Socks for Everyone (except Dad) - Yay!!!

This will be known as the sock post!  I knit up three lovely pairs of socks recently, and for some reason, hand-knit socks make me so happy - especially when the socks are for Camden and Tiberius.  Something about wee hand-knit socks on little kids....

My fancy socks are the Kai Mei pattern by Cookie A.  (She is well-known for her awesome patterns, but maybe most famous (aha!) for the Monkey Sock, which is a free pattern - and which I have yet to knit.)  Kai Mei can be found in her book, Sock Innovation.  (THIS link on Amazon shows that you may have to buy it used, though I'm sure it can be found new SOMEwhere, LOL.....It is also available on Kindle).  I have knit one of her patterns before, but I can't, for the life of me, find a picture...and the socks were a gift for a friend.  There is errata for this pattern.  You can find a link on the pattern page on Ravelry and go from there.  In this case, where the pattern comes from a book, I just pen the correct information directly onto the page in the book.

The pattern is very easy, and with this particular pair of socks, I wanted to do them concurrently, sort of - LOL....I did the leg portion of each one first, before going back to the first sock to finish it.  I never cut the yarn, nor did I have to balls with which to work, so, I just knit from either end of the cake.

The yarn is Black Trillium Fibers, though I am only sort of sure the base is Pebble Sock, and I can't recall the colorway name at all, though surely the tag is somewhere in this house....It is a gorgeous blue with purple sort of peeking through.  I purchased it years ago, and I'm glad I finally used it!  The socks did take forever, though, in terms of the fact that I knit the legs months ago and only just got back to finishing them...like I seem to do with adult socks.  I stuck with the original cast-on amount, as that is a good number for me, and I did add a repeat at the end - and added a few stitches for my bunion on the right sock.  Of course.

Awesome!

As for Tiberius's sock, I can't remember the name of this yarn, either, as it seems it was an "extra" with something...I think it came with one of my Knit Purl sock club installments back in the day.  I do know I purchased the orange at a local yarn store...why I purchased one 50 gram skein, I have no idea, but it works for heels and toes, eh?  For his socks - and Camden's - I used Knitting Pure and Simple Easy Children's Lightweight Sock pattern, which is a paper pattern I'd picked up at a LYS back in the day.  I love that I can use this pattern for them through part of elementary school!  Camden's sock was knit using the orange and the Madelinetosh sock yarn used in socks I knit for Tiberius before he was born.  I will totally be able to get one more pair out of this yarn, I am hoping....we will see!  Even if it's just heels and toes for a sock for ME, LOL.

Tiberius's socks took six whole days, but Camden's seemed to drag on a bit...apparently, 52 stitches, as opposed to 44, is a difference of a MILLION :O  They took almost a month, but they ARE pretty stinkin' cute.  I'm noticing, though, especially with her socks, that my row gauge, as is always the case, seems especially tight when my STITCH gauge is on.  It isn't a big deal, normally - except that we have a whole instep to consider.  I really think I need to start lengthening the heel flap because of this.  I did lengthen it a row or two on Camden's socks, but it probably needs to be more like four rows longer.  The socks fit great around her foot and around her ankle/leg, but getting them up and over is a pain.  I'm sure a soaking will loosen them up a bit, but something I need to remember, anyway.

Chubbs!

I LOVE these!

On another note....poor Matt needs hand-knit socks.  I started some for him years ago....and have basically ripped them out and need to start over.  Sad times.  Soon enough!!!

And more family shenanigans....

Rock piles....good times

Seriously

For real....

His sister has a bike.  The end.

Good 'ole family reading time

Poor kitty...

Stash Diving for a Modkid Julia Skirt!

I could pretend this is a simple skirt, like the Oliver and S Hula Hoop, but let's not kid ourselves....it's "simple," in regards to construction, but the miles of hemming and gathering does slow one down a teeny bit, LOL.

BUT.

Clearly, the Modkid Julia is way cute, and I love it!  I sewed a couple Julia skirts in a size 3 a couple years back, and they were BIG and technically still fit Camden, but I passed them on to her wee friend up in Vancouver, as I was all, "Dude, I can make you another."

Awww!  In her Aneela Hoey fabric and Magical sweater!

