Winter Keeps Coming...and Coming

Made it to Vintage Stitchers on Thursday, in spite of our blizzard.

Barbara had made this block using English Paper Piecing. It isn't a hard block to make with regular seaming, but she wanted to learn the technique.

She also had a top finished, using some puzzle piece blocks.

Carol had some of the same blocks in this quilt top, already quilted. She was working on the binding.

Why does it always snow on Thursday and Sunday? My trip to Salt Lake City for Vintage Stitchers was slow because of the snow, sleet and wind. On the way down, I saw a car off the road with highway patrol vehicles assisting, on westbound and then on the eastbound sides. I was glad I still had the snow tires on. I took this photo on Friday.

The snow coming off the roof meant the pups couldn't go out in the back. It's too dangerous. It's a two-story drop when the snow falls off.

The week was otherwise filled with sorting through belongings, making decisions about what to keep, give away or throw out, and packing stuff in boxes. While down in Salt Lake City, I picked up 15 book boxes and dropped off more donations.

I did have some fun, though. One of my Ravelry groups has started trying to reverse engineer a pattern for this doll dress found on a Russian website by way of Pinterest. The doll wearing it is a Götz Hannah, a doll slightly larger in the waist than the Happy Kidz/Classic Kidz dolls I've been dressing lately.

One of the participants wanted to try it using DK, which is a thicker yarn, although I think the original was knit with fingering/4-ply. It turned out cute.

It's hard to see the tulle petticoat underneath. I only have tulle in white and yellow, so mine will have to be white.

The bodice turned out a little big, so I'm making modifications to the design, but I'll finish this one.

I'm working on the skirt now, worked in the round, with panels of increasing stitches. This photo was about halfway, vertically. I should be able to post a photo next week.

I got some knitting done in the car on the way to the opera on Saturday. We were seeing Falstaff at Lyrical Opera Theater. Several cast members sing with our choir on special occasions or regularly on Sundays.

This was the best production they have done yet, and lots of fun.

For some added cuteness, someone posted a photo in the Facebook Götz group of a doll holding a small Pooh bear. Vroni says, "My Pooh is bigger."

At least something of Vroni's is bigger.

What's on my needles: Besides the Russian Dress, still the Coastal Skies, a little more progress made.

What's on my Featherweight: Still waiting.

What's in my hoop: Still the Spring Flowers quilt, but closing in on finishing.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi is waiting for Tour de Fleece. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished listening to The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz. Then listened to Refining Felicity by M. C. Beaton, not a long book, but fun. I'm not sure if I want to start another one yet. I have a book preordered that will be out tomorrow.

What's in my wine glass: Trader Joe's Coastal Zinfandel, nice with Mexican food.

What's my tip of the week: Not sure how much salad to make? Hate having to eat salad the next day that has been marinating in dressing? Tear up the lettuce and put it in a bowl that has a lid. Cut up the vegetables you want to add to it and let family members help themselves to however much lettuce they want and add their own dressing. Torn-up lettuce will stay crisp and nice for several days in the fridge without the dressing.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Time To Wrap

Hannah's Winter Day Dress is finished.

We have lots of snow, so it was easy to do a photo shoot with her in realistic surroundings. The hardest part was finding a place where the snow wasn't up to her waist. She liked this place under a fir tree. Hannah is very photogenic, and her older-girl shape compliments the design...or the design compliments her figure.

The pattern is Camelot by Deb Denair. It buttons down the back and is knit flat. The only seams are on the sleeves. I used Palette in Pool and Fog. 

Hannah is a Götz doll. Dolly is a Madame Alexander, with a cloth body and a little plumper. I tried the dress on her to see if alterations might be needed if someone wanted to make it for a different doll. Here's how it looks on her:

The sleeves are a little long for her, but otherwise it fits, although her figure doesn't show off the lines of the design quite as well. Dolly is a bit slimmer than American Girl dolls, I think, so I suggest going up a needle size if making the dress for an AG doll. 

