It's A New Year And New Adventures.....

Happy New Year to everyone. I haven't posted in a while but I have knitted and crafted a few new things since my last post. This year I said I would post more even if it's just progress photo's but my main priority to to get my Etsy shop together. Here are a few things I've done lately.
Here are a few cup cozies that I made and decided to add to my shop. They seemed to be a hit for Christmas. More can be seen here.

I've also done some sewing, making more project bags.  And since making socks I've realized how important stitch markers are so I made a few for me and a few to add to my shop.

And yes I have made more socks. More info on these can be found on my Ravelry page.

Owlie Socks

Symmetry Socks

Skandium Socks

There is more to come.  But for now, thanks for stopping by more adventures to come...

3rd Adventure in Sock Knitting........

Completed!!!! My third pair of socks and they're no plain jane's either. With this pair I took this....

ONline Supersocke 100 Neon Color Two # 1726 4ply  and this....

which were left overs from the Maurits (yarn info can be found in that post) socks from my 1st sock adventure, to make Harlequino. 

When I started this sock I was kind of nervous as this was only my 3rd pair of socks ever and this sock is an unusual construction. Not only is it knitted in diamonds but I had to do provisional cast on's and pick up stitches as the sock progress and diamonds were added.

I have to say that the pattern was straight-forward and the notes from all the ravelers as well as the pattern designer were very helpful. Everyone kept saying trust the pattern, and I did. And here's the result.

I can say I am pleased with the results and would definitely knit this pattern again. Want to see more pictures check out My Ravelry page.

Thanks for stopping by....more sock adventures to come.

Carnival Beanpoles- 2nd Sock Adventure

Beanpoles are done. At first I wasn't too sure if I liked the color combo but as the sock progressed I began to like it more and more. From knitting the my 1st sock adventure Maurits I had an idea of what size needles I needed to use to get a sock that fits my foot when worked stranded. I cast on Beanpole on May 9th with 2.25mm needles and changed to 2.5mm needles before starting the gussest. Well I got to the heel and didn't like the tightness of the sock so I started over. Started the second go round on May 20th casting on 84 stitches instead of the 74 still with the 2.25mm needles but changed to 2.75mm/US #2  needles for the remainder of the sock. So here they are:

The end result was rather nice. I can say that I'm getting better with the Kitchener's Stitch (here's a handy video) for closing up the toe. I named them Carnival Beanpole because the Regia stripping yarn reminded me of the carnivla at night when all the lights are light up. Yarn details can be found here and more pictures can be seen on my Ravelry project page. These were knitted as an entry into the Sock Knitters Anonymous May 2015 KAL. 

Project Bag For My Sock Knitting.....

Well today didn't make for much knitting as running errands was priority but I did get some crafting in this evening. I finally decided on the next sock I will knit, Beanpole and I got all 19 pages of the pattern printed. This will be the 2nd sock i've knitted and the 3rd sock in my Adventures in Sock Knitting talked about here. My yarn choices are Regia Design Line 4-ply in Golds Color 3309 and Regia 4-ply in natural.

Beanpole Yarn Choices

In the middle of reading over the pattern I remembered that about a week ago I dug around in my fabric stash and pulled out two fat quarters I ordered a few years ago that now I have no clue what I was going to do with them. I figured they would make a cute project bag. So it was a toss up to cast-on socks or sew me up a project bag.....and the project bag won!

The bag can be reversible and is currently holing 3 50gm balls of sock yarn with room for 1 or 2 more. There are things that I will change on the next bag as this won't be my last and I forgot to add a snap before I sewed it up so I could close the bag if I want. And maybe an inside pocket would be nice. It probably took me more time drawing up the pattern than it did to sew it, but now that it's done I can cast-on my socks.

Thanks for stopping by,...

