tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75884609012047866712024-03-13T02:17:15.665-07:00Stick-Legged GirlFarrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.comBlogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-63798349229207347892010-07-04T16:00:00.000-07:002010-07-04T16:30:51.019-07:00Most satisfying FO everIs it weird that one of the first things I started thinking about when I found out I was pregnant was all the things I would knit for my baby? It must not be too weird, because most of my friends and family members had the same reaction when we shared the news that we were expecting: first, "That is amazing! We are so happy for you!" Almost always followed by, "Has Farrah started knitting yet?"<br /><br />So it was a lot of pressure to make something seriously awesome for my little boy. I have to say I think I found the perfect pattern in the <a href="http://www.pullingatstrings.com/item_631/Gift-Wrap-Romper-by-Sweet-Mama-Small-Sugar.php">Gift Wrap Romper</a>. Because he was due at the end of June, I used a cotton blend yarn (<a href="http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/loops--threads-yarn-gang">Yarn Gang</a> again, purchased on sale again, so total yarn cost of this cuteness was $3). The pattern is fantastic, the process is easy, and the results are...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4761571927/" title="Gift Wrap Romber by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4138/4761571927_68a8bcf46c.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Gift Wrap Romber" /></a><br /><br />freaking adorable if I do say so myself.<br /><br />But wait. That's on the hanger. What about on an actual baby?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4762200578/" title="Perfectly fitting romper by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4762200578_defe37cea1.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Perfectly fitting romper" /></a><br /><br />Ridiculous adorable. I am obviously biased, but I do have the cutest model in the entire universe. My little guy was 6 lbs. 14 oz. at birth and the newborn size of this romper fit him perfectly. He wore it for his official hospital pictures.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4762197616/" title="Which way to the gun show? by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4762197616_98e1cd5d4a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Which way to the gun show?" /></a><br /><br />He has also gotten a lot of use out of the simple little umbilical cord hat I made him out of <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/crystal-palace-yarns-mini-mochi">Mini Mochi</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4762232944/" title="Cian in his romper by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4762232944_a5deac4a08.jpg" width="406" height="500" alt="Cian in his romper" /></a><br /><br />My little model's name is Cian and as expected, he has become my knitting muse and pretty much the center of our world. I can't resist throwing in a non-knitting related picture because this level of baby-liciousness has to be shared...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4762235120/" title="Cian's giant head by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4762235120_9fb011c3f0.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Cian's giant head" /></a>Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-90990429231362955302010-05-24T07:59:00.000-07:002010-05-24T09:53:57.520-07:00DIY Bright Modern NurseryThe nursery project has been in progress for about 6 months now and I have concentrated every nesting instinct I have into this teeny tiny room. We went back and forth, but finally decided to use this mini-room because it gets the best light in the house, has the best view, and using it meant we wouldn't have to get rid of our guest bedroom. It was definitely the right decision.<br /><br />This is the "before" picture- taken from the doorway right before the painting process began...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635923518/" title="Nursery before picture by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3387/4635923518_8eb3b993f1.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Nursery before picture" /></a><br /><br />And here is the after!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635323251/" title="View from the doorway by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4029/4635323251_9bbf4bc946.jpg" width="284" height="500" alt="View from the doorway" /></a><br /><br />The room doesn't have a theme exactly, but a few motifs. Circles and owls seem to come up a lot...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635857426/" title="Nursing corner by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3414/4635857426_97f9e82cc7.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Nursing corner" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635861934/" title="Crib/changing table corner by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4053/4635861934_43247e6750.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Crib/changing table corner" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635863834/" title="Crib by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3405/4635863834_36a807f311.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crib" /></a><br /><br />Now for the details. The stuff that was bought:<br />1. The crib is the <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00116005">Gulliver from IKEA</a>, which was chosen because it was the smallest crib we could find. Pretty much everything else we considered wouldn't fit into the room.<br />2. The changing table is also from IKEA- the old standby dresser everyone has in their house, <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10120592">the Malm</a>.<br />3. The rocking chair is an antique that my parents found on Craigslist and gave us for Christmas.<br />4. The chest of drawers thing under the window was an amazing find from HomeGoods. It was on clearance for only $100 (marked down from $400!). I couldn't believe how perfectly it fit in the space.<br />5. The pendant lamp is also from IKEA- <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90197610">the Fado</a>. I love it because it kinda reflects the circle thing we have going.<br />6. The vinyl wall decal is from Etsy, a shop called <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/surfaceinspired">Surface Inspired</a>. More circles there and of course the owl which I am obsessed with.<br />7. <a href="http://www.target.com/Eclipse-Miley-Window-Panel-Green/dp/B002OL69ZI/ref=br_1_6?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&qid=1274715908&searchView=grid5&sr=1-6&node=689352011&searchRank=pmrank&searchPage=1&searchSize=30&id=Eclipse%20Miley%20Window%20Panel%20Green&searchBinNameList=purchasing_channel%2Csubjectbin%2Ctarget_com_age%2Ctarget_com_gender-bin%2Ctarget_com_character-bin%2Cprice%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Ctarget_com_size-bin%2Ctarget_com_brand-bin">Eclipse curtains from Target</a>. I had every intention of making curtains, but when I found these at Target and they were the kind that wouldn't let light through PLUS they had textured circles all over and matched perfectly, I knew it was meant to be.<br /><br />Stuff we made:<br />1. The crib skirt. After hours and hours of scouring the web for the perfect material, I ended up finding it at Hobby Lobby. We started out with very plain flat panels but wanted to add a little something extra and ended up finding the rick rack in the craft supplies that I inherited from my grandma. I love that a piece of her is in this room. I looked all over the internet for a pattern for an IKEA crib skirt and couldn't find one, so we made one up. If people are interested, I will try to put together a tutorial.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635863834/" title="Crib by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3405/4635863834_36a807f311.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crib" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635325321/" title="Crib skirt close up by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4020/4635325321_600fb41d96.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crib skirt close up" /></a><br /><br />2. A valence and curtain pulls. I wanted something really flat for the valence, but I didn't feel like making a wooden box and hanging it up. The valence is two layers of fabric with a layer of interfacing in between to make it sturdy. There is also a cord running along the bottom inside to keep it straight and flat. The buttons on the curtain pulls are from the great stash given to me by Mema, so a great-grandma is also represented in the room.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635870340/" title="Curtains by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4635870340_93d362f208.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Curtains" /></a><br /><br />3. Chair cushion and pillow. Material, stuffing, and pillow for these was purchased at Joann for 50% off. To make the chair cushion, we traced the chair bottom onto tracing paper to make a pattern. Cut out two fabric pieces, pinned 4 pieces of ribbon to serve as ties between the two pieces of fabric, sewed it all together, stuffed it with polyester stuffing, and sewed on 4 buttons. For the pillow, just cut out two fabric rectangles 1 inch larger than the pillow form and sewed them together.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635874004/" title="Chair pad & pillow by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4635874004_f33fa6de77.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Chair pad & pillow" /></a><br /><br />4. Changing table pad. To be honest, this is still a work in progress. I made a pattern that would fit the curved sides of the contoured changing pad and sewed them to a piece of fabric that fit all the way around the pad, but right now it is pinned underneath until I can get help figuring out the best way to attach elastic.