Prom Dress '09

 

Here's this year's Prom Dress. There were many extra African American Quiz Bowl t-shirts this year, so I was able to get 3.

This was created by measuring for the bodice. It's a really simple shell with bust darts. The skirt is made with 2 shirt bodies with plenty of pleats for fullness. The skirt also has a kangaroo pocket concealed within the pleats. I created the waist panel with a doubled t-shirt hemline.

I dyed the finished piece with a procion dye. This should have produced a completely matched piece, but apparently the thread in the shirts and the thread I was using both contained too much polyester. They remained white. The flowers were sewn on afterward by hand. They each have a vintage shank button as the center.

It's totally customizable. I will definitely be making more of these.

Glass fusing random fun

   

These are my three favorite pieces I made at the Etsy Pittsburgh team glass fusing workshop. They declared my fish tank the "winner", despite the fact it wasn't a contest. I also like it very much. I would make more of them. I also learned that if you layer the glass, it can be called tacking. Fusing seems like a more logical term. We should be doing this again soon. I also found a studio really close to my house where I can also do this, among other things.

Fortune Teller Swap

 

This is the fortune teller I made for the fortune teller swap. I tried to create media message fortunes. I used magazine images and words. Our traditional fortune tellers used 4 colors on the outside, which the reader would spell as they opened and closed it. The inside contained 8 numbers which the reader would count off as they opened or closed it. Then on the third selection, the reader would read the fortune under the number you picked. Other versions have you read the fortune without the intermediate counting. As children, we seemed to value suspense.

the ultimate neglect

Here are the few things I have done since February, which I have already ripped out. Even with my new policy of only pulling out legitimate mistakes I managed to accomplish almost nothing in 3 months.

 

This is the third iteration of this sweater. Still too short and misshapen.

 

Here is the base of an alpaca lace sweater that I already knit up and ripped out 3 times. I was totally winging it, and it took a lot of experimentation to find a suitable lace pattern. This particular version created strange gaps between the lace repeats. Later versions were lacking sufficient positive and negative space.

 

It was also a little too scalloped at the bottom. There was no real focus on scallops in the pattern, so it mostly just resembled a mistake. So I treated it like one and ripped it out. Since sipping out two more versions, I'm almost done with the current usable one.

Fortune Teller Swap

I swap with Swap-bot!
I called these things fortune tellers, if they got called anything at all. There are lots of things in life that I don't have words for. Like these. It's a Cootie Catcher Swap. I honestly didn't know what it was for until I clicked on the swap because I didn't call them anything most of the time.
So mine is fun and exciting. I hope so, at least. It was totally fun to make. Flickr pictures tomorrow.

Crochet Hook Roll

I swap with Swap-bot!
Here's another one I'm sending out tonight. I made lots of slots for hooks. The pictures will be posted on my flickr later - maybe tomorrow.

Monster Mascot Swap

I swap with Swap-bot!
Here's a swap I'm in. I'm sending out today - except the due date was yesterday. Whenever it involves sewing, I spend forever and then decide I hate what I made. I had to make 3 monsters to get one I thought was good enough to send out. I took pictures of all three. They will be posted to my flickr later.
I think What I made is almost as cute as the example photo. I hope my partner likes it.

why you should swap

Sometimes it's fun to make pieces of art just to send to other people.
If you are excited about what you made, you still get to take a picture of it before you send.
If you can't bear to part with it, you can always make some more that you hope to be less attached to.
You don't always have a way of selling things you want to sew, but you can give them to people and get something in return.

I would never have made this little creature if I didn't have a person to send it to. I had nowhere to keep him.

red purple semi-carded batt

red purple semi-carded batt, originally uploaded by hairycarrot.

I've been doing a lot of spinning since I got my wheel. So far, I've noticed that I can control the fiber a lot better with all the compacted practice I've been getting in. I left this skein as a single, which I didn't used to do. Besides from that being a weird verb construction, I just wasn't satisfied with singles.
When you ply, the second twist returns the fibers to straight. You untwist the original twist from the singles around each other. I was able to balance my twist with the natural tendencies of the wool, so this was a satisfactory single.
The batt was not heavily carded in the first place, making the yarn more likely to have color clumps. This done has lots of red, purple, and black. It's the third lightly carded batt from bflo that I've spun.

pink elephants

Today I reopened my etsy shop with a new finger puppet: the pink elephant. It was nice to have a vacation and go over my stock. I'll be listing things occasionally as I finish them. I have a few other puppets that I have never listed before. I'd like to list one new puppet design a month. I have one ready for February. It's time to start planning for March.

I don't really have anything planned for Valentines items, but I might list the couple I have left from last year. I don't want to make any more conversation hearts unless I design a new pattern. I've had my fill of that one.

Yarn action

This is my box of art club fiber. I've been holding it until I could use a wheel. I was certain that I could spin it thinly and evenly. I was going to play at my friend's house, but I ended up getting my own wheel. Very exciting.


These singles are spun from the blue roving. I made one on the drop spindle, and then these two on the wheel. They match up pretty well even though I used two different tools to make them.


This single came from the brown, pink, and silver roving. I plied it after this. There is much more left, so I should end up with quite a bit of yarn.