1st Sock Adventure, And It's No Plain Jane

Ok, no I have never knitted any socks. In my sock ventures and sock searching I came across this book  and it has been on my wishlist for a while now. Op-Art is a wonderful sock book with stranded color-work patterns. I like that they show them in different colors and yarns as well as in classic black and white for each sock.  As a first time knitter I know I probably should have chosen something simple and plain and not a stranded color-work sock but I couldn’t resist and that just wouldn’t be me. I want to make them all in colors and black & white and it’s hard to choose which one to do first. When adding the book to my Ravelry library  I found the Op-Art-Socks Group. This group does a KAL for the socks in the book. I joined the group in March and I couldn't join in that months KAL because my yarn took forever to get here but I was determined for the next month. April's KAL sock was Maurits.  I wanted and could not resist to join but of course I have no sock yarn. I scoured the internet and found the perfect yarn for the lovely lizards on these socks.  I ordered some Regia Fluormania in a greenish-yellow colorway and some Schachenmayr Regia Africa Style Stretch Uni & Color*4ply 

Regia Flourmania Neon Leaf

from Hotyarns. I thought this might make a pair of bright colorful socks that reminded me of how lizards changed colors. Along with yarn I purchased a few different needles. The socks called for US #1 circulars so I ordered two 24-inch Addi Lace Circular needles, a size #1  9-inch HiyaHiya Circular needle,  a size #2 pair of  ChiaoGoo Twist Red Lace needle tips along with a  30-inch twist interchangeable cable, and last but not least a pair of  Karbonz double pointed needles in size #1.  I order so many types of needles because I wanted to not only try them out but I wasn't sure which one's I wanted to use and you can never have too many needles. 

     

Now I think i'm ready to begin.  I started my cast-on  4/20 as to qualify in the KAL the sock had to be cast-on in the month that particular sock was for.

 I started cast-on with the 9-inch circular because I though it might might my life easier and it did my only concern was that my floats would be too tight. It took two try's to get the Baltic braid at the beginning of the sock and finally on the the sock. To make sure that my floats had lots of ease I made sure to keep the stitches on the right needle stretched which makes the floats longer. I started the instep  and right heel on 4/22 and here I switched to the two 24-inch circulars. This section began the increases so I knew I would have needed more room. This was my first time knitting with two circular needles at a time. This is also my first time working with such a stretchy yarn, the black,  and i'm not too sure about it but it's gonna have to work. On 4/24 I started tuning the heel, this had to be the scariest part for me...and I still don't know if I really did it right as it did not say wrap & turn it just said slip the stitch but in the back of the book it looks like wrap & turn for turning the heel. By 4/28 I was finish the heel and now on the sole and remainder of the instep. This part was pretty straight-forward as it was only following the chart.

Sock Front

Sock Back & Heel Before Turn

By 4/28 I was on the toe and by the next day I was finish with sock #1.  Sock #2 took me about 5 days. I kept the i-cord for both socks for the end and completed that after the 2nd sock was finished. So by 5/3 both socks were finished and I couldn't be happier. And here are the finished socks.

Well for today my adventure stops here but I still have more to talk about as far as these socks go so this one is to be continued.......

Thanks for stopping by, have a great weekend,

Terra M.

Back to Knitting

I have recently picked up my knitting needles again instead of just crocheting. On my searching for new things to knit (not that I need anything else with my Ravelry favorites , knitting books and magazines, and Pinterest board) I happened upon socks. I am a lover of socks and whenever I see a pair I like I get them sometimes not ever caring of the price. So I figured why not knot or make my own socks. Between Pinterest and Ravelry there are so many choices of knit sock patterns to choose from, My only worry is that I've never knitted socks. nor do I have any sock yarn or knitting needles small enough to knit socks. This mean SHOPPING!!! On my searches I found so many different patterns, yarns, and needles I wanted to try. I figured I'd blog about it and call it Adventures In Sock Knitting. I will detail my knitting's not only as a reference for me but for others that may be interested in the particular pattern of yarn I used. Have a sock pattern that you like feel free to leave me a link in the comments section. First adventure coming real soon, later today or tomorrow. Yes the adventure has already started. Hope you join me in my adventures......

Thanks for stopping by,

             Terra M.

More Scarves.....

I figured since it's getting cold out and I usually make blankets why not make other things that I can either potentially use or add to my Etsy shop so I decided why not make some scarves, cowls, and infinity scarves.

Red Hounds-tooth by ELK Studio

Black Hounds-tooth by ELK Studio

Triple Purple Triangle Cowl by  Sara Dudek

All three were fun and quick to make. For the most part I followed the pattern directions except on the Hounds-tooth I chained 22 for the black & white one and 20 for the red & aran one. More info on the yarn and hook size I used can be found here and here.                                                                      

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY......HAVE A BLESSED DAY!

