These are a few of my favorite yarns...

Not too long ago, i got my hands on some Koigu KPPM and Amy Butler Belle Organic. and man, let me tell you blogland, these yarns are pretty freaking awesome. I highly recommend them!
now let me show you what i've done with them (well, one of them...)
I just finished a pair of Churchmouse's Koigu Turkish Bed Socks. these were a super quick knit and oh so much fun! I'm not gonna lie, blogland, i've never made socks before in my life. but after doing these, i can't wait to try my hand at more traditional socks (and make more of these!)
one of the reasons i made these socks was to wear under my new TOMS when it gets cold here in Fayetteville. (also, to review TOMS, my vote is awesome: i've worn canvas shoes for years, but these ones have really excellent soles!)i ended up modifying the pattern a bit after the first one, making the foot longer by six rows. i've been living with two different-sized feet for a while now, so it's nice to be able to adjust things accordingly! i decided to add a little embellishment and embroider an L and an R on the bottom of the corresponding sock.and then i went to the park across the street from my apartment and had myself a little photo-shoot before the sun went down!and i was joined by this pretty little guy! isn't he beautiful?the Amy Butler i'm using for a secret squirrel project (no telling, ravelers!) and to recreate a hat that zoom and i have been tossing around for years.

happy saturday, blogland!

Work In Progress Wednesdays

Well, I don't have a picture to share. But I do have a project in the works! I am taking most of my memorable t-shirts from college and making them into a blanket. One side are all the sports season shirts and activities I was involved in, and the other side are greek life event t-shirts. There are 16 shirts per side!! I am cutting them down to 15x15 squares. It is going to be that basic, just 16 squares on each side and some binding. Nothing super fancy, but it will be cozy! And then after I finish it, I am going to start working on Stitch's Quilt! {I suppose she wants it soon, now that we are approaching the cold weather season ;) } I will share a picture later with more progress or completion!

A Treatise on Shipbuilding and Navigation

oh dear blogland, i am so ridiculously proud and excited to present to you, my submission to the Sublime Stitching Combo Contest!

(photo uploaded to Sublime Stitching Gallery, click for bigger)

i used 12 different colors of DMC cotton floss, 4 Sublime Stitching patterns, six different stitches, and a bit of ingenuity to make this piece look like an old book, the kind you find in libraries where all the books seem like they're rotting away and haven't been opened in ages but have the most beautiful illustrations of old maps, the kind with sea monsters. i find those books and maps so inspiring, and when the idea popped into my head, i just couldn't resist.

and here's where it all began. this is my original concept sketch, doodled during class. it's evolved quite a bit since then, but i love looking back at how i originally envisioned it all coming together. the title of the post was found during a random google search, looking for something about shipbuilding (originally written by Mungo Murray, Shipwright in his Majesty's Yard, Deptford, in the year 1742)my friend and coworker Cassy Dominick took some truly fantastic pictures of the completed piece. this is my favorite of the ones she took (even though i used one that was flat on the table so it looked more like a book).

i really can't believe this is only my third embroidery piece! i've decided that one wall of my apartment will become my embroidery showcase wall (though right now, this is the only piece up since the other two pieces i gave as gifts). i'm already scheming a new piece...

adios blogland, happy crafting.

Work In Progress Wednesdays

Hey readers! I decided to start a feature here on the blog-o! Surprise Stitch! Do you approve? I am going to feature something that I have in progress at the moment!


I am still working on that Hilton Head album and here is a picture of my table in progress!

My Four Goals

Elsie posted a challenge about 4 simple goals to accomplish before year end. I enjoy making goals and lists so this challenge is right up my alley!

My four goals for the rest of the year are:
1. start a savings account. I've been at my job for officially a year now and it's time I be an adult and start saving money!

2. make Stitch a quilt. i've never made anything like this before, and i'm super nervous to start it!

3. make my apartment feel more like "home". add more decorations. settle in. get comfortable in my space.

4. make two new friends. I am still "new" to the area and want to expand my friend base!

What are your goals?

