novamade

(not so) little sir

I did not finish the birthday quilt in time for birthday gift-giving.  Little Sir said it was okay, apparently it was the outcome he was expecting (he knows me and my procrastinating ways so well).  Aside from not getting a fabulous quilt for his birthday, he had a really great celebration (hard not to when you are celebrating for a week).

He even lost his first tooth!  It was a big deal...I mean, there was a fairy and money involved, so....

So while I stew over the fact that I recently celebrated my 6th anniversary of  parenthood, I am going to throw a binding on this here birthday quilt. I have some serious catching up to do!

happy st.patrick's day!

1/24 :: a test, and an explaination

Some of you are probably wondering where the sweaters and quilts are.  I have them (some), but today, let's talk about quilts since I haven't really done that and it's March.  The first quilt I am trotting out is a small test quilt I made (pretend like the quilt is on a white wall or that the background fabric is not the same color as my family room wall.  Apparently, beige is the color of my life right now).  It's a little wonky (the way the quilt is hung on the wall exacerbates the wonkiness) and has some minor imperfections.  It doesn't really matter.  The whole point of this quilt was to practice quilting on a quilting frame. 

I spent the last year buying a mid-arm quilt frame system.  Instead of buying a package like a normal person, I bought the components of my frame over the course of a year because...well, that's how I do things, apparently.

I bought the frame first...and then I stained it.  As quilting frames go, I have found Grace frames to be 1) affordable, 2) reliable, and 3) well supported (the customer service is beyond fantastic).  I think it does need to be said that I am in no way affiliated with the company (aside from being a customer), nor am I am paid endorser of the company or its products, okay, so now that that's out of the way...  The frame is sturdy.  It holds a sewing machine and it works!  Regarding equipment of any scale, I am  sort of like the Dyson man, I feel like th thing should just work.

The reason it took so long for me to get this thing operational is the sewing machine situation.  I thought I would use a machine I already owned on it...but then thought better of it, so bought another machine (a Juki--it's a workhorse), but then I needed a new carriage (the carriages are machine specific, fyi).  I was getting a new carriage at the same time as the Grace company started making aluminum pro carriages (as opposed to the wooden carriage)...so I ended up having to send a carriage back and getting  a new one (well, I didn't have to, but that's what the company offered to do for me...see, they are good like that).

And then I tested a Juki/frame set up at the International Quilt Festival last year and realized that my quilt-frame life would not be complete without a stitch regulator.  K got that for me for Christmas because he just became annoyed with the monster in the room.  Seriously, it's huge.  I have the queen set up (I now wish that I got the king set up (I bought this well before the new versions that can easily convert came out)--learn from my mistake.  If you can accommodate a king set up, get the king set up).

So I practiced.

And then I practiced some more.

 

And then I thought I would try a quilt.

I love this thing (the quilt frame...the quilt, like I said, was just a practice piece--I like it, but am not enamored).

And that's why I feel pretty confident that I will finish 24 (not 48) quilts this year.  They won't all be quilted on the frame...but well, most of them will.  I am okay with that. So one down, 23 to go.

2012's list of unachievable greatness

I am sure I have mentioned it before; I don’t really buy into the whole “New Year’s Resolutions” thing.  But I am a list maker, and therefore, theoretically, goal-oriented.  So, I do like the whole goals list (which really, is just a list to tasks...which is kind of a list of goals...which are kind of like resolutions...maybe I am more resolutions-oriented than I thought, oh well, moving on...).  Also, the late date in my entry on New Year's Goals (or what have you), is not due to any sort of procrastination on my part...I just like to be thorough (and set impossible goals for myself. It takes loads of time to set yourself up for failure the way I tend to do, really.).

I have thought really hard about what I want to accomplish this year.  The original goal I came up with was: finish up (in whatever way possible to bring said project to termination) all my unfinished objects (UFOs) or works in progress (WIPs).  While this might sound perfectly doable for a normal person/crafter, we have to remember, I am not the normal person/crafter. 