I did a size 5, just to get more use out of it, pretending that I didn't know it's so BIG.  I should have done a size 4, but whatevs.  It's fun, and I love it.

I had a brain fart, for lack of a cooler expression, when I was attaching the casing for the twill tape.  I asked in the Modkid group, and Patty and someone else were quick to answer.  As always, I'm a nutjob and actually realized I should start reading directions, aha!  Problem solved, I forged ahead, and all was naturally well.

Not much to say about the pattern itself.  Again, it's easy and quick enough, instructions are great, and you can have a lot of fun with the fabrics.  I used a dotted sateen for the underskirt (I mentioned in the last post, I believe, that Superbuzzy has it on sale!)

So, there you have it!  Fun skirt, happy girl, all is well!!!

She likes the porch pose, aha! 

Blog Shout-Outs!

Today's theme?  Blog shout-outs!

I would like to highlight some fellow crafty ladies out there in this big, bad world.  I look to these blogs, amongst others, for inspiration - and a good laugh!

Ali Cat and Co.

First up is BRIANNE over at Ali Cat and Co.  (FB page here.)

She is a woman of many talents - sewing and baking amongst those.  (Speaking of baking, I REALLY need to try this Lemon Cake recipe some time!)  Specifically, though, she has really latched onto making bags.  She loves her some Swoon bag patterns and is making me quite envious of these bags...probably mostly because of the hand embroidery!  She must have a boat load of bags tucked away under her bed.  

She also has two super cute girls, for whom she also sews - pictured below are two patterns she recently tested - the Norah dress by Mouse House Creations (It's out now, peeps!!!  And....only $7 through today!) and the Saffron dress by Zafarani Designs (shouted out below).  

The Life of a Compulsive Crafter

Next up is MAE over at The Life of a Compulsive Crafter.  (See her FB page.)  She happens to blog so she doesn't drive her non-sewing friends crazy with all her hopes and dreams about sewing, LOL!  She does do a bit of the "selfish/mom" sewing, but mostly, she sews for her little girl and boy.

She has a sweet style, girly (well, not so girly when it's for her son, aha!) and understated, and she followed along with the last Project Run and Play.  One of my favorite looks was this one - her Bubblegum dress!  Also on her blog are posts about conscious living, and I will soon be guest posting on her blog (think deodorant!).

Ginger Dimples

CRYSTAL over at Ginger Dimples is a hoot and a holler.  (FB page here.)  She adds a little zing to her posts with her sense of humor - and has made me envious over the years with her awesome Halloween costumes and great Project Run and Play Sew-Along entries - this one being my FAVORITE...and she knows I want to snatch this for my daughter, LOL!

She's only been blogging for eight months now, but she's been sewing for a long time, and one thing she noted in the last PRP challenge was that she wanted to challenge herself and do something she hadn't done before (not sew with ANY woven cottons!) - I think she covered that!  What a great 80s style her daughter has ;)

I have to say, though, that one of my favorite things about Crystal's blog is that she details fun mom-sewing!  (And word up, if you're reading this - I haven't seen any of that in a LONG time!  No hints or anything...)  Here is one photo of her cuteness in a dress she made!  (And here's a link to a lovely mom-and-me project she did!)

Zafarani

Lastly, we have KARLY from Zafarani Designs.  (FB page here.)  She is a funny lady with a big family!  Most of her sewing is for them, which is fine, as she loves to show of both her sewing and her kids, LOL!

One thing I have to say about Karly is that she is SPEEDY!  She always seems to have a million projects - and seems to finish them super fast!  Because she has her share of boys AND girls, she gets the chance to sew for both quite often.

And thing I'm admittedly probably NEVER going to do is sew up a lovely crib set, which she did!  I give kudos to anyone who does that, as it always seems like an effing lot of work to me, if you'll pardon my French!

Above, though, you saw the lovely Saffron dress Brianne sewed, and it was released back in August.  Already, so many people seem to love it!  I know Camden does, as it's pretty twirly!  Karly will have a new pattern coming out, hopefully later this fall, and having seen the sneak peak, I'm pretty excited!

Karly also joined in on the PRP Sew-Along challenge, and I thought both of these entries were great - her Mad for Plaid for her son (because quite often, we don't see enough BOY sewing) and her Candy entry for her daughter - so fun and bright!!

