Musings of a Crafty Wench

2011-01-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

For the latest projects, please go to: http://tenukihandcrafts.blogspot.com/

The End is Near

2010-12-29T17:19:00.000-08:00

Hi all! Just the last reminder that I will be closing this blog at the end of 2010. I was unable to change the name of this blog, since I already have Tenuki Handcrafts up and running, so all the posts in this blog have been merged to the other. Plus an exciting new posting pricing. Ooooooooooooh, math. One last plea to follow me there. This blog will no longer be updated, although I will

Seattle Underground Sunday

2010-12-20T23:12:00.000-08:00

The Underground Tour Building December is nearing and end and with it, the close of this blog. You may wonder why make another post when this blog will officially merge with http://tenukihandcrafts.blogspot.com/ but it's another chance to remind you to follow me there. Also, I didn't want to leave up my last post about craft fairs in the past, so this post is going to include some local

The 3rd Annual Kooterville Bizarre Bazaar is this Saturday!

2010-12-15T21:42:00.000-08:00

Time to do that last minute holiday shopping at the 3rd Annual Kooterville Bizarre Bazaar is this Saturday! Saturday December 18th from 11am-3pm in the Gym at the Greenlake Community Center, 7201 E Green Lake Drive N. Avoid the mall this holiday season! Do all of your shopping at the Bizarre Bazaar! We'll have affordable handcrafted jewelry, knits, soaps, art, clothes, foods and uniquely

Upcoming Holiday Craft Fairs

2010-11-30T13:05:00.000-08:00

For those of you in the Seattle area in need of handcrafted gifts, I am participating at two local holiday craft fairs. At my table you will find hand spun yarns, small hand knit/crocheted items for human and dollies, and jewelry in a wide range of price points. Both fairs feature a wide variety of gifts made by many talented local artists. You're sure to find something for everyone on your

Blog-speriment - The Next Stage

2010-11-24T18:35:00.000-08:00

I've been in a mulling over my crafty life and direction I want to take my craftiness recently. I came to some decisions about how to focus my precious and limited commodity: time. I made a firm resolution to wait until the new year to enact the changes, however, I want to give you, my dear followers, a head's up. In January 2011, I will consolidate this blog under the Tenuki Handcrafts flag.

Snow Day

2010-11-22T21:36:00.001-08:00

November 2010 has been the strangest month of weather. We had a couple days of 70 degrees. Today, it's been 32 and snowing. Here is one pic I took today as I was leaving work. I admit to wanting a snow day tomorrow so I can take the dolls out for a few wintry shots.Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

BEQ 2.0

2010-11-17T00:31:00.001-08:00

I had to wipe and re-do BEQ's faceup. This one turned out better, yet brows plague me. I also trimmed his wig and topped his cranium with one of my own creations. I'm still saving for his body. Happy crafting!Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Mobile blogging

2010-11-17T00:15:00.001-08:00

I(3/3) rafting! Well, that was interesting....I received my new phone and tried a mobile blog post and the above line is all that posted...here is the text that came before... With my new phone, an Android, I've been quite the iZombie lately. I thought I'd put technology to work to best advantage and more frequent blog posts. When I manage to put the phone down, I've been using small bits of

2010-11-17T00:14:00.003-08:00

(2/3) age to put the phone down, I've been crocheting flower pins for two upcoming holiday craft fairs. I'll post the fair details in the next post.Happy c

2010-11-17T00:14:00.001-08:00

(1/3) With my new phone, an Android, I've been quite the iZombie lately. I thought I'd use technology to best advanage (and more frequent posts). When I man

My First Faceup

2010-10-29T22:51:00.001-07:00

beq_0782 Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsHi there! This post is about my latest dolleh project, as you might guess from the title, my first faceup. Felling all empowered after http://musings-of-a-crafty-wench.blogspot.com/2010/09/hiros-mods-complete-doll-nudity.html, and desparately wanting a Dollshe, after seeing several articles about, mostly Dink's Doll's faceups in recent issues of

Fine Thistle Yarn - the Verdict

2010-10-14T13:41:00.000-07:00

In my previous post, I mentioned I would prefer a finer yarn for the garment I intend to make for myself. My original idea for this garment was for a season changing topper, so I wanted a slightly denser than normal fabric. I have knit, washed, and measured the sample and run the numbers. Here they are, for your reading pleasure. This is a 2 ply yarn, spun and plied on my Ashford Elizabeth

Bulky Thistle Scarf

2010-10-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

This scarf is the result of my first test of Thistle 3.0 Yarn Ok, I've spun so many variations, I lost track of which version I'm really on. The point is, this scarf is knit from the first intentionally bulky two ply yarn I've spun. Not like the bulky single ply yarns of my early spinning days, not so long ago. This yarn is comprised of several rovings: the "Blossom" hand dyed fleece, the

Hiro's Mods Complete (doll nudity)

