Phew...

OK, I think this is the last baby gift for awhile.



For The Migglesworth's dear friend's new baby boy.

Second project from Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones.
Fabric by Joel Dewberry from reprodepot.com

Very easy! Very fun!

And they just keep coming...

It was like a beacon of light.

As soon as I approached the Crafts/Hobbies section of Barnes & Noble, it caught my eye. Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones. I had no idea it was coming out, so it was such a pleasant surprise.

To all publishers out there: all books should be in this form. Spiral-bound, hard cover, pocket for patterns. The spiral-bound is so key, no? I like my book to lay flat and open to the page while my hands are busy making whatever it is I'm looking at. It's such a no-brainer to me.

I digress.

In one week I had learned that three friends all had baby boys. In addition to that, two friends are pregnant with two boys. I've knit the sweater... I've made the baby quilt... I've crocheted the baby blanket... I needed something different. So this book was more than just a pleasant surprise, it was exactly what I needed.

Here's my first completed project from the book:



Kimono-Style PJs
Size 3-6 month
Fabric by Denyse Schmidt from reprodepot.com

Cute!

Sweet Dreams Sailboat Quilt

For a dear friend's newborn baby boy, Zachary.

She's also making the big move out of the metropolitan area, up the Hudson. I think it'll be a perfect fit for their new home.



From Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson.

I think this may be my favorite baby gift so far.

Ask, and you shall receive.

Mom wants pillowcases? Mom gets pillowcases.



She loved this Moda fabric, especially that confederate blue.

Four 14" x 14" pillowcases.

A Nervous Twitch

One of my favorite gals in the knitting world is Phyllis. She works for Coats & Clark and helps out Pearl at Knitty City with the website, marketing and events (etc etc etc). One relatively quiet Sunday afternoon, a few of us were sitting at the back table at Knitty City gabbing away about yarn, hideous knitting patterns, our favorite customers and other yarn industry gossip while furiously knitting on whatever projects we were working on.

We didn't notice, but a few young ladies had started to gather round the table. Murmuring caught my attention and when I looked up, one said, "Whoa... I can't believe how fast y'all knit!" Without hesitation, Phyllis simply said, "Dear, I've been knitting for so long it's like a nervous twitch."

She was so right.

A good friend, who's pregnant, cleaned out her apartment and decided to unload some unwanted yarn on me. Little did she know it would come back to her in the form of a crocheted baby blanket. Not terribly exciting, but it's a gigantic granny square with some scalloped edges. I couldn't help but remember Phyllis's words while I crocheted this blanket. It was pretty much just double crochet's over and over and over... I think I blinked maybe twice crocheting the whole thing. And I definitely felt like I had some sort of tick.



I hope she likes it. She liked the yarn enough to buy 7 skeins of it, right?

I also started knitting a sweater I've been wanting to knit for the longest time. The Cabled Tunic from Vogue Knitting's Fall 2006 issue. I've got the back finished, and have started on the front. I decided to indulge and am using Jade Sapphire's 8-ply Cashmere.



I can't wait to finish this up!

And another...

You'd think I'd have the pattern memorized by now.

Flower Coaster

When I started knitting two years ago, I never thought I would have gotten into patchwork and quilting. And since I started patchwork and quilting, I never would have guessed that I would enjoy hand-work more than machine-work. We're always surprising ourselves, and I guess that's why we try new things. At least that's why I do.

I had fallen in love with the "grandmother's flower garden" motif long before I had any good idea of what patchwork or piecing was all about. When I looked into making a quilt with that motif last year, I balked at the idea of doing it by hand, let alone with all those little papers. Papers? What the heck kind of crazy prairie boredom was this?

So now that I've discovered hand-work to be more gratifying, I had to give this stash-busting technique a try. I bought some pre-cut papers from Paper Pieces and the cutest little japanese book with adorable illustrations and pictures to get started.



Yes, it's time-consuming for the novice. And yes, it took an afternoon for me to finish one teensy coaster. But, sometimes... it's about the journey and not the result.

One UFO Down!

I can't remember when I started this quilt. It must have been last winter '07. It has been adorning the back of my chair since I started it all those months ago. It's been a great cushion, patiently waiting for my attention to return.

