Project planning mind dump

November 15, 2012 at 8:25 am (crafting, ideas, knitting, quilting, spinning, weaving)

I have too many ideas…

  • Dishcloths for weaving on floor loom — high priority as I would like to do some for Xmas gifts
  • Cowl for me — linen stitch?
  • Hat for Mom — or maybe a headband? Make sure it is super soft!!!
  • Hat for me! — I want ear flaps
  • grey handspun sweater — shaping my ideas
  • I would say brown handspun sweater, but it is till being spun
  • Charity knitting: preemie hats — need to check my numbers
  • Inkle bands with leftover sock yarn? — I need some time to focus on the new patterns in the book
  • Rigid heddle scarves
  • Pinwheel quilt — idea testing stage
  • Felted wool applique quilt — in process
  • Christmas stockings? Request from a family that I am willing to consider (for pay!), but it needs some idea shaping
  • Stole with combination of lace and cables; I can’t seem to get a creamy white out of my head, even though I’m really not a white clothing person.
  • Baby sweater or two, or maybe booties? Hats?
  • Finish off friend’s quilt (for pay!)

Okay, I think that is all that has been floating around in my head. When I look at it, I can prioritize.

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Belt idea

November 14, 2012 at 5:51 am (crafting, ideas, inspiration)
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What about a belt made of different yarns, all different shades of the same color, braided into a long belt?

I can imagine one that would match what I’m wearing.

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design ideas

November 4, 2012 at 7:55 pm (ideas, knitting)
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I have this idea for a sweater out of my grey handspun: top down sweater with a cable knot on the shoulder, that then has cables going down the front on each side and down the arms, also maybe down the back? I

I want it to be a square yoke sweater, done top down with purls for the turn point of the arm; follow the basic logic of a top down raglan, but not raglan shaping, looking more for set-in sleeve shaping.

I hope this is going to be possible, I’ve been dreaming it up for a long time.

Of course, if it doesn’t work, I can always try again later.

But I cannot start until I’ve finished the two sweaters that I have close to completion. It’s a rule.

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In the moment Oct. 15

October 16, 2012 at 10:43 am (embroidery, stray thoughts)
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time: 11:37 am
location: my brother’s house
drinking: water
eating: nothing yet, but it is almost lunch time
watching: nothing
feeling: relaxed
loving: the smell of what my SIL is fixing for supper
thinking: I do like fall
making: Christmas ornaments for the guild sale
wanting: something I can’t have — a cat of my own
needing: nothing right at this moment
reading: Magic slays
enjoying: watching my nieces home school
avoiding: thoughts of work
wishing: I could have more vacation time here. The weekend plus has just flown by.
hoping: I can avoid involvement in certain things at work.
missing: my own chair

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Crafts progress 2011 to 2012

July 20, 2012 at 4:45 pm (crafting, crossstitch, embroidery, knitting, personal goals, quilting, sewing, spinning, weaving)
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I’ve suddenly realized that I haven’t done any kind of real craft update on the blog for a while, other than as part of the roundup. I think it’s time to consider what I’ve done in the past year.

Also, I DID have some goals — I’ll have to go find them. I know I didn’t achieve some of them, so it’s time to re-evaluate for next year.

Knitting projects completed in 2011

  • Socks #22 (gift for Mom)
  • Baby kimono #3 (finished and gifted)
  • Wool Peddler’s shawl
  • baby kimono #2 (finished and gifted)
  • Socks #21 (wearing and in the dirty clothes)
  • Chemo hat for a girl at church (finished and gifted, although I’m not sure she likes it)
  • Socks #19 (wearing and in the dirty clothes)
  • Candleflames shawl
  • Bamboo skirt (I’m still weaving in the ends and have yet to line it, but all the knitting is done)
  • Now it’s to be felted (a piece of knitted fabric that I hope to use in a bag)
  • Always on hand baby sweater (finished and gifted)
  • Socks #18 (wearing and in the dirty clothes)
  • Baby blanket (2X) for charity (finished and gifted)

Huh, that’s thirteen knitting projects finished in 2011; I find that rather gratifying.

Items still in progress: Summerweight sweater, boiled wool jacket, Shelter sweater, Socks #20, Pine and Ivy shawl, and Socks #23. Already finished knitting Baby kimono #4 in stockinette version, just need to sew together and block.

Knitting goals? Finish sweaters in progress; knit sweater out of gray handspun; do more shawls, a cowl, a hat, and plenty of socks. Figure out one or two of Cat Bordhi’s new sock structures so that I can adapt them. Right now I’m just following a pattern, and I want a certain amount of mental independence from that for socks.

Weaving: did some inkle loom weaving and messed with the shawl on the loom, but actually did very little. I want to focus on this more.

Weaving goals? Do two projects on the big loom. I don’t care if they are new or old, just DO TWO. Maybe take a class?

Quilting: finished the denim quilt, but did little at home. Did work on the feathered star wall hanging, but I would like to FINISH it. Also worked on French braid quilt a bit.

Quilting goals? Do some machine quilting on finished sampler top. Also finish the feathered star. Finish French braid top. Get to the quilting of it if I can. Figure out a new hand project to do at work. (I’m thinking of wool felt applique, which will be a nice blend of quilting and embroidery.) Maybe take a class?

Spinning: worked on some stuff off and on, but nothing with much consistency. Did finish the bamboo/silk blend earlier in the year.

Spinning goals? Just keep working on something as steadily as possible. Right now it is the camel/sick blend. Eventual goal is to get to that lovely brown roving for a sweater.

Cross-stitch/Embroidery: Finished Dragon and castle cross-stitch of many years. Started Celtic cross blackwork embroidery.