2010-09-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention the tools needed for this project: pastels, colored pencils, needle nose pliers, two hemostats, Mr Super Clear, latex gloves, a mask, exacto knife, brushes. And a lot of patience. After a good night's rest and a couple cups of coffee, I took a look at Hiro's pieces. The blush is quite subtle, but that is what I wanted. I took photos all through this process since I take

I Fall To Pieces

2010-09-05T01:18:00.000-07:00

My plan for this Labor Day Weekend: try my hand at some real modifications to Hiro: restring, which means taking him apart. He's too tightly strung so that his limbs snap toward the center. All my previous attempts to improve posing failed - hot glue sueding, wiring, trying to stretch his strings. I took a look at this string, but it can't be loosened there just isn't enought string, so I

Make & Mend

2010-08-24T15:29:00.000-07:00

I had three items on my mend pile, which I think counts as chores, rather than a fun new project. It's chores before fun at the Thompson house. I don't have photos for anything of, but frankly, mending is not *that* interesting. Bill purchased The Zephyr from Duluth Trading. Unlined, no shoulder pads. No offense, DT, but it's a bit boring and looks a bit like a lab coat. Bill wasn't

Black Pencil Skirt

2010-08-02T00:02:00.000-07:00

The vintage wardrobe sewing continues, with a bit of a twist. I bought a Bonfit Patterner, well a long time ago. I saw the ad in Vogue Patterns and thought I'd try it out. I bought the complete kit: bodice, skirt and pants patterners, with all the 'extra' books on fashion design concepts and sample outfits to make. I've had mixed luck with this system. Skirts have worked out, but really,

30s Day Dress is Done

2010-07-31T17:43:00.000-07:00

Today I completed the Folkwear 30s Day Dress by hemming it and adding 4 irridescent shell buttons. I was a bit worried the print was too large, but it's about right. Even with the fab new camera, the fabric is too dark to see the dress details. That would be my only complaint about the project. You can't see the flutter collar detail nor the pockets, which, by the way are adorable and turned

Return of the Crafty Wench

2010-07-27T13:16:00.001-07:00

I haven't been so happy with my blog-speriment, so I'm going to keep both blogs. Crafty Wench will continue to chronicle my crafting adventures. Tenuki Handcrafts will be for my Etsy shop related posts. I was happy to learn about the Label feature on Blogger and have re-labeled my posts so now you can find my posts by topic, for example, all the spinning posts. Trying new things is good, but

Teri and Jeff's Baby Quilt

2010-07-27T12:29:00.001-07:00

Our friends Teri and Jeff just welcomed Kaylee into the 'verse. For the baby shower at work, I went with my standard baby gift: a quilt.I like the idea of making quilts, but there is so much figuring involved for large quilts. I like making a small, baby-sized quilts.The first photo shows the quilt squares laid out on the floor. A little googling for a good baby quilt size and someone suggested

30s Day Dress Update!

2010-07-15T23:18:00.001-07:00

Check it out, won't you? Thanks for reading and happy crafting!

Folkwear 30s Day Dress - Almost Done

2010-07-15T23:17:00.001-07:00

I simply ran out of time tonight and could not quite finish my Folkwear Pattern 30s Day Dress. The dress is assembled, I've tried it on and it looks super cute with my brown Dansko Bliss shoes and my saddles.Ok, I was so excited to take shots of the dress, that I didn't level this one. Here is the back view. I was a tad worried about the gathering at the hip near the zipper. This gal's got a

Look ma! New post!

2010-07-14T20:34:00.000-07:00

Hi all, just trying to encourage you crafty wenches to head over to my latest post: Vintage Sewing Project: Hollywood Pattern 1169 Thanks for reading and happy crafting!

Hollywood Patterns 1169

2010-07-12T21:27:00.000-07:00

I picked up a couple of vintage patterns from New Vintage Lady. The pattern was in pretty good condition, considereing it's 70 years old. If you haven't seen an old school vintage sewing pattern, here's a tip: there is no printing on the pattern tissue. Just die cut markings. The instructions are brief. After all, practically every woman on the planet knew how to sew in the early 20th

Vintage Dress #1, Update #1

2010-07-08T20:51:00.001-07:00

30sdaydress_0351, originally uploaded by Tenuki Handcrafts.Last night I began work on my Folkwear 30s Day Dress. It's been quite a long time since I sewed a dress for myself and its the second item for my vintage wardrobe. Oops! Lookie there, I forgot to post about the Hollywood patterns project. "Would a sincere sorry do?"Any-who, 30s Day Dress. I'm making View B because I don't think View

Vintage Dress #1

2010-06-18T17:28:00.001-07:00

Photo_061810_003.jpg, originally uploaded by Tenuki Handcrafts.The first Vintage Dress in Anne's Great Vintage Wardrobe Experiment Is the Folkwear Pattern 30s Day Dress. The fabric, as you can see, is brown with a fruit and veg theme, which felt vintage to me. 100% rayon. I didn't have a quarter handy to show scale, so I used a go stone, which is approximately the size of a quarter. I'm making

2010-06-14T23:24:00.000-07:00

My first blog post was on March 25, 2006. A rambly start to my intent of recording my craft projects. Anecdotally, I felt I was good at starting projects, but possibly not so good at finishing them. Blogging, it seemed, would keep me on task. Crafty Wench because that was my partner's nickname for me. As I continued to post, I found I complete a lot of projects. More than some, less than

Amidala and Blythe...Twins?

