FO: Lacy Little Top

So, how cute is this?

I LOVE this top & am so grateful that Robin got sick of knitting it! I was thinking about knitting this one for a long time, and am so glad I did. Plus, I didn't have to do the lace part, so bonus!
The details:
Pattern: Lacy Little Top
Yarn: Elann Canapone
Needles: KP Harmony 4's
Size: 32
Mods: I despise I-cord, so I did my crochet chain method for the tie. (chain the length of the desired cord + 10%. Then slip stitch into the 'butt' of each chain)
Thoughts: I was sooooo nervous the hemp wouldn't block out at first, but it was all for naught. I pulled and tugged and pinned it into submission & It fits great!

80s Meme

Before we get to the fun part, Lacy Little Top is blocking! Can't wait to try it on!


OK, I saw the coolest meme ever on Robin's blog Friday, and I had to steal it & join the fun. It's a show your 80's hair photos and answer some 80's questions meme. Awesome!! Warning: High Hair Ahead!!


Peg your Z.Cavarricis, clutch that industrial size can of Aqua Net, and raise that lighter to the tune of a power ballad. Gnarley! We are going 80s today, people! Show us your 80s hair!

Here are the rules:
1.Expand on the questions as much as you can. It makes it more fun for the rest of us.
2.Show us your hair, whether it be preppy or skyscraper bangs. Post some photos and make it fun. We promise not to laugh, we have them too!
3. If you get the meme from a blog, leave a comment on that person's blog so they can see your responses.
4. Post links to any videos from www.youtube.com to your blog that help you and your readers to relive the 80s.
5. Party like it's 1999.

We are so stoked to see your responses.
Post your 80s hair here!

OK, here's the pictures:
This one is of me & my dad & oldest brother. The point of showing it is the outfit. Bon Jour shirt from Lerner NY and Jordache jeans. I wore this outfit at least once a week for 3 years straight:


This one is of my surprise 16th birthday party. I never had a steady boyfriend until 12th grade, so this is just the 'flavor of the month' as my friends called him. Check out those pants! And, I was dating a guy with a mustache at 16? WTF?


This is my sophomore year prom date (he was a Junior; we just went as friends). What is WITH the hair?


The next two are my senior pictures. You could take one or two poses with your friends, and one with those awesome velvet drapes and pearls. I can't find the one with my friends, but here's the one my high school sweetie took with me:

He was my longest HS relationship. We dated my senior year, and the following year which was his senior year. Then he went off to college and that was that. We're the same age, but I was an early kindergartener at 4 and he went when he was 5.
Now for the drapes pose:

So serious!
Then, I committed the biggest big hair sin ever... Glamour Shots!! I have no clue what got on my picture here & I clearly need to dust my scanner glass:

After this picture was taken, I grew out the bangs and stopped getting the semi-annual perms. I've been straight ever since. Thank GOD!!

Here are the questions:

1. Preppy or Rocker
Rocker all the way. I have NEVER owned penny loafers and don't ever plan to.

2. Z Cavarricis or Guess Jeans and Espirit or Benetton?
Wha????? We wore Jordache acid washed jeans with the zips at the bottom or we didn't bother going to school.

2. Favorite Pop song of the 80s
Probably 'Livin on a Prayer' by Bon Jovi

3. Most Annoying Pop song of the 80s
'Mickey' by Toni Basil. Annoying but damn, it's catchy!

4. Hair Metal or Heavy Metal- Who was your favorite performer and favorite song?
Hair metal. Did you SEE those pictures??? I liked Jon Bon Jovi & Kip Winger the most.

5. What posters were on your bedroom wall or college dorm room?
I had every single surface of my room plastered with hair metal band posters and pictures. I had a Bon Jovi wall, a Poison wall, an Aerosmith Wall, a misc. wall, and Kip Winger on the ceiling above my bed. Sick, right?

6. What concerts do you remember most from the 80s?
My first was Stryper with my very religious brother, but I went to a Poison/Cinderella concert a few weeks later. I still go see those guys whenever they come through my city. They rock!!

7. Favorite 80s movies
Dirty Dancing. I was one of those people that saw it like 19 times in the theater.

8. Favorite 80s movie quotes
Oh, jeez. There are too many great ones.

9. Top 3 most memorable pop culture moments of the 80s for you.
Hands Across America
Challenger explosion
Berlin Wall

10. Favorite 80s cartoon
He-Man, Smurfs, and Strawberry Shortcake

11. Favorite 80s commercials
I have to go with the classic "Where's the beef?" Wendy's commercial

12. Boy George or Wham?
Wham, definitely.

13. Favorite one-hit wonder
Not sure this counts since they didn't have THAT big of a hit, but I'll say Steelheart with 'Never Let You Go.' Youtube says it's copywright 1990, but I was still in the 80's until 1993 at least.