I am somewhat magpious when it comes to crafting.  All things are shiny and they attract me, thus I start projects readily and move on to other projects before started projects are completed.  I listed all of my UFOs and WIPs, got a little depressed, drank something fizzy and uplifting; and, after coming up with a list that was completely unfeasible, I added a few more things to it just to give myself something to ruminate over, because, that’s what I tend to do. Here are my crafting goals for 2012—if you are drinking anything, I suggest you desist in that until you are done reading my list…you know, for your own safety:

Knitting

1) 12 in 12.  Yeah, not original, but so catchy.  I am going to knit twelve sweaters this year.  More precisely, I am going to knit/finish twelve sweaters this year.  I will tell you up front that I have a few sweaters that are, for all intents and purposes, done (one of them just has to have the ends woven in and a good soak and blocking); but, whatever.  I have a ridiculous amount of yarn that needs to be used.  What I am showing you is just what is in the visible cabinet.  This doesn’t even take into consideration the stuff in bins and bags elsewhere in my craft space.  So yes, twelve sweaters (and by sweater, I mean anything that in some way covers some part of a torso of any size.  Therefore vests and baby sweaters totally apply here.  See?  Bam, doable.  Sure.

2) Knit other things in addition to sweaters.  This is purposely ambiguous.  Because aside from the mittens Little Sir has asked me for and something I will knit next month for a knitterly friend, I don’t feel any great need to be specific…but I should knit other things… and well, I have at least three things that are already done, they just need to be blocked.  No really, that is how pathetically busy I was last year.

Crochet

 

3) Do some. I like to do a little bit of everything just so I don’t lose the skills.  Also, I have a few crocheted things that are done (see above, on the left)…but you know, the ends need to be woven in and the pieces blocked.  Broken record, right?

Spinning

4) Um, just do some.  Spinning a sweater’s worth of yarn would be great, but this is not a high priority goal for me, I just want to do some spinning this year (just to keep my skills up).

Weaving

5) So maybe a scarf?  Maybe two?  Why don’t we just fold it under the umbrella of “do some”?  Yeah, as Little Mister would say (as he nods and flashes me a look that seems to suggest that he is trying to figure out how he can possibly be related to me), “yeah...that’s a good idea, okay.”

Stitchery

6) Again, just do some. This includes embroidery as well as cross-stitch.   I have a design/pattern that I need to “test-stitch,” I did the drawing last year, I just haven’t stitched it.  I wouldn’t mind doing a few other things, which I probably will in the summer when I don’t enjoy working with wool so much...but I want to knit 12 sweaters, so.... 

Dyeing

7) Well, you know, just do some of it.  I still owe Stacey 8 ounces of dyed BFL (I have not forgotten you, Stacey!).  And well, I have a shop, so there’s that.  But I only list what I have, and I like to get it out of my house as soon as possible so I am not tempted by it.

Sewing

8)I absolutely need to get a few boxbags done.  I have promised them to people…so I should do that.  I am not a welcher, I am just slow.

9) I would also like to try and sew some clothing this year, but this is low priority, I won’t resort to self-flagellation should my efforts in this pursuit fall flat, but there you are.

Quilting (really, if you are drinking or eating anything, now is the time to put it down)

10) 24 in 12.  I know; but, the sad part is: this is me showing restraint.  It seems lofty, but I felt like shooting for 12 in 12 would be a bit cheaterly of me considering that I have 8 quilts that are all quilted and just need to be squared up and have the binding applied. 

So 24 quilts this year…I actually listed out all the quilts that I want to finish and the complete list has 40 quilts on it, and well, no.  That would just be a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure, wouldn’t it?  So 24 quilts.  Yep.  Get excited.

Blogging

11) And yes, I intend to actually blog about all of this in-process this year.  I would like to start next year off with a post looking forward, not necessarily backward...because I am progessive like that.

If you look at the list, you probably get the sense that 2012 will be a productive year for me, craft-wise (presumably).  You probably also get the sense that any success in accomplishment this year could, really, be attributed to diligent starts (but unfortunate stops) in previous years.  But mostly, you probably get the sense that I am completely out of my mind.  Let’s be honest, this list is stupidly unfeasible when you consider the other factors of my life (husband, children, job, school, side business ventures, etcetera).  But well, you know, I like a challenge (and yes, I am probably a little nuts too, I will own it).  So here’s to 2012, may she be craftily productive.

