A Cape for the Cold

Lucky for me Daughter wore Stashbuster #5 to church this morning and I was able to get a picture before she changed clothes. We have noticed lots of capes and ruanas in the stores in recent months and liked the idea of throwing on a quick wrap on a cold day. I picked up Simplicity 1521 (a Sew Simple 97 cent pattern) on a WalMart shopping trip and made a quick, lined cape with a button closure at the neckline.

The fabric is a very inexpensive gray wool blend from Hancock Fabrics lined with a black polyester lining. We decided not to make the buttonholes in the underarm area for a belt. At least, not right now. She likes to just throw it on without having to bother with a belt. Sometimes, simple is best.

2014 Stashbuster Totals
Yarn - 295 yards
Fabric - 7 yards

Stashbusters #3 and #4

Okay, I know it's February and I should have at least 4 stashbusters posted. I really have been sewing and knitting every night but I just can't get outside to photograph because it's always cold, raining, or snowing.

Stashbuster #3 is a dress for charity from one of my underwear factory remnants. I added a bit of rick rack and little heart buttons to the pockets.

Stashbuster #4 used up a seersucker remnant for two more little dresses. I already had bias binding and elastic so I didn't have to purchase a thing!

Coming soon is my entry for the Patternreview Little White Dress Contest. The deadline is Saturday and I got a late start because my daughter and I couldn't decide on fabric and a pattern. I've always wanted to enter a Patternreview contest and the timing was great on this one. Daughter needs a dress to wear to the Kentucky Derby and this just might be the one!

2014 Stashbuster Totals
Yarn - 295 yards
Fabric - 3 yards

One Row Lace Scarf (Stashbusting Project #2)

I'm doing pretty well on my New Year's Stashbusting Resolution. I bought this alpaca/wool/bamboo fiber at a Fiber Festival in 2011. Wow, has it been in my stash that long? I spun a two-ply yarn and ended up with about 180 yards. I didn't especially enjoy spinning this blend of fiber so I put the yarn away for 3 years!

I pulled it out a few days ago and did what I always do when trying to match up yarn with a project. I went to the Ravelry advanced search tool, plugged in my yarn weight, yardage, etc. and came up with an assortment of projects which would work for this yarn. I started knitting a cowl, changed my mind, fingerless mitts, changed my mind, and ended up with a favorite scarf pattern. I have used this One Row Lace Scarf pattern twice before and loved it. (One of them is blogged here)  It seems I always have to eliminate a couple of new patterns before I settle on an old favorite. I have to go through the process.

Ravelry Link

I should not have left this yarn in my stash for so long. I really like the color, the drape, and everything about this scarf! 

Handspun Boot Toppers

It's January so, once again, I'm making one New Year's Resolution and that is to do a little stashbusting. If I knit or sew just one project a week, that's 52 projects a year and I should make a dent in my inventory. Right? And that is a conservative estimate. Surely, I can make more than one project a week. I do realize that this challenge also requires me to stop buying fabric and yarn so I vow to only buy what is absolutely necessary that I can't find in my stash.

This brings me to Stashbusting Project #1. I bought a spinning wheel in 2008 and taught myself to spin. My first yarns were a little, actually a lot, on the chunky side, so I stashed them away. I ran across this boot topper pattern on Ravelry from Homespun Living which requires chunky yarn. I was a little short on yardage but adjusted the pattern and made it work.

Ravelry Link

Both of my daughters love to wear boots so I have plans for lots more boot toppers for my handspun and other skeins with minimal yardage.

Coming soon....my first fabric stashbusting project which is actually finished but getting my daughter to pose for pictures requires some convincing, bargaining, and sometimes a downright threat that I won't ever sew for her again!

Christmas PJ's

Finally, a few minutes to blog after a few busy weeks. I had several sewing projects started which I finished up two days before Christmas. That is cutting it a little too close for me. Every year, since my daughters were very small, I have made them a new pair of pajamas to open and wear on Christmas Eve. I always have trouble finding just the right fabric but this year I think I got it right!

Patternreview link

I went to Hancock's on Black Friday only to discover that all the flannel had juvenile designs on it. Now, I'm not opposed to a cute kitty print but it just can't look like a three year old. I was just about to give up when I spotted a bolt of solid red flannel. I have never made plain, solid PJ's for them before. I got it for about $2 a yard and bought the bolt. I also bought white piping because I had this image in my mind of tailored, monogrammed pajamas. I have used this discontinued Simplicity 5338 many times before so I stuck with what works. I was running out of time and running out of steam so I thought I would just leave off the monograms. Then, one of my daughters said, "Oh, I'm pretty sure they will be monogrammed". So, yep, they were monogrammed.

I purchased the interlocking monogram embroidery font from Herrington Design on Etsy for only $1.50!  I took a risk and embroidered the pockets without testing the design and it came out great.

Now, I know I should be on the lookout for fabric so I can start early on next year's PJ's but I'm sure I'll be writing the same story next year, and the year after, and the year after....

A Royal Visit

I had a delightful visit from Kate Middleton and Prince George today. Kate was sporting a new $3 hat, a $5 jacket from Goodwill, and a $7 dress from Old Navy.

I've decided that adult costumes are as much fun as the kid costumes. My daughter wanted to dress up as Kate Middleton for a Halloween party since she admires Kate's classic style. She found this easy hat tutorial on Youtube which was perfect for her Kate hat. We used navy felt which I interfaced to give it more body. I added the tulle and flower and we're done!

She bought the dress last summer at Old Navy for $7 and the jacket was a recent $5 purchase from Goodwill. The copycat Kate ring was $12 at Kohl's.

She practiced her Kate wave, gathered up Prince George and headed off to the party. I hope she doesn't get spotted by the paparazzi!

Embroidery on Burlap

I've always loved burlap, even before it became a cool fabric for decorating. I always keep a few yards in my stash for covering blah lampshades or cutting a quick table runner with raveled edges. Lately, I have noticed a lot of embroidered burlap pillows items online, at local boutiques, etc.  I have an empty rocking chair on the front porch that needed a little something to perk it up. I already had a 20" pillow form and, of course, burlap in my stash. I hooped the burlap without stabilizer and added Solvy to the top. It might have worked okay without the Solvy but I added it anyway. This is the result. I'm pretty excited about it!