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4635868072/" title="Closet corner by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3394/4635868072_e0b7d6c809.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Closet corner" /></a><br /><br />5. I found the set of red number drawer pulls at Pottery Barn Kids Outlet for only $5! It was more difficult than expected, but Bryan drilled holes into the Malm dresser to put in the drawer pulls and I think it makes a HUGE difference.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4636063532/" title="Changing table by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4636063532_85d9089ef1.jpg" width="500" height="463" alt="Changing table" /></a><br /><br />6. The owl mobile, of course, which is described in my last post.<br /><br />So that's where we're at right now. We have 5 weeks before he's scheduled to arrive and I have a few more things I'd like to get done before then. I want to make a quilt with all the different materials we used in the nursery, but I haven't made a quilt before so it could take some time. I also would like to figure out something to hang up on the wall over the crib, but I am paranoid about hanging things because I'm afraid they will fall on him. I also have 2 or 3 knitting projects I'd like to finish before he gets here as well. OK, all that seems a little ambitious now that I write it out.<br /><br />If anyone has any ideas for safe things to hang over the crib, I'd love to hear them!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-74929319154927111462010-05-04T16:33:00.000-07:002010-05-04T17:47:05.360-07:00Owl MobileWe wanted to create a modernish nursery that had no real theme but just had lots of bright colors and simple shapes. It worked pretty well, I think, but I did get a little obsessed with owls as I went along. Not enough to make it a theme I don't think, but you'll see owls sprinkled around a little.<br /><br />I wanted to make a handmade mobile for the baby, but I sort of liked the idea that store-bought mobiles could move and play music. I got inspiration when I saw a mobile at TJ Maxx that was missing some pieces (it was also <a href="http://www.amazon.com/NoJo-2459079-Princess-Dreams-Musical/dp/B0017VZLA0">fairly ugly</a>). In a move that is totally unlike me, I talked to the manager and asked if I could get it for a discount because it was missing the little arm covers that were shown on the box. The manager said yes and I got this mobile that winds up to move and play music for only $10.<br /><br />I found these absolutely <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wandernstarz/2228998394/in/faves-farrahjacquez/">ADORABLE owl stuffies</a> on Flickr and decided to make the mobile with little owls that are sewn from the fabrics that I used around the rest of the nursery. I made one test one and loved it, so I gathered everything I would need to make 3 more.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579302733/" title="Materials for owl nursery mobile by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4029/4579302733_63a4be1c21.jpg" width="500" height="377" alt="Materials for owl nursery mobile" /></a><br /><br />Using the great directions in tutorials by <a href="http://jennytheartist.blogspot.com/2008/08/traditional-japanese-owl-tutorial.html">Jenny the Artist</a> and <a href="http://moonstitches.typepad.com/photos/tutowlrial/index.html">Moonstitches</a>, I sewed these little guys up in just a few minutes. It was a little more fiddly to do the rest of the sewing by hand, but once I got that first one figured out it took no time at all.<br /><br />I love each of these little guys so much I can't help but show you each one separately. It would be unfair to focus on just one.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579310087/" title="Owl #4 for mobile by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4058/4579310087_633384d58a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Owl #4 for mobile" /></a><br /><br />One major hint I would offer to anyone making owl stuffies (or any other stuffies for that matter) is to splurge on felt that has sticky glue on the back. It is SO much easier to work with the tiny little felt circles if they just stick where they are supposed to end up while you sew.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579314591/" title="Owl #1 for mobile by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4052/4579314591_22471029c6.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Owl #1 for mobile" /></a><br /><br />I seriously don't have a favorite. I love them all.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579945456/" title="Owl #2 for mobile by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4579945456_6b720b6e88.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Owl #2 for mobile" /></a><br /><br />As always, my embroidery skills leave lots to be desired, but I tried to use a satin stitch for the little beaks.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579943728/" title="Owl #3 for mobile by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4579943728_a10a904199.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Owl #3 for mobile" /></a><br /><br />I threaded the red embroidery thread through the backs of the owls at an angle so that they were all facing down toward the baby. That way he'd be able to see the contrast, which is kind of the whole point of mobiles, from what I understand. It bugs me when mobiles are angled so that adults can see how cute they are but the babies can only see the boring bottoms.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579940468/" title="Owl mobile for a modern nursery by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4579940468_45a14fa6ab.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Owl mobile for a modern nursery" /></a><br /><br />For the base and the arms, I just measured the girth of each piece, added half an inch along each side for seam allowance, and cut rectangles. Then I hemmed the short ends and sewed the long ends together to form tubes. Slip the tubes over the base and arms and you have custom-fit covers. I did NOT want any ruffly or ruched-looking lines, so I tried hard to make the measurements as exact as possible so the tubes would fit on exactly and look straight and clean. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4579306355/" title="Owl mobile for a modern nursery by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4579306355_1eee21a02c.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Owl mobile for a modern nursery" /></a><br /><br />I'm thrilled with the results- this makes me want to squee every time I look in the tiny little room where our boy is going to live. I'll show you more sewing soon- I'm trying to figure out the best way to take pictures in such a teeny tiny space.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-111644146736879382010-04-22T12:06:00.000-07:002010-04-22T12:31:39.571-07:00I've been busy, but haven't had much blog-able crafting going on lately. Not secret exactly, but I just wasn't ready to put it out there to the world at large. But I think it's time...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4543443537/" title="30 weeks by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4006/4543443537_aab5ef29cd.jpg" width="303" height="500" alt="30 weeks" /></a><br /><br />Cause it's not like I can actually hide it! We're having a baby come late June and even though I've had 30 weeks to get used to the idea, I still feel kind of shocked by the whole thing. <br /><br />People who check in here often know I do a lot of baby knitting for my friends and family, but knitting for my own little guy (yep, it's a boy) has actually proven to be a little harder. I don't know why, but for some reason I can't decide on the *perfect* patterns or the *perfect* yarns. I did make him a little pair of pants, though.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4544080966/" title="Striped baby pants by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4544080966_b388b08a62.jpg" width="453" height="500" alt="Striped baby pants" /></a><br /><br />I love them. I used the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/kanoko-pants">Kanoko pattern</a> as a general guide, but I didn't do any of the texture and I obviously added stripes. I also added a good inch to the length because all the pictures on Ravely made these look a little short on the babies. The yarn is a cotton/acrylic blend called Yarn Gang and was on sale at Michael's for $1 per skein, so these little pants were only $3.<br /><br />As I was putting together this post I noticed that my most favorite, most anticipated baby pattern ever was just released and I will be knitting it up ASAP. I mean seriously, being able to see my baby wear <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/gift-wrap-romper">this</a> makes labor seem almost worth it. Well that and the whole miracle of creating new life stuff, I guess.<br /><br />I've been doing more sewing lately to fix up the nursery. As soon as I get some time, I am going to post some details of what we've done. My mom and I sewed a crib skirt for the <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00116005">Gulliver crib </a>from IKEA, curtain stuff, and a chair pad and pillow all custom made for our tiny little nursery. I am completely happy with how it turned out and am now just working on getting all the other little decorative details together.<br /><br />More to come!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-55234758823008780842010-02-09T06:44:00.000-08:002010-02-09T07:09:05.004-08:00Worth the repetitionI rarely knit something twice, especially with the same yarn, but a few months back when I was working on the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/baby-yours">Baby Yours sweater</a>, I just kept thinking about how perfect it would be for my friend Kerry's baby. <br /><br />Back in December, I went to Madison, WI for the baby shower.