Just sayin'

One thing that might be really important if I am going to succeed with sewing my own wardrobe for a year is to learn to insert zips using my lovely newish Pfaff - inserting them easily, correctly, neatly and stress-freely. One thing that might help is to use the zipper foot the right way round. Back to front just doesn't work.

End of year FOs

A few finished pieces of knitting to show.


Turn a Square beanies for baby brother and his gorgeous girlfriend for xmas.
Monkey socks for sister - seen here on the sock blockers, almost ready to send off as a belated xmas present (better late than never). I had to send her a WIP photo for xmas. She laughed.
A xmassy cotton mitred hanging towel for a xmas swap partner.

And these snug purple stripey socks that I finished back in October, just in time for my trip to NYC. The gorgeous Grignasco Strong Print yarn was gifted to me by PomPom in a swap earlier this year.


Summer knitting continues, with a few different things on the needles - some of which, frustratingly, have been frogged or tinked back many times. But more socks will be cast on soon, a shawl will be on the blocking wires very shortly, and a cosy pinwheel blanket is progressing well. Loving catching a few short hours to sit with my knitting, watching Sensitive Skin on DVD and enjoying my all-too-short break.

Xmas traditions

I love xmas. I really do. I love that it's hot, hot, hot. I love that I spend weeks (OK, maybe days) planning the menu. Not just for the day, but for all the other days when visitors want to eat with me. I love that I can switch off from work for a week or so. I especially love that I can spend time with my loved ones.

My girls and I have a couple of xmas traditions. Well, the first one, they probably wouldn't admit to being part of, but they laugh along with me. You see, each year, I buy a xmas CD - some years it will be traditional, some years vintage, but most years it's pretty appalling.

Back in the day, I used to buy records - you know, LPs. But I won't inflict those album covers on my blog readers. Since I've moved into the modern world of CDs, I've bought several of the vintage versions, with the usual suspects: Dean Martin, Doris Day, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole.

But some years I diversify. It was the Beach Boys that followed me home one year.

Another year, it was The Hoff (very cringeworthy and, yet, my personal favourite).

Even The Seekers have made it into my xmas collection.
This year it was a toss up among Shirley Bassey, Neil Diamond and Elvis.

Elvis won (although I'm pretty sure he never really actually sang O Come All Ye Faithful with Olivia Newton-John or Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) with Leann Rimes.)

Ahh, I'll bet my xmas visitors are looking forward to hearing this one.

Xmas tradition number two is a bit less scary.

Last year I blogged about my grown-up daughters requesting xmas skirts each year. On our recent trip to LA, Daughter2 selected some Michael Miller Party Girls fabric for this year's xmas skirts.

But did I start them early enough for both girls to wear them on The Day? Of course not. Daughter1 is far away this xmas season, lolling about in the sun and hopefully being spoiled rotten by in-laws, so there is no way I am going to get an as-yet-unmade Party Girls skirt to her now. But Daughter2 is still insistent. It might just get done.

In the meantime, I have resurrected last year's cherry theme for a xmas bib for ma minette.

But just in case she feels like being a Party Girl too, it's reversible!

The Canberra Crew

Recently, some of the Canberra knitters got together for a swap. It's a bit of a Ravelry thing - swapping. This time the fun (and the pressure) came from actually knowing my swap partner. Alison and I and several other knitters meet up weekly at lunch time to knit and drink coffee, and about once a month or so for an evening session, usually involving a glass of alcohol.

We got together one Friday night for a pot luck dinner and a few drinks to swap our parcels amongst friends. This is what I knitted for Alison in the Canberra Crew swap.

It's the Lace Ribbon Scarf by Veronika Avery, in Colinette Jitterbug purchased at Wild Fiber in Santa Monica last April, and supplemented with another skein (I was slightly stressed that one just wasn't quite enough) by Carrie. It's a lovely simple pattern to knit, and the Jitterbug blocked out beautifully.

(I haven't told Carrie yet, but I found another skein of the same colourway in my stash the other day!)

Pop over to Alison's blog to see the gorgeous scarf she made for me.

Little efforts

I am not really a fan of shopping for clothes. If I have my fashion advisers (Daughter1 and Daughter2) with me, then I feel OK about buying a thing or two – and usually I just find one item I like, then buy it in every colour. Not smart shopping, really. I have a real aversion to buying mass produced articles of clothing. I don’t want to pay many dollars for something that some person was paid a few cents to make. On the other hand, I am more than happy to pay for a locally designed and made item. It’s not about the cost, it’s about where it comes from and how many more of them I’m going to see in the street.

