Sewing in Spring

Go go the new blog! This one is leaving! You only have a few weeks before I stop posting here! Exclamation!!

We've been treated to an amazing week. Blue skies. Open windows. Blooming flowers. Singing birds. Yellow sunsets. Early bumblebees.

Inspired by spring's arrival, I pondered nature's awakening, revelled in the beauty of change, and marvelled at the freshness of seasonal renewal. Then I promptly moved on to more important things, like my spring/summer wardrobe. Sundresses! Floral cottons! Nautical! Folk prints! Colourblocking! YAY! Am I shallow? A bit, yeah. Bite me.

I hit a snag, however, in the form of my budget. I am trying to be fairly strict with myself these days, and giant sunshine-induced clothing splurges don't really appeal to my inner miser. "It'll be cheaper if I sew!" I thought to myself. Not cheap enough though. Desperate for some pretty new things, I did the unthinkable. I tackled my fabric stash.

First, I thought about what I wanted to wear, and spent some quality time staring at my current wardrobe. Then I went through the stash, pulling out suitable quantities of fabric and matching them with patterns.

I discovered fabric for four dresses, six tops, and two pairs of scrappy pj shorts. I bagged each item with the corresponding pattern (if I already owned it), labelled the bags, filed them, and mentally prepared myself for my least favourite sewing task - cutting.

I've cut for four garments so far, and will continue to chip away at it. With any luck I'll get some quality time with the sewing machine soon, and then I'll have pretty things to show you!

Are you doing any spring sewing? Tell me all about it!

 

Behind the Scenes

A friendly reminder - this blog's days are numbered! Head over to www.EmmaKnits.net for the new blog.

I've been hard at work in lots of stealthy ways these days. I've been updating the pattern listings on the website - hopefully you will find them more informative now. I may tweak them further still to add more info. I have also rebranded all my patterns so they have updated contact info and are all stored in the same program. They look so matchy now! If you've purchased a pattern of mine you should have received an email informing you of the updated files.

And because I can't only do clerical work, I've also been spinning and dyeing like a madwoman so that there will be all sorts of wonderful offerings available at Fibres West. I think you'll like what I've been up to!

That's some gorgeous Moon Snail in the pots, soaking up a last layer of dye. Love it! That giant yarn there is a fantastic handspun that I have 7 whole skeins of. If I can bear to share it with you, that is. Hmm.

I promise I'll be able to focus on projects and fun blogging again soon!

 

My New Website is Live!

First of all, let me say how grateful I am to have made such amazing friends in the fibre arts world. You have all been so supportive since I went public with the news that I would be closing down Everything Old. It's been bittersweet, actually. I don't want to leave you guys! Will you come with me?

"Where are we going?" you ask.

"EmmaKnits.net!" I reply with the slightly manic enthusiasm of a woman consumed for two weeks with the creation of a new, shiny website.

That's right kids - you can now find me, my patterns, and all the cool things I have to say at www.EmmaKnits.net. My entire blog has been moved over there (although there were some formatting errors in the transfer of my blogger posts, please forgive me for not going through hundreds of posts to tidy them up) so you won't miss anything. This blog will stay here as long as blogger hosts defunct free blogs, but all new content will be created at the new site.

I'll be cross posting everything both here and on the new site for the next month or so, but I'd love if you could bookmark, follow, or whatever you like to do at the new blog location. It's so much prettier and clearer to read. And there's going to be a podcast, guys!

I'm excited. Are you excited? I'm excited.

 

The End of Everything Old

Hey guys, I'm closing the shop.

Not today though. About a month from now.

This is a hard post to write. I don't like disappointing people, and I'd much rather be telling you about some really awesome new things on the horizon that I'd love you to be a part of! I'll get to that, and to reasons and such, but first I wanted to share a shutdown timeline, for those of you who need the quick and dirty.

Timeline

Right now: No worries! The etsy shop is still open. I won't be adding any more items, but even were the shutdown not happening that would be the case because Fibres West is coming and I have to reserve stock.

