my clothing and drape myself in felted bags and blankets in order to scrape together some money to throw at the landlord in order to continue housing myself and my stash (not to mention DH!).

Did I mention, by the way, that I pay for all of my various habits by working as a tenant advocate? But I digress…

My stained glass and other mosaic tools have been moved to the storage locker to make room for the stash, which is slowly (well, not so slowly) taking over the spare room. I have swapped the pleasures of gleaming, smooth glass for the comfort of cotton and wool. Sometimes this saddens me, but I imagine the mosaic muse will strike again when least I expect it.

And then I’ll *never* leave the house…!!!

AGGHGHGHGHGHGHG…