2010-05-29T17:48:00.002-07:00

Photo_052910_001.jpg Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsI am waiting for a new little friend, Pinafore Purple Blythe. While I'm waiting for my new girl's arrival, I decided to sew a cute little dress for her. I found the pattern at xoxoblythe.com. The fabric, you may recall, was a Goodwill purchase, bias cut dress. The first attempt was Gene's Sheath Dress, which came out quite

Lorre's Tam

2010-05-20T21:38:00.001-07:00

Quite a while ago, I promised to write a post about a hat I was making a hat for a friend.It's only taken me four months get here, which is pretty good, given how long it took me to make this little beauty.It began at the 2009 Film Noir Festival. Lorre & Marc were in town and attended one of the movies with us. It was winter in Seattle and we all had hats. Lorre left hers at the theater but

Tyler's Linen Sheath and Mohair Bolero

2010-05-06T22:32:00.001-07:00

Poor Tyler. The first 16" dress I made was in black fabric and had no instructions, so I assembled it as I would a full-sized dress. It didn't work out so well. She'd been wearing that badly made dress for so long, I decided it was time to make her a nice dress.The fabric is brown linen cotton blend, repurposed from a skirt I had sewed for myself, which never quite fit properly. That skirt

Gene's Paisley Scarf Outfit

2010-04-03T19:45:00.001-07:00

My basic plan for doll clothes is to use thrift shop clothes. A lucky trip to the Goodwill netted me a tan and black houndstooth pant suit; a bright orange, beaded angora sweater; a pink tweed jacket, a pair of blue cotton capris with a wacky snakeskin print and a red sheath bias dress with tiny rose bud print. All for about $20.The first two 16" doll dresses I made, a black sheath with white

Countryside Frock Coat, part 2

2010-01-24T15:21:00.001-08:00

I finished the Countryside Frock Coat today. The fabric is navy cotton twill, with a bit of stretch, oh, probably 5% spandex. The pattern, you may recall from the Countryside Frock Coat post muslin test, is Folkwear pattern 263, the women's version. The difference between the men's and women's version are that the women's version had bust darts and the front opening is curved.I rarely pre-wash

Countryside Frock Coat

2010-01-02T17:04:00.001-08:00

It's near the end of my retail revenge winter holiday. Time spent mainly recuperating from yet another flu, but also spent sewing and getting better acquainted with my Pfaff machine, which I've learned makes quick and easy button holes. I also learned recently that I need to make muslin tests before I plow into the 'real' fabric. The project is Folkwear's Countryside Frock Coat and the fabric

Fourth Doctor Scarf

2009-12-23T21:23:00.001-08:00

In just over a year, I'm making another Fourth Doctor scarf. This time it's a trade with a fellow DoAer (that's Den of Angels to you non-dolleh folks). After the Doctor's Maroon scarf, when asked, I said I'd not knit another one of these. Well, never say never, eh?This version is SD sized, which means it's for a 60 cm tall doll, in this case a girl and I can't wait to see the rest of her

Dollie Dilemma

2009-11-12T23:47:00.001-08:00

The June 2009 issue of Haute Doll magazine had an article on bishies. Bishonen. The Japanese word for 'beautiful boy.' Perhaps you've seen them: men so beautiful, with their delicate, feminine features, they seem ethereal. If you're old enough to be around for New Wave, well, you know there was no shortage of androgynous pretty boys. I read that article and thought, well, that's nice. True,

Padded Landscape Quilt Jacket

2009-10-31T18:13:00.002-07:00

Padded Landscape Quilt Jacket Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsIs almost done. I know, the 5th anniversary of the start of this project was, oh, three weeks ago. What can I say? I get sidetracked.As you can see in the photo of the back. The sleeves are attached. I wanted clouds and was just going to stitch stylized clouds near the mountain peak. When I looked at the finished

Jane's Collage

2009-10-28T20:10:00.001-07:00

One of my co-workers retired last month and I wanted to make a special card for her. It had to be large because Jane worked at the Hutch for over 30 years. A lot of people wanted to sign. In the end, I made two cards, similar in design.For the base of the card, I took a light tan colored piece of 8.5" x 11" card stock and folded it in half lengthwise. And then I grabbed a bunch of stamps and

Recycled Planter

2009-10-16T16:21:00.003-07:00

Recycled Planter Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsVisiting my pals Pat & Lisa last weekend, we were greeted by this charming dollie. I love the teeny succulent plants springing out of the doll's head. It can only get better as the plant grows, slowly enveloping the baby.The sun-bleached eye adds to the surrealism of the piece.

