WIP 7/22

[cam]

It is that time of the week again! Show off your stuff, tell us what you have started/made progress on/finished, vent about a frustration, ask for help, whatever.

GTKY for the heck of it: I know it is a bit on early side for this, but I am getting started with the planning stages, so I'm going to bring up the H-word anyway - Halloween. Do you make costumes for anyone (a kid/kids <-- your own/niece/nephew/cousin's aunt's friend's great grandkid/etc, yourself, SO, whomever)? If so, when do you typically start? How in depth do you go (i.e. white outfit + black sharpie + 5 minutes = Dalmation, exact replica of Cinderella's gown down to every last detail, etc)?

[cam]

Not as much time this past week, plus with a bigger project in the works, that was about all I had time for. I finished a cover for LO's wagon and am almost finished with the one for his 4-wheeler. I did squeeze in a couple more toy baggies before I started the sewing on the covers. Otherwise, I have only managed to wash a few pieces of fabric in preparation for their use down the road (a couple projects are in line ahead, but I needed to wash a black dress I hadn't washed before, so I wanted filler for an all-black load of laundry - need to wash the fabrics sometime anyway, so may as well put them to good use and kill two birds with one stone).

GTKY: I made some props to go with LO's outfit last year. He didn't like the idea of a costume that was too far from being like clothing, so we worked around a costume idea that was close to regular clothes plus used props (one serving as his treat bucket) to complete the look. I am in the planning stage for this year and have bought a few things, plus saved a couple cereal boxes to have some decent sized pieces of cardboard. I plan to hopefully start in the next week or two with actual work on the costume.

[cmeon]

Another not-time-filled week for me. I did get some fabric printed, sewed a bandana that slips onto Violet (the great dane pup)'s collar (10 minute project) and made her a bed (minky covered foam) for her new crate. She's getting so big!

I've made the kids costumes for the past 5 years, though DS went as an Enderman last year and didn't need much from me (I made some quick black sweatpants when we couldn't find any and altered his store bought cardboard head so he could see out of it). He was a store bought Flash the year before that.

DS wanted to be a bowling pin at 3yo, which is when the costume making started (because ha- there was no premade bowling pin kids' costume). Then he was Mario, a pirate, Flash and the Enderman.

DD was an owl at 1yo (based on PB's popular baby costume), a fairy at 2yo, a flamingo at 3yo, Vanellope Von Schweetz at 4yo, and exactly what every other little girl was at 5yo (Elsa- duh!).

The only ones I used patterns for were DD's fairy costume (a horrible McCalls pattern- I could have done better without it) and Vanellope's leggins and hoodie (Ottobre patterns- so not really costume stuff).

[rooskie]

I got a few more rows done on Prayer Shawl 2.0. I've officially started on the third pound of yarn so the end is somewhere in sight. I've been trying to visit Yarnia at least 2 days a week on top of studying.

GTKY for the heck of it: We aren't big Halloween people. Our house is on a main road so we MAYBE see 10 trick or treaters. Last year my niece was born 2 months early at the end of September so I knitted her a pumpkin hat and she wore it for Halloween. I'm sure when we have our own kids I'll be more into it.

[MadApple]

I think I did nothing last week. Feeling nauseous all day long really makes it hard to get motivated to do anything.

I need to put together a cross stitch kit and some personalized Starbucks cups for orders, so hopefully I can stop being lazy soon.

GTKY: I always had grand dreams about making all of my kids' Halloween costumes, but last year was the first year I made a Halloween costume for my son. He really wanted to be a robot that looked like his stuffed robot, so I made his costume with that inspiration. I hand cut and hand stitched the control panel pieces together. I think I started that about a week before Halloween, but ultimately, I ended up sewing the body of the costume and the hat together the night before (and day of) his Halloween parade at school, which was on the 30th. I like to wait until the last minute. Hopefully I'll be able to make future costumes.

[cam]

MadApple, liked the part about LO wanting a robot costume to match his stuffed robot (and also in solidarity from a fellow procrastinator), obviously not for the part about you feeling crummy.

[nemomof2]

Jul 23, 2015 15:28:56 GMT -5 cam said:

MadApple, liked the part about LO wanting a robot costume to match his stuffed robot (and also in solidarity from a fellow procrastinator), obviously not for the part about you feeling crummy.

+1

[nemomof2]

I didn't get a whole lot done this week, we were out of the house most of the week. Did try to work on my knitted blanket while in the car. I also got s whole lot of fabric ordered, plan on making DD and DS some PJs and the whole family matching PJs for Xmas.
I have made DDs Halloween costumes the past 2 years. Year 1 she was an owl, year2 I crocheted her a Minnie Mouse hat and skirt and she went as Minnie. I have no idea what I am going to do this year. I have some left over green fleece so might make DS a pea pod costume, but no ideas for DD yet.

