Adventure: Fabric World

At kitting group this past week I heard about this place called Fabric World that is essentially a Big Lots for fabric. Apparently they had a ton of remnants selling for 25 cents apiece, much of it designer fabric, going fast. It sounded like a dream come true. This place was literally calling to my thrifty soul.

So when I was let out of work a bit early on Friday, I knew just how to kick off Memorial Day weekend. I took the 30 min drive over to Stone Mountain to check it out for myself.

And it did not disappoint.

While they had a few things on bolts, most of the store was table after table of fabric remnants. It was just the kind of treasure hunt I love. The signs around the store were layered, so you could see how the fabric started at $2.00 per piece and then worked its way down to 4/$1.00.

The cashier told me that people had been coming in and buying two or three carts of fabric at a time! I can't really blame them - it was the deal of the century, especially if you are a quilter. I also overheard several women talking about how this was their second and third trip, and that the remnants were starting to get picked over. I don't know what they were talking about - there were still gems like this to be had:

I am not much of a stash person (in my mind I still live in our tiny 650 sq ft apartment in Tampa, where clutter is the enemy), so I tried to be a bit choosy, focusing on finding larger pieces of fabric and knits.

An hour or so of digging and $4.77 got me all of this!

I got knits to experiment on as I learn how to use my serger better, some fun cotton prints for project bags or whatever, some lightweight cotton for a summer scarf and a couple of things I have no immediate plans for but thought were nice. I think I'm most excited about these geometric prints that I'm going to make into a tote bag and purse:

Okay, maybe I am a bit of a stash person after all. It's a good thing Fabric World isn't right down the street, or my closets would explode, but it's definitely nice to have an inexpensive alternative to Joann's.

Work in Progress: Mrs. Darcy Cardigan

I've been working on my first sweater, the Mrs. Darcy Cardigan from the book Knits that Fit. I have sleeves!

Clearly I have a ways to go, but I'm pretty proud to have made it this far. Now that I'm looking at this picture, they seem a bit short, but I can add on a few more rows before I do the raglan shoulder.

The finished product will hopefully look like this:

Source

It's a bit terrifying because it's knit from the bottom up, and I am not using the recommended yarn. Back when I decided to start this sweater, I lived in Florida, where there are about three days a year cold enough for a wool sweater. Cotton seemed much more practical, so I went with Knit Picks Comfy Worsted in Peony.

So far, so good! I'm off to my Thursday night knitting group. This has been a great project to take along because stockinette is so mindless I can chat away without worrying much about mistakes. I've already started the body, so my goal is to finish the whole sweater by the end of the summer. Of course, I'll be taking a break for the Ravelympics (Team TARDIS!).

An award and a parade!

First I would like to say thank you to my dear friend Kristen over at Glitter, Gloss and Glaze, who awarded me the Liebster Award. This is given to new bloggers with less than 200 followers.

Kristen is one of my Tampa Bay friends that I sadly had to leave behind, but I love keeping up with her blog.
 
Anyway, I'm very honored and I'd say that this calls for a parade! Kidding, kidding. This past weekend I went the Inman Park Festival, a neighborhood arts and crafts fair known for it's quirky, anything-goes sensibility. It was a lovely day, and I was able to cross off several things from my Atlanta bucket list: taking the MARTA train, eating a King of Pops popsicle, trying a new food truck (well, in this case a 70's camper-van called The Pickle). Best of all, there was a parade. Oh man I love a good parade. In all honesty, I care more about the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade than the food afterward.

And this parade did not disappoint. There were kaleidoscope marching bands:

...boxy cardboard superheros....

...an LGBT marching band with sparkly outfits. I didn't get a picture of the baton twirler because I was so mesmerized, but trust me, he was working it...

...a Chinese dragon...

....whatever these are...

...the Bridesmaid Brigade...

....Elvis....

...cross-dressing....

...and dozens of gnomes! Apparently they were trying to beat some kind of world record. Many had funny signs ("I'm sexy and I gnome it") or a clever spin, like the "Gnomeland security" group.

It was all just so delightfully eclectic. Added to fun was the group of drunk guys next to us that cheered for literally everything that came by, no matter how absurd, ranging from summer camp to termite protection. By the time the parade was over, I was sunburned but satisfied. Inman Park, you know how to throw a party.

Jewelry Organization

Jewelry organizers were all the rage on Pintrest a couple of months ago, a fun way to merge pretty with practical. I immediately latched on to this idea, having a complete "duh!" moment. My old system was to pile all of my jewelry on my dresser and then pick it up off of the floor in the morning after my cat's nocturnal adventures. Seriously. I did this for months. Like I said, duh.

Sidenote - I present this as evidence that Pippin delights in knocking things over:

Anyway, I picked up some cheap frames from the dollar store, and some craft paint from Michael's (Martha Stewart's Gloss paint in Pond). The original plan was to display my jewelry in my bedroom, but after Daylight Savings hit it was pitch black in the morning and I started getting dressed in the closet to avoid waking up my husband. So my jewelry needed to move to the closet too.

If could do this again I wouldn't bother with the painting. I don't know whether I should have sanded the frames first or the craft paint was just sucky, but the paint is incredibly easy to chip. In fact, I managed to chip a big chunk off while hanging the frames up, you can see it a little bit on the top left-hand corner of the bottom frame:

I used a glue gun to put in clear plastic cross stitch canvas for the earrings. The canvases come in relatively small sizes, so I had to buy two smaller frames instead of a single 8"x10" as I had originally envisioned. The holes in the cross stitch canvas are the absolute perfect size for earrings, so I'm happy with it.