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4343710044/" title="Kerry (7 months pregnant) & Farrah by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4004/4343710044_dfeb3ba288.jpg" width="500" height="424" alt="Kerry (7 months pregnant) & Farrah" /></a><br /><br />I made the sweater exactly the same last time, with the same Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, but I did switch up the buttons. Kerry is 100% Irish, so I thought these silver buttons were perfect for a half-Irish baby. The gender was a surprise, but I thought the color would be appropriate for either.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4342975673/" title="Baby sweater for K & J by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2755/4342975673_7ca92f9266.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Baby sweater for K & J" /></a><br /><br />I love this little thing. Pretty simple knitting and such a huge payoff, particularly with this gorgeous cable in both the front and the back.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4342980181/" title="Baby Yours back by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4342980181_5effcc6ea3.jpg" width="500" height="363" alt="Baby Yours back" /></a><br /><br />Kerry & Jason really loved it. I can't tell you how many times they have mentioned it since the shower. And here's the best part- they already sent pictures of beautiful baby Molly, just five days old, modeling the sweater!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4343709056/" title="Molly's sweater by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4058/4343709056_6969e00550.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Molly's sweater" /></a><br /><br />Are you freaking kidding me? This is enough to make a knitter cry. Okay, it did make me cry. Because nothing is better than a beautiful healthy baby girl born to two of your closest friends EXCEPT a picture of that baby wearing a sweater that you knit just for her.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4343708560/" title="Molly in her sweater by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4343708560_21e655a6ef.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Molly in her sweater" /></a><br /><br />Welcome to the world, baby Molly!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-13400304447479198112010-01-07T14:08:00.000-08:002010-01-07T14:31:18.892-08:00Back on the bandwagonI can't imagine how many pairs of these slippers were knitted this holiday season. I contributed with two pairs and I have another in the works (for a particularly impatient little lady who has a birthday in about a week).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4254333965/" title="Felted slippers by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2746/4254333965_d22d77a610.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Felted slippers" /></a><br /><br />The infamous <a href="http://frenchpressknits.blogspot.com/">French Press Felted Slippers</a> are a really good gift for a few reasons: all you need to know is a person's size, everyone can use a pair of slippers, and they really don't take too long at all. I didn't manage to get down to the 90 minutes promised by the Yarn Harlot- for me they were more like 3-4 hours once you consider the knitting and the considerable seaming on both slippers. That is not including the felting and sewing the buttons and flaps.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4254331577/" title="Felted slippers by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4024/4254331577_3794f881a6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Felted slippers" /></a><br /><br />The buttons are from this huge stash of vintage buttons that my grandmother-in-law has been collecting for about 50 years. She gave me this amazing stash over Thanksgiving and I still can't believe how lucky I am to have inherited it.<br /><br />Not so awesome modeled shot:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4254362055/" title="Linda's slippers by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4040/4254362055_a331590b6f.jpg" width="444" height="500" alt="Linda's slippers" /></a><br /><br />I also made a pink pair with really nice brown buttons, but I forgot to get pictures before I gave them away. So all I have is the obligatory Christmas present shot:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4254419743/" title="Pink Felted Slippers by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2724/4254419743_791bb4692f_o.jpg" width="338" height="257" alt="Pink Felted Slippers" /></a><br /><br />To be honest, they aren't my favorite thing in the world to knit because of how fiddly the seaming can be, but I do love the end product. And I think both the recipients so far have been happy. The third recipient next week will almost definitely be happy, considering the degree to which she insisted that she get a pair. I'll show you some modeled shots of those soon.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-16030536229118314922009-12-21T14:57:00.000-08:002009-12-21T15:20:02.400-08:00Flannel is awesome.Getting ready for Christmas this year, I realized that my sister and I got our sewing machines from our parents last Christmas and we've had some good times over the last year. I wish I could say my sewing has advanced as much as my knitting did in Year 1 (when it was a full on, all-encompassing obsession), but I have made a few things I've been pretty happy with.<br /><br />The newest is this little gift set I made for a February baby. I got some really great deals on flannel from Joann, so I looked up ideas for things to do with it. Chickpea Sewing Studio has <a href="http://chickpeastudio.typepad.com/chickpea_sewing_studio/2008/01/making-baby-thi.html">this great tutorial</a> for a blanket, changing pad, and washcloths and <a href="http://chickpeastudio.typepad.com/chickpea_sewing_studio/2008/01/chickpea-infant.html">this tutorial</a> for bibs, which were both awesome. I combined the directions from both and just kind of ran with it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4204026553/" title="Flannel baby set by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2673/4204026553_6fedfdf187.jpg" width="500" height="357" alt="Flannel baby set" /></a><br /><br />The whole little set contains a huge receiving blanket (flannel on both sides), two washcloths, a changing pad, and a bib (all flannel/terrycloth). I bought 3 yards of fabric and one yard of terrycloth. Even with my super-slow sewing skills, I finished it in an afternoon.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4204019515/" title="Changing pad by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2566/4204019515_bb2966460b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Changing pad" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4204024019/" title="Baby bib by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2676/4204024019_dabffcefe0.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Baby bib" /></a><br /><br />There was a fleece remnant at Joann that matched the green frogs in the flannel, so I decided to make a frog plushie to look like the frog head in the pattern. I free-handed a pattern on tracing paper to look like the frog head, then cut that out, pinned it to the fleece, and cut out two identical fleece pieces. I sewed them together right sides together leaving a small opening for stuffing, flipped it inside out, stuffed it, then ladder stitched the opening closed. Using felt from the craft store that is sticky on one side, I cut out shapes for the facial features and stuck them on the head. Ta da! Frog head plushie!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4204028979/" title="Frog plushie by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2566/4204028979_f736f4bdfa.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Frog plushie" /></a><br /><br />I gave it to the parents at a baby shower a few weekends back and they were pleased. They were even more pleased with the knitting I did for the little one, though- more on that later.<br /><br />Hope your last minute holiday knitting is going well and is not stressing you out too much. I have one last project to finish up knitting-wise, but I think I have plenty of time to do it. Now just to wrap all the presents and clean the house and dang it I want to bake some sugar cookies too.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-88367813286688750742009-12-09T14:17:00.000-08:002009-12-09T14:47:59.865-08:00Quick StuffI've been MIA lately, but there actually is a little knitting going on. At least some knitting for little people. On the car ride to Nashville for Thanksgiving, I started working on a hat for a baby girl who is coming in January. I wanted to give a little gift to her Mom during the trip, so I was knitting fast.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4172966808/" title="10 cable baby hat by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2618/4172966808_b46e3f77aa.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="10 cable baby hat" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://heyjulie.wordpress.com/2006/08/18/cabled-baby-hats/">10 Cable Baby Hat</a>, my favorite newborn hat<br />Yarn: baby-pink Plymouth Encore Worsted<br />Needles: Size 8<br /><br />I got the hat done in record time, so the night before Thanksgiving I started on some booties to match. I borrowed some antique buttons from Mema (grandmother-in-law extraordinaire) and had a little set ready to go. I made super-girly Mary Janes, which I've made before and love.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4172965334/" title="Mary Jane baby booties by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2486/4172965334_8465a45270.