The dolls who live with me will be losing their clothes at Christmas, so I ordered some "Jeggings," leggings that look like very stylish jeans. The company, that makes and sells the the Jeggings on eBay, Pixies1952, makes them in AG size and Götz, as well as to fit a few other popular dolls. Dolly and Gabi are modeling the AG size.

I really, really don't like having naked dolls standing around in my house. It makes me want to knit or sew them something right away, and then I end up giving the clothes away. I ordered four pairs, so I can send some home with Hannah, too.

I'm ready to pack the dolls away in their boxes so I can wrap them for Christmas. I can't bear thinking of Hannah staring at the inside of her box until December 25th (her eyes don't close), so I'm going to pack her wearing a sleep mask.

Buddy and Dude are almost ready to wrap as well. I just need to tattoo the children's names on their bums, so they don't get mixed up. All four kids are getting dolls this year. Johan is getting this Raggedy Andy, who is on his way to me now.

He's handmade in the US. I found him on Etsy at Roszanna's Dolls. I plan to make him something, maybe a jacket and a scarf. Johan is a little young to dress and undress a doll by himself.

I was reminded recently of the iBand concert I found back in 2010 put on by North Point Community Church. I thought it might be fun to share again.

Here are the apps used (and the names of the performers).

Not much quilting going on right now, but I'm back to pressing and folding my fabrics, in between cleaning house and cooking. I'll try to get a photo of the reorganization effort when there is more to show.

DD's family of four will arrive about December 23rd, assuming the weather holds (they're driving) and DS2's family of four will fly in Christmas Eve. DGD1 is driving from her new home in California on December 26th. The families with little kids will leave New Year's Eve and January 3rd, and later that week we expect DS1, although his plans aren't set yet. 

What's on my needles: Back to the “So-not-my-palette Cardigan” second sleeve is coming along. 

What's on my Featherweight: Waiting for the next project.

What's on my wheel: Still put away for now.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Listening to An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor. Still reading A Rose Before Dying by Amy Corwin on the Kendall app.

What's in my wine glass: Frontera Merlot by Concha y Toro.

What's my tip of the week: Liquid hand soap often is so thick it clogs the pump. You can avoid this by diluting the soap. I like to fill another bottle about halfway with warm weather. Then I empty about half of the bottle of soap into the bottle with the water. You can just add warm water to the original bottle, but it mixes better if you use a third bottle. If you aren't using it right away, it will mix on its own. I think this wastes less soap, too.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Fat Lady’s Song

The Argyle pullover is done.

Here’s the pattern: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/18-doll-argyle-set

The yarn gave me fits on this project. It's "Loops & Threads Woolike" from Michaels. I had to go up a needle size to get gauge on the pullover because the yarn is thinner than fingering weight. Also, the colorwork was difficult with this synthetic yarn due to static electricity. Three strands clinging together don't make for easy knitting. Next time, I'll use wool and nylon sock yarn or Superwash. It worked out OK for the other projects I made with it, though, and I’m happy with the result of this pullover, even though it had its challenges.

I went on to CO the Sweet Sweater Dress using this pattern: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/55-sweet-sweater-dress

I used Debbie Bliss Cashmerino in Teal Blue and White. It was nice to work with. However, the yarn used by the designer for the project had more yardage than the one I used, and after finishing the body and the first sleeve, I could tell (by weighing the sleeve and what was left of the yarn) I wasn’t going to have enough. Fortunately, I had left the yarn attached, rather than cutting it off, which would have used more yarn because of the weaving in of ends. I guessed at removing six rows of stockinette stitch from each sleeve would be enough, ripped out the first sleeve to that point and reknit, then, without cutting the yarn and using the other end, I CO the second sleeve and knit it the same. When I got done, I had 65” of yarn left for sewing up and sewing on the buttons. I cut it off once I was sure.

The I-cord sash had to be knit out of the contrast color (white), but the dress was finished. Here it is blocking.