As for the necklaces, my husband helped me drill holes about an inch apart to screw the hooks into. The first few hooks went in fine, but eventually the wood split, leaving the hooks wobbly. I filled in the empty space using a glue gun, and this made things much more secure.

Once the hooks were in, the frame no longer laid flush against the wall, so I cut a few strips of cardboard out, and glued them against the top part of the frame, essentially projecting the frame out from the wall about half an inch. Then I used velcro hanging strips to secure the frame to the wall. You can see in the picture below that it's mounted at little bit of an angle to allow for the hooks:

Overall, I'm really happy with how this project turned out. I even enjoyed coming up with solutions to the little challenges that cropped up along the way. And, best of all, my jewelry is now safely out of Pippin's reach.

Amigurumi Nessie

It's complete happenstance that I knit. A few years ago, while browsing around Barnes and Noble, I stumbled across this book:

I thought it was the most charming and quirky craft book I had ever seen. Who wouldn't want to receive a knitted Loch Ness Monster as a gift?! I knew I must learn to knit at once, so that all of my friends and family could look forward to their very own handmade mythical creature. (I have awesome family and friends.)

I had no reason to believe that I could actually do this. I had utterly failed at crochet in undergrad, but I convinced myself that knitting would be easier. So instead of buying the book I coveted, I went to my local Michael's and bought one of those teach yourself to knit kits. Amirigumi Knits was like the summit of Mount Everest - I would have to start at the bottom, train hard, and eventually become skilled enough give it a go. Over the next year or so, I had a couple of starts and stops, making a"scarf" that was decidedly triangular and ripping out more stitches than I care to remember.

Eventually I stopped making unintentional increases and my tension slowly improved. I made the prerequisite Gryffindor scarf, a baby hat for charity, a winter cap and a lace scarf. I learned increases, decreases, eyelets, and cables. And I gave away every single thing I made.

I received Amirigumi Knits for my birthday last October, and last week I finally made it to the top of the summit. I made my very own Nessie:

And I'm keeping him. :)

Fashion Star Review

Fashion Star in a word: bloated.

Don’t get me wrong, I want to like this show. The premise is fresh and interesting, and I love the idea of buyers bidding on the fashions. My beloved Project Runway has lost its way in the past couple of seasons, focusing on producer-created drama rather than skill and talent. Even in its golden era though, Project Runway had a tendency to be a bit stuffy, focused on Fashion with a capital F. The judges would literally scorn anything that could be sold in a store as “just clothes” and not fashion.

Which is to say that I think there’s room for a different kind of fashion show, one focused on ready-to-wear and the commercial side of the industry. Fashion Star, however, was a bit of a disappointment. It was all a bit much, with the lights, special effects and back up dancers. It was too long, had too many mentors, and more contestants than it could properly showcase. 

 One of my biggest complaints is that the he show felt much too long, with an overabundance of commercial breaks and cross-promotions. That fashion show of Elle McPherson’s lingerie line at the beginning was indulgent, and justifying it as  “this is what success looks like” was laughably absurd. I wouldn’t have been nearly as annoyed with Elle McPherson, however, if her flagrant self-promotion hadn’t come at the expense of the contestants. It's unbelievable that in 90 minutes they weren’t able to show the fashions from all 14 designers, and we got a quick recap for 4 out of 10.  Isn’t the point of the show to see the clothes?

There were definitely some bright spots. All three buyers were well-spoken, knowledgeable, and offered excellent critiques. I completely agreed with the three contestants they nominated for elimination. 

I was particularly boggled by Nicholas Bowles cockiness and sexist remarks – if you’re motorcycle jackets are really that fabulous and fashion forward, why did you need to come on a reality show to promote them?

 

 And, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I love Nicole Richie as a mentor. That woman doesn’t take any BS – when Kara Laricks sent other people’s clothes down the runway, Nicole was not having any of it. They should keep her and give the other two the boot. That's not going to happen though, as the entire show was taped months ago. It's clear that three mentors and three judges adds up to too many opinions, and it makes the show drag. 

 

I think I’ll give this show a second chance next week, but I’m by no means sold. Maybe it’s just because I sew or I’m too entrenched in Project Runway, but I wish that we could see more of the design and construction process, with the mentors playing a greater role before the fashions are sent down the runway. 

The contestants are given the assistance of pattern makers and seamstresses, and as 24 Hour Catwalk has shown, having this type of help is a double-edged sword that makes for interesting TV. Perhaps when there are fewer contestants more time will be devoted to the design and construction of each week’s looks.

Picture credits: NBC.com

Gift Knitting

Sometimes the best reason to give a gift is no reason at all. While Christmas shopping on Etsy I came across this adorable penguin amgurumi pattern. One of my brothers has a thing for penguins, and this project, as our mom would say, just screamed out his name. I just had to make it for him. As soon as I was free of the clutches of Christmas gift knitting, I turned to this pattern.

All gifts should be like this one, with no schedule and no stress. It didn't hurt that this is a really straightforward pattern that doesn't require any of the fancy techniques that amigurumi knits usually call for (wrap and turn, I'm looking at you). I decided to knit the body and the hat in the round in order to avoid seams, but overall I found the pattern very quick and easy.

I'm pretty happy with how it came out, and the little penguin now lives in a place of honor - my brother's curio cabinet. Bill the Penguin now shares space with an autographed picture of Bruce Campbell in Army of Darkness!

So awesome. I'm honestly flattered.