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Mary Jane baby booties" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://home.howstuffworks.com/free-baby-bootie-knitting-patterns2.htm">Mary Jane Baby Booties</a><br />Needles: I think size 4s?<br /><br />There is seaming involved in these booties, but it's not too bad. I think the back turned out pretty well- you can tell they are seamed, but it's not too noticeable.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4172210503/" title="Back of booties by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2748/4172210503_549996275b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Back of booties" /></a><br /><br />Pretty cute set together, huh? I think everything together took about 5 hours or so.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/4172206877/" title="Little baby gift set by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2776/4172206877_9c20610227.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Little baby gift set" /></a><br /><br />It's that unfortunate time of year in the knitting world when the blogs are blank because no one wants to show off their holiday knitting too soon. I'm no different- I'm exclusively working on holiday knitting now, but I do have a few FOs waiting. I'll try to get those blogged soon!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-18063107472282817032009-09-20T19:56:00.000-07:002009-09-20T20:49:21.569-07:00Sunday Late NightI'm sitting here in my pajamas (which, yes, is exactly what I was wearing when I got out of bed this morning) and wanted to get a quick post in to make me feel like my day hasn't been a total waste. Not that watching four hours of RuPaul's Drag Race and all 17 hours of the Emmy coverage is a waste or anything, but I did actually knit a baby hat, learn a new knitting trick, and learn how to use my new camera. So pajamas or not, that's something, right?<br /><br />Baby O.C.C., the recipient of <a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2576/3829666919_dfd1845e09.jpg">this sweater</a>, is going to arrive any day now and I wanted to make him a little hat to wear home from the hospital. I used the same yarn as the sweater and whipped up this little number...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3939959282/" title="Newborn Hat for OCC by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3503/3939959282_b48cbd6832.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Newborn Hat for OCC" /></a><br /><br />It's pretty much based on the Umbilical Cord Hat from Stitch & Bitch, but I used DK weight yarn instead of worsted so I casted on 80 stitches. Also, I inserted an extra knit row between each decrease row in the crown because I like hats when they lay more flat on the top. Oh, and I also added stripes. I used <a href="http://techknitting.blogspot.com/2007/01/jogless-stripes.html">TechKnitter's Jogless Stripe</a> tutorial to make traveling stripes, which worked shockingly well I thought.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3940027472/" title="Newborn Hat for OCC by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2613/3940027472_c11d3b581d.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Newborn Hat for OCC" /></a><br /><br />So the new Canon Powershot Elph camera seems like its pretty great. These pictures are taken in my dining room at 11 at night, with miserable lighting, and I still got pretty good sharpness and colors. I'm excited to see how it does in better conditions.<br /><br />In totally unrelated-to-knitting news, I can't resist sharing one of my favorite pictures of the weekend. On Friday night we went to the Reds game and Logan cheered his little heart out, but nine innings was just too much for him...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3940051098/" title="Logan asleep at the Reds game by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3635/3940051098_65d9fe92ec.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Logan asleep at the Reds game" /></a><br /><br />Being an aunt is kinda awesome.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-9328686676339746032009-09-17T12:10:00.000-07:002009-09-17T12:35:27.014-07:00I'm 32, so I'm at a time in my life where everyone I know is having a baby. A friend in Philly is having a baby boy next month, so I'm sending this little sweater off tomorrow. I really, really love how it turned out!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlPVyEaX4htrShc5fsFAeFeQbUkRY7KDqmBOFVz6t4YuO8HwICeaFGOybk6QZxpBlzCjgYuGCQCh3z8sZ84aCP7J8Z40TSi9PNj8bwOoN3Vq-Ij8NzjyUyI7erg0LIvfJGbvLu7QE8D4W/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlPVyEaX4htrShc5fsFAeFeQbUkRY7KDqmBOFVz6t4YuO8HwICeaFGOybk6QZxpBlzCjgYuGCQCh3z8sZ84aCP7J8Z40TSi9PNj8bwOoN3Vq-Ij8NzjyUyI7erg0LIvfJGbvLu7QE8D4W/s320/P1010001.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382518333589657458" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: The Yarn Harlot's <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/baby-yours">Baby Yours</a> (Ravelry link)<br />Yarn: Debblie Bliss Baby Cashmerino- 2 skeins<br />Yarn Source: <a href="http://www.eweandi.com/">Ewe & I</a><br />Buttons: Etched shell buttons from Joann<br /><br /><br /><br />Ewe & I, where I got the yarn for this, is just down the street from my friend Juliana, whose baby will wear this sweater. When I was visiting her there, Ewe & I was having this awesome sale where you could pop a balloon and whatever percent off it said on the paper inside is the sale you get. I got lucky and got 30% off 7 skeins of baby cashmerino!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3929789360/" title="P1010002 by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3452/3929789360_1346f0c451.jpg" width="500" height="416" alt="P1010002" /></a><br /><br />I love the pattern, love the little buttons, and of course the cashmerino is awesome. I already have a request to make another one of these!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3929790318/" title="Back of Baby Yours by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3427/3929790318_1c7d789cc4.jpg" width="500" height="359" alt="Back of Baby Yours" /></a><br /><br />Part of the reason blog posts have been so scarce lately is my broken camera. I can take pictures, but I can't see what I'm doing on the LCD screen. Luckily, this will be the last post with mystery pictures because I just ordered <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-SD1200IS-Stabilized-Green/dp/B001SER49W/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1253214755&sr=8-4">this new camera</a> from ebay (where it was the same price as Amazon but with free shipping and a memory card, case, and lens cleaner included). I have been swatching for my Opulent Raglan, so stay tuned!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-45066645918485828712009-08-17T08:05:00.000-07:002009-08-17T08:41:13.262-07:00Toronto knitting<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_R5mccQvU6tgJoE9VEUYX4qTsK8bfDeZSmsHLv0vVJxPXmQTkJ7vdor0220b_civDk9yfu3MtFGziEuXvGLSE0XUEniTu6jyT7mswh5UUher9_LjXWyqfgs8CPh8Xcrih1EFH73hnzlJo/s1600-h/IMG_0018.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_R5mccQvU6tgJoE9VEUYX4qTsK8bfDeZSmsHLv0vVJxPXmQTkJ7vdor0220b_civDk9yfu3MtFGziEuXvGLSE0XUEniTu6jyT7mswh5UUher9_LjXWyqfgs8CPh8Xcrih1EFH73hnzlJo/s320/IMG_0018.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370955383969054034" /></a><br /><br />I was in Toronto a few weeks ago for a conference and it turned out to be an excellent knitting vacation. I bought a <a href="http://www.theknitkit.com/">Knit Kit</a> at the famous <a href="http://www.lettuceknit.com/">Lettuce Knit</a> and then hung out at Kensington Market for the rest of the day. I also made it out to the Beaches, where I got my hair cut on a whim and visited <a href="http://nakedsheep.ca/">The Naked Sheep</a>, which was having a 25% off-every-yarn-in-the-store sale. I got 5 gorgeous skeins of Elsebeth Silky Wool in a pretty purple to knit the Opulent Raglan. Finally! I have been looking for the perfect yarn to make that sweater forever. I passed <a href="http://thepurplepurl.com/">The Purple Purl</a> while riding the streetcar back to my hotel and hopped off to check it out. I'm so glad I did because I think it was my favorite Toronto yarn store of all. They had some <a href="http://www.soysilk.com/yin.html">SWTC Yin</a> at 40% off, so I bought some blue and brown to make a sweater for a baby boy who will be arriving in about a month.<br /><br />I decided to make a simple little sweater with the baby's initials on the front. I gave it to the parents at their baby shower last Saturday and they seemed to really like it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3829670689/" title="OCC sweater by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2584/3829670689_3e7955d2ba.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="OCC sweater" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: Modified version of <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/striped-sweater-3">Striped Sweater</a> from Debbie Bliss Simply Baby<br />Size: 3 month size<br />Yarn: SWTC Yin (2 skeins Blue, 1 skein Brown)<br />Needles: Size 6 for body, size 4 for borders<br />Buttons: tiny wood ones from Joann<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3829666919/" title="P1010006 by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2576/3829666919_dfd1845e09.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="P1010006" /></a><br /><br />I had planned to use intarsia to do the letters, but it just didn't work out so I used duplicate stitch instead. The entire time I was duplicate stitching, I found myself chanting "You down with O.C.C.? Yeah you know me!"<br /><br />I have another October baby to knit for, but I know just what I'm going to do. I bought some Cashmerino when I was in Philly back in June that is destined to be <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cardigan-for-merry">A Cardigan for Merry. </a> After that, I can move on to my Opulent Raglan.