Entering the World of Burda?

A few weeks ago, I wanted to see all the excitement about Burda Magazine.  I have been reading blogs and sewing pattern review with people talking about creating clothes from Burda Magazine with patterns that comes with each month.  I decided to inquiry about subscribing to the magazine, and so I received a free May issue magazine yesterday in the mail.  Now I see what the excitement is about.  It’s a very trendy (in a good way) and stylish fashion that would be the envy of all your friends.  I like the accessories article in the magazine, and seeing all of the new sunglasses that would make you glamorous for the summer.  Of course, tracing a pattern will probably seem a little foreign to me, but I probably will figure it out and check the Yahoo group Burdg English to get some ideas as the best way to trace.  I think it’s also worth the $80 to subscribe because you get a lot of patterns with each month.  Of course, one may sew everything in the month, but it’s nice to choose from an array of patterns.  I will start out with a six-month subscription, but committing to a year.

I picked up the new Belle Armoire Art to Wear - May/June issue.  There is an article about Joan McGowan, owner of White Lies Designs and author of Knitting with Style.  I love her designs and how she manages to knit and creates style for all women from 2 to 32.  There is another good article about making hats, nice flapper-inspired hats with a modern flair.  I also have my summer issue of Interweave Knits to see all the knit designs.  There are times when I wish I was independently wealthy and not work again, then I can stay home and knit, sew, and do other creative projects.

On the changing my eating habits front.  I managed to transition from drinking soda to drinking tea and juice and milk.  Yes, I drink juice and milk because they are packed with nutrients like vitamins, calcium, and antioxidants which soda does not have.  I do drink water, but not eight glasses because tea has water as I do not use sugar, milk is made up of 80% of water and fruit juices as well.  Since, I eat more fruit and vegetables, they are packed with a lot of water.  I make sure that I eat breakfast if it only means me picking up yogurt with fresh berries and granola on top, and eating an oz of nuts mid-morning.  I am also intentionally having vegetarian meals two or three times a week, and adding fish into my diet at least three times a week.  Once, I have a regular eating routine, then it’s on to exercise.  I am walking for the time being, but need to add things like weight training and pilates or yoga into the mix.

Where I guess that’s all I have for today.  Have a good day everyone!

Fabric, Yarn, and Other Musings

I have President’s Day off, and decided to work on my baby blanket, wash new fabric I received today, and just relax.  Yesterday, I went to see “Three Mo Divas” at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, and have to tickets to see Terrence Howard and James Earl Jones in the production of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.”  However, for today, it was time for me to focus on the blanket if I am going have it completed by March.   I needed to order an addition skein of yarn for the blanket just in case, and probably knit a baby wash cloth with the remainder (waste not, want not).  I am half way completed with the blanket and it will mean me knitting on my daily commute to and from work.

 

I purchased my first knit fabric from Fabric Mart a few days and it came by UPS today.  I already washed and placed into the dryer which came out very well.  I want to sew a simple dress from this fabric as I need to more dresses in my closet, and enough of them that require simple care like washing them with the rest of my laundry and not requiring a great deal of ironing.  With spring and summer approaching, I like to my everyday life as simple as possible and still look good.  I also purchased a tan small houndstooth made from a cotton/linen mix for $1.99 a yard and must admit that I like the way it feels.  It is also the type of fabric that I could wear spring, fall, and winter (milder days).

 

 

 

 

Along with houndstooth fabric in the photo above, I purchased two patters for blouses I want to sew with the idea of finding fabric inspire me.  The second top, I want to find interesting print fabric to sew and wear with a pair jeans.  With the hounsdstooth, I am thinking about a dress and with the remainder a nice tote-bag.  That will mean a trip to the notion store for handbag hardware.  Well, I guess this all I have for today.  Take care, and  any of you who happen to live in Wisconsin and Hawaii, do not forget to vote in tomorrow’s primary.

New Arrivals

After a day waiting to come home a nice bowl of mushroom bisque soup, I received a couple of packages.  My sewing machine and the new version of MAC’s OS Leopard.  I just had to take the sewing machine out of the box to look at it, and at the same time installed my software.  As you can tell that my desk is not exactly tidiest, but it is my organized mess.  I think the machine is good buy and can not wait to break in for that new sewing project.  I went to bookstore yesterday and purchased the magazine from Threads entitled Quick Stuff to Sew (Craftstylish) and it has a compilation of various projects to create from garments to home decorate projects.

