Knitted Cuffs

This weekend was a busy one for me! I got a gift package last week from my crafty soul mate and in it she included this awesome trinket. It inspired me to try to make my own version of a cuff, though, I admit, one with a totally different feel - both tactilely (?) and stylistically. So I started knitting up some cuffs with button accents and I am loving them! So quick and easy to make and it's a great way to use up every last bit of yarn (since it doesn't require much). And such an easy way to add a pop of color to casual outfits. I just finished blocking the completed ones this morning and am working on choosing and sewing up the buttons for them. Wanna see? Of course you do!

In my head, I imagined they'd all have funky contrasting buttons, but I find myself placing complimentary ones on some. I guess it just depends on the color and what my eye finds pleasing.

This weekend was also occupied with taking care of Moondoggie. Full disclosure, I wasn't really the one who ended up with the job. After giving him his usual bath on Saturday afternoon, he became really antsy, whiny and trying to climb the fireplace to look out our front window - behavior very unlike him. He seemed like he kept wanting to go outside so I opened the front door, the back door, but he wouldn't go. Just stayed inside moving restlessly about. We couldn't figure out what was wrong. I went to sleep about 2am and The Doomed stayed up watching tv. I awoke at 5:30am to find that The Doomed still hadn't come to bed and when I opened the door to investigate, I was slammed in the face by an awful, overpowering smell. I found Moondoggie quietly in a corner and The Doomed on hands and knees, scrubbing the rug in his office. Turns out our pooch got horribly sick half an hour after I went to bed, puking and shooting liquid poop for the next 3 hours in our living room, dining room, and finally the office. The Doomed had stayed up all night taking care of him and cleaning up his messes. He hadn't wanted to disturb me and figured with his war experience, he'd smelled everything bad in existence, so his gag reflex wouldn't be as delicate as mine. Poor Moondoggie walked around ashamedly, tail tucked between his legs and looking generally awful. I took over Moondoggie duty and The Doomed finally went to bed around 7am. By then Moondoggie was a little better but he didn't regain his appetite until Sunday evening, after just a bit more puking and pooping. Luckily, he had more control of it by that time and I was able to get him outside to do it. Poor thing! We can't figure out what made him sick, since we didn't feed him anything different or new (though he has been known to take a good, unintentional chomp out of snakes and lizards he finds outside) but I'm just glad he's back to being his happy, hungry self.

Well, that wasn't shop talk! - but, hey, it's what makes up my days.

I Don't Have Time To Blog...

...I'm busy crafting! Update next week!

What I've Been Doing Since Saturday

1) Learned to use my new knitting loom.
2) Made three scarves with said knitting loom.
3) Almost finished knitting red slouchy beanie.
4) Did a small photo shoot this weekend (wasn't crazy about the way it turned out, but maybe there's something there to work with).
5) Started a new book now that I finished Black Dahlia Avenger.
6) Got a new idea for an item.
7) Embroidered another pair of mittens.
8) Rearranged craft space and began (finally!) tidying up the dungeon. (Gotta get ready to work down there once the weather cool's off!)

I've been busy! And you?

Currently shuffling through my soundsystem:  El Matador - Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Not A Lot To Do - The Zutons, Consequences of Falling - k.d. Lang, Superheroes - Esthero, The Rain, The Park and Other Things - Cowsills

I COMPLETED A SEWING PROJECT!

I know it's supposed to be Etsy Finds Friday, but I haven't spent anytime looking at Etsy this week. Instead, today, I will show you the project I made with my sewing machine. No, it's not the dress. I know, I know, but I got a little intimidated when I unfolded the tissue with the pattern and thought I should start with something a little simpler. Ready to see?

I MADE A SKIRT! You're probably thinking "big deal, it's a skirt" but for me it's very exciting. This project was full of firsts for me:  I drafted and cut out my own pattern, made pockets and was careful the patterns of the fabric for the pockets and front of the skirt lined up with each other, made my own bias binding and machine-sewed said binding, and inserted a zipper using my sewing machine. I feel so triumphant! It turns out I know a little more about sewing than I thought I did. I spent two days making this skirt (well, along with other projects) and spent a lot of time taking careful measurements and seriously contemplating each cut before I made it. Still, there was lots of sewing and unsewing, but in the end it all came together. Even if the inside of the skirt isn't great looking - but who's gonna see that anyway? Here's a couple close-ups:

They're awful pictures but I have no time for photoshopping - I wanted to get it posted! I wish I had taken pictures of the skirt in progress, but I just wasn't that diligent. I was so determined to finish this skirt today that I haven't even eaten! Just an apple in the morning and a pear an hour ago. Now I'm starving! But so happy. I even did my happy dance (yes, I have a happy dance). The best part is I made a skirt that fits me perfectly using my scary ol' sewing machine. And my pin cushion got a lot of use, too.

No Knitting Week is almost over and it's been awesome. I haven't made all the things I wanted to for lack of time and materials, but I have no complaints. And even though I'll be picking the knitting needles back up on Monday, I'm gonna keep making time for other projects. It's silly to think I have to knit all the time just 'cause I have deadlines. So next up, tackling that dress!

No Knitting Week Progress

I have been having such a great time working on other crafts this week. Yesterday I altered two tops, pulled out three t-shirts that need fitting, started one, and finished the graphics for two mittens. The altered clothing is boring to look at since they were simple alterations and I didn't take any before pictures anyway but the fingerless mittens I am LOVING. Wanna see?

Stars

Skulls

And how about some action shots?

Modeled here by The Doomed.

POW!

I started with the guys' mittens since it was easier to decide what graphics to embroider. I placed the graphic so that it's off-center and curved on the hand - half on the palm, half on the back of the hand. I am so happy with the way they turned out! And deciding which graphics to put on the others, including the ladies' mittens, has been super easy now. I've even already finished another mitten. Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to complete the graphics for all the mittens this week, but I should be able to make some good headway and maybe even start listing some soon! Well, if I'm able to do a photoshoot this weekend, that is.

I have been having so many ideas since this week began, even the perfecting of ideas I had had but wasn't completely sure how to accomplish. I actually stayed up 'til 2am last night thinking about them and reseaching material I would need for them! One thing I want to accomplish, though, is making an outfit with my sewing machine. I have a small collection of vintage patterns and I really want to try to tackle making one before my No Knitting week is over. I don't even know if I have enough material and certainly know I don't have the skill, but I wanna give it a go anyway. This is the pattern I decided on for my first attempt:

Do you think this is too ambitious for someone with very little sewing experience and who's always afraid to cut fabric for fear of ruining it? Sewing's not like knitting, people! If I screw up knitting, I just have to undo everything and wind the yarn back into a ball. If I screw up cutting fabric to sew, I'm shit out of luck.