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-25002110883814336362009-08-03T09:21:00.000-07:002009-08-03T11:58:12.674-07:00Let's be honest.They don't all work out the way we'd like them to, do they? I hesitated to post this project because it showcases my flaws (in both my knitting and my personality) in such a spectacular way, but I figured why not be realistic. I am almost always impatient and sometimes a little lazy, and those traits have repercussions.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3784821163/" title="P1010001 by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/3784821163_cddcb87347.jpg" width="419" height="500" alt="P1010001" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/sexy-vesty">Sexy Vesty</a> (Rav link)<br />Yarn: Jo-Ann Dreamweave, a wool/silk blend I got on sale<br />Needles: 8's for the body, 7 for the armhole and neck ribbing<br /><br />CanaryKnits made up this little recipe for a lacy vest and she is very clear that it is not a pattern, but more a general set of guidelines, so the pattern is not to blame for what went wrong. What went wrong is all due to me, and my problems were 5-fold:<br /><br />1. As I was knitting, it seemed way too small. CanaryKnits was clear that the vest was made for a person with a 35" bust, and my bust is definitely bigger than that. I justified my decision to keep knitting because on Ravelry, someone commented that this yarn "blooms like no yarn I've seen before". So I just figured it would get bigger with blocking. Did I swatch and test this theory? Nope. I just yellled at Daisy on Daisy of Love for having such terrible taste in men and such an unscrupulous plastic surgeon.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3784822431/" title="terrible seams by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2443/3784822431_75548e9fcd.jpg" width="500" height="483" alt="terrible seams" /></a><br /><br />2. Ouch. Look at those terrible seams. The thing is that despite my best efforts, I didn't make the front and back the same length at the armholes. I had a feeling I had messed this up, but I somehow ignored this feeling and kept knitting.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3784826937/" title="Vest off by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3542/3784826937_1284232002.jpg" width="365" height="500" alt="Vest off" /></a><br /><br />3. Look at those tiny armholes! The guidelines said to knit for 2 inches before binding off the top, but that just isn't enough for my arms. I tried on the vest after seaming up the shoulders and the armholes were very clearly too tight, but I somehow convinced myself that adding on the armhole ribbing would fix this. Seriously? How does that even make sense AT ALL??<br /><br />4. You can't see it that well in these pictures, but the decreases at the front center are wonky as well. Somehow I picked up stitches so that the wrong side was facing me, which meant I had to use P2tog and SSPthroughbackloop to decrease. It looks ridiculous from the right side.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3785632808/" title="Too short by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2647/3785632808_1fc02278be.jpg" width="500" height="463" alt="Too short" /></a><br /><br />5. Not only is it too tight, it's also way too short. Again, my delusions about blocking led me to ignore the obvious and keep knitting.<br /><br />So that's it, friends- a real UGH! to add to my Ravelry page. The sad part is that I'm so done with this project that I don't even think I'll frog it for the yarn. The yarn is soft and has a nice halo, but I hate it now because it is associated with nothing but self-contempt.<br /><br />On to the next, though, right? I'm going to Toronto tomorrow and have big plans to visit all the yarn shops in the area. One of them, the Naked Sheep, is apparently having a huge sale with 25% off every yarn in the store. Can you believe my luck?<br /><br />If anyone has any ideas of things to do in Toronto this weekend, I would very much appreciate it!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-34366748745200654532009-07-07T16:26:00.000-07:002009-07-07T17:17:16.394-07:00Textured Circle ShrugI've been working on this shrug for months- I got hung up on the step where you have to pick up almost 300 stitches. I finally got back in the game when the Lion Brand blog had a knit-a-long that Stefanie Japel herself led, which inspired me to pick this up again and get going.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3698800283/" title="Textured Circle Shrug by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2637/3698800283_93bcc98d55.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Textured Circle Shrug" /></a><br /><br />I have been wearing this around for about a week and just loving it, so I was really hoping to get some great pictures to show off its awesomeness. Unfortunately, our camera is on the fritz so these are going to have to do.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3698801457/" title="Textured Circle Shrug by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3493/3698801457_b01d7a53cd.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Textured Circle Shrug" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: Textured Circle Shrug from Stefanie Japel's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Glam-Knits-Designs-Luxe-Yarns/dp/1600610358/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247009772&sr=8-1">Glam Knits</a><br />Size: 36-38 bust size (second-to-smallest)<br />Yarn: 6 skeins of <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/bernat-soy-natural-blends">Bernat Soy Natural Blends</a> in Oatmeal<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3699616452/" title="Textured Circle Shrug by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2644/3699616452_27a034b3a4.jpg" width="500" height="361" alt="Textured Circle Shrug" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://peacockchic.wordpress.com/">Peacock Chic</a>, a blogger I love, always describes her projects in terms of the good, the bad, and the ugly. I am going to steal that idea to describe this.<br /><br />The good:<br />- My friend <a href="http://stick-leggedgirl.blogspot.com/search?q=kris">Kris</a>, who is fantastic in every way, brought me Glam Knits when he came to visit a few months ago. It somehow made it more fun to knit this, because it made me think of him.<br />- I really like how functional this piece is. I think it's going to be great for the fall; I can see myself wearing it at work all the time.<br />-I got this yarn on major clearance at Michael's a few years ago so I believe this shrug cost about $12. It's 50% acrylic, but the soy makes it soft and I actually kind of liked it. I decided to use it for this project because it has a nice drape and I wanted the shrug to be drapier and silkier than the one in the book. I think it worked!<br /><br />The bad:<br />-The miles and miles of 1X1 ribbing- it was cool at first because I needed some mindless knitting in my life, but after something like 70 rounds of k1p1, with around 300 stitches per row, I was SO ready to have this finished.<br />-I really don't like the holes that are made by the M1P increases. I would absolutely do these differently next time.<br /><br />The ugly:<br />-I am kind of famous for my problems understanding spatial dynamics, so it is no surprise that I wasn't thinking about how the shrug would lie on my body and ended up weaving in all the ends on the collar incorrectly. There were tons of knots in the yarn and therefore tons of ends to weave in, so when I got finished and put the thing on there were 7 different places where you could totally see the messy ends sticking out. I had to take them all out and re-weave them in on the other side of the fabric.<br />-These pictures are kind of ugly, too, but I went ahead and included them to show how it fits. Please ignore the strange lumps under my tank top and the weirdo look on my face.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3699613668/" title="Textured Circle Shrug by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3233/3699613668_99545e1628.jpg" width="309" height="500" alt="Textured Circle Shrug" /></a><br /><br />All in all, a great project that I'm happy to have finished. I just started <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/sexy-vesty">Sexy Vesty</a> today and guess what? I am thick in the middle of more 1X1 ribbing!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-6791617740461355222009-06-12T14:39:00.000-07:002009-06-12T14:46:25.564-07:00Monster!A little late birthday present for my nephew, who turned 1 a couple of weeks ago. One! I can hardly believe it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3620691206/" title="Little Orange Monster by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3319/3620691206_dee2a3b628.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Little Orange Monster" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/little-monster-bear">Little Monster Bear</a> (Rav link)<br />Yarn: Lamb's Pride Worsted, left over from a Bengals hat I made years ago<br />Needles: Size 10 1/2 DPNs<br />Embroidery: Wonky, as usual<br /><br />It took me one night to knit up all the pieces and another to sew everything together. I had to run it through the washer 3 times and I still don't feel like he felted as much as I would have liked.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3619870095/" title="Little Orange Monster by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3403/3619870095_aac253c588.