I’m spending the weekend at a knitting retreat. See you next week!
my creative space
Today I’ll be at the beach relaxing and renewing my creative spirit. I’m planning to finish knitting a wool hat for my husband. There’s also a cute yarn and fabric store that I spied last night on the way to dinner. I’m going back today to take a little look around. I might even come home with something. After all, if I finish the hat, I’ll need a project for the plane ride back, right?
What’s in your creative space today?
Visit more creative spaces over at Kirsty’s blog.
oversized swatch becomes cute wool clutch
Last weekend my friend Jennifer drove up from Kansas City to hang out. It had been over 20 years since the last time we’d seen each other. We had a lot of catching up to do. She wanted to learn how to knit, which is a great way to spend your catching-up time. I cast on some wool to show her how to start. We kept talking and I kept knitting. Without realizing it, I had knit all of my yarn. What was I going to do with this gorgeous rectangle?
I folded my oversized swatch in half, whip stitched the sides and added a lining. The result: super duper cute clutch! The good thing about me finishing this so fast is that I got to show Jennifer how to bind off. She caught on quickly and is doing awesome with her first scarf. Another person successfully converted to the fiber arts. Yay!
Visit my etsy shop for close up pics of those lovely garter stitches.
stash: This is a great stash busting project. Yarn was gifted to me by a friend who was ironically destashing it. Denim lining from my garage sale stash. Thrifted zipper.
crafting as meditation
I’ve got a lot going on offline. I’m sewing, spray painting and taking pictures. I’m visiting with my parents and watching them visit with their granddaughter. There is always so much I want to accomplish when I have someone here to spend the day with Bella. My mind is racing with all of the possibilities.
I try to be mindful of when my creative brain goes into overload. When I start spinning my wheels, nothing gets done. One of my favorite ways to slow down is to knit, especially in the round. Its soothing, repetitive stitches need just enough focus to allow my brain to settle down and let me think. I’ve recently discovered crochet in the round has the same effect (now that I’m getting better at it, of course). Whenever my mind needs a break, I pick up the hook. I like that I can sit with my family, do something I love and refresh my creative spirit.
Do you have a favorite craft that helps you find peace? Please share!
project: Attic24 crochet bag pattern in progress
knitting homework
Last night I was all ready to settle down with the sock I posted yesterday when I remembered that I had homework to do! I’m going on a little knitting retreat this weekend. It’s a local retreat — only 30 minutes away — with beautiful gardens and meditation paths. I’ll have my own room and bathroom. Meals are included. Doesn’t that sound lovely? The best part, though, will be guilt-free knitting! There will even be a few classes, which explains why I had to do homework. I can’t wait!
stash: Yep, you guessed it! My swatch yarn is thrifted from goodwill. It’s part of my acrylic collection for making amigurumi.
my creative space
I would have loved to post this earlier, but I misplaced my camera cord. Yes, it’s been one of those days. I’ve been hustling and bustling to get gifts in the mail. I don’t know why June seems to be a last minute month. I start planning early, I really do. I think part of it is because I really want these gifts to be special, and it takes a lot of searching for that perfect thing to make.
Now that everything is packaged up and at the post office, I am going to work on something just for me: my monkey socks that have been in the UFO pile for almost a year. Yikes!
You can find more creative spaces over at Kootoyoo’s blog.
recycling sweaters from my stash
I’ve had a shift in focus over the past few months. I’ve been slowly moving away from felted wool bags to try new things. I’m not completely abandoning them, but I need room for my new adventures. This hit me over the head on Saturday when I found some really nice things at a local church garage sale. I have a small amount of storage space, so whenever new stash comes in, other stash must go. I packed up three bags of sweaters, which I’m putting up on freecycle today if you are interested. Some are already felted!
I’m spending most of the long weekend sewing and last night I needed something to help me unwind. Ha! I’ve always wanted to unravel a sweater, so I grabbed one from the giveaway pile and went to it. It was very relaxing. I find desconstructing just as exciting as making. My mind starts racing with the possibilities: a baby blanket? matching scarf and hat? thick, wooly socks?
I have no idea what I am going to with this yarn. I certainly don’t need any more in my stash. There are knots at the end of every color change. I was thinking it would be cool to work them into the design. Something in seed stitch might be nice. What do you think?
recycle: There are so many beautiful wool sweaters that have been discarded. Try unraveling one for your next project. Where else can you get yarn to make an entire sweater for just a few bucks?
coordinating cashmere box bag
I finished a box bag to go with the cashmere sweater tote. It’s the first time I’ve used part of a sweater for one of these. The handle is sewn out of the turtle neck portion of the sweater. I delivered both to their new owner last night and she loves them.
I’ve got a lot of project deadlines this weekend so I’m trying to get a little mending out of the way today. Mostly fixing ripped seams and a few holes. It’s the calm before the sewing storm!
bella’s blanket. finally!
There are lots of reasons why this blanket took so long to complete. When I was pregnant, most of the time I was too tired to knit. Plus, my wrists hurt from wearing sea bands to help with the nausea. Then, when M was born, well, you know how it can be with a newborn.
The blanket got tucked away in the closet for awhile. I had terrible bouts of startitis. My projects were scattered all over the place. I knit a lot of socks. I knit a hat and mittens for M. I knit squares for charity blankets. I knit an afghan for my parents. I discovered sewing.
Then I found the coolest fabric. It was the perfect colors for the back of the blanket and M loves monkeys—especially Curious George. I ordered it instantly and made a commitment to finishing the blanket. No other knitting would come first.
It’s much bigger than I had originally planned, but M is a lot bigger now. What was once a baby blanket is now a toddler blanket. Maybe I thought that by not finishing this blanket I could keep M from growing up so fast. I’m glad I got it finished before she went to college. That would have required a lot more yarn.