You may remember the pity party I threw for myself when I had to baste this super sized quilt. I have vowed never to make a quilt this size ever again... unless I use some quilting service. I'm happy with the result on the top. The back? Not so much. There are quite a few tucks and folds since I wasn't able to get it completely flat to baste.



(more pictures to come on Flickr. i just have to find a way to photograph the whole thing.)

It covers my king-sized bed from side to side and almost from top to bottom. It fits perfectly below the pillows. Of course, once I finished it I decided to give it away. I find more comfort knowing things I've made are sprinkled about, instead of piling up in my apartment.

My mom is visiting and wanted it. I was surprised as she usually likes brighter bolder colors. Since she recently beat ovarian cancer, I figured it was only appropriate. Something to mark the start of a new chapter in her life.

I'm so relieved this quilt is finit-o! Now I have to find a proper cushion for my chair.

Update: More pics of entire quilt.

Getting Back in the Game

I just haven't been feeling very crafty lately. But, I think my latest project put a little crafty back in me.

I had to make a little something for The Migglesworth's friend's new baby boy. I had done two quilts in a row, so I figured it would have to be a little knitwear this time.

What better than a Baby Surprise Sweater. I haven't knit a good old-fashioned Zimmermann project in awhile. Getting back to the basics was just what I needed.

I feel invigorated again and infused with ideas. And best of all, I'm looking at (with great disgust) all of my UFO's and wanting to finish them up and move on with a clean slate!

So, here's the Baby Surprise Sweater for a little Champion. Jack Champion to be specific. Isn't that the best name ever?




Notice the quilt it's on? Oh yes, I'm still not done with that quilt I started MONTHS ago. That's my first UFO to slay.

New kicks: Don't hate

I wasn't going to let something like jury duty get me down.

On this glorious day, during our lunch break, I strolled into Soho and stopped into Opening Ceremony - a boutique that is generally too cool for school. I started to get bored flipping through racks of clothing made for people who have nothing better to do than, well... shop in Soho during the weekday.

But wait! What was this? In the sea of black micropolyblendedviscosecyanide pleated high-waisted short shorts, I spied some floral print as I rounded the first display. Liberty of London? As I got closer I realized they were Nike's!



Of course, I had to buy them.



I haven't worn high-top sneakers since the 8th grade when those velcro Reebok's were the sh**. I'm sure I'll look dumb as heck walking around in these, but I don't care! I love them! So what do the kids do these days? Tie or untie? I should go all the way and dig out my E.G. socks and peg the legs of my jeans.

I can't wait to brighten up that dreary jury duty waiting room tomorrow with these guys.

New toys

It's been more than a year since I got the Canon Rebel Xti. It was a vast improvement over the point & shoot that I had. Well, I finally invested in some proper lenses. I wanted a lens I could walk around with and take candid pictures of people and things on the city streets. After doing what felt like 100 hours of research, I decided on the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L. It is a great lens, and now I just have to learn how to use it. And, don't let anyone tell you different - it is HEAVY. I mean HEAVY, no joke. And for a walking around lens, it'll be quite the workout. But, I'm prepared! I can't wait to get some nice springtime shots!

The other lens I bought is the Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 macro. I'm excited to take some close-ups and also have an alternative if I don't feel like lugging the heavy one around. I was told this is a decent lens as an all-around basic use kind of lens, but since there's no zoom, there would be some limitations. Here's some pics from this new lens:



I like how this picture turned out, but I really have to work on my hand shake. So, I should definitely look into mono/tripods. The lens was about 2.5 inches away from the earring.



Then I played around with using this as a basic lens. I think it looks great! And, I was able to catch Brigitte showing off her pink belly in the awful lighting of my apartment. Fun!

Oh yes, another baby quilt

Sometimes I feel like my friends are single-handedly keeping this planet populated. Migglesworth's old old friend had a baby boy, born May 5th, and he'll be receiving this one. I had been working on the other baby quilt, so I had to whip this one up snappy-quick.

I had been tempted for a long while to try the reversible quilt technique. And tempted only because I wouldn't have to wrestle a monster through my sewing machine to quilt it. I loved the idea that I could work on each individual square, and then put it together. It is the answer to anyone's problems if they're dealing with very little workspace.