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Little Orange Monster" /></a><br /><br />As you might suspect from my two month absence from the blog, I've been in a bit of knitting slump lately. I knit this little guy in the attempt to get some mojo back, and I think it worked. I'm knitting the Textured Shrug from Glam knits and now that I've picked up all two hundred stitches, I think I'm on track. Nothing but gloriously monotonous 1X1 rib for days and days...Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-8737831486086114282009-04-16T15:41:00.000-07:002009-04-16T16:01:22.879-07:00Baby HoodieMy oldest friend in the world, who I just realized I've known 25 years now, had her first baby yesterday. I haven't even seen pictures of the little guy yet, but I've been thinking about him a lot over the past couple of weeks. As I knit this sweater, I got more and more excited to meet Michel's baby. I love this kind of knitting- where every stitch just makes you happier and happier.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3448853674/" title="Easy Baby Cardigan by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3543/3448853674_60718443ee.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Easy Baby Cardigan" /></a> <br /><br />The pattern is the <a href="http://knittingpureandsimple.com/babycardi.html">Super Easy Baby Cardigan</a>. I picked up stitches for the button band instead of just knitting garter stitch on the edges. Instead of knitting into the front and back of every stitch for the raglan, I did matching M1 increases. I also used a provisional cast on at the very beginning so I could use the 3 needle bind off for the hood. I'm glad- it was super easy and I think it looks more polished (because as always, my seaming is eh.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3448041093/" title="Easy Baby Cardigan by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3567/3448041093_aa88d2cb71.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Easy Baby Cardigan" /></a><br /><br />The yarn is Cotton-Ease- one skein of Stone covered everything but the second sleeve (I had to go buy another skein for that darn thing). I used a bit of a skein of Charcoal for the borders. Buttons are simple wood ones from Joann (50% off- woot!).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3448852338/" title="Easy Baby Cardigan by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3381/3448852338_73c7c1839d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Easy Baby Cardigan" /></a>Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-17414245997804605742009-03-30T08:00:00.000-07:002009-03-30T08:39:03.918-07:00Starburst Mirror SculptureWhen we moved into the new house, I had resolved to blog about some of the renovations and other fun stuff we planned to do. Unfortunately, the renovations haven't happened as quickly as we had hoped so I haven't had much to report. But a few weeks ago, some fabulous Miami friends came to visit and I had to spiff the place up a bit so they wouldn't be appalled at my lack of style.<br /><br />Our house is older and has some neat little features, like these little lamps that are above the fireplace. Unfortunately, we've been living with a big blank space between the little lamps ever since we moved in. I always see these cool looking starburst mirror wall hanging things at <a href="http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=1420&f=12207">Crate and Barrel</a> and <a href="http://www.wrapables.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=A51821">other fun places</a> and have always thought they would be perfect for that space. Unfortunately, they are usually kind of expensive (that one at Crate & Barrel is $200!). So when I saw on the CRAFT blog a DIY tutorial, I knew I had the perfect fix.<br /><br />I did a little further searching on the Internet and used two tutorials for inspiration: one from <a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/how-tomake-your-own-starburst-mirror-allisons-february-jumpstart-project-2009-076260?image_id=531">Apartment Therapy</a> and one from <a href="http://www.instructables.com/id/Starburst_Mirror/">Instructables</a>. I got everything I needed from Michael's, Wal-Mart, & Home Depot:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3398947798/" title="Starburst materials by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3538/3398947798_2b2dd48d63.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Starburst materials" /></a><br /><br />Glue gun, glue sticks, bamboo skewers, wooden dowels, silver spray paint, silver regular paint, a paintbrush, 2 packs of assorted sized circle mirrors from Michael's (50 total), an auto rearview mirror from Wal-Mart, and 2 circles cut out of carboard.<br />I forget how much I paid for everything individually, but all together I believe it was under $20.<br /><br />All of that turned into this:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3398990808/" title="Starburst by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3557/3398990808_72d9bab2e4.jpg" width="500" height="442" alt="Starburst" /></a><br /><br />I'm really happy with the finished product, but I want to tell you about what I did wrong in case you decide to do this. First of all, I bought 4 long wooden dowels from Home Depot, spray painted them silver, and then cut them into smaller 12" sections. That was dumb, because the sawed off part was all raw and ugly and unpainted. So I had to use sandpaper to sand them down until they looked nice and then I had to hand paint silver onto the ends.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3398176483/" title="Starburst closeup by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3624/3398176483_c9670d3af5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Starburst closeup" /></a><br /><br />Next, I think I bought a slightly too small auto rearview mirror. Originally, the plastic ring around the mirror was black plastic. After I had already assembled the whole mirror I realized that the black plastic didn't look right. But at this point, I already had the starburst hanging on the wall, so I had to get up on a chair and paint the black border by hand with silver paint. I like the look a lot more, but in the future I would paint the center mirror FIRST.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3398172099/" title="Starburst sculpture by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3432/3398172099_73a4de1490.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Starburst sculpture" /></a><br /><br />But even with the mishaps, this project was not too time intensive and I really like the results. Now that big blank spot between the retro lamps if filled, and I feel really thrifty and creative every time I look there. Definitely a win!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-41687445097574275302009-03-22T16:11:00.000-07:002009-03-22T17:07:15.165-07:00Goth SocksFinally I have some knitting to show you! As soon as I saw Cookie A.'s <a href="http://www.knit1mag.com/web_exclusives.php">Marlene Socks </a>in Knit.1, I knew I would be making them for myself. I got some Dream in Color Smooshy in Gothic Rose on sale from <a href="http://www.sonnyandshear.com/">Sonny and Shear</a> and started these socks right after the holidays. They have taken forever because I've been making mistakes and have frogged at least part of them about 8 times. But it is worth it because these are definitely my favorite socks ever.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3377577048/" title="Marlene socks by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3056/3377577048_6664b1c8db.jpg" width="419" height="500" alt="Marlene socks" /></a><br /><br />Look at this pattern! It is fantastic. All those twisted stitches make these gorgeous lines and the heels and toes flow so perfectly from the foot.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3376792683/" title="P3220077 by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3567/3376792683_89a85c0064.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="P3220077" /></a><br /><br />All the ribbing makes them fit really well, too. I love them!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3376748351/" title="P3220076 by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3648/3376748351_af39c9b7ec.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="P3220076" /></a><br /><br />So I need to get started ASAP on a gift for my oldest friend's baby, due in early April. The little one will be living in Philly, so I think I'm going to do a little cotton sweater for spring.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-83038779284966549742009-03-08T20:30:00.000-07:002009-03-08T21:00:19.994-07:00Finally- the mystery present!Several astute readers have asked me about the picture on my sidebar of Jason's Christmas Present. In lieu of an FO picture, I just had a picture of my brother-in-law. I had to do that because Jason is super sneaky and joined Ravelry over the holidays so he could try to find out what I was knitting him for Christmas.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3339569733/" title="Mr. Pitts Socks by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3609/3339569733_f1b885dd2c.jpg" width="500" height="397" alt="Mr. Pitts Socks" /></a><br /><br />Jason is super supportive of my knitting habit- he hand picks yarn for my birthdays and finds knitting books that he thinks I will enjoy. He once told me, when watching me knit a pair of socks, "so basically that heel is a series of short rows, right?" Seriously! He's just the type of person to look up how to knit socks because I am knitting them, even though he has no previous interest in knitting.<br /><br />So that kind of interest warrants a nice pair of handknit socks, right? I searched for a pattern that was not too crazy, but had just a little something to keep it interesting. I found <a href="http://www.greatwhitewong.com/sassystitchess/patterns/mr-pitts-socks/">Mr. Pitts socks</a>, which fit the bill nicely. I used some Patons Kroy Sock Yarn that I found on sale the day after Thanksgiving. I think <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/yarns/library/patons-kroy-socks-4-ply">Kroy sock yarn</a> is one of the most underrated sock yarns out there- it's not indie, but it feel great and you can't beat the value.