• If you have been craving a sweater lot of one of my colourways, now is the time to see if it's in the budget and make a custom order. I will be taking custom orders up until Saturday, March 22. The next day I'll order the yarn, and dye it up as soon as it arrives.
• Custom order rules, limits, etc: Must be for three or more skeins of the same base, though they don't have to be the same colour. If you want less than that, try getting together with a knitterly friend to make your order! There is no extra charge for custom orders. I will be keeping the order options to a few select bases: Paragon, Kashmir, Lively, Sublime, and Squish. I might be convinced on others if folks can get together orders for 6 or more skeins.

March 21 and 22: Fibres West! This is my very favourite show, and I didn't want to miss out on vending one last time. I'll be bringing my entire stock, which includes some surprises, some awesome new colourways, sweater lots, and more! I'll be taking custom orders (same rules apply) there too. Please come see me!

March 23: Last yarn order. I'll be getting ready to fill all of your lovely custom orders. I'll keep you updated as they progress and ship them asap.

March 26 (ish): THE SALE BEGINS. Everything still in stock will go on sale, with the discount percentage going up as time goes on. It's gonna be madness! If there's something you love, buy it now, at Fibres West, or early in the sale because once things are gone there's no turning back.

Now that's out of the way, my reasons for quitting. In short, it's best for me, and for my family. The indie yarn market is full of wonderful dyers who can pick up the slack, and I need to seek out the more consistent paycheque of traditional employment. My kiddo would love preschool and I need to get my butt in gear so I can reliably pay for it. I've been a great boss (and so modest!) and I love working for myself, but I am also looking forward to the stress reduction and defined work hours. Dyeing is a creative process, and it needs to be filled with inspiration and love. I've been having a harder time dredging those up, and so it's time to pass the torch to people who are feeling it as strongly as I was when I started.

Things I am feeling inspired by, however, are pattern design and podcasting! I'll be introducing you to a new website very soon, and (yay!) I plan to have my first podcast episode out sometime shortly after Fibres West. I'm super excited! I'll post more on that later.

Thanks for bearing with me, my dear friends. 

An FO: Veera's Here and There Hat

I love Veera Valimaki's patterns. Her focus on shape, line, and colour creates a clean, simple aesthetic that really lets knitted fabric shine. If my body shape suited them, I'd make every single one of her sweater designs. Hats however, don't require a willowy figure! Yay!

Primary colours FTW

 

Veera's Here and There hat is a gorgeous slouch toque that manages to be both practical and fashionable. I am pretty fussy when I pick hat patterns, as my short hair can get swallowed up in many styles. Also, hats without any volume tend to make my head (which is LARGE) look teeny tiny in comparison to my body. It's a proportion thing.

Bird painting by UnitedThread, lighthouse by EveSand, both on Etsy.

 

The thick, squishy garter stitch fabric gives the hat body, while the stripes and cable make a cute statement. Love it!

I used my own Everything Old Squish BFL Aran in November and Crabapple Jelly. I always feel uncomfortable raving about my own products, but I love this yarn you guys. It's soft, smooshy, and luxurious feeling, yet easy to work with and care for. I used a US size 7 needle, which created a stretchy, malleable fabric with lots of body.

I've already got lots of wear out of this cozy hat, and I know I'll get plenty more before the warm weather comes.

Boo.

 

The Amazing Bi-Directional Striped Tube Cowl

My parents gave me a Crazy Zauberball for Christmas. For the uninitiated, that's a yarn brand, not a German sex toy. I've long coveted a Zauberball, but once I had it in my hands, I had no idea what to do with it. I didn't need another stripy shawl right now, it seemed a shame to put the pretty colours on my feet, I wasn't feeling mitts. Then I remembered the Chevroid I made my sister for Christmas. I hated making the chevrons, but the essence of the project was a quick, easy knit.

Without much consideration for the final product, I provisionally cast on enough stitches to go around my 17" circular US size 5 needle, joined in the round, and started striping from both ends of the ball. Four rounds from the inside, four from the outside, repeat until yarn is gone, graft ends together.

Some of the stripes are 3 and 5 rounds, because the colours synced up and had to be chastised.

It's a seamless bi-directional tube, like a donut but less delicious. Simple as that!

