I had my head down last week, making some new products: fountain pens, cross-style twist pens, and mechanical pencils! They’re not quite ready for the shop, but I’d love for you to take a look at this sneak peek and tell me what you think. Should they be a regular offering? Should I take custom orders? What color metal looks best? I’d love your feedback.
I know I am two months late, but I wanted to share a bit about last year’s Polymer Claycation.
Most times when I have several dedicated days of claymaking ahead of me, I have a bit of a theme in mind to guide my work. This year was the year of the tiny flowers. In other words, I had decided that I was going to make my Calico Cane design in as many of my popular color schemes as possible. In all, I finished eighteen canes, nine of which were brand new. The other nine were replacements for designs I had run out of.
I have two sweaters to show you! One of them I put the finishing touches on just this week, and the other one has been waiting for me to take pictures of it for roughly a YEAR.
The first cardigan is a pattern by Tin Can Knits and features a lovely cabled yoke. It was a bottom-up knit, which is not my favorite, but I enjoyed knitting the cables. And there’s something to be said for saving the interesting part for last.
The other cardigan is the Striped Yoke Cardigan, which is one of my own patterns. I made some significant changes to the yoke for a more customized fit, and I’ve worn it many times over the past year. This one was a top-down knit, which means you get to do the fun part right away, but then you’re stuck with the stockinette slog for the next few weeks until it’s done.
Both methods have their pros and cons.
Keep reading for more details, photos, and links to the patterns, yarns, and button-making instructions!
It’s hard to believe after thinking about a potential trip to Glasgow for five years, here we are on the other side, having been there and back already. We’ve been home for more than a month! I want to share some of my favorite photos from that trip, but I’m actually not finished telling you about the sewing and knitting I finished before we left. So how about we wrap that bit up today?
So, last I told you I had gone down a shirt-making rabbit hole. I thought I was finished with that, but it turns out, I had a few more in me. And I wanted to try my hand at making a dress to wear to the Hugo Awards, too.
I sewed one more top based on my Barefoot Summer Sheath pattern, and one more Simplicity 3835. Then I got all experimental and added sleeves to the Sheath pattern, resulting in a dress that was super comfortable and nice enough to wear to an awards ceremony.
I finished the squishy garter-stitch shawl I was working on a few months ago, and it was actually just right for the Scottish weather and my short-sleeved dress.
Neil and I are going to Scotland in August, and I was thinking about what to wear on the trip. Jeans? Check. Funky colorful shoes? Check. A week’s worth of colorful handmade tops in colors that coordinate well with the funky shoes? Eh, not really.
So, I went shopping. Picked out three plaids and three florals, and sewed myself six new tops, using two tried-and-true patterns.
And then I had a photo shoot outside on a 90-degree day, and did six costume changes, including glasses and earrings, so that I could share these new lovelies on my blog. Come and see!
This weekend is Rhinebeck weekend, and I am not there. For the fourth year in a row. That’s ok, though, because I still have a sweater to share, and I wore it for a week in Ocean City, NJ, which is a very different kind of getaway than a weekend in Upstate NY would be, but it was nice in its own way, and perfect for new-sweater wearing.
I haven’t completed a knit or crochet item in seven months! It took summer to spur me into action. It took the desire for a lacey cotton cardigan to take with me on our casual nights out. And it took wanting something handmade and lovely to throw over my shoulders if the ocean breeze got to be too much.
The last knit of 2022: Owligan, a super bulky cardigan sweater with cabled owls in the yoke. It was a fast and easy enough knit, but there was button drama.
I enjoyed knitting Carol Feller’s Liathite Sweater pattern. it is mostly easy stockinette, plus a nice cable to keep me from getting bored. I love the finished product, too. Here are some photos, and all of the details, in case you want to knit one for yourself. Also: check out my fun new shoes.