I will be spending the weekend reading the instructions, testing out the new machine, playing with the new features on Leopard and continue my baby blanket knitting project.  I am thinking about cooking a nice meal since it is a three-day weekend for me, so I am going to get out the slow-cooker for a nice chicken with tomatoes and cannelloni beans.  I got the idea from listening to Nigella Larsen the other talking about having a great meal in a short time.  Her new cookbook is called Nigella Express which he recipes are demonstrated on the Food Network show with the same name as the book.  It is true that good meal should take hours to prepare.

So Many Projects, So Little Time

A couple of days ago, I received the issue Spring Interweave Knits and had an orgasm (well not quite) upon looking at the projects in the magazine.  There are a few things in the magazine that I would love to make and add it as part of my wardrobe.  There is a project called the holly jacket that is great for the spring and could wear it with a nice pencil skirt for the office, or khaki pants for the weekend.  I think this sweater is nice for the spring (wonder how it would look in sage green, hmmm).

         

 

       

 

Then there is the banded peasant blouse, and the linen trumpet skirt which are very additions to anyone’s wardrobe for the spring.  I am going to put this on my wish list to knit and emphasizing the word wish because it probably will be a while for me with other things I am doing.  Unless, I follow the advice of my nephew and open a yarn/cafe shop, lol, to sleep per chance to dream.  Now, I certainly, cannot write about knitting without writing about something to sew.  I received my Sewing Today issue and saw this dress and said to myself I need to get this pattern and sew this.  The dress comes in two lengths so you can have a day look, or look very nice at a black tie affair (the world needs more black tie affairs).

 

Knitting, Reading, and Other Plans

It has been a few days since writing and posting the last blog entry.  I have been a little busy with the finishing touches of my sweater project, started working on a baby blanket, and planning to sew a diaper bag.  In the mist of all thse projects, I have been listening and watching the election coverage, and catching up on some reading.  I am currently reading two books, Obama’s The Audacity of Hope, and a wonderful book by David J. Garrow an historian entitled Bearing the Cros - Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.  Yes the title is long, and the book is more than 750 pages long (that includes bibliography and index), but Garrow writes a great biography the King and SCLC during the civil rights movement.  The book was first published in 1987 and won a Pulitzer Prize, and Garrow gives a honest portrait of the civil rights movement.  If you are bit of a history buff, Bearing the Cross is an important book to have in your library along with another author who wrote a triology about King, Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63, Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years, 1963-65, and At Canaan’s Edge: America in the King Years, 1965-1968.  Should read these books, you probably will meet your reading quota for the entire year (just kidding, but they are comprehensive books to read.

I have been keeping a running list of all the projects I like to do this year, and realized that my little Brother’s XL 2600 my not be up for the task, so I am thinking about getting another sewing machine (comupterized) at a good price.  However, I will give it a great deal of consideration as my pocketbook is the deciding factor into my decision, and there is no great urgency as the current machine works fine for the small jobs.  I still have to purchase fabric for the diaper bag and cover, and found a website called Erica’s (www.ericas.com) that has some great stuff for craft projects.  That is all on my mind for the moment.

When All Else Fails, Find an Alternative

I decided not to work on the baby sweater for a couple of days and realized that I could resolve my problem by knitting the front sides in a rectangle to match the rectangle shape in the back, and attach the sleeves.  This will require me to make an adjustment without starting from scratch and I can now do a happy dance of the good news.  After that project is completed, I can move on and begin the new t-neck sweater and the baby blanket.  I tend to be obsessive where one thing becomes my primary focus during that period, but I have concentrate on sewing as well because I need some new clothes.

Today, I picked up a new knitting reference book at Borders book entitled The Knitter’s Handy Book of Sweater Patterns, by Ann Budd.  The book explains the basic designs in multiple sizes and gauges.  The author discusses six different sweaters styles that differ in the way the sleesve join the body.  Anyone reading this blogging can venture a guess as my reason for purchasing the book after my experience with the baby sweater.  I buy and read reference books as they do give me a wealth of information and some inspiration to continue my project with confidence.  The books contains ample and meaningful information explaining gauge, basic anatomy about each sweater style, and adjusting the pattern for a better fit.  This book is a keeper and I never have enough knitting, sewing, and fiction literature books.

