you guys, i made my first toy!
FO: i wonder if it remembers me <– ravelry project page
pattern: tadpole by katie boyette from petit purls (free!)
yarn: lambs pride worsted in yellow (leftover from jayne’s hat)
needles: US size 4 (3.5mm) dpns, a little smaller than suggested because i like a tighter gauge, especially when i wanted to shove as much stuffing as possible in the toy, so the stitches wouldn’t warp.
notions: stuffing, grey felt, a little leftover black yarn, matching thread for both, a sewing needle
(this is my favorite photo!)
i love this! it was a quick and easy knit, BUT! it was not a quick and easy FO. while the yardage is low, and the knitting time is fairly low, too, it required quite a bit of finishing fiddling, and tweaking and trying things once, twice, three times in order to get them right. so while i understand the fun of it, and this project never stressed me out, i also don’t know that this is the beginning of an obsession…
i made sure to really shove as much stuffing as possible in when the time came, so that this would be a nice firm plush toy. since the stuffing was put in before the knitting was finished, blocking wasn’t really an option, but a spritz or two from my iron on steam mode still helped tidy things up, visually.
throughout it’s creation it looked like a pear/a yellow potato:
a kitty:
and then a submarine!
this was a knit for a friend who’s a fan of life aquatic with steve zissou. you may recall, i made him a hat along similar lines, with which he made a pretty awesome video which featured it heavily? i’m super chuffed with how it turned out, though, and quite pleased that we got to do the FO shoot on the ocean!
in other news, i’ve been changing things around a bit here on the ole bloggity-blog. i may yet fiddle with the color scheme and make up a header, but what do you think? i also tried to add some of what i consider to be the more useful things to the sidebar on the right, but is there anything i’m over looking? is there anything you would like to see on this blog to increase it’s usability?
have a great long weekend! (if you’re in the US or happen to have a long weekend. otherwise have a great regular sized weekend!)
crewcuts chambray – j. crew striped shirt, skirt
various necklace – target – belt, ballet flats
inspired by sidewalk ready. i love layered looks (proof: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and i could keep going…). but a fairly often, when i try more layered looks, they end up feeling bulky, and i feel like i lose a lot of shape. a shorter skirt (for me) and a belt at the natural waist help a lot!
the necklace is cobbled together from several different sources. elizabeth of delightfully tacky keeps wearing a lovely quartz necklace, and i remembered i had a quartz charm of my own, only in need of a chain. on the quest to put these two together, my little ampersand charm somehow lept on board. truth be told, i have crushes on several of her statement necklaces. i might try to cobble together some more facsimiles of my favorites…
i keep forgetting to take pictures of the exteriors of the yarn stores i visit. i’m just so excited to see the yarn on the way in, and i’m usually juggling purchases on the way out. but, in this case i did get a picture of their extra awesome open sign as i approached yarn & coffee:
crochet & cross-stitch, how cool is that?! i really appreciate this interesting use of materials. it’s only natural to display finished products made with the materials that the yarn store sells, but i love getting to see fresh approaches, and this was definitely a new one for me!
although i’ve visited sante fe several times, this is the first yarn store i’ve ever been to there. it was a bit tricky to find, being located in the back of a building facing the street it belonged to by name.
i only really have a limited number of things to say about good yarn stores, even though it should be the inverse. my main goal in writing about yarn stores in my travels is in case other crafty people are looking for good yarn stores during their travels.
but the yarn selection was good at yarn & coffee. i really appreciate it when a yarn store has diversity in their price points. not every crafter can afford $20 skeins for their projects, especially if they are larger projects. but it’s always nice to have some higher end selection as well, for a little splurge yarn. visit their website for more details and a list of brands carried.
they also had a cute selection of notions, mostly related to the craft, but a few cute tote bags and gifties. i didn’t get a picture of that, of course…
the proprietress was very nice, she answered many questions, directed me to the area they kept more local and artisan yarns, graciously allowed me to take pictures, and even told me to check out the yarn store in albuquerque. (the chronology on this here blog has been just awful this summer. i hope you can forgive me, and that i’m not confusing you too much by flitting around randomly depending on my mood.)
i can’t speak on the coffee aspect of yarn & coffee, as i did not partake of it. but what did i end up bringing home from yarn & coffee?
this absolutely scrummy skein of dream in color smooshy (with cashmere!)
how beautiful is that color? so rich and autumnal!
and this skein of woolly wanka fibers nimue sock, in colorway ‘winterfell’:
you’ve seen it before (twice, actually), and these socks i started in new mexico are still *this close* to being done (it’s weird, it’s like if i don’t pick them up to finish them, they don’t just naturally finish themselves).
does this look familiar?
a bit like this, perhaps:
they aren’t the same hat. but this version was commissioned to be as close to the first one as possible. i think i did pretty well, eh?
FO: striped gradations, a clone, or perhaps a simulacrum
pattern: my own devising
yarn: you know how i love to use up leftover bits and bobs. some lions brand wool-ease, some recycled fingering weight from a thrifted sweater held double, some leftover berroco ultra alpaca fine in turquoise mix held double, some mystery yarn, some brown sheep lambs pride in tahiti teal, some berroco ultra alpaca (worsted) in oceanic mix, some queensland kathmandu aran tweed in charcoal
needles: US size 4 (3.5mm) for the ribbing, US size 6 (4mm) for the body
notes: well, since i pretty much exactly copied my first version, the notes are pretty similar. blah blah, scrap-busting, blah blah, stripes are fun, blah blah, pretty gradation! you know. that stuff!
and if you’re noticing any dark vignetting on these pictures, or any light spots… that isn’t photo editing… no, that’s something i knocked loose in my lens when i dropped it while hiking up a mountain. turns out lens’s aren’t that into bouncing down sand and rock paths. who’d a thunk? i’ll bring it in to a camera store soon enough to see if they can fix it. just some inadvertent style choices in the mean time!
my favorite recent musical find is grimes:
i’ve been listening to this album (visions) a lot recently. i thought i found it via spotify, but i realized when i found this music video that i’d seen it a while back on kate’s blog.
i’ve been kind of obsessed with making sandwiches at home on my days off. goat cheese, roasted red peppers, turkey bacon, sun dried tomatoes, a thin slice of red onion: any combination of these on toast, tossed in the broiler so that the onion softens slightly, and the rest warms up. avocado and mixed greens go on at the end, just before eating. so delicious!
i just got a nail polish set based on ariel, since i’m a nerd. i like all of the colors, but of course i had to try the bright coral first!
i’ve been traveling so much this summer. four states so far, with a fifth coming up shortly. these socks were mostly knit on a road trip up to the upper peninsula of michigan, and i’m *this close* to finishing them.
i love seeing new places and traveling, but to tell you the truth, i’m cherishing my time on the couch at home at the moment.
talbots sunhat borrowed from gram – target aviators, white tee – handmade necklace – rummaged belt – u.o. thrifted kimchi & blue skirt – indigo by clark’s sandals
the pups are emma and taki. emma is shy but sweet, and taki is everyone’s best friend.
i wore this for a day of touristing around sante fe. it’s a little higher altitude than albuquerque, so it’s generally a little cooler. we went to the new mexico museum of art, which was superbly curated. this might be a little nerdy of me, but all of the cards next to the artwork were really well written, and explained the themes and context of the work, as an individual piece, but also within the context of the show it was in. i was impressed.
we lunched at my favorite eatery in sante fe, la plazuela at la fonda hotel. i actually love it there so much that i’ve never eaten anywhere else in sante fe.
ifandany 