Drawstring Project Bag Pattern

For some odd reason, I got tired of shoving my project into the diaper bag I now carry in place of a purse. And though my amazing Aunt custom made the diaper bag for me, there were only so many pockets she could include. A project quadrant just wasn't going to happen.

So the big question became: Do I tangle the project by shoving it into the diaper bag, or do I take another large bag out with me? I, for some reason, own zero small, manageable bags.

Guess what? I decided to make some.

And this one is the first! I scored the blue floral fabric at an epic thrift store score back in Utah and have been planning on bag-ifying it since I saw it. I trolled and trolled Pinterest for the right bag pattern (and the right cookie recipe and the right homemade cleaning product and the right chalkboard...you know how it is) and came across this pattern from Sew Serendipity. It's a lunch bag pattern that was being offered for free by Sew Mama Sew and I knew it was right.

I did a few minor adjustments (namely to the handle) but for the most part kept the bag as it was. The pattern makes a very very nice, roomy project bag without being hugemonsterous.

I opted for a single sided handle in order to make the bag more clip-to-the-diaper-bag friendly, but you can do whatever you want. I don't care. I'm not the boss of you.

I feel kinda fancy with the wooden beads on the draw ties. I was thinking about NOT putting them on because for some reason I was feeling particularly anti-hardware at the time, but I'm so glad Other-Side-of-My-Brain convinced me otherwise. The look so nice! And professional. And stuff. Unlike those last few sentences.

Yeah, I don't actually use those knitting needles, they are more for show. Big long wooden needles look better in pictures than my tangley circulars I enlist for every project. More rustic.

Straight needles are rustic?

Hush. Agree with me. You know I'm right.

My thoughts on the pattern:
-Go with a med-light Peltex on the outer body of the bag if you are using thick fabric like me.
-The strap is very customizable. I could even see this as having two straps for a weirdy cute little backpack!
-Gathering the drawstring segment made that part a bit unmanageable to sew. In the end, I measured (read: completely guessed on) some pleats to ease the top into the bag.
-It's AMAZING that all the seams are enclosed. Nothing is more lovely in a pattern to me than a project that effortlessly encloses all the seams.
-Also, you don't have to turn the draw strings. Because, why should you be subject to that torture? I just ironed them out like bias tape and sewed them shut with some edge stitching.
-Oh, and I didn't include interfacing on the lining. Because I'm a rebel and believe that if you can leave out interfacing, do.

I'm going to be making quite a few more of these, I think. They are quite quick once you get all the pieces cut out! I've actually already finished one other one!

Happy Tuesday!!
-Carolyn

Something a Bit Different: 5KCBWDAY5

Here's something quite different from my normal posting style for you: a video!! I thought it would be just loads of fun to take a video of myself knitting all afternoon and make you poor darlings watch it. But don't worry, I sped the footage up just a wee (1600%) bit. And I added some music. And sound effects. Because they are fun!! And I figured you didn't want to hear the Dr. Who episodes I was watching on Netflix in the background.

Just something different. I must say, getting my camera to cooperate and take the videos was certainly difficult. It's be going all fine, then my camera would be all, "Boop! Imma go to sleep mkay? Bye." No low battery, no lack of memory space...just bored of watching me knit, I guess. Oh well.

These are the"Easiest & Fastest Baby Booties Ever" by A La Sascha on ravelry. It's a free pattern! And as you can see, it is indeed easy and fast. I made a pair in under a minute! ;)

Springtime Socks

Since I tackled socks over Christmas, I've been pining to make myself some. Handmade socks are by far the most best things you can put on your feet. My poor feet were jealous of all the baby socks I've been making lately, so I decided it was indeed high time I whipped out myself a pair.

It's a little bit nutty that I just now got to making myself some socks, considering the weather has finally turned spring-like only within the last two weeks. Why didn't I make some when I'd really need them? Like when it was 50 degrees below zero? Because. I'm insane.