Embroidery goals? Just work on the blackwork project. I have no specific goals with this, even though I may choose to play with Take a stitch Tuesday. But that will be PLAY, not commitment.

Sewing: messed around with some stuff, but didn’t really do any sewing.

Sewing goals? Finish two garments. Probably a skirt and a dress.

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Craft idea for 2012

December 22, 2011 at 10:12 am (embroidery, quilting, takeastitchTuesday)
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It looks like Take a stitch Tuesday is returning.
I’ve been wanting to play with wool felt appliqué.
Maybe I can combine the two in wool crazy quilt blocks for experimentation with embroidery?

Wool & silk? Definitely wool and silk and cotton threads. Ideas are bouncing around inside my head. This would be good for a lunch-at-work project.

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Math and craft

August 20, 2011 at 10:03 pm (crafting, inspiration, quilting)
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You never know when that math and geometry you learned as a child will come in handy.

Unfortunately, you don’t remember it very well.

I was listening to a podcast talk about hexagon quilts. I was inspired… except that I really don’t want to make a hexagon quilt of many, many little hexagons. I prefer larger ones. And I don’t particularly want to make a whole quilt of one, maybe just a wall-hanging. So I don’t want to go BUY a ruler for what may turn out to be less than an enduring project.

So, obviously, I should draft my own pattern.

Drawing hexagons is not exactly easy.

Eventually, after muddling through several failed attempts, I looked online. I was able to find this helpful, explanatory site, which triggered the point I had been missing. I needed to measure my angles from the sides, not the center. I was on the right track with what I had been trying, but not yet there. So now I have a pattern template for a hexagon for a 12” block.

Now what am I going to do with it?

I’ll add a picture later.

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Project 365

May 5, 2011 at 2:11 pm (crafting, ideas, inspiration, personal goals, reflections)
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This year, I decided to do my version of Project 365, the effort to take one photograph per day for a year. For some, just taking the photograph is it, but I intend to create a scrapbook from it. I wanted to do it this year, because this is the year I turn 40, and although I don’t feel like my life will suddenly change because I have finished another decade, I do think it is a good moment to pause and evaluate my life. But I’m not doing it based on the 2011 year, but rather on my birthday year, so I am starting six months before to six months after my actual birth date. This means that my photos started in March rather than January.

To make this a workable thing, I have decided to use a basic template for my scrapbook pages, which I intend to do digitally. A simple page with nine square on it and a title bar. The title bar will have the Project title, with the week’s dates. Each box will have one photo, except for the one that is the explanatory text for each day. I will always put the days in the same order, with one extra photo box in the last spot. That extra is optional for a photo, but can be used for a photo that I liked but didn’t really express what I wanted for that day, for some reason. Otherwise, it could also be a spot for more writing or for just a piece of patterned paper.

I’m concentrating on several things: making sure I have photos of myself on a regular basis, observing the daily things in my life right now rather than only special events, trying not to obsess if I miss a photo one day. So far, so good, but I have no certainty that I won’t eventually forget a day.

One thing I am finding helpful is the daily reminder sent out from Katrina Kennedy’s site on Project 365, which keeps it to the forefront of my mind. I’m carrying my camera more and remembering to take a photo every day, though not always remembering what I want to photograph. But that’s okay. Something is better than nothing, and it is all part of my life. I do find it ironic, however, that much of her reminders don’t really focus on what I think of as daily life reminders. “Photograph a 6” doesn’t really inspire me to find an intriguing photograph of a six that happens to catch my eye. It just reminds me to look around for something in my life to focus on – and if it has a number, that’s nice. But then, I remind myself, that not everyone has the same focus as I in doing Project 365. So for others, that may be the most inspiring thought around.

It is leading me to think more about the Project Life kit that is floating around the scrapbooking world. It sounds interesting. I wonder how well it works with digital?

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Let’s be random

April 16, 2011 at 9:02 pm (cooking, crafting)
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  1. Why aren’t there more cooking tv shows that actually mention working with whole wheat flour? I mean, it’s becoming a big thing in the grocery store – a lot more people actually eat whole wheat bread. Yet I’ve not yet seen a single show that mentions baking of any sort with whole wheat flour or other flours. Why not?
  2. Once again, advertising ignores the deeper reality in a way that I find annoying, because it emphasizes the shortcut over the actual investment of time and effort. Advertising Miracle Gro planting dirt, they show a normal soil in a suburban yard, which is less than desirable. And do they suggest that it might take a while to correct this problem? Do they even hint at the idea that it would be good to feed the soil compost, mulch, or any other kind of nutrient to feed the soil? Of course not! they only suggest that the answer is to mix in the Miracle Gro “soil” that will allow your plants to grow. It makes perfect sense!
  3. I am so tired of this chilly weather. No longer are we getting really cold weather. Just chilly. But still…I am tired of it. I want some warmth. (whine, whine, whine, yes, I know)
  4. I had an idea of a bag using the wrapped cord technique that I learned at guild. But, a really big tote bag, not a small little stiff bowl. I wonder if it would work?
  5. Last night and tonight, and probably the next few nights, I am madly scanning in photos, etc. in order to create a slideshow for my parent’s 50th anniversary party. I’ve been wanting to do something like this for a while, so it is a good opportunity to get moving on the job.

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Design idea

February 15, 2011 at 9:26 pm (crafting, ideas, knitting)

Out of my reading of Knitting in the old way: a boiled wool jacket of knitted fabric made into a jacket. Extra wrinkle: do a subtle braid or cable pattern when knitting it.
Line it with silk.

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