I took these pictures while waiting (forever) for the dog to pee. This is exactly how amused I am by his absurdly specific needs for location, noise level, and wind direction.

Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

We suck at mornings, chez Em. None of the household humans are keen to be up before 9, while both pets are predawn level morning people. I'm the most AM-averse, so to mitigate the ill-effects of my suckitude, I try to streamline our morning routines.

Simplifying breakfast is a good start. It makes Jake's day easier, and I know he's not leaving for work on an empty stomach. This muffin recipe makes a tasty breakfast treat, stuffed with lots of fibre to leave you feeling full for hours. They taste good on the go, or warmed up and paired with a cup of strong coffee and a proliferation of groggy swear-words. They're simple and unassuming looking, but well worth a try. If you're a multi-batch baker, they freeze nicely.

Pictured: twice as much muffin as you will likely need to eat. These little hockey pucks are filling.

A note on apples: conventional wisdom suggests Granny Smiths for baking, and conventional wisdom knows what it's talking about. However, I made these with Red Delicious apples, and the extra sweetness was lovely. I suggest leaving the peels on for extra fibre and nutrition. Also, if you have access, when grating apples a food processor is your best friend. It's totally possible with a cheese grater (use the largest grating option), but it's a messy business.

Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

Makes 12 - 24, depending on size.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup quick oats
• 2 medium sized apples, cored and grated
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp cinnamon, or more to taste
• 1/2 to 2/3 tsp salt
• Brown sugar, for topping

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400°. Grease muffin pan, or use paper liners.
• Mix milk, oats, and apples, let sit for 15 minutes.
• Whisk together egg and oil, then mix in with oat mixture.
• Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then add slowly to wet ingredients, stirring until mixed.
• Spoon mixture into muffin pan, and sprinkle the top of each muffin with brown sugar.
• Bake 25 minutes, or until muffins are golden and springy to touch. Err on the side of baking too long, as the oats hold a lot of moisture and you don't want the centres to be soggy.

Optional:

Experiment with adding dried fruits or nuts, or skip the apples and try peaches or another tasty fruit. These muffins are like little handheld bowls of oatmeal, so experiment with the same types of ingredients!

Look at all that cheery sunshine. When this happens I feel like the morning is taunting me.

My favourite way to serve these is cut in half and warmed up for 20 seconds in the microwave, then topped with butter and honey ...aaaand now I'm hungry.

 

Shop Update: and Valentines Snark

Today's Update courtesy of my cheerful disdain for Valentines Day.

But seriously - there's yarn too! You can see all the new pretties in the etsy window at the top of this page! Aren't they nice? I even included some bright pink in honour of the holiday :)

Katniss Everdeen Has The Best Clothes

One of my besties has a serious thing for the Hunger Games movies (and fair enough, they're awesome) so she naturally fell in love with the asymmetrical cowl-sweater that Katniss wears in Catching Fire. It's a beautiful piece - clearly handmade, in the couture sense of things.

Also it has Jennifer Lawrence in it, which would make anything look fabulous.

Now this friend of mine is most exceedingly knitworthy, as she appreciates both the process required and the finished product. She also lives in one of Canada's winteriest cities, so when she asked me to make Katniss' cowl for her I jumped at the chance to send a warm wooly hug in sweater form. We discussed some of the pre-existing patterns available on Ravelry, but in the end we decided that none of them (at the time, more have come out since) were really accurate to the piece in the movie. Being an experienced knitter, I decided I could easily do it freeform. My only intentional deviation from the film version was to reduce the bulk somewhat, for a more figure-flattering garment.

I adore this photo. It really captures the rustic halo of the yarn.

The yarn is Istex Bulkylopi. At 60 metres to 100 grams, it is, in fact, very bulky. I feel like the Icelandic breed, being a hardy sort with many primitive characteristics, would be far more likely than the Merino to survive in a post apocalyptic future. I used a size 13 needle and varied my gauge as needed using my tension rather than needle size. The neck loops are made from braided strips of recycled sari silk from a woven rug my bastard dog attacked, crocheted over with wool. The silk adds tiny pops of colour that I really enjoy, and because it's very lightweight and flexible it makes the cowl more wearable than the rope versions I had seen other knitters make. I also felt like brightly coloured silk, recycled twice over, added a bit of the feel of the Capitol and its relationship with the districts.

