Halloween 2010

Happy Halloween, Friends! We're already done with our costumed celebrations, and now I'm awaiting the Trick or Treaters. I sure hope we get some!

This year Mr. Jones and I went as Russell Brand and Katy Perry. It was a good few hours of coy posing and trying to walk (even stand) in these heels. Hope you like it!

Goldenrod Owls

When I find a new sportweight yarn that I love, I make this, my favorite sweater. That's exactly what happened when I went to the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival and pawed my way through the Shaggy Bear Farms stand. I found this yarn, like hand spun gold.

Making the five year-old size of the pattern this time, I again altered it to knit the fronts and the back in one piece up to the armhole, then split it. I did some jiggery with the stitch numbers for the owl cables, and then got to work. (Ravelry details here).

The wool became softer in blocking, and once I sewed on all the buttons I knew I had to have more of this wool. But the farm is a phone number and personal email only sort of place, and they haven't gotten back to me quite yet. I'm enjoying the idea that they're just too busy, doing, you know, farm stuff.

The roughness and multi-dimensional color of this yarn are what make this my favorite owl sweater yet. I mean, I've made so many now, can I really make many more? I've done it here, here, and here.

We all know that the answer there, is yes.

Mummies Revenge

Thanks to all of you who wrote, expressing interest in Morning Mummies and how, exactly, to make them. I've written a how-to guide, below. Please click on the image to make it larger, and print away. It was actually fun to revisit this project so long after I made it originally.

A few details:
1. This time, I used a croissant dough from one of those tubes in the refrigerator section of the grocery store. It worked great. One tube would make 2 large Mummies (the size instructed), or four small ones (about half the size).
2. I set the oven to the temp instructed on the dough tube, and kept a close eye on the Mummies, as my oven is hot and my patience is low. Please watch your Mummies carefully and gauge this for yourself.
3. Last time I used icing for the eyes. This time I cut the end of candy corn. Both work great, but add the candy eyes when the Nutella is still warm, and the icing when it's cooled. Enjoy!

I hope you have a spook-tacular baking experience, and send me photos of your result!

What To Be for Halloween

What are you doing this weekend, friends? Mr. Jones and I are working on our Halloween costumes, for sure. As I mentioned, I'm not feeling too motivated this year. But after looking at some photos around the internet, I'm starting to get more into into it. Unfortunately, I have no credits/links to these images. It was just a "pulled them onto my desktop" sort of thing. You know how it goes.



Is this last one even real? If I can do as well as these, I'll be showing off my efforts right here. Links to my previous costumes are here and here. Have a great weekend!

The Real Canadian Tuxedo

I made this bib shirt from Simplicity 3684. I had been thinking about making it for many months, and now I own it, and I'm so pleased. It's made of good quality gingham and chambray from Fabric Depot.

I call it my Canadian Tuxedo, after a Canadian friend who wears Canadian Tuxedos often, and has uttered the phrase, "I love the Canadian Tuxedo. My whole family rocks the Canadian Tuxedo!". I love it too, though this is the closest I come.

Details for the sewists: I cut a size 14 (long version) and the only alterations I made were to leave off the cuffs, extending the sleeves about 3 inches, and then baby hemming them. I think it looks more modern. I also did french seams throughout, and hemmed the entire shirt 3 inches (maybe I should have cut the shorter version after all). I think a dress would be amazing, too. I really like hers.

I wore my shirt to work and to Burgerville (a local Oregon diner chain) yesterday. They advertised a pumpkin milkshake and I was in.

The shake was legendary. Add it to the list: Things To Look Forward To In Autumn.

Patched Up

We went to the farm, with friends, to pick pumpkins. It was such a perfect day!

It was crowded, but never seemed too crowded.

We used to call this the Maize Maze. It was a highlight for Mr. Jones. For me, not so much.

So I hung out with other friends, while I waited for mine to come out:

Everyone seemed to be having a great time around the vegetables.

I loved the freaky gourds, and the squash, and the pumpkin curry that Mr. Jones made the next evening. That was delicious!

I bought a few squashes I'd never seen before, and I'm looking forward to the coming week's vegetable roasting and soup making!