[sunfrogger88]

Sick day today!

So I made a burlap wreath to keep my hands busy while I feel awful. Ugh.

[MadApple]

sunfrogger88, I'm sorry you're sick, but that wreath is cute!

[sunfrogger88]

Thanks! ! I want to use it on the hospital door. I was doing to make a tiny pennant banner with baby girls name on it

[craftcrazymama]

Bit late to the game but I've managed to finish a project so can chime in this week!

I got my husbands wool hat finished, just as we've had unseasonably warm weather here. He chose the colour way (for his favourite team) and the pattern. It came out pretty well and he loves it.


Other than that I've been mostly just dyeing and preparing wool. These are my latest colour ways that I've just put into my store.


Halloween isn't a big thing where I live and we don't allow the kids to go door knocking for sweets so it's pretty much a non event in our house. Wow! I sound like a kill joy! Lol! ; )

[cmeon]

Dying yarn is so fun- I love doing it. Yours came out very pretty, craftcrazymama ! And nice manly knit hat- it can be tough!

[craftcrazymama]

Do you dye yarn as well cmeon? You'll have to show some off for us : )

[cam]

Jul 28, 2015 21:11:08 GMT -5 craftcrazymama said:

Halloween isn't a big thing where I live and we don't allow the kids to go door knocking for sweets so it's pretty much a non event in our house. Wow! I sound like a kill joy! Lol! ; )

Not a kill joy. In some places it is a big deal, and in some places it isn't. Also, I don't take LO around to random doors either. Back home, downtown shops would hand out candy at a different day and time from regular TOTing, so LO would do that. On Halloween, we would basically just go to see family living in the area. Last year, we stayed home on Halloween itself.

[cmeon]

Yep, I've dyed wool plenty of times- the last time was almost 2 years ago, for a Tulips sweater I knit DD. It's hard to tell in photos, but, I do variegated solids- each ball has a bunch of soft shade changes, I love the way it knits up. I never did get a picture of the sweater!


This is a similar batch for a baby/toddler sweater I knit DD years ago:


And that sweater, knitted up:


This was a LONG time ago, DD was a newborn, one of the first hanks I dyed- and I don't have a photo of the actually FINISHED sweater or the skein/ball- but- it's all can find!


I've dyed lots and lots of skeins over the years, all for specific projects, but, not many made it into photos! It's fun, though! I've also dyed wood, felt and fabric plenty.

[nemomof2]

craftcrazymama, cmeon, That is some beautiful yarn! I am just getting into knitting and am too scared to dye my own. We don't have any option besides Walmart and Hobby Lobby in our area. I might have to learn how to dye my own.

[cmeon]

nemomof2, it is so easy to do. Pretty messy, a little time intensive, but, not something to be scared of by any means!

Wool (and nylon) yarns work well with acid dye- the easiest/cheapest being food color and vinegar in a crockpot/microwave/stovetop. Heat is necessary for this kind of dye process, so you do need to be careful not to felt delicate wool (the balled up pics I shared are just that- very rustic single ply thick-thin stuff). Conventionally plied wool (like the bottom sweater and crazy's yarn) are safer for a beginner.

Cotton (and rayon) yarns dye with an entirely different process. I am not a huge fan of working with cotton yarns, so I've never ventured there. Dyed plenty of cotton fabric, though- lots of different ways- and many of the same processes work on yarn, so I feel comfortable talking about it if it interests you.

[nemomof2]

cmeon, This might seem like a dumb question, where do you even find yarn to dye?

[cmeon]

White or natural wool can be found under a few brands in the big box stores, not sure what Walmart carries (our local ones dumped craft departments many moons ago). Hobby Lobby has a %100 wool conventionally plied yarn under "I Love This Wool"- the natural/ivory will dye the best, but, you could have fun with the ones that are dark/ivory plied together, too (you'll obviously see the bulk of the color on the light parts). The blue/purple/greenish yarn knitted into the sweater is Paton's Classic- I used to be able to find that everywhere, but, it's not even at my Michael's anymore.

Knitpicks has lots of dyeable yarns, it just has to be the right fiber and light enough in color (generally a soft ivory in wool).

[craftcrazymama]

nemomof2 - when I first started dyeing I used bargain bin balls of yarn in white and food colouring. These socks (below) are made from my first ever attempt at hand dyeing and have been washed plenty of times with no change in colour



So food colouring definitely sticks and is completely safe to use with your normal kitchen ware. Once you get into acid dyes things get a bit more serious with having to have dedicated equipment.

If you do get into dyeing then there are quite a few online options for buying 'naked' yarn, depending on where you live. I buy mine in bulk and wind off 100 grams skeins to dye up in different colour ways.