I’ve had the argument put to me that if we don’t buy the goods that are made in poorer nations, then those sweatshop girls won’t earn a living. Isn’t it more about making a stand for better conditions for those workers? Hmm, I can see I’m not forming a logical argument here, and I am sure that others can provide a more convincing discussion. I don’t think that my little effort will affect the livelihood of those workers. But it is my little effort, and I feel better for making it.

I read lots of blogs and websites like Consumption Rebellion. I love the Brown Dress project. I chuckle over and admire some of the creations on Wardrobe Refashion.

But how to make a little more effort myself?

I have, in the past, given myself small challenges to desist from buying new clothes, new shoes or new books for six months at a time. Recently, I joined Knitting Sprouts in an effort to reduce consumption. (Mind you, my trip to the States temporarily knocked me off that wagon.)

So my new challenge to myself is to make my own wardrobe – for a year. Too much of a commitment? Well, we’ll see. I know myself that I don’t rise to self-imposed challenges too well (otherwise I would have lost these superfluous kilos long ago, non?). But nothing challenged, nothing gained, I say.

Make my own wardrobe for a year? Everything? I reckon that the only things I won’t make are shoes (a bit tricky), bras (yes, I probably could, but I won’t) and stockings (the ones I could possibly knit would not be very functional, I’m sure). So: make my own wardrobe for a year, everything except shoes, bras and stockings. What do you think? Possible, or no?

After all these words, here’s a couple of photos to indicate that I am on the way. The week before I went on hols, my favourite (and only) pyjama pants fell apart. Yes, I could have run out and bought a nice new pair, but I rose to LilyandJinks’ personal challenge to me one lunch time and whipped up a pair the day before I left for overseas. OK, they’re a bit baggy and clown-like but, my oh my, those soft cotton thrifted sheets make comfy jammies.
On my return, I made the pattern again, this time a size smaller. But the cotton from this sheet was not quite so soft. And Ralph wasn't very impressed either (as we can see by the expression on his little furry face). Lesson learnt: choose your fabric carefully.
So the start of my voyage is represented by a couple of pairs of pyjama pants. I wonder what’s next?

Not knitting

I'm loving getting to know my sewing machine. I've had it for a year or more, but I've not really devoted the time to it that it deserves. I have a fabric stash that truly rivals my yarn stash, and still I buy more. And just on that point, I have a few lovelies to show you in more detail.

As my favourite sister reminded me, in my last post I didn't show the laminated nut sack fabric that we bought in LA. Both of the following are designs from the Kaffe Fasset Studio, and are very soft and drapey.

This next one with bright red cherries is a bit sturdier.

And, because Michelle asked about it, here is a closeup of the dictionary print fabric that I bought on that same shopping expedition. It has definitions of words like original, real, fresh and simple. I think it will make a good lining for project bags.

Back to the sewing machine. I whipped up some cute little pants for ma minette.

I have been doing a bit more sewing, and also a lot more thinking about sewing. I might even want to share that thinking with blogland, but I need to straighten up my own thoughts first. Stay tuned.

Travelling women

Can it really be two months since I last blogged? I guess that when your own daughter sends you an email reminding you that you haven’t posted in a while, then you’d better get a move on.

Things have been happening, including a trip to NYC to act as support crew for Daughter2 (aka Marathon Woman).

Here she is, waiting for the Staten Island ferry to transport her to the start line:
And here she is, 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometres) later in Central Park:
She ran the whole way! It was an amazing experience just being there for the New York City Marathon, even as a spectator. Almost makes me want to run one myself. I said almost.

It was kinda cool to be there at Halloween – there were little (and big) kids dressed up going to parades and parties and there were skeletons and vampires skating at the Rockefeller Center.

Of course, no trip to New York would be complete without a little yarn shopping. Knitty City, Habu and String gave up a few little goodies for me. (And I can’t believe I didn’t photograph my haul before cramming it into my stash cupboard.)

And no trip to the States would be complete without visiting my favourite sister and my favourite fabric store in LA .

In the few days we were there, we found time for another walk around the lovely parts of Los Angeles, this time to the gorgeous canals behind Venice Beach.

And on the homefront, there has been a little crafting, but I’ll save that for another post. Right now, it’s cup of tea time.