FO Friday: Dress to Skirt

Today’s FO Friday is not knitting-related! I actually got off my butt this break to finish a sewing project for the child (OP) before she leaves for college. A few years ago, I received three dresses from my mother-in-law. They were dresses she didn’t want but needed to have for some reason. When the reason was over she gave the dresses to me. Even though they didn’t quite fit, I held on to them in some wacky plan to use them to make clothes. Because, I do wacky plans. Well, I finally converted one of the dresses into a skirt for OP. Specifically, a (slightly too-long) maxi skirt, because she LOVES maxi skirts–the kid is either very fashionable or getting to ready to join some weird cult.

The dress!

Like an idiot, I never took a picture of the dress on the ground, but you can see how big it is compared to her. It’s a stretchy fabric and purple (OP’s favorite color, although she claims to love all colors).

Sadly, I also have no progress photos. I started this past summer, kept getting her measurements wrong (I don’t know why), put it in time out, sat down on Wednesday this week to do it, and it just came out. It’s a smidge big in the waist, but it stays up. I figure I can just feed her crap and her waist will grow! (No, I would not really do that.)

Finished skirt. She just needs 5″ heels to get that hem line up.

I made the mistake of letting her come with me when I went to buy the elastic. She insisted on the gold elastic which doesn’t quite work with the dark purple, but it makes her happy and she loves it. With this selection, I decided to go with the seam on the outside rather than behind the elastic because I thought it would be a weird fit otherwise. I forgot to include the height of the elastic which made the skirt too long. Oh well, she’ll grow. Hopefully

Very snazzy. And it’s almost a straight seem line. Almost.

I tried the skirt on before I added the elastic and the fabric fits me. When she gets bigger, I can cut off the elastic and convert it into a skirt for one of us.

You can sort of see the elastic peeking through.

She was excited to get it and I’m very happy to have it off my to-do list. Maybe someday I’ll convert one of the other dresses I have into a dress for her.

A shot of the elastic seam.

FO: Flower Hat

Pattern: OP’s
Yarn: Cascade 220
Needles: US 7

Still way behind on finished object posts, but here’s another for FO Friday!

The colors are weird in this shot.

First let me start by saying this is 90% my daughter’s design. OP wanted a hat with flowers. She picked a flower chart from several given to her and chose the colors. I used double knitting to give her two hats in one (and because I had never tried it). I did ask her to change from blue and green to a combination because I’m old and the two were way to similar for my elderly eyes.

The reverse side and more accurate representation of the colors.

Double knitting was interesting. I love Fair Isle and thought it would be just as easy and fun (Yes, I find it fun. I’m a geek), but it was a headache. I did start to get it down and after a while it wasn’t so bad. I’d even do it again.

The fifth time I cast on.

Sadly, the child doesn’t wear it much. Before I could finish it, she was given another hat and that became her favorite, which is fine. The other hat is cute and I did knit the flower hat a little big so she could grow into it. When it is really cold, she does pull the flower hat out (two layers of knitting it is WARM) and I have been known to steal it on occasion. Hey, she stole Maluka so it is only fair.

It should be noted that the child has recently been sold to gypsies because she asked that I make her another hat. One that is purple and pink with all kinds of things that start with ‘P’ on it.

FO: Maluka

Pattern: Maluka by Bea Schmidt
Yarn: Knit Picks Gloss Fingering
Needles: US 6

It’s FO Friday! I’m finally posting about Maluka after completing it in March 2013.

Yeah, I am so far behind on these. You should see my Ravelry project page. Grossly out of date.

I really liked the pattern–it was easy, understandable, and fun–and while I loved the final product, I felt it came out too small. I don’t  know if it’s small because I didn’t meet gauge (I never used it), I didn’t understanding the construction, or it was the right size, but I need it bigger.

I tried wearing it different ways, but I couldn’t make it work for me.

I even tried dressing like a babushka.

Fortunately, my daughter decided she wanted it, and it fit perfectly. Since it did, I let her keep it.

I will definitely make this one again, but a little bigger.

FO: Toe-up Purple Socks

Pattern: Toe-Up Socks With a Difference by Wendy D. Johnson
Yarn:Ellen’s Half Pint Farm
Needles: US 1

FO Friday!!!! I’m finally getting this post up after about 3 months of having the project done. Go me.

I love the increase to the heel on these socks.