Finished: Sweater!

i am so excited to present to you: my first sweater!begun in early june and completed earlier today, this Classic Elite Wide Rib Hoodie is making me even more anxious for autumn weather! Using Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Candy Apple, i happily toiled over this sweater, and made it my own.i made the body and sleeves longer than called for. i added ribbing at the base of the sleeves (because really, just doing faggot stitch on a smaller needle didn't look as great as i wanted it to, so i carried over the wide rib), and in attempting to pick up the 314 stitches that comprise the outer rib, i only managed to get a total of 239 (picking up only bars, not bumps, the bumps looked stupid and cramped).
so with the help of my wonderfully math-minded best friend, Anna, i figured out how many stitches i needed for each section (broken into left and right sides, and hood), and how i could space them evenly around. the next round after making those stitches, they were knit through the back loop to make them lie flat.

i have to extend a hearty thanks to anna for her math that saved the final stage of the project, to joy, colleen, cassy, and sarah jo, for telling me that i definitely could make a sweater, that it wasn't as scary as i thought it would be, for helping me figure out my what size to make, how to modify this pattern to my desires, and for the fantastic and inspiring work-environment, to chris for his encouragement and interest in what i was doing, to gayle for her excitement to see it all finished up, to dad for playing ps3 with me when i needed a break back home, and to my mother for blocking all the pieces and her sage advice about knitting calmly. thank you all, for all your help, i am so lucky to have this support from all of you!

WIP: vacation album

My current Work In Progress is a vacation scrapbook from a trip last year to Hilton Head that I took with my family! I am using the Snorkel line by Cosmo Cricket and have picked out cardstock to go with it. I have all the pictures assigned to a layout and the paper to go with them all lined up. It's now a matter of cutting and adhering all the layouts! I am using a kolo album as the base. Here is what I have so far: the cover!


My plan is to mix up layout types that I haven't tried before. I am going to use what I learned and use sketches from Kelly Purkey's Sketchbook class! I don't typically use sketches so this could be interesting!

etsy faves....saturday?

zoom and i were talking earlier today about how long it's been since either of us have posted! last time i posted was my birthday and chris and i were on our way to conway. the following weekend, zoom and i caught up with our dad's side of the family at a reunion in austin, texas.
from my side of our crafty duo, i've begun my christmas knitting projects (eep! already?!), started on the last little bit of my first sweater (only 5 inches of rib to go!), and decided i'm going to enter the Combo Contest on Sublime Stitching! at first i was skeptical (i stitch for fun, for my own enjoyment/relaxation/creativity, and for people who will truly enjoy it). but then, of course, inspiration struck, and i just couldn't resist! i've saved my original concept sketch, so we'll do a little before and after post once it's all finished. deadline's august 20th!

also, i've got some new etsy faves! i could go on and on about how much i love etsy as the handmade forum it is, but i'm sure you'd rather see the pretty things!

it is still summer here in northern arkansas, but my hopes are high that fall is soon on the way! wouldn't this be a fantastic back to class dress? check out more handmade clothes at THIMBLEandACORN!this penny farthing bike tote would look fantastic wandering around the farmer's market! there's plenty more screen-printed totes and shirts at the Bold Banana!
during finals, i took study-breaks to read Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. if you haven't picked it up yet, definitely do, not only is it scarily historically accurate, it adds badass vampires (no sparklies here!) and takes another look at abe lincoln as a man, not just our beloved 16th president. Seth Grame-Smith is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. so i couldn't resist when i saw these intense Abe Lincoln screen-printed ties! pretty fancy stuff! you can check out more of Mr. Phipps wonderful screen-printing a ScatterbrainTies.
my boyfriend, chris, has taught me to have a good appreciation for the beauty of knives, antique, international, and all others. when i found this Scrimshaw Pocket Knife with the glorious sailing ship set in india ink on it. lindalayden's shop has many other great articles in it!
and finally, this pin. because a) i love pins, and b) i do understand. daedalus' and icarus' story is one of my favorite of the ancient greeks, and i really like the portrayal of the story beanforest has created. there are a bunch of other great buttons on his page too!

i'm heading off to work more on my combo piece! stitch out!