The pattern has a cute head band, but since I’m out of yarn, I will have to make that to go with something else. Here's the finished dress, though, worn by Dolly, an expert model now:

I did get SOME sewing done this week. We’ve been practicing for The Messiah Project, a concert of the most popular selections from “The Messiah,” sponsored by the Park City Interfaith Council with professional soloists, a volunteer choir made up of people from most of the faith-based organizations in town (which is where I come in) and an audience that gets to sing along to some of the chorus pieces. Maestro Jonathan Griffith (he of Carnegie Hall fame) came to direct us. So here is where my sewing came in. We had to cover our score in black, so the books would all look the same from the audience. We were told we could go to Staples and have them spiral-bound with a black cover or paste black construction paper on them. Or whatever would make them black on the outside. I had no construction paper and no car to go get some. Staples was out for the same reason, but…I have some black fabric in my quilting stash. I also had some buckram interfacing. Friday morning was spent making a cover for my score. 

I used black ribbon and staples (small S) to hold the cover to the book, and some ribbon down the back goes over my hand so my thumb doesn't get tired while I’m holding my music. We had a practice Saturday morning, and several people said they would pay me to make one for them. I said they couldn’t pay me enough to make another one. (Although now that I have the engineering down…)

The concert went well. We had a lot of fun. I should soon have a photo to share of the chorus and soloists, but for now, here’s a photo of the reception after the event, where we..ahem..vocal artists...mingled with members of the audience and ate cookies.

So that’s done, and the doll clothes are almost done. 

However, there is more ending besides that, thus “Fat Lady’s Song,” and this part is especially for people who have participated in the Knit Picks Knitting Community.  I received an email this week saying that the Knitting Community is closing/ending. This website has been part of my life for more than seven years.

I don't know when I joined, but my first blog post was November 26, 2008. It took me a few days to learn how to post photos. My first one was on November 29, 2008. I participated in the speed-knitting contest and came in third. Since joining the Community, I have written 416 blog posts and uploaded 1,753 photos into 47 albums.

Susan Dearnell, Cheryl Waters and I were interviewed for the April 6, 2011 podcast, #122. We were acquainted before that through the Community, but we got to know each other better through our PMs on the site where we pondered what questions we might be asked for the podcast. We began communicating, sometimes as often as several times a day, through PMs, where we shared not just our fiber projects but also our lives, including all the family and social agonies, as well as health problems. Susan was relatively new to knitting, but amassed a knowledge of fiber-related skills very quickly with a fearless intensity that amazed some of us. Maybe she sensed she didn’t have long to participate in this activity. A year and a half ago we lost Susan, as we have a few other friends, including Xena the wonder dog and yarn skein impersonator, but some of us have continued to stay in touch by PM on the site.

Even though I was also a member of the Quilt With Us social network, sponsored by Connecting Threads, part of the same company as Knit Picks, my special home was on the Knitting Community. Where else could I be known as one of the three “Fairy Godknitters.”

I can only surmise why the website is closing. Almost from the beginning it was targeted by spamers, so blog posts had to be approved before they could appear. Also, Ravelry seemed to provide an outlet for knitters/crocheters/spinners/weavers, but there was no such alternative for quilters. I'm sure it's expensive to maintain a website of this sort.

For whatever reason, the website is singing its swan song. Some of us have special friends in the Knitting Community, and we don’t want to lose touch. If you're a member, let me know if you’re interested in some sort of “afterlife” for the Knitting Community, either by PM, comments to this blog on Blogger or send me an email to zwergpudelfrau@gmail.com.

Quilters: Fear not. I will be quilting again.

[Cue fat lady and swan for their respective songs.]

What's on my needles: Ready to CO final doll knitting project (for now).

What's on my Featherweight: Progress made on cleaning fiber studio, but still more to do.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished Magnificent Devices by Shelley Adina and narrated by Fiona Hardingham and looking forward to the next in the series. Downloaded No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor, but haven’t started it because of the busy week with The Messiah Project. Also reading A Lady of High Regard by Tracie Peterson on the Kindle app. I think I would have liked this one as an audiobook. 