Mid-September?!

2009-09-06T19:31:00.001-07:00

This year has streaked past so quickly. Perhaps it was all the changes at work and the crafty projects that culminated in opening a new on-line shop, two-week electronic-device-free vacation. The highlight of the trip was to the Hollyhock Farm on Cortes Island, British Columbia.A galaxy far, far away from downtown Seattle. To acclimatize to the change in atmosphere, my partner Bill and I took

Gene's Summer Frock

2009-07-26T15:36:00.001-07:00

Gene Marshall. I first saw Gene back when I subscribed to Vogue Patterns and they came out with a pattern for her. I don't recall the pattern, I just remember thinking, what a cute face. I wanted to pick one up, but they weren't the easiest dolls to find, around here anyway. It was last March at the Puyallup Doll Show with Vanessa, that I finally bought one. Going to my first doll show, I

360 Landscape Jacket

2009-07-05T22:55:00.002-07:00

Photo_070409_003.jpg Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsI recently found the hand drawn sketch and fabric plan for the 360 Degree Landscape Quilted Japanese Field Coat. September 16, 2004. There, I said it. it's nearly 5 years in the making. When I saw the date, I decided 5 years was more than ample time to make this coat, so my goal is to finish this coat by 9/16. I want to wear it

Made For Each Other

2009-06-30T22:25:00.002-07:00

Photo_063009_001.jpg Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsThe wool roving in the center of the photo was a gift from my friend Teri, which she brought back from her honeymoon in New Zealand. Um...two years ago. Yeah, like you don't have unfinished projects in your craft hole, my friend. I wanted something for myself, since it was a gift, but no project came to mind. Now, of course, I am

Say Hello to My New Friend!

2009-06-10T21:53:00.002-07:00

The wheel on the right is my new, well used, Ashford Traveler wheel. After careful consideration, I've decided to name her Dr. Lotte Lenya. Purchased on ebay from a lovely woman in New Zealand (home of Ashford wheels, btw).Assembly is complete today, with the addition of a 50 cent e-clamp that attaches the con rod to the drive wheel crank.Dr. Lenya treadles easily and stops on a dime. I've

Photo Collage

2009-06-02T20:01:00.001-07:00

I have tons of digital photos, not all of them are great photos, or even good photos. But many are perfectly good for collage. I haven't yet spent the time selecting and printing photos for paper collage, but I did crank out this digital photo collage, for my own entertainment. And now, hopefully, for your viewing pleasure.Enjoy.

Hot Off the Wheel

2009-04-29T19:43:00.001-07:00

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that I have been purchasing my prepared roving at the Weaving Works in Seattle.I like the idea of developing relationships with the people with the sheep and hand dyers, since I am not equipped to dye my own fibers and am very happy to have begun the process of getting rovings from small farm owners.I recently joined a new Etsy team,

Grey Scoop Neck

2009-04-18T11:12:00.002-07:00

Grey Scoop NeckOriginally uploaded by Tenuki Handcrafts This morning's pre-gardening project was to sew up this grey slinky scoop neck top with 3/4 sleeves.I purchased the fabric a while ago from Fashion Fabrics Club, intending to make a raglan sleeve cardigan but I have lost that pattern. So I went through my pattern stash and found McCalls 5105, which is top with neck and sleeve variations for

Random Felting Project

2009-02-05T12:21:00.002-08:00

Many years ago, my dad gave me cash for my birthday so, naturally, I went to my YLS and picked up a bunch of Lopi Lite in burgundy, sage green, pine green, brown and light tan. The plan was to knit a yoke cardigan. I don't remember exactly what happened, but I got sidetracked with other projects. At any rate, feeling lazy one day, I knit a very long shawl. Ok, it took more than one day to knit

Baby, Really The Blues

2009-02-04T18:47:00.001-08:00

I've discovered a slight challenge with spinning quantities of yarn.Frankly, it's boring......watching the same colored fleece go by hour after hour.It's making me sleepy just thinking about it.One of my spinning projects is Really the Blues, a 2 ply yarn. One ply is navy merino/alpaca and the other is a self-striping wool and merino in light blue, medium blue and two dye lots of Denim, a

Daily Art 3

2009-01-08T23:04:00.003-08:00

Just a short post as it's late and I've got to get to my nightly reading, currently, Margaret Atwood's first novel, The Edible Woman.Here's the stamp theme daily pages. I love canceled postage stamps. It's not like a stamp collecting thing, I just think postage stamps are nifty bits of very small art.One of the physicians I support receives a lot of foreign mail and she gives me the stamps.