Clearly.

Regardless of the seeming lack-of-timing in making myself socks, it's really not all that crazy. After all, it'll be winter again someday, and I have chronically cold feet so thick, cushy, handmade socks are not out of the question until perhaps July. And even then, if I'm inside, I'll probably still wear socks.

My concern about not having enough yarn to make two whole socks drove me to shorten the cuffs of these a little. I really love tall socks, but my yarn-use-calculating skills are still getting re-calibrated for knitting. It's crazy how little yarn knitting uses!!! I'm still in awe!! But my miscalculations this time left me with a little less than 60 yds of this yarn, which means: MATCHING BABY SOCKS!!! 

I may be a bit obsessed with socks.

Check out my Ravelry project page for all the yarn-nerd stats on these socks.

Pitter Patter: Knitted Baby Socks

As I mentioned earlier this week, our life plans have undergone a massive makeover in the last two months. The job out West fell apart, so we have decided to stick to our roots and buy a house in our hometown in Illinois. In the meantime, my loving parents have graciously opened their house to us while we sort things out. Gotta love family!!

Though we are in a gypsy state of living with my parents until we find a house, my nesting desires are growing stronger everyday. My body doesn't care that my mom would probably flip her lid if I painted the living room while she was out. I want colors! I want to decorate! I want to move furniture around! Okay, I don't want to personally move the furniture, but I want to tell Sailor to move stuff around as much as my prego brain desires.

But alas! Though our house hunt is going well, we are not in our own place yet. So I have to be content with casting on and making some socks. If I can't force my husband to do manual labor, whipping out some adorable socks is the next best thing, right? Right. Don't argue with me. I'm pregnant.

I used the Leftovers Baby Socks pattern that I found on Ravelry. It's free. It's easy. It's adorable.I am pretty sure I'm going make at least a bajillion more. They work up super quick, especially if you are watching Dr. Who on Netflix in you pjs on a rainy day. Just sayin'.

Cuffed or uncuffed, these socks are adorable.

 I really like how tall the socks are. Baby Z is going to be born in August, which means winter will be right around the corner. Gotta keep those darling little newborn legs cozy! Especially if this coming winter is anything like the winter we still have hanging about. Did I mention it snowed last week? Barf.

Pretty proud of these heels. I am indeed. Why was I scared of socks before?

You can bet your sweet biffy that baby-type projects are going to increase dramatically in the coming days. Nothing wrong with that, right? Right. Riiiiggghhhtt.

Knit Some Cozy Mitts: Free Pattern

Need a quick little project that is high in the cozy factor? With the temp dipping back down below zero here again, I did. My hands are ALWAYS COLD. ALWAYS. I have been wanting to make some mitts for a while now, and after seeing this free pattern by Carissa Knits I knew it was time.

While I have not been active online, I have been very active at home. Well, maybe not "very" active. But somewhat active. More active than I have been online, at least. As you can see by the pictures of piles of boxes and moving supplies that I'm not showing you, I've gotten a lot done. And that means I earned knitting time, right? Right.

Siiigghhhh. Moving is so messy.

 I used one of my fave shades of Caron Simply Soft. This saturated, jewel-tone teal is just yummy yummy for my eyes. I love it. I am sort of kind of making a blanket out of jewel tones like this. It's on hold though, so I stole the teal for these mitts.

 Another fun tidbit about this project: it was my first experience with cables!! I am smitten. I want to cable everything.

Socks. Underwear. Shower curtains. Pants. Sweaters. Vests. A box.

Everything.

 I also would like to note that I discovered I was doing "make 1"s wrong. I suspected it was incorrect when I was working on Sailor's Christmas present and ended up with a vampire-bite looking hole where I had done two m1's. I had increased stitches before in other projects, but had been with the knit through the back of the stitchy thing method. So I looked up how to ACTUALLY make one using the "raise the bar" technique. And look how clean it looks! That niiceeee lil row of new stitches. So proud.