After initially choosing The Great Pumpkin (a.k.a. the biggest one I could carry), I renegged, and got a reasonably sized white one for carving. I love Fall!

Primary School

I'm loving these images from German Vogue. They make my 1970s heart leap with joy. I'd love to have a wardrobe just like this, mixing and matching as the days go on, adding new pieces as I wish... Maybe I could morph my new haircut into this one, and release my inner Shelley Duvall. Am I getting carried away now?



Or maybe I'll costume a film with kids adorned only in primary colors. Wouldn't that be great?

Knitting/Spinning Around the House

I knitted this cabled beret. I really loved making it. It's a free pattern here, and a Ravelry link here. I made it from some Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift that I bought over a year ago at the Knitting and Stitching Show in London. It's one of my all-time favorite yarns. So much texture and heathered color. I always forget how much I love cables, how simple and satisfying they are! This hat will be going into storage for a Christmas gift. Who will be the lucky person?

I met a Spinner this weekend. Upon going outside to take the photo above, Mr. Jones and I discovered the most amazing, huge, "perfect" spider web. We got so excited that, to capture a picture, Mr. Jones ran inside and grabbed one of my black dresses to hold up behind it.

Personally, I like the illusion, below, that I'm not too scared to hold the spider. And I also like the idea that I'm inside knitting and she's outside my window, spinning.

No wonder they call the finest weight of yarn "cobweb"!

Mummies Return

My Morning Mummies are being featured on an album of Ivillage Halloween Treats. Click here to see some great, crafty food. I'm in love with those bone meringues!

Are you excited for Halloween yet? There have been years where I've started planning in August, but this year, not so much. I'm living in a house for the first time though, and hoping hard for some Trick or Treaters knocking on my door. Now that is exciting.

PS. I've gotten a lot of comments in the original Mummy post wondering how I wrapped the dough. I've finally made a how-to. Click HERE to go!

For Dorothy Klein, at 99.

My grandmother is turning 99 years old on Sunday. 99! I almost like the sound of it better than 100. So for her birthday, I knitted her a sweater. It's in the mail now (Heather, don't tell!). I really hope it fits.

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It's a Sketchbook Cardigan (ravelry link here), from a free pattern here. I made the sweater out of Rowan's Felted Tweed, changing the button bands to moss stitch, and making the sleeves longer than three quarter length.

I always associate my grandmother with this color. Growing up, she had a 1950s kitchen (almost exactly like the one I have now) in this blue color. I used to buy her kitchen towels and make her hot plates and pot holders to match.

It really boggles my mind that she's 99. It's like living my life over, from birth until now, almost twice more! She's seen the birth of the car, 2 World Wars, the birth and death of her son, the dawn of the computer age, and so much more! (I enjoyed buying a birthday card for age 9, and adding another).

Through it all, she's loved a good game of Solitaire, and a nice three course meal. She's still as strong in mind and body, as ever. Here's to celebrating the close of her 99th year, and the start of triple digits! We should all be so lucky.

I Think I'm Sewing Japanese

If you are a sewist, like me, and you live near an amazing Japanese bookshop, like me, you will have bought many Japanese craft books.  The simple patterns and beautiful styling are just so inspiring.

The books come with pattern pieces in the back for all garments , but you have to "extract" the pattern you want, add seam allowance, and then have enough garment sewing expertise to know how to put the pieces together. Unless of course, you read Japanese. I've been terrified of the whole process...until now!

I started off with the most simplistic garment I could find and went for it, using the rest of the bed sheet I had left over from a previous shirt. 

I really like the result!

The only change I would make next time is the elastic on the sleeves. It's a tad too tight.

I love the ties at the shoulder, and the fact that it's only 3 pattern pieces for a comfy, simple, go-to shirt.

I can see one being made from a cotton lawn or voile. A liberty print would be gorgeous! And now that my fear of Japanese sewing is temporarily abated, I can move onto more complicated garments in these beautiful books. Stay tuned!

PS. If you're here in Portland, you can get help with these patterns by taking a "Sewing Japanese" class or going to a help session at Modern Domestic. I'm gonna keep it in mind, in case I get stuck on the next one!