What's in my wine glass: Lindemann’s Cawarra Shiraz Cabernet, 2014, in the big bottle. I needed it this week.

What's my tip of the week: Ever have a knitting pattern that says to wind of a small amount of yarn for a small section of knitting? If you have a center-pull ball of yarn, you don’t have to do this. Just work the small section using the yarn from the outside of the ball. You can also use this trick when you have a lot of sts for a long-tail CO (say…300+). Tie the two ends together and pretend they are one strand of yarn. Do your CO as usual. Both strands will be unlimited.  True, you will have two extra tails to weave in, but a small price to pay.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Taking the Leap

You may remember from last week that I had designed a simple doll dress (Everyday Play) using self-striping yarn.

The design now has a jacket to go with it. You can find it here.

Dolly’s version is a little longer for a slightly different look:

There was still some Simple Stripes (a discontinued Knit Picks yarn) in my “stash” (if you can count sock yarn as “stash”), so I designed this dress using pretty much the same design as the Everyday Play doll dress. It’s called "Stripes and Ruffles." It’s a free download.

People are starting to make my designs. It's fun to see my idea morph into someone else's.

Another designer on Ravelry had a free pattern for doll undies. Dolly didn’t have any undies because she came with snow pants, which went to Daphne Jr. at Christmas, so I made her some knitted undies using this pattern. Here’s the front:

And the back:

Either my gauge was off or the American Girl dolls have much bigger butts than Dolly and Gabi, so I ran some elastic thread through the waist and the leg holes. I also added a decorative trim around the leg holes. Now Dolly doesn’t have to be afraid to lift her skirt.

DGD1 came down with the flu, and since Vintage Stitchers was to be at Joanie’s I just had someone drop off the coffee cake I had and I stayed home. Joanie was just in the hospital with pneumonia a little over a week ago. I was afraid of taking germs to her house. Because I had promised quilts this week and I missed Vintage Stitchers, I’m showing you a few from past blog posts. How about this one of Rebecca’s from “Simple Graces” by Kim Diehl?

Ellen’s Star of Bethlehem or Lone Star:

Here’s one by Diane:

I hope to make the next meeting of Vintage Stitchers. I’m sure they will have good stuff to see.

DGD1 was really sick. She’s much better now, and she has had her stitches out .(Remember the encounter the the hair dryer?)

In other news, for Christmas, I had given DH the choice of snow tires for his car (after he ended up in a snow bank in spite of 4X4) or half of a Bose sound system, the big fancy one.

He ended up getting the tires for himself and was researching the Bose systems. He found a refurbished one without BlueTooth but still with WiFi for not too much more than the amount I had allotted, so it came home with us on Friday. (The BlueTooth would have cost an extra $100, and after thinking about it, we decided we didn’t really need that feature if we had WiFi.) We can play CDs, music from our music libraries (if the computer is on), any radio station we want and music from a variety of music-streaming services. The sound is great. I’m happy especially because the TV isn’t on as much.

Rehearsals for Park City's Messiah Project have started. It's a sing-along for the community sponsored by The Interfaith Council. I'm in the choir that sings the chorus pieces. The audience can sing along with us. Then we have soloists for the solo parts. It was a great success last year. Donations already have come in to pay the expenses.

We haven’t had any cuteness lately (other than the dolls), so here are the grandkids. First, Soren and Johan with Mom (Dad was taking the photo) at the San Diego Zoo.

Then here are Miss Daphne and Zachary having fun with Daphne Jr. 

DD says Daphne really enjoys changing Daphne Jr.’s clothes. Little does she (Daphne) know, come May and her birthday….

Happy Leap Year Day, everyone! (Single ladies can propose today. Why wait for Sadie Hawkins’ Day?)

What's on my needles:  “Plaid” doll skirt.

