posts tagged ‘knitting’
summer knitting madness
[ click for a larger view. ]
With the temperatures in the 90°F+ range, I usually wimp out and decide that I’ve had enough of knitting until the weather turns cool again. This year, however, I’ve been knitting up a storm! I think perhaps it has partly to do with the trips we’ve taken over the past several months, and I’ve started carrying my knitting with me whenever I go out in case I have a few moments of lull in the action–so there have been plenty of opportunities for knitting. So far I’ve managed to finish putting together I 1940s chunky knit cardigan I knit last year (yes, I know… it has taken me over 6 months to put it together!), which I embellished with some pretty glass buttons that my friend E. sweetly gave me. The pattern is from this reprint booklet from Iva Rose, and the yarn is Plymouth Encore Chunky (wool blend) in a lovely tweedy purple. I think it’ll look smashing with my grey wool skirt I made last winter!
[ even the sleeves have a cable each! ]
[ more pictures here. ]
I also knit up a quick little project last week (I find I like having two projects going: one large one–usually a sweater, and a smaller piece that goes together quickly. I’m impatient and like instant gratification!): a 1940s moss stitch turban. It’s quite out of season right now, but I have plans to wear it if we go visit our families in Virginia this winter. The pattern is from the V&A website, and was super easy to make and put together–I rather like how it turned out too! I used a lovely alpaca and silk blend yarn from KnitPicks for this, so it’s super soft and a bit fuzzy.
[ 40s moss stitch turban; more pictures here. ]
I’ve actually got another sweater that I knit earlier this spring being put together right now, so once I have that tucked away there will be more knitting pictures no doubt! I am also trying my hand at sock knitting; something I’ve been eager to try for years but never got around to. I recently checked out Socks from the Toe Up by Wendy Johnson out of the library, and got excited about the possibilities of sock knitting. So I’ve picked out a pattern and went yarn shopping last weekend with E. (who is an experienced sock knitter), and am all ready to get started! We’ll see how that goes–I know most knitters are either wild about sock knitting or dislike it. It’s worth a try though!
So tell me–what creative activities have been taking up your spare time lately?
post link
email me del.icio.us digg stumbleupon
Posted to: knitting. | 54 lovely thoughts
knitting inspiration
[ the book, my knitting, and my oh-so classy yarn holder; née oatmeal box. ]
I recently was able to get my hands on a copy of A Stitch in Time: Knitting and Crochet Patterns of the 20s, 30s, and 40s by Jane Waller. While this book has been reprinted, the version I got to look at is the original 70s edition, which is basically reprints of vintage needlework publications. Let me just say that I think my heartbeat quickened quite a bit when I paged through this book! I am absolutely in love with just about all the designs that have been reprinted–I think if I were an octopus I’d try knitting them all right now! lol.
[ peek inside the book. ]
As it is, I can’t knit more than a couple projects at a time (and certainly not at the same time). I decided to frog a sweater I had started several months ago (and completely lost interest in), and use the yarn to start a new project. I had been looking for a new use for this yarn long before I checked this book out, since the sweater I had been knitting just wasn’t coming together. Now I’ve got something new on my needles!
[ the design that is currently on my needles. so fun to knit up! ]
Perhaps it’s because so many of the books I read as a child were published in the 70s (we spent a lot of time at the library growing up–it was a weekly event!), but these older “vintage style and craft” books always make me feel nostalgic. Partially because I wish I could time travel back to the early 70s when vintage was only just starting to gain interest and things were still widely available, and also because it reminds me of the books that got me interested in handcrafts and vintage clothing as a child. There is something rather wistful in returning to one’s roots nearly 20 years later… it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and just a bit sad that time has passed so quickly! (Although I think part of this is due to my birthday coming up in two weeks–I’m turning The Big 25! I always get silly and nostalgic like this around the end of April…)
[ another sneaky peek inside... more pictures here. ]
post link
email me del.icio.us digg stumbleupon
Posted to: knitting, vintage inspiration. | 19 lovely thoughts
inspiration {week #107}
[ be sure to click for the sources of these gorgeous images! ]
Happy Friday, everyone! How did your week go? Like so many other bloggers, I have mysteriously been feeling under the weather all week. I don’t know if it’s a collective “blogger bug” that is going around (oh no! Now germs can transmit through our computer screens!), but I had a sore throat that left me feeling a little run-down. However, it was conducive to getting some much needed knitting done; both on testing some snood designs and my own projects. The latter has been quite a comical process, a sweater that I posted about a little while ago. I seriously have not gotten much further than when I posted, because I keep ripping out the yoke rows. Why, you may ask? Well, firstly I did not like the original “lace” pattern for the yoke; it wasn’t lacy enough for me. Not that I want something super-open and sheer, but it just looked chunky and un-lace-like. I tried a few more patterns, and like a goof, didn’t swatch them but just plunged ahead on the sweater. So, three pattern tries later, I finally found one that I like on the Vogue Knitting site. Hopefully that means it’ll actually show some progress!
