fluid meditations

felted purse for heather

2009-12-06T14:27:00.002-09:00

this was my first felting project. i had started the slippers and was frustrated and wanted to do something simpler and easier to distract myself for a while. and this was definitely it. took no time to get going and though there is a basic pattern, you can do whatever you want with the body of the bag. i wasn't sure what i was going to do with this when i was making it, but i decided to give it to my little brother's girlfriend as a christmas present last year.

pattern: sadly, i just looked for it, and i don't seem to have it anymore. i got it from my friend tracie and it was a photo copy. (tracie if you're reading, let me know where this pattern came from if you could) there are a ton of felted bag patterns out there though so it wouldn't be hard to find something similar. this one uses an i-cord for the straps, which is common for most patterns i've seen.
yarn: brown sheep, lamb's pride, 85% wool, 15% mohair
colors: main m-290 sliver streaks at nite, stripes m-23 fuchsia & m-190 jaded dreams

i still can't get over how cool it is after it felts. i love it!

my mom helped me sew a liner in as well . . . though i would love to be able to sew, it definitely comes much harder to me than knitting. not sure how many of my bags will end up lined in the future. but, this one turned out beautifully, complete with inside pockets.

fingerless gloves and beanie for nikki

2009-12-06T14:19:00.002-09:00

these are two different patterns that were similar enough that i made them together as a matching set. it seemed like just the sort of thing nikki would love.

patterns: fingerless gloves - plymouth design studio, by joanne turcotte
mock cabled beanie - far north yarn co.
yarn: reynolds, andean alpaca regal, 90% alpaca, 10% wool

weight: bulky

color: 980

my favorite cabled beanie (at least at the moment)

2009-12-06T13:52:00.004-09:00

this was my first cabled hat. come to think of it, its my only cabled hat. i am actually in the process of another cabled pattern right now, but other than that, this is the only one. not sure why i haven't done more because i loooove doing cables. i just love the endless patterns that can be made and i love how a simple little technique can make something look so intricate and complicated. i made this at the tail end of last winter and only wore it a couple of times. but, this year its been my staple and i think i've had it on my head almost every day since the cold blew in. its really really thick and warm and i think pretty darn cute too.

pattern: i have no idea? i have a photocopy of a pattern that i think i got at a yarn store in salt lake city. there is no identifying info. about where it came from. looks like its from a magazine though.
yarn: debbie bliss, cashmerino, 55% merino wool, 33% microfibre, 12% cashmere
weight: superchunky
color: 16025 (yummy chocolate brown, which is also my favorite color . . . at least at the moment)

beanie for tim

2009-12-06T13:43:00.002-09:00

pattern: original by far north yarn co.
yarn: noro, silk garden, 45% silk, 45% kid mohair, 10% lamb's wool
weight: dk
color: 268

this was a really cool design that the son of the owner of far north yarn co. created. he was in the shop wearing one that he had made and i just loved it. though he had not really perfected the pattern, he wrote the basic instructions for it, which gave me enough to be able to figure out the rest. the pattern is not complicated at all, but using a yarn with enough color varigations is the key. i used two skeins of noro (which has ten million different unique color patterns and is gorgeous!) and then fished out the colors i wanted from the middle of the skeins to get two nearly solid colors to do the k2, p2 ribbed edge. after a few rows of that i just used one skein to finish it up. the color gradation is so pretty and makes it look as if you did something special, but really its just the yarn doing the work. this was a birthday present for my tim last year.

sweaters for emmett and lily

2009-12-06T13:16:00.004-09:00

on my last trip to idaho over thanksgiving week, i was able to give emmett and lily their christmas presents a little early. love these sweaters! they were both patterns that intimidated me a little, but i wanted the challenge and i'm glad i took the time to figure them out because i think they turned out so adorable. and i learned a lot with each of them as well.

pattern: from the book essential knits for kids by debbie bliss
yarn: mission falls, 1824 wool, 100% merino superwash
weight: aran
color: 017

the pattern called for a hood as well, but i unfortunately ran out of yarn. i still like it without the hood though.

pattern: from the book itty-bitty nursery by susan b. anderson
yarn: manos del uruguay, cotton stria, 100% pure peruvian cotton

weight: dk

colors: 211 flower, 214 flower center, 203 flower stem/buttons, 215 main

seriously, how adorable are these two little nuggets?

