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Category: Crafts

Craft projects of mine

  • Socks!

    Biohazard SocksFirst up are the Biohazard Socks I designed and knitted for Eileen. They were a gift for getting her Biology PhD, so I thought the biozard symbol was fitting. I took the symbol and turned it into a chart, scaling it to fit nicely around the leg of the sock. I also centered it so the motifs would continue nicely down the top of the foot. Other than that, it’s your basic cuff-down sock with a slipstitch heel. The yarn is Pagewood Farms St. Elias that I bought last year at Compatto Yarn Salon in Santa Monica. It’s hand dyed Bluefaced Leicester and it’s GORGEOUS. I loved knitting with it. I knitted the socks one at a time on two circular 2.75mm needles. (Ravelry details.)

    Sheri's Posie SocksThe second pair are Sheri’s Posie Socks from Socks from the Toe Up. (Thanks to Fiona for lending me the pattern.) I started them at Guild Camp last month but only finished them last night. I knitted them at the same time on two 2.75mm needles. The yarn is Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in the “Sherbet” colourway, kindly gifted to me by Mary-Helen and Sandra. I was worried that the colours might compete with the lace, but instead I think it all worked together really well. The yarn is lovely to knit with and it really showed off the stitch pattern. There was very little pooling, and I ended up with heaps of it left over. I had some trouble with my initial cast-off being too tight, so I tried out Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off, which worked perfectly. (Ravelry details.)

    Now, on to the next project…

  • Matt’s Random Striped Scarf

    Matt's ScarfRemember back in June when I launched my site redesign? Well, in exchange for making my awesome header, I agreed to knit Matt a custom scarf. He liked the look of Kelley Deal’s recycled scarves, so that’s where the inspiration came from. I used sixteen different colours of 8 and 10ply wool on a 4.5mm circular needle (knitted as a tube). Each colour was assigned a number and put on a bit of paper in an envelope. In another envelope I had a selection of bits of paper with 1, 2, 3, 5, and 8 written on them (Fibonacci stripes). I’d pick a slip from each envelope and then knit the specified colour in the specified number of stripes. After all the slips were gone, I put them back in and mixed them up again. This assured that the stripes were random, but not too random. (I wanted a relatively even distribution of the colours.) I think it turned out really well! It’s about six inches wide when flattened, and about five feet long. (Another view.) Matt didn’t want fringe, so I sewed the ends shut. It’s now blocked and on its way to him. Thanks again, Matt! There are a couple other pics on Ravelry…

    And isn’t the Snook a natural male model?

  • Cookie Monster Cupcakes

    Cookie Monster Cupcakes

    Cookie Monster Cupcakes

    It’s Cupcake Day for the RSPCA today, and I went all out. This was my inspiration, and I’d say they come pretty close! Tips for future googlers: I made plain vanilla cupcakes from a box mix. It’s helpful if you can fill the liners higher than usual; that way you get a nice rounded dome on top. The icing is just pre-made Betty Crocker vanilla, dyed to a brilliant sky blue with food colouring we got at Iced Affair. We also used the colouring to dye a bag of dessicated coconut the same colour. (Snookums put it in a big bag, added some drops of colour, and shook it all around.) So I iced the cupcakes and then sprinkled coconut all over. Then the tricky bit. I tried just cutting a slit and sticking the cookie in, but that didn’t work very well. So I started using a sharp knife to cut a smile-shaped wedge out of the top. I also used the knife to trim the sides of each cookie into a point (so I wasn’t ramming as much bulk down into the cupcake). That worked better. The eyes are made from large white chocolate buttons with a small chocolate chip stuck on. I used the knife to cut slits and then stuck the eyes down inside.

    Now I just have to figure out how I’m going to get 24 of these to work!

    Update: I sold out! Everybody loved them. So far I’ve taken in $78 in donations for the RSPCA. Not bad for a few hours’ playing in the kitchen…

  • Baby Cardigan and Tasman Summer Tunic

    Baby CardiganBaby Cardigan and Tasman Summer Tunic
    I finally finished off a couple lingering kids’ projects that I was working on. The first is a cardigan for my friend Venks’s new baby. The boy is named Vivaan and he was born about two weeks ago. The wool is Wired for Fibre’s “Elizabeth” sock wool in colour Serenity. The pattern is free and is knitted sideways (cuff-to-cuff). I got some adorable teddy bear buttons from the button shop in the Rocks last Saturday to finish it. I can’t wait to see it on Vivaan!

    Tasman Summer TunicNext is the Tasman Summer Tunic for my niece Indie. The pattern is by Just Jussi and is available as a free Ravelry download. I knitted the smallest size and used three balls of Morris Paddington (80% bamboo, 20% merino) in colour #611 “Dover”. I left off the beads at the hem, but other than that I didn’t change anything. The ribbon at the front is very cute, and I found a pretty star button to use as the closure at the back. I hope it fits her!

  • Child’s French Sock in Citron Pattern and Diaper Knitting

    Child's French Sock in Citron Pattern and Diaper KnittingLong name… for a fairly unsatisfying pair of socks. I dunno. I’m just not loving these. It’s mostly the colour, I think. The yarn is Wired for Fibre “Rita” merino sock in the colour “Opulent”. In the hank it looked like more of a semi-solid, so I thought it would be a good choice for this fairly busy pattern. Unfortunately when I started knitting it, the pink stripes really stood out and started to compete with the stitches. Not good.