This batt was a bonus in my box. I used it to spin up a thicker yarn.

Here is the batt spun up. I plied it. The size is probably about a 4.

I love Series

Series of things are awesome. It's probably because the brain craves repetition. I just discovered this series at its end. It's wonderful. Click through for the images. It's totally worth it.

This makes me wish I had more to show for my efforts. I was recently wondering where I spent all my time, and realized that I have redone most of my projects immediately after finishing them. Then end result is that I feel like I've accomplished nothing. I've had to start a new rule, where I am not allowed to change my mind, only fix mistakes. More on that later.

And, for amusement: Knitted bus cozy and more.

One redone

This is the image of me a year ago right before I took apart this sweater. Since then I've completed all but one and a half sleeves. Hopefully this means that the new version will be more wearable.

Some of the changes:

• better raglan shaping means I can lift my arms without the sweater rising up
  
• longer body means it will reach my waist
  
• longer body ribbing provides better shape
  
• v-neck should prevent a lot of the bad wool reaction I was having
  

I didn't do any of this over the summer. Now that I've picked it up again, I'm using my new rule: no changing my mind. As long as it fits, I will consider it done.

I Win

I don't need to get any more presents basically forever, unless someone wants to get me sheep; I got a spinning wheel - and it's made in Canada.

Christmas can be canceled next year. I'm set. Now I can spin through all the things that I was saving to spin when it was cold. It's cold and I have a wheel. Plus I got some great fiber from Natasha which will be great on my spindle. I have lots to do and a week more off of work to play.

How to Crochet a Hat

- without a pattern -


If you know how to crochet in the round, you can make a hat.

The easiest way to start crochet in the round is to chain 2, then make 6 single crochet in the second chain from the hook. This is more single crochet than will reasonably fit in a single chain, causing it to curve around. This will create the beginning of a small circle. The first stitch and the last stitch you made will be touching. Make your next stitch in the top of the first stitch. For the second round, you will want to make 2 stitches in each stitch of the first round. Since the first round was 6 stitches, the second round will be 12.

From this point on, you only need 2 basic concepts to create a hat shape.

1. If you want to flatten out, add stitches as your circle starts to buckle. If you add only a few stitches it will create a rounded dome shape. If you add more stitches it will be flat. Just add them as you like.
2. When you want to create the sides of the hat, make no increases. This will create a tube. The tube should be about half of the hat. This will cover your ears.

Handmade Happy Hour

This is the beginning of the menswear line. I'm keeping it small. There are plenty of ideas that I never make because the motivation for their construction just doesn't exist. The driving cap was fun to create because it allowed me to use interesting pieces of fabric that were otherwise too narrow to make into other things. I also got to use my French curves to draft the pattern.

I sold my first one at CITYCRAFT. I'll be listing more in my etsy shop.

Beer Rabbit

We were in charge of dinner yesterday. The original thought was fish curry, but they had whole rabbits at Wegmans. Beer rabbit is made using the same concept as beer chicken, but with the added steps of dredging and roux. Nom Nom.

Buy awesome stuff from Luxe

STITCH SEW AND SHOP

SATURDAY NOV. 29th and SUNDAY NOV. 30th


We are hosting two fabulous designers Thanksgiving weekend. For Saturday and Sunday only, meet two hip crafters while shopping for unique finds for the peeps on your list.

The Picket Fence brings handmade to you!

Luxe Fibre....beautiful handmade lovelies made in a one-woman studio in Pennsylvania. Luxe hand spins, dyes and knits super soft neck warmers, scarves and caplets. Chat with her about a custom piece for the holiday or pick up a skein or two of her home-brewed yarn for the knitters in your life!

Luxe Fibre



Little Hip Squeak Organic
It all started for her love of textiles, and to sew. With her own little baby boy, she started to buy blank tee shirts in bright colors, and sew cool stuff to them. People loved them and asked her for a card. Card? What card?

Certified organic
no hohum colors available

Little Hip Squeak


Saturday, November 29th from 10 to 6
Sunday, November 30th from 12 to 4



THE PICKET FENCE
5425 Walnut Street
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15232
412.246.0350
http://www.picketfenceshadyside.com
info@picketfenceshadyside.com

Macy's Made It Awesome

I don't usually enjoy any part of the Macy's parade, but this year was super special.
This video wasn't made at my house, but this is what my brother and I sounded like when it happened. Then I had to explain Rick-rolling to my father.

In more sewing and knitting related news, when my holiday is over I am going to unveil some new hooded scarves and bags. My next show is on the 17th of December. I have a couple new finger puppets planned, too.

Flickr Knees Mosaic

You know it's a long week when I sit down to my computer and all the stuff I had from the night before is still sitting on my computer unsent!
Here are the links to the images in my mosaic. I kept up my motifs of rats, tattoos, and knitting, with an overarching theme of knees.
1. Untitled, 2. That Blue Dress., 3. Elephant tattoo, 4. Untitled, 5. Humphry having a sniff, 6. Knee, 7. On my knee, 8. Rat in mi kitchen, 9. bzzz, 10. Jonathan, knees, 11. 14/365, 12. knitting knees, 13. Cute Rat