This pattern is really quite easy. I would recommend, though, checking the sizing a bit. My hands are itty bitty baby hands, and these mitts are a lil too big for me. I prefer skin-tight, my-fingers-are-turning-purple gloves. You know, the kind that...fit like a glove. Right.

I don't fault the pattern with this, because my hands are freakishly small.

Give this pattern a try! Your hands deserve to be stylishly warm like mine are.

Happy Friday!!
-Carolyn
Linkin' up at these fine sites!

Free Patterns: Nerd Crafts

I've been vowing to make more things for my own use for as long as I can remember. It is hard to dedicate a large amount of time on a project for myself. It feels selfish! Only certain projects can really stir up the desire to make something for myself. Usually those projects have a certain...geekiness to them.

Here we have a round-up of some free patterns for the crafty nerd in each of us. Perhaps you can convince yourself to whip up a little something for you if the project is delightfully nerdy. -winkwink-

Find the pattern here

I could not resist setting to work on this pattern as my first foray in knitting dishcloths. It is bigger on the inside, you know. (Hurhurhurrr) The chart is very easy to read, and it worked up quickly!! I made two of these cloths: one for me and one for my dear friend Becca. I have quite a bit of blue cotton yarn left from these projects, so there may be a few more in the future.

Side Note: Look at that spiffy coffee mug! The TARDIS disappears and reappears on the other side of the mug when it is filled with a hot beverage. Delightful!

Find the pattern here

 I know I wrote about this Direwolf Cowl before, but it deserves to be mentioned again. The pattern is written for double knitting, but I instead used it as a guide by which to stitch the direwolf onto the cowl afterwards. Very easy!!

Find the pattern here

This pattern marries two of my great loves: yarn crafts and patterns worn by characters on shows/movies I enjoy. This particular scarf is modeled after one worn by Luna Lovegood in the 7th Harry Potter movie. There are many versions of this scarf, but I like this pattern best. It is easy, beautiful, and fun. In fact, I was so fond of the finished product, I rewrote the pattern to make it an infinity scarf and made one for myself. You can expect to see it soon!!

Those are the patterns I have used so far. Here are some free nerdy patterns I want to make soon!

Amy Pond's Pandorica Opens Scarf

Vincent and Amy Pond Scarf

Harry Potter Bookscarves

A Practical Animal Cracker Hat

The Weasley Sweater

Bow Ties Are Cool Washcloth

Have you made any of these patterns? Do you have another favorite nerdy pattern?

Happy Thursday!
-Carolyn
Linkin' up at these fine sites!

WWII Watch Cap: Free Pattern and Reflections on the Past

If you follow me on Deviant Art, then you have already seen a little blurb about this free pattern. I was so excited to stumble upon it! I'm a major nerd when it comes to history, so when you add knitting to history, I'm all up in that.

Both of my grandfathers are interested in history, so I knew this would be the perfect project to work up for both of them. I used the same yarn for each of their hats, and included a note regarding the history of this pattern. It went over quite well at Christmas, so I am very pleased.

This pattern is the Classic World War II Watch Cap, derived from Beanie No. 212, Bucilla Yarn Booklet, Volume 318, dated 1940.

Nineteen forty!! I know there are many recorded knitting patterns that are much older than that, but the fact that I followed a pattern that was followed by dedicated women during a time of great worldwide conflict strikes me as amazing. It is estimated that the pattern was knitted at the very least a million times during World War Two. As I was working on these hats, I could not help but feel a connection to the women and girls who had labored over this same hat in hopes of warming up a soldier off fighting overseas.

You know you are jealous of my ammo trunk and med kit

 That's what knitting is all about, right? A connection to the past, as well as a hope for the future. You don't make a sweater for a baby and hope that it never gets used. You hope that the child will outgrow what you made them, and that the sweater will get tucked away for another baby to use when they are born. A piece of the past, and a prayer for the future, all in one.