Daily Art 2

2009-01-06T23:36:00.003-08:00

Yes, I love Doctor Who. And the daily collage pages pay homage to this brilliant Time Lord. How can you not love The Doctor? Running through corridors, running in quarries, running in space stations, running through lighthouses, running through space ships, running through London, Amsterdam, ancient Rome, ancient Mexico...well, I think you get the idea. There's a lot of running.The Doctor

Daily Art

2009-01-03T15:17:00.002-08:00

After last year's successful tracking of the daily accomplishments (52 creations and 14 books read in 2008), I bought a Moleskin day-per-page calendar. The intent is to both document my daily tasks, mundane and creative but also to use it as a way to create a little every day. It could be writing, collage, samples and technical specs of newly spun yarn, anything goes.So far, so good. Here are

Dark Coopworth, Really

2008-12-19T22:24:00.002-08:00

This is the real dark coopworth 2 ply drop spindle yarn. There was just over 4 ounces, which I weighed on my trusty Weight Watchers food scale. I think I've 'splained this in previous posts, but the WW scale offers both ounces and grams and it's served me well in weighing out fiber and weighing my finished center pull balls.I split the fiber into two roughly equivalent batches. One for each

Medium Brown Coopworth

2008-12-10T18:19:00.003-08:00

Dark Brown CoopworthOriginally uploaded by Tenuki Handcrafts I finished the 2 ply medium coopworth, which was medium when I went through my fleece stash for the light coopworth, only to find out that was 70% merino/30% alpaca. The real dark coopworth is chocolate brown. Yummy.Yarn specs: 2 ply, drop spindle spun, on my Ashford 1.5 ounce high whorl spindle. The final yarn was 12 wraps per inch

Nighttime on Broad

2008-11-11T14:10:00.003-08:00

Photo_111008_003.jpg Originally uploaded by Tenuki HandcraftsIt has been fully dark on my walk home since the time change. As I was walking home last night, I was thinking about my main complaint with the camera on my phone - it is sensitive to movement. Getting a good shot of people is tough and usually takes 5 or so pics until I get one that is shake free.Waiting at lights and watching the

Suffragette City Seed Stitch Scarf

2008-11-09T16:28:00.002-08:00

The first of two scarves commissioned by my Little Brother – actually, Mike is my brother-in-law, but he calls me Big Sister (I'm 5'3 and he's 6'4” or so), so I call him Little Brother. Funny, init?This green heathered yarn is 70% merino and 30% alpaca. The sliver was purchased at The Weaving Works at $0.90 per ounce. Really - I had to confirm it with the clerk, twice. At that price, how could

The Doctor's Maroon Scarf

2008-10-27T22:30:00.002-07:00

A friend was invited to a Halloween party and chose the Doctor from the Tom Baker years. Which means, yes, the insanely long, garter stitch scarf, originally designed by Madam Nostradomus, a witty little knitter.He said he'd take my advice for scarf colors and costume, so given the very short time frame, I felt the maroon scarf was the best choice. I didn't want to try to manage upwards of 10

Kaya Crane Cover

2008-09-21T17:55:00.002-07:00

Still on a sewing kick. We have this lovely kaya table board. But my handsome spouse didn't want to leave the board sitting out on the dining room table to get bashed and spilled on. So I said I'd make a quilted cover.I went to my local fabric store and bought this lovely crane fabric. I'm not sure if it shows up very well in the pics, but those shadow cranes are made of a sort of grid

Bugs n' Cats Baby Quilt

2008-08-31T18:27:00.002-07:00

It's been a while since I made a baby quilt and given that I'm already late for a baby gift to a friend halfway across the world, it was time to dig through my stash for coordinating cottons to whip up into a simple baby quilt.The idea melded together from Jennifer Worick's “The Prairie Girl's Guide to Life” and my friend Kim, who brought some quilt instructions with her. She was working on her

Spinning epiphanies

2008-08-20T12:37:00.002-07:00

Ok, so I lied. This post is not about headbands. It's about a spinning epiphany I had recently that emerged as a result of our recent two week go vacation. When we arrived in Campbell River at the beginning of our vacation, Bill indulged my need to be near wool and we visited a LYS. I picked up some double pointed sock needles (which are shorter than your standard DPNs), a skein of beautiful

SuperBAD Superwash, part deux

2008-07-19T08:53:00.002-07:00

As promised in my last post, here are the yarn specs to SuperBAD Superwash, my latest yarn spun from a 5 ounce batt of superwash Merino, natural colored. Spun on my Ashford Elizabeth Wheel, the only spinning wheel I own.This first photo shows one of the two plied bobbins. I don't recall which, but I'd guess the second bobbin because I couldn't get much more yarn on that bobbin without the yarn

Two-ply Superwash Merino

2008-07-10T12:39:00.002-07:00

I'm officially in spinning heaven: last weekend, I completed plying my first ever lace/fingering weight 2 ply yarn. I wanted to get this posted because it's been so long since the last post. The next one will have pictures and yarn specs. I have changed my mind on the use of this yarn because I did not expect to end up with lace weight yarn. The baby gift I need will be a quilt that I'll be