Okay, you can resume consuming culinary delights now.  I know I could certainly use a drink.

hey, it's a new year!

I think I unintentionally started a new tradition last year. Instead of my first post of the year being about goals, hopes, dreams and what-have-you, it was all about the things that I did the year before that I forgot (or was too lazy) to blog about. So without further ado, this is the cool stuff that I did in 2011 that I never talked about.

knitting

Log cabin baby blanket. I had a ton of Mission Falls Cotton so I just started knitting with it. And I produced this really tiny baby blanket…but now I don’t have anymore MF Cotton taking up space on my shelves, so win.

February Baby Sweater. I originally started this in pink yarn, which was a knitted nightmare, and then realized that is was confining the creativity of my soul (or something akin to that). I had some Dream in Color Smooshy, I think it’s Candy Apple Red (I could be making that up, is that even a colorway?). I think it’s fabulous. It’s going to give it to a friend of mine scheduled to have a baby in three days. She asked for something knitted; and you know, I like to make wishes come true.

I also made some baby socks. I had a hank of Koigu yarn that I bought when I was pregnant with Little Mister…thinking I was going to have a girl. Yeah, not so much. The fact that I bought pink yarn should have been the first clue, really. Why would I want to look at pink baby feet? I wouldn't.

Stockinette Socks of awesome. So they are just plain and simple stockinette socks; but, they are awesome. I started knitting them last May when I hung out with some knitterly friends of mine, and they make me smile whenever I wear them. Yarn is from the Barefoot Spinner. There is no colorway on it, so let’s just call it “purple” shall we?

quilting & sewing

I sewed my kids some pillowcases. It wasn't rocket science, but easily, probably the highest impact gift I've made in a long time. Every time we pull one of them out of the linen cabinet, it's like Christmas! It's a fact, kids love ridiculous pillowcases.

 

Locked Squares. So I made this baby quilt. And then thought, it might be a nice quilt to try pattern writing. So... still doing the pattern writing bit, but the blanket was a huge hit. It was really fun to make (and quite easy), actually.

 Lilly’s Quilt. A friend of mine from library school asked if I could make a full sized quilt from her daughter’s baby bedding. Her daughter was moving up to a full-sized bed and she wanted to save the baby bedding. Because I don’t really think things through sometimes, I said “sure!”. Um, I have never made a bed-sized quilt before this quilt. In case you were under the impression that a full-sized quilt is “no big deal” let me dissuade you from this notion. Cramming a full-sized quilt into the throat of a domestic home sewing machine pretty much made me want to gouge my own eyes out with a dull pencil. But, it came out really nice and I was unspeakably proud of myself after I shipped the quilt off last month. I really was. I should probably get out more.

embroidery & x-stitch

Every summer I get interested in embroidery, because, well, it doesn't involve wool and it doesn’t make my hands sweaty. I was involved in various quilting bees last year (more on that later, this post is getting long) and when Chawne’s month rolled around for one of the bees (I honestly can’t remember which one since she and I were in three bees together, no, I am not kidding), she asked for redwork, we could do anything we wanted. Since I am bookish.... Well, yeah.

 

I did a little drawing, traced it onto some Kona cottong and then stitched it up.  I ended up doing a multi-color version and framed it because I liked it so much, so now I can look at my handi-work (ha…did you see what I did there, oh, nevermind) everyday at work.

I also did some cross stitch last fall.  I needed something for my dining room wall, so I stitched an appropriate eating area command.  I am a fan.

So that’s it. That was the hidden craftiness of 2011. I also went to the International Quilt Festival, but apparently, I was so overwhelmed by it, I never blogged about it (but here is a photo set in flickr). But, I am getting my blogging house in order now, because, well, I pay for this space, so I might as well get my money’s worth. I am all about getting my money’s worth.

In my next post, I will tell you all about my hopes, dreams, and goals (or whatever) for 2012. I just need to think of something to share with you first. While I think of an unfeasible list worthy of my frustrations and energies, check out my studio shot of the Littles that I foisted upon friends and family for Christmas last month.

Next year, the Christmas shot will feature knitted sweaters, I mean, the Littles in knitted sweaters (or course that’s what I meant). Oh, that’s a goal, right there!

seriously, martha?

 

I don't really consider myself to be a "complainer." Sure, I make observations of the "woe is me variety" sometimes. Life can be hard; but, honestly, I tend to try to find the silver lining in most situations. But here's the the thing: my time is valuable, if I, as a consumer, purchase something that I have an expectation will, in some way, make my life easier (or help me portray myself as fabulous, whatever), then that something should live up to expectation, no? Especially when said something is a paper product.

Okay, here's the deal. We are all busy at this time of the year. If you are a parent, or if you are crafty, or if you are just a nutter who goes insane with the baking this time of the year, you are probably making consumable treats. This is the activity I found myself doing at 8 last night after working at the library all day, going to the grocery store, cooking dinner, and saying goodnight to my kids (see what I did there, I illustrated why my time is valuable--it's a fun game, you should do it too). For me it was shortbread cookies to go with some mango and lime jam I canned during the summer (I would like to think Martha would approve). For whatever reason, I thought this would be a suitable teacher's gift this year (with the addition of flash or cash as appropriate, obviously...because teachers are awesome (say it with me: teachers are awesome!).

So you make your holiday treats, bag it, people they are Christmas cookies. I am calling them Christmas cookies, call them what you want, I am calling them Christmas cookies... Anyway, you have your cookies which you have slaved over to produce as Christmas gifts and you need something to put them in... If you are like me, you want simple, elegant, refined...small. And again, if you are like me, something like Martha Stewart's new line of treat boxes are probably going to be right up your alley. It's not really a secret: I am a huge fan of Martha Stewart. I love that domestic craftiness is her business and her "thing."  She has made a fortune doing something she loves; and, that is cool. But also, she sets a ridiculously high standard for domestic perfection which I find hilarious, but that in no way stops me from trying to attain the unrealistic perfection that Martha (and her minions, staffers, whatever) try to convince me that I can achieve with their beautiful styling and artistic product photography.

So I see these treat boxes and I think, "oh, how perfect!" No, really. I really thought that.

This treat box is a paper product...PAPER. It basically pops out and is folded down to resemble a milk carton, of sorts (a really beautiful and fancypants milk carton, but there you are). There are "creases" in the box that are supposed to fold, presumably, easily to help form the box so you can tie it closed with a provided white bow (thank you, Martha) and then pat yourself on the back.

Okay, let's talk logistics here. First off, the holes that the ribbons go through...um, is it that hard to just go that extra mile and punch out the holes at the factory before you pack them? Because having to do it myself required a chopstick, which, I have one, because, hi, I am part Asian and eat Asian food with chopsticks...but it was still a pain...and messy. Some of the little circles ended up in the box with the goodies and I had to empty the boxes and start all over. This took a great deal of TIME.

Those creases. Which, let's be honest, they are really useless indentations, because I had to force the folds in, which required a great deal of finessing; and, the extra care I utilized in folding the boxes still gave me some weird buckles and bulges in the finished box. This was the point where I considered trying to figure out Martha's Connecticut address, it can't be that far away from me. I have information skills that allow me to do that sort of thing, but I don't want to be a stalker; and, it was getting late. But, seriously? RAGE. As the Dyson guy says, "the thing should just work." Especially when it is a PAPER PRODUCT.

The size. This is more an observation than a complaint. If you have large hands, forget it. Do yourself a favor and just buy something else. It is next to impossible to get the treats into the box, and you are supposed to do so in an orderly fashion...with layers of paper (provided, again thank you, Martha)...but no more than 48. I don't have man hands or anything (not that there is a problem if you do, particularly if you are a man, obviously), but I had a considerable amount of difficulty getting my cookies into the boxes. If you don't have tiny hands, or are older than 10, you are probably going to have some problems too.

And that ribbon. This is another observation. I can not blame Martha, or anyone else, for my lack of skills in the bow-tie-ing department. The ribbons is, really, a nice touch. I am glad it's provided, but here is the thing, there should be some kind of disclaimer that the consumer's ribbon may, in no way, resemble the ribbon as tied and photographed in the product sheet. Seriously, how long did the stylist work to get that ribbon just so? I am betting the stylist and photographer used glue to position the ribbon. I have had a few classes in product photography and what I know now makes me feel so much better about myself, it really does. But again, a disclaimer would have saved me some time last night. I was trying to reach the ludicrous standard of perfection, and then at 1 in the morning, I just figured it was good enough. And really, it was.

With all that being said, those little treat boxes are a good idea...just know what you are getting into (a frustrating time suck, I am not going to lie to you). They are elegant, but also cute (it's because of the size...most small things are usually called cute as well); and, instead of giving someone a dozen cookies, you can get by with giving them half a dozen...or eight cookies. Which can slash your baking. And here is the thing: your kid's teacher, probably doesn't want a dozen cookies from you (or me) anyways...unless you are Martha Stewart or are, in some way, related to Martha Stewart and she is making them for you. Or, if you were a world-renowned pastry chef, that would probably warrant a dozen cookies too, right? Sure.

a presidential kind of halloween

"...please, step away from the President."

2011 will always be remembered as the year we went presidential for Halloween.  The extent of my craftiness this year was hijacking a campaign button and fashioning it into a button for Little Sir.  When asked what he was supposed to be for Halloween, his reply: "the President of the United States running for re-election in 2012".  In a true spirit of non-partisanship, he opted to be a member of the Independent Party...or, as he says, "the thinking party."  Okay.  And a President obviously can not get by without a security detail, so Little Mister was the lead agent on his team. 

The verdict is still out on whether I will don a suit and sunglasses tonight to take them trick-treating, but there you are.

I have been busy lately.  Because I am a glutton for punishment, I am taking two classes again (in addition to working full time and doing the wife thing, the mom thing and trying to do the sleep thing (only occasionally).  I have been doing a slew of crafting in spare moments here and there and I actually have something to show for my efforts, but more on that later.  I am heading out to Houston in a few days to go to the International Quilt Festival, so I will probably want to talk about quilts when I get back.  You can be excited, I am.

In the mean time, how about some studio shots from my photographic lighting class?

regarding wedding quilts

 
A long time ago (more than a decade) I started quilting.  Most novice quilters latch onto the concept of miniature quilts fairly early on.  Though impractical (I mean really, who is going to be kept warm with a 13-inch quilt?), miniature quilts give quilters an opportunity to play with design, quilt a smaller area on machine or by hand (as opposed to a huge quilt), and offers a chance to practice quilt binding techniques.  But mostly, due to its size, a miniature quilt is doable. 

 
To be perfectly honest, miniature quilts no longer appeal to me.  Since my goals are usually to produce something pretty and functional, that's where I throw my time.  But eleven years ago, shortly after I got married and relatively shortly after I learned to quilt, I became fascinated with wedding ring quilts.  At the time, I did not have the skill to make a pieced wedding ring quilt, so I opted to try a miniature one, with the rings fused onto the quilt using fusible interfacing (my first time working with that too).  I found the pattern in an old issue of Miniature Quilts Magazine (no longer published--print run 1990-2000/2001) that I picked up at a yard sale somewhere in Maine (where I was living at the time).  In any case, the mini-quilt top got "lost" which, is pretty understandable considering it was, basically, a 13-inch square of fabric.  I found it during our move and decided to finish it, because, well, it was a quilt eleven years in the making.

 
It's a miniature quilt, not terribly useful, but there you are. 

 
Speaking of wedding ring quilts, I am in the process of making a wedding quilt for Little Sir's teacher from pre-school.  She got married last month and, not surprisingly, I am running a little behind.  While I now have the skill to make a wedding ring quilt (at least I think I do...), honestly, I lack the patience for it.  I designed something more modern but the project has become the bane of my existence lately, but I need to cross it off the slate and move on, so you'll likely see that sooner rather than later.  No really, I am basting the quilt tonight...so that's something, right?

on reading and projects from the past

 
While I had all sorts of goals for summertime craftiness, I rang the death knell on all creative productivity without assistance from anyone else.  I was well-intentioned, to be sure; but, the next time I decide to register for two classes (during a truncated session, no less), I will endeavor to ensure that neither of them is text heavy.  I spent a lot of time reading over the past few months (there was also all that other stuff that I do, you know: the wife-ing, the mothering, the librarining/archiving...yes, all of that).  I was photographing as well, but there was a lot of reading.  Which is fine, considering the day job, I guess.

 
When I wasn't reading about photography and its history, I was reading about canning.  I have moved past the obsession stage to sickness, it's true.

 
I have been working on things too (crafty things, not the sugary or salty canned things), lots of things actually.  It recently occurred to me that I have a tendency to start things (many things) when I have no time to do anything at all.  Funny how that works out.  Let me pull together my notes (read: organize myself), and then I can start telling you about the crafty doings around these parts.

 
In lieu of anything recent, how about something forgotten? 

 
 As I was going through some old photos, I realized that I made something last year that never made it to the blog.  It was a re-knit for me (this doesn't happen often), but it was a fun experience all the same.

Swallowtail Shawl knit in Zephyr wool/silk.   Its the first shawl I ever knit.  When I knit it the first time, there were a few flaws.  So I knew I would knit it again one day.  So last fall I knit the pattern again after my friend, Lorelei, asked me to make her a shawl after she saw the Percy shawl I knit for myself.  Not like I was going to knit that again.

 
So, yes.  A forgotten knit, posted.  It occurs to me that I never put a gallery up for 2010 or 2011 on this blog either--which, I have to tell you, has made re-visiting my past endeavors sort of difficult, I will get around to fixing that eventually (really, I will).  Okay, back to organizing...

so... watcha doin?

 
I guess after the whole daily blogging thing, I deserved a little break, but a month seems excessive.  I have been really busy, and today I have about fifteen minutes to breathe before more "busy" and I thought, "hey, why don't I update the old blog?" 

Aside from being so busy that my head is about to explode (no, truly--this was a real concern), I have been doing things like: knitting (during my lunch hour, so clearly this counts as mental fitness), quilting (and by "quilting" I mean sneaking in a block here, cutting a stack of squares there, nothing substantial, which anyone will tell you is no way to finish a quilt), and embroidery (nothing to add here, just stating the fact). 

 

Usually the summer means a little bit of calm at work and time to get things done at home; but, this summer seems to be the exception to that rule.  I am not complaining, I am merely mentioning it because, like I said, I have been busy.  But everyone needs a break from busy, and to kick off my summer I took a break.  I hung out, ate, drank, and knit with some bloggy-knitty friends in Grayling, Michigan (geographically, it sounds random, because it kinda is).

 

We get together at least once a year, sometimes twice.  We meet somewhere fun.  It's a pretty great weekend, really.  I highly recommend this venture to anyone so inclined.  The key ingredient here though, are the people involved.  Let me say up front that I totally borrowed the following shot from Minty, but it was made possible with my tripod, so, yeah...)...

 

This group of friends (we call ourselves KBC) is probably not unique to the blogosphere.  I am sure that there are tons of groups like us.  But this group is special to me...why yes, they do warm the cockles of my heart, in case you were wondering.  The KBC women are the first people that I followed on blogs when I became a blogger (actually, before I became a blogger for some of them).  Some of these fabulous women and I formed friendships over comments left on each others blogs that had nothing to do with knitting or crafting.  But mostly, we all just mesh really well.  There is no animosity, no side-wheedling and backstabbing (which I have found is fairly common in relationships with other women, which is sad--also, this is probably why I don't have a lot of women friends locally outside of my book group, I don't have time for such shenanigans; and, really, I have even less patience for it).  We all support each other and celebrate each others successes and happy events, and we rally when someone is down.  We don't have to work at our friendship, the friendship just works.  If you don't have a group of friends like this, I encourage you to work on developing  friendships of this nature.  It's a healthy thing.

 
Aside from all the fun and culinary delights of the weekend, we also do some sort of "knitted thing" swap.  This year the thing was a hat.  I made a hat for Minty.  I don't think it was much of a surprise since I asked her what she wanted, for the most part (Pasha by Jane Richmond, if you were wondering--very quick, very easy).

 
And yes, there was knitting.  I managed to finish a sock in two days.  I know, right?  Honestly, I feel like I deserve some sort of reward or prize.  A sock in two days?  A sock in two days!  Seriously, people, this never happens.

 
And when I got home, my family was happy to see me, which is always a good thing.