Knitting Mishap and a New Knitting Book

I ran into a problem the other night with my baby sweater, the stitches keep twisting and that became a little irritating for me.  The back of sweater is knitted fine, but the problem occurred while knitting the front left side.  There were two problems, the instructions called for knitted 22 times the knit and purl row which translate into 44 rows and the twisted stitches.  The first problem with knitting the 44 rows that it did meet up with the armhole to the back of the sweater, but is easily corrected by just knitting more of the knit and purl until it meets up with beginning of the armhole and adjust the number of rows to make sure it is even with the neck to the back of the sweater.  The second problem is little more difficult, but a solution is on the horizon.  I purchased Knit & Style Magazine during the summer with an article about twisted stitches to refer to correct the problem.

 

A couple of weeks ago, I purchase some reference books for knitting, sewing, and scrapbooking (yes I am thinking about scrapbooking).  For one reason or another, I find that you can never enough reference books when it comes to hobbies and interests.  I decided to the purchase the book  A to Z of Knitting, the Ulimate Guide for the Beginner to Advanced Knitter by Sue Gardener.  The books has more than a 1,000 photographs of instructions, and the interesting thing about book is the how-to embroidary and intaria knitting with also other knitting basics.  It is a good reference book for knitters, and I like the hidden spiral binder as it is easy to turn the pages along with them staying in place.  If should get a chance, visit Adrienne Little World (http://adrienneslittleworld.typepad.com/) and read her interview with Alice and Grace of Kathryn Ivy blog (http://kathrynivy.com/).  Good day.

The Baby Sweater

I did a few things over the weekend.  I started working on the baby sweater for my co-worker, read blogs, and began reading Barack Obama’s Audacity to Hope.  I worked on the back of the sweater and must mention that I started three times before it looked fine to me.  I am left-handed and my stockinette stitches looked criss-cross, so in order for me to change this pattern is when I did a purl stitch, I turn the yarn in a counter-clock stitch just as I did for the knit stitch and it was so much smoother and more consistent.  A lesson learned for me as I was knitting counter-clock wise, and purling clock wise which does make a difference in the look of the pattern.  I finished the back of the sweater and began working the left front side and found it remarkable that is knitting baby clothes is much easier than I thought, although the trickest part of the sweater will be the shaping of the armholes.  That is the thing about knitting it is flexible and you can always do it over.

I must admit to being a procrasinator or perhaps placing too many things on my plate and becoming full before finishing everything.  I tend to purchase books with the intent of reading them later, particularly literature.  I brought Obama’s book when it was first printed in November 2006.  I read his first book Dreams of my Father, and thought it was a well-written and well-told story about how he had to come to terms with his identity and finding where he becomes in the grander scheme of things.  Now, I am going to let you in on a little secret, I personally met Barack Obama in 2004 when was newly elected to the U.S. Senate when he came to radio station for an interview for one of our programs.  Upon meeting him, I found very approaching and leave with the instinct feeling that he listened to what you were saying.  In other words, I think is probably one of the most perceptive individual I have ever met.  He has the ability to play attention to whoever he is speaking with at that time.  It was within that moment, I had this feeling that he is going to run for president and could win.  I found him to be a leader that would mobilize and galvinize people in which to change or improve policy that is inefficient and ineffective.  I think he bring smart, talented, and doers together to put a plan in place and call people to action to implement it.  It will be interesting to see what happens in this election.

Getting Through Another Week

Now that the holidays are behind along with a nice little vacation, I getting back into the thick of things.  I finally made the trip to yarn shop and received the correct dye lot for the other two skeins of yarn.  It is amazing how you can see the subtle differences in colors, and I certainly did not want to knit the sweater in two different shades of beige.  Of course, I am making the knitting for probably would not care because I put thought and took the time to knit something for her baby, but it would bother me if I did not put my best into the project.  This is the project I am knitting using a smaller needle size and it is different as it does take a longer to finish with smaller needles than larger needles.  In addition to exchanging the skein of yarn, I purchase three skeins of Plymouth Yarn to knit a blanket.  If I just focus working on the sweater, I could complete project by the end of next week, and start on the blanket which I can put those project away for March.