The cowl is predominantly herringbone stitch, knit flat and seamed, with lots of crocheted bits and bobs. I used stockinette to create shaping and textural variety in an attempt to simulate the amazing fabric in the original piece (which I really don't think is knitted or crocheted).

With the leftover yarn I also whipped up some over-the-elbow armwarmers fit for a winter revolutionary. I may put together a pattern for these at some point, but y'all are out of luck on the cowl.

All the photos (except the promo photo of J-Law, of course) are courtesy of Jeremy Clarke, who can be internet-found at jeremyclarke.org. I love the light and the texture and the snow! Some people just get how to photograph knits. Also my friend is a total fox and that always helps.

This project also helped me with my ongoing goal to read more, as until I made this thing I had never read the Hunger Games books. They took me just over a week, and only because I rationed them out so I could savour the story. The books were very powerful and evoked strong emotions, just like the best young-adult fiction should. Teenagers are overpowering emotion and revolution made flesh - they need books like this to fuel their fire.

What do you think of the cowl, dear readers? Would you make a freeform sweater thing? Would you wear this awesome asymmetrical piece of wearable art? What are your feels on Lopi yarn? Most importantly, on a scale of very good to completely amazing, where do you rank the Hunger Games trilogy?

 

Clown Socks and Hanspun!

Hello my dears. First thing - I am switching to bi-weekly shop updates. I put lots of lovelies in the shop last Friday, so keep an eye out next week! I need to dedicate more work time to preparing for my favourite show of the year, Fibres West.

Wanna see some things I finished? I am madly head over heels in love with these socks:

I have crazy clown socks and you are totally jealous.

They were knit toe up, two at a time, with a Fleegle Heel. I love knitting toe up socks, even if cuff down heel flap socks fit me best. I find the extra structure and density of the heel flap keeps the socks from sliding around.

I knit these two at a time because they were dyed in a very particular yarn prep: the sock blank. I got mine from Fat Cat Knits in her Child's Play colourway, but there are other sources if she isn't able to make you one. A sock blank is two strands of yarn held together and knit (generally on a machine) into a rectangle. The dyer then can do all sorts of fun things, creating gradients, stripes, or fascinating variegated colours. The knitter unravels the blank to knit it. I wanted to have seriously matchy crazy socks, so I did some googling and figured out how to work socks two at a time. Honestly, I deeply disliked the method and won't do it again except to knit up my other sock blank. It would be great for those of you who suffer from debilitating second sock syndrome, but that's thankfully not an issue for me.

Action shot! Not pictured: my seething irritation at all the tangling and yarn management.

Another fun project was this handspun:

I spun this yarn from matching gradient batts that I carded on my Fancy Kitty Kitten (if ever a giant spiky wool tool sounded like a sex toy, it's that one). They were a blend of superwash merino wool, sparkly trilobal nylon (also known as firestar), and recycled sari silk in my My Little Pony inspired Luna colourway. The yarn blends smoothly from grey to turquoise, marine blue, navy, and black. I think it'll make an amazing shawl.

It's a simple semi-woolen 2-ply, spun for softness and bounce. I gave it to my mum for her birthday so I can't remember the exact yardage, but I'm thinking about 400 yards of fingering weight. So pretty! Sari silk makes all the difference, adding a textured tweedy look that makes me grateful I am a spinner.

That's all for now! I'll have more fun things to share soon.

 

Shop Update: Bright Sunshiny Day

I know lots of you are trapped in some sort of polar vortex madness. That sucks. It's sunny (if a bit nippy) here and I thought I'd do a nice bright update to send some sunshine out into the yarny world.

The Magic of Meal Planning

Two of my goals for this year were to make more food from scratch and to save money. I've had encouraging success with both goals over the past two months, and I owe it all to meal planning. I've read so many blog posts about wonderful stay-at-home-mums who save a bajillion dollars by making month long meal plans and hoarding coupons and grinding their own flour, all while homeschooling and bicycling and gardening and sewing all their clothes from upcycled organic cotton. Honestly, I feel defeated in the face of these women's incredible efforts. As much as I'd like to emulate the enthusiasm and discipline of the hippie super mamas, I know my limits. I had to come up with a method that worked for my family and allowed considerably more lazy internet browsing time.