What's on my Featherweight: Still doll socks, tights and undies. Will start on Regency outfit for Dolly soon.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished "The Lady of Milkweed Manor" by Julie Klassen. Now reading "To Whisper Her Name" by Tamera Alexander. Still reading "A View to Die For" by Richard Houston on the Kindle app.

What's in my wine glass: Crane Lake Malbec again, always a favorite.

What's my tip of the week: If you read my disclaimer, below, you will notice I don’t do Windows. I’m Apple all the way. DH does Windows, though, and I have learned from him and friends that a good way to make someone suffer is to install Windows 10 on their computer. I wouldn’t know from firsthand experience, though.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

The Pitter-patter of Little Patterns

I’ve published a pattern on Ravelry, the first I’ve actually uploaded myself.

It’s for a doll, hence the “little.” Here’s the back:

It took me longer to write the pattern and post it on Ravelry than it took to knit.

This was my prototype, which I knit flat except for the sleeves:

I realized after finishing the skirt that the sleeves needed to be finished before joining the body, if knitted flat. This is the back, showing why I decided to do my second one in the round.

The self-striping works out well in the round, but the seam is very obvious when knit flat. The pattern now has directions for knitting in the round (using your method of choice: dpns, two circulars or magic loop) and flat. Although I have written directions for knitting the whole project with straight needles, I have only knit the sleeves in the round. I guess I should try knitting the sleeves according to my directions to make sure they work out. Now I’m working on a knitted jacket to go with each dress. I’ll probably publish the pattern when I get done, now that I sort of know how to do it.

Common Threads met on Thursday at Karan’s. Lynda is working on a Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) for a friend’s baby.

Lynda is an experienced knitter, but she keeps remarking on how weird the BSJ is. Karan is making a scarf using cotton yarns in Easter colors.

The pattern is from from Vogue Knitting, Winter 2013/2014, the cover pattern.

Friday night we went to the ballet. Free tickets. Free tickets to the ballet is like a free kitten. You have to consider the additional expenses: gas, dinner out, parking, etc. Still, like a free kitten, the expense has its rewards.

Of course, no week would be quite complete without a trip to the emergency room. DGD1 dropped her hair dryer on her foot, ripping a gash in her little toe, requiring four stitches. Good news: I have my car back. Bad news: We have to drive her to work and pick her up.

What's on my needles:  Jacket to go with the dress. The Trickle Socks, waiting.

What's on my Featherweight: Still doll socks, tights and undies. Will start on Regency outfit for Dolly soon. (I know: promises, promises!)

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished The Watcher by Jo Robertson, a crime novel, another Audible “Deal of the Day.” Then read The Curiosity Keeper by Sarah Ladd. Now Listening to The Lady of Milkweed Manor by Julie Klassen. Still reading A View to Die For by Richard Houston on the Kindle app.

What's in my wine glass: Glen Ellen 2013 Merlot. Nice.

What's my tip of the week: Wear shoes while you're drying your hair.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

It’s a Whirl

Last weekend’s Spin Along resulted in some interesting yarn:

The roving (fiber) was AlohaBlu’s Targhee "Saturated Spring,” 2 oz. The result is more or less DK-worsted. I got 108 yds, Navajo-plied to show off the colors. I used a Kromski Sonata wheel equipped with WooLee Winder.

Here’s what the singles looked like. I used long-draw or modified long-draw drafting method:

I'll post another photo after it's washed.

We’ve had a “new addition” to the doll family. This is Gabi:

She's the Tonner "My Imagination" Starter Redhead.

There are a few slight differences, though, from other 18" dolls. I measured her, and this is what I got: 

chest, 10 5/8” 

waist, 10” 

hips, 11” 

thigh, 5 3/4” 

calf, 5 1/8” 

upper arm, 5 1/2” 

full body around shoulders, 13 3/4” 

arm length from shoulder, 5 1/2” 

inseam, 6” 

head (about where a hat would rest), 12” 

height: 18” (without shoes)

She can wear most clothes made for other 18" play dolls, such as American Girl. She will be the foundation for a new set of fashions to be set aside for the next doll to give Miss Daphne. (I'm trying to spread them apart a bit.)