One other note is that some of these lee-days are over at That's What She Crafted, a blog combining their talents (with another lovely lady) into one ultra-awesome experience!  (FB page here.)

Thanks, ladies, for letting me include you in my blog shout-out post!  I can't wait to see what y'all have up your sleeves in the coming months!

                                         

Oliver and S time! After School Pants and Top.

In a non-normal world, I would get a chance to sew most days of the week, but it seems that lately, I get the chance to have a spurt of sewing and finish a sewing project once every week and a half or so.  I HAVE discovered that Camden is able to entertain herself for an hour or two these days while I get the chance to sew during daytime hours, which is what we call AWESOME.  Sewing always used to be a nighttime thing, but with el bebe coming, I find I better be one of those responsible folk and make sure to get enough sleep, so, I stick with knitting at night.  Sewing is one of those tricky hobbies that will keep me up until 2 in the morning...no bueno.

Happily, I was able to finish my second-ever Oliver and S After School pants and top, this time in a size 4.  I'm not sure what my reasons were for skipping from a size 2 to a size 4, but my child surely could have used size 3 pants.  She has a round little belly (which, according to her, is carrying a baby girl) that demands I size up or lengthen shirts, but her leg inseam is just over 13 inches, so, lengthening pants is just NOT necessary, for the most part.  Camden is, I think, slowly moving from average-sized to small, as she gets older.  She would just call herself a big girl and have done with it, naturally.  Anyway, my bad in choosing to do a size 4, but hey - they'll last a LONG time, aha!

I have worked with Oliver and S patterns many times, and for the most part, I find the directions great, though I like to throw myself off here and there.  There is definitely errata one would want to check out on their site, for each pattern, before beginning - or if you are way stuck and pretty sure something isn't right. I have found some of the patterns needed more careful editing, but that's my critical editing eye coming out in me.  Also, one thing I find myself doing with Oliver and S pattern sheets:  Chippity-chopping them UP, son!  I know that may be pure blasphemy to some, but those suckers are sooooo big that I can't stand wielding them while trying to trace, so, I rotary cut them down to size to make tracing easier, and hey - they still fold up all nice and pretty.

Speaking, too, of paper patterns, I am crazy and prefer to use a pencil when tracing, though some are definitely more comfortable with a pen.  I find I would just have to fix too many things to WANT to use a pen, so, that doesn't work for me.  But check out which SUPER COOL pencils I DO use:  stacking point pencils (and WHO knew that was the proper name?! I will never call them that, neva'.  I will stick with my fancy "changeable lead pencil.")  And I know they're a waste.  Don't hate.  It's a childhood memory or some such.

Lastly, I have to give a shout-out to the tracing paper I love to use, as it's so great and sturdy and see-through (duh) and iron-able.  I don't know what I pay for it locally (I buy it at Modern Domestic - best place ever - great ladies, classes and sewing machines!!), but this Swedish tracing paper is available on Amazon, too.  You can sew with it and even make a quick muslin, if you need to.

As for the After School pattern, I loved it the first time I did it - it's pretty stinkin' easy.  Just keep track of those front and back yokes, as there are four separate pieces.  As I said above, because of my little girl's belly, I usually like to lengthen shirts, especially with Oliver and S.  I don't know if that means the shirts run shorter, or if it's really just her belly.  I forgot this time, so, I'm glad I did the size 4, as it fits nicely right now.  If I'd done the size 3, which would have fit her a bit better, I definitely would have needed to lengthen it.  When I first came across this issue with the patten, I just added a band to the bottom, no biggie.

Gosh, that was so long ago!!!

As for her the size 4 pants I just made, I hemmed them on the longer side, but then I blind hemmed them up another 2.5 inches, as they were so long.  They are at the perfect length.  As you can see below, I used the same fabric, but in a different colorway.  Hey - keeps my life easy, and I planned it that way, LOL!  I got fancy and top-stitched in a contrast to match the reddish-orange leaves, but I didn't get any crazier than that.  With the ruffles it already has, I didn't want to go overboard.

Let me know if you have any questions on construction.  The size 4 pants would easily fit your child in length if she has a 15-15.5 inch inseam.  Sometimes, you have to play with hemming things shorter or longer, so, always remember that.  With my blind hem, I can take that out later, easy cheese cream pie!