Chevron Infinity Scarf

Although I love making blankets....and don't plan on stopping, I figured I needed to make some items that are quick and fashionable to add to my Etsy shop. Everyone like a nice scarf and winter is just around the corner so I figured that scarves, gloves, and hats would be a perfect addition. I know that there are tons out there but you never know when yours might be the one someone is looking for.

I had this Caron Simply Soft that I planned on doing a sweater but I haven't found the right pattern yet, so I saw the Rolling in the Deep scarf  and knew that it was perfect for this scarf. I like the way it turned out, The pattern was easy and worked up quickly.

Thanks for stopping by!!!

Colorful Tiramisu Baby Blanket...

Lately I've been working on a new project the Tiramisu baby blanket that I saw while scouring the internet a while ago. I attempted this blanket once with a natural color Pound of Love by Lion Brand that I had in my stash. I didn't like the way it was coming about so I frogged it. I saw a version of this blanket (if I find the link I will update) and love what she had done with incorporating the stripes in the pattern. So I found some colors that my little one picked out for his blanket (I since changed my mind for the blanket I wanted to do for him) and I started the Tiramisu striped blanket.

The pattern worked up fairly quickly. More details on what I did can be found on my Ravelry page here. The yarn used was Loops and Threads Impeccable from Michael's. I added one of my labels I made and printed through Spoonflower. Now its ready to be given to the recipients of their second child, a baby boy. This family is the same one that got the Crochet Quilt blogged about in this post.

Thanks for stopping by....

T. Mitchell

My DIY Labels...

So I have searched the web and come across many nice labels used on handmade items especially quilts and blankets. I found out about Spoonflower a few months back and I love the endless possibilities this site offers for printing not only fabric but wallpaper, decals, and gift wrap. Jay Bird Quilts has a great tutorial on how she made her labels on Spoonflower and it helped me out a lot. This is what I came up with...

I created these using Adobe Illustrator, a free trial can be downloaded here. This was my first time ever using Illustrator and with the very useful YouTube I figured out enough to make this design. I have other colors along with the yellow as I was curious as to what the other colors would look like. Hopefully they come out nice. I pasted a few repeats on the page and added lines to make for easier cutting to add to the quilts and blankets I make. 

Then uploaded them up to my Spoonflower account and placed an order. I think for my first Illustrator experience I did ok. In hindsight I wish I'd added more empty space around the design so I could write in a date and quilt name if I wanted to. I can't wait to see how they come out.

 

Thanks for stopping by,

 

T. Mitchell 

 



It's A New Day for a Maxi Dress...

Lately I have been able start a few new projects that I've been wanting to do. I broke out my sewing machine and some fabric that I had in my stash. I purchased the fabric from Fabric Art Shop  on Etsy. I came across the Regal Maxi Skirt  on Pinterest and immediately checked out the great blog of MiMi G.......I love her style. I looked at the skirt a few times and ordered the pattern. Those that know me know that this is me all the way and I think the sash drew me in. I've had the pattern for a while now and hadn't used it because I didn't have the right amount of fabric (and I still don't) but I knew I would like to use this fabric for this skirt. I initially was going to make this Maxi dress which is attached to a tank top, hence the one in the picture....I think I may still make this once I find the right fabric.

No, I don't have the amount of fabric the pattern calls for but I'm going to see what I can do with what I have. We'll see how it turns out.

Quilting Newbie......

I have also always wanted to make a quilt. I had some fabric in my stash so why not try this out before I go buy more fabric and plus this will be a good add to my Eysy Shop. After looking at many designs I decided on the half square triangles because there are so many design options that can be made with these little guys. I don't know if this was a good choice for my first quilt but we'll see. I have made squares and cut them into triangles and sewn so that one triangle is patterned and the other black.

I have more patterned material than shown in the picture. Since the picture I have started sewing the squares together. At first I was going with a chevron design but that's changed, it seemed to be harder to get the lines to match up like I wanted then to so I'll have to revisit that at a later time. I instead went with more of a flying geese type design.

I still have to decide on a backing. More photos to come. I hope to get this done soon.

Thanks for stopping by.......

T. Mitchell

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lollo the African Flower bear...