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3339557155/" title="Mr. Pitts Socks by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3539/3339557155_5a97e48e0f.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Mr. Pitts Socks" /></a><br /><br />I looked up Jason's foot size online and made the socks as long as recommended according to some random sock length chart, but it turns out I was totally wrong. The socks were way too long. So after Christmas I took the socks back, frogged the toe and about 15 rows on the foot, and reknit the toe. Now they fit nicely. I think Jason really likes them, and he is a seriously deserving recipient of quality handknits.<br /><br />I took these pictures tonight after spending the day sewing with my sister. Today we decided to mix sewing and embroidery and make these wacky little monsters. They are made of fleece, with felt for the eyes and mouth. We embroidered the faces, using french knots for the eyes and satin stitch for the teeth.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3340369504/" title="Monsters! by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3640/3340369504_12a049d4c3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Monsters!" /></a><br /><br />Aren't these guys fun? I'm going to send my monster (the one on the right) to my oldest friend Michel, who is set to have a baby in early April. Stay tuned- Michel's new baby definitely will have a knitted present, too!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-37888575392266536282009-03-01T17:47:00.000-08:002009-03-01T17:56:22.924-08:00Pillows and TotesDespite Nico's reckless disregard for my crafty efforts, I decided to try again. I made her a fleece pillow, mostly so she would have an alternative to my couch pillow. I even used the project as an opportunity to get a little embroidery practice. It worked well, but of course she started tearing it about 2.2 seconds after she discovered it was there. It's okay, though- she loves it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3321257006/" title="Nico's pillow by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3611/3321257006_a55a9fce26.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Nico's pillow" /></a><br /><br />My sister and I spent Saturday making tote bags from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sew-Fast-Easy-Need-Start/dp/0312269099/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1235957826&sr=8-1">Sew Fast Sew Easy</a> book. It was great- we got the fabric from Joann and recycled a sheet for the lining. We estimate that we made them for about $3 each!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3320426155/" title="Tote bag by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3557/3320426155_7dc1af9c19.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Tote bag" /></a><br /><br />We used fusible interfacing for the first time, so the bags are really sturdy.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3321254874/" title="tote bag pocket by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3545/3321254874_4fdfaea6f5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="tote bag pocket" /></a><br /><br />They also have this hanging pocket on the inside, which was totally worth the extra effort. I really think I'm going to use this all the time. I mean, look at how much it will hold!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3320423211/" title="Logan in a tote bag by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3640/3320423211_b8648484f9.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Logan in a tote bag" /></a>Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-78153461321016724242009-02-22T06:05:00.000-08:002009-02-22T06:43:07.280-08:00Introducing NicoI never thought it would happen, but we got a dog. A tiny 5 month old pomeranian/sheltie mix we named Nico. Because she's only 3 lbs. and it is freezing outside here now, I made her a sweater. Well, also because the way I celebrate things is by knitting something.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3300408574/" title="Nico's sweater by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3347/3300408574_bf4d02675b.jpg" width="428" height="500" alt="Nico's sweater" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/en/visoppskrift.php?d_nr=102&d_id=43&lang=us">Dogcoat from Garnstudio</a><br />Needles: Size 7<br />Yarn: Knitpicks Swish Worsted<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3299582733/" title="Back of Nico's sweater by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3590/3299582733_98c76f063d.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Back of Nico's sweater" /></a><br /><br />The pattern is great- it's worked mostly in the round and has these delicious cables all over it. It took about 5 days, but the process was fun. More time intensive than most dog sweaters, but the cabley goodness is worth it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3299565397/" title="Looking outside by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3384/3299565397_e36c0e8f13.jpg" width="500" height="373" alt="Looking outside" /></a><br /><br />The only negative about the sweater is that it's difficult to get on the dog. It is a turtleneck, for one, and even after you get her head in, you have to wrestle her legs into the sleeves. She doesn't seem to mind the sweater once it's on, but getting it on is not her favorite activity.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3299564547/" title="Front view by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3299564547_28042f03e7.jpg" width="500" height="428" alt="Front view" /></a><br /><br />Nico herself is something else. She is sweet and lovey, but playful and energetic too. <br /><br />Okay, you're not going to believe this, but as I type, she just trotted into the room with the sweater in her mouth. She was wearing it five minutes ago when I came upstairs to type this, but that little monkey somehow managed to chew it off. It's pretty much destroyed. These pictures officially show the first and last time Nico wears a sweater.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3299587175/" title="Laying down by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3611/3299587175_6493c56c12.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Laying down" /></a>Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-6355208783258436492009-02-13T07:06:00.000-08:002009-02-13T07:35:01.668-08:00Bamboo BearA friend from Miami recently had a beautiful baby girl and I knew I wanted to send a care package down, but it's always difficult to decide what to make for warm weather babies. They just don't need sweaters, hats, or blankets the way that cold weather babies do. Every baby needs a teddy bear, though, right?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3276007395/" title="Bear reclining by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3408/3276007395_d441b53c22.jpg" width="383" height="500" alt="Bear reclining" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: <a href="http://www.berroco.com/exclusives/harry/harrybear.html">Harry Bear pattern from Berroco</a> (Free!) <br />Yarn: Bamboospun from Hobby Lobby (held doubled). (On sale for $2.50 per skein)<br />Needles: Size 10<br />Ribbon: 4 yd spool from Michael's ($1)<br />Total cost: $6<br /><br />I know people hate talking about money and think it's super tacky to add up the total cost of things, but I am one of those people who, when complimented on a shirt, says "Thank you! I got in on sale at TJ Maxx for 7 bucks!" So when I can make a baby gift with this level of adorable for $6, I feel the need to share.<br /><br />I recently went to a Hobby Lobby for the first time and was very impressed with their yarn selection- lots of natural fiber stuff and sock yarn. This Bamboo Spun is 77% Bamboo, 23% Nylon and only $2.50 for 148 yds. I could make another bear with my leftover yarn, which makes the total cost of the project even lower!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3276814852/" title="Thinking bear by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3276814852_f94fbab0dc.jpg" width="372" height="500" alt="Thinking bear" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Bamboo Bear ponders the economic crisis while staring out onto the hills of Cincinnati...</span><br /><br />This pattern is super cute, especially with yarns that are a little fuzzy or plushy. As cute as it is though, I would only knit it again if I rewrote the directions for working in the round. Seaming this little thing took as long as knitting it- seriously. As always, my seaming leaves a lot to be desired, but luckily this yarn hides lots of mistakes.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3276814724/" title="Bear sitting up by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3312/3276814724_706f017971.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Bear sitting up" /></a><br /><br />I actually started making a sweater for Bamboo Bear, but it just wasn't turning out right and it was covering his little belly, which is one of his best features. Then I started knitting him a little scarf, but I ran out of scrap sock yarn before it was long enough. I wasn't sure I liked it anyway. I decided to just go for the simple ribbon because Bamboo Bear is going to live in Miami anyway. Most people down there wear the equivalent of this ribbon as on-the-town attire.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3275995367/" title="Bear close up by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3334/3275995367_82d9d1c459.