I also have some reading to catch up on as well.  I couple of magazine articles from the New Yorker and the Barack Obama’s Dream Machine article by Newsweek.  I have some heavy reading to get through this year.  I purchased Obama’s The Audacity to Hope, What is The What, a memior, A Long Way Gone: Memiors of a Boy Solider by Ismael Beah, On Beauty and White Teeth by Zadie Smith, and other books I should read by the end of this year.  My book and CD stash are huge and probably need to do a purge of things I no longer need (Clean House yard sale).  It is good to get through the second week of the year, and make room for a fabric and yarn stash.

Tackling that Sweater

 I must admit that in my apartment are plenty of knitting magazines I purchase over the past six months.  With this in mind, I decided to make my first sweater for the year 2008 as it is getting little boring making hats and scarves. This meant me searching through magazines for that first project.  In finally chose to knit a turtleneck sweater from the fall issue of Knit.1  The pattern seem be one of easiest to knit, and yarn chosen is Lion Brand’s Jiffy which is not expensive.  I went on www.discountyarnsale.com and purchase the yarn for $16.83 for nine skeins. No the yarn is not wool, but it is a good price for nine skeins.  The yarn is an acrylic fiber, but it is fine since this my first sweater and this builds me up to spend more on the next sweater project. On a side note:  The new show How to Look Good Naked with Carson Kressley on Lifetime Television premiered tonight.  I have always been a fan of Carson ever since Queer Eye because his buoyant personality and made his subjects look at things differently when it came to looking their best.  Well Carson does the same for this new show in getting women to accept and feel good about their bodies.  Body image is important to a lot of women and we have something we do not like about our bodies.  I for one am not going to dye my hair when the graying starts.  In fact, I am going to get a new hair cut to show off the gray.  However, there is always something from I do not like flab under my arms to my feet are too big.  I think some of you will like the show if only for Carson to make you laugh.

 

Another Knitting Project Completed

With this being a new year, I decided to finish unfinished projects around the apartment. So tonight, I decided to finished a knitted bag I worked on over six months ago. All the pieces were knitted, but did not get around to sewing everything together (the downside of knitting, hand sewing). The only thing left is to stitch the pocket. I also receive three new books today from Barnes & Noble, Vogue Knitting Stitchionary, volumes one, two, and three. I promised myself that I would learn and experiment with different stitches including cables and color knitting.

The body of the bag is a chocolate brown, pink strap, and green pocket. I sewn in two pink pockets inside the bad, but I still do not know what how I am going to use it. I could use it for a workout bag or traveling bag to keep my knitting projects. This is a little kink, but I can adjust and wait until next week to start project. It is the reason why I allowed myself enough time before March to complete the project. I still have a stash of yarn and waiting for my knitting needles to start on the baby sweater. However, that the three skeins of yarn I purchased for the project, I noticed that one of the skein was not the same shade as the other two, same color number, but different lot number. It is my hope that when I return to the yarn shop next wee.

Ready, Set, Go, Well Not Quite

After finally deciding what project to knit for my co-worker’s baby to be, I went to the yarn store and purchase three skeins of Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino (the color is beige, but gender neutral). I was looking forward to coming home and starting the project after dealing with one of the most vexatious individual ever known to man. The man is a walking sitcom and believe that he would try the patience of most spiritual people who ever walked the earth. Buddha and Jesus would probably run for the hills upon seeing this person. Well I digress, let me get back to my original thought. I finally arrived home eagerly wanting to start the project and realized that I do not have a pair of size two and three knitting needles. Well that meant going to Elann.com and ordering the pairs of needles needed for the project, and means waiting probably until next week to start.  I am not worried as she is not leaving for maternity leave until mid-March.

After ordering the needles, I decided to take some pictures of future projects like the one above.  I thought that is a nice nightgown from the Sensual Knits book.  Imagine after a long day, you come home to take care of what ever you need to do, then take a nice warm or hot bath, and put this nightgown and lounge for the reminder of the evening.  I can not wait to build up my knitting skills to tackle this project.

 

I saw this sweater in the winter 08 issue of Knit Scene and said to myself what I great sweater with wonderful detailing in front to give it more interest.   I think the knit is yummy and this would be the sweater of all sweaters in my closet.  I would like to knit this for my niece as well and it will take some time and practice to get that look.

