Finished projects galore!

Somehow a couple of weeks escaped and we’re in mid-March now. How did that happen?

(Long post alert, I have some serious catching up to do!) The Ravelympics really made February speed by, and I realized I never posted that I finished my shawl! It was just in the nick of time, as I cast off just as the closing ceremonies were starting, but it’s finished!

Last night I finally got brave and blocked the shawl. Although I don’t have any blocking wires yet, I have plenty of knitting needles so I improvised away (while trying to keep the cats safely away from the shawl). Usually they keep away from finished projects, but their curiosity can get the best of them – and sharp front claws can do amazing snagging damage. An intrepid catnip mouse even tried to help as Portia was supervising me.

I’m hoping everything will have made it through the day safely and the shawl will be dry by the time I get home today. I didn’t get time to check it this morning, but the protective sheet cocoon was still in place from the night, so odds are good.

All in all, I’m really happy with how the shawl turned out. It was the first lace project I’ve ever done, and I really didn’t know what to expect. The sock yarn was a good choice - it helped with speed, and was wonderfully soft. The pattern was easy, coming both as a chart and written out directions, and memorization came pretty early in the project. Although I got a bit bored towards the end, it was still a fun knit. Plus, I learned a new way to cast on and bind off, which will be handy for future projects.

Now I’m finally getting back to my rainbow socks and thinking about a new first-time project, a sweater for me. The pattern I’d like to tackle is Star Cross’d Love, but with some pretty heavy alterations for sizing and fit. For anyone on Ravelry, the original is here, but I’m going more for a look like this. The first hurdle is figuring out how much yarn I’ll need, for which I’ll have to do some initial math on the pattern upsizing. Wish me luck!

In the meantime, I may do a bit more sewing. For Christmas, as a combination birthday and Christmas gift from my parents, I got a sewing machine. The story of why I don’t have my grandmother’s machine is a long and complicated tale. For now this new machine will do wonderfully well, and I'm excited to get to know it better. It’s nothing exotic or complex, just a simple Brother ES-2000. It does all I need, covering the full range of basic stitches and buttonholes, and has a nifty needle threader to boot. The first thing I used it for was to finally hem some curtains and do a bit of decorative stitching on the bedroom curtains (I'll try to post pictures of that soon). Then I tackled two very different projects: a DPN case and a sewing machine cover. The sewing machine cover is a necessity with two so very curious cats (both to project paws and the machine, and to cut down on the buildup of dust and/or cat hair); and the DPN case was becoming a necessity with my rapidly growing collection of DPNs and the about three different places I was stashing them. I could never remember what I had or where it was, but now everything is wonderfully together.

First up: the sewing machine cover. About two months ago I went to the fabric store with some friends, and they helped me pick out two fabrics. I had found this pattern (a PDF of the pattern is in the left sidebar of that page), and wanted two complementary fabrics so I could alternate them in the different panels. I didn’t want to mess with any quilting or piping or anything complicated, so I got some double-sided, iron on interfacing so I could layer the fabrics. Then the cover would be stiff enough to sit over the machine instead of draping over it, and would theoretically be a bit more doable.

Before I go any further – I would never, ever do this the same way again. Nice idea, the pattern itself is wonderful and looks great done, but it was a real PITA to do. The first step, ironing the layers together, went beautifully. I had to do some careful cutting and positioning of the interfacing, because I got two yards of it – which came in a two yarn long strip, and my fabrics were each a yard square. I also had to do some repositioning and removing of a cat or two doing the process, and that slowed things up a bit. Melted whiskers (and Portia’s a pro at that, as all lit candles, hot tea, etc., must be investigated closely) are not a fun thing to smell or deal with.

Cutting the pieces out was a snap. I made some templates from newspaper, used an old soap sliver to do a quick outline, and presto – five double sided pieces ready for sewing. Then, oh then, came the sewing. I should have stopped immediately when I read the giant warning on the interfacing that said this shouldn’t be used with fabrics that will be sewn. I should have stopped again when the machine started groaning at the first few stitches as it realized that it could go through all those layers, but it really, totally didn’t want to. Then I really should have stopped when the thread broke about three times before I had the first two pieces sewn together. But I don’t have German blood for nothing. That sucker got sewn together. The seams got ironed so it would actually sit square, and thank goodness, it actually fit the machine perfectly. (Yes, I measured first, but with my luck that day it would have ended up barely big enough to cover the toaster.) I do have to say that I really like the finished cover, and eventually I may get some bias tape to finish off the bottom edge, but only if I find my fabric glue first.

The problems during sewing had mainly to do with the thickness of the interfacing. It was thick and sticky and there was a constant buildup of gunk on the needle, which then caught at the thread but wouldn’t let it feed easily from the bobbin or spool, so the thread kept breaking. Plus, I was going through six layers – two layers of interfacing and four of cotton. The combination caused a consistent use of, shall we saw, power words, along with grim determination and rapidly thinning patience. Isn’t sewing supposed to be a soothing experience?

This post is getting a little ridiculously long, so the DPN case will have to wait until next time! (And thankfully it was a much easier project, which wouldn't have taken much!)