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Bear close up" /></a><br /><br />I'm sure everyone is sick to death of me complaining about how I don't know how to embroider, so I won't go into it again. I did get the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stitch-Kit-Jenny-Hart/dp/0811843211/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234539111&sr=8-16">Stitch It Kit</a> for Christmas, but I haven't taken the time to really learn yet. Too much apron making and knitting and, um, having a job and stuff.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-41626109909051597932009-02-04T11:06:00.000-08:002009-02-04T11:25:38.984-08:00More apronsMy sister and I sewed on our own this weekend and made more aprons. I found this fun bee fabric and a coordinating yellow fat quarter for the pocket and ties.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3253969854/" title="Full apron laid out by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3344/3253969854_fc1879018f.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Full apron laid out" /></a><br /><br />I'm still working on sewing a straight line- I think I'm making it harder than it should be. It's funny- people always tell me I must be patient to knit as much as I do and I never really understood what they meant. I am extraordinarily impatient in life- knitting actually helps with that a lot. I definitely get impatient with sewing- I can't seem to get things right, so I just want to get it done.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3253970412/" title="Full apron by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3354/3253970412_ec018fa3b4.jpg" width="386" height="500" alt="Full apron" /></a><br /><br />I'm going to keep practicing- I just found the <a href="http://www.sewmamasew.com/">Sew Mama Sew</a> blog, which is doing a month-long series on projects to make using fat quarters (which only cost about $1.50, so perfect for practice).<br /><br />Next up, more knitting. I have a baby present in the works and more of the pretty pretty Marlene socks.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-16396341319053262092009-01-28T15:25:00.000-08:002009-01-28T15:43:07.585-08:00Just in time!After knitting my sister's <a href="http://throughtheloops.typepad.com/through_the_loops/2007/12/working-hats.html">Thorpe</a>, I realized that my ears are cold, too, so I needed one just like it. When I was in Chicago, I stopped by <a href="http://www.loopyyarns.com/">Loopy Yarns</a> (which is fantastic, by the way, and the only LYS I've ever been to in which the only 2 employees were male and nice and honestly, pretty darn cute). I chose Araucania Azapa as my souvenir yarn and it is oh-so-delicious. It's a bulky yarn with silk and merino and alpaca, with little bits of tweed in it. Seriously- it's like malabrigo, but maybe even softer and more luxurious.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3234543095/" title="Earflap hat back view by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3484/3234543095_45dc3b7a3a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Earflap hat back view" /></a><br /><br />ick- I'm not nuts about these pictures.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3235377354/" title="Just in time hat by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3366/3235377354_a71f55269d.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Just in time hat" /></a><br /><br />I used some leftover Ultra Alpaca (double stranded) for the crochet border and braids. I like how it brings out the little brown flecks in the Azapa. And the whole hat is just so soft!<br /><br />I've been wearing this pretty much non-stop for the past couple of days because we have just been inundated with snow and ice. I've had 2 days off from work and have been going to town on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/knit_cookie/3121763162/">Marlene</a>. I'm using Smooshy in "Gothic Rose" and I just love both the color and the pattern. Pretty pretty socks!Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-31183248672871008772009-01-23T08:10:00.000-08:002009-01-23T08:49:48.300-08:00Sapphire SweaterThe lovely Ingenue from Custom Knits is done, and I just love it. It ended up taking up my extra time for about 8 days. I finished weaving in the ends at about 1 a.m. on Saturday, soaked and blocked, and she spread out on the back seat of the car to finish blocking on the trip up to Chicago on Saturday morning.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3220612882/" title="Ingenue front by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3495/3220612882_0fd2c9cd37.jpg" width="417" height="500" alt="Ingenue front" /></a><br /><br />She made her debut Sunday night at Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, a performance of 30 plays in 60 minutes at the <a href="http://www.neofuturists.org/">Neo-Futurists Theater</a>. If you haven't seen it and are in Chicago, you should check it out. It is like nothing else you have ever seen.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3220622270/" title="Ingenue standing by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3341/3220622270_b08cfb02ae.jpg" width="500" height="399" alt="Ingenue standing" /></a><br /><br />I definitely added quite a bit of length to the torso and to the sleeves- I believe it was around 15 rows before the waist decreases and 5 or so extra rows before starting the ridge pattern for the bottom. I believe I added around 10 rows to the sleeves.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3219766281/" title="Ingenue back by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3367/3219766281_bfbd6d1ef5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Ingenue back" /></a><br /><br />I really like the ridge pattern- I was actually thinking of changing it because I wasn't sure about it in the book pictures, but I really dig how it looks in real life. It kicks a regular raglan up into special sweater territory.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3220598868/" title="Ingenue side view by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3534/3220598868_c504f821c3.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Ingenue side view" /></a><br /><br />My husband took these pictures and without any special instructions, he made sure to get a shot that shows "all the stuff the knitters will want to see"- the raglan lines, the ridge pattern, the sleeves and the hip edge. Smart guy.<br /><br />So there she is- my first sweater of 2009 (and my first sweater for me ever!). I am wearing it right now at work and really just want to tell everyone who comes into my office- Hey! I knit this sweater! Isn't is AWESOME! But I am not completely obnoxious, so I don't.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588460901204786671.post-62063841815578707362009-01-15T13:38:00.000-08:002009-01-15T14:05:20.451-08:00Happy 30th, Cola!Today is my younger (and only) sister's 30th birthday, which is weirder for me than turning 30 myself. Cola is supposed to be little, and now even she is 30. That means I am getting older <span style="font-style:italic;">for real</span>.<br /><br />We all went snow tubing for her birthday, which was super duper fun. You can tell, see?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3191739148/" title="Cola loves tubing by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3259/3191739148_5e67773c4c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Cola loves tubing" /></a><br /><br />The Knitty-lovers out there may recognize that Cola is wearing a Wavy Scarf in this picture, knit for her by me two years ago. One of my first knitting projects!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3190891315/" title="Snow tubing self portrait by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3338/3190891315_ae86eba0f3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Snow tubing self portrait" /></a><br /><br />You can only barely see it in the snow tubing pictures, but Cola is also sporting the earflap hat I made her for Christmas. She is very easy to knit for because she loves almost anything, and she loves it double if it is blue. This definitely contributes to why she and my nephew are so often the recipients of knitted gifts- she appreciates the gifts, and she appreciates me for knitting them. That makes me just want to knit more.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3200192960/" title="Thorpe front view by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3325/3200192960_84bcdb8d34.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Thorpe front view" /></a><br /><br />Pattern: Thorpe, by <a href="http://throughtheloops.typepad.com/designs/">throughtheloops</a><br />Yarn: Cascade Chunky Tweed, with Paton's Classic Merino held doubled for the crochet edging and braids<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3200185382/" title="Thorpe from the back by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3255/3200185382_11cebd30ee.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Thorpe from the back" /></a><br /><br />There's not a lot to say that hasn't been said before about this pattern- it's fast, easy, free, and the results are functional and good-looking. In fact, now that I think about it, I should probably whip one of these up for my trip to Chicago this weekend...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/farrahjacquez/3191738496/" title="thorpe from the side by stick-leggedgirl, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3124/3191738496_6a23f4c030.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="thorpe from the side" /></a><br /><br />Nah, I know I won't. My heart beats only for <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/scoutj/2797482799/">Ingenue</a>. We have spent a magical week together, and now I just have one sleeve left. I'll probably try to churn it out Friday night to have it done in time to wear in the Windy City. She deserves a true day out on the town.Farrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18260501886908509678noreply@blogger.com0