After flipping through Sharon Pederson's book and looking at my fabric stash, I decided I liked the idea of a quilt not having a back, but I wasn't really a fan of making "two quilts in one". I think quilts, if used properly, are in fact actually being used. So, more likely than not you would see this underside, and that would be an eyesore.

I had so much fun making this quilt. I cut out all the batting squares. Cut out all of my half-triangles. Sewed half-triangles onto batting squares, and then... CHAIN-QUILTED. So, not only could I quilt manageable sized squares, but I could run them through assembly line style. Oh, I was quickly becoming a convert.



And then I had to put them all together with these strips. The strips being the connectors of all these quilted blocks. That was easy enough.

It's definitely not one of the neatest looking quilts I've made. I didn't line up some of the strips, and when machine attaching the final part of the strips, you have to be careful as to what it will look like on the other side. Mine not look so good. Well, I guess mine does have a front and back then. Oh well.

Year of the Rat Quilt

I'm not a huge fan of "rat". The chinese zodiac is riddled with serious translations of animals: boar vs. pig, ox vs. cow, hare vs. rabbit. Why the long face, chinese zodiac? Why so serious?

Who am to change tradition, so I'll stick with Year of the Rat. Here's the Year of the Rat quilt for my friend who's due with her second any moment now. (It is the year of the rat, right?)




This is my first quilt where I actually felt like I was being creative as opposed to some geometrical human calculator and a human guide for my sewing machine. I drew out the mice, um rats, and created the little appliques. I used fusible web, and then satin stitched around the edges. This was my first go at applique, so I wanted to go the easy route. The satin stitching took some getting used to, and boy does it take a lot of thread, but I liked the result.

I embroidered the tails and eyes, and thought better of including whiskers, and feet as I felt I wanted more of the idea of rat, than rats all over the quilt.

And then, the quilting. I started machine quilting on the rat blocks. (Oh God, I can't say it anymore. I'm switching over to mouse/mice.) Uh-hum, so I started machine quilting on the mouse blocks. I tried echo quilting on the first one, and then squiggly lines on the second block. They looked awful. The echo quilting made it look like a "kaboom! supermouse coming through!" The squiggly lines just seemed messy. So, I picked out the quilting - which I don't recommend - and hand quilted the four mouse blocks.



Finally, machine quilted the rest of the blocks in the same style as those fun coasters.

I love this quilt. I really wanted something muted and simple, but not boring.

Lemonade socks

Months ago I had started a half circle cardigan. When I was about to start the finishing process, I realized, after some soul-searching, that I didn't like it. Aside from me not really wanting to do the finishing, and if you'll just ignore the other part of me not really knowing how to do part of the finishing, I just didn't like the sweater. I knew I would never wear it. It was all 2x2 ribbing, so it was going to CLING... if you know what I mean. And, it turned out a little small. Small and clingy, in this very sort of muted variegated way was going to make me look a little crazy.

So after staring at this pile of knitting for months, I decided to do the painful and totally frog it. About 9 skeins of frogging. It was just too annoying to look at everyday. Such a reminder of wasted time. (Although, this was the project that had turned me from an english knitter to a continental knitter.)

The yarn really is so much fun and it's such a unique colorway that I had to knit it up into something. So, here they are. A pair of socks. Sometimes sock yarn should really just be for socks. They're much cuter on my feet than CLINGING to my torso.



So, there's my version of turning lemons into lemonade.

Ripple Weave Sock pattern from Vogue Knitting Fall 2006
Yarn from ShibuiKnits - Sock

I did like this pattern very much. It was easy to get into the groove of the ripple weave pattern. Not confusing, but not boring.

Fancy Tee

I don't think I've ever been able to master the concept of "business casual". It was easy to throw on a suit. And it's easy to throw on some jammies. But, business casual... casual, but not too casual. Ready for business, but not too stiff. So for the past however many years, I've been going to work looking like a waiter, pretty much.

Maybe I've found my happy medium with this fancy tee.



I used Vogue Pattern 8392, View A and Amy Butler's Nigella fabric from Purl. Aside from using a size smaller, I am definitely going to make some modifications on my next one:

1. Longer sleeves. (Or lose some weight. I hate when the underneath part of my sleeve rides up into my armpit. It's bad enough when my pants do it.)