 

 

This sweater from Sensual Knits is just great to have in your closet and it is an easy project for me to create now.  I think women should something sexy in our closet without making us look like we are desperate for a guy and end up with someone somewhat less desirable.  It has just enough allure and confidence to look great.

These projects are for the knit list I am creating, and hopeful that I will.

 

A New Book Find

Today, I went to one of my favorite places, Barnes & Noble.  My manager was kind enough to give me a generous gift card to Barnes & Noble and was more than glad to use it.  I did not make to the fabric store, but I might the trip after work.  Well, I pick up this book entitled Sensual Knits by Yahaira Ferreira who owns the on-line boutique Pure Knits.  The books consist of 25 projects by different knitwear designers.  If you are going to purchase the book, it is probably best do it on the website as it cost $12.00 on-line and $18.00 at bookstores (DRATS! I paid the $18.00).

I love a lot of the projects in the book and according to the author an advanced beginner should be able to tackle these projects.  However, you can purchase the book Knitting Patterns for Dummies which I found very helpful, and there is always the Bitch n Stitch groups one can visit to ask more experienced knitters.  I fell in love with balloon sleeve jacket on the cover, and it luxurious and sensual.  The book also has a few dress patterns and a great opportunity to use alpaca, angora, cashmere, merino, or silk wools.

Another find is a magazine called Belle Amoire - Art to Wear published by Stampington & Company.  The magazine prints bi-monthly and I saw the front cover with that elegant and sophisticated apron.  That apron is something you greet your guest at the door and dare not use while cooking.  I suppose aprons are making a serious comeback and there is an article about the woman to creates them for her business.   Well, that is all I have for now.  Take care everybody.

Oh Baby

I purchased these books today to make some baby items for some friends, but particuarly a co-worker who is having a baby in early April.  This means I have get into the process of which project to knit, and have done in time for her shower.  I have been thinking of just doing a blanket and wait until she has the baby so I will know if it is a boy or girl.  There are some  items I find adorable and of course they are for a little girl.  I am little weary as I heard some people who had trouble with Debbie Bliss’ instructions, so wish me well.

I received some American Express checks and my purchase will be FABRIC.  I do not have any knit fabric, so that will be a present for myself to get knit and possibly coating fabric for that coat pattern.  It will be my first coat just everything else I sew, the first of everything.  However, I think I am going to stick to dresses and skirts for the time being until I work my way up to the coat.  I am slowly, but surely building my stash and have to remember to get by tailor ham for ironing the seams.

Well, I finally am having a taste of winter.  Yesterday was really a windy day, so it felt like 12 degrees outside than 32 degrees.  Today was a better day as the wind finally ceased, and one can walk down the street without holding on to his or her hat.  Now, I have to get to my Christmas menu together today and glad that Prime Rib Roast is on sale for $4.99 a lb, I probably will get 3 or 4 pounds as it is enough to feed 6 to 8 people.  There is also the matter of my New Year’s resolution, what will I resolve to do next year.  I have not a glue, but going to think about it.  Good day.

The Compliment

While leaving for the weekend from my office, I ran into to a guy at work at the elevator. He paid me a compliment on my scarf. He told me it was a nice scarf and asked where I got it. I told him that I made it myself, and he replied yes I figure that you did because it doesn’t look at anything you would buy from the store. He started to ask me what made me get into knitting, and I said I want to learn how to knit from a child so finally learned how a few years ago. He said I bet you knit on the train, and I responded by saying whenever I have elbow room. He mentioned something about knitting and how it seemed a little exhibitionist by saying to the world that you can make your own clothes. And I told it is probably no different than reading on train, and he responded by saying yes telling the world you are reading War and Peace.

That conversation lead me to think about a lot of knitters like to knit on the go, and is there a little truth about what the guy said about being an exhibitionist knitter. I certainly can’t speak for the knitting population, but the reason why I knit on the train is simply to finish my project as quickly as possible. Of course, there is some truth about showing the world that I know how to knit. That sense of independence in saying to the world that I have possess a skill and it gives me power in a sense. There is a certain sense of pride in showing your work. When I am out in public and if I am carrying my knitting, I am going to knit to pass some time, but I do the same time with reading. Reading is a solitary activity because it means that you really do not want to speak to anyone, and want to become involved in the story you are reading at the time. Knitting does not necessarily mean I want to be alone, but want something to do while commuting to and from work.How do you show the world what you can do?