Adventures in High Whorl Spinning & Plying

2008-06-11T21:48:00.002-07:00

In previous posts, I've mentioned my admiration for Priscilla Gibson-Roberts. The last book of hers I needed for my collection was "Spinning in the Old Way." I kept looking at it, but wondered, did I really need to get more spinning tools? It kept calling to me and last year, I purchased my first drop spindle, an Ashford 1.5 ounce high whorl drop spindle and about 4 ounces of Lincoln,

Spinning Journal

2008-06-06T13:48:00.001-07:00

When I start a new interest, I dive right in, slog through the frustrating learning curve period then realize, gee, I should keep a journal on this, to track my progress and record epiphanies. As I've mentioned previously, I'm largely self-taught in my craftiness. I may take a class or a friend will spend some time showing me the basics, but I tend to buy books and figure the rest out on my

Fiber Crazy

2008-05-14T12:59:00.001-07:00

It's been a long time since my last post, but I have been a busy gal. And this post is somewhat stream of consciousness, so please bear with me.I'm taking go lessons, which means playing more games and studying go, but this has not kept me from either housework (boo) or fiber-based activities (yay). I'm sure you're familiar with housework, so I'll spare you the grimy details and get to what

Thistle Yarn

2008-03-17T22:54:00.001-07:00

Nana, my late paternal grandmother, was born in Scotland. Due to her genetic contribution, I have a penchant for bagpipe music and thistles. Sure, thistles grow a lot of places, but thanks to Braveheart, I associate them with Nana and Scotland.This yarn design was inspired by the Ashford Book of Carding by Jo Reeve and will be used in a project in the book: Gull Wing Shawl. She tells how much

Super Sharers

2008-02-26T12:35:00.001-08:00

I've been working on a number of projects lately. My next posts will show my first attempt at blending wool with my drum carder using primary colors. I've returned to work on the landscape hippari coat. Here is where I left off: http://www.flickr.com/photos/craftywench/122099573/in/set-72057594090439049/. Work stalled on this while I tried to decide how to deal matching the fronts better.

Return of the Festive Apocalypse Socks

2008-02-05T12:13:00.001-08:00

Recently, a friend commissioned two pairs of the Festive Apocalypse Socks as a gift to faraway family members. This raised the problem of dealing with size. Is it possible to get measurements without giving away the gift? I can hear the conversation now:Auntie M: Walter, I need to take your foot measurements.Walter: Whatever for?Auntil M: You know your cousin, Zelda, she's got a new hobby:

Hand Spun Tam

2008-01-03T21:16:00.001-08:00

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Lotus Cubes

2008-01-03T20:56:00.002-08:00

Lotus CubesOriginally uploaded by Tenuki Handcrafts I'm testing the Blog this photo tool from my flickr account. On Labor Day Weekend 2007, my handsome spousal unit and I visited a friend in Portland. We visited the Portland Chinese Classical Garden. The garden is a great place for taking photos and, naturally, I took a bunch. But as with all photo jags, some didn't turn out as well as I liked

My First Hand Carding Experience

2007-12-26T23:22:00.001-08:00

I mentioned in the last post, that I purchased a set of Ashford hand carders recently as well as the Ashford Book of Carding. Ooh, recipes for yarn! I had trouble deciding on self-striping or layered.After some deliberation, settled on self-striping. All of the batts were purchased at my LFS, The Weaving Works: Merino in Demin (blues and browns), natural and black. And New Zealand wool in

Spinning

2007-12-15T11:32:00.001-08:00

Some years ago, on a visit to our friends, Chris and Pam, I learned how to spin. They lived with his parents on a farm in south King County, complete with sheep, peacocks, and probably chickens. Don't know what type of sheep they were, but lamb was on the menu that day, after we helped shear the sheep.These were not pampered sheep wearing jackets to keep their fleece relatively clean. The

Garter Stitch Shawl

2007-11-26T20:45:00.002-08:00

This is my first knit shawl, shown, at left, nearly complete. I used Frog Tree 100% Suri Brushed fingering weight yarn on size 5 needles. The color on the label is 0012.Not very descriptive, is it? As you can see, it's a heathered dark charcoal grey, almost black. I didn't care about gauge because I worked it until it got big enough, about 72 inches wide.I fell in love with alpaca yarn when I

The Right Festive Apocalypse Sock

2007-10-07T12:23:00.002-07:00

Silly me, I forgot to provide the technical information for these socks. I used Lion Brand Magic Stripes in Bright on size 4 double pointed needles. Gauge=5 stitches per inch. The yarn is 75% wool and 25% nylon and can be machine washed/dried.Finishing the right sock went smoothly. Working the new turning technique four times in one pair of socks has cemented it in my head. I recommend

