Distractions (Heather)

Rachel's comment on my last post made me laugh because I had indeed gone out and found more buttons... I want to keep those ten together for when I need them. We went to a little button store on Queen St. West (just buttons! the whole store!) and picked out these little gems. I had some grey abalone ones picked out, but they didn't have the smallest size in stock. These are slightly irridescent and slightly irregular and I am quite taken with them.



I bought an extra because I have a way of losing wee things.

I had some sewing to do last weekend, and instead of lending me her sewing machine like she had offered to, my aunt gave me a very early birthday present:



I have played around with scraps of sheet that I had lying around, and it works like a dream! I mean, I am no sewing machine expert by any measure, but I plugged it in, followed the simple threading instructions, and it sewed a seam. Compared to the ones I have tried before, this is nothing less than a miracle for me.

So now, what was a dull feeling that I would like to start sewing/quilting has turned into a raging itch. I decided that I couldn't wait for next week to get started, so I dragged my very good sport of a spouse to Fabricland.

Now, I work in a yarn store. I kind of expected that happy feeling of being around yarn to apply to shopping for fabric. Now, the only problem I have with yarn shopping is choosing from among all the wonderful ideas I have, choosing from all the yarns I want to take home. Instead, we wandered around, looking at everything, not really feeling excited about anything we saw. I asked for help twice, but was greeting with complete indifference. I figured out how to pick out a pattern (it's done in a different way than I have seen before), but the woman at the patterns desk was not very pleased to have been interrupted. We were about to leave altogether when I saw a neat flimsy sheer fabric. I had just so happened to bring along a pattern that Rosemary made for me last year, and one of the alternates is a lined skirt! I took the bolt and my pattern to the cutting desk, which happened to be manned by the only saleswoman who seemed inclined to provide customer service! She read the pattern requirements for me, she helped me pick out an appropriate lining (the blue... she and Mike outvoted me for it), and of course she cut my fabric.



Then of course we were met with more disdain and disinterest when we went to pay, but thank heavens for the cutting table lady! Honestly. If someone came into the yarn store and wanted nothing but a yarn suggestion, I would damn well help them. And do so encouragingly. Not the best of introductions to the world of sewing, that's all I'm saying. But now I have what I need, so I will give it a shot.

Still working away on Evie... there is really not that much left to do, this is a really quick knit, but I have been really busy this week with this and that, and have barely picked up the needles. I will finish the knitting tonight, block and sew tomorrow, then it's time for the DKC Knitter's Frolic! If you are going to the show, come on by and find us as Needles and Pins!

Buttons buttons buttons (Heather)

I haven't got too much done since my last post, but I have been creeping along on Evie. It has been a somewhat busy week, though the next few promise to be fairly hectic too. I am at the neck shaping of the first piece, and since the second piece is identical, it should be a fairly simple thing to get done. I have been engaging in a bit of much needed spring cleaning as well, and Adriana (along with dozens of bloggers out there) is trying to melt my brain by throwing pictures of gorgeous quilts at me.

In the meantime, I was pondering buttons. I almost forgot that Salina calls for four buttons (I could have sworn it was more) on the lapel. I went through my button stash (this is not a big stash, but I have accumulated a few nice pieces). These are the only buttons I have that are in the right size range.


(that's a quarter, for scale)

Courtesy of Rosemary, for my graduation last spring. I tried to capture the colour, but without a cloudy sky, there wasn't a lot of ambient light for picture taking (not that I am complaining about the gloriously blue sky!). The buttons are dark charcoal, almost like hematite, with the same gentle sheen as an oil slick on a puddle. They are mostly matte. Now, in this picture the red of the Felted Tweed is not quite right, so here is a better look at yarn colour:



Are these the right buttons? I really hate to break them up to only use four out of ten, so I am inclined to keep my eyes out tomorrow when we hit Queen Street West for unrelated purposes. Any comments? Suggestions?

Imagine Some Clever Title Here (Heather)

So much for a knitting slump! Suddenly I am working on two very intriguing projects. I am obsessed with both of them, but for very different reasons.

Salina is a long-time knitting crush of mine. I have been smitten by Rowan Felted Tweed since I first laid eyes on it, but this is the first time I have actually knit with it. I am constantly charmed by the colour and texture of the yarn, and continually surprised that a yarn of such a fine gauge (23 sts/4 inches) is knitting up so quickly and efficiently. I honestly thought that the first sleeve would take forever and a day, but it knit up in a little over a day. I cast on for the second sleeve today and I am already nearing the sleeve cap (and getting a little twitchy). Must. Keep. Momentum. I also joined the Salina-along. There are some fantastic sweaters emerging over there! Also, how much does this colour rock?



The project I am working on for Needles and Pins is coming along nicely too! The Stella is dreamy, the colour is very invigorating. I am a real sucker for lime. I am making quite good time on it, I am past the armholes on the first piece. I did expect this to be a very fast knit, considering the gauge of 17 sts/4 inches, but I did not reckon for the slower knitting from a silk/cotton blend. Instead of letting my sts resolve themselves like I do with a wool yarn, I am taking more care forming each stitch. Adriana says that she didn't encounter this at all, so it might just be me. Frankly, since it is a pleasure to knit, I don't mind spending a little more time on it.



Also, the book (Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton/Stella) the pattern is from? Fantastic. I can think of at least four or five other garments I would knit in a heartbeat. And the fact that the book is divided between Pure Cotton and Stella. The gauge seems fairly interchangeable, so anyone buying the book for either yarn would have quite the array of options.



All in all, the knitting is pretty darn fun right now!