My lovely friend YarnKettle and I took a magic loop and toe-up socks class at our local LYS. It was all in one, not one class on magic loop and one on toe ups. It was two sessions and like the dummy I can be, I had the wrong time for the first one. THANK the stars she called me up to say she was caught in traffic or I would have been very sad indeed. I don’t have a link to her finished socks from the class because girl makes a ton of socks and I only have so much time to search. Plus she probably finished them like a week after the last class.

I had tried toe-up socks before the class and liked them, but magic loop and I just did not get along. I tried magic loop for other projects before and then promptly dumped her sorry butt because I don’t have time for fussy techniques that are more work than they are worth. When I saw the magic loop class offered, I decided one more booty call was in order, but this time a booty call with an education.

Getting ready to watch classic Doctor Who in the backround.

The teacher was…well, I’m not sure. I learned a lot from her, but I wasn’t thrilled with her style. She often took projects out of the students’ hands to show us how to do whatever it was we were struggling with, rather than let us do it ourselves. While that’s not bad and is a valid teaching method, I prefer to try the technique with the teacher watching to gain muscle memory. She also kind of trashed double points because YOU’LL POKE YOUR EYE OUT and they are confusing. Yes, they can be similar to eating at a Chinese buffet with a dozen chopsticks at once, but when you figure it out you feel awesome and can kill anyone who would take your dumpling with one of those chopsticks. And I never poked my eye out, a chin maybe or um, my chest, or a hand, but never an eye. Of course, I do wear glasses so maybe that’s why.

Anyway, I learned the magic loop method with this class, and baby, we’re getting married! The stars aligned our timing was right and the technique forgave me all my transgressions. I feel like I’m knitting a bit faster with the one needle rather than the 5. Oh don’t get me wrong, I’ll still be using my double points on the side. It is an open marriage after all, but I totally appreciate the relationship now and am committed to my magic loop baby more than just a mere booty call.

Okay, I think the filler I used on the molding this morning has gone to my head.

The heels and a mess

Anyway, so these are the socks I made in the class and I really, really like them. Remember a couple FOs ago, I said these socks were the best fitting socks EVAR! I was wrong. These socks are the best fitting ever. The pattern is super easy to understand and it just fit my foot like a dream. I think the only problem I had was mis-measuring my foot making them perfectly fit the Husband’s size 12 (men’s) foot. Yikes! He would have taken them, but hell no. The yarn is Ellen’s Half Pint Farm and I just love their yarn. Thankfully I still have a few skeins left and maybe I’ll make the Husband socks from those, but I doubt it. I’m not that nice.

I love the color

FO: Purple Striped Socks

Pattern: Basic Ribbed Socks by Kate Atherley
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock (Mediumweight)
Needles: US 1

That’s right, FO Friday 3 weeks in a row. Don’t hold your breath that there will be one next week. I’m plumb out of finished projects and not knitting much right now.

Stripes!

Let me start the project review with this. These are the best fitting socks I have ever knit for me to date. That’s right. Best. Ever. I don’t know if it’s the pattern, the gauge, the yarn, my screw ups, or a rare aligning of the planets, but I really like the fit of these socks. That’s not to say that my other socks don’t fit. In fact, Skew kicks ass on fit. It’s just these really, really work.

I suspect it’s the pattern. It’s just a really good pattern—simple and easy to understand. Of course, I need to add a caveat.

Are you checking out my caveat?

I didn’t like how the pattern did the heels. I prefer having knit 1 slip 1 on the back of my heel. Maybe it’s because that’s how I’ve always done it or maybe it’s an irrational belief that it will create a thicker fabric and thus not wear as much. Whatever it is, I decided to do the type of heel I liked. Except (and there’s always that pesky except), it didn’t work out right to the pattern. I needed an extra stitch and had to rework a couple things. If you look at the picture, you can see that the gusset is smaller than the width of my heel. I don’t know if that’s normal, but it’s much smaller than on all my other socks. That said, it doesn’t bother me in the slightest.

Again I’ve used Socks that Rock because I have a ton from several yarn fumes-induced craziness at Rhinebeck. That happens a lot. I’m not in love with Socks that Rock despite the aforementioned fume craziness, but I do like how it stripes and it’s a good, solid yarn. Although, saying that it’s a solid yarn is much like saying that homely girl over there has good birthing hips. It’s nice, but it’s not as nice as it seems. Of course, both thisand Skew really are beautiful because of the striping from Socks that Rock, so I’m very happy. Although Makoto uses Socks that Rock, the striping isn’t really there, but then, it’s a subtle colorway and a different type of pattern.

I have good birthing heels.