diagonal ridges scarf

2009-12-06T13:06:00.004-09:00

pattern: ann norling, six lace scarves pattern #46, diagonal ridges (c)
yarn: manos del uruguay, 30% silk, 70% merino extrafine wool
weight: dk (i think)
color: 3014 (kettle dyed)

curly fry scarf

2009-12-06T12:59:00.003-09:00

pattern: from the book scarfstyle by pam allen
yarn: andes, 100% wool
weight: worsted
color: 15

note: the book calls this pattern "ruffles" but i personally like "curly fry" better

cabled headband

2009-06-21T09:12:00.005-08:00

i started this ages ago for my mom, but as with many of my projects, i put it down just before it was finished. i say its because i get bored, but i think its really because i just don't want to let the baby go yet. ridiculous. anyway, i tossed it in my luggage back in april and last night finally pulled it out and finished it up. i have one just like it in a light brown baby alpaca, but i have to say, i think this periwinkle one is even better.

cabled headband

pattern: original by Far North Yarn Co.

material: reynolds, andean alpaca regal, 90% alpaca, 10% wool - bulky (297)

i like the way kay wrote the pattern for joining this in the back. it starts with a provisional cast on and then joins with a kitchener stitch at the end so it ends up seamless. very cool. (did i really just refer to a knitting technique as "very cool"? wow.)

if you've never worn a headband in the winter instead of a hat, you should give it a try. its nice and cozy without making you too hot.

baby beanies oh yeah

2009-06-19T18:26:00.010-08:00

here are some of the baby/kid beanies i've made . . .

erik's sister, kara, truly has one of the most beautiful little boys i've ever seen. logan (15 months) is a very well dressed little california boy who is now almost two years old. i have hesitated to knit him something thinking it wouldn't really be all that practical. but, when kara called and asked me to make him a hat i was thrilled. so thrilled in fact that i made him three just so he would have a choice.

baby flap hat
pattern: adapted slightly from an original far north yarn co. pattern
yarn: misti alpaca, 100% baby alpaca
weight: chunky
color: 689

ribbed edge beanie
pattern: made it up
yarn: debbie bliss, cashmerino, 55% merino wool, 33% microfibre, 12% cashmere
weight: dk
color: 18034

bulky ribbed beanie
pattern: original by far north yarn co.
material: debbie bliss, cashmerino, 55% merino wool, 33% microfibre, 12% cashmere
weight: superchunky
p>color: 16014

unfortunately, this one ended up being too small right from the start, so kara gave it back to me and its now in my trunk of treasures waiting for the right person to give it to)

the next two were for lily (6 months), the daughter of my friends, jim and nikki in boise.

seed stitch beanie
pattern: made it up (and didn't do a very good job at decreasing, but with seed stitch, you can sort of camouflage it a little bit)
yarn: moda dea, tweedle dee, 80% acrylic, 16% wool, 4% viscose
weight: bulky
color: grape jam

i had some extra yarn, so i also did a quick scarf to match while i was visiting. i'm pretty sure a scarf isn't the best idea for a baby, but it did make for a super cute little ensemble, if even for just a photo . . .

purl striped beanie
pattern: made it up
yarn: rowan, handknit cotton, 100% cotton
weight: dk
colors: 333 main & 253 stripe

this last one was actually my very first hat and my very first class. i took a flap hat class at Far North Yarn Co. and ended up with this same hat, except way too big for anyone i knew. still a pretty new knitter, what i did next was really hard for me! but, it seemed it had to be done. my teacher and yarn shop owner, kay, has a very sweet way of letting you know that a new knitter, and even sometimes an experienced one, needs to let go and be able to "rip it out" once in a while. so that is just what a did and it really was a little bit excrutiating. the yarn was just too beautiful to let sit in a hat that nobody was going to wear though. and this yarn is sooooo soft and nice to work with that doing it for a second time turned out to be just fine. for the second try, i decided the colors were really so soft and sweet that a certain little boy came to mind. i decided it would be just right for lily's big brother, emmett (2 years), and it turned out to fit perfectly.

baby flap hat
pattern: original by far north yarn co.
yarn: plymouth, baby alpaca grande, 100% baby alpaca
weight: bulky or chunky? i'm not sure.
colors: 208 bottom, 100 trim, & 64 top

felted clog slippers

2009-05-20T21:04:00.008-08:00

so, after a few practice swatches and dish rags to get myself going with basic knitting, i decided to attempt the felted clog slippers that had initially lured me to learn to knit in the first place. admittedly, the pattern was not always easy for me and i did have to reach out to sweet tracie to help me along a few times, but still, they turned out awsome. and, i really do think it is a great first project because you have a chance to learn a lot of different techniques and felting is a beautiful way to literally erase your mistakes. all you need to felt is 100% wool yarn (you can mix a little mohair or novelty yarn in too, but only a little), a top loading washer with a good agitation setting, and hot water. the yarn ends up fusing together and you don't even see the stitches. so these first clogs were made with mike in mind and ended up a perfect fit.