Finished Product

I am happy today because I finally finished my scarf.  This is an accomplishment and feel that I can get to my other working projects.  I am not a big time multi-tasker and focus on the project at hand even if I am thinking about the next project finishing the first one becomes more important.   My scarf has an organic feel because the yarn is multi-color and each skein was a different than the one before, so I went it whatever colors feel in place.  Towards the end of my scarf did have black due to the one skein where that color was almost existent, and I think it’s looks good because everything doesn’t have to be even or matchy matchy.

 

Aprons on my Mind

Throughout the course of the day, aprons has come across my path a few times.  I always thought having an apron, but believe they were outdated.  However, aprons are practical in the kitchen and working on crafts.  Mimi from Domestic Haven made a great apron that she posted on her log today.  I heard Adrienne speaking with Deepika today on Conversations with Adrienne podcast, and Deepika talked about the first sewing project she made was an apron that she continues to wear.  At this point, I am sold on having an apron.

I do have a few ideas about the kinds of aprons I want to make, and yes I definitely a few kitchen aprons, and a couple of crafty aprons.  The thought also occurred to me to knit a cotton apron.  Yes a knitted apron with a crochet trim and a couple of pockets.  This is another reason why I decided to crochet, knit, and sew, I am in need of kitchen towels, oven mittens, and dish cloths, and it’s easier for me to make what represents my personality and allow my creativity to come out.  I could do a variation of the apron in the winter issue of Adorn Magazine and try some fabric painting and create my own design (attempt anyway, I draw stick people).

I like to thank the people I mentioned in the blog inspiring me to think about making an apron for myself.  Sometimes we are need a little nudge every now and again to spark our creativity.

What’s Happening

I am now into my three-day weekend off. I did not do very much over the weekend, but managed to see “Why Did I Get Married” on Saturday, work on my scarf, and put a muslin together for a pair of pants. It is a very good thing that I created the muslin because it calls for a could of adjustments with the length (a little longer), and just add an 1/2 inch to the waist, and it should do the trick.

I finally received my patterns from Butterick and want to get started with doing the tunic from pattern number 5100, and make a diaper bag for a co-worker at work who’s having a baby. The creative idea is to make a couple of diaper bags and use them as center pieces for the shower. I can put things in the bags like cloth diapers (hey, you can use a couple just in case), baby wipes, glass bottles, lotion, powder, etc. I think it’s different than doing a gift basket and one can get more use from two diaper bags than the basket.

With the arrival of the holidays coming, it can be so hectic. Can you believe that Thanksgiving is next Thursday? I have yet to write out my shopping list as I am still thinking about what I am preparing. Of course, the turkey will be the main event, but still haven’t decided on the side dishes and dessert. I was thinking about preparing a cranberry pear oatmeal crumble and potato sour cream biscuits. I think these will be nice and easy to prepare and tasty along with preparing cranberry sauce. Yes I do prepare my own cranberry sauce and it is very simple with a cup of water, sugar, and a bag of cranberries. I usually do a variation by adding an apple or orange to the sauce, and the dish can be made a few days before the dinner as you will need to allow cranberry sauce to chill and jell together. My father always wants yellow turnips with his dinner, so I will make a batch of that to keep him happy and my sanity will remain in tact. I shall write out my dinner menu by tomorrow night.