2. Longer length. (Or lose some weight. It's bad enough I have to deal with my big booty. The general public shouldn't have to suffer too.)

3. Different neck closure. Hook and eye closures are not so good when there's no tension pulling them closed. So they pop open often. I'm going to try some cute covered buttons next time. Or even on this one.

It was very easy, and very quick. I do recommend it. And I think it's cute, fun and best of all, business casual friendly.

Doing it my way

I'm finally starting to accept the fact that I'm no spring chicken. More often than not, I'm being called "ma'am" instead of "miss". I often mention movie lines or lyrics to the younger set with only blank stares in response. But, the worst is this: I get heartburn turn acid reflux when I eat foods that are too "heavy". I don't even know what that means other than bad for you. But, I do know my list of no-no's is growing.

I was devastated when I realized the carbonara at Otto set off acid reflux for weeks, only to be followed up with chocolate giving me migraines. Am I paying for past indulgences? Am I setting my 20's straight now that my body cannot take anymore abuse?

Well, I decided to do it my way. (Sorry Mario.) I found a decent carbonara recipe that used cream instead of raw egg (boo-hoo). And instead of pancetta, easily obtainable bacon was an ingredient. Hm, bacon has never given me any gastronomical problems... so, when I passed the sign stating "REALLY GOOD BACON" at the Greenmarket in Union Square yesterday, I had to indulge.



Isn't that awesome? It's like 99% fat, 1% meat. I've always told the Migglesworth that I must have been a pork bellies commodities trader in a former life. Either that, or I watched Trading Places too many times when I was younger.

And, it gave me a chance to try out my new Le Creuset stainless steel cookware. It's amazing. I highly recommend it.

I would have taken pictures of the final dish, but being a little pork belly myself, I snarfed it all down.

Many many thanks

Sometimes it's hard to make friends. Sometimes it's even harder to make friends at work. And when you do, I have them to thank for my daily sanity.

Thanks Davina - you know why.

And thank you Jane for all the fun and the introduction to Tammis Keefe.



And a big thank you again to Purl Bee for always providing such wonderful inspiration.

The Yuwa fabric used in this project is very sheer, so I decided to double it up for a tougher hanky. I used my sewing machine and embroidered initials onto the corners using water soluble stabilizer. Then, I serged the edges right sides together, leaving 2 inches to flip right side out. Pressed flat. And finally, topstitched around the edges and to close the opening.

It was my first time using such soft, sheer fabric. Quite the learning experience. It's a little fussier than I'm used to.

A common love

Thank you, Mr. Mark Lipinski for the link back here! We have more in common than you think...

Pugs!

Urban Quilters League... UNITE!

Thanks to Linsay, whom I met over Flickr, I joined a new quilting group - the Urban Quilters League. (I think we're still deciding on a name, but this was the only suggestion and I think it's cute-thanks Marie!) With this being my first quilting group, I didn't know what to expect. I wasn't able to attend the first meeting, but I was able to join their second meeting and met most of the members. We were limited to meeting for an hour because we were using City Quilter's classroom.

My first UQL assignment: create a 16" x 13" block for Rose's soon-to-arrive baby. The group had picked out fabric at the first meeting, and thankfully I could join in the fun even though I was late to the game.

Yesterday, I ran over to where Linsay's roommate had the fabric for me (thanks Kevin!) and got started. I drafted a design last night, and finished the block this morning. It was the first time I designed a block so I was a little nervous about getting the measurements right. And, I had never done curved piecing before. It was definitely not as difficult as I thought it was going to be, much to my surprise.


The funny thing is, I messed up. Can you see it? After drafting out a pattern and creating plastic templates for the pieces, it's important to remember to trace the template pieces backwards onto the back of the fabric. I needed two each of the background shapes for the big orange circle blocks. I had three of one, and then one of the other. So, I had to flip one of the fabrics and use the back of it on the front. (It's the paisley fabric - a Katmandu fabric from Mark Lipinski.) Hope it looks ok!

Thank you Sew Mama Sew!

Flattered is an understatement. Thank you for featuring my Crossroads Quilt on your wonderful blog, Sew Mama Sew!