Here are my basics. I hope they help you find realistic inspiration!

The notions bag I got at our knitting group's holiday party has already come in handy! I knew it would!

I plan our meals weekly. Every Friday I sit down for 20-40 minutes with the grocery flyer and the contents of my fridge, pantry, and freezers to come up with seven days worth of lunches and dinners. I make sure easy meals are planned for busy nights and Jake-friendly cooking is planned on nights I'll be out. I ask if there's anything the family hopes to see on the schedule and include requests if at all possible. My main goals are:

• Use all perishables before they go bad so no food is wasted.
• Plan purchases around the meat and produce that is on sale or earns extra loyalty points. This cuts the food budget down considerably and encourages creativity.
• Make sure our diet is varied, healthy, and delicious, with lots of fresh veggies and as few processed or ready-made foods as possible.
• Try new recipes and flavours. I knew I was pinning tasty things on Pinterest for a reason!

Because I know what's for dinner ahead of time, the rush and stress is gone from cooking. I am much less likely to make "put all the things in the fridge in a sauce over pasta or rice" on tired nights when inspiration refuses to strike. We order less takeout. Produce doesn't rot. Cooking is fun again. Jake's lunches are planned ahead of time (and are usually based around the previous night's dinner) so I can pack them up at night, saving money that he would otherwise spend on fast food. Knowing what's for dinner ahead of time also allows me to make things from scratch - If I know I need tortillas I can allot an extra half hour to roll and cook them.

It's amazing.

I use a few tools to keep track of things and I thought they might help you too:

 

• Pepperplate app: this awesome free app stores recipes and has a monthly calendar for meal planning. The in-app shopping list allows you to move easily between your calendar and recipes for efficient grocery planning. It has timers you can use while cooking, and can multiply your recipes for you (so you never double the baking soda but not the flour ever again. Yuck). The interface is sleek and intuitive, and the same account can be synced to multiple devices so you can send your partner to shop, or plan on your PC but use your phone as a shopping list. Love it.
• Mint.com app: I use this free budgeting app to track all my finances. I just checked now - before meal planning we spent $550-$725 monthly on food to feed a family of three (including restaurants, fast food, coffee shops, alcohol, everything). This month we have eaten better food and will be spending less than $400. I think we'll continue to spend even less as I gain more experience and self control. I'd love to get it to $300.
• PC Plus app: this is only relevant to you if you do your groceries at a President's Choice affiliated store (we go to Real Canadian Superstore). Their points program follows what you regularly buy and offers you points based on those items. It's a little hit and miss (no, Superstore, I will never buy crackers stop trying to make me) but still useful. If you're going to buy potatoes anyway, and they want to give you extra points, plan two meals with them instead of one and save a little money!
• Pinterest: I know, Pinterest is a giant time suck full of ridiculous, impractical hot glue projects, Taylor Swift quotes, wedding dresses, and obnoxious thinspo photos. It's also a Mecca of craft inspiration and delicious recipes, depending on who you follow. I follow some amazing boards and I've tried several delicious recipes. Check the blog sidebar if you want to follow me or check out my friends. I haven't seen a thinspo image or a popsicle stick craft on Pinterest for months, all because I carefully curate the boards I follow. Don't knock it unless you've really tried it.
• Costco: if you stay away from name brands, don't overbuy, and watch for sales, Costco is an amazing resource. I pay $13 for 20 kg of flour and store it carefully in sealed buckets at home. Suddenly, baking bread is actually cheap. Large cuts of meat (I'm looking at you, 4kg pork loin) that you can cut and freeze can be a great deal too. My amazing local fair trade coffee company costs less than half the grocery store price, making it actually reasonable. Grain free cat food with an excellent ingredient list costs barely more than WalMart Purina and might save you a fortune in vet bills. As always, beware good deals on things you don't need. The membership costs money, but you can split it with a friend or family member and shop together.