Gabi has an all-vinyl body, not a soft body, like the Madame Alexander doll, Dolly, and the American Girl dolls that are so popular. However, like the American Girl dolls, Gabi has a wig. (Dolly has rooted hair.) Also possibly important, her eyes don’t close, so she needs a sleep mask to get any sleep. I found a sleep mask pattern on Karen, Mom of Three’s Craft blog, July 16, 2012.

Gabi makes a great Little "Red" Riding Hood. Here she is with the wolf pup she met on the way to Grandmother’s house:

I finished the “Time for Tea” dress, started last month, for her.

Here’s the Ravelry Project Page. The pattern can be found here. The yarn is Stroll Tweed "Bare" I had dyed with KoolAid.

Here’s the back:

A slip underneath the skirt gives it some flair.

I had some issues worth discussing. First of all, someone on Ravelry observed that hand-dyed yarn sometimes left color that was hard to remove from doll bodies. Remembering that KoolAid can dye protein (animal) fibers but not cotton or acrylic, I conducted a test using the bottom of the foot on each doll. The “dye’ applied to each foot didn’t leave a mark on either. I will be vigilant, however, when using commercially hand-dyed yarns for either doll.

Another issue was the blocking. I thought I could just wash the dress and hang it to dry, because it’s so small, but it stretched, making it too long and too big in the neck (Superwash wool will stretch) and very limp. I wet it down again and dried it using the hair dryer, with the skirt spread out in a circle, which worked better than putting it in the dryer, because I could choose the shape. With the slip underneath it was just right.

Dolly hasn’t been neglected. I managed to get some lycra on Thursday after Vintage Stitchers and on Friday sewed the leotard for Dolly’s ballet costume.

The leotard (actually the swimsuit from Best Doll Clothes Book by Joan Hinds) can be used for practice sessions and classes at the barre, as well as for the foundation of her performance costume, sort of a Mardi Gras style costume.

The embellishments to the costume are made with Patons Twister in “Fruit Loops.” A three-stitch I-cord goes around each armhole and the neck. The one at the waist has the addition of 12” sections of the same yarn attached at more or less equal intervals with a single crochet stitch, allowing equal tails to hang down over the skirt, which is made from three equal 7” strips across the width of fabric, gathered. The net is attached to a ribbon and tied at the waist. The I-cord is separate, so it can all come off for practice.

At Vintage Stitchers almost everyone was sewing binding on quilts you have seen before, but Barbara had this one you haven’t seen since June of 2014, and certainly not quilted yet then.

The blocks come together in the middle of each dark shape. Templates were used, but the curves are gentle, and piecing was done easily by machine. Many of the fabrics are by Kaffe Fassett.

We’ve had some nice, sunny days. It won’t last, though, so we got out with the pups for a hike in the snow. No snowshoes needed, because the trail was nicely packed down.

What's on my needles:  Striped dress for Dolly. The Trickle Socks, waiting.

What's on my Featherweight: Still doll socks, tights and undies. Will start on Regency outfit for Dolly soon.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished From a High Tower by Mercedes Lackey. Great story, narrator was fine except for pronunciation of German words. Now listening to The Watcher by Jo Robertson, a crime novel, another Audible “Deal of the Day.” Still reading A View to Die For by Richard Houston on the Kindle app.

What's in my wine glass: Crane Lake Malbec, a staple at our house.

What's my tip of the week: It’s easy to make gathers in fabric without any special equipment. Make two parallel rows of basting stitches along the edge where you want the gathers to be. Pull the bobbin threads from each end and adjust the gathers so they are evenly distributed along the edge and the piece is the width you want it to be. Then you can tie the bobbin threads together or wrap them around a pin at each end. If the basting stitches show below the seam after you have sewn the gathered material to the bodice, sash or whatever other piece you’re using, it is easy to remove. In fact, it’s easier to keep the gathers even if you allow one row of basting to show below the seam.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.