Revenge of the Festive Apocalypse Socks

2007-10-02T15:26:00.001-07:00

When I made the original pair of Festive Apocalypse Socks as a gift for Teri, there was enough yarn leftover for a second pair of socks. I picked up another of Priscilla Gibson-Robert's books, "Simple Socks, Plain and Fancy." The reason I bought this book is that it provides instructions on knitting socks from the toe to the top. This is a great concept for handspinners because, I don't have a

SIFF 2007

2007-06-26T13:27:00.002-07:00

One of these days, I'll learn to count! We, in fact, had five movies left. Here are our last SIFF 2007 movies:Confession of Pain. If you haven't figured it out by now, I'll suspend my disbelief right to the very end and give every opportunity for a movie to wow me. Hong Kong action move by the Internal Affairs trilogy director. This movie took it's time to develop the story and characters; there

Best Friend Jacket

2007-03-27T22:06:00.002-07:00

Sally Melville's The Knitting Experience: Knit Stitch is the source of this fun, over-sized jacket. I chose Knit Picks Sierra, 70% wool 30% alpaca, in Coal for this garment. I got gauge (13 stitches and rows per inch) with size 11 needles (size 9 for the cuffs, as recommended). The photos show the progression from nearly the beginning to the finished product.Started on 2/15/07 and finished on 3/3

Grey Wolf Basic Stockinette Socks

2007-03-06T22:42:00.002-08:00

I used Knit Picks Telemark 100% Purvian Highland Wool in Grey Wolf and size 4 needles - on two circular needles, one long and one short. You can Google instructions for this technique if you don't have Sally Melville's TKE: The Purl Stitch. I found it much easier to start the sock with two circulars than with double pointed needles. I felt like a crazed porcupine knitting with double

Happy Things

2007-02-26T12:38:00.002-08:00

Mr. Scorsese's Best Director Oscar 2007 (Congrats, Mr. S, you have earned it many times over!)There is no a book entitled: Quantum Theory for Dummies or The Complete Idiot's Guide to Quantum Theory. Go ahead, smarty pants, explain the Hanbury-Brown and Twiss effect to the average person. And someday, you'll reverse the polarity of the neutron flow and show that Doctor guy a thing or

Arctic Pool V Neck Pullover Sweater

2007-02-20T17:55:00.002-08:00

I purchased Wool of the Andes 100% Peruvian Highland Wool in Arctic Pool Heather from Knit Picks, with the plan of a couple extra balls, just in case. This time, I went to Ann Budd's “The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns.” I chose a drop shoulder sweater and, once I got my gauge, select a size that would give me a slightly oversized sweater. At first, I was going to make a roll turtleneck

Festive Apocalypse Socks

2007-02-07T21:39:00.001-08:00

The name for these lovely socks came from a lunch with friends. We were discussing what we'd done over the holidays and I told everyone about my first pair of knit socks. Teri said that when the apocalypse comes, she wants to be around me, because I can knit socks! We all had a good laugh about the apocalypse. I realized that Teri might enjoy a pair of hand knit socks and her birthday was close.

Navy Hand Spun, Hand Knit V Neck Pullover Vest

2007-01-30T20:21:00.002-08:00

Expect several posts on my newest knitting projects in the next couple of weeks. I decided that each item deserved a little more love, in the form of detail. Eventually, I want to post pics of the works-in-progress, but I gotta start somewhere, right?I've been spinning yarn off and on since I bought my Ashford Elizabeth wheel about ten years ago. The wool was purchased at The Weaving Works, in

There are some things you can do one-handed on the Internet

2007-01-03T20:46:00.002-08:00

Knitting is not one of them. While my dreams of regular posts have died, my crafting lives on.I finished my grey Go Everywhere Cardigan. The complete hand made ensemble is pictured, left. You may recall from a couple of posts back that I used Rowan's Wool Cotton. Grey for the body and black for the crocheted trim. Picking up crochet stitches for the border posed a minor problem in that I picked

It's official: I'm knitting obsessed

2006-10-02T23:12:00.002-07:00

The Pink Lace Tank is done. Rather than finish the neck and armhole as instructed, with a picot edge, I completed it with a single crochet edge. See the results for yourself.Why did I stop with a single crochet? Well, I tried to work the picot, but dang, with a tiny hook and thin yarn, I just made a mess of it. I needed some closure on this project all ready.I'm not giving up on crochet. It

Pink Lace Tank Nearly Complete!

2006-08-10T21:31:00.002-07:00

It's been a while my last post, but I have been busy. I fitted the cover on my dress form; rececived comments on Lesson 2 of my knitting course; and nearly finished my pink lace tank. I tried out my watercolor crayons and painted an overhead picture of a garden; took some more photos. Expanded my journaling, which has, in past, focused on writing. I've SARK-ified it with photos, clips from

Luxembourg!