yarn: lion brand, lion wool, 100% wool
weight: worsted
colors: 125 trim/bottom & 132 main

after mike's, i made an all black pair for erik, which i don't have a picture of. unfortunately they don't look as nice as the two tone color. they seem to pick up a lot of lint and other stuff, which shows up a lot on the black. erik said he still liked them and he did wear them a few times, but they have been resting in my arctic entry for probably 6 of their 8 month life. sad.

i just loved making these slippers so much that i kept on going. next pair was for my mom. i again went for the same color for the whole thing, but this time with a variegated yarn and it turned out great. i didn't get a picture when i made them, but this one was taken after she had been wearing them for about 6 months.

yarn: lion brand, lion wool prints, 100% wool
weight: worsted
color: 201

after taking a break from the slippers and trying a few other patterns, i came back to them to make a pair for my friend kelly. this time i experimented with an i-cord swirled around on top. i like how it turned out, but i think it will be better next time with a little bit smaller i-cord. kelly has raved about these slippers and says they fit her feet perfectly. i love that. and i love that she lovingly refers to them as her "love shoes".

trim and bottom
yarn: brown sheep company, lamb's pride, 85% wool, 15% mohair
weight: worsted
color: M181

main
yarn: lion brand, fisherman's wool, 100% pure virgin wool with natural oils
weight: worsted
color: 126

if you are interested in making these for yourself, you can get the pattern online from Fiber Trends.

i generally like to use fairly high quality yarn for my projects, but i've found that with felting, even the more inexpensive yarn works beautifully. bonus! for all of these slippers i used regular old lion's brand 100% wool, worsted weight yarn. you can find this anywhere from fred meyer to joanne's. its cheap and it felts up great. the only limitation is color. for kelly's slippers i wanted a better selection of color so i ended up also using lamb's pride, which is a little more expensive and generally only found in quality yarn shops. the selection of colors is fantastic though and is worth the extra dough i think. i do find that the lamb's pride also seems to ball up a little bit less after its felted.

i'm hoping to knit myself a pair before winter rolls around again, but somehow knitting for others is much more fun, so we'll see?

how it all began

2009-04-29T14:00:00.001-08:00

who knew that a couple of sticks and some yarn would be a key to unlocking a part of myself that i didn't even know was yearning to be unlocked? december 2007 was the beginning of a pretty spectacular turn in my creative life. i was at my friend kelly's house for a holiday dinner when i fell in love with a pair of slippers my friend tracie was wearing. what i first noticed about these slippers were the beautiful periwinkle and orange colors. i raved about them and was clearly a bit awe struck when she told me that she had made them. without prompting she said, "its easy, its just knitting . . . i could totally teach you". she had no idea what she was in for when she made that statement. just a few weeks later i took her up on her offer and hosted a small knitting night at my house with her, kelly, and a neighbor deann. that night i learned to knit . . . and by that i mean, literally, i learned the knit stitch . . . barely. it was difficult and as with most things, i did not catch on quickly (though kelly would disagree, its true, it was not easy for me). but, i was determined. i wanted to make a pair of those slippers! so, i kept at it and by our next knitting night, i had a sizeable start to a garter stitch scarf out of some surprisingly yummy acrylic yarn (my rise to the yarn snob that i am today came later). tracie was impressed (or at least made me feel that she was) and took me to the next step . . . the purl stitch. this didn't come any easier, but eventually i found my rythym with that too. she gave me the book "stitch and bitch" by debbie stoller, provided a few more phone calls and even a couple of house calls as i began my knitting journey. i started those slippers after a few more practice swatches and now know that it was a great project to start with. the pattern calls for a variety of different techniques and it was a great way to learn a lot with one project. unfortunately our knitting nights went by the way side, but the seed tracie planted was enough. and by the way, the seed stitch is probably my all-time favorite now. my love for knitting quickly became a passion or an obsession perhaps. and i'm not even ashamed to admit it. i've wanted to start a blog to keep track of projects, favorite patterns, etc. and finally i've done it. maybe nobody will ever read, but if you do, rest assured you will learn way more about my knitting life than you ever wanted to :). enjoy.