Jagged Window

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Heather

I’m always a little sad when something doesn’t turn out the way I pictured it.

Cathedral Window Pin Cushion

This is a cathedral window pin cushion. I used these instructions, which are quite good. Unfortunately, my sewing skills are still a bit lacking, and I don’t always get everything right.

Yeah, it does look okay, but that is only because I stuck on the big honking button. If you look really close at the top triangle shape, you’ll see some jaggies. That’s the pinked edge of the charm square that should have been under the rolled over black around the edges. Next time (and there will be a next time!), I’ll know to make sure to have the points of the charm square triangles up closer to the centre.

Still, this is a great little pattern, and doesn’t really take to long to make. I’ve got a bunch more charm squares kicking around, so I know I will make more.

For those who are interested, the black fabric is Heritage quilt solids, and the Halloween print is Costume Clubhouse by Riley Blake.

2 Comments | Posted in Sewing | Tagged ,

The Socks That Broke the Camel’s Back

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Heather

Well, actually, the ones that hurt my hand. 🙁

Tintern Abbey Socks, designed by Brenda Dayne

The pattern: Tintern Abbey by Brenda Dayne (the host of the Cast-On podcast). The pattern is available on Ravelry here individually, or on Brenda’s site as part of her eBook Welsh for Rainbow (totally worth the price for the whole book, in my knitterly opinion).

The yarn: Yarn Hollow’s Summer Love in colourway Bronze. (Her base is my favourite sock yarn, Panda Cotton.)

The needles: HiyaHiya metal needles, which hurt my hands sooooo much after four pairs of socks.

The solution: Knitter’s Pride Cubics; wooden needles that are square and flexible.

You history or travel buffs might be interested to know that Tintern Abbey is a real place in Wales (where Brenda lives). It is now a beautiful and hunting ruin, thanks to Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536. After being given to courtier Henry Somerset, the lead from the roof was sold, and the buildings began their slow, graceful decay. As always, Wikipedia has more information.

Tintern Abbey and Courtyard (source: Wikimedia Commons)

Comments Off on The Socks That Broke the Camel’s Back | Posted in Knitting | Tagged , ,

WIPocalypse – At a Loss

Posted on July 5, 2012 by Heather

Well, if you can believe it, I just don’t know what to work on for Wipocalypse this month. I just checked my list, and I have 53 WIPs. Surely to goodness there is something in there I can work on this month. (Five were started this year, so they don’t really count. Does that make things better?)

So, let’s see. This month’s theme for Theme-a-licious is Jolly July, where holiday stitching of all sorts is on order. I’m planning on stitching up Haberdashery Designs’ Voodoo Girl so my mom can take it on a trip with her (long story, but don’t worry, it will be coming home to me).

I think I will focus on Christmas Biscornu by Kim Beamish this month. It is a class piece from the 2011 fall Creativ Festival. I really like the design, but I put it away for quite a while because there is sooooo much buttonhole stitch in it. The other week I actually dug it out and powered through it, and I think I may have finally figured out buttonhole stitch. (Starting it still confuses me, but I think I figured that out too.)

Ta-da!

Christmas Biscornu, designed by Kim Beamish

I’ve still got the centre area to do, obviously, and a bunch of eyelet stitches there behind the buttonhole stitches, but it is still looking great.

The bottom is plain, but I’m think I may stitch the holly border from the top. When it is sewn together, the buttonhole/eyelet/bars hangs over like a lace edging. Beautiful, really. I can’t wait to finish it. I think I’ve found my WIPocalypse focus for July.

3 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Memes & Collabs | Tagged , , ,

July Stitching Blogger Question

Posted on July 4, 2012 by Heather

Ouch! My poor left hand. It seems that knitting four pairs of socks on small metal needles, one right after the other, wasn’t such a good idea. I have developed a pain my in hand that is taking a bit to long to go away. I’ve been taking it easy since the weekend, which means I’ll be sharing some older finishes during the next couple of days. I have been able to do some canvaswork though, since I’m leaning the frame against the table, so I might have some of that to share soon too.

Before I get to this month’s SBQ, there are just a couple of more things I wanted to mention. First, I’ve got a new comment system set up. If you have trouble with it, please send me an email to let me know (link to your right -> ). And speaking of to your right, I’ve added some links that will let you find me on Pinterest, Twitter, and Steam (for those of you who are gamers).

So, this month’s Stitching Blogger Question from Lee is:

“Oh, I don’t have the patience for stitching/crafting.” How do you respond when you get that kind of statement? What’s the best response you’ve ever heard/seen?

You know, it is funny, but I get this sort of comment about my knitting from people who are stitchers. To them, I usually say that cross stitching takes a lot longer, and knitting is more portable, so I can take it just about anywhere and make time to get things done.

The best response I’ve heard to this sort of comment is that crafting is what gives us patience, and that is so true. I go crazy if I haven’t got something to do with my hands (like now with my sore left hand…), and I have not patience at all. But give me a sock to knit or a design to stitch, and I will wait all day.

3 Comments | Posted in Memes & Collabs | Tagged ,

Happy Canada Day!

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Heather

Happy Canada Day!

Here’s a cute video from Chapters Indigo (Canada’s biggest bookseller), featuring a bunch of great Canadian things, including Canadian books and authors.

Check out my other blog, The Lotus Pond, for another one of my favourite feel-good-about-Canada videos.

1 Comment | Posted in Site News, The Outside World |

My Kingdom for a Sock

Posted on June 30, 2012 by Heather

As I’m sure you are well aware, I really enjoy knitting socks. They are small, fairly quick projects and the wide variety of patterns allow me to try new techniques all the time. Sock knitting is also less expensive than knitting sweaters all the time (generally speaking), but it is far from cheap. I pay between CAN$10 and $20 for enough yarn for a pair of socks, but then you need to factor in the price of a pattern. They can range from free to about US$7, or whatever the cost was of the book or magazine the pattern is in. (According to my Ravelry library, I now have somewhere around 590 sock patterns…)

Compared to the 10 socks for $10 you can buy at Wal-Mart, it might seem crazy to knit my own socks. Of course, there is a big difference between the feel of the fabric of those socks and my hand knit beauties. But what about some of the socks in this article? You’ve got your €19.90/pair red socks made by a company who makes socks for the Pope, all the way up for $200/pair cashmere socks that can only be worn a few times before they give out (any knitter can tell you that you never make socks from 100% cashmere yarn!).

I think that my hand crafted, custom fit, exactly as I like them socks are a much better deal than any of those. But, I think the next time someone mentions that they would like me to knit them a pair of socks, I’ll let them know my prices start at $200.

1 Comment | Posted in Knitting, The Outside World | Tagged

Watch Dragon (Theme-a-licious)

Posted on June 29, 2012 by Heather

There is something about seeing a cross stitch design in person, isn’t there? Take Enchanting Lair’s Watch Dragon. When I first saw the picture online, I thought it was nice, but not for me. I was lucky enough to see it in person, though, and, well, wow!

I put the last stitches into it earlier this week. What do you think?

 

Watch Dragon from Enchanting Lair

Mine is stitched on black evenweave of some sort, using Dinky Dyes in colourway Quicksilver. I left off the outer border because I am planning on finishing it in a pennant shape.

Edit: Oh, this was supposed to be my Theme-a-licious post! Ooops! Well, as you can see, it is a dragon and June was jumanji June, for stitching animals. Ta-da! Also, check out my post about Hootey, my other Theme-a-licious finish for this month.

Next up: Voodoo Girl for Jolly July! Once I pull some fabric for her…

7 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , , ,