Sew I See!

I finished the amigurumi trio this afternoon, and since the recipient is two years old and unlikely to see this blog, anyway... ;o)  ...Why not go ahead and "unveil" them? I've made all three patterns before-- for my niece, Clarabel-- so I knew more or less what to expect.  Except.  It's been a while, so it was pretty much seeing them for the first time. First came the turtle . It's still kind of a tedious thing to make, but I liked my results much better, this time.  The legs are a pain to crochet, but that's not the worst of it.  The part I like least is positioning and seaming together all those little pieces!  But-- when you get him finished, he's so small!  He's so cute!  You almost forget what a mess he was to make. Aw.  He reminds me of the teensy baby turtle Donald and I found on a walk, a few years ago.  He fit in the palm of a hand!  (We picked him up to move him off the trail.  He was so small and ble...

I don't have a lot of craft-project progress to report, but there's a little . - - - - - - - The faux cathedral windows denim quilt is still just sitting there, clamped down in the old Singer, looking at me reproachfully every time I go in the room.  The last time I was working on it, the upper thread kept breaking.  Very frustrating!  (Especially after arranging/positioning the quilt just so, only to have the thread break a few stitches later.) I have a short list of possible problems and solutions.  I'll start with the easy ones-- changing out the thread (in case it's a bad spool), then (if/when the new thread doesn't help) putting on a new needle.  If that doesn't work, it will be time to start fiddling with the tension settings, but I'm hoping it won't be necessary.  (It was working fine not long ago!  Those tension settings shouldn't need changing, should they?) I'm tempted to just bundle the whole thing up and donate it, but I...

Last Friday, my family lost my maternal grandmother.  She was a really wonderful, loving person , and we've been feeling the loss keenly.  It was sudden and unexpected, and while that is a blessing in some ways, it came as a shock.  I know that time will mellow the sadness, but you still have to put in those tender days, one at a time... Though I've given crochet doilies to a handful of people-- and they've expressed what I'm sure is genuine appreciation of the time and work that goes into them-- Granny was one of my most enthusiastic doily recipients, and I'm sure I'll always associate thread crochet with her.  It had become a tradition for me to crochet a doily or two for her birthday and Christmas gifts, every year.  There's a pang when I remember that she won't be here to unwrap one this May, but I'm trying to focus on the happy memories instead. The day after Granny passed away, I spent a few minutes (trying to grasp some sense of normality)...

(Ah, dyeing!  What other crafty pursuit offers such rich opportunities for puns?)   I've dyed yarn for the edging of the Catherin Wheel scarf (a.k.a. the Rhubarb Scarf Wannabe, which in almost no way resembles the inspiration scarf). I took my last skein of "soft white" Deborah Norville's Premier Serenity Sockweight Whatever-It's-Called yarn... a microwave-safe bowl... a little white vinegar... and globs of No-Taste Red and Royal Blue Wilton food dye (gel form).  I followed the same basic procedure for microwave dyeing that I described (at length) in this blog entry -- only all the yarn went into a single bowl.  (Not fussing with multiple colors and mini-hanks really speeds up the process!) Here's an "in-progress" photo: And of course, when I gently rearranged the hank to check that all the yarn got some dye, I realized that there were undissolved blobs of red gel at the bottom of the bowl.  So now there are some highly saturated red sp...

I spent much of yesterday working in the yard doing the kind of work that doesn't make a big visual impact.  Pruning/shaping.  Taking down a small (and leafless) tree or two.  Weeding.  Tidying. The kind of work that after hours of it, you can step back, take a look, and think, "Hm.  I guess it looks ok.  Pretty much like it looked before."  If not for today's mild aches and a fresh pile of "garden debris" waiting to be burned, I might question whether or not I actually did yard work at all.  Barely made a dent, in other words.  Also, because I was working mainly in the front yard, where I don't tend to spend much time, I noticed several new tasks that have crept up and must now go on the To Do list.  (Clean the front door stoop of old webs, dirt-dauber nests, etc.  Repaint the front door.  Re-caulk around the front windows.  Re-fasten a couple of the shutters that are coming loose.)  That's life, I guess! ...

I finished the sewing machine cover for the Singer yesterday! Maybe it's not worth the exclamation point.  The cover's pretty simple, and it's not perfect , but it fits!  That is worth a small celebration, since 3-D sewing is tricky for some of us.  ;o) I might possibly add some embellishments.  (I'm thinking crochet lace doo-dads of some sort...)  However, it probably won't be very visible, most of the time-- just sitting on that shelving unit to the right of the sewing table-- so maybe it's not worth the effort... Not to mention that with such a busy print, not just anything would be very visible... Now that it's done, I should think about making a cover for the new machine, but I'm still not gung-ho about that particular project.  It needs to be done, though.  I don't want the new machine getting dusty-- and the cover for the Singer won't fit it. - - - - - Of course, with the new cover for the Singer finished, I promptly sat dow...

I think I'm just about to the finishing point of the length of the Catherine Wheel scarf/cowl, but because I didn't heed my own advice, I've yet to dye the yarn for the edging.  (Maybe I'll do that today... Shouldn't be time-consuming, but getting back into dyeing mode takes an effort.)  That project's on the back burner, now. - - - - - - -  When I put away the scarf project bowl, I pulled out the basket of yarn for the Simply Soft hexagon afghan.  It doesn't look much different from the last time I photographed it, but I've added several more hexagons since then.  Progress is slowed by the need to stop and deal with the loose ends, every now and then, but there's also no sense of urgency to finish the blanket.  - - - - - - - I've also begun to sew a cover for the old sewing machine.  I don't have much experience sewing three-dimensional objects, so I thought that this could provide some practice before getting down to t...

There's not much to show from the past several days, craft-wise. The Catherine wheel scarf grows row by row-- but slowly.  (Note to self:  It's not too soon to dye the yarn for the edging so it'll be dry and ready to use by the time I need it.) While sorting fabric during the reorganization, I came up with a few more scraps for the "Crumb Box", so I treated myself to some more crumb block sewing.  That was fun, but before long it became evident that I need a greater variety of crumbs.  The blocks are starting to all look alike!  I can space them out in the final quilt design, of course, but they're more fun to sew when there are plenty of options. Here are the fifteen I've completed so far (the new ones with the old): Yesterday, I took out the watercolor supplies and spent some time playing.  No photos from that, yet, but soon.  I'm feeling restless lately-- not sure where to place my focus.  There are a variety of crochet/knitting p...