- I haven’t really been paying attention to Fashion Week, but Jessica caught my attention with the fun, Nancy Drew-inspired Rachel Antonoff collection!
- A super lovely pair of mini bloomers from Colette Patterns–perfect weekend sewing.
- To whet your appetite for cute summer clothes even more, Lauren shared images of some snappy 1934 summer separates!
- This week Tricia asked some interesting questions regarding fashion week (that I think extend to the fashion world in general), and started some good discussion.
- Gertie shared how she creates covered buttonholes using a kit, but with some tricks to make them look even more finished.
[ a fantastically cheerful ad for shoes from 1950 ]
This week’s inspiration image is prompted by my latest search for some practical shoes for the summer. I’ve found a few pairs, but nothing nearly as adorable as these (although Remix has a few that come close…)! Really cute for $2.98 (a little over $25 in today’s dollar–still not too shabby!). lol! Have you found an fun shoes lately?
Have a lovely weekend, all!
post link
email me del.icio.us digg stumbleupon
Posted to: knitting, vintage inspiration, weekly inspiration. | 15 lovely thoughts
1940s snoods
[ black 40s snood, knit on 11 needles with #3 crochet yarn. ]
I’ve been determined for awhile to make myself a few 40s style snoods. They’re definitely an accessory that isn’t for everyone, but I’ve always loved the sporty look they lend to 40s style outfits! Snoods were not only extremely practical (as evidenced by the many photos of female factory and farm workers during the war who wore them to keep their hair neat and tidy), but cute with a sporty look or even elegant with a gorgeous dress and hat perched atop. Plus, let’s face it: some days I’m lazy and just don’t feel like dealing too much with my hair. I get tired of doing endless variations on Heidi braids, so this little item does nicely to change things up.
[ the plain cream snood. knit on 11 needles with fingering weight yarn. ]
[ another view. ]
It’s actually taken me a couple tries to get a snood that I could actually wear. Between experimenting with stitch patterns and yarn thicknesses, I finally found a happy medium. I made a black one embellished with a black velvet ribbon bow (using this pattern), and then a plain cream one (instructions here). I found some patterns online to guide me a bit, but the basic stitch principle (an open pattern on big needles; I generally use US 10 1/2 or 11′s) is easy. For attaching the round elastic to the edges, I just do a double crochet around 3 sides, catching the elastic between the edge of the snood and the dc stitches. I think by the time I made the cream snood, it too me only a couple hours to make! Easy!
[ black knit snood, modeled by my slightly creepy foam head! ]
Now I’m eying some variations… I think these will be great for keeping my hair up during the summer or while dancing (yes, thanks to a lovely reader, we’ve found a swing dance club in our city!)…
post link
email me del.icio.us digg stumbleupon
Posted to: knitting, vintage inspiration. | 33 lovely thoughts
curl up with some knitting…
[ how I spent most of last weekend while nursing my cold! ]
I’m sure you all have heard by now of the insanely cold temperatures we’re experiencing in the southern portion of the East Coast. It actually got so cold I had to pull out all my super heavy winter coats! This time last year, it was solidly in the 70s; it always amazes me how quickly nature changes from one thing to the next… kind of like life! The chilly air has made me want to hibernate with endless pots of tea, under my favorite quilt, with my knitting. Of course, I can’t do that all day long, but I have been spending inordinate amounts of time in the evening working on a new sweater. (I actually have just finished another and need to stitch it together. Pictures coming soon!) I found a great site a few months ago with free vintage knitting patterns, and this one has been calling to me. I changed the yoke up a bit and started it sooner than the pattern called for so that the lace pattern would be more prominent; wide yokes have been appealing to me of late.
[ subtle, yet pretty. ]
I’m such a silly girl: I always get excited when I hit the “interesting” parts of a knitted project. Cables, lacy patterns, neckline shaping–I find it way too fun. I think it has something to do with seeing the yarn start to take on shape and form into intricate little twists and bumps. The lace pattern on this sweater isn’t terribly fancy: I’d hesitate to even classify it as a lace (at least in my book), since it doesn’t have the characteristics of lots of open spaces. In it’s simplicity is a certain charm that has emerged as I knit each stitch and slip them off my needles. I have quite a ways to go with this sweater still (the question is: will it get completed before the really warm weather hits Florida?), but for now I’m happily wrapped up in the gentle rhythm of the needles and the yarn.
post link
email me del.icio.us digg stumbleupon
Posted to: knitting. | 15 lovely thoughts
Next Entries »