14. INXS or Depeche Mode
INXS. Michael Hutchence was sooooo hot.

15. Poison or Warrant
Poison. No, Warrant. No, Poison. OK, both.

16. Did you ever meet a rocker or 80's pop icon? Where were you?
I met Alice Cooper when I was working in a movie theater when I was in college. He didn't have any makeup on, so I had to blink a few times for it to register who he was. I said, "Are you....?" and he said, "Yes." I said, "$5.50, please."

17. Snap bracelets or Jelly bracelets?
Jellies. Hundreds of them.

18. Fess up. Who had the garden weasel bangs? Did you ever measure your wall o' Aqua Net love?
We all did. The bigger the better.

19. Favorite 80s sitcom
Growing Pains. Kirk Cameron had a spot on the miscellaneous wall.

20. Is Jon Bon Jovi still hot or what?
OMG, YES!!!

21. "Double Dare" or "You Can't Do That on Television"
Double Dare. Good stuff.

22. Who was your favorite Brat Packer?
Molly Ringwald. I could totally relate to her in so many ways.

23. Jellies or Reebok Pumps
Neither, really. I did have a pair of electric purple Reebok high tops, though. Does that count?

24. Favorite pizza parlor arcade game
Miss Pac Man. But I never was that good. Kiss pinball was pretty cool too.

25. Deep South "Good 'ol Boys" or "L.A. underground vigilantes wanted for a crime they didn't commit"
Dukes all the way, baby! I never missed a single episode.

Yay! Presents!

The other day Robin, of Yarn Crawl fame, asked me if I would like a sweater she was half-done knitting because she couldn't take the hemp yarn anymore. I completely understand her frustration with the stuff; it can really be rough to work with. But I LOVE the sweater she was working on and I also don't mind the hemp so much, so I was happy to release her from her UFO prison. Here's what she sent me; she totally did the hard part for me:

And a little BONUS hemp!

Love the green! I have no idea which of their tops I am going to make with it.... There are so many patterns to pick from & I can't decide! But anyway, back to Lacy Little Top, I haven't been able to keep my hands off it since it arrived, and am just about done:

It looks like it should fit a 12 year old, but I know that hemp will block to whatever I tell it to block to, so I'm not too worried. Thanks again, Robin! Can you tell I like it? ;)

p.s. Have you guys read Twilight? I'm reading it now & WOW. It's billed as teen lit, but like Harry Potter, adults get just as sucked in. Can't wait for the movie this Christmas!

Sewing FO: Mccall's 3566

Well, I took the plunge and cut and sewed ACTUAL swimsuit fabric this weekend! I like the boy short bottoms of the McCall's pattern I showed last time:

And, here's my version of them:

They fit really well. I'm so glad I made the muslin! Here's my favorite RTW pair on top of the new ones:

So, as you can see, they're pretty close in size! I don't really like any of the tops in the pattern, so I'm going to wait for my Jalie pattern to come in (which should be soon!) before I make the top for it. I am loving having the freedom to make my own swimsuits, because I HATE HATE HATE shopping for them!

O, Hai!

I can’t believe the last thing I blogged was that faux pregnant picture of myself. I have been up to a lot since then. Progress is happening on Joe’s sweater:

I also made him a swiffer cover (he loves to vacuum and swiffer the house):

The pattern is loopy dust mop sleeve by MK Carrol. I changed the pattern a bit to accommodate my swiffer Max (which just means it’s bigger). And, I also liked the bobbles on this swiffer cover for holding it on, so I improvised some bobbles for mine. I love how the yarn made those stripes!
Then, I made a baby feet washcloth (with improvised bobbles again for the toes) for the bff:

After my all cotton, all the time stint, my hands and wrists were begging for some wool. So, who am I to refuse them? I started Salina from Vintage Knits with some JoSharp Silkroad DK from the stash:

I have been wanting to make this one for a while, and am glad I finally got off my butt and started it. In sewing news, I made a muslin of the shorts on this pattern:

Sorry, no modeled shot of that one! I’m glad I made the muslin, because I need to go down 2 sizes from what I thought I was and I didn’t waste any good fabric finding that out. Also, the crotch of this pattern is kind of weird, so I may try to figure out how to improve their design a little. Or maybe not. We’ll see. Rocco helped the whole time, of course:

What is it about pattern tissue and freshly washed fabric that is irresistible to kitties?? Oh, speaking of fabric, I just realized I never blogged about our trip to Osgood’s. We couldn’t take the bike because it was rainy that day, but it’s only 40 minutes away, so we went in the car anyway. I got a few knits to make some tops (just solid colors, nothing exciting), and MORE swimsuit material:

I really hope all these swimsuits come out OK. I’ll have plenty of practice if not! How was Osgood's, you're wondering? It was……… overwhelming. There was fabric everywhere and it wasn’t the best organizational skills I’ve ever seen. The knits and spandex blends were together for the most part, but I found some random sections of it mixed in with the cotton and with the satins. I can’t complain though, it was more fabric than I’ve seen in a really long time. I'll be back, but I'm going to need a shot of whiskey or something first. LOL

Pure Silliness

OK, before I get a zillion emails that say 'congratulations,' let me just say I AM NOT PREGNANT! But, my best friend is! I have so much knitting and sewing mojo going on right now, I thought I would attempt to make her some maternity clothes as well as a few baby things. So, first up are the maternity clothes. I found this nice pink jersey at Affordable Fabrics ($3 total!), so I whipped up Butterick 5196 on Sunday. I had to take the pic before I finished the hems, because we had to leave to go to dinner, but you get the point:

(My favorite salad bowl is substituting as a baby bump). I could not stop giggling when Joe was taking the picture; you should have seen the look of horror on his face! I really hope she likes this because I think it's ADORABLE. The knot part drove me a little batty, but I think I have the hang of it now. She and I are basically the same size, but she is nearly a foot taller than I am, so hopefully the length will work for her.
In knitting news, I finished sleeve #1 on Anniversary, and am on to knit the back now. I fear running out of yarn on this one, so I figure if I knit the back + one sleeve, I will have knit exactly half of the sweater and will know if I need to order more yarn.
I can't wait for next weekend because Joe & I have a Harley trip planned to go to this fabric store in Massachusetts. Yay! So, how was your weekend?

FO: Labyrinth

Well, we can thank the Yankees and the basketball playoffs for another FO! Actually two FO's! Friday night, as Labyrinth finished blocking, I cut out the fabric for another cute skirt, and Saturday afternoon, I HAD another cute skirt!

I searched high and low for the identical fabric from the pattern sleeve (Amy Butler something-or-other):

But, since I couldn't find it, the Michael Miller water lily print had to substitute. I think I actually like it better than the Amy Butler fabric!
And then, Labyrinth was done blocking:

(I was squinting in the picture, so I cropped my head out). I need to get a different bra to wear with it though; If you look closely, you can see my current "everyday" bra peeking out of the corner of the neckline. The neckline is very low, but since it's square, it's not what I'd consider even remotely trashy.
The details:
Pattern: Labyrinth
Yarn: Ella Rae Bamboo Silk 7 Skeins of Velvet, One skein of Baby Mauve
Size: 36
Needles: Knitpicks 7's for everything except the neckline, which were Knitpicks 6's
Mods: Only did 4 rounds of ribbing on the neckline, then bound off.

In other news, I found the match to my sock in progress, so they are finally together again! (I don't know if I mentioned this on the blog, but I lost one of them for a few months. It turned up in my pool bag over the weekend. Yay, and also, DUH!)
Then, I couldn't possibly sit still for 5 whole seconds, so I wound the yarn for Joe's anniversary sweater, which happens to be Knitty's Anniversary Sweater. I figured with all those cables, I better start early, even though our actual anniversary isn't until November.

The yarn is Blue Sky cotton in black, and there will be an orange stripe on the chest only (he doesn't like the arm stripes for some reason).

Road Trip!

Joe & I made our annual road trip to Dover this year for the NASCAR race this past weekend. Last year, we got there way early on Saturday (the race is Sunday), and we were so bored that we went to the movies. This year, I went with a list of fabric shops that were less than 3 miles off the highway so that wouldn't happen again! Our first stop was in Norwalk, CT at Banksville Designer Fabrics. I REALLY liked this shop, as they have a great selection and are super friendly. Plus, they're an easy motorcycle trip from our house, so I will definitely be visiting again soon. My haul from there are two lycra/cotton blends; the first one is to make a bathing suit bottom to go with a bathing suit top I already have and LOVE (but the bottoms, not so much):

And the second is to make the new Jalie Empire Crossover Top:

Then, we stopped in NY at Hartsdale Fabrics. This place was crazy busy. Anyone that thinks sewing is dead needs to go here. They had a lot of apparel fabrics, and to my surprise, a LOT of swimsuit fabric. Since I'm on the crazy swimsuit kick, I bought this to make another bikini, Jalie's Choice of Bikini's Pattern, view A:
Since it was $22 a yard, that's all I got there. Our last stop was at J&O Fabrics in Pennsauken, NJ. I was completely overwhelmed in this one. I even got a little lightheaded the way I do at Rhinebeck. They had a zillion cotton prints to choose from, but I finally narrowed it down to this Michael Miller one to make another Cute Skirt:

More swimsuit fabric; I maybe have little spandex obsession now (all purchases must be sniffed by Rocco for his approval):
And some more lycra for another Empire top perhaps:

Now, don't go feeling bad for Joe for all this fabric shopping. There was a Harley Dealership (they also sell t-shirts & other various crap), as well as a leather shop along the way for him. Then we were off to the races!

