Frowsery

I’ve gone ahead and consolidated at amandaruzin.com. I’ll still be talking about knitting and other craftly endeavours, so if you’re interested, mosey on over there to see what I’ve been up to.

Coraline's star sweater

A while ago I commented on the awesomeness of the miniature knitting in Coraline. How awesome is it that Nipperknits published a full-sized Coraline sweater pattern (PDF)?

Soap-Bubble-Wrap-4

Originally uploaded by changcon_14850

I saw the Soap Bubble Wrap in today’s Knitting Daily email, and I became captivated by the lace detail on the shoulder.

I’m not sure that those sleeves would be flattering on me, but this could be inspiration for a future project.

Lumpy Bumpy

Originally uploaded by aruzin

Words can not describe how much fun it is to knit with this yarn. It’s Lumpy Bumpy Yarn by Charlene by Farmhouse Yarns, and it’s a lovely slubby thick and thin merino. It’s stretchy and squishy and knitting with it feels a little bit like watching a kitten kneading a blanket with his front paws.

It’s going to make a wonderful 3×3 ribbed hat and is a welcome intermission from Hey, Teach. (I’m knitting in the round and almost ready to start the arm shaping, did I mention that? Or the fact that I finished Rusted Root? No?)

I want to have Rusted Root done and blocked so I can wear it Friday.

I want to start and finish Hey, Teach! while I am on vacation.

I want to pick up Josephine (which has been sitting, 70% done, for a year) after I get back from vacation and finish it.

I’ve made a few quilts and sewn more than a few sets of curtains before, but my sewing skills could use improving.  I’ve been talking about taking a sewing class centered on garment construction in the past, but never got around to it.  No longer!

I just registered for Sewing Expo at Lillstreet, and I am very much looking forward to it.   It’s a 10 week course focusing on the basics of garment instruction, with plenty of open studio and time to ask questions of the instructor.

This class provides a dizzying array of demonstrations from basic handstitching techniques to seams like French seams & corded seams, up through edge finishings and garment details such as setting zippers, pockets and collars. Each week will provide time for the demonstrations, practice time for students, and optional work on student projects utilizing all of the new skills learned from the class.

I’ve never taken a textiles course there, but I have only had good experiences with Lillstreet.  So excited!

A few months ago, I happened upon this interview with Leon Theremin. Because of that interview, I decided to rent Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, which I am watching now.

The cats do not like it. In fact, since I started watching, the cats have been running around with expressions much like the second cat’s face in the following video.

This is a terrible and awesome discovery. It makes me want to buy one of these solar theremin kits; £9.95 is a little steep for a cat toy, but it might be worth it.

I found a few glass beads kicking around the house this morning. I brought them into work, and as I was showing them to my coworkers I realized that I miss having time dedicated to creating. It’s not just admitting to myself that I want to make the time to be creative, but forcing myself to follow through. More than having knitting supplies handy, more than having a sewing machine set up in the corner, signing up for a class guarantees that I will challenge myself and dedicate the time to learn something new.

I learned how to make the beads in a class at the Lillstreet Art Center, in one of several glass and metalsmithing classes I’ve taken there. This time around I think I’ll try something new. Maybe I’ll sign up for screen printing, something I’ve been interested in since high school. Since I’m already a knitter, it would make sense to take a spinning class. It’s an additional obsession I’m pretty sure I don’t need, but I must admit that I’d like to be able to understand knit construction from fiber to wearable garment.

I’ve been talking about making some new skirts for summer, so perhaps I should take a garment construction class at Lillstreet. If the idea of tackling a button-down shirt is too threatening, maybe a formal quilting class at Quiltology would hone my self-taught quilting skills and sharpen my corners.

I guess I could pick up and finish any one of the half-dozen unfinished knitting projects that are cluttering up my closet, but where’s the fun in that? What’s more, why should I have to choose? The more opportunities that I can give myself to create, the happier I am. Knowing that, I think I’ll cast on for a new sweater.

I’ve been productive today, running the types of errands and completing the kinds of chores that can only mean that I’m avoiding a bigger, badder task. The strong motivational powers of procrastination led me to fix some shelving, hang an additional cabinet in my bathroom, and break down an old fiberboard desk that’s been cluttering up my dining room.

I recognized that the shelving in my linen closet was questionable when I moved in;  the uneven 1″ ply is resting on disparate types of shelving pegs, and their instability was duly noted when I removed the old vinyl lining.  Last week one of the metal pegs gave up the ghost and a back corner fell.  I used some 2″ screws to replace the weakest looking pegs; this is a short-sighted solution, but short of cutting new squared-off shelves or installing new pegboard, there wasn’t much else I could do.

I’m fairly proud of the bathroom cabinet.  I managed to hang it fairly level with a minimum of extra holes punched in the drywall, and it seems to be firmly mounted to the wall.  I hope.

The old MDF desk was a relic I inherited when I bought my grandparents’ house, and I suspect it’s older than I am.  Was older than I am.  I’m on a mission to get rid of all of my feels-like-college furniture, and this was an easy sacrifice.  The desk left this world the same way it entered it: by means of an Allen wrench.

The bit about having a bigger, badder task is true, and I should get to it. Right after I clean the cat box.