    Anyway, the pattern is from Knitting Vintage Socks. I knitted both socks at the same time on 2.75mm circulars. Despite looking complicated, the pattern was actually very easy to memorise. I’m still not happy with my lace knitting though. (My yarnovers between two knit stitches are way smaller than my YOs between a knit and a purl. I fear this would be problematic in a larger piece.) I do like the way the diaper knitting continues down on the heel flap. I was finishing the socks at Morris & Sons on Sunday when Mrs Morris came by and admired them. “You like ’em?” I said. “They’re yours. Happy birthday!” At least they’ll go to someone who really likes them. (More pics on Flickr and details on Ravelry.)

  • Cranford Mitts

    Cranford MittsCranford Mitts
    I saw Lyn’s Cranford Mitts last week and realised they were the perfect project to use up the Noro left over from my ribbed socks. The pattern is available for free (but just watch out because there’s a missing YO on row 8). I cast on last week and had most of the first mitt knitted on Saturday, but when I tried it on I could barely get it over my hand! My tiny hands! My legendary tight tension strikes again. (And that’s with going up to a 2.75mm needle.) So I frogged it all back and started over with 60 stitches instead of 50, which meant I had a whole extra pattern repeat. That works much better for me. I lengthened the pattern a fair bit, adding in extra repeats before and after the thumb. I finished the pair of them in just five days. When I tried them on last night, I noticed that the opening around my knuckles gaped a bit so I had the bright idea to sew the sides together between my 3rd and 4th fingers. That made them fit much closer to my hand and feel a lot warmer. (Well, as warm as lacy fingerless mitts can feel!) I think they look pretty cool though, and they match my Clapotis. Yay for crafty accessories! (Ravelry details are here.)

  • Brycie’s Outfit and Noro Ribbed Socks

    Brycie’s Outfit and Noro Ribbed Socks
    Brycie's OutfitA couple finished objects to report! First up is an outfit for Andrew and Kathleen‘s new son, Bryson Burton. The whole set is knitted from two balls of the new Morris Empire 4ply in “Plumage”. Details for the vest, hat, and socks are all up on Ravelry. The vest was the trickiest, in that I was adapting a Sirdar pattern for 8ply. I ended up just knitting a bigger size and hoping for the best. It worked pretty well! I delivered the set (still a bit damp from the final blocking) to the happy parents on Sunday, and hopefully they’ll be able to post a piccie of him in it soon.

    Ribbed Noro SocksI also finished the Noro socks I started when I taught the Morris and Sons sock workshop last month. The pattern is Wise Hilda’s Basic Ribbed Sock, which I knitted out of Noro Kureyon Sock on two 2.75mm circular needles. (Rav details) I’m really pleased that I got the colour gradients to match up so nicely. (I wasn’t actually really trying.) I finished these off yesterday morning before work and put them straight on my feet. Man, there is nothing better than wool socks in winter. I feel my sock mojo starting to come back…

  • Rusted Root

    Rusted RootRusted Root
    I should officially move this one into the FO pile! I started Rusted Root in March as a palate-cleanser during the rush to finish Na Craga. I tweaked the pattern a fair bit based on mods I saw on Ravelry (using tubular cast-on for the neckline, adding a few rows in the sleeves, putting in hip shaping, etc). I was unhappy with the waist though, and at knitting camp last weekend I decided to frog it back and try something different. The girls suggested a simple roll edging (rather than a rib). I think it really works! It makes the whole thing just a little more casual, which is appropriate given that it’s really just a cotton t-shirt. I’m still not sure it’s the most flattering style for a large-busted gal, but since when has that stopped me before? I used 3.5mm needles for the ribs and 4.0mm for the body. The yarn is Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Buttercream, and I only used 4 skeins! More details over on Ravelry.

  • Na Craga

    It’s finished! I dragged the Snook out for a photoshoot this morning. There’s a slight visible line from my drying rack across the front, but I’ve already steamed it out for Show delivery. The light was too nice not to go for the photographs right away.

    Na Craga (Finished!)

    As I said on Ravelry, I kinda feel like crying a little bit, like when I finished my first half-marathon. This WAS a marathon. Getting to the finish line is just such a relief. Regardless of whether it wins anything, I think this may be the knitting project that I am most proud of. Thanks to all you guys for your great comments, advice, and encouragement.

    More photos are on my Ravelry project page and on Flickr.

    The pattern is “Na Craga” from Alice Starmore’s Aran Knitting. Unfortunately the book is out-of-print and used copies sell for hundreds of dollars. Luckily a kind Raveler was willing to share hers with me so I could knit it.

    I ended up using 19 skeins of Naturally Harmony 10ply. The last skein (used for the collar) is a different dye lot, but I can’t spot the difference at all. The twisted ribbing was done on 4.5mm needles, with the body and sleeves being done on 5mm. It took me nearly four months to do the actual knitting, and then the sewing up took another two weeks. It’s being entered in the 2009 Sydney Royal Easter Show Arts Competition in class #119 (Aran Knitting). I’ll update if/when it wins a prize!

  • bmp Socks

    I started these socks back in November as a prize for the Colony of Gamers charity raffle. I sat them aside in December to wait to hear who won (so I could knit the feet the correct size). And I waited… and I waited… and no email! I contacted them a few weeks ago asking what was happening, and still no reply. I figure that means they’re mine, right? Right. So this weekend I finally finished ’em.

    bmp Socks

    bmp Socks

    The pattern is from Knitty. I happened to have a lot of black and white 5ply in my stash, so I used that instead of traditional sock wool. (I took the needle up to a 3mm.) They look pretty big, but fairisle doesn’t stretch much and they fit me well. I knit them on two circs and followed the pattern pretty much exactly. The shooter was done in duplicate stitch. Cute and retro, huh? (More pics and details on Ravelry.)