Owl Wallet

I admit that I am not an amazing seamstress, but it is something that I like to pull out and play with occasionally. So recently when I found this pattern, I got super excited about making it for a friend's birthday. It has owls! See?


(Can I just say how happy finding the perfect button makes me?) And then it opens up to reveal a set of pockets to store tea bags or business cards without letting them get crushed at the bottom of your purse. I am not the only one with that problem right?

Pattern: Christy's Creation's Tea Wallet Tutorial
Fabric: that same great owl fabric I have used before

Believe it or not I have never used interfacing before (fusible or otherwise), although I had some in the house. But the instructions are very clear, and it was not that hard once we figured out what tension my machine needed. (Thank you Salvbard! What would I do without you?)

Clown Barf

Normally I don't spin much in the summer, but this one has been so cool and wet that I have made an exception. Plus I am trying to convince myself that hand-spun takes up less space than roving, so this is practically making my house-packing easier, right?

A few months ago I had picked up this amazing 100% merino pencil-roving by Zitron, part of their Artfelt line, at Mind's Eye Yarns. Seriously people, this stuff is super fun to spin. And like Zitron's infamous Trekking XXL, you get the most lovely long color transitions.

Since I wanting to maximize my yardage and not dilute the brights through plying with a non-matching strand, I opted to ply with thread instead. This was a new technique for me, though it is just as easy to do as it sounds.

The silver metallic thread that my single was plied with is a metallic decorative sewing thread made by Coats and Clark. I had picked up a few spools from local quilting store, who had them on clearance. Apparently they are changing the put up, but also possibly the formulation. I hope they don't change it too much though, as it has good flexibility and a nice feel to it compared to many metallics.

The title of the post is mostly tongue in cheek, because I do love the end result. But when I saw how bright the end result was going to be, I knew it needed the metallics to push it over the top. I have no idea what I could reasonably make with this that would actuallly get used, but for now I am happy just to pet and admire it.

I.C. hat

Remember the Imperial Cog motif I was working on? I am still working on revisions, but in an effort to be using up stash I finished the first attempt as a baby hat. Seriously, there are few things cuter than babies wearing geek-cred.

Yarn: Filatura Di Crosa Dolce Amore & Reynolds Saucy Sport
Hook: C/2.75 mm

No pattern (yet), but I will be working on the second attempt with the cog shortly.

I always thought that it is interesting that you see a lot more free-form crochet out there than free-form knitting. Having done both now though, I guess it makes sense. You just have a lot more flexibility in adapting as you go without looking too strange. You can, of course, also do free-form knitting, but it needs a little more thinking ahead.

Mail Call

I am afraid I am late, but I wanted to acknowledge some wonderful mail I received a few weeks ago.


Sarah of Bumblebirch Designs was kind enough to donate a set of stitch markers as a prize on the HP Knitting/Crochet House Cup group on Ravelry. Many thanks to the people who voted for my Ribby Vest and Chiquita's hoody so that my name went into the drawing.

Or Maybe a Phone Case

We are just over a week until the 6th Harry Potter movie comes out, so you know I was going to make a few accessories to celebrate. You know since it is July... and it would seem reasonable to expect it to be too hot for wool. I am still hoping for some actual summer-like weather, but maybe the chill wet is just an excuse to actually wear my house sweater, my quidditch sweater or my house robes.

Pattern: Camera Case Recipe
Needles: US 0 / 2.0 mm
Yarn: mystery fingering weight

Modifications: Ha! I can't even help modifying my own patterns. I changed out the seed stitch for garter stitch. And (less importantly) this was for a phone not a camera.

Salvbard is always giving me crap about my Leatherman scratching my phone in my purse. Maybe this will help.

Imperial Cog Take 1

So I have found a disturbing vaccuum in the (english-speaking at least) internets. I was looking for something inspiring to make this month, and a girlfriend suggested Imperial cog potholders. Now, she is absolutely biased, being involved with the 501st, but while I was looking around for ways to possibly make that happen, I was really disappointed by the knitting charts I have seen out there.

The outer circle and inner cog look ok, but the middle level was not entirely pleasing to me. And I though that a center-out crochet pattern might be a really good technique for the layout of this design. If you are not familiar with what the Imperial cog can be seen here. So here is the first free-form attempt:


I am not entirely pleased with it, though it does come across better than the flash in the above photo would have you believe. I need to play with the spacing of the increases in order to better center the lines, though the proportions are not completely awful. Hmm, back to the design board.

Wedding Afghan II Check-in

I am still plugging away at my brother's wedding afghan, though I am afraid it does not make for particularly interesting blogging. Taking a cue from grandfather though, it is often a good idea to stop and sit back to admire all the work you have done.

(You can click the image to make it larger.)

So far I have finished 3 skeins of each color and am working through the fourth ones. I figure I am more than a third of the way through this project, so as long as I keep at it, I hope to have it completed by the early September wedding. (Yeah, the wedding shower date just isn't happening...)