Well, that's all I can think of today - I'd love to hear from you! Do you plan meals? What are your favourite recipe sites? Are you an amazing couponing flourgrinding home sewing organic super mama with the secret to how you can do all the things in only 24 hours a day? (Is it amphetamines?) Tell me!

 

 

Rainbow Dash Hat - Twenty Percent Cooler

If you've spent much time with me in person, you probably know that I am a big fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It helps that I have a nearly four-year-old daughter (holy crap!) but honestly, I'd watch it even if she wasn't around. It's adorable, hilarious, and completely without cynicism. There are very few shows aimed at little girls that don't make me grind my feminist teeth, and while MLP isn't perfect, it's pretty close.

For Christmas I made my daughter a pony hat. Not just any pony hat, either. A Rainbow Dash hat. Because clearly she needed one. Sorry the photos are a little sloppy - it's not easy to keep a child still on Christmas morning.

While I improvised the entire project (I have been doing that a lot lately) you could easily modify any hat pattern to be a super awesome pony hat. I made the mane by finding the centre line of the hat and tying small bundles of yarn every few stitches.

For the ears I made simple single crochet triangles, picked up along the crown of the hat. You could also knit them and sew them on, or make them from felt.

The pompoms were the perfect touch. Both the mane and the pompoms were made from Knitpicks Felici self striping yarn. It was much cheaper to buy one ball with all the colours I needed than shell out for all six colours separately. The body of the hat is Knitpicks Brava Sport. It's a fairly pleasant acrylic to work with, though I did find it squeaky. Can't beat the price though!

Isn't it cute? I made it big enough that it almost fits me, so she'll be able to wear it for as long as she's interested in ponies!

 

FO - Handspun Arbutus

I don't often spin yarn for a specific project. Sometimes I look at fibre and think "this should be a cowl" or "downs wool means socks!" But beyond that... Meh. This fibre, however, knew was going to be Jane Richmond's Arbutus cowl right away.

It's "twinklebunny" by Ixchelbunny - a blend of merino, tencel, and angora rabbit. It's lusciously soft and the colours look just like a lavender farm in summer.

I made the cowl a repeat larger than the pattern, mostly because I had lots of yarn left. It's unbelievably cozy and warm, so much so that unless we have a serious cold snap I'll barely be able to wear it.

I'm so happy with this project. It's great when something comes together exactly as planned, right from the fibre. Go me!

 

Shop Update: The Blues (and greens)

I've got a pretty little update for you guys today! It features three of my favourite colours to dye - Deep Space, Supergreen, and Kozmic Blues. I took the photos with my ipod today to see how it worked out. I think next week I'll be going back to the regular camera. The colours are fairly accurate but the background isn't as bright as I would like. Ah well, I tried.

Thanks for looking guys!

 

Doing Inventory is Bad for the Stash

I had originally planned to do my shop inventory on January first, prior to re-opening for the new year. That plan was thrown off by the death plague (better now, thanks for asking!) and I didn't get to it until yesterday. By that point I was feeling pretty nonplussed by the whole process, which may have affected my grabby hands, because I kept moving things across the room to my stash instead of counting them.

Oops.

These pretties (Squish in Crabapple Jelly and November) will likely become Veera's Here and There hat:

A skein of Squish in Diva will morph into something lovely for a March girlbaby:

I will finally create the perfect Colour Affection using Kashmir in Havana Club, Pinkle, and Sweet Spot:

And this batt was just too perfect to let go (sorry guys, but you can hardly blame me):

Also detrimental to the stash - my holy grail in sock yarn form. I've been on the hunt for Trekking XXL in colour 550 (a better name would have been "giveittomerightthefucknowi'mgonnadiefromlackofrainbows”) for about a year now, and my awesome sister-in-law gave it to me this Christmas! I'm a lucky girl.

LOOK AT IT! Amazing. Have a peek at the projects using it on Rav. You're jealous now right? She got it at Paradise Fibers, if you're interested.

There are also undyed sweater lots set aside for me (yay! I'm thinking red for one!). I don't really know what happened - I've been so good in previous years. I am going to have to work so hard to decrease stash volume this year. Wish me better luck!