Finished Knit: Long Saroyan (Two)

Remember this? (Project details here.)

Once I finished my Azami, this became my only knitting on the needles, which means it's done now. It's just about 90 inches long, so I lay it out on the floor so you can see: this long!

That wee bit of yarn underneath is all that's left over from a skein of Malabrigo Sock. I like how this pattern (Saroyan) allows me to use as much of the yarn as I can--and in the end I have a nice long skinny scarf that I can wrap around my neck a few times.

I took a photo outside, too, to show you how much the color changed within this skein.

When I started (the left) it was much more blue. By the time I ended, it was definitely heavier on the green. I like it. I bought the yarn because the colors reminded me of the ocean, and that's exactly what the beach water does, too--changes color.

And no, I didn't block it. I blocked my first one, and what a hassle, to try to block 90 inches worth of scarf. Where do you lay that out? And it didn't take anyway. Experience taught me that in this yarn, anyway, it's just going to curl no matter what. I don't mind. The leaf edging is like a sweet little secret. I know it's there. You might get a peek of it while I'm wearing it, just enough to make you think, hmm, there's a little something extra about that scarf....

But now I'm bereft, with empty needles. Completely unprepared. The Ravelympics Ravellenic Games (curious about the strike-through? Google will help) begins in ten days, and I was thinking I'd make something from this skein of lace weight (Aurora by Jill Draper Makes Stuff) because I have only knit in lace weight once and so yes, it would be a challenge.

I'm not sure what to knit with it though--any suggestions? Funny story about this yarn. I left the Squam Art Fair with no yarn--I know, none! I did have fiber, as a gift for my sister-who-spins. But no yarn. Then one of my cabin-mates wanted to go back for more of Jill Draper's yarn, and I offered to keep her company, and next thing you know she's whispering into my ear like the devil on the shoulder in cartoons, and I end up with a skein of lace weight, of all things. I'm fine with knitting lace; it's the lace weight yarn that crosses my eyes.

What I really need right now, though, is a project that will take no more than ten days--or that I'll be okay abandoning for a while in ten days--and uses yarn I already have. Any ideas for a skein of Socks That Rock Mediumweight? I have one left over from making baby sweaters. Really, truly, I need something to knit right now.

Creative Space: 4x6 Exchange

So I signed up for the Arthouse Co-op's 4x6 art exchange, but it's making me sort of stressy, I think because when I signed up instead of "name" in the name box, it said "artist." I nearly closed the browser tab right then. But I didn't. So I need to come up with "art," versus those fun loose postcards that might be called mail art by some but Hanna gave it the way less stressy name of "DIY Postcard Swap" (and by the way, that link goes to the post with the links to everyone's postcards and they are amazing).

I think I should put my head away, really, and just have fun with this, but in the meantime, I tried to make a small watercolor painting instead. Remember the skunk cabbage from yesterday?  I sketched it a bit while we were walking, and then tried to paint it, using the sketches and the photo as guides.

After I took that photo, I added in some highlights that are probably completely unnoticeable, using white conte crayon.

I don't know, technically, this has problems, although it does look like skunk cabbage, if you know what skunk cabbage looks like. (My daughter, when shown this, id'd it right away. That's my girl!!) I haven't decided if this is worthy of an "art" swap. Maybe I should take another approach--printmaking, maybe, or collage, or even sewing. (A local gallery is holding a postcard fundraiser, with submissions due later in April...I've got something sewn in mind for that.)

The more I look at it, the more I'm thinking no. What do you think?

Linking up with our creative spaces...

August Stitch-a-Long: The Next Embroidery Project

Do you read the Feeling Stitchy blog? (If you embroider, or have any interest in beginning to, you should!) I began following shortly after I fell headlong into the embroidery rabbit hole, but I've never joined in with a stitch-a-long before. They host them every month. Either I'm busy with something else, or the pattern doesn't speak to me, or the pattern speaks to me and says, "Be intimidated!" THIS month, though, I'm on the ball. This month, the stitch-a-long is to stitch on fabric of your choice, following the design. This is something I've had in the back of my mind to get to anyway, so this seems like perfect timing. (I did a little bit of this on one of my sewn cuffs, here.) So, the first step is to decide what fabric.

First I looked in stash. I have some cool dragon fabric (I didn't photograph it), but the dragon is HUGE. I mean, HUGE. It would take forever to go over it in thread, plus then what would I do with it? So I decided that would become something else... someday. On the way home from the library with all the kids the other day, I ducked into the local quilting store and bought a couple fat quarters.

There weren't a lot of options for large-patterned fat quarters, so I went with the one on the right. I bought the one on the left because I liked it and thought it might make a cute sewn cuff. But I also have this fat quarter in stash, sent to me from Tasmania by Tinkingbell:

At first I thought those little insects were way too small for stitching, but I put it to the kids, and we really looked at all the fabrics. We all like the Australian fabric, and we thought this guy would look great stitched up:

I had all the colors I needed except for the darkest green, too. So we went to pick up some dark green floss, and I took the other fabrics with me. We picked out loads of floss colors and then had to leave everything behind when the line at the store (let's say, oh, Joanns) didn't move for ten minutes. And my 7yo instigated my 2yo to misbehave, and she couldn't stop grabbing all that cheap tacky stuff they put along the maze they make you stand in while you wait to check out. And wait, and wait, because they understaff. And then when I picked her up, she inexplicably began screaming at the top of her lungs--not her usual MO--and then for the first time in nearly ten years of parenting I had to leave a check-out line with a screaming child, abandoning everything. (I include all this for any other moms out there who wonder about how come it all looks so easy on the Internet to tell you that it's not.)

So. I was convinced to try again, with only my oldest along, and this is what we have.

The Australian fabric, missing the brown floss: Where did I put that when I took this photo?!

The purple fabric

The flowers

What do you think? I put a poll in the sidebar... I'd love to know which you'd stitch up first, if you were me (because I have a feeling I'll get to all of them eventually). While I still think the purple-printed fabric would make a nice embroidered cuff, I also think hooping a circle of it and stitching up some of the design would look really cool. I love the colors in the flowered fabric. And, of course, the Australian fabric is unique and fun... but maybe I'd want to keep that whole and not go chopping it up for that one section.

Please click through and vote, and feel free to leave a comment leaving your reasoning as well!

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If you've considered taking up embroidery but haven't yet, make sure you check back next week. I'll have a giveaway of the basics you need to get started.

Experimenting

I'm trying to figure out how to make my sewn cuffs adjustable. Suppose, for instance, I wanted to give one as a gift? I know my wrists are small--every time I get a watch we're either taking out links or adding holes, depending on what kind of watch band it is--so I can't really go by my wrist alone. My first thought was to use an elastic loop, like I did for my daughter's, and more than one button.

I think it looks pretty cute, and it works, but as far as utility goes, I like the snaps better. Not that it's relevant to the fit, but here's a closer look...

The fabric itself has the purple starburst pattern, and I went over it with embroidery floss. Anyway, my 6yo son likes the buttons. He thinks they look nice, so they serve two purposes. (I think they look nice too.) My husband and older son like the snaps, and they both suggested just putting two snap bottoms on, so the cuff can be snapped either smaller or larger. I'll probably try that next.

But I was wondering... what do you think? Multiple buttons, multiple snaps, or something else I haven't thought of?