More winter crafts

Finally got back into the groove and made some more winter the hats over the past few days...started with an ivory one that I slapped a sparkly maroon bow onto, then a really soft yellow angora one, and then my favorite, a grey cashmere one with black leather bows, and fingerless gloves to match! Glad to be back in action, I think I'm going to use the rest of the yellow angora sweater to make a little cat sweater for Belle...I want to make one for Orion too, but I'll need a whole sweater, and a big one, so that may not happen until I make another trip to Restore.

Here are the hats I made this week...(the ivory one was really hard to photograph, so forgive the blurriness, and the brightness.)

I made the fingerless gloves using the same idea I used to make my last ones (which I ended up giving to my mom while she was here; she liked them and wanted them as driving gloves), but it was a lot less work this time because I used the end of the sleeves for the hand part, and just cut a little hole to sew in the thumb part (which I cut out of the bottom of the sweater), and also used the neck of the shirt (cut into two parts) for the wrist. They look a lot more professional, I think, and like I said, it was a lot easier. The bows are mostly to cover up stitching, but I really like them. :)

Today Josh and I spent some time outside working on clearing the two huge branches that fell next to our house. We made some pretty good progress, but it's slow going since we don't have a chainsaw (or even an axe - we were taking turns using a machete). I think we're going to go to Lowe's tomorrow and get an axe, before we tackle it again. Orion tried to help drag away branches as we cut them off at first, but then got bored and resorted to eating a pumpkin that I threw out.

I have plans to post a lot of words tomorrow, regarding the new year and reflections of this past year, but if I don't get around to it, everyone have a safe and happy end to 2012, and beginning of 2013!

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Notes

OK. Let me just start this whole thing off by saying that I know I don't really get into fashion all that often, but I do love it. I mean, ever since I started sewing at around 8 or 9, and then got into theatre at 13, I've been a fashion lurker. I check in on my favorite labels, I clandestinely follow bloggers that make the trip(s) to the various fashion weeks, and, occasionally, I splurge and get myself something nice. (Usually Marc Jacobs sunglasses, Michael Kors purses, or anything Elizabeth & James or The Row, although a Balenciaga purse is definitely happening sometime this next year.)

Anyway, that brings me to my point. I love love LOVE Alexander Wang. His work is amazing, and I would drop the $$ in a heartbeat if I could commit to one thing. But I can't. So when the announcement came that he would be the new head at Balenciaga, I swear, I almost collapsed. I am ecstatic to see what comes of this.

Moving on...

I didn't really do much this weekend. I mean, I made a couple of little girl dresses for Bella, my almost niece, and made a stop at restore where I stocked up on sweaters, but I didn't get to Lowe's, so I haven't purchased any of the supplies to start working on my new/old kitchen table.

I (we) also haven't put up Christmas lights. Not along the edge of the roof, anyway. Last year we were one box short, and this year we decided instead of putting them up and wasting money on our electricity bill, or buying new lights (since we couldn't find a match for ours), we would just forgo the lights entirely and spend the money on getting nice gifts for the people that matter. :) We've already bought them for my family, all of whom will be here sometime this weekend. (My parents are arriving Thursday, and my brother, his girlfriend, and her kids should be here on Saturday.) Anyway, giving is my favorite part of Christmas (I prefer to GET on my birthday ;P) so I'm insanely excited to see how everyone likes the things I made them. (Everyone is getting something bought and something made.)

As for Joshs family, we're hoping to spend actual Christmas with them, although whether it's here or there has not yet been decided...

 Anyway. I don't have a story, or a point, so I'll just leave you with a few pictures that I've been meaning to post but haven't had a good reason to.


Here's one of the chairs that goes with my new/old table. You can see some of the carving detail, which is the reason I fell in love with it.

Here's some more detail on the edge of the table.

And here is a shot of the decorations on my front door. A wreath I made last year, complimented by some garland, ornaments, and a bow! I think it looks nice, I really like the color scheme I went with. :)

Finished shot of the shirt I made my mom. Burlap tree with (fake) pearl ornaments.

And this last one is a shot of Josh and Orion in the park yesterday. Such a nice, unseasonably warm day for walking in the park.

Anyway. I'm going to be finishing up getting the house in order the next few days (my parents arrive on Thursday evening, and we have plans for EVERY WAKING MINUTE that they'll be here) so forgive me if I'm a bit slow on the posting, but you know how it is. :)

31 Days Series: Another hat.

Alright, I know, I've made a lot of hats already. BUT! This one is different. And by different I mostly just mean more complicated. Part of this stems from the fact that it was made from the arms, and didn't have a nice, snug, trim around the bottom like the other hats I've made so far did. (Told you I wasn't going to let a single piece of that sweater go to waste!) This meant I had to come up with a way for it to fit my head without flying off into the wind. Because I started this late last night with no real objective, and without really knowing if it was going to work, I didn't take pictures. I did, however, draw an amazingly accurate picture to show you how to start off if you want to recreate this. (Which I only recommend doing if you have random sweater arms laying around and no other way to use them. Otherwise, just cut your hat pattern from the bottom; it's much easier.)

Like I said, this is constructed from sleeves. Two of them. If you're using a shirt with short sleeves you may be able to skip the second half of this, but in my case I was using the top half of sweater sleeves, so I had to pick my brain and figure out how to finish it off. But we'll get to that in a sec.

Eh, you like that? ...ok, sorry. I tried. Follow the diagram, if you can. First you want to cut the sleeves off, and then open up the seam that closes the arm together. You'll have two pieces that are shaped like the third picture. Cut about an inch off the top (keep in mind; my sleeve pieces were about 8 inches long before I cut that off, so if yours are shorter you may need to cut less. If they're longer, cut some off the bottom too.) Put them right sides together and sew up both sides. Then finish off the top the same way we've done before.

Now you should be left with something like this:

Alright. Here's where it gets hairy.

We're going to add elastic! If you've ever made a skirt with an exposed elastic waistband, then you know where I'm going with this. If not, good luck! (Just kidding. It's not hard, but it's definitely going to test your patience if this is your first go at it.)

Start by cutting a piece of elastic that will fit comfortably around your head; tight enough to stay on, but loose enough to wear for long periods of time without getting a headache. Once you have the elastic cut, measure it, and mark the quarter, half, and three-quarter points on it. Then, sew those points to the corresponding points inside your hat. (Fold the edge over about ¼ inch, and just sew a zig-zag line across the width to keep the elastic in place; see the top picture.)

Now you finish it up by sewing the elastic all the way around the inside of the hat. Use a large zig-zag, and sew the ¼ inch piece of the hat that folded over to the edge of the elastic. It's a little easier if you work in fourths, going from one of the points you already sewed to the next, while keeping the elastic stretched all the way out. (This is the hardest part, and it may take some trial and error, so if you're not comfortable with the process, practice on some scrap fabric first.)

And now you are the proud owner of a scrap hat, that can be worn pulled down over your ears on cold days, and pushed back like a head band inside. :) Woo!

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