My Afican Flower Bear is done. She has been done for a while now and I realized I didn't post any finshed pictures. I enjoyed working this up and I think it came out great. More details on her as well as the yarn and colors used can be found on my Ravelry page and original post . And you can have one like her or to your liking through my Etsy shop.

She sits 23in tall and is 31in standing. I originally made her to sit on my desk until I realized she was waaay too big for that so now I think I will put her away and enter her into the Washington Parish Free Fair this year.

Thanks for stopping by,

    Have a great day,

T. Mitchell

More African Flowers....

Can't get enough of those African Flowers. I'm still working on the African Flower blanket and plan to be finished by next months end. I purchased the pattern for Lollo the african flower bear by Heidi Bears, It's been sitting in my Ravelry library for months now. I was waiting to order the right type of yarn but then I thought why not use what I already have and see how this comes out before ordering more yarn. I had tons of Caron Simply Soft in solids and brites, which I was going to use for a sweater, but why not use for this bear. I chose gray for the base color and a rainbow of colors for the flowers. I got the idea from granpen's lollo African flower bear done in a rainbow of colors.

I was looking forward to finishing this but now the hook needed to complete the last hexagon for the body as well as the entire head is now missing. And of course I have tons of hooks but only one in that size. I'll probably find it once I go buy another. Now I have time to find eyes and buttons for the joints. Thanks for stopping by.....

T. Mitchell

Cold Weather = Harlequin Hoodie

I have seen the pattern for the Harlequin Hoodie many times as well as on Ravelry. After looking at it I decided to make this. I figured it would be perfect for the upcoming cold weather over the Thanksgiving week. All the yarn used was from my stash probably all Red Heart which worked out really well because I didn't have to spend any money. Of course I didn't have it finished by then but it's complete now just in time for the next snap of cold weather.

                                  
I am happy with the way it turned out. I did add ch stitches to the hood as well as the cowl and added a few more rows to the hood so that it would be more oversized vs close fitting. I also tappered it off in the back with decrease rows so it would be sort of rounded instead of square. If I make another one I will follow the pattern exactly and make in a solid color except for the edging rows. And use a differnt type of yarn. Looking foward to wearing it soon.

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY.....HAVE A GOOD DAY!!!

Christmas Stocking & More...

I haven't posted in awhile but that doesn't mean that I haven't been crafting. I've been also trying to get back into taking surveys which in the end can help fund my projects. Lately I have gotten back into baking...cream cheese pound cakes have been in the cake plate a lotaround here. I started slippers for my son...still need to attach the sole on one. I've also been drawn to those darn African flower hexagons and started a blanket using them in shades of blue and green.

I'm trying to attach along the way as well as sew in or crochet in the ends so I won't be stuck with that daunting task in the end. I don't know how big it will be I plan to go until the yarn runs out. I want to start a pair of these slipper boots in gray and cream with maybe a hint of blue- green color.

I saw these on the Cozy Made Things blog and really liked her take on the slippers. The original pattern uses less hexagons for a short slipper but I like the taller version. I originally bought some plastidip to put on the bottom but after further research I also bought a roll of jute that I will use for the bottoms. This way I can wear them out the house if I please. I was going to go this alone but I found a pattern on for crochet soles - turning slippers into street shoes, which I think will be very helpful.

After going through my stash, even taking yarn from other projects (rainbow puff stitch blanket) I decided I wanted a hoided scarf. I refuse to buy what I can make and this time went with the Harlequin Hoodie on Ravelry.

African Flower Christmas Stocking

After making African flowers for the blanket I thought this would make a unique Christmas stocking. There is a Etsy shop that sells a pattern but I figured this was one of those things I could figure out on my own. I used this pattern for the Polka Dot Christmas Stocking to help piece the motifs together.

I attached them differently at the toe and took out two motifs from the toe as well as a full row at the top of the stocking. Instead I added half hexagons to make a straight edge along the top and some rows of single and double crochet. I liked the finished product and decided to list this in My Etsy shop.

Nacho Baby's Typical Blanket

I had an interesting request for a custom order baby blanket. A nacho chip including the cheese and a jalapeño. All I knew is that the chip needed to be a triangle shape and a slight idea of how to do the rest. I could not find any patterns anywhere for a jalapeño slice so I had to figure it out and go from pictures. In two weeks time this is what I came up with. 

 

Thanks for looking......T. Mitchell