In the 1940's, factories were dedicated to making uniforms, weapons, and vehicles for the war. Women had to become the machines that cranked out the hats to warm the boys out in the field. How many of them were thinking of one or two men in particular while stitching? How many of them prayed that, in the future, their beloved husbands, sons, and brothers would find their way home? These were the questions that rattled around in my head as I worked on these hats.

 My Grandfathers taught me so much: how to grow anything in your garden, how to make a fishing pole out of a stick, how to treat other people with respect and polite teasing, how to set up a tent and build a campfire, how to work with wood to build a new door, a new bed, a new wall- the list goes on. While I was knitting these hats, my hope for the future was that they would both understand the love, honor, and respect I have for them and their life experiences. I hoped they would see the joy I find in understanding the past and how that joy came from the importance they placed on history when I was young.

I think they understood. <3 br="">
You can find the pattern here.

Happy Tuesday!!
-Carolyn

Linkin' up at these fine sites!

Luna Lovegood Scarf: Free Pattern by Jen Valure on Ravlery

Aww, yeah. Luna as in Luna Lovegood, folks. I made this scarf for my Grandma for Christmas. Please note, she is not a Luna Lovegood fan, nor Harry Potter fan at all. The fact that this is an "accessory from a movie that some cool people figured out the pattern for" held no weight in my decision to make this pattern for her. Well, maybe it held a little weight, because it made me smile. But other than that, it was selected on a purely aesthetic basis.

That said, how beautiful is this scarf?? While anguishing over what to make my Grandmother for Christmas, I happened upon this lovely lil thang. I wanted to crochet her something that was not only beautiful, but also warm. I selected a lovely brushed wool for the scarf because it not only has a gorgeous fibery halo, but it is also oh-so cozy.

 The pattern, which can be found here, worked up really fast with stunning results. That is what makes me love crochet work. I've been cheating on it a lot as of late with it's two-needled cousin, and if felt really nice to pick up a hook again. The first love is always the deepest, right? Yeah?

The fibery halo I was talking about earlier. Mhhhhh. Wool.

I think I may even make myself one using this pattern. But perhaps as an infinity scarf? That could take some fiddling, but it'd be worth it.

Holla at me, Luna fans!!




Happy Friday home dogs!
-Carolyn


Pattern (c) Jen Valure

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Winter is Coming Direwolf Cowl

When it comes to nerdy crafting, I am the first on to jump aboard. In my adventures of Christmas gifting, I knew I was going to get my nerd on with one particular giftee: my sister in law, Kori.

The year was 2012. The month, October. The place? A car on the highway headed to Tennessee. In our adventures to go pack up the rest of Kori's belongings and move her up north. She was reading the fifth book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series (aka the Game of Thrones books, for all you non-readers). Every now and then, while she was reading, she would go "oooohhh snap" or something like that. It was an exciting book. On that very same trip, Kori bought me the first book of the series and sparked my love for it.

As a tribute to her introducing me to the GoT universe, I had to get nerdy for her Christmas gift. I used the Double-Knitted House Stark Direwolf Scarf chart by Katie Dawson on Ravelry. I only took a segment of the pattern and used it to embroider the direwolf after I knitted the cowl.

Funny enough, she got Sailor and I Game of Thrones themed shirts for Christmas. He got a Night Watch shirt, and I got a "My Little Dragon" one. Too perfect.

Dat wolf. I really, really, REALLY wanted to keep it for myself. Maybe I'll make my own. After all, winter is coming. I mean....winter is already here. It's cold.

Bark baaaarrrrk.

The pattern for the direwolf is free at the link I posted above. The cowl itself is just knit on circular needles. I think it's 170 sts for 44 rows. Math.

I have a few more nerdy knits coming up, so keep your eyes peeled!
Love,
Carolyn

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