Our guy came in 7th, so we were pretty happy!

Sewing Extravaganza

Thank God Joe had to work all weekend because the sewing bug hit me HARD on Sunday! It all started on Friday night; work released us early, so I went home and finished the body and neckline of Labyrinth. The whole point of this was to find out if I had enough/too much of the Ella Rae Bamboo Silk because I knew I was going to WEBS the next day & could get more or return the excess. I found out when I got to WEBS that you can't return sale items, so it was a moot point. Oh, well, no biggie. I got a lot done anyway:

The whole purpose of the trip on Saturday was to go with Karen, Kris, Paula, Peggy, Audrey, and Amy to the Mass Sheep & Wool festival. It was so much fun! The festival's great and all, but I really look forward to going to the little fabric store & WEBS afterwards. I bought a skirt pattern and some fabric from Valley fabrics:

And some CotLin from WEBS to make some of those grocery bag thingies (like an everlasting bagstopper, for instance). I cut the skirt pattern out Sunday morning and it really motivated me to sew some UFO's that were hanging around in my sewing bag.
Like Simplicity 4189, view F:


View C:


And, of course the one that started the whole works, Favorite Things "Cute Skirts" pattern:

I really like this pattern, and am already in the hunt for more fabric to make another one. FYI, it does run closer to RTW sizes, not typical pattern sizes. I didn't realize this until it was too late, so mine is super roomy. But, it's elastic in the back, so it's not going to fall off or anything. ;)

Action Packed Weekend

What a crazy weekend! The craziest part is that I'm NOT tired today. We started Friday night with dinner with Joe's parents, then his mom & I hit the going out of business sale at the local sewing center. Six hundred dollars later, we went home and caught up on our Tivo'd shows. Oh, right, you want to see the haul:

(I obviously borrowed the photo) It's a Janome 1110DX serger, snagged for 1/2 price since I'm on the mailing list! I also got a ton of accessories and notions, but they're still in my trunk, and they're not that exciting anyway. Saturday morning, Rocco and I went to the vet for his shots (he was SO good! The vet asked him if she could see his belly and he rolled over on his back with his legs out so she could rub his tummy. She looked at me a little shocked that he did what she said, but I just shrugged since it happens all the time). Saturday evening I went to Laser Tag with some work people and then watched the Nascar race with Joe. Sunday morning, we got up super early and went to the local Harley Dealer for a fundraiser for the Children's Hospital. Motorcycles everywhere!! This is our third year riding in this, and it was by far the best organized it has ever been. The local and state police did a fantastic job keeping us together and safe. This is my favorite part, riding by the children's hospital and waving to the kids:

After that, we took a power nap and then headed to NYC for the Yankees/Mets game. They got beat (badly), but we still had fun!

That is a LOT for one weekend for me. I can't believe I'm not tired. How is this possible?

MD Sheep & Wool 2008

I am just now finally recovering from the Maryland trip. It's not like we had to fly far, do very much, or exert any energy to speak of, but I was TIRED when we got home. I guess any weekend not spent on the couch watching Food Network counts as "activity" to my body & therefore wears me out. Anyway!
First off, my mom is a little, um, nuts (it's ok if she happens to find the blog; she knows I think she's crazy). We got a suite for the weekend, and within 5 minutes, she had the place fully stocked for a month-long stay:

I took the liberty of stocking the fridge:

Aren't the little beers adorable? I couldn't resist them! The festival was of course amazing. I got to meet Jess from Ravelry:

I tried to get a Stew Leonard's bag picture with a sheep, but in true animal form, she turned her head at the last second:

And, the yarn! My God, the yarn! I love to just go for the "experience" and not necessarily to buy anything, so I ended up buying stuff I could have easily picked up on my lunch break at Creative Fibers. Whatevs, I had fun!
I got some SWTC Bamboo for the CrochetMe Babydoll Top:

Some Lorna's Laces sock yarn (Black Purl to match the Clapotis):

I also got my WEBS sale purchases a week or so ago:

It's Ella Rae Bamboo Silk to make Labyrinth by Wendy Bernard/StitchDiva:
(Stitch Diva Photo)
I started this last night, and Joe commented that everything I am making lately has been purple (28Thirty, Clapotis, the babydoll top, the sock yarn, and now Labyrinth). I didn't even realize it! What can I say, purple makes me happy.