2006-06-20T18:33:00.002-07:00

The Seattle International Film Festival closed Sunday night. We saw more movies this year than previous years - 23 movies and documentaries in 25 days. Certainly no world record, but considering we both have to work full time, sleep, and craft, this was the most we could see and retain a tiny bit of sanity. Besides, three movies in one day is pushing it; the movies begin to blur.Why Luxembourg?

Gum head, throw me a towel!

2006-05-06T17:55:00.002-07:00

Today was the day to pick up my trusty Singer from the shop. On my way out, Bill suggested I test driving a couple machines, just for yuks.Got to the store and asked if I could test my machine BEFORE I left the store. I didn't want to be disappointed again and have to make yet another trip. Huzzah! It works. While I was there, Marilyn, the sales lady, chatted me up a bit. Praising my old machine.

May Journal

2006-04-30T23:39:00.002-07:00

Month two of my on-line journal. This is stream of consciousness thoughts currently lodged in my grey matter. Sometimes I feel like making transitions, sometimes not. You have been warned. More focal effort is placed on the regular blog entries.05.01.06. The phones were relatively quiet at work, where none of the parents calling in ranted and screamed at me. All around, a good day for my birthday

Past Imperfect

2006-04-23T18:54:00.002-07:00

Some knitted projects are problematic and a teal sleeveless shell caused me no end of grief. I had to persevere through it and get to the finished garment. It shouldn't have been such a pain because it was, I'm a tad embarrassed to say, a Very Easy Very Vogue tank, half of a twin set. I like the cardigan with ¾ sleeves, but I do not like the horizontal stripes. It will take some math and a good

One of these things is not like the other

2006-04-11T22:16:00.002-07:00

I went to a Stampin' Up party about a month ago and picked up a few stamps, but am most excited about the watercolor crayons. A week or so ago, I pulled out the new floral stamps, the crayons, some pink paper and went to work stamping images all over the page. At first, I didn't like them, so I let them sit until tonight. I like them better now. There is more experimenting to do, but I think

Synchronicity

2006-04-06T22:12:00.002-07:00

With the deepest respect to Laurie Anderson: Long time, excellent time. See it fly. There it goes. The feeling is not quite like being unstuck in time, but when did it happen that I've lost track of time? Lost the ability to accurately date some specific event. I started noticing this phenomenon recently. No I can't pinpoint when, can I? I'd been pondering this point recently when a bit of

April Journal

2006-04-06T21:35:00.002-07:00

This is a test of on-line journaling. I don't know how long I'll keep it up. I really like the tactile sense of pen to paper. Will I have to make separate posts? For now, I'm going to add the new pages to the top of the Daily Journal post. We'll see how it goes. Good luck to you if you try to get through this. You ought to get something for the effort. I'll try to work a laugh or two in.

Wardrobe Malfunction

2006-04-05T00:17:00.002-07:00

I'm not a clothes horse: I like simplicity. My work environment requires dressier than casual Friday everday, so my wardrobe consists of the basics in mix and match colors: black, navy, brown and plum. No hard thinking in order to make an outfit. A couple of years ago, Bill suggested that the easiest wardrobe of all would be to make black for the major pieces. Even though I look good in black, I

Multiplicity

2006-04-02T14:13:00.002-07:00

Wasn't that the name of a Michael Keaton movie about the wacky effects of cloning? It's also the way I craft and read. The reading list is relatively short for me: “Zen and the Art of Knitting” by Bernadette Murphy, “The Two Towers” by Tolkein, “Crytonomicon” by Neal Stephenson. I read one book for a while, until the story settles into a slow spot then switch books for a while. There are very few

Sew what?

2006-03-30T18:35:00.002-08:00

As indicated in my profile, I have been sewing since I was 12. That's 210 dog years, but I don't think dogs live that long. Ouch. With a few costume designs under my belt, I decided to revive a long time goal of designing and making my entire wardrobe. A few years ago, I purchased the Bonfit pattern system. It's an adjustable, lightweight plastic sloper, with three slopers: bodice, skirt and

My baby is back

2006-03-26T15:54:00.002-08:00

Saturday was a mostly sunny day in Seattle. The second day of spring. Maybe the third day. I've been working a lot of overtime for the past two weeks, so my sense of time is whacked.It's not so much a baby as an older sister: my 1963 Singer Touch n Sew. All metal housing. I clean it before I start a new project and oil it after every two or three projects or after around 12 hours of sewing. I

Urban Thistle

2006-03-25T11:27:00.002-08:00

It's a start

2006-03-25T10:04:00.002-08:00

I don't know when this habit started, but I have to read multiple books and have multiple craft projects in the works. First up, knitting. My mom tried to teach me knitting when I was a kid, but she's not a patient woman, easily irritated. My friend Joyce reintroduced me to knitting in 1992. I've knit an abundance of hats, scarves, a flock of baby booties as a prop for a show, and the occasional