Now I am going to do a review of my movie I saw on Saturday “Why Did I Get Married.” I thought it was Tyler Perry’s most adult and mature movie to date. Upon watching the problems of the couples unfold, I thought that a couple of marriages could have ended and one does because of the obvious reason that the marriage between Mike and Sheila . You really don’t know what Mike really marries Shelia although she seemingly loves him and put more than 100% into the marriage and he gave her nothing in return. Actually he does give her something, his contempt and ridicule. Mike is the least mature person in the movie, and doesn’t understand what it takes to make a marriage work. Shelia stays in the marriage for the wrong reasons as it did not matter to Mike what she could have done to change herself (by losing weight), he did not appreciate or love her. I thought the movie brought out the point of the importance of honesty with your spouse. I think have become more of an opponent of discussing any concerns you may before getting married because at least you know where you stand, and a person can make a choice to accept or or not. I thought it was a little disconcerting that Diane who did not want children got her tubes tied without her husband’s knowledge knowing that he wanted more children (he gets a DNA test on their daughter without her knowledge). Perhaps intellectually and legally she does have the right to do whatever she wants with her body, but sometimes being right may not the best thing for a marriage, and she should have been honest enough to discuss with her husband that she did not want to have four children (actually it should have been discussed before walking down the aisle) . I think this movie is good in knowing what happens when you are not honest within a relationship, and it gives one a great to think about what kind of marriage you want and willing to live with.

Another Scarf, Perhaps More!

Yes, I started knitting another scarf last night. However, I decided it was time to different type of knit stitch. A double seed stitch or sometimes called double moss. It’s a really simple pattern with row 1 and 2, knit 2, purl 2 across the row, and row 3 and 4, purl 2 and knit 2. The double seed stitch is reversible with a nice drape, and is coming out really nice in my scarf. I am using the Patons SWS yarn that I purchased last week on my fabric store trip, the yarn has this nice stripe and getting a good strip pattern as well. I like using multi-color yarns as it does say me from changing colors by adding different color yarns. It’s not difficult to change to another color, but it’s a pain weaving the tails after finishing the project.

I took these photos of my progress of my scarf and tweed skirt.  I probably will finish the skirt on the weekend as it is not as stressful in addition to more time to work on it.  It is a matter sewing the seams, put in the elastic waistband, and small hem.  I think my fabric  cutting is improving (because I really like to take my time and cut as nicely as possible).  It was a good idea to cut out a muslin piece first because there was only one pattern to cut the skirt and the instructions called for a single thickness cut.  So when it came time to cut the real fabric, I had two pattern pieces to pin than just one.  While taking these photos, I realized that the scarf coordinates well with the skirt.  The yarn has purple and thought to myself that the color would coordinate well.  Is there a purple silk blouse or purple sweater on my list to sew and knit respectively?  It is amazing how the mind works sometimes, I purchase the yarn without coordinating with the tweed.  I definitely I am going to make a hat with the reminder of the tweed fabric.  I can see myself with my driving cap with the skirt (I don’t own a car, lol).

 

Catching Up to Time and Other Moments

Upon waking up this morning, something feel a little off to me.  Although I woke up during daylight, it still felt very early to me and the realization hit that I forgot to turn back the clocks prior to going to bed (not use to standard time occurring in November).  It was only 6:25 am with one clock reflecting the correct time (my cable box), so simply got out of bed and turned all of my clocks back (went back to bed as well).  A typical Sunday for me is really staying around the house, cooking, and just relaxing.  However, I did manage to pinned another muslin project for a pair of pants.  I think pinning and cutting pants patterns are probably one of the easiest thing for me to do.  Actually I am using a Simplicity pattern and find using those patterns are easiest for me considering I am neophyte to the sewing world.  This is the first pattern that I am putting in darts and a zipper.  All I really need to do is just take my time and everything should fine.  However, I am going to need to put a lining for the fabric I am using to make the pants (wool flannel).

Now I may be creating more work for myself, but it’s important to me have my fall/winter apparel lined.  I do not know if anyone has noticed, but clothes in the department stores are not lined.  I brought a pair of Ellen Tracy wool gabardine without a lining.  Now a person would think that a pair of pants with a $250.00 price tag should have a lining (I only paid $50.00), but no because it’s a way for designers to find shortcut in order to save money for the company.  I think quality suffers in the process, but what do I know for I am just a mere consumer who’s spending her money.  That’s enough of venting for the day.

I haven’t really knitted anything this weekend and still trying to figure out what knit stitches to use for my new scarf.  I am differently knitting another long scarf. but want to do an interesting knitting pattern that will look nice with the yarn.  Maybe a simple lace pattern, I can search on knitting pattern central to find a pattern that is simple and quick to knit.  I still  haven’t purchased any yarn for my knitted skirt project, but promised myself that I am going to knit a skirt.  I hope I am not suffering from knitting and sewing overload, but there could other things that are worst.